March 31, 1 881] 



NA TURE 



523 



cerdo Rayneii.— Yxoi. Ralph Tate, rectification of the nomen- 

 clature nf Purpura anomala, Angas. — E. Meyrick, descriptions 

 of Australian Micrulepidoptera ; parts 3 and 4, Tineina. — J. 

 Brazier, on a;^nevv variety of Bulimiis Calcdonicus. 



SOCIETIES AND ACADEMIES 



London 

 Chemical Society, March 17. — Prof. Roscoe, president, in 

 the chair.— The following papers were read :— On the volume 

 of mixed liquids, by F. D. Brown. The author has determined 

 with very great care the alteration in volume which lakes place 

 when various liquids are mixed. The liquids experimented with 

 were carbon disul|jhide and benzene, carbjn di-ulphide and car- 

 bon tetrachloride, carbon tetrachloride and benzene, dichlorethane 

 and lienzene, dibromethane and benzene, and carbon tetra- 

 chloride and toluene. The experiments were made at 20° C. 

 The author concludes that these changes of volume are depen- 

 dent on the chemical character of the molecules, and not on 

 such physical properties a^ vapour tension, molecular volume, 

 &c. — On the action of alcohol on mercuric nitrate, by R. 

 Cowper. When mercury is dissolved in twelve times its weight 

 of nitric acid (i'3), the solution allowed to stand until all nitrous 

 fumes have escaped, and twelve parts by weight of pure alcohol 

 added, a crystalline precipitate is formed, with or without heat- 

 ing, which the author has investigated ; it has the constitution 

 (CjHjHgaO.XNOs),; he has aUo prepared the hydrate and 

 oxalate of the dyad "radical (C.iH.HgjCj). — On boron hydride, 

 by F. Jones and R. L. Taylor. 5lagne-ium b^ride is first pre- 

 pared by heating a mixture of recently-ignited boric anhydride, 

 with tw-ice its weight of magnesium du^t, in a covered crucible. 

 On treating the magnesium boride with hydrochloric acid, boron 

 hydride is obtained, always however mixed with a large excess 

 of hydrogen. Its composition is probably BHj ; it resembles 

 in many of its properties arsine (AsHj) and stibine (SbH.,). — 

 On the action of aldehydes on phenanthraquinonq in presence 

 of ammonia, by F. R. Japp and E. Wilcock. — On the action of 

 benzoic acid on napihthaquinone, by F. R. Japp and N. II. J. 

 Miller. — Note on the appearance of nitrous acid during the 

 evaporation of water, by R. Warington. The author proves 

 that the nitrous acid is always derived from the atmosphere or 

 from the products of combustiDn from the source of heat u-ed 

 for evaporating ; he also gave some account of the m.arvell)usly 

 delicate test proposed by Griess for nitrous acid. The solution 

 is acidified, and some sulphanilic acid v\'ith some hydrochlorate 

 of naphthylamin added ; if nitrous acid be present, equal to one 

 part of nitrogen in 1000 millions of water ; a rose-red tint is 

 developed. — On the sweet principle of Smilax glycophylla, by 

 Dr. W right and Mr. Rennie. — Note on usnic acid and some 

 products of its deC' imposition, by the late J. Stenhouse and C. 

 E. Groves. — On the absorption of solar rays by atmospheric 

 ozone, and on the blue tint of the atmosphere, by W. N. 

 Hartley. The author concludes that the higher regions of the 

 atmosphere contain much more ozone than the layers near the 

 earth's surface, and that the blue tint of the atmosphere is 

 largely due to ozone. — On the nature of certain volatile products 

 contained in crude coal-tar benzenes, by Watson Smith. — On 

 New Zealand Kauri gum, by E. H. Rennie. On distillation 

 this gum yields a terpene, boiling at I57"'-I58°. 



Geological Society, March 9. — Robert Etheridge, F.R.S., 

 president, in the chair. — Robert Thompson Burnett, William 

 Erasmus Darwin, Charles James Fox, and the Rev. T. Granger 

 Hutt were elected Fellows of the Society. — The following com- 

 munications were read: — Descripition of parts of the skeleton 

 of an Anomodont reptile {Platypodosaitrus robustus, Ow. ) ; 

 Part II. The Pelvis, hy Prof. Owen, C.B., F.R.S. In this 

 paper the author described the remains of the pelvis of Plalypo- 

 dosariis robustus^ which have now been relieved from the matrix, 

 including the sacrum, the ri'^ht "os innominatum," and a great 

 part of the left ilium. There are five sacral verrehrre, which 

 the author believes to be the total number in Platypodosaitrus. 

