A volts, have been produced; one company has even professed Electric Arc-lamps and Vapour-lamps. A new departure was introduced some years ago by the Plaissetty soft mantle, and more recently the Cerofrim Company is stated to have made advances in the same direction. For such mantles it is claimed that their softness renders them convenient for package, and that they naturally burn into the shape of the flame, and are thus used under the most efficient conditions. The introduction of the inverted mantle has, of course, also been a great advance, although only two years ago there were many who doubted its commercial possibilities. At the same time, steady improvements in the design of inverted burners have proceeded. Many types on the market are specially designed to avoid discoloration of the fitting through heat, to secure all the conditions most favourable to complete combustion. Whittaker and Litle in the United States, and, more recently, Lebeis in Germany, have described thermostatical methods of automatically regulating the access of air to the burner, which frequently requires adjustment, as the burner after lighting gradually becomes heated. Perhaps the greatest advance has been in the direction of high-pressure gas lighting, which serves to promote an intimate mixture of gas and air, favouring complete combustion. To this end gas at high pressure may be used, or air at high pressure led into the burner, or a mixture of gas and air at high pressure. In any case, however, special external arrangements are needed with an exist The most marked development in arc-lamps of late years has been the introduction of flame carbons, that is, carbons such that the light comes from a bridge of incandescent vapour instead of the tips of the electrodes. By this means consumptions so low as 0-2 watt to 0-3 watt per mean spherical candle-power are said to have been obtained. Flame carbons, however, burn away very quickly, and in order to extend their life lamps in which a succession of carbons is automatically used have therefore been introduced. Another development, the enclosed regenerative lamp, involves methods enabling the access of air to the carbons to be restricted, so that a high efficiency, and yet a fairly long life, is obtained. Mention must also be madeing low-pressure installation. Self-contained, highly efficient of the new Blondel flame carbons, yielding a very white light, which have been stated to yield a polar curve of light-distribution specially well adapted for street lighting, and are burned vertically one above the other. Another direction of progress has been the improvement of small candle-power enclosed arc-lamps, which formerly served to bridge the gap between high candle-power flame arcs and glow-lamps. By securing more complete exclusion of the air from the globe, the Regina Arc Lamp Company claims to manufacture a lamp consuming only 0-8 watt per candle, and lasting for 250 hours without recarboning. High candle-power metallic filament incandescent lamps, which are manufactured up to 1000 candlepower, now also serve to fill this gap. The chief drawback of mercury-vapour lamps is, of course, the peculiar colour of their light, there being practically no red rays. It has, therefore, been proposed to mix certain salts with the mercury, to use fluorescent materials, &c., in order to improve the spectrum, but few such devices have come to a practical issue. A recent advance has, however, been achieved by Dr. Küch, of Germany, by the use of a tube composed of special quartzglass, which can stand a very high temperature. By this means a consumption of only 0.27 watt per mean spherical candle-power is said to have been obtained; an incidental advantage is that the luminescence in the tube seems to be partially replaced by temperature radiation, and therefore the light contains a distinct red element, the spectrum broadening out into a more or less continuous band instead of consisting of isolated lines. In addition, quartz-glass allows ultra-violet light to pass through with special ease, and the lamp is therefore believed to have special uses for the destruction of bacteria, photographic purposes, &c. For ordinary illuminating purposes a special absorbing glass envelope restricting these rays is used. The Moore tube utilises gases in a rarefied condition and subjected to a high-tension alternating discharge. The essential feature of this arrangement is the use of a valve which automatically keeps the condition of the gas within the tube constant. Gas Lighting. Great advances have been made in the efficiency of gas burners since the early flat-flame burners yielding only about 3 candle-power per cubic foot. The most recent figure is furnished by the Keith high-pressure light, for which 60 to 70 candles per cubic foot have been found by some observers. Improvements have been made in the incandescent mantle both in the direction of the colour of the light and through durability. Even So, manufacturers in England have stated that, as a rule, mantles require renewing every 200 hours. lamps, which can be run off the ordinary low-pressure supply, have therefore been designed. For instance, the Lucas lamp employs a small fan driven by an electric motor, which receives current from a thermopile near the mantle. In the Chipperfield lamp, a small hot-air engine placed above the burner automatically pumps air under pressure into the burner. on An important field in gas lighting is the use of automatic ignition devices. These may consist of electric sparking apparatus, of clock-work arranged to turn and off the gas by means of a bye-pass at specified hours, or automatic devices