578 



NA TURE 



[April 19, 1894 



ob'served a dead gull, lying in a gra<;s field in front of the 

 window, whic'i, she is convinced, was not there before. 



Those who picked the bird up report it as still warm, and it 

 is said that it smelt villanously of "brimstone." I should like 

 Lw k low whether a bird not perched cs.n be killed by lightning, 

 and, if so, whether instances are common. Skelfo. 



The Early Return of Birds. 



The lemarkably early appearance of some of our migratory 

 birds this season is worthy of note. On Wednesday, April 4, 

 while crossing some fields soutti of Ashtead Station, a solitary 

 chimney swallow (Hiriindo rustica) passed close to me, flying 

 near to the ground. 



On the following Saturday (7th inst. ), when strolling through 

 the woods on the Common, I heard two cuckoos, getting quite 

 near them to prevent mistake. They have been heard in the 

 neighbourhood each day since. Robert M. Prideaux. 



Ashtead, Surrey. 



The Foundations of Dynamics. 



If no one else cares to raise the question, may I ask Mr. 

 Bassett how he fixes the foundations- of his dynamics, viz., the 

 axes of reference to which the positions and velocities of his 

 particles are referred? There are other questions, of more or 

 less metaphysical interest (such as the nature of "Force"), 

 which his paper does not touch ; but this one is of importance 

 to the most practical view of the subject ; and only an elementary 

 text-book for schoolboys can afford to beg it, while treating of 

 the Foundations of Dynamics. Edward T. Dixon. 



Cambridge, April 13. 



THE ELEVENTH INTERNATIONAL 

 MEDICAL CONGRESS. 



T AST autumn, when the public health of Europe was 

 -*— ' in an unsatisfactory condition, it was thought that 

 it would be wise to postpone the Medical Congress until 

 this spring, though it was feared by everyone that such a 

 determination would be fatal to the efforts of the Congress. 

 The votes of the majority and of the most influential mem- 

 bers of the Executive Committee, however, iinpressed 

 upon Prof. Baccelli the necessity of postponement. It 

 was also thought that the visitors would prefer to enjoy 

 the attractions of the city in the spring rather than in 

 the autumn. No one in Rome expected such a numerous 

 concourse of savants, doctors, and others, as assembled on 

 this occasion. At such an extraordinary meeting we 

 must not only consider the characteristic note of the 

 congress and the certainty of its success, but also ascer- 

 tain the causes of various inconveniences which members 

 of the congress have had to submit to, and of which 

 complaint has been made. 



The object of a congress is to afford an opportunity to 

 its members to make new personal 'acquaintances and to 

 renew old ones with the view of exchanging ideas between 

 men who live at great distances from each other, and to 

 ventilate their arguments. 



A congress provides also a means of estimating the 

 scientific condition of a country, which it is impossible to 

 do through correspondence or through the public press. 



The ordinary channel of particularity was abandoned 

 at the Congress, and it will have been seen from the 

 speeches that more general and comprehensive ideas were 

 evolved than is possible through ordinary scientific 

 literature. 



Considered in this sense, the Congress at Rome has 



been a great success, and it has been easy to see that 



visitors have a growing sense of admiration for medical 



science in Italy, and especially for the younger branches 



NO. 1277. VOL. 49] 



of the profession. Italy, however, has been regarded from 

 other points of view. Its reputation led many persons to 

 expect a spectacle of misery, but they, on the contrary, 

 have been agreeably surprised at the enlightened aspect, 

 comforts, and welfare of the land. This has shown 

 visitors that they had formed a wrong impression, and 

 the critical condition has proved only a temporary diffi- 

 culty ; for the original foundation still exists unchanged. 

 The best proofs of scientific progress were seen while 

 travelling through the Mont Cenis Tunnel and 

 visiting Turin. Passengers found there many large 

 edifices destined shortly to be utilised as scientific 

 institutions. 



Only one of the four blocks is entirely finished and 

 one almost furnished. On one side is the Department of 

 General Pathology (Prof. Bizzozero), and that of Experi- 

 mental Pharmacy in Medicine (Prof. Giacosa). On the 

 other side. Physiology (Prof. Mosso). 



Prof. Mosso has distributed to his colleagues of the 

 section of physiology a pamphlet containing the descrip- 

 tion and drawings of his institute. Everyone has admired 

 the beauty of the new laboratory. The University of 

 Turin is the second in rank in Italy for the number of 

 students it will accommodate. 



The Congress was divided into several sections. The 

 conferences were held in the central part of Rome, in a 

 building very badly selected, but which had the advan- 

 tage of being near the building where the International 

 Exhibition was held. The meetings of the sections were 

 held in the Policlinic buildings, outside of the Porta 

 Pia, at a convenient distance from the centre of the 

 town, but in a quarter very difficult of access. 



The Policlinic is a very large institute, built by Prof. 

 Baccelli. It is not yet finished, a small portion only 

 being complete. The essential and historical elements 

 of the eternal city are equally represented in this 

 institute, which has evidently been built regardless of 

 cost in its external appearance and its maintenance 

 hereafter. The Policlinic was built for the accom- 

 modation of the clinics. It is arranged not only for 

 the welfare of the sick, but also in the interests of 

 students. 



It is interesting to note that the man who has built 

 two edifices for the clinics in the Policlinic has totally 

 overlooked the tuition. The complete buildings are five 

 in number, connected by a passage which in the future 

 will be turned into a portico. 



The central building, which is also the largest, has a 

 large marble staircase, which called forth the admiration of 

 more than one of the congressists ; it contained the 

 offices of the presidency, secretary, and accommodation 

 for the press, post, and strangers' committee. 



The meetings were held from the 30th March to the 

 5th of April, from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. At 4 in the 

 afternoon addresses were given, which constituted a 

 most interesting part of the programme. Among 

 these addresses we must mention those of Prof. 

 \'irchow, of Bizzozero, growth and regeneration in the 

 organism ; Cajal, morphology of nervous cells ; Dani- 

 lewsky, protoplasm and its modifications by life ; 

 Foster, the organisation of science. Other addresses 

 were given by Profs. Brouardel, Babes, Nothnagel, 

 Laache, Kocher, Jacoby, and Stockvis. 



In some sections the debates were carried on with 

 difficulty. The most rational method has not been 

 always observed, many meetings therefore have left a 

 certain impression of confusion. Certainly for a future 

 congress it will be necessary to make some definite rule 

 on the matter ; that is to say, to indicate the special 

 theme and argument, which will conduct the discussion 

 in a more useful manner between competent men, who 

 are always to be found in such a congress. It is a cause 

 of complaint that in such an assembly those who wished 



