2l6 



NATURE 



{Jan. 14, 1875 



receive any communication from the Secretary of the Society 

 named ; and if any gentlemen propose to avail themselves of his 

 Majesty's invitation, I should wish to receive particulars of the 

 probable number of the party or parties, of the station or stations 

 proposed, and the foundations required for instruments — a plan, 

 in fact, for each intended observatory, that I may submit them 

 for his Majesty's orders. You may state that our topographer, 

 Capt. Loftus, and other officers who, as surveyors, are accus- 

 tomed to precise observations, will be happy to assist if desired, 

 and his Majesty will willingly release them from their other 

 duties for this purpose. With the assurance of my high esteem, 

 believe me, my dear sir, your most faithful friend, Bhasha- 

 KARjUVONGSE, H.S.M. Private Secretary." 



The great solar eclipse of 1S6S was visible in Siam, as the 

 1S75 eclipse will be. The then reigning Siamese king had not 

 invited any European astronomer ; but the French Government 

 sent an expedition, who located themselves in Malacca for the 

 purpose of taking spectroscopic observations. The King of 

 Siam, who professed to be an astronomer, came with a royal 

 train and a large army to observe the sun and perhaps the sun- 

 observers. The observations were very successful indeed ; but 

 the French astronomers had located themselves on marshy land 

 and were almost all attacked by fever, of which they were cured 

 only on their return to France. Such was not the case, however, 

 with their royal guest, who was also attacked, and died a few 

 months afterwards. 



A TELEGRAM, dated Hong Kong, January 9, states that the 

 Challenger has left that place in continuation of her cruise. 



We are informed that a subscription list has been opened in 

 Stockholm for the purpose of erecting a monument to Scbeele, 

 ■whose discoveries gave such a powerful impulse to the advance" 

 ment of chemical science in the eighteenth century. 



It is also reported that there is a probability of a monument 

 being erected in Brussels in honour of the late M. Adolphe 

 Quetelet, the well-known Secretary of the Belgian Academy, 



A NEW section of the Glasgow Philosophical Society^Sec" 

 tion C, Pliysics (including Mechanics and Engineeiing) — has 

 been formed, with Jas. R. Napier, F.R. S., as president, Prof. Sir 

 Wm. Thomson, LL.D., F.R.S., and Prof. R. Grant, LL.D. 

 F.R.S., as vice-presidents, and Thos. Muir, M.A., F.R.S.E. 

 as secretary, and has already begun to do good work in the 

 cause of original research. The success of this section, alourr 

 with that of the recently organised Science Lectures Association, 

 affords good evidence that in Glasgow, as elsewhere, there is a 

 significant stirring among the dry bones from which we may 

 hope for valuable results in the not distant future. 



The January number of Petermann's Mitthcilungcn contains a 

 letter from Dr. Nachtigal, who has done for the eastern countries 

 of the Sahara and Soudan what Earth did for the central, telling 

 of his return to Cairo after an absence of about six years. He 

 was received by the Viceroy and the German inhabitants of Cairo 

 with the greatest honour. As his health has been considerably 

 impaired by the hardships he has had to undergo, he intended to 

 stay some time in the genial climate of Egypt to recruit, not 

 caring to plunge suddenly into the rigours of a northern climate. 

 Dr. Petermann gives a brief resume of the course of Dr. Nach- 

 tigal's journeys. 



The scheme which was proposed about a year ngo for the 

 erection of an aquarium, to be built on the beach at Hastings, 

 has been revived, and we are informed that a limited liabihty 

 company, composed of local capitalists, has been started for the 

 purpose of carrying out the project. The building will be 

 erected a little to the east of the present pier, and one of the two 

 designs to which premiums were awarded last year will probably 

 be adopted. 



From a previously undisturbed deposit on Funk Island, a 

 guano-covered rock to the east of Newfoundland, several bones 

 of the Great Auk [Aha impeniiis) have been recently brought to 

 this country. They are not in a first-rate state of preservation, 

 being considerably injured by exposure. 



The Marquis of Bute has recently purchased eight Canadian 

 Beavers, seven of which have arrived safely in the Island of Bute, 

 and have been placed in the enclosure constructed for the four 

 which died some time ago on Drumreoch Moor. To increase 

 the chance of their accUmatisation, the animals will be supplied 

 with a certain amount of food for some time to come. 



From a report of a journey into the interior of Formosa 

 made in the latter part of the year 1873, we leam that the flat 

 portion of the country is almost everywhere cultivated with the 

 greatest care: the principal crops are rice, sugar-cane, and sweet 

 potatoes ; and the minor crops, pea-nuts [Arac/ns kvpogica), 

 indigo, 3X\A Areca paliiis. The mountain region, though very 

 steep and rugged, was covered with thick tropical forest. Tree- 

 ferns, as well as other fern^, grew luxuriantly ; and in places 

 where there was a bit of level ground, Chinese had formed set- 

 tlements around which they were growing rice, and were clearing 

 patches of the liill-sides for the cultivation of tea. Formosa is 

 the island from whence we obtain our supplies of the camphor of 

 commerce, but in the interior the trees which abound in the 

 forests are said to be left untouched, a5 the natives do not know 

 how to make camphor. 



The cultivation of cocoa {Theobroma caeao) is being largely 

 extended in Guayaquil. New plantations have been found, and 

 new trees planted on the old estates, so that the average yield 

 will be greatly increased. The crop of 1873 was the largest yield 

 known for many years. Another of the chief products of Guay- 

 aquil is indiarubber, or caoutchouc, the yield of whichhas very 

 much decreased of late, owing to the custom of destroying the 

 trees to collect the gum, so that it has become necessary to go 

 further into the forests in search of the trees, which, together 

 with the increased difficulty of transport, has added much to its 

 first cost. 



One of the large Blue Gum Trees (Eucalyptus globulus) in the 

 Temperate house at Kew is now showing bunches of fruit. These 

 fruits are from three-quarters to an inch in diameter, and are 

 peculiar on account of their hard woody nature, being nearly 

 enclosed by the ligneous calyx, and opening at the apex by valves 

 corresponding in number with the cells. 



Amongst economic plants of interest at present flowering at 

 Kew, the Tea-plant and the Star Anise claim notice. A fine 

 bunch of the Black Tea ( Tltea chinensis), var. Bohca, cannot fail 

 to attract attention in the Temperate house at this season, where 

 flowers in general are scarce. Though the genus Thca is so 

 closely allied to that of Caiiullict, its flowers are comparati>-eiy 

 inconspicuous when compared with those of the well-known C 

 japonica. The large yellow anthers, however, redeem it from 

 insignificance. The Star Anise {Illicium anisatnm), which find 

 a home in the Economic house, is a native of South-west China, 

 growing to a height of about fifteen feet. The common name of 

 Star Anise is derived from the stellate form of the fruit when 

 ripe, and its odour somewhat resembling that of aniseed. Large 

 quantities of these fruits, with the seeds in them, are exported 

 from China to Europe and India. On the Continent they are 

 largely used to flavour spirits, but with us their chief use is lor 

 expressing an essential oil, which is frequently sold for real oil 

 of aniseed. 



Thi: differences between the organisation of the French 

 Academy of Sciences and the Royal Society are striking. Any- 

 one wishing to become a French Academician is obliged to visi- 

 each of the electors and to ask personally for their suffrages. 



