October 13, 1904J 



NA TURE 



595 



prospecting has been going on to determine its extent and 

 to locate its source in the bed-rock. The ore is mostly 

 cassiterite, but stannite also occurs. Pebbles of slate con- 

 taining small tin-bearing quartz veins have been found in 

 the gravels, while elsewhere the ore has been found dis- 

 seminated through more or less altered granitic dykes. 



PRIZE SUBJECTS OF THE INDUSTRIAL 

 SOCIETY OF MULHOUSE. 

 T^HE Industrial Society of Mulhouse has issued a pro- 

 gramme of the prizes to be awarded by the society in 

 1905 ,■ excluding the subjects which are of a purely local or 

 technical character, the following are the principal prizes 

 open to competition to all nationalities : — 



In the section of chemistry, medals of honour will be given 

 for experimental investigations of the alizarine reds, of the 

 colouring matter of raw cotton, of the transformation of 

 cotton into oxycellulose, and of cochineal carmine; for the 

 synthesis of the colouring matter of cochineal or of some 

 other dye used in industry ; and for the production of fast dyes 

 of a specified nature. Several medals will also be awarded 

 for studies of special mordants and for the synthesis of 

 some naturally occurring substance. A sum of 500 francs 

 to 1000 francs is to be allotted to the best compilation of 

 densities of mineral and organic substances in the solid 

 state and in cold saturated solution. Many practical 

 chemical problems in the bleaching and dyeing of cotton, 

 wool, and silk are also suggested as subjects for competition. 

 In the section of mechanical arts, a prize of 500 francs 

 and a silver medal is offered for a new method of construc- 

 tion of buildings suitable for cotton spinning, wool comb- 

 ing, or calico printing. The following subjects will receive 

 medals: — a new non-tubular type of boiler; an indicator 

 of the total'Avork done in a steam engine ; a new system for 

 heating steam boilers ; various machines for combing, card- 

 ing, and weaving the textile fibres; a comparative study 

 of electric and gas lighting in factories : a system of auto- 

 matic lighting by conductors of the second class. 



The following subjects deal with natural history and 

 agriculture ; — a catalogue of the plants in the neighbour- 

 hood of Mulhouse, Thann, Altkirch, and Guebwiller ; an 

 account of the fauna of Alsace ; a mineralogical or geological 

 description of part of Alsace ; a study of the plants or 

 insects inimical to agriculture in the same province. A 

 medal is also offered for an investigation of the character 

 of .Alsace in prehistoric times. 



In the sections of commerce and statistics the subjects 

 are : — a consideration of the questions of insurance against 

 risks of transport and fire; the influence of taxation on 

 industry ; and the effect of trusts and like organisations 

 on commerce. 



UNIVERSITY AND EDUCATIONAL 

 INTELLIGENCE. 



Ca.\ibridge. — Mr. J. J. Lister, F.R.S., of St. John's 

 College, has been appointed demonstrator of comparative 

 anatomy. 



The Board of Geographical Studies has arranged for a 

 course of instruction in geographical surveying, to be given 

 by Mr. Hinks at the observatory. 



The council of the Senate proposes an important scheme 

 whereby the matriculation and senior local examinations 

 of the Universities of London, Oxford, and Cambridge shall 

 be mutually recognised. The object is to diminish the 

 number of distinct examinations for which schoolmasters 

 have to prepare their pupils. The proposed conditions are 

 set forth in the University Reporter for October 11. 



Mr. R. R. Webb, St. John's, Mr. G. H. A. Wilson, Clare, 

 Mr. J. M. Dodds, Peterhouse, and Mr. E. W. Barnes, 

 Trinity, will be the examiners for the mathematical tripos, 

 part i., in 1905. 



Sir Isambard Owen has been appointed principal of the 

 Durham College of Science in place of the late Dr. Gurney. 



Dr. Arturro Marcacci, of the University of Palermo, 

 has been appointed professor of physiology in the University 

 of Pavia. 



