pike a. ial Te eae OTe, en eee 
DF 7 if 4 i 
696 
hibited, as follows, in their order from south to north: 
the Gary moraine, the Antelope, Kiester, Elysian, 
Waconia, Dovre, Fergus Falls, Leaf Hills, Itasca, 
and Mesabi moraines. The last of these crosses the 
northern part of the state, from the head waters of 
the Mississippi River, to Grand Portage on the north 
shore of Lake Superior. —— Mr. C. F. Sidmer gave 
some account of the manufacture of the Chamber- 
lain illuminating-gas, made of petroleum, water, and 
air, and called attention to some of its advantages. 
NOTES AND NEWS. 
THE following is a complete list of the papers 
read to the scientific sections of the Royal society of 
Canada, at its recent meeting in Ottawa, of which an 
account is given elsewhere in this number:— In the 
physical section: F. N. Gisborne, Electrical induction 
in underground and aerial metallic conductors; C. 
Baillargé, A particular case of the hydraulic ram, or 
water-hammer; R. Steckel, The form of the con- 
tracted liquid vein, affecting the present theory of 
the science of hydraulics; T. Sterry Hunt, The origin 
of crystalline rocks; J. G. MacGregor, The density 
and the thermal expansion of aqueous solutions of 
sulphate of copper; E. Haanel, Blowpipe re-actions 
on plaster-of-paris tablets; Description of apparatus 
for distinguishing flame-coloring constituents when 
occurring together in an assay; T. E. Hamel, Essai 
sur la constitution atomique de la matiére; N. F. 
Dupuis, The algebraical development of certain 
functions; E. J. Chapman, Contributions to our 
knowledge of the iron ores of Ontario; J. C. K. La- 
flamme, Note sur une fait météorologique particulier 
& Quebec. In the geological and biological section: 
A. R. C. Selwyn, Note of observations, in 1883, on the 
geology of a part of the north shore of Lake Superior; 
George Lawson, Revision of the Canadian Ranuncu- 
laceae; J. W. Dawson, Geology and geological work in 
the old world, in their relation to Canada; T. 8. Hunt, 
The Taconic question in geology; W. Saunders, Note 
on the occurrence of certain butterflies in Canada; E. 
J. Chapman, Some deposits of titaniferous iron ore in 
the counties of Haliburton and Hastings (Ontario); 
Mimetism in inorganic nature; T. J. W. Burgess and 
J. Macoun, A monograph of Canadian ferns; L. W. 
Bailey, Geological contacts and ancient erosion in the 
Province of New Brunswick; G. F. Matthew, Illus- 
trations of the fauna of the St. John group (part iii., 
Conocoryphidae, with notes on the Paradoxidae); G. 
M. Dawson, The glacial deposits in the neighborhood 
of the Bow and Belly Rivers; R. Bell, The geology 
and economic minerals of Hudson’s Bay and northern 
Canada; J. C. K. Laflamme, Note sur certains dépéts 
auriferes de la Beance; Découverte de l’emeraude 
au Saguenay; J. F. Whiteaves, A description of a 
supposed new ammonite from the upper cretaceous 
rocks of Fort St. John on the Peace River; On a 
new decapod crustacean from the Pierre shales of 
Highwood River, N.W.T.; E. Gilpin, Notes on the 
manganese ores of Nova Scotia; D. Honeyman, A 
revision of the geology of Antigonish county, Nova 
SCIENCE. 
[Vou. IIL, No. 70. 
Scotia; S. Obalski, Notes sur la constitution géolo- 
gique de l’apatite Canadienne. 
—It is to be hoped that there will be no lack of 
papers from chemists on this side of the Atlantic 
before Section B of the British association, and that 
the titles will be sent in as early as possible to Prof. 
H. E. Roscoe, president of Section B, British asso- 
ciation, P.O. box 147, Montreal. The subjects for 
special discussion, as already announced, are, 1°, The 
constitution of the elements; 2°, Chemical changes 
in relation to micro-organisms. The first will be 
introduced by Professor Dewar, probably on Friday, 
Aug. 29; the second, by Professor Frankland, on 
Monday, Sept. 1. 
— The land-office maps of the United States, and 
of certain of the states and territories, give a fair 
outline of our horizontal topography, with rough 
mountain shading, and, in addition to this, present 
various details — concerning public lands and land- 
offices; Indian, military, naval, and lighthouse reser- 
vations; railroad and large private grants, confirmed 
and unconfirmed — not to be found in our ordinary 
atlases. The latest edition, issued under the direc- 
tion of Hon. N. C. McFarland, commissioner, includes 
the general map of the country, six and a half by 
four feet, dated 1885, on a scale of 40 miles to an 
inch; Alabama, 1882, 12 miles to an inch; Arizona, 
1883, 15 miles ; Colorado, 1881, 15 miles; Dakota, 
1882, 18 miles; Florida, 1888, 12 miles; Idaho, 1883, 
16 miles; Indian Territory, 1883, 12 miles; Louisiana, 
1879, 14 miles; Minnesota, 1884, 15 miles; Montana, . 
1883, 18 miles; New Mexico, 1882, 16 miles; Utah, 
1884, 15 miles; Washington, 1883, 15 miles; Wyoming, 
1883, 15 miles. These state maps have the coasts, 
river-lines, townships, lettering, etc., in black; water- 
areas in blue; and reservations in red or green. Al- 
though we have to lament the lack of adequate 
representation of the relief of the land, the maps 
cannot be adversely criticised on account of this want; 
for the measurement of the vertical element of our 
topography has never been undertaken by the land- 
office: its work has been simply to measure off the 
public lands for sale, and to present such maps of 
the surveyed districts as shall serve to locate the vari- 
ous townships and sections. In the western moun- 
tainous region, the land-surveys follow only the lower 
country, and the adjacent mountains are merely 
roughly sketched; indeed, in some cases so roughly 
as to lose all of their characteristic form. But, on 
the other hand, some of the open country is shown 
in finer, or at least in more, detail than on any other 
maps yet published. Thus we find the lake districts 
of Florida and Minnesota well illustrated; and the 
number of lakes and ponds dotted over the plains 
of Colorado gives a clew to a peculiar chapter in their 
physical history. So, also, the branching and mean- 
dering of rivers in the Mississippi valley are drawn 
with greater variety of form, and hence, we may sup- 
pose, with a nearer approach to precision, than in our 
common atlases. ~ 
The post-office department also has a series of 
post-route maps, grouped in areas of several states 
together, and prepared especially for office use. The 
