New electric lamp. - Mr. Charles Lever of Manchester has invented and patented an electric lamp in which the carbons are held apart by a spring when no current is passing. The current, when first started, excites an electro-magnet which releases a clip, and allows the upper carbon to fall upon the lower; the weakening of the magnets consequent on shunting the current through the carbons allows the spring to bind the clip, and draw back the upper carbon to the proper distance. When the carbons burn away so as to increase the resistance greatly, this process is repeated. (Rev. électr., Jan. 6, 1883.) J. T.

[296

Electric torpedo-boat.-A torpedo-boat has just been satisfactorily tried at Constantinople, in which a Siemens electro-motor drives two screw propellers in the rear of the boat. The vessel is cigar-shaped, and moves under water at the rate of eight knots an hour. Its path is traced in the day-time by a wire which projects above the surface, and is followed by a telescope; in the night, by a lantern having an opening only towards the shore, and a light too feeble to betray itself to the enemy by reflection. The place in which the torpedo-boat was tried furnished a severe test on account of the strong currents, which vary in direction in different parts of the channel, and in strength from one part of the day to another. The wires conveying the explosive discharge are, of course, distinct from those carrying the motive current. (L' Electricité, Jan. 6, 1883.) J. T.

[297 Electro-magnetic theory of light.-J. W. Gibbs continues his mathematical treatment, obtaining in this paper as the general equation of monochromatic light in a medium of any degree of transparency:— 4 π2

Pot [U] Avev [ 9 ] Ave = • [U] Ave + ¥ [Ú ] Ave, p2 where and denote linear and vector functions; Pot, the operation by which the potential of a mass is derived from its density; q, the actual potential; U the electrical displacement; and p, the period of the luminous disturbance. The symbol [] Ave denotes a space-average taken through a sphere of unit radius concentric with the point considered. This treatment removes certain objections to the electro-magnetic theory raised by Lorentz and Rayleigh. The equation, however, is not claimed to be rigorously general. (Amer. journ. sc., Feb., 1883.) J. T.

[298

Regulation of rivers, and prevention of floods. A valuable report upon the rectification of the Rhine and Danube has been made by M. Gustave Wex, privy councillor to the emperor of Austria, in which an account is given of the work carried on between Mannheim and Basle during the period from 1819 to 1863, by which the distance has been shortened from 252 to 169 kilometers, and the fall increased by thirty per cent. The stream has moreover been confined to a uniform channel, the banks being carefully protected, and the old bed with its branches filled, and the land thus reclaimed brought under cultivation. Government considers that the benefits from the change are so large as to make ample payment for the outlay. Similar work upon the Danube has been in progress from 1869 to 1881. The author concludes, that from 48 years of observation and experience of extensive works undertaken for the improvement of rivers, it can be confidently stated that by careful study, even the most tortuous rivers and the swampiest valleys can within a few years yield the most satisfactory results. - (Van Nostrand's eng. mag., Feb., 1883.) G. L. V.

[301

The preservation of timber. - A committee of eight members of the Amer. soc. of civil engineers has made a preliminary report upon the above matter, in which a list of thirty-three different chemical processes is presented for preserving wood from decay. The census of 1880 has shown the need of a far more economical use of timber in this country than has prevailed heretofore. Not less than a thousand circulars were sent out to civil engineers, railroadsuperintendents, dealers in timber, and chemists; and numerous letters from engineers are given, in regard to the duration of wood under various conditions. (Trans. Amer. soc. civ. eng., Oct., 1882.) [302

G. L. V.

New harbor at Vera Cruz, Mexico. - The plans of Mr. James B. Eads for a new and extensive

artificial harbor at Vera Cruz have been for some time before the engineering world, and the work was commenced last autumn. The natural harbor is exposed to gales from the north and north-west, and is often made very dangerous during storms. The plan

of Capt. Eads provides for a quiet harbor with deep water and suitable lights for guidance of shipping. The cost of the above works is reckoned at about ten millions of dollars. (Engineering, Nov., 1882.) [303

G. L. V.

-

CHEMISTRY.

(Organic.)