of the same type manipulated by a rise or fall in pressure. Clock-work systems are very trustworthy, but, of course, do not take account of peculiar atmospheric conditions, such as fog. Apparatus of the last type can be controlled from the station, and lamps can be lighted up or extinguished as the engineer desires. Mention must also be made of the special Norwich system for interior lighting and of the pneumatic methods; these, too, involve the use of the pilot flame. The subject of street lighting formed the object of study of a deputation to the Continent recently appointed by the Corporation of London, and was subsequently investigated by the lecturer in a visit to Germany. A novelty of considerable interest, with which experiments are being made at Stuttgart, consists in slinging gas lamps on wires spanning the street, just as is done in the case of electric arc-lamps in Cannon Street at present. Lastly. in this section of the subject, the lecturer refers to the recognition of the importance of the heating power of gas. which is now regarded as more vital than its "illuminating nower, according to the prescribed tests with flameburners, for modern methods of lighting, and discusses the suggestion of a calorific standard in the future. Gas, Oil, Acetylene, and other Self-contained Methods of The simple method of lighting by petroleum lamps, the author points out, should not be neglected. It is used, for instance, in the Church of St. Sophia of Constantinople, where it is preserved on account of its decorative value and because of religious tradition. In addition, petroleum lamps are still used in the country, and give good results when properly handled; in this connection the researches of Mr. Guiselin, who has demonstrated the advisability of keeping the reservoir in oil lamps well filled, are of interest. For instance, the illuminating power was found to be improved by 20 per cent. when 700 cubic centimetres instead of 500 were retained in the reservoir. Recently many methods of incandescent oil lighting, that is, the use of vaporised fuel with an incandescent mantle, have been devised. The Kitson system and the Empire light are stated to be very efficient for lighthouse work and for the illumination of large outdoor areas in remote localities. Other types of lamps are the Blanchard, the Petrolite, &c., which are described in detail. A special account is also given of petrol air-gas lighting, three typical systems, the Machine Gas Syndicate (Cox's system), the Aerogen, and the National Air Gas, being exhibited. This system of lighting has attracted great attention recently for the lighting of private houses in districts where gas or electricity are not available. A mixture of a small percentage of petrol vapour with air is generated outside the building, and passed through pipes to the burner in the usual way. The method of lighting by alcohol lamps is worth consideration in agricultural districts where petroleum may not be available, but alcohol is readily manufactured. There are also a number of liquid-gas systems in which gas is stored under pressure in liquid form, and has been effectively used for railway-carriage lighting, &c. Acetylene Lighting. Mr. Gaster deals briefly with the historical development of acetylene lighting, and describes the modern form of generator and several types of portable acetylene lamps; these are frequently used in mines, for motor-cars, &c. Acetylene, like petrol-air gas, finds its main application and therefore we ought not to utilise artificial methods of lighting differing too widely from diffused daylight. The importance of providing for proper access of daylight in the design of buildings, particularly schools, is insisted upon. In this connection, the choice of wall-papers and the scheme of decoration are of considerable importance. It is pointed out, too, that the intrinsic brilliancy of illumination has gradually increased of recent years. The effect of gazing directly upon such bright sources is very fatiguing and distressing to the eyes, and the author suggests that the time is now ripe for Governmental recommendations on this point. In order to reduce the intrinsic brilliancy of light sources, suitable shades may be employed, and special reference is made to the Holophane diffusing globes and reflectors, which enable the light to be distributed and concentrated in any desired direction. Some particulars are given of recent progress in photometry. The line of development of special consequence has been the introduction of so-called illumination photometers, which measure, not the actual intensity of the source, but the actual illumination on the pavements or at the desk at which we read. Sir William Preece so long ago as 1883 emphasised the value of such measurements. The Ulbricht globe photometer, by the aid of which the mean spherical candle-power of a source ca i be determined by a single measurement. where gas and electricity are not available. A recent development of considerable interest is the method of dissolving acetylene in acetone, which, at a pressure of ten atmospheres, absorbs about 240 times its own volume of acetylene, but liberates it when the pressure is released. Tubes of dissolved acetylene have been widely used for portable lighting, on motor-cars, railway trains, and even in emergencies for interior lighting. Perhaps one of their most successful applications, however, is for the lighting of buoys and beacons in remote localities. There are several types of ingenious valves which are very effective in saving the consumption of acetylene in the above circumstances. For instance, the Dalen solar valve automatically