March 5, 1896] 



NATURE 



423 



written by a member or associate of the Society, was won last 

 year by Mr. H. C. Hay ward, with an essay on " Protective Re- 

 semblances amongst EngUsh Lepidoptera." In awarding the 

 prize, preference is given to essays containing original work. 



The London Amateur Scientific Society held its annual meet- 

 ing on Friday last, at the Memorial Hall, Farringdon Street. 

 Among the very interesting exhibits were a series of curious 

 botanical specimens shown by Mr. Howell, a collection of rare 

 and abnormal forms of Mollusca, by Mr. S. Pace, and an album 

 of views of the Baku Oil Region, by Dr. W. F. Hume. After the 

 specimens had been described, a paper was read by the Pre- 

 sident (Mr. W. H. Davis), on the *' History of the Determin- 

 ation of Latitude and Longitude." Mr. Davis reviewed the 

 existing state of geographical knowledge from the Homerian 

 period to the time of Strabo and Ptolemy— its eclipse in the 

 Middle Ages, and revival under Arabic influence, and progress up 

 to recent times. He pointed out the method adopted in each 

 successive epoch to determine positions on the earth's surface, 

 and the progressive influences on scientific research induced by 

 these inquiries. The objects of the Society is to further the 

 study of the natural sciences among amateurs and students by 

 the reading of papers, by excursions, lectures, the formation of 

 a library, and in otherjways. A Society having for its aim the 

 cultivation of interest in natural knowledge, deserves encourage- 

 ment and success. 



Several publications have been received from the Meteor- 

 ological Observatory of the Imperial University of Odessa. The 

 Annales for 1894 contain a description of the Observatory ; 

 observations made during the year ; and an account of the 

 mortality and characteristic elements of the climate of Odessa. 

 In the Revue Met^orologiqtie (vol. vii.) the meteorological 

 observations made at stations in the south-west of Russia are 

 brought together. The numerous observations at the stations 

 organised in that region by Prof A. Klossovsky, who is 

 responsible for the whole of the publications, have enabled him 

 to study the question of torrential rains during the period 

 1886-92, which discussion forms the subject of a separate 

 paper. 



The elaborate " Le9onssur I'Electricite et le Magnetisme," by 

 MM. E. Mascart and J. Jouberl, has reached a second edition, 

 the first volume of which, dealing with " Phenomenes Generaux 

 et Theorie," has been received from MM. Masson and Co. 

 Prof. Mascart is alone responsible for the new edition. Prof. 

 Joubert being unable to assist in bringing the work into line 

 with the present state of electrical knowledge. The many 

 modifications introduced into the text, and the additions 

 rendered necessary by the development of the science of elec- 

 tricity, has not resulted in any alteration of the general plan of 

 the work. The second volume will be published at the end of 

 this year, and will be devoted to the study of methods of 

 observation, details of experiments, and the examination of the 

 principal characteristics of industrial applications of electricity. 



The Field Columbian Museum at Chicago, a description of 

 which was given in Nature of June 6, 1895 (vol. lii. p. 137), 

 commenced last year a series of publications having for its 

 object the description of the contents of the Museum, and the 

 issue of papers which come withm the range of scientific or 

 technical discussion. The publications will thus include not 

 only catalogues of collections, but also transactions, memoirs, 

 bulletins, monographs, and handbooks. There will be separate 

 series for botany, zoology, anthropology, geology, and history, and 

 each series is to have a separate pagination and volumes, so that 

 the literature of each science or general subject will be rendered 

 consecutive and complete for binding. No time is being lost in 

 making known the extent of the collections in the different 

 NO. 1375, VOL. 53] 



departments of the Museum, and Publications 2 and 3, which 

 have just reached us, show that a high standard is aimed at. Ir» 

 one of these publications (Hist. Series, vol. i. No. 2), Mr. W. 

 E. Curtis describes "The Authentic Letters of Columbus." 

 The original Columbus documents which form the subject of his 

 valuable bulletin were exhibited at the World's Columbian 

 Exposition. Photographs were taken of the entire collection, 

 and the negatives were subsequently presented to the Field 

 Columbian Museum. The facsimiles thus obtained, now form 

 part of the material in the Department of Columbus Memorial 

 of that institution, and from them excellent half-tone plates have 

 been made to illustrate Mr. Curtis's bulletin, which contains 

 translations of all the manuscripts of Columbus existing, 

 arranged in the order of the dates at which they are supposed to 

 have been written ; it will, therefore, be of extreme interest and 

 service to students of geographical history. The second publica- 

 tion which we have received (Geol. Series, vol. i. No. i), is a 

 "Handbook and Catalogue of the Collection of Meteorites," 

 by Dr. O. C. Farrington. Constructed on much the same lines 

 as Mr. Fletcher's "Introduction to the Study of Meteorites," 

 the publication will prove helpful to all who are interested in 

 " holy things fallen from heaven." From the historical portion 

 of the work a knowledge of the principal characters of meteorites 

 will be obtained, while the catalogue of specimens in the Museum 

 will facilitate the study of the collection. Maskelyne's classifica- 

 tion of meteorites into aerosiderites, aerosiderolites, and 

 aerolites, is followed in the catalogue. Six plates, each con- 

 taining several figures illustrating the forms of meteorites, 

 Widmanstatten figures, and microscopic structure, accompany 

 Dr. Farrington's descriptions. 



Some speculations of considerable interest are put forward 

 by M. Guntz in the current number of the Cotnptes rendus. 

 Recalling the observations of Prof. Ramsay on the reduction of 

 the vapour pressure of mercury by dissolved metals, from which 

 the conclusion was drawn, that, at the boiling-point of mercury, 

 the molecular weight of the metal in solution was in general 

 equal to its atomic weight, M. Guntz puts forward the idea 

 that in the case of metals extracted from their amalgams at a 

 low temperature, the residue actually consists, for the most part, 

 of the element in the atomic state. This, and not merely the 

 fine state of division, he regards as the explanation of the ener- 

 getic properties exhibited by such metallic residues. In support 

 of this, thermo-chemical data are given for ordinary fused man- 

 ganese, and manganese from its amalgam, the heats of combina- 

 tion with oxygen showing that the conversion of the latter into 

 the former is accompanied with the evolution of heat (3 "8 

 calories for the gram-atom). Besides manganese, both chromium 

 and molybdenum, which after being fused are unchanged in 

 air, are pyrophoric when extracted from their amalgams at low 

 temperatures. M. Guntz proposes to study the heats of poly- 

 merisation of several metals, more especially of iron. 



Prof. Arcimis informs us that the bearings he gave to the 

 diagram (Fig. i), which accompanied his description of the 

 Madrid meteor {.ante p. 395), were wrong. The south point 

 should have been at the top of the diagram, and the east to the 

 right. 



The additions to the Zoological Society's Gardens during the 

 past week include three Punjaub Wild Sheep (ft'/j vigiieiy 

 6 9 9), from North-West India, presented by Captain R. 

 A. Ogilby ; a Vulpine Phalanger (Phalatigista vttlpina, (J > 

 from Australia, presented by Messrs. Multon and Wallis ; a 

 Eraser's Eagle Owl {Biiho paitsis) from Ashanti, presented by 

 Major H. M. Sinclair, R.E. ; a Greater-spotted Woodpecker 

 (Dendrocopus major), British, presented by Mr. W. H. St. 

 Quintin ; two Spiny-tailed Mastigures ( Uromastix aiant/iinKrus) 

 from Biskra, Algeria, presented by the Lord Lilford ; a Collar- 



