496 



NATURE 



[September 22, 1892 



The following arrangements have been made for science lec- 

 tures at the Royal Victoria Hall during October :— October 4, 

 Sir John Lubbock on " Books." After the address he will pre- 

 sent the prizes and certificates gained by students of the M, M. 

 College, Prof. Fox well in the chair. October 11, Mr. C. T. 

 Dent (late President of the Alpine Club), on "The Alps in 

 Winter." October 18, Mr. F. W. Rudler, on "Frost and 

 Fire, "with special reference to the flood at St. Gervais, and the 

 eruption of Etna. October 25, Col. Swinhoe on '• Some 

 Curiosities in Nature." 



Last week we noted that Messrs. Macmillan and Co. had 

 issued a new edition of " Arithmetic for Schools." This is the 

 well-known work by Mr. Barnard Smith. The book has been 

 revised and enlarged by Prof. W. H. H. Hudson. 



Messrs. Gauthier-Villars have issued " Bulles de Savon," 

 a translation, by C. E. Guillaume, of Mr. Boys' little work on 

 " Soap Bubbles." The translator, while reproducing the main 

 features of the book, has, with the author's sanction, adapted it 

 for the use of French readers. He has also incorporated an 

 account of some new experiments which Mr. Boys has brought 

 to his notice. 



The first number of a new German journal, which promises 

 to be of considerable interest to non-professional students of 

 science, has just been issued in Berlin, the publisher being R. 

 Oppenheim. It is entitled Natur und Haus, and is edited by 

 L. Staby and M. Hesdorffer. The articles are written in a 

 popular style, and well illustrated. 



The additions to the Zoological Society's Gardens during the 

 past week include a Mona Monkey {Cercopithecus mona^) 

 from West Africa, presented by Col. Makins ; a Macaque Mon- 

 key {Macacus cynomolgus $ ) from India, presented by Mrs. 

 Palmer; a Vulpine Squirrel {Sciurus vulpina S) from North 

 America, presented by the Hon. G. Carew ; a Malayan Tapir 

 ( Tapirus indicus i ) from Malacca, presented by Col. J. M. 

 Jenkins ; a Great Eagle Owl {Bubo maximus), European, pre- 

 sented by Commander Ernest Rason, R.N. ; a Black-crested 

 Cardinal ( Gubernatrix crlstatella) from South America, presented 

 by the Rev.W. B. K. Frances ; a Small Hill Mynah {Gracula 

 religiosd) from India, presented by Mr. George Grigs ; a Long- 

 nosed Crocodile {Crocodilus cataphractui) from the River Juba, 



Eist Africa, presented by Cipt. F. G. Dunbar, R.N. ; two ■ 



Tortoises {Testudo ), five Cinixys {Cinixys ), a Puff 



Adder ( Vipera arietans) from East Africa, presented by Mr. D. 

 Wilson; a Pig-tailed Monkey {Macacus nemestrinus $) from 

 Java, a White-backed Piping Crow {Gytnnorhina leuconota) 

 from Australia, an Adorned Terrapin ( Clemmys ornata ) from 

 North America, a Robben Island Snake {Coronella phocarum) 

 from South Africa, deposited ; a Red Kangaroo {Macropus 

 rufus ? ), a Black- fronted Weaver Bird {Hypotriorchis velatus) 

 bred in the gardens. 



OUR ASTRONOMICAL COLUMN. 

 Proposed School of Practical Astronomy. — Mr. H. 

 C. Russell, Government Astronomer of New South Wales, in a 

 paper read before the Royal Society of Tasmania, makes some 

 very practicable, and what we think excellent, suggestions with 

 respect to the disposal of the sum of moiiey (^^10,000) left by the 

 late Mr. Leake for the foundation of a school of astronomy. 

 The idea is for the Leake trustees to co-operate with the Univer- 

 sity. of Tasmania, and in this way form a complete school in 

 which both the tlieory and practice of astronomy should be dealt 

 with simultaneously. In addition to the observatory being 

 merely a school for students, Mr. Russell suggests that it should 

 take up some special line of research, and proposes that of 

 astronomical photography. This seems an excellent proposition. 

 The work which such an observatory as this could do if 

 thoroughly equipped with the necessary apparatus, would be 

 very considerable, and the special advantages of climate 

 and position, to say nothing of the unexplored state of the 

 NO. II 95, VOL. 46] 



southern heavens, would soon render it of great importance. 

