62 



NATURE 



[November 21, 1895 



Peru included in the Amazon basin. It consists mainly of an 

 account of the various diseases. Dr. Gavazzi gives a short 

 account of the hydrology of the lower part of the River Krka 

 in Dalmatia. Among the smaller articles contributed is a 

 biography of Huxley by Dr. Haas, an account of the German 

 expedition of Lieut, von Carnap-Querheimb and Dr. Griiner in 

 Togoland, and of Dr. Kriiger up the Palena river in Chile. 

 There is also a short notice of Glave, who did excellent work 

 under Stanley on the Congo, and died there in May last. It 

 also contains a report on the various expeditions engaged in 

 work in Africa. From this we learn that Capt. Bottego is 

 attempting to march from Barawa, on the Somali coast, to 

 Logh, on the Juba ; thence he is to cross to Lake Rudolf, and 

 explore the course of the Omo, from its mouth to the point 

 where Prince Ruspoli was killed. The King of Italy and the 

 Italian Government have each contributed 40,000 lire for this 

 expedition. Prince Boris, the well-known Russian sportsman, 

 has been shooting in the Ogaden country in Somaliland, and 

 has traced the Dachato river to its confluence with the Webi 

 Schebeyli. Dr. Humpelmayr left Berbera in June in order to 

 march across East Africa from north to south, as far as 

 Mombasa. 



The Zoological Society have just issued the thirty-first volume 

 of the Zoological Record, containing a summary of the zoological 

 literature published in the year 1894. The various articles have 

 been prepared by Messrs. J. A. Thomson, R. Lydekker, R. 

 Bowdler Sharpe, G. A. Boulanger, W. A. Herdman, B. B. 

 Woodward, D. Sharp, F. A. Bather, R. Hanitsch, and Miss 

 Florence Buchanan. The whole volume has been edited by 

 Dr. D. Sharp, F.R.S., of the Cambridge University Museum. 

 Great credit is due to the Society and to the Editor for the early 

 date at which this volume has been published. We observe that 

 the corresponding Record, just finished in Wiegmann's Archiv, 

 only relates to the year 1890, being thus four years behind that 

 of its English rival. A very useful feature in the present volume 

 is the newly revised list of abbreviations used in the Record for 

 the titles of the loiirnah and Transactions that contain zoolo- 

 gical papers. These periodicals are now, as is well known, 

 exceedingly numerous, and increase in number every year. 

 Some sixty or seventy new titles have been added to the present 

 edition. The principal libraries in London and Cambridge, in 

 which the various periodicals are to be found, are indicated by 

 key -letters attached to each title, so that the recorder in each 

 subject may always know where to go for his information. We 

 observe that the present volume contains no records for the 

 Crustacea, Arachnida, Myriopoda, and Coelenterata, the natu- 

 ralists to whom these subjects were assigned (Mr. R. I. Pocock 

 and Dr. S. J. Hickson) not having delivered their manuscripts at 

 the promised date. These deficiencies are much to be regretted ; 

 but the early appearance of a Zoological Record is a matter of 

 so much importance, that we cannot but approve of the Editor 

 refusing to wait for the convenience of his tardy coadjutors. 



A FLORA of the Graminese of France, Belgium, and Switzer- 

 land is in preparation by M, T. Husnot, of Cahan, near Athis 

 (Orne). 



The Christmas course of lectures, adapted to a juvenile 

 auditory, at the Royal Institution, will be deUvered this year by 

 Prof. John Gray McKendrick, F,R.S. The subject will be 

 "Sound, Hearing, and Speech," and the lectures will be 

 experimentally illustrated, 



A SKETCH of the life and personality of M. Berthelot, now 

 Minister of Foreign Affairs, appears in the current number of 

 the Chemist and Druggist. "The Republic has no use for 

 chemists," is said to have been the remark made by the tribunal 

 which condemned Lavoisier to the guillotine. The words are 

 probably apocryphal, but, at any rate during this century, France 

 NO. 1360, VOL. 53] 



has in many ways shown her appreciation of the abilities and 

 work not only of chemists, but of all her scientific investigators. 



