■ te y-OJENCB GOSSIP. HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP Foe 1869. HARDWICKE'S Ji4ip4£- Argonauta argo, 170, 171. Ash-buds, 36. Asterionelta Bleakleyi, 193. Attheya decora, 192. Aubrietia deltoides hair, 237. Auliscus sculptus, 197. Aureliu aurita, 53. Auriculated Aurelia, 53. Barren Brome-orass, 130. Bat's Winer, skeleton, 227. Beech-buds, 24. Birds, the Bullfinch, 121. the Heron, 56. the Jay, 225. the Kestrel, 131. the Lapwing;, 78. the Ruff and Reeve, 249. the Short-eaied Owl, 2«6. the Siskin, 37. Bream, scale of, 13. Brumus sterilis, 130. Broscus cephalotes, 141. Buds of various trees, 24-36. Bullfinch, the, 121. Cape Frogs, 48. Carpels of Geranium, 117-119. Cartilage of Petromyzon, 112. Caterpillar of 'Felea, 220. Cephalanthera grandiflora, diagrams of flower, 72. Cereus gem.raceus, 164 12). papillosum, 164 (5). Ceylon Bug, 55. Chcerocampa celerio, 208. Chei'fer Lntreillei, 211, 212. Cheyletus, I. , Egg of, 2. and Cheesemite, 4. , Head of, 3. , Mr. R. Beck's, 5. Cillenum laterale, 140. Circoea lutetiana, abnormal flower, 47. ■ , normal flower, 46. Circulatory system of Dreissena, 89. Cocconeis excentrica, 21)0. Cocoon of Telea, 221. Collecting-case, 16. Comactis viridis, 163 (9). Common Rye-grass, 129. Coscinodiscus nitidus, 195. ovatis, 194. Crab, four-horned, 133. Crustacean, Nameless, 76. Cuckoo-spit larva, proboscis, 82. Cuttle-fishes, 167-172. Dace, scale of, 122. Dendritic Spot on Paper, 52. Dianthus barbatus seed, 107. sinensis seed, 1 06. Diatoms, seaside, 173-205. Digestive System of Dreissena, 90. Diphasia pinaster, 154. pinnata, 153. rosacea, 151, 152. Draba incn7ia hair, 238. Drawing Apparatus, 57. Dreissena pulymorpha, 88. Eel, scale of, 132. Egg of Cheyletus, 2. Entozoon of Labiducera, 95, 96. E/ihydra larva, 51. Episiylis, 54. Epithemia marina, 191. Eschscholtzia Cali/ornica seed, 9- tenuifolia seed, 10. Eupodiscus argus, 198. Falco tinnunculus, 131. Float of lanthina, 22. Flower, Abnormal, of Circeea, VJ. , Normal, of Circaa, 46. Flowers. Abnormal, 58-66. of Foxglove, Abnormal, 58-60. Foot of lanthina, 18, 19, 20. of Obisium, 217, 218.'; Foxglove Flowers, Abnormal, 58, 59. FragiUuria Crotonensis, 81. Fringilla spinus, 37, Frogs from the Cape, 48. Fungiu putellaris, section, 109. Gummurus locusta and Brood, 142. Garden Rocket hair, 235. Garrulus glundarius, 225. Geophilus subterraneus tracheae, 41. Geotriu austrulis, 116. Geranium tnolte carpels, 119. pusitlum cartel*, 11 7. rotundifolium carpels, 118. Gobiofluviuttlis scale, 49. Grummut ophora marina, 203. serpentina, 2»4. Grey Poplar-buds, 31. Gudgeon, scale of, 49. Gymnadenia conopsea, diagram of flower, 74. Gypsophila elegans seed, 105. Hairs of Chelifer, 214-216. Hairs, Vegetable, 231-248. Hatidrys siliquosu, 165. Hazel- buds, 26. Head ot Cheyletus, 3. Head of Lamprey, section, 115. Heron, the, 56. Hieracium Ptlosella hair, 241. Bolcus florets. 127, 128. Honeysuckle flowers, 63. Hornbeam-buds, 25. Horse-Chestnut-buds, 25. Humble Bee at Home, 39. Hydrallmannia falcata, 148. Hypochoeris radicata hair, 236. lanthina communis, 17. exigua, 21. , float of, 22. lingual strap, 23. , foot of, 18, 19, 20. Ideal Section, Pennine Chain, 40. Isthmia enervis, 205. Jay, the, 225. Kestrel, the, 131. Labidncera magna, 92, 93. Lamprey, Head of, 115. , respiratory apparatus, 114. , the Pouched, 1 16. Lapwing, the, 78. Larva of Ephydra, 51. Leuciscus vulgaris scale, 122. Lime-buds, 32. Linaria Cymbalaria hair, 231. Lingual strap of lanthina, 23. Live-box, 84-86. Loligo vulgaris, \J2. Lolium perenne, 129. Lonicera Periclymenum hair, 232. Lychnis dinica seed, 104. Floscuculi hair, 246. Magnetic Stage, 87. Maple-buds, 22. Marsh Foxtail Grass, 125. Mimulus moschata hair, 242. Nameless crustacean, 76. Nautilus, 170, 171. Navicula (Estiva, 178. angulosa, 176. Clepsydra, 182. crucifnrmis, 180. granulata, 173. humerosa, J 74. Lyra, 177. rectangulata, 175. retusa, 1/9- Trevelyana, 181. Nitzschia virgata, 190. vinax, 189. Nose-piece, 15. Oak-buds, 23. Obisium orthodactylum, 219. spermatozoa, 210. Octopus vulgaris, 167. Opium Poppy seed, 6. Orchestia Deshayesii, 138. littorea, 139. Orchis purpurea, diagram of flower, 73- Orobanche caryophyltacea hair, 240. Orthosira punctata, 80. Owl, Short-eared, 206. Papaver samniferum seed, 6. Parasite of Obisium, 213. Peach-flower, abnormal, 62. Pea-crab, 136. Peduncles of Geranium, 120. Pennine Chain, ideal section, 40 VI HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE- GOSSIP. [Dec. 1, 1869. Peritymbia vitisana, 42. Petromyzttn marinus, cells, 111. Phronima sedentnria, 50. Phymactes St. Helena, 163 (4). Pigment- cells, Petromyzon, 113. Pinnotheres pisum, 136. Pisa tetraodon, 133. PlantagO lanceolata hair, 244. Platyxtrmon I'ulifiirnicum seed, 8. Pleurosigma astunrii, 184. — angulutum, 187. Faeciola, 186. lan-eolatum, 185. Plocamium corcineum, 166. Podosira compressa, 202. Poly ccelia profunda, section, 110. Polygula vulgaris hair, 233. Pope, Scale of, 38. P°PPy. Opium, seed, 6. Primula vulgaris hair, 243. Privet Hawk-moth, 207. Proboscis, Cuckoo-spit larva, 82. Pterodactyle, head of, 226. skeleton wing, 229. Pupa of Telea, 222. Pyrrhula vulgaris, 121. Retribution on a Cheyi-etus, 4. Roach, scale of, 12. Rudd, scale of, 11, Sagartia coccinen, 164 (9), rosea, 164 (8). — viduata, 164 (4). Salmon, scale of, 230. Salmo solar scale, 230. trutta scale, 250. Sandhopper. the, 137. Saponana Ca lahrica seed , 102. Scale of Bream, 13. of Dace, 122. Scale of Eel, 132. of Gudgeon, 49. of Pope, 38. of Roach, 12. of Rudd, 11. of Salmon, 230. of Trout, 250. Scrophularia nodosa hair, 241. Sea Anemones, 163, 164. Section-cutter, 14. Seed, Agroxtemma cnronaria, 103. Argemone grandifiora, 7. Dian'hus barbatus, 107. sinensis, 106. Eschscholtziu Califurnica, 9- tenuifolia, 10. Gypsuphila elegans, 105. Lychnis dioica, 104. Opium Poppy, 6. Papaver somniferum , 6. Platystemon Calif ornicum, S. Saponaria Calubrica, 102. Silene alpestris, 98. Armeria, 97. Stelluria holostea, 100. media, 101. Viscaria oeulata, 99. Sepia officinalis, 1 68. 169. ' ovum and embryo, 145. Sertulariella polyzonius, 149. rugosa, 150. Sertularia abietina, 159, 160. argent ea, 161. cupressina, 162. filicula, 158. operculata, 155,156. pumila, 157. Shore-hopper, the, 139. Silene alpestris seed, 98. armeria seed, 97. Silk-moth, American, 223, 224. 144, Silver-striped Hawk-moth, 208. Siskin, the, 37. Skeleton Wing of Pterodactyle, 229. Slender Foxtail Grass, 123. Sphteroma serrutum, 143. Sphinx ligustri, 207 . Spider-crab, four-horned, 133. Spider's foot, 108. Spirorbis Nautiloides, 134, 135. Stage, magnetic, 87. Stelluria holostea seed, 100. media seed, 101. Strix brachyotus. 206. Surirella Capronii, 43, , sections, 45. Sycamore-buds, 34. Symphytum officinale hair, 234. Tulitru* locusta, 137. Telea Po'yphemux, 6" 5, 223, 224. Thuiaria thuia, 146 (7). Tingis ftystricrllus, 55. Toxonideu Gregoriana, 188. Trachea? of Geophilus. 41. Tiudescantia zebrina hair, 245. Tropaolum majus, peloria, 75. Triceratium alternuns, 201. Trout, scale of, 250. Vanellus cristatus, 78. Verbascum Thapsus hair, 239. Vine-insects, 42. Viscaria oeulata seed, 99. Wayfarivg-trbe-buds, 24. White Beam-buds, 21. Wing of Bat, 228. Wych Elm- buds, 33. Zoophytes, Sertulariav, 146-162. January, 1869. Hardwicke's Science-Gossip. THE STOEY OF A PIECE OF COAL. Br J. E. TAYLOR, Hon. Sec. Norwich Geol. Soc, etc. AN any of my lis- teners form any idea of what a mil- lion of years means ? It is very difficult, I grant, but I can- not give any more definite conception of my own great age than by saying I am many millions of years old. You must therefore take it for granted that all this immense lapse of time has occurred since I was born. Be- fore I attained my majority — that is to say, before I became really and positively coal — I had ex- isted in manifold forms, more numerous and varied than the metamorphoses of the butterfly. You cannot hit upou a greater mistake than to suppose I was originally made just what you now see me — a jetty mass of mineral. The doctrine of metempsychosis, said to be held by the Hindoos, would apply almost literally to my own biography. You may trace my career through a hundred different stages, each more widely various than the other. Nay, the process of elaboration through which I have passed is so complex that I may well be forgiven if I have not a clear recollec- tion of it myself. I am English born and bred, notwithstanding the tropical character of my antecedents. In some measure, it may be thought that I hardly partake of English characteristics as regards the climate which affected my earlier career ; but I can assure you I was never once removed from British ground In the distant ages to which I have briefly referred, my recollections go back to waving forests of tree- fern and gigantic club-mosses, as well as to a thick underwood of strange-looking plants. The name now given to this formation by geologists is termed No. 49, the Carboniferous, and you may form some idea of the ages which have flowed away since then by the fact that no fewer than nine subsequent distinct formations and periods occurred. Tbese are known as the Permian, Triassic, Liassic, Oolitic, Cretaceous (or chalk), Eocene, Miocene, Pliocene, and Quater- nary, to say nothing of the epoch comprehending the human race. To make myself still more clearly understood, it is necessary to state that the forma- tions newer than that to which I belong attain a vertical thickness of more than fifty thousand feet ! All this mass was slowly formed by gradual depo- sition along old sea-bottoms, whilst a more than equivalent period of time was taken up in the up- heaving and other processes which have elevated these rocks into their present position ! The climate and geography of Great Britain were very different from what theynow are when I was born. You must imagine a soft balmy temperature, neither too hot nor too cold, and lacking those extremes which at present characterize the seasons. There was no great necessity for extreme heat — rather it was most important to the growth of a luxuriant vegetation to be free from cold. There were few ranges of hills or mountains, for these always cause a refrigeration of the atmosphere by condensing the clouds ; thus hanging the sky with a curtain which shuts off a great deal of solar heat. True, right across what is now central England, there stretched a hilly barrier, which separated two coal-formations going on contemporaneously. Scotland and Wales were also then widely different from what these countries are at present. Instead of the grand, mountainous scenery they now possess, we had long-extended saline mud-flats, thickly studded with trees now extinct, and known to the geologist by the names of Sigillarice, Lepidodendra, and Cata- mites. In fact, all the district now considered as " coal-yielding " was then similarly circumstanced g The entire area had a geographical condition similar to the marine swamps which now fringe the coast- line of the Southern States of America. To these B HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. [Jan. 1, 1S69. the slowly ebbing and flowing tides bad access nearly twice a day. Around the more aged trunks of these extinct trees, standing on a muddy, shallow sea-bottom, so to speak — marine worms clustered, and their coiled tubes are now occasionally found fossilized, along with the petrified vegetation to which they clung when in life. These Spirorbi, as they are commonly termed, are tolerably plentiful in the north of England. It was owing to the semi-marine, semi-terrestrial character of the area on which the luxuriant vegetation of the Carboniferous period grew, that we now find so many fossil mussels and other marine shells imbedded in the same strata. I am told that chemists nowadays have dis- covered only one atom or particle of carbon asso- ciated with every thousand of the other gases forming the atmosphere. The atmosphere of the period when I was born hardly contained more. This small quantum was absorbed by the waving forests into their structure, and thus added to their solid bulk. Day by day, and year by year, each individual tree grew, so that the mass of solidified carbon increased, but without exhausting the original store. This was constantly being furnished by volcanoes, as well as by the lowly animals of my own time. Everything, they say, is composed of minute and cellular parts, and originally my atoms freely floated in the air as so many particles of carbon. This was before I had entered into that combination which made me part and parcel of a living tree. Once having been sucked into the leaf- pores of a Lepidodendron or Sigillaria, I started existence under a new form. I became subject to those unknown laws of vital force which philoso- phers find so great a difficulty in explaining. I had now an active duty to perform, and had to assist in the growth and well-being of the tree in whose bulk I lay. But this did not prevent me from noticing the many strange objects which surrounded me. Human beings there were none, nor did the race to which I am now so useful an auxiliary appear upon the earth's platform for millions of years afterwards. Tree lizards, not very much larger than those which haunt the sunny banks of old England, climbed up and down the sculptured branches of the forest trees, and lived upon the marsh flics and beetles, whose " drowsy hum " was the only sound that broke upon the stillness of these primeval woods. They found a shelter in the hollow trunks of Sigillaria', in association with the pupa; of beetles and other insects. In some places they have been found fossilized together, — a con- served recollection of those bygone times. Great reptiles, much resembling a frog, only as large as a small ox, waddled to and fro over the extensive beaches, and left their enormous hand-like impres- sions in myriads upon the yielding mud. As such they are now found in the flaggy sandstones which compose the strata of the coal formation. Occa- sionally, when overtaken by death, their carcases rotted on the shores, and were imbedded in the sands, to be found in long- subsequent ages in a fossil state. Several species of these gigantic batrachians existed contemporaneously. Very frequently the,salt- water reaches were visited by alligator-like animals, now termed Archtegosaurus, whose bodies were covered by hard, horny scutes or scales, held to- gether much after the manner a slater now adopts when he tiles a house. These reptiles were five and six feet long, and, together with the great frogs I have mentioned, were the principal and most power- ful animals of the age I am speaking of. The atmosphere differed little from its present condition, being neither denser nor more rarified. This you may prove for yourself by the impressions of rain- drops preserved in the Carboniferous sandstones. The great drops were driven by the wind aslant, so that even now there is indicated the very quarter from which the wind blew at the time ! The passing shower over, the sun peeped forth from behind the dark clouds, and his heat baked the mud, and cracked it, just as he does now the bottom of a clayey pond. These sun-cracks were subsequently filled up, sometimes by sand of a different colour, so that they are fossilized as truly as the shells and plants. The same sandstones yet bear the trail- markings which the marine worms left after they had crawled over them when in a soft state. Occa- sionally you may even come across their burrows or holes ; whilst the flagstones also are impressed with ripple-marks left by the retreating tides ! Although the sea-bottom was so shallow in the neighbourhood of the great forests, I should state that many miles further out it gradually shelved deeper, until there was an area where " blue water " was at- tained. Here the sea was fairly alive with animals of all sorts of natural liistory orders and classes. Coral banks, with animals putting forth their beautifully coloured tentacles, more various than the rainbow hues, stretched over many leagues of old Devonian rocks, and, as the area was slowly submerging at the time, their united labours, in the course of ages, produced no small portion of what is now termed the "Mountain Limestone." Shell-fish, allied to the existing nautilus, found in these purer waters, free from land sediment, the essentials of their well- being. In the limestones which their dead shells helped to form there are no fewer than thirty different species of nautilus ! They had relatives termed Goniatites (long since died out, for they did not possess the hardiness of their congeners), whose chambers were fashioned in a zigzag or angular manner. Then came another group of shell-fish, equally near by blood, the Gyroceras, whose coils did not lie so closely together', as those of the nautdus. One other class of cephalopods are now known as Orthoceratites. They were also chambered, but Jan. 1, 1S69.] HABDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. were straight instead of being coiled. The lime- stones of this age are crowded with immense numbers both of species and individuals belonging to these genera. Of them all the Orthoceras was perhaps the most dreaded, partly on account of its size (some of their shells being three feet long, and as thick as a man's leg), and partly on account of their voracious habits. Fancy them, as I have frequently seen them, with their last chamber sur- rounded with a fringe of long arms, each of which was furnished with suckers that would indicate no slight danger to bathers nowadays ! Hundreds of thousands of these creatures existed. Indeed, they were the scavengers of the Carboniferous seas, eat- ing up everything that came in their way, and perhaps not particular about preying upon a weakly brother when appetite prompted them. In Scot- land, in many parts of the limestones formed at this time, the strata, for hundreds of feet in thickness, are composed of hardly anything else but the ac- cumulated shells of Orthoceratites ! At the bottom of the sea in which these cepha- lopods lived and flourished there were gathered together immense shoals of a peculiar shell called Spirifera, now extinct. Scores of species of this particular shell lived and died there, for it was the period when the family attained its maximum of existence. In fact, they occupied the place in those earlier seas that cockles and mussels do now. Their anatomy was very peculiar, each shell-fish being furnished with a peculiar coiled-up apparatus which it could protrude so as to produce currents that brought to it its food. Small, but beautiful crusta- ceans, of a race then fast dying out, still swarmed the waters. Formerly they were known as Trilobites — those of this age are christened Phil- lipsia. Their family had exercised a sort of mollus- can oligarchy during previous geological epochs. But the Carboniferous period saw the last of the race, and its limestones became their tomb. I am told that the geologist knows few fossils more beautiful than these little trilobites. The cream, coloured matrix in which they are imbedded, and the perfect and ornate characters of the fossils them- selves, cause them to be greedily collected and much admired. In the same sea were hundreds of species of shells besides, all of which thronged together to enjoy a common life ; but to mention them separately would be to convert my story into a tedious detail. I should be lacking greatly in memory, however, if I were not to mention a most abundant and peculiar family, allied to the star-fishes and sea-urchins of the present day — I mean the Crinoids. The common feather-star of recent seas most resembles the upper parts of these extinct animals. But the tentacles of the latter were longer, whilst each was subdivided into branches. When at rest, these closed around the body like the petals of a tulip. Again, each was fastened to a jointed stem, which anchored itself by roots to the sea-bottom. Submarine forests of these crinoids covered many square miles of the rockier portions, and their graceful outlines and motions in the water, as well as their bright colours, were sufficient to induce admiration. In Derby- shire the limestone is almost entirely composed of their broken and aggregated stems. As these dead shells and other animal remains accumulated along the ocean-floor to form a lime- stone that should afterwards be easily identified by their imbedded forms, almost every individual was coated by minute sea-mats. No Honiton lace of the present day ever excelled in grace and elegance that which belonged to these lowly animated beings. In the solid masses of the Carboniferous limestone you may now fiud them festooning shells and corals ; and few objects afford greater delight to the geologist when he comes across them. The single torals also — that is to say, those which did not grow in reefs, but lived solitary on the sea-bottom —were not inferior in beauty to any now existing. Their fringe of gorgeously coloured tentacles made them ap- pear like so many animated flowers ; and thus the dark caves of ocean then bore many a flower that was born to blush unseen. Slowly, through countless myriads of years, the Carboniferous limestone in- creased to its present thickness, principally by the accumulation of dead shells ! The sea-water con- tained more or less of carbonate of lime, which the shell-fish absorbed in order to build then - dwellings, just as the trees did carbon that they might form wood. In this way the minute particles became ultimately condensed into rock masses. Meantime, the water was animated by little creatures that would have evaded human eyesight, although their forms were not a whit less elegant and graceful than those of their larger neighbours. Their tiny shells fell to the sea-bottom, and there formed a bmy mud, which acted as a fine cement for the bigger fossils. As time passed on, the sea actually became shallower, by reason of the vast numbers of organ- isms lying on its floor. The weight of sea-water pressed them into a solid limestone rock, such as you now behold it. Can you wonder, after this, that such a deposit should take a high polish when worked, or that the marble thus produced should be speckled and marked by so many strange forms as you see it in your mantel- pieces or pillars ? In the shallower waters of the