May 20, 1897] 



NATURE 



63 



some extent not very good ; for the same reason, exposures 

 longer than 70 seconds were not deemed advisable. These 

 temperature variations made the measurements of wave-length a 

 more difficult task than would have been the case had they been 

 absent, but Dr. O. Lohse seems to have taken the greatest 

 pains to overcome this point ; the measures were based on the 

 solar spectrum, Rowland's normal lines being adopted ; while 

 the spectrum of iron was used as a comparison. It is stated 

 that the measures may be generally taken as accurate up to a 

 tenth of an Angstrom unit (o"ol /t/it), and only in the cases of 

 very dim or broad lines is this limit exceeded ; the intensi- 

 ties are given on a scale of tenths. The communication con- 

 cludes with tables of the wave lengths thus obtained. 



THE ROYAL GEOGRAPHICAL SOCIETY. 



A T the anniversary meeting of the Royal Geographical 

 ■^ Society, on May 17, the President, Sir Clements Mark- 

 ham, F.R.S., in place of the usual annual address, gave a 

 review of the progress of British geography during the sixty 

 years of the Queen's reign. The practice of delivering an 

 anniversary address was commenced in 1837 by the then 

 President, Mr. W. R. Hamilton, in the eighth year of the 

 Society. The first presidential address took the form of a 

 survey of the position of geography at the time, and now forms 

 a suitable landmark by which to estimate the advance that has 

 been made. The Ordnance Survey of the British Islands was 

 fairly under way, and that of India was also in progress. 

 Hydrographic surveys were being pursued by British ships in 

 every sea, and the coasts of Africa had been charted. The 

 whole interior of Africa, most of Australia, and immense terri- 

 tories in Asia and South America were absolutely unexplored. 

 The whole science of oceanography, although created by 

 Rennell, had not yet been recognised. 



One of the first pieces of geographical research of the Queen's 

 reign was the memorable voyage of Sir James Clark Ross to 

 the antarctic regions in 1839-41, and this may be held to be 

 the only antarctic expedition ever sent out. Of late years the 

 necessity for an antarctic expedition has become more and more 

 urgent, for many reasons, but chiefly because the science of 

 terrestrial magnetism is at a standstill, owing to the absence of 

 any observations in the far south during the last fifty years. 

 The knowledge which would be acquired by such a magnetic 

 survey will not only be of scientific interest, but will also be of 

 practical importance to navigation. Deep-sea soundings, dredg- 

 ings, temperatures of the ocean at various depths, meteorology, 

 the distribution of marine organisms, are some of the investi- 

 gations which would be undertaken by an antarctic expedition 

 with reference to the ocean. Equally important objects would 

 be to determine the extent of the south polar land, to ascertain 

 the nature of its glaciation, to observe the character of the 

 underlying rocks and their fossils, and to take meteorological 

 observations on shore. 



Since 1893 the most strenuous efforts have been made to 

 induce the Government to send out another naval antarctic 

 expedition, but without result. We have been told that officers 

 cannot be spared from the ordinary routine of the fleet ; that 

 times are much changed from the days of the Challenger s com- 

 mission, and are now much more unsettled. It is forgotten that 

 the naval superiority of Great Britain, in the days of St. Vincent 

 and Trafalgar, " lay not in the number of her ships, but in the 

 wisdom, energy, and tenacity of her officers and seamen," and 

 that these qualities are now to be acquired by such special 

 service as is involved in an antarctic expedition. It is forgotten 

 that in the good old times neither war nor the fear of war were 

 any check to the despatch of naval expeditions of discovery. 

 Captain Cook was sent on his third voyage at a time when 

 France, Spain, Holland, and the American insurgents were all 

 vainly banded together for our destruction. In the midst of the 

 French revolutionary war. Captain Vancouver was calmly 

 surveying the intricate straits and sounds of New Albion, and 

 Cuptain Flinders was exploring the shores of Australia. 



The duty which will not be undertaken by the Government, 

 will now receive the special attention of the Society, which will 

 not appeal in vain for co-operation to the patriotism and energy 

 of private individuals in Great Britain, or to the Governments 

 in Australasia. 



