1878. ] Geography and Travels. 569 
placeinto eastern Tibet; and Captain Gill’s testimony now supplies 
us with a link between the observations of Prejevalsky and David, 
as he speaks of the wonderfully moist and semi-tropical character 
of the vegetation on the eastern side of the plateau, between the 
valleys Sung-pan-ting and Ling-ngan, on the extreme northern 
border of the province of Se-chuen. 
Durcu Arctic Exprepirion.—The Willem Barentz, a two- 
masted schooner of eighty tons, built expressly for this service, 
with a crew of fourteen men, three officers, a zoologist, a doctor, 
a photographer and Ser sailors, sailed from Ijmuiden on the 
5th of May, upon what may be regarded as an experimental voy- 
age to Jan Mayen Island, thence to eer Yi yma the 
edge of thë ice en rou ite, and calling at Amsterdam Island. 
Afterwards they: hope to visit Novaya Zemlya sad the Barentz 
Sea, returning home in October. Deep sea soundings will be 
made, and observations taken of the fauna, and flora; strength, 
and direction of currents; in magnetism, and meteorology. The 
expedition is supported by the contributions of Dutchmen. 
GEOGRAPHICAL News.—The last (June) number of Peter- 
mann’s Mittheilungen contains a very interesting account of 
the application of the process of helio-gravure, by the Austrian 
Military Geographical Institute, to the production of the new 
maps of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The maps are pre- 
pared on a scale of 1-60,000, and reduced photographically 
to a scale of 1-75,000. The (sun) eg Hehe upon copper by 
the new process requires only about four weeks, whilst the 
engraving by hand would need Piel th monii The first 
sheets of this new map were issued in 1873; and, at the end of 
1877, 271 were published, and it is expected that the whole num- 
ber (715) will be completed within 10 or 12 years from the com- 
mencement of publication ; whereas by the usual method a period 
of fifty to sixty years must have elapsed before the accomplish- 
ment of the work. The cost of the new process is only one-fourth 
that of the old. As regards the artistic appearance of these maps 
a specimen given in the Mittheilungen is most favorable; the im- 
pression being clear and sharp, and likely to deceive even an en- 
graver. 
The first volume of Dr. F. Ratzil, on the Geography o of the 
United States, relating to physical ‘geography, has lately been 
published. A second volume, on Social Geography, will next 
appear. 
The Geographical Magazine, for June, gives the results of 
Nares’ Narrative of a Voyage to the Polar Sea during 1875-76. 
Also a very complete map of the African Lake Region, with a 
notice of the advance sheets of Stanley’s book. The map marks — 
an era in African cartography. The review closes with this para- | 
graph “ Great as the value of Mr. Stanley's Pie OE ee aS 
