22 



NATURE 



[Nov. 6, 1879 



of a horse-shoe-shaped electro-magnet. A similar disposition 

 was previously employed by M. Marcel Deprez in the excellent 

 little electromotors shown by him before the French Physical 

 Society last year. 



In the latest pattern of telephone transmitter sent by Mr. 

 Edison to this country, the button of compressed carbon derived 

 from paraffin-smoke has been abandoned in favour of another 

 device. A small rod of ordinary hard carbon, of the quality 

 used in producing the electric light, is mounted behind a mica 

 disk and adjusted in loose contact with a light spring faced with 

 platinum. This arrangement is therefore nothing more or less 

 than a microphone attached to the back of a disk which receives 

 the vibrations of the voice. 



At a late meeting of the Academie des Sciences, M. Wardon 

 made a suggestion to substitute nickel for steel as a material for 

 compass needles. M. Wardon adopts a circlet of the metal of a 

 form similar to that devised by M. Duchemin. When the appa- 

 ratus was submitted under the direction of the Ministere de la 

 Marine to a comparative trial with that of M. Duchemin, it was 

 found to be decidedly inferior for nautical purposes ; for the 

 oscillations of the magnetised circlet are extremely slow, owing 

 to the comparatively feeble intensity of magnetisation of nickel. 



GEOGRAPHICAL NOTES 



At the last meeting, October 15, of the Russian Geographical 

 Society, the Secretary, M. Sreznevsky, read a detailed report on 

 the geographical work done during the past summer. After 

 having spoken of the gallant geographical feat of Prof. Norden- 

 skjold, he sketched the results of the expeditions of Col. 

 Prshevalsky, MM. Potanin, Alferaki, and Pyevtsoff, and of the 

 expedition engaged in exploring for the Central Asian Railway. 

 As to ethnography and statistics, the secretary mentions the re- 

 searches by M. Kuznetsoff in Western Russia, by M. Syrkou in Bul- 

 garia, the anthropological researches of M. Meredlenovsky in the 

 Crimea, M. Polyakoff in the Ural Mountains and Caucasus, M. 

 Kibalchich' on the banks of the Dnieper, and M. Miclucho- 

 Maclay in Australia.* As to this last, the Society engaged him to 

 return to Europe, for the publication of the very rich results of 

 his explorations, but he prefered to take part in a zoological 

 exploration undertaken by Australian naturalists. The pecuniary 

 position of M. Maclay is a very critical one. After having under- 

 taken his extensive travels without sufficient means, he has 

 received from the Society about 7,oco roubles, which sum was 

 certainly quite insufficient to meet the great expenses neces- 

 sitated by these travels. Now he has contracted debts for about 

 15,000 roubles at the Singapore bankers, and the Society seeks 

 private subscriptions, the 1 means for paying these debts, in 

 which it is supported by the opinion of the whole of the Russian 

 press. Finally Prof. R. Lentz made a communication on the 

 labours of the International Conference in the Meteorology of 

 the Polar regions. The Geographical Society « ill take an active 

 part in the organization of the meteorological stations in these 

 regions. 



The Moscowskiya Vyedomosti has received the following in- 

 formation as to the Amu-darya expedition, dated Katty-kourgan, 

 October 19. At Termez the expedition was divided into two 

 parts : one has gone in boats down the Amu to Fort Petro- 

 Alexandrovsk, the other through Surkhan and Rafiuaghan rivers 

 to the Vaksh river. The results of the expedition are important : 

 it has explored the Amu- Darya throughout its length, and its two 

 branches, the Vaksh and the Pyandj rivers, for fifty miles above 

 their junction. The topographers have prepared maps of these 

 parts of the two rivers, and completed the maps of the Amu by 

 several details ; several latitudes and longitudes are determined 

 astronomically, and zoological collections obtained. A levelling 

 of the Amu is made up to Chardjuy. We notice the appear- 

 ance of a Russian work by M. Lokhtin, "The Amu-Darya River 

 and its former Connection with the Caspian." It contains a 

 description of the river, a sketch of the historical data as to the 

 Amu, and a review of the hypotheses as to the causes of the 

 changes of its bed ; it is accompanied by a map. The third, 

 fourth, and fifth volumes of the "Report of the Amu-Darya 

 Expedition," contain reports by M. Zuboff on hydrographical 

 works in the lower parts of the Amu-Daria ; by M. Dorandt, 

 on the astronomical, magnetical, and hydrometrical measure- 

 ments ; and by Prof. Schmidt, on the slime of the Amu River. 



The death, from paralysis, in India, is announced, of Major 

 Herbert Wood, author of a well-known work on the Aralo- 



Caspian Region, on the hydrography of which he contributed 

 several papers to this journal. 



