December 19, 1890.] 



SCIENCE. 



34: 



the svstero of "visible speech" invented by Mr. Alexander Mel- 

 ville Bell, and that by its aid the pronunciation of a dialect can be 

 conveyed in writing by one who has learned the sounds, to another 

 person who has never heard the sounds, with reasonable accuracy. 

 The Object of this letter is to state that a rare opportunity is now 

 presented to a limited number of higher educational institutions 

 to avail themselves of the direct teaching of Mr. Bell through a 

 lecture in elucidation of visible speech. All teachers of compara- 

 tive philology understand this system, but perhaps can learn some- 

 thing in regard to the method of teaching it by seeing the mpthod 

 employed by Mr. Bell himself. It may be stated that the inventor 

 ■of this system does not require any compensation for his lecture, 

 but is willing to engage during the coming season, January to 

 June, 1891, to give a free lecture on the subject named. Applica- 

 tions should be addressed to Mr. Alexander Melville Bell, 1526 

 Thirty-fifth Street, N.W., Washington, DC. Mr. Bell begs to 

 state that for colleges, etc , near and to the south of the District 

 of Columbia, early dates should be selected, and immediate appli- 

 cation made, in order that visits may be serially arranged. 



— The Journal of Education (London) is authority for the state- 

 mentthat Professors Ludwig, Wislicenus, Bruns, Bohm, Hoffmann, 

 and Ostwald, all of the University of Leipzig, have signed the fol- 

 lowing declaration: "The undersigned, without as yet deciding 

 what the course of instruction in the high-schools should be, never- 

 theless feel themselves compelled to declare that the education 

 which our students have received in the Gymnasia, as at present 

 constituted, is but little suited as a basis for the study of natural 

 science and medicine." This has called forth the following counter- 

 declaration, signed by one hundred and twenty-two Leipzig pro- 

 fessors : " The undersigned professors and lecturers of the Univer- 

 sity of Leipzig declare thnt all educational reforms which do away 

 with, or materially lessen, the study of the Greek language and 

 literature, can only result in a serious injury to our national edu- 

 cation. At the same time the undersigned express their conviction 

 that the alterations, which may possibly be necessary in cettain 

 particulars, are quite possible with the retention or the classical 

 basis of our Gymnasium education." Among the supporters of 

 this declaration are the ' ' Cultusminister " of Prussia, Bavaria, 

 Saxony, Wiirtemberg, and Baden. 



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

 ■of the operations of the State Geological Survey during the month 

 of November, says that detailed mapping has been continued in 

 Johnson, Madison, St. Frangois, Washington, and Iron Counties, 

 and about 170 square miles have been covered. In the laboratory 

 analyses have been made of mineral waters collected during Sep- 

 tember and October, and work on a large number of clay samples 

 has also been in progress. Examinations of clay deposits and 

 Tauilding-stones have been made in Henry, Vernon, Bates, and 

 Johnson Counties, and a number of specimens and samples have 

 been collected for exhibition aud test. For the purposes of the 

 preliminary report upon the coal-deposits of the State, inspections 

 have been extended into Miller, Morgan, Bates, Vernon, Dade, 

 Cooper, Saline, and Audrain Counties. The field-work allotted to 

 the past season is now very nearly completed, and during the 

 month of December all members of the survey will be withdrawn 

 from continuous field-work until next spring, and the intervening 

 time will be devoted to preparing the results of the past season's 

 •work for publication. 



— The board of directors of the National Educational Associa- 

 tion, at the meeting held in St. Paul, indicated Saratoga Springs, 

 JS'.Y., as their first choice, and Toronto, Canada, as their second 

 choice, as the place of holding the next meeting of the association. 

 The executive committee was instructed to make personal exami- 

 nation of railway facilities and local guaranties, and was empow- 

 ■ered to make final decision as to time and place, and to complete 

 arrangements for the next meeting. Three members of the com- 

 mittee visited Saratoga Springs. The local and State authorities 

 igave guaranties beyond the requirements; but the Trunk Line 

 Association, in whose territory Saratoga Springs is situated, re- 

 fused to grant the customary reduced rates. The committee then 

 ■opened negotiations with Toronto. Four members of the commit- 

 tee have visited that city and held consultations with the local 



and i'ailroai authorities. Satisfactory guaranties have been pre- 

 sented by the local authorities and by the railroads with the ex- 

 ception of the Trunk Line Association. The next meeting of the 

 association will be held at Toronto, Canada, July 14-17, 1891. 

