Sept. 27, 1877] 



NATURE 



467 



and carry out a similar excursion on a more extended scale. Dr. 

 Marshall described the echinoderms, molluscs, annelids, and 

 crustaceans taken. 



Prof. Palmieri has noteJ for the present year threat 

 anomalies of temperature. The degree of heat observed at the 

 Vesuvius Observatory is unprecedented, having reached 34° C, 

 and the mercury has fallen as low as — 7° C. This low tempe- 

 rature has never been reached once before, even in January and 

 February, in the twenty-five years during which the observatory 

 has been established. 



The Emperor of Brazil has formed a commission charged with 

 the determination of geographical positions in the empire, and 

 the first work of this commission is just published. It contains 

 an account of the determination of the longitude and latitude of 

 Barra de Pirahy. Geodesic operations are continued for 

 localities situated on tlie prolongation of the Santos railway, and 

 also on the parallel ( 10° in length) destined to join Rio to the 

 great meridian of the empire, which will be measured by the 

 commission. 



/)»> A&/«>- of September 1 7 contain ; an interesting collection 

 of some of the myths and stories which constitute the folk-lore of 

 the Australian aborigines. 



In the Anthropological Section of the Havre meeting of the 

 French Association M. Gustave Lagneau exhibited an ethno- 

 graphic map of France, on which lie has attempted to indicate, 

 in accordance with historical and ethnographical data, the 

 division, juxtaposition, superposition and mixture of the various 

 ethnical elements which have contributed to the formation of the 

 present population of the country. 



Of the many natural history societies in the United States but 

 one, so far as is known, is composed almost emirely of Germans, 

 the proceedings of which are published in the German language. 

 This is the Naturhistorisches Vtrein, of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 

 of which the annual report for 1S76-77 has just been published. 

 This society is organised in five sections — zoology, botany, 

 mineralogy, geology, and ethnology — holds regular meetings, and 

 has quite a large active membership. 



A GENERAL inventory has been taken by the French ministry 

 of all the public libraries of France. More than 200 towns 

 have been found to possess each a library numbering from 

 10,000 to 20,000 volumes. 



A Swedish paper just received publishes an interesting article 

 under the heading, *' \Yhy is the Climate of Europe growing 

 Colder?" The article states that in the Bay of Komenok, 

 near Koma, in Greenland, fossil and very characteristic remains 

 of palm and other trees have been discovered lately, which tend 

 to show that in these parts forme'ly a rich vegetation must have 

 existed. But the ice period of geologists arrived, and, as a con- 

 sequence of the decreasing temperature, this fine vegetation was 

 covered with ice and snow. This sinking in the temperature, 

 which moved in a southerly direction, as can be proved by geo- 

 logical data, i.e., the discovery of lossil filants of certain species, 

 seems to be going on in our days also. During the last lew 

 years the ice has increased far towards the south ; thus between 

 Greenland and the Arctic Sea colossal masses of ice have accu- 

 mulated. On European coasts navigators now frequently find 

 ice in latitudes where it never existed before during the summer 

 months, and the cold reigning upon the Scandinavian peninsula 

 this summer results from the masses of ice which are floating in 

 the region where the Gulf Stream bends towards our coasts. 

 This is a repetition of the obser\'ations made in the cold summer 

 of 1S65. The unaccustomed vicinity of these masses of ice 

 has rendered the climate of Iceland so cold that corn no 

 longer ripens there, and the Icelanders, in fear of a coming 



famine and icy climate, begin to found a new home in North 

 .-Vmeiica. 



Prof. Nordenskjold's voyages seem to have been of service 

 in o < ning up a sea-route to Siberia for commerce. A vessel 

 heloniing to M. SidorofT, Capt. Schwanenberg, arrived at Vardo 

 on September 16, after a passage of twenty-one days from the 

 mouth of the Yenisei ; and the steamer Trazer, belonging to 

 M. Sibiriakoff, Capt. Dahlmann, which sailed from Bremen on 

 July 28 for the mouth of the Yenisei, returned to Hammerfest on 

 September 24. 



