172 
tions by their investigations made during a two 
months’ residence in the lighthouse at the Isle 
of May—a famous bird observatory situated in 
the North Sea off the mouth of the Firth of Forth. 
There are also contributions from nearly one 
hundred observers, posted between the Muckle 
Flugga (the northernmost limit of the British 
Isles) and the shores of the Solway and Tweed. 
This vast amount of material has been arranged 
under the following headings: birds new to Scot- 
land; uncommon visitors and species new to 
faunal areas; extension of breeding range; 
hybrids; summer and nesting; winter; ringing; | 
plumage; food, habits, &c.; and migration. 
Much that is interesting is recorded under 
all these headings, but the special feature of the 
report lies in the wealth of data from the numerous 
islands—the most important, in some respects, of 
all bird stations. 
These insular records relate mainly to the spring 
and autumn passage-movements of those feathered 
voyagers which traverse our shores when en 
voute between their accustomed northern summer 
haunts beyond our isles, and their winter retreats 
lying to the south of them. These birds form 
by far the most numerous class of migrants that 
visit the British area. At such stations, especi- 
ally the northern stations, the comings and going's 
of these travellers are to be observed free from 
the complications that arise on the mainland 
through the presence of birds of the same species 
which are simply local natives or engaged in 
local movements. In addition, the recent atten- 
tion devoted to island stations has resulted in 
the garnering of a remarkable crop of records 
on the occurrence of rare visitors, some of them 
mere waifs, while others formerly considered such 
have unexpectedly proved to be annual in their 
appearances—among others the yellow-browed 
warbler, red-spotted bluethroat, little bunting, 
ortolan bunting, and grey-headed wagtail. : 
The year 1912 was remarkable for the number 
of rare species detected at Scottish stations. 
These included the black chat, northern bullfinch, 
scarlet grosbeaks, little buntings, Richard’s pipit, 
red-breasted flycatchers, Blyth’s reed warblers, 
icterine warblers, barred warblers, snowy owl, 
Tengmalm’s owl, broad-billed sandpiper, Tem- 
minck’s stints, little bustard, &c., the visits of 
which are duly recorded along with the particulars 
relating to their occurrence. 
In conclusion Scottish ornithologists have every 
reason to be satisfied with the results of the 
year’s investigations and may congratulate 
themselves on the able and excellent manner in 
which these results are set forth in the report. 
WEG: 
NOTES. 
A rew days ago (October 2) the daily Press pub- 
lished sensational paragraphs to the effect that Sir 
Frederick Treves had announced, at the Radium 
Institute, ‘“‘a complete revolution in the future of 
radium.”” When analysed, the ‘revolution’? amounts 
to little more than a statement that the Radium Insti- 
NO. 2293, VOL. 92] 
NATURE 
[October 9, 1913 
tute has begun to collect radium emanation in sealed 
glass tubes, and to issue the tubes to doctors for the 
treatment of their patients. It was assumed by the 
literary young men who write the leaders and notes 
in the daily papers that radium emanation had just 
been discovered instead of being known and named 
for ten years or more, so they let their enthusiasm 
overstep the bounds of their knowledge. Even the 
method referred to by Sir F. Treves is not new; it 
was published in The Lancet on December 11, 1909, 
p. 1742 (‘On the Use of Radium for Local Applica- 
tion within the Body,” by Dr. Alfred C. Jordan), and 
this paper is quoted and fully abstracted by Dr. 
Dawson Turner in his book on ‘‘ Radium: its Physics 
and Therapeutics”’ (Bailli¢re, Tindall and Cox, 1911), 
pp. 27 and 28. In The Lancet the glass tube con- 
taining the emanation was directed to be enclosed in 
a tube of lead ‘‘compo”’ of 1 mm. thickness, and 
this in its turn in a length of rubber tubing. Of 
course, these tubes must be used at once, for the 
emanation decays to one-half its initial strength in 
three and a half days. A tube of initial strength equal 
to 10 mg. of radium may be placed in contact with 
a tumour, and left to ‘“‘decay”’ there. It will be 
understood that emanation used in this way (in sealed 
tubes surrounded by 1 mm. of lead) depends for its 
action on its y rays and its hardest 8 rays, the glass 
stopping all the a radiation, while the lead absorbs 
most of the 8 rays. Very different is the action of 
free radium emanation, as in radio-active waters. In 
the latter case the « particles are able to bombard the 
tissues at close quarters; the action of the 8 and 
radiation then becomes negligible, possessing no more 
than one-hundredth part of the energy of the « 
radiation. Great care must be used in applying 
a radiation to the tissues, for the destructive action is 
most pronounced. Good results have been obtained 
with radium in many diseases, but the hopes of the 
public as well as the medical profession are centred 
round the treatment of cancer. Even in this dreaded 
disease many favourable results have been reported 
both with radium and with the Roéntgen rays, but 
unfortunately disappointments are far more frequent 
than cures. 
THE year 1914 is the centenary of the birth of Sir 
John Lawes, and 1917 is that of Sir Henry Gilbert; 
and it is proposed by the Society for Extending the 
Rothamsted Experiments to raise the sum of 6o000!. 
by public subscription for the purpose of erecting a 
suitable commemoration laboratory at the Rothamsted 
Experimental Station. It is understood that if 6oool. 
is raised in this way, a further grant of 6o0ol. can 
be obtained, making a total of 12,0001. altogether, 
for which sum an adequate building could be put up. 
The rapid development of agricultural chemistry and 
bacteriology, and particularly of the special branches 
associated with Rothamsted—the composition of crops 
and the study of the soil in relation to the plant— 
has necessitated further increases in the laboratory 
staff, and has attracted a number of voluntary 
workers. For all these more modern accommodation 
is required than can be obtained in the older part of 
the present buildings. The work of Lawes and 
: Gilbert not only laid the foundations of agricultural 
eet Md a isd 
