March 15, 1895.] 



SCIENCE. 



305 



tance for the liistory of physics, meteor- 

 ology and physical geography, since it fur- 

 nishes proof of the existence of atmospheric 

 pressure, and forms the basis of measure- 

 ments of altitudes with the barometer. But 

 three copies of the original are known to 

 exist. 



No. 3. On the Modification of Clouds. Luke 

 Howard. London. 1803. 9 pages in- 

 troduction and .■?2 pages facsimile with 

 three plates. Price 3 M. = 75 cents. 

 This was the first successful attempt at 

 a cloud nomenclature on which all later 

 schemes are based. The first edition of 

 the original work is veiy rai'e. 



A. L. RoTCH. 



XOTES AND NEirS. 



ENTOMOLOGY. 



It is well to draw attention to two admi- 

 rable brief illustrated papers published last 

 year by Ch. Janet on Myrmica rubra, one on 

 the morphology of the skeleton and espe- 

 cially of the postthoracic segments (Mem. 

 See. Acad, de V Oise, xv.), the other on the 

 anatomy of the petiole (M^m. Soc. Zool. 

 France, 1894). We regret we have not 

 space for a full analysis of each, but thej' 

 will be found of gi-eat interest to morphol- 

 ogists and hymenopterists. The clear il- 

 lustrations are pretty sure to find their way 

 into text-books. 



The annual presidential address before 

 the Entomological Society of London by 

 Capt. H. J. Elwes is on the geographical 

 distribution of butterflies and deals largely 

 with those of North America. 



Dr. Ph. Bertkau announces that his 

 health obliges him to give up the admirable 

 annual review of entomology which has ap- 

 peared in the Arrhlv fiif naturycKchichte since 

 1838 under different editors — Erichson, 

 Schaum, Gerstaecker, Hrauer and Bertkau. 

 Entoniologists are under great obligjitions 

 to Dr. Bertkau for the excellence of his 

 summaries, their completeness and the 



promptness with which they have a])peared. 

 A still prompter method of rapid publica- 

 tion in all branches of biology is now being 

 planned, which is at the same time a prac- 

 tical combination of all the current re^'iews 

 — a consummation devoutly to be wished 

 and helped forward. 



M. Emile Blanchard was retired Xovem- 

 ber last from the chair of entomology at the 

 Jardin des Plantes, on account of age ; hi» 

 first entomological paper was published 

 nearly seventj- years ago ; his successor has 

 not yet been announced. 



Fire has committed ravages with our ento- 

 mologists this winter. Mr. J. G. Jack lost 

 his library and collection in Jamaica Plain 

 by the destruction of the building in which 

 they were kept ; Prof. C. H. Tj'ler Town- 

 send lost his valuable dipterological library 

 (nearly complete for America and very full 

 for Europe ) by the burning of the warehouse 

 at Las Cruces, N. Mex., while he was absent 

 for a few weeks at "Washington ; and now 

 comes news that Rev. C. J. S. Bethune's 

 school at Port Hope, Ont., has been burnt 

 to the gi'ound. His loss is estimated at 

 eighty thousand dollars. 



GENERAL. 



Among the articles of scientific interest 

 in the popular magazines for March are the 

 following : Hermann von Helmholtz ; Thos. 

 C. Martin— f'€)i<Hr)/. The World's Debt to 

 Medicine ; John S. Billings — The Chaidau- 

 qnan. Weather studies at Blue Hill ; Ray- 

 mond L. Bridgman — Neiv England Maga- 

 zine. Heredity; St. George Mivart — Har- 

 per's Magazine. The Direction of Educa- 

 tion ; N. S. Shaler — Aflantic Monthly. 



Professor Carhart will deliver the ad- 

 dress at the dedication of the Hale scien- 

 tific building of the Univei-sitj' of Colorado, 

 on March 7th. His subject is The Educa- 

 tional and Industrial Value of Science. 



There will be held at Vienna between 

 the months of January and Mav, ISitfi, an 



