436 



NA TURE 



{Sept. 6, 1883 



evidently thought that they required notice. He has had 

 them added to a figure of the plant [which he reproduces 

 from " Tabernaernontanus," as he explains, " with addition of 

 the joynted tuberous roots as they are in Winter ; yet by the 

 Canter's fault they are not altogether so exquisitely exprest as I 

 intended." Withering ("Botanical Arrangement of British 

 Plants," ed. ii., 1787, p. 613) has, "The roots, when dried and 

 powdered, will make bread." And in Bromfield's " Flora 

 Vectensis " (1856), the note occurs : — "The routs of S. palnstris 

 are said to become edible by cultivation. See Curtis, ' Brit. 

 Entom.,' vi." This last is a book to which I have not convenient 

 access ; but the reference may give your correspondent a u-eful 

 clue. 



I may mention that I do not find the name " Ba e Hore- 

 hound" given at all in Britten and Holland's very comprehen- 

 sive dictionary of English plant-names. The old name for 

 Stachys palustris was " Clown's All-heal." 



W. T. Thiselton Dyer 



Garfish 



Having been absent from England for some time, I have only 

 just noticed the two letters published in Nature for July 5 and 

 12 (pp. 226 and 245), on " Garfish." I have little doubt that the 

 fish described by Mr. S. Archer as having cut a slit in a felt hat 

 was, as he believes, a garfish, a lar^e Belone, not a Hemirhamphus, 

 and not a swordfish or sawfish of any kind, as suggested by Mr. 

 Goodsir. It is the constant habit of large Belones, some species 

 of which attain, according to Dr. Giinther, a length of five feet, 

 when startled to move along the surface of the water by a series 

 of rapid bounds for thirty or forty yards at a time, with astonishing 

 rapidity. I have often seen them thus spring out of the water 

 when scared by a boat. I was told that in some of the Pacific 

 Islands these fish not uncommonly cause the death of the natives, 

 who, when wading in the water, have their naked abdomens 

 speared by the sharp snouts of the fish, with the result of causing 

 peritonitis. The fish appear to bound blindly away from danger, 

 and strike any obstacle in their way haphazard. As a good 

 many natives wade in together in many of their fishing opera- 

 tions, as at Fiji, for example, where one party drives the 

 fish into the nets held by another, such accidents may easily 

 occur. I do not think a sawfish could possibly jump over 

 a boat. I have described the jumping habits of the large garfi-h, 

 and alluded to their fatal effects in " Notes by a Naturalist on 

 the Challenger," p. 4S0. II. N. Moseley 



Continuous Registration of Temperature 



In your issue of July 26 (p. 306) there is a description of an appa- 

 ratus lately devised by Messrs. Negretti and Zambra, by which a 

 record of twelve temperatures in succession can be obtained by 

 the somewhat elaborate arrangement of twelve thermometers, a 

 clock, and a series of electromagnets and battery. I wish to 

 bring under your notice a simple machine invented by Mr. Bovv- 

 kett, late resident medical officer of the Leeds Fever Hospital, 

 by which a continuous record of atmospheric temperature can 

 be obtained by means of an apparatus consisting solely of a 

 "bourdon" steam gauge tube, a clock, and a writing lever, 

 costing little more than a few shillings. 



Mr. Bowkett devoted great mechanical skill during several years 

 of experimentation to the perfecting of a form of this instrument 

 sufficiently small and accurate to be used for medical purposes, 

 i.e. to register the temperature of the human body. For this 

 purpose the instrument has to be somewhat more complicated, 

 and accordingly more costly. Many of these are in use in our 

 hospitals and elsewhere, and are of the greatest possible value. 



These instruments can be made of any size, and when large 

 are of very great strength, and mi;;ht easily be applied for 

 thermal regulation by attachment to valves or other ventilating 

 arrangements. The instrument constructed by Mr. Bowkett for 

 registering the temperature of rooms was of the size of a small 

 clock, of the simplest possible character, requiring very little 

 care in its use. Messrs. Salt of Birmingham are the licensees 

 of the patent. Ernest M. Jacob 



12, Park Street, Leeds 



Aurora and Thunderstorm 



A display of aurora was seen here on the 30th ult., which 

 may perhaps be of sufficient interest for insertion in Nature. 

