possible source of error in Stas's nitrogen ratios: R. W. Gray. The researches of Rayleigh, Leduc, D. Berthelot, Guye, and the author confirm Stas's lower value for the atomic weight of nitrogen, and an indirect comparison of the atomic weights of nitrogen and silver from the results of Marignac, Scott, and Richards leads to the same result. -Electrolytic oxidation: H. D. Law. On oxidising benzoin by the electrolytic method, benzil, benzaldehyde, and benzoic acid are formed. In addition, a certain amount of tarry matter is always obtained, the formation of which is a property of high potential discharge at the anode, and always takes place in the case of unsaturated compounds. -The ethyl esters of acetonyloxalic and acetophenyloxalic acids and the action of ethyl oxalate on acetanilide and its homologues: S. Ruhemann.-An oxidation product of indigotin: A. G. Perkin. On sublimation with limited access of air, pure indigotin gives a small quantity of a vellow sublimate, which crystallises in needles and has the formula C,,H,O,N,.-Indigo-yellow: A. G. Perkin. In 1904 it was shown that the yellow colouring matter present in Java indigo is kampherol. Examination has now shown that it is derived from a glucoside (kampheritrin) present in the leaves of Indigofera arrecta. It is hydrolysed by acids into kampherol (1 mol.) and rhamnose (2 mols.).-1 3-Diphenylbarbituric acid and some coloured derivatives. Synthesis of 1: 3-diphenyluric acid: Miss M. A. Whiteley. The alkylation of rhamnose: T. Purdie

and C. R. Young. Dimethyl acetone-rhamnoside, trimethyl methylrhamnoside, di- and tri-methylrhamnose, and a number of their derivatives are described.—The alkylation of l-arabinose: T. Purdie and R. E. Rose. By methylating Fischer's a-methylarabinoside with silver oxide and methyl iodide, trimethyl a-methylarabinoside is obtained in large, well-formed crystals, and by hydrolysing this with dilute hydrochloric acid, trimethyl arabinose is produced. Descriptions of these substances are given.-The esters of triacetic lactone and triacetic acid: F. Sproxton. The methyl and ethyl esters are described.-Optically active reduced naphthoic acids, part ii., the resolution of the tetrahydronaphthoic acids: R. H. Pickard and J. Yates. -The velocity of chemical change in the pentamethylene series: N. Menschutkin, sen. A résumé of the results obtained in the study of the velocity of chemical change in polymethylene derivatives is given.-Hydrolysis of ammonium salts by water: E. G. Hill. The constants obtained in the case of the salts of monobasic acids are inversely proportional to the molecular conductivities of the acids, and agree well with the values obtained for the strength of the acids by the various dynamical methods. In the case of dibasic acids, the constants are irregular.The addition of alkyl halides to alkylated sugars and glucosides: J. C. Irvine and Miss A. M. Moodie. The results point to the formation, during cooling, of oxonium compounds of the sugar with alkyl halides, and the a-form of the aldose appears to be more reactive than the 8-isomeride. The following notes have been received since the meeting:-Note on the preparation of ethyl acetonedicarboxylate: E. Ormerod. The interaction of nitroformazyl, carbon disulphide, and potassium hydroxide. A contribution to the chemistry of the thiobiazalones and the xanthates: E. Ormerod.-Aldehydrol and the hydrates of compounds containing a carbonyl group: W. M. Colles. Concentrated aqueous solutions of aldehyde acetone, formic, acetic, monochloroacetic, and trichloroacetic acids were cooled to low temperatures in a special apparatus. The following compounds of special interest were obtained :aldehydrol, CH,CH(OH),; a hydrol of formic acid, possibly o-formic acid, HC(OH), o-acetic acid, CH,C(OH),; and o-monochloroacetic acid, CH,CIC(OH),.

Challenger Society, June 27.-Capt. Wilson-Barker in the chair.-A series of deep-water fish from the N.E. Atlantic slope: Messrs. Holt and Byrne. The series included Chimaera mirabilis, Collett, Macrurus labiatus, Koehler, and Scorpaena echinata, Koehler. Several of the rarer species filled gaps in the known area of distribution.-A photograph of so-called oily patches at sea, supposed to be rich in plankton: Captain Wilson-Barker. -New charts published by the society. Six of these, prepared by Dr. Schott, showed the mean annual isotherms of the ocean, and the seventh was a small blank chart of

the world for plotting distributions, &c.-A destructive test of Hensen's theory of the uniformity of plankton over large areas: Dr. Fowler. It was shown that great variations in the plankton occurred on successive days at stations close together in a district apparently unappreciably affected by currents.-The scientific cruise of his yacht, Silver Belle, in 1906: Dr. Wolfenden. The vessel was chiefly occupied with trawling and hydrographic work, from Dublin to Funchal, and from Gibraltar to the Josephine Bank and N. coast of Morocco. Mr. Byrne exhibited and commented on some of the fish obtained during the cruise, of which the most interesting was a fine specimen of the little-known Himantolophus reinhardi, Lütken, said to have been taken in shallow water near Gibraltar.

