240 



NATURE 



\yan. 10, i8?4 



shaped support of cast zinc, L l, which is screwed to the 

 laboratory wall like a bracket. 



It will be seen that Dr. Edelmmn has discarded the 

 Leyden jar, replenisher, an 1 gauge, which phy so im- 

 portant a part in Sir W. Thomson's electrometers. 

 Instead of these a Zamboni pile, or a battery of 200 small 

 well insulated voltaic elements, is used. These are made 

 of test-tubes filled with common water, and having small 

 zmc-copper pairs placed from cell to cell. It is difficult 

 to believe that either of these dispositions is an improve- 

 ment on the replenisher-jar-gauge arrangement, though 

 either may be somewhat cheaper. Nor is it likely that 

 the presence of the ebonite rings R and S will add, in the 



long run, to tlie satisfactory working of the instrument ; 

 for, as is well known, this substance when exposed to 

 light decomposes at the surface, and becomes covered 

 with a conducting-film of acid. The insulation of the 

 quadrants ought not to be risked by such a doubtful 

 device. It ought to be mentioned that a cylindrical 

 arrangement of quadrants had been previously employed 

 by Silow in an instrument for investigating the dielectric 

 capacity of liquids : but to Dr. Edelmann is due the 

 credit of having applied this arrangement for the con- 

 struction of these electrometers, which in consequence of 

 their many good points are becoming so popular for 

 laboratory work both in Germany and elsewhere. 



GLEANINGS FROM THE REPORTS CONCERN- 

 ING THE ERUPTION OF KRAKATOA 

 T DO not propose to give here an abstract of all the 

 ■•■ reports which I have gathered, but I only wish to 

 state some important data which might be u-efulto those 

 who wish to become acquainted with the full particulars 

 concerning the eruption. Therefore I have mentioned 

 the authorities fro n which 1 ha\ e taken ihe following 

 statements, in order that the reader who wishes for more 

 circumstantial reports may find them easily. 



I regret to say that I have not been able to find any 

 reports from Tjiringm and the lighthouse-keepers of 

 Java's First Point and \'lakke Hoek. 'in the beginning of 

 I ictober an engineer of the mine-service was sent to 

 K'rakatoa to examine the island, and he is expected now 

 to bring in a scientific report about the eruption ; it is to 

 be hoped he has in-isted that everything referring to the 

 citastrophe should be circumstantially recorded. 



I. Data referring to the time anterior tei the Eruption.— 

 In a report which was published in the /aTa Coiirant (the 

 paper of the Dutch Government), which was brought 

 from Batavia by the mad of August 25, it was slid : '' There 

 are now t«o craters on Krakatoa, 3 km. distant from 

 each other, whxh are continually wording. The western 

 crater is at the foot of Mount Perbuatan (working since 

 May 20) ; the eastern crater working since a more recent 



date (which is unknown to me) at the foot of Mount 

 Dannan. The outlines of the top of Mount Perbuatan 

 are changed ; the outlines of the beach are also altered 

 by some increase of land along the shore. The trees 

 which covered the island are burnt for the greater part." 



As to what occurred before and during the eruption 

 of August 26 and 27 I particularly took the data : — 



(i) From the report of the Berhice, Capt. I.ogan, from 

 New York (A7W/7W 7'(7« den Dag, October 11): August 

 26 at 2 p.m. she was off V'lakke Hoek, 20 miles to the 

 south ; she got sight of the light of Java's First Point 

 August 28 at 12 p.m. Since August 26 at 4 p.m. she had 

 only little sail ; 28, at 4 a.m., maintopsail was set ; after- 

 wards at noon she set full sail and made for First Point. 

 Therefore she was during the eruption near a line which 

 joins Java Head and the point where she was August 

 26 at 2 p.m. 



(2) From the report of the Charles Bal (Nature, 

 Dec. 6, p. 140) : She passed Prince's Island August 26, at 

 9 a.m. ; Krakatoa seen at 4.15 p.m., north half east, 10 

 miles distant. At 1 1 p.m. the inland became more visible, 

 west-north-west, 11 miles distant; August 27 at 6a.m. 

 she set sail, passed lighthouse Fourth Point at 8 o'clock, 

 Anjer at 8 30; passed Button Island at 10.15. 



(3) From the report of eye-witnesses, who were at 

 Anjer during the catastrophe {Niemcs '<'an den Dag, 

 October 1 1 and 14). 



(4) From a report written by a passenger (an engineer) 

 of the Goi/verneiir Loudon {liMlch Indian steamer, 761 reg. 

 tons, 190 h.p.) [Nieuw. Rotterdam. Court., t'ctober 23, by 

 Mr. van Sandick) : She was off Anjer August 26 at 



3 p.m. ; went to Telok Betong, where she arrived at 

 7 p.m. ; remained there till next morning at 7 o'clock. 

 After a wave had destroyed Telok Betong she made for 

 Anjer, but before she had left the bay darkness came on, 

 and she was compelled to lie there till August 28 in the 

 morning. 



(5) From the report of eye-witnesses at Telok Betong 

 {Nieuws van den Dag, November 3 and 13). 



Moreover, I took a few particulars from the reports of 

 Katimbang {A'teun's van den Dag, October 16) (Lam- 

 pongs, at the foot of the Radjah Bassa), Binuangan 

 (Nicuw. Rotterdam. Court., October 23) (at the bottom of 

 the Semangka Bay), and Pulu Merak {Niti/ws van den 

 Dag, October 10). 



Though e.g. on the Island Bali strong detonations 

 were heard in the morning of August 26, the reports 

 of Telok Betong and Anjer say : Fine weather, no ex- 

 traordinary detonations in the afternoon. Berhice reports : 

 Sky dark at 2 o'clock, threatening at 4 o'clock ; at 6 p.m. 

 thunder and lightning. Cn board the Charles Bal At 



4 15 an eruption at the east of Krakatoa was observed ; 

 the masses which were dri\ en forth to the east had the 

 ap|.earance of a furious squall. Anjer reported : At 



6 o'clock quite dark ; at Telok Betong at 6 p.m. slight 

 rain of ashes ; at the sa.ne time Berhice experienced ashes 

 pouring down at once ; it was quite dark. Fall of ashes 

 and daikness continued the whole evening. About this 

 time the commotion of the sea began also. At Anjer, 

 between 6 and 7 p.m , several vessels were carried by the 

 wave to and fro in the harbour (canal), but the sea did 

 not flow o.er. From Merak is reported, August 26, at 



7 p.m. or 7.30 p.m. : Heavy detonations, violent shocks 

 (but no earthquakeV Waves swept away the Chinese 

 camp ; caused much damage. In the night (I could not 

 find out at what o'clock) fiery phenomena were seen in 

 the direction of Krakatoa, shocks of earthquake, waves. 

 The Controleur, who was at Katimbang, related : " August 

 26, 7 p.m., several prows thrown on the beach, waves, but 

 the sea did not flow over, nor did the waves grow higher." 



The London came to anchor off Telok Betong at 7 p.m. 

 Rough sea, boats could not communicate. They observed 

 that there was something wrong, but could not make out 

 what it was. The Dutch baik Marie, which was there 



