Mav 3. 1900] 



NA TURE 



and fruits. He regards chlorophyll and haemoglobin as antago- 

 nistic substances, the one characteristic of the vegetable, the 

 other of the animal kingdom. 



To the Sitzuiigsberichte of the Berlin Academy for March 15, 

 Dr. K. von Mobius, the director of the Zoological Museum, 

 communicates a suggestive paper on our perception of the 

 Lvsthetic proportions of various mammals. 



The April number of \}n^ Journal of Anatomy and Physiology 

 contains the full text of the paper read by Dr. Albert Gray at 

 the last meeting of the British Association on Helmholtz's 

 theory of hearing. The author proposes a modification of the 

 theorj- of the German investigator, according to which a re- 

 markable analogy between the senses of hearing and touch is 

 shown to exist. 



In the last issue of the Transactions of the South African 

 Philosophical Society, Dr. R. Marloth gives the results of his 

 investigations as to the mode of growth of the barnacle infesting 

 the Southern Bight Whale. Were it not for some special pro- 

 vision, the growth of the epidermis beneath, coupled with the 

 \ earing away of the outer layer, would soon cause the parasite 

 i be shed, and, as a matter of fact, this actually takes place 

 with the dead shells. The living barnacle cannot, however, be 

 discarded in this manner, since it dissolves the part of the epi- 

 dermis with which its skin is in contact at the same rate at which 

 fresh epidermal tissue is formed below. Consequently the layer 

 of epidermis between the barnacle and the true skin never varies 

 in thickness, and the parasite accordingly retains its position, the 

 shell disintegrating at the apex at the rate at which it grows at 

 the base. 



MM. Gauthier ViLLARS, Paris, have published the third 

 revised edition of the " Traite elementaire d'Electricite avec les 

 principales Applications," by M. R. Colson. 



Mr. Felix L. Dames, Berlin, has issued a catalogue of 

 books and papers on astronomy, geodesy, meteorology and re- 

 lated sciences, which he has acquired from the library of the 

 late Dr. H. Romberg, and offers for sale. 



The seventh edition of the late Prof. Milnes Marshall's well- 

 known and practical manual on " The Frog : an Introduction 

 to Anatomy, Histology, and Embryology," edited by Dr. G. 

 Herbert Fowler, has been published by Mr. David Nutt. The 

 chief addition consists of a new series of woodcuts in illustra- 

 tion of the development and metamorphosis of the frog. 



The " Handbook of Jamaica," compiled by Mr. T. L. Rox- 

 burgh and Mr. J. C. Ford, and published by Mr. Edward 

 Stanford, is filled with historical, statistical and general in- 

 formation concerning the island. We notice that the magnetic 

 declination, which was 6' 30' E. at the end of last century, and 

 has been steadily decreasing since then, is now only 1° 24' E., 

 and in 19 10 its value will be zero. 



In the course of a few weeks, Mr. Gustav Fischer, Jena, will 

 commence the publication of " Aus den Tiefen des Weltmeeres," 

 an elaborate work in which Prof. Carl Chun will describe and 

 illustrate the German deep-sea expedition to Antarctic waters.- 

 The work will be published in twelve parts, the first of which 

 will appear during this month and the last in November. 



A sixth edition, revised and enlarged, of " A Text-book of 

 Assaying," by C. and J. J. Beringer, has just been published by 

 Messrs. Charles Griffin and Co. Mr. J. J. Beringer is responsible 

 for the revision of this handy book for assayers ; and he remarks 

 in the preface: "The principal changes in this edition are 

 additions to the articles on gold, cyanides and nickel, and a 

 much enlarged index. The additional matter covers more than 

 forty pages." 



NO. 1592. VOL. 62I 



Scientific students and investigators in Melbourne should 

 be grateful to Mr. T. S. Hall for the " Catalogue of the 

 Scientific and Technical Periodical Literature in the Libraries 

 in Melbourne," which he has prepared. Besides periodicals, 

 the list includes reports of scientific societies, as well as Govern- 

 ment reports and Parliamentary 'papers of scientific import. 