Faraday Society. Julv 2.-Prof. S. P. Thompson, F.R.S., in the chair.-The oxidation of atmospheric nitrogen in electric arcs: Prof. Kr. Birkeland. This will be dealt with in a later number.-Preliminary report on the experiments made at Sault Ste. Marie, under Government auspices, on the smelting of Canadian iron ores by the electrothermic process: Dr. E. Haanel. The results obtained are summarised as follows: (1) Magnetite (which is the chief Canadian ore) can be as economically smelted by the electrothermic process as hematite. (2) Ores of high sulphur content not containing manganese can be made into pig-iron containing only a few thousandths of 1 per cent. of sulphur. (3) The silicon content can be varied as required for the class of pig to be produced. (4) Charcoal, which can be cheaply produced from mill refuse or wood which could not otherwise be utilised, can be substituted for coke as a reducing agent, without being briquetted with the ore. (5) A ferronickel pig can be produced practically free from sulphur and of fine quality from roasted nickeliferous pyrrhotite. (6) The experiment made with a titaniferous iron ore containing 17-82 per cent. of titanic acid permits the conclusion that titaniferous iron ores up to perhaps 5 per cent. titanic acid can be successfully treated by the electric process. Electrolysis of dilute solutions of acids and alkalis at low potentials: dissolving of platinum at the anode by a direct current: Dr. G. Senter. When dilute solutions of sulphuric acid and of sodium hydroxide are submitted to electrolysis at a potential below that at which oxygen is evolved in the gaseous form, an oxidising agent is formed in a very small amount at the anode. The substance is very stable, and is not destroyed by boiling; it is not hydrogen peroxide. In the course of the experiments with dilute sulphuric acid, it was observed that traces of platinum went into solution from the anode, although the average current density was only about 1.5 X 10-7 amperes per sq. cm.

DUBLIN.

Royal Dublin Society, June 19.-Prof. J. A. McClelland in the chair.-The absorption of B radiation by matter: Prof. J. A. McClelland and F. E. Hackett. As pointed out in a previous paper, the coefficient of absorption of B radium rays as usually measured gives little information as to the stopping power of different types of atoms. This arises from the fact that the secondary radiation of B particles is important, and must be allowed for before a true coefficient is obtained. The measurements in the present paper are made in such a way that this necessary correction can be applied. The results show that the quotient of this true coefficient of absorption by the density is not constant, but depends on the atomic weight of the absorbing substance. The main feature is that the quotient increases as the atomic weight increases; the rate of increase is not, however, uniform, and there is evidence that the elements fall into divisions with respect to this quotient corresponding to the chemical periods. This may be compared with the previous work by one of the present authors, showing that the emission of secondary B radiation is determined by the atomic weight of the substance acted upon.

PARIS.

Academy of Sciences. Julv 9.-M. H. Poincaré in the chair. Remarks by M. Berthelot on his work "Archéologie et Histoire des Sciences."-Trypanosomiasis of the

