Fan. 25, 1883 | 
D. Pidgeon, Recent Improvements in Agricultural Machinery 5 
Wilfred Cripps, F.S.A., English and Foreign Silver Werk, with 
some Remarks on Hall-marking. In the Foreign and Colonial 
Section—Edmond O'Donovan, Life among ithe Turkoman 
Nomads ; Rev. J. Peill, ‘‘Social Conditions and Prospects in 
Madagascar ; Robert W. Felkin, Egypt: Present and to Come; 
W. Delisle Hay, Social and Commercial Aspects of New 
Zealand. In the Applied Chemistry and Physics Section— 
C. F. Cross, F.C.S., Technical Aspects of Lignification ; Walter 
G. McMillan, F.C.S., Chemical Means for Preventing or Ex- 
tinguishing Fires; W. N. Hartley, F.R.S.E., Self-purification 
of River Waters; R. W. Atkinson, B.Sc., The Formation of 
Diastase from Grain by Moulds ; James J. Dobbie, D.Sc., and 
John Hutchinson, On the Application of Electrolysis to Bleach- 
ing and Printing. In the Indian Section—Charles H. Lepper, 
Overland Commercial Communication between India and China, 
vid Assam; W. S. Seton-Karr, Agriculture in Lower Bengal, 
with some Notice of Tenant Right, &c.; J. M. Maclean, Private 
Enterprise in India; C. Purdon Clarke, Some Notes on the 
Domestic Architecture of India. 
WE have received from Egypt a publication of :ome interest 
in the shape of the Axd/etim of the Chemical I aboratory at 
Cairo, directed by M. Altert Ismalun. The laboratory is under 
the Department of Public Works, and judging from the report 
in the Bulletin is doing a fair amount of useful work. The 
laboratory has been recently much improved, and attached is a 
museum of specimens in geology, palzontolozy, and zoology. 
A CONSIDERABLE number of names has been added to the 
list of those who are unfavourable to the meeting of the British 
Association in Canada in 1884. The request of the protesters 
to the Council seems to us quite reasonable, —‘‘ that it is highly 
de-irable that you should take some further steps in order to 
ascertain the general feeling of the members of the Association 
upon the subject, before allowing our kind and liberal friends 
in Canada to incur any further trouble or expense.” There are 
I4I names appended to the circular, and while some of them 
are well known, still we note the absence of some of the leading 
representatives of English science. 
THE proceedings at the meeting of the Association for the 
Improvement of Geometrical Teaching were not carried out 
quite on the lines laid down in a recent number of NATURE 
(vol. xxvii. p. 247). In consequence of a delay in the delivery 
of the copies of ‘‘the Elements of Plane Geometry,” the Presi- 
dent was oblized to defer the movi-g of his resolution till the 
next meeting, which, it is hoped, will be held about Easter next. 
The members were also informed that Mr. Levett had, in answer 
to an appeal made to him, consented to retain office as Hon. 
Secretary for the present year. Mr. E. B. Sargant, Trinity 
College, Cambridge, was elected to act as joint secretary with 
Mr. Levett. The following members were elected: Miss 
Burstall, Professors G. C. Foster, F.R.S., W. H. H. Hudson, 
H. Lamb, and G. M. Minchin, Rev. A. Jamson Smith, and 
Messrs. G. Griffith, E. B. Sargant, Charles Smith, F, Turner, 
and H, H. ‘Turner. 
Dr. PEVERATI, director of the Meteorological Observatory 
of Cassine, states that an earthquake shock was felt there on 
January 16, at 7.42 a.m. (Roman time). The shock was undu- 
lating, preceded by a rumbling noise in the direc'ion W.E., and 
lasted three-quarters of a second. The accompanying noise 
is compared to that of a very heavy body in motion in contact 
with another body at rest. The shock is classified as No. 3 in 
the scale of intensity proposed by Dr, Forel, A similar shock 
was felt the same day at Demonte (Cuneo) at 5.25 a.m., moving 
in a west-south direction. On the night of the 14-15th, 
several shocks were felt at Terranova and Pollino in Basilicata. 
NALORE 
299 
Twenty-two shocks of earthquake were felt on January 16, 
at Centi, in the province of Murcia, Spain. Several houses 
were destroyed, but the inmates escaped unhurt. There was no 
loss of life. 
Ir is announced from Mexico, January 23, that a new comet 
near Jupiter has been discovered at the Puebla Observatory. 
A NEW electrical paper E/ectricity, has issued its first number 
at Buda-Pesth. It is written in the Magyar language. The first 
paper of this description ever published was called Les 
Archives del’ Electricité, and was published by M. de la Rive at 
Geneva in 1840, and the first issued in England was edited by 
the late Mr. Walker in 1843, under the title, Zvectrical Maga- 
zine. None of these papers lasted for more than three or four 
years. 
THE Algerian Government is preparing an expedition for next 
spring, in order to protect effectually the southern patt of the 
province of Oran against incursions of the surrounding indepen- 
dent tribes. The results of this expedition are not without 
interest for English journals, many of which are printed on 
paper made from alfa, a plant cultivated in those remote regions, 
and manufactured in England. A curious fact is, that no 
French paper-maker ever attempts to manufacture alfa for 
inland consumption, 
THE oases of the Beni-mzab Confederacy to the south 
of Algeria, have been annexed to the French Algerian posses- 
sions, and a military expedition has established a regular 
administration in the country. The Algerian section of the 
French Alpine Club is organising a scientific expedition which 
will leave shor.ly in order to take advantage of a favourable 
season for travelling. | Any one wi-hing to take part in this 
excursion should communicate with M. Durando, president of 
the Algerian section. The newly-annexed oases are seve in 
number, with a population estimated at 40,000, with about 
200,000 palm-trees under cultivation. The ruins of several 
large towns have been covered by sand. 
Two of the most important scientific expeditions which 
attempted to get into the Siberian seas last year were those in the 
Dijmphna, with Lieut. Hovgaard bent on reaching the North 
Pole, and the Dutch Meteorological Expedition in the Varna, 
bound for Port Dickson. These two vessels succeeded in 
forcing the ice in the Waigatz Straits in September last, and 
perhaps the Dijmphna would then have got through the Kara 
Sea, had she not, by mistaking certain signals, been led to leave 
the open ‘“‘lead” in which she was, and gone to the assistance of 
the steamer Zcwise, beset by the ice. She was caught in the 
pack, as the ara had previously been, and was frozen in on Sep- 
tember 17. ‘The last report which we possess from these vessels, 
is dated September 22, and was brought to Europe by Capt. 
Dallmann of the Zowise. Since that date no news whatever has 
come to hand from the vessels, and the statements which have 
appeared in the Rus-ian press relating to the discovery by 
Samoyedes of a wreck, supposed to have been that of the 
Dijmphna, south of Waigatz Island, have been proved to refer 
to an old Russian whaler, stranded there some years ago. 
Although the expedition, if it had met with any mishap, would 
undoubtedly have found its way to the mouth of the Petchora, 
of which we should have had information before now, it has 
been decided by the Danish Government to send out a search 
expedition, under Capt. Norman, from Siberia, in case the 
Dijmphna should be in want of anything. On the other hand 
the Swedish-Norwegian Consul at Arkangelsk reports under 
date of December 13, that fishermen who had visited 
Waigatz Island in November last, had not seen any vessel near 
that island. In the last message received from Lieut. Hovgiard 
he expres-ed the opinion that the ice in the Kira Sea w vuld 
