NA TURE 



[Jan. i, 1885 



one to antagonise its action. The glandular secretion acts as a 

 vehicle for carrying the spermatozoa, as liberated, towards the 

 oviduct. Another gland, previously unknown, now adds its 

 secretion, and serves to bring the spermatozoa into proper 

 separation from each other. The common oviduct is not a 

 simple tube, as formerly supposed, but carries in its centre a 

 pouch of delicate membrane, and very like the recurved tail of 

 a lobster. Two muscles, having for their especial purpose the 

 direction of the egg in transit to the ovipositor, carry the egg, 

 if a worker is to be produced, into this central pouch, and bring 

 it into contact with the spermatic fluid, when a spermatozoon 

 enters its micropyle. If a drone or male is to be produced, it 

 takes a lower path in the right or left oviduct, and a side path 

 to the ovipositor, and so avoids the pouch and escapes fertilisa- 

 tion. Siebold's theory of parthenogenesis in the bee is thus ana- 

 tomically demonstrated to be accurate. — -Dr. Van Heurck's paper 

 on the resolution of Amphipleura into "beads" was read, and 

 gave rise to a long discussion. — The meeting resolved to send a 

 contribution to the memorial now being raised in America to 

 the late R. B. Tolles, the eminent optician. 



Royal Meteorological Society, lice. 17, 1SS4. — Mr. R. 

 H. Scott, F.R.S., President, in the chair.— Mr. C. H. Cotton, 

 Mr. S. A. Jolly, L.R.C.P., and Rev. C. J. Taylor, M.A., were 

 elected Fellows of the Society. — The following papers were 

 read: — On the reduction of temperature means for short series 

 of observations to the equivalents of longer periods, by Dr. 

 Julius Hann, Hon. Mem. R. Met.Soc. The author has recently 

 carried out an investigation into the climate of the Alpine dis- 

 tricts of Austria, and in doing so he has endeavoured to reduce 

 the monthly and annual means of all the temperature observations 

 from the districts in question during the interval from 1S48 to 

 1880, and in some places to 1884, to the mean for the thirty 

 years' period 1851 to 1SS0. In this paper Dr. Hann describes 

 the methods he adopted to reduce observations at mountain sta- 

 tions for short periods to the equivalents of longer periods. — 

 The diversity of scales for registering the force of wind, by 

 Charles Harding, F.R. Met.Soc. The object of this paper is to 

 call attention to the confusion that exists in the systems in use 

 by various countries for registering wind-force, whether instru- 

 mentally or otherwise, and to show the need of action for im- 

 provement. — Report on the phenological observations for the 

 year 18S4, by the Rev. T. A. Preston, M.A., F.R. Met. Sec. 

 The salient features of the weather during the period embraced 

 in this report, viz. October 1883 to September 1884, were: the 

 mild winter, the cold April, the hot August, and the long 

 period of drought, which at the end of September began to be 

 seriously felt. The general effects on vegetation have been : 

 the prolonged existence of many of the autumn species, the 

 great loss of wall-fruit, the failure of bush fruits, the plentiful 

 supply of strawberries as long as they lasted, but the time was 

 short ; the good hay harvest, although it was light in quantity ; 

 the good corn crop, the unusually plentiful potato crop, and the 

 great abundance of wild fruits. 



Edinburgh 



Royal Society, December 15, 1884. — Mr. Robert Gray, 

 Vice-President, in the chair. — Dr. Sang read the first part of a 

 paper on the theory of the tides. — Mr. J. T. Cunningham gave 

 a communication on the nature and significance of the structure 

 known as Kupffer's vesicle in teleostean embryos. — Prof. Turner 

 discussed the relation of the alveolar form of cleft pa'ate to the 

 incisor teeth and the intermaxillary bones. — Mr. T. Andrews, 

 F.C.S., gave a paper on the apparent lines of force on passing a 

 current through water. 



Royal Physical Society, Dec. 17, 1884.— B. N. Peach, 

 F.R.S.E., F.G.S., President, in the chair. — The following 

 communications were read : — On Loligopsis and allied genera, 

 by W. E. Hoyle, M.A. (Oxon), F.R.S.E., &c. The author 

 reviewed all the species which have at various times been re- 

 ferred to the genus Loligopsis, and indicated the different genera 

 to which they should be relegated ; the genera Leachia, Lesueur, 

 and Taonius, Steenstrup, were fully characterised ; Desmoteuthis, 

 Veriill, was considered, and shown to be synonymous with 

 Taonius. — Mr. Hoyle also exhibited, with remarks, a specimen 

 of Strongylus contortm (Rud.). — Mr. J. R. Henderson, M.B., 

 of the Scottish Marine Station, Granton, read a communi- 

 cation on additions to the fauna of the Firth of Forth. 

