June 19, 19 13] 



NATURE 



409 



crystals are produced round those first formed. Some 

 of the original crystals, which have been distorted by 

 rolling, are completely broken up into the new smaller 

 crystals before recrystallisation begins in other lamina;. 

 Ill- new crystals are soft, and the unaltered lamina; 

 remain hard. Incompletely annealed metal thus con- 

 sists of alternate strips of hard and soft material. 



Prof. C. J. Patten: (i) Model illustrating the topo- 

 graphy of the Tuskar Rock and Lighthouse relative 

 to some features in the diurnal migration of certain 

 birds. (2) Studies in the migratory movements of 

 birds at the Tuskar Light-station, illustrated by a 

 series of photographs. 



The John Innes Horticultural Institution : Pheno- 

 mena of plant-breeding, (i) " Maternal " hybrids 

 and actual hybrids in Primula and Nicotiana. 

 12) Inheritance of double flowers and sex in 

 Tropceolum. (3) Inheritance in Campanula persici- 

 jolia. (4) Double flowers of various types in 

 Begonia. 



Dr. G. D. H. Carpenter: A synepigonic series of 

 Papilio dardanus from the parent form planemoides. 

 This exhibit represented the first proof by breeding 

 that the form planemoides is definitely of the species 

 Papilio dardanus. 



Dr. H. F. Standing: Photographs of the skeletons 

 of extinct giant lemurs from Madagascar, also casts 

 of skulls of the same. This exhibit showed casts of 

 the skulls and photographs of the mounted skeletons 

 of two species of giant lemur recently exhumed in a 

 subfossil condition at Ampasambazimba, in the centre 

 of the Island of Madagascar. The smaller animal 

 {Palaeopropithccus maximus) shows curious specialisa- 

 tion for an amphibious mode of life. It probably 

 burrowed in the banks of lakes and streams ; the 

 peculiar roughened upward extension of the nasal 

 bones no doubt carried some kind of epidermal ex- 

 crescence, presumably used in burrowing. The larger 

 animal (Megaladapis grandidieri) was arboreal in its 

 habits, and its mode of life probably resembled that 

 of the chimpanzee. 



Prof. IV. M. Flinders Petrie : Egyptian jewellery, 

 ^,400 b.c. The pectoral exhibited is of soldered gold 

 inlaid with cut turquoise, lazuli, and carnelian, like 

 the celebrated pectorals of Dahshur, and probably by 

 the same artist. Found with it was a piece of inlaid 

 open work of Senusert II., and a gold shell with 

 soldered wire work of Senusert III. None of this 

 Fabric has reached England before. These were found 

 at Gerzeh, forty miles south of Cairo, in a grave in 

 which a plunderer had been killed by a fall of the 

 roof. 



REMARKABLE DROUGHT 

 PHILIPPINES. 



IN THE 



THE drought experienced during the eight 

 months, October, 1911-May, 1912, prob- 

 ably the most severe ever observed in the archipelago, 

 has been discussed by the assistant director of the 

 Weather Bureau. At Manila the total rainfall re- 

 corded during the period was only 373 in., or a 

 monthly average of less than half-an-inch ; the driest 

 month was April, with only o'o3 in. The following 

 rainless periods are especially noteworthv : October 

 24-November 16 (24 days) ; November 20-December 

 n (22 days); March 19-April 12 (25 days); April 14- 

 May 7 (24 days). Deducting the insignificant amount 

 of 0004 in. (o'i mm.) on May 8, there would result a 

 rainless period from April 14-May 20 (37 days). 



Sr. Coronas shows that, so far as Manila is con- 

 cerned, the drought was the worst experienced since 

 the establishment of the observatory in 1865. From a 

 cursorv inspection of his tables it is seen that for the 



NO. 2277, VOL. 9I~j 



months October-December, 191 1, the rainfall was 

 14' 05 in. below the normal; for the months January- 

 May, 1912, 510 in. below, and that the total rainfall 

 for the eight months was 550 in. below the absolute 

 minimum recorded for those months during the entire 

 period. In other regions of the archipelago the results 

 cannot be so convincing as those for Manila, as the 

 statistics for the secondary stations cover only a re- 

 latively short period. A table of the rainfall at 

 twenty-six selected stations shows that it was without 

 exception less than the normal at every station. The 

 longest dry periods occurred in western Luzon, and 

 the shortest on the eastern coasts of Samar and Min- 

 danao ; this was to be expected, as in the former case 

 the dry season is most pronounced, especially from 

 December to March, and in the latter case during the 

 same months the most persistent rains of the whole 

 year occur. An extraordinary period of 165 days with- 

 out rain occurred at Vigan (western Luzon) between 

 December and May. 



Some very high teniperatures were recorded in April 

 and May. At Manila a maximum of 1009° (38-3° C.) 

 occurred on May 19; so high a temperature had not 

 been recorded since May, 1889. It may not be without 

 interest to recall the fact that the drought of the 

 summer of 191 1 in this country was followed bv a re- 

 markable period of excessive rainfall during the winter 

 six months of 1911-12. This period has been specially 

 discussed by Dr. Mill, and referred to in our columns. 



WORK OF THE ROTHAMSTED 

 EXPERIMENTAL STATION. 



THE annua! report for 1912 of the Rothamsted 

 Experimental Station, which has lately been 

 issued, includes an introduction, the annual report 

 proper, and a supplement giving the year's yields of 

 the various series of plots. The report deals first with 

 the season 1912, its peculiarities, and their effect on 

 the crops, and proceeds to give short abstracts of the 

 work of the various members of the staff. 



The central idea of the work of the Rothamsted 

 Experimental Station is the investigation of the rela- 

 tion between plants and the soil in which they grow. 

 Dr. Russell, who has during the year succeeded Mr. 

 Hall as director, is engaged, in conjunction with 

 Messrs. Hutchinson, Golding, Petherbridge, and 

 Goodey, in investigating the effects of partial sterilisa- 

 tion of the soil. His results have now got beyond 

 the theoretical stage. Partial sterilisation is now 

 practised largely in the glasshouses of the Lea valley 

 with good results, and has so impressed the tomato 

 and cucumber growers of that district that they are 

 endeavouring to get established an institute for the 

 investigation of the problems of glasshouse culture — 

 a most encouraging instance of the readiness of prac- 

 tical men to adopt any really sound innovation pin 

 before them in a feasible form. 



Dr. Miller continues his investigations of the 

 nitrogen content of rainfall and drainage. Dr. 

 Brenchlev is studying the possible stimulating effects 

 of poisons on plant growth, and has extended her 

 survey of the weeds of arable land to the eastern 

 counties. Mr. Davis has published the results of a 

 careful series of comparative determinations of 

 potassium bv the perchlorate method, which he recom- 

 mends as accurate and trustworthy. The method is 

 well worth the attention of analysts in these days of 

 dear platinum. 



The report on the whole is of great interest as 

 showing the varied methods of attack which are 

 being applied with success to the central problem of 

 the relation of plants to the soil in which they grow. 

 References are given to the original publications, 



