2/8 



NA TURE 



[January 19, 1899 



value suitable for introduction into the United States — one by 

 Mr. W. T. Swingle, to the Mediterranean coasts of Europe, 

 Asia, and Africa ; the other by Mr. D. G. Fairchild and Mr. B. 

 Lathrop, to both coasts of South America. 



The addition to the British flora of a species belonging to so 

 well-known and conspicuous an order as the Orchidex, is an 

 unexpected circumstance. Mr. H. Goss has been fortunate 

 enough to accomplish this in the case of Orchis criienta, Muhl., 

 which he has found growing abundantly in several spots in 

 bogg)' ground at an altitude of about looo feet, between 

 Borrowdale and Walendlath, in Cumberland. O. cntcnta is 

 nearly related to 0. iiicariiata and O. /a/ifolia, being regarded 

 by some authorities as a variety of the latter. The discovery is 

 especially interesting as adding one more to the small number 

 of specially Arctic plants comprised in our flora. It has hitherto 

 been known only in Norway, Sweden, and Finland. It should 

 be looked for in Scotland. 



In a paper published in the Aniiais of Botany for December, 

 Mr. II. Wager appears to have set at rest the much-disputed 

 question of the presence of a nucleus in yeast-cells. In all the 

 species of Saccharoiityccs examined — S. Cerevisiac, Ludwigii, 

 t>astoriaiiHS, o-ni Mycoderiiia — he finds what he calls a " nuclear 

 apparatus," that is, a special portion which appears to be set 

 apart to perform the function of a nucleus. This nuclear body 

 is perfectly homogeneous, even when observed under the highest 

 powers of the microscope, and appears to correspond rather 

 with the nucleole of higher plants. One of these bodies is 

 found in every yeast-cell. In addition to the nuclear body, there 

 is in every yeast-cell a structure of the nature of a vacuole, 

 which appears to be an essential part of the nuclear apparatus, 

 and to possess some of the attributes of a nucleus. This struc- 

 ture has often been mistaken for the nucleus itself. 



Prof. W. B. Clark, State Geologist, reports, in the Johns 

 Hopkins University Circular for November, on the progress of 

 the Maryland Geological Survey and Maryland Weather Service 

 during the session 1897-98. Established in 1S96, the aim of the 

 .Survey has been to inaugurate those investigations which w'ould 

 prove most beneficial to the people of the State, and at the same 

 time contribute most largely to the knowledge of the stratigraphy 

 and structure of the country. With the aid of a surveying force 

 provided by the United States Geological Survey, a large 

 area has been surveyed topographically on the scale of an inch 

 to a mile. The geological work is systematically divided, and a 

 competent man placed in charge of each large district. Subjects 

 such as the highways and road-metals, agriculture and soils, 

 distribution of plant and animal life, and terrestrial mag- 

 netism are dealt with by officers specially chosen for the 

 purpose. Prof. G. P. Merrill conducted investigations on the 

 building and decorative stones. Statistical data are collected 

 regarding the output of each industry that has to do with the 

 mineral wealth of the State. The Survey, in short, isconducted 

 in a way that reflects the highest credit on the State Geologist. 

 As director of the State Weather Service, he carries on this 

 branch of work in close co-operation with the State Geological 

 Survey, the State Agricultural Institutions, and the United 

 States Department of Agriculture. Reports from the .State 

 Weather Service are promised upon the physiography, meteor- 

 ology, medical climatology, agricultural soils, forestry, hydro- 

 graphy, crop conditions, botany, and zoology of Maryland. 



