Geological Society. 369 



And we know that in the compilation of the work this was the 

 main object of its author. On opening it for the first time, the 

 student cannot do better than turn to Appendix I. and make the 

 corrections indicated there. Marked and important features of 

 the manual are a map of the 3Ioon. and a clear and not over- 

 crowded index to it, Double Stars, Clusters, and Xebulse, from 

 Struve's famous ' Catalogue,' Smyth's ' Cycle of Celestial Objects,' 

 and the more recent accurate observations of Burnham and others ; 

 while an Appendix contains the same objects placed, for the sake of 

 convenience, in the order of their EA. 



The labour bestowed on Part III. and the Appendices must have 

 been enormous ; and great praise is due to the author for the way in 

 which it has been accomplished. Some at least of the materials 

 used in compilation must themselves have caused great trouble by 

 the careful sifting they needed. Smyth's ' Cycle of Celestial 

 Objects,' for instance, is a work not to be relied on for general 

 accuracy. 



"With regard to Part II., we may note, en passant, what appear 

 peculiar faults of omission and commission when we consider what 

 a surprising amount of detail is given elsewhere. 2>To mention is 

 made of Mercury's distance (35.500,000 miles) from the Sun. 

 Xeither the dimensions of Yenus nor her distance from the Sun are 

 given. On page 172 a very curious and puzzling description of 

 Saturn is given. Part of it runs thus : — " The Orlobe. Though about 

 69,200 m. in equatorial diameter, second only to Jupiter, and about 

 nine times larger than the earth,"' &c. We are afraid that young 

 students, not knowing that spheres are to one another as the cubes 

 of their diameters, would take this sentence to mean that Saturn 

 is only nine times the size of the Earth. The rest of the sentence 

 is simply beyond human comprehension . However, the book amply 

 fulfils its object, and ought to find a place wherever an astrono- 

 mical telescope is in use, whateAer its range may be. 



XLVTI. Proceedings of Learned Societies. 

 GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 

 [Continued from p. 147.] 

 •January 25, 1882.— E, Etheridge, Esq., E.E.S,, 

 President, in the Chair. 

 T^HE following communications were read : — 

 ■*■ 1. " On the Eossil Eish-remains from the Armagh Limestone 

 in the Collection of the Earl of Enniskillen." By James W. Davis, 

 Esq., E.C.S., E.L.S. 



2. " On an extinct Chelonian Eeptile (Notochelys costata. Owen) 

 from Australia." By Prof. Owen, C.B., F.B.S., E.G.S. 



3. " On the Upper Beds of the Eifeshire Coal-Measures." Bv the 

 late E.W. Binney, Esq., E.K,S.,E.G.S., and James W. Jxirkby, Esq. 



These beds are best exposed in Eife, between the mouth "of the 



