THE ASSUMED PLANET, O, BEYOND NEPTUNE.-Replying to a criticism which appeared in the previous number, Prof. W. H. Pickering has a letter in the current number of the Observatory (No. 412, August, p. 326) in which he recounts some of his reasons for assuming the existence of a planet beyond Neptune, which is exercising a perturbative force on Uranus. After pointing out essential differences between the present problem and that which presented itself to Leverrier and Adams, Prof. Pickering states that in the observations of Uranus he finds six distinct deviations from the computed course of the planet which occur where they should if produced by such a perturbing body as his assumed planet O; without the assumption three must remain unexplained. He then points out that the Greenwich observations of the last ten years show a steadily increasing deviation from those of the previous sixty years, a deviation which he considers is, of itself, a strong argument in favour of the existence of a hitherto unrecognised disturbing force.

With regard to the suggestion, made in NATURE for June 17, that the time is ripe for the discussion of the observations of Neptune, for the determination of any perturbing influence, Prof. Pickering suggests that such a discussion would probably be more hopeful in twenty years' time, when the deviations of Neptune should amount to two or three seconds. Another maximum of Uranus will occur about then, and a graphical solution would be likely to furnish trustworthy data concerning the perturbing force, or forces, very quickly.

AGRICULTURE IN THE TRANSVAAL. THE issue of the annual report of the Transvaal Department of Agriculture is an important event in the agricultural world, and each year's report furnishes fresh proof of what science can do for agriculture. The work has outgrown the accommodation, and Mr. Smith puts in a strong plea for buildings which, in the Transvaal, is not likely to be disregarded.

An account is given by the heads of the separate departments of the work that has been going on. Dr. Theiler reports further experiments with Piroplasma mutans and P. bigeminum, two organisms causing serious animal diseases, and is making considerable progress with inoculation methods of coping with them. The botanical division, under Mr. Burtt-Davy, has occupied itself with the improvement of the seed maize. Already the Transvaal farmer exports maize, and could export more: he would secure higher prices and greater profits if supplies of trustworthy seed were available. New and promising plants have also been investigated, and one or two appear as if they will be useful, especially the Florida beggar weed, a leguminous plant suitable for the bushveld, and much liked by stock.

The plant pathologist, Mr. Pole Evans, finds that the potato-rot fungus, Nectria solani, Pers., hitherto regarded as a saprophyte, is, in the Transvaal at any rate, an active parasite, attacking the tubers at all stages of growth, and causing a putrid rot in them while still in the soil. Infected potatoes are not admitted into the Transvaal, and steps are being taken to eradicate the disease, but the other South African colonies are doing nothing to prevent the disease from establishing itself within their borders. A uniform system of dealing with plant diseases will be not the least among the advantages of unification.

Locust destruction has received much attention from the Entomological Division. There was a serious invasion of brown locusts, doing damage estimated at about 1,000,000l., but the swarms were marked down, and the voetgangers destroyed by spraying with sodium arsenite solution. Unfortunately, some of the farmers and many of the natives are still indifferent about the work, and look upon locusts as a scourge against which it would be impious to contend; thus places where eggs are laid are not always notified.

There is also a general rise in the standard of agriculture in the colonies, in which the experimental farms of the department have played a conspicuous part. An increased area of land has come under the plough. Thrashing

machines are being used more commonly; wheat is being taken up. The quality of the live stock is improving: there is a large demand for well-bred animals, and competition for the pedigree stock raised on the Government farms is very keen. Some farmers are interesting themselves in ostrich farming, which is likely to be a valuable industry in some parts of the colony, where the wild birds are fairly numerous.

Altogether the record is a highly satisfactory one, and the director, Mr. F. B. Smith, and the staff, are to be congratulated on what they have accomplished.

SPONTANEOUS COMBUSTION.

DR. JOHN KNOTT has published in the New York Medical Journal (April 17 and 24) an article on spontaneous combustion, with the object of showing that the cases of death reported as occurring from that cause are mere fancy legends which were partly the result of ignorance and mainly of imagination. Many years ago Liebig, and later Casper, wrote treatises with the same object; but Dr. Knott's contribution is not devoid of interest, if only for the exhibition of gentle sarcasm with which he attacks the writings and statements of past Fellows of the Royal Society and others of equal standing who lent the sanction of their names to these idle fables. He does not include among his cases the one which is probably best known to English readers, namely, the celebrated case of Mr. Krook recorded by Dickens in Bleak House." The evidence in favour of spontaneous combustion as the cause of Mr. Krook's death is just about as convincing (or the reverse) as in the majority of the others.