NO. 1824, VOL. 70] 



Dr. Hermann Kossel, of the Imperial Board of Health 

 at Berlin, has been appointed to the chair of hygiene at the 

 University of Giessen in succession to Dr. Georg Gaffky. 



The first congregation to inaugurate the University of 

 Leeds was held on October 6, and the honorary degrees 

 announced in our issue of September 29 (p. 547) were con- 

 ferred. The Chancellor of the university, Lord Ripon, 

 presided. 



We learn from the Atlictuiciim that Dr. Hans Balterman, 

 of the Berlin Observatory, has been appointed director of 

 the observatory at Konigsberg, and professor of astronomy 

 at the University of Konigsberg, in succession to Prof. 

 Hermann Struve, lately appointed to the vacancy at Berlin 

 caused by the retirement of Prof. Forster. 



The Board of Education has issued its " Syllabuses and 

 Lists of .Apparatus " applicable to schools and classes other 

 than elementary from August i, 1904, to July 31, 1905. 

 A new subject, under the title " Elementary' Science of 

 Common Life (Chemistry)," number twenty-six, has been 

 added to the list of branches of science in which the board 

 holds examinations. The list of subjects in which no ex- 

 aminations are held, though the subjects are recognised by 

 the Board, has been extended, and now includes many sub- 

 jects introductory to more advanced work in technology. 



The anonymous gift of looo!. to the University College 

 of Bristol announced a few days ago is, it may be hoped, an 

 indication that the work of this institution is being appreci- 

 ated in Bristol and the surrounding district. In addition 

 to the usual courses, appropriate and systematic instruction 

 is given at the college in those branches of applied science 

 which are most nearly connected with the arts and manu- 

 factures. We notice that the total number of individuals, 

 excluding medical students, attending the college during 

 the session 1903-4 was 1084, of whom 596 were day students. 

 The new calendar of University College, London, that 

 for the session 1904-5, gives full particulars of several 

 interesting new developments in the work of the college. 

 The university courses of study, especially those in 

 economics, have been extended, and further arrangements 

 have been made for post-graduate courses, lectures, and 

 research— this post-graduate work is explained fully in ten 

 pages of the calendar. The list of papers and other publi- 

 cations from the scientific departments of the college, since 

 the Dean's report of last year, runs to eight full page's, and 

 shows that the work now being accomplished in the college 

 is of the same high order as in previous years. 



It is reported that there is apparently a deficiency of 

 about 2000/. for the annual working expenses of the Tata 

 Research Institute, and on account of this the scheme for th<> 

 institute is at a standstill. Referring to this, Caj,,.^. 

 remarks : — " The question now is whether for the sake of 

 two or three thousand pounds India should go without a 

 Research Institute. Is the object good or not? If it was 

 not good, why did the Government of India promise to help 

 it? If it is good, why should there be any stinginess on 

 their part about it? Should a great Government refuse its 

 support and countenance to a scheme, the expenditure on 

 which will be repaid not only to the people of India, but 

 also to the Government itself a hundredfold? " 



The buildings of the new technical college at Danzig 

 were opened on October 6 in the presence of the German 

 Emperor. The college, which has been established on a 

 modern basis, is intended to develop the industries of West 

 Prussia and of the city of Danzig. Shipbuilding is to 

 receive special attention. In a speech which he made the 

 Emperor referred to the importance of technical education 

 for the maintenance of Germany's position among the 

 nations, and described the special characteristic o'^f the 

 German technical colleges as being their " comprehensive 

 many-sidedness." It is, he continued, for this reason that 

 these colleges constitute a scientific " Universitas " which 

 may be compared justly with the old universities, and ex- 

 plains why the endeavour has been made to place the two 

 kinds of institutions on an equal footing by bestowing upon 

 the technical colleges the right to confer degrees. " .Mav 

 the new college," the Emperor concluded, "prosper and 

 flourish to the glory of German learning, to the blessing of 

 these old Prussian provinces, and to the honour of the 

 German name ! " 



