STEPHEN BEALE.

H——, Eng., Aug. 1.

—Country Gentleman.

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WOLPERT'S METHOD OF ESTIMATING THE AMOUNT OF CARBONIC ACID IN THE AIR.

There is a large number of processes and apparatus for estimating the amount of carbonic acid in the air. Some of them, such as those of Regnault, Reiset, the Montsouris observers (Fig. 1), and Brand, are accurate analytical instruments, and consequently quite delicate, and not easily manipulated by hygienists of middling experience. Others are less complicated, and also less exact, but still require quite a troublesome manipulation—such, for example, as the process of Pettenkofer, as modified by Fodor, that of Hesse, etc.



Hygienists have for some years striven to obtain some very simple apparatus (rather as an indicator than an analytical instrument) that should permit it to be quickly ascertained whether the degree of impurity of a place was incompatible with health, and in what proportion it was so. It is from such efforts that have resulted the processes of Messrs. Smith. Lunge, Bertin-Sans, and the apparatus of Prof. Wolpert (Fig. 7).

It is of the highest interest to ascertain the proportion of carbonic acid in the air, and especially in that of inhabited places, since up to the present this is the best means of finding out how much the air that we are breathing is polluted, and whether there is sufficient ventilation or not. Experiment has, in fact, demonstrated that carbonic acid increases in the air of inhabited rooms in the same way as do those organic matters which are difficult of direct estimation. Although a few ten-thousandths more of carbonic acid in our air cannot of themselves endanger us, yet they have on another hand a baneful significance, and, indeed, the majority of hygienists will not tolerate more than six ten-millionths of this element in the air of dwellings, and some of them not more than five ten-millionths.

Carbonic acid readily betrays its presence through solutions of the alkaline earths such as baryta and chalk, in which its passage produces an insoluble carbonate, and consequently makes the liquid turbid. If, then, one has prepared a solution of baryta or lime, of which a certain volume is made turbid by the passage of a likewise known volume of CO{2}, it will be easy to ascertain how much CO{2} a certain air contains, from the volume of the latter that it will be necessary to pass through the basic solution in order to obtain the amount of turbidity that has been taken as a standard. The problem consists in determining the minimum of air required to make the known solution turbid. Hence the name "minimetric estimation," that has been given to this process. Prof. Lescoeur has had the goodness to construct for me a Smith's minimetric apparatus (Fig. 2) with the ingenious improvements that have been made in it by Mr. Fischli, assistant to Prof. Weil, of Zurich. I have employed it frequently, and I use it every year in my lectures. I find it very practical, provided one has got accustomed to using it. It is, at all events, of much simpler manipulation than that of Bertin-Sans, although the accuracy of the latter may be greater (Figs. 3, 4, 5, and 6). But it certainly has more than one defect, and some of the faults that have been found with it are quite serious. The worst of these consists in the difficulty of catching the exact moment at which the turbidity of the basic liquid is at the proper point for arresting the operation. In addition to this capital defect, it is regrettable that it is necessary to shake the flask that contains the solution after every insufflation of air, and also that the play of the valves soon becomes imperfect. Finally, Mr. Wolpert rightly sees one serious drawback to the use of baryta in an apparatus that has to be employed in schools, among children, and that is that this substance is poisonous. This gentleman therefore replaces the solution of baryta by water saturated with lime, which costs almost nothing, and the preparation of which is exceedingly simple. Moreover, it is a harmless agent.

The apparatus consists of two parts. The first of these is a glass tube closed at one end, and 12 cm. in length by 12 mm. in diameter. Its bottom is of porcelain, and bears on its inner surface the date 1882 in black characters. Above, and at the level that corresponds to a volume of three cubic centimeters, there is a black line which serves as an invariable datum point. A rubber bulb of twenty-eight cubic centimeters capacity is fixed to a tube which reaches its bottom, and is flanged at the other extremity (Fig. 7).

The operation is as follows:

The saturated, but limpid, solution of lime is poured into the first tube up to the black mark, the tube of the air bulb is introduced into the lime water in such a way that its orifice shall be in perfect contact with the bottom of the other tube, and then, while the bulb is held between the fore and middle fingers of the upturned hand, one presses slowly with the thumb upon its bottom so as to expel all the air that it contains. This air enters the lime-water bubble by bubble. After this the tube is removed from the water, and the bulb is allowed to fill with air, and the same maneuver is again gone through with. This is repeated until the figures 1882, looked at from above, cease to be clearly visible, and disappear entirely after the contents of the tube have been vigorously shaken.

The measures are such that the turbidity supervenes at once if the air in the bulb contains twenty thousandths of CO{2}. If it becomes necessary to inject the contents of the bulb into the water twice, it is clear that the proportion is only ten thousandths; and if it requires ten injections the air contains ten times less CO{2} than that having twenty thousandths, or only two per cent. A table that accompanies the apparatus has been constructed upon this basis, and does away with the necessity of making calculations.

An air that contained ten thousandths of CO{2}, or even five, would be almost as deleterious, in my opinion, as one of two per cent. It is of no account, then, to know the proportions intermediate to these round numbers. Yet it is possible, if the case requires it, to obtain an indication between two consecutive figures of the scale by means of another bulb whose capacity is only half that of the preceding. Thus, two injections of the large bulb, followed by one of the small, or two and a half injections, correspond to a richness of 8 thousandths of CO{2}; and 51/2 to 3.6 thousandths. This half-bulb serves likewise for another purpose. From the moment that the large bulb makes the lime-water turbid with an air containing two per cent. of CO{2}, it is clear that the small one can cause the same turbidity only with air twice richer in CO{2}, i.e., of four per cent.