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We fancy, however, that Dr. Knott is preaching to the converted, for we can hardly believe him when he states spontaneous combustion is still accepted as article of pathological faith by our recognised leaders in the domain of medico-legal opinion and teaching. The belief in spontaneous combustion in the human body doubtless originated in the observation of electrical phenomena long before electricity was understood or even discovered. The will-of-the-wisp was endowed, as its name suggests, with a personality. The saintly halo and the fiery tongues of painters and poets familiarised the onlooker with imaginary exhalations; the easy combustibility of certain organic substances, the occurrence of phosphorescence in the sea and in decaying organisms, were then mysteries which combined to lend credence in an unusual combustibility of the human frame in those evidence. inclined to believe in the miraculous on the slenderest of

This point of view was accentuated and stimulated by the discovery of a new element, phosphorus, especially as it was first isolated from human urine and bones. The discovery of phosphorus in its day excited just the same of radium is doing at the present time. kind of interest and imaginative thought as the discovery

ETHNOLOGY IN AMERICA.

THE American Ethnological Society has reprinted in facsimile the first part of their Proceedings, originally published in 1853. The most interesting article is that contributed by W. Bartram, which was written in 1789, entitled "Observations on the Creek and Cherokee Indians," being replies to a series of ethnological questions prepared by Dr. B. S. Barton, vice-president of the Philosophical Society of Philadelphia. The connection of this tribe with the Iroquois, of whom they formed the southern branch, has now been established by Horatio Hale and Gatschet. This paper gives a singularly interesting account of the ethnography of a tribe now practically extinct, describing their probable origin, relations with other tribes, their picture records, religious beliefs, forms of tribal government, physical characteristics, social relations, their " Chunkey-yards or earthworks, tenures of land and conditions of property, diseases and their remedies, food and means of subsistence. In connection with the divine kings of Prof. J. G. Frazer, it is interest

ing to find that the King of the Seminoles threatened a certain Mr. McLatche that "if he did not comply with his requisitions, he would command the thunder and lightning to descend upon his head, and reduce his stores to ashes." They had also a remarkable cult of the sacred fire. "The Spiral Fire, on the hearth and floor of the Rotunda, is very curious; it seems to light up in a flame of itself at the appointed time, but how this is done I know not."

Another important article in the same reprint is that by E. G. Squier on "The Archæology and Ethnology of Nicaragua." He describes a curious kind of spindle, resembling a gigantic top, which revolved in a calabash, and an equally primitive hand-loom. Mr. Squier was the first traveller who collected a vocabulary and prepared a grammar of the speech of these tribes. They used, he says, the vigentesimal system of counting by twenties instead of the decimal, while the Eskimos, Algonkins, and Choctaws counted by fives. They were emigrants from Mexico, "and presented the extraordinary phenomenon of a fragment of a great aboriginal nation, widely separated from the parent stock, and intruded among other and hostile nations; yet from the comparative lateness of the separation, or some other cause, still retaining its original, distinguishing features, so as to be easily recognised." Their arms were identical with those of the Mexicans-lances and arrows pointed with flint, copper, and fish-bones, with blades of obsidian set on the edges. These papers are specially interesting, because they were written before the age of scientific ethnography, and were prepared without reliance on any particular theory of the origins, social organisation, or beliefs of the tribes which were studied by their authors. The re-publication of this valuable material is a laudable enterprise on the part of the Ethnological Society.

PURIFICATION OF WATER BY STORAGE.

THE third annual report, compiled by Dr. Houston, of the Metropolitan Water Board, on the results of the chemical and bacteriological examination of the London waters for the twelve months ended March 31 has just been issued, and contains a mass of valuable information. The chief conclusions formulated by Dr. Houston may be summarised as follows. The raw waters from which the supplies are derived are usually unsatisfactory, particularly during the winter months, and a judicious selection for waterworks purposes is important. The storage is unequal, and in some cases inadequate in the different works; filtration is also unequal, and in some instances too rapid. The quality of the filtered water is likewise variable, and in some cases not altogether satisfactory, though a remarkable percentage improvement in the quality of the raw water is effected by storage and filtration; on the whole, however, the water supplied to the consumer is of satisfactory quality. Storage has been clearly proved to be advantageous in all respects. The recent investigations of the Board point to the fact that the present sources of the water supply of the metropolis may be regarded with less disfavour than previously.

