July 25, 1901] 



NA TURE 



H. J. Dukinfield Astley warmly asserts its Neolithic origin and 

 attacks Dr. Robert Munro for doubting this view. The weighty 

 arguments of Dr. Munro are parried by Mr. Andrew Lang in 

 his characteristic manner. Those who care to see the present 

 position of this pretty quarrel should consult the current number 

 of the Reliquary and Illustrated Archaeologist. Doubtless the 

 problem will be threshed out in Section H of the British Asso- 

 ciation at the meeting in Glasgow in September next. 



The " Picts' houses" of Scotland are a perennial source of 

 discussion to antiquaries, and Mr. David MacRitchie, who has 

 long studied the Pictish question problem, describes in the 

 Reliquary and Illustrated Archaeologist (vol. vii. 1901, p. 89) 

 a series of interesting complicated bee-hive huts round which 

 earth has been heaped. Mr. MacRitchie suggests that the series 

 is as follows : — (i) The primitive subterranean " Picts' houses," 

 consisting of one or more chambers and reached by a low narrow 

 gallery. (2) Circular buildings with several chambers round a 

 central one, the walls rising to a height of 12 to 15 leet and cul- 

 minating in a " bee-hive" roof. (3) Brochs or forts, similar in 

 ground plan to the last, rising as ring-like towers, with stair- 

 cases in the walls and the central area unroofed. 



The May number of the Physical Review contains a good 

 portrait of the late Prof. Fitzgerald, reproduced by photogravure. 

 Dr. Larmor contributes an appreciative notice of the life and 

 work of the lamented .investigator, whose death all men of 

 science sincerely deplore. 



Feilde)Cs Magazine will celebrate its second anniversary on 

 the first of next month. During its short life it has shown 

 what a good engineering magazine can be, and has maintained 

 a high standard both in its first-class illustrations and in its text, 

 which has been graphic and well up to date. On this account 

 we are glad to express the wish that its future may be long and 

 prosperous. 



The fifth part of " A Manual of Surgical Treatment," by 

 Drs. \V. Watson Cheyne, F. R.S. and F. F. Burghard, has 

 been published by Messrs. Longmans, Green and Co. The 

 subject is the treatment of the surgical affections of the head, 

 face, jaws, lips, larynx and trachea, and one of the main divisions 

 is on the intrinsic diseases of the nose, ear and larynx, by Dr. 

 H. Lambert Lack. Dr. A. Whitfield gives an account of the 

 method of removing superfluous hairs by electrolysis. The 

 negative electrode from a battery of about five Leclanche cells 

 is connected with a needle which is introduced into the neck of the 

 hair follicle. The patient is then instructed to grasp firmly the 

 positive electrode, and after a few seconds bubbles of hj drogen 

 can be seen issuing from the mouth of the follicle. Shortly 

 afterwards the needle is withdrawn, and after a moment or two 

 the hair may be pulled out very easily. If the operation has 

 been successful. Dr. Whitfield says that the hair will slide 

 out of the follicle without offering the slightest resistance, and 

 will bring the inner root-sheath with it. About forty hairs can, 

 on the average, be taken out at one sitting. 



The additions to the Zoological Society's Gardens during the 

 past week include a Campbell's Monkey {Cercopithectis campbelli) 

 from West Africa, presented by Mrs. Morrell ; a Lion {Felis 

 ieo, 6 ) bred in Ireland, presented by Mr. Rowland Ward ; an 

 Alligator {Alligator inississippiensis) from Southern North 

 America, presented by Mr. W. S. Foster ; four Crossed Snakes 

 (Psammophis criicifer), a Rough-keeled Snake [Dasypeltis 

 scabra), two Rufescent Snakes {Leptodira hotamboeia), five 

 Rhomb-marked Snakes [Trinierorhinns rhomheaius) from South 

 Africa, presented by Mr. A. W. Guthrie; five Red-headed 

 Weaver-birds {Foudia luadagascariensis) from Madagascar, two 

 Vellow-iumped %&&A-ti.\.^xs.{Cri!hasra sulphurata) from South 

 Africa, six Waxbills (Estrelda ciiierea) from West Africa, two 

 NO. 1656, VOL. 64] 



