202 



SCIENCE. 



[Vol. XV. No. 373; 



another explorer went to Brazil to study dyeing woods; and, in 

 the last century, Condamine, Dombey, Bougainville, and La 

 Perouse went on their well-known expeditions. The president, 

 Comte de Bisemont, mentioned tbattbeie were still in the archives 

 of the Ministry of Marine copies of the instructions given to 

 travellers and navigators in past centuries, and that these were 

 '• positively models of their kind, which could not be followed 

 too closely now." Professor Bureau, of the Museum of Natural 

 History in Paris, observed that a botanical collection made by 

 Paul Lucas in the reign of Louis XIV, still existed in the museum ; 

 and be referred especially to Tournefort, of the same period, 

 whom he described as the scientific traveller of former times who 

 perhaps most nearly approached moderns in his methods of ob- 

 servation: He was sent by the king on a botanical expedition 

 to the Levant, with very precise instructions, among others, to 

 collect and observe the plants mentioned by the ancients He 

 did not confine himself to this, but formed a complete herbarium, 

 which is still preserved at the museum, and is one of its treas- 

 ures. He was accompanied by an artist named Aubriet, who 

 brought back a large collection of colored sketches, which forms 

 an important part of the unrivalled collection in the library of the 

 museum. 



— The 6fteentb session of the Sauveur College of Languages 

 %vill be held at the University of Vermont, Burlington, Vt., com- 

 mencing at 8 A.M. on Wednesday, July 9. and continuing six 

 weeks. The situation of Burlington on a hill which slopes down 

 to Lake Champlain, and the frequent fresh breezes, make the 

 climate in summer cool and healthful. It is a place of great 

 natural beauty, and the University of Vermont commands a most 

 beautiful view. Mansfield and Camel's Hump of the Green 

 Mountains, the noble range of the Adirondack?, and the lake 

 with its islands, form a picture which will delight all. The uni- 

 versity is a new and handsome building. It contains collections 

 in various departments of knowledge, and a valuable library. The 

 instruction of the college will include, for the adults, French, 

 German, Italian, Spanish, modern Greek, and Romance languages; 

 Latin and ancient Greek ; comparative grammar of the English 

 language and the formation of modern English ; English literature 

 and rhetoric. There will be each day, for the adults, seven hours 

 of French, seven of German, three of Latin, three of Greek, three 

 of Italian, tno of Spanish, one hour each of English literature and 

 rhetoric, comparative grammar of the English language, and the 

 formation of modern English; for the children, two hours of 

 French and two hours of German. The classes will meet every 

 day except Saturday, and the lessons will be given from 9 A.M. to 

 1 P.M., and from 4 P.M. to 5 P.M. Saturdays will be devoted to 

 recreation. Excursions will be arranged for, at moderate rates, 

 to Ausable Chasm, Mount Mansfield and Camel's Hump, Lake 

 George, Montreal, and other places of interest. Those who pur- 

 pose attending the College of Languages, or who know but little 

 of this summer school, are recommended to send for a copy of the 

 programme, which may be had at the bookstores of F. W. Chris- 

 tern, New York ; Carl Schoenhof , Boston, Mass. ; John Wanamaker, 

 Philadelphia, Penn. ; Robert Clarke & Co., Cincinnati, O. ; and 

 will be sent to applicants by Dr. A. N. van Daell, 28 Atherton 

 Street, Roxbury, Mass. ; Dr. William Bernhardt, City High School, 

 Washington, B.C.; Dr. James H. Dillard, Mary Institute, Wash- 

 ington University, St. Louis, Mo. ; or Dr. L. Sauveur, Copley 

 Terrace, Roxbury, Mass. 



— The stay of some 306 natives from various French colonies, 

 etc., for about six months, in Paris last year, in connection with 

 the exhibition, was an interesting experiment in acclimatization. 

 According to Nature of March 6, owing to wise hygienic measures 

 (such as vaccination, good water-supply, isolation of closets, and 

 surveillance of food), these Annamites, Tonquinese, Senegalese, 

 etc., seem to have escaped most of the common endemic diseases. 

 According to the Semaine MMicale, they had no typhoid-fever, 

 scarlatina, or measles, though these were in Paris at the time. 

 Some 68 natives were attacked by mumps. The fatigues of a 

 voyage and the change of climate led to a recurrence of intermit- 

 tent fever, with grave symptons, in twenty cases. It was thought 

 at first to be typhoid fever of a severe type ; but the rapid and 



durable efficacy of sulphate of quinine, given in doses of two to 

 three grams a day, proved the paludine nature of the disorder. 

