April 6, 1899] 



NA TURE 



545 



the two seas, but the minima of the Adriatic are much lower 

 than those of the Ionian Sea. These results are based upon 

 observations made during one year. 



Mr. J. Baxendell has sent us a copy of the report of the 

 Fernley Observatory, Southport, for the year 1898. The 

 observatory is maintained by the corporation of that town, and 

 is one of the best equipped in the United Kingdom. Observ- 

 ations have been regularly taken at Southport for nearly thirty 

 years, having been commenced by the late Mr. J. Baxendell 

 (father of the present observer), who was a meteorologist of con- 

 siderable repute. The results, it is almost unnecessary to say, 

 show evidence of very careful work, and include, in addition to 

 the usual elements, observations of "sea-surface and underground 

 temperature, evaporation, ozone, iS:c. , and a useful table, contain- 

 ing comparisons with other health resorts, is appended to the 

 report. All such stations vie with each other in giving good 

 reports of bright sunshine. Southport possesses both the 

 Campbell-Stokes burning recorder and the Jordan photographic 

 recorder, and we are glad to see that the records of the latter 

 are "fixed" before being measured. Possibly this is not done 

 at all st.^tions ; when measured before "fixing" the results are 

 somewhat ex.iggerated, as compared with those of the burning 

 recorder. We should scarcely have expected the sunshine at 

 Guernsey (where a photogr.iphic recorder is used) to have been 

 greater than at Jersey. 



We have received together the 13th and 14th reports of (he 

 State Entomologist of the Sta'e of New York for 1897 and 

 1898, on " Injurious and other Insects." The report for 1897, 

 which was edited by the late Dr. J. A. Lintner, calls attention 

 to the decline in the spread of the formidable San Jose scale, 

 and deals briefly with a large number of insects, some few being 

 noticed at greater length. The two plates represent Tenthrcdo 

 rufopcctiis, Norton, and three species of Uroceridae, and the 

 spines of the larva ot Eades iniperialis, Drury (after Packard). 

 The report for 1898 is edited by Dr. Ephraim Porter Felt, 

 Acting State Entomologist. During that year much damage 

 was caused to trees in America by the attacks of various cater- 

 pillars. The general character of this report is similar to that 

 of the last ; both are illustrated with woodcuts in addition to 

 the plates, and both contain useful bibliographical notices re- 

 lating to various insects discussed. The report for 1S98 con- 

 tains nine plates, several of which aie devoted to illustrations 

 of trees defoliated by caterpillars to an extent fortunately not 

 often seen in Europe. The other plates illustrate various moths, 

 caterpillars, Coccidae, and the cast skin of a Tarantula. 



The seventh volume of the Anna/en der Sternwarlt in 

 Leiden, published by the director of the observatory. Prof. 

 H. G. van de Sande Bakhuyzen, contains four contributions, 

 three of which, as we are told, have been previously distributed 

 among some observatories. The first of these, by the director 

 himself, is devoted to investigations on the period of rotation 

 of the planet Mars, and to variations of his spots. The author 

 has n,ade use of all the available d.ita, and finds that in 

 Schrceter's and Herschel's time a very dark spot, similar in form 

 to that of Syrtis Major, but fifty to fifty-five degrees distant 

 from the latter, was situated in the region of Cyclopium. This, 

 he says, indicates large variations in this part of Mars' surface. 

 He is also led to adopt new values for the time of transit of the 

 zero of longitude and the period of rotation, this value for the 

 latter being 24h. 27m. 22 66s. , with a mean error of + 001323. 

 The second paper, also by himself, gives an account of an 

 apparatus he has devised for determining the absolute personal 

 equation of an observer in making transit observations. The 

 chief part of the apparatus consists of a movable and fixed 

 prism, the velocity of the former being known. By a simple 

 arrangement of mirrors, the artificial star can be viewed in the 

 NO. 1536, VOL. 59] 



transit instrument when the latter is set at any altitude. Prof. 

