i6 



NATURE 



[May 5, i88] 



them, and was even open to accept some of the latest develop- 

 ments of scientific thought. At first, for example, his attitude 

 to Darwinism was decidedly hostile, but later on. Prof. Tyndall 

 states, "he approved cordially of certain writings in which Mr. 

 Darwin's views were vigorously advocated, while a persor.al 

 interview with the great naturalist caused him to say afterwards 

 that Charles Darwin was the most charming of men." 



We learn from the American Naturalist that a proposal will 

 be made at the next meeting of the American Association to invite 

 the British Association to hold its meeting in 1SS3 in America in 

 conjunction with its American sister. The proposal deserves 

 consideration. 



According to the Frankfurter Zeituiig, at Nakkoo, in the 

 Island of Lapland, an eagle was shot on the 15th ult., which 

 measured 6i feet between the tips of the wings. Round its neck 

 it had a brass chain to which a little tin box was fastened. The 

 box contained a slip of paper on which was written in Danish, 

 " Caught and set free again in 1792 by N. and C. Andersen. — 

 Boetod in Falster, Denmark." 



We regret to learn that the printing of the "International 

 Bulletin" issued by the U.S. Signal Oflfice will hereafter be 

 twelve months after date, instead of six months as at present. 

 This seems to us a step backwards from the energetic and liberal 

 poUcy of the late General Myer. 



Prof. Gegenbaur, the well-known Heidelberg comparative 

 anatomist, is said to be dangerously ill with blood-poisoning, 

 contracted while dissecting. 



The Davis Lectures for 1881 will be given in the lecture-room 

 in the Zoological Society's Gardens in the Regent's Park, 

 on Thursdays at 5 p.m., commencing June 16. The following 

 are the subjects and lectures : — June 16, Whales, Prof. Flower, 

 F.R.S. ; June 23, Dolphins, Prof. Flower, F.R.S. ; June 30, 

 Extinct British Quadrupeds, Mr. J. E. Harting ; July 7, The 

 Limbs of Birds, Prof. W. K. Parker, F.R.S. ; July 14, Birds 

 Ancient and Modern, Mr. W. A. Forbes ; July 21, Zoological 

 Gardens, Dr. P. L. Sclater, F.R.S. ; July 28, Chameleons, 

 Prof. Mivart, F.R.S. These lectures will be free to Fellows 

 of the Society and their friends, and to other visitors to the 

 Gardens. 



At the fifty-second anniversary of the Zoological Society the 

 report of the Council on the proceedings of the Society during 

 the past year was read by Mr. Sclater, F.R.S., the Secretary. 

 It s'ated that the number of Fellows on December 31, iSSo, 

 was 3309 against 3364 at the same date of the previous year, 

 153 new Fellows having been elected, and 20S removed by 

 death or other causes during the year. The total receipts for 1880 

 had amounted to 27,388/. against 26,463 for 1879. The ordinary 

 expenditure for 1880 had been 24,753/., and the extraordinary 

 expenditure 1825/., besides which the sum of 1000/. had been 

 devoted to the repayment of part of the mortgage-debt due on 

 the Society's freehold premises, which had thus been reduced to 

 70Q0/. This had left a balance of 879/. to be carried forward 

 for the benefit of the present year. The total assets of the 

 Society on December 31 last were estimated at 27,852/., and the 

 liabilities at 9078/. Amongst the works carried out in the 

 Society's Gardens in iSSo were specially noticed the completion 

 of the insectorium (which had just been opened to the public, 

 and contained a collection of living insects), and the thorough 

 repair and reconstruction of the parrot-house. The number of 

 visitors to the Society's Gardens in 18S0 had been 675,979, 

 gainst 643,000 in 1879. The zoological lectures having been 

 wtell attended during the past year, would be continued during 

 the present season. The number of animals in the Society's 

 collection on December 31 last was 2372, of which 703 Mere 



mammals, 1438 birds, and 231 reptiles. Special attention was 

 called to the increasing number of presents to the menagerie 

 received by the Society of late years, the number thus acquired 

 having now so increased as to usually exceed the number of 

 those obtained by purchase. Col. J. A. Grant, C.B., F.R.S., Dr. 

