November 21, 1895] 



NATURE 



59 



With reference to the aurora briefly noted in our last number 

 (p. 35), Mr. J. Shaw writes from Tynron, Dumfriesshire, as follows: 

 — "At II p.m. November 9, I saw an aurora extending from 

 the north-west to the north-east, where it began to break into 

 long lines, one line lying above the planet Jupiter, It occupied 

 about one-fourth of the distance from horizon to zenith at its 

 widest. The luminosity was singularly free of tremulous motion, 

 and between it and the spectator were ragged patches of black 

 clouds, such as often portend rain, which began to fall in torrents 

 four hours later. " 



For some years the need has been felt at the Harvard College 

 Observatory, of some means of making a more prompt announce- 

 ment of the results of its work. It is proposed therefore to issue 

 a series of circulars, as required, to announce any matters of 

 interest, such as discoveries made there, the results of recent 

 observations, new plans of work, and gifts or bequests. It is 

 not proposed to give these circulars a wide distribution, but 

 rather to use them as a means of bringing new facts to the atten- 

 tion of the editors of astronomical and other periodicals, and 

 thus secure the immediate publication of such portions as would 

 be of interest to the readers of these periodicals. The distribu- 

 tions will be made without charge to such persons as will be 

 likely to use the results. 



Im view of the unsatisfactory condition of veterinary ana- 

 tomical nomenclature, we are glad to learn from the Lancet that 

 the section of the recent sixth international veterinary congress 

 detailed to give an opinion as to the necessary steps to be taken 

 to remedy it, reported that the Nomina Anatomica of His be 

 recognised as a basis for an international Latin nomenclature of 

 veterinary anatomy, and that the work of adaptation, as well as 

 the creation of new Latin denominations, should be allotted to 

 certain anatomists of the countries represented, with the right of 

 co-optation. This recommendation was unanimously adopted, 

 and the following gentlemen were appointed to undertake this 

 task, MM. Miiller of Berlin, Arloing of Lyons, Lorge of 

 Brussels, Sussdorf of Stuttgart, Schmalz of Berlin, Martin of 

 Zurich, Rubeli of Bern, and Szakall of Pesth. 



The Manchester Museum was opened to the public last 

 Sunday afternoon. The attendance was considered satis- 

 factory, some five hundred visitors entering. Attention was 

 pretty evenly distributed through the various departments, but 

 a special attraction was the collection of Egyptian antiquities, 

 recently added to the museum, and consisting of palettes for 

 grinding metal tools, ceremonial and other flints, mace-heads, 

 pottery (figured, polished, and rough), stone vases, art jars, &c. 

 Objects arranged naturally, as sjiecimens of the Porifera, also 

 found favour. Arrangements are being made for demonstrations 

 to be given upon the various classes of exhibits ; and it is 

 expected that this concession, rendered possible by the important 

 pecuniary assistance from the Manchester Corporation, will be 

 fully appreciated. 



The Executive Committee appointed to make the necessary 

 local arrangements for the reception of the British Association 

 in Liverpool, next year, held a meeting on Friday last, under 

 the presidency of Sir Wm. Forwood. Among those present 

 were the secretaries. Prof. Herdman, F.R.S., and Messrs. Isaac 

 Thompson and Willink ; the honorary treasurers, Mr. Reginald 

 Bushell and Mr. C. Booth, jun. ; Prof. O. Lodge, Drs. Hope 

 and Forbes, and others. It was announced that the following 

 gentlemen had been elected by the Council of the Association 

 vice-presidents of the meeting, to be held from Wednesday, 

 September i6, to September 23, 1896 : The Lord Mayor (the 

 Earl of Derby, K.G.), Lord Sefton, Sir W. B. Forwood, Mr. 

 M. Rathbone, Mr. George Holt, Mr. T. H. Ismay, Principal 

 Rendall, Sir Henry Roscoe, and Mr. W. Crookes. The 



NO. 1360, VOL. 53] 



President-elect is Sir Joseph Lister, Bart., F.R.S. A sub- 

 committee was appointed to superintend the hospitable arrange- 

 ments, which will be conducted on a liberal scale, and it was 

 proposed to arrange for an excursion to the Isle of Man at the 

 conclusion of the meeting. This excursion would occupy 

 several days, and it was hoped that a local committee in the 

 island would be appointed and facilitate arrangements. The 

 honorary treasurers reported that they had received a large 

 number of subscriptions ; but as they had no reason to consider 

 the list complete, they proposed to defer the publication of the 

 list. 



The vagueness of the English names of our wild plants is one 

 of the stumbling-blocks in the way of the student of botany. 

 Those given in our text-books are, for the greater part, mere 

 book-names — often simply translations of the Latin names — 

 which are not, and never have been, applied to the plant in any 

 part of the country. Even with regard to familiar names in 

 common use, many — as for instance, eyebright and harebell — 

 are used for quite different plants in different parts of the 

 country. On the continent, and especially in Germany, where 

 the more educated peasantry have a much better knowledge of 

 wild flowers than is the case with our agricultural labourers, the 

 state of things is still worse. In his Internationales Worterbuch 

 der Pflanzennamen^ Ulrich gives, in many cases, from twelve to 

 twenty German names for the same species ; and it is stated that 

 for some species there are more than one hundred names in use. 

 We learn from Die Natur that an attempt is being made to 

 correct this evil. The Allgemeine Deutsche Sprachverein of 

 Berlin offers two prizes, of the value ot six hundred and four 

 hundred marks, respectively, for the best schemes for a uniform 

 German nomenclature of plants for schools. It would be an 

 immense gain to the teaching of botany in schools if something 

 of the same kind could be done in this country. Could not the 

 J^ournal of Botany or the Botanical Exchange Club take it up ? 



After a part of last week's issue of Nature had been 

 printed off", containing a note announcing the death of Dr. George 

 Dawson, we were rejoiced to be able to stop the press and 

 cancel it, as a cablegram contradicted the rumour. 



The death is announced of M. A. M. Villon, the author of 

 the " Dictionnaire de chimie industrielle " and other important 

 works connected with chemical industry. He was only twenty- 

 eight years of age. 



An International Marine and Fisheries Exhibition will be 

 held at Kiel next year, in connection with a provincial exhibition 

 for Schleswig-Holstein, and will be open from May 13 to the end 

 of September. 



The earthquake which occurred at Rome on the first day of 

 this month, and was noted in these columns (p. 12), was pre- 

 ceded by severe shocks, felt in parts of the United States, in the 

 early morning of October 31. The shocks appear to have 

 especially affected Ohio, Illinois, and Indiana. 



Another important atmospheric disturbance approached our 

 western coasts from the Atlantic on Friday last, 15th instant, 

 causing further south-westerly gales and considerable damage ; 

 and before this disturbance had passed away a secondary de- 

 pression reached St. George's Channel, on the following day. 

 The rainfall which accompanied these storms was very consider- 

 able, amounting to nearly three inches in two days at Holyhead. 

 In the storm of Saturday, the Bishop's lighthouse, off Pembroke, 

 was struck by lightning. 



The Committee formed for the purpose of erecting a memorial 

 to the late Dr. Valentine Ball, C.B., F.R.S., Director of the 

 Science and Art Museum, Dublin, announce their desire to close 

 the subscription list at an early date, and trust intending sub- 