 The council will convene July 10. A cordial invitation, indorsed 

 by the authorities of Ontario, of every province in Canada, and 

 by the authorities of the Dominion, has been before the association 

 for two years. Many of the teachers of Canada have become 

 members of the association. They will meet in Toronto in full 

 force, and will prepare an exhibit giving a complete view of 

 Canadian systems of education. 



— A patent has been issued this week to N. D. C. Hodges, edi- 

 tor of Science, for an improved method of protecting buildings 

 from lightning. This invention is based on the large electrical 

 capacity of a fine powder scattered in a dielectric. The electrical 

 discharge is received on some body, which is then dissipated in 

 the form of powder, and the potential of the charge is thereby 

 largely reduced. The quantity of material which it is necessary 

 to dissipate in order to furnish protection is not large if the 

 material be placed so as to serve to the best advantage, at the 

 most not exceeding a few cubic inches. 



— In connection with the meeting of the National Electric Light 

 Association in Providence, R.I., on Feb. 17, 18, and 19, 1891, it is 

 proposed to hold an exhioition of electrical apparatus and appli- 

 ances, especially such as are used in the business of furnishing 

 light and power. A suitable hall has been secured opposite the 

 hotel, which will be the association headquarters; and through the 

 courtesy of the Narragansett Electric Lighting Company all the 

 electric current necessary will be provided. There will be no 

 charge for space or current to exhibiters, who must, however, be 

 associate members of the association. The installation and care 

 of exhibits will, of course, be at the expense of exhibiters. As 

 this meeting may b? said to virtually mark the close of the first 

 decade of electric lighting commercially, it is suggested, that, as 

 far as possible, efforts be made to show the progress in the art by 

 exhibiting the earlier forms of apparatus and appliances, together 

 with those embodying the latest improvements. The exhibition 

 will open on Tuesday, Feb. 17, and close on Thursday evening, 

 Feb. 19, and will be open day and evening. Exhibits may be in- 

 stalled on the Saturday and Monday previous, and removed on 

 the following Friday. It is expected that this exhibition will prove 

 very attractive to the Providence public, as well as to the members 

 of the association. To exclude the streetgamiu element, a nomi- 

 nal admission fee (twenty five cents) will be charged; but it is in- 

 tended to circulate complimentary invitations freely among the 

 representative business-men of the city, and exhibiters will be 

 supplied with as many complimentary tickets as they may desire 

 to distribute. As space is limited, and will be allotted in the order 

 in which applications are received, it is desii'able that all intending 

 exhibiters apply to the chairman of the committee, C. H. Barney, 

 20 Cortlandt Street, New York, prior to Jan. 15, 1891, at which 

 date all allotments of space wiU be made. 



— The Copley Medal of the Royal Society, London, has been 

 awarded to Professor Simon Newcomb of Johns Hopkins Univer- 

 sity, and superintendent of the " Nautical Almanac," for his con- 

 tributions to gravitational astronomy. The medal was first given 

 by the society in 1753, to Dr. Benjamin Franklin. In the follow- 

 ing list the names are recorded of those who have received this 

 honor during the last thirty years : 1860, R. W. Bunsen; 1861, L. 

 Agassiz; 1862, T. Graham; 1863, A. Sedgwick; 1864, C. Darwin; 

 1865, M. Chasles; 1866, J. Plticker; 1867, K. E. von Baer; 1868, C. 

 Wheatstone; 1869, H. V. Regnault; 1870, J. R. Joule: 1871, J. R. 

 Mayer; 1873, F. Wohler; 1873, H. L. F. Helmholtz; 1874, L. 

 Pasteur; 1875, A. W. Hofmann; 1876, C. Bernard; 1877, J. D. 

 Dana; 1878, J. B. Boussingault ; 1879, R. J. E. Clausius; 1880, J. J. 

 Sylvester; 1881, K. A. Wiirtz; 1883, A. Cayley; 1883, William 

 Thomson; 1884, C. Ludwig; 1885, A. Kekule; 1886, F. E. Neu- 

 mann; 1887, J. D. Hooker; 1888, T. H. Huxley; 1889, G. Salmon; 

 1890, S. Newcomb. The mathematical medalists in previous years 

 have been. Waring (1784), Ivory (1814), Gauss (1838), Sturm 

 (1841), Chasles (1865), Plticker (1866), Sylvester (1880), Cayley 

 (1883), Thomson (1883), Salmon (1889). 



