176 



NA TURE 



{Jan. I, 1874 



surface of liquid within tlie tube sinks under tliat without, and 

 the depths to which it sinks in given times are as the fourth roots 

 of the times. — Dr. Peyritsch communicated a memoir on Laboul- 

 benia, describing a new species of the parasitic fungus, also the 

 mode of development. 



1. R. Geological Institute, Oct. 30, 1S73. — Prof Dr. A. 

 Alth sent the first part of a monograph on the palfeozoic rocks of 

 Fadolia and "its organic remains," which will be published in 

 the transactions of the Institute. This first part of Dr. Alth's 

 memoir contains the geological description of the oldest forma- 

 tions of Padolia which, covered by large masses of cretaceous 

 and tertiary deposits, and nearly horizontally stratified, appear 

 only in the deep creeks along the beds of the rivers. The lowest 

 rudimentary beds, resting immediately upon granite are sand- 

 stones which alternate with violet Argyle-slates, and are almost 

 deprived of fossils. They contain the linown concretionary globes 

 of phosphorite. The ne.xt layer consists out of bituminous lime- 

 stone with many fossils which belong to the \\'enlock series ; it 

 is covered by grey marly slates which contain Brachiopods and 

 Crinoids, and rarer Trilobites and Orthoceratites. The highest 

 Silurian beds are green or grey shists alternating with crystalline 

 limestones, which correspond to the Ludlow-series and contain, 

 besides other fossils, very interesting remains of fishes. The 

 Silurian strata are covered by red sandstone of Devonian age, 

 and these immediately by the cretaceous strata. Of the fossil 

 remains are described in the first part of the memoir, the fishes, 

 chiefly Cephalaspida; but partly also Placadermata (M. Cay) and 

 the Crustacea?, as Trilobites and Ostracada;. They are figured 

 on five plates. — Dr. O. Leny describes a fossiliferous bed belong- 

 ing to the upper Neocomian limestone (Spatangenkalk) near 

 Klein, in Vorarlberg. It consists chiefly of well-preserved 

 oyster-shells and contains, besides, many different forms of 

 Brachiopods, which certainly lived here in company with tlie 

 oysters. This observation furnishes a new proof tliat the ancient 

 Brachiopods were not confined to the deep sea like the modern 

 representatives of tliis class, but inhabited the shores, also, 

 together with the oysters ; analogous observations had been made 

 formerb l)y Th. Fuchs in the tertiary deposits of the Vienna 

 basin, auJ by Dr. Majsisovics in the Muschelkalk of the Rhae- 

 tic. — Dr. C. Doelter examined last summer the environs of the 

 Gurgl-valley in the Oetzthal Alps. He sends a notice about 

 the different crystalline rocks which form this region. 



GOTTINGEN 



Royal Society of Sciences, Sept. 3, 1S73. — Chemical papers 

 weie commmiicated, on a I ase from nitrobenzanilid (Hiibner and 

 Retscliy), on the xylidine from coal tar (Hiibner and Struck), 

 on the combination of nitrile with aldehydes (Hiibner and 

 Jacobsen). 



November 12. — Dr. Hermann Ethe made a lengthy commu- 

 nication on the oldest period in new Persian poetry, criticising 

 works of the poet Riidage, some of whose songs he translates. 



Boston, U.S. 



Natural History Society, Oct. 15, 1873. — Mr. S. H. Scudder 

 described some kittens which he had seen at Plymouth, N. H., 

 supposed to be a cross between the rabbit and the cat. The 

 animals had a short rabbit-like tail, long haunches, and the gait 

 of a raliljit, but in other respects were cat-like. Mr. Scudder 

 could not believe the possibility of a cross between animals so 

 far apart in the natural system, and asked for information from 

 those present. — Dr. T. M. Brewer read a paper on the specific 

 characters of the hermit thrushes, and also read extracts on their 

 habits from the forthcoming work on "Birds of North Ame- 

 rica," by Prof Baird, Mr. Ridgev\ay, and himself — Dr. T. 

 Sterry Hunt gave some account of the crystalline rocks of the 

 Blue Ridge and their decomposed condition, as seen by him at 

 various points in the region to the south-west of Lynchburg, 

 Va. They are principally gneisses with hornblendic and mica- 

 ceous schists, like those of the Montalban or While Mountain 

 series, and are completely decomposed to a depth of 50 ft. or 

 more from the surface, being changed into an unctuous reddish 

 t)rick-clay, in the midst of which the interbedded layers of quartz 

 are seen reraiuing iheir original positions, and showing the 

 highly-inclined attitude of the strata. The nature of these 

 chemical changes of the gneissic and hornblendic rocks con- 

 sisted essenlially in the removal, in the form of soluble carbo- 

 nates, of the alkalies, lime, and magnesia of the silicated mine- 



rals and the hydration of the residues. The great antiquity of 

 this chemical decomposition of the rocks was next alluded to. 

