540 



NATURE 



[September 29, 1898 



in which their geographical distribution, their division into 

 stems, their history, and their present institutions and general 

 conditions are discussed. In the same volume we find a most 

 valuable list of 597 trigonometrically-determined spots in 

 Transcaucasia and the Terek province, with their latitudes, 

 longitudes and altitudes, indexed according to latitudes and 

 alphabetically; four very good geographical, economical and 

 statistical descriptions of the provinces of Stavropol, Terek and 

 Zakataly, with a map of the province of Stavropol giving the 

 distribution of landed property ; an interesting paper on the 

 forests, the forestry, and the inhabitants of the woodlands of 

 Ichkeria, in Daghestan ; and a list of the Alpine plants (270 

 species) of Central Caucasus, by Prof. AkinfiefF— the result of 

 seven years' work. In an appendix we find two long papers, 

 one, by N. Dinnik, containing a graphic account of his 

 Caucasian journey — this time to the head waters of the Urushten 

 and Byelaya rivers (with a large-scale map, 3^ miles to the 

 inch) ; and another, on the common law of the Svanes, their 

 habits and customs, written by such an excellent authority on 

 this subject as Prince Raphael Eristoflf.— The twentieth volume 

 of the same periodical, just received, contains an admirable 

 map of all Caucasia and Transcaucasia, with very carefully 

 drawn mountains, on the scale of 27 miles to the inch. It 

 accompanies the first instalment of a work, " Transcaucasia," 

 in which Colonel Lisovskiy gives a general physico-geographical 

 description of Transcaucasia — its physical features, its geology, 

 its vegetation, and its animal world. 



SOCIETIES AND ACADEMIES. 

 Paris. 

 Academy of Sciences, September 19.— M. Wolf in the 

 chair. — On the clinical value of the agglutination of Koch's 

 bacillus by human blood serum, by MM. S. Arloing and Paul 

 Courmont. The results of over one hundred cases show 

 that the aggregation of the tubercle bacilli when the blood 

 serum is introduced into a culture may furnish, very rapidly, an 

 important element of information in the early diagnosis of true 

 tuberculosis. There were, however, two remarkable cases where 

 the test failed, though tuberculosis was undoubted and in an 

 advanced stage. The fact that positive results were almost always 

 obtained when the tuberculous lesions were in an early stage 

 renders the serum reaction the more valuable. Feeble aggre- 

 gation was induced in some cases where tuberculosis was not 

 found by the ordinary clinical methods, and the inference is 

 drawn that latent tuberculosis may be consistent with the 

 appearance of perfect health. One of the latter cases after- 

 wards developed into tubercular laryngitis. — Observations and 

 •elements of the Perrine-Chofardet comet by M. G. Fayet. — 

 Observations on the Perrine-Chofardet comet, made with the 

 large equatorial at the Observatory of Bordeaux, by MM. L. 

 Picart and Courty. — Synopsis of the solar observations made 

 at the Royal Observatory of the Roman College during the first 

 ■quarter of 1898, by M. P. Tacchini. — On the colorations of 

 the less fusible porcelain enamels, by MM. A. Le Charpentier 

 and P. Charpy. A list of the colours obtainable from various 

 metals, all of which have been tested upon the manufacturing 

 scale. The compositions are given of erbium and neodymium 

 blues, erbium and neodymium greens, neodymium violet and 

 erbium red. — Influence of gravity and light upon the dorsiventral 

 ■organisation of the branches in inflorescences, by M. H. Ricome. 

 — On the balloon ascents of June 8, 1898, on the occasion of 

 the fourth international experiment, by MM. Hermite and 

 Besan9on. 



GOTTINGEN. 



Royal Society of Sciences. — The Nachrichten (Mathe- 

 matico-physical Section), part 2 for 1898, contains the following 

 memoirs communicated to the Society : — 



April 30. — W. Voigt : Thermo-dynamical contributions on 

 the interrelations of galvanism and heat. 



May 14. — E. Riecke : Second memoir on the theory of 

 galvanism and heat, W. Voigt: On the magnitude of the 

 stresses and strains involved in the production of shearing in 

 Iceland spar. E. Marx : The dispersion of the electrical 

 spectrum of water. P. Stackel : On transformations of motions. 



June II. — W. Voigt: Is the pyroelectricity of crystals en- 

 tirely referable to piezoelectric action ? 



June 25. — E. Riecke : The reactive pressure of kathode rays. 

 J. Orth : Fifth report on the work of the Gottingen Patho- 

 logical Institute. 



NO. 1509, VOL. 58] 



BOOKS, PAMPHLETS, and SERIALS RECEIVED. 



