672 
Arctic regions, presented with the Bulletin, possesses 
no marked merit. 
Before closing this notice, reference must be made 
to Prof. K. Haussmann’s ‘‘ Die magnetischen Landes- 
aufnahmen im Deutschen Reich und magnetische 
Uebersichtskarten von Deutschland in 1912” (Mitteil- 
ungen, January-April), and to the regular supplement 
on military geography in the same journal, which 
{apart from the interesting and suggestive fact of its 
mere existence) shows that that branch of study is by 
no means a preserve of military men. 
WIRELESS TELEGRAPHY.! 
(1) FE the last four parts of the sixth volume of the 
Jahrbuch der drahtlosen Telegraphie und Tele- 
phonie, part 3 is almost wholly devoted to an account 
of the doings of the recent International Radio-tele- 
graph Conference in London, and of the fruits of 
their labours. In part 4 there is a return to scientific 
and technical matters, the principal article being one 
which concludes an elaborate piece of work, both 
theoretical and experimental, by F. Miller, on the 
oscillations in three coupled circuits. Part 5 contains 
several articles of interest. One, by S. Loewe, on the 
calibration of thermo-elements for accurate quantita- 
tive work—chiefly in connection with the measure- 
ment of small high-frequency currents—may be useful 
to others than those in Hertzian research. A very 
elaborate technical study of a resonance inductor for 
use with alternating current of 1000 periods per 
second is contributed by S. Kimura. An article by 
G. Seibt describes apparatus for the exhaustive test- 
ing of mineral substances with a view to their useful- 
ness as detectors of electrical oscillations. Part 6 con- 
tains a paper by P. Jégou on the utility of acoustic 
resonance in wireless telegraphy—a matter that has 
received considerable attention of late on account of 
the widespread use of rapid sparks, producing musical 
notes, in signalling. F. Kiebitz contributes two 
articles, one dealing with an elaboration of Bjerknes’s 
method of measuring the decay coefficient of a circuit, 
the other describing new experiments on antennze 
consisting of long wires stretched horizontally at a 
height of a few metres above the surface of the earth. 
It is found that the state of the ground under the 
horizontal antennz greatly affects the efficiency with 
which such antenne can radiate. This article is fol- 
lowed by an interesting correspondence on the same 
subject. 
(2) A new edition of the official handbook for wire- 
less telegraph operators, revised in accordance with 
the International Radio-telegraph Convention of Lon- 
don, 1912, has recently been issued by the Postmaster- 
General. It contains eighty pages, and is sold at 3d. 
Though it does not in any way deal with scientific 
principles or technicological details, it will be found 
of interest to everyone connected in any way with 
wireless telegraphy. Very full instructions are given 
concerning the calculations of rates and of the routine 
of transmitting a message; this will be of interest to 
those of the general public who have occasion to use 
radio-telegraphic facilities. The comprehensive tables 
and lists of abbreviations to be used for commonly* 
occurring phrases, are absolutely indispensable to the 
amateurs who amuse themselves by tapping other 
people’s messages. The book closes with the regula- 
tions of the examinations for qualification as an 
operator on board ship. 
1 (1) Jahrbuch der drahtlosen Telegraphie und Telephonie.” Heraus 
geechen id Dr. Gustay Eichhorn. Band 6, Heft 3-6. (Leipzig: J. A 
arth, 1913 
Gay Book for Wireless Telegraph Operators Working Installations 
Licensed by H.M. Postmaster-General." (London: Wyman and Son, Ltd., 
1913:) Price 3d. . - jk : ' 
NO. 2311, VOL. 92| 
NATURE 
/ regions be dealt with differently from the ordinary 
[FEBRUARY I2, 1914 
THE PRESERVATION OF NATURE IN 
GERMANY. 
[% 1907 the Prussian Ministry of Education insti- 
- tuted the Central Office for the Care of National — 
Monuments. The office is in the old Botanical Museum 
in Berlin, and it contains, besides other rooms, a 
library and a large hall for meetings and lectures. 
The staff includes a director, two naturalists, a lawyer, 
librarians, and clerks. Associated with the Central 
Office there are in the provinces of Prussia forty local 
committees, on which are representatives of the Impe- 
rial.Government, the local administration, the agri- 
cultural and forestry departments, and the local uni-— 
versities and museums. The provincial committees 
are not supported financially by the State; they re- 
ceive, however, small grants from the provincial 
administrations for the purpose of working expenses. 
The aims of the Central Office are :—(1) To discover 
the existence of natural monuments’ and to investi- 
gate and preserve them; (2) to make records of their 
situations and the conditions of their ownership; (3) 
to make maps and photographs of them for permanent 
preservation in the office; (4) to form a collection of 
all the literature dealing with the dangers threaten- 
ing such places and their prevention, the laws relating 
to the ownership of land, and any scientific books dis- 
cussing in particular the areas reserved or worthy of 
reservation. : 
The publications of the Central Office are two. 
“Beitrage zur Naturdenkmalpflege’’ contains the 
report of the office and of the work done in foreign 
countries; it is circulated principally among scientific 
people and administrative officials. ‘*‘ Naturdenkmaler, 
Vortrage und Aufsatze” (‘‘ Natural Monuments, — 
Lectures and Essays’’) is written in a more popular 
style, with the purpose of carrying the ideals of a 
love of nature among all classes of the people. Be- 
sides these periodical publications, lectures which have 
been held under the auspices of the office are printed 
and circulated in the form of pamphlets, and many 
provincial committees print and distribute “‘communi- 
cations”’ in their own spheres of work. Courses of 
instruction are held from time to time at the Central 
Office, chiefly for the information of strangers, and 
every week debates are held, which are attended by 
residents in Berlin who are interested in the work. 
The department works hard to make all classes in- 
terested in the work, and in this it receives great 
assistance from the Administration of State Forests, 
the employees of which are made acquainted with the 
trees of scientific as well as of economic importance. 
The General Order of 1907 empowered the provin- 
cial representatives of the Imperial Government to 
start reservations of forest, and to provide that those 
scheme of forestry, with a view to the preservation — 
of rare plants and animals. As a consequence of this” 
order a large number of reservations of greater or 
less extent, which lack of space prevents us from 
enumerating here, have been laid out. It has wisely — 
been decided that size alone is not a necessary condi- 
tion of a reserve; a single tree or the face of a cliff 
may well be worthy of that dignity. Not only the 
Department of Forestry, but those of Agriculture, of 
Constructions, or War, and even the churches, both 
Protestant and Catholic, have helped to further the 
ends of the Central Office. What has been said above 
of the work done in Prussia is true also of Bavaria. 
and Wurtemberg, and, to a less extent, of some of 
the smaller States of the German Confederation. This 
1 Under this title are included any natural objects of interes, whether | 
botanical, zoological or geological, particularly those which have survived 
in their primitive state, untouched by civilisation. fas 
2 
