130 
The raids of the Meenas into British territory brought matters 
to a crisis, and it became necessary to put them down. But in 
contrast with the unfortunate contests with savage races, which 
are going on at the present day in other parts of the world, it 
may not be unworthy of note that the tranquillisation of Jehaz- 
poor was effected without a shot being fired. 
CRYSTALLOGRAPHY 
Crystals of Potassic Racemate 
ACCORDING to De la Proyostaye, potassic racemate crystallises 
in the rhombic system; but M. des Cloiseaux, in a communi- 
cation to the Annales de Chimie (xvii. 
365), disputes the truth of that statement. 
All the crystals with which he worked (some 
being presented to him by Pasteur, some by 
Lamy and Gernez), are really derived from an 
oblique rhomboidal prism of 96° 56’. The 
base of this prism is always highly developed, 
and its inclined diagonal makes an angle of 
92° 28’ with the anterior vertical edge. ‘The 
plane of the optic axes is perpendicular to 
the plane of symmetry ; the acute bisectrix is 
negative and normal tog’. The revolving dis- 
persion is considerable, as shown by the dis- 
tance which separates the plane where the 
red axes are situated from that containing the 
blue. It is easily found by the polarising 
microscope across fine sections, normal to the 
acute bisectrix. The frofer dispersion of the 
axes is rather strong, with p < v. For their apparent distance in 
air (at 19) 
2E=130 2’ (red rays); 132 45’ (blue rays). 
ZOOLOGY 
Development of Molgula Tubulosa 
Ir is well known that the larve of the Ascidians generally 
possess a form resembling, in external appearance at least, that 
of the tadpoles of our common Frogs, and also resembling these in 
the agility with which they swim about by means of their tail- 
like appendage. In fact, as M. Lacaze Duthiers indicates in a 
paper just communicated to the Academy of Sciences, this 
peculiarity of development has for a long time been regarded as 
characteristic of all the Ascidians. According to the celebrated 
naturalist just mentioned, M/olgu/a tubulosa forms an excep- 
tion to this general rule. Instead of exhibiting the brisk, jerk- 
ing movements of the embryos of the 7’2a//usie@ for example, the 
embryo of A/o/gu/a moves very slowly within its egg-capsule, its 
movements consisting chiefly of alterations in its general form 
which, however, finally effect the rupture of the capsule. Through 
this opening the embryo /fows, like a plastic, amceboid mass, 
which remains quietly at the bottom of the vessel, merely chang- 
ing its form slowly by amceboid movements. Soon after exclu- 
sion the embryo shows indications of zones in its body, and from 
the outermost of these processes are given off (for some time only 
five in number), which seem to fix it to surrounding objects and 
are analogous to the innumerable filaments of the tunic in the 
adult. 
SCIENTIFIC SERIALS 
THE May number of Silliman’s American Fournal of Science 
and Arts (vol. xlix. No. 147) opens with a paper by E. W. Blake, 
jun., on a method of producing, by the electric spark, figures 
similar to those of Lichtenberg. His method consists in throw- 
ing the discharge upon the surface of a fusible non-conducting 
body, of which common pitch, coating a plate of tin, seems to 
furnish the best results. Figures produced by means of 
friction and induction sparks are represented by woodcuts. 
Col. J. J. Woodward publishes an important paper on the 
application of the magnesium and electric lights to photo- 
micrography, illustrated with figures showing the arrangement of 
the apparatus. An anonymous writer, using the initials]. H. B. L., 
describes and figures a new form of mechanical finger for the 
microscope, The chemical papers are as follows :—Combinations 
of silicon with alcoholic radicals, by C. Friedal and J. M. Crafts, 
a long and valuable paper; analyses of meteoric irons, and re- 
NATURE 
“burrows to haye been made by a //elix. 