 GUnther, F.R.S., Prof. Newton, F.R.S., Osbert Salvin, F.R.S., 

 and the Right Hon. George Sclater Booth, M.P., were elected 

 new Members of Council. Prof. W. II. Flower, LL.D., 

 F.R.S., was re-elected President, Mr. Robert Drummond, 

 Treasurer, and Mr. Phihp Lutley Sclater, M. A., Ph.D., F.R.S., 

 Secretary to the Society. 



A NEWLY issued part of the Annals of the " Museo Civico " 

 of Genoa is devoted to a memoir by Dr. Peters and Marquis G. 

 Doria on the Mammals of New Guinea and the adjoining 

 Papuan Islands, procured during the recent researches of 

 Beccari, D'Albertis and Bruijn. In the collection amassed by 

 these ardent explorers fifty-seven species are represented, amongst 

 which are twenty-two Marsupials, nineteen Bats, and thirteen 

 Rodents ; Siis papiiensis — an introduced species — was the only 

 Ungulate met with. It will be seen, therefore, that, as in 

 Australia, the Mammal-fauna of the Papuan sub-region may be 

 said to consist nearly entirely of Mar.-upials, Bats, and Rodents. 

 Its affinity to Australia is further shown by the presence of a 

 Monotreme (Tacltyglossits bruijnii), and by the occurrence of 

 such genera as Macropiis, Dasyurtis, and Dromicia. The 

 memoir is illustrated by eighteen excellent plates. 



Mr. Thiselton Dyer writes to the Daily Netvs in reference 

 to a suggestion " that the labels of ferns, flowering and other 

 plants in Kew Gardens should bear not only scientific but popu- 

 lar names." Mr. Dyer states that as far as such popular names 

 can be ascertained they are carefully indicated on the Kew 

 labels. "There is some misapprehension," Mr. Dyer states, 

 ' ' about the popular names of plants. Your correspondent seems 

 to have proceeded on the assumption that there is a popular 

 botanical nomenclature co-extensive with the scientific. This is 

 very far indeed from being true even of a vegetation so tho- 

 roughly investigated as that of the British Islands. Of the 

 plants of foreign (especially tropical) countries it is obviously, 

 with the exception of some useful or medicinal plants, not true 

 at all. But, as you will observe from the accompanying copy of 

 the popular guide to the Royal Gardens, where anything like a 

 genuine popular name exists, great prominence is given to it at 

 Kew. . . . The popular tongue is by no means ready in finding 

 acceptable names for the foreign plants of our gardens, and is 

 quite content to accept from botanists Dahlia, Petunia, Phlox, 

 Pelargonium, Gladiolus, Calceolaria, and the like." 



We take the following from the May number of the American 

 Naiuralisl : — The Kansas Academy of Science, at their Novem- 

 ber meeting, appointed a Commission to memorialise the Legis- 

 lature in reference to a State Survey. Two preliminary surveys 

 under Professors Mudge and Swallow have already been made. 

 A more extended aud thorough scientific survey is now needed. 

 The most active geologist now in the field in this State is Prof. 

 O. W. John, who for two years past has studied the strati- 

 graphical geology of Eastern Kansas. Last summer Prof. F. II. 

 Snow, with several assistant-, spent over a month in Santa Fe 

 Cairon, New Mexico, as H'ell as in Colorado, and made im- 

 portant entomological collections ; among them were twelve new 

 species of coleoptera and an interesting collection of geometrid 

 moths, comprising a number new to the Colorado plateau region. 

 Prof. A. Hyatt, the curator 'of the ^Boston (U.S.) Society of 

 Natural History, announces that a sea-side [laboratory will be 

 opened this year under his direction at Annisquam, Mass., three 

 miles from Gloucester, from June 5 to September 1 5. 



We have received copies of handy and cheap guides to the 

 New Natural History Museum ; penny guides are furnished for 