sea, and sometimes even in the marine lagoons where the trees grew, multitudes of strangely-clad fishes swarmed. The largest of these, the Megalichthys, or " great fish/' possessed characters which linked it to the reptile family. Its teeth and jaws rendered it a formidable assailant, and its powerful build and rapidity in swimming made it the terror of its neighbours. In fact, the "great fish" occupied a place among the fishes of its time similar to that held in modern b 2 HAftDWICKE'S SCIENCE- GOSSIP. [Jan. 1, 1869. rivers by the pike ; its size, also, averaging about the same. Time, however, would fail me to enumerate the various kiuds of fish that lived in the same epoch that I did. From four or five feet in length, to thousands no bigger than the common stickleback, all were covered with enamel plates instead of horny scales. Indeed, homy-scaled fishes did not come into existence for ages afterwards. In many parts of Lancashire, in the shales which overlie the coal-seams, these shining enamelled plates may be turned up by the thousand. The smaller fishes haunted the shallower lagoons overhung by club- mosses and ferns, and the dim light that broke through these was often reflected from the sheeny mail of Palaonisci, as they wantoned and gambolled, unaware of " great fish " lying near. When the muddy bottoms of these reaches and lagoons became afterwards hardened into coal-shale, the dead fishes lying there, whose hard covering had protected them from decay, were entombed and passed into a fossil state. But what tongue can describe the vegetable wonders of the forests where I grew ? The woods were so thick, and the gloom so impenetrable in consequence, that it required a keen eye to make out individual peculiarities. Fancy Lepidoclendra four or five feet in diameter, and as much as fifty or sixty feet high, and yet nothing but gigantic " club-mosses " ! Their long leafy ribbons waved like the leaves of the aspen, and, where these had fallen off, the bark was most gracefully and geome- trically reticulated from their attachment. Thirty or forty different sorts of these immense club-mosses existed at the same time, each characterized by different leaves and bark. The gigantic Sigillaria were nearly related to them, the main difference being their longer leaves, straighter stems, and the larger marks made on the bark. The roots, also, of this latter class of trees were very peculiar, and stretched through the mud on every side, seeking a firm foundation for the tree to which they belonged. Shooting many feet above these great club-mosses were huge " mares' -tails," as easily distinguished from the rest as the wavy poplar nowadays is from oak and elm. These are called Catamites, and truly they were extraordinary objects. You have only to magnify the little "mares'-tails" growing in ditches until you see them fifty and sixty (or more) feet high, and you would have the best restoration of these Calamites that could be imagined. There were many species, characterized by fluted joints, and by difference of foliage. Here and there, but more sparsely scattered, were graceful tree-ferns, whose former fronds had left great scars on each side the trunk. The higher grounds were occupied by peculiar species of pine, bearing great berries as big as crab-apples. The humid morass was densely covered by a thick underwood of smaller ferns, which grew there in rank abundauce. The equable temperature, rich soil, and humid atmosphere were just the needful accessories to the growth of vegeta- tion of the class I have mentioned. It consequently flourished at a rate of which we can form but a poor idea from the present. The accumulated trees, ferns, &c, were very great, and these gathered in immense quantities over the entire area. I men- tioned before that there was a slow sinking or sub- mergence going on. Well, occasionally, the tides brought up silt and strewed it over the decomposing vegetation. In fact, many of the forests were actually buried thus, and their trunks are frequently met with standing erect in solid sandstone rock. But though the covering-up of the vegetation pre- vented the liberated gases from escaping, it also obstructed for a time the growth of other trees. The latter could not well flourish on sand-banks, and so they were limited to conditions elsewhere similar to those I have mentioned. But as time elapsed, the old circumstances returned. Another forest grew on the site of the older, to be buried up in its turn. During countless ages this alternate growth and covering-up went on, until in some places, as in the South Wales coal-field, there are no fewer than one hundred different seams of coal ! After this vegetation had been thus collected, chemical changes began to take place. The mass heated and turned black, just as a stack of hay does now when it has been packed in a damp state. By- and-by, it was transmuted into a pulpy condition, wherein almost all traces of vegetable structure be- came lost. It afterwards changed into a solid sub- crystalline mass, and obtained the jetty, semi-cubical character it now presents. As many of the tissues of coniferous trees contain more or less of silex, which is indestructible, it follows that when coal is burned, this drops out of the grate as a white ash. Wheu the microscope is applied to it, the peculiar spiral and dotted vessels of these ancient trees are plainly visible. But notice the associations which cling to a piece of coal ! It represents a more solid condition of carbon than is to be found in mere wood. And here I should state that though various conditions of fossil fuel are met with, from green wood to culm and anthracite, their vegetable origin is never once lost sight of; whilst chemistry steps in with an easy statement of how these changes occurred! The ancient vegetation of the Coal period grew by virtue of the stimulus of the sun -light. The heat and light induced growth, and thus even a piece of coal represents so much fossil sunshine t And now, when men light their fires or manufacture their gas, they are but setting free the light and heat of the suu which poured down on the old Carboniferous forest, and were stored up by the vegetation in their tissues. Nay, more, botanists will tell you that the three primary colours of light are sure to be developed at some time or another in the history of every plant or tree— in the blue aud Jan. 1, 1869.] HARDWICKE'S SCIEN CE -GOSSIP. yellow which form the green of the leaves, and in the red of the fruit or russet of the bark. Just so with the fossil vegetation termed coal. The very- aniline colours which are obtained from coal tar are nothing more or less than the restoration of the primary colours which the ancient vegetation stored up from the light ! Such is a portion of my history, briefly sketched; but the broad traces of design manifested in my preparation are too palpable to be overlooked. The age in which I was born was a special one, like to none other which went before or came after ; and it is to me that modern progress is indebted. In my mass is stored up a . force that saves the wear and tear of human muscle and sinew, that does away with the fearful toil which makes simple slaves of men, and enables them to gain daily bread by easier means. But through the vast ages during which I have been silently stowed away, plutonic disturbances have repeatedly broken through and cracked the solid strata, and have thus brought them to the surface to enable men to work the coal they contain. Meantime life in its manifold phases has never once been absent ; whilst its up- ward progression culminated in a being endowed with moral and mental as well as physical perfec- tions, and it was for him and his kind that I was specially prepared, to surround him with the means of social happiness and comfort, and to enable him to rise higher in the scale of intellectual being. CHEYLETL* THESE arachnids, some species of which, ac- cording to the " Micrographic Dictionary," are found in books and museums, are thus described in that work: — "Rostrum prominent, palpi thick, resembling arms, and falciform at the ends, antennal forceps (mandibles?) didactylous."t My acquaintance with them began in the early part of December 1866, when I was searching in a cellar for microscopic curiosities, chiefly Podurae. To the naked eye they appeared as little orange- coloured mites % on the surface of the damp wood and amid the spiders' webs, &c.§ A lens revealed something of their outline, and I thought I recog- nized certain characteristics of the creature so ably described by Mr. Richard Beck in the Journal of Microscopical \Science as "a new species of acarus," whose agamic reproduction offered an interesting field for study. Accordingly I eagerly collected all the specimens I could, amounting to about eight, and prepared to watch them in confine- ment. Like Mr. Beck, I soon found that the Cheyletus was partial to a diet of cheese-mites ; so * Read at the Quekett Microscopical Club, 23 Oct., 1868. f Micrographic Dictionary. J Possibly the species is new. § [Cheyletus venustissimus (Koch.) is an orange species found in stables, &c, which this somewhat resembles. — Ed.] in a supply of these my captives were speedily indulged. After coursing round and round their prisons, seeking in vain for a means of escape, the Cheyleti at last settled down to a quiet life, dividing their time between satisfying their appetites and laying eggs. Both these processes were extremely curious, and displayed a degree of intelligence which to me seemed surprising in so minute a creature. The hungry Cheyletus would start forth from its hiding-place in the cell, the first pair of legs (which, by the way, in some species are never used to walk upon) extended as if groping. As I cannot discover any eyes in the creature, I am led to conclude that this is the sole function of the first pair of legs. Their branched structure favours this inference. By-and-by, after poking them into various holes and corners, they would touch a Fig. 1, Cheyletus, x 30. moving cheese-mite ; I say moving, because if the cheese-mite remained still, it seemed to escape the notice of the Cheyletus altogether, even though it were repeatedly touched by these groping organs. But if it moved, the Cheyletus actively turned itself in that direction, placing its head at right angles to the cheese-mite's body, and lowering it towards the mite's legs ; then it suddenly seized hold of a leg with the mandibles and falces, the former piercing, and the latter holding it steady. Having made an aperture in the skin of the mite, the Cheyletus pro- ceeded to suck into its own body the contents of that of its prey. With a two-third inch objective the passage of the fluids by constant jerks down the leg of the mite, and into the Cheyletus could be clearly seen. Unless greatly disturbed, it would not relinquish its hold till its appetite was satisfied, but it would carry or drag the mite with it as it retired from suspected danger. Whether the bite of the Cheyletus is venomous to the cheese-mite, is an open question— Mr. Beck thinks it is venomous. Anyhow, the mite ceases to move in about a second after it is bitten, doubling up its legs immediately, HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. [Jan. 1, 18G9. as if paralyzed. After the meal is despatched and the shrivelled-up skin of the mite is cast away, the Cheyletus returns to the spot in the cell which it has appropriated as its home, and prepares to deposit an egg. Before and after doing this, it is at great pains to spin threads (apparently from its mouth) crossing each other in various directions at one point, to prevent the egg rolling away from the selected spot, and also to afford the young Cheyletus, when hatched, some slight protection. The young (as with acari hi general) have only six legs, and they remain, for some little time after leaving r the egg, under the shelter of the silken cords which formed its support before it burst. The cheese-mites that were enclosed in the cell with the adult Cheyleti, being hunger-pressed, commenced their depredations on the eggs of their Fig. 2. Egg of Cheyletus, § in. and A eye-piece. enemies, and were so successful in this under- taking that from the early part of December till the end of January, when the mites were in much diminished force, not one of the eggs of the Cheyleti, though many were laid, was suffered- to hatch. They all disappeared under the mandibles of the cheese-mites, whose voracity till then I was not well acquainted with. One even had the temerity to attack an adult Cheyletus, and was successful in the attempt. Somehow it got round to the rear of its enemy, and, having thus obtained the advantage, it made the most of its opportunity, by climbing up and then cutting furrows in the unfortunate prisoner's back, and transferring the fragments of viscera to its own interior economy, till at last the Cheyletus gave in, and submitted to its fate. After the captor had glutted itself, it left the prey quivering in agony, and waddled off. When I took another glance, two hours afterwards, five other cheese-mites were busily occupied clearing away the remains of the feast, and they steadily persisted till nothing but the horny feet and mandibles re- mained. These they rejected ; and I observe they always leave these parts uneaten after a cannibal feast, which is not an unfrequent occurrence in the life of our friend Acarus domesticus. About the middle of February the eggs of the Cheyleti were hatching too rapidly for the cheese- mites to keep down the race effectually, and it was most interesting to witness the early development of ferocity towards cheese-mites in the young Chey- leti. They would attack individuals much larger than themselves by gripping the cheese-mite's leg fiercely, and keeping hold long enough to obtain some slight nutriment from the juicy prey. In almost all cases, however, a few kicks compelled Fis 3. Head of Cheyletus ; mandibles holding leg of Cheese-mite, \ in. obj. the young tyrant, whose strength was not equal to its desires, to relinquish its hold very soon. An hour or two afterwards it would try again, and suc- cessfully obtain some refreshment after a similar struggle. Thus these little mites prolonged their existence, and gradually grew larger. The conduct in confinement of this Cheyletus, which, from comparison with Mr. Beck's drawings, I take to be a distinct species from that he describes, is probably just the same in its natural state. I generally notice it in the dark cellar alluded to, either in some crevice in certain pieces of wood, or protected by an old forsaken spider's web ; and in its neighbourhood I observe, often in considerable numbers, an active species of mite, certainly not a cheese-mite, but probably the species figured in Hogg's book on the microscope as a flour-mite. Occasionally I have caught a Cheyletus in the act of making a meal off one of these. But it seems to me that the Cheyletus is by no means restricted in its diet to one species of acarus, for in confinement I have observed it devouring several. Not long ago a person called my attention to a large birdcage, which was much infested by the bird -mite (Derma?iyssus avium). A close ex- amination of the nests of that creature revealed a mass of mites of all sizes, their cast skins and eggs, Jan. 1, 1869.] HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. and also numerous Cheyleti, Avhich bad so freely imbibed tbe contents of the bodies of tbe Der- manyssi as to acquire tbeir colour, — a very deep red, almost black. These remarks would be extremely incomplete if no allusion were made to the species of Cheyletus that Mr. R. Beck described, and which I have lately been fortunate enough to find. The three or four specimens which came in my way had taken up their abode on the cover of a book that had lain in a cupboard for about a year undisturbed. They were each sitting on the top of a small heap of eggs in various stages of development, some being already hatched, and some only just laid. At short dis- tances off, also, on all sides, there were numerous cast skins of the creature, and discarded remnants of unlucky acari that had fallen a prey to them. Fig. 4. Retribution on a Cheyletus by a Cheese-mite. The most remarkable and interesting discovery in connection with this Cheyletus was the fact that he obtained several generations from the first indi- vidual, without the intervention of a male, leaving the question, "whether the creature is really her- maphrodite, or whether, as with Aphides, one act of fertilization by the male produces an indefinite series of generations ? " to be decided by some expert microscopic physiologist in the future. He says, " On July 10th of this year, a young acarus of this species was taken from a trap, in which there was only a mature female; it was completely isolated, and on the 29th of the same month it laid eggs, which hatched on the 4th of August. One of these on the day it was hatched was removed to a trap, and also completely isolated ; by the 13th of September it had laid eggs, and some had hatched. On the 19th of September, two of the young from the last-mentioned trap were separated and secured. Since then, one of these specimens was killed ; the other laid eggs, which hatched on the 29th of December, and one of these young ones is still alive, but isolated in the same way as its pre- decessors. " The securing a succession of three generations, including some accidents, has with me extended over a period of about five months, and I am quite prepared to admit that the proof of agamic repro- duction in this acarus would have been more satisfactory if continued through a longer period ; but after reading Professor Huxley's paper on the Agamic Reproduction of Aphis, in part of which he states that c in Myriapoda and Arachnida the Fig. 5. Mr. R. Beck's Cheyletus. process is not known,' I have thought that the few facts I have just given were of sufficient value to bring before your notice." * This Cheyletus has shorter legs than the other that I have alluded to in the early part of my notes ; it has a smoother skin, and its palpi and head are much larger relatively to the rest of its body. It also is of a paler yellow ; but it is possible that the colour may be greatly influenced by its diet. The first pair of legs are more highly developed as organs of locomotion than in the other species, but it appears, notwithstanding, to be less given to roam- ing about. As it has been in my possession but a few days, I have not been able to verify the obser- vations of the distinguished microscopist I have quoted; but at some future time I may be able to communicate further information. S. J. MTntire. * Journal of Microscopical Science. HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. [Jan. 1, 1S69. FRESH-WATER PLANARLE. rpHESE little Hat-worms, common as they are, -*- have been little noticed among the numerous objects which come under the aquarium-keeper's eye ; and, with the exception of Mr. Kay Lankester's paper in the Popular Science Review, I can find no systematic account of their habits. I have there- fore set down the following disjointed notes of my own, in the hope of suggesting a more extensive history to others who have greater facilities for ob- servation than I possess. The Planaria?, which are included in the class of Plat-worms (Platyelminthes), and are members of the order Tushellasia, may be found abundantly in our streams and ponds, either gliding about or clinging in a quiescent state to the inferior surfaces of stones, water-lily leaves, &c. In size they vary from nearly an inch in length to a mere speck, and their colouring presents different tints, — rufous, orange, white, black, and olive green. Locomotion is effected by a continuous over gliding, similar to that of the Bubble- shell (Pkysa fontinalis), but swifter. The white varieties, which are far more sensitive to touch than their coloured congeners, will, when alarmed, contract and relax their bodies violently in the attempt to progress like a leech, but, though they can proceed in this way, no true sucking-disc is present. Apropos of the sensitive- ness of the Planarise, they often fall foul of the Hydra?, but seem nowise incommoded by the contact, though sometimes escaping with difficulty from the grasp of the tentacles. Like many molluscs, these creatures will frequently launch themselves on the surface of the water with the ventral aspect upper- most. When thus travelling, any disturbance of the water will send them tumbling down; and I have often seen them break their fall, or even remain suspended by means of a delicate thread. This cord is probably spun, as Dalyell and others mention spinnarets as present in some species ; but it may be due merely to the mucous secretion which covers the body and causes the fingers to adhere slightly after handling a Planaria. They are active night and day ; but if the weather be cold they contract themselves and cling to sheltered stones or bury themselves in the ooze. In the absence of such shelter they suspend themselves from the surface of the water, much as the hydra is wont to do, by hollowing the ventral aspect into a kind of boat. The Black Planarians may be found in cold weather huddled together in great numbers and in almost any water ; for they are by no means particular in the latter respect, and will bear changing from fresh to putrid water without injury. I have not ob- served, however, that the fresh-water species enter the brackish water at the mouth of the same river ; and on transferring some individuals from fresh to slightly brackish water they apparently lost all power of locomotion, feebly erecting themselves on either extremity and writhing about. They were dead on the expiration often minutes ; and, curiously, they became tough and shrivelled like shreds of leather, though naturally of a semi-gelatinous consistency. In common with the hog-louse {Asellus) and the fresh-water shrimp (Gammarus), the Planaria plays the role of scavenger. A dead mollusc is speedily black with feasters ; and on one occasion 1 found them attending the funeral of a relative, when, the orthodox " baked meats " not being forthcoming, they devoured their deceased friend. At another time a living