June 



■^] 



NATURE 



103 



totality will continue about 3m. 383., with the sun at an 

 altitude of 50' and near the meridian. 



(6) 1889, December 22. — The greater duration of 

 totality in this eclipse falls upon the Eastern Atlantic, but 

 where the central line meets the African coast in Angola 

 (about 10" 6' S.) it continues 3m. 35s., with the sun at 

 an altitude of 56^. At Bridgetown, Barbados, totality 

 commences about 6h. 47m. a.m., with the sun at an 

 elevation of (f, and continues im. 483. 



(7) 1S92, April 26. — Almost entirely an ocean track on 

 the South Pacific, commencing indeed in the Antarctic 

 Ocean at a latitude of upwards of 75° : an impracticable 

 eclipse, though the duration of totahty attains a ma.ximuni 

 of more than four minutes. 



(8) 1893, April 16. — Probably, all classes of observa- 

 tion considered, this will be the most favourable eclipse 

 occurring before the end of the century. On the west 

 coast of South \merica, rather less than a degree north of 

 Coquimbo, where the sun will have attained an altitude of 

 24°, totality will continue nearly three minutes, com- 

 mencing about 8h. 14m. a.m. : hence the central line 

 traverses Brazil, passing off the South American continent 

 near Ciara, and here the sun, at an altitude of 77^, and 

 near the meridian, will be totally eclipsed 41x1. 44s., or 

 within a second or two of the longest interval possible on 

 this occasion. Perhaps the central eclipse may pass about 

 10' north of Ciara. After traversing the Atlantic it enters 

 Africa close to Bathurst, at the mouth of the Gambia, 

 where the total phase still continues about four minutes, 

 thence through Central Africa to a point from 4- to 5^ 

 west of Khartoum, where it leaves the earth. From these 

 circumstances an extended course of observations may be 

 e.Npected. 



(9) 1894, September 28. — On this occasion we have 

 either a sea-track or a passage over inaccessible regions, 

 except that the eclipse may ultimately be found to be 

 total in the Seychelles ; the tabular position of the moon, 

 upon which our calculations referring to this phenomenon 

 are founded, perhaps admitting of alteration to the 

 amount required. The central line commences in the 

 middle of Africa just north of the equator, leaving that 

 continent near the Juba River, the mouth of which is 

 almost upon the equator. \ In the longitude of Mah^ 

 in the Seychelles it appears to pass about 38' to the 

 south. The maximum duration of totality occurs in 

 about 86° E. and 34' S., and is close upon two minutes. 

 From this point the course of the central line is in the 

 direction of Macquarie Island, near to which it passes 

 off the earth, without, so far as a preliminary computa- 

 tion enables us to say, certainly encountering land after 

 leaving the African continent. 



(10) 1896, August 9.— Stations will doubtless be 

 found for the observation of this echpse, as although in 

 the first half of its course, at least, the track lies at con- 

 siderable northern latitudes, the season of the year is 

 favourable. The central line enters Norway, near Tana 

 in Finmark, and in 28' 46' E. and 70° 31' N. the duration 

 of totality is im. 43s. with the sun at an altitude of 15°. 

 After rising to a still higher latitude the central eclipse 

 begins to descend, until we find it occurs with the sun on 

 the meridian in about 112° 21' E. and 65' 38' N., and the 

 latitude continues to diminish until the total phase leaves 

 the earth. In 136° 21' E. and 51° 5' X., near the Amoor 

 River totality continues 2m. 38s. with the sun at an 

 altitude of 46°. The total eclipse may be observed also 

 in the northern parts of Yesso, Japan, but does not 

 afterwards meet land. [This will be a recurrence of the 

 eclipse of 1806, June 16, observed by Bowditch in 

 America, of that of 1842, July 8, well observed in the 

 South of France and in Italy, and of the " Himalaya 

 eclipse" of i860, July 18, when a numerous party was 

 conveyed to the south-west of Europe in H.M.S. 

 Himalaya, there meeting with observers from all parts 

 of the Continent, and unitedly putting upon record 



important details of the phenomena obser\-ed. Its last 

 recurrence was on July 29, 1878, when so good an 

 account of it was given in the United States by American 

 and European astionomers.] 



(11) 1898, J.\NUARV 22. — This eclipse may be well 

 observed in Hindostan, where the central line enters the 

 peninsula in about 73" 25' E. and 16' 38' X. ; totality will 

 commence at oh. 45m., and continue about 2m. 6s. It 

 commences in Senegambia, and leaves the earth in East 

 Mongolia. .Although many observations may probably be 

 made in India, it will be seen that the duration of the total 

 phase is comparatively short. 



(12) 1900, May 28. — The central line entering upon the 

 earth in the Pacific in 18' N. traverses the south-east por- 

 tion of the United States, from Louisiana (not far from 

 New Orleans) to Norfolk, on the .Atlantic coast, and at 

 the point where it leaves the American continent totality 

 commences about 8h. 47m. a.m., and continues im. 40s. 

 with the sun at an altitude of 47^ Crossing the Atlantic, 

 upon which the greatest duration of totality falb, it enters 

 Portugal near Ovan in about 40^ 49' N., and here the total 

 phase continues im. 30s., with the sun at an elevation ol 

 42'. The eclipse may be well observed in Portugal and 

 Spain ; at Alicante totality lasts im. i8s. This eclipse 

 will be a recurrence of that of May, 18S2, and the available 

 durations of totality, it will be seen, are about the same on 

 both occasions. In Hallaschka's Kkinciila Eclipsium, 

 by an oversight, this eclipse is represented as broadly 

 annular ; the geocentric excess of the moon's semi-dia- 

 meter over that of the sun will be, however, about 9". 



The following table exhibits the approximate positions 

 of beginning and ending of total phase, and of the central 

 eclipse at apparent noon, for the twelve eclipses included 

 in the above remarks : — 



A CHAPTER IN THE HISTORY OF THE 



CONIFERS 1 



The CUPRESSINE.t 



THESE are classed as the first tribe of the Coniferae 

 in Hooker's "Genera Plantarum," wherein seven 

 genera are recognised. The Cupressineffi are large trees 

 or shrubs, very resinous, with small scale-like leaves. 

 The cones are small and globular, and composed of six, 

 eight, or rarely ten peliate and persistent scales, except 

 in the Juniper, in which they coalesce into a fleshy galbu- 

 lus or berry. The seeds are small, compressed, frequently 

 triangulated, and, except in Junipt-nis and the Biota 

 section of Thuja, provided with small membranaceous 

 wings at the angles. The order comprises many of the 

 hardiest shrubs in existence. 



Their origin can possibly be traced back to the Per- 

 mian genus Uhiiaitiiia,anA they seem to have become the 

 preponderating tribe during the Jurassic and Wealden, 

 to judge from the prevalence of wood known as Cupress- 

 inoxylon. The earlier forms, described as Widdrington- 

 ites, Echinostrobus, Thityites, and Thuyopsis, though of 

 great interest are still imperfectly known, even from the 

 Cretaceous, but with the Tertiary period most of the 



■ Continued from vol. xxiii. p. 414. 



