May 



1905J 



NATURE 



89 



Messrs. Crosbv Lockvvood and Son will publish shortly 

 a work on " Modern Lightning Conductors," by Mr. Kil- 

 lingworth Hedges, honorary secretary of the Lightning 

 Research Committee. • 



.\n appendix to Mr. R. L. Taylor's " Student's 

 Chemistry " has been published by Mr. John Heywood. 

 It consists of two sections; the first part deals with the 

 radio-active elements, and the second is an introduction to 

 the study of organic chemistry. 



We have received from the Art. Institut Orell Fiissli, of 

 Zurich, Nos. 177, 178, and 170 of their " Illustrated 

 Europe " series of handbooks. The three parts are bound 

 together in a convenient little volume with the title 

 " Orisons Oberland." The guide book is by Dr. Chr. 

 Tarnuzzer, and a historical sketch has been contributed 

 by Prof. J. C. Muoth. The translation into English was 

 done by Dr. and Mrs. Spondly-Blakiston. Visitors to this 

 interesting part of Switzerland will find interesting scien- 

 tific, historical, and topographical information in this 

 guide book. The book may be obtained in this country 

 from Messrs. Hachette and Co. 



Messrs. Oliver and Boyd have published the ninth 

 volume of the " Reports from the Laboratory of the Royal 

 College of Physicians, Edinburgh." The volume is edited 

 by Sir J. B. Tuke and Dr. Noel Paton. The papers in- 

 cluded fall under two categories ; the first comprises four- 

 teen papers describing researches on the ductless glands 

 under the Mason fund, and the second consists of general 

 researches in physiology, pathology, and pharmacology. 



We have received from Mr. John Grant, of Edinburgh, 

 a catalogue of scientific books, chiefly on botany, zoology, 

 and geology, and a catalogue of recent purchases — including 

 some well known works of science — all of which are offered 

 at greatly reduced prices. 



Mr. W. Butler, Southport, has devised a new type of 

 camera stand — called the Swingcam — to facilitate the 

 photography of natural history subjects. The stand 

 enables a photographer to point the lens of a camera at 

 any angle and fix it in that position, without the use of 

 a swinging back or front or any other independent attach- 

 ment. The Swingcam tripod head can be fixed in a hori- 

 zontal or vertical position, or at any angle, and is also 

 capable of being inverted if desired. Naturalists and 

 others who occasionally have to use cameras in awkward 

 positions will no doubt find these devices a convenience. 



New editions of two standard works already reviewed 

 in these columns have just been received from Mr. Gustav 

 Fischer, Jena. One is the seventh edition of the " Lehr- 

 buch der Botanik " by Profs. Strasburger, Noll, Schenck 

 and Karsten, and the other is the seventh edition of Dr. 

 R. Hertwig's " Lehrbuch der Zoologie." Both works have 

 been revised, so that they will maintain their high position 

 among text-books of science. 



We have received from Messrs. Henry Sotheran and 

 Co., 140 Strand, W.C., a copy of their latest catalogue 

 of second-hand books, including numerous scientific works ; 

 and from Messrs. John Whcldon and Co., 30 Great Queen 

 Street, W.C., a catalogue of a miscellaneous collection of 

 books, comprising many dealing with biology, geology, 

 and mathematics. 



Messrs. Dawbarn and Ward, Ltd., have published a 

 second revised edition of " Photographic Failures : Pre- 

 vention and Cure," by " Scrutator " of the Photogram. 



NO. 1856, VOL. 72] 



OUR ASTRONOMICAL COLUMN. 



Newly Discovered Nebul.^. — In No. 4013 of the 

 Astronomische Nachrichtcn Prof. Max Wolf announces the 

 discovery of a small, but beautiful, nebula the position 

 of which, referred to the equator of igoo-o, is as follows : — 

 o=i3h. s8m. 33-445., S=-9° 39' 36". This object was 

 discovered on a plate exposed during a search for minor 

 planet (126), Velleda, and is of a spiral form, of the un- 

 usual S-shaped variety, the nucleus being of the fourteenth 

 magnitude. Its diameter in R.A. is about o'-75, and in 

 dec. about I'-o. 