 It is noteworthy that most illnesses of this population, especially 

 that just noticed, and those from cold, appeared during the first 

 part of the time, when the weather was mild ; while in the second 

 period, with unfavorable atmospheric conditions, the illness dimin- 

 ished, whether owing to precautions in the matter of dress and 

 food, or to more complete acclimatization. The negroes of Senegal 

 and the Gaboon seem to have been the greatest sufferers, while the- 

 Indo-Chinese race acclimatized the best. 



— There are in Berlin 16 Gymnasia, — 5 government and 11 

 municipal Gymnasia. The government Oymnasia are those of 

 which the expenses are wholy or partly borne by the government. 

 In the 5 government Oymnasia there are 83 classes with 3,194 

 pupils; in the 16 others there are 165 classes with 5,b87 pupils. 

 There is one government Realgymnasium with 15 classes and 665- 

 pupils, and seven municipal Realgymnasia with 102 classes and 

 3,983 pupils. There are 3 Ober-realschulen and 5 higher burgher- 

 schools, all municipal. There are 7 high schools for girls, having 

 114 classes with 5,210 pupils. These 7 schools for girls, com- 

 pared with the 31 schools for boys, are altogether inadequate. 

 Private schools for girls have therefore sprung up in all parts of 

 the capital, but they are all subject to the inspection of the school 

 committee. There are more than 48 private high schools for girls, 

 with 11,493 pupils. As a bridge between the higher and the- 

 lower schools, there are the so-called Gemeindeschulen (municipal 

 schools). In these, pupils are specially prepared for the higher 

 schools, and some are directly connected with them They num- 

 ber 33, and contain 80 classes with 4.105 pupils. Besides these, 

 there are 15 private schools with 116 classes and 8,832 pupils, 

 mostly preparing for the higher schools. A few private elemen- 

 tary schools were kept going through the deficiency in the num- 

 ber of public schools. The municipality placed in them its surplus 

 school population and paid the fees. But the chief raison d'etre- 

 of these schools disapjjeared with the abolition of school fees and 

 the introduction of free elementary education. Their day is past, 

 and there will no longer be any complaints about the inefficiency 

 of the teaching given in them as compared with that in the public 

 schools. The present cry in Berlin is for more schools and smaller 

 classes. The latter complaint, indeed, is not confined to Berlin, 

 but is becoming general in all parts of the country The abnor- 

 mal growth of the capital since 1870 has rendered it very difficult 

 for the municipality to keep pace with the population and provide 

 enough schools. The number of classes in Berlin of overgrown 

 size has risen in the space of one year, 1888-89, from 55 to 106. 

 The cause of this is the thinning of the ranks of the elementary- 

 teachers through the low rate of salaries. 



— A curious phenomenon is reported from Batoum, says Nature. 

 On Jan. 33, at 4 p.m., during a complete calm, the sea is said to 

 have suddenly receded from the shore, leaving it bare to a depth 

 of ten fathoms. The water of the port rushed out to sea, tearing 

 many of the ships from their anchorage, and causing a great 

 amount of damage. After a short time the sea assumed its usual 

 level. 



— The Boston Manufacturers Mutual Fire Insurance Company 

 reports the causes of 206 fires occurring during 1889, as follows r 

 foreign matter in stock, 45; picker fires (unknown whether for- 

 eign matter or friction), 38; friction of stock, 17; hot journals, 

 17; spontaneous ignition of oily material, 15; spontaneous igni- 

 tion of dyes, 13; chafing of belt, 5; gas-jet, 5; kerosene lamp, 4;. 

 matches, 3; lightning, 8; steam pipes, 3; rocket, 1; sulphur 

 bleach, 1; electricity from belt, 1; overheated oven, 1; sparks 

 from r-roken machinerj', 7; sparks from chimney, 3; sparks from 

 cupola, 3; sparks from forge, 3; sparks from burning building, 

 1; sparks from locomotive, 1; sparks from boiler-setting, 1; 

 sparks from furnace, 1 : sparks from core-oven, 1 ; sparks from 

 card-grinder, 1; back draught, 3; derailed train, 1: various fires 

 in mill tenements. 3; suspected incendiary (two by insane per- 

 sons), 5; unknown, 18. The times of starting of the fires wereas- 

 follows : day, 151; night, 39; unknown (all extinguished with- 

 out claim), 16. The property was classified as follows: cotton- 

 miUs, 115; woollen- mills, 39; machine and metal works, 15;. 



