86 



NATURE 



[May 26, 1892 



specimens for local museums, and in concentrating the scientific 

 activity of a district to the advantage of the local technical 

 college, and of the district in general, Messrs, Sach and Ross, 

 the resident science masters at Goulburn and Eathurst respec- 

 tively, have formed scientific societies in their respective cities. 

 These societies have already a good number of members, who 

 meet regularly for the discussion of scientific questions, and they 

 seem to Mr. Maiden to give promise of much usefulness. 



At the meeting of the Linnean Society of New South Wales 

 on March 30, Mr. R. Etheridge, Jun., read a paper on, and 

 exhibited, a very peculiar form of "womerah." It is from an 

 unknown locality, but its history is partially known, and a clue 

 is furnished by three very similar weapons in the Macleay 

 Collection from Port Darwin. It is lath-like in form, slightly 

 curved in outline, and altogether a remarkable implement, very 

 unlike anything, to the author's knowledge, previously 

 described. 



Dr. G. T. Stevens publishes in Science of May 6 an 

 interesting preliminary note on the relations of the motor 

 muscles of the eyes to certain facial expressions. He has for 

 some years closely observed the anomalies of the muscles which 

 govern the movements of the eyes, and has been struck by the 

 fact that remarkable changes often follow the modification of the 

 conditions of these muscles. This led him not only to regard 

 such facial changes with greater care, but to bring to the subject 

 the aid of photography, by means of which alone the expressions 

 could be accurately registered. Photographic portraits giving 

 a direct front view of more than two thousand persons have thus 

 been made. In each case a record, as full as he has been able to 

 obtain, of the state of the eye muscles has been made, and in the 

 majority of cases careful observations have been repeated many 

 times during some weeks or months. Photographs have been 

 taken at various stages of modification of these muscles, so that 

 a comparative study of the face under varying conditions of the 

 eye muscles has been rendered possible. The result of the 

 investigation has been to demonstrate that ' ' certain well-defined 

 types of facial expression are not only associated with, but are 

 dependent upon, certain relative tensions of the oculo-motor 

 muscles." The object of his paper is to present the general 

 characteristics of some of the most typical forms of expression 

 which have their origin in efforts to adjust the eyes. 



The first part of a paper on the development of American 

 armour-plate, by Mr. F. Lynwood Garrison, appears in the 

 May number of the Journal of the Franklin Institute. It was 

 the author's original intention to present in the form of a report 

 the results of the recent armour-plate trials at Indian Head. 

 As, however, these trials have been described in an excellent 

 report by the Chief of the Bureau of Ordance of the U.S. 

 Navy, Mr. Garrison has preferred to give a sketch of the develop- 

 ment of armour-plate, combining with this the more important 

 details of the official report. He writes from the standpoint of 

 the metallurgist rather than that of the military engineer. At 

 present great interest is centred upon the use of the complex 

 steel alloys and the methods adopted to harden them, and it is 

 to these subjects more particularly that he calls attention. The 

 detailed methods of producing such alloys as well as the sereral 

 methods for quenching and tempering armour-plate are kept 

 secret by steel manufacturers ; but the results are made public 

 at the trials, and "the possible deductions to be made there- 

 from," says Mr. Garrison, " are patent to every observing and 

 thinking engineer." The fact that he has had exceptionally 

 good opportunities of making such observations is a sufficient 

 reason for the publication of his views. 



Some interesting details as to the production of mercury in 

 Russia have been submitted by Prof. Emile Muller, of 

 NO. II 78. VOL. 46] 



Taschkent, to the Paris Geographical Socieiy. A bed of this 

 rare metal, discovered at Ekaterinoslav, is now worked with great 

 energy, and 2o,coopouds (320,000 kilogrammes) of pure mercury 

 are obtained. The entire demand for the metal in Russia is 

 supplied from this source, and a surplus of 14,000 pouds 

 (224,000 kilogrammes) is exported. During the past year 

 mercury was discovered in the district of Daghestan, in the 

 Caucasus, and it is expected that the discovery will lead to the 

 growth of a profitable industry in that region. 



The vine industry in Bashahr, in the Punjab, was formerly 

 of great importance ; but of late years it has declined in con- 

 sequence of the old trees having been attacked by a disease. 

 Mr. Coldslream, the Deputy Commissioner of Simla, proposes 

 to revive the industry, if possible, and has secured a large num- 

 ber of cuttings for the State. 



The Pioneer Mail (Allahabad) of May 5 says that locust 

 swarms are reported from the frontier, and that stragglers have 

 been observed again passing over Lahore. It is thought that 

 they have chosen a bad time, as the district is full of the 

 migratory hosts of starlings which come at this season of the 

 year to feed upon wild mulberries, and few of the stragglers are 

 likely to " run the gauntlet " successfully. 



The additions to the Zoological Society's Gardens during the 

 past week include a Bonnet Monkey {Macacus sinicus ? ) from 

 India, presented by Mr. M. McPherson ; a Crested Porcupine 

 {Hystrix cristatus) from Africa, presented by Mr. J. Bullock ; 

 a Common Pea-fowl {Pavo cristatus) from India, presented by 

 Colonel Bagot Chester ; two Yellow-bellied Toads {Bombinator 

 bovibinus), European, presented by Mr. A. M. Ansler ; two 

 Black Bears [Urstis americanus) from North America, de- 

 posited ; a Japanese 'Dter (Cervus sika <J ) ; a Bennett's Wallaby 

 {Halmaturus bennetti 9 ) ; two Himalayan Monauls {Lopho- 

 phorus impeyamis) ; two Greater Black-backed Gulls {Larus 

 marimis), bred in the Gardens. 



OUR ASTRONOMICAL COLUMN. 



Paris Observatory Report. — The annual report on the 

 state of the Paris Observatory for the year 1891, presented by 

 Admiral Mouchez, shows that a considerable amount of work, as 

 in former years, has been accomplished during the past year. 

 After mentioning briefly some of the last reports that have been 

 communicated by those who are undertaking the work of photo- 

 graphically charting the heavens, he gives a resume of the reso- 

 lutions that have been adopted during the session of 1891. In 

 the table showing the zones allotted to the different Observatories, 

 that given to Greenwich lies between declinations -f 90° and 

 + 65°, and that to Oxford between + 31° and + 25° ; the number 

 of plates for each zone being 1 149 and 1180 respectively. A 

 rm^wf' of the meridional observations for the year informs us 

 that no less than 19,458 observations were made, while those 

 of the planets amounted to 570. M. Paul Henry, M. Wolf, and 

 M. Deslandres, have all been busily engaged in their respective 

 sections, their work having been previously mentioned in 

 these columns. The second volume of the catalogue and the 

 second volume of the observed positions (6h. to I2h.) have been 

 completed and published; while Part III. (i2h. to i8h.)is 

 still in preparation. The observations for 1884 are now quite 

 finished, and those for 1885 will be ready by the end of this 

 year. The verification of the reduction of the observations made 

 in 1884-86 for the formation of a catalogue of twenty-four stars 

 very near the Pole has already been commenced, and should, 

 when completed, form a most important volume. The indi- 

 vidual works that have been published from time to time are 

 also referred to here. The meteorological observations and 

 time service have been continued as usual. 



Stars with Remarkable Spectra. — No. 3090 of the 

 Astronomische Nachrichteti contains a list of stars with remark- 

 able spectra, continued from a former number (3023) of the 

 same periodical, and communicated by T. E. Espin. The num- 



