416 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. XXIV. No. 613. 



for reclaiming the Rann of Cutch, a work 

 which, if carried out, will be similar to that 

 undertaken by the Dutch in the Zuider Zee. 

 The Rann of Cutch is a waste, at some sea- 

 sons water, at others land, and it is proposed 

 to reclaim it by closing the inlets from the 

 sea, which are narrow. The water, which is 

 everywhere shallow, would then evaporate rap- 

 idly, leaving heavy saline deposits. These, it 

 is thought, could be washed out and drained 

 away by a great canal to be constructed from 

 the Indus. The application of scientific agri- 

 culture to the reclaimed land and the con- 

 struction of a railway linking Karachi and 

 Bombay would complete the proposed scheme. 



UNIVERSITY AND EDUCATIONAL NEWS. 



Foreign journals state that the Grecian 

 government recently received from St. Peters- 

 burg a legacy of about eight million roubles 

 (over $6,000,000), which was left in the be- 

 ginning of the last century by a rich Grecian 

 merchant, of the name of Dombolis, with the 

 condition that after the lapse of a definite 

 time a second Grecian university should be 

 built in Corfu out of the capital and interest, 

 and be called the Kapodistrias University. 



We learn from the Journal of the American 

 Medical Association that the former professor 

 of legal medicine and toxicology at Mont- 

 pellier, France, Dr. Jaumes, who died recent- 

 ly, aged seventy-two, made the medical faculty 

 his legatee. A fund producing an income of 

 $1,200 was left to found a chair of general 

 pathology and therapeutics, and a prize in 

 legal medicine was also endowed in both the 

 medical and law departments. Another fund 

 representing an income of $2,000 reverts ulti- 

 mately to the medical faculty, and $6,000 was 

 presented to the local medical and other scien- 

 tific societies. 



Mr. Albert Crane, of Stamford, Connecti- 

 cut, has given $100,000 to the Divinity School 

 of Tufts College. 



Improvements have been made during the 

 summer at Cornell College which will greatly 

 strengthen the scientific work. New and en- 



larged quarters have been provided for the 

 engineering department and the departments 

 of geology, physics and biology. Quantitative 

 and organic laboratories have been provided 

 for the chemical department. A large amount 

 of apparatus has been secured for the different 

 subjects. 



A NEW dormitory for men has been erected 

 at the University of the Pacific to replace the 

 one damaged by the recent earthquake. It 

 will contain fifty-six sleeping rooms (all out- 

 side rooms) each supplied with hot and cold 

 water, fixtures for electric and gas light, and 

 steam heat. Each floor will have six bath 

 rooms and four needle-shower rooms with tile 

 wainscoated sides and floors. The Y. M. C. A., 

 library and club rooms will be 25 x 26 feet 

 each. The building is being constructed of 

 wood, steel and cement, with metal tile roof, 

 will be practically flre-proof, and practically 

 earthquake proof. It will cost about thirty 

 thousand dollars. The fourth story of East 

 Hall has been removed, the roof lowered and 

 the entire building bound securely by steel 

 rods. North, South, East, West, Central and 

 Music Halls have been replastered and deco- 

 rated. A new athletic field is being laid out, 

 and a large plunge bath will be put in back 

 of the gymnasium. One of the heating plants, 

 destroyed by the earthquake, is being replaced 

 by a large plant of sufficient capacity to heat 

 all the buildings in place of two plants as at 

 present. 



The buildings of Groningen University 

 were partly destroyed by fire on August 30. 

 The natural history museum and the chemical 

 laboratories were among the buildings de- 

 stroyed. 



It is reported that Ziirich University will 

 increase the lecture and laboratory fees 

 chargeable to foreigners, with the idea of les- 

 sening their numbers. 



Dr. Francis Francis has been promoted to 

 a chair of chemistry at University College, 

 Bristol, vacant by the appointment of Dr. 

 Travers to the directorship of the Indian In- 

 stitute of Science, to be established at Ban- 

 galore. 



