56o 



NATURE 



[October 8, 1891 



The paper is illustrated by five plates. Three new British 

 species of Hieraciuin are described by Mr. E. F. Linton and 

 Mr. W. H. Beeby. 



SOCIETIES AND ACADEMIES. 

 Sydney. 



Royal Society of New South Wales, August 5. — H. 

 C. Russell, F.R.S., President, in the chair.— On the micro- 

 scopic structure of Australian rocks, by Rev. J. Milne Curran. — 

 The Chairman presented the Society's bronze medal and a 

 money prize of /"as, which had been awarded to Father Curran 

 for this paper.— Prof. Anderson Stuart exhibited his new instru- 

 ment for demonstrating the nature of such waves as those of 

 light. 



August 10.— H. O. Walker, in the chair.— Notes on slicing 

 rocks for microscopic study, by Rev. J. Milne Curran, illus- 

 trated by rock sections in various stages of preparation for 

 mounting. 



August 12.— C. W. Darley, in the chair.— Methods of deter- 

 mining the stresses in braced structures, by J. I. Haycroft, 



Paris. 

 Academy of Sciences, September 28.— M. Duchartre in the 

 chair. — Notice of the works of M. P. P. Boileau, by M. Maurice 

 Levy. — Remarks on the international prototype of the metre, 

 by M. Foerster. — Observations of four asteroids, discovered at 

 Nice Observatory on August 28 and September i, 8, and li, by 

 M. Charlois. The positions on the dates of discovery are given. 

 — Verification of the law of refraction of equipotential surfaces, 

 and measurement of the dielectric constant, by M. A. Perot. — 

 Relation between the index of refraction of a body, its density, 

 molecular weight, and diathermancy, by M. Aymonnet. — On 

 the cyclone of August 18, at Martinique, by M. G. Tissandier. 



Brussels. 

 Academy of Sciences, August i.— M. Plateau in the 

 chair. — On the predominance and extension of Upper Eocene 

 deposits in the region between the Senne and the Dyle, by M. 

 Michel Mourlon. — Direct synthesis of primary alcohols, by Dr. 

 P. Henry. — On circular sections in surfaces of the second degree, 

 by Prof. CI. Servais. — On the curvature of lines of the order/ 

 possessing a multiple point of the order / - i, by M. A. De- 

 moulin. — Preliminary notes on the organization and development 

 of different forms of Anthrozoaires, by M. Paul Cerfontaine. 

 The author describes a new Cerianthus from the Red Sea, and 

 names it Cerianthus byachysoma. He has also studied in detail 

 the tentacles of Cerianthus mevibranaceus, and the variations of 

 these organs during successive stages of individual evolution, 

 and relates an interesting case of regeneration observed in 

 Astrodes calycularis. — Researches on the lower organisms, by 

 M. Jean Massart. 



GOTTINGEN. 



Royal Scientific Society.— The Nachrichten from June 

 to August 1891 contain the following papers of scientific 

 interest : — 



June. — Karl Heun, Berlin, mathematical note on the in- 

 tegration of the equation for the motion of Gauss's bifilar 

 pendulum. 



July. — Fr. Schilling, note on an interpretation of the 

 formulae of spherical trigonometry when complex values are 

 assigned to the sides and angles of a spherical triangle. 



August. — Eduard Riecke, on the molecular theory of piezo- 

 electricity and pyroelectricity. — Tammann and W. Nernst, on 

 the maximum vapour tension of hydrogen liberated from solu- 

 tions by metals. — Tammann, the permeability of precipitate- 

 films. — Eduard Riecke, on a surface connected with the 

 electrical peculiarities of tourmaline. — David Hilbert, the 

 theory of algebraic invariants of forms with any number of 

 variables. 



BOOKS, PAMPHLETS, and SERIALS RECEIVED. 



