354 
July 1, 1900, and the buildings for the primary, 
or principal Magnetic Base Station, located at 
Cheltenham, Md., 16 miles southeast of Wash- 
ington, have been completed and the installa- 
tion of the instruments is now taking place. 
Special declination readings from 7 A.M. to 4 
P.M. have been made at Gaithersburg, Md., 
since March 22, 1900, and at Sitka, Alaska, 
since October 1, 1900. The sites for the Mag- 
netic Base Stations at Sitka, Alaska, and near 
Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands, have been de- 
termined and preparations made for the erection 
of the buildings. It is intended to have these 
magnetic observatories completed in time for 
cooperation with the proposed Antarctic expe- 
ditions. 
Special simultaneous observations have also 
been made on special days at various times, the 
purpose of these special observations being to 
determine over how large an area the variations 
as recorded at the Base Stations may be re- 
garded as applying. 
Various special investigations, both of an 
experimental and of a theoretical character, 
have been undertaken, and considerable atten- 
tion paid to the thorough training of observers 
and to the proper correlation of the various 
magnetic instruments. During the fall of 1899 
a set of Coast Survey magnetic instruments was 
compared with the standard instruments at the 
following foreign observatories: Kew, Eng- 
land; Potsdam, Germany; Pavlovsk, Russia, 
and Pare St. Maur, France. 
The following publications have been is- 
sued: Appendix No. 9, giving a general re- 
port of the magnetic survey of North Carolina, 
and Appendix No. 10, on the magnetic work 
of the U. 8. Coast and Geodetic Survey; both 
appendices appearing in the ‘Report of the 
Survey for 1898-99.’ Good progress has also 
been made with the new edition of the Coast 
and Geodetic Survey magnetic declination tables 
and Isogonic charts for the United States and 
Alaska for 1900, designed especially for the 
use of surveyors and mariners. There has 
also been issued recently Bulletin No. 41, giv- 
ing a general summary of magnetic declina- 
tions and of secular variation tables in North 
Carolina. 
Ey 
SCLENCE. 
(N.S. Von. XIII. No. 322. 
ADVANCE IN FORESTRY LEGISLATION. 
ONE by one the different States are awakened 
to their duty in providing for the future of our 
forest supplies. The latest development is the 
introduction on January 23d of two bills into the 
Legislature of Michigan, which aim to place 
the two most needful foundation stones for the 
future State policy. One bill is a most compre- 
hensive ‘Forest Fire Protection Act’; the 
other recognizes the forest reservation policy by 
establishing a State Forest Reserve. 
There had been previously (in 1899) created 
a Forestry Commission of three members, and 
the bills were undoubtedly drawn by that Com- 
mission with great care. 
The Fire Bill is based, in general principles, 
upon that in existence in the State of New 
York, which the writer had formulated in 1885, 
but is improved in several directions. It pro- 
vides an organization of town fire-wardens 
under district forest-wardens, with a single 
Chief Forest-Warden responsible to the For- 
estry Commission. It places responsibility care- 
fully and, with rather too much prescriptive 
detail, tries to meet any possible case. The 
main improvement upon the New York State 
law, besides the greater coherency of the organi- 
zation, is the manner in which the expense is 
distributed. The State pays the entire expense 
and then collects three-quarters of it from the 
counties involved, namely, one-half from the 
county in which the fire originated, the other 
half from the counties, in proportion to the area 
burned over in each. But, if neglect on the 
part of a fire-warden or a responsible county 
officer can be proved, the whole charge goes 
against that county. This provision should 
create a wholesome solidarity and watchfulness 
in the whole community. 
The State Forest Reserve, or rather several 
reservations, are to be made up of ‘ delinquent 
tax lands’ within certain districts of the 
southern peninsula. The area desirable to re- 
serve is to be determined by the Forestry 
Commission ; future tax sales are to increase 
this area in a similar manner, and also volun- 
tary contributions by private individuals. A 
novel idea in favor of educational effort is intro- 
duced for the acquirement of additional lands 
