New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1882-11-15
LEARNED MEN IN COUNCIL.
urr N,r1oNAI. AcApEMY or sciences.


auYor. ROOD, RENsEN. PETERS AND MAYER
The annual meeting of the National Academy of
isnces was called to order in the classical room OF
iColumbia College yesterday morning at IL O'Clock.
Professor o. c. Marsh. of Yale College, the vice
nresident of the Academy was in the chair, ana
Professor Charles F. Barker of Philadelphia acied
rs secretary Professor Marsh. in opening the meet
ing announced that the session of yesterday morn
ing would be devoted to the reading OF scieh''"e
papers, that there would be business session a,
This morning followed by meeting for the reaulhs
of papers at 10 o'clock and that another session loi
,readings would follow on Thursday morning hio-
fessor Marsh then announced that the first paper
nMean Annual Rainfall" by Professor Eias
Joomis. of Yale College would be read by the sec
r,tarv. Professor Barker. The substance OF the
paper was as follows:
Since the publication Of my map showing the
mean annual rainfall for the world nave 0ota,neu
additional observations from South America, aus
tralia and Central Africa. which have caused me 70
make new map. On our Atlantic coast an a t1
rainfall of at least fifty inches extends IRON iatuu
SO north to latitude 33o south IN tne pdtnOPrI
mart of south America a rainfall OF hfty inches *
tends nearly to the Andes, and there are G,
districts which have rainfall OK seven ~
fnches In Africa there is rain belt OF hIlS uGnes
whose average breadth is ZOO miles, ana WhSh -
annarentIy continuous from ocean TO ocean lheIe
r 80 aytensiye districts where The annual ram
fall exceeds seventy-fye inches In nearly al .ae
ISLANDS OF the East Indian Archipelago the mean
:fi, xceeds seyentv-hye inches We have thus
an equatorial rain-belt amounting 20 az IedSI nv
Inches annually having an average % he con- ~
finuous across all the islands and continents WIN
regard 10 the ocean our knowledge is very limited
A. we recede from the great equstOfiah TaIl-Delt,
~. amount of the rainfall dimlnshes rapidly, with
fhe exception of certain districts OF limited extent
where local causes give rise 10 large rsillSi.
VERY large portions of the globe have an annual
rainfall of less than ten inches, In North America
tnoh region is found In southern Calllornla ana
Arizona and there is q large district about slave
AXE where the annual precipitation IS only ABOUT
Ten inches of water and Is apparently less than tha
amonnt In south America such region is found
IN the west side of the Andes. In Europe there IS
no district having so small rainfall as ten inches,
except in Spain. In Asia there Is such a region
S006 miles long and 1000 broad In the north
eastern part of ASIA there also an extensive region
where tie precipitation scarcely exceeds ten inches
There are also large sFsreIeS q bs m nd fbat
bout onehh part of the entire land surface OF the
0lobe has rainfall less than ten inches, and q stu
larger portion has rain so small as 10 render
sanaess for agricultural purposes, except IN tnose
lInited districts which allow irrigation.
The next paper was by Professor Ira Remsen of
Johns Hopkins University. ION White Phosphorus
This paper only pspsr in name as the Profess
sor made his remarks without notes. de said:
In the course Of some experiments recently it be-
came necessary for to get some pure phosphorus.
Thought that the ordinary form OF the substance
would not answer my purpose: tnouSnt1 cou4o
Improve upon the usual form OF dlstliilng.
Professor Remsen then drew on the blackboard
diagram OF the retorts which be had used He con-
tinued
Thought that we might pure hydrogen. |
aid this passing it into glass retort. contrlved
TO condense the vapOrs more Suddenly III tins way.
ffound that the phosphorus in the receiver after the
operation was in unknown form could not
And any record of it, feared it was the oxide, but
npon examining il found that 1t was not. have
slnce been able to determine the conditions which
bring about this form of phosphorus. think TINS
form depends upon much the same condition as
Professor Rensen then exhibited specimens of
white phosphorus and gave description OF the
forms of apparatus used in producing it. Professor
Young. OF Princeton, followed with short descnp-
ton of a no ifed form of solar eye-plece for use
with large apertures BE had found it necessary
to arrange an eye-piece by which the SUMS rays
would be diminished in power before reaching the
eye shade The heat of the sun was so great that
il split the long prisms. He had obviated this
difficulty in the twentythree inch aperture of the
great telescope at Princeton by all arrangement Of
tubes which conveyed water between the lenses
and thus kept them cool.
INSECTS FROM THE ROCKY MOUNTAINS.
The fourth paper was entitled "On Triassic In
sects from the Rocky Mountains" by Professor
Samuel FL. Scudder, of Harvard. This essay en-
bodied the results of recent researches by Professor
Ecudder in Colorado. The object OF the paper was
to show the weakness of geological evidence taken
from plants 1t gave rise to numerous remarks on
the part of those present all of whom agreed with
The position taken by Professor Scudder. Its sub
stance tOllowst
Last June | examined geological formations near
Fairplay. Col. found fauna and flora OF consider;
able interest. The plants have been pronounced
permian by Leo Lesquereup. The animal remains
Consist almost exclusively Of insects which belong
10 types of far more modern character than any
the palaozOic series has yet disclosed All but one
Dr two belong TO group which, OF all palbozoic
nnsects, has received the most attention. namely,
hhe cockrOaches. While this fact OF the great pre-
ponderance OF cockroaches and the further fact that
The few known genera found IN tins collection have
hitherto been discovered only in carboniferous and
perrnian rocks would lead us at first to refer the
beds in which they occur 10 one OF the paleOzolc
series the presence of the other forms. and even the
characteristics of those which Teferable 10
boniferous aud permian genera, unnstakaDiy point
10 a later origin.
from living species by having five veins IN the wing
Instead of iour. For these ancient forms the name
OF paleOblattar@ has been proposed Eleven out
OF tie seventeen species found at talrplay
belong TO this class. Only four of the eleven
belong TO known species, and one OF these
il doubtful. The average size OF the talrplay pa
iROblatteri8 much less than that OF the pate
ozaie members OF the group. he six species which
40 not belong to the paiaoblatteTi9 show strong
1esemblances to the mesoZolc cOckroaches: Ihey
all have decided mesOzolc aspect and would be al
once considered lriassc or at least Jurasslc Oy any
one familiar with the forms already known from
THESE deposits Only of these species resembles
any OF the paeOblsttariG. This resem bl3nce Is
OF especial interest because ii points out the meth
ods ip which the change from pal3OZolc to mes0-
2Oie forms is made
The facts that have now been brought forward
show that in this locality at tairplay we have an
assembsge OF forms altogether different from any
Thing hitherto found IN the paleozoIc series on the
one hand, OF the Jurassc beds on the other. Ihey
Indicate that the beds III which they belong are
irassc. II this Is true the discovery Will have an
added interest from the fact that little Is now
known Of the plants or insects OF this period.
Professor G. II. +. Peters, Of the Litchfeld OBJ
servatory Hamilton College then presented the
Academy with the first ten numbers Of his astro-
00mlcal charts In he
SAID: