196 



NA TURE 



[July 2, 1896 



to be found in works on this subject, because the time 

 and expense involved in visiting personally all the spas 

 of Europe is very great, and few physicians are able to 

 accomplish such a feat. 



Domestic Science Readers. By \'incent T. Murche. 



Book iii. Pp. 176. (London : Macmillan and Co., 



1896.) 

 In the subject of domestic economy, for Standard III., 

 the Education Department require knowledge of the 

 chief materials used in clothing and washing, e.g. silk, 

 linen, wool, cotton, fur, leather, and washing materials. 

 This book supplies that knowledge in a form attractive 

 to juvenile minds. The children who read the book will 

 acquire useful information in an easy manner. 



The Slnry of Electricity. By John Alunro. Pp. 194. 



(London : George Newnes, Ltd., 1896.) 

 A SIMPLE and accurate story, containing brief but clear 

 descriptions of the principles and applications of electrical 

 science. The book will educate the public in the know- 

 ledge of the great achievements of electricity, and will 

 create an interest in scientific things. 



LETTERS TO THE EDITOR. 

 [T/ie Editor lioes not hold liiiiisclf responsible for opinions e.x- 

 pressed by his correspondents Neither can he undertake 

 to return, or lo correspond with the writers of, rejected 

 manuscripts in/ended for this or any other part of NATURE. 

 No notice is taken of anonymous coininiinications.'\ 



Zoological Publications. 



When the rules for zoological nomenclature are next under 

 discussion, it might be advisable to include a clause relative to 

 the discretion of editors in dealing with authors' contributions 

 to scientific journals. 



My paper [fournal of the Linnean Society, xxv. p. 325), 

 before publication, was entitled " The Egg-case of Port Jackson 

 Sharks," and it was presumed that the Port Jackson sharks, 

 popularly so known, would be thereby understood. 



As the length of time occupied by postal transit to and from 

 London might unnecessarily delay publication, I did not ask 

 for a proof. On receiving my copy of the Jo2irnal, I found 

 that the title was altered to " On the Egg-cases of some Port 

 Jackson Sharks ; " thus the purport of the title was destroyed. 

 Perhaps this is a small matter. One affecting me more nearly 

 is the substitution of the name " Ccstracion " for Heterodontus, 

 which I used. 



Heterodontus may be right or it may be wrong ; but, as author 

 of the paper, having adopted that name, I submit that it should 

 have been retained. At the same time, there could be small 

 objection to an editorial foot-note. Edgar R. Waite. 



Australian Museum, Sydney, April 28. 



The appellation "Pott Jackson Shark" is customarily ap- 

 plied to Ccstracion Philippi. Macleay, as is well known, 

 doubted the justice of including in this species the Japanese 

 Heterodontus zebra (Gray) i and as Mr. Waite, admitting the 

 independence of the latter species, e.stends the vernacular 

 name to C. galcattis, the alteration in the title of his paper is 

 regretable, though not serious. It was made without my 

 sanction, and I am sorry to say that it escaped my notice in 

 the performance of my editorial duties. Had I detected it, I 

 should not have allowed it to pass. 



Concerning the substitution of Cestracion for Heterodontus, 

 I would point out that although the latter name has priority 

 by a year, no recent writers but Maclay and Macleay, so far as 

 I am aware, have allowed it to stand ; and that even were this 

 not so, Heterodontus (l8l6) on the strict rules of priority in 

 nomenclature is preoccupied by Heterodon, applied by Latreille 

 to a snake in 1800. 



When Mr. Waite's paper came before the Council of this 

 S ociety, the matter was carefully considered, and, in accordance 



NO. 1392, VOL. 54] 



with instructions, I wrote him to the above efl'ect, pointing out 

 that I should substitute Cestracion for Heterodontus unless I 

 heard from him to the contrary during the passage of his paper 

 through tlic press. My letter was written early in July 1895, 

 and the paper was published last ]''ebriiary, amjiie time being 

 thus allowed its author in which to reply. To this day no 

 reply has been received. G. B. Howes. 



