June 29, 1899] 
NATORE 
215 
that Dr. Scott has extracted the heavy falls. He finds that 
Falmouth has the greatest frequency of heavy falls, the next 
station being Valencia, and then Stonyhurst. The most excep- 
tional fall during the whole period was at Glasgow at five p.m. 
on August 11, 1895, when as much as 0°So in. was collected in 
ten minutes. The information given in this paper is likely to 
be of much service to engineers who want to know the rate at 
which rain sometimes falls in short periods. —A paper by Mr. 
J. Baxendell, describing his new self-recording anemoscope, was 
read by the Secretary. This instrument, which records the 
direction of the wind on an open scale, has been in use at 
Southport for more than a year, and works very satisfactorily. 
The vane, which is an exceedingly light, but large double- 
bladed, one, is sensitive even in light airs, and is steady in the 
strongest gales, The records from this anemoscope, which 
were exhibited at the meeting, were very clear and of an inter- 
esting character, and showed the instrument to bea valuable 
companion to the Dines pressure tube anemometer.—A paper, 
by Mr. R. C. Mossman, on the average height of the barometer 
in London, was also read by the Secretary. Some years ago 
Mr. H. S. Eaton worked out the mean monthly and annual 
height of the barometer in London for one hundred years. Mr. 
Mossman has carried on this discussion for a further period of 
twenty years ; but he finds that the results for the one hundred 
and twenty years are practically identical with those for one 
hundred years. 
Zoological Society, June 20.— Dr. Albert Giinther, F.R.S., 
Vice-President, in the chair.—Mr. W. E. de Winton made 
some remarks on a small collection of mammal-skins from 
British Central Africa, which had been transmitted to Mr. 
Sclater by Mr. Alfred Sharpe, C.B. Mr. de Winton also ex- 
hibited the mounted heads of a male and female red-flanked 
Duiker (Cephalophus rufilatus, Gray), collected by Mr. J. F. 
Abadie in the Borgu country of the Niger district; and the 
skull of a male of the same species obtained by Captain W. 
Giffard near Gambaga, in the back country of the Gold Coast. 
—The Hon. Walter Rothschild read a memoir on the casso- 
waries, which contained notes on and an enumeration of the 
species and geographical races of these birds.—Mr. C. W. 
Andrews gave a description of a new type of bird, the skull 
and pelvis of which had lately been discovered by Mr. W. H. 
Shrubsole, enclosed in a nodule in the London clay of Sheppey. 
—A communication from Mr. J. Y. Johnson treated of the 
antipatharian corals of Madeira, and of a specimen from the 
West Indies in the British Museum.—A communication was 
read from Mr. Stanley S. Flower, containing notes on the Pro- 
boscis monkey (MVasalzs Jarvatus) made on a young male ex- 
ample of this animal which had lived for a short time in the 
Egyptian Zoological Gardens at Ghizeh, Cairo.—A communi- 
cation from Mr. Alexander Sutherland on the temperature of 
the Ratite birds was based on observations made on specimens 
of birds of this family in the Society’s Gardens.—Mr. G. A. 
Boulenger, F.R.S., read a paper on the American Spade-foot 
(Scaphzopus solitarzus, Holbrook), in which he pointed out that 
this frog had affinities with both Pe/obates and Pelodytes, and 
that these three genera together formed one natural family, 
viz. the Pelobatzdae.—Mr. W. L. H. Duckworth read a paper 
containing an account of the female chimpanzee, known as 
“Johanna,” living in the menagerie of Messrs. Barnum and 
Bailey. The history and habits, diet in captivity, intellectual 
attainments, physical proportions, and appearance of this ape 
were dealt with in the paper, as also was the question of 
species, the author regarding the specimen as allied to the 
chimpanzees rather than to the gorilla.—A communication from 
Mr. R. Lydekker gave an account of a new species of Kob ante- 
lope (specimens of which had recently been received in a collec- 
tion from Sierra Leone), under the name of Codus nigricans. 
Mr. Lydekker also drew attention to skins of a Kob from Baro- 
tseland, recently received at the British Museum, which he had 
identified with C. senganus. The specimens of the latter 
form he stated differed so slightly from the type of C. vardonz 
that he was inclined to regard them as not worthy of specific 
rank, and to refer them to a subspecies which he proposed 
to call C. vardoni senganus.— Mr. Lydekker also sent a de- 
scription of a specimen of a leopard from the Caucasus, 
belonging to the collection of Prince Demidoff, which differed 
in several respects from the common leopard, and which he 
proposed to regard as a subspecies under the name of Fe/zs 
tardus tulléana.—A third communication from Mr. R. 