In the arctic regions Englishmen have discovered the whole 

 of the American side from Bering Strait to the north coast of 



NO. 1438, VOL. 56] 



Greenland, and have explored the intricate system of channels 

 and straits which separate the numerous islands. They have 

 thus thrown open to the knowledge of the world a vast amount 

 of information in all branches of science, and have esi>ecially 

 taken the largest share in preparing for the solution of the jxjlar 

 problem. Dr. Nansen, by his memorable drift of the Frain, 

 has supplied what was needed to complete the means of com- 

 prehending what had previously been a mystery. For this great 

 service to geography Nansen has received a special gold medal 

 from the Society ; and he has rendered ever memorable, in 

 arctic history, the sixtieth year of the Queen's reign. It saw the 

 solution of the north polar problem. 



The main points in the history of the exploration of each 

 continent were touched upon, and the part taken by the Society 

 in the work made plain, the President summing up the re.sults 

 as follows. 



" When we contemplate these immediate consequences of our 

 geographical work, it will, I am sure, be felt by all who are 

 connected with this great Society, that it occupies a position of 

 national importance, a position which entails most serious duties 

 and heavy responsibilities. It is our privilege to render fre- 

 quent services to several departments of the Queen's Govern- 

 ment ; to take the lead in numerous enterprises, many of which 

 are eventually recognised, in their results, as involving consider- 

 able benefits to the nation ; and to prepare the means, by our 

 great collections of books and maps, and by the facilities we can 

 give for instruction, for others, including the authorities under 

 Imperial guidance, to follow in our footsteps." 



As regards the new departures in the work of the Royal 

 Geographical Society, the President mentioned the institution 

 of a diploma for proficiency in practical astronomy and survey- 

 ing, and the according of a large measure of support to Mr. 

 Mackinder's scheme of a London School of Geography. 



The Royal medal awarded to Dr. G. M. Dawson was handed 

 to Sir Donald Smith, the High Commissioner for Canada ; that 

 awarded to M. P. P. Semenoff was given to M. Lessar, of the 

 Russian Embassy. The Danish Minister received the awards 

 given to Dr. Thoroddsen and Commander Ryder, while 

 Lieutenant Seymour Vandeleur received the Murchison grant 

 in person. 



THE IRON AND STEEL INSTITUTE. 



T' 



HE annual spring meeting of the Iron and Steel Institute 

 was held on Tuesday and Wednesday of last week, in the 

 theatre of the Institution of Civil Engineers. There were 

 twelve papers down on the list, as follows: — "On the Per- 

 meability of Steel-making Crucibles," by Prof. J. O. Arnold 

 and F. K. Knowles ; " On the Practice of the Combined Open- 

 Hearth Process of Bertrand and Thiel," by E. Bertrand ; "On 

 the Agricultural Value of Sulphate of Ammonia from Blast- 

 Furnaces," by F. J. R. Carulla ; "On the Specific Heat of 

 Iron," by Prof W. N. Hartley, F. R.S. ; "On Charging Open- 

 Hearth Furnaces by Machinery," by Jeremiah Head ; " On the 

 'Weardale' Reheating Furnace," by H. W. HoUis ; "On the 

 Effect of Phosphorus on Cold Shortness," by Baron Hanns 

 Juptner von Jonstorff; " On the Determination of Hardening 

 and Carbide Carbon," by Baron Hanns Juptner von Jonstorff; 

 "On Malleable Cast Iron," by G. P. Royston ; "On Carbon 

 Changes connected with Malleable Cast Iron," by G P. Roy- 

 ston ; "On Microscope Accessories for Metallographers," by 

 J. E. Stead, Member of Council ; "On Central Blast Cupolas," 

 by T. D. West. 



Of these six were read and four discussed. Six papers were 

 taken as read, and not discussed. The latter consisted of the 

 papers of Messrs. Carulla, Hartley, Stead, and West, and the 

 two papers of Baron Juptner von Jonstorff. Mr. Royston's 

 papers were those read and not discussed. 



The formal proceedings having been got through, and the 

 report of the Council having been read, the past- President, Sir 

 David Dale, introduced the new President, Mr. E. P. Martin, 

 who, as is well known, is the manager of the Dowlais Iron 

 Company of South Wales. Sir Frederick Abel was next pre- 

 sented with a Bessemer medal ; and then the President pro- 

 ceeded to read his inaugural address. This was of an eminently 

 practical nature, and gave a most interesting description of the 

 growth of the iron and steel industry at Dowlais almost from the 

 earliest times, these historic works having been established for 

 over a hundred years. It is interesting to notice that in the year 

 1791 the quantity of coal consumed in making a ton of iron in 



