86 
NATURE. « 
THE Naturalists’ Societies in the East of Scotland have 
advanced an important stage. They have been established, 
have worked, and now have formed a union, the first report of 
which we have now before us. The union embraces the societies 
in the counties of Aberdeen, Fife, Forfar, Kincardine, Kinross, 
and Perth, and now consists of ten societies. The president, 
Dr. Buchanan White, of Perth, explained in his inaugural 
address the functions of the union as distinguished-from those of 
the individual societies. Its main object of course is to carry 
on more effectually the work for which each of the societies that 
compose it has been formed, that work being the promotion of 
the study of natural science, especially of local natural science. 
Rivalry begotten of communication and connection, he argues, 
is as valuable to societies as to individuals; and while each 
society was isolated and worked independently in its own dis- 
trict, the sum total of the work done was necessarily imperfect 
because of want of uniformity in the matter of details ; one sub- 
ject has been thoroughly worked while another has been un- 
touched, certain districts have been investigated, while others 
have been neglected, and the relations of one district to another 
have not been considered. Each society has toiled in a quarry 
in its own district, and has brought forth good stone<, but they 
lie in an unsorted heap. The union undertakes the task of 
sortins and utilising them. On this broad principle the union 
started, and the president laid down in the opening address the 
programme of its work for the immediate future. The first step 
was to ascertain the present state of knowledge of the zoology, 
botany, geology, and meteorology of the six counties included in 
the union. For this purpose a uniform method of treatment was 
adopted. Each reporter in his own special subject states how 
far the subject has been investigated, what parts of it especially 
require investigation, both as regards the district and the subject, 
what the probable richness of the district is, what important 
works, if any, have been published on the subject and district, 
and, finally, what work should be taken in hand at once. These 
statements make up the bulk of this first report, and there are in 
all nineteen, covering almost every department of natural history. 
The union, it thus appears, directs and organises the work of 
its affiliated societies, and prevents waste of power. 
THE additions to the Zoological Society’s Gardens during the 
past week include a White-bellied Beaver-Rat (4ydromys leuco- 
gaster), a White-bellied Sea Eagle (Haliaetus leucogaster), two 
Stump-tailed Lizards ( Trachydosaurus rugosus), a Great Cyclodus 
(Cyclodus gigas), a Diamond Snake (Morelia spilotes) from 
Australia, presented by Mr. E. P. Ramsay, C.M.Z.S. ; an 
Australian Cassowary (Casuarius australis) from Australia, pre- 
sented by Mr. T. H. Bowyer Bower ; four Pucheran’s Guinea 
Fowls (Numida pucherani) fram East Africa, presented by 
Commander C, E. Gissing, R.N.; a Kestrel (Tinnunculus 
alwidarius), British, presented by Mr. C. A. Marriott ; seven 
Striped Snakes (Zyopidonotus sirtalis) from North America, 
presented by Mrs. A. H. Jamrach ; a Common Viper (Vifera 
berus), from Epping Forest, presented by Mr, F. W. Elliott ; 
two Lions (/¢/i; /zo) from Africa, two Pumas (/¢lis concolor) 
from South America, deposited ; a Collared Fruit Bat (Cyno- 
nycteris collaris), four Upland Geese (Bernicla magellanica), 
bred in the Gardens. 
OUR ASTRONOMICAL COLUMN 
DousLe-STar Measures —Nos. 2662-63 of the Astronom- 
ische Nachrichten contain the first division of a series of measures 
of double stars made by Herr R. Engelmann during the years 
18$2-84, preceded by a comparison of the differences between 
the observer's positions and distances of a number of stars, with 
those measured by Dembowski and Asaph Hall, and other 
particulars bearing upon his own results. For several of the 
more interesting binaries, the following epochs are given :— 
0 
Castor Ses 1882°88 ced 234°3 = 
@Cancril s. 1884°28 67'0 Ag 
» Leonis ... 1884°23 , gI'4 : 
& Urse Majoris 1884"41 Ae 249°6 5 
y Virginis ... 1883°07 eC 1556 “0 
42 Comz Beren. 1882°93 192°1 a 
~ Bootis 1884°45 2666 : 
second catalogue of variable stars, so as to satisfy more nearly 
the observations of the late Prof. Schmidt in 1882 and 1883 :— 
h. m. h. m. h. 
