June 12, 1903.] 



SCIENCE. 



947 



plete ehange in the pelagic fauna within reach 

 of the laboratory, the catch consisting chiefly 

 of larvffi of forms living upon the Bahama 

 Bant. Reports of the Weather Bureau show 

 that, except during the midwinter months, the 

 prevailing winds at the Tortugas are from east 

 to southeast. That is, they blow diagonally 

 across the Gulf Stream toward the station. 

 This, with a reasonable amount of calm 

 weather, would afFord ideal conditions for the 

 study of the truly pelagic fauna, which is the 

 most interesting and the least known. Or- 

 dinarily one has to go out in a ship to study 

 this fauna, but at Tortugas, as at Bimini, it 

 would be brought to the door of the laboratory 

 by an ocean current, and at the Tortugas there 

 would be the additional advantage that the 

 wind would generally be blowing across the 

 current toward the laboratory instead of away 

 from it. 



If a laboratory is established there I shall 

 certainly endeavor to use it, and I hope that 

 its establishment will not be delayed by any 

 idea of great expenditure. Very good work 

 can be done at such a place with very modest 

 equipments. 



Egbert Payne Bigelow. 



Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 

 May 26, 1903. 



Having spent a season in Jamaica I am 

 disposed to advocate that island with almost 

 unqualified commendations as a site for a 

 research laboratory in the tropical Atlantic. 

 B. W. Barton. 

 Johns Hopkins University, 

 May 6, 1903. 



8E0RTEB ARTICLES. 



THE ARC OP QUITO. 



The following statement concerning a work 

 of international interest and importance is 

 taken from the Oompies Bendus, Hehdoma- 

 daireSj des Seances de I'Academie des Sciences, 

 tome CXXXVL, No. 14 (6 Avril, 1903).* 



* Report presented in the name of the commission 

 charged with the scientific control of the geodetic 

 operations on the Equator. (Commissioners; Mm. 

 Bouquet de la Grye, Hatt, Bassot, Loewy; H. 

 Poincarg, Secretary.) 



" The commission formed by the French 

 Academy of Sciences for the scientific control 

 of the geodetic operations on the Equator had 

 a meeting on March 9 to hear the report of 

 M. le Commandant Bourgeois on the work 

 executed during the year 1902." Unhappily, 

 the progress of the work has not been as rapid 

 as was expected last year when the previous 

 report was made. This delay has resulted 

 from two prinicipal causes, the first being the 

 exceptionally unfavorable meteorological con- 

 ditions. The summits of the mountains were 

 constantly covered with clouds or mist which 

 rendered observations impossible. 



Lieut. Perrier remained three months at the 

 station on Mirador, at an altitude of 4,000 

 meters, and was constantly in the clouds. 

 During his whole stay incessant rains and a 

 furious wind prevailed except at rare intervals. 

 The other parties encountered the same diffi- 

 culties. At Tacunga, M. Maurain was only 

 able to observe at rare intervals. At Cahuito, 

 M. Lacombe passed many days in the mist 

 and snow without being able to obtain a 

 single observation. M. Lallemand had charge 

 of the reconnaissance and signal building and 

 encountered many obstacles. These unfavor- 

 able conditions appeared to have an excep- 

 tional character which the reconnaissance 

 could not make known in advance. Ordinarily 

 the season of rain is shorter, and even in the 

 worst months observations are sometimes pos- 

 sible during many hours of the day. Is it 

 possible that the persistent bad weather should 

 be ascribed to the recurrence of volcanic ac- 

 tivity which showed itself in the whole of 

 South America after the catastrophe at 

 Martinique ? 



The volcanoes of the eastern Cordilleras, 

 which ordinarily emit a little vapor, threw 

 out columns of smoke on many occasions, and 

 there were lava flows in the western chain. 



Strong earthquake shocks were also felt. 

 These volcanic manifestations did not directly 

 delay the work, but perhaps they were con- 

 nected with the meteorological conditions 

 which proved to be so serious in delaying the 

 operations. 



The second cause of delay was the continued 



