August 27, 1903] 



NATURE 



395 



. The Times Brussels correspondent states that the eleventh 

 Interriational Health Conference will be held in Brussels 

 from September 2 to 8. One of the leading questions for 

 discussion is whether the tuberculosis bacillus in the 

 domestic animal is identical with that of the human species. 



In connection with an exhibition which is to take place 

 at Milan in 1905, a national sanitary congress is to be 

 held. The work of the congress will be dealt with in the 

 following sections : — sanitary assistance, public hygiene, 

 clinico-scientific and therapeutic, medical jurisprudence and 

 accidents to workmen, professional interests. 



A GENERAL exhibition arranged by the Central Associ- 

 ation of Inventors, of Bayreuth, for the purpose of 

 facilitating the sale of patents and copyrighted patterns 

 is to be held during September and October next at 

 Nuremberg. There are, it is stated, more than 200,000 

 copyrighted patterns in Germany and more than 140,000 

 patents, but one-half of these are not in public use, the 

 reason being that the inventors are not able to exploit their 

 inventions. It was because of this that the Central Associ- 

 ation came into being some years ago. Its purpose is to 

 assist the members to make their inventions profitable to 

 themselves, the majority of inventors not having the means 

 to do so. The Association furnishes space to inventors 

 without means free of cost, and charges no fees for effecting 

 a sale. 



According to a Reuter telegram from Berlin, a number 

 of mining officials will, at the instance of the Minister of 

 Commerce, shortly be sent to this country to make a 

 thorough study of the hygienic and sanitary arrangements 

 in mining districts. 



The Electrician, quoting from the Western Electrician 

 of Chicago, states that preliminary reports have been given 

 concerning wireless telegraph experiments which have 

 been conducted on board the training ships Prairie and 

 Topeka, in conjunction with shore stations, by the Navy 

 Department of the United States during the last year. 

 The reports state that the Slaby-Arco system is well suited 

 for naval purposes, and has been adopted by the United 

 States Navy. It was tested in competition with French, 

 German, and English devices, not, however, including the 

 Marconi system. Satisfactory terms, it is stated, could 

 not be made with Mr. Marconi for the installation of his 

 instruments on the war ships, and further negotiations were 

 discontinued. Twenty sets of Slaby-Arco instruments have 

 been installed on eight war vessels, which used them in the 

 fleet manoeuvres. 



A TELEGRAM from New York, through Laffan's agency, 

 states that the advisory board of the American scientific 

 expedition to Babylon has been compelled to abandon its 

 plan of extensive excavations at that place, preparations for 

 which have been made during the last three years. The 

 abandonment is due to the persistent refusal of the Porte 

 to permit the American society to carry on such work, 

 although it has readily authorised excavations by other 

 nations. 



The collections made by Mr. M. J. Nicoll, who accom- 

 panied Lord Crawford, as naturalist, in the R.S.Y. 

 Walhalla during his recent tour round the world, have 

 arrived at the Natural History Museum, South Kensington, 

 and contain about 1500 specimens. The Walhalla remained 

 so short a time at most of the places where she stopped 

 that it was not possible to procure a large number of ex- 

 amples of terrestrial animals, but about 250 bird-skins were 

 brought home. The principal collections were made in the 



NO. 1765, VOL. 68] 



Magellan Straits, at Valparaiso, in the Samoan and Fiji 

 groups of the Pacific, and in Torres Straits. Mr. Nicoll is 

 now engaged in arranging and naming the specimens. 



Several living specimens (three of which have arrived 

 safely) of the wild guinea-pig of Brazil have, according to 

 Science, recently been sent to the zoological laboratory of 

 Harvard University by Mr. Adolph Hempe) for the purpose 

 of experimental studies in heredity. 



Dr. Carroll gives an interesting risumi of our know- 

 ledge of the mode of transmission of yellow fever (Journ. 

 Amer. Med. Assoc, May 23). He points out that the mos- 

 quito theory has been proved to be true, and that the non- 

 communicability of the disease from person to person, and 

 by means of fomites, has been demonstrated. Yellow fever 

 has been eradicated from Havana, one of its endemic 

 homes, by the institution of measures directed against the 

 mosquito, after extreme cleanliness and energetic disinfec- 

 tion had proved dismal failures. 



The specificity of anti-venene, the anti-serum for snake 

 venom, has been a matter of controversy for some years. 

 Calmette originally asserted that anti-venene was not 

 specific, that is, cobra anti-venene, prepared by injecting 

 an animal with increasing doses of cobra venom, though 

 most active against cobra venom, would also antagonise 

 other venoms. Martin, and more recently Tidswell, in 

 Australia, questioned the correctness of this view, and 

 Captain Lamb, I. M.S., has now proved beyond doubt that 

 anti-venomous sera are just as specific as any other anti- 

 sera, e.g. diphtheria or tetanus {Sc. Mem. of the Gov. of 

 India, New Series, No. 5). He has tested the neutralising 

 properties of several anti-venomous sera towards the venoms 

 of many species of venomous snakes, and in no case was 

 any neutralising power exhibited by a serum except 

 towards the venom with which it had been prepared. 



The annual report issued by the superintendent of the 

 Botanical Department in Trinidad bears testimony to the 

 useful work which is carried on at the St. Clair experi- 

 ment station. The Lagos " silk rubber " plant Funtumia 

 elastica continues to be in demand, as the points in its 

 favour are suitability to the climate, easy coagulation, and 

 good rubber yield at an early age. The experiments with 

 seedling sugar-canes are unfortunately limited by the small 

 amount of space available for growing plots, but the 

 demand for canes to the full extent of the available supply- 

 is a sufficient guarantee of the success of the undertaking. 

 The cultivation of cotton in the West Indies would be the 

 revival of an old industry. Through the cooperation of 

 the Cotton Growers' Association, a quantity of seed has 

 been provided for distribution, and prizes are offered for 

 the best results. 



The botanical features of that district comprised in the 

 Delta of the Ganges known as the Sundribuns are so 

 unique that even after the surveys by Prof. Heinig and 

 Mr. C. B. Clarke there still remains scope for the account 

 which is presented by Dr. Prain in the Records of the 

 Botanical Survey of India. This includes the first corfiplete 

 list of plants gathered in the district, with a guide to the 

 genera and species, as well as a summary of the principal 

 ecological associations, and observations on the manner in 

 which they may have originated. First in point of interest 

 comes the mangrove vegetation, which includes a hetero- 

 geneous collection of plants, many of which are charac- 

 terised by the development of root suckers having a 

 respiratory function ; further, the collections of plants found 

 at the sea face and in the clearings present problems in 

 connection with the dispersal of species. 



