ences, more or less numerous, to station publications where further information can be secured if desired. It is of course impossible to refer in detail to all the subjects. A reference to a few will probably be of interest. Under Chrysanthemum we read that experiment showed it to be possible to keep pollen of the plant for five days and still retain its vitality. It is observed under Dandelion, quite extensively used as "greens" in spring, that it has been studied in Minnesota, and directions are given for cultivating it. Geological work is not extensively carried on, only four geologists being employed, and these being engaged in studying soils. Numerous varieties of grasses are discussed, over ten pages being devoted to them. In a short note upon Leguminosæ numerous references are made to investigations upon root-tubercles. Their value in taking Their value in taking nitrogen from the air and storing it in the soil is considered very great, and it is stated that by growing the tubercle-producing plants and plowing them under they form manure for wheat and other crops requiring considerable nitrogenous material. The article upon Milk refers to the value of late researches upon bacteria causing fermentation, souring of cream, etc. Those bacteria causing red milk, ropy milk, etc., can be prevented by cleanliness. Those which are useful in butter and cheese making can be utilized. The aroma of butter has been determined to be due to a specific bacterium, and the ferment produced by this is being used to a certain extent in Germany and Denmark. In the ripening of cream there is a conflict of many varieties of bacteria and the problem has been to separate that one which will give the best results. So, too, with cheese-making. The ripening of cheese is due to the action of micro-organisms. The number of these has been found to be from 25 to 165 millions per ounce. The conclusion reached is that in the future "the butter-maker will separate the cream by the centrifugal machine in as fresh a condition as possible and will add to the cream an artificial ferment consisting of a pure culture of the proper bacteria, and then ripen his cream in the normal manner. The result will be uniformity. The cheese-maker will in like manner inoculate fresh milk with an artificial ferment, and thus be able to control his product. Perhaps he will have a large variety of such ferments, each of which will produce for him a definite quality of cheese. To the dairy interest, therefore, the bacteriologist holds out the hope of uniformity. The time will come when the butter-maker may always make good butter and the cheese-maker will be able in all cases to obtain exactly the kind of ripening that he desires." Under the head of Phosphates there is an interesting account of the different kinds, with analyses of those found in South Carolina and Florida. Perhaps the longest article in the volume is upon the weeds of the United States, nearly 20 pages being devoted to them. A list of the weeds with common and scientific names and station publications where referred to occupies thirteen pages. Finally in an appendix there are given a number of tables of analyses, of feeding stuffs, vegetables, fruits, nuts, commercial fertilizers, farm manures and ash constituents of woods. The volume is, upon the whole, one of the most useful which has ever been issued by the Department of Agriculture. EXCHANGES. Wants. Brain Workers. Horsford's Acid Phosphate is recommended by physicians of all schools, for restoring brain force or nervous energy, in all cases where the nervous system has been reduced below the normal standard by over-work, as found in lawyers, teachers, students and brain-workers generally. Descriptive pamphlet free on application to Rumford Chemical Works, [Free of charge to all, if of satisfactory character. Address N. D. C. Hodges, 874 Broadway, New York ] WA WA To exchange.-Works on entomology, botany and For Sale or Exchange.-A "Troughton & Simms" bronzed metal sextant, with double-frame platinum Wanted. Sachs's Text-book of Botany, 2nd Eng- For Sale or Exchange.--A large number of state Beware of Substitutes and Imitations. For sale by all Druggists. Skins, with full data, of Agialites nivosa, A GEOLOGIST thoroughly conversant with the For Sale.-An entirely new analytical balance, capacity 100 grammes, sensitive to one-twentieth a milligramme. Never been used. Regular price, troduction to the Study of Lichens. THE WINNIPEG COUNTRY; OR, THE MODERN MALADY; or, Suf- ROUGHING IT WITH AN ECLIPSE PARTY. ferers from Nerves.' An introduction to public consideration, from a non-medical point of view, of a con BY A. ROCHESTER FELLOW. (S. H. SCUDDER.) 