December 6, 1889.] 



SCIENCE. 



585 



NOTES AND NEWS. 

 The eighth congress of Russian naturalists and physicians 

 will be held at ^t. Petersburg from Dec. 27, 1889, to Jan. 7, 1890. 



— There are now thirty-nine crematories in various parts of the 

 world. Italy has tweniy-three ; America has ten ; while England, 

 Germany, France, Switzerland. Denmark, and Sweden have one 

 apiece. In Italy there were two cremations in 1876; the number 

 rose to fifteen in 1877, and in 1888 the number was 226. Since 

 1876. 1,177 cremations have taken place in Italy, while the com- 

 bined numbers in all other countries brings the total only to 1,269. 



— The following is a list of the papers read at the meeting of the 

 Royal Meteorological Society, London, Nov. 20: "Second Report 

 of the Thunder-Slorm Committee," being a discussion by Mr. 

 Marriott on the distribution of days of thunder-storms over Eng- 

 land and Wales during the seventeen years 1871-87; "On the 

 Change of Temperature which accompanies Thunder Storms in 

 Southern England," by Mr. G. M. 'Whipple ; "Note on the Ap- 

 pearance of St. Elmo's Fire at Walton on the Naze, Sept. 3, 1889," 

 by Mr. W. H. Dines ; " Notes on Cirrus Formation," by Mr. H. 

 Helm Clayton, who has made a special study of cloud-forms and 

 their changes ; " A Comparison between the Jordan and the 

 Campbell Stokes Sunshine Recorder," by Mr. F. C. Bayard, being 

 the result of a year's comparison between these two instruments; 

 "Sunshine," by Mr. A. B. MacDowall, being a discussion of the 

 hours of sunshine recorded at the stations of the Royal Meteoro- 

 logical Society ; " On Climatological Observations at Ballyboley, 

 County Antrim," by Professor S. A. Hill, the result of observations 

 made during the five years 1884-88. 



— A circular letter has been 5ent to the members of the National 

 Electric Light Association by the secretary, Mr. Allan V. Garratt, 

 asking them to state to him as briefly as possible the most difficult 

 electrical problems they ineet in their investigations or in the con- 

 duct of their electrical business. They are also requested to state 

 v.'hat feature of their business is the least economical or efTicient, 

 and why, and where the greatest economy could be effected if the 

 difficulty could be overcome. The answers to these queries will be 

 digested, and the results submitted to Professor Henry A. Rowland 

 of Johns Hopkins L^niversity. Professor Rowland has consented 

 to address the next electric-light convention at Kansas City in Feb- 

 ruary, basing his remarks upon the problems suggested by the 

 members, and pointing out the direction in which their solution 

 must be sought. 



— From a memorandum appended to the last report of the 

 United States consul at Shanghai, it appears that the greatest silk- 

 producing province in China is Che Kiang, and Kiang-Su comes 

 sepond. The two great divisions in silk as exported from central 

 China are known in all places of consumption as isatlees and tay- 

 saams. Tsatlee is simply the Cantonese for iseih le (or " seven 

 li") ; that is to say, an area of that dimension, taking Nanzing as 

 the centre, where the best fine-sized silk was formerly produced. 

 The radius has been extended, in consequence of the higher price 

 paid for fine compared with coarse sorts ; and tsaikcs now include 

 some silks reeled from Sinsze and Seloo cocoons, which formerly 

 were only employed for silks of the coarser thread. Considerable 

 quantities of taysaams are still, however, being reeled in the two 

 last-named districts. At the present time tsatlee means silk pro- 

 duced at Nanzing, Chinza, Linglooh, Shwangling, Woochin, 

 Leensze, Hoochow, and a portion of Sinsze and Seloo, besides the 

 intennediate towns, all situated in Che- Kiang. Taysaain (mean- 

 ing "a big worm ") has really only the signification of silks of a 

 coarse reeling, and under the denomination are classed silks from 

 Kiahsing, Sinsze, Dongse, Shaouhing, Woosieh, and Laeyang, the 

 last two districts being situated in Kiang-Su. Haining or Yuenfa, 

 situate in Che- Kiang, produces silk reeled of the finest size known 

 in China ; and when native competition was crippled by the Tai- 

 Ping rebellion, large quantities annually found a ready sale in 

 Europe, Of late years, however, the e.xport has dwindled down to 

 almost nothing. Hang-Chow, also Che-Kiang, produces both 

 fine and coarse sized silks, tsatlces and taysaams, the size of the 

 former from this district very nearly approaching to that of Kiah- 

 sing taysaams, and they are generally in favor both for export and 

 for home use, while the coarse sorts are mostly taken by Chinese. 