stickleback was attacked. The fish in question was affected with a disease in the form of white glandular swellings. Being placed for a few minutes in a jar containing Planarise, an individual of the black variety (Polycelis nigra) fixed itself on one of the excrescent swellings ; nor was the fish, though evidently troubled by its presence, able to shake it off. I presently pushed the worm off, whereupon a thin stream of blood issued from a wound visible as a slight puncture on the ball. Having left the fish for a short time, I found it on my return covered with Planarians and, if not exactly sucked dry, at least minus its natural fluids. The aliment of these creatures is received into the stomach through a suctorial pharynx, which is cap- able of extension, and serves also for the ejection of the non-assimilated food. The latter falls as white flosculent matter. In one specimen, which I cut transversely, this pharynx remained hanging to one of the halves of the body in an extended state, and did not fall off for about ten days, when doubtless a new organ had been formed. It is well known that the Planaria; rival the Hydra; in their susceptibility of reproduction by artificial division ; but the power of spontaneous fission possessed by them is yet hardly proved. I have cut many both longitudinally and transversely, and severed them partially or wholly, and they usually formed perfect animals, but I have not witnessed an instance of spontaneous separation ; nevertheless the white species (Planaria lactea), after being partially crushed, will discard the wounded portion, and supply its place by a fresh growth. The same species, if the frontlet be slit so as to form two heads, presents a strange sight, each head striving to pursue a separate course, which is mostly diametically opposed to that of the other. A slight sketch of the characteristics of the com- moner species may be found in the " Micrographic Dictionary," where, in addition to the black and white varieties, a dark grey species (P. torva) and a dusky-brown species (P. brunned) are mentioned. These are essentially similar in habits to the Black Planaria, but are more locally distributed. Besides these I have found several of an olive colour, which Jan. 1, 1SC9.] HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. are of large size, very broad in proportion to the length, and show a rudely dendritic " water- vas- cular" system. This variety is much less active than the above-mentioned, and far less abundant. Like the "White Planaria, it has the habit of pucker- ing its body into folds when at rest. It has been a matter of doubt whether the Planariae possess the faculty of sight, although they exhibit eye-spots varying in number from two to sixteen, and even more. I incline to think they do derive some aid from these eyes in their progress. In a jar in which my Planariae are kept, the weeds hang above a large stone, up which the worms crawl, and, immediately lifting up their bodies on the posterior extremity, they pass on to the over- hanging weed without pausing or feeling about for a hold ; thus proving that they are conscious of the presence of the weed, though it is nearly half an inch above them. A. Hakt Evebett. ELORAL GIANTS. THE two largest flowers in the world hold very distinct places in the vegetable kingdom; inasmuch as one is a water-plant with leaves pro- portionally large, the other a parasite on tree trunks, without any leaves at all. In short, the one is the representative giant of aquatic, the other of land plants. The aquatic is the elegant Victoria regia (the Irupe or water-plate of the natives of Guiana, the Royal Water-lily), which for beauty, size, and sweetness of scent stands without a rival. Its enormous flowers, measuring not less than 15 inches across, open each evening, of a pure white, but gradually assume a pink hue, diffusing, as they mature, a delicious odour. As is the case with our own water-lilies, the flowers are accompanied by several floating leaves, each 5 or 6 feet in diameter : but these leaves, to meet the necessities of the case, are of a very peculiar construction : the edges are turned upwards, forming a ridge 3 or 4 inches high the whole way round, giving the leaf the appearance of a huge platter. The lower surface, which is of a purplish-red colour, is traversed in every direction by stout projecting ribs, strengthening the material of the leaf to an incredible extent. This glorious plant, an inhabitant of the Amazon and some of its affluents, was first discovered by a German traveller, Thaddeus Haenke, in 1S01; it was soon after seen by Bonpland, but was first described by Poppig in 1S32, and named by him Euryale Amazonica. Five years later Sir R. Schom- burgk again fell in with it in the river Berbice, and from the examination of specimens sent home by him it was removed by Professor Lindley from the before-named genus and re-named Victoria regia. Schomburgk describes so graphically his feelings on first encountering this stately plant, that I cannot resist inserting the passage : — " While contending with the difficulties that nature opposed in different forms to our progress up the river Berbice, we arrived at a point where the river expanded and formed a currentless basin. Some object on the southern extremity of this basin attracted my attention. It was impossible to form any idea of what it could be ; and animating the crew to increase the rate of their paddling, we were shortly afterwards opposite the object that had raised my curiosity— a vegetable wonder ! All calamities were forgotten ; I felt as a botanist, and felt myself rewarded : a gigantic leaf, from 5 to 6 feet in diameter, salver-shaped, with a broad rim, of a light green above and a vivid crimson below, resting on the water. Quite in character with the wonderful leaf was the luxuriant flower, consisting of many hundred petals, passing in alternate tints from pure white to rose and pink. The smooth water was covered with the blossoms." Sir Robert has himself told me the story in a similar strain, and has mentioned how he has seen large heavy water-birds standing, three or four together, on the broad leaves, supported by the net- work of ribs on the lower surface.* The other giant, Rafflesia, has none of the graces which distinguish the lovely Victoria: it is note- worthy, however, both for its enormous size and for the extraordinary circumstance that the solitary flower constitutes the whole plant. There is literally neither stem, branch, leaf, nor in fact any organ whatever, except the flower itself and the rootlike processes by which it is attached to the trunk of the tree on which it grows and by whose juices it is nourished. Let the reader imagine a great dull red corolla fixed to the side of a tree — generally some species of Cissus — undistinguished by a stem and unrelieved by leaf or verdure of any kind, and he will have some notion of this singular production of the islands of the Indian Archipelago. Clifton. W. W. Spicek. Local Names, whether of birds, beasts, or fishes, and of all vegetable organisms, will be of service if sent either to Mr. James Britten, of High Wycombe, or Mr. Robert Holland, of Mobberley, Knutsford, Cheshire. * It is worth recalling to mind that the late Sir J. Paxton, the architect of the Great Exhibition building-, 1851, borrowed his plan of construction from the leaf of the Victoria. He says : " It was here (Chatsworth) that this singularly beau- tiful aquatic flowered for the first time in this country, on Nov. 9, 1£-19. You will observe that Nature was the engineer in this case. If you examine this and compare it with the drawings and models, you will perceive that Nature has pro- vided it with longitudinal and transverse girders and sup- porters, on the same principle that I, borrowing from it, have adopted in this building." 10 HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. [Jan. 1, 1S69. ASSOCIATION POR THE PROTECTION OP SEA-BIRDS ON THE ENGLISH COAST. IT is well known that the English coast, on some of its loftiest cliffs and boldest headlands, has from time immemorial been the favourite haunt— during the breeding season— of a variety of gulls and other sea-birds; and so long as railways, steamers, aud other means and motives of locomotion did not invade their privacy, they were secure from all but those smaller chances of loss arising from the occasional visit of a sportsman or a tourist. Those days of seclusion and security are now, unhappily, among the things of the past; and a systematic destruction of sea-bird life has become so completely the abnormal state of things that it is felt that, unless steps be immediately taken to protect them from harm— and, if possible, secure them from molestation — during the incubating period, by some stringent legislative enactment, there will soon be no birds left on the English coast. It was recently stated in the leading journal that one person alone had a contract for 10,000 birds, the wings being largely used as an article of com- merce ; it seems, however, to be quite overlooked— or, if foreseen, to be a matter of indifference— that, even in an economical point of view, the supply must soon be followed by scarcity, with no source left to which to look for its possible renewal. There are other grounds, however, of more im- perial interest than the mere decoration of female attire, upon which an appeal may and must now be made on behalf of the sea-birds of Old England. It is understood to have been already proved before the Manx authorities, in procuring a special Act for the Isle of Man, that the cry of the birds in foggy weather will more effectually warn the seaman of his danger as he approaches the rock-bound coast, than either the fog-bell or the beacon-light could do; while the fisherman, earning his honest liveli- hood among the finny tribes of the deep, is often guided where to cast his nets, or where to drop his line, by the hovering of the sea-birds over the tbickest of the shoal. Other arguments might be adduced why these birds should have the fostering care of our country's laws, instead of being left to what must otherwise be their speedy and cruel fate ; a plea might be put in hi favour of that which constitutes, to every lover of the beautiful, one of the charms of the wildest parts of our coast scenery; but it is hoped that enough has been said to warrant the publication of this ad- dress, inviting co-operation and support for an asso- ciation, the object of which is to endeavour to carry an Act through Parliament, in the ensuing session, for the purpose of preventing the destruction of sea- birds during the breeding season. The following facts and figures were communicated by Commander H. H. Knocker, R.N., to Land and Water, and will show the necessity for prompt action. It takes only "the Yorkshire coast-line between Scarborough and Bridlington, a distance of about IS miles, and which includes Piley, Speeton, Bempton, and Flamborough, North and South. The lowest estimate of numbers has been taken, that there may be no charge of exaggeration." Time which the birds are on the coast (say from the middle of April to the 10th of August), llOjdays. Say 25 boats daily (Scarborough, Piley, Plambo- rough, Bridlington), with 2 guns in each boat (many take 4 or".,6), will make 50 guns ; then 15 guns on shore" (Mr. Dobson, guumaker, has let out himself as many as 21 per day) gives a total of 65 guns. Allowing 15 birds to be shot or wounded per gun, this will give 975 birds per day, or 107,250 for the season. Add to this number 12,000 birds per season destroyed by professional bird-killers, and we have a total of 119,250 birds killed for pleasure and gain. Take also into calculation the egg -collectors, and compute them at 8, each of which would collect 100 eggs per day for 42 days, and we have a total of 33,600 eggs taken annually. Allowing that two-thirds of the birds shot have young ones or eggs, this gives 79,500 young birds or eggs lost by their parents being destroyed. This does not include the numerous ones lost when the birds are frightened off the rocks, and sweep off the young or eggs they are sitting on. We then have 107,250 birds destroyed by pleasure parties, 12,000 birds destroyed for gain, 33,600 eggs taken, 79,500 young birds starved to death or eggs lost. 232,350 birds and eggs shot, wounded, die, and taken in the breeding season, or between the middle of April and early in August. Those who wish to join the association are requested to send their names and addresses to one or other of the honorary secretaries — viz., the Rev. H. P. Barnes, the Vicarage, Bridlington ; and Mr. Harland, Bridlington, Yorkshire. A subscription of five shillings or upwards con- stitutes membership. THE PAST YEAR, 1868. AS one of the objects of Science-Gossip is to record the variations which each year pre- sents, a few observations on the past season, in addition to those which have been abeady recorded, may not be out of place. In the spring of last year I referred to the variegated leaves which had even then become noticeable from their frequent occurrence; and I may remark, in passing, that the variegated elder, which I then mentioned, bad its later leaves of the usual colour, although the earlier ones were green Jan. 1, 1869.] HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 11 and yellow until the end of the season. As the year •went on, these variegated leaves became more re- markable ; so much so that, were I to give a list of all that I have observed, I should enumerate nearly a hundred species. Perhaps the most ornamental was a plant of the Ribwort Plantain {Plantago lanceolate?) which I found near Knutsford : each leaf had a broad lohite — not yellow — border, throw- ing up the green centre with great effect. At Llanfairfechan, North Wales, I found a plant of Silverweed {Potentilla anserina) with the leaflets half yellow and half green. Doubtless many readers will call to mind additional examples. Again, the general drought which prevailed in the summer months produced a curious effect upon the autumn vegetation. We shall notice, almost every season, that a few odd plants of certain species will put forth a second crop of blossoms in the autumn ; but I have never observed this second crop so general as it was last year. While in Cheshire, at the end of September, I noticed that the Meadow Crowfoot {Ranunculus acris) was every- where coming into flower ; and on my return to Wycombe the same occurrence was equally conspicuous. The Dogwood (Cormis sanguinea) flowered twice ; how many times the honey- suckle blossomed I am quite unable to say ; certainly three, probably four. The Marsh Marigold {Call ha palustris) and Wood Stitchwort (Stellaria nemorum) were in flower at Mobberley at the end of Sep- tember ; the Garlic Mustard [Alliaria officinalis) blossomed again, in October, at Wycombe ; and a turnip-field near Great Marlow was in the middle of November almost filled with Erysimum cheiran- tho'ides and Penny Cress (Thlaspi arvense), just coming into bloom. These, and many other instances, suggest that a complete second crop was produced, the first having seed sufficiently early to allow of such an occurrence. As to monstrosities and malformations, they have been unusually abundant ; but an abler hand than mine has undertaken to describe them. Many aquatic plants, deprived of what would seem their natural element, have, contrary to what might have been expected, flourished most luxuriantly. I first noticed this near Aylesbury in July, where the Arrowhead [{Sagittaria sagittifolia) was growing in large masses in the almost dried-up bed of a stream. Water-lilies (Nymphaa alba and Nuphar luted) were similarly benefited by this change of circumstance. Mr. Holland states that Utricularia minor, growing in pools containing but little water, was flowering freely at Oakmere ; this species seldom blossoms in ordinary seasons. The Pillwort (Pilularia globulifera), in the same locality, formed masses, green and luxuriant as grass, many yards in extent. Many bog plants, however, had been seriously affected ; on Lindow Common, Cheshire, the Sundews {Drosera rotundifolia and D. anglica), except in a few places, did not put in an appearance ; Andromeda polifolia flowered three, if not four, times.* On the road between Mobberley and Knutsford are three or four beech-trees ; these had, apparently, been killed by the heat ; their leaves were in august shrivelled and brown. At the end of September, however, after the showery weather, I observed young green leaves appearing at the ends of several of the branches. Mr. Holland has referred (Science-Gossip iii., p. 249) to the growth of fresh shoots from the axils of the leaves on the dead main stem of many plants. Here, at High Wycombe, the same thing has been noticeable. In the Field of September 19th a correspondent says that there were two regular swarms of bees on September 1st in a garden in the parish of Shiplake, Henley-on-Thames. The editor thinks that these were cases of desertion of the hive for want of food, and that the correspondent was mistaken. It seems, however, quite likely that the bees were mis- taken in the season, and did swarm, as many plants had put on an appearance of spring. In fact, the bees probably did not swarm before, because of the scarcity of food ; but they did then, because there was a new supply. Bees do not generally desert a hive en masse, but dwindle away, usually leaving a considerable number of dead ones behind. Other entomological occurrences— such as the great number of " whites " recorded from many places, the absence of wasps, the appearance of rare moths and butterflies — I leave to be recorded in detail by those who devote themselves to their observation. B. POPPY-SEEDS. FN continuation of the theme of "Microscopic -■- Seeds," commenced in our November number, we offer figures and descriptions of a few seeds from the Poppy family, known to botanists as the Papaveracea. There is undoubtedly a great simi- larity in the seeds of the true Poppies themselves, or at least in all we have had the opportunity of examining, but the different genera of the order present peculiar types, which will be seen to differ entirely from those of the Poxglove family (Scro- phulariacece) already described. The Opium Poppy {Papaver somniferuni) has two varieties of seeds, the one called "white-seeded," with pale buff-coloured seeds, and the other " grey- seeded," with pale slate-coloured seeds. Micro- scopically, there is no difference, save in the colour. The form is kidney-shaped, and the surface reticu- lated, so as to leave shallow hexagonal pits, which * See Science-Gossip iii., p. 162. 12 HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. [Jan. 1, 1869. again are more minutely reticulated with faint hexa- gonal veins, more distinct in the grey than in the white variety (fig. 6). Fig. 6. Seed of Opium Poppy, x 40. The Laege-flowered Argemone {Argemone grandiflora) is a cultivated plant. The seeds are larger than in the Poppy, of a brownish-black colour, nearly egg-shaped, pointed at one end, and reticu- lated in a similar mariner, but the pits are deeper, and more distinctly concave. The secondary reti- culations are almost obsolete (fig. 7). Fig. 7' Seed of Argemone grandiflora, x 40. Californian Platystemon {Platystemon Call- fornicuni) is another cultivated plant. The seeds are very distinct from those of the Poppies, being brownish-black and shining, elliptical, with a longi- tudinal furrow on one side. The reticulations are very faint, irregular, and elongated (fig. 8). Fig. 8. Seed of Platystemon Cali/ornicum, x 40. Common Eschscholtzia (Eschscholtzia Calif or- nica), found in nearly every garden, has rather large ovate seeds, bluntly pointed at each extremity. They are of a dull grey colour, deeply and coarsely reticulated. A distinct furrow usually traverses the seed longitudinally. The depressions are irre- gularly hexagonal, the ridges irregular at the margin, and striate from the base upwards. Se- condary, small, faint, hexagonal reticulations are just visible at the bottom of the pits (fig. 9). Slender-leaved Eschscholtzia {Eschscholtzia tenuifolia). — The figure of this seed, furnished by Mr. E. Marks, is so distinct in its character from Fig. 9. Seed of Eschscholtzia Califurnica, x 40. the foregoing that one feels almost disposed to doubt its identity. The form is irregular, almost spheroidal, and the surface, instead of being reticu- lated, is covered with large, prominent, conical Fig. 10. Seed of Eschscholtzia tenuifolia, x 40. projections (fig. 10). If truly an Eschscholtzia, and we have no other reason to doubt, it serves as a caution, not only against hasty generalizations, but also against the supposition that the seeds of all allied plants are very much alike. THE RUDD AND ITS SCALES. rpHE Rudd, or " Roud," as it is locally called, is -*- a common fish in the Norfolk Broads, and in the rivers which run through them. Zoologists recognize it as a distinct species under the name of Cyprinus erythr ophthalmitis. Anglers know it well in those waters, not only when they see it, but before they see it, by the manner in which it takes their bait. No angler who has been accustomed to this fish would ever dream of regarding it as only a local variety of some other fish, as the roach, or as a hybrid. Yet some persons have of late given ex- pression to a doubt whether the Rudd is not a hybrid between the Roach and the Bream. The supposition is ingenious, but, as I believe, utterly groundless. The habits and personal appearance of the fish condemn such a hypothesis. When cooked, its flesh is much firmer than either of the others of which it is supposed to be the offspring. At any rate, it is a truly fertile hybrid, and in the brightness of its colouring, and its edible qualities, is far superior to either of its supposed progenitors. The forms of scales in the three species are here figured for comparison, and we doubt whether they Jan. 1, 1869.] HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 13 can be adduced as any evidence of hybridization. Lubbock, in his "Eauna of Norfolk," says that, although often in company with the roach, "the Rudd, on the whole, prefers the broad, and the roach the river ; is very lively and active, rises