12°. $1.50. dition of ill-health which is increasingly With thirty-two Illustrations and a Map. treatment which have at various times been By CYRIL BENNETT. DELSARTE SYSTEM OF ORATORY. N. D. C. HODGES, A Book of over 600 pages of great value to all Delsartians, teachers of elocution, public speakers, singers, actors, sculptors, painters, psychologists, theologians, scholars in any department of science, art and thought. Price, $2.50, postpaid. EDGAR S. WERNER, Publisher, 108 East 16th Street. New York. 874 Broadway. New York NEW METHOD OF PROTECTING BUILDINGS FROM LIGHTNING. SPARE THE ROD AND SPOIL THE HOUSE! Lightning Destroys. Shall it be Your House or a Pound of Copper? PROTECTION FROM LIGHTNING. What is the Problem? IN seeking a means of protection from lightning-discharges, we have in view two objects, the one the prevention of damage to buildings, aud the other the prevention of injury to life. In order to destroy a building in whole or in part, it is necessary that work should be done; that is, as physicists express It, energy is required. Just before the lightning-discharge takes place, the energy capable of doing the damage which we seek to prevent exists in the column of air extending from the cloud to the earth in some form that makes it capable of appearing as what we call electricity. We will therefore call it electrical energy. What this electrical energy is, it is not necessary for us to consider in this place; but that it exists there can be no doubt, as it manifests Itself in the destruction of buildings. The problem that we have to deal with, therefore, is the conversion of this energy into some other form, and the accomplishment of this in such a way as shall result in the least injury to property and life. Why Have the Old Rods Failed? When lightning-rods were first proposed, the science of energetics was entirely undeveloped; that is to say, in the middle of the last century scientific men had not come to recognize the fact that the different forms of energy heat, electricity, mechanical power, etc.- were convertible one into the other, and that each could produce just so much of each of the other forms, and no more. The doctrine of the conservation and correlation of energy was first clearly worked out in the early part of this century. There were, however, some facts known in regard to electricity a hundred and forty years ago; and among these were the attracting power of points for an electric spark, and the conducting power of metals. Lightning-rods were therefore introduced with the idea that the electricity existing in the lightning-discharge could be couveyed around the building which it was proposed to protect, and that the building would thus be saved. The question as to dissipation of the energy involved was entirely ignored. naturally; and from that time to this, in spite of the best endeavors of those Interested, lightning-rods constructed in accordance with Franklin's principle have not furnished satisfactory protection. The reason for this is apparent when it is considered that the olectrical energy existing in the atmosphere before the discharge, or, more exactly, in the column of dielectric from the cloud to the earth, above referred to, reaches its maximum valu on the surface of the conductors that chance to be within the column of dielectric; so that the greatest display of energy will be on the surface of the very lightningrods that were meant to protect, and damage results, as so often proves to be the case. It will be understood, of course, that this display of energy on the surface of the old lightning-rods is aided by their being more or i-ss insulated from the earth, but in any event the very existence of such a mass of metal as an old lightning-rod can only tend to produce a disastrous dissipation of electrical energy upon its surface,-"to draw the lightning," as it is so commonly put. Is there a Better Means of Protection? Having cleared our minds, therefore, of any idea of conducting electricity, and keeping clearly in view the fact that in providing protection against lightning we must furnish some means by which the electrical energy may be harmlessly dissipated, the question arises, "Can an improved form be given to the rod so that it shall &. n this dissipation?" "This is a sprightly narrative of personal inci dent. The book will be a pleasant reminder to many of rough experiences on a frontier which is rapidly receding."-Boston Transcript. "The picture of our desolate North-western terri the writer's style, constitute the claims of his little book to present attention."