628 



NATURE 



[October 24, 1895 



solution containing but one part in 1500 to 2000 parts of soap- 

 water proves destructive to all common injurious parasites with- 

 out any deleterious action on the plants. Prof. Aubry, the 

 well-known director of the experimental brewing station in 

 Munich, has e.xamined its disinfectant action on yeast, and finds 

 that the latter, when treated with antinonnin, remained for a 

 long time in a fresh condition in the heated workrooms, whilst 

 untreated yeast rapidly underwent decomposition. A closer 

 examination showed that all the sjiecimens exhibited destruction 

 of bacteria, while the yeast itself proved resistant to even 

 stronger solutions, up to 5 per cent. Numerous other experi- 

 ments have been made with this substance, and so far it promises 

 well, being also odourless and ver)' inexpensive. Whether this 

 new antiseptic will succeed in carrjing out all that is hoi>ed of 

 it, remains to be (seen ; meanwhile it may be regarded as an 

 interesting, and possibly important, contribution to our list of 

 disinfectants. 



Messrs. Mac.mii.lan and Co. will issue in the course of 

 November a further instalment of their " Cambridge Natural 

 History." The volume is mainly devoted to insects, Iwing the 

 first part of a complete treatise on the subject by Mr. David 

 .Sharp, F.R.S. Introductor)' sections on Peripatus and on 

 Myriapods are contributed respectively by Mr. .\dani Sedgwick, 

 F.R.S., and by Mr. F. tJ. Sinclair. The volume is the fifth in 

 the series, and will be followed at no long interval by the second 

 volume, in which various contributors deal with worms and 

 Polyzoa. The ninth volume, in which Mr. .V H. Kvans treats 

 of birds, may l)e expected before the end of next year. 

 Among .Messrs. .Macmillan's announcements for next week, one 

 of the most important is that of an exhaustive work on " The 

 Structure and Development of the Mosses and Ferns " (Arche- 

 goniata;), by Dr. D. II. Campbell. 



Within the past few days, a bulky bundle of new publications 

 of the U.S. Geological Survey has been added to the many 

 reports and memoirs of the Survey already lying on our table. 

 The amount of work represented by these volumes is so exceed- 

 ingly great, that limits of space prevent us from attempting to de- 

 scribe and discuss the ground covered in them. We propose, 

 however, to give in an early issue a general account of the recent 

 publications of the Survey, and content ourselves at present with 

 the bare statement of the volumes received during this month. 

 First of all, we have to acknowledge the receipt of the fourteeenth 

 annual Report of the Surrey, in two parts. Part I contains the 

 report of Mr. J. W. Powell, the Director, on the operations of 

 Ihe Survey for the year ending June 30, 1893, and part 2 (a 

 volume of six hundred pages) contains |ia|x:rs on geological sub- 

 jects, among which wc notice — the potable waters of Eastern 

 United States ; the natural mineral waters of the United 

 .Stales ; measurements of river discharges ; Ihe laccolilic 

 mountain groups of Colorado, Utah, and Arizona ; the gold- 

 silver veins of Ophir, California ; geology of the Caloctin Hell ; 

 tertiary revolution in the topography of ihe Pacific Coast ; the 

 rocks of the Sierra Nevada ; prc-Cambrian igneous rocks of the 

 Unkar Terrane, Grand Cailon of the Colomdo. Two mono- 

 graphs of the U.S. Geological .Survey have Iwen received, viz. 

 vols, xxiii. and xxiv. The former deals with the " Geology of 

 the Green Mountains in Massachusetts," by .Messrs. K. Pum|)elly, 

 J. K. Wolff, and T. Nelson Dale ; and the latter contains Prof. R. 

 P. Whitfield's text and drawings of ihc Mollusca and Crustacea 

 of Ihc .Mirxiene formations of New Jersey. Holh these valuable 

 mr.nograph.H arc profusely illustrated. Finally, liullelins Nos. 

 11^-122 of Ihe Survey have come to hand. No. ll8isageo- 

 '^' ionar)' of New Jersey. The next liiilUtiii contains 



' geological reconnais.<>ancc in North-west Wyoming, 

 r<fercncc to economic resources ; No. 120 is on the 

 , icm of ICasicm Pennsylvania and New York. No. 