cuts off the main supply of acetylene in daylight, leaving only the bye-pass burning, and rekindles it at night. General Problems in Illumination. In the last of these four lectures Mr. Gaster discusses the question of illumination in general terms. He again directs attention to the increasing brilliancy of modern illumination, and points out that the eve must have developed mainly in compliance with daylight conditions, Another interesting development is the Globe photometer, an example of which is shown in the accompanying illustration. Perhaps an exceptionally important development during the last year has been the establishment of the international unit of light between England, France, and the United States, and the recognition of a simple relation connecting this unit with the value in use in Germany. The success of cooperation in this direction in this country is felt to be largely due to the fact that representatives of the gas industry and the gas referees were invited to act with those connected with electricity on the commission studying this subject. Turning next to some practical examples of illumination, the author insists upon the importance of adequate school lighting, quoting many authorities to show that the evesight of school children deteriorates during school life; he suggests that tests of the children's condition should be accompanied by the preservation of data relating to the methods of illumination emploved in such schools. as this is believed to have a very vital influence on the health of the child. In the same way the lighting of factories, hospitals, libraries, &c.. should receive very careful study, for good illumination is as much a necessity as the provision of adequate sanitation and good ventilation; it is hoped that in the future, conditions of illumination, like the matters referred to above, will become the subject of Government inspection and recommendation. In addition, it is pointed out that even from the point of view of expediency employers would do well to pay attention to this matter. as a relatively small expense involved in securing good lighting is more than counterbalanced by the improvement in the quality and output of work. In hospitals it is obvious that the lighting should be exceptionally perfect, since people in an invalid condition are specially liable to feel the effect of bad methods of lighting. Libraries, again, are frequented by people engaged in strenuous work and taxing their eyes severely; it is therefore suggested that in this case also no pains should be spared to make the methods of lighting convenient to the workers, and that when great expense is incurred in collecting valuable books and housing them in handsome buildings, the provision for the necessary illumination by the aid of which the books alone can be read should not be grudged. A subject on which cooperation between different authori ties is badly needed is street lighting. It is pointed out that there is room for the establishment of some central testing department where thoroughly trustworthy and impartial tests could be carried out and used for the common benefit of those interested. In particular, it is suggested that it cannot be decided by the mere personal impression of a non-technical body of observers whether the lighting of the street is good or bad. This must be determined by the aid of precise scientific tests, carried out by impartial experts, who have made a thorough study of the subject, and can provide records by which experiences can be checked and subsequently repeated. Other instances of problems in illumination in which there is great field for scientific treatment are shop-window lighting, stage lighting, and light-house illumination; in the two former fields, in particular, there is ample scope for the ingenuity of those who are up-to-date in their knowledge of the different illuminants, and possess, in addition, the requisite taste. In the next section of this lecture Mr. Gaster deals with the scientific basis of light production, pointing out how the nature of the radiation from an illuminant depends in general upon its temperature, and indicating some of the possible lines of future development. The figures of authorities in this matter differ very greatly, but it is generally considered that the percentage of energy radiated in the form of light is very small indeed. The problem of light production is complicated by the fact that some invisible kinds of radiation seem to exert a prejudicial effect on the eye. The author describes some experiments showing the nature of the ultra-violet rays, which some authorities consider to be injurious. In conclusion, Mr. Gaster points out that the problem of illumination is a complex subject which deserves special consideration by itself. There is a need for men who are not connected with any particular illuminant and who are able to take a wide view of the different aspects of the matter, so as to deal with modern problems of lighting. In order to focus interest in this subject and to bring into contact the engineers, architects, oculists, and others interested in illumination, a society has been formed this year which will, it is hoped, gradually lead to the solution of the important questions on which further exact data are felt to be desirable; this is termed the Illuminating Engineering Society. The first president of the society is Prof. S. P. Thompson, and the opening session will commence in November. ANNUAL METEOROLOGICAL REPORTS. THE Deutsche Seewarte has issued part xvii. of its oversea meteorological observations for 1907, containing very carefully prepared summaries, and in some