596 



NA TURE 



[February 23, 1899 



winter temperature anJ the height of the barometer in north- 

 west Europe. Mr. Dines concludes, and M. Lancaster, of 

 Brussels, agrees with him (see p. 377), that in winter it is just 

 as likely to be cold when the barometer is below the average as 

 when it is above the average. This result is opposed to the 

 current theory, but the Rev. M. Dechevrens holds that the 

 phenomena concerned are only an extension of the general 

 theory of variations of temperature in cyclones which he has for 

 some years been bringing before the attention of meteorologists. 

 A brief description of his conclusions as to the variations of air 

 temperature in cyclones, and their cause, will be found in 

 Nature of July 28, 1898 (vol. Iviii. p. 301). 



DuRlNi". the fine weather of last week Mr. Walter Garstang 

 successfully accomplished the first of his periodic surveys of the 

 physical and biological conditions of the English Channel for 

 the current year, an investigation in which he has been assisted 

 by a grant from the British Association and by the use of 

 apparatus belonging to the Government Grant Committee of 

 the Royal .Society and the .Marine Biological Association. Mr. 

 Garstang left Plymouth on Friday last in the steam tug Storm- 

 cock, and returned home late on Sunday. Stations were estab- 

 lished in mid-Channel (50 fathoms), off Ushant (60 fathoms), 

 oft' Parsons Bank, seventy miles west of Ushant (80 fathoms), 

 and oft' Mounts Bay (50 fathoms). Serial temperature sound- 

 ings were taken, and collections of plankton were made at the 

 surface and in 40 fathoms at each of these stations. The deep 

 water plankton collections were made by means of a pump and 

 40 fathoms of armoured suction hose. Surface collections were 

 also made with the same apparatus. The quantity of water 

 pumped on each occasion was determined with all possible 

 accuracy, and the filtered samples were preserved for future ex- 

 amination without accident, thus admitting of a quantitative 

 analysis for a comparative statement of the results obtained. 

 Surface collections were also made at each station by means of 

 tow-nets for comparison with the results obtained by the pump. 

 A heavy ground swell, crossed by a stiff north-westerly breeze, 

 was encountered between Ushant and Parsons Bank, but in 

 other respects the weather was all (hat could be desired. The 

 temperature results display a remarkable uniformity for all depths 

 at each of the stations. The warmest water was met with to the 

 westward, while the mid-Channel water was found to be warmer 

 than that bathing the English and French coasts, thus confirm- 

 ing Mr. H. X. Dickson's results as to the course of the axis of 

 high temperature in the Channel. It is intended to repeat the 

 investigation at the same stations during May, August and 

 November of the present year, in order to provide material for 

 a complete account of the seasonal changes, as well as the hori- 

 zontal and vertical distribution of plankton and temperature in 

 this region of the Channel. 



From a report in the Adelaide Chronicle, it seems that the 

 iguana lizard, hitherto supposed to be perfectly harmless, except 

 in poultry yards, has been found to be the slaughterer of lambs. 

 Several sheep-owners have caught the iguana in the act of killing 

 lambs, so there can be no doubt that this reptile must now be 

 classed amongst the enemies of the pastoralists. The scarcity 

 of opossums has probably driven the iguana to attack lambs 

 for food. Pastoralists, who since the discovery have watched 

 their lambs closely, say that even very small iguanas will attack 

 a lamb, and they further state that any lamb so bitten will not 

 recover. 



The presiidential addresses delivered before the various sec- 

 tions of the .Vmerican Association at the forty-seventh meeting 

 and fiftieth anniversary, held at Boston, M.issachusetts, last 

 August, and abstracts of the papers communicated, are printed 

 in the volume of Proceedings (vol. xlvii.), which h.as just been 

 published by the permanent secretary, Dr. L. O. Howard. The 

 NO. 1530, VOL. 59] 



volume runs into 658 pages, and contains many papers of 

 scientific interest and value. This year's meeting of the Associ- 

 ation will be held at Columbus, Ohio, the president for the 

 meeting being Prof. Edward Orton, of Ohio State University. 



Thouc.h the age of the implements or " paheoliths" from 

 the Trenton gravels has been the subject of much controversy, 

 little attention appears to have been given to the human re- 

 mains from the same beds. Dr. Frank Russell has, therefore, 

 made a detailed study of these remains in order to determine 

 whether or not they resemble the remains of recent Indians of 

 the region. The Delaware Valley was occupied by the Lenni 

 Lenape until 1737 ; and Dr. Russell concludes that the crania 

 found near the surface, at least about Trenton, are the skulls 

 of members of this tribe, or of other modern Indians. The 

 paper in which the remains are discussed appears in the 

 American Nattiralisl. 



Experiments to determine the density of ice are described, 

 by Prof. Edward L. Nichols, in the January number of the 

 Physical Keriew. From his own investigations. Prof. Nichols 

 concludes that the natural ice he used in the form of air-free 

 icicles, and in the massive form of ice-blocks cut from the 

 surface of a frozen pond, had a density at o" of 09180. Arti- 

 ficial ice produced by the use of carbon dioxide and ether was 

 found to have a density not far from 09161. There appears 

 to be no doubt that natural ice obtained from the surface of 

 frozen ponds and rivers and in the slow formation of icicles 

 possesses a density greater than that of artificial ice by about two 

 parts in a thousand. 



Mr. Charles S. Tomes, F.R.S., describes, in the Quarterly 

 Journal of Microscopical Science, an investigation on the differ- 

 ences in the histological structure of teeth of fishes of the family 

 Gadida;. The object of the investigation was to ascertain the 

 extent of the variation in structure of the teeth of various 

 Gadidx, and to see how far these diff'erences coincide with the 

 lines of classification on general grounds. The conclusion arrived 

 at is that the diflTerences of tooth structure only to a limited 

 extent follow the lines of the general aftinities of the genera. 

 Mr. Tomes also remarks : "The teeth of the Gadidae appear to 

 furnish an argument against the adequacy of the purely mechan- 

 ical theory of the evolution of tooth forms, so warmly advo- 

 cated by Cope under the name of kinetogenesis, and adopted 

 in its entirety by a large number of the .Vmerican school of 

 naturalists. " 



The Pilot Chart of the North Atlantic Ocean, issued by the 

 Ilydrograjihic Office of the United States for February, reviews 

 the state of the weather from December 20 to January 20. In 

 many localities the weather in the Atlantic was very severe ; 

 gales of hurricane force accompanied with violent squalls were 

 frequently reported. The tracks of fifteen storms are tniced 

 upon the chart ; the centres of these disturbances were for the 

 most part to the north of the transatlantic routes, moving 

 north-eastward, and following each other in rapid succession. 

 Several of them are shown to have traversed the whole of the 

 North Atlantic. Nearly all of them p.issed to the northward 

 of our islands, although their influence would be felt on our 

 extreme northwest coasts. The principal exception was the 

 storm which was central over England on December 29, 

 which after reaching longitude 30° W., took a nearly direct 

 westerly course ; this disturbance developed otT the American 

 coast on December 26. Reports from the Newfoundland coast 

 indicate a rapid southerly movement of the Arctic ice floe. Some 

 immense icebergs were reported 200 miles S.F^. of St. John's, 

 Newfoundland, in the _l.atter part of January, directly in the 

 track of shipping. 



