November 14, 1912] 



NATURE 



315 



The Mitteihmgen from German Protectorates 

 (vol. XXV., part 3, 1912) contain the monthly and yearly 

 summaries of the meteorological observations at 

 stations of the second order, and at the rainfall 

 stations in Togoland (equatorial West Africa) for the 

 j'ear igu. The summaries have been very carefully 

 prepared by Dr. P. Heidke, of the Deutsche Seewarte, 

 and include in the accompanying text much valuable 

 information relating to the climate of that district. 

 It is satisfactory to note that the observers take much' 

 interest in their work; at many stations they have 

 considerably exceeded what was required of them. 



No better evidence of the paucity of scientific know- 

 ledge amongst Englishmen supposed to be well edu- 

 cated has ever been atlorded than was given in the 

 House of Commons during the discussion of the Bill 

 for the adoption of the metric system five years ago. 

 A responsible Minister of the Crown then stated that 

 "the metric system had broken down in France," and 

 the House appears to have believed him. To those 

 whose information on tfie subject is not up to date, an 

 article by Dr. C. E. Guillaume in the Revue gdn&rale 

 des Sciences for October 15 will be of great value. It 

 shows that the other systems have almost entirely 

 disappeared, the only ones at present in use being 

 the Anglo-Saxon, the Russian, and the Japanese, while 

 Japan has recently adopted the decimal system with a 

 view to further reform in the near future. Australia, 

 New Zealand, and South Africa are anxious that the 

 British Empire should adopt the system, and it begins 

 to look as if the Mother Country would be left in sole 

 possession of a system which the average man finds 

 so difficult to remember that he cannot say how many 

 multiples a pound or an ounce is of a grain, or a mile 

 of a yard, or what is the definition of a gallon. 



The Proceedings of the University of Durham 

 Philosophical Society for 191 1-12 (vol. iv., Pt. 4) 

 contains the follovvmg papers : — The stability of a 

 floating triangular prism, Mr. F. H. Alexander; the 

 effect of soil aeration on plant growth, Mr. C. Hunter ; 

 chemical reactions takmg place at the kathode and 

 anode during the electrolysis of simple salt solutions, 

 Dr. J. H. Patterson; the preparation of benzyl mer- 

 captan, Dr. J. A. Smythe; the preparation of acrylic 

 ester. Dr. F. G. Trobridge ; some para derivatives of 

 phenylacetic acid, Mr. S. Robson ; analysis of a Florida 

 Clay, Dr. A. A. Hall; and the rate of fermentation as 

 measured by difference of potential, Dr. M. C. Potter. 

 The society includes 171 members, and held 21 meet- 

 ings, at which 26 papers were read, during the session 

 1911-12. The sixth report of the Boulders Committee 

 is printed in the present issue of the Proceedings. 



.Mr. Robert Eluott-Cooper's presidential address 

 to the Institution of Civil Engineers is largely com- 

 posed of an interesting discussion of the labours of 

 the civil engineer in the oversea dominions of the 

 British Empire. Dealing with the Grand Trunk 

 Pacific Railway in Canada, while there is much to 

 admire in this huge undertaking and its accessories, 

 there is one matter which will not find general accept- 

 ance in these days of picturesque town-planning, 

 except perhaps from those who think, with Ruskin, 



NO. 2246, VOL. go] 



that railways and aestlieticism are absolutely irre- 

 concilable. The new townships which have been and 

 are about to be established along the undeveloped 

 lengths of the new line are, as nearly as possible, 

 eight miles apart, centre to centre, and are all on 

 the northern side of the railway. In each town is one 

 main street, named so in every case. So ft. wide, and 

 leading up to the precise centre of the station, wliile 

 there are 60-ft. streets at exactly equal distances apart 

 on a chess-board pattern, completing a perfect square. 

 A few of these perhaps would not affect the traveller 

 much, but, when 1000 miles covering 125 towns of 

 this description are passed, it will take all ilie sublime 

 diversity of the scenery of the Rocky Mountains to 

 soothe his irritated nerves. 



Mr. John Murray has published a translation by 

 Mr. W. C. Clinton of Dr. L. Bloch's " Science of 

 Illumination," which was reviewed in these columns 

 on March 7 last (vol. Ixxxix., p. 3). With the consent 

 of the author, Mr. Clinton has made certain altera- 

 tions and additions rendered necessary by the differ- 

 ence between the English and German units and 

 standards, and by the lapse of time. The price of the 

 English edition is 6s. net. 



Mr. Francis Edwards, bookseller, of 83 High 

 Street, Marylebone, London, W., lias issued a cata- 

 logue of the geographical library of Mr. Ernest G. 

 Ravenstein. The catalogue includes some 1197 entries 

 of works wliich he has for sale. Messrs. Bowes and 

 Bowes, 1 Trinity Street, Cambridge, have published a 

 catalogue of books on pure and applied mathematics 

 which they have on sale. The list deals with inathe- 

 matical histories and dictionaries, mathematical works 

 published before 1700, and works of reference. 



OVR ASTRONOMICAL COLUMN. 



The Brazilian Eclipse, October 10. — We learn 

 from Mr. J. H. Worthington that his private eclipse 

 camp in Brazil was in the same locality as that of the 

 Greenwich observers, and that rain entirely prevented 

 observations. He further states that it would probably 

 have been necessary to travel at least a thousand miles 

 to escape the rain zone on the day of the eclipse. 



Borrelly's Comet igi2c. — Circular No. 137 from 

 the Kiel Centralstelle gives a set of elements and an 

 ephemeris for the comet discovered by M. Borrelly 

 on November 2. From these we see that the comet 

 passed perihelion on October 22, when it was some 

 103 million miles from the sun, and is now travelling 

 southwards through Hercules towards Aquila ; on 

 November 18 it will be about 25 m. east of t Aquilae. 

 The distances from both the sun and the earth are 

 increasing, and consequently the calculated magnitude, 

 now 8'7, is decreasing. 



In a letter in The Times of November 13, Mr. W. S. 

 Franks states that the comet was observed on Novem- 

 ber 9 at Mr. F. J. Hanbury's observatory, Brockhurst, 

 East Grinstead, with the 6-in. equatorial. "At 

 8.10 p.m., November 9, its approximate right ascen- 

 sion was i8h. 37m., and declination 27° 33' N. It 

 was fairly bright, and estimated as of about seventh 

 magnitude, being easily visible in the finder. It was 

 judged to be about i' of arc in diameter, gradually 

 brightening to the centre, but without a nucleus." 



The Light-curve of Nova Geminorum, No. 2. — 

 The results of about 270 magnitude-observations of 



