298 



SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XXXIII. No. 843 



popularize this science, has died at Meran at 

 the age of fifty-eight years. 



The death is also announced of Dr. Sig- 

 mund Grundfienger, formerly professor of 

 mathematics at Darmstadt. 



Herr Leopold Koppec, a Berlin banker, has 

 given $175,000 for the erection of a research 

 institute for physical chemistry in Berlin and 

 will make a further gift of $87,500 extended 

 over the next ten years for maintenance. 



The senate has passed the Weeks bill pro- 

 viding for the establishment of a forest re- 

 serve in the Appalachian Mountains by a vote 

 of 57 to 9. The bill is applicable from Maine 

 to the Gulf of Mexico, on the eastern sea- 

 board. It was passed by the house at the last 

 session. The bill gives the consent of Con- 

 .gress to the states to enter into an agreement 

 among themselves for the purpose of con- 

 serving the forests and water supply of each, 

 and appropriates $200,000 to enable the secre- 

 tary of agriculture to cooperate with such 

 states in giving fire protection. In addition, 

 the bill appropriates $1,000,000 for one year, 

 and not more than $2,000,000 for each year 

 thereafter, until 1915, for surveys, examina- 

 tions and acquirement of lands located at the 

 headwaters of streams which are being or may 

 be developed for navigable purposes. A com- 

 mission composed of the secretaries of war, 

 interior and agriculture and of two members 

 fiach of the house and senate is created to 

 .acquire these lands subsequent to an examina- 

 tion by the Geological Survey. 



It is reported in Nature that at a special 

 ...general meeting of the Geological Society of 

 London on January 26, the following resolu- 

 tions were passed: (1) That the space now 

 occupied by the museum be made available 

 for the extension of the library. (2) That it 

 is desirable that the society's collections of 

 fossils, minerals and rocks, with certain ex- 

 ceptions to be subsequently specified, be of- 

 fered to one or more of the national museums, 

 provided that guarantees be obtained that the 

 -specimens will be properly registered and ren- 

 dered available for scientific purposes. (3) 

 That it is not desirable that the society should 

 .accept money for any part of the collections. 



or in consideration of them. (4) That the 

 council be empowered to approach such insti- 

 tution, or institutions, with the view of carry- 

 ing the above resolutions into effect, and that 

 the council shall call another special general 

 meeting to express approval or otherwise of 

 the arrangement proposed. 



The late Dr. Huchard has bequeathed to 

 the Academie de medecine a sum of $20,000 

 to found an annual prize to aid young stu- 

 dents, who like his son. Marcel Huchard, in 

 whose memory the prize is founded, are vic- 

 tims to professional devotion and to enable 

 them to continue their studies. 



A CATECHISM on bovine tuberculosis is the 

 title of a circular of information issued by 

 Dean H. L. Russell, of the college of agricul- 

 ture of the University of Wisconsin, and Pro- 

 fessor E. G. Hastings, of the university ex- 

 periment station. This bulletin presents over 

 sixty questions gleaned from inquiries re- 

 ceived at the college with brief answers based 

 on the best scientific knowledge of bovine 

 tuberculosis. Complete instructions for de- 

 termining the presence of the disease through 

 the administering of the tuberculin test are 

 given, together with hints on how to control 

 the disease in a large herd. 



The operation of amblygonite mines in 

 South Dakota during the last two years has 

 reduced the price of lithium carbonate from 

 $2.50 to 50 cents a pound, and large quantities 

 have been sold at still lower prices. The car- 

 bonate is the lithium product most used and 

 is employed in making storage batteries and 

 fireworks and for medicinal purposes. Lith- 

 ium, the metal, has no practical use. Lithium 

 bromide is used to some extent in photography 

 and in medicine. In an advance chapter of 

 the United States Geological Survey's volume 

 entitled " Mineral Eesources of the United 

 States, Calendar Year 1909," prepared by 

 Frank L. Hess, the occurrence and extraction 

 of lithium ores are discussed. In 1909 several 

 carloads of amblygonite were taken from 

 mines at Keystone, S. D., and a few carloads 

 of spodumene were shipped from the same 

 locality by another company. Practically all 



