^8 Scientific Intelligence. 



selton Dyer, who has for a good number of years been Assistant 

 Director, and for not a few of them the son-in-law of the botanist 

 who now retires, — not from labor, indeed, but to the more steady 

 prosecution of the work which the science expects from him. In 

 this his colleagues throughout the world take a higher interest 

 even than in the administration of the great institution which is 

 known by the inadequate appellation of The Royal Gardens, Kew. 



a. G. 



TV. Astronomy. 



1. Meteors of November 27, 1885. — On the evening of Nov. 

 27th, there was a remarkable shower of meteors radiating from 

 Andromeda, and presumably connected with Biela's comet. In 

 brilliancy it compares favorably with the magnificent display on 

 the same day in 1872. In Europe and Asia the star shower was 

 very remarkable wherever the clouds did not prevent its being- 

 seen. In this country it was nearly over before sunset, yet in the 

 early evening the meteors were numerous enough to attract very 

 general attention. 



Mr. Robert Brown, of the Yale College Observatory, shortly 

 after six o'clock, counted 44 in 24 minutes. About half of them 

 left momentary trains. At half-past nine about a dozen were 

 seen by three persons, Mr. Brown, Mr. Lyman Baird and myself. 

 We estimated the hourly number for three observers, looking at 

 the same part of the heavens, to be about 100. The radiation 

 was in general from near y Andromedee with, however, some 

 striking exceptions. Two or three left trains which were much 

 less brilliant than those seen by Mr. Brown early in the evening. 

 From 10 h 15 ra to 10 h 30 m I counted 13, watching alone. Though 

 several flights "went sharply from near y Andromedse yet the 

 radiation was not from any single point. One short flight had a 

 broken appearance, much like the jagged line of an electric spark. 



At Princeton, N. J. — Professor Young, in Science, reports 36 

 counted in a ten-minutes walk beginning at 7 h 15 m , and about a 

 hundred before 7 h 45 m . From 7 h 45 m to 8 h , only three or four 

 were seen. "The radiant was very well marked — an oval region 

 about 4° long N. and S., and about 2° wide. Its center, accord- 

 ing to the best estimate I could form, was about 2° N.W. from 

 y Androniedse." 



At Georgetown, D. C. — In Science are reported observations by 

 two of Professor Hall's sons (and Mrs. Hall, who watched a short 

 time), who counted 213 meteors between 6 h 30 m and 7 b 50 m ; also 

 the count of a party of four under charge of Mr. Horigan, viz : 

 100 between 7 h m and 7 h 30 m , 100 between 7 h 30 m and 7 h 55 m , 

 100 between 7 h 55 m and 8 h 35 m , 28 between 8 h 38 m and 9 h m . 



In England. — At Greenwich the rate of fall between 6 h and 7 h 

 was reckoned at 30 to 40 per minute with remarkable average 

 brilliancy. At ll h only 3 to 5 per minute appeared. The radi- 

 ant was located at R. A. 20°, Deck 49° N. At Dundee, Mr. 