freely at flies, and is fond of sporting on the surface; is most Fig. 11. Scale of It u del, x 10 diameters. vivid in colour, sometimes nearly rivalling the gold fish ; does not often exceed two pounds* but is commonly met with a pound and a half in tig. 12. Scale of Roach, x 10. weight ; is much better to eat than the roach or bream. I have seen marshmen select Rudd for their own cookery, w T hilst they carried bream and roach home only forthe dogs or the pig." To these observa- tions we can bear evidence, founded upon many and many a day's pleasant sport amongst them, and sundry breakfasts at which a dish of Rudd was smoking. Although so plentiful in Norfolk, this is undoubtedly a local fish, and in many parts of the British Isles is wholly unknown. It has, however, been recorded from other localities than those in which we have made its acquaintance, as Yorkshire, Fig. 13. Scale of Bream, x 10. Lincolnshire, and Oxfordshire, to which I believe Cambridgeshire may be added. The scales figured are from fish taken last August, on the same day, and within a few yards of each other, in the neigh- bourhood of Barton Broad. C. CHRISTMAS BERRIES. Heap on more wood ! the wind is chill j But let it whistle as it will, We'll keep our Christmas merry still ! CHRISTMAS Berries. What are they ? what do they include ? Looking back to former days, and many a right merry Christmas long gone by, I should certainly say that the holly, the laurel, the ivy, and the mistletoe are most undoubtedly Christ- mas berries, for the plants and shrubs on which they grow have been, and still are, those most generally used for the decorations in fashion at Christmas-time in private houses. Church decorations is another matter. Many persons object to the Ivy soft and meek of speech, as the old carol has it, because it was considered sacred to Bacchus; and as to the mistletoe, a lady of my acquaintance read some young relatives of hers a long lecture on the Druidical rites performed in con- nection with this parasitical shrub, when they faintly hinted that its smooth white berries would form a pretty contrast to the coral-like red of the holly fruit, in an elaborate piece of floral embroidery, which they were making for a pet curate's especial delectation. But, as I am not particularly up either in clerical millinery or church ornamentation, I shall confine my description to those old home favourites, which we doubtless all remember as associated with our earliest recollections of Christ- mas day. Nay, ivy, nay, it shall not be I wys ; Let holly have the mastery, as the manner is. 14 HAHDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. [Jan. 1, 1S69. Our holly is the Ilex aquifolium, a tree possessed of many valuable properties, but far inferior, neverthe- less, to its SouthAinerican cousin, the Mate, the native tea-tree, I may call it, of the country. There are three different sorts of tea made from this species of holly, and brought into the markets in South America : one called the Caa-cuys is prepared from the half-opened leaf-buds, roasted and powdered ; the other, Caa-mire, is the leaf in its green state, de- prived of its midrif and veins ; whilst the Yerva de Palos of the Spaniards is the entire leaf, petioles, and small branches dried and beat up into a fine dust. A teaspoonful will make a large cupful. Boil- ing water is poured on it, and it is drunk when cold, or I should say sucked through a tube, after the fashion in which the Yankees imbibe cold drinks. It contains the same principle as tea — theine. The unripe fruit of some of the holly genus abounds in tannin, and Erench physicians are of opinion that the Ilicine (medicinal principle) is a most efficient substitute for Cinchona bark. There is little doubt but what the dressing up of houses at Christmas-time was derived from a heathen custom, for we read that the Romans ornamented their dwellings with green boughs during the Saturnalia ; but I do not see why this should afford any just cause of objection to our introducing ever- greens into our houses, for, if there is a Pagan pre- cedent, there is also a Biblical sanction. The Jews employed evergreens in their Feastof Tabernacles, and Christ entered Jerusalem over strewn Palm branches. Have you ever heard it said that if the evergreens put up at Christmas-time are not taken down before Caudlemas-day, there will be a death in the family who occupy that house before the year is out ? Ivy-berries are smooth and black ; they hang on all the winter, unless picked off by the birds. Wood-pigeons, especially, are devoted to them ; and I have heard it said that the resin which exudes from old branches will attract fish. If this be true, then fish do smell, which some writers in Land and Water appear to doubt, and have lately been dis- cussing with considerable facetiousness. By the way, it is as well to observe that the Irish Ivy, which is considered by some to be a variety of the common, bears red berries. Ivy formed the poet's crown in days gone by. Horace in his ode to Mecaenas, and Virgil in his seventh Eclogue, both refer to this custom. In- deed, the plant appears to have been a very great favourite with all the poets — so many of our own writers, ancient and modern, abound in beautiful allusions to it. The wood of the Ivy being so soft and porous, it obtained the reputation of being able to separate water from wine when the two were mixed together. Pliny mentions this, and gravely says that the water filtered through its pores, leaving the wine in the vessel. Garlands of Ivy are decidedly very pretty, and the ancients displayed good taste when they deco- rated the statues of their gods with it. There are over fifty species of Ivy. The Laurel was first brought over to Constan- tinople from the Caucasus by the name of Trabison cumasi, or " date of Trebizond," in 1576 ; but it was not cultivated in England before 1629. A London merchant, a Mr. Cole, first cultivated it at Highgate. He had a single plant of it, which he used to cover in winter time with a blanket in order to protect it from the frost. Who that has ever seen our beautiful evergreen Laurel hedges and banks at Christmas-time could possibly imagine this to have been the case with their first English ancestor ? The fruit of the Laurel is an ovate, shining, purple-black berry ; and, singular to relate, al- though the leaves, inner bark, and seeds contain a poisonous principle, the pulp of the fruit does not, and a preserve is made of it. The Mistletoe (Viscum album) produces a smooth white berry. The plant is a parasite, growing chiefly on Apple-trees, and rarely on the Oak, although persons generally imagine that most of the Mistletoe-berries seen at Christmas-time are found on Oak-trees ; but we must know, when we reflect on the superstitious reverence with which the Druids regarded the Mistletoe on the Oak, it was even a rare thing in those days to find the plant on that tree, for we are told that a search was made for it even in an age when this island was covered with forests of Oak. The berries were certainly, in the days of Shake- speare, considered poisonous, for he writes of it as the " baleful Mistletoe " ; but birds devour them very readily, and it is mentioned in a natural history of Prussia, by Boek, that the branches and leaves of Mistletoe had been dried and pounded in times of scarcity, and made into bread mixed with rye-flour. There are some singular old superstitions con- nected with this plant, originating, doubtless, in the Druidical customs before alluded to ; and the peasantry in some parts of England even now believe that an amulet made of the wood and hung round the neck would preserve the. wearer from witchcraft. My Christmas berries are described ; and, having commenced with a line from Scott, I will e'en con- clude with more : — And well our Christian sires of old Loved when the year its course had rolled, And brought blithe Christmas back again With all his hospitable train. Domestic and religious rite Gave honour to the holy night ; On Christmas-eve the bells were rung; Oa Christmas-eve the mass was sung ; That only night, in all the year, Saw the stoled priest the chalice rear. The damsel donned her kirtle sheen ; The hall was dres>ed with holly green; Forth to the wood did merry-men go, To gather in the mistletoe. Helen E. Watney. Jan. 1, 1869.] HAUDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 15 APHIS LION AND LACEWING ELY. IN the latter end of August last year my attention was attracted to an ivy-leaf, in the centre of which was something white. I gathered it, and on nearer!inspection found that there were about twenty or twenty-five small white bodies elevated on an ex- ceedingly fine footstalk, which again was attached to the centre of a small glistening circular disc on the upper surface of the leaf. Each was about the third of an inch long, and the space they covered did not exceed the size of a fourpeimy piece. I had never seen anything of the kind before, and, fearing lest I should not meet with it again, I took all the care possible of it, and immersed the end of the leafstalk in water. It put me more in mind of the fructification of some of the new mosses than any- thing else, and I imagined it was a minute fungus. I looked at it from day to day, but it remained just the same, even after the ivy -leaf dried up and became brown. It did not seem to suffer from the loss of moisture, but each little oval body stood up as stiff and erect as ever on its tiny footstalk. Eor ten days or a fortnight there was no change at all, and then I had to go away ; fortunately, I returned just as the mystery was being solved. Coming in within a week, and in the middle of the day, I went to the shelf on which they stood, and there, upon the mar- ble and close to the bottle, I saw two or three little black bodies crawling along. There were some on the bottle, more on the old brown leaf, two were leisurely descending the stalks from their elevated cradles, and one was just emerging from its shell. I was just in time to see the little colony burst into life ; had I been a day later I should have felt satis- fied it was a vegetable organism, as when the eggs were open, the regularity of their toothed margins tended to favour that idea. I had very little time to spare, but popped a few into a pill-box ; and as the microscope stood on the table ready 1o hand, I put one into the live-box, so as to get some means of identifying it subsequently ; I found it covered with black hairs, and the possessor of an enormous pair of jaws. . As I hurried away again, I wondered what it was, when it occurred to me that such a singular egg as this could never have escaped the notice of Kirby and Spence. On turning to that work, I was enabled to identify it as containing a larva called the Aphis Lion. Not very long before, out in the garden one evening with the same object which led me to discover these eggs, just as it was getting dusk, I noticed some fairy-like insect flitting about, and scarcely visible. I made several inef- fectual attempts to catch one ; and when at last I succeeded in getting my hat over one on the grass, and cautiously raised it, I was not clever enough to prevent its getting away. At length I saw one fairly settle on the palings, and having a small box in my hand, I took off the lid and inverted the box over the creature, then dived into my pocket for an envelope, which I slipped underneath the box, and then gradually withdrew it as I put on the lid. I conveyed it indoors, and exa- mined it beneath a gas-lamp, and I found an insect with a beautiful green body, large brilliant eyes like polished copper, and two pairs of large membranous wings, pale green, and reflecting the prismatic co- lours. Its wings were folded together ; and as I took hold of them to remove it from the box, I became conscious of a most disagreeable smell ; so that I popped it at once under a wineglass, and put in also a bit of paper steeped in chloroform. The smell is so pungent that you can taste it in your mouth as soon as you can smell it ; what to compare it to I do not know, but it reminded me of sul- phurous acid. Bad as it was, I was rather gratified by it than otherwise, for I thought so beautiful a creature with so foul an odour was sure to be in Kirby and Spence' s book, and there I found it, under the name Chrysopa perla. Wonderful as it is for its beautiful colour, for the brilliancy of its eyes, for the lustre and delicate structure of the wings, and also for the villainous nastiness of its perfume, it is no less wonderful as producing the singular eggs which 1 have before described : the Aphis Lion is the larva of the Chrysopa perla. They spin themselves a silken shroud, that they may die to the winter, from which they rise as the perfect insect in the following sum- mer. It is curious that an insect so gorgeously got up should fly only in the twilight, when its beauties cannot be appreciated; perhaps, however, there are eyes which can see more than ours ; but if there are, I am afraid the owners, instead of admiring it as a beautiful object, would admire it more as an article of diet ; and doubtless for that reason it is supplied with the means of emitting an odour which would deter any created being, I shoidd imagine, from en- tertaining such a thought for a moment. If any of the egg clusters are found, it would be quite worth while to transfer them to a conservatory, especially if infested with aphides, as these form the principal food of the larva in question. As soon as hatched, they start off in their search of the in- sects, and are said to require only half a minute to suck all the juice out of the biggest aphis. They are very voracious, only ceasing to eat when the supply fails, and then they not unfrequently attack each other. When gardening becomes more scien- tific, and it is considered necessary to have some little knowledge of the insects that are beneficial as well as prejudicial to plants, the eggs of the Chrysopa perla will doubtless possess some market value, and will be carefully collected for the express purpose of placing in greenhouses ; and then the progeny of a dozen of the insects will perhaps be found to rid a house of aphides more effectually and more economically than all the tobacco-paper that has ever been smoked. — F. H. Ward. 16 HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. [Jan. 1, 1S69. ZOOLOGY. Sphinx Convolyuli.— The following paragraph has been going the round of the papers :— " A lady informs the Leamington Chronicle that she has recently seen the humming-bird (!) in , Staffordshire, Cheshire, and Warwickshire. The plumage was of a reddish brown, speckled upon the back with white." Is it not possible that S. convolvuli was intended ? This rare moth has been taken this year at High Wycombe and at Great Marlow. In the latter neighbourhood several specimens of the pale Clouded Yellow (Colias hyale) have been captured this season. C. edusa has this season occurred in the north and south of Buckinghamshire, and seems to be gradually becoming more frequent in the country.— B. The Cuckoo. — A correspondent of Science- Gossip asks for information concerning the cuckoo, and perhaps the following facts, mostly gathered from Montague's "Dictionary of British Birds" (see Introduction), may be interesting. The cuckoo generally arrives about the first or second week of April, but it has been heard on the 27th of March, as already mentioned in Science-Gossip; but it may be mentioned that one must be careful not to be taken in by some small boy who endeavours to April-fool his friends by imitating the notes so easily copied. Montague observes that the cuckoo has probably the power of retaining its eggs in the ovarium, and the reasons for supposing so are the following : — It would be often necessary, on account of the difficulty of always finding a nest ready for the cuckoo's egg, as it is highly improbable, if an egg were laid in an unfinished nest, that a small bird would continue incubating ; yet it has been frequently observed that in cases where the cuckoo's egg has been dropped the last into the nest it has been the first to hatch. This causes a supposition that the egg may have been retained in the ovarium, and therefore is already partly incubated by the in- ternal heat of the cuckoo's body. But, at the same time, that the cuckoo is unable to retain the egg beyond a certain time is evident from the account given by Mr. Harper, of Norwich, who shot a cuckoo with its egg in its beak searching on the ground for a nest to deposit it in. This bird had another egg in the ovarium of the same size, but without the calcareous covering. This also proves a question which has been much mooted — namely, that the cuckoo does not " lay " her eggs, but deposits them with her beak, and the nest has so often been found in positions where the egg could not have been laid, that it seems that there is no doubt about the fact. The nests chosen appear to be of many kinds — -amongst others, the hedge-sparrow's, red- breast's, pied wagtail's, linnet's, redstark's, titlark's, meadow pipits, and reed bunting's are mentioned. It has been stated that when the young cuckoo's foster-parents are unable to feed it sufficiently, they call all their neighbours to help them ; but it is much more probable that they mistake it for a hawk, and assemble round it as swallows and other small birds do round rapacious birds. That the young cuckoo throws other young birds out of the nest after being a day or two old is undoubted; but is it not possible that the old cuckoo may assist at first, as it has been stated that a young cuckoo is too weak for some days to stand up, much less to throw out other birds ? Young cuckoos have not been as yet successfully reared: the one kept longest died, not inappropriately, on the 1st of April. Should I have made any mistakes, 1 only hope any other correspondent will kindly correct me, as I shall be glad of all communications on the subject ; and if any abler person will enter further into the subject, he will oblige many who with myself take much interest in the history of the cuckoo. — E. G. W. Gnats. — About thirty years ago I remember an extraordinary flight of gnats; it consisted of a column about a foot in diameter, which rose nearly perpendicularly to the height of about fifty feet ; it waved about in the wind, lost its perpendicularity, and was finally dispersed by the wind. The column itself Mas at first tolerably compact, and contained probably a quarter of a million of insects. A more extraordinary flight occurred at Nottingham, on the 4th of October, 1S58 ; I say more extraordinary, inasmuch as I have heard and read of single columns of gnats, like that just mentioned, but I have never seen or heard before or since of a flight similar to that I am about to describe. It was between four and five o'clock, as I was crossing the little river Leen, below the castle rock on the western side, that I noticed a series of perpendicular lines extending for nearly a mile over the gardens along the bank of the stream, giving to the clouds and the smoke of a tall chimney in the distance a most extraordinary appearance. On a nearer inspection I found these lines to be columns of gnats. The base of each column was about six feet from the ground, and extended upward to the height of from twenty to one hundred feet ; the columns were all cigar shaped, that is, tapering at each end, and having a diameter in the centre of about eighteen inches. The columns appeared to be distant from each other about thirty or forty feet, and extended over a space about thirty or forty yards in width, by nearly a mile in length. On standing beneath one of the columns, the gnats were seen to be in rapid motion, and performing the most complicated gyrations, but constantly preserving the peculiar cigar-shape, and not altering the position of the columns, which appeared to be stationary. How long they remained in that position I am uimble to Jan. 1, 1S69.] HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 17 say ; I watched them for more than half an hour, and as I returned home could see them distinctly half a mile distant. On a rough calculation I suppose there would be about ten millions of insects. I have never read of a similar flight, and, not having seen any notice of the above, I thought that the fact ought to be recorded.— H. 0. S. Glossy Ibis in Norfolk.— A fine specimen of the now rare visitor to the Norfolk coast, the Glossy Ibis {Ibis falcineUus), was shot near Stalham last month.