May 4, 1882J 



NATURE 



as with the weapon of combating the most fertile sources 

 of infection. In preventing the distribution — either by 

 proper disinfection, or by destruction — of the expectora- 

 tions of tubercular persons, and further, in superintending 

 and restricting the use of tubercular animals of the bovine 

 species, we possess the means of preventing the spread 

 of this deadly and terrible plague, and hereby saving a 

 vast amount of human life. These discoveries of Ur. 

 Koch were made entirely through experiments on living 

 animals. E. KLEIN 



DEEP-SEA EXPLORATION 

 T N Nature, vol. xviii. p. 34s, we described Negretti 

 ■*■ and Zambra's Patent Deep-Sea Standard Thermo- 

 meter. Some uncertainty as to the accuracy of its indica- 

 tions in deep sea service led to a re-arrangement of the 

 instrument, which now greatly increases its reliability. 

 The improvement is chiefly due to suggestions furnished 

 by Commander Magraghi (see Nature, vol. xxiv. p. 505) 



(of the Royal Italian Navy) to Negretti and Zambra. 

 Several of these improved thermometers may now be 

 fastened on one line, and serial temperatures at any 

 required depth obtained with certainty. 



The woodcuts exhibit the apparatus, Fig. 1, as pre- 

 paredfor lowering down into the Sea, and Fig. 2 after the 

 hauling up has commenced — the thermometer having 

 reversed and registered the temperature at the moment 

 of turning over. Fig. 3 shows the peculiar construction of 

 Negretti and Zambra's inverted thermometer used in 

 their improved deep-sea apparatus. The apparatus will 

 be understood by reference to figures (Nos. 1 and 2). A 

 is a metal frame, in which B, the thermometer, is pivoted 

 upon an axis, H, but not balanced upon it. c is a screw- 



fan attached to a spindle, one end of which works in a 

 socket, D, and at the other end is a screw, e, about half 

 an inch long, and just above it is a small pin, F. On the 

 spindle G, is a sliding stop-piece, against which the pin, 

 f, impinges when the thermometer is adjusted for use. 

 The screw, E, works into the end of the case, B, the 

 length of play to which it is adjusted. The number of 

 turns of the screw entering the case is regulated by means 

 of the pin, f, and stop-piece, G. The thermometer and 

 its case is held in position by the screw, E, and descends 

 into the sea in this position — as Fig. 1 ; the fan, C, not 

 acting during the descent, because it is checked by the 

 stop, F. When the ascent commences, the fan revolves, 

 raises the screw, e, and releases the thermometer, which 

 then turns over and registers the temperature at that 

 spot. When the hauling-up has caused the thermometer 

 to turn over, a spring at K forces the pin, L, into a slot ia 

 the case B, and clamps it (as seen in Fig. 2) until it is 

 received on board, so that no change of position can 

 occur during the ascent from any cause. The case, B, is 

 cut open to expose the scale of the thermometer, and also 

 perforated to allow free passage of the water. 



SOME PRIMITIVE IDEAS ON METEOROLOGY 

 T N an article published in Nature (vol. xxv. p. 82) on 

 -*■ the opinions of the Chinese Emperor Khang-hi on 

 certain natural phenomena, it will be remembered that 

 the yang and yin, or the male and female principles of 

 Chinese philosophy, played a conspicuous part. Japan, 

 it is well known, adopted at a very early period in its 

 history the law, polity, science, philosophy, and writing 

 of the Chinese, and with them the yang and yin; and it 

 may not be uninteresting to our readers to see how th - 

 doctrine of these dual forces, mutually repellent as well 

 as attractive, has been employed to explain the facts of 

 meteorology. A recent issue of the Japan Gazette news- 

 paper of Yokohama contains the translation of a work 

 written in 1821 by a certain Arai Yoshinari, called the 

 " Ten-chi-jii; or, Ideas about Heaven and Earth." The 

 heavens, the writer says, are very high, the earth is very 

 thick ; we cannot ascend to the one or go down into the 

 other ; consequently man was unable for many genera- 

 tions to comprehend the phenomena of either ; but now 

 the opinions of all philosophers on this subject are based 

 on the action and reaction of the male and female, the 

 active and passive principles of nature upon each other. 

 The rain is a changed form of the male, and the vapour 

 under the earth of the female principle. When the male 

 principle sinks into the earth it pursues the female. The 

 earth is the mother of all things and the heaven is the 

 air or wind where the sun, the moon, and the stars hang 

 shining. There are two kinds of air — the heaven-air and 

 the earth-air. The motion of the heavens is contrary to 

 that of running water. The heavens move from east to 

 west, while water runs from west to east. In some dis- 

 tricts, indeed, water in the earth runs towards the north, 

 but meets the earth-air which obstructs its flow, causes 

 much agitation, and finally its complete evaporation from 

 the surface of the earth. The vapour thus formed 

 ascends and becomes clouds, which are again turned into 

 rain by the action of the wind. The water has periods of 

 increase and decrease according to the male and female 

 seasons ; thus in summer, which is the male season, water 

 increases, while in winter, or the female season, it dimin- 

 ishes. Again, the earth-air is changed into rain when it 

 moves from east to west ; and therefore, previous to rain, 

 we see a white vapour in the morning ascending in the 

 east. "This is a clear proof of the earth's growing hot." 

 For the same reason mountains become somewhat darker 

 just before rain. 



Thunder is produced by the mingling of the male and 

 female principles. Sounds are often heard in the earth 

 in the neighbourhood of volcanoes. This is due to the 



