June 22, 1882] 



NATURE 



185 



Bristol Trade and Mining School, founded by the exertions of 

 the late Canon Moseley, in 1855. 



A recent report by Dr. Biirkner to the Gdttingen Roya' 

 Society of Science?, on his " Polyklinik " for ear disorders, gives 

 some instructive facts. In 1881 the number of patients was 516 

 persons (33S male and 178 female), with 5S3 different forms of 

 ear disorder. The doctor reckons that a cure was effected in 

 61 85 per cent, of the patients, and improvement in 1512 per 

 cent. 2n (or 409 per cent) of the patients were of juvenile 

 age, 15 and under. There were 139 cases of injury of the ex- 

 ternal ear, 15 of the tympanum ; 322 of the middle ear, 27 of 

 the inner ear, and 13 sundry. For otorrhcea, pulverised boric 

 acid was largely used. The greatly praised iodoform was fully 

 tried in ear-treatment, but Dr. Biirkner considers it has "no 

 future " in this sense. I.eiter's heat-regulator, consisting of very 

 flexible lead tubes, through which water of any desired tempera- 

 ture i- conveyed to injured parts of the body, did good service, 

 especially in inflammation. 



For the Sanitary Institute Congress at Newcastle-upon-Tyne, 

 September 26, the following gentlemen have accepted the presi- 

 dentship of the various sections : — Dennis Embleton, M.D., 

 F.R.C.P., Section I. Sanitary Science and Preventive Medi- 

 cine ; Henry Law, M.I.C.E., Section II. Engineering and 

 Sanitary Construction ; Arthur Mitchell, M.A., M.D., LL.D., 

 F.R.S., Section III. Meteorology and Geology. 



Mr. W. G. Innes, of Great St. Helens, has sent us a few 

 specimens of photographs of New Zealand scenery, taken by 

 Burion Brothers, of Dunedin. They are beautiful specimens of 

 the photographic art, and many of them are of interest from a 

 geological and ethnological point of view. One photograph 

 gives an excellent idea of the White Terrace at the Kotouiahana 

 Hot Springs, others show some of the grand mountains and 

 beauti' ul bays, native life, &c. , 



Mr. Bryce Wright has, we understand, received a very 

 fine specimen of the interesting gem known as Alexandrite, 

 from India. 



The enormous glacier, Fon or Svartisen (69° 25' N., 35° 15' 

 E.) on the Senjen Island in Norway, and which is the northern- 

 most of its kind in Europe, will shortly be made the object of a 

 remarkable enterprise. It appears that a number of speculative 

 merchants in Bergen have obtained the right of cutting block-ice 

 for export from its surface. Some blocks have already arrived 

 at the latter place, and as the quality of the ice has been found 

 to be good, large shipments may be expected. The glacier is 

 ab >ut 120 square miles, and as the distance from its border to 

 the sea is only a couple of miles, the ice may be obtained very 

 cheaply. A similar attempt to utilise the glacier F'olgefonden 

 was made some years ago, but failed, owing to the blocks in 

 their downward course repeatedly breaking through the wooden 

 bore or conductor in which they were slid down to the sea. 



The Zoological Museum of the Lund University has just 

 received as a gift from Prof. Nordcnskjdld a splendid specimen 

 of the sea-cow, Rhytina Slelleri, now extinct, brought by the 

 Vega from Behring Island. 



Pasteur's discoveries having been doubted in Germany, they 

 have been submitted to the appreciation of a special commission 

 in Berlin, and M. Pasteur sent thereto one of his assistants to 

 perform vaccination on sheep. The report has been sent to 

 Paris, and is said to approve the process and to show ihat it has 

 been quite as efficient in Germany as in France. 



The Daily News correspondent at Maritzburg reports that a 

 brilliant comet has been observed there for the last two or three 

 days, in close proximity to the sun. 



We have on our table the following books : — China, by Prof. R. 

 K. Douglas (S.P.C.K.) ; White's Manual of Naval Architecture, 



2nd edition (John Murray) ; Electric Lighting, by Th. du Moncel, 

 translated by R. Routledge (George Routledge and Sons) ; 

 La Bourboule, by Dr. G. H. Brandt (H. K. Lewis) ; the 

 Funeral Tent of an Egyptian Queen, by Villiers Stuatt (John 

 Murray; Hot Water Heating, by F. A. Fawkes (Batsford) ; 

 Notes on Cage Birds, edited by W. T. Green (Upcott Gill) ; 

 Botanical Atlas, Part II., by I'r. M' Alpine (W. and A. K. 