— E. A., Norwich. The Smew {Mergus albellus). — A beautiful spe- cimen of this bird was shot by the late Robert Hawking, Esq. It was disporting on the river Ouse, eleven miles above York. The figure (44) in Science-Gossip gives a very correct idea of the bird, and is very life-like. The bird was preserved, and is now in the possession of W. D. Hawking, Esq., of Laiton. — Jno. Hanson, Linton-on-Ouse, York. Maigre at Brighton {Scicena aquila.) — On Sunday morning, November 22nd, as a labouring man was strolling along the beach in front of the Marine Parade, his attention was attracted to a large fish which was floundering about in shallow water, where, doubtless, it had been driven by the high gale and rough sea of the previous night. With the assistance of some other loungers, he secured the prize, which excited the admiration of all who saw it by the splendour of its colour. Its scales, which were of a large size, shone and flashed in the light like burnished gold. The fins, which were large and extended, were of a deep crimson colour. In shape it was like a salmon, with small head, of elegant shape, and above five feet long. In weight it was about 701b. It proved to be a very rare fish, the " Maigre," of the Mediterranean, and Peis rei or Royal Eish of Rome, only four specimens of which (including the present one) have been known to be caught in the British seas. The fish was still alive when brought to Mr. Wright's, on whose slab it was exposed during the whole of Monday, and attracted admiring crowds, the colours continuing very brilliant to the last, though, of course, less so than when the fish was first caught. The "Maigre" is much esteemed at Rome as a delicacy of the table, and we can speak from experience on the point, being indebted to R. Peak, Esq., who became a purchaser of the fish, for an opportunity of tasting this visitor from the south. — Brighton Herald, Nov. 2S. Tern at Sydenham. — I lately noticed a Tern or Sea-swallow skimming over one of the ornamental waters in the grounds of the Crystal Palace. — W. H. Tate, Grove Place, Denmark Hill. Legal Zoology. — The following cutting is from the police report in the Times of December 9th : — " A gentleman applied to Mr. Vaughau to ascertain if there were any means of punishing a street hawker of birds under the Act for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, or any other Act. Having noticed that the bird-vendor in question was in the habit of illustrating the tameuess of his canaries, &c., by exhibiting them openly on his hand, without any apprehension of their flying away, the applicant had the curiosity to purchase one. He then discovered that the pinions under the wing had been snapped asunder and completely drawn away, so that the birds were unable to fly at all. It was obvious that this process of 'taming' the birds was attended with great cruelty, and the man, who lived in Shore- ditch and constantly visited the Strand, ought, if possible, to be summoned. Mr. Vaughau, after consulting the statutes, said that a bird was not an animal within the meaning of the Act for the Pre- vention of Cruelty to Animals, even if the specific act of cruelty alleged in this case could be proved. The applicant remarked that it is illegal to encourage cock-fighting. Mr. Vaughau said that there was a special enactment with regard to cock-fighting, but it did not apply to an offence of this kind." Another illustration of the familiar saying about driving a stage-coach through an Act of Parliament. A man might with impunity roast an Ostrich alive under the very nose of authority. — W. Cole, Clapton. Woolwich Mosquitoes. — At the Entomological Society of November 2nd, " the Secretary exhibited a specimen of the so-called Mosquitoes sent from Woolwich, which proved to be a species of Chrysopa" Hence it will be evident that two or three different insects have been confounded together under the one name of "Mosquitoes" in that locality, and none of them the genuine article. Clouded Yellows.— I can assure your cor- respondent " H. H. O'FarreU " that the Clouded Yellow Butterfly {Colias edusa) is not uncommon near London in certain seasons : I have taken it at Tooting, Wandsworth Common, Dulwich, and Forest Hill. It has been taken plentifully in clover fields near Bromley, Kent. The pale-clouded yellow butterfly {Colias hyale) has been taken occasionally at Eorest Hill.- 6'. Wood. The Pill Millepede, or wood-louse, as it is here called, comes into my house in the autumn, and is a perfect pest. They congregate on the walls, and run on the floor under the carpets, and on the carpets, so that we can hardly take a step in the room without crushing them. Finally, as the weather grows colder they all disappear, hiding behind the skirting board and under the floors, to emerge again when the temperature rises in March and April. Can you or any of your readers suggest a method by which they may be got rid of ?— W. B. C. [Consult the Notes and Queries in prior volumes of this journal.] 18 HARDWICKE'S SCIEN CE-GO SSIP. [Jan. 1, 18C9. MICROSCOPY. Sections of Fossil "Wood.— Having been asked by several readers of Science-Gossip how I cut and grind my sections of fossil wood, &c, I will, with your permission, give my method. Eirst, I will begin with the cutting. To the framework of an ordinary foot-lathe I attach an upright spindle (see the accompanying sketch) ; on this upright spindle I drive, by a band passing over carry pulleys from the wheel below. On the top of this spindle I fix my cutting disc, which is made from a very thin piece of sheet iron, and is about six inches in diameter ; the edge of this saw I charge with diamond powder ; to the edge of the saw I hold my specimen, and as it cuts I lubricate the edge with a small brush dipped in turpentine. With this method I have cut sections of fossil wood so thin that all its structure has been well defined and required Fig. 14. Section Cutter. nothing but mounting in balsam : this has been silicated fossil wood ; in cutting calcareous fossil wood, I have to cut the sections thicker, and grind them down. My grinding apparatus is composed of leaden laps, which I make to revolve in a hori- zontal position on the same upright spindle on which I fix my cutting saw ; I use two laps, one for rough grinding, and the other for smoothing. I use No. 1 emery and a little water with the first lap, and flour of emery with plenty of water on the second lap. In preparing a specimen, I first grind a smooth surface on one side, and then fix it to a plate of glass (of such a size as will suit my specimen) with Canada balsam ; I then reduce it in thickness on the rough lap, till I begin to see the light through it ; then I begin with the smoothing lap, and reduce it with flour of emery until every part of its structure is distinct. If I choose to polish the specimen, I do so on a lap made of plush cloth, or cotton velvet, and putty powder ; I then float them off the slide on which they have been ground, and fix them on another with Canada balsam. I prefer, were it practicable, to mount them in balsam under a thin cover in the usual way, as I am satisfied that the structure is better brought out. If any of the readers of the Gossip are simi- larly engaged, I shall be glad to correspond with them on this subject. — John Buttenoorth, Mount Pleasant, High Crompton, near Oldham. Substitute for Nose-pieces. — Will you allow me to lay before the microscopical portion of your readers a suggestion for the more ready attaching and detaching of object-glasses ? I take it for granted that all who work much with the in- strument have found inconvenience in changing the powers rapidly, particularly when examining objects with which they are unacquainted. Nose- pieces (especially when made to hold more than two powers) are inconvenient, heavy, and costly, and are much in the way. My plan is as follows — Fig. 15. Upper end of Object-glass. Lower end of Object-glass. a. Thread untouched. b. Thread removed. viz., Divide the circumference of the screw, both of the "object-glass" and "body," into four equal parts ; then file away all the thread in two opposite quarters, leaving the remaining two opposite quarters intact (it is better in practice to remove slightly more than one-fourth on each side, so as to allow free clearance. The object-glass may now, by placing it so that the remaining portions of thread come opposite the corresponding gaps, be passed into the body, right up to the shoulder, without turning it round at all ; and about one-eighth of a turn fixes it in its place as firmly as if screwed in. The adoption of this plan does not prevent the use of the altered object-glasses with other instruments, nor does it preclude the use of unaltered object- glasses with altered bodies. — James Fogan. Jan. 1, 1869.] UABDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 19 Microscopic Collecting-Case. — A new de- scription of collecting-case for professional or amateur microscopists, made by Mr. Stanley, of London Bridge, was exhibited at the Quekett Microscopic Society's meeting on the 27th of No- vember last, by Mr. Earmer, and met with general attention and approbation. The description of this article, of which an illustration is given below, will no doubt be interesting to many. In outward form it much resembles a rather large japanned tin sandwich-box, being similarly constructed to fold in two equal parts, the only outward addition being a leather strap, omitted generally from sandwich- boxes, which enables it to be carried suspended from the neck, to rest under the armor upon the loins, to the taste of the wearer. So far as concerns the exterior, it appears light, rather professional-looking, and not inelegant. As regards the practical part, the interior consists of several divisions, or compartments, which we think from position and other circum- stances may contain choice diatomacese or other ob- jects of our research ; we secure bottle a to the brass clip, and screw it to our walking-stick or rod ; thus secured, the bottle will dive for mud, water, or weed, which we continually examine by the aid of one of the dipping-tubes, microscopic slide and lens. If our objects are satisfactory, we reduce the bulk as much as possible by straining off or dipping, and examine and place the quantity we wish to save in one of the vials, commencing with No. 1 ; or, if very full of good things, we save a quantity in bottle d ; or if we wish some special choice speci- men, we isolate it in vial No. 2. At the end of our search in this spot we place in our note-book the locality and particular objects we have collected, as nearly as we know, with number of bottle or vial in which we have placed them, and plod on our journey. And thus with other spots and other objects, wet or dry, until we are satisfied with our results, sometimes filling only the seven bottles for evening examination, at other times selecting and discarding as time and inclination suggest.—/. S. Fig. 16. Collecting Case. which are fitted with the simple useful collecting- apparatus to be described. The first, or upper com- partment, contains three wide-mouthed bottles, each capable of holding three fluid ounces : these are lettered a, b, c, respectively, and are each fitted with a varnished cork. The second compartment con- tains four similar bottles of a smaller size, and let- tered respectively d, -t to J. C. Hutcheson, 8, Lansdowne Crescent, Glasgow. Pollen of Lilium lancifolium, punctatum, or ru- brum (unmounted), exchanged for unmounted microscopic objects of interest (named).— Address, enclosing stamped envelope, C. E. Osborn, 28, Albert Road, St. John's Ville, Highgate, N. Eggs of North American Birds (46 eggs, 14 species) offered for Eggs of British Birds.—" Maine," care of the Editor. British Lichens (90 species) and European Grasses (27 species) for exchange.— W. H. G., 15, Thomhill Road, N. Exchanges. — We must caution exchangers against send- ing out such slides as we have lately seen under the descrip- tion 01 " good slides," that are not worth the unground glass on which the objects are mounted. Persons permitting such slides to leave their own cabinets have very little regard for their reputation, and deserve to have them ieturned.— Ed. S. G. BOOKS RECEIVED. " Scientific Opinion." Nos. 4, 5, 6, and 7. London : Wjman & Sons. " Proceedings of the Bristol Naturalists' Society." Vol. III., No. 8, November, 1863, Bristol. "' The American Naturalist." Vol. II., Nos. 9 and 10, November and December, 1868. Salem: Peabody Academy of Science. " Annual Report of the Smithsonian Institution for 1866." Washington: Smithsonian Institution. "The Gardener's Magazine." Part XXXVI., for December, 1868. London : E. W. Allen. " The Quarterly Journal of the Folkestone Natural History Society." No. 1, December, lbtis. Folkestone: Express Office. " Sciography, or Radial Projections of Shadows." By R. Campbell Puckett, Ph.D., Head Master of the Bath School of Art. London : Chapman & Hall. " Fifth Annual Report of the Belfast Naturalists' Field Club," 1 867-8. Belfast: Field Club. "Land and Water." No. 152, December 19. 80, Fleet Street. "The Naturalists' Circular." For December. Communications Received.— J. E. T.— J. B. C— J. B. — G. H.— G. H. H— W. L. W.— J. M.— T. H. O. W. E.— H. E. W.— T. W. W.— J. V. H.— H. G.— W. G— W. M.— W. Murrell — C. W.— S. S— C. (Barnsbury).— G. B— J. H.— J. S.— W. E. S.— G. H.— T. P. B— A. A., jun— J. G., jun.— J. M. H. — H. H. K.— W. H. D.— G. N.— A. B.— E. A.— J. R. S. C— B.— J. V.— L. G. M.— F. W. B.-H. E. W.— T. W.— P. H. H. —A. P.— H. H. K— W. C.-A . B— J. T. Y— H. C. S.— J. D. H. — T. B. H.— F. R— G. G.— C. L. C— A. B. H.— T. McC— S. S.— E. W.— W. P. M.— A. J.— A. A.— J. R. E.-T. P. B.— H. L. W.-J. C. H.— J. H. M.— G. B.— G. D— C. E. O.— J. W.- W. W. S.— J. W.— W. P. M. (too late).— B. T. H. M.— G. R.— H. M.-S.-J. H.— W. H. G— F. A. H.— R. B. Feb. 1, 1S69.] HARDWICKE'S SCIEN CE -GOSSIP. ENGLISH PLANT-NAMES. What's in a name ? That which we call a rose, By any other name would smell as sweet. Shakespkare. MONG the many quotations from the works of our great dramatist which are con- tinually " crop- ping up " in our conversation — which, as it were, have so fixed themselves upon our memory that we cite them all unconsciously, sometimes not even knowing whence they come — there is not one more hackneyed than that which heads this paper. So hackneyed is it, that we have come to regard it, not only as stating, in its literal sense, an incontro- vertible fact, but as containing an insinuation at least, that there is really little or nothing in a name after all. In the present paper, I am going to attempt to show that there is, in many cases at least, a great deal in a name. I deprecate most strongly a state- ment which appeared in a recent number of 'Science-Gossip, that "an examination of the com- mon or vulgar terms applied to plants and animals will at once introduce us to a complete language of meaningless nonsense, almost impossible to retain, and certainly worse than useless when remembered — a vast vocabulary of names, many of which signify that which is false, and most of which mean nothing at all." I have for some time been engaged in col- lecting the local names of plants, and, as far as they are concerned, I find very few which have no signification, — and doubtless even these few will, in ■course of time, be explained ; while, in the majority of cases, there is not only a meaning, but a very good and appropriate reason for the name. It is only those who have given, at any rate, some slight attention to this subject of local names, No. 50. who can at all comprehend the multiplicity of sources from which they have been derived. The names of our birds are less numerous, and, to my mind, less interesting ; although doubtless Mr. Hol- land, to whom the lists sent to Science-Gossip have been intrusted, will show that among them there is ample food for reflection : but the varied uses and associations of plants— religious, medicinal, ornamental, poetical, domestic— have each contri- buted to swell the list, and the result is both curious aud instructive. When, in the earlier days of this magazine, the Editor intimated his willing- ness to become curator of any lists of names which might be sent, until it should be decided how to make use of them, he probably did not expect so hearty a response to his proposition. Many of the lists sent are far too copious to include in a paper short enough for insertion; a whole number of Gossip might be filled with them alone, without note or comment. This will, I hope, be considered a suffi- cient apology for the non-appearance of much inter- esting information in the present paper ; a second one is in preparation, which will include many names here omitted ; but a volume is needed to do the subject justice. Mr. Holland and myself hope at some future period to publish such a volume : and any contributions or suggestions addressed to Robert Holland, Mobberley, Knutsford ; or to James Britten, High Wycombe, will receive due attention. The thanks of all who may find iu this paper anything worthy of note, are due to the following contributors: — "R. W.;" "C. A.;" " M. H. ;" " G. B. C. ;" ",J. S., Jun. ;" " E. G. B. ;" " J. B. ;" " T. E. W. ;" " G. S. ;" " E. M. H. ;" " R. E. D. ;" " V. A. S;" " W. B ;" " W. S ;" " L ;" "J. B." (Cockan) ; "L. S.;" "T. S.;" and others; for from them many of the names referred to have been received. Mr. Hollaud's assistance has been of especial value to me ; and for much of the infor- mation regarding the derivation of plant-uames I c 26 HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. [Feb. 1, 1S69. am indebted to Dr. Prior's interesting work " On the Popular Names of British Plants." With these necessary, if tedious, prefatory remarks, I will enter upon my subject. It must be remembered that it is no argument against the appropriateness of these common names that the reasons for which they were given are now forgotten by those who use them ; and that the names themselves are often so corrupted that it re- quires some ingenuity to discover what they were originally. They were doubtless expressive and comprehensible to those who first invented and used them ; and the wide distribution of many of them is sufficient proof that they were generally accepted as such. In the first place, then, I will endeavour to show what languages enter into our English plant- names, illustrating each by a few examples, types of numberless others, which might be cited, did space permit. We are all familiar with the Hawthorn (Crataegus oxyacantha), and we call its red fruit "haws." Eurther north, however, as in Cheshire, Lancashire, and Yorkshire, they are known as " haigs " or "hagues." Eor the meaning of these words, we must refer to the Anglo-Saxon, where we shall find hawthorn rendered hagaSorn, hag&om, or hege^orn, which closely corresponds with the German hagedorn. Erom this we may gather that the Hawthorn was employed from very early times in the manufacture of our hedges (A.-S. haga, or hcege, perhaps from the Icelandic hegna, to fence round) ; and possibly its general use for that purpose may have led to the application of haga, first to the shrub of which the fences were formed, and, in later times, to the fruit of that shrub. Mr. Holland, however, thinks that A.-S. hag, a hedge, was derived from the tree, and not the name of the tree from the place of its growth ; for this simple reason, -hagcc&orn would meau "the thorn-tree bearing luegs ;" and in A.-S. times hags probably referred, as they do still, to the fruit rather than to the shrub bearing them. Hag, or haga, then, would be A.-S. for the fruit ; hcrg^orii, the tree bearing the fruit ; and that being used in the making of fences, a fence was therefore called haga or /urge. In Cheshire and Lancashire the origin of Hawthorn is more apparent, as it is there called " Haythorn ;" and in Norfolk a hedge is a "hay." Haguebush or Hagbush Lane, in the north of London, formerly a favourite resort for artists, but now doubtless covered with bricks and mortar, meant originally Hawthornbush Lane. But we have not yet done with haga. The Great Mullein (Verbascum Thapsus) is, in modern books, called High-taper, and this name is explained as referring to the resemblance of its tall yellow spike to the candles which formerly stood on the altars of our churches. Here we have an illustration of the readiness with which a reason may be invented to account for a name. Gerarde and our older herbal- ists spelt it Hig-taper, which, being incomprehen- sible to some, was transformed into High-taper, and the above meaning added. Yet Hig-taper, or Hag- taper, was the original word ; the " taper," perhaps, referring to the tall stem of the plant, the affix " hig " being A.-S. for hay, or if we take "hag" as the correct form, referring to the usual place of growth of this Mullein — viz. hedgebanks. The Buckingham- shire names, "agg-paper" and " agg-leaf" counte- nance the latter notion : here we observe another cor- ruption, that of " taper " into " paper." "Agg-leaf," however, is a sensible name enough ; the plant is a biennial, and the prominence of its rosette of large flannel-like leaves on the hedgeba.\\k during the first year of its existence, would attract observation, even though without blossom. Every one knows the long hooked stems and small burs of the Cleavers, or Goosegrass (Galium Aparine), which fasten upon and persistently adhere to our clothing. In the northern and midland counties this has a very curious name, spelt by different correspondents heriff, hayriff, herriff, ayriff, airup, aireve. Here, again, we have hreg entering into the composition of the name of another hedge-plant ; for all these forms are from the A.-S. hegerife. Dr. Prior derives the second half of this word from A.-S. reafa, which, he says, " significantly enough, means both a tax-gatherer and a robber." A writer in the Athenceum, however, prefers to take the verb reafiau, to seize, to lay hold of, as its origin. In either case, no one will deny the suitability of the epithet ; but it is worthy of note that here we have an example of the transferring of a name from one plant to another ; as the Burdock (Arctium Lappa) was the original hegerife (Prior). The term is equally appropriate to both ; but, curiously enough, while it is applied to the Cleavers in many lists, I haye not noted a single instance of its connection with the Burdock. It has been attempted to show that the word herriff is merely a contraction of hair- rough, referring to the rough hairs with which the plant is clothed ; but the derivation from the A.-S. above given is the more satisfactory. It receives a curious confirmation in the Cumberland names of the plant : " Rob-run-up-dyke," and " Robin-run- up-dyke ;" and the Dublin one, " Robin-run-the- hedge ;" which look very like translations of hegerife, robber-run-up-hedge ; robber having been corrupted into Robin, or abbreviated into Rob. Haga, ovJurg, enters into the old names Haymaids and Heyliovc for the Ground Ivy (Nepeta glechoma), into Hag- berry (or, in Cumberland, Heckberry) for the Wild Cherry (Pruims avium), and others which we can- not now stop to consider. That most troublesome weed to farmers, the Couch-grass (Triticitm repens), has a variety of names. In Cumberland and Essex it is Twitch ; in Cheshire and Shropshire, Scutch ; in North Buck- inghamshire, Squitch ; in South Buckinghamshire, Feb. 1, 1869.] HARDWI-CKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 27 Couch- or Cooch-grass ; all evidently having the same derivation, but an obscure one. In the Norfolk " Quicks," and the Warwickshire " Quicken-grass" we have a clue. No plant is so retentive of vitality as this Triticum repens ; the smallest piece left in the ground will grow. All these names are but forms of the A.-S. cwic, living, a word with which we are familiar as occurring in the Apostles' Creed in the English Prayer-book, where " the quick " are referred to in opposition to " the dead." The words " quicks " and " quickset " are applied to living hawthorn hedges as distinguished from dead-wood fences ; civic-beam, the living tree, was, according to Dr. Prior, the A.