cases individual readings, at some thirty stations. The principal localities include Labrador, Morocco, Shantung, German East Africa, and some islands in the Pacific Ocean; there are also some isolated stations, including one recently established at Babylon. Scientific investigators will be grateful to the Seewarte for references which are given in all cases to the periodicals in which previous observations and results have been published. The annual report of the Philippine Weather Bureau for 1907, part i., contains hourly readings at the Manila Observatory, together with means deduced therefrom. The tables also show the extreme values recorded, and the departures of the monthly and yearly means from the average. The mean temperature of the year, 79.5°, was practically normal; the absolute extremes were 98.1° in April and 59.0° in January. The rainfall, 72-5 inches, was 3.3 inches below the average; of this amount 64 inches fell from June to October inclusive (the period of the southwest monsoon). An appendix shows the greatest daily and hourly rainfall registered at the observatory in past years; the greatest daily falls were 13.3 inches and 12.1 inches, on September 24 and 25, 1867. The report of the Liverpool Observatory for the year 1908 has been received from Mr. W. E. Plummer. This useful establishment is maintained by the Mersey Docks and Harbour Board in the interest of shipping, and is well provided with meteorological and astronomical instru ments. In addition to the continuous use of the transit instrument for the determination of time, observations of selected stars and of comets visible from the observatory formed the chief astronomical work of the year. A Milne seismograph for the registration of tremors in the earth is kept steadily at work; during the Messina earthquake (December 28) the duration of disturbance was 1h. 41m., and the amplitude (half the complete range of maximum motion) was 15 mm. The meteorological results are very complete, e.g. the wind observations show the maximum velocity for each day recorded by Dines's apparatus, the extreme pressure on the square foot by Osler's anemometer, the horizontal motion by Robinson's anemometer, and the number of hours that the wind blew from different points of the compass. The mean temperature of the year (49.2°) was practically normal, and the rainfall (28.9 inches) slightly above the average. The annual report of the United States Weather Bureau for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1908, shows that the research work at Mount Weather Observatory has been carried on without material curtailment, notwithstanding the destruction by fire of the administration building in October, 1907. Investigation of the upper air by means of kites and captive balloons is made daily (except Sundays), and the data are telegraphed to Washington for the use of the forecast division. The work on solar physics includes the measurement of solar radiation and the degree of absorption by the atmosphere. Considerable discrepancies exist in the values of the solar constant, even computed from observations on the same day at Mount Weather and at Washington; in most cases these are traceable to the unsteadiness of the atmosphere. Great activity exists in the divisions dealing with land and ocean meteorology; the number of climatological stations now exceeds 3700, and more than 1600 vessels cooperated with the Bureau during the year. All data referring to the Indian Ocean are lent to the Indian Meteorological Department, where they are copied and returned. In the forecast division isobaric charts are prepared from daily telegraphic reports from selected stations throughout the northern hemisphere, and forecasts for about a week in advance were published during the last three months of the year. The library now consists of about 28,000 books and pamphlets. In addition, meteorological articles contained in periodicals and transactions are catalogued under both author and subject; this bibliography is said to be more frequently consulted than the catalogue of books. The Survey Department of Egypt has published its meteorological report for 1907, containing hourly readings at Helwan and climatological tables at thirty-five stations of the second and third order; the monthly tables give tridaily readings in the form adopted by the International Meteorological Committee, and also include the daily amount of evaporation, as that element is of considerable importance in Egypt and the Sudan. Additional tables include hourly observations by Dines's pressure anemometer at Alexandria, rainfall and wind direction for a number of stations, and river-gauge observations. In compliance with a desire expressed by the International Meteorological Committee in 1907, tables of normal values are also given. Rainfall was in excess in Egypt and in North Sudan, but in considerable defect throughout the rest of the Sudan, and, as we have previously stated, the Nile flood was worse than any recorded during the past fifty years. The meteorological year-book of the Bremen Observatory for 1908 has been received. From small beginnings this institution, under the superintendence of the late Dr. P. Bergholz, has attained a position of considerable importance; the observations, which include hourly readings and means, with monthly and yearly summaries, have been reduced by Prof. Grosse in the same thorough manner as heretofore, with the addition of hourly tabulations of sunshine records and monthly means of earth temperatures. The valuable materials, which now extend over many years, await a general scientific discussion; this desideratum is urgently pointed