Linnean .Society, London, June 19. 



The Salaries of Science Demonstrators. 



Wii.i. you allow me to protest in your columns against what 

 is nothing less than a public scandal, namely the advertisement 

 by a University College, in your last is.sue, for a Demonstrator 

 of Chemistry at a .salary of ;^70 per annum ? 



A science demonstrator at a University College is, or should 

 be, in .some sense " a scholar and a gentleman"; and how, I 

 ask, is a man of that type to support a decent existence on such 

 a .salary ? The effect of this policy of accepting the lowest 

 tender will l)e either to close such posts to those not possessed 

 of private means — a re.sult utterly at variance with the spirit of 

 the time, and destructive of true efficiency — or to fill them with 

 men of an inferior class, which would be no less harmful to 

 the quality of our scientific education. Have we not a right to 

 expect a more enlightened policy frtmi the governing bodies of 

 our Univer.sity Colleges ? Surely they must see that the haggling 

 of the market does not afford the best means of fixing a teacher's 

 reward. Even the general public cannot but recognise it to be 

 in its own interest, that those who are chosen to educate its sons 

 should be men of as deep knowledge and as wide culture as 

 possible. And what width of culture and depth of knowledge 

 can be attained on f^^o a year, with the day fully occupied 

 in the routine work of teaching, the general public itself 

 can judge. Demonstrators of chemistry have, too, I think, 

 peculiar cause for complaint ; as a rule their duties are heavier 

 than those of other science demonstrators, whilst their salary 

 is the same. 



In these days, even the miner has his minimum wage : 

 cannot one be fixed for science demonstrators ? It .should 

 not be less than ;^I50, I think ; certainly anything under ;^loo 

 is scandalous, even in the present state of public opinion. 



Charles Frederic Baker. 



Halley's Chart of Magnetic Declinations. 



Within the last few days I have come into possession of 

 another early map showing Halley's lines. The date of this 

 map is 1725, and it was published by John Senex, F.R.S. It 

 is entitled " -\ Map of the World, corrected from ihe Observa- 

 tions communicated to the Royal Societys of London and 

 Paris." The map consists of the two hemispheres, each of 

 which is 21 inches in diameter. Around the margin in small 

 print is Sir Isaac Newton's "Theory of the Tides," and "An 

 attempt to Assigne the Physical Cause of the Trade Winds and 

 Monsoons, by Dr. Ed. Halley." The map is particularly 

 interesting, as it was evidently intended to give a full account of 

 the winds, the directions of which in the trade winds and 

 monsoons are indicated by arrows. Another interesting note in 

 the margin is " Of the quantity of Vapour exhaled from the 

 Sea, of its Circulation, and of the Cause of Springs," " Ex- 

 tracted from a Discourse published in the Philosoph Transact., 

 No. 189, 192. Writ by Dr. Ed. Halley.'' What makes themap 

 so interesting is the notes printed upon it referring to the mag- 

 netic declinations. The lines of magnetic variation for every 

 5" east and west of the line of no variation, are given in the 

 Atlantic and Indian Oceans, but not in the Pacific. 



The line of no variation is described as " The line of no 

 variation in the year 1700." The following note is printed upon 

 the Atlantic Ocean between the Azores and Cape Verd Isles. 

 "These curve lines W^l" express y'= variation of Y magnetical 

 needle ware ol^served by D' Edmond Halley for y" year 1700, 

 but it must be noted that there is a perpetual tho' slow change 

 in the variation almost everywhere (viz.) about C. Bona Esper- 

 anza y= W. variation increases about a Deg. in 9 years, irr our 

 Channel a Deg. in 7 years, on y" C.uinea Coast a Degree in 1 1 

 or 12 years, on y^ American side y"^ W. variation alters but 

 little : and y° East variation on y'' S. America decreases 

 y^ more Southerly y*^ faster ; y« L. of no variation moving 



