296 
NATURE 
[Fuly 30, 1885 
the Savracenza, like some animals, can feed upon carrion 
and thrive upon it. 
In instances in which experiments have been made with 
fresh, raw beef or mutton, the meat has been covered in 
a few hours with the secretions of the leaves, and the 
blood extracted from it. There is, however, one differ- 
ence between the digesting powers of the leaves when 
exercised upon insects or upon meat. Even if the bodies 
of insects have become putrid, the plant, as has already 
been stated, has no difficulty in assimilating them ; but 
as regards meat, it is only when it is perfectly sweet that 
the secretions of the leaves will act upon it. 
The Pitcher plant undoubtedly derives its principal 
nourishment from the insects it eats. It, too—unlike 
most other carnivorous plants, which, when the quantity 
of food with which they have to deal is in excess of their 
powers of digestion, succumb to the effort and die—ap- 
pears to find it easy to devour any number of insects, 
small or large, the operation being with it simply a ques- 
tion of time. Flies, beetles, or even cockroaches, at the 
expiration of three or four days at most, disappear, 
nothing being left of them save their wings and other 
hard parts of their bodies. 
The Sarracenia is, indeed, not only the most voracious 
of all known species of carnivorous plants, but the least 
fastidious as to the nature of the food upon which it 
feeds. WwW. C.M 
THE ECLIPSES OF AUGUST, 1886 
T has been before stated in NATURE that the total solar 
eclipse of August 28-29 next year can be most favour- 
ably observed on the west coast of Africa near Benguela. 
In a recent number of Sczezce Mr. Skinner supplies a 
valuable account of the local conditions, which we here 
reprint :— 
“Benguela is about 400 miles south of the mouth of 
the Kongo, and about 200 miles south of the mouth of the 
Koanza. The climate of the lowlands bordering the 
coast near Benguela is fatally unhealthy for strangers, 
making it compulsory, on the score of prudence, for an 
observing party to penetrate the interior sufficiently to 
attain the mountainous highlands which lie not far inland. 
“The American Board of Commissioners for Foreign 
Missions has for some three years occupied two mission 
stations in this region—viz. Bailundu, about 133 miles 
eastward from Benguela, and Bihe, about 70 miles south- 
east from Bailundu. Through the courtesy of Rey. 
Judson Smith, D.D., secretary of the American Board, 
and Mr. Frederick A. Walter, secretary of this west- 
central African Mission, I have received definite state- 
ments of some of the precautions necessary, and some of 
the difficulties to be encountered by an observing party 
locating in this region. I will give in brief the points 
with which Mr. Walter favours us. 
“Dangers to the person from savages are not to be 
apprehended. The climate of Bailundu and vicinity is 
exceedingly salubrious. During a residence of nearly 
three years, Mr. Walter and his family have experienced 
no illness to be ascribed directly to the climate, but in 
every case to overwork, over-exposure to the sun, or want 
of proper food. 
“ The difficulties in reference to transportation are con- 
siderable. Transportation is done entirely by men; 
waggons and animals cannot be used. The gross weight 
for a carrier is from 65 to 70 lbs. ; commonly it does not 
exceed 58 lbs. Packages, either bales or boxes, should be 
of about the following dimensions :—14 inches by 9 
inches by 30 inches, or, if more convenient, 16 inches 
by Io inches by 24 inches. No single package should 
exceed 18 inches in width by ro inches in depth. Pieces 
not exceeding 60 lbs. in weight, though 8 or 10 feet long, 
can be carried by a single carrier. 
“As to means of subsistence, an observing party must 
bring all their supplies with them, as it is essential to the 
health of newcomers that they should live on food to 
which they are accustomed. The time required for a 
round trip of a caravan from Bailundu to Benguela may 
be stated as one month to six weeks. 
“Mr. Walter states that the chances for clear sky at the 
time of the eclipse are very favourable. 
“Tt may be stated that the land rises very abruptly as 
one leaves the coast from Benguela, and in a few miles 
attains a very considerable altitude, and throughout these 
highlands the climate is very healthful.” 
INTERNATIONAL INVENTIONS 
EXHIBITION 
ELF-ACTING or automatic machinery has made 
wonderful strides of late years, and its progress in 
the special department of watch-making cannot be more 
advantageously studied than in the beautiful display of 
machine tools now exhibited by the American Waltham 
Watch Company at South Kensington. We think that a 
few remarks with reference to the functions of these tools 
may be of service to the readers of NATURE when 
viewing the collection. The machine tools are all 
labelled, and can readily be identified. 
(1) A screw-making machine.—This machine is en- 
gaged in producing watch jewel screws ; the size of the 
screws may be appreciated when we state that it takes 
more than 8500 to weigh one ounce troy. Lengths of 
wire are transformed into these tiny screws in the follow- 
ing manner. The machine is fed with the wire through a 
hollow mandrel, the wire is seized and rotated rapidly, a 
movable cutter is brought against it, and immediately the 
body of the screw is turned. Two dies are at hand which 
attach themselves, and they cut the thread; on reaching 
the limit of their cut, they pull out the wire a distance, 
the thickness of the screw head, for hitherto the wire has 
only projected the length of the body of the screw through 
the mandrel head. The dies disengage themselves, and 
a second cutter cuts off the screw at its junction with the 
mandrel head. There is an alternating arm, the most 
conspicuous part of the machine: this takes possession 
of the screw as it is cut off, and, carrying it to a different 
part of the machine, holds the head against a small 
circular mill, where the notch is cut. The screw is now 
finished, and is discharged intoa magazine bya kind of ram- 
rod. The machine turns out 4000 screws a day, and indeed 
the successive operations go on with so much rapidity, that 
it requires some practice to follow them. Itis to be noticed 
that when the dies are cutting, the wire is stationary, and 
the machine then quickens its motion to save time. When 
the dies pull forwards, the chuck holding the wire opens 
simultaneously. Copious streams of oil are supplied to 
wash away the shavings, and the oil after being used once, 
escapes into reservoirs from whence it is automatically 
pumped up again. The different parts of the machine 
are regulated almost entirely by cams, the dies by a very 
elegant arrangement of opposing toothed sectors. 
(2) A machine for cutting off dial feet—z.e. attachments. 
If this machine stood alone it would be interesting, but it 
is overshadowed by its neighbours. ; 
(3) A machine for roughing out staves or pinions.—This 
is similar in some respects to the screw-making machine. 
Lengths of wire are fed through the mandrel, and a cutter 
shapes one end of the staff or pinion, giving it a male 
centre. Itisthen cut off, but the other end has to be 
shaped with its male centre too. Again we have an 
alternating arm, which carries the pinion away and places 
it in a very similar mandrel on the other side. So soon 
as it is gripped it begins to rotate; a cutter comes and 
shapes the unfinished end with its male centre. When 
done it is discharged into a magazine, as the tiny screws 
were. 
(4) This is a machine for trueing down the staves or 