The Universal Atlas, Part 7 (Cassell).— Food, Physiology, &c. : W. Dur- 

 ham (Black).— British Edible Fungi: Dr. M. C. Coke (Paul).— South 

 Africa, from Arab Domination to British Rule : edited by R. W. Murray 

 (Stanford). — An Elementary Hand-book on Potable Water : F. Davis (Gay 

 and Bird).— The Birds of the Sandwich Islands, Part 2 : Wilson and Evans 

 (Porter).— Differential and Integral Calculus: T. H. Miller (Percival).— 

 Physiography: J. Spencer (Percival).— Geodesy : J. H. Gore (Heinemann). 



— Electricity and Magnetism : A. Guillemin; translated by Prof S. P. 

 Thompson (Macmillan).— Annuaire de I'Observatoire Municipal de Mont- 

 souris, 1891 (Paris, Gauthier-Villars).— Stones for Building and Decoration : 

 G. P. Merrill (New York, Wiley).— Taxidermy and Zoological Collecting : 

 W. T. Hornaday (Paul).— Dynamics of the Sun : J. W. Davis (Mew York). 

 —The Man of Genius : Prof. C. Lombroso (Scott) —Ninth Annual Report 

 of the Fishery Board for Scotland, Three Parts (Edinburgh).— Richerche 

 Sperimentali Intorno a Certe ScintiUe Elettriche constituite da Masse 

 Luminose im Moto : Prof. A. Righi (B )logna).— Proceedings of the ,Liver- 

 pool Geological Society, Part 3, vol. vi. (Liverpool).— Mind, No. 64 (Williams 

 and Norgate)— Journal of the Royal Statistical Society, September (Stan- 

 ford).— Journal of the Royal Agricultural Society, 3rd series, vol. ii.. Part 3 

 (Murray). 



DIARY OF SOCIETIES. 



London. 



THURSDAY, October 8. 

 Camera Club, at 8.30.— P.aper by Captain Abney. 

 MONDAY, October 12. 

 Camera Club, at 8.30. — Lantern Evening. 



THURSDAY, October 15. 

 Camera Club, at 8.30.— Bacteria Photographed: Andrew Pringle. 



CONTENTS. PAGE 



The Ice Age in North America. By Prof. T. G. 



Bonney, F.R.S 537 



The Total Reflectometer and the Refractometer for 



Chemists. By G. T. P 538 



A Weather Record of the Fourteenth Century. By 



H. F. B 538 



Our Book Shelf:— 



Johnston-Lavis : " The South Italian Volcanoes " . . 539 

 St. Clair: " Buried Cities and Bible Countries " . . 540 



Durham: "Food, Physiology, &c." 540 



" Blackie's Science Readers " 540 



Letters to the Editor : — 



Comparative Palatability.— E. B. Titchener ... 540 



Alum Solution,— Ch. Ed. Guillaume 540 



Weather Cycles,— Prof. J. P. O'Reilly 541 



Occurrence of the Ringed Snake in the Sea.— J. 



Cowper 541 



A Rare Phenomenon.— Herbert Rix ; Dr. J. L. E. 



Dreyer 541 



The Heights of Auroras.— T. W. Backhouse ... 541 

 Some Notes on the Frankfort International Elec- 

 trical Exhibition, III. {Illustrated.) 542 



On Van der Waals's Treatment of Laplace's 

 Pressure in the Virial Equation : in Answer to 



Lord Rayleigh. By Prof. P. G. Tait 546 



The Existing Schools of Science and Art. By 



Oliver S. Dawson 547 



Notes 548 



Our Astronomical Column :— 



Physical Appearance of Periodic Comets 551 



Discovery of Tempel-Swift's Comet 551 



Photographic Definition. I. {Illustrated.) By A. 



Mallock 552 



The Koh-i-Nur— a Criticism. {Illustrated.) By 



Prof. N. Story-Maskelyne, F.R.S 555 



Scientific Serials 559 



Societies and Academies 5^° 



Books, Pamphlets, and Serials Received 560 



Diary of Societies 560 



NO. II 45, VOL. 44] 



