April 7, 1892] 



NATURE 



551 



washed with cold water the precipitate loses a large proportion, 

 though not all, of the mercuric cyanide contained in it. Boiling 

 water and cold potassium iodide solution extract the mercuric 

 cyanide more readily. Experiments have been made in which 

 the relative masses of the interacting substances were varied, 

 these experiments prove that a true compound of the two 

 cyanides is formed, and suffers decomposition to a greater or less 

 extent, depending on the amount of water present. An examina- 

 tion of the curves plotted from these results leads to the inference 

 that the double salt is a tetrazincic monomercuridecacyanide, 

 Zn4Hg(CN)io. — A lecture experiment to illustrate the phenomena 

 of coal-dust explosions, by T. E. Thorpe. The author describes 

 an apparatus by means of which the phenomena of a coal-dust 

 explosion, resulting either from a local explosion of fire-damp or 

 by the direct action of a blown-out shot, may be illustrated. The 

 apparatus consists of a long narrow wooden box having an 

 explosion chamber at one end ; a thin layer of fine coal-dust or 

 lycop idium powder is spread along the bottom of the box. On 

 firing a mixture of coal-gas and air in the explosion chamber, 

 the explosive wave sweeps along the box with increasing strength 

 until it shoots out at the open end of the apparatus. By observa- 

 tions made with this apparatus the author finds that there is no 

 evidence of a diminution of pressure along the sides of the space 

 through which the flame rushes, and he is of opinion that there 

 is no experimental proof of the validity of the "suction theory," 

 which assumes that in consequence of this alleged diminution of 

 pressure, occluled fire-damp is drawn out from the coal, and 

 contributes to the violence of the explosion. — The production of 

 the ketone, 1:2:4 acetylorthoxylene from camphor by the 

 action of sulphuric acid and zinc chloride, by H. E. Armstrong 

 and F. S. Kipping. The authors have previously stated that 

 they have separated a ketone of the composition C9H12O from the 

 crude product of the action of sulphuric acid on camphor. On 

 treatment with bromine the ketone yields a compound which 

 reatily decomposes, giving a monobromo-derivative, C,,HjiBrO, 

 melting at 63 "-64". When oxidized with dilute nitric acid, the 

 ketone yields two acids, separable by means of chloroform. 

 One of these proves to be paraxylic acid, viz. 1:2:4 dimethyl- 

 benzoic acid, whilst the other is xylidinic or i : 2 : 4 methyliso- 

 phthalic acid. The ketone is therefore 1:2:4 acetylorthoxylene, 

 a compound which Glaus has synthesized from acetic chloride 

 and orthoxylene in presence of aluminium chloride. — Platinum 

 tetrachloride, by W. PuUinger. The author has obtained 

 platinum tetrachloride by heating hydrated hydrogen platinic 

 chloride in a current of dry hydrogen chloride at 163° for fifteen 

 hours. When thus prepared, it is a very soluble, but not deli- 

 quescent, substance. — Note on a new acid from camphoric acid, 

 by VV. H. Perkin, Jun. When warmed with sulphuric acid, 

 camphoric acid is converted intosulphocamphoric acid, with loss 

 of water and carbon monoxide, CjoHj^O^ -f- H0SO4 = CgHjy 

 SO,; + CO + HoO. Kachler found that, when fused with 

 potash, sulphocamphoric acid yields a crystalline substance, 

 C9H12O.,, melting at 148^ which is apparently not an acid. 

 The author in repeating Kachler's experiments, but sulphonat- 

 ing at 100' instead of at 65°, obtained a well-characterized 

 monoba-ic acid, C^jHioO.,, isomeric with this substance and melt- 

 ing at 108'. It would appear from these results that the acid 

 obtained by sulphonating camphoric acid at 100° is isomeric with 

 ordinary sulphocamphoric acid. — The specific rotatory and cupric 

 reducing power of invert sugar and of dextrose obtained from 

 cane sugar by means of invertase, by J. O'Suliivan. The author 

 describes experiments in which the hydrolysis of cane sugar was 

 eff"ected by means of invertase instead of by means of acid. The | 

 specific rotatory power of invert sugar obtained by means of \ 

 invertase, which has no action on Isevulose, is [a]y = - 24'''5, 

 and that of the dextrose prepared from such invert sugar is 

 [o]y = 57^. The apparent specific rotatory power of IjEvulose 

 calculated fromthese numbers is [a]y = - io6% or [a]u= — 93°'8, 

 a value agreeing with that generally accepted. — Ethyldimethyl- 

 amidobenzene, by W. R. Hodgkinson and L. Limpach. This 

 amine is prepared by heating paraxylidine hydrochloride with 

 ethyl alcohol at 25o'-30o". It is purified from diethyldimethyl- 

 amidobenzene by crystallization of the sulphates. The sulphate 

 of the latter substance is the more soluble. The formyl and 

 acetyl derivatives of the amine are described. — Action of nitric 

 acid on oxanilide and its analogues, by A. G. Perkin. The 

 author finds that oxanilide and its analogues are readily con- 

 verted by nitration into the higher nitro-derivatives, thus 

 differing from acetanilide and similar compounds, which yield 

 dinitro-derivatives only with great difficulty. 



