August 23, 1894J 



NATURE 



413 



been formed in a lake dammed to the east and west by ice in a 

 moraine, a view which elicited considerable comment and 

 disagreement from a number of glacialists present. Prof. Blake 

 described areas in the Harlech Mountains, some of which were 

 floored by bare, ice-scratched rocks, side by side with others 

 covered by thick drift deposits. Prof. Bonney, judging by the 

 temperature at which glaciers now form in the Alps, came to 

 the conclusion that a fall of 15° to 20° F. would be quite 

 sufficient to cause all the known glaciation in the northern 

 hemisphere. Mr. E. P. Culverwell read a paper entitled " An 

 Examination of CroU's and Ball's Theory of Ice Ages and 

 Genial Ages,'' in which he stated that an appeal to figures con- 

 clusively proved the inadequacy of the astronomical theory as 

 at present formulated. By calculating the comparative solar 

 heat of the high eccentricity winter ot 199 days, and that of 

 199 coldest days of the present winter, he showed that the 

 isochimenals would be about 4^ of latitude further south, and the 

 isotherals more than 4' further north, then than now. In the 

 "genial age " the shifting would not be more than 24°. This 

 cause he considers totally inadequate to account for glacial and 

 genial ages, and therefore falls back on changes in physical 

 geography for the former, and shift of the pole, or greater solar 

 and terrestrial activity, for the latter. In the discussion Sir 

 Robert Ball defended his position, but was further attacked by 

 Prof. Fitzgerald and other speakers. 



Prof. Blake endeavoured to show that by the lowering of its 

 centre of gravity as a whole the further end of an ice-sheet 

 might be raised and carry boulders and detritus up a slope. 

 The Rev. E. Jones presented the final report on the Elbolton 

 Cave, stating that no palaeolithic remains had been found, 

 and that the investigation was consequently abandoned. The 

 preliminary work, however, in the Calf Hole Cave, near 

 Skipton, was more hopeful, and already a hafted implement, 

 made of a chisel-like tooth bedded in antler and mounted in 

 wood, had been found. In a short paper on the palaeolithic 

 section at Wolvercote, near Oxford, Mr. Montgomerie Bell 

 described the section as follows : (i) a "northern drift "and 

 subangular gravel resting in eroded hollows of the Oxford clay. 

 (2) A river gravel contaming shell seams, and in whose lowest 

 bed palaeolithic implements associated with mammoth, Cervus 

 elaphus. Bison priscus, &c., have been found. (3) A bed of 

 peat containing the remains of local plants. (4) Sand, mud, 

 and hail close the section. Two palaiolithic implements were 

 recorded by Mr. Bruce Foote from an old alluvium, through 

 which the Sabarmati river in Guzerat had cut a channel, vary- 

 ing from 100 to 200 feet in depth. 



Dealing with questions of physical geology, Mr. Lobley tried 

 to show that the contraction theory would not explain volcanoes 

 and earthquakes. Dr. Tempest Anderson described three types 

 of subsidences occurring in connection with volcanic rocks in 

 Iceland ; the most common type was due to a falling crust 

 where the inner lava stream escaped, others were due to earth- 

 quakes, and still others to faulting, probably caused by sub- 

 sidence of a volcanic centre as a whole. Dr. Johnston-Lavis 

 recorded his observations on the activity of Vesuvius during the 

 year. Mr. De Ranee reported in underground waters. Prof. 

 Herdman drew attention to the geological results flowing from 

 his investigation of the bed of the Irish Sea. Prof. SoUas 

 announced that arrangements were in progress for commencing 

 the boring of a coral island. I'rof. Hennessy described the 

 channels of streamlets in estuaries as possessing a section con- 

 structed of two catenary curves, the only shape which gives a 

 constant velocity whatever the depth of the stream ; and Sir H. 

 Howorth passed a series of strictures on current geological 

 nomenclature, with suggestions for its revision, which will 

 doubtless receive the attention due to so high an authority in 

 these matters. 



