488 



NATURE 



[September 17, 1903 



new principle and fact discovered will soon find its economic 

 application. Further, it is necessary that we should obtain 

 as soon as possible a better knowledge of the mineral re- 

 sources of the smaller and thinly inhabited colonies, pro- 

 tectorates, and spheres of influence. This is one of the 

 things which would conduce to the more rapid, effective 

 occupation of these areas. 



With regard to areas not at present British colonies, it 

 seems to me that no great harm would be done by obtaining, 

 not in any obtrusive way, some general knowledge of the 

 mineral resources of likely areas. This at least seems to 

 be what other nations find it worth their while to do, and 

 then, when the opportunity of selection arises, they are 

 able to choose such regions as will most rapidly fill up 

 and soonest yield a return for the private or public capital 

 invested in them. 



To sum up, I consider that the time has come when 

 geologists should make a firm and consistent stand for the 

 teaching of their science in schools, technical colleges, and 

 universities. Such an extension of teaching will of course 

 need the expenditure of time and money ; but England is 

 at last beginning to wake up to the belief, now an axiom 

 in Germany and America, that one of the best investments 

 of money that can be made by the pious benefactor or by 

 the State is that laid up at compound interest, " where 

 neither rust nor moth doth corrupt," in the brains of its 

 young men. 



This knowledge has been an asset of monetary value to 

 hosts' of individuals who have made their great wealth by 

 the utilisation of our mineral resources, and to our country, 

 which owes its high position among the nations to the 

 power and importance given to it by its coal and iron. It 

 is surely good advice to individuals and to the State to ask 

 them to reinvest some of their savings in the business which 

 has already given such excellent returns, so that they and 

 we may not be losers through our lack of knowledge of 

 those sources of energy which have made us what we are, 

 and are capable of keeping for many years the position 

 they have won for us. 



And in our present revival of education it would be well 

 that its rightful position should be given to a science which 

 is useful in training and exercising the faculty of observ- 

 ation and the power of reasoning, which conduces to the 

 open-air life and to the appreciation of the beautiful in 

 nature, which places its services at the disposal of the allied 

 sciences of topography and geography, which is the hand- 

 maid of many of the useful arts, and which brings about 

 a better knowledge and appreciation of the life and growth 

 of that planet which we inhabit for a while, and wish to 

 hand on to our descendants as little impaired in vitality and 

 energy as is consistent with the economic use of our own 

 life-interest in it. 



iVOTE5. 



The following have been elected Fellows of the Reale 

 Accademia dei Lincei : — As Ordinary Fellows (" Soci 

 nazionali "), Messrs. J. Dalla Vedova for geography, 

 A. Naccari for physics, C. de Stefani for geology, A. Borzl, 

 J Fano, A. Maffucci for zoology, pathology, &c. As 

 Corresponding Fellows (" Corrispondenti "), Messrs. P. 

 Pizzetti for mechanics, A. Angeli for chemistry, R. Fusari 

 and A. Stefani for zoology and physiology. As Foreign 

 Fellows, Messrs. D. Hilbert and J. D. van der Waals for 

 mathematics and mechanics, J. Thomson and H. Becquerel 

 for physics, R. Lydekker for geology and palaeontology, 

 E. B. Wilson, T. Schlosing, P. Sorauer and F. Marchand 

 for zoology, agronomy and pathology. 



The prizes offered by the Reale Accademia dei Lincei for 

 the present year have been allotted as follows : — Royal 

 prizes have been awarded to Prof. Artini for mineralogy 

 and geology, to Prof. Ghino Valenti for social and economic 

 science, and to the late Prof. Contardo Ferrini for juris- 

 prudence and political science. Of the prizes offered by the 

 Minister of Public Instruction, awards have been made for 

 NO. 1768, VOL. 68] 



physical and chemical science to Profs. Cicconetti and Pier- 

 paoli (jointly), and to Prof. Baggio Lera, and for philology 

 to Profs. Toldo, G. T^mbara and V. Ussani. The Carpi 

 prize for botany has been conferred on Dr. Biagio Longo, 

 of Rome. The award of the Royal prize for mathematics 

 has been deferred. 



We have received a copy of the programme of prizes to 

 be awarded in 1904 by the Soci6t6 Industrielle de Mulhouse. 

 The present publication takes the place of all previous issues, 

 and copies of the programme, in which certain changes 

 have been made, can be obtained on application to the 

 secretary of the society. There are no fewer than fifty-six 

 competitions concerned with chemical technology, more 

 than twenty dealing with the mechanical arts, and twelve 

 with natural history and agriculture. Several prizes are 

 off'ered with the object of improving and stimulating local 

 industries. The programme also contains full particulars 

 of several large prizes of five thousand francs, which are 

 awarded for scientific work at intervals of in some cases 

 ten, and in others five years. 



The death is announced, at the age of eighty-one years, 

 of the Rev. Maxwell Henry Close, treasurer of the Royal 

 Irish Academy, and author of numerous contributions to 

 the Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy. 



Violent earthquake shocks of seventeen seconds' duration 

 are reported by Reuter to have been experienced in"^ 

 Bucharest, Roumania, at 10 a.m. on Sunday last. 



An earthquake is stated in the Globe to have taken place 

 in Lisbon at 1.34 p.m. on Monday last. It was of three 

 seconds' duration. 



Dr. W. H. Allchin is to deliver the Harveian oration 

 at the Royal College of Physicians of London on Monday, 

 October 19. The Bradshaw lecture (the subject of which 

 will be " Some Observations on Tuberculosis of the Nervous 

 System ") will be delivered at the college by Dr. E. F. 

 Trevelyan on Thursday, November 5. 



A COURSE of lectures on bacteriology for medical men, 

 veterinary surgeons, agriculturists, brewers, farmers, sani- 

 tary inspectors, teachers and others is to be given by Dr. 

 F. Bushnell at Plymouth under the direction of the educa- 

 tion authority for that town. The lectures will be illus- 

 trated by lantern slides, cultures and demonstrations, and 

 it is hoped to make arrangements for a class of practical 

 bacteriology in the future. 



An International Exhibition of Inventions is to be held 

 at Brighton in November next. The object of the exhibition 

 is to afiford inventors and patentees an opportunity of bring- 

 ing their inventions before the notice of capitalists, manu- 

 facturers, and users. Awards of gold, silver, and bronze 

 medals will be made for inventions possessing the greatest 

 merit combined with commercial utility. 



It has been decided to start a school of colonial medicine 

 at Marseilles, and Surgeon-Major Martine, of the colonial 

 military service, has just been appointed by the French 

 Minister of War to confer with the municipality of 

 Marseilles relative to its establishment. 



The U.S. Consul-General at Frankfort is reported by 

 the Chemist and Druggist to have stated that " the city of 

 Dusseldorf will soon have the first academy for practical 

 medicine in Germany, and it will be in connection with the 

 new hospital to be erected." Prof. Witzel, of the Uni- 

 versity of Bonn, is proposed as director of the academy. 

 The establishment of other similar academies is under 

 consideration. 



