46 

position calculated to prompt them to oppose very strenuously a 
policy on which they see that their superior is set. Moreover,’ 
the advisers, who in the case before us are but two or three indi- 
viduals, may be, as it was believed they were, prejudiced against 
the contrivance under consideration, It would be natural that 
the Minister should make a considerable deduction from the 
weight of their remonstrances on account of the departmental 
jealousy by which he might imagine them to be more or less 
tinctured. Thus he is at sea, as deficient in the elements of 
stability as the Captatn herself. 
An obvious remedy for such a state of things might be to 
appoint as permanent heads to our great technical departments 
men thoroughly acquainted with their duties who could act on 
their own independent judgment. But this would subvert that 
- perfect and inviolable edifice, the British Constitution. Far be it 
from a liumble unit like myself to attempt such sacrilege ! 
What remains, then, as we cannot repress inventors and silence 
public clamour if we would, than to give the Minister stronger 
and more independent scientific support than that which was 
found in the case of the Caffain too weak to prevent the most 
humiliating and disastrous blunder of modern times ? 
The suggestion I now venture to make is not new, nor do I 
make it now, on the pinch of the moment, for the first time. I 
brought it more than a year ago before a committee of the British 
Association, of which I was chairman. My proposal was, and 
is, that a powerful body of the most eminent men in every branch 
of science should be constituted a permanent paid Council for 
consultative, as distinguished from executive, purposes. Space 
does not admit of my detailing the constitution, mode of elect- 
ing, and functions of this body. But, having long had the matter 
in my mind, I may say that I see no difficulty in securing the 
main conditions of varied and profound acquirements, and of due 
official relation to, yet thorough independence of, the Ministry 
and politics of the day. Ineed hardly say that such a con- 
sultative Council should comprise not only men distinguished in 
abstract science, but also men representing all branches of the 
sea and land forces, all technical departments, the public works, 
and the principal arts and manufactures of the country. 
No mistake can be greater than to consider this proposal 
revolutionary, as some at first sight have done. It is in fact 
only a consolidation and systematisation of agencies actually in 
existence. The principle of supplying the country gentlemen 
who become Ministers of State with scientific advice through 
permanent seeretaries and other subordinates, and through tem- 
porary committees entrusted with specific inquiries, has long 
been in force. It is certain that these individuals and bodies are 
often se'ected capriciously, and it is not saying too much to 
assert that the results of their labours would have been more 
valuable if their functions had been less narrow and their 
existence les; precarious. The great domain of physical science 
cannot be parcelled out in neat little squares like a chess-board ; 
its varied clistricts, as Nature has planned them, run into and mix 
with each other so intimately that in order to trace the boundaries 
of one, some knowledge at least of the adjoining tracts is 
necessary. Special committees, however well chosen, are seldom 
eyen numerically strong enough to comply with these conditions. 
The Council now advocated purposes to substitute for innumer- 
able, scattered, temporary, incomplete, hand-to-mouth expedients 
a permanent, properly selected organisation. In one case the 
work is done somehow—we see to our cost how ; in the other it 
will be done as well’as human intelligence can do it; but in both 
cases the very same work will be done—namely, that of bearing 
really the burden of responsibility which Ministers only bear 
nominally. The principle will be the same under the existing 
and the proposed régime, but whereas it is now only recognised, 
it would then be realised. ‘The details of the proposed reform, 
which are present to my own mind, would occupy more space 
than you could spare on one occasion from other important 
subjects. Nor is it possible in the brief limits of one letter to 
meet all those objections, now so well known to me, which start 
up directly this subject is mooted. Should, however, the remarks 
I have ventured to offer prove of sufficient interest to provoke 
discussion, I will on a future occasion solicit your permission to 
extend them.—I am, Sir, obediently yours, 
Oct. 22 ALEX. STRANGE, Lieut.-Colonel 

The Earliest Mention of the Aurora Borealis 
THE first appearance of the Aurora Borealis noticed in Mr. E. J. 
Lowe’s ‘‘ Natural Phenomena and Chronology of the Seasons” is 
that on Jan, 30, 1560, Other appearances are mentioned under 
NATURE 


