272 Proceedings of Royal Society of Edinburgh [sess. 
Continent exhibit the closest agreement with the winds at low levels 
in the same regions, the winds at the top of Ben hTevis, on the 
contrary, differ widely from the mean direction of the winds near sea 
level in that part of Great Britain. As regards Ben JSTevis, this 
observed difference is a peculiarity of cyclonic regions, and thus 
marks out the Ben Nevis winds not merely different to, but as being 
wholly different in kind from, the winds of High Level Continental 
Observatories. But perhaps the most valuable result of the inquiry 
is the proof given that the veering of the wind at great heights, as 
required by the current theory that a cyclonic storm is a whirling 
column drawing the air in spirally below and pouring it out spirally 
above, is not confirmed by the Ben Nevis Observatories — a result 
making it plain that further observation and research are needed in 
order to place this vital question of atmospheric movements on a 
sound basis. 
The Makdougall-Brisbane Prize for 1888-90 was presented to 
Dr Ludwig Becker for his Paper on “The Solar Spectrum at Medium 
and Low Altitudes,” printed in Yol. xxxvi.. Part 1, of the Society’s 
Transactions : — 
Lord McLaren, on presenting the Prize, said : — 
I am now about to present to Dr Becker the Makdougall-Brisbane 
Medal for his paper on “ The Solar Spectrum of Medium and Low 
Altitudes,” and I can hardly doubt that the Society will most fully 
approve the award of the Council, when I say that in a field of 
research which has engaged the attention of many eminent astronomers 
and physicists, the results obtained by Dr Becker represent a very 
remarkable advance on the best observations hitherto published. 
Since the earliest days of Spectroscopy, men of Science have directed 
their attention to the bands produced by the absorption of the 
atmosphere. The object proposed is the discrimination of the lines 
of the solar spectrum due to air and aqueous vapour from those 
which represent absorption by the solar atmosphere, or other extra- 
mundane causes, and the method employed is that of high and low 
sun observations, and the comparison of the spectra thus obtained. 
The possibility of accomplishing such work depends on the rapidity 
and accuracy with which the lines can be recorded while the sun is at 
a low altitude, and Dr Becker’s first work was the invention of a 
recording apparatus. The idea worked out was that of the relative 
angular motion of collimator and grating magnified by wheels and 
