BRITISH ASSOCIATION

Hokitika Guardian, 12 September 1919, Page 2

BRITISH ASSOCIATION

(By Electric Telegraph—Copyright.) rAUSTRALIAN & N.Z. CABLE ASSOCIATION’] LONDON, Sept. 11. The regular .meeting of the British Association is being held at Bournemouth and the addresses of the assembled scientific, commercial and other notables were most interesting.

■ Sir Charles Parsons (inventor of the steam, turbine, and head of the Parsons Turbine Coy.), gave an interesting presidential address. He surveyed the development of new engineering devices during the war.. He particularly referred to new sources of industrial energy, to scientific coal production, and the provision of cheap electricity. Sir Charles Parsons said that before the war there were comparatively few steel electric furnaces in Britain, while there were now 117. These were producing 20,000 tons of steel every month.

There were a number of papers read of Australian and New Zealand interest.

One read by Mr G. W. Walker advocated the setting up of first-rate Seis inology stations in Australia and New Zealand these to co-operate with English experts.

Mr G. Chinnery detailed the evidence gained respecting the conduct of primitive goldmining in Papua. This showed it was carried on by the builders of megalithic monuments.

The Rev. Francis Allen gave evidence regarding tbe genesis of peoples who were the aborigines of the Pacific. The Melanesian, Polynesian) and Australoid stocks,- be said, were represented to-day in tile native populations of America.

Dr Charles Merrier read an interesting paper on the results of eiglityears of experiments in the electrcal treatment of seeds. The increases in corn crops have averaged thirty per cent. The cost of electrification was small, and the process simple. Professor Somerville, in the Presidential address before the Agricultural section, referred to the effects of potash and other manures upon grasslands. Mr Oldershaw emphasised the value of lupins in the cultivation of light lands that are poor in lime. Their value was owing to ,tlie power they had of assimilating free nitrogen. It was claimed that a method had been discovered in Holland whereby all poisons can be extracted from tbe lupin grain, and it can be rendered fit for stock feeding.