Jan. 22, 1885] 



NA TURE 



265 



ing from Borneo. The habit seems genera], and, according to 

 letters, not confined to venomous or non-venomous 

 rd F. Taylor 

 St. Augustine's College, Canterbury, January 13 



irawak, Borneo, II, 1SS4 



"The inclosed cutting from NATUR1 was sent me by H. 

 Brooke Low, Esq., resident of Rejang, with a desire that I 

 should forward my experience (which w; i - Evans's) 



to your paper. A young I >yak youth was walking up the hill 

 towards my house, when a snake sprang out of the bank and 

 fastened itself on the boy's jacket, just under the right arm. 

 Fortunately, its fangs got caught in the cloth, and the boy 

 escaped unhurt. Eventually, the reptile was killed and brought 

 to the house. It measured five feet and ome odd inches in 

 length. In examining its fangs I noticed in its mouth the tail 

 of another snake, and, on pulling it out and comparing them, I 

 found it to be a few inches longer than the outside snake, though 

 not quite so thick. I have come to the conclusion that this 

 snake is the Ophiophagm elap of the Straits. The native name 

 fbl it is ' Ular Kendawang.' It is more deadly, more agile, and 

 more beautifully marked than the ' Ular biliong ' mentioned by 

 Mr. Evans. So fascinatingly beautiful is the appearance of this 

 snake, that in Dyak poetry one of their heroes is described as 

 ' Crowned with the cast skin of the Ular Kendawang,' thus 

 attributing to the hero that comeliness, agility, and fearlessness 

 for which the ' Kendawang ' is noted. I have reason to believe 

 that the ' Ular biliong,' or axe snake (from the shape of its 

 head), mentioned by Mr. Evans is an Ophiophagus, but it is 

 not what is called the 'Elaps.' Its movements are sluggish, 

 and its poison is not nearly so deadly as that of the ' Kenda- 

 wang.' The distinctive marks of the ' Kendawang ' are a red- 

 dish head and tail, the red of the tail being about twice the 

 length of the head. The ground colour of the body is gene- 

 rally of a dark gray, but I have seen them of a silver gray, and 

 also dark brown. A light streak of flesh-colour runs down the 

 back, and the edges of it are serrated with vermilion and 

 metallic-green spots, with just enough of white and yellow to 

 make a most pleasing combination of colour. Besides these 

 two, there are two other species belonging to the Ophiophagous 

 class. The native names are ' Ken»kang mas,' or ' Tinchin 

 mas,' i.e. golden-ringed; and 'Matikor,' i.e. dead-tailed, and 

 these four species are, I believe, very common throughout the 

 Malay Archipelago. "M.J. I. \ water, 



" S.P.G. Missionary in Sarawak " 



The Canadian Geological Survey 



A PHRASE used in your condensed report of my remarks after 

 Sir J. II. Lefroy's pape', read on January 13 at the Colonial 

 Institute, may, I fear, be misunderstood by some of my friends 

 in Canada. I am reported speaking of the Geological Survey 

 of that country as " being slowly conducted." My remarks were 

 not intended to imply the slightest reproach. I explained that 

 progress could not be rapid because of the vast extent of the 

 territory and the natural difficulties of many parts of it. I think, 

 indeed, that i" i* surprising that, having regard to the means at 

 their disposal, the Survey have accomplished so much- 1 urged 

 that, as it was impossible for the present staff to 

 specially for minerals without abandoning the general work of 

 surveying, which is of the more importance for science, some 

 specialist should be added to it, to whom the former duty should 

 lie assigned. I did not use quite so str ng a phrase as that I 

 the 'liMrict north of the St. Lawrence was rich in 

 valuable minerals." My opinion is that, as certain parts are 

 known to be rich, and as there is great uniformity in the geology 

 of the district, it is very probable similar deposits exi-t in the 

 (very large) unexplored portion. T. G. Bonney 



23, Denning Road, Hampstead, N.W., January 19 



ASTRONOMICAL PHENOMENA FOR THE 

 WEEK 



1885, January 25 3 1 



/AS an experiment we have here adopted for the 

 V-**- reckoning of time the civil clay, commencing at 

 Greenwich mean midnight, counting the hours on to 24.) 



