NATURE 



[June 4, 189 



at Budapest, Great Britain was but feebly represented. It is 

 difficult to understand this unwillingness of Englishmen to visit 

 an International Congress. Our countrymen are always sure of 

 a hospitable reception, the interchange of ideas with foreign 

 colleagues is pleasant and profitable, the personal friendships 

 which result are of permanent value, and in the case of Museum 

 officials the relations established with the Museums of the 

 Continent invariably result in mutual benefit. The great ques- 

 tion which all zoologists can discuss is that of nomenclature. 

 This year a preliminary skirmish took place at Frankfort, where 

 the annual meeting of the German Ornithological Society was 

 held on May ii and 12, under the presidency of Prof, Wilhelm 

 Blasius, of Brunswick. The Senckenburg Museum at Frankfort 

 had been closed for four years, and had been opened to the 

 public only four days before the arrival of the visitors. Prof. 

 Noll, the well-known editor of the Zoologischer Garten, wel- 

 comed the German Ornithological Society in a few well-chosen 

 words, and then followed the discussion on zoological nomen- 

 clature, which occupied the best part of two days of hard work. 

 The proposals of the Committee appointed to examine into and 

 report on the rules of zoological nomenclature were fully dis- 

 cussed, and were adopted, though, by the courtesy of the 

 members, Mr. Bowdler Sharpe, and Mr. Biittikofer, of the 

 Leyden Museum, were allowed to state their objections to some 

 of the propositions. The members and guests of the Society were 

 conducted round the Museum by Prof. Noll and Dr. Hartert, and 

 great satisfaction was expressed at the excellent condition in 

 which Prof. Riippell's types were found to be. The ornitho- 

 logical collection has been carefully catalogued by Dr. Hartert, 

 and his recently-published catalogue of the collection is an 

 admirable piece of work. At the conclusion of the meeting, an 

 adjournment took place to the Zoological Gardens, where the 

 visitors were hospitably entertained by the Director, who per- 

 sonally conducted them round the Gardens. From Frankfort a 

 detachment of members and guests proceeded to Vienna and 

 thence to Budapest, to attend the meeting of the Ornithological 

 Congress. 



Messrs. Macmillan have nearly ready for publication " A 

 History of Human Marriage," by Dr. Edward Westermarck, 

 Lecturer on Sociology at the University of Finland, Helsingfors. 

 In an introductory note the work is commended to the attention 

 of students by Dr. A. R. Wallace, who expresses a high opinion 

 of the learning and insight displayed by the author. Dr. 

 Westermarck dififers widely in many respects from the opinions 

 hitherto held by most anthropologists as to the development of 

 the various forms of marriage. 



In the House of Commons on Friday last, there was an in- 

 teresting debate on the Ordnance Survey. Mr. Roby, who 

 introduced the subject, had much to say as to the unsatisfactory 

 rate at which the Survey is proceeding, and Sir George Camp- 

 bell efTectively contrasted the work done in England with that 

 done in other countries. In India, he said, the surveys were 

 incomparably ahead of those in the United Kingdom ; he was 

 often surprised at the perfection of the surveys even of those 

 porcions of that vast country only reached by sportsmen or ex- 

 plorers. "In his own country he found nothing of the kind. 

 There, in one of the most cultivated and civilized places in the 

 world, they had nothing but the old survey. It was a disgrace 

 to the country that we should not have decent maps." Mr. 

 Chaplin, under whose department the Ordnance Survey has 

 been placed, said what he could in defence of existing arrange- 

 ments, but was not disposed to deny that there was much solid 

 ground for complaint. He promised that his influence should 

 be used to secure reform in various directions. 



The University College Biological Society has arranged for 

 an excursion to Sheerness on Saturday, June 6. The excursion 

 NO. 1127. VOL. 44] 



will leave Victoria at 10 a.m., and the time at Sheerness will be 

 spent either in dredging or shore work. The party will be 

 accompanied by Prof. Weldon. 



The Eastern papers report that an expedition has, by order 

 of the Straits Government, commenced work on the frontier 

 between Burmah and the Malay Peninsula. Its operations will 

 be chiefly confined to Pahang. It is placed under the charge of 

 Mr. Ridley, Director of Gardens and Forests in the Straits 

 Settlements, accompanied by Mr. William Davison, Curator of 

 the Raffles Library, Singapore, and Lieutenant Kelsall, R.A, 

 The funds available for the expedition are 2000 dollars voted 

 from the Straits Treasury. The object is to ascend the highest 

 mountain in Pahang, incidentally noting all that can be learned 

 about the physical features and the flora and fauna of the 

 country. The expedition was to go by steamer to Pekan ;. 

 thence up stream to Kuala Lipis ; thence northerly up the 

 Tembelinis and Sat rivers. Having ascended the latter river so 

 far as it may be navigable for small canoes, the expedition will 

 strike through forest and jungle, estimated to extend for sixty 

 miles, till they emerge at Gunong Tahan, which is said to be 

 about 8000 feet high. Ascending this mountain, and crossing 

 what is called Cameron's plateau, they will then ascend Gunong. 

 Siam, a mountain the height of which has been estimated to be 

 as much as 14,000 feet. Having completed this ascent, they will 

 return by the same route, the estimated period of absence from 

 Singapore being between two and three months. The party 

 were to take with them three Tamil hunters and collectors 

 attached to Mr. Davison's Museum staff, and three Malays of 

 the Gardens and Forests Department. 



At the meeting of the French Meteorological Society on 

 May 5, a discussion by M. Millot of fifty years' observations at 

 Nancy was presented. The temperature and rainfall values - 

 were divided into two periods, viz. 1841-79 and 1880-90. 

 These averages showed that the mean temperature had con- 

 siderably decreased since the winter of 1879-80, and that the 

 amount of rainfall had increased ; the climate showed a tendency 

 to become more continental. M. Teisserenc de Bort com- 

 municated the results of his inquiries respecting a destructive 

 tornado which visited the town of Dreux on August 18 

 last. At loh. 5m. p.m., Paris time, a sharp clap of thunder 

 occurred, followed by heavy rain and hail for about a minute, 

 and five minutes later the to'rnado broke over the town with a 

 noise resembling that of an express train, making a furrow in. 

 the ground, and in less than a minute tiles were flying about, 

 trees uprooted, and several houses destroyed. After a short 

 course the efifects of the tornado ceased, and it appeared to rise 

 to the upper strata of air, but descended again with equal 

 violence near Epone about 60 kilometres distant, the rate of 

 translation being about 29 miles an hour. The action of the 

 electricity seemed to be of an unusual nature ; although much 

 damage was done by it, no metallic object was fused, but only 

 traces of fusion could be found in bad conducting bodies. 

 Among other incidents an iron bedstead was dismounted, with- 

 out trace of fusion. The paper was illustrated by several 

 photographs, showing the damage done in various parts of the 

 path. 



Dr. J. Hann has communicated another important treatise 

 to the Vienna Academy, entitled " Studies on the Conditions of 

 Air-pressure and Temperature on the Summit of the Sonnblick, 

 with remarks upon their importance for the theory of cyclones 

 and anticyclones." The work is based upon four years' 

 observations, and is divided into eight sections, viz. : — (i) An 

 investigation of the general meteorological conditions under 

 which the maxima and minima of air-pressure occur on the 

 Sonnblick. The anomalies of pressure are more marked above 

 than below, and are increased by the accompanying temperature 