Dianilido - phosphorus hydrate. Professor Jackson mentioned a Dianilido-phosphorus hydrate (C, H, NH) POH, which he and Mr. Menke had obtained by the action of phosphorus trichloride upon aniline. The crude product formed by adding

Quantitative determination of calcium. Dr. Kinnicutt gave an account of some experiments which he had undertaken with Mr. F. G. Short on the quantitative determination of calcium. Calcium oxalate is precipitated highly crystalline from a boiling solution if it is cooled rapidly, and it may be filtered immediately. In the separation of calcium and magnesium, the calcium oxalate may be filtered without standing, if the formation of an ammonio-magnesium oxalate is prevented by using a small excess of ammonium chloride and by cooling rapidly after precipitation. (Ibid.) [306

Estimation of sulphur in illuminating-gas. A method proposed by O. Knublauch consists in burning a known volume of the gas, mixed with air, in a glass tube, and absorbing the sulphuric and sulphurous acids in a solution of potassium carbonate. After oxidation of the sulphurous acid with potassium permanganate, the sulphur is calculated from the weight of barium sulphate obtained by precipitation with barium chloride. For details of the method, and description of the apparatus, reference is made to the original article. — (Zeitschr. anal. chem., 1882; also Berichte deutsch. chem. gesellsch., xv. 2403.) [307

C. F. M.

Volumetric determination of copper, iron, and antimony by the processes of M. F. Weil. - If a standard solution of stannous chloride is added to a boiling solution of cupric chloride containing sufficient free hydrochloric acid to impart to it a yellow color, complete reduction of the copper solution is indicated by disappearance of the color. A solution of ferric chloride also is rapidly reduced by stannous chloride. In each case the final re-action is so clearly marked that no other indicator is required. When cupric chloride is added to a solution of antimonic chloride in an excess of hydrochloric acid, the mixture acquires a greenish-yellow color. If the quantity of copper is known, by deducting from the volume of tin solution required to reduce the mixture the volume corresponding to the copper, the difference represents the volume of stannous chloride required to reduce the antimonic to antimonious chloride. Copper, iron, and antimony may be determined in the same solution by a combination of these methods. After each series of determinations the tin solution must be restandardized. - (Revue des mines, Chem. news, 46, 284.) C. F. M. [308

AGRICULTURE.

Availability of nitrogenous fertilizers. - To obtain an approximate idea of the relative value of different nitrogenous substances as fertilizers, Stutzer and Klinkenberg propose to digest them with an acid

Fineness of superphosphates. In pot experiments with finely ground superphosphate and with the same substance artificially granulated, Wagner finds the former decidedly superior. - (Biedermann's central-blatt, 1882, 665.) H. P. A. [310

Clover sickness. - A particular case of 'clover sickness' has been investigated by Kutzleb. It was shown that the failure of the clover was not due to parasites, to lack of nitrogen, to lack of water, or to unfavorable physical properties of the soil. An analysis of the soil showed a decided deficiency of easily soluble potash (soluble in carbonic-acid water), especially in the subsoil, in comparison with the soil of neighboring estates on which clover flourished; and the clover sickness is attributed by the author to this cause. No attempt appears to have been made to test the effect of manuring the field in question with potash. (Biedermann's central-blatt, 1882, 728.) [311

H. P. A.

Induration of rocks by atmospheric action.— Dr. M. E. Wadsworth gave some observations, made in 1871-73, upon the effect of atmospheric action in indurating the friable St. Peters and Potsdam sandstone in Wisconsin. This effect was quite strongly marked upon the exposed surfaces, resulting in induration, the partial obliteration of the granular structure, the formation of concretions, and even of quartz crystals; while the covered portions of the same blocks and slabs retained the usual friable character. · (Bost. soc. nat. hist.; meeting Feb. 7.)

[313

Glacial phenomena of Mill Rock near New Haven. - Prof. W. P. Blake spoke of the low eastand-west ridge just north of New Haven, and referred its existence to the intrusion of trap-rock in the form of a narrow vertical dike, a part of the East-rock dike. It presents a precipitous front to the south; but northwards the slope is gentle, and is formed of sandstone. This dike of hard trap, and the adjacent hardened sandstone, stood up like a wall in the path of the great glacier; and its surface is strongly rounded off, grooved, polished, and striated by the ice. This cutting is best seen on the surface of the hard sandstone. The direction of the glacier appears to have been from the north-east. In addition to the glacial scratches, there is a series of transverse valleys or depressions having about the same direction. These appear to have been formed by the ice following the lines of outcrop of the harder beds of sandstone underlaid by soft red shales.