 Johnstone) ; Im Fernen Osten, 2 vols, by Gustave Kreitner (A. 

 Holder) ; Results of Rain and River Observations made in New 

 South Wales during 1881, H. C. Russell, Sydney; Handbook 

 of Invertebrate Zoology, by W. K. Brooks (Cassino, Boston, 

 U.S.); How to Overcome the Potato Disease, by J. S. Jensen 

 (Menzies) ; A Synopsis of Elementary Results in Pure and Ap» 

 plied Mathematics, vol. i., section 9, by G. S. Carr (Hodgson 

 and Son). 



The additions to the Zoological Society's Gardens during the 

 past week include an Arabian Baboon (Cynocephalus hamadryas 



6 ) from Abyssinia, presented by the Messrs. James ; a Bonnet 

 Monkey {Macacut radiatus <J ) from India, presented by Master 

 G. H. Clark ; a Chima-chima Milvago (Milvago chimachima) 

 from Demerara, presented by Mr. G. H. Hawtayne ; two Upland 

 Geese (Bernicla viagellanica 6 9), five Ruddy-headed Geese 

 (Bernicla tubidiceps), a Loggerheaded Duck ( Tachyeres cineretts) 

 from the Falkland Islands, presented by Mr. F. E. Cobh> 

 C.M.Z.S. ; a Rufous-necked Weaver Bird (Hyphantornis textor) 

 from West Africa, a Common Lapwing ( Vanellus cristatus), Euro- 

 pean, presented by Mr. J. S. Baldwin, F.Z. S. ; a Loggerhead 

 Turtle ( Thelassochelys casuana) from the Straits of Bonifacio, pre- 

 sented by Lord Lilford, F.Z.S.; a White-backed Piping Crow (Gym- 

 tiorhina lencjiiota) from Australia, deposited ; a Black-fronted 

 Anielope (Cephalophus n'gri/nms) from Africa, a Water Chevro- 



ain (Hyomoschus aquaticus) from West Africa, three Darwin's 

 Rheas (Rhea darwinii) from Patagonia, two Spanish Blue Mag- 

 pies (Cyanopolius cookii) from Spain, purchased ; an Egyptian 

 Goose (Chenalopex agyptiaca), a Chiloe Wigeon (Mareca chilo- 

 ensis), five Mandarin Ducks (Aix gatericutata), bred in the 

 Gardens. The following insects have emerged during the past 

 week : — Silk Moths : Actias telene, Samia cecropia ; Moths : 

 Sphinx pinastri, Deiliphila euphorbia, Trochilium apiformis, Sci:i- 

 pteron tabanifarmis, Sesia conopiformis, Sesia museeeifortnix, 

 Hypechera io, Callimorpha dominula ; Butterflies : Vanessa 

 xanthomelas, Vanessa urtica, Aporia crabagi. 



OUR ASTRONOMICAL COLUMN 

 The Approaching Transit of Venus. — In deducing the 

 following expressions for determining the times of contacts in the 

 transit of Venus on December b, for any point upon the earth's 

 surface, the positions of the planet have been taken from Hill's 

 Tables, which had an advantage over Leverrier's at the last 

 transit, and Auwer's semi-diameter is adopted. For the sun the 

 semidiameter deduced by Leverrier from the transits of Mercury 

 has been employed. 



For first external contact, there results — 

 Dec. 6, ih. 56m. 12s. +[2-5442] rsin/ 



- L 2 '4793J r cos / cos (L - 87° 3S'"o). 

 For first internal contact — 

 Dec. 6, 2h. 16m. 52s. +[25822] r sin / 



-[2-4768] r cos /cos (L-85° 3i' - 9). 

 For last internal contact — 

 Dec 6, 7h. 54m. os. - [2-2894] r sin ! 



+ [2-6261] rcos /cos (L- 138° 18' -8). 

 For last external contact — 

 Dec. 6, Sh. 14m. 41s. - [2-2152] r sin / 



+ [2-6142] r cos /cos (L- 134° 38'-!) 



The angles from N. point for direct image are respectively 

 145°!, i48°-4, 1 16" -9, and U3°5. 



In the above formula r is the radius of the earth at the place, 

 / the geocentric latitude, and L the longitude from Greenwich, 

 reckoned positive towards the east. 'Ihe resulting times are 



