Feb. 15, 1872] 



NATURE 



305 



more and more absorbed, when I followed them to some 

 five or more degrees from the sun, in whose proximity 

 they always brightened most, but passing over its disc, 

 appeared to be rather dark, changing, however, suddenly 

 into white when they emerged and entered the blue again. 

 It became obvious that the little bodies I had before 

 me were of small density, partly opaque, apparently of a 

 white and reflecting surface, the edges of which were lit 

 up by the sunbeams. 



The course of the higher ones (at some 1,000 metres 

 distance) being generally parallel, and their reciprocal 

 velocity of about the same rate, 1 noticed much variety in 

 the lower strata, where their flight was often of great incon- 

 stancy, changing their direction every moment, or falling, 

 and second after second augmenting their focal distance, 

 by the change of which, taken on the eye- piece scale, 1 

 learned that these bodies did not quite follow the law of 

 gravitation, losing time ; a fact not surprising to me, 

 already convinced of their small consistency. In com- 

 paring the daily direction with the simultaneous coui'se of 

 winds and clouds, there was a remarkable conformity. Ac- 

 cepting the direction of the clouds to be the same as that 

 of the wind in the stratum they pass through, a supposition 

 not far from the truth, to which, of course, I was forced, hav- 

 ing no weather-cock in such high regions, I found the direc- 

 tion of the little bodies and the clouds (in about the same 

 stratum) to be (i) accurately the same in 31 percent. ; (2) 

 differing not above 90 degrees in 49 per cent. ; (3) differing 

 not above 180 degrees in 67 per cent.; and (4) of quite 

 opposite direction in only lA per cent. This conformity is 

 so evident that when the tky is cloudless, starting from 

 the distance and direction of the ever-passing little bodies, 

 one might easily learn the direction and perhaps the 

 velocity of winds in the reciprocal strata, a fact of course 

 of no little value to meteorologists and even mariners. 



Taken altogether, these results could not but lead to 

 the opinion that what I had to deal with were ice-crystals 

 and flakes of snow. Here it may be recollected that 

 already, in the seventeenth century, Mariotte, the re- 

 nowned discoverer of the law of gas-expansion, pointed 

 out that parhelions and mock-moons are caused by ice- 

 crystals floating in the sky ; and indeed, if we consider the 

 above results, we are forced to believe him. Firstly, we 

 learned that these bodies belong to the atmosphere ; we 

 also found them in its lower strata. Their average size 

 of 32 millimetres, their flake-like shape, their incalcu- 

 lable number, will also strongly convince us. But while 

 the minimum during the winter months might seem 

 rather unaccountable, the chief maximum occurring in 

 April and May, it may be remarked that from September 

 to March the sun, although in the meridian, does not light 

 up so strongly the rather misty sky ; and that many days 

 the sun will not appear at all. Now, referring to the chief 

 maximum, from about April 20 to May 15, is it not 

 astonishing that it occurs on the very same days which, 

 especially those of May, were at all times well known 

 from their low temperature, and called in Germany " the 

 Latins" (Pancratius, May 12 ; Servatius, May 13, cSrc), 

 and were much feared by gardeners ? But are the enor- 

 mous masses of ice-crystals found in the atmosphere 

 during these days the origin of its low temperature, or 

 does the latter favour the formation of snow-masses ? I 

 only mention the fact that, for instance, heat is absorbed 

 when snow is melting, and would be happy to direct the 

 altention of meteorologists in any country to this pheno- 

 menon, inviting contributions oi facts and correspondence. 

 Finally, the velocity of the bo lies being the same as that 

 of the clouds, their reflected magnificent white light, 

 their regular courics in the higher regions where strong 

 winds are generally blowing, their irregular or even falling 

 movement and small denbiiy in the lower ones, and their 

 very remarkable coiifirmiiy of direction with simulta- 

 neously passing clouds, will give much support to my ex- 

 planation. Henry Waldner 



Weinheim, near Heidelberg 



THE MONGOOSE AND THE COBRA 

 T N reading the interesting account of a fight between 

 -'■ these two animals, as given in Nature for Jan. 1 1 

 (p. 204), the question arises, How does the mongoose sur- 

 vive the bite of the cobra? There are only two solutions 

 of this question, viz. : — (i) That the mongoose has some 

 antidote ; and (2) that it is not affected by the cobra 

 poison. With regard to the first, various observers give 

 different antidotes, such as grass, Aristolochia, &c. (see 

 Sir J. E. Tennent's " Natural History of Ceylon," p. 38). 

 There is no one plant that the mongoose has heea proved 

 to go to as a remedy. 2. That the mongoose is not 

 poisoned by the bite of the cobra has, I think, been 

 proved by Dr. Fayrer, of Calcutta. I quote three of his 

 experiments, which are published in the Edinhurgli 

 Medical Journal, April 1869, pp. 917-919: — "A young 

 mongoose {Herpesles Malacconsis) was bitten two or three 

 times by a full-grown cobra,'at 1,24 P.M. on the 30th April 

 1 868, on the inner side of the thigh from which the hair 

 was lirst removed. Blood was drawn] by the bites." 

 This animal died in si.x minutes, but in the two following 

 experiments no harm resulted to the mongoose. The 

 second mongoose was also "bitten on the inner side of the 

 thigh, and put into a cage immediately." It got no antidote 

 except " raw meat," and was none the worse for the bite. 

 The third mongoose was put into a large wire cage with 

 a full-sized cobra at i P.M. (April 2, 1868). " The snake 

 struck at the mongoose, and they grappled with each other 

 frequently, and apparently the mongoose must have been 

 bitten, as the snake held on to it about the neck or head. 

 At 1. 15 P.M. there was no effect on the mongoose ; both it 

 and the snake were much excited and angry, the snake 

 hissing violently. 2.30 ; no effect on the mongoose. The 

 snake is bitten about the head, and shows the bleeding 

 wounds. 2.51 ; they are both occasionally darting at 

 each other, but the mongoose jumps over the snake, and 

 tries to avoid it. Next day at noon both were well ; the 

 snake frequently struck at the mongoose, but did not appear 

 to injure it ; both seemed very savage, but the mongoose 

 would not bite the snake ; he jumped over it. There had 

 been two cobras in the cage during the night, both equally 

 fierce, and striking each other and the mongoose ; but the 

 latter was uninjured. He was bitten once by the cobra 

 rather severely on the head." James W. Edmonds 



HARTWIGS SUBTERRANEAN WORLD * 

 'T^HE increasing demand for works of a semi-scientific 

 ^ character similar to that now under consideration, 

 is in itself the most satisfactory proof that a desire for ac- 

 quiring a more extended and accurate knowledge of the 

 phenomena of Nature is gradually taking root within a 



Fig. r.— Blind Fish [Amblyofsis sfeta-us) 



class of society, which,|until of comparatively late years, had 

 always contented itself with a very opposite style of litera- 

 ture. When it is observed, in many of the so-called popular 

 scientific books, that accuracy has evidently been less 



* **The Subterranean World." By Dr. George Hartwi^. (London; 

 Longmans, Green, and Co.) 



