236 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. XI. No. 267. 



kilometers, or about 825 miles. The point re- 

 ferred to concerns the effect of a water surface 

 upon the temperature of the air at the altitude 

 of the balloon (about 500 meters). At about 9 

 a. m. on October 1st the balloon began to drift 

 over a part of the Baltic Sea, and the aeronauts 

 at once noticed a fall in temperature and an 

 increased humidity in the air through which 

 they were moving. In consequence of these 

 changed conditions, the balloon began to de- 

 scend, and it was necessary to throw out ballast 

 in order to maintain it at a proper altitude. 



THE BAGUIOS OF THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS. 



In the Monthly Weather Review for October, 

 Abbe notes that in speaking of tropical cyclones, 

 the word cyclone should uniformly be employed 

 for all revolving storms, or else that names 

 should be used which have a widespread local 

 usage. Thus the term hurricane, which has its 

 root in the Carib word ourgan, should, at least 

 in English works, be restricted to the violent 

 tropical cyclones of the North Atlantic Ocean. 

 Typhoon has been the recognized designation of 

 the revolving storms of the China Sea for many 

 years. And now the term baguio, which is 

 commonly used by the Tagalogs and Viscayans 

 seems likely to come into use. Baguio is the 

 name universally applied in the Philippine 

 Archipelago to the storms that, after they pass 

 westward over the Archipelago, become typhoons 

 on the coast of China. 



THE DKOTJGHT IN INDIA. 



It has for some time been the custom of the 

 Indian Meteorological Department to issue long- 

 range forecasts of the monsoon and cold weather 

 rains in India. From Nature for January 11th 

 we learn that this year the forecast of the cold 

 weather (December-February) rains in northern 

 and central India anticipated a rainfall slightly 

 above the normal. The prediction has unfor- 

 tunately not been verified, as an area comprising 

 nearly two-thirds of India is now suffering from 

 the most severe drought of the century, and 

 there does not seem, at present, to be any im- 

 mediate chance of a change for the better. 



METEOROLOGICAL CHART OP THE GREAT LAKES. 



There has been issued by the Weather Bu- 

 reau a publication entitled Meteorological Chart 



of the Oreat Lakes: Summary for the Season of 

 1899, by A. J. Henry and N. B. Conger. This 

 quarto pamphlet summarizes the information 

 contained in the monthly meteorological charts 

 of the Great Lakes, issued throughout the navi- 

 gation season. The discussion concerns the 

 storms of the year ; precipitation and the possi- 

 bility of evaporation in the Lake region ; fog ; 

 ice during the winter of 1898-99, and the 

 wrecks and casualities which occurred during 

 the year. A dozen charts illustrate the text. 

 E. Dec Ward. 



WAGNER FREE INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE. 



The lectures for the spring term at the 

 Wagner Free Institute of Science will com- 

 mence on Monday, February 12, 1900. The 

 following is the .schedule : 



Mondays, Dr. Henry Leffman, 'Chemistry.' 



Tuesdays, Professor W. B. Scott, ' Dynamical 

 Geology.' 



Wednesdays, Professor R. E. Thompson, ' Amer- 

 ican History, 1783-1865. ' 



Thursdays, Professor G. F. Stradling, 'Heat.' 



Fridays, Professor S. T. Wagner, ' Metallic Ma- 

 terials of Engineering Construction.' 



Fridays, Professor T. H. Montgomery, ' Inverte- 

 brate Animals. ' 



Saturdays, Dr. Emily G. Hunt, ' Some Aspects of 

 Botany.' 



At the annual meeting at the Institute Mr. 

 G. H. Cliff, formerly president of the Girls' 

 Normal School, was elected a trustee to suc- 

 ceed the late Richard B. Westbrook, Esq. 



From the report of the Actuary it was learned 

 that 13,828 persons had attended the Fall 

 course of lectures, that 28,378 persons had used 

 the Reference Library and that the Branch of 

 the Free Library had circulated 269,618 vol- 

 umes for home use ; 1327 books and 2226 

 pamphlets and magazines were added to the 

 Wagner Institute Reference Library during the 

 year. The report dwelt at some length upon 

 the splendid collection of government docu- 

 ments owned by the Institute, probably the 

 best in the City of Philadelphia, which was now 

 classified and was being thoroughly catalogued. 

 The thanks of the Board were extended to the 

 officers of the Spring Garden Institute for an 

 important addition to this collection. 