This apparatus, although it makes no pretensions to extreme accuracy, is capable of giving valuable information. The table that accompanies it is arranged for a temperature of 17 deg. and a pressure of 740 mm. But different meteorological conditions do not materially alter the results. Thus, with 10 deg. less it would require thirty-one injections instead of thirty, and CO_{2} would be 0.64 per 1,000 instead of 0.66; and with 10 deg. more, thirty injections instead of thirty one.

The apparatus is contained in a box that likewise holds a bottle of lime-water sufficient for a dozen analyses, the table of proportions of CO_{2}, and the apparatus for cleaning the tubes. The entire affair is small enough to be carried in the pocket.—_J. Arnould, in Science et Nature_.

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[NATURE.]



THE VOYAGE OF THE VETTOR PISANI.

Knowing how much Nature is read by all the naturalists of the world, I send these few lines, which I hope will be of some interest.

The Italian R.N. corvette Vettor Pisani left Italy in April, 1882, for a voyage round the world with the ordinary commission of a man-of-war. The Minister of Marine, wishing to obtain scientific results, gave orders to form, when possible, a marine zoological collection, and to carry on surveying, deep-sea soundings, and abyssal thermometrical measurements. The officers of the ship received their different scientific charges, and Prof. Dohrn, director of the Zoological Station at Naples, gave to the writer necessary instructions for collecting and preserving sea animals.

At the end of 1882 the Vettor Pisani visited the Straits of Magellan, the Patagonian Channels, and Chonos and Chiloe islands; we surveyed the Darwin Channel, and following Dr. Cuningham's work (who visited these places on board H.M.S. Nassau), we made a numerous collection of sea animals by dredging and fishing along the coasts.

While fishing for a big shark in the Gulf of Panama during the stay of our ship in Taboga Island, one day in February, with a dead clam, we saw several great sharks some miles from our anchorage. In a short time several boats with natives went to sea, accompanied by two of the Vettor Pisani's boats.

Having wounded one of these animals in the lateral part of the belly, we held him with lines fixed to the spears; he then began to describe a very narrow curve, and irritated by the cries of the people that were in the boats, ran off with a moderate velocity. To the first boat, which held the lines just mentioned, the other boats were fastened, and it was a rather strange emotion to feel ourselves towed by the monster for more than three hours with a velocity that proved to be two miles per hour. One of the boats was filled with water. At last the animal was tired by the great loss of blood, and the boats assembled to haul in the lines and tow the shark on shore.

With much difficulty the nine boats towed the animal alongside the Vettor Pisani to have him hoisted on board, but it was impossible on account of his colossal dimensions. But as it was high water we went toward a sand beach with the animal, and we had him safely stranded at night.

With much care were inspected the mouth, the nostrils, the ears, and all the body, but no parasite was found. The eyes were taken out and prepared for histological study. The set of teeth was all covered by a membrane that surrounded internally the lips; the teeth are very little, and almost in a rudimental state. The mouth, instead of opening in the inferior part of the head, as in common sharks, was at the extremity of the head; the jaws having the same bend.

Cutting the animal on one side of the backbone we met (1) a compact layer of white fat 20 centimeters deep; (2) the cartilaginous ribs covered with blood vessels; (3) a stratum of flabby, stringy, white muscle, 60 centimeters high, apparently in adipose degeneracy; (4) the stomach.

By each side of the backbone he had three chamferings, or flutings, that were distinguished by inflected interstices. The color of the back was brown with yellow spots that became close and small toward the head, so as to be like marble spots. The length of the shark was 8.90 m. from the mouth to the pinna caudalis extremity, the greatest circumference 6.50 m., and 2.50 m. the main diameter (the outline of the two projections is made for giving other dimensions).

The natives call the species Tintoreva, and the most aged of the village had only once before fished such an animal, but smaller. While the animal was on board we saw several Remora about a foot long drop from his mouth; it was proved that these fish lived fixed to the palate, and one of them was pulled off and kept in the zoological collection of the ship.

The Vettor Pisani has up the present visited Gibraltar, Cape Verde Islands, Pernambuco, Rio Janeiro, Monte Video, Valparaiso, many ports of Peru, Guayaquil, Panama, Galapagos Islands, and all the collections were up to this sent to the Zoological Station at Naples to be studied by the naturalists. By this time the ship left Callao for Honolulu, Manila, Hong Kong, and, as the Challenger had not crossed the Pacific Ocean in these directions, we made several soundings and deep-sea thermometrical measurements from Callao to Honolulu. Soundings are made with a steel wire (Thompson system) and a sounding-rod invented by J. Palumbo, captain of the ship. The thermometer employed is a Negretti and Zambra deep-sea thermometer, improved by Captain Maguaghi (director of the Italian R.N. Hydrographic Office).

With the thermometer wire has always been sent down a tow-net which opens and closes automatically, also invented by Captain Palumbo. This tow-net has brought up some little animals that I think are unknown.

G. CHIERCHIA.

Honolulu July 1.

