October 24, 1895] 



A^^l TURE 



63: 



with some second-class hotel accommodation. This place was 

 used as an ohsening station in 1769 by the Austrian Hell for the 

 transit of Venus; and, being less than twelve miles directly 

 north of the central line of shadow, might he advantageously 

 occupied. It forms the most easterly station ; being in longitude 

 31° 8', and latitude about 70' 22', it would have a duration of 

 totality of over im. 31s., and the sun's altitude will be about 14^°. 

 It is easily accessible, no high ground obstructs the view, and 

 |)rovisions and lalwur are to be had. Passing south down a 

 <lroary coast of quartzite rocks and Silurian slates, we come to 

 Kilberg, about ten miles south, and two miles inland. There is 

 a hill about 500 feet high, but although this would be only five 

 or six miles north of the central line, it is not in other respects 

 a desirable station. Steaming south-south-west we |)ass 

 Store Ekkero, a promontory some twenty-five or thirty miles 

 west of Vadso, which appears to have all the attributes ol a good 

 station, provided accommodation can be arranged ff)r : the 

 central line of totality passes over the southern point, and there 

 is a free view to the south-south-east and east-north-east, the 

 sun's azimuth at the local time of l8h. being 97° south towards 

 east, and the duration of totality a maximum — viz. over im. 41s., 

 the sun's altitude about 14!°. Passing on to Vadso, the town of the 

 Kinmarken district, there are .several hills, two or three hundred 

 feet, easily accessible, and in all respects suitable for observing 

 stations within three or four miles ; indeed, Vadsii should be 

 looked upon as the headquarters of an East Norway expedition. 

 The local time of totality here would be I7h. 57ni. 46s. , and 

 duration about Im. 35s. .\11 the aforementioned places are in 

 telegraphic comnumication with most parts of Norway darmg the 

 fishing season, and no doubt arrangements could be made for 

 keeping the offices open as late as .\ugust 8. The temperature 

 at Vadso is remarkably high, probably between 50° and 60' 

 K. in August, and there is every chance of fine weather at that 

 time. 



Crossing the Varanger Fjord we come to Bugo, a Lapp fish- 

 ing station, and within a mile and a half of the central line ; the 

 longitude is about 29° 50', and latitude 69° 58'. There the dura- 

 tion would be about im. 40s., with nothing to obstruct the 

 view ; frequent communication could be had with \'adso at 

 certain limes of the day ; heliograph signals might be trans- 

 mitted : there are several sites hereabouts, but one in particular 

 desirable. The Bugbnxsfjeld I will leave to iho.se who like to 

 he in the clouds I So little is known of it thai every map shows 

 il in a dilTercnt position ; but if intrepid mountaineers are fond 

 of carrying half-hundred-weights up mountains, there is no 

 reason why they .should not have the satisfacliim they desire, but 

 Ihey will find no one to do it for them. 



In order to distribute the parties and multiply the chances of 

 success, one party might proceed from V'adso to Seida, on the 

 Tana River. This station is a good one for all points except the 

 length t)f totality, which is only about Im. 12s., and has the sun 

 at an altitude of about I3i°. Polmak, some twelve miles due 

 siiuth (reached by poling up the river), is not .so easily got at, 

 but a.slronomically better situated, and south-east of it, about 

 five miles, is a mountain over 1000 feet high. .-Mjout forty or 

 fifty miles further up this river, in a south-west direction, is 

 Utsjoki, a place also that might be advantageously occupied in 

 the Russian Lapland. The duration of totality there would be 

 about ini. 26s., and the sun's altitude about 13^ ; both al* 

 Polmak and Utsjoki camp etpiipage would have to be taken. 

 Poth are in telegraphic comnumication with \'adso and \*agge, 

 the latter place being at the mouth of the Tana Fjord. lsara.sjok 

 is astrontjmically a gootl place, within four miles of central line, 

 the sun's altitude being about 12^° and duration of totality over 

 lAm. Much, of course, will ilepend on the number of observers 

 il is proposed to send out, their powers of endurance, and know- 

 ledge of Lappish, Russian, and Norwegian for the east coast 

 expeditions (except at \'ardo). 



To the information which Colonel Burton-Brown has brought 

 together, «e may a<ld that the Orient Steam Navigation Coni- 

 ]iany propose to send one of their large steamships to Vadso, for 

 the purpose of enabling observations to be made of the eclipse. 

