254 



NA TURE 



\yan. 29, 1874 



Carpenter, F.R.S., refuting the old theories of the non-exist- 

 ence of animal life at great depths, and bringing to light 

 (with others) animals such as Pcntacriiius ',i'yvtllc-thomsoni 

 and Bat/iyctinus gracilis, pedunculate star-fishes allied to the 

 Comaticia, from 2,435 fathoms, whose very existence was unsus- 

 pected, and who were supposed " in the lapse of ages to have 

 been worsted in the struggle for life." And following these in- 

 vestigations came the exploring expedition of II. M.S. Challenger, 

 the most important mission of its kind that Great Britain had 

 ever engaged in, from whence we now and then got stray tidings 

 of yet more remarkable animals, — animals of comparatively 

 high organisation, allied to the lobster, dredged up from 2,000 

 fathoms : in one individual, a gigantic amphijiodal crustacean, 

 " the eyes of the creature extended in two great facettic lobes over 

 the whole of the anterior part of the cephalo-thorax, like the eyes 

 ^^A'«rt among Trilobites " (NATURE, vol. viL p. 3S8). In another, 

 Deidamia leplodaclyle, there were no traces whatever of eye? of 

 sight or their pedicels (Nature, vol. viii. p. 52). Further, from 

 the enormous depth of 3,000 fathoms, or nearly 3,^ statute miles, 

 "a depth which does not appear to be greatly exceeded in any 

 part of the ocean," have been taken a tube-building annelid, its 

 tube formed of the gritty matter which occurs but sparingly in 

 the clay at the bottom, affording, in fact, as Prof. Wyville 

 Thomson remarks, "' conclusive proof that the conditions of the 

 bottom of the sea to all depths are not only such as to admit of 

 the existence of animal life, but are such as to allow of the un- 

 limited extension of the distribution of animals high in the 

 zoological series, and closely in relation with the characteristic 

 faunne of shallower zones (Nature, vol. viii. p. 53). 



Contemporaneously with these expeditions and what would 

 appear to be not an inappropriate sequitur, marine aquaria of ex- 

 tensive size, and constructed on scientific principles, had been 

 established in some of our principal towns, thus affording a new 

 source of enjoyment and an intellectual giatification to the 

 people— that of the examination of living marine animals as they 

 exist " in the depths of the sea " — and combining with this in 

 some instances a source of pecuniary benefit to the promoters. 

 The public interest in these establishments seemed so great that 

 the arrival of the octopus had attracted almost as much attention 

 as the visit of a foreign emperor, and the death of the porpoise 

 was mourned as a national calamity. 



In conclusion the president said he hoped he had said some- 

 thing suggested by the recent marine excursion to interest the 

 members in marine zoology. For his own part he could say that 

 the little attention he had been able to devote to it had been a 

 most acceptable relief to official duties (as Treasurer of the 

 Borough), always laborious and responsible, and at the same time 

 it had brought him in contact with fellow-workers in natural his- 

 tory from whose friendship and kindly intercourse he had derived 

 the most lasting pleasure. 



Mr. Hughes ventured to express his opinion that a Marine 

 Aquarium, if constructed properly and managed efficiently — for 

 instance like that beautiful one at the Crystal Palace under the 

 direction of his friend, Mr. W. Alford Lloyd, who had done 

 more for the advancement of public aquaria than any man living — 

 would be most acceptable to Birmingham, wliere the great 

 Priestley carried on his scientific researches, and in 1 773 obtained 

 the Copley medal of the Royal Society for the discovery of the 

 mutual dependence of plants and animals on each other — the 

 grand principle of all aquaria. It occu-.red to him after 

 much thought, and as a successful student of marine 

 aquaria for many years, that no greater attraction or means 

 ot intellectual recreation for the working classes and their 

 neighbours in the mining districts could be devised, because it 

 would be so utterly different from any other exhibition now 

 existing, and so suitable as a reliet and mental refreshment for 

 those in crowded courts to whom the sea was but a name. It 

 was indisputable that "the sea and its living wonders" 

 had irresistible fascination to us far away from it. The 

 peculiar central inland position ot Birmingham would be highly 

 advantageous by allowing ready and rapid modes of conveyance 

 of rare animals from almost any part of the coast. He com- 

 mended the project to the earnest consideration of the many 

 wealthy and intellectual men in the town, and could not 

 help believiirg and hoping — although his views as a naturalist 

 might be sanguine — that Birmingham would sooner or later 

 possess a marine aquarium worthy of it, and follow the example 

 of London, Brighton, Liverpool, Manchester, Plymouth, and 

 other large towns, which, besides others on the Continent, h»d 

 already taken the matter up. 