The shark captured by the Vettor Pisani in the Gulf of Panama is Rhinodon typicus, probably the most gigantic fish in existence. Mr. Swinburne Ward, formerly commissioner of the Seychelles, has informed me that it attains to a length of 50 feet or more, which statement was afterward confirmed by Prof. E.P. Wright. Originally described by Sir A. Smith from a single specimen which was killed in the neighborhood of Cape Town, this species proved to be of not uncommon occurrence in the Seychelles Archipelago, where it is known by the name of "Chagrin." Quite recently Mr. Haly reported the capture of a specimen on the coast of Ceylon. Like other large sharks (Carcharodon rondeletii, Selache maxima, etc.), Rhinodon has a wide geographical range, and the fact of its occurrence on the Pacific coast of America, previously indicated by two sources, appears now to be fully established. T. Gill in 1865 described a large shark known in the Gulf of California by the name of "Tiburon ballenas" or whale-shark, as a distinct genus—Micristodus punctatus—which, in my opinion, is the same fish. And finally, Prof. W. Nation examined in 1878 a specimen captured at Callao. Of this specimen we possess in the British Museum a portion of the dental plate. The teeth differ in no respect from those of a Seychelles Chagrin; they are conical, sharply pointed, recurved, with the base of attachment swollen. Making no more than due allowance for such variations in the descriptions by different observers as are unavoidable in accounts of huge creatures examined by some in a fresh, by others in a preserved, state, we find the principal characteristics identical in all these accounts, viz.: the form of the body, head, and snout, relative measurements, position of mouth, nostrils, and eyes, dentition, peculiar ridges on the side of the trunk and tail, coloration, etc. I have only to add that this shark is stated to be of mild disposition and quite harmless. Indeed, the minute size of its teeth has led to the belief in the Seychelles that it is a herbivorous fish, which, however, is not probable.

ALBERT GUNTHER.

Natural History Museum, July 30.

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THE GREELY ARCTIC EXPEDITION.



Some account has been given of the American Meteorological Expedition, commanded by Lieutenant, now Major, Greely, of the United States Army, in the farthest north channels, beyond Smith Sound, that part of the Arctic regions where the British Polar expedition, in May, 1876, penetrated to within four hundred geographical miles of the North Pole. The American expedition, in 1883, succeeded in getting four miles beyond, this being effected by a sledge party traveling over the snow from Fort Conger, the name they had given to their huts erected on the western shore near Discovery Cove, in Lady Franklin Sound. The farthest point reached, on May 18, was in latitude 83 deg. 24 min. N.; longitude 40 deg. 46 min. W., on the Greenland coast. The sledge party was commanded by Lieutenant Lockwood, and the following particulars are supplied by Sergeant Brainerd, who accompanied Lieutenant Lockwood on the expedition. During their sojourn in the Arctic regions the men were allowed to grow the full beard, except under the mouth, where it was clipped short. They wore knitted mittens, and over these heavy seal-skin mittens were drawn, connected by a tanned seal-skin string that passed over the neck, to hold them when the hands were slipped out. Large tanned leather pockets were fastened outside the jackets, and in very severe weather jerseys were sometimes worn over the jackets for greater protection against the intense cold. On the sledge journeys the dogs were harnessed in a fan-shaped group to the traces, and were never run tandem. In traveling, the men were accustomed to hold on to the back of the sledge, never going in front of the team, and often took off their heavy overcoats and threw them on the load. When taking observations with the sextant, Lieutenant Lockwood generally reclined on the snow, while Sergeant Brainerd called time and made notes, as shown in our illustration. When further progress northward was barred by open water, and the party almost miraculously escaped drifting into the Polar sea, Lieutenant Lockwood erected, at the highest point of latitude reached by civilized man, a pyramidal-shaped cache of stones, six feet square at the base, and eight or nine feet high. In a little chamber about a foot square half-way to the apex, and extending to the center of the pile, he placed a self-recording spirit thermometer, a small tin cylinder containing records of the expedition, and then sealed up the aperture with a closely fitting stone. The cache was surmounted with a small American flag made by Mrs. Greely, but there were only thirteen stars, the number of the old revolutionary flag. From the summit of Lockwood Island, the scene presented in our illustration, 2,000 feet above the sea, Lieutenant Lockwood was unable to make out any land to the north or the northwest. "The awful panorama of the Arctic which their elevation spread out before them made a profound impression upon the explorers. The exultation which was natural to the achievement which they found they had accomplished was tempered by the reflections inspired by the sublime desolation of that stern and silent coast and the menace of its unbroken solitude. Beyond to the eastward was the interminable defiance of the unexplored coast—black, cold, and repellent. Below them lay the Arctic Ocean, buried beneath frozen chaos. No words can describe the confusion of this sea of ice—the hopeless asperity of it, the weariness of its torn and tortured surface. Only at the remote horizon did distance and the fallen snow mitigate its roughness and soften its outlines; and beyond it, in the yet unattainable recesses of the great circle, they looked toward the Pole itself. It was a wonderful sight, never to be forgotten, and in some degree a realization of the picture that astronomers conjure to themselves when the moon is nearly full, and they look down into the great plain which is called the Ocean of Storms, and watch the shadows of sterile and airless peaks follow a slow procession across its silver surface."—Illustrated London News.

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THE NILE EXPEDITION.