In our report of the opening of the Chingford Museum (p. 16)^ 

 the writer inadvertently wrote " Dengey Hundred " in reference 

 to Mr. Walter Crouch's collection of shells. He desires us to 

 state that the collection was made in the Becontree Hundred, 

 which comprises the Forest District. 



The Central Hydrographic Office of Vienna has published its 

 fix&t/ahrbuck containing daily or monthy rainfall values at 861 

 stations, and tidal observations at 493 stations, for the year 

 1893, The work occupies 562 large folio pages, and contains 

 brief discussions of the observations, arranged according to the 

 various river systems, and a map showing the yearly distribution 

 of rainfall over the entire area. The publication is a valuable 

 contribution to meteorological and hydrographical science. 



The additions to the Zoological Society's Gardens during 

 the past week include a Blotched Genet (Genetta tigrind)y 

 two Crossed Snakes {Psammophis crucifer), a Smooth-bellied 

 Snake (Homalosoma lutrix), a Rough-keeled Snake {Dasypeltis 

 scabra), a Many-spotted Snake {Coronella multimaculata), a 

 Hygian Snake {Elaps hygice) from South Africa, presented by 

 Mr. J. E. Matcham ; eight Great Tits {Parus major), British, 

 presented by Mr. Brunsden ; a Puffin {Fratercula arciica), 

 British, presented by Dr. J. B. Johnson ; two Lions {Felis 

 leo, <J ? ) from Africa, deposited ; a Black-faced Spider Monkey 

 (Ateles ater) from Eastern Peru, purchased. 



Ol/R ASTRONOMICAL COLUMN. 



A New Comet.— A telegram, received from Kiel on Novem- 

 ber 18, announces the discovery of a new comet by Mr. Perrine 

 at the Lick Observatory on the i6th inst. At the time of ob- 

 servation the comet was in R.A. I3h. 44m. and Deck 1° 40' N. ; 

 accordingly, it was nearly midway between C ^i^tl ''■ Virginis, 

 and would rise at London about 3.40 a.m. It is described as 

 having a bright tail. 



The New Merope Nebula. — The round bright nebula very 

 close to Morope, in the Pleiades, whichwas discovered by Prof. 

 Barnard in 1890, has recently been observed by him with special 

 reference to its position {Ast. Nach. 3315, p. 42). With respect 

 to Merope, its position angle for i895'67 was i66''*6, and dis- 

 tance 33" '58; these figures agree remarkably well with the 

 earlier measurements, and they indicate that the place of the 

 nebula can be determined with such precision, that repeated 

 observations may be expected to show whether it has any proper 

 motion, or physical connection with the star. It is remarked 

 that the nebula is only difficult in small telescopes because of its 

 extreme closeness to the star, and that away from the star it 

 would be an easy object in almost any telescope. The use of 

 an occulting bar in the eyepiece of the telescope would probably 

 facilitate observations of the nebula. 



Number of Nebulae. — The number of known nebulae has 

 during the past few years been so largely increased by the laboiurs 

 of different observers, and the modes of publication have been 

 so varied, that Dr. Dreyer's new index catalogue of the recent 

 discoveries will be highly appreciated {Mem. Roy. Ast. Soc. 

 vol. li. p. 185). This is a continuation of the well-known " New 

 General Catalogue," which contained particulars of the 7840 

 nebulae and clusters known up to the end of 1887, and brings 

 the information to the beginning of the present year. The 

 seven years' observations have resulted in the detection of 1529 

 new nebulae, so that the general catalogue and the index 

 together give the positions and descriptions of 9369 objects. 

 More than half of the new discoveries are to be placed to the 

 credit of M. Javelle, who has the advantage of employing the 

 great refractor of the Nice Observatory. It is notable that only 

 a very small proportion of new nebulae has been discovered by 

 the photographic method. Most of the objects included in the 

 index are very small and faint, and it is remarked that they are 

 probably only a small fraction of the total number visible in 

 large telescopes. Dr. Dreyer considers it desirable that some of 

 the possessors of large telescopes should turn their attention 

 from the search for very faint nebulae to " the less showy but 

 more useful work of verifying the many old nebulae which 

 require re-observation." 



