604 



SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XXXII. No. 826 



the inhabitants of Minnesota ought not to be 

 in ignorance hereafter as to the mushroom 

 species of that state. 



The book opens with an introductory page 

 of generalities regarding fungi, among which 

 we are glad to find that the Roman pronuncia- 

 tion of the Latin names of families, genera 

 and species is given as the proper one to be 

 used. Then follows keys and descriptions, 

 accompanied by 124 reproductions of photo- 

 graphs. The attempt has been made by the 

 author to write his descriptions in such non- 

 technical language as will render them intel- 

 ligible to the reader who is not an expert in 

 mycology. Even the non-botanical reader will 

 be able to master the necessary terms by re- 

 ferring to the glossary at the end of the vol- 

 ume. Four color plates add to the interest 

 of the book. The last chapter deals with col- 

 lecting and cooking mushrooms. Enough 

 advice is given here to prevent any danger 

 from the use of poisonous species, and there 

 are enough recipes to start out the neophyte 

 mycophagist happily and safely. 



Chaeles E. Bessey 



The Univebsitt of Nebraska 



THE SCIENTIFIC RESULTS OF THE FIRST 



CRVISE OF THE "CARNEGIE " IN MAO- 



NETI8M, ELECTRICITY, ATMOSPHERIC 



REFRACTION AND GRAVITY "^ 

 The first cruise of the Carnegie began at 

 Brooklyn in August, 1909, and ended at the 

 same place in February of the present year. 

 During this period of about sis months, a 

 total distance of 8,000 nautical miles was cov- 

 ered in the north Atlantic Ocean between the 

 parallels 51° north and 19° north and the fol- 

 lowing ports were visited: Greenport (Long 

 Island), St. John's (Newfoundland), Fal- 

 mouth (England), Funchal (Madeira), Ham- 

 ilton (Bermuda) and Brooklyn (New York). 

 Last June the vessel started out once more, 

 this time on a circumnavigation cruise of 

 65,000 miles to extend over a period of three 

 years and to embrace the Atlantic, Indian and 

 Pacific Oceans. The vessel has already com- 



^ Head at the meeting of the American Physical 

 Society, New York, October 15, 1910. 



pleted a voyage of nearly 7,000 miles since she 

 left last June and is now at the mouth of the 

 Amazon River. The present voyage has not 

 only cut across our first cruise, but is so ar- 

 ranged, by the introduction of loops, as to 

 intersect itself also at various points. We are 

 thus enabled to apply numerous checks. 



In addition, special observations have been 

 made in Gardiner's Bay, off Long Island, and 

 on the neighboring islands at the beginning 

 of the first cruise in September, 1909, and 

 again at the beginning of the present cruise 

 in June of this year. The results of all these 

 elaborate tests have shown conclusively that, 

 with a non-magnetic vessel like the Carnegie 

 and with the instrumental appliances and 

 methods used, it is possible to secure an ac- 

 curacy in the magnetic results approaching 

 that of land observations. 



As I am to cover four lines of activity on 

 this vessel in the space of a quarter of an hour, 

 it will not be possible to go into further detail 

 and I shall have to content myself with stating 

 at once the main conclusions reached. 



A. .Terrestrial Magnetism. — Except for the 

 portion of the cruise from 48°. 5 N., 47° W. to 

 Falmouth Bay and thence to Madeira, all 

 charts show too low west magnetic declination 

 over the portion of the Atlantic Ocean covered 

 by the Carnegie. While the correction is in 

 general less than a degree, it is unfortunately 

 in the same direction for about 5,000 miles, 

 and hence the resulting error in a ship's course 

 based on the present mariner's charts may be 

 accumulative and ultimately reach a consid- 

 erable amount. The maximum chart error at 

 any one point may be from 1°.3 to 2°. 6 ac- 

 cording to the chart used. 



The chart corrections both for magnetic in- 

 clination and horizontal intensity, often being 

 of opposite signs on the portion of the Car- 

 negie's first cruise, the average algebraic cor- 

 rection is in consequence at times greatly re- 

 duced. The average chart correction (sign 

 not being considered) for magnetic dip ap- 

 proximates 1°.5 to 2°; the maximum correc- 

 tion for the British chart is 2°. 5 and that of 

 the German 4°. 4. It is also seen from the 

 values of the average algebraic dip correction, 