As soon as the authorities had finally made up their minds to send a flotilla of boats to Cairo for the relief of Khartoum, not a moment was lost in issuing orders to the different shipbuilding contractors for the completion, with the utmost dispatch, of the 400 "whaler-gigs" for service on the Nile. They are light-looking boats, built of white pine, and weigh each about 920 lb., that is without the gear, and are supposed to carry four tons of provisions, ammunition, and camp appliances, the food being sufficient for 100 days. The crew will number twelve men, soldiers and sailors, the former rowing, while the latter (two) will attend the helm. Each boat will be fitted with two lug sails, which can be worked reefed, so as to permit an awning to be fitted underneath for protection to the men from the sun. As is well known, the wind blows for two or three months alternately up and down the Nile, and the authorities expect the flotilla will have the advantage of a fair wind astern for four or five days at the least. On approaching the Cataracts, the boats will be transported on wooden rollers over the sand to the next level for relaunching.

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THE PROPER TIME FOR CUTTING TIMBER.

To the Editor of the Oregonian:

Believing that any ideas relating to this matter will be of some interest to your readers in this heavily-timbered region, I therefore propose giving you my opinion and conclusions arrived at after having experimented upon the cutting and use of timber for various purposes for a number of years here upon the Pacific coast.

This, we are all well aware, is a very important question, and one very difficult to answer, since it requires observation and experiment through a course of many years to arrive at any definite conclusion; and it is a question too upon which even at the present day there exists a great difference of opinion among men who, being engaged in the lumber business, are thereby the better qualified to form an opinion.

Many articles have been published in the various papers of the country upon this question for the past thirty years, but in all cases an opinion only has been given, which, at the present day, such is the advance and higher development of the intellectual faculties of man, that a mere opinion upon any question without sufficient and substantial reasons to back it is of little value.

My object in writing this is not simply to give an opinion, but how and the methods used by which I adopted such conclusions, as well also as the reasons why timber is more durable and better when cut at a certain season of the year than when cut at any other.

In the course of my investigations of this question for the past thirty years, I have asked the opinion of a great many persons who have been engaged in the lumber business in various States of the Union, from Maine to Wisconsin, and they all agree upon one point, viz., that the winter time is the proper time for cutting timber, although none has ever been able to give a reason why, only the fact that such was the case, and therefore drawing the inference that it was the proper time when timber should be cut; and so it is, for one reason only, however, and that is the convenience for handling or moving timber upon the snow and ice.

It was while engaged in the business of mining in the mountains of California in early days, and having occasion to work often among timber, in removing stumps, etc., it was while so engaged that I noticed one peculiar fact, which was this—that the stumps of some trees which had been cut but two or three years had decayed, while others of the same size and variety of pine which had been cut the same year were as sound and firm as when first cut. This seemed strange to me, and I found upon inquiry of old lumbermen who had worked among timber all their lives, that it was strange to them also, and they could offer no explanation; and it was the investigation of this singular fact that led me to experiment further upon the problem of cutting timber.

It was not, however, until many years after, and when engaged in clearing land for farming purposes, that I made the discovery why some stumps should decay sooner than others of the same size and variety, even when cut a few months afterward.

I had occasion to clear several acres of land which was covered with a very dense growth of young pines from two to six inches in diameter (this work for certain reasons is usually done in the winter). The young trees, not being suitable for fuel, are thrown into piles and burned upon the ground. Such land, therefore, on account of the stumps is very difficult to plow, as the stumps do not decay for three or four years, while most of the larger ones remain sound even longer.

But, for the purpose of experimenting, I cleaned a few acres of ground in the spring, cutting them in May and June. I trimmed the poles, leaving them upon the ground, and when seasoned hauled them to the house for fuel, and found that for cooking or heating purposes they were almost equal to oak; and it was my practice for many years afterward to cut these young pines in May or June for winter fuel.

I found also that the stumps, instead of remaining sound for any length of time, decayed so quickly that they could all be plowed up the following spring.

From which facts I draw these conclusions: that if in the cutting of timber the main object is to preserve the stumps, cut your trees in the fall or winter; but if the value of the timber is any consideration, cut your trees in the spring after the sap has ascended the tree, but before any growth has taken place or new wood has been formed.

I experimented for many years also in the cutting of timber for fencing, fence posts, etc., and with the same results. Those which were cut in the spring and set after being seasoned were the most durable, such timber being much lighter, tougher, and in all respects better for all variety of purposes.

Having given some little idea of the manner in which I experimented, and the conclusions arrived at as to the proper time when timber should be cut, I now propose to give what are, in my opinion, the reasons why timber cut in early summer is much better, being lighter, tougher and more durable than if cut at any other time. Therefore, in order to do this it is necessary first to explain the nature and value of the sap and the growth of a tree.

We find it to be the general opinion at present, as it perhaps has always been among lumbermen and those who work among timber, that the sap of a tree is an evil which must be avoided if possible, for it is this which causes decay and destroys the life and good qualities of all wood when allowed to remain in it for an unusual length of time, but that this is a mistaken idea I will endeavor to show, not that the decay is due to the sap, but to the time when the tree was felled.

We find by experiment in evaporating a quantity of sap of the pine, that it is water holding in solution a substance of a gummy nature, being composed of albumen and other elementary matters, which is deposited within the pores of the wood from the new growth of the tree; that these substances in solution, which constitute the sap, and which promote the growth of the tree, should have a tendency to cause decay of the wood is an impossibility. The injury results from the water only, and the improper time of felling the tree.

