514 
NATORE 
[SEPTEMBER 18, 1902 
instrument of the Bushmen and two papers on Kabyle pottery. 
Indian ethnography is represented by one paper and Malay 
ethnography by three ; other papers deal with the Nicobars, 
Sarawak, Tasmania, Tonga and New Zealand, The range is 
wide alike in geography and matter, so that practically all 
departments of anthropology are represented, and the twenty 
plates are of exceptional interest and excellence. 
ANTHROPOLOGY is to be congratulated in having found 
so able and enthusiastic a student as the Rey. J. Roscoe, of 
Uganda, whose paper on the manners and customs of the 
Baganda is of extreme interest. Amongst other important 
novelties, it contains an account of a typical form of totemism 
which was previously untecorded among the Baganda, and even 
the magical aspect appears to be present. Very suggestive are 
the customs relating to twins and the sympathy between human 
beings and plantains. The people appear to have but recently 
emerged from matriarchy into patriarchy. 
ANOTHER important paper in the same /ourna/ of the 
Anthropological Institute is that on some animistic beliefs 
among the Yaos of British Central Africa, by the Rev. A. 
Hetherwick. The Yao present us with three stages of animistic 
belief, (1) the Zésoka or human shade, the agent in dreams, 
delirium, &c. ; (2) this /soka regarded as mulungu and an 
object of worship, the controller of the affairs of this life; and 
(3) meedungu as expressing the great spirit agency, the creator 
of the world and of all life. Between these three conceptions 
of the spirit nature no definite line can be drawn. 
In the concluding portion of his article on ‘‘ Regeneration 
in Plants” in the Biologésches Centralblait, Prof. Goebel has an 
instructive chapter on the disposition of adventitious develop. 
ments which follow upon injury or wounding. That it may 
be referred to a polarity depending upon internal, not external, 
factors follows from Vochting’s researches. Tracing the argu- 
ment back further—e.g., what does polarity mean ?—Beijerinck’s 
hypothesis of an upward current shoot forming and a down- 
ward current root forming is accepted in part, and experiments 
which can be explained upon this hypothesis are mentioned. 
Sometimes, however, this is not satisfactory, and Prof. Goebel 
finds that a more general and correct explanation of certain 
anomalous cases is obtained by a consideration of the direction 
of flow of the food current. Finally, Prof. Goebel regards 
with favour the idea of a controlling enzyme as postulated by 
Beijerinck. 
The Geological Survey of Western Australia, in Bu//etin No. 6 
(1902), gives the results of the chemical and mineralogical re- 
search work carried out by Mr. E. S. Simpson since the labor- 
atory was established in 1897. There are notes on native gold 
and its compounds with tellurium and other elements, as well 
as notes on various ores, on coal, peat, clays, water, and on 
sundry intrusive rocks. 
WE have received three important papers devoted to 
embryology and development. Two of these, dealing respect- 
ively with amphibians and the brachiopod Lingula, appear in a 
recent issue of the Journal of the Tokio College of Science. 
The third, by Dr. J. A. Masterman, which is published in the 
Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, treats of 
echinoderm development. 
THE August issue of the /ournal of the Department of Agri- 
culture of Victoria is composed of the annual reports of the 
officers in charge of the various branches of the Department, 
prefaced by a brief summary of the whole by Mr. S. Williamson 
Wallace, the Director of Agriculture for the colony. The re- 
ports are interesting reading, and tell of much good work done 
on scientific lines at a comparatively small cost. 
NO. 1716, VOL. 66] 
THE Sctentific American, New York, for August 30, contains 
an illustrated article, by Mr. F. Moore, upon the United States 
Naval Observatory. 
PArr 4 of the new and cheaper edition of Kerner and 
Oliver’s ‘‘ The Natural History of Plants” has reached us from 
Messrs. Blackie and Son, Ltd. 
Mr. BERNARD QUARITCH has just issued a new part, de- 
voted to India and the Far East, of his ‘‘ Catalogue of Works 
on Oriental History, Languages and Literature,” containing 
particulars of many rare and valuable books. 
THE additions to the Zoological Society’s Gardens during the 
past week include two Bonnet Monkeys (A/Zacacus sénicus) from 
India, presented by Mr. J. H. Osborne; two Diana Monkeys 
(Cercopithecus diana) from West Africa, presented by Mr. E. 
Skinner; a Levaillant’s Cynictis (Cynzct?s penicillata) from 
South Africa, presented by Mr. E. C. S, Jervis; two Cape 
Eared Owls (Aszo capensis) from Africa, presented by Captain 
Fraser ; a Diana Monkey (Cercopithecus diana), a White-thighed 
Colobus (Co/obus vellerosus), two Grey-headed Sparrows (Passer 
simplex) from West Africa, a Simpae Monkey (Senenopithecus 
melalophus) from Sumatra, a Salle’s Amazon (Chrysotis ven- 
tralis) from St. Domingo, two Striated Tanagers (7anagra 
striata) from Buenos Ayres, a Blue Sugar-bird (Dacnis cayana), 
an All-green Tanager (Ch/orophonia viridis) from Brazil, de- 
posited ; two Swinhoe’s Pheasants (Zuplocamus swinhoiz), an 
Argus Pheasant (Argus giganteus) bred in the Gardens. 
OUR ASTRONOMICAL COLUMN. 
ANOTHER NEw CoME?.—From information received, through 
Mr. E. W. Maunder, from Mr. John Grigg (a member of the 
Cometary Section of the British Astronomical Association), of 
Thames, New Zealand, it appears that the comet discovered by 
Perrine, which, if this news is confirmed, has been erroneously 
named 1902 4, is not the second, but the third comet discovered 
this year. 
Mr. Grigg says that whilst using his 34-inch Wray equatorial, 
with a power of 25 on July 22d. 18h. 30m. G.M.T., he saw a 
nebulous object which was roughly noted as R.A.=1th. 35m., 
Dec. = +7° 0’, and reference to various charts and tables elicited 
the fact that this was not a previously recorded nebula or comet. 
On the following evening, the same object was doubtfully re- 
corded as 24’ further south and 7’ eastward of its previous 
position. Feeling satisfied that this was really a new comet, 
Mr. Grigg acquainted Mr. Baracchi (Melbourne Observatory) 
and the Press Association of his supposed discovery. 
Three days later, and also on August I and 2, the same 
observer again saw the suspected comet and recorded the follow- 
ing positions :— 
d. h. 
July 23°85 G.M.T. R.A. =11 40 Dec.= +6 35 
26°8 =12 0. 5, =+5 30 
=12 20 >» =+4 20 
” ” 
298s; 4s 
and from these he calculated the following elements : — 
T=June 20, 1902. 
w= 292 43 
2=217 48 
z= “TS24 
log g=9°7241. 
The observations are all of them a little doubtful owing to 
persistent haze and moonlight, but Mr. Grigg gives the 
particulars for “‘ what they are worth,’’ and has sent them in. 
this uncertain state in order to catch the outgoing mail. 
The position of his observatory is : 
175 32 38°54 E. 
Longitude 
37 8 23°21 S. 
Latitude 