| Fune 16, 1870 
marks on the alkalies contained in leucite, by J. Lawrence Smith 
the first part of a memoir by B. Silliman and H. Wurtz, on flame 
temperatures in their relations to composition and luminosity ; 
on some double sulphates of the Cerium group, by C. H. Wing ; 
cn two peculiar products in the nickel manufacture, by Joseph 
Wharton ; two short notes by O. Loew, on the action of sun- 
light on sulphurous acid, and on the formation of ozone by rapid 
combustion ; and two notes on methods to be adopted in gas- 
analyses by Dr. Wolcott Gibbs. Prof. Arthur Wright notices 
some curious phenomena observed by him in connection with 
the discharge of an electrical machine. Natural History proper 
is represented in this number only hy two papers, namely, an 
account, by H. Y. Hind, of the Laurentian and Huronian series 
in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, and descriptions of some 
new corals, by A. I’. Verrill, The latter consist of four Aleyon- 
aria and three Madreporaria, one of which is described as form- 
ing a new genus. Besides the usual abstracts and extracted 
articles placed under the head of Scientific Intelligence, the editors 
publish an extract from a letter describing the movements pro- 
duced by a strong gale of wind in the great iron dome of the 
Capitol of Washington. This is illustrated by a tracing of the 
pencil mark showing the course of the movement of the centre of 
the dome. 
TueE Revue des Cours Scientifiques for June 4 gives us M. Ber- 
thelot’s lecture ‘fon the isomeric states of simple bodies,” in 
which he treats especially of the different states of oxygen, and 
concludes by observ:ng that there exists, at least in certain cases, 
a relation between the states of a simple free body (element) and 
the nature of the combination from which it has been separated ; 
that a Simple body in a certain condition can enter more easily 
into one class of combination than into another class ; and that a 
simple body can change its condition even while it exists in cer- 
tain combinations. We find also a continuation of M. Bernard’s 
lectures on ‘‘ Suffocation by the fumes of charcoal,” and an ad- 
dress by M. C. Robin, entitled, ‘‘ How the parts of an organism 
adapt themselves to determinate purposes.” The number for 
June 11 is mainly occupied by the description of a contrivance 
by means of which a locomotive can be made to act as a drag 
or arrester of motion in the train, when such is the will of the 
driver. We have also a report of Prof. Helmholtz’s lecture before 
the Society of Natural and Medical Sciences at Heidelberg, on 
‘the physiological action of electric currents of short duration 
in the interior of extensive conducting masses.” 
THE Journal of Botany, British and Foreign, for June hardly 
sustains the interest of the earlier numbers of the new series. 
The original articles are confined to a continuation of the Hon. 
J. L. Warren’s paper on the British 2/, and of Mr. Worthing- 
ton Smith’s Clavis Agaricinorum, and an article of considerable 
interest to geographical botanists and theorists on the origin of 
species, ‘fOn the World-Distribution of the British Caryo- 
phyllacee,” by Mr. J. G. Baker. We have besides a biography 
(with portrait) of the late Dr. Franz Unger, and some extracts 
and shorter notes. 
THE best article in the May number of the American Ento- 
mologist and Botanist, is one which is neither entomological nor 
botanical, ‘‘On the Gordius or Hair-worm,” by Prof. Jos. 
Leidy, of Philadelphia, giving an account of the anatomical 
structure of the animal, its mode of propagation, and of the 
different species found in the United States. There are several 
other articles and an abundance of shorter notes, that will be of 
value to the young naturalist. 
THE Geological Magazine for June commences with an article 
by Prof. Harkness, on ‘* Elephant-remains in Ireland,” which have 
now been met with in several localities. The writer mentions 
incidentally that Ireland has afforded hitherto no traces of either 
the hyzena or lion ; the pleistocene carnivora were confined to the 
bear, of which, however, there are no historical records, and the 
wolf, which was finally extirpated about the year1710. Prof. de 
Koninck contributes a paper ‘‘On some new and remarkable 
Echinoderms from the British Palzeozoic rocks, including a species 
of Palechinus ; a new species and new genus, LVacocystites 
Fforbesianus, belonging to the family of Cystidee; and a new 
species of //aplocrinus, H. granatum.’ Mr. T. G. Bonney, 
“On supposed Pholas-burrows in Derbyshire,” believes these 
Mr, J. W. Laidlay 
describes a ‘‘ Prehistoric Dwelling and Kitchen-midden on the 
Coast of Haddingtonshire,” in which were found a very large 
quantity of rude pottery in fragments, and, for the most part, 
roughly moulded by the hands; a number of implements of 
bone, such as needles, arrowheads, combs, knives, chisels, &c., 