Heavy bowlders of hard trap are irregularly distributed in sandy gravel on the north slope. There are some large bowlders of quartz, but granite bowlders do not occur. Most of the bowlders have flattened sides, showing extensive abrasion. They are generally ellipsoidal in form, and are often broken at one

end. The quartz bowlders are found in forms which indicate that they were firmly held in the ice, first in one position, then in another, some of the smaller masses having several facets. A great variety in the nature of the soil is observed. There are deposits of clean sand and of bowlder-clay. These peculiarities, and the abraded bowlders, indicate the moraine profonde, or under-moraine. The large pot-holes cleanly cut in the sandstone of the north slope are referred by Prof. Blake to glacial origin, being similar to the giants' kettles' of the glaciated regions of Norway, and formed, probably, by vertical torrents falling through the ice-sheet. (Conn. acad. arts and sc.; meeting Jan. 17.) [314

6

Humite. As the result of the crystallographic study of this mineral from Ludugrufvan (Sweden), Hj. Sjörgren has shown its analogy to the crystallized humite from Vesuvius, though the number of occurring planes is much smaller. The associations of the mineral from this locality is very similar to that occurring at Brewsters, N.Y.; the humite, associated with magnetite, calcite, and brucite, occurring from pure, through all stages of decomposition into serpentine. The pure, unaltered crystals were mostly found imbedded in calcite. In thin sections under the microscope, the appearance is almost identical with that of olivine. The author entering into a discussion of the chemical composition of this, and the closely allied minerals clinohumite and chondrodite, states that the presence of water in all these minerals has often been noted; and, although it fails to appear in most of the published analyses, there is, in most cases, a deficiency of constituents given, in order to make up the full 100 per cent; and this deficiency increases as the quantity of fluorine decreases. Provided this deficiency is due to undetermined water, it might be taken to indicate, that, where there is a deficiency of fluorine, a univalent hydroxyl group enters into the mineral as an isomorphous replacement of a part of the fluorine. Taking this into consideration, and also the varying ratios of Si: R (R=Mg and Fe), he finds that the three minerals agree closely with the following formulae, arranged so as to show their relation to one another and to olivine: olivine, он

2

4

Alloclasile. This mineral, which occurs at Oravicza (Hungary) in small crystals resembling mispickle, has been newly investigated by A. Frenzel, and shown to be in composition also closely related. On account of the rarity of the crystals, enough of them could not be obtained for analysis; but several analyses from specimens of massive material were made which agreed nearly with the formula (Co Fe) (AsBi) S. It varies from mispickle in that most of the iron has been replaced by cobalt, and part of the arsenic by bismuth. - (Min. und petr. mitth., v. 179.) [319

8. L. P.

METEOROLOGY.

Thermal belts of North Carolina. - Professor J. W. Chickering read a paper on this topic, reciting the observations of Mr. Silas McDowell and others. The valley of the Little Tennessee river, in Macon county, is about 2,000 feet above tide. When the thermometer indicates a temperature of about 26° F., the frost extends about 300 feet in vertical height up the mountain-sides, and there ceases, appearing again 400 feet higher. In the intervening belt, the most delicate plants remain untouched; and so sharp are the dividing-lines, that sometimes one half of a shrub may be frost-killed, while the other is unaffected. Following a tributary stream upward from the valley, one passes three mountain-barriers, and enters in succession three valleys, the highest of which is plateau-like, and 3,900 feet in altitude. The vernal zone appears in each valley, rising as the valleys rise, but somewhat less rapidly; so that in the highest it is only 100 feet above the plateau. In this frostless zone the Isabella grape not merely has ripened for twenty-six consecutive years, but is free from mildew, blight, and rust. In Polk county a similar belt is said to skirt the Tryon mountain, extending from 1,200 to 2,200 feet above tide. This is untouched by frost until the latter part of December, and is usually free from snow; while the mountains above and the valleys below are covered. The peculiar stratification of the air indicated by these statements merits scientific investigation. - (Phil. soc. Washington; meeting Feb. 24.) [320

GEOGRAPHY. (Asia.)

