that the hemispherical cup anemometer was invented by Osler, and improved by Dr. Robinson. Dove assumes that observations in London, Liverpool, and Dublin, represent our climate fairly, while the instances cited to prove the mildness of our climate fall far below the real facts of the case, especially in the vegetable world. This paper is followed by some remarks on the climate of the Polar regions, but the bulk of the work is taken up with Temperature Tables. These are most valuable, containing, as they do, for about 1200 stations the yearly, monthly, and seasonal means, with the extreme range of climate, as well as that from summer to winter. To these tables are appended others of the non-periodic variations, giving for more than 400 places the monthly means derived from several years' observation, and the deviations from those means observed in every year from 1856 to 1868. Remarks on the average and absolute variability of temperature follow, and the volume is concluded with a notice of some of the most remarkable exceptional seasons which have been recorded, such as severe winters, e. g. 1838, 1850, both of which, though cold in Europe, were warm in America; famous vintages, e. g. the Comet Year, 1811, and various other notabilia as regards climate. Many of these particulars have been already described by Dove in his Five-day Means of Temperature,' and in his papers read before the Berlin Academy; but the thanks of all meteorologists are due to him for having condensed such a mass of information into a work of 300 pages.

Professor Wild has followed up the publication of the 'Annales' for 1865 for the Russian stations by the announcement of the issue of a new serial, Repertorium für Meteorologie.' Formerly, a periodical under this title was published by the Geographical Society, at the suggestion of Kämtz, who was himself the author of most of the papers in it. The new 'Repertorium' is to appear under the auspices of the Academy, and to contain special discussions of the observations which are given in full in the Annales,' as well as independent papers on the Meteorology of Russia. The first part has already come out, and we find in it the instructions for the reorganization of the meteorological stations throughout Russia, with the tables for the reduction of observations on the basis of centigrade and metrical scales, which are to be substituted for the former tables drawn up by Kupffer. There is also an Essay on the Wind and Rain of Taurida and the Crimea,' by W. Koeppen. It is impossible to do more than allude to this paper, which is of the greatest value, being a discussion of a large accumulation of trustworthy observations.

It is curious that at the very time that Sir E. Sabine was discussing the climate of Barnaoul and Nertschinsk, as described in our last number, Lieutenant Rikatcheff was investigating the same subject, and he has published his results in a paper "On the Diurnal

March of Temperature" at the two stations in question, deduced from a series of twenty years' hourly observations. This paper forms part of No. II. of the Repertorium.' The results on the whole agree very well with Sir E. Sabine's. The climate of Nertschinsk is more truly continental than that of Barnaoul, but this difference is not exhibited to its fullest extent, owing to the difference in elevation between the two stations, the former being situated 2200 feet above the sea, as compared with 400 feet, the elevation of the latter.

The second report of the Norddeutsche Seewarte,' that for the year 1869, has just appeared. The main points brought forward by Herr von Freeden in this report have a special reference to Sailing Directions and to the practical pecuniary value of the office to the shipowners and traders of Hamburg. Accordingly, hitherto he has not been able to devote his attention to the general subject of ocean meteorology. However, the North German Parliament has now adopted the office, and several of the seaport towns of Prussia, such as Memel and Dantzic, have affiliated themselves to it as branch stations for the issue of instruments and registers.

The Report also contains interesting information relating to the Telegraphic Intelligence of Storms, sent to Hamburg by the Meteorological Office in London. From this it appears that the storm only preceded the warning on four occasions, three of which were accounted for by the intervention of Sundays, and that no intelligence at all of two other storms was received, owing in one case to a break-down on the telegraph line. Accordingly it will be seen that the storms which are felt on the Elbe almost invariably pass over these Islands. The instances in which the weather at Hamburg was undisturbed, subsequent to a warning, are all proved to have been accounted for by the fact that the storm died out before crossing the North Sea.

In conclusion, we have to notice the very important changes as regards meteorology which are in progress in France. M. Leverrier has been superseded, and his successor at the 'Observatoire Impérial' is M. Charles Delaunay. It is understood that for the future meteorology will form no part of the duties of the astronomical staff, and we hope that ere long this special science will receive in France a development worthy of its daily increasing importance.

9. MINERALOGY.

FROM the days when Montezuma presented Cortez with four Chalchihuitls, on his landing at San Juan de Ulua, it has been matter of dispute among mineralogists what was the true nature of the ornamental stone designated by this Mexican name. That it was held in the highest esteem is well known from many passages in the old chroniclers. It appears to have been worn only by the chiefs, and on the death of a great dignitary a chalchihuitl was placed in the mouth of the corpse. Indeed, the name of the stone became synonymous with all that was most valued; and according to one tradition, Quetzalcoatl-the law-giver, priest, and instructor of the Mexicans-was begotten by one of these stones, which the goddess, Chimalma had placed in her bosom. In recently laying before the Lyceum of Natural History of New York a fine collection of carved chalchihuitls, Mr. Squier took occasion to bring forward a body of evidence tending to identify the stone.* Molina, in 1571, defines the word as signifying esmeralda baja—an inferior emerald. Sahagun describes it as a jasper of very green colour, or a common emerald." Montolina, in 1555, in enumerating the riches of Mexico, after speaking of gold, silver, and all metals and stones, refers to the chalchihuitls, and concludes by saying, "Las finas de estas son esmeraldas." Professor Blake has sought to identify it with the turquoise, but the author considers this not to be the true stone of the Mexicans and Central Americans. "The weight of evidence, in my opinion," says Mr. Squier, "goes to show that the stone, properly called chalchihuit, is that which Molina defines to be baja esmeralda,' or possibly nephrite, 'a jasper of very green colour,' as Sahagun, already quoted, avers."