Dr. Houston, in a fourth report on research work, also details the results of an investigation on the vitality of the cholera microbe in artificially infected samples of raw Thames, Lee, and New River water, which may be considered to be supplementary to his previous report on the vitality of the typhoid bacillus in similar circumstances (see NATURE, vols. lxxviii., p. 377, lxxix., p. 259, and 1xxx., P. 286). A number of different strains of the cholera vibrio was dealt with, and only those which, after investigation, might be regarded as undoubted cholera vibrios were employed in the research, and their bacteriological characteristics are detailed. The conclusions are that cholera vibrios rapidly die in the raw waters as a result of storage in the laboratory. At least 99.9 per cent. of the organisms perish within one week, and none could be isolated even from 100 c.c. of the water three weeks after infection. These results are of considerable interest now

that cholera is prevalent in Russia and other parts of Europe, and emphasise the importance of storage of the raw water as a safeguard against water-borne disease. R. T. HEWLETT.

UNIVERSITY AND EDUCATIONAL
INTELLIGENCE.

DR. R. K. MCCLUNG has been appointed lecturer in physics in the University of Manitoba, Winnipeg.

DR. FRITZ COIIN, extraordinary professor of mathematics and astronomy at the University of Königsberg, has been appointed professor of theoretical and mathematical astronomy, and director of the Königliche Astronomischen Recheninstitut, at Berlin; he enters upon his new duties on October 1.

THE Central News Agency reports from New York that, by the will of the late Mr. Cornelius C. Cuyler, the sum of 100,000 dollars is bequeathed for the immediate benefit of the Princeton University, and on the death of Mr. hands of the University authorities. Cuyler's widow several million dollars will pass into the

WE have received a copy of the Directory for higher education, 1909-10, issued by the Education Committee of the Staffordshire County Council. The directory contains the regulations of the committee and the details of schemes in operation throughout Staffordshire. We notice that a very complete scheme of technological instruction is provided throughout the county by the committee. In the case of mining, instruction is given by two lecturers, whose whole time is devoted to the work, and their assistants. For this purpose the county is divided into two portions, comprising the North Staffordshire Coalfields and the South Staffordshire Coalfields respectively. Theoretical and practical classes in metallurgy and iron and steel manufacture are conducted in accordance with the regulations of the Board of Education and the City and Guilds of London Institute. Lectures and laboratory work in pottery and porcelain manufacture will be given during the coming session at Burslem, Longton, Stoke, and Tunstall. The services of an instructor in boot and shoe manufacture are

engaged jointly by the committee and the Education Committee of the Borough of Stafford. Silk manufacture is taught at Leek, glass manufacture at Stourbridge, and art metal-work at Bilston. To enable teachers in elementary and secondary schools to impart instruction in various branches of technical and manual training, special classes are provided at convenient centres by the committee. Courses of lectures on health and the care of children are delivered at suitable localities in both rural and urban districts, and demonstrations and lectures are also provided on gardening, bee-keeping, and poultry-keeping. elaborate system of scholarships is in vogue, including training scholarships for teachers and midwives, extensive aid is given to secondary schools, university extension lectures are provided, useful work has been arranged in rural districts, and numerous evening classes are available. Altogether the Staffordshire committee is making adequate provision for the education of young men and women anxious to equip themselves properly for their work in life.

SOCIETIES AND ACADEMIES. PARIS.

An

Academy of Sciences, August 17.-M. Bouquet de la Grye in the chair.-The synthesis of unsaturated fatty ketones : F. Boudroux and F. Taboury. Calcium carbide attacks the ketones of the fatty series. Acetone gives mesityl oxide and other condensation products; butanone is dehydrated in a simpler manner, the unsaturated ketone C,H,.C(CH,)=CH–CO.C,H, being

formed. The influence of the reaction of the medium on the development and proteolytic activity of Davaine's bacteridium: Mlle. Eleonore Lazarus. The limits of acidity or alkalinity between which it is possible for the organism to develop, as well as the reaction corresponding to the maximum proteolysis, depends, not only on the strain, but also on the nature of the food material.-The mitochondria of the muscular fibres of the heart: Cl. Regaud.—The geological history of the Tellian Atlas of eastern Numidia (Algeria): J. Dareste de la Chavanne.