 There is no doubt that we are not yet overburdened with a 

 surplus of observatories in the southern hemisphere, for even 

 now there is a doubt as to how the international photographic 

 chart of the heavens shall be provided for in this region, three 

 observatories which have undertaken the work having been un- 

 able to carry out their plans on account of the political troubles. 

 Should this proposal be accepted, the new Leake Observatory 

 will start under good auspices, as it will fill up a gap by taking 

 in hand a share of the greatest modern astronomical enterprise. 



Double Star Measures. — Mr. S. W. Burnham, in 

 Astronomische Nachrichten, Nos. 31 13-14, gives a list of all 

 the double star measures that he has made during the year 

 1891 with the 36-inch of the Lick Observatory. Most of the 

 stars here included may be classed as difficult objects, being too 

 close for any smaller aperture, and all of them more or less 

 unequal. As Mr. Burnham tells us, many of the stars are taken 

 from his own catalogues, it being rather important to measure 

 them at this time, since several are in very rapid motion. Owing 

 to the fact that some of these stars have not been measured 

 since the time of their discovery, it is interesting to note the 

 changes that have taken place. Observations of these have 

 "shown some very remarkable changes, and have shown the 

 existence of some of the most remarkable binary systems known. " 

 Measurements have also been made of some of the closest and 

 most difficult binaries from the discoveries of Clark, Struve, 

 and others. The epoch for the star places is as heretofore 

 1880. 



Comet Brooks (1882, August 27). — From Edinburgh 

 Circular, No. 31, we make the following extract of the elements 

 and ephemeris relating to the comet discovered by Mr. Brooks 

 at Geneva on the 27th. The computations are based on four 

 observations made between August 31 and September 5 :— 



Elements, 

 T = 1892 Dec. 19727 M.T. Berlin. 



CO = 269 24 27" 



a = 261 2 55 

 / = 27 57 8. 

 Log q = 9-84455. 



-Mean Equator, 1 892*0. 



^89»- h. m. s. 



Sept. 21 7 2 13 



23 7 8 13 



25 7 14 21 



27 7 20 37 



29 7 27 2 



Ephemeris for Berlin Midnight. 

 Decl. 



log. A. log. r. Br. 



-(-28 4X-6 0*2342 0-2458 2"5 



28 14-5 



27 45-0 0-2105 0-2315 3-0 



27 I3'i 



26 38-6 o-i86o 0-2166 3*6 



The brightness at the time of discovery is taken, as usual, as the 

 unit of Br. 



Nova Auriga. — Some short notes with regard to Nova 

 Aurigse are communicated to Astronomische Nachrichten, 

 No. 3114, which may be of interest here :— On Sept. 3, Dr. F, 

 Ristenpart, of the Observatory in Karlsruhe, with a 6-inch 

 refractor, by comparing the Nova with the brightness of an 

 accompanying star, estimates the Nova as of the 9-65 magnitude 

 of the Bonn scale. Herr Cand. F. Kroeger observed the Nova 

 on three different occasions — Sept. 3, 4, and 6. Comparing it 

 with a neighbouring star of the 9 ■5m. (Star — Nova = -f 3S-5 -f- 

 i'-2), the Nova was found to be about "a degree dimmer 

 than the comparison star." On Sept. 4 the seeing was much 

 better, and the Nova was about " two degrees brighter than 

 the comparison star." On the third occasion, with excellent 

 definition, the comparison star and the Nova were of equal 

 brightness. These observations are all made between I2h. and 

 I2h. 30m. Kiel mean time. Prof. E. E. Barnard has also made 

 a very interesting observation with the 36-inch of the Lick 

 Observatory, finding that the Nova appeared as a small, bright 

 nebula, with a star-like ttucleus of the loth magnitude. The 

 nebulosity, as he says, "was pretty, bright, and dense, and 

 was 3" in diameter. Surrounding this was a fainter glow, 

 perhaps half a minute in diameter." If this observation can be 

 verified, it will assuredly strengthen very considerably the 

 hypothesis that the Nova was caused by collisions of meteorites, 

 in the same way as the stars in the Pleiades nebula are the loci 

 of intersecting streams, as clearly shown by Mr. Roberts' 

 wonderful photographs. 



