158 



NA TURE 



[August io, 1893 



that the first crystallographic measurements might be obtained : 

 the specimen was presented by Mr. Michael Williams to Mr. 

 Maskelyne for the British Museum, and has ever since been on 

 exhibition in the Gallery. As the crystals were only jjiyth of 

 an inch in thickness, the determination of their form was a 

 noteworthy piece of scientific work ; and it may be observed 

 that the more recent discovery of larger crystals of the same 

 beautiful mineral in another Cornish locality has only served to 

 confirm the remarkable accuracy with which the form of those 

 acicular crystals was then determined. 



A short time ago, Mr. J. C. Williams, whose open-handed 

 generosity is well known in Cornwall, perceiving that the con- 

 tinuance of the collection in so isolated a museum as that of 

 Caerhays Castle prevented its utility both to students and the 

 general public, decided to select some of the specimens for pre- 

 servation in the family, and to present the remainder to public 

 museums. Accordingly, in a courteous letter, he invited me to 

 Caerhays to select any specimens which would be useful in com- 

 pleting the series preserved in the British Museum, and I imme- 

 diately went down, accompanied by my colleague Mr. Miers, to 

 examine the collection and remove the specimens which should 

 be selected. 



The collection, which amounted to about lo,ooo specimens, 

 was exhibited in numerous glazed wall-cases and table-cases in 

 a large hall well lighted from the roof. The specimens were 

 from various parts of the world, but as a rule only those of local 

 origin could be of service for an old-established collection like 

 that of London : the Cornish specimens, however, formed a series 

 which, owing to the closing of so many mines and the change of 

 mineral conditions in others, it would be quite impossible to re- 

 produce in the present day : for the acquisition of such specimens 

 the successive owners of the collection, by reason of their interest 

 in Cornish mining enterprise and its products, have had excellent 

 opportunities of which they have not failed to make use. In all, 

 nearly 300 specimens were reserved by Mr. Williams for continued 

 preservation at Caerhays ; 510 specimens have been selected for 

 the British Museum ; the collection formed by the late Mr. John 

 Taylor (to whom the British Museum was indebted for the dona- 

 tion of some excellent mineral specimens), and acquired at 

 hisdecease by Mr.Michael Williams,has been given, with the exhi- 

 bition-cases containing it, to the Camborne Museum ; the re- 

 maining specimensand exhibition-cases have been divided between 

 the museums of Redruth and Truro. 



That the character and extent of the donation to the British 

 Museum may be more readily appreciated by visitors, the selected 

 specimens have been arranged in four window-cases of the Mineral 

 Gallery, and will be exhibited together for a year or two before 

 their distribution through the main collection. Special attention 

 may be directed to two specimens of blende (sulphide of zinc) 

 which for size and excellence are superior to any yet heard of, 

 and in colour somewhat resemble those from Hungary. A 

 remarkable specimen presenting crystals which are of an emei aid- 

 green colour and of unusual form, has been examined by Mr. 

 Miers in conjunction with Mr.Prior, and will shortly be described 

 by the former. He finds the crystals to be identical with spango- 

 lite (sulphate and chloride of copper and aluminium) ; of this 

 species, described by Mr. Penfield three years ago, only one other 

 specimen, found and preserved in the United States, is known to 

 exist. There is a fine suite of crystallised specimens of cassiterite 

 (oxide of tin). Special mention, too, should be made of the 

 specimens of redruthite (sulphide of copper), the large series 

 of specimens of chalcophyllite, clinoclase, and olivenite 

 (arsenates of copper), libelhenite (phosphate of copper), 

 liroconite (phosphate of copper and aluminium), cuprouranite 

 (phosphate of copper and uranium), pyromorphite (phosphate 

 and chloride of lead), cerussite (carbonate of lead), chalybite 

 (carbonate of iron), and fluor. 



The thanks of Cornish and London students are due to Mr. 

 J. C. Williams for the generosity and self-denial he has shown 

 in parting for their benefit with a valuable collection formed by 

 the efforts of at least two preceding generations of his family. 



L. Fletcher. 



PROPOSED NEW TELESCOPE FOR 

 CAMBRIDGE OBSERVATORY. 