-S. for the Aspen {Populustremula), on account of its ever-moving leaves ; and Quick- in-hand was an old name for the Touch-me-not {lm- patiens Noli-me-tangere), from the suddenness with which its seeds discharge themselves when handled. The Kentish name for the Early Purple Orchis {Orchis mascula) is " Skeat-legs ;" this is also, but less generally, applied to other orchids. The A.-S. word scat, or sceat, meant any description of wrap- ping, or swathing, clothing, such as a sheet, which is from the same word ; sceata meant a woman's skirt, or the lower napping part of a sail, and scad, a loose sheath. The appropriateness of the name Skeat-legs to most of our orchids, but especially to 0. mascula, will at once be readily recognized ; describing the stem, or " leg," partially enveloped in a sheathing leaf. This is an excellent example of the way in which a name, apparently meaningless, may be shown to have really arisen in a natural peculiarity of the plant to which it applies. I am indebted to Dr. EitzGerald, of Folkestone, for its explanation. Many north-country names are derived from Swedish and Danish sources. The black heads of the Ribwort Plantain {Plantago lanceolata) are, in the northern counties, called kemps. We find the origin of this in the Danish Icampe, A.-S. cempa, a warrior. Children often play with the flower-stalks, each endeavouring to knock the head off the other's mimic weapon ; and this game is still known in Sweden, where the stalks are called kampar (Prior). The same game is very popular with the Cheshire children, who term it " playing at conquerors ; " the heads themselves they call "fighting cocks." Pushes {Junci) are called sivs and seaves, from the Da. siv, Sw. saf, a rush. The name Roan, Ran, Royne, or Rowan-tree, by which Pyrus aucuparia is known in Scotland and the northern counties, comes from Da. ronn, Sw. runn, which is traceable to the " 0. Norse runa, a charm, from its being supposed to have power to avert the evil eye " (Prior). Vaccinium Myrtillus is, in Cumberland and Yorkshire, known as Blue-berry, in Scotland Blae- berry, from Sw. bloa-bar, or Da. bollebar, a dark berry ; its more ordinary name, Bilberry, is probably from the same source. Space will not allow us to do more than glance at the names derived from the Welsh ; these do not occupy a prominent position in our lists, and may therefore be dismissed with a short reference. Grig, the Shropshire and Cheshire name for the Ling {Call una vulgaris), is the Welsh grwg, which is so pronounced; Gromwell {Lithospermum) is in Welsh grwmmil, a contraction of grawm-yr-haul, "grains of the sun," the bright shining seeds of L. officinale and other species having probably given rise to the name. Dr. Prior, however, favours a different derivation. From the German and Dutch we obtain several of our commonest plant-names. Buckwheat {Poly- gonum Fagopyrum), for instance, is from Du. boekweit, G. buchwaitzen, beechwheat, " from the resemblance of its triangular seeds to beechnuts, a name adopted with its culture, from the Dutch" (Prior). The Figworts {Scrophularia aquatica and S. nodosa) take their name, Brown-wort, from G. braunwurz, pro- bably in reference to their dark foliage and brown stems and flowers. Dr. Prior thinks it more pro- bable that it is from the plants " growing so abun- dantly about the brunnen, or public fountains of German towns and village;" but the former deriva- tion seems to me the more likely, especially as neither species is peculiar to these localities. In Devonshire the name Brunnet is applied to one or both species : this is probably a corruption of brown- wort, or possibly an abbreviation of brown-nettle ; the word Burnet is not very different from this, and that is applied to a brown-stemmed plant {Poterium Sanguisorba). Names of French origin are yet more frequent. The Dandelion {Leontodon Taraxacum) gives us a familiar example; it is in French dent-de-lion, lion's tooth, although the reason for the name is not satis- factorily known. At Glasgow the Gooseberry {Ribes Grossularia) is called groset ; in other parts of Scotland, grosert, grose, and groser : the Black Currant {R. nigrum) is gazles in Sussex ; and in Kent the same name is applied to the White Cur- rant. We find the origin of all these words in the Fr. groseille. In the Ayscough MSS., as quoted in Notes and Queries (Series IV. i. 532), we read that the Raspberry {Rubus Idaus) is called framboise by the country people in Dorset ; and the S. George's Mushroom {Jgaricus Georgii) is known aschamperon to the people about Abingdon. Mushroom itself, by the way, is but an anglicised form of Fr. mousseron, formerly mouscheron. " One of the most conspicuous of the genus {Agaricus), the A. muscarius, is used for the destruction of flies, mousches; and this seems to be the real source of the word, which, by a singular caprice of language, has been transferred from this poisonous species to mean, in the popular acceptation of it, the wholesome kinds exclusively " (Prior). Tutsan {Hypericum Androscemum) is from Fr. toute saiue, a name by which it has been known c2 28 HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. [Feb. 1, I860. since the time of Gerarde, who gives this explana- tion of it. In Buckinghamshire a corrupted form of this is still in use iu the words Tipsen-leaves and Touch-and-heal ; in Hampshire it is Touchen-leaves. In the second of these we have an example of the tautology so frequently found iu English names where foreign words have been translated, and then both original and translation have been combined. The " Touch-and " is the same as Touchen, aud is evidently a corruption of toute saine ; the " heal " is a translation of toute saine. It has been converted into Touch-tf#f/-heal to make sense of it: and the word is now, perhaps, supposed to indicate the rapidity with which the healing properties of the plant take effect. Many Latin and Greek names, introduced, like the knowledge of the plants bearing them, by the monks, have become anglicised. Eroni the former we derive Plantain, Bistort, Medick, Rose, Saxifrage, Violet, Feverfew, Sanicle, Vervain, Centaury (and its corrupted form, Sanctuary); from the latter, besides the Latiu originals of many of the foregoing, we have Leopard's Bane, Coral-root, Coriander, Swallow-wort, Spleenwort, Daffodil, "Mazalion" (by which name Daphne Mezereum is known in Buckinghamshire), Celandine or Saiardine, and many more. Besides these, we have some which, apparently English, are really corrupted from the Latin : Herb Bennet {Geum urban um) is an ab- breviation of lierba benedicta, the blessed herb, a name given on account of the many virtues formerly attributed to it : Mill-mountain (Linum catharticum) is, according to Dr. Prior, a corruption of Cha-mcel- inum montan-um, the old scientific title of the plant. The first half of the Dumfries name for the Coltsfoot, " Tushy-lucky gowan," is doubtless from the Latin Tussilago. From Latin names, the transition to another class, in a measure connected with them, and introduced by the same agency, is an easy one ; I refer to what [ may term religious plants, such as have been in some manner associated with, and have taken their titles from, the pious observances of former times. The Church taught by the eye as well as by the ear ; and by natural objects sought to recall not only, as we shall presently see, her more solemn seasons, but the saints whose festivals she kept. The coincidence, for example, of the flowering of a plant with the feast of a saint led to a connection between the two, and eventually, in many cases, the name of the latter was bestowed upon the flower. A natural feeling of reverence seems to have prevented, at any rate in England, the dedication of plants to either person of the Blessed Trinity ; and the few exceptions to this rule with which I am acquainted are associated with our Lord in His human nature exclusively. The Blessed Virgin, however, who held a foremost place among the saints, is commemorated, under the title of " Our Lady," by which she was formerly most generally known in England, iu the Lady's Bedstraw or Bedestraw {Galium rerum), Lady's Smock {Cardamine pratensis), Lady's Finger {Anthyllis vulneraria), Lady's Tresses {Spiranthes autunmalis), Lady's Comb [Scandix Pecten), Lady's Mantle {AlcJiemilla vulgaris), and very many more. During Puritan times, it became the custom to substitute the name of Venus for that of the Blessed Virgin. Thus, Lady's Comb became Venus's Comb, and so on ; and this substitution was fostered by the false classical spirit which became fashionable during and after the reign of Charles II. The Bev. W. Jones, of Nayland, a celebrated Anglican clergyman of the last century, refers in terms of severe reprobation to this alteration, in his " Reflec- tions on the Growth of Heathenism among Modern Christians." It must not, be supposed that "lady" always has the above signification; Lady Fern, for example, is simply a translation of Filix famina. The names Marygold and Marybud are generally supposed to have a similar allusion, but Dr. Prior doubts this ; Virgin's Bower {Clematis Vitalba and 0. Flammula), and Virgin's Thistle {Carduus Mariamis), however, undoubtedly refer to the Blessed Virgin. In Hampshire the Lungwort {Pulmonaria officinalis) is called "Joseph and Mary." At first sight, this might seem difficult of explana- tion ; but a little investigation soon enlightens us as to its meaning. It will be noticed that the flowers of this plant are pink or red when they first expand, becoming blue when they arrive at maturity. In mediaeval paintings and stained glass, aud hence doubtless in the once popular miracle plays, S. Joseph was represented chiefly in red, and the Blessed Virgin in blue. The union of the two colours in the blossoms of the same plant will account for the name. Lords-and-Ladics {Arum, maculatum) is thought by some to be a corruption of " our Lord and our Lady," the resemblance of the spadix, enshrined, as it were, in the spathe, suggesting the idea of a statue of the Virgin and Child beneath a canopy. Mr. Holland, however, writes, "I think most country people who use the name Lords and Ladies think that the plant is so called because the spadices are sometimes red and sometimes white, the white ones representing ' ladies,' the red, ' lords.' If this name were derived from a statue of the Virgin and Child, it would probably have been called Lord-and-Lady, and not by these words in the plural form. In Cheshire, on the 29th of May, children thus distinguish between the reddish leaves of the oak and the green ones, the red ones being called ' girl's oak,' the others ' boy's oak.' "Girls decorate themselves with the former, boys with the latter." Among plants popularly dedicated to other saints, we may notice S. John's Wort {Hypericum, especially H. per- foratum), in many places corrupted into Sinjonswort, which blossoms about St. John the Baptist's day, Feb. 1, 1869.] HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 20 June 24 ; St. James' Wort (C'apsel/a bursa-pastoris), and many more will be found in herbals. In some cases, however, we must admit that names, referred by modern writers to a similar dedication, have really a very different origin. Herb Bennet, for instance, is said to commemorate St. Bennet or Benedict, although, as I have shown, it has a very different origin ; Timothy-grass (Phleum pratense), which really took that name from being brought into cultivation by one Timothy Hanson, is supposed to have been dedicated to St. Timothy ; Paul's Betony (Veronica officinalis), which, according to Dr. Prior, refers to an old author, Paul iEgineta, who described it as a betony— to St. Paul ; and. so on. In the floral kalendar, the Church's seasons were duly noticed. The Holly (Ilex aquifolium), from its use in church decoration at that season, is in many places still called Christmas ; the Snowdrop (Galanthus nivalis), in its old name " Fair Maid of February," comme- morates the feast of the Purification (Feb. 2) ; Lent brings its Lent lilies (Narcissus pseudo -Narcissus) ; Palm Sunday its "palms," as the willow catkins are pretty generally called ; Easter, its Paschal, or Pasque, flower (Anemone Pulsatilla) ; the days preceding the Ascension are referred to in ltogation- flower or Procession-flower (Poly gala vulgaris), which received its name from its use in the garlands which were carried in the religious processions which marked llogation-week ; Herb Trinity (Viola tricolor) pointed to Trinity Sunday; the Virgin's Bower (Clematis) to the Assumption; and the Michaelmas Daisy (Aster) to the feast of SS. Michael •and All Angels. In these enlightened ages we are not supposed to need such aids to faith ; but let us not despise the efforts made in bygone days to bring religion into the daily life of the people by means of the objects which God Himself had created, and which He Himself has told us to " consider." But we must pass on to the consideration of another class. Many plants take their names from a resemblance, real or imaginary, to animals, or parts of animals. The tail-like inflorescence of some has suggested many names ; amongst which are Mouse-tail (Hyosurus minimus), with the carpels arranged on the long slender receptacle ; Cat's-tail (Typha latifolia), with a thick stout spike, a name applied also to Phleum pratense (in Cheshire this grass is called Rat's-tail, a title given, in Cumberland, to the Plantain (Plantago major) ; Hare's-tail (La- jgurno ovatus), remarkable for its soft flowerheads ; Squirrel-tail (Hordeum maritimuni) ; and Dog's-tail (Cyuosurus cristatus). The jHorse-tails (Equiseta), flowerless plants, have their loug slender branches growing in whorls up the barren stem : the name is particularly appropriate to E. maximum. The gaping corolla of the Snapdragon (Antirrhinum majus) has suggested, not only that appellation, but the allied ones, Babbit's-mouth, Lion's-snap, and Dog's-mouth ; in Buckinghamshire the Toadflax (Linaria vulgaris) is called Dragon-bushes. Dr. Prior says that " snap " is from the Dutch sneb, a snout ; so that Snapdragon means simply Dragon's- snout. In Sussex some of these names are trans- ferred to the Foxglove (Digitalis purpurea), which is known at Brighton as Tigcr's-mouth, Dragon's- mouth, and Lion's-mouth ; the wide-open spotted corolla having suggested the titles. The names Geranium, Erodium, and Pelargonium, with their English equivalents, Crane's-bill, Heron's-bill, and Stork's-bill, originated in the long beaked carpels which characterise the various species of those genera. The Hart's-tongue Fern (Scolopendrium vulgare) took its name from the shape of the fronds; in Dorsetshire it is called Hoss (or horse) tongue : the narrow slender spike of Ophioglossum vulgatum accounts for its name, Adder's-tongue : according to Dr. Prior, the Sneezewort (Achillea Ptarmica) is Goose-tongue, "from its finely serrated leaves;" the Hoary Plantain (Plantago media) is Lamb's-tongue; Helminthia echio'ides is Ox-tongue, " from the shape and roughness of its leaf;" while the softness of the foliage of Cynoglossum officinale probably suggested its Greek name, of which the English, Hound's- tongue, is but an equivalent. The shape of its leaf shows the appropriateness of Colt's-foot, as applied to Tussilago Farfara; in Cumberland and Yorkshire this is called Foal-foot, by which it has been known since the time of Gerarde : other names for it are Bull's-foot and Horse-hoof. It is not so easy to explain the meaning of Crowfoot, by which various species of Ranunculus are known ; for if we imagine it to have originated in some fanciful resemblance in the shape of the leaves, the same reason will not account for its application, in Yorkshire and Cumberland, to the Early Purple and Green-winged Orchids (Orchis mascula and 0. morio), unless we suppose that, from the buttercups and orchids growing together, the name may have been extended from one to the other. The Bird's-foot (Oruilhopus perpusillus), and Bird's-foot Trefoil (Lotus coruiculatus) point to the likeness, in the former a very striking one, of the heads of seedpods to a foot or claw : in Buckinghamshire the latter is called Cat's-claws; in Warwickshire, Lambtoes; and elsewhere, Crowtoes. The long projecting nectary of many species of Delphinium suggested the name Lark's-spur, or Lark's-claw ; a name which is ap- plied in Buckinghamshire to the Toadflax (Liuaria vulgaris), from a similar peculiarity in its blossoms. The soft heads of Trifolium r//w#.s\ Fig. 24. Beech. Fig. 25. Hornbeam. The study of buds may also be turned to account in other ways. It is of great importance to be able to recognize our trees and shrubs in the winter season, when devoid of leaf, flower, and fruit. This may perhaps be done by observing the conformation of the branches and twigs, and the colour and sculpture of the bark. It will, however, be greatly facilitated by an intimate knowledge of buds. It is not unfrequently desirable to be able to assign i'small stray branches and twigs to their parent orms ; and for this purpose a thorough knowledge Fig. 26. Hazel. Fig. 27. White Beam. Fig. 28. Maple. of the form, colour, and arrangement of buds, if not essential, is of very great value — a cursory in- spection, in such case, being often all that is neces- sary in order to determine the question. Feu. 1, 1SC9.] HARDWICKE'S SCI ENC E-GO SS1P. 37 A few illustrations are given, with brief notices. They are intended rather as incentives to study than as valuable for their teaching. Fig. 29. Oak. Fig. 30. Wayfaring Tree. Beech (Far/us sylvatica), fig. 24. — The buds of this noble tree are highly characteristic. They are long, lanceolate, with acute apex, and are placed at a pretty constant angle of about 45° with the stem. They are covered with closely imbricated, shining, brown scales. Hornbeam {Carpiuvs betnluH), fig. 25. — This tree, whose leaves have a stiong resemblance to those '?!' Fig. 31. Grey Poplar. -ci Fig. 32. Lime. of the beech both in form and manner of unfold- ing, has buds also not unlike those of the latter. They are, however, sufficiently separated from them by their erect manner of growth, being mostly closely pressed to the stem upon which they 3S HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. [Feb. 1, 1S69. grow, and by their more numerous and shorter scales. Hazel (Cori/l/es aoellaiui), fig. 2G. — This tree and the hornbeam are generally grown together in our Kentish woods for hop-poles, firewood, &c. Their leaves on first expanding are very similar, and may n n Fig. 33. Wych Elm. o, leaf-scar. • Fig 31. Sycamore. form and colour ; so that the trees are more easily separated in winter than summer. The buds are obovate, laterally compressed, particularly the axil- lary ones ; margin of scales with fine streak of reddish brown. easily be confused. At this time the great difference in the colour of their stipules is sufficient to sepa- rate them at a glance : those of the hornbeam are quite red. Their buds are widely different, both in Fig. 35. Horse Chestnut. Fig. 36. Ash. Wych Elm (Ulmus monianus), fig. 33. — The buds of this tree arc broadly ovate or elliptical, dark, and shining. Feb. 1, 1809.] HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 39 White Beam (Pyrus aria), fig. 27. — These buds, in addition to the difference of arrangement, are very dissimilar to any of the foregoing. They are of an obscure green colour, with few scales, with reddish margins. They are very broad at the base, or point of insertion with the stem, thence tapering to a point, having thus a triangular appearance. They are slightly compressed laterally, and some- what cariuated at the edges. Oak (Quercus robur), fig. 29. — Buds small, ovoid, reddish ; scales numerous, very closely imbricated. Grey Poplar {Popuhis canescens), fig. 31. — Buds reddish, shining, very glutinous. Outer pair of scales enclosing, or nearly enclosing, the whole bud. Terminal bud large, and outer scales proportionately less. Figs. 30, 34, 35, 36 are specimens of the simplest case of whorl-structure. They are sufficiently cha- racteristic, and need no remark. The scars left by the falling leaf are also worthy of some study. In form they vary greatly, and are frequently good marks by which to recognize the branch or twig upon which they are found. A reference to the scars of the ash, the horse-chest- nut, the grey poplar, and the elm, as indicated in the foregoing figures is sufficient to demonstrate the truth of this statement. In conclusion, we may add that there is no part of a tree, be it leaf or leaf- scar, stem, branch, or root, bud or bark, that will not amply repay in pleasure and profitable in- struction any amount of labour that may be ex- pended in its examination. St. Mary's Vale, Chatham. J. IlErwonTH. Mistletoe Culture. — I am constantly seeing accounts in Science-Gossip of unsuccessful at- tempts to grow the Mistletoe. Four years ago I planted some berries, and have now about a dozen nice plants. If your readers will adopt my plan, I think they will have no difficulty in growing it. I squeeze the berry on to the under side of a smooth- skinned bough of apple, thorn, or any of the trees on which it generally grows, and bind it there with the mucus that surrounds the seed. In a few days the seed will adhere to the bough as firmly as if it were glued. The following summer it will send out a small shoot, which will curve over to the bark, and press into it, causing the bough to swell slightly. I think it is a mistake to cut the bark, as it causes it to open, leaving nothing for the seed to root into. I generally tie a piece of white tape a few inches from it, to keep birds away, and mark where the seed is planted. My seeds planted at Christ- mas, 1S67, are all growing, and those planted this Christmas are now quite firm on the bough. If any of your readers wish further information on the subject, I shall be pleased to give it them.