July 3, 1885.] 



SCIENCE, 



13 



A railway already f tallows the lower course of the 

 Irrawadi, between Rangoon and Prome. This route 

 has just been extended to Tungu on the Sitang, and 

 ultimately will proceed to Mandelay, and even to 

 Bhamo. A branch could be made at Mandelay, and 

 touch the Me-Kong at Kiang-Tung, though in this 

 comparatively short space it must cross at least eight 

 mountain chains having a height of two thousand 

 metres. One can imagine the inclination of the sides 

 and the depth of the valleys among mountains so 

 near each other. The Saluen flows seven hundred 

 metres below the hills which border it: it is there- 

 fore out of the question to consider this. 



Another project is to start from Bhamo, and to 

 reach Talifu by Man-Wyne or Moraein. In this ter- 

 ritory the hills are even more marked, more abrupt, 

 and steeper, than in the preceding, and the popu- 

 lation is much to be feared. Even the Brahmapootra 

 has been suggested: it is easily ascended to Sooja, 

 partly by rail, partly by steam; but above this the 

 route is impracticable, there being a rapid and un- 

 interrupted succession of high mountains and high- 

 banked rivers. 



To summarize these data, the two Chinese rivers 

 must be abandoned, not precisely on account of the 

 difficulties of the territory, but because for a long 

 time the celestial empire will be more or less impen- 

 etrable and dangerous for Europeans, and the course 

 of the Me-Kong is too long and too hilly. The 

 routes which traverse the bed of the Brahmapootra 

 and the valley of the Irrawadi present such obstacles 

 that they are impracticable. The route of the Saluen 

 is more attractive; but it must not be forgotten, that, 

 besides its length, it must cross two watersheds, one 

 of which at least is very diflBcult, and must ascend 

 the Me-Kong for a very long distance. The route by 

 the Red River remains, which is not at all wonder- 

 fully accessible; but, to establish communications 

 with Yun-Nan and with Se-Chuen, some obstacles 

 must be surmounted; and this is the course whicli 

 offers fewest of them. Beside the fact that it is 

 shortest, it will not be necessary to cross mountains 

 or to traverse valleys. The French recently sent a 

 commission of engineers to survey for a railway be- 

 tween Tonquin and Burmah. We doubt whether 

 this project can be realized; but these investigations 

 will necessarily bring forth important data in regard 

 to the penetration of western China. 



THE GEOLOGY OF JAPAN. 



The Japanese geological bureau has prepared a 

 series of maps illustrative of the geology of the Jap- 

 anese archipelago, to be presented at the Geological 

 congress at Berlin this year. The bureau was estab- 

 lished in 1879, and includes topographical, geological, 

 and agronomical departments, and a chemical and 

 technical laboratory oflScered by Germans. The area 

 already surveyed by the topographers is about eighty 

 geographical miles square; and the whole country 

 is expected to be surveyed and mapped in about eight 

 years more. The geological survey has reached about 

 the same extent as the topographical. The maps and 



accompanying text are being published in both Jap- 

 anese and English. The agronomical survey was 

 begun in 1882. A map showing the knowledge at 

 present attained, of the geological structure of Japan, 

 is 'amongst the series. The observations made are 

 summarized as follows : All the geological formations 

 are met with in Japan. Gneiss occurs in small quan- 

 tities in the neighborhood of Nagasaki and in the 

 centre of tlie main island. Crystalline schists, con- 

 sisting of mica, talc, marble, serpentine, etc., are 

 found in Shikoku and the south-west of the main 

 island. The paleozoic formations embrace the largest 

 portion of the country, and are found everywhere. 

 The mesozoic formation, including trias, jura, and 

 chalk, is also known in Japan, but is not so prevalent 

 as the previous one. Trias occurs in the north and 

 south-west of the main island and in Shikoku. Chalk 

 is found widely distributed in Yezo, the main island, 

 and Shikoku. The cenozonic formation, including 

 the tertiary and quaternary, is found everywhere on 

 the edges of the older mountai n ranges. In these for- 

 mations numerous remains of mammals are found, 

 especially of prehistoric elephants. Of the Plutonic 

 rocks, granite is found widely distributed, and covers, 

 next to the paleozoic formations, the widest area. 

 The volcanic rocks consist mostly of trachyte and an- 

 desite : basalt is rare. Among the soils in Japan is 

 the so-called tuff, i.e., volcanic tuff, which, for the 

 most part, consists of decomposed silicates, and which 

 is of great importance to agriculture. It is almost 

 wholly unknown in Europe, while in Japan it forms 

 the greater part of the so-called hara, which are the 

 uncultivated plains at the foot of mountains, but 

 which will bear cultivation. Accurate knowledge 

 of this kind of soil will be of the utmost moment to 

 Japanese agriculture. It is also noticeable that 

 Japanese soils in general are very poor in chalk, and 

 would therefore be improved by the addition of marl 

 and chalk. 



AMERICAN ENGINEERS AT DEER 

 PARK. 



The annual convention of the American society 

 of civil engineers, just held at Deer Park, Md., June 

 24-26, will be remembered as one at whicli more busi- 

 ness was transacted, and more discussion elicited, 

 than at any previous convention of the society. In 

 fact, the limit in this direction may fairly be said to 

 have been reached; and the thin attendance at the 

 meetings of the last day was followed early in the 

 afternoon by a motion, which was unanimously car- 

 ried, that the reading of the remaining papers be 

 dispensed with, as the members were too tired to 

 listen to them. The experience at the conventions 

 of the past few years had indicated the advisability 

 of devoting less time than formerly to excursions 

 and sight-seeing; and the meeting this year was 

 therefore purposely held in a place offering little of 

 local engineering interest, and where almost the 

 whole time could be devoted to the business of the 

 occasion. 



The convention was attended by over one hundred 



