608 
members. Baltimore has thus taken its place as one 
of the leading centres of science and learning in our 
country, and bids fair soon to outstrip older centres 
in the renown which must follow. The circular for 
April follows hard after that of March; and we no- 
tice in it anumber of interesting facts, with abstracts 
of valuable papers which give an insight into the 
intellectual delights and activities surrounding the 
young university. Dr. Brooks gives an outline of 
the work of the Chesapeake zodlogical laboratory, 
from its beginning six years ago, dwelling especially 
upon its service in studying the propagation of the 
oyster. The lecture of Dr. Martin on modern physi- 
ological laboratories, and the account of that lately 
constructed for the university, are reprinted from 
Science. Reviews or analyses of books published by 
the officers of the university, and abstracts of papers 
in philology, history, mathematics, and other branches 
of science, fill up a large part of thenumber. We ob- 
serve that an attempt is to be made to construct a 
map of the region about Baltimore, including about 
six hundred square miles, on the scale of two inches 
to a mile, based mainly on work already effected by 
the U.S. coast-survey. 
— After the U. S. fish-commission steamer Alba- 
tross left Aspinwall, April 2, a line of soundings was 
started for Old Providence Island, about 250 miles 
distant. Casts were made at intervals of from ten 
to twenty-five miles. Starting with 707 fathoms, 17 
miles from Aspinwall, the water shoaled to 611 
fathoms at 27 miles, reached the maximum, 1,900 
fathoms, 77 miles from port, and then shoaled grad- 
ually to 339 fathoms close to the reef off Old Provi- 
dence. 
On leaving Catalina harbor, on Old Providence 
Island, April 9, the Albatross laid a course for a 
doubtful bank 109’ distant, in latitude 14° 53’ north, 
longitude 80° 20° west, sounding at intervals of 
about eleven miles. The water increased gradually 
in depth to 1,151 fathoms on the reported bank, 
where it was supposed to break at times. The spot 
was carefully located by astronomical observations. 
After crossing a bank lying between Thunders knoll 
and Rosalind bank, a course was laid north-west for 
a vigia marked on hydrographic-office chart No. 394 
in latitude 18° 30’ north, longitude 83° 16’ west. The 
depth gradually decreased to 920 fathoms, 75 miles 
from Thunders knoll, then suddenly increased to 3,169 
fathoms at 105 miles. This was the greatest depth 
found in the Caribbean, and the sounding was made 
under adverse circumstances. On the first trial, the 
stray line parted, after something over 200 fathoms had 
run out, the sounding-rod, water-bottle, and shot being 
lost. It is difficult to explain this accident, unless it 
is to be attributed to a shark or some other fish; as the 
strain on it at the time did not equal one-tenth of its 
tensile strength. On the second attempt, all the wire 
was run off the reel without reaching bottom; and 
the shot had to be reeled in, more wire added, and 
finally the sounding taken. The bottom was a light 
yellow ooze, with a trace only of foraminifera. 
The currents, which had been light since leaving 
Old Providence, now became strong and irregular. 
SCIENCE. 
ae 
[Vou. Il., No. 67. . 
On reaching the position assigned to the vigia, 66 
miles from the deep sounding above mentioned, a 
sounding was taken in 2,829fathoms. While making 
this distance, and taking two intermediate sound- 
ings, the vessel was so beset by strong and erratic 
currents, that it was only by locating each position 
astronomically that it could be kept anywhere near 
the desired locality. If these currents have been 
encountered by other navigators, who were steering 
a course without taking hourly observations, a very 
brief period would be required to take them sufficient- 
ly out of their reckoning to account, not only for 
the vigia mentioned, but the soundings of H.B.M.S. 
Phoebe and Rosario to the eastward of Misterioso 
bank, which was itself, doubtless, reported in a mul- 
titude of positions before it was finally located on 
the charts of to-day. From this point, the Albatross 
sailed for Key West by way of Cape San Antonio, 
reaching port, April 15. 
— The annual session of the American oriental so- 
ciety was held in Boston, May 7. Since the last meet- 
ing, the society has lost by death an unusually large 
number of its members; its president, Hon. 8S. Wells 
Williams, and Dr. Ezra Abbot, being among the num-— 
ber. Dr. Abbot, who resigned his office two or three 
years ago, had served the society as recording secre- 
tary for more than thirty years. Tender and appropri- 
ate tributes were paid to the memory of both of these 
men; the former having been the foremost Chinese, 
and the latter the foremost biblical, scholar of Ameri- 
ca. In the election of officers, Professor Whitney of 
New Haven was chosen president, and Professor 
Lanman of Cambridge, corresponding secretary. Bal- 
timore was selected as the place for the next meeting. 
Nine papers were presented to the society, four of 
which discussed Sanskrit topics. Prof. C. R. Lanman 
gave an account of Protap Chundra Roy’s enterprise 
in furnishing gratuitous editions and translations of 
the ancient Hindu classics, noticed elsewhere in our 
notes. He also read a paper on one of the spurious 
stanzas of the Rig Veda (10, 18, 14), illustrating by re- 
marks on the stanza the subject of Vedic criticism. 
Professor John Avery of Brunswick, Me., presented 
a paper on the unaugmented verb-forms in the Rig 
Veda and the Atharva Veda. Professor Whitney, who 
read a paper on the study of Sanskrit versus that of the 
Hindu grammarians, showed that a study of the lit- 
erature itself is the only proper way to learn San- 
skrit. He gave many illustrations of the artificial and 
arbitrary character of the grammars. 
Prof. I. H. Hall of Philadelphia gave some notes 
on a Cippus from Tarsus, now in the Union theologi- 
cal seminary at New York, bearing a Greek inscrip- 
tion. He pointed out that the name Paul, which 
occurs in the inscription, cannot, as has been sup- 
posed, be that of the great apostle. Professor Hall 
read a second paper on a Shapira roll in Philadelphia. 
He thinks that no part of this Hebrew document can 
be older than the last century, while part of it possi- 
bly belongs to the present century. The remarkable — 
fact about it is, that an age of more than a thousand — 
years has been assigned to it, which would make it 
the oldest known Hebrew manuscript. This great 
