NA TURE 



[Dec. lo, 1885 



The additions to the Zoological Society's Gardens during the 

 past week inchide a Sly Silurus {Silunts g/aiiis), European, a 

 Thunder- fish {Misi;Hriiiis fossilis), a Ground Loach (Cobitis 

 tcenia) from Danzig ; a Barbel {Barius vulgaris), a River Bull- 

 head (Cotiiis ^obio) from British fresh waters, presented by Mr. 

 Alban Doran, F. R.C.S. ; one hundred Golden Carp (Carmsins 

 aura/us) from Spain, presented by Messrs. Paul and Co. ; a 

 Black-shouldered Kite (Elainis cimileus) from Africa, received 

 in exchange. 



ASTRONOMICAL PHENOMENA FOR THE 



WEEK, 1885, DECEMBER 13-19 

 (For the reckoning of time the civil day, commencin'^ at 

 Greenwich mean midnight, counting the hours on to 24, is here 

 employed.) 



At Greenwich on December 13 

 Sun rises, 8h. om. ; souths, iih. S4m. 33'83. ; sets, I5h. 49m. ; 

 decl. on meridian, 23^ 12' S. : Sidereal Time at Sunset, 

 2ih. 19m. 

 Moon (at First Quarter on Dec. 14) rises, Ilh. 48m. ; souths, 

 I7h. l6m. ; sets, 22h. 53m. ; decl. on meridian, 6° 51' S. 



Mercury 



Venus 



Mars 



Jupiter 



Saturn 



S 53 - 

 II 4 ... 



23 o* ... 



o 45 ... 



16 49» ... 



cates that the 



15 18 



5 43 



6 47 

 o 58 



'6 43 



19 32 



12 26 



12 49 



9 7 



23 8 S. 

 20 5 S. 



7 52 N. 

 o 23 S. 

 22 27 N. 



s that of the preceding day. 

 Occnllations of Stars by the Moon 



Mag. Disap. 



/x Piscium... 

 B.A.C. 741 

 B.A.C. 987 



.. I 47 

 -39 

 .. 23 2 

 the follow! 



2 40 



3 23 



Corresponding 

 angles from ver- 

 te.x to right for 



159 308 



66 34 

 162 284 



; day. 



Phenomena of Jupiter' s Satellites 



14 

 15 

 IS 

 •5 



The Occultati 



risible 



7 14 I- tr. illg. 

 3 24 I. eel. disap. 

 651 I. occ. reap. 



1 43 I- tr. ing. 



2 29 III. occ. reap. 



3 59 I. tr. egr. 

 » of Stars and Phe 





I 19 I. occ. reap. 



7 2 II. eel. disap. 



... 4 36 IV. eel. disap. 



7 23 IV. eel. reap. 



... 4 36 II. tr. ing. 



... 7 24 11. tr. egr. 

 of Jupiter's Satellites are sue! 



Dec. 

 17 

 19 



Mercury at least distance from the Sun. 

 Mercury in inferior conjunction with the 

 .Sun. 



R Vulpeculse 20 59 17 ... 23 22 'o N. 

 5 Cephei ... 22 24 54 ... 57 49-6 N. 



R Cassiopeite 23 52 34 

 U Cephei ... o 52 8 . 



TMonocerotis 6 19 i , 

 f Geminorum 6 57 17 . 

 U Monocerotis 7 25 19 . 

 T Geminorum 7 42 24 . 

 W Virginis 13 20 6 . 

 8 Librae 14 54 50 . 



50 44-9 N. 

 81 I5'3N. 



7 8 

 20 44 



9 32 

 24 I 



2 46' 



U Coronas. 



15 13 30 ■■• 

 -1/ signifies 



•9 N. 

 ■3N, 

 ■2 S. 

 2N. 



9S. 



7S. 



32 4-1 N. 



Meteor Showers 

 A shower from the constellation of the Quadrant, radiant. 

 R.A. 220°, Decl. 53° N., may be looked for throughout the 

 week, after the moon has set. 



.\ small shower with r.idiant in the constellation of the Lyn.\, 

 K.\. 108^, Decl. 63° N., has been observed by Schmidt and 

 Zezioli during this week of the year. 



Stars with Remarkable Sfecira 

 V Cygni R.A. 2oh. 37111. 36s., Decl. 47°43''8 N., variable. 

 .Secchi's fourth type. I'he blue end is either wanting or e.x- 

 tremely faint. The two dark bands usually seen in the orange 

 in stars of this type seem absent, but the dark band in the 

 yellow is very pronotinced. 



R.A. Decl. 



h. m. s. , f'Three well- 



a Orionis and p Persei show m.^ny fine metallic lines beside the 

 system of dark bands, shading otf towards the red, which forms 

 the characteristic of the third type of stellar spectrum. Thes; 

 brighter stars should be by all means examined with the fainter 

 stars of the same type that the observer may become perfectly 

 familiar with the characters and positions of the principal bands. 



The Dun £cht Circular, No. loi, issued on Decetrber 5, 

 from Lord Crawford's Observatory, says that the announcement 

 has been received by Harvard College Observatory, from Dr. 

 Lewis Swift, Director of the Warner Observatory, of the 

 discovery of a comet by Barnard. 



M-T. R.-\. Decl. 



Dec. 3 ... 15 7.2 ... 4 21-9 ... N. 4 45 

 Daily motion 35' towards the north preceding. 

 The above message was forwarded by Prof. Krueger, of Kiel. 



EXPLOSIONS IN COAL J/LVES^ 

 II. 

 "T^HE superficial observer, in noting the real progress made 

 -*■ during the last few years in the facility and success with which 

 the electric light has been utilised in a remarkable variety of 

 directions, might have been pardonably led to the conclusion that 

 there existed no very great difficulties in the way of at once 

 presenting the miner with an electric light in almost as portable 

 a form as a safety lamp — incomparably safer than the best of 

 these — and capable of affording a much superior light for the 

 entire duration of his longest working hours underground. A 

 little inquiry into the subject demonstrated to the Royal Com- 

 mission that such a conclusion would be at least very premature, 

 and that, although the ^ubject was one most worthy of patient 

 pursuit, the attainment of really useful results v\as beset with 

 formidable difficulties. It is one thing to announce in oracular 

 fashion, as the 7'imesiii<i, in a le.ading article last June, "that col- 

 lieries ought to be lighted in a way to dispense withsafety lamps, " 

 and " that electricity is the one illuminating medium which 

 can supply the light which miners want, without the fiame which 

 endangers them." It is quite another thing to apply the electric 

 light with safety, even along main roadways, in mines in which 

 fire-damp is prevalent. The writer of those lines would have 

 been less confident in his assertions had he sought sufficient 

 infonnation to teach him that the fracture of a glow-lamp, or the 

 rupture of a conducting wire in a mine, might be as much fraught 

 with danger as the injury of a safety lamp or the lighting of a 

 pipe. Had he, moreover, but learned by simple inquiry what 

 progress had been made by patient workers (at the time he was 

 inspired thus to write), towards setting aside those sources <T 

 danger and providing the miner with a portable and efficient 

 self-contained lamp, he would certainly have hesitated to assert 

 that "no proper zeal has been brought to bear upon the conquest 

 of difficulties" in the application of electric lighting in mines, or 

 to sneer at "the scientific brains, whom the public may encour.age, 

 though it cannot compel, to exert themselves as keenly for the 



■ Address of Sir Frederick Abel, Cha 

 delivered at the opemng meeting, Nov 

 tjontinued from p. iiz. 



1 of Council of the Society of Arts. 

 1885.— (,'ibstract by the Author.) 



