March 8, 19 17] 



NATURE 



31 



phasised the importance of mechanics to chemists 

 who intend to practise in industry, and recommended 

 a training as wide as possible for chemists generally. 

 Dealing with the recent discussions on the subjects of 

 <^ducation and the reform of the school curriculum, he 

 criticised what was termed "generalised science," by 

 which he supposed was meant a composite course, 

 including a little physics, a little chemistry, a little 

 biology, and a little of everything else, and suggested 

 that school science should be as simple as possible, 

 and that the first place should be given to mechanics 

 ■experimentally treated, as being essential to the study 

 of all other experimental science. 



Mr. J. VV. Ogilvy, secretary of the Microscopical 

 Section of the Young Men's Christian Association, 

 has sent us a copy of the report just issued. The 

 object of this section is to give exhibitions and deliver 

 lectures on microscopical subjects to the troops in the 

 camps and hospitals in the Metropolitan and Home 

 Counties areas ; for this purpose sixty-five micro- 

 scopists have volunteered their services. For the 

 three months October to December, 19 16, seventy- 

 three exhibitions have been held and twenty-two lec- 

 tures delivered, all brrnches of natural historj', to- 

 gether with physJo'.jgy and pathology, being dealt 

 with. One of the mpst popular lectures is entitled 

 "Some Huns of the Microscopical World," which 

 treats of some of the disease-producing micro- 

 organisms, and in which the opportunity is taken to 

 refer to syphilis, its causation and spread. There is 

 much evidence among the troops that venereal dis- 

 eases are spread to a considerable extent through 

 Ignorance and thoughtlessness, and an endeavour is 

 being made to enlighten the men upon the subject. 

 These lectures and demonstrations have proved a 

 great success, and it is proposed in the near future 

 to commence a series of Saturday and Sunday after- 

 noon rambles for munition boys. 



Mr. a. H. Smith, of the British Museum, contri- 

 butes to vol. xxxvi., part ii., of the Journal of the 

 Hellenic Society for 1916, an interesting account 

 of the history of the acquisition of the marbles 

 of the Parthenon by Lord Elgin, and of their purchase 

 by the British Government. The late Lord Elgin, 

 on the centenary of the acquisition of this collection 

 by the public, placed in Mr. Smith's hands all his 

 papers bearing on the subject, his desire being that 

 the episode of the marbles should appear in its due 

 proportion in a full biography of his distinguished 

 grandfather, the other aspects of his career being dis- 

 cussed by Sir Harry Wilson, K.C.M.G. We have now 

 a full collection of the original letters and reports 

 dealing with this collection, the glory of the British 

 Museum. An important incident is that of the work 

 of Signor Giovanni Battista Lusieri, by whose efforts, 

 in a large measure, the operations were successlully 

 completed. By an unlucky accident an important 

 collection of drawings and some artistic objects were 

 lost in the wreck of the Cambrian, a 48-gun frigate, 

 commanded by Capt. Hamilton, wrecked on the 

 coast of Crete on January 31, 1828. The ship was 

 attacked by pirates, and it was necessary to abandon 

 her at once, without saving even the ship's dog and 

 muster-book, with the large case containing the 

 drawings. 



There is happily a ver\' general desire among us 

 that such wild spots as still remain to us in these 

 islands should, so far as possible, be jealously guarded. 

 Thus the announcement in the Press of February 22, 

 to the effect that Sir Thomas .\cland had placed some 

 seven or eight thousand acres of Esmoor under the 

 guardianship of the National Trust, will be ver\- 

 welcome. A lease has been granted the trust for the 



xo. 2471, VOL. gol 



next five hundred years. By arrangement, Sir Thomas 

 and his successors will continue to enjoy the rents 

 and profits and all the ordinary rights and powers of 

 an owner, except that the owner will have no power 

 to develop the land as a building estate. 



Prof. E. C. St.vrks, in the Leland Stanford Junior 

 University Publications, University Series, gives a 

 valuable sur/ey of that extraordinarily variable bone 

 m the mandible of fishes, the sesamoid articular, 

 illustrated by numerous figures. He confirms the 

 opinion of Dr. VV. G. Ridewood that it is to be re- 

 garded as a sesamoid. Contrary to the views of some 

 earlier investigators, he regards the sesamoid articular 

 as useless as a factor in the classification of groups 

 larger than species, as it often differs within the 

 genus. Nor until much more extensive investigations 

 have been made will it be possible, he considers, to 

 pronounce upon its value in differentiating species. 



Among the vast numbers of Brent geese which visit 

 our shores during the winter months a considerable 

 sprinkling occurs of the American form {Bernicla 

 leucogaster). Until now it has been supposed that 

 this sub-species occurred with greatest frequency on 

 the Northumberland coast, where, indeed, it appears 

 to be more abundant than the British B. brenta; and 

 the same is apparently true in regard to its numbers 

 on the south-east coast of Ireland. While it has been 

 by no means regarded as a rarity in Scotland, it 

 seems possible that further observation may show 

 that it is of far commoner occurrence than was sup- 

 posed. For the Misses Rintoul and Baxter, in the 

 Scottish Naturalist for February, record the fact that 

 an examination of the specimens of Brent geese in 

 the Royal Scottish Museum shows that the large 

 majority belong to the American race. 



Sir Frederick Tr&ves, in the Observer of Feb- 

 ruary 25, directs attention to the grave results likely 

 to follow from the introduction of the American grey 

 squirrel into Richmond Park. Not only has it driven 

 out our native red squirrel, but it has also now spread 

 beyond the confines of the park into adjoining gar- 

 dens, working serious damage there. "They eat 

 everything that can be eaten, and destroy twenty 

 times more than they eat." The buds and shoots of 

 young trees, apples, pears, and stone fruits, peas, and 

 strawberries are all laid under a hea\'y contribution. 

 Already it seems the Office "of Works has given 

 orders for the destruction of these pests. The order, 

 however, has come somewhat late, for they have 

 already made their way into the open country' of Surrey 

 with a steady persistence and in good force. "When 

 it has reached the fruit-gardens and young plantations 

 of Surrey and Kent, we shall hear more." We are 

 evidently in grave danger of having another very 

 practical lesson in the folly of " acclunatisa- 

 tion," of which the rabbit in Australia forms a 

 familiar and awful example. 



All interested in the formation and management of 

 War Food Societies will find useful guidance in 

 Special Leaflet No. 32 of the Board of Agriculture 

 and Fisheries, of which a revised edition is now 

 available. Examples of what has already been done 

 by war food societies and women's institutes since the 

 first issue of the leaflet are now given. It is of 

 interest to note that the Women's Institute at Cric- 

 cieth, with a membership of about eighty, realised 

 in the first nine months more than 200/. by the sale 

 of surplus produce beyond home requirements. In- 

 structions are given as to how a food society or 

 women's institute may be started, and numerous 

 suggestions are made as to the different directions in 

 which their activities may be exercised. Special 

 attention is directed to the powers now conferred 