 J. C. Kapteyn is the author of the third memoir, which deals 

 with the determination of the parallaxes with the meridian 

 circle ; while the last paper contains the determination of the 

 diflerenceof longitude between Leyden and Greenwich, by Prof. 

 H. G. van de Sande Bakhuyzen and his brother, Dr. E. F. 

 van de Sande Bakhuyzen ; the final value adopted for the 

 difference of longitude being given as 17m. 55"S9is. 



Messrs. Dulau and Co. have issued a catalogue of book 

 and papers on astronomy and meteorology offered for sale by 

 them. 



The twenty-ninth volume of the Proceedings of the London 

 Mathematical Society has just been published in two parts. 

 The volume contains papers read before the Society from 

 November 1897 to November 189S; but as brief abstracts of 

 these papers have appeared in our reports of Societies, it is un- 

 necessary to do more now than announce their publication in a 

 complete form. 



The fifteenth edition of Kirkes' well-known " Handbook of 

 Physiology," by Prof. W. D. Halliburton, F. U.S., has just 

 been published by Mr. John Murray. The results of important 

 researches in all branches of physiology have been incorporated, 

 and the order in which the subjects are treated has been 

 modified, the section on the central nervou-; system being now 

 placed towards the end of the book. The additions and alter- 

 ations will increase the value of the volume to teachers and 

 students. — A second edition of " Chemistry for Photographers," 

 by Mr. C. F. Towniend, has been published by Messrs. 

 Dawbarn and Ward, Ltd. 



The additions to the Zoological Society's Gardens during the 

 past week include a Bay-thighed Monkey (Cercopilhecus ig- 

 iiaiiis, S), a Green Monkey {Cercopilhecus callitrichus) from 

 Liberia, presented by Mr. J. F. Braham ; a Lesser White- 

 nosed Monkey (Cercopilhecus pelaurista) from West Africa, 

 presented by Captain F. E. Bishop ; a Cape Jumping Hare 

 {Pedetes caffer) from South Africa, presented by Mr. W. 

 Champion ; a A'ulpine Phalanger ( Trichosurns vulpecula) from 

 Australia, presented by Mr. S. Humble ; a Pel's Owl {Scolopelia 

 peli) from West Africa, presented by Lieut. E. V. Turner, 

 R. E. ; two Ravens (Coi-vus corax), European, presented by 

 Mr. Francis Walpole ; a Giraffe (Giraffa camelopardaiis, 6) 

 from South-east Africa, two Elands {Orias canna, <5 9 ) from 

 the Transvaal, a Blessbok (Damaliscus a.hifrons, i) from 

 South Africa, deposited : a Red-faced Ouakari ( Ouacaria rubi- 

 cunda, 9 ) from the Upper Amazons, a Naked-throated Bell- 

 bird {Chasinorhynchus nudicollis), three Blue-bearded Jays 

 (Cyanocorax cyanopogan) from Brazil, purchased. 



Decl. 



OUR ASTRONOMICAL COLUMN. 

 Tuttle's Comet (1899 b). — 



Ephemeris for I2h. Berlin M.T. 

 1899. R.A. 



April 6 ... -\ o 506 



8 ... ' 8 2I-0 



10 ... 15 49'S 



12 ... 23 167 



14 ... 30 41-4 



16 ... 38 3 9 



18 ... 45 242 



20 ... 52 421 



22 ■•• 3 59 573 



24 ... 4 7 100 



26 ... 14 202 



28 ... 21 28-0 



30 ... 4 28 iyz 



0-96 



-(-26 25 6 



25 47 S 102 



25 7 48 ... 



24 27 7 ... I 07 



23 45 6 ... 



23 I 44 ... I-I2 



22 17 I ... 



I 23 



20 43 43 

 19 55 12 

 19 5 30 ... 

 iS 14 38 ... 1-28 

 -(-17 22 40 ... 



