6o6 



NA TURE 



[October 17, 1895 



Mr. A. S. Keid, represenling Section C, stated that Mr. 

 Osmund leflTs had consented to retain the |iost of secretan- to the 

 (ioolc^cal Photographs Committee for another year, as Sir. \V. 

 W . Watts had agreed to act as co-secretary during that time, 

 and afterwards to become sole secretary. The Krratic Blocks 

 Conimitlee had altered its title .*;o as to include Scotland. 



Mr. Murdoch hoped that the Karlh Tremors Committee might 

 include Scotland in its sphere of action. It was then a purely 

 Knglish Committee. 



Mr. .M. B. Slater thought that an exchange of local geological 

 photographs among the various Corre<p<indi ng .Societies would 

 bt a good thing. Some discussion then took place on the 

 practical difficulties likely to arise from an interchange, such 

 as the burden likely to be laid upon the shoulders of the 

 amateur photographer. \c. Mr. I lopkinson thought that copies 

 should l>c obtainable at the Jermyn-slreet Museum at a small 

 fixed charge, and Mr. Keitl utentioneii a plan suggested b\' 

 Mr. C'iray of Belfast. .\l that town a photographer had been 

 apixiinted who received the negatives taken by various members 

 of the local societies, and furnished as many copies as were 

 required at a small fixed charge. 



Sc't/itm E. 

 Mr. .Sowerbutts saiil that the Committee of Section K ha<l 

 asked the Council of the British .Association to (lermil them to 

 have a Committee for the purjiose of making an inquiry into the 

 condition of the leaching of geography in (Ireal Britain in all 

 schools, es|)ecially secondary schools, ami to rejKirt next year. 

 It wasprolable that the CorresixHuling Societies might l>e asked 

 to furnish certain information, and he lioiied their secretaries 

 would reply as promptly as (Mssible. 



The Rev. (. O. Bevan thought thai the statements ma<le in 

 the rejwrt of the Conference of Delegates at Xollingham, that in 

 some county, unnamcil, "children attending schools were not 

 taught geography in any way," and that geography was absolutely 

 ignored in .secondary schoi>ls, were decidedly erroneous, though 

 in .some primary schools it was not taught except in connection 

 with reading. The Royal ( icographical Society had instituted 

 examinations in geography in secondary schot>ls, and gave gold 

 medals and other prizes. 



Section H. 

 Mr. Hartland .said that he w.is there owing to the very sad 

 liercavement su.stained recently by Mr. Brabrook, the Chairman 

 of the Ethnographical Survey Committee, who was consequently 

 unable to attend. The I'.lhnographical Survey was a matter in 

 which the CorresiKtnding Societies were especially ca|xible of 

 rendering valuable assistance. They had hitherto, however, met 

 with but little res|x>nse from the local societies. The work h.id 

 so many branches that .some of them could scarcely fail to 

 interest their more active members. If the Committee obtained 

 the grant for which they asked, they projxxsed to begin work in 

 ( ialuay, and he ho|X!d to report jirogress at the next meeting, 

 lie woidd lie glad if meanwhile the Corresixmding Societies 

 would circulate their schedules, and bring the .Survey under the 

 notice of their meml)ers. 



Mr. M. B. Slater mentioneil the work done in the neighbour- 

 hiKxl of Malt'in by a subcommittee, of which Dr. Colby was 

 chairman: and S\x. Hartland remarked that the Malton 

 Naturalists' Srciely was one of those which had res|«jn<lcd to 

 their circular. 



The Chairman noted the great variety of the work of the 

 I- thn'pgraphical Survey, which included questions of physical 

 rh;iracteristics, f<ilk-lore, linguistic difl'erences, ijlace-names, 

 itadiiions, »\:c. .Satisfactory work had ix-en (lone around 

 I|>swich. 



Mr. Hartland wished also to mention the preservation of 

 >r,ri.-ni monuments. He had just received a letter from the 

 > f i.iiy of a local committee in Pembrokeshire, mentioning the 

 !■ ■ I.I iliscoveiy there of some ancient stones and some pit 

 ''\\<-lltngs. 



Mr. I lopkinson thought that the measurements asked for were 

 very elalx>rale, ami the <|uestions were considered in(|uisitorial. 

 He wa.« sure that a simpler system would lie found to answer 

 lietier in practice, as ihcn more societies or jxirsons would l)c 

 f'Hinrl willmg to imderlake the work. 



^'' I' ■■'I ' 1 . . ,| ||,[,i incmliers who objected to Ihc 



would lake up the subjects of dialect, 



' monument'. Though they hoiwd to lie 



alile to obtain the clalximle measurements in M>mc cases, they 



NO. 1355, VOL. 52] 



were glad to get such measurement as cuuM l>e procured. 