-The Dial. N. D. C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, N. Y. SCIENCE CLUBBING RATES. 10% DISCOUNT. We will allow the above discount to any subscriber to Science who will send us an order for periodicals exceeding $10, counting each at its full price. N. D. C HODGES, 874 Broadway, N. Y As the electrical energy involved manifests itself on the surface of conduc tors, the improved rod should be metallic; but, instead of making a large rod, suppose that we make it comparatively small in size, so that the total amount of metal running from the top of the house to some point a little below the foundations shall not exceed one pound. Suppose, again, that we introduce numerous insulating joints in this rod. We shall then have a rod that experience shows will be readily destroyed-will be readily dissipated - when a discharge takes place; an i it will be evident, that, so far as the electrical energy is consumed in doing this, there will be the less to do other damage. The only point that remains to be proved as to the utility of such a rod is to show that the dissipation of such a conductor does not tend to injure other bodies in its immediate vicinity. On this point I can only say that I have found no case where such a conductor (for instance, a bell wire) has been dissipated, even if resting against a plastered wall, where there has been any material damage done to surrounding objects. Of course, it is readily understood that such an explosion cannot take place in a confined space without the rupture of the walls (the wire cannot be boarded over); but in every case that I have found recorded this dissipation takes place just as gunpowder burns when spread on a board. The objects against which the conductor rests may be stained, but they are not shattered, I would therefore make clear this distinction between the action of electrical energy when dissipated on the surface of a large conductor and when dissipated on the surface of a comparatively small or easily dissipated conductor. When dissipated on the surface of a large conductor, a conductor so strong as to resist the explosive effect,-damage results to objects around. When dissipated on the surface of a small conductor, the conductor goes, but the other objects around are saved A Typical Case of the Action of a Small Conductor. Franklin, in a letter to Collinson read before the London Royal Society, Dec. 18, 1755, describing the partial destruction by lightning of a church-tower at Newbury, Mass., wrote, "Near the bell was fixed an iron hammer to strike the hours; and from the tail of the hammer a wire went down through a small gimlet-hole in the floor that the bell stood upon, and through a second floor in like manner; then horizontally under and near the plastered ceiling of that second floor, till it came near a plastered wall; then down by the side of that wall to a clock, which stood about twenty feet below the bell. The wire was not bigger than a common knitting needle. The spire was split all to pieces by the lightning, and the parts flung in all directions over the square in which the church stood, so that nothing remained above the bell. The lightring passed between the hammer and the clock in the above-mentioned wire, without hurting either of the floors, or having any effect upon them (except making the gimlet-holes, through which the wire passed, a little bigger), and without hurting the plastered wall, or any part of the building, so far as the aforesaid wire and the pendulum-wire of the clock extended; which latter wire was about the thickness of a goose-qu!ll. From the end of the pendulum, down quite to the ground, the builing was exceedingly rent and damagei.... No part of the aforementioned long, small wire, between the clock and the hammer, could be found, except about two inches that hung to the tall of the hammer, and about as much that was fastened to the clock; the rest being exploded, and its particles dissipated in smoke and alr. as gunpowder is by common fire, and had only left a black smutty track on the plastering, three or four inches broad, darkest in the middl, and fainter towards the edges, all along the ceiling, under which it passed, and down the wall. One hundred feet of the Hodges Patent Lightning Dispeller (made under patents of N. D. C. Hodges, Editor of Science) will be mailed, postpaid, to any address, on receipt of five dollars ($5). Correspondence solicited. Agents wanted. AMERICAN LIGHTNING PROTECTION CO., 874 Broadway, New York Citv. Probably you take THE Electrical Engineer. Most people interested in Electricity do. THE MODERN MALADY; or, Suf ferers from 'Nerves.' An introduction to