Books.— Nine Years at the Gold Coast : Rev. D. Kemp (Macmillan).— 

 Stories of Starland : Mary Proctor (Bacon).— The Discharge of Elect'icity 

 through Gases : Prof. J. J. Thomson (Constable).— Canalisations Elec- 

 tiiques: R. V. Picon (Paris, Gauthier-Villars).— Organographie der 

 Pflanzen, &c. : Prof. K. Goebel, Zweiter Teil, i Heft (Jena, Fischer) — 

 Fourteenth Report of the U.S. C.S. Commission (Washington).— Second 

 St.ige Mathematics : edited by W. Briggs (Clive). 



Pamphlets.— A Determination of the Ratio of the Specific Heats at 

 Constant Pressure and at Constant Volume for Air. Oxygen, Carbon- 

 Dioxide, and Hydrogen : O. Lummer and E. Pringsheim (Washington).— 

 Meteorology in Mysore for 1897 : J Cook (Bangalore).— Cape of Good 

 Hope : Report of the Meteorological Commission for the Year 1897 (Cape 

 Town).— Contributions to the Morphology of Lepidoptera : Dr. K. Jordan. 

 — An Examination of the Classificatory and some other Results of Eimer's 

 Researches on Eastern Papilios ; Dr. K. Jordan.— Zweckma«sigkeit und 

 Anpassung : Prof J. W. Spengel (Jena, Fischer). — Clinical Observations 

 on 2000 Obstetric Cases : Dr. G. P. Mathew (Simpkin). 



Serials.— L' Anthropologic, Tome ix. No. 4 (Paris, Masson).— Zoologist, 

 September (West).— American Naturalist, August (Ginn).— Boletim do 

 Museu Paraense, Vol. 2, No. 3 (Para): — Memoirs and Proceedings of the 

 Manchester Literary and Philosophical Society, 1897-98, Vol. 42, Part 4 

 (Manchester). — History of Mankind, F. Ratzel, translated, Part 29 (Mac- 

 millan).— Zeitschrift fiir Physikalische Chemie, xxvii. Bd. i Heft (Leipzig, 

 Engelmann).— Archives of the Roentgen Ray, August (Rebman).— Botan- 

 ische Jahrbiicher, Funfundzwanzigster Band, 4 Heft (Leipzig, Engelmann). 

 — Jahrbiicher der Central-Anstalt fiir Meteorologie und Erdmagnetismus, 

 i8g4, 2 Vols., 1895, 1896. 1897 (Wien). — Bulletin de I'Acad^mie Royale des 

 Sciences, &c., de Belgique, 1898 (Bruxelles).— Annuario p.p. Observatorio 

 do Rio de Janeiro, 1898 (Rio.de Janeiro).— Proceedings of the American 

 Philosophical Society, July (Philadelphia).— Economic Journal, September 

 (Macmillan),— Records of the Botanical Survey of India, Vol. i. No. 2 

 (Calcutta). 



CONTENTS. PAGE 



The Return from Idealism. By H. W. B 517 



An Introduction to Geological Science 518 



Our Book Shelf:— 



Barnes : "Plant Life, considered with special reference 



to Form and Function " 5^9 



Proctor: " Stories of Starland " 519 



Picou : " Canalisations electriques " 519 



Harraca : "Contributions a I'Etude de I'Heredite et 



des Pi incipes de la Formation des Races" .... 519 

 Letters to the Editor :— 



Flow of Water.— Prof. H. S, Hele-Shaw .... 520 

 The Movement of Encke's Comet.— Prof. Reginald 



A. Fessenden 520 



A Request for Zoological Literature.— Prof. W. 



Blaxland Benham 520 



Stereochemistry and Vitali.sm.— Prof. F. J. Allen . 520 



A White or Milky Sea.— Dan. Pidgeon 520 



Luminous Clouds?— Arthur P. Jenkin 521 



"Crannoges" in Estuaries.— W. F. Sinclair ... 521 

 Transference of Heat in Cooled Metal. — Henry 



Bourget ... 521 



Horn- feeding Larvse.- Captain G. G. Traherne, 



R.A 521 



"Purple Patches." -F. Southerden 521 



Re-Blossoming of Horse-Chestnut.— J. J. W. ... 521 

 International Conferences and the British Asso- 

 ciation 522 



Notes 522 



Our Astronomical Column :— 



Astronomical Occurrences in October 526 



The Planet between the Earth and Mars 526 



Photograph of the Chromosphere 526 



Observations of Jupiter during the Opposition 1898 . 526 



Periodic Comets 526 



The British Association : — 



Section H— Anthropology. (n/us/raUd.)— Opening 

 Address by E. W. Brabrook, C.B., President of 



the Section 52? 



Physics at the British Association 532 



Mathematics at the British Association 534 



Forthcoming Books of Science • . . . 535 



University and Educational Intelligence 538 



Scientific Serials • • • 539 



Societies and Academies 54° 



Books, Pamphlets, and Serials Received 540 