 Specimens were exhibited of forty-five species new to the 

 district, including the following : — Astrorhiza limicola, Hale- 

 cium sp. (probably new), Ascanclra variabilis, Tomopteris sp., 



Nymphon kirtum, Corophium ienuicorne, Nyctiphanes [Thysano- 

 phoda) Nbrvegica, and PodopHs Slabberi (new to Britain). — 

 Mr. F. G. Pearcey explained a method of hardening friable and 

 decomposed rocks, sands, clays, &c, so that sections maybe 

 made of them for microscopical purposes. During the cruise of 

 the Challenger, he said, there was obtained a large collection of 

 oceanic deposits, whose structure could not be accurately deter- 

 mined without making transparent sections. On account of their 

 extreme friability this was found impossible by the usual methods, 

 and it was therefore necessary to find a mode of rendering them 

 hard and compact. After many experiments and much labour, 

 a method was devised which had proved successful, and which 

 would be found of great service to mineralogists, geologists, 

 and others, in the investigation of soft rocks. It consisted in 

 the introduction of a foreign substance to cement the grains 

 together, and so render the material capable of being cut into 

 sections. The substance used for this purpose was a solution of 

 gum copal in ether, the ether being evaporated after the ma- 

 terial had been soaked in the preparation, and the residuum 

 carefully dried. Mr. Pearcey minutely described the various 

 processes to be followed, and exhibited specimens illustrative of 

 the results obtained. Mr. Hoyle spoke of the necessity of having 

 mud and ooze examined by the polariscope, and bore testimony 

 to the value of the method of doing this, which was due to Mr. 

 Pearcey's patience and perseverance. — A note on the breeding 

 of the Marsh Tit (Parus palustris, L.) in Stirlingshire during the 

 present year (1884), with exhibition of nest and eggs, was read 

 by Mr. William Evans, F.R.S.E. — On abnormal dentition in a 

 Dingo (Ca/iis dingo), specimen exhibited, by Andrew Wilson, 

 L.D. S. — Mr. A. Gray exhibited, with remarks, a live specimen 

 of the Water Spider (Argyroneta aquatica) from Luffness 

 Marshes. 



Dublin 

 Royal Society, Nov. 17, 1884. — Section of Physical and 

 Experimental Science. — Prof. J. Emerson Reynolds, F. R. S., in 

 the chair. — After an introductory address by the chairman the 

 following communications were read : — Notes on the aspect of 

 the planet Mars in 18S4, by Otto Boeddicker, Ph.D., communi- 

 cated by the Earl of Rosse, F. R. S. The notes are accompanied 

 by thirteen drawings of the planet, representing the following 

 longitudes of Mars' central meridian : — (1) I2°'6 (March 23), (2) 

 24°'9, (3) 2 8°'3 (March 22), (4) 38°-o (March 23), (5) 73°o 

 (March 17), (6) i37°-8 (March 10), (7) 26l°-8, (S) 267-4 

 (April 2), (9) 279°'4 (April 1), (10) 286 0- 7, (11) 303°'2 (Feb- 

 ruary 24), (12) 307°-6 (April 1), (13) 3I7°'4 (February 24). 

 When compared with Schiaparelli's charts they admit of the 

 identification of the following spots: — South: Saba?us Sinus, 

 Deucalionis Regio, Thymiamata, Margaritifer Sinus, Aurora; 

 Sinus, Mare Cimmerium, Hesperia, Syrtis Minor, Syrtis Major, 

 and a trace of CEnotria or Japygia ; North : Lacus Niliacus, 

 Nilus, Alcyonius Sinus, Astapus ; on the disk-middle traces of 

 these canals : Gehon, Indus, Hydaspes, Ganges, Cyclopum, 

 Phison, Euphrates. Sketches Nos. I to 4 show when the mark- 

 ings in longitude 10" lie on the disk-middle, the sp-nf 

 direction of Deucalionis Regio, but when they lie near the 

 preceding limb the sf-np direction of Thymiamata prevails so 

 considerably that the angular shape of the two Sinus Sabaeus 

 and Margaritifer may be entirely overlooked, and only the one 

 or the other direction perceived and ascribed to them. Lacus 

 Niliacus is seen interrupted on Nos. 1 and 4, so as to resemble 

 its appearance on Schiaparelli's chart of 1S82 ; and Nilus is seen 

 double on No. 13 — which makes it probable that a trace of 

 Schiaparelli's gemination of lines was perceived at Birr Castle. 

 During the time between Nos. 7 and 8, Syrtis Minor became 

 much darker, and Syrtis Major became visible ; this, as it can- 

 not be due to the planet's rotation, is probably due to changes 

 in its own atmosphere. Alcyonius Sinus appeared much darker 

 than either in 1879 or 1881. Sketch No. 5, which at time of 

 drawing was considered difficult but fairly good, does not 

 show any spots capable of certain identification. A comparison 

 with other drawings of the same period may explain this. — 

 On the volatilisation of zinc from German silver alloys at high 

 temperatures, by A. R. Haslam ; communicated by Prof. C. R. 

 Tichborne. Alloys of known composition were heated in a 

 current of hydrogen, and weighings taken at intervals of one hour. 

 The chief loss in weight was found to take place in the first 

 hour, and the loss was greatest in the alloys that were poor in 

 nickel. The author concludes that nickel has the effect of re- 

 tarding the volatilisation of the zinc. — On the analogy between 

 heat and electricity, by Prof. G. F. Fitzgerald, F.R.S. It was 