 NO. 1356, VOL. 52] 



121 is a bibliography of North American palseontolog)' for the 

 years iSSS-92, inclusive ; and No. 122 contains the results of the 

 primary iriangulation executed by the -Survey during the past 

 twelve years — that is, since the commencement of work ujwn the 

 topographic atl;\s of the United States. In conclusion, we wish 

 only to remark that the gratitude of geologists i.s due to the 

 United Slates Government for providing ihe funds to publish so 

 many works, not only of national 'but also of international im- 

 portance. 



The current number of the lournal de PAysiifiie contains a 

 paper by M.\I. Abraham and Lemoine on the measurement of 

 very high potentials by means of a modified attracted disc 

 electrometer. Two forms of instrument are descrilied, the one 

 for standard measurements, and the other, which is of simple 

 design, intended for measuring potentials up to 100,000 volts 

 to within about one per cent. In the standard instrument, 

 which resembles a modified Kelvin electrometer as designed by 

 M. Bailie, the movable disc is suspended from the beam of a 

 short-beam balance, the extent of the movement being limited 

 by stops. In order, when desired, to make the movement of the 

 balance beam stable, an auxiliary knife-edge is placed below the 

 chief knife-edge of the beam, and weights are placed in a pan 

 susiiended from this auxiliary knife-edge. The attracted disc is 

 maintained cenlr.iUy within the guard-ring by means of three 

 fine fibres. The simplified form of electrometer is, however, 

 the one which exhibits most novelty. In this instrument the 

 attracted disc is carried by a rod altaclied lo one arm of a 

 Roberval's balance. The movements of the balance, which is 

 limited by stops, is noted by means of a long jiointer attached 

 to one of the horizontal Ijars of the moving parts. Finally, 

 the adjustments of the guard-ring and attracted disc are not 

 made by means of a complicated system of adjusting screws, 

 but by the simple bending of their supports. These supjwrts 

 are made of soft copper wire, and, in Ihe case of the guard-ring, 

 have an S shape. This manner of allowing for the adjustment of 

 the parts of a piece of apparatus is one which will very often 

 be found of use, and we may mention that lead wire is \i&x- 

 licularly well suited for the purpose. The .authors have made 

 a series of experiments to lest what is tlie maximum dislance 

 between the attracled and attracting discs it is allowable to use, 

 and find that the greatest distance to be equal to half Ihe width 

 of the guard-ring. In making their measurements, the authors 

 have used a novel method of obtaining a high potential which 

 should remain steady for some minules. Their arrangenienl 

 consists of an electrostatic electric machine driven at a imilorn) 

 speed by a small motor. The jwles of the machine are joineil 

 to two points, between which a conlinuous stream of sparks 

 passes. One of these points is connected to earth, and the other 

 by means of a poor conductor, such as cotton soaked in 

 |)araffin oil, to the inner coaling of a Lcydcn jar. Under these 

 circumstances it is found that ihe potential of Ihe interior coal- 

 ing of ihc jar is very constant. Thus in a series of measure- 

 ments recorded by the authors, the maximum change in six 

 minules amounled lo only I [xirl in 1000, the [lolenlial being 

 alraut 20,000 volts. 



Thb additions to the Zoological Society's Gardens during 

 Ihe past week include a Mozambique Monkey (Cc/ro/*///;r(//r 

 fygtryt/iriis,')) from F.asl .\frica, a Smith's Dwarf Lemur 

 {Microtehin smil/ii) from Madag.ascar, presented by Mr. E. 

 Dyer ; a Rhesus Mf)nkcy {Afacticiis rliesiis, 9 ) from India, 

 presented by Mrs. Vernon Biden ; a Polar Bear {C/rsiis 

 maritimiis, S) from .Spilzbergcn, presented by Mr. Arnold 

 Pike ; two .Masked Parrakcets (Pyrrhiilopsis personala) from Ihc 

 Fiji Islands, a Blue and N'ellow Macaw (Ara araraiina) from 

 South America, a Peregrine Falcon {Falco pcrcgrinin, var. 

 .■Iiialiim) from North .\merica, a Night Heron (Aydhorax 



