January 26, 1900.] 



SCIENCE. 



159 



probably the best instruments hitherto used in 

 such observations. Mr. A. E. Douglass will 

 make simultaneous observations under Mr. 

 Lowell's auspices in Georgia. 



President Daniel C. Gilman has been 

 granted a year's leave of absence by the 

 trustees of the Johns Hopkins University. He 

 will leave for Europe early in the spring. 



Professor Reginald A. Fessenden, of the 

 electrical engineering department of the West- 

 ern University of Pennsylvania, has resigned 

 his chair to accept a position in the Signal De- 

 partment of the United States Weather Bureau, 

 at Washington. 



The Academy of Sciences at Belgium has 

 elected as foreign members. Sir George Stokes, 

 Sir John Murray, M. Moissan, M. Maupas and 

 President Jordan. 



The Royal Astronomical Society of London 

 has elected as foreign members. Professor 

 George B. Hale, of Yerkes Observatory ; Pro- 

 fessor Robert Helmert, of Berlin University ; 

 Professor K. F. Kiistner, of the Bonn Observa- 

 tory ; and Dr. Juan M. Thome, of the Argen- 

 tine National Observatory. 



Dr. Manuel Anton, professor of anthro- 

 pology at the University of Madrid and secre- 

 tary of the Museum of Natural Sciences, has 

 been appointed acting director to fill the va- 

 cancy caused by the death of Dr. Andres. 



It is gratifying to learn that the manuscript 

 of the new edition of Coues' ' Key to North 

 American Birds,' which has been largely re- 

 written and rearranged in conformity with the 

 classification and nomenclature of the American 

 Ornithologists' Union, was left by Dr. Coues in 

 a finished condition, and will be published as 

 soon as the new drawings, which are being 

 made by Louis Agassiz Fuertes, are ready. 



Dr. James Martineau died in London on 

 December 12th, in his ninety- fifth year. He 

 began the study of civil engineering, but soon 

 turned to theology and philosophy, and was 

 appointed pi-ofessor of philosophy in Man- 

 chester New College in 1840. He followed the 

 College to London in 1857, and became its 

 Principal in 1869. Dr. Martineau is well-known 



for his writings on theology and philosophy, of 

 which one of the most important is ' Types of 

 Ethical Theory,' published in 1885. 



Dr. William A. Hammond died at Wash- 

 ington on January 5th. He was at one time 

 Surgeon General of the United States and later 

 Professor of Diseases of the Mind in Bellevue 

 Medical College, New York. 



The Auk announces the death of two mem- 

 bers of the Ornithologists' Union. Dr.D. Webster 

 Prentiss, one of the founders, but since 1895 a 

 corresponding member, died in Washington on 

 November 19th. He was best known for his 

 contributions to medicine, but published in con- 

 junction with Dr. Coues a list of birds ascer- 

 tained to inhabit the District of Columbia. Mr. 

 W. W. Colburn, an associate member of the 

 Union died in Springfield on October 17th last. 

 He had been principal of the high schools at 

 Manchester and Springfield, and did much to 

 promote the study of natural history. He had 

 published, in conjunction with Mr. R. O. Mor- 

 ris, a list of 203 species of wild birds observed 

 in Forest Park, Springfield, Mass. 



We regret also to record the death on Jan- 

 uary 14th of Mr. W. T. SuflTolk, treasurer of the 

 Royal Microscopical Society of Great Britain. 



Mr. Andrew Carnegie has given $50,000 

 for a library in East Orange, on condition that 

 a site be provided and $5,000 contributed 

 annually for its support. A similar offer has 

 been made to the City of York, Pa., and 

 $40,000 has been offered to the City of Coving- 

 ton, Ky., on the same conditions. 



Mr. M. L. Delafield, Jr., of New York 

 City, has qualified as the first patron of the 

 Botanical Society of America by giving $250 to 

 the Society. 



A bill has been introduced in the Assembly 

 at Albany appropriating $30,000 to allow the 

 State Engineer and Surveyor to continue to 

 cooperate with the Director of the United States 

 Geological Survey in making a topographic 

 survey and map of the State of New York. 



By direction of the secretary of war, a board 

 of medical officers, to consist of First Lieutenant 

 Jere B. Clayton, assistant surgeon, U. S. A. ; 

 First Lieutenant, Richard P. Strong, assistant 

 surgeon, U. S. A., and Acting Assistant Sur- 