We understand that Mr. Hughes' suggestion has been acted 

 upon, and that an influential committee has since been appointed 

 to make inquiries with the view to the promotion of an efficient 

 marine aquarium for Birmingham. 



SCIENTIFIC SERIALS 



Astronomische Nachrichteii, No. 1,969, Jan. 9.-^ This 

 number contains a paper by Prof. Spoerer on M. Faye's theory 

 of solar spots. He refers to M. Faye's statement that spots 

 are below the surface of the sun, and to his reliance on his treat- 

 ment of Carrington's observations ; for if a spot be observed for 

 two or more revolutions its distance from the liinb can be calcu- 

 lated on the assumption that the spot is on the surface of the 

 sun. Should, however, the observed plan of the spot not agree 

 with the calculated position, the assumption will be that the spot 

 is below or above the vurface of the sun. Prof. .Spoerer informs 

 us that, on the whole, his observations show that the observed 

 distance from the limb of the sun are too great ; this he ascribes 

 to the effect of refraction altering the position of the sun's limb 

 to a greater degree than that of the spot. — On the identity of 

 Coggia's Comet of Nov. 10, with Comet 1818 I. by Prof. Weiss. 

 In this paper the author gives the elements of Coggia's comet as 

 lately (Jelerrained, together with the recorded observations of 

 Comet iSiS I. from which he considers the two comets to be 

 identical. — In a second paper by Prof. Weiss he gives elements 

 calculated on a parabolic orbit and on two elliptic orbits of 55'82 

 and 6'g775 years respectively, being on the assumption in the 

 first case thai one revolution has happened since 1818, and in . 

 the other that eight have taken place. — Observations on variable 

 stars, by G. T. G. .Schmidt, p'rom observations up to the end 

 of 1873, given at length in his paper, we extract the epochs of 

 maxima and minima of the followi\ig stars : — 



Mira Ceti about May 25 



30'S. 1873. mag. 9-5 



May 13 



Period, 363 days. 



— Ptriod 4047 days. 



R.Scuti ... U"^^.'',. AT''' 



) Sept. 20 Oct. 13 

 ( Nov. 4 — 



Wilhelm Schur gives an opposition epkemeris for Arethusa. 

 The opposition happening Jan. 21, the R. A. being then 

 8 . 2 . 52.78 and Dec. + 4 . i . 54 



The fourth line of the spectrum of the nebula in Orion, by 

 D'Arrest. The author refers to a note on this line by Di. Vogel 

 in Astron. Nach., No. 1963, mentioning the fact that the fourth 

 line of the nebula coincided with H7, and goes on to mention 

 that this lire was known to Huggins in 1S64, and by Capt, 

 Ilerschell in 1S68, and was brought to the notice of the Royal 

 .Society in 1872 by Iluggins. Its wave-length he gives as 4343. 

 The author also mentions a peculiarity in the spectrum of 

 B. Durchm -f 22° 4203. — Mr. J. Birmingham states in a note 

 that he believes that 252 Schjellciup has disappeared, and he 

 thinks this star a remarkable variable. 



Medizinische Jahrbiichcr : k.k. Gesellsch. d. Aerzte : Vienna, 

 1873, Heft 3 and 4. — The last two issues of this quarterly journal 

 for 1S73 contain the following papers of scientific interest: — 

 Researches into the minute structure of the Tendon, by Arnold 

 Spina, with an illustration ; the Nerves of the Knee-joint in the 

 Rabbit, by Dr. C. Nicoladoni (with a figure) ; contributions to 

 the Anatomy of the Human BUidder, by Dr. Gustav Jurie ; 

 (Quarantine in Cholera, a report to the International Medical 

 Congress, by Dr. Oser. 



SOCIETIES AND ACADEMIES 



London 



Zoological Society, Jan. 20.— Prof. Newton, F.R.S., vice- 



president, In the chair.— Mr. Sclatcr exhibited two .skulls of 



Baird's Tapir {Tapirus ijairdi) rtceived from Mr. Constantine 



