134 



NA TURE 



[June 7, 1906 



The Haslemere Museum Gazette is the title of a new 

 serial published by the institution the name of which it 

 bears, and to be issued in monthly parts at the price of 

 sixpence. The Haslemere Museum specially devotes itself 

 to education at first-hand, that is to say, by inculcating 

 familiarity with actual specimens rather than the cultiva- 

 tion of mere book-knowledge. One of the objects of the 

 new journal is to assist and amplify this excellent concep- 

 tion. It is proposed to refer in turn to the chief museums 

 in London (including those devoted to art), the Zoological 

 Society's Gardens, &c., and to direct the attention of 

 readers to some of the most noteworthy objects in each. 

 By this means — without in any way usurping the function 

 of a " guide " — it is urged that the educational value of 

 such establishments will be largely increased. Nor will 

 nature itself be neglected, as is demonstrated by the frontis- 

 piece, representing two oaks growing under similar con- 

 ditions, but one with and the other without leaves. Excel- 

 lent " lecturettes " on prehistoric times and the severance 

 of Britain form part of the contents of the first number. 

 Giraffes in the British Museum, with a (not absolutely 

 accurate) transcript of the accompanying label, form the 

 subject of another section. 



In connection with the study of the occurrence of 

 glycogen and paraglycogen in fungi, the late Prof. Errera 

 compiled a bibliography of the subject. The list of papers 

 with his abstracts on their contents is published in Recueil 

 de I'Institut hotanique, Brussels, vol. i., 1905. 



In the Bulletin du Jardin imperial hotanique, vol. vi., 

 part ii., Madame O. Fedtschenko writes a note on species 

 of Eremurus in which she refers the species Eremurus 

 Aiicherianus and Eremurus Korolkowi from Turkestan to 

 Eremurus anisopterus and other species. Mr. V. Arci- 

 chovskij discusses the size of plants as a specific character. 



To replace the list of ferns and fern-allies cultivated in 

 the Royal Gardens, Kew, issued in 1S95 and now out of 

 print, a second edition compiled by Mr. C. H. Wright has 

 been published. The plants are enumerated under the 

 three groups of ferns, fern-allies, and cultivated forms of 

 British ferns. The table of fern-distribution throughout 

 the world, drawn up by Mr. J. G. Baker for the previous 

 edition, has been revised, showing a considerably increased 

 percentage for temperate Asia. 



A DETAILED account of the distribution of the forest flora 

 of the Bombay Presidency and Sind has been contributed 

 by Mr. W. A. Talbot to the Indian Forester (January to 

 March). Mr. Talbot distinguishes an evergreen forest 

 flora of Malabar showing a decided Malayan affinity, a 

 Deccan dry deciduous flora in which African elements pre- 

 dominate, and the flora of the Western Ghats and Konkan, 

 in which there is a mixture of high deciduous and ever- 

 green forests. The dry Deccan flora includes such typical 

 species as Zizyphus jujuba, Acacia catechu, Sterculia 

 ureus, and Bomhax malabaricum. Myristicas, Diptero- 

 carpe«e, laurels, and palms are characteristic of the tropical 

 evergreens. 



The Bulletin of the Johns Hopkins Hospital for May 

 (xvii.. No. 182) is mainly devoted to medical subjects. Dr. 

 Gushing contributes an interesting article on a course of 

 instruction in operative medicine, and Dr. Pratt one on 

 the home sanatorium treatment of consumption, in which 

 the problem of applying the open-air treatment of tubercu- 

 losis in the homes of the poor is dealt with. The proceed- 

 ings of the Johns Hopkins Historical Club are devoted 

 to a ■' symposium " of the " gold-headed " cane, a stick 

 NO. 19-10, VOL. 74j 



or cane, now in the possession of the Royal College of 

 Physicians of London, which made its appearance in 

 medical circles about the year 1689, and for one hundred 

 and thirty-six years was carried by a leading London prac- 

 titioner, including John Radclifi'e, Richard Mead, Anthony 

 Askew, William Pitcairn, and Matthew Baillie, all well- 

 known names in medical history. 



We have received from Mr. Herbert Kynaston, director 

 of the Transvaal Geological Survey, a copy of his memoir 

 on the geology of the Komati Poort coalfield (Pretoria, 

 1906, price 7s. 6d.). It covers 55 pages, and constitutes 

 the second of the series of descriptive memoirs which it is 

 the intention of the Geological Survey to issue from time 

 to time. It is an admirable piece of work, giving a con- 

 nected account of the character, behaviour, and distribu- 

 tion of the coal-bearing strata of the Komati Poort district. 

 A description is also given of the associated sedimentary 

 and igneous rocks. Apart from the prevalence of intrusive 

 sheets and dykes of igneous rock throughout the coal- 

 bearing strata, the conditions are favourable, and no 

 evidence was observed of the beds having been disturbed 

 by faulting in a manner that would be discouraging to 

 mining operations. The actual Coal-measure series occupy 

 150 square miles, and the great thickness of the coal- 

 bearing strata, and the favourable situation of the better 

 portion of the field, render the prospects eminently satis- 

 factory. The memoir is accompanied by two coloured 

 geological maps and six sections, and six photographic 

 views giving an excellent idea of the character of the 

 scenery on the Crocodile and Komati rivers. 



Some valuable results of an experimental investigation 

 on the effect of fire on building stones were described by 

 Mr. W. R. Baldwin-Wiseman at a meeting of the 

 Surveyors' Institution on May 14. The purpose of the re- 

 search was not so much to determine the design of a 

 building for fire resistance as to estimate the ultimate 

 stability of an edifice after subjection to a severe con- 

 flagration, and to afford some small assistance to those 

 who may be called upon to decide whether demolition or 

 reconstruction shall succeed the wrecking influences of a 

 big conflagration. The points of primary importance in 

 determining the most efficient design for fire resistance 

 are summarised as follows : — (i) That the edifice should in 

 no wise be flimsy ; (2) that it should be constructed of 

 stone possessing a uniform or fairly uniform coefficient of 

 expansion, and retaining a considerable strength after sub- 

 jection to high temperatures ; (3) that all combinations of 

 different stones should be avoided as much as possible ; 

 (4) that combinations of stone and metal should be avoided, 

 especially when the former rests directly upon the latter, 

 even when the metal is entirely enshrouded in stone, for 

 stone acts as a fairly good conductor of heat ; (5) that 

 stair wells and lift wells should open as little as possible 

 on to the main building, and should preferably be enclosed 

 and glazed with wired glass from basement to roof ; 

 (6) that floor areas should not be unduly large or corri- 

 dors unduly long. 



The first parts of two serial publications, issued by 

 Messrs. Cassell and Co., Ltd., have been received. A new 

 edition of Prof. G. S. Boulger's "' Familiar Trees " is to be 

 completed in twenty-nine fortnightly parts, and will con- 

 tain 114 coloured plates and 114 illustrations from photo- 

 graphs. Mr. W. F. Kirby's " Butterflies and Moths of 

 Europe " will be published in thirty-two instalments at 

 fortnightly intervals ; and the completed volume, with its 

 large pages and fifty-four coloured plates, will form an 

 attractive addition to the naturalist's reference library. 