TN order to complete the equipment of the Cambridge Ob- 

 servatory a public appeal has been made for funds. The 

 appeal reads as follows : — 



NO. 124 1. VOL, 48] 



" It will be allowed that the Cambridge Observatory ought 

 to be completely equipped for carrying on the most advanced 

 work in modern astronomy. As celestial photography is the 

 branch of astronomy in which the most important advance is 

 now being made, it has been decided that a photographic tele- 

 scope shall be obtained if the necessary funds be lorlhcoming. 

 It is the opinion of those most competent to form a judgment 

 that a photographic refractor of about 18 inches diameter would 

 render it possible to attain results of the highest excellence. 

 The new objective would be corrected for the photographic 

 rays, and the present Northumberland telescope would serve as 

 the guide when attached to the new tube. With such an ex- 

 ceptionally efficient instrument the director of the observatory 

 would devote the attention of the staff (presently to be liberated 

 by the termination of the international zone work on which it 

 has been engaged for many years) to the investigation of stellar 

 parallax. At the same time the telescope would be admirably 

 adapted for other work. The twin instrument would be erected 

 in the building at present occupied by the Northumberland 

 equatorial, but a new dome, mounting, and driving clock would 

 be required. 



"The scheme sketched above has received the general sanc- 

 tion of the senate of the university, and the observatory syndicate 

 are auth6rised to take the preliminary steps necessary to carry 

 it out. 



"The estimated cost for the new objective with the mounting, 

 driving gear, and other adjuncts, is ;^2450. To this must be 

 added ;^500 for the new dome, while the apparatus for measur- 

 ing the photographs would cost £i'^o. With the moderate 

 allowance of;,^ 100 for extras, the total sum wanted is found to 

 be ;f 3200. The observatory syndicate have had under their 

 consideration the means of providing this sum. There is a 

 ' Special Sheepshanks Fund ' available for the purchaise of 

 astronomical instruments for the Cambridge Observatory. This 

 fund amounts at present to about .1^1500, of which about £1000 

 might be prudently expended. Accordingly about one-third of 

 the money now required could be taken from the special Sheep- 

 shanks fund, whilst the remaining two-thirds would have to be 

 raised otherwise. As the state of the university finances renders 

 it hopeless to expect that any large sum could be forthcoming 

 for this purpose from the university chest, it only remains to 

 make an appeal to the public. The syndicate would therefore 

 urge the friends of the University of Cambridge, and those in- 

 terested in astronomical science, to render substantial aid in the 

 furtherance of this project. They accordingly ask for donations 

 towards the sum of ;^2200 which they have shown to be recuisite 

 for the full efficiency of the Cambridge Observatory. 



Subscriptions will be received by Sir Robert Ball or by any 

 of the following members of the observatory syndicate : — John 

 Peile (vice-chancellor), G. G. Stokes, G. D. Liveing, G. H. 

 Darwin, |H. M. Taylor, and W. W. Rouse-Ball. A list of sub- 

 scriptions will be duly announced after replies to the appeal have 

 been received. 



UNIVERSITY AND EDUCATIONAL 

 INTELLIGENCE. 



The University Extension movement has hitherto received 

 no assistance in the form of grants from the Government. But 

 now that the movement is recognised as an educational power in 

 the land it should be subsidised to a certain extent. As Prof. 

 Stewart remarked in the course of a speech on the subject, de- 

 livered in connection with the summer meeting at Cambridge, 

 "There was no sum of money that could be better spent by the 

 State for educational purposes than a grant, say of ;^5,ooo a 

 year, to the university extension movement, because thereby they 

 would render the jf 6,000,000 a year paid for elementary educa- 

 tion so much more effective and productive, seeing that a very 

 large proportion of university extension students were elemen- 

 tary school teachers." It was afterwards resolved: "That, in 

 the opinion of this conference of university extension students, 

 application should be made as early as possible to the Education 

 Department for aid to university extension work, particularly for 

 subjects not dealt with by the Technical Instruction Act." 



Upright Penmanship is rapidly becoming popular wilh 

 the teachers and pupils in our schools, if we are to judge from 

 the yearly growth in the number who send in copybooks to 

 Mr. J. Jackson's annual competitions. The prize-list for 1893 

 just received contains four photographed specimens of prize- 