.-// Gi January 25 



Sun rises 7I1. 50111. ; souths 12I1. 12m. 40.9s.; sets 16I1. 35m.; 



Decl. on meridian iS 50 S. ; sidereal time at sunset 



oh. 55m. 

 Moon (1 day past First Quarter) rises Ilh. 55m ; souths 



toil. 29m. ; sets 3I1. 12m.*; decl. on meridian 15° 59' N. 



RU 





Mercury ... 6 23 ... 10 27 ... 14 31 ... 21 47 S. 



Venus ... 6 31 ... 10 29 .. 14 27 ... 22 44 S. 



Mars ... 8 6 ... 12 29 ... 16 52 ... 18 54 S. 



Jupiter ... 19 6' ... 2 7 ... 9 S ... 11 10 N. 



Saturn ... 12 43 ... 20 46 ... 4 49* ... 21 32 N. 



January 26, 16I1. — Mercury at greatest elongation from the Sun, 

 25' W. 



Occultalions of St ' Toon 



Corresponding 

 Jan. Star Mag. I' ip, Reap. angles from 



26 ... B.A.C. 1526 



27 ... B.A.C. 1930 



29 ... A Geminorum 



30 ... B.A.C. 312.1 



31 ... t I.e mis ... 



Phenomena of Jupiter's Satellites 



Jan. h. m. Jan. 



25 ... 4 1 I. tr. ing. 27 



6 21 I. tr. egr. 



21 40 IV. tr. egr. 



26 ... o 40 J. eel. disap. 



3 31 I. occ. reap. 28 

 3 52 II. tr. ing. 



6 47 II. tr. egr. 29 



7 27 III. eel. 



22 28 I. tr. ing. 30 



h. in. 



47 I. tr. egr. 



19 8 I. eel. disap. 

 21 33 II. eel. disap. 

 21 58 I. occ. reap. 



1 33 II. occ. reap. 

 19 13 I. tr. egr. 

 19 54 II. tr. egr. 

 23 19 III. tr. ing. 



2 54 III. tr. egr. 



* Indicates that the rising Is that of the preceding, and the 

 the following nominal day. 



etting that of 



DUST' 



MY business this evening is to talk about dust : 

 meaning by dust all suspended foreign matter of 

 whatever kind, and including smoke and fog under the 

 one heading. Coining from England I should naturally 

 begin by saying, well, we all know what dust and 

 smoke are ; and even in Canada, I suppose, I may ven- 

 ture to say the same, though I am bound to say that 

 your country, at present, shows a remarkable deficiency 

 in this respect. In an English town dust and smoke are 

 the most noticeable features, and are always ready to per- 

 form any insanitary or other function that may be expected 

 of them. In this clear atmosphere none of these functions 

 can be properly performed ; disease-germs must languish 

 and die, and their sworn foes, the white corpuscles of the 

 human blood, must thrive amain. Let me say, however, 

 that the air here is not so absolutely free from smoke as 

 I had hoped to find it. Compared with an English town 

 it is a splendid contrast ; compared with one's ideal it falls 

 short. Your houses may indeed burn anthracite and wood, 

 but your passenger locomotives do not : I can attest 

 from very recent personal experience, in a journey across 

 this continent, that some of your locomotives emit almost as 

 much smoke as a Clyde steamer, and that the journey 

 would have been much pleasanter if they had emitted less. 

 I also see some factory chimneys rising here and there. If 

 you be not warned in time, you will not realise the blessing 

 of fresh and pure air until it. It is good to 



have large manufactures, it is better to retain healthy and 

 pure air. But with proper cue the two may go together, 

 lose ground in this respect, as we have done in 



Tiing discourse to I " ' Friday 



1 I niversity Col- 