он

6

drodite, Mgs [Mg(OH)] [SiO4]. These formu

F

lae are derived principally by calculation from the older analyses; and it is hoped that more exact analyses may be made to clear up more fully the true chemical nature of these minerals. - (Zeitschr. krist., vii. 344.) s. L. P. [317 Rezbanyite. — Under this name, a new mineral

Regel in central Asia. - Dr. Regel reports a number of new geographic details to the Russian geographical society from the region of Karategin and Darwas, about the sources of the Amee River.

The climate is clear and dry in summer; but in the long winter there are heavy snowfalls, preventing communication between the villages. On the way eastward to Karategin, he crossed three nearly meridianal mountain ranges. South-east of the Wakish, the ranges run north-east and south-west; and after crossing the Pandj (Pandsch), the great Badakshan range is fully parallel to the Hindu-Kush. The Wakish, Pandj, and Wandj rivers are respectively 100, 100-170, and 60-100 metres broad. The natives regard the latter two as the true head-waters of the Amee. They both have turbid water, and in winter carry cakes of ice. There are no bridges over the Pandj, and the stream is crossed on goat-skin floats. The population of these villages is very mixed: some of the tribes seem of true Aryan type. For the last fifty years the country has been desolated by wars, in which the prisoners were carried off to be sold as slaves at Buchara, Kashgar, and Badakshan. —(Verh. ges. erdk. Berlin, ix. 1882, 505.) W. M. D.

(Africa.)

[322

The

New expeditions for eastern Africa. geographical society of London has given Mr. Joseph Thomson command of an expedition to enter eastern Africa from Zanzibar, with the object of exploring a direct route to the eastern shores of Victoria Nyanza, and examining Mount Kenia. Thomson left England on Dec. 13. He has previously led two expeditions in this region with excellent success, and a good share of scientific results. He is now preceded in the field by Dr. G. A. Fischer, for whose expedition the Hamburg geographical society has appropriated 15,200 marks. Fischer was to leave Pangani last November, and march toward Liconono, then to the south-eastern shore of Victoria Nyanza, and the little-known Baringo Lake, and, if possible, to go on farther north. Parts of this region have been specially studied by German explorers: Erhardt, Krapf, and Rebmann, in 1848-49; v. d. Decken, Kersten, and Brenner, in 1859 and 1862; Hildebrand, in 187577; and Denhardt, and Fischer himself, in 1878.(Proc. roy. geog. soc., 1883, 32; Verh. ges. erdk. Berl., 1882, 399; Ausland, 1882, 978.) w. M. D. [323

Dr. Junker on the Uelle. This persevering explorer joined an armed Egyptian party a year ago, and followed down the valley of the Uelle, gaining some information about its probable lower course, and returning by a détour to the south and east. It seems that Uelle is simply, as is so often the case, the local word for river, and that its name is really Makua; so with its southern branch marked Nomayo on Schweinfurth's map, which should be Bomokandi. Dr. Junker concludes from native information, that the Makua Uelle is the head stream of the Shari; and that the Nepoko, rising farther east and flowing south, is Stanley's Aruwimi branch of the Kongo. He also refers to a large lake south of the region he passed through, and doubtless corresponding to the lake reported from upper Egypt by Lupton; Junker's Makua being presumably the same as Lupton's Bahr el Makwar. (Proc. roy, geogr. soc., Jan., 1883; Peterm. mittheil., 1882, 424, 441.) W. M. D. [324

BOTANY.

