Nov. 24, 1881 | 
AN interesting cave has recently been discovered in the Bela 
‘Lime Alps, which form the north-eastern part of the Tatra Moun- 
‘tains, From the Kotlin valley the cave can be reached in about 
‘an hour, During August and September last the inhabitants of 
Bela thoroughly investigated the cave. The entrance is formed 
“by a shaft about fifteen metres long and only one metre wide. 
After having passed this torches must be lighted. The cave 
contains fine white stalactites and stalagmites, large subterranean 
akes and ponds, which obtained for it the name of ‘‘ Seehohle” 
(lake cave), A number of bones of prehistoric animals were found. 
‘It appears however that the cave was known to the neighbouring 
inbabitants about the years 1713 and 1731, and was then for- 
gotten, German names with these figures underneath were in 
one part found scratched upon the rock. 
ON September 1 an Aéronautical Society was founded at Berlin 
under ‘the presidency of Dr. Wilhelm Angerstein. The new 
Society grows rapidly, and it is the intention of the Committee 
‘to hold an aéronautical exhibition next year, 
THE additions to the Zoological Society’s Gardens during the 
past week include a Moustache Monkey (Cercopithecus cephus  ) 
from West Africa, presented by Mr. Frank G. S. Laye; a 
Bonnet Monkey (A/acacus radiatus? ) from India, presented by 
the Key. R. H. Manley ; two Herring Gulls (Lavws argentatus), 
European, presented by Mrs. Greaves ; two Chilian Sea Eagles 
(Ceranoetus melanokucus) from South America, a Red-breasted 
Merganser (Mergus servaior), a Guillemot (Uria trot/e), a Par- 
tailed Gedwit (Zzmosa lapponica), British, purchased. 
GEOGRAPHICAL NOTES 
On Monday week Lord Aberdare opened the fifty-second 
session of the Geographical Society with a brief address, in 
which he dealt first with the expedition of Dr. Matteucci and 
Lieut. Massari across Africa. He next referred to the geogra- 
phical papers read at the York meeting of the British Associa- 
tion, and afterwards dwelt at some length on the International 
Geographical Congress at Venice. According to Lord Aber- 
dare’s view it is a gieat mistake to mix up exhibitions with these 
congresses, as, owing to international jealuusies, it becomes neces- 
sary to withdraw the best men from the sections of the congress 
to serve on the juries of the exhibition, ford Aberdare re- 
ferred particularly to the miserable show made by this country 
in the Exhibition, which was solely due to the parsimony of the 
Treacury, who did not even pay the travelling expenses of the 
British Commissioners, and merely sent 1cO/, to the Vice-Consul 
at Venice for petty disbursements! The latter part of the 
address was chiefly devoted to the Arctic expeditions of the 
Feannette and the Hzra, and we are glad to notice that so much 
confidence is felt regarding the safety of Mr. Leigh Smith’s 
party. Mr, F, A. A. Simons afterwards read a paper of con- 
siderable geographical interest on the Sierra Nevada de Santa 
Marta and its watershed, and he certainly has thrown much light 
on this almost unknown region, ze. in the north-west corner of 
South America, The water-system, which Mr, Simons was at 
much pains to explain clearly, consists of the Rio Cesar, withits 
affluents, the Rio Rancheria and others falling into the Caribbean 
Sea, and the two large rivers which form the Grand Cierraga, 
‘Mr. Simons, who has spent some three and a half years in the 
country in natural history researches, has already contributed to 
the Geographical Society’s Proceedings a paper on the topo- 
graphy of the Sierra Nevada, so that its geography can now be 
well understocd through his labours, 
SOME further details of the interesting discoveries made by 
the search ship Aedgers in and about Wrangel Land are given in 
the Zimes. It appears that the Rodgers, after leaving St. Law- 
-rence Bay, passed through Behring Straits, and effected a landing 
on Herald Island on August 24. Having left records of her 
visit there, she steamed for Wrangel Land, which she reached 
on the evening of August 26. Finding a safe harbour, she de- 
spatched parties to the eastern and western coasts in search of 
cairns or traces of the Fearmnette. Capt. Berry, who commanded 
the land party, reached a mountain 2500 feet high, from which 
he saw open water around the island everywhere, except between 
NATURE 
89 
the west and south-south-west, where a high mountain seemed 
to terminate the land. Master H. S. Waring went round the 
eastern coast and northern side, and being blocked by ice had to 
return by land to the ship. Ensign Hunt went by the western 
coast and reached the ice which had blocked Waring, and found 
it impenetrable. He had passed to the northern side, and could 
see Waring’s p: sition, so that the entire island had thus been 
skirted. No traces of the Yeannette were found. The New 
York Herald correspondent says that he was ‘‘ surprised to see 
the ice moving constantly to the westward along the shore, where, 
according to a ratural suppositiop, the wind would blow it off. 
