Mar. 19, 1874] 



NA TURE 



;89 



mass of bare rock, the summit of which is entirely devoid 

 of vegetation, and quite inaccessible. The cliffs are com- 

 posed of columnar basalt. At the eastern end of the 

 island are some sand rocks, like that of Bermuda, and 

 dunes of calcareous sand also occur. St. Michael's 

 • Mount is a cone 300 feet hi^fh, composed of a mass of 

 phonolith. The remaining islands are flat, composed of 

 sandstone, with volcanic particles. 



It was in the dry season, which extends from July to 

 December, that the Ckal/ciii^'t')- visited these islands ; this 

 season, however, is not one of absokite drought, parching 

 up everything, but there are occasional heavy rains. Trees 

 abound on the higher parts of the island, where the land 

 has not been cleared for cultivation, or where the convicts 

 have not felled them for making their fishing-boats or 

 rafts, the largest trees, it is said, having all disappeared 

 for this purpose. Numerous creepers cluster to- 

 gether in the branches of the trees. At the western 

 extremity of the island the vegetation is thickest 

 . and richest, and apparently of a virgin character. 

 Jatropha gossypifolia L., a large shrubb)' plant, 

 common in the West Indies, and also growing in 

 Bahia, Mexico, and New Granada, was very abundant ; 

 it was in full flower, but its only foliage were tufts of 

 young leaves just beneath the inflorescence, so that its 

 bare stems were conspicuous among the green creepers. 

 The plant was also found on St. Michael's Mount and 

 Rat Island. Another euphorbiaceous-looking plant, with 

 stout thorns, was found on the principal island, but not 

 on any of the others. A thorny acacia also grew on the 

 shore ; and climbing round almost eveiy tree was Abrtis 

 precatorius L., one of the commonest of tropical plants, 

 and so well known for its pretty brilliant scarlet and 

 black seeds, which are used everywhere for necklaces, 

 and other ornamental purposes, and in India as a 

 standard weight. This plant, however, grew only on the 

 main island. Ipomaa pcs-copra- Sw. is abundant on the 

 sand hills, and upon it and most of the other low-growing 

 plants, Ciiscuta aincricana L., spreads amazingly. A 

 species of Corns was abundant on the cliffs, but only 

 one grass {Oph'smcnus colonics H.B.) was found on the 

 main island. 



Trees, bushes, and creepers cover the upper part of St. 

 Michael's Mount, which is, to a certain extent, inacces- 

 sible, and, moreover, being so small, offers no room for 

 cultivation ; therefore there is no reason to suspect that 

 the plants found upon it are attributable to any other than 

 a natural origin. Capparis cynopliallophora L. grows in 

 abundance on the summit of the mount. It is a tree 

 with a stem S or 9 inches in diameter, and dark green 

 oval lanceolate leaves. A species of Ficus with aerial 

 roots grows in favourable spots, and there forms a tree 

 of considerable size ; one is mentioned as having a trunk 

 30 feet high, and iS inches in diameter. On Rat Island 

 the same species of Ficus was also found down near the 

 sea level, where, instead of forming a tree, it becomes a 

 low spreading bush, not more than 5 or 6 feet high. 

 From the natural exposure of this island to the full force 

 of the wind, all the plants growing here, which are mostly 

 leguminous and euphorbiaceous, mingled with cucurbi- 

 taceous creepers, are stunted in their growth. Although 

 shady moist places occur about .St. Michael's Mount, 

 neither on this nor on the main island were any ferns, 

 mosses, or hepaticiu found. Lichens also are very 

 scarce. 



Among the principal cultivated fruits are bananas and 

 melons, the latter being veiy plentiful, and of a peculiarly 

 fine flavour. Grapes grow well, but are not cultivated at 

 the present time. Sugar-cane, cassava, maize, sweet 

 potatoes, &c. are also grown in large quantities. 



