November 21, 1890.] 



SCIENCE. 



28r 



of the Daghestan plateau turned towards the Caspian Sea ; while 

 the dry Daghestan plateau itself has a flora decidedly recalling 

 that of the highlands of central Asia. M. KuznetsofE explains 

 these differences by the raoister climate of the Caucasus highlands, 

 due to the proximity both of the Black and of the Caspian Sea. 

 But it may also have a deeper cause. In fact, the plateaus of 

 Daghestan cannot but appear to the orographer as a continuation 

 of the geologically oldest plateaus of Asia Minor, now separated 

 from the main plateau by the relatively much younger chain of 

 the Caucasus. Referring to the vegetation of the Caucasus dur- 

 ing the tertiary epoch, when the Caucasus was a vast island 

 surrounded by tertiary seas, M. Kuznetsoff considers that the flora 

 of Daghestan has undergone, the greatest change since the tertiary 

 epoch. The floras of both the western and the eastern Caucasus 

 have maintained more of their old characters, owing to less change 

 having gone on in their climate, which has remained moist; and 

 the vegetation of the Black Sea coast, which has a climate very 

 much like that of the Japan archipelago, has retained still more of 

 the aspects it had during the tertiary epoch. Further exploration 

 will be necessary to show how far climate alone cau account for 

 the present characters of the flora of the Caucasus. 



— Mr. Arthur Winslow, State geologist of Missouri, in his re- 

 port of the State Geological Survey for October, states that de- 

 tailed mapping has been continued in the central and south-east- 

 ern portions of the State, and about 140 square miles have been 

 covered in Randolph, Howard, Chariton, Johnson, Madison, and 

 St. Frangois Counties. During the first half of the month the 

 examination of the clay deposits of the western central counties 

 was in progress; but during the latter half this work was discon- 

 tinued temporarily in order to make final additions to other work 

 already nearly completed. This work in these counties will be 

 resumed this month with the hope of completing the field-work 

 there this season. Examination of the mineral waters has been made 

 in the following nine counties, and samples for analysis have 

 laeen collected: Adair, Schuyler, Macon, Daviess, Mercer, Chari- 

 ton, Pike, Marion, and Ralls. In the laboratory, analyses have 

 bsen made of mineral waters and clays, and a number of speci- 

 mens sent in by outside parties have been determined. For the 

 purpose of preparing a preliminary report upon the coal-industry 

 of the State, inspections have been made in Callaway, Clay, Ray, 

 Johnson, Saline, Henry, and Barton Counties. The survey has 

 many applications for information concerning the coal-deposits of 

 the State, and there are no publications on hand with which to 

 ■satisfy this demand: hence this preliminary report will be pre- 

 pared for early distribution. It will not be possible to give in 

 such a report all of the valuable detail as to the distribution and 

 character of the coal beds which the final reports and maps are 

 ■designed to contain; but it will furnish general information relat- 

 ing to the present condition of the coal-industry and its prospec- 

 tive development, concerning which nothing comprehensive and 

 •olEoial is available now. Work has also been in progress in 

 Webster and Greene Counties in extension of what was done there 

 Jast summer. 



— Nature announces the death of Dr. Alexander John Ellis, 

 F.R.S. The following notice of his career is from the London 

 Times: "Dr. Ellis, whose original name was Sharpe, died at his 

 residence in Auriol Road, West Kensington, on Oct. 28. He was 

 born in Hoxton in 1814, and educated at Shrewsbury, Eton, and 

 Trinity College, Cambridge, of which he was elected a scholar in 

 1835, and graduated B.A., being sixth wrangler, and first in the 

 second class in classics, in 1 837. He was elected a fellow of the 

 ■Cambridge Philosophical Society in 1837, of the Royal Society in 

 1864 (being a member of the council for 1880-83), of the Society 

 of Antiquaries in 1870, of the College of Preceptors in 1873, and a 

 life governor of University College, London, in 1886. He was 

 president of the Philological Society during 1873-74, and also 

 1880-83. He was also a member of the Mathematical Society of 

 London, of the Royal Institution, of the Society of Arts, and hon- 

 orary member of the Tonic Sol-Fa College. Dr. Ellis was a volu- 

 minous author, his works including 'The Alphabet of Nature,' 

 1845; 'Essentials of Phonetics,' 1b48; ' Plea for Phonetic Spell- 

 ang,' 1548; ' Universal Writing and Spelling,' 1856; ' Early English 



Pronunciation, with Special Reference to Chaucer and Shakspeare.' 