Of the process in which the sap promotes the growth of the tree, the scientist informs us that it is extracted from the soil, and flows up through the pores of the wood of the tree, where it is deposited upon the fiber, and by a peculiar process of nature the albumen forms new cells, which in process of formation crowd and push out from the center, thus constituting the growth of the tree in all directions from center to circumference. Consequently this new growth of wood, being composed principally of albumen, is of a soft, spongy nature, and under the proper conditions will decay very rapidly, which can be easily demonstrated by experiment.

Hence, we must infer that the proper time for felling the tree is when the conditions are such that the rapid decay of a new growth of wood is impossible; and this I have found by experiment to be in early summer, after the sap has ascended the tree, but before any new growth of wood has been formed. The new growth of the previous season is now well matured, has become hard and firm, and will not decay. On the contrary, the tree being cut when such new growth has not well matured, decay soon takes place, and the value of the timber is destroyed. The effect of this cutting and use of timber under the wrong conditions can be seen all around us. In the timbers of the bridges, in the trestlework and ties of railroads and in the piling of the wharves will be found portions showing rapid decay, while other portions are yet firm and in sound condition.

Much more might be said in the explanation of this subject, but not wishing to extend the subject to an improper length, I will close. I would, however, say in conclusion that persons who have the opportunities and the inclination can verify the truth of a portion, at least, of what I have stated, in a simple manner and in a short time; for instance, by cutting two or three young fir or spruce saplings, say about six inches in diameter, mark them when cut, and also mark the stumps by driving pegs marked to correspond with the trees. Continue this monthly for the space of about one year, and note the difference in the wood, which should be left out and exposed to the weather until seasoned.

C.W. HASKINS.

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RAISING FERNS FROM SPORES.



This plan, of which I give a sketch, has been in use by myself for many years, and most successfully. I have at various times given it to growers, but still I hear of difficulties. Procure a good sized bell-glass and an earthenware pan without any holes for drainage. Prepare a number of small pots, all filled for sowing, place them inside the pan, and fit the glass over them, so that it takes all in easily. Take these filled small pots out of the pan, place them on the ground, and well water them with boiling water to destroy all animal and vegetable life, and allow them to get perfectly cold; use a fine rose. Then taking each small pot separately, sow the spores on the surface and label them; do this with the whole number, and then place them in the pan under the bell-glass. This had better be done in a room, so that nothing foreign can grow inside. Having arranged the pots and placed the glass over them, and which should fit down upon the pan with ease, take a clean sponge, and tearing it up pack the pieces round the outside of the glass, and touching the inner side of the pan all round. Water this with cold water, so that the sponge is saturated. Do this whenever required, and always use water that has been boiled. At the end of six weeks or so the prothallus will perhaps appear, certainly in a week or two more; perhaps from unforeseen circumstances not for three months. Slowly these will begin to show themselves as young ferns, and most interesting it is to watch the results. As the ferns are gradually increasing in size pass a small piece of slate under the edge of the bell-glass to admit air, and do this by very careful degrees, allowing more and more air to reach them. Never water overhead until the seedlings are acclimated and have perfect form as ferns, and even then water at the edges of the pots. In due time carefully prick out, and the task so interesting to watch is performed.—The Garden.

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THE LIFE HISTORY OF VAUCHERIA.

[Footnote: Read before the San Francisco Microscopical Society, August 13, and furnished for publication in the Press.]

By A.H. BRECKENFELD.

Nearly a century ago, Vaucher, the celebrated Genevan botanist, described a fresh water filamentous alga which he named Ectosperma geminata, with a correctness that appears truly remarkable when the imperfect means of observation at his command are taken into consideration. His pupil, De Candolle, who afterward became so eminent a worker in the same field, when preparing his "Flora of France," in 1805, proposed the name of Vaucheria for the genus, in commemoration of the meritorious work of its first investigator. On March 12, 1826, Unger made the first recorded observation of the formation and liberation of the terminal or non-sexual spores of this plant. Hassall, the able English botanist, made it the subject of extended study while preparing his fine work entitled "A History of the British Fresh Water Algae," published in 1845. He has given us a very graphic description of the phenomenon first observed by Unger. In 1856 Pringsheim described the true sexual propagation by oospores, with such minuteness and accuracy that our knowledge of the plant can scarcely be said to have essentially increased since that time.



Vaucheria has two or three rather doubtful marine species assigned to it by Harvey, but the fresh water forms are by far the more numerous, and it is to some of these I would call your attention for a few moments this evening. The plant grows in densely interwoven tufts, these being of a vivid green color, while the plant is in the actively vegetative condition, changing to a duller tint as it advances to maturity. Its habitat (with the exceptions above noted) is in freshwater—usually in ditches or slowly running streams. I have found it at pretty much all seasons of the year, in the stretch of boggy ground in the Presidio, bordering the road to Fort Point. The filaments attain a length of several inches when fully developed, and are of an average diameter of 1/250 (0.004) inch. They branch but sparingly, or not at all, and are characterized by consisting of a single long tube or cell, not divided by septa, as in the case of the great majority of the filamentous algae. These tubular filaments are composed of a nearly transparent cellulose wall, including an inner layer thickly studded with bright green granules of chlorophyl. This inner layer is ordinarily not noticeable, but it retracts from the outer envelope when subjected to the action of certain reagents, or when immersed in a fluid differing in density from water, and it then becomes distinctly visible, as may be seen in the engraving (Fig. 1). The plant grows rapidly and is endowed with much vitality, for it resists changes of temperature to a remarkable degree. Vaucheria affords a choice hunting ground to the microscopist, for its tangled masses are the home of numberless infusoria, rotifers, and the minuter crustacea, while the filaments more advanced in age are usually thickly incrusted with diatoms. Here, too, is a favorite haunt of the beautiful zoophytes, Hydra vividis and H. vulgaris, whose delicate tentacles may be seen gracefully waving in nearly every gathering.