out by Dr. Grosse, but under present arrangements, while the director has to divide his energies between the observatory and other official duties, this important work has to be postponed. WORK OF THE PHYSIKALISCHTECHNISCHE REICHSANSTALT IN 1908. FROM the annual report of the above institution for last year, recently published, we find that the same steady progress is made in research work of a varied nature; the following notes give some particulars of a few of the more interesting investigations completed or in progress in 1908. The saturation pressure of water vapour between 50° and 200° was determined as a continuation of the experiments in the previous year, the resultant pressures being tabulated in the report. The limit of accuracy over the whole range depended on the measurement of temperature, and the greater part of the work was devoted to such measurements. In the neighbourhood of 100° the temperature scale could be considered as trustworthy to o-01°, and at 200 to 0-02°. The platinum thermometers used were compared at 150° and 200° with the nitrogen thermometer, after the constants of the latter had been determined, the comparison being made in an electrically heated oil-bath. The experiments on the heat of evaporation of water, which were previously made between 30° C. and 100° C., have been continued for temperatures above 100°. Up to the present it had only been possible to obtain the values for the evaporation-heat from Regnault's observations of the total heat by calculating the heat of the water. It therefore appeared desirable to make direct measurements of the evaporation-heat. The experiments were carried out between 100° C. and 180° C. The results show that in the first approximation it is admissible to extrapolate beyond 100° the formula L=94.210(365-t)0-34129 Cal. 15, which has been drawn up for the evaporation-heat L between 30° C. and 100° C. as limits for t. The work connected with the silver voltameter was brought to a conclusion, and a paper published dealing with the subject. The object of the measurements was (1) to compare with the aid of the voltameter and a resistance the E.M.F. of the Weston normal cell, which was last determined by means of the silver voltameter in 1898; (2) to determine the accuracy attainable in measurements with the silver voltameter (a) under conditions which are as regular as possible, and (b) with a variation of the factors in connection therewith. It was found (as at the National Physical Laboratory) that the differences obtained by Richards and by Schuster, attributable on the one hand to the influence of the anode liquid, and on the other to that of the oxygen, could not, within the errors of observation, be confirmed. Particulars of the changes in shellacked manganin coils due to varying humidity were published in 1908. The changes in question are so slight in the German climate as only to be of importance for resistances equal to or greater than 100 ohms, and even then only for measurements of the highest precision. For resistance standards of 1000 and 10,000 ohms the changes during the summer of 1908 amounted to 5 parts in 100,000 only. By taking the precaution of keeping resistances in a hygrostat of 50 per cent. humidity the constancy of all resistances up to a 100,000-ohm coil was secured. A comparison of the mercury standards with the manganin coils is in hand. Various institutions (e.g. the National Physical Laboratory, Teddington, and the Bureau of Standards, Washington) have issued specifications for the setting up of standard cells, and detailed instructions are given for the preparation of the mercurous sulphate. It is directed that this salt shall not be washed with water, but with dilute sulphuric acid or with a saturated solution of cadmium sulphate. The Reichsanstalt is of opinion that the manner of washing the preparation is without influence on the result. It follows from this that the same E.M.F. results whether the salt be hydrolysed or not. In connection with the research on anode rays mentioned in the last report, it was found that when in the presence of substances which emit intense anode rays the electro-negative bodies such as iodine, bromine, &c., considerably favour the formation of the rays. It was found that the red and blue fluorescent tints of glass which can be produced by slow kathodic rays can also be caused by sufficiently dense kathodic rays. For the blue fluorescence it was shown that they are connected with the emission of negative electrons. A fixed point for the presence of the positive electrons could not be ascertained. The experiments commenced in 1907 on the electrolytic properties of silver and copper were concluded, and show that silver in the aqueous solutions of HCl, HBr, and HI, and copper in the aqueous solutions of HF indicate an electrolytic valvular action which does not appear, as in the other metals, to be caused by a gas stratum, but by a solid stratum. For the determination of the absolute values of standards of self-induction, which are made by comparing with capacities measured absolutely, a standard air condenser was constructed. The new air condenser consists of 107 magnalium discs of 20 cm. diameter, I mm. thickness, and I mm. apart. It has a capacity of about 0-03 mfd. Amber is used for insulating, the insulation resistance being of the order 1015 ohms. The work done in the magnetic laboratory includes a comparison of the methods of testing magnetic materials and experiments on initial permeability. An exhaustive series of measurements of self-induction was carried out with high-frequency alternating currents, and papers bearing on this subject have been