January 7, 1909] 



Ar.4 TURE 



291 



tion to the m-cci of isolating consumptives on railway 

 journeys, particularly in travel by sleeping-car across tlie 

 American continent. He is arranging apparatus to take 

 - cmples of the air breathed in these cars for the purpose 

 analysis in the interest of the public health. 



.\ GRATIFYING sign of the increased interest in hygiene 

 in .America is reported from Tuskegec, Alabama, where 

 a meeting of the National Negro .Anti-tuberculosis Con- 

 gress was held on December iq, igoS. It was decided to 

 begin the organisation of anti-tuberculosis committees in 

 all negro lodges and business leagues. Hitherto, owing 

 largely to the neglect of normal precautions, the mortality 

 from consumption has been exceptionally high among the 

 coloured population. 



The death is announced of Prof. Richard Pischel, who 

 had occupied the chair of Sanskrit in the University of 

 Berlin since ig02, and was elected a member of the 

 Prussian Academy of Sciences in 1903. Prof. Pischel was 

 born on January 18, 1849, and took his degree at Breslau 

 in 1S70. He was for ten years professor of comparative 

 philology at Kiel, and was afterwards at Halle, from 

 whence he was called to Berlin. His " Vedische Studien," 

 published in conjunction with Geldner (1889-1901), played 

 an important part in vindicating the specifically Indian 

 character of the Rig-Veda. 



The Paris correspondent of the Times states that on 

 December 31, 1908, Mr. Wilbur Wright accomplished at 

 I.e Mans a flight lasting ah. 20m. 23.2s., the distance 



■vered being officially returned at nearly 125 kilometres. 

 A year ago Mr. Farman flew 1093 yards in 88 seconds, and 

 now Mr. Wright has traversed 136,106 yards in 8423 

 seconds. There has thus been a decided advance both as 

 regards duration of flight and distance covered. A Reuter 

 message from Brussels states that King Leopold's prize of 

 25.000 francs (loooZ.) will be awarded this year to the 

 author of the best work on aerial navigation. 



The Berlin correspondent of the Glohc states that a 

 series of interesting experiments is being carried out by 

 the German military authorities with regard to the employ- 

 ment of wireless telegraphy by balloons. These experi- 

 ments are being made by means of registering balloons 

 fitted with a wireless-telegraphy apparatus. When a 

 message has been received by the balloon an ingenious 

 mechanism opens the valve, and the balloon descends. The 

 military authorities hope to be able soon to extend the 

 working of wireless telegraphy to the military stcerable 

 balloons. 



The summary of the weather issued by the Meteorological 

 Office for the week ending January 2 gives some interest- 

 ing temperatures which occurred in the recent severe frost, 

 to wjjich reference was made in our issue last week. The 

 summary states that the lowest of the minima were gener- 

 ally registered on December 29 or 30, and were so low as 3° 

 at Swarraton, near Worthing, on December 30, S° in the 

 Midland counties, and 7° at Cambridge. Temperatures at 

 other than the usual stations are also given. At Liphook, in 

 Hampshire, about thirteen miles to the south of Aldershot, 

 the thermometer in the screen fell to 1° below zero on 

 December 30, at Buxton and Epsom to plus 4°, and at 

 Great Billing, Northampton, to plus 6°. The thermometer 

 exposed on the snow at Tunbridge Wells fell to 2° below 

 zero, and at Epsom to 8° below zero. The temperature 

 at Greenwich on the morning of December 30 fell to 

 12° in the screen, and to 2° on the grass. There have 

 only been four winters during the last fifty years in which 

 the sheltered thermometer has fallen below 12° at Green- 



NO. 204s, vol.. 7q1 



wich, and the lowest temperature recorded is 6^-6. on. 

 January 5, 1867. Subsequent to the close of the frost on 

 December 30 the weather has been unusually mild for 

 the time of year over the entire kingdom, and the thaw- 

 was botli sudden and complete. 



The weather statistics kept at Greenwich Observatory 

 during 1908 show the year to have been generally one of 

 normal conditions. The aggregate measurement of rain 

 was 23-8 inches, which is 0-3 inch less than the average 

 of the previous half-century. The largest measurement in 

 any month was 3-66 inches, in July, which is 1-26 inches 

 more than the average ; the other months with an excess 

 of rain were March, April, June, .August, and December. 

 The month of least rainfall was November, with 076 inch, 

 which is 1-46 inches below the average ; the deficiency in 

 September was 0-93 inch, and in October o-8i inch, giving 

 a total deficiency of 3-20 inches for the three autumn 

 months. There were in all 155 days with rain, the 

 greatest number in any month being twenty, in December, 

 and the least six, in June. Snow fell on twenty-three 

 days during the year, and eight of these occurred in 

 March. The mean air temperature for the year was 

 50°. I, which is in precise agreement with the average. 

 The highest mean for any month was 63°.i, in July, and' 

 June and August each had the mean above 60°. The 

 coldest month was January, with the mean 36°.3, which 

 was 2°. I below the average. The range of temperature 

 was 72°, the absolutely highest reading being 84°, in 

 July, and the lowest 12°, in the recent frost on 

 December 30. Frost occurred in all on forty-four nights, 

 and thirty-two of these occurred from January to March. 

 The temperature was above the average on forty-six 

 nights in the two months October and November, and 

 there were only three nights with frost. The duration of 

 bright sunshine was 1633 hours, which is 132 hours in 

 excess of the average for the previous ten years ; the most 

 sunny month was June, and the least sunny December. 



Mr. F. L. Dames, Steglitz, Berlin, has sent us copies 

 of catalogues of works on entomology (No. qy) and botany 

 (No. 98)." 



The early development of the polycladian Planocera 

 Is discussed by Mr. F. M. Surface, who has sent us a 

 copv of his paper, in the Proceedings of the Philadelphia 

 -Academy for December, 1907 (issued February, iqoS). .As 

 the paper reaches us somewhat late, we are unable to 

 refer to its contents. 



Messrs. Macmillan and Co. have just published another 

 of their series of coloured wall-pictures of farm animals, 

 this being the portrait of the shire stallion champion 

 " Hendre Royal Albert." This animal, which is a bay, 

 with a white "blaze" and white "stockings," has been 

 finely depicted by Mr. J. Macfarlane, the painter. 



In an article in the December (1908) number of Xaturen 

 Mr. O. Nordgaard is led to the conclusion, from the 

 enormous numbers of flint-implements to be met with in 

 certain parts of the country, that during the early human 

 period Norway possessed a Cretaceous formation, which 

 has now been denuded away. 



In Nature for March 21, 1908, was published a 

 notice, by Dr. P. L. Sclater, of a pamphlet by Mr. W. 

 Rodier on the best means of exterminating rabbits in 

 -Australia, while a second notice was communicated by Mr. 

 W. B. Tegetmeier to our issue of November 13, 1902. 

 Both notices are commendatory of the plan, which consists 

 in killing off the females, and thus causing a preponder- 



