FEBRuARY 26, 1914] 
has-been done care should have been taken not 
to be so behindhand as to include the roebuck 
in the same genus as the red deer. A more serious 
error occurs on page 24, where Balaena mys- 
ticetus, the name of the Greenland whale, is mis- 
applied to the common fin-whale, which, by the 
way, is neither the largest animal in existence nor 
attains a length of go feet. R. L. 
Things Seen in Oxford. By Norman J. David- 
son. Pp. 258+plate. (London: Seeley, 
Service and Co., 1914.) Price 2s. net. 
Ir Mr. Davidson’s little book on Oxford is to 
be recommended to the readers of Nature, it 
must be on the understanding that they are not 
to expect guidance in scientific matters. We read 
with surprise that the University Museum “is 
excelled by no other in the world for its com- 
pleteness in the Natural Sciences,” and _ that 
“during the winter months Oxford is invariably 
flooded.” Neither statement is wholly true. The 
information on undergraduate life also is some- 
what antiquated, for the average undergraduate 
now goes bareheaded, and when he gets back 
to his rooms in the evening is more likely to 
switch on his light than to “turn up his lamp.” 
But then it not infrequently happens that to 
visitors “things seen in Oxford” differ consider- 
ably from the same things as known to residents. 
The illustrations from Taunt’s photographs are 
excellent. 
Indian Administration. By Prof. Vaman G. Kale. 
Pp. vi+298. (Poona: Aryabhushan. Press, 
1913.) -Price 1.4 rupees. 
THE machinery of Indian government and ad- 
ministration is described in this book in a manner 
which should appeal to the ordinary, intelligent 
Indian citizen. One chapter is devoted to Indian 
education, and provides a summary of progress 
and policy since 1854. From one of Prof. Kale’s 
tables we find that in 1912 there were in India 187 
colleges concerned with higher education, and that 
36,334 students were in attendance at them. The 
existing provision for university education is not, 
it is urged, adequate to the ever-growing demand, 
and new seats of learning will have to be founded 
in parts of the country where there are at present 
no facilities. 
The Examination of School Children. A Manual 
of Directions and Norms. By Dr. W. H. Pyle. 
Pp. v+70. (New York: The Macmillan Com- 
pany, 1913.) Price 2s. net. 
As Dr. Pyle says, an accurate knowledge of the 
mental and physical characters of each child under 
his care would assist greatly a schoolmaster’s 
lessons. The object of this little book is to pro- 
vide directions for the examination of the mental 
and physical natures of school children, and to 
supply tables dealing with normal cases of various 
ages. It is to be feared that ordinary teachers 
have not the necessary knowledge and experience 
to make trustworthy tests, but the hints given 
should prove of value to psychological and medical 
experts. 
Ore tee H 
‘ 
“4 
VOL. 92 
NATURE 711 
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR. 
[The Editor does not hold himself responsible for 
opinions expressed by his correspondents. Neither 
can he undertake to return, or to correspond with 
the writers of, rejected manuscripts intended for 
this or any other part of Nature. No notice is 
taken of anonymous communications.] 
Weather Forecasts in England. 
Tue Meteorological Offices of this and some other 
countries issue weather forecasts each day for the 
succeeding twenty-four hours, these forecasts being 
based on information telegraphed from various sur- 
rounding stations. They are often, but not always, 
right, or partly right, and it may not be without 
interest to compare the actual weather, first, with the 
official prediction, and then with such predictions as 
might be made without any information except such 
as can be gathered on the spot from the barometer 
and the “look of the weather.” 
The British Isles, with no land to the west and 
south (except the Azores) for some thousand miles, 
are unfortunately situated as regards weather pre- 
diction, for the greater part of the changes which 
affect them come from a part of the Atlantic which 
is traversed by comparatively few steamers, and from 
which, therefore, but few wireless messages can be 
received, and no other source of information is avail- 
able. Central Europe and America are better off in 
this respect. 
With the view of examining the correctness of the 
English forecasts, I have recently gone through the 
weather reports for 1913, and extracted from_them 
those forecasts relating to the London and S.E. dis- 
trict, which is perhaps the most favourably situated 
for prediction. The results of this examination, 
though they refer only to a single district for a single 
year, will give some idea of the use of telegraphic 
information, but before considering the tables in which 
these results are stated, I will add a few general 
remarks. 
There are in England four clearly distinguished 
types of weather, namely, those which accompany 
winds from the south to west, north to east, west to 
north, and east to south, their relative frequency being 
in the order stated. 
The characteristics of each type are :— 
S. to W.—Warm, wet, cloudy. 
N. to E.—Cold, dry, with haze. 
W. to N.—Cold, clear air, with hail in spring. 
E. to S.—Very variable in character. 
There are, of course, frequent exceptions, but in the 
main these are the leading features of winds from 
the respective quadrants. The correct prediction of 
the type of weather is for most purposes more impor- 
tant than that of the amount of rain or sunshine to 
be expected. 
In regard to whether forecasts are to be judged 
as right or wrong, it must be noticed that in our 
Weather Reports they are often so worded as to make 
a decision difficult, and to bring to mind the fortune- 
teller’s ‘‘ dark man” and ‘“‘fair man.’’ The wind, for 
instance, is to be “light, moderate, fresh, or strong,” 
or ‘strong at times in places.” For the weather, 
“Some rain, fog, or mist, but with fair intervals.” 
The temperature is described as “moderate,” “rather 
warm,” ‘cool,’’ ‘‘below normal,’ and so on, but 
whether it is rising or falling is rarely stated. 
Rain, cloud, and sunshine are more variable than 
wind or temperature, and in the following table I 
have considered only the latter two. 
In marking the forecasts as right or wrong, regard 
has been had in the first place to direction of the wind 
and secondly to its strength. If, for instance, a west 
wind is predicted and a S.S.W. follows, this would 
