November 2, 1905] 



NA TURE 



'7 



well known British species, mark the Ordovician age of 

 certain blark slates ; a new species of Receptaculites comes 

 from Silurian rocks, while some Devonian fossils are re- 

 described. 



The frequent association of the acid igneous rock 

 granophyre with the basic gabbro has attracted the atten- 

 tion of many geologists, and two explanations have been 

 offered — (i) that the two rocks have been differentiated, 

 during slow consolidation, out of a uniform magma of 

 intermediate composition ; and (2) that one of them repre- 

 sents the unaltered original magma, while the other has 

 been formed by part of it absorbing and assimilating 

 foreign material. Mr. R. A. Daly, of the International 

 Boundary Commission, describes (Amer. Journ. Sci., 4th 

 ser., vol. xx., No. 117, September) cases he has observed 

 in British Columbia and elsewhere which appear to him 

 to prove conclusively the second theory to be correct. 

 Gabbro-sills, intrusive in a quartzite, have been converted 

 into an acid rock along the upper contact by absorption 

 of silica from the quartzite, the other rock constituents 

 retaining verv nearly their original proportions. 



We have received the report on rainfall registration in 

 Mysore for 1904 prepared by Mr. J. Cook, director of 

 meteorologv in that province ; it contains valuable statistics 

 relating to the seasonal and geographical distribution over 

 that extensive area. The number of Government stations 

 is now 201 ; but with regard to a few of the stations the 

 director has to lament culpable inattention on the part of 

 the officials concerned, who have allowed the gauges to lie 

 for months without being suitably fixed. Among the heavy 

 falls in twenty-four hours may be specially mentioned 

 20.67 inches in June, in the Shimoga district, and 

 13-70 inches in July, in the Kadur district. The geo- 

 graphical distribution is plainly exhibited by two maps, 

 one for the year 1004, and another showing the average 

 for thirty-live yens, 1870— 1904 ; the abnormality of the 

 distribution owing to the failure of the north-east 

 monsoon rains is strikingly represented. The thirty-five 

 years' average for the whole province is 3712 inches; the 

 average for the Kadur district is 7426 inches, and for the 

 Chitaldrug district 21-46 inches. 



Prof. Stout's paper on "Things and Sensations," read 

 to the British Academy in May, has been published by 

 Mr. Henry Frowde. Prof. Stout maintains that the 

 problem for philosophy is not. Is there an external world? 

 but What is the external world, and how do we know it? 

 He points out that in one aspect the thing and its sensible 

 appearance are regarded as entirely one, and in another 

 aspect as separate and independent. He rejects the solu- 

 tion that the sensible appearance is merely the thing itself 

 appearing, examines hastily but suggestively the views 

 of Locke and Kant, and comes to the conclusion that there 

 is an actual existence other than sensation. This he calls 

 the independent not-self, and he describes it as not un- 

 knowable and as not matter, but only one constituent of 

 the complex unity which we call matter. In the concluding 

 section of his admirable essay he argues that we must 

 apprehend this independent not-self as another self, or as 

 a partial aspect of another self more or less like our own. 



The fifth volume of the new series of the Proceedings 

 of the Aristotelian Society has been published by Messrs. 

 Williams and Norgate at 10s. 6d. net. The volume in- 

 cludes the papers read before the society during the session 

 1904-5, an abstract of minutes of the proceedings, and the 

 report of the executive committee. 

 NO. 1879, VOL. J$~\ 



The first two parts of a " Three Years' Course of 

 Practical Chemistry," by Messrs. George H. Martin and 

 Ellis Jones, science masters of the Bradford Grammar 

 School, have been published by Messrs. Rivingtons at 

 is. 6(2. each. The second part, dealing with the work of 

 the second year of the course, was originally published 

 privately, and was reviewed in our issue for December 1, 

 1904 (vol. lxxi. p. 100). An introduction to each volume 

 has been provided by Prof. J. B. Cohen. 



Among the articles in the current number of the 

 Quarterly Review is one dealing with the aborigines of 

 Australia, written by Mr. Andrew Lang. This article 

 reviews the work of the chief observers of the primitive 

 peoples of Australia, examining exhaustively the researches 

 of Mr. A. W. Howitt, Mr. F. J. Gillen, and Prof. Baldwin 

 Spencer. Mr. Lang differs from all these on some points 

 of theorv, though he is profuse in his admiration of the 

 matter and manner of their work, except as regards 

 linguistic and philological research. The hypothesis put 

 forward by Mr. Lang is the converse of that apparently- 

 entertained by Messrs. Spencer and Gillen. To quote the 

 concluding paragraph of the article: — "they probably 

 regard the Arunta lack of religion as primitive, just as 

 they think the totemism of the Arunta most archaic. 

 They do not indulge in the comparative method in either 

 case ; and it is the comparative method that leads us to 

 our conclusions." The same number of the review con- 

 tains an article on food supply in time of war. 



OUR ASTRONOMICAL COLUMN. 

 Astronomical Occurrences in November :— 

 Nov. 3. 13b.. 35m. to 14b.. 56m. Transit of Jupitei's Sat. III. 

 (Ganymede). 

 ,, 5. ioh. 59m. to 12b.. 4m. Moon occults t Aquaiii 



(mag. 4'8). , 



„ 9. t5h. 52m. to i6h. 51m. Mcon occults v Piscium 

 (mag. 47). _ 



„ 13. 6h. 35m to 7h. 16m. Moon occults a Iaun 



(ui. g. II). 

 ,,13. 9h. 7m. Minimum of Algol (8 Persei). 

 ,, 14-16. Epoch ofLeonid shooting stars (Kadiant i5i°-(-23°). 

 ,, 15. Venus. Illuminated poilion of di?c =0-930. Uf 



Mats =0-879 

 ,, 16. 5h. 56m. Minimum of Algol (3 P.rsei). 

 ,, 17-21. Epoch of Andromedid shooting s'ars, with probable 



maximum November 18 (Radiant 25+43°) 

 ,, 20. Saturn. Major axis of ring =39" 62, Minor axis 



= 7" 88. 

 ,,23. 2ih. Jupiier in opposition to the Sun. 

 „ 24. i8h. Venus in conjunction with the Moon. Venus 



3° 42' S. 

 ,, 26. I7h. Mercury at greatest elongation, 21° 41' E. 

 27. iSh. Mercury in conjunction with the Moon. 

 Mercury 6° 33' S. 

 Wave-lengths of Silicium Lines. — Because of their 

 especial utility in radial-velocity determinations, Prof. 

 Frost and Mr. J. A. Brown have re-measured the wave- 

 lengths of the silicium lines at A\ 4553, 4568, and 4^75, 

 whii h were simultaneously identified by Sir Norman 

 Lockyer and Mr. Lunt, and designated " group iii." by the 

 former observer. 



The three spectra measured in this new determination 

 were obtained bv passing a strong spark between poles 

 containing metallic silicium and titanium, the sharp 

 titanium "lines providing useful standards of wave-length 

 in the subsequent calculation. As a titanium line occurs 

 near enough to the silicium line at \ 4553 to interfere with 

 the measures of the latter, only those photographs were 

 used on which the faintness of the other titanium lines 

 showed that this possible source of error might be 

 neglected. 



As a result of this research the following values were 

 obtained for the wave-lengths sought : — \ 455264, 