Royal Meteorological Society, March 16. — Dr. C. Theo- 

 dore Williams, the President, delivered an address on the value 

 of meteorological instruments in the selection of health resorts. 

 He drew attention to thermometers, maximum and minimum, 

 as the foundation-stone on which medical climatology rests, and 

 instanced effects of extreme cold or of heat on the human or- 

 ganism. The direct rays of the sun are of the greatest import- 

 ance, and in health resorts should be utilized to the full — in fact, 

 only climates where during the winter months even a delicate 

 person can lie or sit for several hours a day basking in the sun- 

 shine are to be recommended for most complaints, and the 

 various forms of sunshine-recorders are used to aid the medical 

 adviser in the choice of such health stations. After referring 

 to the value of rain gauges, hygrometers, and barometers. Dr. 

 Williams stated that many health resorts owe their reputation 

 almo-t solely to their shelter from cold winds ; for instance, the 

 advantage in climate which Hyeres and Mentone enjoy over 

 Marseilles is chiefly due to their being more sheltered from the 

 Mistral, or north-west wind, 'the scourge of the lower valley of the 

 Rhone from Valence to Avignon. He went on to describe the 

 climate of the Riviera, illustrating it by lantern slides from recent 

 photographs, including views of Hyeres, Costabelle, Cannes, 

 Nice, Mentone, San Remo, &c., and he showed the three prin- 

 cipal causes of the warm winter of this region to be (l) the 

 southern latitude, (2) the protection from cold winds by moun- 

 tain ranges, and (3) the equalizing and warming influence of the 

 Mediterranean Sea, which, being practically tideless, is always 

 equally potent, not varying with hour and season. Dr. Williams 

 mentioned the weak points of the south of France climate, with 

 its blustering Mistral, its occasional cold Bise, its moist Scirocco 

 wind ; but summed up the Riviera winter climate as being, as a 

 whole, clear, bright, and dry, with fog and mist practically un- 

 known, with a winter temperature from 8° to 10° higher than 

 England though subject to considerable nocturnal radiation, 

 with about half the number of rainy days, and four or five times 

 the number of bright ones, which we can boast of, with cold 

 winds and cold weather, without which it would lose its health- 

 giving eff'ect. — After the delivery of this address the meeting 

 was adjourned in order to allow the Fellows and their friends an 

 opportunity to inspect the Exhibition of Instruments relating to 

 climatology, which had been arranged in the rooms of the In- 

 stitution of Civil Engineers, 25 Great George Street. The 

 Meteorological Office showed a set of instruments necessary for 

 the equipment of a climatological station, viz. Stevenson ther- 

 mometer screen, fitted with dry bulb, wet bulb, maximum and 

 minimum thermometers^ and also a rain gauge. Thermometers 

 were also shown for ascertaining the temperature on the ground, 

 under the ground, and at a distance, as well as for recording 

 temperature continuously. Various forms of sunshine-recorders 

 were exhibited, as well as a number of actinometers and solar 

 radiation instruments for ascertaining the heating effect of the 

 solar rays. The Exhibition included a large and interesting col- 

 lection of hygrometers, also several rain-gauges and other 

 instruments. Among the curiosities was a piece of plate glass, 

 which was "starred" during a thunderstorm on August 21, 

 1879 ; this was not broken, but it has a number of wavy hair-like 

 lines. The Exhibition contained a large number of beautiful 

 photographs of clouds, lightning^, and snow scenes, as well as of 

 the damage done by the destructive tornado at Lawrence, 

 Mass., U.S.A. The Exhibition remained open until Tuesday, 

 the 22nd ult. 



Anthropological Institute, March 22. — Francis Galton, 

 F.R.S., Vice-President, in the chair. — Mr. Theodore Bent read 

 a paper on the finds at the Great Zimbabwe ruins. The outer 

 wall of the semicircular temple on the hill is decorated by a 

 number of birds perched on long soapstone pedestals, all of 

 which appear to be intended to represent the same bird, prob- 

 ably a vulture. Two of the birds, similar in character and 

 slightly varying from the others, are represented as perched on 

 zones or cesti, and there seems to be a similar class of symbolism 

 connecting them all. Mr. Bent is of opinion that these birds 

 represent the Assyrian Astarte or Venus — the female element in 

 creation. In the centre of the temple stood an altar, into the 

 stones of which were inserted a large number of soapstone 

 objects, which afforded ample evidence of the existence of 

 phallic worship in this place. Within the sacred inclosure are 

 two solid round towers, the largest of which is 34 feet in height 

 and has a girth of 53 feet. Before them is a raised platform, 

 presumably for sacrifice, and the wall behind them is decorated 



NO. II 7 I, VOL. 45] 



