202 



NATURE 



Sjfune 30, 108 1 



come upon a passage which bears on the hi=tnry of the diving- 

 bell. Bartolini thei-e writes : "Singulare in«trunientum invenit 

 descripsitque Franziscus Kesler Wetzlarien^ is in secretis suis 

 Oppenheimii editis 1616, capiteVI., quod Wasserharnisch vocat, 

 quo tuto ambulemus in fundo maris, legamus ibidem, scribamus, 

 edamus, potemus, cantemus, sine periculo vitse longiori tempore, 

 omnia pergamus, thesauros eruamus at abscondamus," and so on. 

 Of the two figures one represents the interior — a rough frame- 

 work of wood, having straps with which the diver secures him- 

 self in the bell ; the other (see IVied. Ann., No. 5) shows the 

 exterior, an inverted vessel of tumbler shape having five or six 

 small circular windows at the top, while the man's legs project 

 little below. According to Poggendorff (it is stated) the oldest 

 book in which the diving bell is mentioned is of 1664, and it 

 refers to a work of Taisnier (as the source of infoiination), the 

 date of which Poggendorff does not give. 



We learn from L'EkctricitJihaX there is being made near the 

 Palais de I'lndustrie a basin, 16 metres in diameter, which will 

 be put at M. Trouve's disposal for exhibition of his boat driven 

 by electricity. In the centre will be an electric light on a pedcst.-!!. 

 At various points within the Palais de I'lndustrie will be placed 

 (under the direction of MM. Ranvier, Berger, and Fontaine) 

 models of statues as supports for the electric light in its various 

 forms. 



The Municipal Council of Philadelphia has granted to a Com- 

 pany the right to place 3000 kilometres of wire on posts for 

 telephonic purposes. No tax is imposed, hut a limit is set to 

 the subscription. The fire-telephones in Berlin have proved so 

 useful, that the municipal authorities are increasing the number. 

 In Paris the development of tele] honic lines amounted to 9121 

 kilometres, the extent of wire being double thk. 



An electromagnet of enormous dimensions has lately been 

 made by Herren von Feililzsch and Holtz for the University of 

 Greifswald. The case is formed of twenty-eight iron plates bent 

 into horseshoe shape, and connected by iron rings so as to form 

 a cylinder 195 mm. in diameter. The height is 125 ctm.; the 

 total weight 628 kilogr. The magneti-ing helix consists of insu- 

 lated copper plates and wires having a total weight of 275 kilogr. 

 (For further details see Les Mondes of June 23.) With fifty 

 small Grove elements the magnet will fuse in two minutes 40 

 grammes of Wood's metal in the Foucault experiment. The 

 plane of polarisation is rotated in flintglass after a single passage, 

 &c. The core of the largest magnet hitherto known, that of 

 Plucker, %veighed 84 kilogr. and the wire 35 kikogr. 



Mr. W. Mattieu Williams, F.R.A.S., F.C.S., author of 

 'The Fuel of the Sun," "Through Norway vnth a Knapsack,'' 

 &c., has been appointed to the management of the Royal Poly- 

 technic Institution, Limited, and will commence his duties at 

 once. 



Mr. H. C. Russell, Government astronomer, has just sent 

 home his report on the results of rain and river observations 

 made in New South Wales during 1880. In regard to the latter 

 part of the subject Mr. Russell remarks that it seems impossible 

 to doubt that an unlimited supply of water passes away under- 

 ground, more indeed than would suffice to make the western 

 districts of the colony a well-watered country, and all that is 

 wanted to make the supply available is a judicious use of the 

 boring-rod. The report is illustrated by an interesting rainfall 

 map of New South Wales, and another on which are given 

 curves showing the height of the western rivers during the year. 



Four shocks of earthquake occurred at Agram on the night 

 of June 22-23 ; rather severe shocks were felt on June 22 at 

 Bobyhad (10.20 p.m.) and Szegszard (11 p.m.) in Hungary. 



A SKELETON of an Ursus spelsiis was found this week in a 

 cave near Spanheim (Germany). 



The arrangements for the International Medical and Sanitary 

 Exhibition are now complete ; the offices are removed from the 

 Parkes Museum to the Exhibition Buildings at South Kensing- 

 ton. The Right Hon. Earl Spencer, Lord President of the 

 Council, has accepted the office of president, and will be present 

 at the opening ceremony on Saturday July 16. The Exhibition is 

 to be complete on Wednesday, July 13, and the judges will 

 make their examinations for the awards on the two days previous 

 to the opening. 



