448 
but later investigations tend to re-establish his reputation. There 
is no doubt that, owing to the fact that he sent ont specimens 
from his garden, and that his references to localities were at 
times inaccurate, his records are not always trustworthy ; on the 
other hand, some of his doubted specimens have since been re- 
affirmed, of which Mr. Druce mentions Sa/ix doniana, Triticum 
alpinum and Carex ustiulata. The concluding part of the 
address furnishes a list of species peculiar to Scotland, and an 
account of species characteristic of counties or districts. 
Now that autumn is approaching, and it is time to be planting 
bulbs, those growers who require daffodils will be interested in 
the catalogue issued by Messrs. Barr and Sons. This’ firm has 
for a long time made a speciality of these flowers, and offers all 
varieties, from the inexpensive kinds suitable for planting in 
woodlands to the select and rare hybrids which require several 
years to raise from seed. 
THE report on the St. Kitts-Nevis Botanic Station, for the 
year ending March 31 last, states that in August, 1901, an experi- 
ment with tobacco was successfully established on half an acre 
of ground. Plots were also started on four estates, advice and 
assistance being constantly given to those in charge, and the 
planters invited to witness each operation in progress. With 
seed procured from England, another attempt was made to culti- 
vate potatoes, but the results weni to show that instead of pro- 
ducing what we know at home as ‘‘new” potatoes, the crop 
when reaped was found to have precisely the flavour and con- 
ditions of old potatoes. For the purpose of destroying grass- 
hoppers, an endeavour was made to acclimatise the Barbadoes 
blackbird. Several consignments of birds were received, but 
nearly all disappeared, a few being seen only in one or two 
places where they are regularly fed. 
THE Journal of the Royal Microscopical Society for June 
contains an interesting paper, by Mr. C. F. Rousselet, on the 
genus Syncheta. Some of the members of this genus are 
amongst the commonest rotifers inhabiting fresh-water lakes 
and ponds as well as brackish tide pools and the open sea. 
Pastor Eichhorn (1761) and F. O. Miiller (1786) are probably 
the earliest authors who have left sketches probably representing 
species of this genus; but our real knowledge of these rotifers 
dates from 1831 to 1834, when Prof. Ehrenberg described four 
species of Synchzeta. Mr. Rousselet now records sixteen 
different species, of which five are new, viz. S. z¢zna (in fresh 
water), S. Zé/¢oralis (in brackish water), S. cecz/za, S. vorax 
and S. »eapolitana (marine). 
A NOTE by Prof. Garbasso, of Turin, contributed to the 
Nuovo Cimento, 5, ii., deals with a phenomenon observed by 
Prof. Manuelli, viz. the action of sunlight in facilitating the 
passage of electric sparks, an effect closely resembling, if not 
identical with, Hertz's phenomenon. Prof. Garbasso has made 
experiments which show that even diffused sunlight has a con- 
siderable effect. In one experiment he counted 24 discharges 
in 30 seconds in the light as against $°8 in darkness ; in another 
experiment the numbers were 18*1 and 673. The effect of the 
light seems to last for a certain interval after the illumination is 
cut off. Experiments were made first witha lens and next with 
a mirror used for concentrating the rays ; and it was also found 
that when the light was brought to a focus on one of the elec- 
trodes, an uninterrupted current was obtained even at distances 
beyond the sparking distance in the dark, but the effect was 
greatest when the light fell on the negative pole. This in- 
fluence of solar light is unaffected by the passage of the light 
through quartz or Iceland spar, but is destroyed by a few films 
of mica, a thick glass plate, or a vessel of water or alum solution 
4cm. thick. These results point to the view that the effect of 
Manuelli is due, not to the presence of ultra-violet rays, but 
rather to the heating of the electrodes. 
NO. 1714, vou. 66] 
NATURE 
[SEPTEMBER 4, 1902 
BulletinzNo. 51 of the U.S. National Museum will be ex- 
ceedingly useful to working naturalists, since it contains a list 
of the publications of that institution from the year 1875 to 1900, 
drawn up by Mr. R. L. Geare. 
THE last issue of the Zyansactions of the South African 
Philosophical Society, comprising pp. 561 to 896 of vol. xii., is 
entirely devoted to a continuation of the valuable descriptive 
catalogue of the beetles of South Africa. A very large number 
of new species as well as some new genera are described in this 
fasciculus, the diagnoses of which appear to be well and care- 
fully drawn up. We think, however,'it would have been better 
had the dates been added in all cases to the references to 
previously named genera and species. 
Scéence for August 15 contains a full report of a long address 
on the history of ichthyology, delivered by Prof. Jordan before 
the zoological section of the recent meeting of the American 
Association, held at Pittsburg. Commencing with Aristotle, 
the lecturer gives a full account of the gradual progress of our 
knowledge of recent and fossil fishes, in the course of which he 
allows full credit to the efforts of the earlier workers, especially 
Artedi, whose list of genera is given at length. The British 
Museum catalogues of fishes, recent and fossil, receive a large 
share of commendation. Of one of these the lecturer speaks as 
follows :—‘‘ The chief criticism which one may apply to this 
work concerns most of the publications of the British Museum. 
It is the frequent assumption that those species not found in the 
greatest museum in the world do not really exist at all.’’ We 
venture to doubt whether this sweeping criticism is deserved. 
Readers with a knowledge of British fish-literature will not fail 
to notice that the first appearance of Yarrell’s work is mis- 
printed 1859 (in place of 1839) in the report of the address. 
In the August (third) number of the ef? Naturalist’s 
Quarterly, the editor devotes the opening paragraphs to a dis- 
cussion of the present form of nature-teaching in schools, and 
the manner in which this may be improved. It is essential that 
the lessons should be simple and practical, and the author 
recommends that a child should be encouraged to watch and 
describe the life-history of a common insect, or the daily develop- 
ment of a flowering plant. Later on in the same number, Mr. 
R. Haines discusses the difficulties in connection with the 
establishment of an ‘‘ Arbor-day” in this country. The main 
idea of such an institution is that on a certain day each inhabitant 
of a village or town should plant a tree; and the author very 
pertinently inquires who is to provide the trees and the land on 
which they are to be planted, and the kinds of trees to be 
selected. He might have asked who is to be responsible for 
the attention and care they will certainly require during the 
earlier years of their growth. 
WE have received from Dr. H. Hergesell the year-book of 
meteorological observations taken in Alsace and Lorraine 
during 1898. For Strassburg, hourly or two-hourly readings 
are published, and the usual observations at ten stations of the 
second order. Rainfall summaries are given for fifty-eight 
stations. 
THE eighteenth volume of observations made at the Hong 
Kong Observatory for the year 1901 has been published by Dr. 
Doberck. The comparison of the daily weather forecasts with 
the weather subsequently experienced shows, as in previous 
years, a large amount of success, the sum total (including cases 
of partial success) reaching 93 per cent. The useful work of 
collecting observations from ships’ logs, for the construction of 
pilot charts for the eastern seas, has been vigorously continued ; 
the number of entries in 10° squares available for each month of 
the year save two exceeds twenty thousand. The magnetic and 
astronomical observations have also been regularly carried on. 
In the year 1901, the number of transits observed was 3349. 