A FIRE in Washington has destroyed the greater part of the 

 Patent Oflice Museum, with thousands of patent models, many 

 of great value. 



We notice among Messrs. Churchill's announcements for the 

 forthcoming season : "A Handbook of Analysis of Water, Air, 

 and Food, for the Medical Officer of Health," by Cornelius B. 

 Fox, M.D., M.R.C.P., Medical Officer of Health for Central, 

 East and South Essex; "Parasites: an Introduction to the 

 Study of the Entozoa of Man and Animals, including some Ac- 

 count of the Ectozoa," by T. Spencer Cobbold, M.D., F.R.S., 

 F. L.S., Professor of Helminthology in the Royal Veterinary 

 College ; and a "Student's Guide to the Anatomy of the Joints," 

 by Henry Morris, M.A., M.B., F.R.C.S., Assistant-Surgeon to 

 and Lecturer on Anatomy at the Middlesex Hospital. 



The additions to the Zoological Society's Gardens during the 

 past week include a Grivet Monkey (Cercopithecus griseoviridis) 

 from West Africa, a Nisnas Monkey {Cercopithecus pyrrhonotus) 

 from Nubia, presented by Mr. W. D. James ; a Green Monkey 

 [Cercopithecus callilrichns) from West Africa, presented by Mr. 

 W. W. Stead ; a Macaque Monkey (Macacus cynomoli^ns) from 

 India, presented by Mr. J. F. Greenwood ; a Capybara (Hydra 

 chmrus capybara) from South America, presented by Mr. W. 

 Smith ; a Peregrine Falcon (Falco perrgriims), European, an 

 African Buzzard {Buteo tachardus) from Africa, presented by the 

 Rev. W. Willimott ; a West African Python {Python s,b(e), a 

 Royal Python (Python regiiis) from West Africa, presented by 

 Mr. J. J. Kendall; a Coffin's Cockatoo (Cncatua g^ffini) from 

 the Fiji Isles, an Ariel Toucan (Ramfhaslos arid), a Maxi- 

 milian's Aracari (Pteroghssiis iviedi), two Blue-bearded Jays 

 (Cyonocorax cyanopogon), two West Indian Rads (Aramida 

 cayennensis) from South America, deposited ; two Upland Geese 

 (Bernicla magellanica) from the Straits of Magellan, three 

 Andean Geese (Bernicla melanopttra), two Slaty Coots (Fulica 

 ardesiaca) from Peru, purchased ; an Axi> Deer (Cervus axis), a 

 Yellow-footed Rock Kangaroo (Peiro^alc xanthopus), burn in 

 the Gardens. 



THE DIRECT PROCESS IN THE PRODUCTION 



OF IRON AND STEEL ^ 

 T N mixing comparatively rich iron ore in powder, with about 

 ■^ twenty-five per ctnt. of its weight of pounded coal, and in 

 exposing this mixture lor some houis to the heat of a common 

 stove or of a smith's fire, n;etaliiciion is former^, which, onbeirg 

 heated to the welding point, on the same smith's hearth, may be 

 Jorged into a horse-shoe of excellent quality. The admixture 

 with the 01 e of some fluxing materials, such as lime or clay, will, 

 in most cases, be of advantage to rid the iron of adherent slag. 



The simplicity of this process is such lh.at it naturally pre- 

 ceded the elaborate processes now in use for the production of 

 iron and steel upon a gigantic scale, nor can it surprise us to find 

 that attempts have been n ade from time to time down to the 

 present day, to revert to the ancient and more simple mett.od. 

 It can be sliown that iron produced by direct process is aliuost 

 chemically pure, although the orts and reducing agent employed 

 may have contained a considerable percentage of phosphorus, 



' Some Further Kemarks regarding the Production of Iron and Steel bv 

 Direct Process Paper read at the Ne»ca»tle Meeting of the Iron and 

 Steel Institute, hj- C. Will.am Siemens. D.C.L . F.R.S., President. 