published. A rotating interrupter for absolute capacity measurements by Maxwell's method is described. A number of tests were made on various forms of flicker photometer which could be used on a straight photometer bench, with the view of determining whether the use of the flicker photometer is to be advocated for tests. It was found, however, that the flicker photometer offered to the skilled operator no advantage over the usual method of measurement as regards rapidity and certainty of adjust ment. Nearly seventy official and private papers of a scientific nature by members of the staff were published during 1908, particulars of these being given in an appendix to the report. ZOOLOGY AT THE BRITISH ASSOCIATION. BY arrangement between the organising committees, the presidents of the biological sections gave their addresses at different hours, so as to make it possible for members to attend them all. The address in Section D was delivered by Dr. Shipley on Friday, August 27. The programme for Thursday, August 26, was opened by Dr. E. Goodrich with a paper on the origin of the vertebrates. The object of this paper was to show that none of the theories of the origin of vertebrates hitherto brought forward, deriving them from some existing class of the invertebrates, was satisfactory, because the theories violated the sound principles of phylogeny based on the combined evidence of comparative anatomy and physiology, embryology and palæontology. This evidence enables us to trace back the Gnathostomes to a primitive shark-like fish, the Gnathostomes and Cyclostomes to a common form of much more uniformly segmented structure, and, finally, the Craniata and Cephalochorda to an ancestor of very simple structure, without dermal skeleton and without pronounced cephalisation, which probably became extinct even before the Silurian age. Mr. C. L. Boulenger followed with a paper on certain subcutaneous fat-bodies in Bufo. These structures are to be found in a number of different species, and consist of masses of adipose tissue situated at the junction of the hind-limbs with the trunk. On Friday, August 27, after the presidential address, Prof. H. Jungersen read a paper, illustrated by lanternslides, on the osteology of the Lophobranchii. The author pointed out that the skeletons of these fishes have hitherto been most unsatisfactorily examined, and the cranial structures, especially the suspensory apparatus, the gill-arches and the scapular arch, have been incorrectly interpreted by all previous authors. In the skull, parietals and opisthotics are wanting, the pterotics are greatly developed, reaching below to the basioccipital, and preventing the exoccipitals from meeting the prootics. These two features, together with the prolongation of the anterior part of the skull (mesethmoid and vomer), the Lophobranchii have in common with the Solenostomidæ, the Fistulariidæ, the Aulostomida, and the Centriscidæ, these families forming with the Lophobranchii a natural group, the "Solenichthyes" of Regan. The scapular arch is cartilaginous to a much greater extent than is the case in other Teleosteans, but a small ossified scapula is to be found as well as a coracoid. The three anterior vertebræ are immovably joined together, their neural arches being firmly bound by sutures with long dentations; in addition, the two anterior ones are fixed to the expanded clavicle. The vertebræ bearing the interspinous bones for the dorsal fin are provided with secondary transverse processes behind the primary ones, thus enlarging the surface which gives attachment to the powerful muscles of the dorsal fin, the chief agent in swimming. After a paper by Dr. S. Hadwen on Texas fever in cattle, and its cure by the use of drugs, the day's programme closed with the reports of the special committees on grants. The meeting on Monday, August 30, was opened by Prof. A. B. Macallum, who read a paper, illustrated by numerous lantern-slides, on palæobiology and the age of the earth. Prof. C. J. Patten followed with two papers :-(1) on the pre-nuptial plumage in Calidris arenaria, illustrated by lantern-views of the sanderling at different periods; (2) on the germinal disc in naturally incubated eggs of Passer domesticus. Due reflection of the facts that nests (or, in the case of those birds which make no nest, the soil on which the eggs are deposited) vary to an extraordinary extent in their heat-retaining properties; that the protecting egg-shells vary strikingly, not only in their thickness, but in their porosity and other structural peculiarities; and, lastly, that avian embryos vary to a considerable extent as regards their vitality when heat is withdrawn from the shell, has led the author to think that the method of studying avian embryology by means of the artificial incubator is not always the most trustworthy. He therefore described the changes which he observed during the first six hours in a clutch of naturally incubated eggs of the house-sparrow (Passer domesticus). The next paper, on the role of visual function in animal and human evolution, was, in the absence of the author, Dr. G. M. Gould, taken as read. Prof. S. H. Reynolds read a paper on the British Pleistocene Canidæ. Three species are found, the wolf, the fox, and the Arctic fox. There is no evidence of the existence in Britain in Pleistocene times of any animal that could be called a dog. The jaw described as Lycaon anglicus is thought by the author to be better regarded as a somewhat abnormal wolf. While, apart from any difference in size, the skull of a fox is readily distinguished from that of a wolf or dog by the depressions in the postorbital processes of the