June 7, 1883J 



NA TURE 



OD 



illustrating the different senses of the English words are omitted 

 as unnecessary. Should the work be carried out on these lines 

 it will enable the student to wait somewhat more patiently for 

 the appearance of Mr. VVhitmee's long-promised Comparative 

 Dictionary of the Polynesian Languages. 



The Minister for Postal Telegraphy will ask from the French 

 Parliament the credits required for connecting by a cable Saigon 

 to Haifong, the principal seaport of Tonquin, and Haifong to 

 Hanoi by another line laid down in the bed of the Red River. 



At the Polytechnic, which is now occupied by a Young Men's 

 Christian Institute, there was recently an exhibition of drawings, 

 and works of art and manufactures, executed wholly or in part 

 by the members of the institute and the students at the numerous 

 classes held there. Most of the exhibits show proofs of the use- 

 fulness and success of the institution. The exhibition included 

 also many valuable works of art and a very costly and interest- 

 ing collection of Japanese, Chinese, and Indian curiosities lent 

 for the occasion by Mr. Quintin Hogg and other friends of the 

 institute. 



The Oxford University Junior Scientific Club held a very 

 successful conversazione in the University Museum on Friday 

 evening last. 



Prof. Dewar, F. R.S., will give an experimental discourse 

 on the Chemistry of the Electric Discharge at the last Friday 

 evening meeting on June 8 at the Royal Institution. 



The additions to the Zoological Society's Gardens during the 

 .past week include two Pig-tailed Monkeys (Macacus nemestrinus 

 i 9) from Sarawak, pre.-ented by His Highness the Rajah of 

 Sarawak ; an Egyptian Cat (Felis chaus) from India, presented 

 by Mr. W, R. Glyn Griffiths ; three Common Kingfishers (Alcedo 

 ispida), British, presented by Mr. Frederic Houghton ; a Barbary 

 Ape (Macacus inuus) from North Africa, four Elliot's Pheasants 

 (P/iasianus ellioli £ £ 9 9 ) from China, five Ceylon Terrapins 

 (Clemmys trijuga) from Ceylon, four Bungonia River Turtle 

 (Emyda granosa) from India, four Lacertine Snakes (Caiope/tis 

 lacertina), a Horseshoe Snake (Zamenis hippocrepis), a Pleurodele 

 Newt (Pleurodeles walli), South European, a Red-legged Partridge 

 (Caccabis rufa), European, deposited ; a Buffon's Touracou 

 (Corythaix buffoni) from West Africa, two Bronze-winged 

 Parrots (Piouus chalcopltrus) from South America, two Varied 

 Hemipodes (Turnix varia) from Australia, two American 

 Siskins (Chrysomitris tristis) from North America, two Black 

 Larks (Mclanoeorypha yellonensis) from Siberia, a Cerastes Viper 

 (Vipera cerastes) from Egypt, purchased. 



LOCAL SCIENTIFIC SOCIETIES 



"pOR some years past there has been a growing expres- 

 •*- sion of desire of local scientific societies to be 

 officially represented at the meetings of the British Asso- 

 ciation. The question is one of considerable difficulty 

 and delicacy, and though it has been the subject of fre- 

 quent discussion and some legislation, no measure has 

 yet been carried that is satisfactory to all parties. Last 

 year the subject was referred to the Council, who ap- 

 pointed a special committee, and this committee made 

 on Tuesday its preliminary report. They asked in it for 

 permission from the Council to circulate the report among 

 the local societies in order to obtain from them that re- 

 sponse which is needed before the committee can feel 

 themselves in a position to report finally, and a fortiori 

 before the Council can take their report into considera- 

 tion. This permission has been granted, together with 

 that of free publication. A copy of the report will con- 

 sequently be shortly sent to the various societies by the 

 secretary, Mr. H. George Fordham, Odsey Grange, 

 Royston, Cambridgeshire, with the request that their 



replies will be forwarded to him. But as the subject 

 presses, and as the season is advancing and the annual 

 sessions of societies are drawing to a close, the best 

 method of bringing the report before the members ot 

 those societies is through the columns of Nature. I 

 therefore forward it at once. Francis Galton 



June 6 



Preliminary Report of the "Local Scientific Societies' Com- 

 mittee, consisting op Mr. Francis Galton (Chairman), the 

 Rev. Dr. Crosskey, Mr. C. E. De Rance, Mr. H. G. 

