Makch 13, 1885. 



SCIENCE. 



217 



The long-disputed questions as to the ancient bed 

 of the Amu Daria, or Oxus, appear to have received 

 a final settlement in the publication of the studies of 

 Konshin of St. Petersburg. According to him, the 

 river has never directly emptied into the Caspian; 

 but it is probable that at some period an indirect 

 communication has existed between them through 

 Sari-Kamich Lake and the Uzboi, which drained it. 

 The lake was of much greater area, and its overflow 

 reached the Caspian by the Uzboi: its character was 

 saline or brackish. Were this state of things restored, 

 we should have an immense Turanian sea, composed 

 of a northern basin corresponding to that of the Sea 

 of Aral, and a southern one corresponding to the 

 Sari-Kamich area, connected by a wide but shallow 

 neck of water. Into the former the Sir-Daria would 

 empty, with the Sari-Su and the Chiu ; into the lat- 

 ter, the Oxus, the Tedient, and the Murghab. The 

 overflow of brackish water would find its way by the 

 Uzboi to the Caspian. 



Those interested in the question of lakes with two 

 outlets would do well to incite exploration of Frances 

 Lake in the North-west territory. This lake, discov- 

 ered many years ago by Kobert Campbell, now of 

 Winnipeg, was reached by him from the head waters 

 of the Liard River, ascending, according to his ac- 

 count, a small stream actually proceeding from the 

 lake. To his surprise, on the other side he found a 

 communication, during the time of high water, with 

 the head waters of the Pelly River. In 1865 infor- 

 mation received from officers of the Hudson-Bay 

 company at Victoria, by those of the International 

 telegraph expedition, was to the effect that the Pelly 

 communication was the chief one, and that a lower- 

 ing of its bed had turned the drainage permanently 

 north-westward, and the connection with the Liard 

 had become nearly or entirely dry. This has since 

 been indicated on most charts; but, as the lake cov- 

 ers some four hundred and fifty square miles, fuller 

 and confirmatory evidence would be very desirable. 

 The Liard is an affluent of the Mackenzie, and the 

 Pellv of the Yukon River. 



THE STATE SURVEY OF NEW YORK. 



The veto of the appropriation for this survey by 

 the late governor of New York caused only a partial 

 suspension of its functions. The survey exists by 

 reason of an organic law creating the commission, 

 and defining its powers. Only by the repeal of this 

 law can the survey be abolished. Its work has been 

 confined to a tri angulation so accurately executed as 

 to form a reliable basis for all local surveys and topo- 

 graphical work; but the value of such careful meas- 

 urements is somewhat difficult for the unscientific 

 man to understand, and the results are not immedi- 

 ately apparent. 



To remove all doubts regarding the excellence and 

 economy of the work under their control, the com- 

 missioners requested an investigation by the U. S. 

 coast and geodetic survey. After a full examination 



of the records of eight years' work, Superintendent 

 Hilgard transmitted them to the state authorities, 

 with his full indorsement. 



By this appeal to a most competent authority, the 

 commissioners and director of the New- York state 

 survey have established the fact that the work slowly 

 accomplished with small appropriations since 1870 

 has been done in the best way and at a small cost. 

 Their report just made to the legislature, having vin- 

 dicated the work of the past, recommends a radical 

 change in the future policy of the survey. It is 

 urged that New York should be warned by the ex- 

 perience of Massachusetts that a triangulation not 

 immediately followed by a detailed topographical sur- 

 vey gives but little satisfaction to the people. The 

 citizens of a state want reliable maps which they can 

 use, not mere skeleton maps which are only available 

 for surveyors. The board therefore recommends 

 that the legislature enlarge its powers, and increase 

 the appropriations for the state survey, so that topo- 

 graphical surveys may be at once begun in at least 

 three counties, and be carried forward on such a scale 

 as to permit of the economical performance of the 

 work. The cost of the topographical work is esti- 

 mated at from ten dollars to twenty dollars per square 

 mile, depending upon the character of the country, 

 and the scale of expenditure recommended is forty 

 thousand dollars per annum. Tor this sum, com- 

 plete maps of from three to five counties could be 

 made each year, and the maps, by counties, issued 

 within a year after the field-work is done. It is pro- 

 posed to have the U. S. coast and geodetic survey 

 complete the primary and secondary triangulations, 

 leaving the funds of the state to be used for tertiary 

 triangulation and topographical work. 



The experience of the director of the survey, who 

 is by law the engineering member of the state board 

 of health, has proved conclusively the wide-spread 

 need of topographical maps to aid in the sanitary 

 work of the state. The commissioners therefore 

 affirm that there is pressing necessity for topographi- 

 cal maps for sanitary works on water-supplies and 

 drainage; that no survey can meet the wants of the 

 people that does not result in a reliable map suf- 

 ficiently detailed for ordinary practical and scientific 

 purposes ; and that the people have a right to expect 

 that the benefits of the survey will be made imme- 

 diately available in the form of useful maps. 



PROPOSED NEW METHOD OF MEASUU- 

 ING THE DENSITY OF THE EARTH. 



The only known way of measuring the density of 

 the earth is through the 'gravitation constant,' which 

 expresses the attraction exerted by a known mass at 

 a given distance. The bodies whose attractions have 

 been measured are either mountains or portions of 

 the earth, as in the well-known experiments of Maske- 

 lyne and Airy; or portable masses of lead, as used by 

 Bailey and others. The difficulty in the way of the 

 former experiments is the necessary uncertainty of 

 the density of those portions of the earth's mass in 



