NA TURE 



\_/ufy3, 1884 



nitrates universally present in the vegetable kingdom, by M. 

 Berthelot. From his experiments the author infers that the 

 nitrates, derived partly from the soil, partly from the atmosphere, 

 are found chiefly in the stems of plants, varying from almost 

 infinitesimal quantities to 15 thousandths in the potato, 2S thou- 

 sandths in wheat, and even 150 thousandths in certain species of 

 Amaranthus. — Report on the documents, published by the 

 Minister of Public Works, connected with the mission undertaken 

 "by Lieut. -Col. Flatters to the region south of Algeria, by M. 

 Daubree. The object of this mission, carried out in the winter 

 of 1SS0-81, was to ascertain the possibility of constructing a 

 railway across the Sahara, between the French possessions on 

 the Mediterranean and the Atlantic. As far as the Asiu wells, 

 the extreme point so far reached, no serious obstacle was met, 

 and for over 350 miles to the south of Wargla, the ground was 

 found to be so easy that a line might be constructed to this 

 point at an outlay of about 4000/. per mile. — Arithmetical com- 

 mentary on a formula of Gauss (continued), by M. de Jon- 

 •quieres. — Report of the Suez Canal International Committee, 

 meetings of June 16 and 19, communicated by M. de Lesseps. 

 The Committee pronounces in favour of simply widening the 

 Canal in preference to constructing another. — Election of 

 Dr. Salmon as Corresponding Member for the Section of 

 Geometry in place of the late Mr. Spottiswoode. — Report 

 on two cases of secondary suture of the central nerve 

 attended by rapid restoration of the functions of the nerve 

 in the paralysed parts, by M. Tillaux. — Remarks on 

 some phenomena of chemical occlusion : occlusion of one 

 gas by another, by M. P. Schutzenberger. — On a new method 

 of synthesis of nitrous o-ganic compounds ; complete synthesis 

 of xanthine and methylxanthine, by M. Arm. Gautier. — Re- 

 searches on the formation and structure of the gray embryonic 

 substance in the spinal marrow of the higher vertebrate animals, 

 by M. W. Vignal. — Description of the Calocoris, an insect of 

 the genus Phytocoris, whicli infests the vine and young grape, 

 by M. G. Patrigeon. — Note on a generalisation of the theory of 

 reduced quantities, by M. Em. Barbier. — Remarks on the height 

 and annular form of the mountains on the planet Venus, by M. 

 P. Lamey. From a careful study of a series of designs of the 

 planet executed .it Grignon during the present year, the author 

 infers that a perfectly circular protuberance in the southern 

 hemi phere, presumably a volcano, has an elevation of probably 

 not less than seventy miles. He argues that this enormous 

 height is in no way incompatible with the volcanic nature of the 

 planet. — Description of a new mercurial electro-dynamometer, 

 by M. G. Lippmann. — A study of the spheroidal state of fluids 

 and their freezing-point under pressure, by M. J. Luvini. — Note on 

 the glyoxalbisulphites of potassa and baryta, by M. de Forcrand. 

 — Researches on ferricopotassic tartrate, ferric arseniate, arse- 

 nite of iron, and other colloidal sulphates of iron, by M. E. 

 Grimaux. — A comparative study of the alcohols derived from the 

 xylenic carburets, by M. A. Colson. — Remarks on the natural 

 saltpetres of Chili and Peru, in connection with rubidium, 

 caesium, lithium, and boric acid ; practical application to the 

 beet-growing districts in the North of France, by M. Dieulafa't. 

 — Distribution of the saline substances of the grist in the various 

 products of the corn-mill, by M. Balland. — Note on the poison 

 of the Hymenoptera, and anatomical description of their secret- 

 ing organs, by M. G. Carlet. The author concludes that the 

 poison of these insects is always acid ; that it is composed of two 

 distinct liquids, one extremely acid, the other slightly alkaline ; 

 and that these two liquids are secreted by two special glands, 

 the acitl and the alkalim glands, which discharge their contents 

 at the base of the gorgeret, or sheath of the sting. — On a new 

 type of elastic fibre observed in the larva of Eristalis, by M. H. 

 Viallanes. — On the development of the digestive tube of the 

 Limaceae, by M. S. Jourdain. — Note on the Geological Map of 

 France, scale I : 500,000, prepared by MM. G. Vasseur and L. 

