1876.] Scientific News. 701 
per’s Weekly, directing the Secretary of State to cause to be published 
a brief history of the several surveys and expeditions ordered and pros- 
ecuted by the United States during the century just closed, including 
those under the direction of the War, Navy, and Interior Departments, 
and other bureaus. An appropriation of $10,000 is suggested for the 
purpose of carrying this into effect. 
— Baron von Nolcken has just returned to Germany from Columbia 
with ten thousand macrolepidoptera collected by him in that country, 
besides many of the smaller moths. 
` — Ata meeting of the Paris Geographical Society held August 2d, 
Lieutenant Wyse announced to the society that the government of Co- 
lumbia had granted to a company, represented by General Türr, the priv- 
ilege of constructing a ship-canal through the Isthmus of Darien. A 
body of surveyors would leave in November, in order to make the final 
surveys, and he trusted the enterprise would meet with the support of the 
international committee recently formed under the presidency of M. de 
Lesseps. M. Leon Drouillet announced that he was about to proceed 
to America, and would use his best efforts to establish there a sub-com- 
mittee for the scientific exploration of the American isthmus. Their 
committee intended to study this question without prejudice, for, in spite 
of this new concession, our information was as yet very far from being 
complete. ; 
M. Hayaux du Tilly read a paper on the ivory trade. England 
alone imported annually 1,200,000 pounds of ivory, and to obtain this 
quantity it was necessary to kill annually 30,000 elephants, and the 
ivory supply of the whole world probably caused the destruction of 
females and males were killed indis- 
criminately, this animal would soon become extinct. my 
— During the meetings of the American Public Health Association 
held in Boston, October 2d—6th, Mr. James T. Gardner read a paper on 
the relations of Topographical Surveys and Maps to 
Some relations of general climatic conditions to the health of man have 
long been recognized; modern investigations have shown that local 
> . :. > ub- 
causes are as active and effective producing disease, though more s 
tle and obscure in their o i 
peration. : , 
Those natural local conditions most seriously affecting health are the 
conformation of the earth’s surface and its underlying — yet, 
though this is supported by ample evidence, the exact effects produ 
are little understood, from lack of facts upon which to base conclusions. 
rface structure upon health, 
geology over large areas, 
The former class of facts must be ascertaine 
and geological surveys, and registered in maps, 
lowed by an equally accurate sanitary survey, based upon these maps 