The chromatophor of algae. While at the zoological station in Naples, Prof. Fr. Schmitz studied the arrangement of the coloring matter in the cells of marine algae; and he has since extended his observations to the coloring matter of other groups of plants. At present he gives only the results of his observations on algae, reserving for a future publication his researches on Archegoniata and phaeno

gams. In a few plants, as the Phycochromaceae, the coloring matter is uniformly diffused through the cell; but in most cases it has a definite outline, and forms a mass to which Prof. Schmitz gives the name of chromatophor. In the higher plants the chromatophor is principally represented by chlorophyl grains; but in algae it is often represented by bands, stellate masses, or large irregularly shaped bodies. Schmitz finds in the chromatophors of many algae more or less spherical bodies to which he gives the name of pyrenoids. They occur in some red and brown algae, and are very common in green algae. Schmitz shows that the chromatophors of algae are capable of division, and that new chromatophors are always formed from some already existing chromatophor and not from the protoplasm itself, using the word in its strict sense. In some cases it appears to be the case that pyrenoids which are in reality nuclei of the chromatophors have been mistaken for the nucleus of the cell itself; as in the case of Anthoceras, where it has been generally supposed the cell nucleus was surrounded by an irregular mass of chlorophyl. · (Verhandl. natur. vereins Rheinl. u. Westfalens, 1883.) [325

W. G. F.

American Characeae. The manuscript of the late Alexander Braun, of Berlin, has been edited by Nordstedt, who has added notes and observations of his own; and the whole forms the most complete monograph of the Characeae yet published. In it appear for the first time in print descriptions of several American species which were hitherto only known from herbarium names. The monograph includes one hundred and forty-two species and sub-species. — (Abhandl. acad. wiss. Berlin, 1882.) w. G. F. [326

The relations, as regards size, of the woodcells in Coniferae and other trees. - Dr. Ewald Schulze has repeated the extensive observations of Sanio, and has obtained results which appear to confirm them. He has further shown, that the principles laid down by Sanio may be extended to a much wider range of ligneous plants. (Zeitschr. f. naturwiss., 1882, no. 3.) G. L. G. [327

Relations of organic matters in the soil to the process of assimilation in the sugar-beet. - The old experiments have been repeated and extended by Corenwinder, but have added very little to what was known before. He states, however, that the beet, when cultivated in a soil very rich in carbonaceous matters, can absorb more or less carbon from that source. As to the use which is made of this carbon, he is unable yet to express a positive opinion; so the question has not been materially affected by his present work. (Comptes rendus, Jan. 2.) G. L. G. 1328 Detection of adulterations in tea. - Mayer calls attention to the peculiar character of the felted hairs on the leaves of certain Camellias, and to the universal occurrence of firm cells, which are almost true sclerenchyma, in the parenchyma of the under side of the leaves of tea. The cells are said to be best seen when thin sections of soaked leaves are first treated with dilute potassic hydrate, afterwards washed with alcohol of 50% which contains 10% hydrochloric acid, and finally placed in glycerine and water. -(Zeitschr. f. naturwiss., 1882, no. 3.) G. L. G. [329

Permian plants from eastern Russia. — After giving a vertical section of the upper Permian of Kargalinsk, Twelvetrees describes a Cardiopteris, two species of Walchia, one Lepidodendron, one Schizodendron, one Anomorrhoea, a Caulopteris (?), and four Calamites. These plants have, taken altogether, a remarkable analogy with a group of vegetable remains procured from strata near Fairplay, Col., and which, by their characters, are of lower Permian age. The affinity is rendered the more remarkable by the fact, that, as remarked by the English author, "The list of the species of plants has a paleozoic aspect, but a secondary one as respects the reptilian remains." The same can be said of fossil remains of Fairplay, the plants being all of paleozoic types; while the insects, according to the researches of Mr. Scudder, are mesozoic. (Quart. journ. geol. soc. Lond., no. 152.)

L. L.

ZOOLOGY.

(Geographical distribution.)

[331

The relations of the 'nearctic' region. re-examination of Wallace's palaearctic and nearctic regions is being made by A. Heilprin.