 It was, in his opinion, effected at a time when a highly carbo- 

 nated atnrosphere and a climate very different from our own 

 prevailed. 



Paris 

 Academy of Sciences, Dec. 22, 1873. — M. de Quatrefages, 

 president, in the chair. — The following papers were read ; — Note 

 on the report of the last meeting by M. Pasteur. The author called 

 attention to the tone of M. Trecul's paper, which he considered 

 was too personal ; helbriefly re-asserted his statements with 

 regard to the origin of Mycoderma, &c. — M. Trecul replied and 

 adduced in support of his own views as opposed to those of 

 M. Pasteur, the experiments of Wyman, H. HoU'man, and 

 Bastian. After a brief reply from M. Pasteur the subject was 

 dropped. — On loss of magnetism, byM. J. Jamin. The paper dealt 

 with the loss of increasing magnetism, as exhibited on cooling, 

 suffered by a steel bar subjected to increasing temperatures. — Re- 

 searches on the stability and reciprocal transformations of the 

 oxidised compounds of nitrogen, by M. Berthelot. — On the 

 results of the experiments made by the commission on vine sick- 

 ness of the department of Herault, by M. H. Mares. — On a 

 skeleton of PaUvtlicrium Magnum, found in the Vitry-sur-Seine 

 gypsum quarries.- On the ariliarnionic relation of four points of 

 a plane. — Note on magnetism (6th part), by J. M. Gaugain. — 

 On the phenomena of gaseous thermo-diffusion in leaves and on 

 the circulatory movements which result from the chlorophyllian 

 respiration, by M. A. Merget. — On the action of incandescent 

 bodies in the transmission of electricity, by M. E. Doaliot. — On 

 an eruption of mud from the volcano of Nisyros, by M. 

 Gorceix. — On the limit of the ice in the Arctic Ocean, by M. 

 Ch. Grad. — On the form of the Phylloxera, a comparative study 

 of the young, from leaves and branches, of hybernating and of 

 sexed insects, by M. Max-Cornu. — An essay on the geographical 

 distribution of the primitive populations of the departments of 

 the Seine-et-Marne and Moselle. — On bilinear polynomes, by 

 M. C. Jordan. — On the physical constitution of the sun, an 

 answer to M. Faye's criticisms, by M. E. Vicaire. — Note on a 

 process for the measurement of the relative intensity of the con- 

 stituent elements of different luminous sources, by M. H. Tran- 

 nin — On the chemical composition of certain vegetable paren- 

 chyma, by M. Maudet. — New researches on the preparation of 

 Kermes mineral, and on the action of alkaline carbonates and 

 alkaline earthy bases on sulphide of antimony, by M. A. 

 Terrell. 



CONTENTS Page 



The Yorkshire College of Science 157 



Refraction of Light Mechanically Illustr.'vted. By E. B. 



Tylor, F.R.S. (With Diagrams) 158 



The Freshwater Fish of India and Burmah. ByDr. A.Gunthek, 



F.R.S 159 



Kohleausch's " Physical Measurements" 160 



Our Booic Shelf 161 



Letters to the Editor : — 



Wasps.— The Earl of RosSE, F.R.S 161 



Ttie Potato Ilisease and Lord Cathcart's Prize. — \V. G. Smith, 



F.L S 161 



The Denudation of Limestone Hills of Sarawak.— A. H. Everett 162 



An Appeal to our Provincial Scientific Societies 162 



The Killing of Entomological Specimens.— W. M.Williams, F.C.S. 162 



Lecture E.\periments. — K. Clowes, B.Sc 162 



Mr. Garrod's Theory of Nerve-Force.— A. Chudleigh .... 163 



Genesis in Borneo.— A. Hall 163 



Indian Snakes. — E. H. Pringle 163 



Poey's Classification of Clouds 163 



Fertilisation of Flowers, V. By Dr. Hermann Muller {With 



Illustrations) 164 



Polarisation of Light, IL By W. Si'ottiswoode, Treas. R.S. 



(IVith Illustrations) 167 



Galileo's Work in Acoustics. By Sedlev T aylor 169 



The Hoosac Tunnel 170 



Notes . . . . ; 170 



Science in Konigsberg 172 



Wellington (N.Z.) Philosophical Society 173 



SclHNTlFic Serials 174 



Societies and Academies 175 



Erratum — Vol. ix. p. 124. 1st col. 1. 6, for*' South Villa," read" Campden 



Hill, Kensington." 



