Jan. 20, 1887] 



NA TURE 



383 



tioned as ready for issue in the last Report, were distributed in 

 1SS5. Mr. Pogson's attention was chiefly directed, during the 

 year, to the necessary preliminary investigations for the publica- 

 tion of the meridian-circle observations from 1S62 to the prefcnt 

 time. The formation of the star ledgers and the deduced 

 catalogues of mean posiiions for each year «-ere completed for 

 the years 1862, 1S63, and partly for 1864, which will form the 

 first of the eight volumes about to be published. The star 

 ledgers for the next three years— 1865-67— are also in progress, 

 for the second volume of the series. Except for time observa- 

 tions and determinations of positions of a few comparison stars 

 for equatorial observations, the meridian-circle will be little used 

 until the publication of its past results is accomplished. Only 

 352 complete positions of st.ars were determined in 1885, making 

 52,074 during the past tuenty-four years. A few o'.servations 

 of minor planets were made with the equatorials during the year. 

 We are glad to find that there is at length a prospect of the 

 publication of the Madras meridian observations, the long 

 delay in which has been a serious blot on the fair fame of the 

 Observatory. 



ASTRONOMICAL PHENOMENA FOR THE 



WEEK 18S7 JANUARY 23-29 



/■pOR the reckoning of time the civil day, commencing at 



^ Greenwich mean midnight, counting the hours on to 24, 



is here employed.) 



At Greenwich on January 23 

 Sun rises, yh. 54m. ; souths, I2h. 12m. 4'4S. ; sets, i6h. 30in. ; 

 decl. on meridian, 19° 27' S. : Sidereal Time at Sunset, 

 oh. 41m. 

 Moon (New, January 24) rises, 7h. 14m. ; souths, tlh. 40m. ; 

 sets, l6h. 9m. ; decl. on meridian, 18° 13' S. 

 Planet Rises Souths Sets Decl.on meridi.in 



M signifies 



Meteor-Sho wers 

 On January 28 a radiant near 8 Coronse Borealis is in evi- 

 dence. The meteors from this radiant are very swift, R. A. 

 236', Decl. 25° N. Another radiant giving very swift meteors 

 lies near a Leonis, R. A. l6S°, Decl. 7° N. 



GEOGRAPHICAL NOTES 

 It is all but certain that Mr. Stanley will lead the Emin 

 Pasha Relief Exploration by the Congo route. He will cer- 

 tainly go to Zanzibar, prepared to follow whatever route circum- 

 stances may indicate as likely to prove the most successful. At 



Port Said he will meet with Dr. Junker, who may give him 

 information of critical importance. At all events, Mr. Stanley 

 and bis staff and the whole of the baggage will proceed, in the 

 first instance, to Zanzibar. If a steamer is handy, the Expe- 

 dition, after recruiting a caravan and laying in a store of suitable 

 goods for trade by the way, will s.ail round the Cape to the 

 Congo ; that at least is Mr. Stanley's present intention. All 

 the available steamers belonging to the King of the Belgians 

 will be placed at his disposal, and probably by the begin- 

 ning of May he will be at the limit of navigation and 

 ready for his land journey eastwards to Lake Albert Nyanza ; 

 if, indeed, he does not give the lake a wide berth west- 

 wards and go direct to Wadelai. A camp as a base of 

 operations will be established, as far as safe from the Congo, 

 and left in charge of a trustworthy member of the staff. About 

 fifty donkeys will be taken to carry the heavy baggage, and the 

 caravan will consist of about 100 men, with a few Egyptian 

 soldiers to maintain discipline. The staff consists of half-a-dozen 

 carefully selected men, among whom are two able engineer 

 officers, under whose caie the interests of science will be 

 attended to. Four or five carefully rated chronometers and 

 other instruments are being taken, so that we may expect some 

 good results. It is probable that Mr. Stanley will endeavour to 

 solve the Albert Nyanza and the Welle- Mobangi problem, as 

 well as other obscure points in African hydrography, on his 

 return journey. It is to be hoped that Emin Pasha will not think 

 of coming away, as Dr. lunker states he wishes to do ; but if 

 he does, then no doubt Mr. Stanley will be able to make 

 arrangements to carry on the work which Emin has begun so 

 well. Mr. Stanley leaves England to-morrow, and the go ,d 

 wishes of all will go with him. He is confident of being able 

 to reach Emin Pasha by July i , and possibly may be back in 

 Europe about Christmas ; in that case, we fear, he could not do 

 much exploring work. 



Dr. Lenz has at last arrived at Zanzibar, having taken less 

 than eighteen months to cross the African continent from the 

 mouth of the Congo. A fortnight ago we gave ^ome account of 

 his journey up the Congo from -Stanley Falls to Nyangwe and 

 Kasonge ; it will be interesting to know what route he followed 

 after leaving the Upper Congo. It will be remembered that 

 Dr. Lenz went out eighteen months ago for the purpose, if pos- 

 sible, of reaching Emin Pasha and Dr. Junker. From Zanzibar 

 the late Dr. Fischer started through Masai Land on a similar 

 errand. In both cases the object has not been accomplished, and 

 no wonder, now that we know the real facts. Much good work, 

 however, has been done by both men. Dr. Lenz is a man of 

 scientific training and experience in African travelling, and there 

 can be no doubt that the results of his just completed journey 

 will be a gain to science. It is possible that Mr. Stanley may 

 meet with Dr. Lenz on his way to Zanzibar ; and if so may 

 obtain some information that will be of service on his great 

 expedition. 



The Rev. Thomas Brydges, a missionary in Tierra del Fuego, 

 in the large island of Onisin, among the Ona and the Yagbons, 

 mentions a curious circumstance with reference to the people, 

 illustrating the influence of environment on the acquirement of 

 habits. Between men and women there is a fair subdivision of 

 labour. Among other things, the men make and fit up the 

 canojs, but the women are the rowers. The result is that the 

 women are good swimmers, but the men cannot swim at all. 

 The reason is that often on the coast there is not a single tree 

 to which to fasten the canoes. The women, therefore, after 

 landing their husbands, have to row the canoes to a spot where 

 sea-weed has been masked together, in order t^ moor the canoes 

 thereon ; after which operation they are compelled to swim back. 

 So, also, when the canoe is wanted, the woman has to swim out 

 for it and row back for her husband. 



The current number of X^zMittheilKtr^cn of the Geographical 

 Society of Vienna (Band xxix. No. 10) has a large map of the 

 r»ute from Ango-Ango to Leopoldville, made by Herr Baumann, 

 of the Austrian Congo Expedition, with accompanying remarks, 

 and a comparison with other recent maps of the same part of the 

 river. There is an interesting note by Herr Baumann on the 

 numerical systems of the Why or Wai Negroes and of the 

 Mandingoes. The former, although they have a writing of their 

 own — the Mandingoes use Arab letters— have no expression in 

 their language for lOO, and use the English, while the Mandin- 

 goes Bantus, and other tribes can count with ease up to 1000. 

 Herr Baumann also writes on the region around Stanley FallSj 