Lydekker related to the former existence of a Sirenian of 
NO. 1548, VOL. 60] 
some kind in St. Helena, which had been noticed by former 
observers in that island, but to which no reference had been 
made by recent authors.—Mr. F. E. Beddard, F.R.S., read a 
paper on the brain of the Capybara (Hydrochoerus capybara) 
based on examination of specimens in the Society’s Gardens. — 
Mr. Beddard also read a paper, prepared by himself and Miss 
Sophie M. Fedarb, containing notes on the anatomy of the 
worms Perichaeta biserzalzs and its variations and Trichochaeta 
hesperidum.—Dr. Woods Hutchinson read a paper on the 
zoological distribution of tuberculosis from observations made 
mainly in the Society’s Gardens. Of 215 autopsies made in the 
prosector’s room during the past six months, 49 presented the 
lesions of tuberculosis, z.e. 25°3 per cent. of the mammals and 
birds. This mortality fell most heavily upon the ruminants and 
gallina, and least so upon the carnivores and raptors. Race or 
family appeared to exert little influence upon susceptibility, 
mode of housing only a small amount, and food and food-habits 
much more. <A close correspondence appeared to exist between 
immunity and the relative size of the heart in both birds and 
mammals.—A communication was read from Dr. A. G. Butler 
containing an account of a small collection—consisting of 
nineteen specimens—of butterflies sent home from Muscat by 
Lieut.-Colonel A. S. G. Jayakar.—Dr. W. Gregory read 
a paper containing an account of the West Indian species of 
corals of the genus A/adrefora.—A communication was read 
from Marquis Ivrea on the black roedeer of Hanover. j 
EDINBURGH. 
Mathematical Society, June 9.—Dr. Morgan, President, 
in the chair.—The following papers were read :—Systems of 
circles analogous to Tucker circles, part iii. ; systems of conics 
connected with the triangle ; systems of spheres connected with 
the tetrahedron, Mr. Third; ‘‘ La perspective d’une conique 
est une conique ” (démonstration éleméntaire), M. L. Leau. 
PaRIs. 
Academy of Sciences, June 19.—M. van Tieghem in the 
chair.—On a class of isothermic surfaces connected with the 
deformation of surfaces of the second degree, by M. Gaston 
Darboux. <A further development of the subject dealt with in 
a previous note.—On the determination of the integrals of the 
equations to partial derived functions of the second order by 
their values on a closed curve, by M. Emile Picard.—Late 
watering of the vine, by M. A. Miintz. Towards the end of 
adry season the growth of the grapes is impeded and small 
yields are obtained, although the wine produced is often of 
higher quality. Nevertheless, this increased value does not 
compensate for the diminished quantity, and artificial watering 
is therefore resorted to. The author has experimented on the 
effects of this practice, and finds that the grapes thus treated 
increase in weight to the extent of 25 to 30 per cent. as com- 
pared with the untreated fruit. Part of this increase is due to 
simple absorption of water, but not the whole, since there is 
a notable increase in the sugar and vegetable acids. It is note- 
worthy that delayed watering causes a retrogression in the 
ripening process, the relative proportions of the sugar and acids 
becoming what they were at an earlier part of the year.—Note 
on the toxicity of the urine of children, more especially in cases 
of appendicitis, by MM. Lannelongue and Gaillard. The toxicity 
of the urine of normal children is inferior to that of the urine 
of adults, but is largely increased in cases of acute appendicitis. 
The colour of the pathological fluid is also more marked, and 
the density and amount of extractives present are greater, — 
Electromotive force produced in a flame by magnetic action, 
by M. R. Blondlot. If two platinum wires are placed sym- 
metrically at the opposite edges of an ordinary gas flame and 
connected with a capillary electrometer, only a feeble oscillatory 
movement of the mercury is noticed, but a steady deflection is pro- 
duced when the flame is placed between the poles of an electro- 
magnet. This phenomenon is doubtless due to electromagnetic 
induction, the effect of the heated gases constantly ascending in 
the magnetic field being the production of an electromotive 
force the direction of which is normal both to the lines of force 
and to the direction in which the gases are moving.—Influence 
of the manner of introduction on the therapeutic effects of anti- 
diphtheritic serum, by M. S. Arloing. From the experiments 
described it appears that with the dog the therapeutic effect of 
the serum is more marked when it is introduced into the blood 
instead of into the connective tissue, whereas with the guinea- 
pig the reverse is the case. Observations made at the Bordeaux 