 Carez. This map, the first executed since 1842, will lie com- 

 pleted in forty-eight sheets early next year. Several of the 

 sheets have already gone to press. 



Berlin 

 Physiological Society, May 30. — Dr. Falk has, in the 

 course of an investigation of the phenomena of death by drown- 

 ing, determined experimentally certain relations of the cutaneous 

 nerves to respiration for which he claims a manifold practical 

 importance. When rabbits are suddenly plunged into cold water 

 of about 5°~7° C. a cramp of the expiratory muscles occurs, and 

 respiration ceases in the position of expiration. This effect of 



cutaneous stimulation occurs even when the superior laryngeal 

 nerves have been cut through. The recognised relation of the 

 trigeminus to expiration, which manifests itself in the occurrence 

 of sneezing upon stimulation of the nasal mucous membrane, was 

 also confirmed in these experiments ; when the face only was 

 dipped into the cold water the expiratory cramp was very 

 violent, whereas the sudden immersion of the hinder extremities 

 and of the lower part of the body was inoperative, the effect not 

 being produced till the breast and the neck were stimulated. 

 The respiratory track of the larynx was the only part of it that 

 was affected, when the face was not immersed, but the glottis 

 closed completely when the trigeminus was stimulated. When 

 the cutaneous nerves were more powerfully stimulated so that 

 pain occurred, a violent inspiration set in. The methods of 

 restoring persons apparently dead and still-born children to life 

 have, according to Dr. Falk, no relation to the effect of cuta- 

 neous stimulation upon respiration ; the dashing of cold water 

 upon the chest acts upon the heart alone, and the pouring of 

 water on the nape of the neck and back of the head acts upon the 

 medulla oblongata. — Dr. A. Baginski, who had previously dis- 

 covered the occurrence of xanthine bodies in the urine of children 

 who were affected with nephritis, has followed up the occurrence 

 of these substances, and has determined, by comparative examin- 

 ation of healthy and sick children, that xanthine occurs only in 

 nephritis ; and that the quantity of it present increases propor- 

 tionately with the malignity of the attack. The circumstance 

 that methyl xanthine resembles theobromine in its chemical 

 composition suggested an examination of the tea, in which con- 

 siderable quantities of guanine, xanthine, and hypoxanthine were 

 detected. In the pancreas when putrefying the amount of 

 xanthine substances were diminished, and of these guanine was 

 the one of which, proportionally, most was destroyed by putre- 

 faction. Next came xanthine, and hypoxanthine had the greatest 

 powers of resisting putrefaction. The presumption that hypo- 

 xanthine would not even be destroyed by digestion was not borne 

 out. After exhibition of hypoxanthine the quantity that occurred 

 in the urine was not above the normal but rather a little below 

 it. Its effect upon the heart was a very remarkable one, it 

 occasioned much more active and energetic contractions, so that 

 hypoxanthine may be regarded as a body which has the power 

 of increasing the cardiac activity, and perhaps it is to this that 

 the beneficial effect of tea-drinking may be attributed. Dr. 

 Baginski intends to follow up the investigation of these interesting 

 substances further. 



CONTENTS 



Page 



Cholera at Toulon 213 



The Earth as a Globe 214 



Practical Botany 214 



Letters to the Editor :— 



Chalk and the " Origin and Distribution of Deep- 



Sea Deposits." — Dr. J. Gwyn Jeffreys, F.R.S. . 215 



Protoplasmic Continuity in Plants. — Thomas Hick 216 

 Aseismatic Tables for Mitigating Earthquake Shocks. 



— W. Topley 216 



Black Rain.— Dr. W. J. Treutler 216 



A Cannibal Snake. — Edwin H. Evans . . . . . 216 



Peronospora infestans. — J. L'. Bozward 216 



Kephir 216 



Henry Watts, F.R.S 217 



Geology at the British Association 217 



Primary Education at the Health Exhibition. By 



Wm. Lant Carpenter 218 



Work-Measuring Machines. {Illustrated) 220 



Notes 221 



The Composition of Chlorophyll. By C. A. Mac- 



Munn • - 224 



Recent Morphological Speculations, II 225 



The Royal Society of Canada 227 



The Rains and the Recent Volcanic Eruptions. By 



M. Gay 229 



Experiments on the Passage of Electricity through 

 Gases— Sketch of a Theory. By Arthur Schuster, 



Ph.D., F.R.S 230 



University and Educational Intelligence 232 



Scientific Serials 232 



Societies and Academies 234 