 Fordham (Secretary), Mr. John Hopkinson, Mr. R. 

 Meldola, Mr. A. Ramsay, Prof. Sollas, Mr. G. J. 

 Symons, and Mr. W. Whitaker, appointed by the Council 

 in compliance with the following resolution referred to the 

 Council by the General Committee : 



" That the Council be empowered to appoint a Committee, 

 as recommended in their Report adopted by the General Com- 

 mittee on August 23, in order to draw up suggestions upon 

 methods of more systematic observation and plans of operation 

 for Local Societies, together with a more uniform mode of 

 publication of the re-ults of their work. It is recommended 

 that this Committee should draw up a list of Local Societies 

 which publish their proceedings." 



The Committee have communicated with all the Societies 

 known to them which appear to fjll under the designation of 

 "Local Societies which publish their proceeding-," giving to 

 this definition a somewhat liberal interpretation, and they submit 

 a tabular list of the publications with other particulars of those 

 which have furnished replies. These societies are about 170 

 in number, and seem from their rules and publications to be 

 centres whence local scientific information may conveniently be 

 obtained. 



The Lojal Societies differ widely in character. Those which 

 are established in large towns, and are not particularly well 

 situated for carrying on systematic local investigations, are often 

 of high scientific rank, and their affairs are administered in a 

 business-like manner by a regular staff. On the other hand, 

 there are numerous smaller societies and field clubs, scattered 

 over the country, which are excellently placed for conducting 

 local investigations, but whose organisation is so incomplete that 

 it has often been difficult to discover their official addresses. 



In some parts of the country the sm <)ler societies either group 

 themselves into what is practically a federation, or else affiliate 

 themselves to some large society in their district, and the Com- 

 mittee think that if the Local Societies generally could be induced 

 to group themselves round what might be described as local sub- 

 centres, it would not be difficult to devise methods of uniting the 

 representatives of those sub-centres in the j erforniance of in- 

 lere-ting and important duties during the meetings of the British 

 Association, with the final effect of establi hing systematic local 

 investigation throughout the country, and uniformity in the modes 

 of publishing the results. The recommendations the Committee 

 are about to make will tend wholly in this direction, because, 

 although they have considered many plans of fulfilling their 

 instructioi s in a direct manner that perhaps look well on paper, 

 no plan recommends itself to them as superior to this indirect 

 method in its capacity of producing valuable and durable 

 effects. 



The Committee do not suggest any new topics for systematic 

 investigation, but confine themselves to giving a few examples of 

 what these topics are, taken from a circular printed last year 

 by a committee appointed at a conference of delegates of 

 scientific societies : (1) Underground Waters (to record the height 

 of water in wells, and its variations in level in different parts of 

 the country). (2) Erratic Blocks (to record their position, height 

 above sea, lithol gical character, &c). (3) Underground Tempe- 

 rature (to investigate the rate of its increase downwards in 

 various localities). (4) Rainfall (its measurement). (5) Periodical 

 Natural Phenomena (to rec >rd time of flowering of certain plants, 

 arrival of certain migratory birds, appearance of certain insects). 

 (6) Injurious Insects (to record their appearance in unusual 

 numbers, the injuries they cause, and the degrees of success in 

 preventing them). The first three of these investigations were 

 set on fo^t by Committees of the British Association, and the 

 last three by societies or private individuals. 



It can hardly be doubted that numerous systematic in- 

 vestigations of a local character will from time to time be 

 carried on, and that their successful prosecution would result 

 in important gains to science. Neither does it appear doubtful 