frontals, it is extremely difficult, if not impossible, to find any valid distinctive character between dogs and wolves. The most useful character, for which we are indebted to Studer, is the orbitofrontal angle. He regards as belonging to wolves skulls in which this angle measures 40°-45°, and as belonging to dogs skulls in which the angle is greater than 45°. The author's measurements, while confirming Studer's contention that the angle in question tends to be decidedly less in the wolf than in the dog, show that the distinction is not absolute, and cannot be relied on in all cases. The programme for the last day of the meeting, Tuesday, August 31, opened with a paper by Mr. C. F. Rousselet, on the geographical distribution of Rotifera. The author showed that the results of recent investigations point more and more to the fact that the Rotifera enjoy a cosmopolitan distribution, which is not limited to continents, but extends to all places on the surface of the earth where suitable conditions prevail. Wherever search has extended in Europe, America, Africa, India, China, Australia, and even the north and south polar regions, the same genera, and even species, have been met with, and it is not possible to speak of any typical or peculiar rotatorian fauna for any continent, zone, or region. The very erratic appearance of rare or uncommon species in widely separated places seems to show that distance is no obstacle to their distribution, provided only that they find suitable conditions. To account for such a distribution over the whole of the globe, it has been supposed that most species of Rotifera can be dried up and their bodies carried by the wind, as dust, for long distances, and then come to life again on landing in suitable surroundings. This Mr. Rousselet showed to be a very erroneous generalisation of the fact that a very few species of bdelloid Rotifera, and in particular Philodina roseola, are capable of secreting a gelatinous envelope in which they can resist drought for many months, and come to life again on being placed in water. The author's experience has shown him that the vast majority of rotifers die immediately on being dried, and do not revive after complete desiccation; but their eggs, and in particular their resting eggs, can stand a prolonged state of desiccation and also freezing, and can therefore readily be transported by the wind or by aquatic birds and other animals, and will hatch when deposited in suitable pools of water. In his opinion it is by this means that the cosmopolitan distribution of the Rotifera over the world has in the course of time been brought about. Dr. J. Pearson read a paper on the processes of autotomy in the Crustacea, and Prof. H. Jungersen communicated an account, by Dr. J. Schmidt, of the distribution of the fresh-water eels (Anguilla) throughout the world. The following papers were, in the absence of the authors, taken as read:-Dr. F. A. Dixey, on the parallelism between the nymphaline genera Adelpha and Chlorippe; and Mr. W. J. Dakin, histology of the eye of Pecten. In the afternoon Mr. J. Stanley Gardiner delivered a lecture on coral-reefs, illustrated by numerous lanternviews. Two resolutions were passed by Section D during the meeting at Winnipeg : (1) The zoological section of the British Association wish to record their sense of the danger caused by the approach of the Norwegian rat, which threatens the wheat industry of western Canada, and to urge the Governments concerned to take immediate steps to organise the extermination of this dangerous pest. (2) In view of the enormous importance of the fisheries of Canada in connection with her prosperity and her rapidly developing position as the great source of the food supply of the Empire, and appreciating the danger of exhaustion which menaces certain of the fisheries, the members of the zoological section of the British Association for the Advancement of Science, now in meeting in Winnipeg, desire to congratulate both the Dominion and the Provincial Governments upon the work already accomplished in connection with the study of the food-fishes, upon the establishment of a marine biological station on both the Atlantic and Pacific coasts, and upon the cooperation with the Government of the United States in an International Commission from whose labours much may be expected. At the same time, the members of the section are of the opinion that further and more extensive efforts in all these directions are urgently needed if certain of the fisheries, notably that of the Pacific salmon, are to be maintained even at their present condition of productiveness. For the framing of satisfactory and effective regulations for the utilisation and conservation of the food-fishes a complete knowledge of their life-history is absolutely necessary, and the section desires to impress on the Governments concerned the immediate need for an extensive prosecution of investigations along this line, for greater facilities for the scientific study of the fisheries, especially those of the Pacific coasts, and for a continued cooperation of the Dominion Government with the governments of the provinces and also those of the United States in all efforts looking towards the conservation of the fisheries, one of the most valuable natural resources of Canada." GEOGRAPHY AT THE BRITISH THIS section was presided over this year by Colonel Sir Duncan A. Johnston, K.C.M.G., C.B., formerly director-general of the Ordnance Survey of the United Kingdom, and, as usual, the opening address dealt with matters of which the president had been made intimately cognisant through his life-work. After briefly referring to |