 1869-86; ' Glossic,' 1879; ' Practical Hintson the Quantitative Pro- 

 nunciation of Latin,' 1874; 'On the English, Dionysian, and Hel- 

 lenic Pronunciation of Greek,' 1877; 'Pronunciation for Singers,' 

 1377 ; ' Speech in Song,' 1878 ; together with numerous other works 

 and tracts on music and phonetics. He received the silver medal 

 of the Society of Arts for three papers in connection with the 

 ' Musical Pitch' at home and abroad." 



— The following is a complete list of the papers presented to the- 

 National Academy of Sciences, at its meeting in Boston, Nov. 11. 

 12, and 13: "On the Primary Cleavage Products formed in the 

 Digestion of the Albuminoid, Gelatine," by R. H. Chittenden; 

 "On the Classification and Distribution of SleUar Spectra," by 

 Edward C. Pickering; "On the Relation of Atmospheric Elec- 

 tricity, Magnetic Storms and Weather Elements, to a Case of 

 Traumatic Neuralgia," by R. Catlin; " On the Growth of Children 

 studied by Galton's Method of Percentile Grades," by Henry P. 

 Bowditch; "On Electrical Oscillations in Air, together with 

 Spectroscopic Study of the Motions of Molecules in Electrical 

 Discharges," by John Trowbridge; " Some Considerations regard- 

 ing Helmholtz's Theory of Dissonance," by Charles R. Cross; "A 

 Critical Study of a Combined Metre and Yard upon a Surface of 

 Gold, the Metre having Subdivisions to Two Millimetres, and the 

 Yard to Tenths of Inches," by W. A, Rogers; " On Evaporation 

 as a Distiu-bing Element in the Determination of Temperatures," 

 by W. A. Rogers; "On the Use of tlie Phonograph in the Study 

 of the Languages of the American Indians," by J. Walter Fewkes; 

 " On the Pr-obable Loss in the Enumeration of the Colored People 

 of the United States, at the Census of 1870," by Francis A. 

 Walker; " On the Capture of Periodic Comets by Jupiter," by H. 

 A. Newton; " On the Proteids of the Oat- Kernel." by Thomas B. 

 Osborne; " On the Present Aspect of the Problems concerning 

 Lexell's Comet," by S. C. Chandler; "The Great Falls Coal Field, 

 Montana, its Geological Age and Relations," by J. S. Newberry ; 

 " Notes on the Separation of the Oxides in Cerite, Samarskite, and 

 Gadolinite," by Wolcott Gibbs; " On the Relationships of the Cy- 

 clopteroidea," by Theo. GiU; "On the Origin of Electro-Magnetic 

 Waves," by Amos E. Dolbear. 



— The Brooklyn Institute, through its department of geography, 

 is preparing to open about Jan. 1, 1891, a permanent exhibition of 

 specimens of the best geographical text-books, maps, atlases, 

 globes, reliefs, models, teUuria, and other apparatus used in the 

 various countries of Europe and America in their courses of geo- 

 graphical instruction, or required by persons of culture or wealth 

 who equip their libraries with the best geographical material. 

 The plan having been submitted to the foremost educators in this 

 country, to heads of scientific bureaus of the United States Gov- 

 ernment, and to leaders in business and financial affairs, has re- 

 ceived their indorsement, and will have the advantage of their 

 hearty cooperation. The exhibition wiU be open for one month 

 in the building of the Brooklyn Institute. The collection 

 will then be exhibited for one month in each of the 

 cities of New York, Philadelphia, Boston, Baltimore, Washing- 

 ton, Chicago, St. Louis, and other great centres of popula- 

 tion. The entire collection, except loaned specimens, will then 

 be arranged as a permanent exhibition in the building of the 

 Brooklyn Institute. In connection with the exhibition, the Brook- 

 lyn Institute is collecting material for a comprehensive report 

 which it will publish regarding the position and methods of geo- 

 graphical instruction in America and Europe. The exhibition 

 will also illustrate lectures to be delivered on the teaching of 

 geography. The exhibition will be free to the public. The col- 

 lection wiU be fuUy catalogued and conveniently arranged for 

 purposes of comparative examination and study. The intention is 

 to illustrate the methods of geographical instruction in all grades, 

 from primary to university, and to give the American public an 

 unequalled opportunity to become acquainted with the best ex- 

 amples of all the various appliances, wherever produced, that are 

 used to illustrate geography. It is desired to make a very promi- 

 nent department of books that are helpful to teachers of geogra- 

 phy. For further information address Cyrus C. Adams, president 

 Department of Geography, Brooklyn Institute, Brooklyn, N.Y. 



