March i, 1894] 



NATURE 



425 



has been found that, after loo million years, the depth of the 

 surface of zero strain is 779 miles, the total volume of crust- 

 folding about 6,145,000 cubic miles, and the mean thickness of 

 the layer formed by spreading it over the whole earth l64'7 

 feet. This result is much larger than that obtained when the 

 coefficient of dilatation is taken as constant. 



If the conductivity increases with the temperature, or if the 

 material which composes the earth's interior be such that the 

 conductivity and coefhcient of dilatation are greater in it than in 

 the surface rocks, or if initially the temperature increased with 

 the depth, these figures must be still further increased. It 

 follows, therefore, that calculations as to the alleged in- 

 sufficiency of the contraction theory to produce mountain 

 ranges are at present inadmissible. 



" Chemical Analysis of the Meteoric Stone found at Maka- 

 riwa, near Invercargill, New Zealand, in the year 1886." By 

 L. Fletcher, F.R.S. 



The results of a microscopic examination of this meteorite by 

 Prof, Ulrich have already been published. Mr. Fletcher has 

 now completed the chemical analysis of the stone, and in this 

 paper gives a detailed account of the method and his observations, 

 for the convenience of future analysts of such bodies. 



The interest of the investigation is not in the mineralogical 

 results, but in the study of a composite method applicable to the 

 most complicated meteoritic chemical analysis, namely, that of 

 a partially-rusted meteoric stone. 



Chemical Society, February i. — Dr. Armstrong, Presi- 

 dent, in the chair. — The following papers were read : — Note on 

 the liberation of chlorine during the heating of a mixture of 

 potassium chlorate and manganic peroxide, by H. McLeod. 

 Brunck has recently stated that oxygen prepared by heating a 

 mixture of potassium chlorate and manganese dioxide, contains 

 ozone but not chlorine. The author now shows that the re- 

 verse of this is true, the gas containing chlorine but not ozone. 

 — The examination of some recent freezing-point determina- 

 tions, by S. U. Pickering. The differences between the results 

 of the freezing-point determinations made by the author and 

 H. Jones are apparently due to inaccurate calibration of the 

 thermometer employed .by the latter. — Salts of dehydracetic 

 acid, by J. N. Collie and H. R. Le Sueur. The salts of de- 

 hydracetic acid have the general composition CgHyO^M ; on 

 heating at 145" they lose water, and the residual salts then have 

 the composition CgH^OjM. This water may be water of crys- 

 tallisation ; the question as to whether dehydracetic acid is a 

 lactone or not, is hence still unanswered. — A new method of 

 producing carbon tetrabromide, by J. N. Collie. A very large 

 number of organic compounds yield carbon tetrabromide when 

 heated with a strong solution of sodium hypobromite. — 

 Metallic derivatives of acetylene. Mercuric acetylide, by M. 

 Travers and R. T. Plimpton. Mercuric acetylide is a white 

 explosive powder, and probably has the composition 

 3CoHg,H20. — Synthesis of indene, hydrindene, and some of 

 their derivatives, by W. H. Perkin, junr., and E. Revay. On 

 heating barium hydrindenecarboxylate, indene, and not hydrin- 

 dene, is obtained ; the indene, however, seems to be isomeric 

 with ordinary indene. 



Mathematical Society, February 8. — Mr. A. B. Kempe, 

 F.R.S. , President, in the chair. — Atlhe request of Lord Kelvin, 

 P.R.S., Mr. J. J. Walker, F.R.S., exhibited and described 

 Lord Kelvin's models of his " Tetrakaidecahedron." Votes of 

 thanks were passed to Lord Kelvin and to Mr. Walker. A 

 conversation ensued, in which Messrs. S. Roberts, F.R.S., 

 Forsyth, F.R.S., MacMahon, F.R.S,, Elliott, F.R.S., Colonel 

 Cunningham, R.E., and the President took part. — Abstracts 

 were communicated of the following papers : — On a class of 

 groups defined by congruences, by Prof. W. Burnside, F.R.S., 

 and some properties of the uninodal quartic and quintic having 

 a triple point, by Mr, W. R. W. Roberts. Most of the pro- 

 perties of the curves, discussed by Mr, Roberts, are derived 

 by the aid of Abelian integrals. 