July 25 13 10 Sept. 3 16 29 ... Sept.29 
28 9 58 6: 13/27 = Octane 
Aug. 14 14 49 Getto: 16) 5% 19 
L7, ta, 38 12) 16; 54) oes 22 
20 8 26 26 DANS 7 eae 25 
New ZEALAND.—It is well 
known to those who are interested in astronomical matters that 
the track of the central line in the total eclipse of the sun on 
September 9 next is almost entirely over the Southern Ocean, 
and that the total phase will only be observable on Jand on the 
shores of Cook’s Straits, New Zealand. It would appear that 
no central eclipse has traversed those islands during the present 
century ; an examination of the various ephemerides points to 
the annular eclipse of December 29, 1796, as the last which was 
there central. An annular, though nearly total, eclipse will take 
place near the north extremity of the North Island on January — 
3, 1927, while, on May 30, 1965, when the sun is barely risen 
to an altitude of 5°, he will be totally eclipsed on the east coast 
of the North Island, near its north extremity for about 2m. 20s. | 
It is true that in an old catalogue of eclipses which has been — 
transcribed into several of our popular astronomical treatises 
those of December 12, 1890, and September 29, 1894, are men- 
tioned as being central in New Zealand, but an examination of 
these eclipses upon more recent data shows that neither will 
reach that country. In the eclipse of 1890 the central line ends 
in about longitude 143° W., latitude 364° S., totality with the 
sun on the meridian taking place in longitude 129}° E., latitude 
54 south, and the line thus running south of New Zealand. In 
the eclipse of 1894 it ends not far from longitude 163° E , lati- 
tude 56° S. 
THE DAYLIGHT-OCCULTATION OF ALDEBARAN ON MAy 22, 
1868. —Mr. H. Sadler reminds us that the occultation of Alde- 
baran to which reference was lately made in this column, as 
having been pointed out by Mr. Newall in 1868, when the star 
was only some eight degrees from the sun’s place, was observed 
by Prof. Asaph Hall. The observation is to be found in the 
“* Washington Astronomical and Meteorological Observations ” 
for 1868, p. 327. 
ASTRONOMICAL PHENOMENA FOR THE 
WEEK, 1885, WAV 31 TO JUNE 6 
(For the reckoning of time the civil day, commencing at 
Greenwich mean midnight, counting the hours on to 24, is here 
employed.) 
At Greenwich on May 31 
Sun rises, 3h. 51m. ; souths, rrh. 57m. 25°7s. ; sets, 20h. 4m. ; 
decl. on meridian, 21° §9' N.: Sidereal Time at Sunset, . 
12h. 42m. 
Moon (at Last Quarter June 6, oh.) rises, 2th. 16m.* ; souths, 
th. 43m. ; sets, 6h. tom. ; decl. on meridian, 18° 21’ S. 
Planet Rises Souths Sets Decl. on’meridian — 
h. m. h. m. Reh rigs 
Mercury ... 3 7 IO 22 17 38 13 43 N. 
Venus 414 12 28 20 42 23 8N. 
Mars 2 50 IO 21 17. 52 16 31 N. 
Jupiters “2.7 Lowes) pees © 37* .= I35ORNG 
Saturn aha t.. Sgt 3 2I 12 22 24N. 
* Indicates that the rising is that of the preceding and the setting that of 
the following day. 
Phenomena of Jupiter's Satellites 
June h. m June h. m. 4 
2 ne 22050) eaten. 5 ... 22 43 (I. occ. disap. 
4. ..; 23 44 “Vitvecl-sreap. 1! @6 %s) 22022)" loptrrepr 
The Phenomena of Jupiter's Satellites are such as are visible at Greenwich. 
