460 



• KNO\A/^LEDGE ♦ 



[Nov. 28, 1884. 



to set people against vegetarianism, even in a modified 

 form, altogether. The author of the work before us, how- 

 ever, tells us how he and a small boy lived upon two 

 shillingsworth ot vegetables for a whole week — the " vege- 

 tables," by the way, though, including two quarts of skim 

 milk and three ounces of lard. It is needless to add that 

 this was all washed down by the beverage of the lowest and 

 most degraded races the world has yet seen — water. " One 

 who has Tried it ■' overdoes the whole thing. 



Mottoes and Motives. (London : Elliott Stock, 1884.) — 

 "This," said the lamented Mrs. Gamp, "is my mortar, 

 which I sticks to." Would that she were at our elbow to 

 satisfy us as to which are the "mottoes" and which the 

 " motives," in the wonderful farrago before us ; inasmuch 

 as we are utterly unalJe to do so by the limited light 

 vouchsafed to us. 



We have, too, on our table. Part VII. of Heath's Fern 

 Portfolio, with its exquisite plates of the Maiden-hair, Poly- 

 pody, and Bristle ferns, the venation in the latter being 

 starilingly natural. Also the Kansas City Revieir, a very 

 able Scientific Journal, Bradstreet's, The Medical Press and 

 Circular, The Tricyclist, The Sidereal Messenger, Society 

 (with its readable and exciting Christmas Number, and a 

 large cartoon of celebrities), and Tli^ American Druggist. 



THE FACE OF THE SKY. 



From Xovembee 21st to Decembbb 5th. 

 By F.R.A.S. 



THE usual daily examination of the Snn's disc ivill be made for 

 spots and facnla>. Maps XI. and XII. of " The Stars in their 

 Seasons" may be consnlted for the aspect of the night sky. 

 Mercury is an evening star, but aa badly placed for observation as 

 he well can be. Venus is a morning star, and is still a bright 

 object before sunrise, though now somewhat shorn of her glory. 

 Mars is invisible. Jupiter rises about llh. 22m. to-night, and a 

 little after half-past 10 by the 5th pros., but, of course, he does 

 not attain sufficient altitude to be favourably seen during the 

 working hours of the ordinary amateur's night. On the night of 

 the 29th an eclipse of his third satellite may possibly be seen at 

 llh. 46m. 28s., a similar phenomenon occurring with his second 

 satellite on December Ist, at 12h. 4-lm. 8s. p.m. Satellite I. will 

 pass off his disc at llh. 15m. p.m. on December 4th, but he will be 

 very low down. Saturn continues visible practically all night long. 

 He is travelling away to the westward, to the north of ? Tauri. 

 He is a glorious object in the telescope. Uranus is invisible, 

 but Neptune is above the horizon all night long, and may be found 

 from directions previously given in these columns. The Moon 

 enters her first quarter at lOh. 15'9m. p.m. on November 25, and 

 is full on December 2nd, at 6h. 59'7m. in the evening. There will 

 be high tides about this date. FoiU' oecultations of stars will 

 occur at convenient times during the next fortnight. On the 25th, 



6 Aquarii, a star of the 4i mag., will disappear at the Moon's dark 

 limb at 5h. 39m. p.m., at an angle from her vertex of 135°, reap- 

 pearing at her bright limb at 6h. 52m. p.m. at a vertical angle of 

 281*. On the 27th, a 6J mag. star, b.a.c. 8311, will disappear at 

 the dark limb at 4h. 19m. at a vertical angle of 104°, to reappear 

 at the bright limb of the Moon at 5h. 25m. p.m., at an angle of 

 252' from her vertex. On the 30th, 38 Arietis, a star of the 5th 

 mag., will disappear at the dark limb at 6h. 35m. p.m., at 

 an angle of 40° from the vertex of the Moon. It will 

 reappear at the bright limb at a vertical angle of 293° at 

 7h. 29m. p.m. Lastly, on December 3rd, b..\.c. 1930, of the 

 6i mag. will disappear at the bright limb at lOh. 20m. at a 

 vertical angle of 355°, reappearing at the dark limb at 10.51 p.m. 

 at an angle from the vertex of the Moon of 305°. The Moon is in 

 Sagittarius to-day and to-morrow, quitting it for Capricomus at 

 2 a.m. on the 23rd. At one o'clock that night she crosses into 

 Aquarius, through which she is travelling until 9 p.m. on the 26th. 