Mr. C. Davison's report on earth tremors contained an account 

 of the trial and modifications of Mr. H. Darwin's bifilar 

 pendulum, and of the horizontal pendulum used at Nicolaiew ; 

 then followed an elaborate analysis of the pulsations of the 

 Greek earthquake of this year, showing how they spread to one 

 observatory after another, and were felt at Rome, Siena, 

 Nicolaiew, Potsdam, Kcw, and Birmingham. In his report 

 on geological photographs, Mr. Jeffs staled that the collection 

 now amounted to 1055, and that the time seemed to have 

 arrived when it should be housed in some convenient and 

 central position, although it was still necessary to add to the 

 collection, so as to make it thoroughly representative of the 

 whole country. A number of photographs were exhibited and 

 slides from some of them displayed at the second conversazione. 



NO. 1295, VOL. 50] 



NOTES. 

 M. GusTAVE CorrEAU, a Correspondent of the Paris 

 .\cademy, in the Section d'Anatomie et Zoologie, died at 

 Paris on the loth inst. 



Mr. iM. a. Ryerso.v has presented to the University of 

 Chicago the Ryerson Physical Laboratory, built at a cost 

 of 250,000 dollars. 



The International Congress of Applied Chemistry, which 

 has just finished a sessional Brussels, will hold its next meeting 

 at Paris in 1896. 



Dr. D. F. Oltm.vmns has been appointed Extraordinary 

 Professor of Botany at the University of Freiburg-i. B. 



TiiE Imperial Acclimatisation Society of Moscow has founded 

 a botanical section for the purpose of collecting materials for a 

 Flora of Russia. The co-operation is invited of all who are 

 able to assist in this work. Communications should be 

 addressed to the Director of the Polytechnic Museum, Moscow. 



Mr. H. W. Unthank informs us that while shore-hunting at 

 Brightlingsea on Aa^u;t 4, hi came upon a stranded .Vurelia 

 which exhibited a pentamerous instead of the usual tetramerous 

 symmetry. The specimen is at present in the Brightlingsea 

 Marine Laboratory of the Essex County Council. 



Mr. Fred N. Scott, Assistant Professor of Rhetoric in 

 the University of Michigan, has issued, in the form of a leaflet, 

 a series of questions on the psychology of usage. He wishes 

 to ascertain the origin of dislikes, especially of arbitrary, un- 

 reasoning dislikes, for certain words and phrases. He will be 

 glad to send a copy to anyone who is interested in the subject 

 and who will take the trouble to answer the questions. 



The annual general meeting of the Federated Institution of 

 Mining Engineers will be held in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, on 

 Wednesday, September 5, in the Wood Memorial Hall of the 

 North of England Institute of Mining and Mechanical 

 Engineers. The papers down for reading are : — " The Stete- 

 feldt Furnace," by Mr. C. A. Stetefeldt ; " Walling and Sink- 

 ing simultaneously with the Galloway Scaffold," by Mr. John 

 -Morison ; " Timber Bridges and Viaducts," by Mr. Morgan W. 

 Davies ; "Explosions in Nova Scotian Coal-mines, " by Mr. 

 Edwin Gilpin, jun. ; and " The Shaw Gas-tester for detecting 

 the Presence and Percentages of Fire-damp and Choke-damp 

 in Coal-mines, &c.," by Mr. Joseph R. Wilson. There will 

 also be discussions on other papers, and various excursions. 



The cholera epidemic is slowly spreading, especially in 

 European Russia. Since the end of June, fifteen new districts 

 in Russia have been declared to be infected, making a total of 

 about forty. In Austria-Hungary, in many towns situate on the 

 Vistula, and in Belgium, the disease has extended, and a number 

 of fatal cases have occurred iu places in Northern Holland. 

 The Local Government Board is keeping a close watch on the 

 progress of the epidemic, and every precau'.ion is being taken 

 to prevent it from obtaining a foothold in this country. Some 

 anxiety will be felt for a month or so, for during this period the 

 risk of infection is greatest. The dismal weather we have been 

 experiencing this summer, though hardly conducive to pleasant 

 holidays, has one redeeming feature, for it is decidedly unfavour- 

 able to the development of a cholera epidemic. 



By the death of Dr. C. R. Alder Wright, at the end of last 

 month, science lost a tireless and enthusiastic worker. He was 

 educated at the Owens College, Manchester, and early showed 

 an aptitude for scientific research. His work extended over a 

 large part of the domain of chemistry. It comprises, says the 

 C/iemical jYr.vs, "investigations of simple substances, like 

 hydtiodic acid, and some of the most complex substances, like 



