April 15, 1S80] 



NA TURE 



575 



first discovered several years ago, the report affirms, it was nearly 

 a mile in length, and at the bottom of the "gulch" presented a 

 sheer precipice of ice about 150 feet in height. Later in the 

 season it had been considerably reduced both in length and 

 bulk ; but earlier in the following year it had regained first 

 dimensions. The rocks on the sides of this immense mass of 

 moving ice are said to show all the characteristic signs of glacier 

 action. The location of this interesting natural curiosity is said 

 to be in the Mosquito Range, about fifteen miles north of the 

 Pass ; and, being very inaccessible and out of the ordinary line 

 of travel, the fact of its being discovered at this late day is 

 accounted for. 



The experiment of sending up three connected balloons will 

 be tried in Lille at the end of next May. The balloons are now 

 fitting in the vestibule of the Palais de l'Industrie of the Champ 

 de Mars, Paris ; there will at the same time be a descent in a 

 parachute by M. Tavis. 



1 M. YoN, one of the admini.-trators of the Paris Captive 

 Balloon, is publishing a pamphlet on the construction of a new- 

 directing balloon, devised on the plan worked out by M. Giffard 

 in his great experiment executed at Paris in 1S52. The only 

 difference is that the motive screws are two, and placed laterally 

 and attached to the ring. A captive balloon fitted up according 

 to the principles practised so successfully by M. Giffard in Paris 

 and in London is being constructed now at Brussels, in the 

 vicinity of the next national exhibition, which will be opened on 

 June 19 to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of Belgian inde- 

 pendence. The number of exhibitors amounts to 6,oco, so that 

 an exceedingly fair specimen will be offered to the world of 

 Belgian resources and industry. 



The additions to the Zoological Society's Gardens during the 

 past week include a Yervet Monkey (Cercopithecus lalandii) from 

 West Africa, presented by Mr. L. Samuel ; a Garnett's Galago 

 (Calago gariutli) from East Africa, a Marsh Ichneumon (//cr- 

 pestcs paluJosus) from South Africa, presented by Mr. A. Chirn- 

 side ; an African Civet Cat ( Vivcrra civet/a) from Africa, 

 presented by Mr. P. Lembery ; a Banded Ichneumon (flerfesta 

 fascialtts) from West Africa, presented by Mr. A. Ferris ; a 

 Common Jay [Garrulus giandarms), British, presented by Mrs. 

 A. Duttoa ; two Graceful Ground Doves (Geoptlia amenta) from 

 Australia, deposited; a Black Saki {Pithecia saianas) from the 

 Lower Amazons, a Cape Hyrax (Ifyrax capensis), a Robben 

 Island Snake (Coronella phocartttii) from South Africa, a Great- 

 billed Rhea (Rhea maa-orhyncha) from South America, pur- 

 chased ; an Amherst Pheasant ( Thaumalea amhcrstnc) from 

 Szechuen, China, received in exchange. 



OUR ASTRONOMICAL COLUMN 

 The Southern Comet.— Dr. Gould, Director of the 

 Observatory at Cordoba, has addressed to Prof. Peters of Kiel 

 an interesting letter with observations of the great southern 

 comet. The tail was seen at Cordoba on January 31. Two 

 evenings later, when Dr. Gould first perceived it, the length was 

 certainly 35 . Careful drawings of its position amongst the 

 stars were made independently by two observers until February 

 14, after which it had not been distinguishable ; it was then not 

 less than 37° in length, but was seen with difficulty, and was 

 scarcely brighter near the head than at its extremity. Even at 

 greatest brilliancy about February 7, its light was nowhere 

 superior to that of the Milky Way in Taurus. Dr. Gould states 

 that from the first no nucleus had been discernible in the 

 telescope, the head always appearing "cloud-like and filmy, and 

 elongated in the direction of the tail, which it did not very much 

 surpass in brilliancy ;" indeed " the inordinate length of the tail 

 and the great faintness of both tail and head " were very 

 •remarkable features in the appearance of the comet. Observa- 

 tions for position were obtained on six evenings between 

 February 6 and 15, which have enabled Dr. Gould to claim 

 priority in pointing out the probable identity of this comet with 



the great comet of 1843. Calculating from the observations on 

 February 6, 9, and 12, he deduced the following first approxi- 

 mation to the elements : — 



Perihelion pa-sage, January 27-4185 M.T. at Washington. 



