JULV 16, 1896] 



NA TURE 



261 



and in all other facilities for mountaineering away from crowds 

 of tourists. "In fine," concludes Sir Martin Conway, "no 

 part of the Alps now forms a better training-ground for the 

 youthful would-be mountaineer, none a less vulgarised holiday 

 resort for the man of moderate physical capabilities, simple 

 tastes, or restricted means, than the region comprised in the 

 Austrian and Bavarian Tyrol." 



In Siribner there is also an article on scientific taxidermy, 

 under the title "A Lost Art," by Mr. J. Carter Beard. The 

 reform in taxidermic methods is said to have begun fifteen years 

 ago. As instances of .successful work are cited Mr. W. T. 

 Ilornaday's " Fight in the Tree-Tops," illustrating a charac- 

 teristic episode in the lives of orang-utans, whose habits he had 

 studied in their native forests, and whose .skins and skeletons 

 he had himself collected ; Mr. Hornaday's group of flamingoes, 

 and groups of bison, in the U.S. National Museum, and New 

 ^'ork Museum of Natural History ; a group of Rocky Mountain 

 goats, by Prof. L. L. Dyche ; a young camel, by Mr. Rowley, 

 in the latter Museum, and the rehabilitation of " Chico," a 

 large ape, done for the same museum by the same taxidermist. 

 Nothing is said of any of the specimens in our own Natural 

 History Museum. 



The Geographical Journal caxA&ms the address delivered by Sir 

 Clements Markham at the recent anniver.sary meetingof the Royal 

 Ceographical Society. There are also contributions on " The 

 I'amirs and the Source of the Oxus," by the Right Hon. George 

 N. Curzon ; "Admiralty Surveys during the Year 1S95"; 

 " The Indian Surveys 1894-95," by Mr. C. E. D. Black ; and 

 " ( jcography at the Universities." In the Contemporary, Mr. 

 \. v.. Pease has a short article on the political geography of 

 " .Africa North of the Equator." The Century contains 

 "C.limpses of Venezuela and Guiana," by Mr. W. N. King; 

 .1 short paper on Eskimo life, entitled " An Arctic .Studio 

 (77' 44' N. lat.)," by F. W. Stokes; and "Impressions of 

 South Africa," by Mr. James Bryce. 



.\ passing mention must suffice for the remaining articles of 

 scientific interest in the magazines and reviews received. Under 

 the title " Stray Thoughts on South Africa," Olive Schreiner 

 contributes to the Fortnightly some facts as to the crossing of 

 races in South Africa and the results of the mixture of blood ; 

 I'rof. Max Mtiller's paper on "Coincidences," read before the 

 Royal Society of Literature in May last, appears in the same 

 review. Dr. Louis Robinson discusses, in the National, some 

 aspects of "The .Science of Change of Air," and offers a few 

 sensible and seasonable suggestions on the subject. Mr. F. E. 

 Hewitt has in the Westminster Review a historical study en- 

 titled " How the First Priests, the long-haired Shamans, and 

 their successors, the Tonsured Barber-Surgeons, measured 

 Time." To Longman's A/agazine Mr. Grant Allen contributes 

 a popul.ar paper on "Lobsters at Home." Mr. James Buck- 

 land describes in the English Illustrated Magazine the remark- 

 able mode of nidification of the hornbills, and makes a conjecture 

 why the male bird plasters up the nest and keeps the female a 

 |iri.soner until the eggs are hatched. Finally, Chambers's fournal 

 contains its usual complement of instructive articles, among the 

 subjects being Mr. Carey Lea's work on modifications of silver, 

 and artificial perfumes of flowers. 



UNIVERSITY AND EDUCATIONAL 

 INTELLIGENCE. 



\ C.AMBRIDGE. — An examination in natural science (chemistry 



and physics) will be held on Wednesday, October 7, for the 

 purpose of filling up a Bristol scholarsliip (open/ro hac vice) of 

 the annual value of £\cx> and tenable (under the usual con- 

 ditions) for five years ; the successful candidate to commence 

 residence immediately upon election. 



I)R. T. M. Lego has been appointed Professor of Hygiene 

 in Bedford College, London. 



TilF, widow of the late Dr. Arthur Jackson, of Sheffield, has 

 presented ^5000 to the Sheffield School of Medicine to endow 

 a chair of Anatomy, to be named after her late husband. 