The last number of the Isvestia of the' Russian Geographical 

 Society, contains the proceedings of a meeting of the Society 

 in October, 1878, and several interesting papers : — By M. 

 Prshevalsky, on the observations of Dr. Richthofen ; by K. 

 Scharnhorst, on the barometric measurements of heights in 

 Central Asia ; by M. Mayeflf, on the upper parts of the Amu- 

 Darya, according to the description of Ibn-Dast ; and by M. 

 Miclucho-Maclay, on the Agonies Islands. The notes contain 

 information as to the travels of MM. Prshevalsky, Nordenskjold, 

 and Grigorieff. In the note by Colonel Scharnhorst, on the baro- 

 metrical measurements of heights made by M. Prshevalsky 

 during his journey to Lake Lob-Nor, the measurements being 

 calculated by comparison with barometrical observations at Nukus 

 and at Omsk, the heights of which above the sea-level are 

 exactly known from geodetical measurements, they are trust- 

 worthy, and the error does not exceed 100 feet. The height 

 of Tashkend, calculated by comparison of six years' barometrtcat 

 observations with those made atOm^k, Kazalinsk, Nukns, Petro- 

 alexandrovsk, Baku, and Astrakhan, is 1,516 feet. The other 

 places of general interest are : Kuldja, 2,oSo feet ; the passes 

 across the Narat and Yuldus Mountains, 10,370 feet and 10,040 

 feet ; the junction of Khabtragay and Baltangay Rivers, 5,320 

 feet ; the town of Kurl, 3,240 feet ; Lake Lob-Nor, 2,500 feet ; 

 Lake Sayram, 6,920 feet ; and Guchen, town, 2,310 feet. 



We are glad to notice the appearance of an " Annuaire for 

 Turkestan" (Jwkestansiiy /Calendar) for 1S80, which contains 

 much useful information as to the mineral riches of the country, 

 its meteorology, financial situation, and statistics, besides a route- 

 map and a map of the general-governorship of Turkestan. 

 We learn from this Annuaire that Turkestan possessed in 1877 

 only thirty-five schools, with 1,848 scholars. 



The November number of the Geographical Society's periodical 

 contains three short papers : Notes on the Topography of the 

 Sierra Nevada of Santa Marta, U.S. of Columbia, by Mr. F. 

 A. A. Simons ; Exploration of Oregon in 1878 by the Wheeler 

 Survey ; and Pevtsof's Expedition in North- West Mongolia, by 

 Mr. E. D. Morgan. The first-named is illustrated by a map, 

 which is not particularly well lithographed. The geographical 

 notes, however, are the chief feature of the number. The Dutch 

 Arctic Expedition claims the place of honour, and two pages 

 are devoted to Dr. Holub's career. There is also a long account 

 of the native territories south of the Zambesi, abridged from a 

 report to Sir Theophilus Shepstone, which embodies informa- 

 tion hitherto unattainable, and the more valuable as it has been 

 revised by Dr. Holub. The exploration of the Swat River by 

 the Mullah is recorded. The concluding thirteen pages are taken 

 up with notes on new books and new maps, the map part bearing 

 a close resemblance to a catalogue. 



Mr. Stanford has published a new Library Map of the 

 World, on Mercator's projection. The size is 5 feet by 3 feet, 

 and has several new and admirable features. The currents hi 

 the ocean are shown by strong blue waved lines. The areas 

 occupied by these currents, which are chiefly caused by the great 

 periodical winds, have an oscillating boundary or limit, as waved 

 lines are better calculated to indicate this, than the firm and 

 sharply defined lines frequently used. A lew of the lines in each 

 current have arrow heads to indicate the direction. Figures in 

 blue upon these waved lines, give the maximum and minimum 

 rates in nautical miles per twenty-four hours. These are 

 selected, we believe, from innumerable observations that have 

 been registered and examined by Captains Evans and Hull of 

 the Hydrographic Department, and published in their invaluable 

 " Wind and Current Charts." The drift currents in the Indian 

 Ocean and China Sea change with the Monsoon winds, and in 

 the chart they are shown as they flow during the south-west 

 monsoon, which blows from April to September. The trade 

 and monsoon winds are named over the map in red letters, and 

 the areas over which they generally blow are tinted in colours. 

 The areas over which north-east w inds blow are coloured blue, 

 the areas for south-east winds pink ; other areas are differently 

 coloured in accordance with the particular direction of the winds 

 which blow over them. A graduated scale at either side of the 

 chart shows the sun's progress to and fro between the tropics ; 

 to the left of the chart the sun's vertical action may be traced as 

 he proceeds northward to the Tropic of Cancer, and to the right, 

 his return journey southward to the Tropic of Capricorn. Dates 

 are given at intervals of five days, the intervening dr.ys being 



