264 



NA TURE 



[July \6, 1896 



continued to live. Under these circumstances the small sessile 

 glands of Drosera stained deeply, showing that they became 

 active in the presence of proteid material. Plants similarly 

 treated with gentian-violet stained red where the glands were 

 active, violet where they were only refle.xly stimulated. The 

 l)aper was illustrated by a number of lantern-slides and micro- 

 scopic preparations. — Dr. C. G. Knott gave a summary of two 

 papers by Mr. J. C. Bealtie. The first was on the relation 

 between the Hall effect and thermo-electricity in bismuth and in 

 various alloys. That there was a connection was established, 

 but what the precise nature of that relation was could not be 

 determined till more definite knowledge of the Hall effect in 

 alloys and with different temperatures, was arrived at. The 

 se:ond paper was on the curves of magnetisation for films of iron, 

 cobalt, and nickel. The films were deposited on platinised 

 glass and oscillated in the magnetic field. The results agreed 

 with those already obtained for these metals in a solid condition. 



I'ARIS. 



Academy of Sciences, July 6.— J\I. A. Cornu in the chair. 

 — The Secretary announced that the Institute would be able to 

 award the Jean Jacques Berger Prize in 1S97 ; the prize will be 

 at the disposal of the Academy of Sciences in 1S99. — Remarks 

 by M. Albert Goudry on presenting a work on Philosophical 

 PdUeontology. — General laws of uniform flow in channels of 

 large section, by M. J. Boussinesq. — Researches on tungsten, 

 by M. H. Moissan. The pure metal is readily obtained by the 

 reduction of tungstic acid with carbon in the electric furnace. 

 With a large excess of carbon the carbide CW„ is formed, which, 

 in the fused state, readily dissolves more carbon, graphite crystal- 

 lising out on cooling. Pure tungsten can be readily filed and 

 forged, it welds easily, has no action upon a magnetic needle, 

 and hasa melting point higher than chromium and molybdenum. 

 — On the solubility of carbon in rhodium, iridium and palladium, 

 by the .same. These three metals dissolve carbon with ease at 

 the temperature of the electric furnace, and give it on solidi- 

 fying in the form of graphite. No combination to form a carbide 

 appears to take place. — Physiological action of high frequency 

 currents ; practical means for their continuous production, by 

 M. A. d'Arsonval. When animals are placed within a solenoid 

 traversed by currents of high frequency, the respiratory changes 

 go on more rapidly. This was shown very simply by measuring 

 the loss of weight in a given time. — Therapeutic effects of high 

 frequency currents, by M. A. d'Arsonval. Since these currents 

 have been found to cause a large increase in the rate of pro- 

 duction of carbon dioxide in the body, it was thought that the 

 application of such currents might give relief in diseases such 

 as diabetes, gout and rheumatism, in which the rate of 

 combustion is reduced. In two cases of diabetes the treat- 

 ment produced marked relief. — On five photographs of 

 the region round 7)-Argus, by Mr. David Gill. — Verifica- 

 tion of Van der Waals's law of corresponding states, by 

 M. E. H. Amagat. — Mr. Christie was elected Corresponding 

 Member in the Section of Astronomy, in the place of Mr. Hind. 

 — On a new capillary theory, by M. Marcellin Langlois. — A 

 sealed note, by M. D. Loiseau, was opened : On some proper- 

 ties of rafiinose, serving to estimate this substance in sugars. — 

 On ordinary differential equations of the first order, by M. A. 

 Korkine. — On the local attr.actions observed in Eastern Europe, 

 by M. Venukoff. An account of the deviation of the pendulum 

 in the neighbourhood of mountains in Bulgaria and in the 

 Crimea. — On the refraction and diffraction of the X-rays, by M. 

 Gouy. For the substances examined, the index of refraction, if 

 not exactly unity, differs from it by a quantity less than the 

 errors of experiment ('oooooi). As regards diffraction, none 

 could be established with certainty, and the wave-length must 

 be smaller than '005 ji, or i/ioo of the wave-length for green 

 light. — Composition of pendular movements, by .MM. Jean and 

 Louis Lecarme. — Comparative experiments on the pitch of 

 cylindrical tubes vibrating transversely, by M. C. Decharme. — 

 Action of zinc on the photographic plate, by M. R. Colson. 

 The action has been traced to the vapour of zinc ; it is most 

 energetic after the surface has been cleaned with emery paper, 

 but falls off' as the surface oxidi.se.s. The practical conclusion is 

 drawn that metallic zinc should not be used in the construction 

 of the camera or dark box. — Action of nitrogen peroxide upon 

 antimony trichloride, by M. V. Thomas. There appears to 

 be no true compound formed, but only a solution of the 

 gas in the trichloride. — The effect of a high temperature 

 upon some sulphides, by M. A. Mourlot. In the electric 



furnace the amorphous sulphides of lead, antimony, zinc 

 and cadmium are converted into galena, .stibine, wurtrite, 

 and greenockite respectively. The antimony sulphide gave 

 some metallic antimony, but no trace of a sub-sulphide. — 

 On two isomers of anethol (propenylanisol), by M. C. Moureu. 