Linnean Society, February 15. — Prof. Stewart, President, 

 in the chair. — Mr, W. B. Hemsley exhibited some germi- 

 nating seeds of Lemna and some flowering plants of 

 Lemna gibba, upon which, in his absence, some remarks 

 were made by Mr. C. H. Wright. From the observations 

 made it was suggested that, although Lemna minor and L. \ 

 gibba are usually regarded as distinct, they are respec- 

 tively the male and female plant of one species. On behalf of 

 the Director of the Royal Gardens, Kew, Mr, C. H. Wright 



NO. 1270, VOL. 49] 



exhibited and made some remarks upon a collection of native 

 plants from the neighbourhood of Cape Town, which had been 

 presented to the Herbarium by Miss Yorke, and which was re- 

 markable for the skilful way in which the natural colours of the 

 flowers had been preserved.— On behalf of the Rev. J. G. Tuck, 

 of Tostock Rectory, Bury St. Edmunds, there was exhibited a 

 hybrid between the common house sparrow and the tree sparrow 

 {Passer viontaiins), which had been taken near Bury on January 

 13 last. Only one instance of a similar wild hybrid was known 

 to have been previously captured, although two or three in- 

 stances were on record of the two species interbreeding in 

 aviaries. — Mr. J. C. Willis gave an abstract of a paper on the 

 "Natural History of the Flower" (part ii.), in which he dealt 

 with the mode of fertilisation in Brodiaa ixioides, S. Watson, 

 Stanhopea tigrina, Bateman, Pimelia decussata, R. Br. var. 

 diosmafolia , Cotyledon umbilicus, L., Hydrolea spinosa, L., and 

 Ziziphora capitata, and made some remarks on cleistogamy in 

 Salvia Verbenaca, L. A discussion followed, in which Dr. D, H. 

 Scott, Prof. Reynolds Green, and Mr. A. B. Rendle took part. — 

 The Secretary read a paper by Miss D. F. Pertz, on hygroscopic 

 movements connected with seed-dispersal, in which the author 

 partially reviewed the literature of the subject, and detailed the 

 method of observation adopted by previous workers and by 

 herself. 



Zoological Society, February 20, — Prof. G. B, Howes in 

 the chair, — A report was read, drawn up by Mr. A. Thomson, 

 on the insects bred in the Insect-house during the season of 

 1893. Examples of seventeen species of Bombyces, twenty of 

 Diurnal Lepidoptera, and twenty-four of Nocturnal Lepidoptera 

 had been exhibited during the past season, of which many had 

 not been shown in former years. Amongst these were specimens 

 of the fine insect Actias mimosce, from south-east Africa, hatched 

 from cocoons presented by the Rev. H, A, Junod. — Mr. Oldfield 

 Thomas called attention to the skin of a Giraffe from Somali- 

 land, sent for exhibition by Mr. Rowland Ward, and pointed 

 out its differences from the South African Giraffe. — A com- 

 munication was read from Dr. R. W. Shufeldt, giving particulars 

 of the methods used in preparing specimens of certain Inverte- 

 brates for public exhibition employed in the U.S. National 

 Museum. — Mr. Sowerby read a communication forwarded to 

 him by Dr. O. F. von Moellendorff, giving an account of a 

 collection of Land-Shells from the Samui Islands, Gulf of Siam. 

 These Land-Shells were referred to thirty-three species, of which 

 many were described as new to science. — A communication 

 from Dr. D, Sharp, F.R.S., contained a list of Hemiptera 

 Heteroptera of the families AnthocoridiB and Ceratocombidce, 

 collected by Mr. H, H, Smith in the island of St. Vincent, with 

 descriptions of new genera and species, prepared by Prof. P. R. 

 Uhler, upon specimens submitted to him by the West Indian 

 Committee. — Mr. O. Thomas read tfie third of his contribu- 

 tions towards our knowledge of the mammals of Nyasaland, 

 based, as the two former, on specimens forwarded to the British 

 Museum by Mr. H. H. Johnston, C.B., H.B.M, Commissioner 

 in British Central Africa. The present paper contained remarks 

 on thirty-five mammals, of which two were described as new, 

 and were named respectively Lepus xvhytei and Procavia 

 johnsloni. — A communication from Dr, R. W. Shufeldt gave 

 an account of the conclusions to which he had arrived respecting 

 the affinities of the birds of the order Steganopodes. 



Royal Meteorological Society, February 21. — Mr, R. 

 Inwards, President, in the chair. — The following papers were 

 read : — Temperature, rainfall, and sunshine at Las Palmas, 

 Grand Canary, by Dr. J, Cleasby Taylor, The author gave 

 the results of his observations during the five years 1889-93. The 

 island of Grand Canary occupies a position midway between 

 the African continent and the most western of the Canary group. 

 The mountain peaks rise to a little over 6000 feet, and are about 

 twenty miles from the coast. The chief town and port of the 

 island, Las Palmas, is consequently free from the influence of 

 the mountains. The diurnal range of temperature fluctuates 

 considerably with the variations in wind and sunshine. With 

 a southerly wind (which usually dies down at sunset) the range 

 is increased, but the greater part of the increase is due to a higher 

 day temperature. With northerly winds persisting after sunset, 

 the range may be very slight, particularly if the day has been 

 cloudy. The sea temperature is dependent on causes outside 

 the limits of the archipelago ; local presence or absence of sun- 

 shine does not cause any difference, A boisterous northerly 

 wind, with a high sea, may cause the temperature to fall quicker 