 The steamer will leave London on July 21, and, after calling at 

 fJdde, Hergen, Naes, Molde, Trondhjem, Ilammerfe.st, and 

 North Cape, will arrive at Vadso on August 3. It will leave a 

 week later, ami will arrive in London on .-Vugust 17. U'ull par- 

 ticidats of this journey will be found in our ailvertisement 

 columns.) 



We are informed by Messrs. Cook and Son that the Bergenske 



NO. 1356, VOL. 52] 



Steamship Company have consented, subject to certain con- 

 ditions, to send one of their best steamers from Bergen and 

 Trondhjem to Vardo an<l back, for the purpo.se of enabling 

 persons interested in astr<jnomy to view the eclipse. Ii is pro- 

 posed that the steamer shall leave Bergen on July 31, calling at 

 Trondhjem two days later, reaching Vardo on August 8, and 

 remaining until 4 p.m. on August 9, returning to Trondhjem 

 August 13. and Bergen August 15. The steamer will call at all 

 the usual places visited by the tourist steamers between Bergen 

 and the North Cape. 



UNIVERSITY AND EDUCATIONAL 

 INTELLIGENCE. 



C.\mbkiI)(;e. — Mr. Herman, of Trinity College, is apptinted 

 Chairman of the Examiners for the Mathematical Tripos. 



The University Lecturer in Geography (Mr. H. Vule Old- 

 ham) announces a course of lectures on the Elements of Physical 

 Geography during the present term. The Royal Geographical 

 Society's Studentship of ;^loo will be awarded at Easter. 

 Candidates must be members of the University who have 

 attended the courses of the University Lectures. 



The Council of the Senate recommend that the University of 

 .\llahabad be adopted as an affiliated University on terms corre- 

 sponding to those in force for the University of Calcutta. 



The report of the Syndicate on the Higher Local Examina- 

 tions shows that good results have been attained in the scientific 

 subjects. The new laboratory examination appears to work 

 well, and has had a wholesome effect on the candidates' 

 training. 



Mr. W. C. D. Whetham and Mr. J. \V. Capstick have been 

 recognised as Teachers of Physics, and Mr. R. H. .\die as a 

 Teacher of Chemistry, for medical degrees. 



Among the freshmen who have matrictdated this term, there 

 are over 150 students of medicine. 



Slowly, but surely, the system of -paying teachers of ele- 

 mentar)' science according to the examinational successes earned 

 by their students — in other words, according t<i their ability' to 

 cram young students with a large assortment of scientific facts, 

 dogmatically staled and imperfectly understood — is giving way 

 to one more calculated to create and foster a desire for natural 

 knowledge. Within the past few days a Minute has been issued 

 to schools under the Department of Science and Art, stating 

 that the Lords of the Committee of Council on Education have 

 decided to try the experiment of making grants for instruction 

 in science and art depend partly upon the attendance of the 

 student and partly on ])ayments on results as tested by examina- 

 tion. The Committees of Science and .Art Schools and Classes 

 which have been in the receipt of grants from the Department 

 for two consecutive years, or which are conducted by a local 

 authority under the Technical Instructicm .Act 1889, or the 

 Technical Schools (Scotland) Act 1887, will be allowed to elect 

 to receive their grants on the scheme under which the payments 

 on results will be one-half those on the present scale, while 

 attendance grants will take the place of the other half, provided 

 that the Inspector of the Department reports that the teaching and 

 equipment of the school are thoroughly satisfactory, and that the 

 class or classes are not too large for instruction by the staflof 

 teachers. The attendance grant will be \J. for each attendance of 

 at least an hour's duration in a day science class, and 2d. in a night 

 science class, and of 31/. for each attendance of one and a half 

 hours' duration given to practical work in chemistry, physics, 

 metallurgy, or biology, in a properly equipped laboratory. 

 .Applications to receive grants under the new .Minute must be 

 received before December I, 1896, and in subsequent years 

 before November I. But the sanction to be so treated may be 

 wiihdrawn at any lime should it appear from the results of the 

 examination in May, or from the reports of the Inspectt>rs, that 

 the instruction is not efficient ; and no school can receive grants 

 partly under the new Minute and partly under the ordinary scale 

 of payments on results. Organised science schools are exempted 

 from these attendance grants ; nor can the grants be claimed on 

 behalf of students who are on the register of an elementary school. 

 The principle of recognising attendance at cla.sses as one of 

 the tests of the efficiency of a school has common sense at the 

 back of it, and it should do something to reduce the baneful 

 influence of the examination fiend upon elementary scientific 

 education. 