We h.ive received, from Messrs. J. Klster and II. Geitel, an 

 excerpt ])aper from Terrestrial Mai;ne(ism for June last, on a 

 method of determining the direction of vertical electrical 

 currents in the atmosphere by observations of atmospheric 

 electricity. In connection with this .subject, we would draw 

 attention to an important article by Mr. W. Trabcrt in Meleoro- 

 NO. 1525, VOL. 59] 



logische Zeilschrifi for November last, on the connection between 

 the phenomena of terrestrial magnetism and the electrical pro- 

 cesses in the atmosphere, in which special reference is made to 

 the above paper. Messrs. Elster and (ieitel have pointed out 

 that the direction of any vertical current from the surface of the 

 earth, induced by a process analogous to electrical dissi|)ation or 

 conduction, is completely determined by the sign of the elec- 

 tricity of the ground, or, what is the same thing, by the sign of 

 the potential over the corresponding locality. Thus if the surface 

 of the earth is everywhere negatively charged, there must be a 

 downward vertical current due to conduction. But they also 

 point out that cases are imaginable in which the conveyance of 

 electricity occurs in the opposite direction, and must be traced 

 to some other process, either mechanical or one which is at 

 present quite unknown. It may possibly be due to the effects 

 of terrestrial magnetism, and be detected by measurements of 

 atmospheric electricity. 



An elaborate series of tests on cadmium standard cells has 

 been undertaken by .Mr. S. X. Taylor (Physical Kci'iew, vol. vii. 

 pp. 149-170, 189S). The ratio of the E.M.F. of the Clark cell 

 (15° C.) to the Cadmium cell (217°) is given as 1-4077; this 

 may be compared with the Reichsanstalt determination, I •4063, 

 and with the recently published value, i •40663, of Jaeger and 

 Kahle, /.citschr. fur. Inslrk., June 189S. -Assuming that the 

 E.M.F. of the Clark cell is I '433 volts, the Cadmium cell has 

 an E.M.F. of foiSo volts. But the value of the Clark cell is 

 not definitely established to the third decimal place ; its E.M.F. 

 is variously stated as follows: — Rayleigh, 1S85, 1-4345; Car- 

 hart, I 434; Glazebrook and Skinner, 1S92, I '4342; Kahle> 

 1896, I '4322. 



The new issue of Natural Science, which has lately changed 

 hands, diff'ers little from the numbers with which we have for 

 some years been familiar. The original communications in- 

 clude the Friday evening address delivered by Prof. W. J.' 

 Sollas before the British Association at Bristol, on " Funafuti ; 

 the Study of a Coral Atoll." Mr. T. J. Cunningham discusses 

 in detail Prof. Weldon's evidence of the operation of natural 

 selection, expressed in the presidential address before the 

 section of biology at the same meeting of the -•Association. Mr. 

 H. C. Wyld writes on biological analogy and speech develop- 

 ment, and Dr. A. T. Masterman contributes an article upor\ 

 the subject of symmetry of organisms. In addition to these 

 articles, there are the usual critical notes and comments, 

 reviews, a budget of fresh facts, and items of news. 



The Transactions of the Leicester Literary and Philosophical 

 Society, New Series, vol. v. Parts 1 and 2 (July and October, 

 189S), contain the following papers on entomology : " A Group 

 of Insects' Home-made Cradles," by G. B. Dixon ; " Notes on 

 the British Longicornes," by Horace Donisthorpe : "On the 

 Genera Depressaria and Gelechia," by Rev. Canon Crutt- 

 well ; and "On the Evolution of the Hind Wing in Lepido- 

 ptera," by W. J. Kaye. The Proceedings of the Sections include 

 numerous shorter notes on various branches of natural history, 

 though entomology seems to receive the lions share of the 

 attention of the naturalists belonging to this energetic local 

 society. 



Bound in a strong handsome cover, and containing excel- 

 lent illustrations from beginning to end, volume ix. of the 

 Practical Photographer (Vexcj Lund, Humphries, and Co., Ltd., 

 London) consists of the issues for the past twelve months, and 

 forms a volume which every an>ateur photographer would like to 

 possess. Among the numerous articles will be found interesting 

 criticisms of the pictures exhibited at the various photographic 

 exhibitions held during the year, practical notes on the different 

 branches of the art, descriptions of the styles of work, and illus- 