Royal Society of South Africa, July 21.-Prof. L. Crawford in the chair.-Notes on the absorption of water by aërial organs of plants: Dr. Marloth. Numerous experiments were made with various Karroo plants in order to ascertain whether they are able to absorb water by means of their leaves, and thus to utilise the dew, which is of common occurrence in the Karroo every night during the winter. The results showed that some plants possess specially constructed hairs, like Mesembrianthemum barbatum and Crassula tomentosa; others, peculiar stipules like Anacampseros Telephiastrum and A filamentosa; others, an unusually modified epidermis like Crassula decipiens; and others, again, aërial rootlets like Cotyledon cristata. These organs absorb sufficient moisture to supply the requirements of the plants during a part of the year, thus enabling them to exist in arid regions like some parts of the Karroo or the desert coast-belt of Namaqualand.— Evaporation in a current of air (part i.).: J. R. Sutton. The results of previous observations upon the rate of evaporation made under natural conditions at Kenilworth (Kimberley) with gauges of various patterns suggest that the relative humidity of the air is of more importance than the absolute humidity in determining the loss of water from a given surface, and that there is no simple correspondence between the wind and the evaporation. In this paper the author describes some experiments made to determine the rate of evaporation under different conditions of moisture and temperature in the forced draught generated by an electrically driven fan.-The genesis of the chemical elements: James Moir. The author has found a relationship between the atomic weights, whereby the accepted values can be calculated with remarkable accuracy. The scheme brings out closer relationship between such groups as the alkali metals and the halogens, and although it follows the periodic law, it would require the latter to be modified in important particulars. Some flowering plants from the neighbourhood of Port Elizabeth S. Schönland.-Statement of Silayi, a Tembu of the Zemba tribe, with reference to his life among the Bushmen : W. E. Stanford. This communication contains interesting information about a clan of Bushmen whose haunts were in the Drakensberg Mountains, and could muster forty-three men. It is a narrative of cattle lifting in various ways and devices, as well as of their domestic habits and mode of life, and also of the ultimate destruction of the clan by the Tembu chief.

CALCUTTA.

Asiatic Society of Bengal, August 4.-The constitution of the roots of Arisaema concinnum, Schott, and A. speciosum, Mart.: B. B. Dutta. These roots contain an abundance of carbohydrates, and are used as food by the Lepchas of Sikkim in case of need, after taking precautions in the cooking to get rid of the irritant needle crystals. The ova of a Distoma found in the skeletal muscles of Saccobranchus fossilis: G. C. Chatterjee and T. C. Ghosh. Last year, during the small-pox epidemic, a peculiar eruption was noticed on fish offered for sale in

**Shata

as given in

the Calcutta markets, and popularly connected with smallpox. This fish disease, on examination, was found to due to a flat worm of the parasitic genus Distoma. The authors have found the ova in various parts of the body of the fish, but particularly near the dorsal fins in the skeletal muscles towards the posterior third of the body. Two actual moving worms were found in water whee diseased fish were which are described as presumably the adult form of the worm.-Chemical examination of aurvedic metallic preparations, part i., Shata-puta lauha and Shahasra-puta lauha" (iron roasted hundred times and thousand times): Panchanan Neogi and Birendra Bhusan Adhicary. The method of preparing puta and Shahasra-puta lauha, Rasendra-Shara-Shangraha, as well as that followed by modern aurvedic physicians, are given in this paper. Samples of iron heated once, ten times, seventy-eight times, 100 times, and 1000 times have been collected and analysed. Samples which have undergone a fewer number of " putas are magnetic, and contain ferroso-ferric oxide. As the number of roastings (puta) increases the amount of ferrous oxide diminishes, and "Shata-puta 'Shahasra-puta lauhas contain ferric oxide only, and are not magnetic. Shata-puta and Shahasra-puta " lauhas are almost identical in composition, the amount of ferric oxide varying from 78.1 per cent. to 84.6 per cent. Siliceous matter is present in considerable quantities, varying from 10.1 per cent. to 34.1 per cent. These "lauhas are very light and porous, and "swim on water like a duck,' but precipitated ferric oxide does not "swim." It is on account of their fineness and lightness that these "lauhas " are efficacious. Ordinary ferric oxide is not incorporated in the British Pharmacopoeia. Incidentally, a method of estimating metallic iron in presence of ferrous iron is given.

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August Meteoric Shower.-W. F. Denning The Ringing of House-bells without Apparent Cause. Dr. John Aitken, F.R.S.. Flying Animals and Flying Machines. A. Mallock, F.R.S.

The British Association at Winnipeg

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Inaugural Address by Prof. Sir J. J. Thomson,
M.A., LL D., D.Sc., F.R.S., President of
the Association.

Section A.-Mathematics and Physics.-Opening
Address by Prof. E. Rutherford, M.A., D.Sc.,
F.R.S., President of the Section

Notes
Our Astronomical Column :-

Comet 19096 (Perrine's 1896 vii.)
The Recent Perseid Shower
The Spectroscopic Binary 8 Orionis
Ephemeris for Comet 1909a (Borrelly-Daniel)
Maximum of Mira, 1908

The Assumed Planet, O, beyond Neptune
Agriculture in the Transvaal
Spontaneous Combustion.
Ethnology in America

Purification of Water by Storage. By Prof. R. T.
Hewlett.