REPRODUCTION IN VAUCHERIA.

After the plant has attained a certain stage in its growth, if it be attentively watched, a marked change will be observed near the ends of the filaments. The chlorophyl appears to assume a darker hue, and the granules become more densely crowded. This appearance increases until the extremity of the tube appears almost swollen. Soon the densely congregated granules at the extreme end will be seen to separate from the endochrome of the filament, a clear space sometimes, but not always, marking the point of division. Here a septum or membrane appears, thus forming a cell whose length is about three or four times its width, and whose walls completely inclose the dark green mass of crowded granules (Fig. 1, b). These contents are now gradually forming themselves into the spore or "gonidium," as Carpenter calls it, in distinction from the true sexual spores, which he terms "oospores." At the extreme end of the filament (which is obtusely conical in shape) the chlorophyl grains retract from the old cellulose wall, leaving a very evident clear space. In a less noticeable degree, this is also the case in the other parts of the circumference of the cell, and, apparently, the granular contents have secreted a separate envelope entirely distinct from the parent filament. The grand climax is now rapidly approaching. The contents of the cell near its base are now so densely clustered as to appear nearly black (Fig. 1, c), while the upper half is of a much lighter hue and the separate granules are there easily distinguished, and, if very closely watched, show an almost imperceptible motion. The old cellulose wall shows signs of great tension, its conical extremity rounding out under the slowly increasing pressure from within. Suddenly it gives way at the apex. At the same instant, the inclosed gonidium (for it is now seen to be fully formed) acquires a rotary motion, at first slow, but gradually increasing until it has gained considerable velocity. Its upper portion is slowly twisted through the opening in the apex of the parent wall, the granular contents of the lower end flowing into the extruded portion in a manner reminding one of the flow of protoplasm in a living amoeba. The old cell wall seems to offer considerable resistance to the escape of the gonidium, for the latter, which displays remarkable elasticity, is pinched nearly in two while forcing its way through, assuming an hour glass shape when about half out. The rapid rotation of the spore continues during the process of emerging, and after about a minute it has fully freed itself (Fig 1, a). It immediately assumes the form of an ellipse or oval, and darts off with great speed, revolving on its major axis as it does so. Its contents are nearly all massed in the posterior half, the comparatively clear portion invariably pointing in advance. When it meets an obstacle, it partially flattens itself against it, then turns aside and spins off in a new direction. This erratic motion is continued for usually seven or eight minutes. The longest duration I have yet observed was a little over nine and one-half minutes. Hassall records a case where it continued for nineteen minutes. The time, however, varies greatly, as in some cases the motion ceases almost as soon as the spore is liberated, while in open water, unretarded by the cover glass or other obstacles, its movements have been seen to continue for over two hours.

The motile force is imparted to the gonidium by dense rows of waving cilia with which it is completely surrounded. Owing to their rapid vibration, it is almost impossible to distinguish them while the spore is in active motion, but their effect is very plainly seen on adding colored pigment particles to the water. By subjecting the cilia to the action of iodine, their motion is arrested, they are stained brown, and become very plainly visible.

After the gonidium comes gradually to a rest its cilia soon disappear, it becomes perfectly globular in shape, the inclosed granules distribute themselves evenly throughout its interior, and after a few hours it germinates by throwing out one, two, or sometimes three tubular prolongations, which become precisely like the parent filament (Fig 2).

Eminent English authorities have advanced the theory that the ciliated gonidium of Vaucheria is in reality a densely crowded aggregation of biciliated zoospores, similar to those found in many other confervoid algae. Although this has by no means been proved, yet I cannot help calling the attention of the members of this society to a fact which I think strongly bears out the said theory: While watching a gathering of Vaucheria one morning when the plant was in the gonidia-forming condition (which is usually assumed a few hours after daybreak), I observed one filament, near the end of which a septum had formed precisely as in the case of ordinary filaments about to develop a spore. But, instead of the terminal cell being filled with the usual densely crowded cluster of dark green granules constituting the rapidly forming spore, it contained hundreds of actively moving, nearly transparent zoospores, and nothing else. Not a single chlorophyl granule was to be seen. It is also to be noted as a significant fact, that the cellulose wall was intact at the apex, instead of showing the opening through which in ordinary cases the gonidium escapes. It would seem to be a reasonable inference, I think, based upon the theory above stated, that in this case the newly formed gonidium, unable to escape from its prison by reason of the abnormal strength of the cell wall, became after a while resolved into its component zoospores.

WONDERS OF REPRODUCTION.

I very much regret that my descriptive powers are not equal to conveying a sufficient idea of the intensely absorbing interest possessed by this wonderful process of spore formation. I shall never forget the bright sunny morning when for the first time I witnessed the entire process under the microscope, and for over four hours scarcely moved my eyes from the tube. To a thoughtful observer I doubt if there is anything in the whole range of microscopy to exceed this phenomenon in point of startling interest. No wonder that its first observer published his researches under the caption of "The Plant at the Moment of becoming an Animal."