Shaouhing, in Che-Kiang, produces a very considerable quantity of 

 silk, that, when reeled on foreign methods, is said to be equal to 

 any in the empire, but which, as natives persist in reeling on a large 

 wheel and without care, has gradually lost all interest to foreigners. 

 Laehang, in Kiang-Su, produces from 3,000 to 4,000 bales annually, 

 but the same remarks as those applied to the Shaouhing produc- 

 tion must apply also to' this district's production. The principal 

 towns where throwing is carried on are Nanking, Soo-Chow, and 

 Hang-Chow, and the business must be large to meet the require- 

 ments of the enormous piece-goods trade of China. Formerly 

 foreigners used to export considerable quantities ; but the improve- 

 ments made in Europe which have not extended to China have 

 extinguished the trade. The re-reeling of silks (for the purpose of 

 rendering the manipulation of the silk easier to manufacture) is 

 carried on in the centres of Nanzing and Chinza, and the outlying 

 farms and hamlets. The production is considerable, and would 

 be larger, it is said, if the Chinese would use greater care and 

 abstain from adulterating the silk during the process. 



— In response to a despatch from Emin Pacha, doubtless sent 

 on to Zanzibar in advance of the main party, and thence cabled to 

 Cairo, the Egyptian government steamer " Mansourah " has been 

 sent to meet Stanley and Emin and their party at Zanzibar. This 

 will hasten Stanley's return to Europe, and the completion of his 

 adventurous three-years' task may be chronicled very soon. A 

 long letter from Stanley to a friend, dated September, 1888, has 

 just been published. It records his discoveries, and recounts the 

 difficulties anticipated on his homeward journey. There is an ac- 

 count of the hostility of the King of the Kabburega, who stripped 

 Casati, and turned him adrift to perish. He was fortunately found 

 and rescued by Einin. Another letter gives a full account of his 

 sojourn with Emin. 



— The Za«a'/, commenting on the passage of the English in- 

 fectious disease notification bill, says, " One thing is remarkable in 

 this legislation, — the slight resistance which politicians of ad- 

 vanced views have been able to offer to its fundamental principle ; 

 viz., the right of the community to insist on knowing the affairs of 

 individuals and families where these are likely to involve in any de- 

 gree the health of others: in other words, the subordination of the 

 individual to the community. This is, of course, the fundamental 

 principle of society, but it is ever undergoing fresh development. 

 National education, vaccination, isolation, and notification of dis- 

 ease, are all illustrations of the same principle. We have ourselves 

 no hesitation in accepting the principle that individual liberty must 

 give way where such doubtful advantages as the freedom to have 

 small-pox and scarlet-fever are the only badges of liberty ; and it 

 will involve no misfortune to the world if many other rights claimed 

 by well-meaning but discordant individuals are curtailed in the in- 

 terests of society." 



— The New York Electrical Society, the oldest body of the kind 

 in the country, is the Electrical Section of the American Institute. 

 The object of the society is to bring before its members such topics 

 and new inventions as merit their study and attention. There is 

 a large and rapidly growing class of those who wish to gain a 

 greater familiarity with electricity, and it is to the education of this 

 class that the society directs its work. There is another class, 

 composed of those who, while not earning a livelihood from elec- 

 trical work, are greatly interested in all the developments of elec- 

 tricity, and who are glad to attend the meetings of the society, be- 

 cause they there are given the opportunity to come into contact 

 with practical elec'ricians, from whom they may elicit instruction 

 and information such as no book could impart. The appreciation 

 of the work of the society in connection with this element of the 

 community is shown by the growing attendance at the meetings, 

 and by the readiness of the press to publish reports of the pro- 

 ceedings. During the present season She society will introduce to 

 its members a number of the leading men in the electrical profes- 

 sion, who will handle the subjects with which they are most familiar, 

 and of which they are acknowledged masters. From such a course 

 of papers and lectures as has been arranged, there can be no 'doubt 

 that a great stimulus will be given to the study and application of 

 electricity in New York ; and the society therefore confidently ap- 

 peals to those in any way interested in electricity for all the support 