In consequence of the increasingly numerous cases of myopia 

 developed in French schools through bad arrangement of seats 

 and distribution of light, the Minister of Public Instruction has 

 nominated a commission named De I'Hygiene de la Vue dans les 

 Ecoles, whose object will be to study the influence of the mate- 

 rial conditions of school arrangement on the progress of myopia, 

 and to discover the means of counteracting the evil. 



A CAREFUL study of the chief methods in use for the chemi- 

 cal examination of potable water, so far as organic matter is con- 

 cerned, has been undertaken by order of the U.S. National Board 

 of Health. Medical men throughout the country, and others in- 

 terested in sanitaiy matters, have been requested to report to 

 Dr. Mallet of Virginia University any well-marked case of 

 disease from impurities in drinking-water, and to forward 

 samples of such water. 



The additions to the Zoological Society's Gardens during the 

 past week include two Red-handed Tamarins {Midas rufimanus) 

 from Demerara, presented by Mr. John Pe que ; a Stanley 

 Crane ( Tetrapteryx paradisea) from South Africa, a Common 

 Chameleon (Chamekon vulgaris) from North Africa, presented 

 by Mr. J. Sexton ; two Laughing Kingfishers [Dacelo gigantea\ 

 from Australia, presented by Sir Hubert Sandford ; a Lead- 

 beater's Cockatoo (Cacatua Uadbeateri) from Australia, presented 

 by Mr. Martin Smith ; a Marsh Harrier (Circus isruginosus) 

 from Malta, presented by Mr. J. Wolfe Murray ; a Lesser 

 Kestrel (Tinnunadus cenchris), South European, jiresented by 

 Mr. William Brodrick ; an Undulated Grass Parrakeet (Melo- 

 psittactis undu/alus) from Australia, presented by the Counte-s 

 of EUesmere ; two Gerliillus {Go'bilhts, sp. inc.) from Algeria, 

 presented by M. Alphonse Milne-Edwards ; a Long-headed 

 Snake {Xenedon rkabdoctphalus), a d'Orbigny's Snake [fletej odon 

 d'Orhignyi) from South America, presented by Dr. A. Stradling, 

 CM. Z.S. ; a Red-throated Amazon (Chrysotis coUarid) from 

 South America, deposited ; three Moustache Monkeys {Cercc- 

 pilhecus cephus), a Diana Monkey [Cercopithe-us diaua), a 

 Talapoin Monkey (Cercopithecus talapoin), two Green Monkeys 

 (Cercopithecus callilrichus), a White-collared Mangabey (Cerco- 

 cebus collaris), a Grey-cheeked Monkey (Cercocebus albigena), 

 two Water Chevrotains (Hyomosc/nts aijualicus), a Crested 

 Guinea Fowl {Numida cris/ata) from West Africa, a Tamandua 

 Anteater (Tamandua tetradactyla), & Peba Armadillo (Tu/iM/a 

 peba], a Red-billed Toucan (Ramphastos erythorhynchus) from 

 Brazil ; a Hawk's-billed Turtle ( C/^^/(?w itnbricala) from the East 

 Indies, a Puff Adder ( Viper arielans) from Africa, purchased ; 

 a Horned Tragopan (Ceriornis satyra), an Impeyan Pheasant 

 (Lophophorus impeyanus), bred in the Gardens. 



BIOLOGICAL NOTES 

 Rhythmic Contraction of Voluntary Muscles. — It 

 has been recently observed by Herr W. Biedermann (Vienna Acad. 

 Si/zuitgsberic/ite) that if the. sartorius muscle of a curare-poisoned 

 frog, prepared at a low temperature, be put in a solution of 5 gr. 

 NaCl, 2 gr. NaoHPOj, and 0-4 to 0-5 gr. NnCOg in i litre 

 water, it shows, after a longer or .shorter time of rest, rhythmic 

 contractions, w hich continue regular a certain time tor each part 

 of the immersed muscle. Then occur periods of rhythmic cor.- 

 tractions, separated tiy longer or shorter pauses, and often varying 

 in character. These phenomena last a long time ; w'ilh a cotp. 