FORMATION OF OTHER SPORES.

The process of spore formation just described, it will be seen, is entirely non-sexual, being simply a vegetative process, analogous to the budding of higher plants, and the fission of some of the lower plants and animals. Vaucheria has, however, a second and far higher mode of reproduction, viz., by means of fertilized cells, the true oospores, which, lying dormant as resting spores during the winter, are endowed with new life by the rejuvenating influences of spring. Their formation may be briefly described as follows:

When Vaucheria has reached the proper stage in its life cycle, slight swellings appear here and there on the sides of the filament. Each of these slowly develops into a shape resembling a strongly curved horn. This becomes the organ termed the antheridium, from its analogy in function to the anther of flowering plants. While this is in process of growth, peculiar oval capsules or sporangia (usually 2 to 5 in number) are formed in close proximity to the antheridium. In some species both these organs are sessile on the main filament, in others they appear on a short pedicel (Figs. 3 and 4). The upper part of the antheridium becomes separated from the parent stem by a septum, and its contents are converted into ciliated motile antherozoids. The adjacent sporangia also become cut off by septa, and the investing membrane, when mature, opens: it a beak-like prolongation, thus permitting the inclosed densely congregated green granules to be penetrated by the antherozoids which swarm from the antheridium at the same time. After being thus fertilized the contents of the sporangium acquire a peculiar oily appearance, of a beautiful emerald color, an exceedingly tough but transparent envelope is secreted, and thus is constituted the fully developed oospore, the beginner of a new generation of the plant. After the production of this oospore the parent filament gradually loses its vitality and slowly decays.

The spore being thus liberated, sinks to the bottom. Its brilliant hue has faded and changed to a reddish brown, but after a rest of about three months (according to Pringsheim, who seems to be the only one who has ever followed the process of oospore formation entirely through), the spore suddenly assumes its original vivid hue and germinates into a young Vaucheria.

CHARM OF MICROSCOPICAL STUDY.

This concludes the account of my very imperfect attempt to trace the life history of a lowly plant. Its study has been to me a source of ever increasing pleasure, and has again demonstrated how our favorite instrument reveals phenomena of most absorbing interest in directions where the unaided eye finds but little promise. In walking along the banks of the little stream, where, half concealed by more pretentious plants, our humble Vaucheria grows, the average passer by, if he notices it at all, sees but a tangled tuft of dark green "scum." Yet, when this is examined under the magic tube, a crystal cylinder, closely set with sparkling emeralds, is revealed. And although so transparent, so apparently simple in structure that it does not seem possible for even the finest details to escape our search, yet almost as we watch it mystic changes appear. We see the bright green granules, impelled by an unseen force, separate and rearrange themselves in new formations. Strange outgrowths from the parent filament appear. The strange power we call "life," doubly mysterious when manifested in an organism so simple as this, so open to our search, seems to challenge us to discover its secret, and, armed with our glittering lenses and our flashing stands of exquisite workmanship, we search intently, but in vain. And yet not in vain, for we are more than recompensed by the wondrous revelations beheld and the unalloyed pleasures enjoyed, through the study of even the unpretentious Vaucheria.

The amplification of the objects in the engravings is about 80 diameters.

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JAPANESE CAMPHOR—ITS PREPARATION, EXPERIMENTS, AND ANALYSIS OF THE CAMPHOR OIL.

[Footnote: From the Journal of the Society of Chemical Industry.]

By H. OISHI. (Communicated by Kakamatsa.)

LAURUS CAMPHORA, or "kusunoki," as it is called in Japan, grows mainly in those provinces in the islands Shikobu and Kinshin, which have the southern sea coast. It also grows abundantly in the province of Kishu.

The amount of camphor varies according to the age of the tree. That of a hundred years old is tolerably rich in camphor. In order to extract the camphor, such a tree is selected; the trunk and large stems are cut into small pieces, and subjected to distillation with steam.

An iron boiler of 3 feet in diameter is placed over a small furnace, the boiler being provided with an iron flange at the top. Over this flange a wooden tub is placed, which is somewhat narrowed at the top, being 1 foot 6 inches in the upper, and 2 feet 10 inches in the lower diameter, and 4 feet in height. The tub has a false bottom for the passage of steam from the boiler beneath. The upper part of the tub is connected with a condensing apparatus by means of a wooden or bamboo pipe. The condenser is a flat rectangular wooden vessel, which is surrounded with another one containing cold water. Over the first is placed still another trough of the same dimensions, into which water is supplied to cool the vessel at the top. After the first trough has been filled with water, the latter flows into the next by means of a small pipe attached to it. In order to expose a large surface to the vapors, the condensing trough is fitted internally with a number of vertical partitions, which are open at alternate ends, so that the vapors may travel along the partitions in the trough from one end to the other. The boiler is filled with water, and 120 kilogrammes of chopped pieces of wood are introduced into the tub, which is then closed with a cover, cemented with clay, so as to make it air-tight. Firing is then begun; the steam passes into the tub, and thus carries the vapors of camphor and oil into the condenser, in which the camphor solidifies, and is mixed with the oil and condensed water. After twenty-four hours the charge is taken out from the tub, and new pieces of the wood are introduced, and distillation is conducted as before. The water in the boiler must be supplied from time to time. The exhausted wood is dried and used as fuel. The camphor and oil accumulated in the trough are taken out in five or ten days, and they are separated from each other by filtration. The yield of the camphor and oil varies greatly in different seasons. Thus much more solid camphor is obtained in winter than in summer, while the reverse is the case with the oil. In summer, from 120 kilogrammes of the wood 2.4 kilogrammes, or 2 per cent. of the solid camphor are obtained in one day, while in winter, from the same amount of the wood, 3 kilogrammes, or 2.5 per cent., of camphor are obtainable at the same time.

