March 3, 1887] 



NA TURE 



423 



intepreled all of them. Three of his translations, which were 

 published in the Times of Saturday last, are invocations to the 

 sun and water gods, and, apparently, to the divinity of the 

 moon.' Capt. Conder says that not only the words, but the 

 grammar of the inscriptions, can be shown to belong to a well- 

 known tongue. What this tongue is, we are not to learn for 

 some time. 



We regret to announce the death of Or. Grothe, Professor at 

 the Polytechnical School at Delft, author of " Mechanical 

 Technology," and an excellent monograph on iron. He was 

 born in Westphalia in 1806, and died on February 10 last. 



Prok. H.\eckel, of Jena, has just started on a journey to 

 the East, which will be of some months' duration. He will 

 visit the coast of Asia Minor to cintinue his investigations of 

 lower marine animals. 



Lieut. Quedenfeldt has just returned from Morocco to 

 J/^ Berlin, bringing with him some valuable collections : an ethno- 

 logical one, which he has presented to the Anthropological 

 Society, a collection of insects, and a large collection of the 

 implements, tools, and instruments of torture of the Hamadjas 

 tribe. 



Messrs, G. Philip and Son have in the press a revised and 

 enlarged edition of "The Geology of England and Wales," by 

 Horace B. Woodward, F.G.S., of the Geological Survey of 

 England. They will also have ready shortly " Philips' Plani- 

 sphere of the .Stars visible from the Countries situated about 

 35° south of the Equator" (uniform with "Philips' Plani- 

 sphere for England"); "Rustic Walking Routes within the 

 Twelve-mile Radius from Charing Cross," containing a field- 

 path map of the district, with geographical description, charts, 

 and directions, by W. R. Evans ; and " Philips' Handy Volume 

 Atlas of the World," consisting of sixty-four plates, containing 

 upwards of one hundred maps, printed in colours, with statistical 

 notes on each map. 



Messrs. Whittaker and Co. will publish shortly a second 

 and much enlarged edition of "Magnets and Dynamo-Electric 

 Machines," being the first volume of their " .'Specialist's Series." 

 For the new edition some revisions in the text have been made, 

 and a preface and a chapter on the latest types of generators 

 have been written by Mr. W. B. Esson. 



A French translation has been published of Caesar Lumbroso's 

 " Uomo Delinquanti," with a fine series of figures to illustrate 

 the learned author's lectures concerning the anthropological 

 features of the professional criminal. 



Admiral Teisserenc de Bort has just published a map, 

 showing the distribution of fog on the various parts of the earth. 

 It is based upon observations made at 1600 land stations, and 

 1 12,000 marine ones. 



In a Report just issued, Mr. S. W. North, Medical Officer of 

 Health, calls attention to the prevalence of typhoid fever in 

 York during the year 1886. For many years York has been 

 liable to outbreaks of this disease, and the fact will not surprise 

 anyone who reads Mr. North's account of the sanitary con- 

 ditions of the city. 



In a paper entitled " Ueber die Allgemeine Beugungsfigur in 

 Fernrohren " (Memoires de I'Academie Imperials des Sciences 

 de St. Pctersbourg, vii'. serie, tome xxxiv.. No. 5), Hermann 

 Struve remarks that the old problem of the diffraction of light 

 through a circular aperture, the source being in the axis, has 

 been considered by Airy and others, who have given approxi- 

 mate solutions in special cases ; but the general solution has 

 only been made feasible by the discovery of Bessel's functiins. 

 He accordingly proceeds to develop it by the straightforward 

 methods with which readers of modem analysis are familiar ; 



showing how his solution accords with those previously given 

 for the axis and for the edge of the geometrical shadow. In 

 this latter case he remarks that the illumination is less than one- 

 fourth that which would be obtained by removing the screen. 

 His results are put into a useful numerical form in tables at the 

 end of the paper. 



The last number of the Bulletin of the Belgian Natural His- 

 tory Museum contains a summary of ornithological observations 

 made at various stations throughout Belgium during the 

 year 18S5. This is quite a novel feature, which, if carried out 

 systematically, promises excellent results, especially as regards 

 the many obscure questions connected with the migrations of 

 birds of passage. The chief stations are B.ussels, Hasselt, Carls- 

 burg, and the Ostend and other lighthouses along the coast. The 

 names of the naturalists who undertake to send in reports ai'e 

 given in all cases. These reports contain the name of the bird 

 in three languages — Latin, French, and Flemish or Walloon 

 according to the locality — followed by the dites of arrival and 

 departure, and any other remarks tending to throw light on the 

 habits and movements of the bird. Thus, under Ctconia alba, 

 Bechst., Cieogne btaiichc, (Pu/t-wmr (white stork), we have, from 

 the Nieuport Lighthouse : " Seven seen, June 18, flying west- 

 wards ; rare on this coast, where they never nest. — Signed, A. 

 Vermorke." The present summary contains 171 such entries, 

 the value of which, when made by competent observers from 

 year to year, ornithologists will not fail to appreciate. 



The latest advices from Honolulu report that the volcano of 

 Mauna Loa is again in eruption, and that all the craters in the 

 vicinity have become active. 



In the December nunber of the Mineralogical Magazine, 

 Prof. Macadam gives the analysis of a sample of talc used in 

 paper-making. This mineral is obtained from New Jersey. It 

 is very largely euiployed for paper-making in place of China 

 clay (kaolin), and gives, amongst other advantages, a much 

 more pure eftluent, fully 90 per cent, being retained in the 

 paper. From its fibrous nature it appears to attach itself to the 

 smaller paper particles, and retain these also. The very high 

 and beautifully smooth glaze of the American papers is largely 

 due to the use of this substance. 



In the JiliH/ieiluitgen of the Ziirich Antiquarian Society 

 (Band xxii. Heft i) will be found a detailed account of the 

 recently-discovered lake-dwelling at Wallishafen,on the Lake of 

 Ziirich. The articles found were mainly bronze, but underneath 

 the existing remains appear to be the charred fragments of an 

 earlier dwelling, the remains of which clearly belong to the 

 Stone Age. 



A large c-.noe, belonging to prehistoric times, was lately 

 dragged from the bottom of the River Cher, near Vierzon, and 

 is now in the Museum of the Society of Antiquaries at Bourges. 

 A part of it had been visible for many years at low water, but 

 no one understood what it was until it happened to be seen by 

 M. Beauchard, who at once perceived its real character. When 

 it was brought to land, fragments which had been torn or cut off 

 by peasants were recovered and pieced together. The canoe is 

 in the form of a trough, and is said to have a general resem- 

 blance to the ancient boat found some time ago at Brigg, in 

 Lincolnshire. The present specimen has the special character- 

 istic of being closed at both ends by pieces of wood fixed in 

 vertical grooves. This device seems to have been adopted in 

 consequence of the boat having been injured by some accident. 



M. GuiLMETH, the French traveller, while on a journey in 

 Australia, discovered some bee-hives in a gigantic eucalyptus- 

 tree, of 120 metres in height. The honey was strongly scented 

 with the perfume of the (lowers of the tree. Prof. Thomas 

 Karaman has examined it, and believes it to have beneficial 

 medicinal properties. 



