182 
(2) A letter from Volta to Prof. Barletti, of Pavia, 
dated April 18, 1777, containing an anticipation of the 
electric telegraph. Volta suggests the possibility of 
connecting Milan and Como with a wire suspended from 
poles, so that an operator at one end of the line could 
fire an electric pistol at the other. 
(3) A manuscript dated May 14, 1782, dealing with 
animal electricity. 
(4) Volta’s paper of March 20, 1800, announcing his 
discovery of the electric pile to Sir Joseph Banks, 
President of the Royal Society. 
(5) Volta’s monograph on the formation of hail, 
published about 1806. 
The apparatus exhibited illustrate Volta’s inventions 
of the electrophorus and the “electric pistol,” his appli- 
cation of gas to lamps, combined with an electric gas- 
lighting apparatus, his invention of the eudiometer, his 
researches on the capacity of condensers, his condensing 
electroscope, his investigations on the law of electrostatic 
force involving the use of the electric balances and the 
electrometer, his researches on atmospheric electricity, 
his studies on the expansion of gases, his first forms of 
voltaic pile, including the columnar pile represented by 
several examples, also the “crown of cups,” and his early 
experiments on electrolysis. A number of batteries of 
Leyden jars, electrostatic machines, and other apparatus 
used by Volta in his experiments, while not referring to 
any special advancements in science, go far towards 
giving us an insight into the thoughts and pursuits of 
a physicist of a century ago, of whom the people of Como 
feel justly proud. G. H. BRYAN. 
UNITED STATES GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 
ee literature of American geology increases at an 
almost overwhelming rate. We have just received 
three large volumes containing 2053 pages of letterpress, 
including Part ii. of the Eighteenth Annual Report of 
the Survey for 1896-97, being papers chiefly of a theoretical 
nature; and Part v., the Mineral Resources, in two 
volumes. We have already called attention in NATURE 
for May 4 to some of the papers contained in Part ii., 
of which we received advance copies; these were on 
“The Triassic Formation of Connecticut,” by W. M. 
Davis, with coloured maps and sections ; on the “ Geo- 
logy of the Edwards Plateau and Rio Grande Plain 
adjacent to Austin and San Antonio, Texas, with refer- 
ence to the occurrence of underground waters,” by R. T. 
Hill and T. W. Vaughan; and “A Table of the North 
American Tertiary Horizons, correlated with one another 
and with those of Western Europe, with annotations,” by 
Mr. William H. Dall. 
In addition, this volume contains a report on the 
“Glaciers of Mount Rainier,” by I. C. Russell, with a 
paper on “The Rocks of Mount Rainier,” by G. O, 
Smith. Associated with the Cascade range in the State 
of Washington, but of later date and distinct from it 
both geographically and geologically, are four prominent 
volcanic mountains, of which one is Mount Rainier, 
14,526 feet in height. This mountain is an extinct 
volcano, but the residual heat of its once molten rocks 
gives origin to steam-jets, which escape from crevices in 
the now partially snow-filled craters at the summit. The 
main mass consists of fragmental andesitic and basaltic 
materials, with some lava streams ; but its outlines have 
been modified by frost and storms, and deeply sculptured 
by glaciers. The glaciers are now receding. The scenery 
around the mountain possesses such great beauty and 
grandeur that a portion of ground was reserved as a 
National Park in 1893, and it is now intended to reserve 
a larger area. Numerous views of the scenery are given. 
“The Age of the Franklin White Limestone of Sussex 
County, New Jersey,” is discussed by J. E. Wolff and 
NO. 1547, VOL. 60] 
NATURE 
[June 22, 1899 
A. H. Brooks. This limestone occurs in the Pre- 
Cambrian or Archzean highlands of New Jersey, an area 
largely occupied by gneisses. These schistose rocks have 
a nearly constant north-east strike and south-east foli- 
ation-dip, with a frequent linear paralle} structure which is 
usually “inclined at a moderate angle to the north-east, 
lying generally in the plane of dip, andis called ‘ pitch.’ ” 
It is observed that the foliation structure in the lime- 
stone is usually parallel to that in the gneiss, and “the 
pitch structures of the gneiss, white limestone, and 
associated [magnetite] ore deposits have a general 
parallelism both in direction and angle.” Mr. Wolff 
regards the pitch-structure as due to primary crystal- 
lisation, The authors conclude that the white limestone 
was deformed, metamorphosed, and partly eroded before 
the basal member of the Cambrian series was laid 
down. 
“A Geological Sketch of San Clemente Island” is 
contributed by W. S. T. Smith. This island is the 
southernmost of a group known as the Channel Islands, 
which he off the southern coast of California. It has no 
permanent human inhabitants except one old man, who 
has lived there most of the time for the last thirty years, 
Sheep, cattle and wild goats have been introduced, and 
there are foxes, lizards and land-shells. The vegetation 
is limited almost entirely to low shrubbery and herbage. 
The cactus and “‘salt-grass” are abundant. The island 
has a length of nearly twenty-one miles, a maximum 
width of little over four miles, and an altitude at one 
point of nearly 2000 feet. It is built up almost entirely 
of lava flows, with intercalated volcanic breccias and 
ashes. A detailed account of these is given. Miocene 
and later sedimentary deposits occupy small areas. The 
volcanic rocks appear to have been of Miocene age, but 
older than any of the sedimentary deposits. Attention 
is drawn to the evidence of faulting which occurred 
between the close of the Miocene and early Pliocene 
times, and which has had a marked effect on the physica 
features of the island. This faulting has continued at 
intervals ever since. ) 
“The Geology of the Cape Cod District ” is described 
by N.S. Shaler. He discusses the series of geological 
events which occurred since the beginning of the 
Cretaceous period in the south-eastern portion of New 
England. After tilting and the erosion of the Cretaceous 
and Tertiary beds, various Pleistocene deposits were 
laid down, and these in turn became somewhat disturbed. 
The region, in fact, has evidently been one of remarkable 
instability. A very full and interesting account is given 
of the structure of the region and of the glacial and post- 
glacial phenomena, illustrated by numerous views and 
sections. 
“Recent Earth Movement in the Great Lakes Region ® 
is the title of an article by G. K. Gilbert. He points out 
that although modern movements are of small amount, it 
is believed that they are of the same kind as the ancient, 
and that the great changes of the geologic past were 
effected slowly. His observations now lead to the 
conclusion that the whole North American lake-region 
is being lifted on one side or depressed on the other, so 
that its plane is bodily canted towards the south-south- 
west, and that the rate of change is such that the two 
ends of a line 100 miles long and lying in a south-south- 
west direction are relatively displaced four-tenths of a 
foot in 100 years. The changes are not directly obvious 
owing to inequalities of rainfall and evaporation, but the 
mean height of the lake-surfaces has been affected. 
With reference to the economic bearings of these 
changes Mr. Gilbert remarks that the modifications are 
so slow that they may have small importance in engineer- 
ing works. He observes, however, that it is a matter of 
greater moment that cities and towns built on lowlands 
about Lakes Ontario, Erie, Michigan, and Superior will 
sooner or later feel the encroachment of the advancing 
