May 17, 1^94] 



NA TURE 



the present tree in 1875 certifies : — " This tree, under the i 

 blessing of Almighty G id, had the honour of sheltering from 

 his foes King Charles II." But, it is pointed out, Mr. R. F. 



[ Collins (Trans. North Slaffordihin Field Club, 1890) has 

 shown that this tree, being only eleven feet ten inches in girlh, 

 <,ould not have been the polhrJ oak of nearly two and a half 

 centuries ago, and that a previous inscription in 1817 testified 



; that " the present tree sprung, it is said, from the above tree " 



I (meaning the Royal tree). Previous inscriptions were also 

 referred to, from which it seems that the original tree dis- 

 appeared soon after 17S7. Indeed, Dr. Stukely recorded that in 

 1713 "the tree was in the middle almost cut away by people 



i who caine to see it." As to historic hawthorns, one is credited 

 with having witnessed the death of Lord Maxwell at the Battle 

 of Dryfe S.inds, and several hive been associated with Mary 

 Oueen of Scots ; but Dr. Christison remarks that it is scarcely 

 possible that any hawthorn could exist for three hundred years, 

 as the species rarely exceeds a very moderate size, and his 

 observations show that it grows at a fair average rale. 



Mr. Thomas Carroll's general report on the Irish Agri- 

 cultural Department during 1892, published a few weeks ago, 

 contains the results of experiments carried out under his direc- 

 tion, having for their object (i) the determination of the mode 

 by which the disease F/iytop/ithora iiifcs'ans reaches the tubers 

 of the potato plant, and (2) the examination of measures for 

 the prevention of, or for the lessening the effects of, the disease 



I upon the crop. The point upon which information was especially 

 desired was, whether the disease producing Mycelium reached the 



I tubers of the potato plant through the aerial and underground 



I stems, or by means of the disease-producing spores falling upon 

 the ground, and being carried through it to the surface of the 

 tubers. To test this, a portion of ground upon which potatoes 

 were growing was covered beneath the potato stems and leaves 

 with a layer of cotton wool. This cottonwool was carefully 

 placed around the stems, and every means used to have the 

 ground perfectly covered with it, with the view of filtering out 

 the spores that might fall upon the ground. No diseased 

 potatoes were found on plants protected in this manner, whereas 

 many oc>.urred on plants grown in ground not covered with 

 cotton wool. These experiments, which were very caref'illy 

 carried out, serve to indicate that the disease is carried to the 

 tubers of the potato plant through the spores which cause 

 the disease being taken through the earth to the tuber, and 

 not by means of the Mycelium finding its way to the tul ers 

 through the stem of the plant. An experiment, having for its 

 object the testing of the efl'ect of removing the stalks of potatoes 

 upon the appearance of disease, with the view of preventing the 

 tubers from being affected, was carried out at the H illacutrania 

 School Farm, County Sligo. This system of removing the 

 potato haulin upon the appearance of the disease has frequently 

 been recommended as a preventive. To test it, two plots of 

 groun<l hearing a crop of potatoes were marked out for experi- 

 ment. On one the stalks were removed ; on the other they 

 were allowed to remain. A comparison of the weights of the 

 crops in each case, and the amounts of diseased tubers, shows, 

 however, that through the removal of the potato haulm, before 

 *he crop was matured, the yield of crop was lessened without 

 comtnensurate benefit in freedom from disease. 



Mr. George S. Perrix has sent us a paper on " Australian 

 Timbers," read before the Royal Victorian Institute of -Vrchitects 

 in September 1893, and having spacial reference to the orna- 

 mental and decorative woods of Australia. 



BiilUliiis Nos. 48, 49, and 50 have been sent out fiom the 

 Purdue University Agricultural Experiment Station. They 

 contain the results of experiments with small fruits ; a history 

 of the attempts that have been made to establish the sugar-beet 



NO. 128 I, VOL. 50] 



in America, with a statement of the conditions required for its 

 successful cultivation ; and the resultsof some field experiments, 

 by Prof. W. C. Latta, with Indian corn and oats. The 

 Bulletins are sent free to all agriculturists in Indiana who 

 desire them, and their contents are found invaluable. 



On April 18 the Geological Survey of Alabama attained its 

 majority — twenty-one years— under the present management. 

 It has been thought desirable to mark this occasion by some sort 

 of permanent memorial, and to this end maps are in course of 

 preparation showing the condition of knowledge of the geology 

 of the Slate at the beginning and at the end of the period 187 ;- 

 1894, and columns showing the relative amounts of raw materials 

 and of finished products from Alabama mineral resources at the 

 same times, are also in preparation. In the line of this design 

 a sketch has been prepared by Mr. E. A. Smith, showing the 

 origin and progress of the survey, the difficulties under which 

 it has laboured, what it has accomplished, what it has cost, and 

 what it yet hopes to accomplish. 



A LIST of apparatus for the psychological laboratory designed 

 by Prof. J. Jastrow, and made by the Garden City Model Works, 

 Chicago, has been received. It comprises descriptions of 

 testhesiometers, for determining the distance upon the skin at 

 which two points are just perceived as two ; pressure attach- 

 ments, for testing the pressure sense of the skin ; appara'us for 

 the sense of roughness and smoothness ; apparatus for all kinds 

 of reaction experiments ; an arrangement for testing the ap- 

 preciativeness of changes of temperature ; others for recording 

 involuntary movements ; and for testing memory. The character 

 of some of the apparatus shows that experimental psychology and 

 physiology overlap to a large extent. Indeed, it is often difficult 

 to define the limits of psychological and physiological research. 

 Like many other branches of science, these two merge into one 

 another, and their peculiar provinces of investigation are com- 

 paratively small. 



The fourth volume of the Proceedings of the Chester Society of 

 Natural Science and Literature, which has just been published, 

 contains a number of very interesting articles by several well- 

 known men of science. It is a matter fjr regret that the pub- 

 lication of some of the papers has been so long delayed. For 

 instance, we note that a paper by Prof. T. McKenny Hughes, 

 F.R. S., on the Silurian Rocks of North Wales, was read before 

 the Society in January 1SS6, and another, on caves and cave 

 deposits, in October of the same year. Mr. A. O. Walker 

 contributes to the volume some notes on the natural history of 

 the Chester district, from 1879 to 1893, a paper on the climate 

 of Chester, and one on that of the North Coast of Wales. The 

 Heron, and Heronries of Cheshire and North Wales, forms the 

 subject of a contribution by Mr. R. Newstead, who also gives 

 a preliminaiy list of the mammals of the same district. Another 

 important list gives the results of observations on the 

 occurrence and distribution of birds in different parts of 

 West Cheshire, Denbighshire, and Flintshire. This list 

 was drawn up by Mr. W. H. Dobie, and is accompanied 

 by a map. From this brief description it will be seen that the 

 Chester Society of Nalutal Science is doing something to 

 promote the study of natural knowledge. We are glad to 

 learn that the Society is in a very fljurishing condition, the 

 number of members being at present over six hundred. 



The Society for the Protection of Birds have added to their 

 list of publications a pamphlet by Mr. W. II. Hudson, entitled 

 "Lost British Birds." The species described as lost by Mr. 

 Hudson are those of which the British race is extinct, or very 

 neatly so. The list includes the Crane, White Spoonbill, 

 Capercailzie, Avocet, Great Bustard, Blacktailed Golwit, Great 

 Auk, Red Night reelcr, Bittern, Marsh Harrier, Ruff and 



