August ^, 1880] 



NATURE 



329 



has been arranged for helping visitors to find their \\3.y to this 

 exaUed situation. 



A VERY curious telephonic experiment has been made in 

 Switzerland on the occasion of the Federal file of singers. A 

 telephone had been placed in the ZUrich Festhalle and two con- 

 ductors connected with the Bale telegraphic office, where a large 

 audience had congregated. The distance from Bale to Zurich 

 is about So kilometres. The Bale audience enjoyed the singing 

 about as well as if they had been placed in the upper circle of an 

 ordinary Opera House. At the end of the performance they 

 proved their satisfaction by clapping hands, which the tele- 

 graphic wires transmitted with perfect fidelity to the Ziirich 

 performers. 



A CREDIT of 25,000 francs has been voted by the French 

 Parliament for establishing, on solid foundations, one signal at 

 each extremity of the Melun base line, which was used by 

 Delambre for measuring the distance from Dunkerque to Per^. 

 pignan, and establishing the length of the metre. This operation 

 wasbegun by Delambre and Laplace on 17 Vendemaire, An VI. 

 (October 1797) and terminated in six weeks. This base has a 

 length of 6,000 toises, and was situated on the margin of a public 

 road "-oing from Lieusaint to the crossing of the Brie and Paris 

 roads. 



A STRONG shock of earthquake was felt at Smyrna at 5. lo a.m. 

 on July 29. The walls of the telegraph office were split in two 

 or three places. Four or five houses were thrown down, and 

 many others were much damaged by the oscillation. Two of the 

 inhabitants were killed, and five or six injured. Much damage 

 has also been done in the country near Smyrna. At Burnabat 

 the shock caused eleven houses and several cafes to fall in. Two 

 minarets were also thrown down and two people were killed, and 

 ten more or less injured. Slight shocks continued to be felt 

 from time to time. 



The new edition of the "Guide to the Gardens of the Zoolo- 

 gical Society " brings the notices of the tenants of the Gardens up 

 to the latest date. Mr. Sclater's name as editor of the Guide is 

 a sufficient guarantee for its accuracy, while the numerous illus- 

 trations render it both attractive and instructive. By means of 

 this very cheap Guide a visit to the Gardens will be rendered 

 doubly enjoyable and profitable. 



The Gardeners' Chronicle, in advocating the establishment of 

 school gardens where practicable, as an instrument of useful 

 scientific education, refers to the success of such gardens in 

 Bavaria, Belgivim, Sweden, and other countries. In Sweden 

 alone there are nearly 2,000 school gardens. 



We have received a copy of the American Antiquarian, No. 3, 

 vol. ii., published at Chicago by Jameson and Morse, and edited 

 by the Rev. S. D. Peet. It seems to us to be doing useful work 

 in collecting information on early America, though several other 

 serial publications in the States are doing the same thing to a 

 greater or less extent. Excessive subdivision of labour of this 

 kind in any special department is apt to embarrass the student, 



The subject of a depraved taste in animals is an interesting 

 one, which has not been studied as much perhaps as it might. 

 In human beings it would seem to depend on ill -health of either 

 body or mind, but in animals it would seem as if it might be 

 present and the animal enjoy good health. One remarkable 

 instance in an herbivorous animal we can vouch for. It occurred 

 in a sheep that had been shipped on board one of the P. and O. 

 steamers to help to supply the kitchen on board, but while 

 fattening it developed an inordinate taste for tobacco, which it 

 would eat in any quantity that was given to it. It did not much 

 care for cigars, and altogether objected to burnt ends ; but it 

 would greedily devour the half -chewed quid of a sailor or a 



handful of roll tobacco. While chewing there was apparently 

 no undue flow of saliva, and its taste was so peculiar that most 

 of the passengers on board amused themselves by feeding it, to 

 see for themselves if it were really so. As a consequence 

 though in fair condition, the cook was afraid to kill the sheep, 

 believing that the mutton would have a flavour of tobacco. 

 Another very remarkable case has just been communicated to us 

 by Mr. Francis Goodlake : this time a flesh-eating animal in 

 the shape of a kitten, about five months old, who shows a 

 passionate fondness for salads. It eats no end of sliced cucumber 

 dressed with vinegar, even when hot with cayenne pepper. After 

 a little fencing it has eaten a piece of boiled beef with mustard. 

 Its mother was at least once seen to eat a slice of cucumber 

 which had salt, pepper, and vinegar on it. The Idtten is 

 apparently in good health, and its extraordinary taste is not 

 easily accounted for. Even supposing it once got a feed of 

 salmon mayonaise, why should it now select to prefer the dressing 

 to the fish? 



The American J ournal of Microscopy and Popular Scienceiyo]. 

 iv., 1879, of which is before us) is now publishedjmonthly. 

 Besides vaiious original articles, some of which are illustrated, it 

 contains from time to time £.bstracts of the transactions of many 

 of the microscopical societies of the United States. This journal, 

 without aiming at a standard to be compared withJthe_European 

 journals relating to microscopical science, seems to perform its 

 part well, and we are glad to know that it has [done much to 

 encourage the use of the microscope in the States. We may 

 trust soon to see some results from all this work, and to find 

 the chief articles in the American Journal of Microscopy the 

 result of original researches among the minute algse, fungi, 

 rhizopods and infusoria of America, and that the extracts from 

 the various European journals may be relegated to a second 

 place. There is without doubt an abundant field for work of 

 this nature in America — mtness Leidy's volume on rhizopods — 

 nor do we understand why the labourers^^should be so few. 



The Ceylon Observer has published letters from Mr. Morris, 

 who was recently transferred to the Botanical Gardens, Jamaica, 

 detailing his recent experiences with regard to the ciUtivatlon of 

 cinchona, and his views on the coffee-leaf disease in Ceylon. 

 He still maintains the usefulness of dusting with lime and 

 sulphur. 



Further rich discoveries of gold are reported to have been 

 made in Northern Queensland and Tasmania. It is also stated 

 that gold has been discovered under the basalt in the Brook 

 Mountains, in New South Wales, the first instance of the kind 

 in the colony. 



In a memoir pubhshed by the Revue Scientifique, M. Ernest 

 Maindron, archivist of the Academy of Sciences, shows that the 

 Academy is possessed of an income of 116,000 francs, to be 

 awarded in about thirty prizes, of which the periodicity varies 

 from one year to ten. 



From the Fifth Aimual Report of the Hertfordshire (formerly 

 the Watford) Natural History Society, we are glad to learn that 

 that society is now prosperous, its membership having greatly 

 increased during the past year. 



The Proceedings of the Nottingham Literaiy and Philosophical 

 Society for 1S79-S0 is mainly "occupied with the president's (Rev. 

 R. A. Armstrong) address on "What is Science?" papers on 

 "Sandstones," by Mr. J. H. Jeimings ; "Philosophy in the 

 Middle Ages," by Mr. G. B. Kidd ; and "Structure of Mole- 

 cules," by Mr. J. J. Harris Teall. A large'number of lectures 

 on scientific subjects were given dm-ing the session, and several 

 special papers read in the Natural History Section. 



The Transactions of the Norfolk and Norwich Naturalists 

 Society for 1879-80 contains a favourable report of the present 