The Council of University College, London, have instituted 

 a new Professorship of Pathological Chemistry, and have 

 appointed Dr. Vaughan Harley to the professorship. 



The Cornell University has issued, in the form of a slender 

 hrochiire, its programme of courses of instruction in physics for 



NO. 1394, VOL. 54] 



the session 1896-97. The Ddpartment of Physics occupies a 

 large building known as Franklin Hall, and the equipment is 

 valued at 50,000 dols. Prof. E L. Nichols has the services of 

 an efficient staff", consisting of three assistant professors and 

 seven instructors. The curriculum includes elementary courses 

 for senior and junior students, advanced work both for under- 

 graduates and graduates, and courses given in the summer 

 school from July 6 to August 16. Among other encouragements 

 for research, one university fellowship and one graduate scholar- 

 ship in physics are awarded each year. With a view to afford- 

 ing still further stimulus for research, the University, three years 

 ago, founded the Physical Revieto, which is the only journal in 

 America devoted exclusively to physics. Such enterprise 

 furnishes an example which our older English universities 

 would do well to emulate. 



The Duke of Bedford has placed at the disposal of the 

 Technical Instruction Committee of the Bedfordshire County 

 Council a farm of 275 acres, 149 of which are arable land and the 

 rest grass. In addition to this his Grace has erected the neces- 

 sary lecture-rooms, dormitories, and other buildings for the 

 accommodation of twenty students. Twenty boys are granted 

 free scholarships by the County Council, entitling them to two 

 years' board, residence, and instruction in the science and prac- 

 tice of farming. On Tuesday, June 30, the members of the 

 Bedfordshire County Council were able, at the invitation of the 

 Duke, to pay a visit of inspection to the farm, and are able to 

 report that every branch of farm and garden practice is effi- 

 ciently taught by means of models and specimens in school and 

 of actual work on the farm, in the dairy, poultry-yard, and 

 garden. The institution is modelled on the lines of similar 

 school farms on the continent, which were inspected and 

 reported upon by the Organising Secretary of Technical 

 Instruction some time ago. 



SOCIETIES AND ACADEMIES. 



London. 



Royal Society, June 4. — " On the unknown Lines observed 

 in the Spectra of certain Minerals." By J. Norman Lockyer, 

 C.B., F.R.S. 



In the first note of the series " On the New Gases obtained 

 from Uraninite," by the distillation method, the author remarked ' 

 " I have already obtained evidence that the method I have 

 indicated may ultimately provide us with other new gases, the 

 lines of which are also associated with those of the chromo- 

 sphere." 



In a subsequent paper " On the Gases obtained from the 

 Mineral Eliasite," he gave a list of several unknown lines, and 

 suggested that they might indicate the existence of a new gas or 

 gases in that mineral, and added- "Although the evidence in 

 favour of a new gas is already very strong, no final verdict can 

 be given until the spectra of all the known gases, including 

 argon, have been photographed at atmospheric pressure, and the 

 lines tabulated. This part of the inquiry is well in hand." 



The inquiry above referred to has now been completed and in 

 the following manner : — 



Photographs were taken of the spectra at atmospheric pres- 

 sure of nitrogen, oxygen chlorine, carbonic anhydride, coal gas, 

 sulphuric anhydride, phosphoretted hydrogen, and argon, these 

 being the gases which, from the experience thus far acquired 

 are likely to be associated with those given off" by minerals. 

 In addition to these the lines of mercury, potassium, and 

 platinum, were also photographed. The lines of platinum are 

 always present in the spectra for the reason that the spark is 

 passed between platinum poles, while the lines of mercury or 

 potassium frequently appear according as the gases are collected 

 over mercury or potash. 



For the wave-lengths thus obtained no greater accuracy than one 

 indicated by four figures is claimed. It was the author's intention, 

 in the first instance, to give five figures from the more elaborate 

 tables of some of the elements given by other observers, but 

 this had to be abandoned in consequence of the considerable 

 variations found in the tables between the results as given by 

 diff"erent observers. 



.\ list is given of sixty lines which have been observed and 

 photographed in the spectrum of the gases from eliasite which 

 do not appear in the .spectra of the old gases. 



» Roy.Soc. Proc, vol. Iviii. p. 70. 

 - Ibid. , vol . lix. p. 3. 