 The catalogue will be a very useful guide to scientific literature 

 accessible in Melbourne and its suburbs. 



The sixteenth part of Mr. Oswin A. J. Lee's fine wor.k, 

 " Among British Birds in their Nesting Haunts, illustrated by 

 the Camera," has just been published by Mr. David Douglas, 

 Edinburgh. The birds illustrated and described are the black- 

 cap, bullfinch, short-eared owl, yellow wagtail, stock dove, 

 pintail, wryneck, and lesser whitethroat. The present part 

 completes the fourth volume, and it is hoped that the whole 

 work will be finished in the course of a few months. 



At the meeting of the Chemical Society on June i, 1899, 

 Prof. Sydney Young, F. R. S. , described a series of tests made 

 by him to determine the relative efficiency of various forms of 

 still-heads for fractional distillation. The design of several new 

 still-heads, superior in many respects to those in common use, 

 was an outcome of the investigation ; and chemists will be glad 

 to know that Messrs. J. J. Griffin and Sons have now placed 

 these improved forms upon the market. 



The additions to the Zoological Society's Gardens during the 

 past week include a Mozambique Monkey {Cercopithecus pyge- 

 rythrus, ? ) from Uganda, presented by Lady Ashburnham ; two 

 Leopards {Felts pardus, <J 9 ) from India, presented by Mrs. C. 

 Simpson ; a Tawny Owl (Syrnium aluco) from Scotland, pre- 

 sented by Mrs. C. M. Blackwood ; six Common Vipers ( Vipera 

 berus) from Dorsetshire, presented by Mr. A. Old ; nine Natter- 

 jack Toads {Biifo calamita) from Norfolk, presented by Mr. 

 J. B. Thornhill; a Sykes's Monkey {Cercopitkecus albigu- 

 laris, 9 ), a Flap-necked Chameleon {Chainaeleon dilepis) from 

 East Africa, a Cactus Conure {Conurus cactorum) from Bahia, 

 deposited ; two Gold Pheasants ( Thaumalea picta, 29), two 

 Silver Pheasants {Euplocamtis nycthemerus, 29), two Cabot's 

 Horned Tragopans [Ceriornis caboti, $<i) from China, two 

 Germain's Peacock Pheasants {Polyplectron germaini, <J 9) from 

 Cochin China, two Japanese Pheasants {Phasianus versi- 

 color, (5 9), two Soemmerring's Pheasants {Phasianus soemmer- 

 ringi, 6 ? ) from Japan, three White-backed Trumpeters 

 {Psophia leucopte7-a) from the Upper Amazons, four Wonga- 

 Wonga Pigeons {Leucosarcia picata) from New South Wales, a 

 Musky Lorikeet [Glossopsittacus concinnus) from Australia, 

 three Blue-crowned Hanging Parrakeets (Loriculus galgulus) 

 from Malacca, an Ural Owl {Syrnium uralense). North-east 

 European ; a Great Wallaroo {Macropus robustus, 6 ) from 

 South Australia, a Barbary Wild Sheep (Ovis tragelaphus,i) 

 from North Africa, purchased ; a Yak {Poephagus grumtiens, 6 ), 

 born in the Gardens. 



OUR ASTRONOMICAL COLUMN. 



New Variable in Taurus.— In the Astronomische Nach- 

 richten (Bd. 152, No. 3635) M. W. Ceraski, of Moscow, an- 

 nounces the discovery of another new variable by Madame 

 Ceraski during her examination of the plates taken by M. S. 

 Blajko. The star's position is : — 



R.A. Decl. 



5 33 1 7 '33 •■• +26 18 58-3 (1900) 



5 30 2956 ... -1-26 17 7-9 (1855) 



The star is not found in the b.D. At its maximum it is of 



90-9-5 mag. ; at minimum, about 12 mag. or less. On 1900 



March 29, it was at the limit of visibility in a telescope of 4-5 



inches aperture. 