public consideration, from a non-medical point of view, of a condition of ill-health which is increasingly prevalent in all ranks of society. In the first part of this work the author dwells on the errors in our mode of treating Neurasthenia, consequent on the wide ignorance of If you do not, now is a good time to the subject which still prevails; in the sec ond part, attention is drawn to the principal By CYRIL BENNETT. N. D. C. HODGES, 874 Broadway. New York. Publishers, Importers, Booksellers. Our Paris and London branches enable us to in All books reviewed in SCIENCE can be order 125 MILK ST., BOSTON, MASS. BRENTANO'S, Union Square, New Yor This Company owns the Letters - Patent No 186,787, granted to Alexander Graham Bell, January 30th, 1877, the scope of which has been defined by the Supreme Court of the United States in the following terms: "The patent itself is for the mechanical hicapo Washington BUILDING structure of an electric telephone to be used DRAWING to produce the electrical action on which the first patent rests. The third claim is for the INSTRUMENTS. use in such instruments of a diaphragm, made of a plate of iron or steel, or other material capable of inductive action; the fifth, of a permanent magnet constructed as de scribed with a coil upon the end or ends nearest the plate; the sixth, of a sounding box as described; the seventh, of a speaking or hearing tube as described for conveying the sounds; and the eighth, of a permanent magnet and plate combined. The claim is not for these several things in and of themselves, but for an electric telephone in the construction of which these things or any of them are used." This Company also owns Letters-Patent No. 463,569, granted to Emile Berliner, No vember 17, 1891, for a combined Telegraph and Telephone, and controls Letters-Patent No. 474,231, granted to Thomas A Edison, May 3, 1892, for a Speaking Telegraph, which cover fundamental inventions and embrace all forms of microphone transmit. ters and of carbon telephones. SCIENCE CLUBBING RATES. 10% DISCOUNT. We will allow the above discount to any subscriber to Science who will send us an order for periodicals exceeding $10, counting each at its full price. N. D. C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, N. Y. London Paris 1893 Catalogue of Books on Buildin W. T. ComstocL STERBROOK'S OF SUPERIOR AND STANDARD QUALITY For Sale by all Stationers. THE ESTERBROOK STEEL PEN CO. PRACTICAL ELECTRICS, a universal handy book A SYSTEM OF EASY LETTERING, by Howard THE ORNAMENTAL Penman's pocketbook of alpha- Books mailed post paid to any address on receipt of publish price. Mention this paper. SPON & CHAMBERLAIN, 12 Cortlandt Street, N.Y. FOSSIL RESINS. This book is the result of an attempt to collect the scattered notices of fossil resins, exclusive of those on amber. The work is of interest also on account of descriptions given of the insects found embedded in these long preserved exudations from early vegetation. By CLARENCE LOWN and HENRY BOOTH, 12°. $1. N. D. C. HODGES, 874 Broadway, N. Y. "BUSY FOLKS' GYMNASIUM." A few minutes' daily exercise our fascinating apparatus clears the brain, tones up the body, develops weak parts. Our cabinet contains chest weights, rowing-weights, lifting-weights, clubs and dumb bells, adjustable for old and young. It is the only complete exercising outfit in the world suitable for use in living rooms. All prices. You can order on approval. Chest machine separate, $4.50 and up. good for Round Shoulders Educated agents wanted. PHYSI 6 Shoulders and Upper Back CAL CULTURE CHART, with illustrated directions for developing every part of the body healthfully, 50 cts. Sent for half price to those naming this paper. WHITNEY HOME GYMNASIUM CO., Box D., Rochester, N. Y. NEW YORK, JANUARY 26, 1894. CURRENT NOTES ON ANTHROPOLOGY.— (Edited by D. G. Brinton, M. D., LL. D., D. Sc.) Origin and Distribution of Maize in America. THE best study which has yet appeared on maize, both from the botanical, historical and economic points of view, is one recently published in Vol. I. of the "Contributions from the Botanical Laboratory of the University of Pennsylvania," by Dr. John W. Harshberger. With regard to its origin, he traces it to the highlands. of Mexico, somewhat south of the twenty-second degree of north latitude. He believes that from that point it was introduced into the area of the United States from two sources, from the tribes of northern Mexico and from the West India Islands. The Pueblo and northern Mexican tribes derived it from southern Mexico. It penetrated to South America by way of the Isthmus of Panama, whence it extended