Sometimes when he went to bed he would see the pack ice filling 
the sea as far as the eye cou'dreach, and the next morning when 
he went on deck he would behold a vast expanse of open 
water.” Wrangel Land is now said to be about sixty miles 
long, ard there is a current at the northern end of it running to 
the north-west, at the rate of about six knots an hour, At the 
south-east of the island the ice was observed to be drifting in a 
northerly direction, at the rate of about two miles a day. From 
all this it is inferred that the Yeann tte, which was last seen in 
September, 1879, steaming towards Wrangel Land, did not 
reach that island, and that either she was caught in the pack, 
and is being carried by the current in a northerly direction, at 
about the 172nd meridian, or that, finding the sea open, as the 
Rodgers did, she has been induced to leave the land, and has 
taken advantage of open leads through the ice, and has sailed 
northwards into unknown space. Efforts are still being made 
to search for her or her crew if they have abandoned their ship. 
The Aodgers will winter at St. Lawrence Bay off Kotzebue 
Sound, on the Alaska coast, and will in the spring make further 
search. ‘The American observation party have reached Point 
Barrow, where they will winter, and where they will have 
opportunity of searching among the wreckage, which is so often 
washed on that shore, for any records of the missing ship. 
Lirut. A, HovGAarb, who was on Prof, Nordenskjéld’s 
staff in the memorable Vega expedition, is trying to start an 
expedition in search of the Yearmnette. Hovgaard thinks of 
sailing in the same track which was | ursued by the Vega, in 
order to prove that the Kara Sea is perfectly navigable, if the 
necessary precautions are taken, He intends to winter at Cape 
Chelyuskin, in order to make scientific and principally meteoro- 
logical observations. He has already received numerous contri- 
butions for this purpose from his Danish compatriots. 
Count WALDBURG-ZEIL has safely returned from his Arctic 
expedition, which had for its object the establishment of a regular 
steamship service between Bremen and Siberia, His ship Luzse 
encountered considerable difficulties ; nevertheless the Count is 
of opinion that a regular service will be possible and remune- 
rative. The Dal/mann, the second ship of the Count’s expedi- 
tion, was left bebind at the Yenisei estuary, where it will remain 
during the winter. 
THE German paper Ausland publishes a letter from the 
German traveller Dr. B. Hagen, dated from Tandjong Morawa, 
to which he had returned from his excursion into the interior of 
Sumatra, He travelled through the Northern Batta districts, 
hitherto almost entirely unknown, and then across the plateau of 
Northern Tobah as far as the great Tobah Lake. The tra- 
veller was well received everywhere, and only the eternal wars 
between the several villages impeded and delayed his progress. 
His collections of anthropological, ethnographical, zoological, 
and yarticularly of botanical specimens are very large. The 
fauna and flora on the Tobah Plateau, as on all tropical high 
plateaux (such as Java, and even in Japan), resemble those of 
Europe. 
News from Zanzibar state that the Belgian expedition under 
Mr. Rogers left for the Congo on October 20 last, 135 natives 
accompanying it. 
UNDER the Chefoo Convention, negotiated by Sir Thomas 
Wade with the Chinese authorities in 1876, it was agreed that a 
British officer could reside at Chung-king, in Sze-chuan, on the 
upper waters of the Yangtsze. The gentleman at present sta- 
tioned there, Mr, E. H. Parker, of H. M.’s Consular Service 
in China, seems to have made good use of the opportunities 
thus afforded him of investigating this comparatively little-known 
district. Under the title of ‘‘Short Journeys in Sze-chuan,” he 
bas contributed to recent numbers of the China Review an 
account of his travels in the province, together with observa- 
tions on its trade, customs, geography, &c. 