 They did not consider their standard .as of universal obligation. 



The Chairman wished to say a few words about another 

 Committee, that concerned with the measurement of school 

 children. Many schools had been iloing good work in this way, 

 but unfortimately there had been no uniform system, so that itie 

 results obtained at one school could not be comjiared w ilh those 

 at another. The Committee had drawn ui> a system which he 

 ho|)eil would prove acceptable lo tlie various schools. 



I)r. Brett (Hertfordshire) said that since the Vork meeting of 

 the British .Vssociation, fifteen years ago. it had been his cuslon> 

 as a medical man to record the height, weight, colour of hair and 

 eyes, iV;c.. of children. He had up to that time made alwut 

 three thous;>nd observations, but had not yet been able to put 

 his records into shape. 



The Rev. J. (). Bevan spoke of the desirability of expediting 

 the archxological survey of the kingdom, which had been begiui 

 a few years ago. He was then at work at the map of Hereford 

 shire, which was nearly re.idy for publication. He was surprised 

 that the work had not been taken up more enei^etically b\ 

 properly qualified persons in the diflerent districts. 



THE AFI-'II.IATED SOCIETIES OF 17/ E 

 A ME RICA .V A SSOCIA TIOX. 



A I'K.VTCRK of the meetings of the .\mejican . Vssociation 

 ■^ for the .\'lvancenient of Science is the numlier of affiliated 

 sixrieties which meet at nearly the same time and ])lace, though 

 having no organic connection with it. One disadvanliige of 

 this is that the Sections of the .Association do not get many of 

 the important papers read before the atVdialed societies : in fact. 

 these societies seem almost to take the place of the Sections, and 

 they certainly ten<l to put the .Vssociation in a secondary [xisi- 

 tion. .\s a targe number of the jxipers w ere more of local than of 

 general interest, we confine ourselves to a brief statement of the 

 societies which met at .Springfield iluring the recent meeting ol 

 the -American .Association, and of a few of the subjects con- 

 sidered. 



The Society for the Promotion of .Agricultural Science dis- 

 cussed several papers on spraying as a prevention of the 

 attacks of various insect pests and fimgi, and also on cereal 

 culture in the United Stales. .At the enti of the proceedings, 

 .Mr. R. I.azenby was elected President of the Society. 



The attention of the .\ssociation of l\c<inomic KnloniologisK 

 was largely directed to the results of experimenting with in- 

 secticides, and the methods of placing the knowledge Ixffore all 

 agriculturists. .A resolution was passed asking the Mas.sa- 

 chusetts authorities to support the work of ihe (iipsy Moth Com- 

 mission. Another resolution was adopted asking that the pub- 

 lication of " Insect Life" by Ihe Department of .Agriculture be 

 resumed. The officers for the ensuing year are : President, 

 Prof. C. H. Fernald : first vice-president. Prof. K. M. Webster; 

 second. Prof. Herbert O. .Ames; .secretary. C. L. Marian. 



The session of the .American Koreslry .\ssocialion was a very 

 succe.s.sful <me. In the course of a short comnumication. Baron 

 Herman pointed out that Ciermany has comparatively Ihe 

 most forests in well-regulated administration of all Ihe countries 

 of ihe world ; that is, one-fourth of its Whole area is covered 

 with ihem (all under long and careful management). There is 

 scarcely one tree in the whole of the fatherland which is nol 

 known |x'rsonally lo a forest officer, and which has not Ix'eu 

 sown or planted with more or less great care and labour. The 

 whole area of wooded land is almo.st equally divided between 

 State, coinmunily, and |>rivate per.sous. .\nd it is thought thai 

 this is a very good state of affairs, the commonweallh being in 

 that way well inleresled in its parts as well as in the whole, in 

 the affairs connected with the forest growth. This of course 

 influences legiskilion, and although laws concerning the foresN 

 are not passed in the Reichst.ig, but in the Parliaments of 

 the individual Stales, there is scarcely a part of (lermany 

 where one is allowe<l to cut down a forest, and nol ])lant it 

 again, without the permission of the Department of Koreslry. 

 The forests are managed by hundreds of forest oflicers, and 

 these are educated al special colleges for forestry, there being 

 no less than eleven in (iermany. The theoretical study at these 

 colleges lasts generally four years, not counting the lime a young 

 man has to spend in learning practical work in llie wtxuls. Thi'- 

 comparatively long time a man wants, for his training show^ 

 how very nuich the science of forestry has Ix'eo developed iu 