— S. C. Hi neks. THE SISKIN. (Fri)igilla spinus.) "\TTHEN November comes, like the pioneer of ' ^ winter, to cut down the leaves, and scatter the seeds of the forest trees, then is the time to look for the Siskin. Follow- the winding stream till the last homestead has been left far behind, and creep stealthily to the nearest alder or birch. The seeds of these two trees form the favourite food of the Siskin, and it is here you may expect to find him, if he happens to be in your neighbourhood. If the season be a favourable one, and there be abundance of seeds, the greater your chance of success. The Siskin comes to us as a winter visitor from the north, but the date of his arrival is very uncer- tain, apparently depending as much upon a sudden change of temperature, as upon an abundance or scarcity of his favourite food. The elm and maple supply him in turn with a change of diet, and in the pine and larch plantations he is almost sure to be found at the proper season, although from the ever- green nature of the two last-named trees, and the denser growth of their foliage, he is not so readily seen there. Our own acquaintance with the Siskin was made where the alder and elm best nourish and the larch and pine are scarce. It is therefore upon an alder- tree that we shall introduce the bird to our readers. In size no larger than a Linnet, but with shorter wings and tail, the male bird may be at once dis- tinguished by his black cap and chin, his greenish- yellow breast and rump, spotted flanks, and black and yellow wings. The tail is forked, and with a brownish-black tip. The female, more sombre in appearance, yet sufficiently like her mate to be recognized, is of a general greenish-grey above, suffused with longitudinal streaks of brownish- black, and the dark streaks, which are con- spicuous on the flanks of the male, extend further in the female, to the sides and the whole of the breast. She has no black on the head or chin, but shows the greenish-yellow rump which charac- terizes the other sex. We have remarked that in young males the black colour is confined to the head, and does not appear on the chin until they are fully mature. The variety of attitudes which the Siskin assumes in his busy search for seeds, is very striking, and reminds us a good deal of the Tit family. We have often seen the Siskin and the Marsh Tit on the same branch vieing with each other in their acrobatic feats, and have been struck with the similarity of their movements ; now clinging to a catkin which sways with the weight ; now hanging head down- wards, the more easily to extract a seed or lurking insect ; anon, swinging by one foot upon a bending 40 HABDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. [Feb. 1, 1869. spray preparatory to a new flight, or descending jerkily to some tall reed or thistle-head only to return to the favourite tree. A prettier sight than a little flock of Siskins thus engaged, can scarcely be imagined, and while the eye is pleased with their ever-varying attitudes, the ear is charmed with their incessant merry notes ; for they are by no means silent at their work. A pleasing twitter, uttered, as it were, half aloud, serves as much to keep the flock together, as to express the high spirits of the individuals which compose it. A great friend of the Siskin is the Lesser Redpole, and the two species are frequently to be seen in company, but we must confine our attention for the present to the former bird. Although as a general Scotland." In Ireland the Siskin has only been noticed as an occasional winter visitant.* The nest and eggs resemble those of the Goldfinch upon a smaller scale, and some authors, taking into consideration the structural similarity of these two birds have separated them from the true FrinyiUidtP and placed them in a genus by themselves under the generic name Carduelis. Meyer has found the nest of the Siskin so near London as Coombe Wood, Wimbledon Common; and as the eggs taken were afterwards hatched under a canary, there was no doubt about the identity of the species. In the third volume of his "Illustrations of British Birds and their Eggs " (p. 97) the above-named Eig. 37. The Siskin. rule remaining with us only from November to April, there are many instances on record of the Siskin having remained to nest in England, and we are satisfied that in some parts of Scotland, this bird breeds regularly every year. Mr. A. G. More, who has been at considerable pains to ascertain the distribution of birds in Great Britain during the nesting season, says of the Siskin :* " The nest has been found in Lancashire (Yarrett) ; near Walton Hall (Waterton) ; in Durham {Hancock and Rev. II. B. Tristram) ; and in Westmoreland (Bolton quoted by Montagu). In the South of Scotland, the Siskin breeds occasionally in Dalswinton Woods, Dumfriesshire (Gibson) ; in Kirkcudbright {Yarrett); within two miles of Glasgow (R. Gray) ; in Perth- shire perhaps regularly; in Argylcshire; and, though not numerous as a species, may be considered to nest regularly in most of the northern counties of * The Ibis fox I860, p. 129. author gives an interesting account of two other nests of the Siskin which he found, — the one at St. Anne's Hill, Chertsey, and the other "in a wild straggling hedge in the open plain bordering the Thames, at no great distance." In both cases the parent bird was distinctly seen upon the nest. To this account, and to some remarks by that excellent observer Charles St. John (which may be found in his "Nat. Hist, and Sport in Moray," p. 110), we refer such of our readers as seek further information than we have given. To those who know the Siskin only as a cage-bird, we say, study him in his proper haunts ; steal quietly to the alder, pine, or birch tree ; watch his merry antics, and listen to his sprightly song ; and we ven- ture to say that the pleasure to be thus derived will far outweigh any that can arise from the contem- plation of a solitary captive. J. E. Harting. * Thompson's " Nat. Hist, of Ireland," vol. i. p. 264. Feb. ], 1869.] HARDWICKE'S SC 1EN CE-GOS SI P. 41 GUDGEON SCALE. "TX7E give a magnified figure of the scale of tbe ™ * Gudgeon {Gohio fluviatilis) because it is one of the " common objects " which is not so well known to microscopists as it ought to be. There is a great similarity in the structure of this scale and that of the Perch, but the differences are quite sufficient to make both of them equally desirable for the cabinet. The scales are small and beauti- Fig. 38. Scale of Gudgeon x 12. fully transparent, so that they can scarcely be sur- passed, even by the scale of the "Sole" as objects for the polariscope. The magnifying power under whicb the woodcut is drawn is slightly higher than that of the scales figured at page 13. THE WINTER HOME OF THE HUMBLE BEE. T T is a very pleasant thing for a lover of nature -*• resident iii the country to have a friend with tastes somewhat similar to his own, to join him in his evening walks, and with him to explore favourite haunts in search of some of the treasures of natural history. One evening, late in the month of August, in company with such a friend, I enjoyed the pleasure of an agreeable search in a very pleasant and ex- tensive demesne. My special object was to obtain beetles, as I was then engaged in the examination of the gastric teeth of some of the Coleoptera. While searching in a sheltered grove that bordered upon a meadow, we happened to turn up a large stone that was slightly embedded in the earth, and, from its position and appearance, had evidently lain a long time without any disturbance of place. We found that the under-surface of the stone was quite flat, and that it lay upon a smooth bed of clay, to which it fitted very closely. Near the centre of this bed, and about eight inches from its nearest margin, there was a spot, nicely hollowed out, of rather more than an inch in length ; the width and depth were each about three-fourths of an inch. In this hollow bed there was a humble bee. The bee was lying on its side, and was alive, but not very active (fig. 39). The flat bottom of the stone had formed a close covering for the cell, and we Fig. 39. Humble Bee at home. could not discern any marks of the passage by which the bee had found access to its place, nor could we see any traces of the earth that had been removed by the bee when forming the cell. The shelter and protection of the spot were very complete. We concluded that we had happened upon the winter quarters of a female bee, where the period of her comparative torpidity would have been passed until the return of the warm days of the following spring ; and from her position in her winter home, we recognized an applicability in the specific name of the bee as the Bombus terrestris. Armagh. Lewis G. Mills, LL.B. Microscopic Objects — February. — Water- fleas and the Green Hydra may be found in pools and ditches. The pollen of Tussilago frugrans, very pretty. That of Corylus avellana exhibit the pollen tubes when treated with weak sulphuric acid. Hairs of Senecio vulgaris. The stellate and com- pound hairs of the ivy and the torulose hairs of Lamitim album. — H. G. G. 42 HAEDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. [Feb. 1, 1S69. ZOOLOGY. Duration of Animal Life. — I was reading some short time since in a periodical, observations almost assertions, relative to the above subject, wherein the writer gave the maximum length of life to birds as ten years. This, from actual expe- rience, I know to be a great mistake. I had a pigeon for twelve years, and he was two years old when I bought him, and thus he was fourteen years old at the time I lost him, and then he was appa- rently as active as ever he was. A relative of mine has a canary, stuffed, that died at nearly eighteen years of age. An acquaintance of mine had a parrot that when I last saw it was ninety-five years old. It was an heirloom from one branch to another, and may be alive now, for aught I know. Poll, like the canary, gave strong evidences of age in her ragged attire. — G. Bullard. Gold Crest.— This morning, while sitting at breakfast, I was surprised to see two of those pretty birds, the Golden-crested Wren (Regulus cristatus) come and pitch on a small fir-tree in front of my window, and I watched them with much pleasure, whilst they busily searched the shrubs for their insect food. Is it not a rare occurrence for this bird to approach so near to the haunts of man ? It may interest some of your readers to hear that on the 7th of last month I saw a flock of Fieldfares (Tardus pilaris), or Redwings {Tardus iliacus), pass over this locality; they flew too high for me to distinguish with certainty whether they were birds of the first or second named species.—/. R. E., Downshire Hill, Hempstead. New Entomostraca in a Coal-mine. — Mr. Thomas Atthey has discovered a new and interesting species of Entomostraca on the roof of the Low Main, "West Cramlington Colliery, near Newcastle. Under the name of Canthocamptus cryptorum it is described by G. S. Brady in the Quarterly Journal of Microscopical Science for January. New British Moth.— At the meeting of the Entomological Society of London (December 7th), Mr. Edward Saunders exhibited a new British Moth (Crambus myellus), allied to C. pinetellus, captured near Aberdeen by Mr. D. E. Brown.— Gardeners' Chronicle. Orange Fly (Ceratiles citriperda) has been found at Peckham in Marie-Louise Pears; and no wonder that it has settled in England, seeing how many "maggoty" oranges have come over of late. Lovers of good pears will not be glad to hear that in the absence of oranges this fly accommodates itself with pears. It may in the course of a few years prove to be a real pest. — See Newman's "Entomologist" for January, with figure of the fly. On Physalia. — With regard to the remarks of Mr. Gosse, F.R.S;, on my note in Science-Gossip for December, on the Physalia, I would observe that I did not imagine that Mr. Gosse doubted the discharge of a fluid, but that he doubted that the stinging sensation was caused by the fluid alone. I was inclined to think that he was uncertain as to this point from his remarks quoted in my note ; and I felt that my face had borne testimony to very " sensible observation " when smarting from the effects of contact, 7iot with the Physalia, but with my hand, which had been applied to its disc, and had received therefrom the poisonous secretion which it communicated to my face. I can, there- fore, have no doubt, after this, that the symptoms of poisoning are due to an irritant juice emitted, and that it does not require the penetration of any barbs to make its influence felt. Mr. Gosse would appear to imagine that I brought up my experience to prove that contact with the Physalia produces severe irritation of the skin. Such a well-known fact required no further testimony. What I wished to show was, that there is an acrid juice emitted, and that this juice causes the irritation without actual contact with the Physalia ; and therefore I hold that my experience is an additional proof of the pain being caused " by means of an acrid juice discharged " from the animal, which latter quotation from Mr. Bennett was the original cause of the argument. I regret that my former note at p. 279, vol. iii., was not sufficiently clear to prevent a mis- understanding. I had no intention of attempting to prove Mr. Gosse's doubts, but to add an " iota " of evidence towards the support of Mr. Bennett's statement, which latter I think I have done, not- withstanding that Mr. Gosse is of a different opinion. Unhappily, I do not possess Mr. Gosse's valuable work on " Sea-Anemones," so I may be ignorant of a similar circumstance having occurred under that gentleman's own observation. — IF. Wykeham Perry, II. M.S. " Caledonia," Malta, Dec. 22, 1SGS. Trichina spiralis.— Dr. Virchow's treatise on the life of Trichina, translated by Dr. 11. K. Browne, is appearing in consecutive numbers of the American " Dental Register." Queen of Spain Fritillary (Argynnis la- thonia). — A beautiful specimen of this rare insect was caught by myself in a field at Milton next Gravescnd, the latter part of September last. — II. J. M. Todd, Gravescnd. Protection of Sea-birds, &c. — A meeting has recently been held at the Zoological Society of Lon- don, in which the llev. H. B. Tristram, Professor Newton, and others, took part, to carry out the views propounded at the British Association meeting, and to place themselves in correspondence with the Yorkshire Society (see p. 10). Eeb. 1, 1SG9.] IIARDWICKE'S SCIENCE GOSSIP. 43 BOTANY. The Glastonbury Thorn.— There is, in Wy- combe Park, a tree of this variety, known as Cra- taegus oxyacuntha precox, which usually buds, but does not blossom, in December. This season, how- ever, many blossoms have fully expanded, induced by the mildness of the weather to put in an appear- ance ; their perfume being quite as powerful as that of those which expand at the more usual time. — Quart. Mag. of High Wycombe Nat. Hist. Society. The Wood Sorrel (p. 20).— Mr. Holland in- tended to .draw attention to the fact that Oxalis Acetosella produces seed from " apetalous flowers ;" not from " a petalous flower," as your printer has made it appear. Mr. Watson, in his " Compendium of the Cybele," notes " summer flowers apetalous, as in Viola." — B. Wood Sorrel.— Mr. Holland will find a notice of the manner in which this pretty wild plant produces its seed, in Barton & Castle's "Elora Medica."— Helen E. Watney. Cholera Eungus. — After a series of long bota- nical researches, Professor Ernest Hallier, of the University of Jena, has convinced himself of the presence in the excreta of cholera patients of a microscopic fungus which exists in them in con- siderable quantities. On submitting this minute plant to a careful microscopical examination, the distinguished botanist found that it has all the characters of Urocistus oryza, which in India is found sometimes in the rice plantations. Professor Hallier then manured some rice plants with the excreta in question, and finds that they perish rapidly. A whole plantation may be thus destroyed by the Urocistus in a very short space of time. — Scientific Review. [Our contemporary, like Professor Hallier, has leaped to an unj ustifiable conclusion. The researches alluded to have assumed too much, and proved too little. Scientific men do not believe in them, and many months since we gave our grounds for reject- ing wholly the supposed fungoid origin of cholera, in " Country Life." — See also Dr. Thudicum's remarks in the first Number of the Monthly Microscopical Journal. — Ed. S. G.] Scurvy Grass. — This plant (Cochlearia offici- nalis) is rare on the southern coast, at least I have never found it there ; in the north, it is said to be plentiful on the shores of creeks, and frequent on the highlands of Wales and Scotland. Will any one who has an opportunity of observing it give some information as to its habits of growth? The authorities differ. It was once cultivated, and Miller, in his " Gardener's Dictionary," says it is an annual, because, when sown in July, the proper season, it completes its growth by July following; a reason not quite satisfactory. Loudon, another gardener, describes it as biennial. Withering, the same. Hooker, in his " British Elora," 4th edit., 1S38, marks it annual, in common with all the sister plants except C. armoracia. Bhind, in his "Vegetable Kingdom," says it is perennial. My experience is limited to one specimen of C. offici- nalis found, with others, on a dry bank (to which the plant seems confined in that neighbourhood), near the town of Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, and removed in September to a garden in another county, where it flowered strongly two years, and had a perennial character, throwing up several flowering stems. It perished in the drought of last summer. I am led to think that Bhind is right. It is bold to challenge the authority of such a book as Hooker' s " British Elora," but itself furnishes strong evidence that an error has crept into it. The species named Greenlaiulica, which Hooker suspects to be only a variety of C. officinalis, and which Miller, under the name of Welsh Scorpion grass, describes as biennial, is marked annual in the "British Elora ;" but it is highly improbable that an annual plant should be able to maintain itself on the edge of the Arctic Circle, among the dwarf willow and birch, as its name implies, and it is known to do. The plant is interesting, but fallen into general disuse, both as a salad and a medicine ; though Loudon says it forms, mixed with orange-juice, an ingredient in the popular remedy called " Spring Waters." C. armoracia, the horse-radish, a sister- plant, does not seem at all likely to be so much neglected. — S. S. Monograph of Thuja.— I ask permission to cor- rect a typographical error in my recently published Monograph of the Coniferous Genus Thuja {Linn.), and of the North American species of the genus Le- bocedrus (Encll.) (Transactions of the Botanical Society of Edinburgh, vol. ix. pp. 35S-378). The parallel columns containing the characters of the genera on p. 363 ought to be transposed, and the superfluous "the," last word 15th line from the foot of p. 3G2, deleted. The error was made after the paper passed from my hands ; and though I have corrected it in a number of separate copies, and the context and preceding and succeeding statements make it at once self-evident, yet the memoir may pass into the hands of some who have not seen these corrections. — Robert Brown. Elotvering of Whin in December.— When strolling along the southern slope of the Ochil Hills, near the village of Blairlogie, on Christmas morn, I was much surprised and pleased to find the top- most sprigs of the whin clustered with its yellow- flowers. The stony slopes of the hill reflect the sun, while the mountains shelter from the N. andE. wind, so that, on a fine day in December, you have the temperature of April.— Wm. Hacldon. 44 HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. [Ffb. 1, 1869. MICROSCOPY. Christmas and the Microscope — Nee jam sustineant onus, Sylvre laborantes, geluque Flumina constiterint acuto, might well be said of Canadian woods and streams at this season of the year. The earth has pnt on her winter robes, and under them she hides most of those objects which in summer please and delight us so much. A cheerless prospect for microscopists, one would think. So I thought, as on Christmas afternoon I sallied out with bottles and stick in search of diatoms, infusoria, snow-peas, &c, though I did not expect to be very successful. After wandering about for some time, searching vainly for an unfrozen stream, I was about to return home with empty bottles, when I suddenly bethought my- self of an old spring which supplied several families with water, and which I knew therefore would be unfrozen. In this country, wherever there is a good spring some kind individual sinks a barrel for the benefit of the community at large, and thereby benefits microscopists in no small degree, for in these you are generally sure to find a good supply of microscopic objects. When I got to the spring the first thing that greeted my sight was a piece of alga; floating on the top of the water, and on a closer examination of the barrel I saw that the sides had a dark-brown coating, in which I knew diatoms and infusoria would be found. Scraping some of this oft', I placed it in a bottle and retraced my steps homeward, well satisfied with my afternoon's walk. Getting home at that unfavourable time for work- ing, just as the light is beginning to fail, I had to exercise my patience and wait till evening to see what my bottle contained. 