162 



SCIENCE. 



[Vol. VII., No. 159 



clouded on the average, from the western part of 

 the totality to Lake Baikal, the region on both 

 sides of the Ural Mountains excepted, where it is 

 above 6. Probably the conditions will be a little 

 better than those indicated, as the eclipse will take 

 place in the later morning hours, when cloudiness 

 is somewhat less than in early morning and the 

 afternoon. In southern Transbaikalia the cloudi- 

 ness is even less. There is no doubt, according to 

 Woeikof , that, if the observing parties are well dis- 

 tributed on the path of the eclipse, some of them 

 will certainly have good atmospherical conditions, 

 it being impossible that the sky be everywhere 

 overcast on so extensive a territory. The great 

 interest of barometric observations during the 

 eclipse was then dwelt on, and the subject illus- 

 trated by the results of the American expedition 

 to the Caroline Islands. The results would be 

 especially important as bearing on the theory of 

 the daily variation of air pressure. 



At the annual meeting of the Academy of 

 sciences, Jan. 10, the most interesting feature was 

 a report on the progress and future prospects of 

 the expedition to the New Siberian Islands under 

 Dr. Bunge. It was to begin with an exploration 

 of the Yana Basin. Among other matters, some 

 results of last year's observations at Werkhojansk 

 were mentioned. The mean temperature of Jan- 

 uary, 1885, was — 52°.7 C. (— 62°.9 F.) and the 

 minimum — 68° C. ( — 90°.4 F.). Thus the low 

 mean winter temperature at this place is more 

 than confirmed by new and reliable observations, 

 and it has the coldest winter weather yet known 

 on our globe. 



Colonel Prejevalsky has not yet arrived at St. 

 Petersburg. He is to lecture at Moscow to-day on 

 his last travels. 



The annual meeting of the geographical society 

 was held to-day. It was principally devoted to a 

 review of the year's work of the society by the 

 secretary. The annual awards followed. The 

 highest, the Constantine medal, was awarded to 

 N. D. Jurgens, the chief of the Russian Lena ex- 

 pedition. The Lutke medal was awarded to Colo- 

 nel Pewtsow for his extensive travels and explo- 

 rations in Mongolia ; the great medal of the section 

 of statistics, to Terestchenko, for his statistical 

 description of several districts of the government 

 of Poltava ; the great medal of the ethnographical 

 section, to Dmitrowsky, for his translation, with 

 numerous additions of Otono Kigoro's Japanese 

 account of Korea. The small gold medals were 

 awarded to W. N. Mamow, for his anthropologi- 

 cal and ethnographical description of the Mordwa 

 (a Finnish tribe of eastern European Russia) ; to 

 W. Fuss, for the calculation of the results of the 

 Siberian levelling; to Prof. R. E. Lenz, for his 



useful work as president of the section of physical 

 geography for seven years ; and to Mielberg, for 

 magnetical observation at Tiflis in connection 

 with the polar stations. 



The next number of the Isvvestia of the society 

 will contain an important work of Gen. A. A. 

 Tillo on the level of Lakes Ladoga, Husen, and 

 Onega. In round numbers, the first was found to 

 be five metres, the second eighteen, the last thirty- 

 five metres, above the mean level of the Gulf of 

 Finland. This is considerably less than admitted 

 till now. For the altitude of Lake Ladoga, a 

 height of about twenty metres was generally 

 received ; and for Onega, seventy metres. 



When the results of the levelling of Lake La- 

 doga were first calculated, they were received 

 with distrust, and a levelling on another road 

 was made ; but the result was confirmed. Other 

 levellings are begun by the Ministry of public 

 works, under the direction of General Tillo, 

 among others, on the upper Volga. The general 

 result is to make the level of the waters lower 

 than they were admitted to be till now. 



A movement is under way for establishing a 

 female medical school at St. Petersburg. A few 

 years ago, ladies received instruction at one of 

 the military hospitals, and some of the graduates 

 are practising with honor. Later this instruction 

 ceased, as the minister of war would not con- 

 tinue the subsidy given before, nor allow the use 

 of the buildings. Now the matter is under dis- 

 cussion in the duma (city assembly) of St. Peters- 

 burg. There are also private subscriptions for 

 this end, and lately the great importance of 

 female physicans is especially insisted upon for 

 central Asia and eastern Transcaucasia ; that is, 

 provinces where the great mass of the people are 

 Mohammedans. O. E. 



St. Petersburg, Jan. 17. 



NOTES AND NEWS. 



The subject of bird-protection is receiving in- 

 creased attention in England. A ' bird-protection 

 league' has been organized through the instru- 

 mentality of Mr. G. A. Musgreave, F.R.G.S., the 

 members of which pledge themselves neither to 

 purchase birds of beautiful plumage nor to shoot 

 rare birds. 



— The council of the Practical naturalists' so- 

 ciety of England have appointed Dr. J. W. 

 Williams to make a survey of British bird-migra- 

 tion, and prepare a list of migratory species, in- 

 cluding those rare and extinct. 



— In connection with some letters which have 

 recently appeared in these columns, the following 

 sentences from Mr. Keltie's report will be of inter- 