 — Action of ethoxalyl chloride upon naphthalene in presence of 

 aluminium chloride, by M. L. Rousset. Two naphthyl- 

 glyoxylic acids are obtained, the oximes of which on distilling 

 ill z'aciio give (a) and (;8)-naphthonitriles. — On amorphous 

 greenockite of Laurium, by M. Christomanos. — Experimental 

 researches on the effects of intravenous injections of saline 

 solutions. Determination of their value in therapeutics, by 

 MM. Bosc and Vedel. — Cutaneous evaporation in the rabbit ; 

 action of pilocarpine, by M. Lecercle. — On some points in the 

 histology of the muscles of the Cirrhipedes, by M. A. Gruvel. 

 — On an accidental parasite in man, belonging to the order of 

 the Thysanoiires, by MM. Freche and Beille. — Influence of the 

 composition of the water of lakes upon the formation of sub- 

 lacustrine ravines, by M. A. Delebecque. — On a new sounding 

 machine ; portable apparatus with steel wire, by M. E. Belloc. 



BOOKS RECEIVED. 



Books. — Year-Hook of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, i395(Wa.sh- 

 ington).- All Index to the Genera and Species of the Foraminifcra : C. D. 

 Sherborn, Part 2 (Washington, Smithsonian Institution).— Thirteenth 

 Annual Report of the Bureau of Ethnology. 1891.92 (Washington). — Aus 

 den .\lpen ; R. von Lendenfeld, 2 Vols. (Wien, Tempsky).— Report of the 

 Chief of the Weather Bureau, 1894 (W.ashington).—Element.-iry Practical 

 Chemistry, &c. : Prof F. Clowes and J. B. Coleman (Churchill).— An 

 Inquiry into the Alleged Liability of Wood Charcoal to Spontaneous Com- 

 bustion, 3rd edition (A. Gardner). — Flora der Oslfriesischen Inseln ; Dr. F. 

 Buchenau (Leipzig, Engelmann).— Grundriss einer Geschichte der Natur- 

 wissenschaften: Dr. F. Dannemann, i. Band (Leipzig, Engelmann). — The Col- 

 lected Mathematical Papers of Arthur Cayley. Vol. .\. (C.imbridije LTniversily 

 Press).— The Official Guide to the Norwich Castle Museum : T. Southwell 

 (Jarrold) — Grundriss einer Exacten Schopfungsgeschichte : H. Habenichl 

 (Wien, Hartleben). — A Geographical History of Mammals : R. Lydekker 

 (Cambridge University Press). — Solutions to the Examples in Loney's Plane 

 Trigonometry, Parts i and 2 (Cambridge University Press).- Wild Life of 

 Scotland : J. H. Crawford (Macqueen). 



NO. 1394, VOL. 54] 



CONTENTS. PAGE 



The Zoological Results of the Horn Scientific Ex- 

 pedition to Central Australia 241 



The Water Supply of New York 242 



A New Chemical Dictionary 244 



Our Book Shelf:— 



Swann : " A Concise Handbook of British Birds '' . . 245 



Ward: " Practical Radiography " 245 



Letters to the Editor: — 



Are Specific Characters useful? — Prof. E. Ray 



Lankester, F.R. S 245 



.\re Specific Characters the Result of " Natural Selec- 

 tion" ?— Dr. St. George Mivart, F.R. S 246 



"The Reminiscences of a \'orkshire Naturalist." — 



Dr. E. Frankland, F.R.S 247 



The Tsetse Fly.— L. Peringuey ; Walter F. H. 



Blandford 247 



The Salaries of Science Demonstrators. — Saville 



Shaw 247 



\ Solar Halo.— Dr. H. Warth 24S 



-\n Optical Illusion.- F. H. Loring 248 



Food of Chameleons. — E. L.J. Ridsdale 24S 



Rontgen Rays. — Alex. Thurburn 24S 



A Curious Connection. — Margaret McEvoy . . . 24S 



The International Catalogue Conference 24S 



On the Motion of a Heterogeneous Liquid, com- 

 mencing from Rest with a given Motion of its 



Boundary. By Lord Kelvin, F.R.S 250 



The Return of Brooks's Comet. By W. F. Denning 251 



Notes 252 



Our Astronomical Column: — 



The Cluster in Coma Berenices 256 



Objective Gratings 256 



Distortion of the Earth's Surface 256 



On the Liquation of certain Alloys of Gold. ( ]Vilh 



Dia!;iains.) By Edward Matthey 256 



The Atomic Weight of Oxygen. By E. C. C. Baly 25S 



Science in the Magazines 260 



University and Educational Intelligence 261 



Societies and Academies 261 



Books Received 264 



