EDITORIAL NOTES. 
129 
POILORTAL NOEs: 
On Tuesday evening, May 25th, the Kan- 
sas City Academy of Science held its fourth 
annual meeting. A very interesting paper 
was read by Dr. Heath, of Wyandotte, Kan- 
sas, upon Orton and Peru, which will appear 
in the REVIEW next month. Judge West fol- 
lowed with his report of an exploration of 
ancient barrows in Kansas, which appears in 
the present issue of the REVIEW. A resolu- 
tion was passed, thanking the various lectur- 
ers of the extra Winter Course for their aid 
and the pastors of the churches used for their 
courtesy, and the railroads furnishing free 
transportation; after which an election of 
officers for the ensuing year was held. 
THE extra winter course of lectures fur- 
nished by the Kansas City Academy of 
Science was closed on the 22d ult. by that of 
Rev. Dr. Laws; and in most respects it has 
proved a success. The lecturers have been 
selected from among the best teachers and 
writers of Missouri and Kansas, and the 
topics treated by them have been of pop- 
ular interest and suited to the most diverse 
tastes. The audiences have been in most in- 
stances quite large, and in all from among 
our most intelligent people. 
The Academy has been at great trouble 
and some expense to secure the services of 
these gentlemen, to obtain the use of various 
churches in the city and other necessary mat- 
ters, but if our people have been entertained 
and benefited enough to ask for a similar 
course next winter it will be forthcoming. 
AmoncG the later inventions few present 
points more worthy of consideration among 
metallurgists than that of employing the 
electrolytical process of refining the precious 
metals. It has been patented by E. André 
both in the United States and Europe, and is 
in practical use among some of the largest 
works in Great Britain and on the Continent. 
This process is said completely and eco- 
nomically to extract the gold and silver from 
their alloys, ieaving the former in the dia- 
phragms at the anodes and depositing the 
baser metals in a pure metallic state on the 
cathodes. 
As an evidence of the importance and value 
of the U.S. Signal Service observations and 
predictions, it may be stated that the verifica- 
tions of the latter, based upon the former, 
for the month of March, 1880, amounted to 
$2.3 of the whole number of predictions 
made. 
SiGNor N. Perrini, an Italian teacher of 
astronomy in London, has invented a new 
planetarium which is free from most of the 
objections to the old fashioned orreries, 
whose multiplicity of conspicuous wires and 
other machinery was liable to confuse the 
observer. Signor Perrini has his planetarium 
in a large circular room with aconcave dome ~ 
upon which the movements of the sun, moon 
and stars, &c., are distinctly and correctly 
shown by means of motive power which is 
out of sight above the ceiling. 
AN important law suit now pending in the 
courts of Wisconsin involves the exact and 
probably speedy solution of the vexed ques- 
tion of the agency of wind or electricity 
in cyclones. The plaintiff sues an insurance 
company to collect pay for damages done to 
his property by a noted storm in 1878; basing 
his claim on the allegation that the storm 
was of electrical origin and therefore that 
the company is liable under the ‘lightning 
clause” of his policy. Of course the com- 
pany resists payment onthe ground that the 
property was destroyed by wind alone, re- 
gardless of the agency of electricity. 
