July 19, 1894J 



NATURE 



269 



his original intention of merely writing lecture-notes for his 

 class, there would have been some force in his excuse ; but 

 when he sends forth his work as " a textbook, with the hope 

 that it may find a wider field," he cuts the ground from under 

 his feet. He must recollect that the majority of his reaiiers will 

 never have the opportunity of seeing his lecture diagrams and 

 lantern-slides. If illustrations are out of place in a text-book, 

 why did the author take the trouble to insert twenty-nine ? 

 Surely he is not ashamed of his beautiful and instructive 

 frontispiece. 



(4) Alining chapter. — After Prof. Tarr's candid confession, 

 I will not say another word likely to cause him pain or annoy- 

 ance ; but will merely express the hope that Professors of 

 Economic Geology, while examining mineral deposits, will take 

 the trouble to notice how they are worked, and so render them- 

 selves independent of any second-hand aid when writing upon 

 the art of mining. The Reviewer. 



Halo of go° with Parhelia. 



On July 1 1 the halo of 90', intersecting a primary halo of the 

 usual si/.e, but intensely brilliant in colouring, was visible at 

 West Newton, Cumberland, for about four hours — 9 a.m. to 

 I p.m. The sun shone brilliantly all the time. Light strips 

 and wreaths of cirrus and minute mottled cirro-cumulus marked 

 the upper sky. There were several mock suns, not all equally 

 distinct. Tlie halo of 90', a very unusual phenomenon, was of 

 a pale grey-blue tint, showing no prismatic colours, except in a 

 very slight degree at the point furthest removed from the sun. 



This system of halos formed a splendid sight for about four 

 hours, indicating a vast sheet of ice-crystals. I have observed 

 that parhelia sometimes precede heat, as well as stormy 

 weather. 



The intensely vivid colouring of the part of the two (almost 

 concentric) halos, where they intersected above the sun, was 

 most strikmg. Samuel Barber. 



West Newton, Cumberland, July II. 



P. S. — Four dry days followed, the fifth luet. 



Rate of the Flight of Birds. 



I SHALI. be glad if any of your readers can inform m.e 

 whether the rate of the flight of any birds other than Homing 

 Pigeons has been accurately measured, and what attempts, if 

 any, have been made to employ birds belonging to other families 

 in place of Homing Pigeons. F. W. HeaijLfy. 



Haileybury, July 15. 



THE UNIVERSITY OF LONDON AND THE 

 REPORT OF THE GRESHAM COMMIS- 

 SIONERS. 



'T^HE University of London is beyond question the 

 ■•- Institution most nearly concerned with the recom- 

 mendations of the Commissioners appointed to consider 

 the draft charter for the proposed Gresham University 

 in London. These proposals, .as was pointed out in 

 Nai'UKI'; in March last (vol. xlix. p. 405), involve the 

 reconstruction of the present University and the forma- 

 tion of a .Senate and Convocation having powers differ- 

 ing considerably from those at present possessed by 

 them. Iiitportance would, under any circumstances, 

 attach to the lattitude assumed by either body towards 

 the Report, and in the present case it is in no way 

 lessened by the fact that in the charter of 1S63 it is 

 ordained that Convocation — that is, those graduates of 

 the University who have attained a certain seniority and 

 paid certain fees — shall have " the power of accepting 

 any new or supplementary charter for the University, or 

 consenting to the surrender of this our charter, or of any 

 new or supplemental charter," the consent of the Senate 

 being also requisite before either acceptance or surrender 

 becomes operative. This power of veto was exercised 

 by Convocation in 1S91, when a draft charter proposed 

 by the Senate was rejected by a large majority, and the 



NO. 1290, VOL. 50] 



way made clear for University and King's Colleges to 

 proceed with their petition for a separate University. 



The preparation of a scheme for engrafting teaching 

 on the present examining functions of the University of 

 London did not originate with the Senate. To Con- 

 vocation belongs the distinction of being the first to 

 advocate this enlargement of the scope of the Univer- 

 sity, and its proposals were embodied in a scheme as 

 long ago as 1886, while in a later scheme submitted to 

 the Commissioners it indicated in still further detail the 

 lines on which in its opinion a solution of the question 

 might be found. The inability of each body to accept 

 the schemes of the other, the chronic division of opinion 

 between the .Senate and Convocation on the Teaching 

 University question, did not augur well for a joint assent 

 to any scheme resulting from the labours of the Com- 

 missioners appointed in 1892. 



This contingency evidently presented itself to a large 

 majority of the Commissioners, since, with a wisdom 

 which seems likely to be justified by events, they have 

 gone beyond the terms of reference, which contemplated 

 " the establishment under charter of an efficient Teach- 

 ing University for London," and say that " in view of 

 the failure of previous attempts to settle this question, 

 and of the difficulty and delay which must inevitably 

 attend an alteration of the constitution of the University 

 through the action of the University itself, we are of 

 opinion that, in accordance with the precedents followed 

 in other cases of University reform, the changes which 

 we recommend should be effected not by charter, but by 

 legislative authority, and by the appointment of a Com- 

 mission with statutory powers to settle, in the first 

 instance, arrangements and regulations in general con- 

 formity with the recommendations which we are about 

 to submit to your Majesty." 



The latest project for the inevitable extension of Uni- 

 versity education in London was speedily recognised by 

 many as a well-considered and feasible plan for meeting 

 the requirements of the case. Highly desirable as it 

 was that it should be accepted by, and not forced upon, 

 Convocation, yet at first the outlook was anything but 

 bright. The Annual Committee of Convocation — the 

 body of graduates elected every year " to advise Convo- 

 cation upon any matter affecting the interests of the 

 University" — undertook the preparation of a report on 

 the scheme of the Commissioners for presentation to 

 Convocation. While this was under discussion an 

 interview took place between it and the Committee of 

 the Senate charged with the consideration of the Com- 

 missioners' Report, and it may be inferred that exception 

 was taken to the revocation of the veto and to the mode 

 of procedure proposed by the Commissioners, since the 

 Chancellor (Lord Herscheli), in the course of his reply, 

 is reported to have said : " If the proposals of the Com- 

 missioners were generally considered to be for the public 

 good, and a reasonable solution of the problem that had 

 been referred to them, it would scarcely rest with this 

 University, either through the Senate or through Con- 

 vocation, to veto the plan ; nor should the remodelling 

 of the constitution of a public body, with a view to its 

 further efficiency, be regarded as a penal abrogation of its 

 charter." 



Disregarding this statesmanlike view of the situation, 

 the Annual Committee the same evening adopted a 

 Report w-holly adverse to the proposals of the Commis- 

 sioners, and drew up five resolutions which they reconi- 

 niended Convocation to adopt. Space will only permit 

 reference to the first : " That Convocation protests against 

 the withdrawal without its consent of the charter of the 

 University of London as proposed by the Gresham 

 Commission . . . ." and the fourth : " That Convocation 

 therefore, although it would regret the establishment of 

 a second University in London, is of opinion that it would 

 be less disastrous to establish such a University with a 