 The n'^ural canal of the la-t lumbar vertebra is 8 lines in 

 diameter, and of the fir-t sacral 9 lines, diminishing to 6 lines 

 in the fifth, and indicating an expan-ion of the myelon in the 

 sacral region, which is in accordance with the great development 

 of the hind limbs. The sacral vertebrae increase in wirlth to the 

 third ; the fourth has the widest centrum. This coalescence of 

 the vertebra; justifies the consideration of the mass, as in Mam- 

 malia, as one bone or ** sacrum," which may be regarded as 

 approaching in shape that of the Megatherioid mammals. 



although including fewer vertebrae. Its length is 7| inches ; its 

 greatest breadth at the third vertebra, 5i inches. The ilium 

 forms the anterior and dorsal walls of the acetabulum, the pos- 

 terior and postero-ventral walls of which are formed by the 

 ischium and puViis. The diameter of its outlet is 3 inches, the 

 depth of the cavity i| inch ; at its bottom is a fossa i^ inch 

 broad. The foramen is subcircular, I inch in diameter. The 

 ventral wall of the pelvic outlet is chiefly formed by the pubis ; 

 it is a plate of bone 6 inches broad, concave externally, convex 

 towards the pelvic cavity. The subacetabular border is 7-8 hnes 

 thick ; it shows no indication of a pectineal proc-ss, or of a 

 prominence for the support of a mar.supial bone. The author 

 remarks that of all examples of pelvic structure in extinct Rep- 

 tilia this departs furthest from any modification known in exist- 

 ing types, and makes the nearest approach to the Mammalian 

 pelvis. This is shown especially by the number of sacral verte- 

 bra? and their breadth, by the breadth of the iliac boneS, and by 

 the extent of confluence of the expanded ischia and pubes.' — 

 On the order Theriodontia, with a description of a new genus 

 and species (^■Elui-o^auriis felinus, Ow. ), by Prof. Owen, C.B., 

 F.R.S. The new form of Theriodont reptile described by the 

 author in this paper under the name a{ .'Eliirosaui-us fehnus is 

 represented hy a skull with the lower jaw, obtained by Mr. 

 Thomas Bain from the Trias of Gough, in the Karoo district 

 of South Africa. The post-orbital part is broken a«ay. The 

 animal is mononarial ; the alveolar border of the upper jaw is 

 slightly sinuous, concave above the incisors, convex above the 

 canines and molars, and then straight to beneath the orbits. 

 The alveolar border of the mandible is concealed by the over- 

 lapping teeth of the upper jaw ; its symphysis is deep, slanting 

 backw ard, and destitute of any trace of suture ; the length of 

 the mandible is 3^ inches, which was probably the length of the 



skull. The incisors are 



5-5 



and the molars probably 



5-5 



5-5' ■ ■ S-S 



or , all more or less laniariform. The length of the ex- 



6-6 

 serted crown of the upper canine is 12 millims. ; the oot of the 

 left upper canine was found to be twice this length, extending 

 upwards and backwards, slightly expanded, and then a little 

 narrowed to the open end of the pulp-cavity. There is no 

 trace of a successional canine ; but the condition of the 

 pulp-cavity and petrified pulp would seem to indicate re- 

 newal of the working part of the canine by continuous 

 growth. The author infers that the animal was mono- 

 phvodont. AilurosaurHs was said to be most nearly 

 allied to Lycosaurus, but its inci-or formula is Dasyurine. 

 With regard to the characters of the Theriodontia the author 

 remarked that we may now add to those given in his " Catalogue 

 of South African Fossil Reptiles " that the humerus is perforated 

 by an enteiiicondylar foramen and the dentition monophyodont. 

 — Additional observations on the superficial geology of British 

 Columbia and its adjacent regions, by G. M. Dawson, D.Sc. 

 This paper is in continuation of two already published in the 

 Society's Journal (vol. xxxi. p. 603, and vol. xxxv. p. 89). In 

 subsequent examinations of the southern part of the interior of 

 British Columbia the author has been able to find traces of 

 glaciation in a noith to south direction as far as or even beyond 

 the 4gth parallel. Iron Mountain, for instance, 3500 feet above 

 the neighbouring valleys, 5280 feet above the sea, has its summit 

 strongly ice-worn in direction N. 29° W. to S. 29° E. Other 

 remarkable instances are given which can hardly be explained by 

 local glaciers ; boulder-clay is spread over the entire di-trict ; 

 terraces are cut in the rearranged material of this, bordering the 

 river-valleys, and at greater elevations expanding over the hii;her 

 parts of the plateau .and mountains. At Mount It-ga-chuz they 

 are 5270 feet above the sea. The author considers that the 

 higher terraces can only be explained by a general flooding of 

 the district. Some of the wide trough-like valleys of the plateau 

 contain a silty material which the author regards as a glacial 

 mud. North of the S4th parallel and west of the Rocky Moun- 

 tains similar evidence of glaciation is obtained ; erratics are 

 found in the Peace and Athabasca basins. The fjords of British 

 Columbia are extremely glaciated, the marls being generally in 

 conformity with the local features ; terraces are scarce and at low 

 levels. The Strait of Georgia was filled by a glacier which over- 

 rode the south-east part of Vanconver's Island ; evidence is given 

 to show that this ice came from the neighbonring mountainous 

 country. Queen Charlotte's Island shows evidence of local 

 glaciation. Boulder-clays and stratified drifts .are found, with 

 occasional Arctic shells. The author considers that the most 