The

Two propositions are discussed: namely, 1°, whether the nearctic region is entitled to independent rank; and, 20, if not, to which of the two regions, neotropical or palaearctic, does it belong. For the mammals, Wallace's tables are recast. It is shown, that, while eighteen neotropical and nineteen palaearctic families occur in the nearctic region, only eleven genera are common to the nearctic and neotropical regions, as opposed to twenty-one genera common to the latter region and the palaearctic. The number of genera peculiar to the nearctic region amounts to 35 per cent; to the palaearctic, 35 per cent; to the oriental, 46 per cent; to the Australian, 64 per cent; to the Ethiopian, 63 per cent; and to the neotropical, 78 per cent. number of families peculiar to the nearctic is given as one; to the palaearctic, none; while all the remaining regions have from seven to nine. By uniting the first two regions, the proportion of peculiar genera is raised to fifty per cent, and the number of peculiar families, including Rogiferidae, Alcadae, and Copridae (though without warrant in this case, as it appears to us), to seven, thus bringing the combined regions into rank with remaining divisions of the globe. In conclusion, it is considered proved: "first, that by family, generic, and specific characters, as far as mammals are concerned, the nearctic and palaearctic faunas taken collectively are more clearly defined from any or all the other regions than either the nearctic or palaearctic taken individually; and, second, that by the community of family, generic, and specific characters, the nearctic region is indisputably united to the palaearctic, of which it forms a lateral extension."

It would appear that the first conclusion does not entirely satisfy the first proposition, and that the second conclusion should be reversed; since, according to the percentages given, the palaearctic region is the lateral extension of the nearctic. Among the many thoughts to which the paper (which is not yet completed) gives birth, the following may be recorded:

1o. Even after combining the two northern regions, the interval between their percentage of peculiar genera and that of the region having the next higher number is greater than that between percentage of the palaearctic region alone and that of the region having the next higher number. 2°. The number of families peculiar to the combined regions, according to Wallace's tables (excluding the ungulate subfamilies), is but one more than the number of families peculiar to the nearctic region alone according to Allen's tables. 3°. The character of the peculiar families inhabiting the Australian region is very different from that of those of the other regions, since in the former case six of the eight families belong to one order, while in the latter the families are divided among the many orders of Monodelphia. 4°. A knowledge of what regions are occupied by a group of animals is of more importance to the zoologist than the knowledge of what animals occupy any region or regions; especially if, in the latter case, no account is taken of extinct forms. (Proc. acad. nat. sc. Philad., 1882, 316.) F. W. T. [332

(General physiology and embryology.) · Action of digitaline on the circulatory organs (preliminary note by H. H. Donaldson and L. T. Stevens). The continuation of the experiments begun last year has yielded the following results: the work done by the heart of the common frog is decreased by digitaline, whatever the dose, as was previously shown to be the case for the heart of the slider' terrapin, In both frog and terrapin, the decrease occurs, whether the aortic valves are intact or not. Variations in arterial or venous pressure do not affect the result.

By a method permitting direct measurement of the fluid circulating through the viscera and lower extremities in a unit of time and under constant pressure, it has been determined for the frog that the arterioles are constricted by digitaline. On this point the terrapin has not yet been investigated. Digitaline has also been shown to increase mean blood pressure in both frog and terrapin.

We have, then, for the frog under digitaline a decrease in the work done by the heart, a rise of mean blood pressure, and a constriction of the arterioles. The first and second of these points have been already demonstrated for the terrapin as well. (Johns Hopk. univ. circ., Feb., 1883.) [333

Origin of the heart.- Professor Bütschli has advanced a hypothesis of the phylogenetic origin of the heart and blood-vessels, which has much plausibility. He suggests that the heart is a remnant of the primitive or segmentation cavity of the embryo, and is not derived from the secondary or permanent body cavity (schizocoele or enterocoele). He endeavors to reconcile this view with the accounts of the development of the heart in vertebrates, maintaining that it probably arises as a fissure in the mesoderm, remaining as a permanent part from the temporary primitive cavity. More support for the hypothesis is found in arthropods; for it has been observed in several forms that the two edges of the mesoderm approach one another in the median dorsal line, leaving a space between them, which belongs to the primitive cavity. This space becomes the heart. Sometimes it is cut off before, sometimes after, the mesoderm is split into segments. These observations were upon the bee (Bütschli), Geophilus (Metschnikoff), and Branchipus (Claus). An investigation to answer the problem propounded by Bütschli would, it may be safely said, prove fruitful and interesting. — (Morph. jahrbuch, viii. 474.) C. S. M. 1334