December 23, 1909] 



NA TURE 



■-:d 



The University of Paris lias been autliorised, we learn 

 from the Revue scientifique, to accept the gift made last 

 June by M. Henry Deutsch. The gift, which amounts to 

 500,000 francs, and yields an income of iSiOOO francs, is 

 to be devoted to the inauguration of an aerotechnical insti- 

 tute for the encouragement of research, having for its 

 object the perfecting of machines for aerial navigation. 

 The institute is to be established at the St. Cyr School, 

 and it is hoped that it will be opened in May next. 



The inaugural meeting of the Nature Photographic 

 Society was held at the Institute of Science, Art, and 

 Literature, Leeds, on December ii, Mr. J. J. Ward pre- 

 siding. The primary object of the society is to form a 

 fellowship among nature photographers in all parts of the 

 world. The president is Mr. Richard Kearton, and the 

 vice-presidents are Messrs. J. J. Ward, F. Martin-Duncan, 

 H. Irving, and O. G. Pike. The secretary is Mr. Carl 

 Edwards, Woodlesford, Leeds, who will be glad to supply 

 particulars to all who are interested in the work of the 

 society. 



We learn with regret that Dr. Enrico Hillyer Giglioli, 

 professor of zoolqgy and director of the Royal Zoological 

 Museum in Florence, died on December i6 after a short 

 illness. Dr. Giglioli was commendatore of the Order dei 

 Santi Maurijis e Lazzaro and of the Corona d'ltalia, com- 

 mandeur of the Franz Joseph Order and of the M^rite 

 agricole, officer of the Instruction publique de France and 

 of the Brazilian Order of the Rose. He was born in 

 London on June 13, 1845, and completed his studies in 

 Pisa in the year 1864. The following year he made a 

 voyage of exploration on the Royal ship Magenta. In 

 1869 he was called to the University of Florence, where 

 he was made extraordinary professor in 1871, and ordinary 

 professor three years later. In 1896 he founded the collec- 

 tion of the Italian vertebrates, and later he published his 

 " Avifauna italica," which reached its second edition in 

 the year 1906. On December 20 Prof. Giglioli would have 

 celebrated his fortieth year of teaching ; and his death a few 

 days before this proposed celebration has deprived his 

 colleagues, friends, and pupils of the anticipated pleasure 

 of offering him their congratulations upon his work. By 

 the death of Prof. Giglioli one of the leaders of zoology, 

 ornithology, and anthropology in Italy has passed into 

 silence. 



Mr. Otto Beit has made a munificent gift of 215,000?. 

 for the foundation and endowment of medical research 

 scholarships as a memorial to his brother, the late Mr. 

 Alfred Beit. It may be remembered that some time ago 

 Mr. Alfred Beit provided by his will the sum of 50,000?. 

 toward the establishment of an institute of medical 

 sciences. Owing to various circumstances the proposed 

 formation of this institute was abandoned, and the moneys 

 subscribed were returned to the donors or their executors. 

 Mr. Otto Beit has now increased the sum thus received 

 by him as his brother's residuary legatee to 215,000/., 

 which will yield by investment in trustee stocks an annual 

 income of about 7500?. In his letter to the Senate of the 

 University of London announcing this generous gift, Mr. 

 Beit asks that the fund shall be named " The Beit 

 Memorial Fellowships for Medical Research," and shall 

 be devoted entirely to the furthering of medical research 

 work in all its branches ; or, as the deed of foundation 

 states, " to promote the advancement by means of re- 

 search of medicine and the allied sciences in their relation 

 to medicine." Each fellowship is to be of the value of 

 250?. a year for three years, and " any man or woman 

 of European descent, graduate of any approved university 

 within the British Empire," will be eligible for election. 

 NO. 2095, VOL. 82] 



The fund will be administered by a board of trustees con- 

 sisting of Viscount Milner, Lord Curzon, Mr. R. B. 

 Haldane, the principal of the University of London {ex 

 officio), Mr. Otto Beit, Dr. J. K. Fowler, and Mr. B. F. 

 Hawksley. The advisory board must consist of not fewer 

 than five or more than seven men, all of whom must be 

 members of the medical profession. The first members 

 of the board are Sir T. Clifford AUbutt, K.C.B., F.R.S., 

 Prof. J. Rose Bradford, F.R.S., Dr. J. K. Fowler, Dr. 

 C. J. Martin, F.R.S., Prof. W. Osier, F.R.S., and Prof. 

 E. H. Starling, F.R.S. The first election to the fellow- 

 ships will take place on or before March i, 1910, and on 

 or about January i of each subsequent year. Except in 

 special cases, the fellows may undertake research only at 

 recognised places In London, so that the work to be pro- 

 moted by the benefaction will be mainly carried out in 

 institutions connected with the University of London. 



When Dr. F. A. Cook returned from north polar regions 

 four months ago and announced that he reached the North 

 Pole on April 21, 1908, we expressed the hope that the 

 observations of position and narrative of the journey would 

 be published at an early date, so that the value of the 

 claim could be decided definitely. In the absence of 

 documentary evidence of this kind, the explorer's state- 

 ments had to be accepted provisionally, but judgment upon 

 them was reserved. At last the material upon which the 

 claim to have reached the North Pole is based has been 

 submitted to a committee of Copenhagen University 

 appointed to investigate the records of Dr. Cool-c's journey. 

 The conclusion arrived at by the committee is that the 

 documents are altogether insufficient to prove the attain- 

 ment of the highest northern latitude. A Reuter message 

 fiom Copenhagen on December 21 states that the papers 

 submitted to the committee for investigation were : — 

 (i) A type-written report by Mr. Lonsdale on Dr. Cook's 

 Aictic voyage, consisting of sixty-one folios. (2) A type- 

 written copy of sixteen folios, made by Mr. Lonsdale, com- 

 prising the note-books brought back by Dr. Cook from 

 his journey, and covering the period from March 18 to 

 June 13, 1908, stated to have been written on the way from 

 Svartevaag to the Pole and back until a place west of 

 Heibergsland was reached. The committee points out, as 

 a result of its investigations, that the afore-mentioned re- 

 port of the journey is essentially identical with that pub- 

 lished some time ago in the New York Herald, and that 

 the copy of the note-books did not contain astronomical 

 records, but only results. In fact, the committee remarks 

 that there are no elucidatory statements which might have 

 rendered it probable that astronomical observations were 

 really taken. Neither is the practical side, namely, the 

 sledge journey, illuminated by details in such a way as to 

 enable the committee to form an opinion. The committee 

 therefore considers that from the material submitted no 

 proof can be adduced that Dr. Cook reached the North 

 Pole. The council of the University accordingly declares 

 as a result of the committee's report that the documents 

 submitted to Copenhagen University contain no observa- 

 tions or explanations to prove that Dr. Cook on his last 

 polar journey reached the North Pole. 



The December number of the Entomologist's Monthly 

 Magazine contains announcements of several additions to 

 the British insect-fauna, among the most interesting of 

 which is the brachelytrous beetle Proteinus crenulatus, 

 obtained by Dr. D. Sharp at Netley Bridge in 1906, and 

 again in 1907. In Spry and Shuckard's " British Coleo- 

 ptera " three of the five European species are recorded as 

 British ; Dr. Sharp has been enabled to include the whole 

 five in our fauna. 



