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at the time of the commencement of the existing period of geological history. The Professor’s ihistrations were chiefly derivedl from his investigations of the distribution of sea-fish and lawd-snails, Iyofessor #, Zirkel, of Kiel, made some communications on the mineralogical conatinition of the basalt-lavas of Laacher Sec aml the Kifel. Professor von Rath deseribed a new mineral from Laacher See, which he proposes to cal] Amblystegite, in allusion to the extreme obluseness of some of its angles. 1t is of a yeddish brown colour ; harduress almost equal to that of quartz ; specific gravity 3.4545 black glass insoluble in hydrochloric <cid, allied to hypersthene, but is distinguished from that mineral by the alsence of the characteristic cleavage. Extracts from a paper by Professor Fublvott on the caves of Grevenbriick anc the Monnethal were tsen read; and Vrofessor Schaffhausen availed hinwelf of the opportunity of insisting upon the desiva- bleness of a systematic exploration of the bone-yielding caves in which Westphalia is so rich, are being taken 10 raise funds for this purpose among Vie mem- bers of the society, The most hmportant hads in the Greven- briick cave are coprolites of hyana, and two human lower jaws of primitive fore.

VIENNA

Imperial Academy of Sciences, November 1$.—Vrofesser Unger communicated a memeir on the anthracite deposits in Carinthia, tle statcd that nineteen species of plants, chiefly ferns, have been detected in the shales accompanying this eposit. ‘They agree with those of the coal-neasures, and eight of them occur also in the anthracite deposits of Styria, Switzer- land, and the French Alps. Two undescribed Fem-stens were particularly noticed by the author, who tuck the opportunity of opposing the ordinary notion that the daguarie are the roots of Suiiarie, Of the latter he regarded those species which have not furrowed stents, a5 ferns. —Dr, C, Jelinek presented a pre- liminary communication upon the hurricane-like ston which visited Vienna on the 1gth November. he greatest velocity of the wind was 46°6 Paris feet per second, about noon ; the dimi- nution of barumetric pressure conUmved until 6 »M., when the mercury had fallen 7°17 lines, thy velocity of the wind being 36°5 feet pet second.— Director Tschermak communicated a memoir ou a new salt from Lallstadt. This mineral, to which the author gives the name of Astrakanite, ocews mixed with common salt, anhydrite, acl a mixture consisting chiefly of sodivan sulphate in the Christiua gallery at Llallstadt. 41 forms a bluish layer, the colour being duc to enclosures containing iron, and the crystals, which are very small and occur in druses, being frequently colourless. Its composition is expressed by the formula, MegsQ,, Na SO, 429. su that it t the third natural magnesiuny-sedium stilphate with which we are aciuainted. presented a paper by M. P. Hausenachild, giving an account of he microscopic examinativa of the minerals called Predazzite and Vencanw, By the examination of thin slices of the most homogeneous locking speciniens, the author found that two minerals may be distinguished in thea with certaimty, namely, calcite and brucite.-- Pr. Samuel Stem presented a memoir entitled '* Contrilutians to the theory of orrlinary (net musical) sounds, as an objective character, with reference tu the special requirements of medical diagnosis."—Prof. E. Ludwig presented a paper by himself amd Dr. J, Hein upon the synthesis of hydroxylamine, which, they said, inay be effected by the direct aditition of nascent hydrogen to pure nitrous oxide as follows

melts with great diffeulty, forming a | In composition it ts

We ave glad to hear that steps |

NM. 'Pschermak also |

NO + 18 = NH*%0O. The process consists im passing nitrous oxide through a mixture of tin and hydrochloric acid, freeing the ‘id from tin by sul- phuretted hydrogen, evaporating the filtrate from the sulpkuret ef tin 10 drynes=, washing the residue im cold and dissalving it in hot alcvhol. separating the ammonium chloride with platinum chloride, anc precipitating ibe pure hydvechlorare of hydroxyla- mine by ine itow ether, The analysis and measurement of the crystals thus ubtaied proved their iceutity with bossen’s salt. — The following memoirs were presented, but only their tides are given: By Prof. Hyrtl, ‘On a precorneal vascular net in the human eye,” and ‘On an insular intercalated bene in the parietal) bone ;” and by Prof. B. Lapschin, of Odessa, "On the specific gravity of the water of the Black $ca," and ‘*On the conductibility of cork for heat, and its application to the con- struction of a barometer,” Vrof Julius Wiesner also presented a memoir ot the origin aml increase of Bactria, the results of

which had been communicated to the Academy on the 29th Apyil last,

English—The Monthly Microscopical Journal, December 1869 (Robert Hardwicke).—Chemistry for Schools: C. Haughton Gill (James Walton).—Burton-on-Trent—its History, its Waters, and its Breweries: W. Molyneaux, F.C.S. (Trübner).—Outlines of Chemistry; or, Brief Notes of Chemical Facts: Dr. Odling (Longmans)—Earth and Sea: Louis Figuier (Nelson and Sons).—The Second Table of the Commandments: Dr. Rowland (Longmans)—Heads and Tails: Adam White (Nisbet).—Romance of Natural History, 2 vols.: P. H. Gosse (Nisbet).—Facts and Dates: Rev. A. Mackay (Blackwood).—Physical Ethics: A. Barratt (Williams and Norgate).—Womankind in Western Europe: J. Wright (Groombridge).

Foreign—Les Pierres Précieuses: J. Rambosson.—Histoire des Météors: J. Rambosson.—Leçons sur la Respiration: P. Bert.—Die Blausäure: W. Prever.—Landwirthschaftliche Zoologie: Dr. Giebel. (Through Williams and Norgate.)