 She then enters Pisces, her journey through which large constella- 

 tion it takes her until 10 p.m. until the 29th to accomplish. At 

 this hour she passes into Aries. She quits Aries for Taurus at 

 noon on Dec. 1, and that in turn for the northern part of Orion at 



7 p.m. on the 3rd. It takes her until G.30 the next morning to 

 traverse this and emerge in Gemini. She crosses the boundary 

 between Gemini and Cancer at G p.m. on Dee. 5, and we there leave 

 her. [The above was inadvertently omitted from our last issue.] 



" Let Knowledge grow from more to more." — Alfsed Tenkvsob. 



Only a tmall proportion of Letters received can possiily be in- 

 terted. Correspondents mvst not le offended, therefore, should their 

 letters not appear. 



All Editorial eommunicalione should be addressed to the Editor Of 

 Knowledge; all Business commvnications to the Publishers, at tht 

 Office, 74, Great Queen-street, W.C. Ip THIS 18 KOT ATTENDED TO 

 delays arise fob which the Editor is not responsible. 



All Remittances, Cheques, and Post Ofice Orders should be made 

 payable to Messes. Wyman & Sons. 



The Editor is not responsible for the opinions of correspondents. 



No communications are answered by post, even though biakpkd 

 AND directed envelope be enclosed. 



DOCTORING WINE. 



[1515] — I see that Mr. Mattieu Williams, at page 331 of Know- 

 ledge, revives the old cry alxiut the dangerous properties of the 

 gypsum frequently used in the preparation of wine. 



I think that the correctness of his chemical theory and opinion 

 on this point is very doubtful. In the first place, sulpliate of lime 

 is very slightly soluble in water, and so is bi-tartrute of potash ; 

 and it is contrary to the usual theory of chemical combination to 

 suppose that the constituents of these two salts would separate and 

 re-combine as sulphate of potash, which is more soluble than either, 

 unless the tartrate of lime which must be formed were absolutely 

 insoluble and at once precipitated. 



If this were the result of mixing sulphate of lime and bi-tartrate 

 of potash in wine, the same result would ensue if bi-tartrate of 

 potash were added to hard water, which contains salts of lime, and 

 the water would be clouded and softened, which is not the case. 



Again, as to the chemical effect in the body, would Mr. M. 

 Williams explain on what authority he asserts that sulphate of 

 potash or sulphuric acid is a precipitant of lithic acid ? The analysis 

 given in Miller's " Chemistry " shows that they exist together in 

 solution. If it did precipitate uric acid, the sulphate of lime in 

 hard water and the sulphate of soda in Carlsbad water would 

 have the same effect. 



It seems to be a dangerous doctrine to say port is less productive 

 of gout than a dry sherry, because the latter may contain a trace 

 of gypsum, and I think the opinion of Dr. H. Dobell, in "Diet 

 and Eegimen," and that expressed in " From Vineyard to 

 Decanter," by Don Pedro Verdad, as to its harmlessness, is more 

 reliable. Gypsum. 



IS GYPSUM IN BEEE INJURIOUS ? 



[151Gj — At the recent Brewers' Exhibition, large quantities of 

 prepared gypsum, warranted " to dissolve freely in water," were 

 exposed for sale. It seems that brewers cannot make good beer 

 except with hard water, and that the hardness produced by gypsunx 

 is preferable to that produced by chalk. Possibly this addition is 

 not so injurious in beer as in wine, but I think we should all like 

 to hear Mr. W. Mattieu Williams's opinion on the subject. 



John J. Scaegill. 



PREVISION IN A DREAM. 



[1517] — JIany years ago I had just joined the East India College, 

 Haileybury, in the winter term, and, the morning after my arrival, 

 was seated at breakfast with a friend — another freshman. I told 

 him I had had one of my curious dreams the previous night, and I 

 said; "I know there must be a cricket pavilion here with a 

 verandah round it, for I dreamed that you and I were sitting in the 

 verandah watching a match. Two men were standing in front of 

 us talking; one of them was tall and dark, and the other was short, 

 with red, curly hair. The former said so-and-so to the latter, and 

 addressed him aa ' Stumpvrich.' Was not that a queer name ? The 

 actual name was not this, but it was one quite as odd and unmean- 

 ing." Next day we were again in my room when I saw a man 

 crossing the quad, and I pointed him out to my friend, saying : 

 " That is the man who was called ' Stumpwich ' ; let us find out if 