_ [NWov. 17, 1870 


the years 1564, 1574, and 1575. No further record of it appears 
until Noy. 10, 1707, whenit was seen in Ireland. Five more dis- 
plays are noticed between this and the memorable one of Feb. 23, 
1716, which, happening to take place on the day of Lord Derwent- 
water’s execution, obtained for the phenomenon in the north of 
England the appellation of ‘‘ Lord Derwentwater’s Lights.” On 
March 6 of the same year occurred another grand display, 
which is referred to in the chronologies of remarkable occurrences 
published in the almanacks of last century as ‘*The Great 
Amazing Light in the North,” continuing to be seen (more or 
less) at several times since, yearly. Previous displays in this 
century had probably not been visible in London. The phe- 
nomenon is thus described, with an attempt at explanation, in the 
Flying Post of March 8 :— 
‘* Last Tuesday night, as soon as it was dark, a pale sort of a 
light broke out in the north-west part of our horizon, which 
looked like the dawn of day, or rather like the moon breaking 
through the clouds. It darted many streams towards all parts 
of thesky, which looked like smoke. It proceeded towards the 
S.E., and continued by several intervals till midnight, when it 
totally disappeared. Some ignorant people, whose ideasare onsuch 
occasions stronger than their senses, fancied they saw armies en- 
gaged, giants with flaming swords, fiery comets, dragons, and the 
like dreadful figures ; and others fancied they heard the report of 
fire-arms, and smelt powder ; whereas there was nothing but what 
may easily be accounted for from natural causes, the sun haying 
been hot for two days past, and particularly that afternoon, by 
which vapours were exhaled both from the earth and water, and 
the sulphurous particles mixed with them taking fire might oc- 
casion that light, and some coruscations, as is very common 
oyer marshy and fenny places in spring and summer nights.” 
The writer goes on to observe that ‘‘the disaffected party 
have worked this up to a prodigy, and interpret it to favour their 
cause,” which accounts for a very obvious design to write the 
phenomenon down. 
was witnessed at Leominster, on Feb. 21, 1718, as appears by a 
letter in the Weekly Fournal of March 1. ‘The streamers are 
there compared to the tail of the great comet of 1681. 
London, Noy. 7 R. G, 

THE fallacy of trusting for scientific information to any other 
than a recognised scientific source, cannot be better illustrated 
than by Mr. Pocklington’s letter in your issue of Noy. 3. He there 
seems to thinks that the statements of the editor of a volume of 
popular poems on a matter of science are worthy of notice, and 
therefore thinks it worth while to inquire whether or not it is true © 
that no aurora borealis ever appeared before 1715. The absur- 
dity of such a rash statement is so apparent that it seems almost 
superfluous to show it. In 1754 a book was published by M. de 
Mairan, entitled, ‘‘ Traité Physique et Historique de l’Aurore 
Boréale,” in which he collects from all the writers, ancient and 
modern up to that date, accounts of all the Aurorz Boreales which 
had been seen. Their total number amounts to 1,441 between 
the years A.D. 583 and 1751. 
These are divided as follows : From A.D, 583 to 1354, 26 were 
recorded ; 1354 to 1560, 34; 1560 to 1592, 69; 1592 to 1633, 
70; 1633 to 1684, 34 ; 1684 to 1721, 219; 1721 to 1745, 961 ; 
1745 to 1751, 28. Of these, 972 occurred in the winter half 
year, and 469 in the summer half year, the greatest numbers 
occurring in March and October. Since that date the two most 
remarkable displays have been those of the 23rd of October, 
1804, and the 24th of October, 1847. An account of the latter 
aurora was published at Cambridge in the same year, giving twelve 
large coloured lithographic views of the brilliant display which 
are, without doubt, the best views ever given of any Aurora. 
J. P. EARWAKER 
Merton College, Oxford, Nov. 5 
THE quotation given by C. Pocklington im your last issue as 
the words of the Editor of Routledge’s edition of Collins's 
Poems, is the very note given by Dr. Langhorne in the ‘‘ Poetical 
Works of William Collins,” published in the year 1808, in a 
small book entitled *‘The Laurel,” and as it has not been re- 
printed word for word its sense is somewhat obscured, In the 
original it runs thus :— : 
“By ‘Young Aurora’ Collins undoubtedly meant the first 
appearance of the Northern Lights, which happened about the 
Another display, not in Mr. Lowe's list, — 

wpe 
pied tesa. 
Bbitie Gatos 

