November 30, 1893] 



NA TURE 



109 



The Deutsche Scewarte has published No. xi. of the results 

 of observations taken in the North Atlantic on ships supplied 

 with instruments either belonging to that institution, or verified 

 by it. Each part contains all the observations made in a ten- 

 degree square, which is again subdivided into lOO one-degree 

 squares, grouped in such a way that anyone can make use of 

 them as they are, or they can be eventually combined with the 

 observations made by any other institution. The tract now 

 covered by these volumes extends from latitude 20^-50° N., 

 and longitude 10^-50° west (with the exception of one square), 

 and this district joins on to that for which the data were dis- 

 cussed some years ago by the Meteorological Council, and ex- 

 tending from 20° N. to 10° S. latitude ; so that for nearly all 

 that part of the North Atlantic which is traver.'ied iby_long- 

 voyage ships a large amount of useful data is available, either 

 for scientific inquiry or for the purpose of navigation. The 

 winds are tabulated under sixteen points, and storms under four 

 quadrants, while the mean values of pressure, temperature, 

 &c., are deduced from the total number of observations in 

 each sub-square. This work is quite independent of the syn- 

 optic weather charts of the North Atlantic, which are regularly 

 prepared by the Seewarte, in conjunction with the Danish 

 Meteorological Institute. 



The Kansas University Quarterly , vol. ii. No. 2, contains 

 three articles by Prof. S. W. Williston. In one of these, 

 entitled " Kansas Pterodactyls," a previous article is referred to, 

 in which the opinion was expressed that the genus Pteranodon 

 occurs in Europe. Since then Prof Williston has seen papers 

 by Prof. Seeley, in which the same view is held, and an atten- 

 tive examination of the evidence leads him to say: "I am 

 satisfied that there can no longer be any reasonable doubt of the 

 congenerousness of our species with those included in the genus 

 •Ornithostonia. Seeley, a generic name antedating Pteranodon 

 Marsh by some five years." 



Mr. R. L. Jack, the Government Geologist at Brisbane, has 

 prepared a report on the progress of the geological survey of 

 Queensland during 1892. Attention has been confined to 

 detailed mapping of small areas of economical importance. 

 For a general colony map it is thought that the scale of sixteen 

 miles to an inch permits sufficient detail to be shown. As 

 visiting the different mines will occupy some considerable time, 

 it is intended to publish, in the meantime, a map showing 

 the geological features, which will also be useful in the hands 

 of miners and the general public for its topography. On the 

 map, which is now being drawn on stone, are shown the out- 

 crops of most of the reefs, as at present understood. A subse- 

 quent edition will show the actual or inferred outcrops of all 

 the reefs, the underground workings, and the geological inform- 

 ation acquired in the course of the underground survey by the 

 Geological Staff. On the completion of the work, it is in 

 contemplation to construct a glass model, the surface of which 

 will be coloured, and the outcrops of the reefs shown in the 

 same way as in the geological map, and the extension of under- 

 I ground geological boundaries, so far as ascertained, will be 

 1 represented. Its main advantage, however, will be that the 

 exact position of the reefs with relation to the surface features 

 and artificial boundaries will be understood at a glance, and the 

 depth at which any given reef would be met with in any 

 position could be ascertained by a simple calculation. 



A PAPER read by Dr. V. Ball, before the Royal Irish Academy 

 on January 23 of this year, has been reprinted from the " Pro- 

 ceedings " (3rd Ser. vol. iii. No, i, pp. 151-169). The title is 

 " On the Volcanoes and Hot Springs of India, and the Folk- 

 Lore connected therewith." Dr. Ball shows how the evi- 

 dences of past volcanic activity in India — the metamorphism of 

 sedimentary rocks by the Deccan traps into porcellanic shales, 



NO. 1257, VOL. 49] 



the agates, cornelians, &c. produced, the peculiar appearance of 

 old craters, the " Lonar Lake," the natural caves and pillared 

 temples of basaltic rock, &c. — have formed a nucleus of truth 

 around which the religious spirit of the people has wrapped 

 coil upon coil of myth and the marvellous. Sometimes undue 

 credence has been given by travellers to native tales of smoke 

 emanating in present times from peaks in W^estern Bengal and 

 the Central Provinces. For these no better foundation could 

 be discovered by Dr. Ball than the ordinary atmospheric 

 effects of mist and cloud. Bhawani Patna, in the Central 

 Provinces, is an example of a "mythical volcano." Hot springs 

 have more especially appealed to the superstition of the people, 

 and served the purposes of the native priesthood. Dr. Ball 

 stated that the total number of recorded sites where hot springs 

 occur in India is about 300. He gave then a concise account 

 of the most important scientific phenomena associated with the 

 hot springs, and details, in some cases, of the particular virtues, 

 medical and spiritual, ascribed to them by the people. He 

 called attention, in concluding, to the local character of the 

 vegetation near hot springs, and of the fauna which are some- 

 times present in their waters, e.g. the famous Magar Pir, 

 seven miles north of Karachi, with its numerous crocodiles. 



The August number of the Records of the Geological Survey 

 of India, vol. xxvi. part 3, has been sent us. An important 

 paper is the "Geology of the Sherani Hills," by Mr. T. D. La 

 Touche, with a geological map of part of the Sulaiman Range 

 and several sections and sketches (pi. i.-v. ). The first part 

 of the paper is devoted to the physical features. The strati- 

 graphical geology of the Sherani Hills is not complicated ; the 

 deposits in the area examined range from Cretaceous to recent 

 and sub-recent time, and a complete table of the succession 

 and the relative thicknesses of the rocks is given on p. 82. 

 Dr. Fritz Noetling describes "Carboniferous Fossils from 

 Tenasserim " ; good specimens of I.onsdaleia salinaria, and 

 new species of Lithostrotion and of Schwagerina are figured on 

 the accompanying plate. Details are given by Mr. R. D. 

 Oldham, Superintendent Geological Survey of India, of a 

 deep boring at Chandernagore, and a "Note on Granite in 

 the Districts of Tavoy and Mergui " (with plate), by P. N. 

 Bose. Especial comment is made in the " Tri-Monthly Notes 

 of the Geological Survey of India Department" upon the com- 

 pletion of the second edition of the " Manual of the Geology 

 of India," by Mr. Oldham. 



The calendar for the year 1893-4 of the University College 

 of North Wales has just been issued. 



We note with pleasure that the Oxford University Press has 

 published two more editions of the " Oxford Bible for Teachers," 

 containing the excellent " Helps to the Study of the Bible " 

 reviewed in Nature of October 5. 



We have received a " Record" of results of observations in 

 meteorology and terrestrial magnetism made at the Melbourne 

 Observatory and at other localities in the colony of Victoria, 

 Australia, from July to December, 1892, under the superintend- 

 ence of Mr. R. L. J. Ellery, the Government Astronomer. In 

 the future this "Record "will be issued quarterly instead of 

 monthly. 



Messrs. William Wesley and Son have issued their 

 Ii8th " Natural History and Scientific Book Circular." The 

 catalogue includes a number of works from the library of the 

 late Sir G. B. Airy, in addition to transactions of scientific 

 societies, periodicals and serials. Government reports, and works 

 dealing with the history of science. It should be in the hands of 

 every bibliophile. 



The sixth edition of a book known to most chemists, viz. 

 " Laboratory Teaching," by the late Prof. C. L. Bloxam, has 



