May 2, 1907] 



NA TURE 



15 



Prof. J. E. Rice. Full particulars of the conference can 

 be obtained from the honorary secretary, Mr. Edward 

 Brown, 12 Hanover Square, W. 



The annual conversazione of the Selborne Society was 

 held in the theatre and halls of the Civil Service Com- 

 mission, Burlington Gardens, on Friday, April 26, and 

 between five hundred and si.x hundred guests were present. 

 Lord .-\vebury presided, and was supported by the Earl of 

 Stamford and the Hon. Walter Rothschild. During the 

 course of his presidential address, which dealt with the 

 study and appreciation of nature, Lord Avebury said : — 

 " To the wise and good, indeed. Nature is divine, but 

 to understand her we must love her, we must feel that we 

 are one with her. People often talk of the supernatural. 

 This is, no doubt, mainly a matter of definition. To me. 

 Nature is all-sufficient and all-covering. What they re- 

 gard as supernatural seems to me either natural or non- 

 existent. Whatever exists is part of Nature. It is not 

 that those who hold these views wish to lower the so- 

 called supernatural, but that those who hold the opposite 

 opinion seem to us to limit and lower Nature. Nature is 

 infinite. Every fresh discovery reveals new sources of 

 wonder ; every problem that is solved opens others. The 

 telescope and microscope create for us new worlds ; the 

 spectroscope has answered questions which Comte thought 

 were obviously beyond the range of human ken." During 

 the evening Mr. E. J. Bedford, one of the first to apply 

 photography to the study of birds, gave an illustrated 

 lecture on " Bird Architecture." Among the exhibits were 

 the original manuscript of Gilbert White's " Natural 

 History of Selborne," and the original letters of Mulso 

 to Gilbert White. 



To vol. Ixxxvi., part ii., of the Zeitschrift fiir wissen- 

 sckaftliche Zoologie, Mr. W. S. Marshall, of Madison, 

 Wisconsin, contributes an elaborate account of the develop- 

 ment and structure of the cellular elements of the ovary 

 in two species of insects, based on investigations recently 

 conducted by himself in Berlin. The wasp known as 

 Polistes pallipes forms the subject of the first paper, in 

 which, after reviewing previous work, the author discusses 

 the developmental history of the three types of cells — 

 oocytes, nurse-cells, and epithelial cells — throughout the 

 whole or the greater part of their e.xistence. In the second 

 paper, where Platyphylax designatus is the species dis- 

 cussed, the author opens up newer ground, since very 

 little is known as to the details of the developmental 

 history of the Phryganeidse. 



We have received three publications from the Bergen 

 Museum, the Aarsheretning for 1906, together with the 

 third part of the Aarhog for 1906 and the first part for 

 1907. From the first of these we learn that attention 

 continues to be directed to extending the educational value 

 of the museum, especially as regards the fauna of the 

 country, several new groups of Norwegian animals having 

 been added to the exhibited series. In the third part of 

 the Aarbog for 1906 Mr. J. A. Grieg continues his de- 

 scription of the echinodorms collected in the late cruise 

 of the Michael Sars, dealing in this instance with the 

 starfishes, while the bryozoans obtained on the same ex- 

 pedition form the subject of an article by Mr. O. 

 Nordgaard in the issue for the current year. The stone- 

 implements of western Norway are discussed by Dr. 

 A. W. Brogger in the last-named part. 



Prof. A. J. Ewart contributes to the Proceedings of 

 the Royal Society of Victoria, vol. xix., part ii., a list of 

 identifications of Australian plants, several of them being 



NO. 1957. VOL. 76] 



corrections of previously recorded names. A new genus 

 of the Composita;, Bellida, founded on a West Australian 

 species, is described and figured. Two new species, 

 Daviesia mesophylla and Eriostemon intermedius, are re- 

 corded, and the characters of Romulea cruciata, a native 

 Irid known as onion grass, allied to Romulea bulbocodium, 

 are noted. 



In Florida the growers of citrus fruits are troubled with 

 the whitefly, Aleyrodes citri. A Bulletin, No. 88, of the 

 Florida Agricultural Station, prepared by Dr. E. W. 

 Berger, deals with the methods of combating the pest. 

 Special value is attached to the efficacy of fungi parasitic 

 on the whitefly, of which a red fungus, Aschersonia 

 Aleyrodes, a yellow species of Aschersonia, and a brown 

 fungus are known. It is recommended to scatter spores 

 of the fungi by spraying, or to introduce cultures on 

 leaves or trees. 



As a consequence of the shortage in the Indian jute 

 supply, the Government of India delegated Mr. R. S. 

 Finlow, attached to the Agricultural Department as a jute 

 specialist, to ascertain whether new localities suitable as 

 to soil and climate could be discovered outside the ordinary 

 area of jute cultivation that lies along the lower courses 

 of the Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers. In Mr. Finlow's 

 report, issued as Bulletin No. 3 of the Agricultural Re- 

 search Institute, Pusa, it is stated that jute growing 

 promises to be successful in Bihar, where it will take to 

 some degree the place of indigo. With regard to districts 

 inspected in Madras, Bombay, and Central Provinces, the 

 pro.spects are less certain, and it will be necessary to await 

 the results of experimental cultivation. 



No branch of botany received more attention from Prof. 

 Errera and his pupils than the examination of organic 

 compounds in plants. The late professor was therefore 

 essentially qualified to prepare a practical course on the 

 microscopical identification of such compounds in plant 

 tissues. A small brochure, consisting of the notes on 

 this subject drafted by him for the benefit of students 

 taking botany for a doctorate in science at the University 

 of Brussels, has been published by Dr. J. Massart. Some 

 of the reactions are based on researches made in Brussels, 

 others are taken from the writings of Macallum, Gilson. 

 and Moll. 



A GENERAL revicw of the evolution of scientific methods 

 for improving the sugar-cane by hybridisation is presented 

 in the paper published in the West Indian Bulletin, vol. 

 vii.. No. 4, under the joint authorship of Sir Daniel 

 Morris and ' Mr. F. A. Stockdale. The possibility of 

 raising seedling canes was authenticated by Harrison and 

 Bovell in 18S8 ; this was shortly followed by the produc- 

 tion of numerous seedlings, some of which have proved 

 greatly superior to previously existing strains. Success 

 was thus obtained, but the results were quite fortuitous, 

 and the parentage of the seedlings could not be deter- 

 mined. Finally, the somewhat difficult task of removing 

 the anthers from young flowers and pollinating with pollen 

 from a known type was performed by Lewton-Brain in 

 1904. The paper also furnishes an indication of future 

 lines of work and a summary of results already obtained. 

 Coloured illustrations of six of the best known West 

 Indian varieties are given. 



Up to the present time no deposit of coal has been dis- 

 covered in the Sahara and in the whole of North Africa. 

 .\n attempt to ascertain whether coal really exists to the 

 south of Algeria has been made by Mr. E. F. Gautier, 