Longitude of perihelion 



,, ascending node 



Inclination 



Logarithm of perihelion distance ... 

 Motion — retrograde. 



280 26 59 

 7 5° 28 

 35 5 30 

 7719160 



So that, he remarks, the perihelion distance given by this first 

 rough approximation is such that the comet's centre of gravity 

 would have passed at a distance from the solar surface equal to 

 only one-eighth of the sun's own radius. 



Dr. Gould also refers to the discussion which took place in 

 1S43 cu to the possible identity of the comet of that year with 

 the one observed in southern latitudes in 166S, and concludes : — ■ 

 "Although Hubbard's discussion shows that the ob-ervations of 

 1S43 can be best represented by an ellipse of more than 500 

 years, and although the intervals of 175 years between 1668 and 

 and 1S43, and 37 years from the perihelion of 1S43 to the pre- 

 sent time, are not commensurable, still this argument against 

 identity does not seem very forcible." 



The "Argus Summary for Europe," published at Melbourne 

 on February 19, contains three positions of the comet, communi- 

 cated from the Observatory, which are as follow : — 



Right Ascension. Declination, 



h. m. s. „ , ., 



Feb. 9 at 9 p.m. ... 23 41 145 ... - 33 43 52 

 10 at 9 p.m. ... 23 5S 23-0 ... - 33 44 5S 

 14 at 9 p.m. ... I 2 156 ... - 33 21 7 

 These places are termed approximate, and on comparing with 

 the positions received from I r. Gould and Mr. Gill's rough 

 ones, it is evident that the declination of February 14 has been 

 misprinted, and should be — 32° 21' 7". It is stated that on 

 this date the nucleus had become very faint, and "even with 

 the great telescope the tail could only be seen as a thin wisp 

 extending eastwards from the head for a couple of degrees. The 

 head itself appeared simply as a faint nebulous mass with a 

 slight central condensation." Beyond the fact that the comet 

 had passed the perihelion and was rapidly receding from us, 

 nothing definite appears to have been known of the orbit at 

 Melbourne up to February 19, and it is clear that at the Cape 

 up to February 24 its similarity to that of the comet of 1843 had 

 not been remarked, the elements which we have published from 

 Mr. Finlay being entirely different. So that, as we have re- 

 marked, it is probable that Dr. Gould has priority in drawing 

 attention to one of the most striking facts connected with the 

 periodicity of comets. 



From the first approximate position determined at Cordoba, 

 and the Melbourne observations of February 9 and 14, Mr. 

 Hind has calculated the following orbit, which still further adds 

 to the probability of the identity of the great comets of 1 843 and 

 1SS0:— 



Perihelion passage, January 27-5272, M.T. at Greenwich. 



Longitude of perihelion 2783*7 



,, ascending node o 5-7 



Inclination 36 9-3 



Logarithm of perihelion distance 7'8'749 



Motion—retrograde. 

 Trof. Winnecke al.-o has found that the elements of 1843 

 represent, with very trifling differences. Dr. Gould's place of 

 February 4 and Mr. Gill's rough positions of February IO-15, 

 and thinks there can hardly be a doubt that the bodies are 

 identical. 



PHYSICAL NOTES 

 M. PAUL Bert lately de-cribed a tele microphone to the 

 Academie des Sciences of Paris. The instrument thus denomi- 

 nated differs only in < etoil of construction from a form of micro- 

 phone publicly described eighteen months ago in England. The 

 transmitter of the telemicrophone consists of a tolerably thick 

 disk of ebonised rubber, suitably mounted, to the centre of which 

 one of the carbons is attached ; the oiher carbon is kept lightly 

 in contact w ith it w ith a pres-ure which can he adjusted by mag- 

 netic means, a small armature of iron being affixed to it, to which 