Two Indian_meteorites have been subjected to an exhaustive examination by Professor Nevil Story Maskelyne, the Keeper of the Collection of Minerals in the British Museum-a collection which vies with Vienna and Calcutta in the number and variety of its meteoric specimens. One of the stones fell at Busti, between Goruckpoor and Fyzabad, on the 2nd Dec., 1852; and the other fell at Manegaum, in Khandeish, on the 26th July, 1843.† The Busti meteorite consists for the most part of enstatite, a silicate of magnesia, in which are imbedded small spherules of Oldhamite. This mineral is composed mainly of sulphide of calcium; and the presence of such a compound would seem to indicate that the conditions under which the ingredients of the meteorite were formed must have been very different from those met with on the surface of our globe.

* Observations on the Chalchihuit of Mexico and Central America.' By E. G. Squier, M.A. New York, 1869.

Proceedings of the Royal Society,' Jan. 13, 1870, p. 146.

Not only does it bespeak the absence of water and of oxygen; but having regard to the conditions needful for the production of this particular compound, the author thinks himself justified in pointing to the presence of some reducing agent, which operated during the formation of the constituents of the stone-such an agent as would be furnished by Graham's meteoric hydrogen.

Oldhamite forms spherules of a chestnut-brown colour, having a specific gravity of 2.58, and presenting a cubic cleavage. In some of these spherules there are minute gold-coloured octohedral crystals, which contain calcium, sulphur, and a rare metal-probably titanium. As a befitting compliment to the gentleman who forwarded the Busti meteorite to this country, Maskelyne describes this second mineral under the name of Osbornite.

Dr. Giovanni Strüver's studies in Italian mineralogy have lately been directed to the examination of the iron-pyrites of Piedmont and of Elba.* In the collection of the Engineering School of Turin, and of the University Museum in the same city, nearly 6000 specimens of Italian pyrites are to be found. The author has thus had ample materials for study, and that he has made good use of his opportunities is clear from his exhaustive monograph on the subject. He describes the various simple forms and combinations in which the Italian mineral occurs, including many newly-observed forms. It is notable that in 5603 specimens only three distinct simple forms were found. The memoir is illustrated by a series of fourteen plates.

Some few years ago, Herr Stein described a mineral under the name of Staffelite. It had the extraordinary composition of a hydrous phosphate and carbonate of lime, with a fluoride of calcium and traces of iodine. It occurred usually as a greenish incrustation, but was said to be also found in rhombohedral crystals. A similar substance has been met with in certain phosphorite workings near Offheim, in Nassau; and upon this crust of so-called staffelite were some fine clear crystals of apatite. Dr. Kosmann publishes an analysis of this apatite,† and assigns to it the formula: 5 (3 Ca O. PO)+2 Ca Fl. It is notable for containing as large a percentage as 4.52 of fluorine, and for the presence of magnesia. The author believes that staffelite is nothing more than an impure form of apatite rapidly deposited and contaminated with the salts of the mother-liquor from which it was evaporated. Dr. Kosmann also describes a new mineral under the name of Lime Wavellite, the composition of which is sufficiently indicated by its name.

In the Bergmannstroost mine at Altenberg in Silesia certain needle-like crystals are found penetrating brown-spar. Under the

* 'Studii sulla Mineralogia Italiana. Pirite del Piemonte e dell' Elba.' Torino, 1869.

↑ Zeitschrift d. deutschen geolog. Gesellschaft,' Bd. xxi., Heft 4, p. 795.

microscope they appear as strongly-striated rhombic prisms, with indistinct octohedral terminations. Formerly they were taken for antimony-glance, but when it was found that they contained lead, they were referred to either the species Jamesonite or Boulangerite. Dr. Websky has, however, recently shown that this mineral constitutes a new ore, which he proposes to designate as Epiboulangerite. It is a sulphide of antimony and lead, which may be thus formulated: (Sb, Pb.) S15.*

Professor Wöhler announces the discovery of minute crystals of diamond, with the native platinum of the Oregon; and diamonds are also reported from Bohemia.†

Ramelsberg has been led to compare the relation of gadolinite with several other species, and finds that datolite, euclase, and gadolinite form an isomorphous group.‡

10. MINING AND METALLURGY.

MINING.

THE mining interests of the country are promised rather more than the usual amount of attention from the British Legislature during the present sitting of Parliament.

The Secretary for the Home Department has introduced his "Mines Regulation and Inspection Bill," which was read for the second time on the 21st of February.

Lord Kinnaird, on Thursday, the 17th of February, introduced a Bill to the House of Lords, which is an attempt to apply the "Mines Regulation Act of 1870" to the metalliferous mines of the country.

The President of the Poor Law Board has intimated his intention of bringing again, before the House of Commons, the consideration of the question of rating metalliferous mines for the support of the poor.

The Government Mines Regulation Bill, introduced by the Home Secretary, professes, in its broader features, to fix definitely the responsibility in connection with the workings of all collieries, to secure increased safety in the mine, and to promote the better education of the mining population.

Last year the Mining Association of Great Britain, and the Colliery Inspectors, representing the Home Secretary, agreed to the following provision:-"That in every coal and ironstone mine an amount of ventilation shall be constantly produced, adequate to

*Zeitschrift d. deutschen geolog. Gesellschaft,' Bd. xxi., Heft 4, p. 747.

་

+ Comptes Rendus,' 24 Jan., 1870, p. 140.

Zeitschr. d. d. geol. Gesell.,' Bd. xxi., Heft 4, p. 807.