A second nebula of especial interest was found in the 

 position (igooo) R.A. = i3h. 58m. 1517s., 8= -9° 40' 10". 

 This object is i' in length along its major axis, which has 

 a position angle of about 120°, and is of the Andromeda 

 nebula form. 



The Bruce TELEScorE Reference Photographs. — When 

 the 24-inch Bruce telescope of the Harvard College Observ- 

 atory was being planned it was expected that the instru- 

 ment might be useful in assisting in the discoveries of 

 new satellites, and this expectation was realised in the 

 discovery of Phoebe. A number of plates of each planet 

 have been taken since 1893, and of these Prof. Pickering 

 now gives the details as to object photographed, exposure, 

 date and region, in Circular No. 97 of the Harvard College 

 Observatory, hoping that the knowledge of their existence 

 may assist other observers of possible satellites. The list 

 includes 12 plates exposed for Mercury, 2 for Mars, 6 for 

 Vesta, 21 for Jupiter, 12 for Uranus, and 3 for Neptune. 

 The Saturn plates were fully described when the manner of 

 the discovery of Phoebe was related in a former publication. 

 The limiting magnitude of the objects shown on these plates 

 may be taken as 17-0 or 175, and therefore the photo- 

 graphs may prove useful in the correction of the elements 

 of Jupiter's newly discovered satellites when more is 

 known of the positions of these tw-o objects. 



Comet 1904 II. (1904 d). — A continuation of the 

 ephemeris for comet 1904 d is given in No. 4012 of the 

 Astronomische Nachrichten by Herr M. Ebell. 



This comet is now only about one-sixth as bright as 

 when discovered, and is gradually becoming fainter. Its 

 position on May 26, according to the epheineris, will be 

 a (true) = 2h. 23m. 48s., S (true) = -f64'' 50', which is 

 about 2° south of t Cassiopeiae, and the object is travelling 

 slowly towards the constellation Camelus with a very 

 slightly increasing declination. 



Twelve St.4rs with Variable Radial Velocities. — 

 Further results of the spectrographie work performed by 

 the D. O. Mills expedition from Lick Observatory to the 

 southern hemisphere are published in Bulletin No. 75 of 

 that observatory. 



Twelve stars have been found by Prof. Wright and Dr. 

 Palmer to be spectroscopic binaries, some of them, 

 mentioned below, having features of especial interest. 

 a PhoE-nicis has a period of about 190 days. The system 

 of d Eridani has been found to be very similar to that 

 of Mizar, the brightest component, 9,, having a composite 

 spectrum similar to that of the star named, o Puppis, 

 a Volantis, a Carinae, and ic and p Velorum are amongst 

 the other stars of which the radial velocities have been 

 found to be variable. 



Double " Canals " on Mars in 1903. — In Bulletin 

 No. 15 of the Lowell Observatory Mr. Lowell gives, and 

 discusses in detail, the results of his observations of the 

 Martian " canals " during 1903. Before proceeding to 

 the account of the actual observations, he comments on 

 the various theories which have been advanced in argu- 

 ment against the reality of the " doubling " phenomenon. 

 The " diplopic " or out-of-focus theory is refuted for five 

 reasons, the chief of which is that for any special epoch 

 the width of each individual double canal remains con- 

 stant. 



The " interference " theory is met by the statements 

 that in the case of these features there is no bright streak 

 such as would be necessary to produce the two dark 

 streaks to give the idea of a double canal, and that the 

 width of each double canal does not vary with the aper- 

 ture employed. Lastly, the " illusion," or, as Mr. 

 Lowell refers to it, the " Small Boy," theory is considered, 



