January 30, 1885. 



SCIENCE. 



97 



This interesting and instructive case will doubtless 

 inaugurate a new era in medical practice; for, although 

 this particular individual has succumbed to measures 

 adopted to avert his otherwise certain death, the 

 experience thereby gained is sufficient to encourage 

 further efforts in a similar direction, which may- 

 prove beneficial to others. In the Marshall Hall ora- 

 tion of last year, Professor Ferrier remarked, " There 

 are already signs that we are within measurable dis- 

 tance of the successful treatment, by surgery, of some 

 of the most distressing and otherwise hopeless forms 

 of intercranial disease, which will vie with the splen- 

 did achievements of abdominal surgery." He further 

 added, reflecting on the success which had attended 

 brain operations on animals, " I can but believe 

 that similar results are capable of being achieved on 

 man himself." That distinguished physiologist can 

 but feel gratified that his prophetic words have been 

 partially realized. 



DISCOVERY OF SILURIAN INSECTS. 



Some weeks since, we noticed the discovery by 

 Lindstrom of a Silurian scorpion, Palaeophoneus 

 nuncius, — the. earliest-known air-breathing animal. 

 To-day we reproduce in natural size a photograph 

 of it received from Dr. Lindstrom. How quickly 

 one discovery leads to another, is evinced by the curi- 

 ous fact that we now learn of the discovery by Dr. 

 Hunter of another scorpion of the same genus in the 

 Ludlow beds of Scotland, which are also referred to 



PALAEOPHONEUS NUNCIUS. 



the upper Silurian. This second specimen, fortu- 

 nately, is preserved so as to show the stigmata and 

 * comb ' of the ventral surface, and will therefore 

 offer more evidence as to its exact zoological position. 

 It is in the hands of Mr. Peach of the geological sur- 

 vey, who described the carboniferous scorpions of 

 Scotland with such care. Even this curious discov- 



ery is eclipsed by the announcement, at the last meet- 

 ing of the French academy in 1884, of the finding of 

 an insect's wing in the middle Silurian of Calvados, 

 which Mr. Charles Brongniart, who announces the 

 discovery, refers to a cockroach. It presents certain 

 peculiarities, and among others an unusually long 

 and straight anal vein. It is named Palaeoblattina 

 Douvillei, after its discoverer. The oldest-known 

 winged insects, up to this time, had been the Devonian 

 insects of New Brunswick. 





METEOROLOGICAL NOTES. 



The Colorado meteorological association, recently 

 formed, proposes to establish stations for observation 

 at twenty or more points in Colorado, and has ap- 

 plied to the legislature for assistance. 



In co-operation with the chief signal-officer, U.S. 

 army, arrangements have been completed with the 

 Old colony railroad, whereby 'cold-wave' flags — 

 white, with a black square in the centre — will be 

 displayed at eleven of the most important stations on 

 the road, on receipt of telegraphic orders from Wash- 

 ington. The stations are Boston, Quincy, South Brain- 

 tree, Brockton, Middleborough, Taunton, Somerset, 

 Fall River, Newport, New Bedford, and Plymouth. 

 An extension of this arrangement is in contempla- 

 tion, so as to bring the daily weather forecasts issued 

 by the signal-office into even more general notice 

 than they gain by publication in the daily papers. 

 Postmasters or town authorities in New 

 England, desirous of undertaking the dis- 

 play of daily weather signals, are requested 

 to address Mr. W. M. Davis, Cambridge, 

 Mass. 



Investigations upon the subject of ozone 

 and the relation of its presence or absence 

 . to epidemic diseases are now carried on in 

 various sections of the country. If suffi- 

 cient encouragement is given, it is probable 

 that observations will be undertaken by the 

 New-England meteorological society, under 

 the supervision of Dr. E. U. Jones of Taun- 

 ton, Mass. Physicians and others who would 

 be willing to engage in these observations 

 are requested to address Dr. Jones. The 

 cost will be about three dollars annually for 

 each observer. 



On the morning of Dec. 27, when the 



wind was everywhere light, the temperature 



at the summit of Mount Washington was 



+ 16°, while at stations at lower levels, 



north of the Massachusetts boundary, the 



temperatures ranged from — 10° to — 24°. 



A more striking instance of the disturbance of the 



usual law of decrease of temperature with increase of 



altitude is rarely noted. 



In his ' Meteorological summary ' for the year 

 1884, Prof. F. H. Snow states that the most notable 

 features of the year 1884, in Kansas, were the low 

 mean temperatures of the spring, summer, and win- 



