NATURE 



{_Nov. 4, iSSo 



spondence " we find letters by Adm. R. C. Mayne on a possible 

 communication between Skyiing Water, Straits of Magellan, 

 and Smyth's Channel, and by Capt. Alexanderson on the subject 

 of some observations made during a recent voyage along the 

 Loango Coast of West Africa. The maps given this month are 

 of King William Land and the Estancia de San Jorge, Uruguay, 

 with almall inset map of the whole republic. 



As we announced last week, the Vienna Geographical Society 

 has issued an appeal for subscriptions for an Austrian expedition, 

 which Dr. Emil Holub has decided on undertaking. Dr. Holub 

 intends crossing the whole length of Africa from south to north. 

 Pie will start from the Cape of Good Hope and penetrate to 

 the Zambesi, thence explore the Maruthemambunda territory, 

 the watershed district between the Zambesi and the Congo, visit 

 the lake sources of the Congo, and from there through Darfur 

 he will try to reach Egypt. Dr. Holub expects the journey to 

 extend over three years. The expenses, he reckons, will amount 

 to about 50,000 florins, 5000 of which lie can himself supply. 



Lord Aberdare will preside at the first meeting of the 

 Geographical Society next Monday evening, when Mr. Jos. 

 Thomson, the Commander of the East African Expedition, who 

 has lately returned from Zanzibar, will give an account of his 

 journey to the Lukuga outlet of Lake Tanganyika, via the head 

 of Luke Nyassa. Mr. Thomson's paper promises to be unusually 

 interesting, as the coimtry traversed by him was for the most part 

 previously unexplored. 



Another African traveller, Mr. James Stewart, C.E., has 

 just returned to England from Livingstonia, Lake Nyassa. Mr. 

 Stewart, it will be remembered, also crossed the unknown belt 

 of country between Lakes Nyassa and Tanganyika by a different 

 route, for the most part, from Mr. Thomson's, and arrived at the 

 south end of the latter lake only a day or two after him. 



In the November number of their ChronicU the London Mis- 

 sionary'Society publish a full account of Dr. Southon's interview 

 with Mirambo on the subject of the murder of Messrs. Carter and 

 Cadenhead, and the main facts elicited by him appear to exone- 

 rate that chief from any direct share in the unfortunate occur- 

 rence. Mohammed, Capt. Carter's servant, succeeded in saving 

 the journals of both Carter and Cadenhead, and all the most 

 important manuscripts and letters of the former. 



The Baptist Missionary Society hope to pubUsh in the 

 December number of their I/irald an admirable map which 

 they have just received from the Rev. T. J. Comber of their 

 Congo Mission, who has been for some time stationed at San 

 Salvador. It is stated to be very carefully drawn to scale, and to 

 exhibit the many and important discoveries made by the mission- 

 aries in their various journeys towards Stanley Pool ; it will also 

 show the relative positions of the various towns to Banana, 

 Mboma, San Salvador, Makuta, and other important centres. 



The new Bulletin of the Antwerp Geographical Society con- 

 tains papers by M. Bernardin on the Fiji Islands, their resources, 

 progress, cSfcc, and by Dr. L. Delgeur, vice-president of the 

 Society, on cartography among the ancients. 



We have received from Danzig an excellent little guide-book 

 to that city, with special reference to the scientific and medicinal 

 points of interest of the town and district, compiled from the 

 recent meeting of the German Association. It is a model of its 

 kind, and contains an admirable series of special maps. 



Doctors Rohlfs and SXECKERhaveleft Suez for Massowah 

 and Abyssinia. 



In the A^orth American Review are appearing M. Desire 

 Charnay's notes of his exploring work in Mexico. The 

 November number contains the third instalment. 



KEVV GARDENS REPORT 



pROM the just-issued " Report on the Progress and Condition 

 ■*• of the Royal Gardens at Kew " for 1879 we take the 

 following items : — 



Some idea of the magnitude of the destruction caused by the 

 hailstorm of August 3, 1879, may be obtained from the fact that 

 the number of panes broken was 38,649, and the weight of 

 broken glass eighteen tons. The plantations along the Grass 

 Avenue skirting the river have all been greatly improved, very 

 poor specimens removed and replaced by Holm oaks, which will 



eventually render the avenue practically an evergreen one. This 

 portion of the grounds suffers greatly from the unconsumed 

 smoke of the gas-works and manufactories at Brentford, which 

 is not only most prejudicial to the plants, but so blackens the 

 labels that they become illegible m a few years. Some interest- 

 ing notes are given on the cultivation of the various kinds of 

 india-rubber. According to Hecht, Levis, and Kahn's Report 

 for 1S79, Para rubber (/fc'ra) is still the large-.t source of supply. 

