4156 German Association. 



world. He complained of the ignorance prevailing in England on the suhject 

 of German coal, and quoted a conversation he had with an Englishman of some sci- 

 entific standing, who asked him whether there were any coal in Germany ? — a question 

 he answered by stating that not only had Germany enough coal for her own use, but 

 could supply England and all the world, at the rate coal is now used, for 500 years to 

 come. Fraas gave an account of the oldest inhabitants of the Swabian Alps. It 

 appears that a few yew#ago fossil teeth were found which some at once declared to be 

 those of man. This determination, however, was called into question, as no human 

 teeth of the mammoth period had ever been fonnd in any part of the globe. Again, 

 these teeth were exhibited last year in Wiesbaden, by Jaeger, when they were gene- 

 rally admitted to be human teeth; one was even sent to Owen, who agreed with the 

 Wiesbaden meeting in pronouncing them to belong to man. The discovery of several 

 almost perfect skulls has set the matter linally at rest: there was a race of men living 

 simultaneously with the mammoth and other huge antediluvian animals. Gumbel 

 read a paper on Mosses, explaining their importance in the economy of Nature, their 

 great use to man, with whom they appeared together upon the earth. Veesenmeyer 

 gave a spirited sketch of the Kirguises, and with a power of language reminding one 

 of Humboldt's ' Views of Nature,' he described their relation towards plants and animals. 



The sectional meetings were well attended. In the section for Chemistry and 

 Pharmacology there were Fehling, Schlossberger, Leube, Babo, Weidenbusch, Ammer- 

 muller, Fresenius, Weltzien, H. Rose, &c. ; Fehling and Rose alternately presided. 

 In the section for Mathematics, Physics, and Astronomy, we noticed Wolfers, Osann, 

 Reusch, Dove, Holtzmann, Gugler, &c, ; Dove and Osann presided. The section for 

 Medicine and Surgery counted the largest number of members. We may mention 

 Ritter, Virchow, Heyfelder, Erlenmeyer, Fraas, Vierodt, &c. ; Virchow was elected 

 President. The Botanical section counted amongst its members Martens, Veesen- 

 meyer, De Bary, Steudel, Schnitzlein, Hochstelter, and elected Schullz, Seemann, and 

 Gumbel Presidents. The section for Anatomy, Physiology, and Zoology was attended 

 by Luschka, Ecker, Focke, Wutzer, and was presided over by Rapp. The section for 

 Geology, Mineralogy, and Geography was represented by Carnal, Quenstedt, Strom- 

 beck, Glocker, Desor, Gerlach, Stocker, &c, and elected Merian President. 



The Imperial L. C. Academy of Naturalists, which may be looked npon as 

 the nucleus of the Society, held two sittings under the Presidency of Professors 

 Jaeger and Heyfelder. Dr. Nees von Esenbeck, the President, was unfortunately pre- 

 vented by illness from attending. In a letter of his addressed to Jaeger he gave 

 a favourable statement of the affairs of the Academy, showing that there were at pre- 

 sent a greater number of first-rate scientific papers for publication in the ' Nova Acta' 

 than at any former period. The topics of discussion referred chiefly to the affairs of 

 the Academy, and have not yet been made public. 



On the 24th of September the meetings were finally closed. Gottingen was cho- 

 sen as the place of meeting for 1854, and Professors Listing and JBaum were elected 

 Presidents of the Society. — From the * Literary Gazette ,' October 22, 1853. 



According to the ' Bonplandia,' three Englishmen were, on the 18th of August, 

 elected Members of the Imperial L. C. Academy: — 1. John Smith, Esq., who received 

 the cognomen " Kunze.'' 2. Dr. Thomas Thomson, to whom the title " Hamilton '' 

 was given. And, 3. John Miers, Esq., on whom the name " Kunth " was conferred. 



EDWARD NKWMAN, PRINTER, 9, DEVONSHIRE STREET, BISHOPSGATE. 