Upper Niger : a new pathogenic trypanosome: A. Laveran. The new species was obtained from a ram, inoculated from the blood of a horse infected in the Bari region, and is named Trypan. cazalboui. This trypanosome is clearly distinguished from neighbouring species by its pathogenic action upon animals. The chlorides and sulphates of rubidium and cæsium: M. de Forcrand. A thermochemical paper.-The secondary alcohols of the octane (CH3)2.CH.(CH2), ̧.CH, Louis : Henry. A discussion on the relations existing between the boiling points of the secondary alcohols and the position of the hydroxyl group in the chain.-The effect of breathing air containing from 5 per cent. to 10 per cent. of carbon: N. Gréhant. The effect of increasing the carbonic acid content of the air from the normal amount to 5 per cent. is to set up more rapid breathing, but the composition of the gases of the blood remains nearly constant. When the proportion of carbonic acid was increased to 10 per cent., the respiratory movements were three times as fast as with pure air; the oxygen in the blood gases was still constant, but the carbonic acid was increased from 38.4 per cent. to 42.8 per cent.-A reflection heliometer: Milan Štefánik. -A preliminary measurement of the lines of the solar spectrum in the infra-red: G. Millochau. The results of the application of a method indicated in a previous note. Measurements of 106 lines are given for wave-lengths A 8025.5 to λ 9325.2.-The theory of ensembles: Jules König. The measurement of the capacity and self-induction of telegraph lines: M. Devaux-Charbonnel. Details are given of the methods used to prevent the interference of parasitic currents. It was found that the capacity of air lines is higher than their theoretical value, and varies with the hygrometric state of the atmosphere. The determination, in wave-lengths, of the photographed absorption bands of the colouring matters of the blood: Louis Lewin, A. Miethe, and E. Stenger. The action of the silent discharge on cyanogen: H. Gaudechon. Nitrogen is set free and a solid body deposited, the latter not being merely a polymeride of cyanogen, since the values of n in the formula CN, varied from 44 to 5.0 in different experiments.-Amido-acids derived from the albumens: Albert Morel. An account of the preparation of some substituted ureas of glycocoll, including glycocoll-urea, a mixed urea of glycocoll and leucine, and of glycocoll and tyrosin. None of these compounds was capable of hydrolysis with digestive ferments.-Condensations with anthranol: R. Padova. The reduction of the primary unsaturated alcohols of the fatty series by the metal-ammoniums: E. Chablay. With allyl alcohol, one molecule is converted into sodium allylate and a second into propylene. The reaction is quantitative, and forms a good method for the preparation of pure propylene.-The transformation of some secondary-tertiary a-glycols into ketones, and the transposition of hydrobenzoin: MM. Tiffeneau and Dorlencourt. The isomorphism of potassium chlorate and nitrate Jean Herbette. It is shown in the case of these two salts that the properties of mixed crystals in a series of isomorphous mixtures are not necessarily intermediate between those of the extreme terms of the series, the pure salts. The influence of the absorption of sugar on the phenomena of germination of young plants: W. Lubimenko. When fermentable sugars are absorbed by the plant, the latter behaves physiologically like a yeast placed under aërobic conditions.-Variations in the nutritive exchanges under the influence of muscular work developed during mountain climbing: H. Guillemard and R. Moog. The temporary disappearance of the trypanosomes of nagana in infected dogs: Gabriel Roux and Léon Lacomme. The geology of the Djebel Ouenza district, on the borders of Tunis and Algeria: Pierre Termier.-The terrestrial magnetic inclination in prehistoric times: Paul L. Mercanton. The trajectories of electric corpuscles in space under the influence of terrestrial magnetism, with applications to the aurora borealis and magnetic disturbances: Carl Störmer. The aurora borealis: P. Villard. -The supposed law of monthly distribution of earthquakes F. de Montessus de Ballore. The author concludes that earthquakes occur at any time of the year, and that there is no ground for supposing a maximum earthquake frequency in any special month.

NEW SOUTH WALES.

Linnean Society, May 30.-Mr. Thos. Steel, president, in the chair.-The genus Cardiothorax, with descriptions of new species of Australian Coleoptera, part ii.: H. J. Carter. All workers in Australian entomology who are precluded from an examination of types in European museums find their difficulties increased by the want of information on many of the commoner species. The present paper is an attempt to clear up much of the confusion that has existed as to the nomenclature, identification, and geographical distribution in one of the larger genera of the family Tenebrionidæ, subfamily Helopides, viz. the genus Cardiothorax.-Preliminary note on the geological history of the Warrumbungle Mountains district: H. I. Jensen. It is shown in this note that the Warrumbungle Mountains are the remnants of a dome-shaped mass of volcanic rocks dissected by arid agencies. The erosion has produced a land form similar to that described by Ida H. Ogilvie under the new name of "conoplain (American Geologist, July, 1905). It is also shown that this conoplain is surrounded by a peneplain dissected by arid agencies and base-levelled to the level of the Western Plains. Descriptions of new species of Australian Coleoptera. part viii. A. M. Lea. The paper contains descriptions of twenty-two new species and one new genera (a blind one) of Staphylinidæ, a new genus of Pausside, a remarkable new genus of Ptinidæ, the only known species of which occurs in ants' nests, an Inopeplus, a Pelonium (a genus of Cleridæ not hitherto recorded from Australia) four species of Lathridius, and a beautiful Lemodes.-New Australian species of the family Agrionidæ (Neuroptera Odonata) R. J. Tillyard. Eleven new species are added to the Australian list, bringing the total for this family up from twenty-eight to thirty-nine. Seven genera arr represented, of which two have not before been recorded for Australia. Of the species described, ten are new to science, and the eleventh has only been recorded before from Central Africa, where it is common.

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