 The total import into England during the year was 4651 tons. 

 Liverpool received 25 tons of Ceara Scrap rubber and 900 tons 

 of African {Landolphia), while London imported 350 tons from 

 Assam {Fiais elastica), 250 tons from Borneo (Willughbeia), and 

 550 from Mozambique {Landolphia). Considerable attention 

 has been paid at Kew during the past ) ear to the examination of 

 the African Landolphias and Malayan rubber-yielding Willugh- 

 beias, and the results will be given in the next report. Addi- 

 tional facts to those contained in the previous Report are given 

 on the introduction of South American species into the Old 

 World. From Singapore Mr. Murton reports: — " The plants 

 of Hevea and Castilloa in the gardens are now large plants, 

 but hitherto propagation from the strong growths they are 

 making seems rather difficult, whereas they tised to propa- 

 gate freely from the weak w-ood produced while in pots.' 

 Preparations are being made in Burma; for the cultivation of 

 Ceara Scrap (Manihot glaziovii), while Dr. King reports that the 

 Ceara rubber promises to grow well in Calcutta ; seeds have 

 been distributed to various parts of India, and the plant seems to 

 thrive well in Upper India. Singapore does not seem to suit 

 Ceara Scrap, according to Mr. Murton, while at Zanzibar it 

 yields seed most abundantly, but the seeds are slow to germinate. 

 At Zanzibar the Para rubber is a le^s quick grower than the 

 Ceara and does not branch. At Mergui eight Para trees, the 

 survivors of a batch of seedlings received from Dr. King in 1S77, 

 continue to do well in the office compound. At Calcutta, 

 according to Dr. King, Para rubber continues to be as disap- 

 pointing as ever ; he believes it is useless to try it anywhere 

 except in the south of Burma or the Andamans, and perhaps in 

 Malabar. Mr. Jenman reports that the atmospheric conditions 

 in Jamaica appear favourably adapted to the Para rubber. 

 Equally important information is given as to the cultivation of 

 mahogany in the Old World. On this the Report says : "This may 

 now be regarded as an accepted success. The tree grows well in 

 many parts of India and in Ceylon, and in the former there is a 

 local demand for the wood. In this country new uses are found for 

 it, one of the most recent being for the linings and panellings of 

 railway carriages instead of teak, which is now exclusively used 

 for ship-building. It is not easy to see any valid arguments 

 against the cultivation of a tree the timber of which is of admitted 

 excellence for a variety of purposes and the growth of which is 

 apparently attended with little difficulty. As late as 1876 the 

 Government of Bengal was adverse to mahogany planting. This 

 policy has now, however, been modified, and in his report for 

 1S78-79 Dr. Brandis, the Inspector-General of Forests, reports : 

 ' Of the exotic trees which are cultivated by way of experiment 

 mahogany is the most important, and its success seems not im- 

 probable, though it is too early yet to form final conclusions upon 

 the subject.' Maliogany is also cultivated as an experiment in 

 Burma and the Chitt.agong dibtrict of Bengal. The tree is known 

 to thrive well near Calcutta, and every effort should be made to 

 cultivate it in those forest districts where climate and other cir- 

 cumstances are favourable." Experiments are beini; made in 

 Queen-land, and favourable reports come from Saharunpore 

 and .Singapore. Some curious notes are contained in the Report 

 on Che-tnut Flour : " We are indebted to Mr. D. E. Colnaghi, 

 H.B. M.'s Consul at Florence, for specimens of the dried chest- 

 nuts, flours, and necci (the cakes made from them), which are so 

 im|jortant an article of subsistence in the Apennines. The col- 

 lection of the specimens for Kew was due to the kindness of Dr. 

 L. Bacci of Castigliano, in the mountains of Pistoja. The fresh 

 chestnuts are dried, or rather roasted, for three days and iiights 

 in a scccatoio, or drying room, on a latticed floor covering a 

 chamber in which a fire is lighted. The husk is then easily re- 

 movable, and the kernel is ready to be ground into flour, wliich 

 is of a pinkish colour. This is mixed to the consistence of cream 

 with \\ ater, and poured on fresh chestnut leaves to be baked into 

 small circular cakes, nccci, between heated stones. The collec- 

 tion having been divided between the museum of the Royal 

 Gardens and the Food Collection, Bethnal Green, Prof. Church, 

 who has charge of the latter, has obligingly_/urnished us with 

 the following analysis of the flour : — 