Animal life is singularly scarce, two lizards being the 

 only animals recorded from Fernando Noronha, one of 

 which is peculiar to the island, the other being found 

 also in North America. 



NOTES 

 The" following intelligence with regard to the late Dr. 

 Livingstone, sent by Dr. Kirk, appears in the Times of 

 Tuesday: — "Lieut. Murphy, in a note addressed to me from 

 M'pwapwa, a place about ten days' journey from the coast, and 

 dated the 20th of January last, says that he was then accom- 

 panying the body, and expected to reach Bagamoio, a seaport, on 

 or about the I4lh ult. Capt. Sheffe, of the Austrian ship-of- 

 war Heligoland, had proceeded to the coast, and would at once 

 convey the body and Lieut. Murphy's party to Zanzibar on their 

 arrival. Lieut. Cameron had set out for Ujiji to recover papers 

 left there by Dr. Livingstone. Lieut. Murphy had been in com- 

 munication with him subsequent to the death of Dr. Dillon, 

 and was sorry to find that great difficulties impeded his onward 

 progress, owing to the antagonism of native chiefs and the 

 desertion of many of his followers on the road from Unyan- 

 yembe to Ujiji. Chuma, who for eight years accompanied the 

 Doctor in his wanderings, I learn had been into Zanzibar. He 

 seems to place the position of Dr. Livingstone's death at the 

 north of Lake Bangweolo, on or about the 4th of May, 1873. 

 He was probably on his way westward. A reply to the official 

 telegram, regarding the disposal of the body on arrival, was 

 anxiously ^expected. " 



We learn that Mrs. Arnott, the widow of the late Dr. Neil 

 Arnott, has written to Dr. Lyon Playfair, the member for the 

 University of Edinburgh, offering 1,000/. for the promotion of 

 Natural Philosophy in that University. 



The trustees of the late Dr. Andrew Bell, the founder of the 

 Madras School, St. Andrews, have placed at the disposal of the 

 Senatus of the University of St. Andrews, his native city, a 

 considerable sum towards the endowment of an Education Chair 

 during the present session. The Senatus has had under considera- 

 tion the subject of a teacher's degi'ee, and a programme relating to 

 its institution has been laid before the Education Department of 

 the Government. 



At a meeting of the Sedgwick Memorial Committee held at 

 Cambridge on the llthinst.. Prof. Humphry in the chair, it was 

 stated by the Treasurer that the subscriptions exceeded 10,000/., 

 and that more than 7,000/. had been paid into the account of the 

 fund at the several banks. The question of the site of the new 

 Geological Museum, which is to constitute the memorial, was 

 discussed, and the feeling of the committee was in favour of the 

 space in front of the New Museum and Pembroke Street. , ,-,,j 



The Italian Government has determined to send out four ex- 

 peditions for the observation of the Transit of Venus, the main 

 instrument of inquiry depended upon being the spectroscope. 

 On the other hand, for reasons not far to seek, no spectroscopes 

 are to be employed by the English parties. Truly " they manage 

 tliese things better in France," and not only in France, but in 

 America and Italy. 



To-NIGHT (Thursday) Mr. Dewar's lecture On Dissociation 

 will be given before the Chemical Society. 



At the annual meeting of the trustees of the Museum 01 

 Comparative Zoology, Cambridge, U.S., held in January, a com- 

 mittee reported that to carry out the plan inaugurated by Prof. 

 Agassiz, a considerably larger endowment will be necessary, and 

 that the funds now on hand are not sufficient to conduct opera- 

 tions on the present scale later than April i, after which, unless 

 an additional income of 15,000 dols. can be secured, it will be 

 necessary to greatly reduce the scale of work. 30,000 dols. per 

 annum is estimated as being the least sum on which the establish- 

 ment can be maintained on a satisfactory scale. Efforts aie now 

 being made lu secure an endowment of 300,000 dob., of which 

 about 65,000 had been contributed at a recent date. 