southward along the great Andean system until it reached the Gran Chaco, where we find the native tribes, no way related to the Kechuas of Peru, borrowing its name, as they doubtless did the cereal itself, from these cultivated people. South American words for maize extended all over the West Indian Islands, showing that it was introduced to this archipelago from the southern continent. These results are new and most interesting. The statement that the Caribs introduced it into Florida, and that the Antillean word for maize was found in Florida, or in the area of the Gulf States, is an error derived from old authorities whose assertions are now considered unreliable. The Caribs. APROPOS of the questions about the Caribs, their origi nal home and their lines of dispersion (see Science, Dec. 27, 1893, p. 361), the whole subject is most ably and satisfactorily presented in the recent volume of Dr. Carl von den Steinen, entitled "Unter den Naturvölkern Brasiliens." It is a handsome book, large octavo, with thirty full-page plates, and 160 illustrations in the text, of 562 pages, and containing eleven vocabularies of the native dialects. It is based upon the author's observations and studies in his second expedition to the head waters of the Schingu River, in the years 1887 and 1888. Besides the narrative of the expedition, the work contains a very complete anthropological description of the native tribes encountered, especially those of the Carib stock. He sets forth their arts, traditions, mental and physical peculiarities, costumes, etc., with desirable fullness. The question of the primitive home of the Caribs is answered by an admirable linguistic analysis of the numerous dialects of the family, and the changes in phonetics and grammatical forms which they underwent in their long separation from the mother tongue. For this the author was peculiarly well prepared by his patient and fruitful investigations of the Bakairi dialect, probably the most primitive in its form of any, reference to which was made in one of my previous notes (Science, Aug. 26, 1892). Those who wish to obtain the latest and the most trustworthy views about the wonderings of these redoubtable warriors should turn to the pages of this valuable book. Basque and Berber. THE ethnic relations of the Basques, who now to the number of a scant half million live in the valleys of the been, and continue to be, a difficult puzzle. (See Science, Pyrenees, partly in France and partly in Spain, have long July 7, 1893.) The latest attempt to unravel them is by the Professor G. von der Gabelentz, whose recent loss to science is so regrettable. In an article which was issued in the proceedings of the Prussian Academy of Sciences, in 1893, entitled "Baskish und Berberisch," he institutes a comparison between these two languages and claims to show that Basque is a Hamitic tongue, related to the Berber dialects of north Africa. He believed that this relationship had not heretofore been maintained, which is an error, as so far back as 1876 Dr. Tubino, of Madrid, in his "Aborigines Ibericos,' compared the two idioms for the same purpose. Several of the analogies presented by both these writers are certainly so close and so striking that it seems unreasonable to attribute them to chance; but if they are real, do they establish the claim of a descent of the Basque from the primitive Hamitic stock? No; because they are of such a character that they might well have belonged to the class of loan-words and have been borrowed from the large colony of Berber descent which there are cogent reasons to believe peopled much of the Iberian Peninsula in remote semi-historic times. The modern Basque has borrowed enormously from French and Spanish, and so did ancient Basque from Berber and Celtic dialects. Micmac Studies. He THE late Rev. Silas T. Rand was for forty years a missionary among the Micmac Indians of Nova Scotia. was a versatile linguist and acquired a more thorough knowledge of their language, traditions and mode of life than any white man had previously attained. In the later years of his life he compiled an extensive dictionary in two parts, Micmac-English and English-Micmac. The Government of the Dominion undertook its publication, but the author died after the first part only had passed through the press. The second part remains in manuscript in the possession of the Dominion Government, and it is not likely to see the light in print for a long time to come, if ever. Mr. Rand took especial pleasure in collecting the tales, legends and myths of the tribe from the old men and women who recollected them from a long time back. He |