 A thunderstorm passed from west to south during the after- 



noon. Thunder and lightning commenced between 3 and 4 

 p.m. and continued till about 9 o'clock. The storm centre was 

 about two miles from the city ; no rain fell here, though a heavy 

 hail shower fell to the west in the afternoon. Lightning was 

 vivid till fast midnight in the south. From ir. 30 to midnight 

 an auroral light passed over the zenith from west to east, of well 

 defined nebulous light. It was io° in width as measured by a 

 sextant. This was joined on the north by a horizontal band of 

 aurora 1S altitude. There were no great flashing lights from 

 this. 



On the northern horizon was a small arc throwing up short 

 flashes. The horizontal band was the brightest. 



The temperature and force of wind and barometer readings 

 were as under : — 



Barometer. Wind. Temperature. 



Dry Bulb. Wet Bulb. 



3 p.m., 29857 ... ... 798 ... 71-9 



6 ,, 29855 ... ... 714 ... 640 



9 ,, 29-862 ... S.S.E. 5 miles ... 66-4 ... 64 - o 

 12 ,, 29-851 ... S.S.E. 4 miles ... 609 ... 6o - 3 

 Maximum shade reading of the day, 83°'5. 

 ,, ,, of the 31st, 82°'0. 



The observatory is 764 feet above the sea level, and I am 

 indebted to the observer for the above figures. 



Alan Macdougall 

 Winnipeg, Manitoba, August 10 



A Complete Solar Rainbow 



On Thursday, August 16, while R.M.S. Nor/iam Ciistlev/as in 

 lat. 2° 20' N., long. 13° 58' W., a phenomenon entirely new, at 

 least to the officers and passengers on board, appeared at 11 a.m., 

 and lasted until 12.30 p.m. This consisted of a complete rain- 

 bow round the sun, when nearly and at the zenith, having an 

 inner diameter — taken by Capt. Winchester, R N. R. — of 43 08'. 

 The day was bright and warm, with a slight haze above. The 

 rainbow appeared to crown the whole of the upper dome of the 

 sky, and to possess all the normal colours, only very slightly 

 dimmed. Whether connected with this appearance or not I 

 cannot say, but the next two days were squally, with heavy 

 rains. D. Morris 



Kew, September 5 



Animal Intelligence 



I am a constant reader of Nature, and have read with much 

 pleasure the several instances recently con-municated by corre- 

 spondents of animal intelligence, a subject in which I take great 

 interest. 



It has struck me that some of your readers might in turn be 

 interested in hearing of the intelligence and powers of observa- 

 tion of a collie bitch called " Winifred," my constant com- 

 panion. 



In one of the fields attached to my house there is a large 

 pond well stocked with fish, and especially with eels. I very 

 often spend an evening fishing for these latter, using several lines 

 at different points round the pond, the rods lying on the grass, 

 each one receiving my attention whenever its 'respective float 

 indicates that there is a bite. 



The collie " Winifred" is constantly with me on these occa- 

 sions, and has always taken the greatest interest in her master's 

 proceedings, watching every movement most intently. It was 

 for a long time a source of considerable amusement to me to 

 notice that by constant observation the dog had come to under- 

 stand the connection between the bobbing and final disappear- 

 ance of a float and the subsequent exciting proceedings of pulling 

 up an eel, disengaging it from the hook, and putting it into the 

 creel. The cocked ears, head on one side, and eager eyes of 

 " Winifred " when she saw a float bobbing gave plain proof that 

 she was as much interested in the .fishing as her master. 



One evening some six weeks ago it happened that I was at 

 one end of the pond baiting a hook, while the dog had remained 

 at the other end, lying on the grass close to one of the rods. 

 Suddenly I observed her showing signs of excitement, and, on 

 looking across, saw one of my floats finally disappearing under 

 the water. As I did not come, "Winifred" got very excited 

 indeed, uttered one or two sharp yelps, and ended by seizing the 

 rod in her mouth and "backing" with it, attempting to pull out 

 the line from the water. I hurried to take the rod from her, 

 fearing the effects on my tackle of the lack of skill of this canine 