The amount of the oil obtained in ten days, i.e., from 10 charges or 1,200 kilogrammes of the wood, in summer is about 18 liters, while in winter it amounts only to 5-7 liters. The price of the solid camphor is at present about 1s. 1d. per kilo.

The oil contains a considerable amount of camphor in solution, which is separated by a simple distillation and cooling. By this means about 20 per cent. of the camphor can be obtained from the oil. The author subjected the original oil to fractioned distillation, and examined different fractions separately. That part of the oil which distilled between 180 deg.-185 deg. O. was analyzed after repeated distillations. The following is the result:

Found. Calculated as C{10}H{16}O.

C = 78.87 78.95 H = 10.73 10.52 O = 10.40 (by difference) 10.52

The composition thus nearly agrees with that of the ordinary camphor.

The fraction between 178 deg.-180 deg. C., after three distillations, gave the following analytical result:

C = 86.95 H = 12.28 ——- 99.23

It appears from this result that the body is a hydrocarbon. The vapor density was then determined by V. Meyer's apparatus, and was found to be 5.7 (air=1). The molecular weight of the compound is therefore 5.7 x 14.42 x 2 = 164.4, which gives

H = (164.4 x 12.28)/100 = 20.18 or C{12}H{20} C = (164.4 x 86.95)/100 = 11.81

Hence it is a hydrocarbon of the terpene series, having the general formula C^{n}H^(2n-4). From the above experiments it seems to be probable that the camphor oil is a complicated mixture, consisting of hydrocarbons of terpene series, oxy-hydrocarbons isomeric with camphor, and other oxidized hydrocarbons.

Application of the Camphor Oil.

The distinguishing property of the camphor oil, that it dissolves many resins, and mixes with drying oils, finds its application for the preparation of varnish. The author has succeeded in preparing various varnishes with the camphor oil, mixed with different resins and oils. Lampblack was also prepared by the author, by subjecting the camphor oil to incomplete combustion. In this way from 100 c.c. of the oil, about 13 grammes of soot of a very good quality were obtained. Soot or lampblack is a very important material in Japan for making inks, paints, etc. If the manufacture of lampblack from the cheap camphor oil is conducted on a large scale, it would no doubt be profitable. The following is the report on the amount of the annual production of camphor in the province of Tosa up to 1880:

Amount of Camphor produced. Total Cost.

1877.......... 504,000 kins.... 65,520 yen. 1878.......... 519,000 " .... 72,660 " 1879.......... 292,890 " .... 74,481 " 1880.......... 192,837 " .... 58,302 "

(1 yen = 2s. 9d.) (1 kin = 1-1/3lb.)

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THE SUNSHINE RECORDER.

McLeod's sunshine recorder consists of a camera fixed with its axis parallel to that of the earth, and with the lens northward. Opposite to the lens there is placed a round-bottomed flask, silvered inside. The solar rays reflected from this sphere pass through the lens, and act on the sensitive surface.



The construction of the instrument is illustrated by the subjoined cut, A being a camera supported at an inclination of 56 degrees with the horizon, and B the spherical flask silvered inside, while at D is placed the ferro-prussiate paper destined to receive the solar impression. The dotted line, C, may represent the direction of the central solar ray at one particular time, and it is easy to see how the sunlight reflected from the flask always passes through the lens. As the sun moves (apparently) in a circle round the flask, the image formed by the lens moves round on the sensitive paper, forming an arc of a circle.

Although it is obvious that any sensitive surface might be used in the McLeod sunshine recorder, the inventor prefers at present to use the ordinary ferro-prussiate paper as employed by engineers for copying tracings, as this paper can be kept for a considerable length of time without change, and the blue image is fixed by mere washing in water; another advantage is the circumstance that a scale or set of datum lines can be readily printed on the paper from an engraved block, and if the printed papers be made to register properly in the camera, the records obtained will show at a glance the time at which sunshine commenced and ceased.

Instead of specially silvering a flask inside, it will be found convenient to make use of one of the silvered globes which are sold as Christmas tree ornaments.

The sensitive fluid for preparing the ferro-prussiate paper is made as follows: One part by weight of ferricyanide of potassium (red prussiate) is dissolved in eight parts of water, and one part of ammonia-citrate of iron is added. This last addition must be made in the dark-room. A smooth-faced paper is now floated on the liquid and allowed to dry.—Photo. News.

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BREAKING OF A WATER MAIN.

In Boston, Mass., recently, at a point where two iron bridges, with stone abutments, are being built over the Boston and Albany Railroad tracks at Brookline Avenue, the main water pipe, which partially supplies the city with water, had to be raised, and while in that position a large stone which was being raised slipped upon the pipe and broke it. Immediately a stream of water fifteen feet high spurted out. Before the water could be shut off it had made a breach thirty feet long in the main line of track, so that the entire four tracks, sleepers, and roadbed at that point were washed completely away.

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