Nutmeg Birds {Munia punctularia) from India, presented by 

 Mr. E. S. Foot ; two Antillean Boas (Boa divinilotjua) from 

 St. Lucia, presented by Mr. Walter Graham ; an Algerian 

 Skink (Eunieces algerieinii) irom North Africa, presented by the 

 Rev. F. Jervis-Smith, F.R.S. ; two Peba Armadillos { 7a/«j/a 

 peba), three Brazilian Tortoises {Testudo tabulata), a Blue and 

 Yellow Macaw (Ara ararauna) from South America, a Short- 

 billed Toucan (Raiiiphistos brevicarinattts) from Central 

 America, a Reticulated Python (Python retictclatus) from the 

 East Indies, six Spiny-tailed Mastigures (Uromaslix acanthin- 

 urus), three Grey Monitors ( Varanus griseus) from North 

 Africa, deposited ; a Lion (Felis Ieo, i ) bred in Ireland, received 

 in exchange; two Crested Screamers (Chauna cristata) from 

 Buenos Ayres, two Hoopoes ( Upupa epops), European, a White- 

 fronted Amazon (Chrysotis leucocephala) from Cuba, two Red 

 Under-winged Doves (Leptoptila rufaxilla) from Guiana, pur- 

 chased. 



OUR ASTRONOMICAL COLUMN. 



The Total Solar Eclipse, May iS, 1901. — Since the pro- 

 visional telegraphic reports immediately after the eclipse there 

 has been little further information as to the exact procedure of 

 the various parties, but an article in the Times of July 20, 1901, 

 gives a more comprehensive series of particulars. 



Considering the adverse meteorological conditions, the obser- 

 vations in general must be classed as successful, as out of the 

 fifteen stations occupied along the line of totality, determina- 

 tions of some kind were made at thirteen places. In respect 

 to the special investigations based on the unusually long dura- 

 tion of totality, however, the results are practically useless. 

 Chief among these unsuccessful attempts were the large scale 

 photographs of corona by Prof. B.^rnard, the spectroscopic 

 determination of the rotation of the corona by Messrs. Newall, 

 Wilterdinck and Baume Pluvinel, and the determination of heat 

 radiation from corona by Dr. Abbott and Prof. Julius. 



The photographs of the region round the sun for recording 

 stars, &c., to be used in searching for possible intramercurial 

 planet were more successful, good results being obtained by 

 Prof. Perrine at Padang and Mr. Dyson at Auer Gadang. 



The polariscopic investigation^ were only partly successful ; 

 visual observations were secured by Prof. Julius, and a series of 

 photographs obtained by Mr. Newall with a Savart camera. 



In the case of the chromospheric spectrum, several observers 

 have secured more or less successful photographs. At Fort de 

 Kock Dr. Humphreys has obtained good spectra of the lower 

 chromosphere, using a concave grating, the whole blue and 

 violet range of spectrum being on a film two feet long. 



Mr. Newall, assisted by Lieut. Briggs, used an objective plane 

 grating and obtained a series of spectra with high dispersion 

 over a small range. 



Dr. Mitchell also obtained a valuable series of spectra of the 

 flash by means of a grating spectroscope. 



Good series of photographs with prismatic cameras were ob- 

 tained by the Dutch party at Fort de Kock, M. de la Baume 

 Pluvinel, M. Donitch, and also by Mr. Maunder at JIauritius. 



Numerous photographs of the corona and surroundings were 

 obtained with various forms of cameras, but it is improbable 

 that any of these taken in Sumatra will show any considerabla 

 extension of the streamers, and reliance will have to be made 

 in this branch upon the photographs taken under the more 

 favourable conditions at Mauritius. In Sumatra, series of large 

 scale pictures were obtained with 40-feet lenses by Prof Nyland, 

 Mr. Perrine and Dr. Humphreys. Prof Todd failed to even 

 see the corona at Singkep on account of heavy clouds. 



From an examination of the plates it is stated that they show 

 a remarkable feature indicating a huge local storm in the eastern 

 equatorial regions, and several bright arches apparently related 

 to marked prominences, especially in the S.E. quadrant. 



The duration of totality again appears to have been consider- 

 ably different from the computed ephemeris lime, the observed 

 time in most cases being shorter. The Dutch astronomers at 

 Painan report it about eleven seconds, and Mr. Dyson about 

 nine seconds shorter than the almanac duration. Other obser- 

 vers, however, including Prof. Burton and the Fort de Kock 

 party, appear to have found the time of totality longer than was 

 P'-edicted. 