1 had not long to wait, as darkness soon succeeds the light here : so when I had got a lamp lighted, I proceeded to examine my spoils. A short account of the things 1 found may not be uninteresting to English readers of the Science-Gossip, as it will give them some idea of what lovers of science meet with in this country. Upon putting a slide under the microscope before I had it properly focussed, I saw the dim outline of some little creature kicking and struggling as though it were caught in a net. It turned out to be one of the Tardigrada, or little water-bears, that had got its feet entangled in the gelatinous tube of the Encyonema prostratum. It was with great difficulty that it freed itself from the jelly, and then it began its slow and stately walk, which formed such a con- trast with the quick, lively movements of the animalcules with which it was surrounded. The little water-bears are by no means common objects with us, but it only makes them the more accept- able when we chance to get them. The Encyonema prostratum seems to delight in these quiet water- barrels, though it is occasionally fouud on the wave-washed Cladophora of our lakes. They always remind me of the manner in which peccaries sleep, packed closely together in hollow logs. I have seen the Encyonema shoot out of its tube, but whether it can find its way back again or not I do not know. Two species of Euglence were very plentiful, viz., the E. viridis and E. acus. They are found here in the spring in such numbers as to give to the water they are in a dark green colour. The Paramecium aurelia and Kolpoda cucullus were in great abun- dance. Among other Infusoria were the Amphileptus anser, two species of VorticeU'uue and the Leueophrys pat/da. Of Desmids there were three species : Closterium acerosum, Cosmariitm undulatum, and Scenedesmus quadricauda. Of Diatoms, besides the Encyonema, the following species were present : Gompj/ionema coronation, G. minutissimum, Melosira varians (Thwaites), Fragillaria rhabdosoma, Meridon vernale,Navicula amphirhynchus, N. lib rile, Hyalosira rectangida, Synedra splendens, Cymbella gastroides, and some others. — W. Osier, Dundas, Ontario. Object for Polariscope. — The skin and scales covering the legs of a pheasant make a very pretty object for the polariscope. The scales should be cleared from fat by immersion in ether or dilute liquor potassae, dried between slips of glass, soaked in turpentine until quite transparent, and finally mounted in balsam. The colours are very bright if a selenite stage is used. — /. II., Cheltenham. CoRDYLorHORA lacustris.— The only habitats I find recorded for this interesting zoophyte are docks in London and Dublin, where there would, I suppose, be some admixture of salt water some- times, though Professor Allmann says he kept spe- cimens for a fortnight in fresh water. Last June a specimen was found by a friend of mine on a piece of old caual-boat, which we were examining for polyzoa, lying on the Birmingham Canal at Tipton. I subsequently found this zoophyte in the Stour- bridge Canal, close by the town ; and I also ob- tained a luxurious gathering from a pool near Pensnett, Dudley, where it was lying close to the side, attached to a small stick, and exposed to the full glare of the August sun. I transferred this colony to my aquarium, where it is still (Nov. 16) flourishing. The zoophyte does not seem therefore to avoid light, though, I suppose, when so exposed, it is frequently destroyed by the more rapid growth of Conferva?. Johnston only gives a short account of it in his 2nd edition, and derives the name from Kop$v\oc (a water-newt) instead of KopcuXi] (clava, a club).— {See Professor Allmann's admirable paper in Philosophical Transactions, 1853.) An interesting account of it also, by the Rev. T. Hincks, is to be found in Ann. and Mag. Nat. History, 1853. — W. Madeley, Pensnett, near Dudley. Feb. 1, 1869.] HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 45 NOTES AND QUERIES. Fumart.— The Pole- cat is called Fumart in Cum- berland, which is evidently a corruption of Foul- marten, so called on account of the horrid stench it emits when attacked ; and also to distinguish it from the Beech-marten, or Sweet-marten (Mustela martes), or, as it is generally called there, " Mart." The Stinkhorn fungus (Phallus impjidicus) is known here by the name of Pow-cat, which is doubtless a corruption of Pole-cat. It is not uncommon to hear a person say, when speaking of anything causing a disagreeable odour, that it stinks iike a Pow-cat. -J. B. Similar replies have also been received from E. T. Scott, W. Tyrer, Fred. Smith, &c. Fumart.— At p. 22, W. Gain makes inquiries about this word. The only light (if light it can be called) that I can throw on the subject is an extract from Thomson's "Etymons of English Words," 1826. He speaks of the "Jumart" as "an animal absurdly supposed to be produced from a male ass and a cow. F. (French) Jumart, from A. (Arabic) Hummar, a red ass, which is held in disrepute as degenerate." One is almost tempted to correct the word with the Latin " Jumentum, a beast of burden." Of course, such a monster as the Fumart or Jumart never existed. — IF. W. Spicer. Weather-wise Glowworm. — There is a weather proverb to the effect that, — " When the glowworm lights her lamp Then the air is always damp." Can you inform me why this is the case ? Sometimes on a warm night in summer, when walking in the neighbourhood of Lyme, I have seen glowworms in abundance, but on passing through the same place a i'ew nights afterwards I have scarcely observed any. How far north is the insect found ? and does it inhabit the Isle of Man and Ireland ? — F. J. D. Hintori. Snow-bunting. — Can any of your readers in- form me where I can get a female snow-bunting. I have two males, and should be glad to exchange one of them for a female, or am willing to buy. I have had my birds two years, they are healthy and in good feather. I should like the female to have moulted in confinement. — A. Pickard, Wokingham, Darlington. Drying Leaves. — In drying leaves for a speci- men-collection of " winter leaves," I find the leaves of the laurel (either common or variegated) become invariably spotted with black, which spreads until the whole leaf is discoloured, every precaution having been taken, such as changing the drying- papers. Can any of your correspondents explain this, or assist me with their experience ? — H. P. Lamperns. — "L.S." would be glad to know if the little fish caught in the Severn and sold by the name of Lampern, or Lampron, is Petromyzon fluviatilis, _ and whether it is the same fish that Henry I. is said to have died from indulging in ? She would be glad to know if Lamprey is its proper name, or whether the country name of Lampern or Lampron is right. She has heard that the lamprey is a much larger fish. What's in a Name?— The remarks made by " M.G." in Science-Gossip last month remind me of an amusing incident somewhat a propos of his little anecdote. A new gardener of mine said to me one morning, when I was giving him some directions respecting a few shrubs I wanted re- moved, " A couple of those ' Our angels ' would look beautiful there, if you 'please, ma'm." — "A couple of what ? " I asked. " ' Our angels,' ma'm. Those blue 'our angels,' like your mamma, Mrs. Raby, has at Beyn M or," was the reply— " 'Our angels,'" I repeated. " Yes, ma'm ; we have pink ones here : there is some over there," pointing, as he spoke, to a clump of hydrangeas. — "Why, those are hydrangeas, Jenkins," I exclaimed, nearly dying of laughter. " Well to be sure ! Mrs. Raby called them by some foreign name, and I thought it was ' our angels.' ''—Helen E. Watneij. Acorns.— It is a fact— no "folk lore" at all— that when pigs are killed without being put up to fatten on barley-nieal, peas, &c, after feeding on acorns the flesh will not make good pork or bacon. 1 know this to be the case. — Helen E. Watney. Humming-bird in England. — I must beg leave to dissent from your correspondent's inference with regard to its being the Sphinx convolmdi which was mistaken by the lady at Leamington for the Hum- ming-bird, for I think everything points to the sup- position that it was the Humming-bird Hawk-moth (Macroglossa stel lata rum) which she saw. For in- stance, S. conrolculi is a nocturnal insect, and the probability is that no one would imagine it was a Humming-bird which was seen flying at night. M. stellatarum being diurnal in its habits, flying in the hottest sunshine over flowers, with that peculiar darting, hovering motion (which has earned for it its common name) when about to dive its long haustellum into the nectaries of petunias, pelar- goniums, or other flowers, might well be mistaken by a person ignorant of natural history for the veritable Humming-bird. The description, too, tallies with M. .stellatarum, inasmuch as the "plumage of reddish brown, speckled upon the back with white," is as the two bars of white upon the rufous ground-colour of the body would appear when the moth was poising itself over the flowers. — A. 31. B. Silurian Maps. — I believe there have been pub- lished some approximate geological maps of Europe at the Silurian period. Will you inform me where they are to be obtained, and the price of them ? Can you also inform me if there are any other than the Silurian maps ? — H. W. Richardson. Laurel-leaves. — I noticed the four, rarely only two, spots at the back of the leaves of the common laurel many years ago. I was in a garden on Mus- well-hill, Hornsey, and my attention was drawn to the spots by noticing a number of bees, not the common honey-bee, alight on the leaves in a steady business-like way, and run rapidly down the middle of the leaf, turn briskly under to the side where the spots are found, suck the juice from the four ending spots in succession, and fly away. I have since ex- amined these spots, or (?) excretionary glands. At some seasons of the year they exude each quite a respectable drop of a sweet juice; at other times the spots are dry and brown. I have never seen them on any other save the common, laurel-leaves. Fshould be glad to know what species of bee it is that seems to know and like so well this nectar or syrup. When I first observed the spots I was more interested in them than my little guides, and so lost the opportunity of settling the question as to their species. — S. M. 4G HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. [Feb. 1, 1SG9. Piece of Coal. — Allow me to correct two glar- ing mis-statements in the "Story of a Piece of Coal," with which your fifth volume commences. The Honorary Secretary of the Norwich Geological Society there states "that, during the carboniferous 5>eriod, there stretched across what is now central England, a hilly barrier, which separated two coal- formations going on contemporaneously.''' A rough sketch (fig. 40) will show the fallacy of this hypo- thesis better than mere description. The coal-mea- sures were deposited conformably over the Millstone Grit, and it was not till after the close of the car- boniferous period that the upheaval of the range occurred. It is easy to imagine the continuation of the beds which have been cut off by denudation subsequently. But the next error is still more glaring. I refer to the statement that the moun- tain limestone was formed simultaneously with the coal-measures ! Considering that the mountain limestone underlies the latter by several thousand feet of Millstone Grit, I think it is needless to comment upon this most novel hypothesis. — W. II. Button, Geol. Survey. January, 1669; Quarterly Journal of Geological Society, vol. xxii., pp. 590, 470, 599 ; M. Agassiz, Poissons Fossiles, 8 vols. ; Ditto, Du Vieux Gres Rouge ; Transactions of Manchester Geological Society, vol. i., p. 10; Transactions of Tvneside Naturalists' Field Club, vol. vi., p. 231; Owen's Odontography ; Owen's Palaeontology ; Owen's Homology of the Vertebrate Skeleton ; Buckland's Geology and Mineralogy ; Pace's Handbook of Geology; Page's Geological Terms; Chambers's Encyclopaedia; Proceedings of the Palseontographical Society ; Acadian Geology by Dawson, pp. 179, 353; Proceedings of North of England Institution of Mining Engineers ; Sedgwick and McCoy's British Palseozoic Fossils ; Miller's Footprints of the Creation ; Science - Gossip ; Scientific Opinion. From any of the works enumerated valuable infor- mation may be derived. — T. P. Parkas, Neiocastlc- on-Tyne. Substitute for Nose-pieces. — There is an error in the description of my sketch (fig. 15, in the number for last month). I wrote, or should have Coal-mearures. 2. Millstone-grit. The Nightingale. — I read in the Western Morn- ing News of this day (January 11th) that " the valley between Liskeard and Moorswater (in Cornwall) is now tenanted by a nightingale, which warbles enchanting, but untimely music." Is it not a very unusual occurrence at this season of the year and in that locality?—^/. J. Davy, Torquay. Gkowtii in Greengage. — In the month of July last year, I was preparing to eat a fine-looking greengage, when on opening it to remove the stone, [ found the kernel had germinated, and a radicle had appeared at one end of the stone, which was partly open, and a delicate primule at the other. As it looked healthy, I carefully closed the fruit around it, and planted it en masse, but am sorry to say it perished, 1 believe owing to the continuous rain. —II. P. Books and Pafebs on Carboniferous Faun.e. — 1 have had numerous applications to recommend works in which information may be had respecting carboniferous faunae, and as there is no single work in which the information at present possessed has been condensed and illustrated, L beg that you will permit me to refer your readers to some of the many sources from which valuable information may be obtained : — Annals of Natural History, February, April, May, June, 1S0S ; Proceedings of the Geo- logical Society, vol. xviii., p. 2'.)1 ; vol. xix., p. 03; Transactions of Royal Irish Society, vol. xxiv., p. 351, plate 19; Memoirs of Geological Society, 1859, p. 52 ; Ditto, Decades vi. and x ; Transactions of Geological Society, series ii., vol. vi., plate 43, fig. 1; Owen's Dental Characters of Genera and Species of Fishes and Reptiles from Low Main Coal-seam, Northumberkmd ; Geological Magazine, vol. vi., pp. 323, 378 ; Ditto, Aug., Nov., Dec, 1S0S, and done so, lower end of " body," and 'not, as printed, " object-glass." (Of course the upper end of object- glass goes into the lower end of body.) — James Vogan. [It is printed as our correspondent wrote it; hence the error is his own.— Ed. S. G.\ To repair Corallines. — Can any one inform me how to mend a piece of coralline from the Mau- ritius ? Arabian cement and plaster of Paris have been tried, but without success. — F. II., Eastbourne. [Is it a coral or a coralline ? — Ed. S. G.] Dendritic Spots. — I have for a length of time been puzzled to know what these are. They cer- tainly look like some fungoid growth, but I cannot feel so sure about it as " J. T. G." I have often tried, but can find no spores, neither can I make out that the spots grow, nor yet increase in number, as they would do were they a kind of fungus ; ana I cannot find them on all sorts of paper. 1 have now by me two kinds of foolscap which have been kept in the same place. One sort abounded in spots when I had it, but they have certainly not become more numerous during the past year or more. On the other lot of paper, about half a ream, I can find none. May they not be some crystallization which takes place in the making of the paper ? I have looked into some old books which have got rather discoloured with damp, but do not find them, though there is a black fungus of quite a different appear- ance which is produced, and does grow and increase. Perhaps " J. T. W." can procure and figure the spores, which would set the matter at rest as to the vegetable nature of the spots. — E. T. Scott. Luminous Centipede.— While walking in the garden one night with a friend, we observed a luminous appearance on the walk by the side of the lawn. It looked like a number of luminous grains Feb. 1, 1SG9.] HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 47 of sand arranged in a row, and all moving about very quickly. We took it up and carried it to the light, and found that it was an animal like a centi- pede, only a good deal longer, more slender, and with many more legs. It is very common in the kind of places in which centipedes are found. On going to the British Museum I saw an animal that I thought was the same, called Geophilus carpophagus. The luminosity did not seem to proceed from a wound, as it was all over from head to tail. — A'. W. An Ejectment for Ants. — A lady for many years has had the misfortune to have her best plums and pears infested with ants, so that the inside of the ripe fruits has been partially filled with these little creatures. Boiling water, lime, salt, tobacco- water, aloes, guano, were tried and failed ; indeed, as one of your correspondents said, those articles appeared to agree with them, and made them more lively than ever. An old gentleman gave informa- tion that train-oil would give ants a clear ejectment. On going to purchase the oil, the druggist said it would be a more certain mixture if one ounce of the flowers of sulphur were mixed with two pints of the train-oil. This mixture was applied with a whitewash brush on the wall and on the trunks of the trees for the height of two yards. The effect has been that only one ant has been seen during the last summer, and none of the fruit infested by them.— John Higginbottom , F.B.S.J., Nottingham. Laurel-berries, &c— The question asked by Mr. E. J. Battersby, in a recent number of Science- Gossip, is one attended witli much interest, and relates to a subject but little attended to by botanists generally. It is a well-known fact that the common Laurel (Cerastes Lauro-cerasus), which must not be confounded with the true Laurel of the ancients (Laurus nobilis), contains a virulent secretion— prussic acid— in large quantities. It is also well known that the fleshy portion of its dark purple berries, as they are erroneously called, is edible when perfectly ripe; in fact, I have eaten them myself in large quantities without experiencing anything unwholesome; still I have doubts as to whether the kernels do not contain a poisonous principle, as do those of the delicious peaches, nectarines, &c, of our gardens. Instances are on record of death having been occasioned by partaking of them in quantity. I am of opinion that Laurel- " berries" (drupes) are poisonous whilst in a young state, their flavour at that period being similar to that of the leaves. Why any particular plant (or order) should absorb and secrete in itself prussic acid, as the Laurel ; Solanine, as by the Solanums : Atropine, as by the "Deadly Nightshade (Atropa Belladonna); 1 'heiue, as by the Tea shrub (Thea), &c, is a mystery difficult to explain. Why should apples, pears, and other of our common fruits differ in flavour ?_ Take apples, for example. There aie in cultivation several thousand named varieties; yet_ out of this immense collection scarcely two varieties can be named as possessing exactly the same flavour. In the case of varieties, as in the example already named, it is highly probable that all the natural secretions are present, such as malic acid, sugar, &c. ; but that they exist in different proportions in nearly every variety, and thus occa- sion differences of flavour. It may be asked, What causes the secretions to exist in different proportions in separate varieties ? I have asked this question many times ; 1 have put it to some of the leading horticulturists with whom 1 have had the oppor- tunity of conversing; and never yet received a decided answer. It is only by patient observation that we can wrest many of Nature's secrets from her grasp. Some of her problems are difficult to solve, and can only be thoroughly mastered by con- tinual observation and well-directed study.— F. W. Burbidge, Somerby, Oakham. October Lilac. — "During the past autumn, I have, on two separate occasions, observed the com- mon Purple Lilac in bloom. In one instance, it is but fair to state that the plant had been forced the previous spring. In the other case, the plant com- menced its growth very early in the spring, being in a warm, sheltered situation, and the summer being hot and dry, the wood became ripened early. The autumnal rains _ started some of the most prominent buds, and it produced several clusters of beautiful and delicately-perfumed purple flowers, which, according to rule, ought not to have ap- peared' until the succeeding spring.— F. W. Bur- bidge, Somerby, Oakham. Spiders suspending a Stone.— Might not the stone referred to by " J. E. D.," p. 2S3, as sus- pended from a spider's web, have been used by the spider appertaining thereto as a means of keeping its web distended, or to steady it from the effects of the wind ?— F. W. Burbidge, Somerby, Oakham. Luminous Worm. — One evening in September last I observed and captured a centipede, which emitted a light so much similar to that of a glow- worm, that at the time (it being nearly dark) I mistook it for one. I was surprised, upon examin- ing it in the light, to find it a centipede. After having had it in my hands some minutes, I placed it under a glass for future examination ; and upon going into a dark room my hands shone as though I had rubbed them with a piece of phosphorus. This luminous appearance I found resulted from a minute quantity of viscid matter which had adhered to my fingers whilst I was examining the polypodian luminary itself. The specimen I observed was to all appearance perfect and uninjured, and shone brightly at times as it moved quickly along a gravel path. In reply to the re- marks of Mr. G. J. Dew, I would say that I believe the "insect" he refers to in the December number of Science-Gossip does naturally emit a light, although such light may shine much brighter when the "insect" suffers from a fracture, as Mr. Dew states was the case with the specimen he observed. The luminous centipede observed by myself, and which I have no doubt is identical with the one seen by Mr. Dew, was nearly two inches long, slender, very active, and of a pale yellow colour. Probably some of the correspondents of this periodical may have observed this luminous pheno- menon, and be able to furnish us with its scientific appellation. — F. W. Burbidge, Somerby, Oakham. What are the specific Differences between Potent ill a tormentilla and Potentilla reptans? — Potentilla reptans, the common creeping cinquefoil, has a filiform creeping stem ; Potentilla tormentilla (tormentil) an ascending dichotomous one. P. reptans has quinate leaves and obovate leaflets ; the P. tormentilla ternate leaves and elliptical lanceolate leaflets. They are not quite so serrated (toothed) as those of the P. reptans. These are, I believe, the chief specific differences between the two plants, for we often find a tormentilla with five petals and a ten-parted calyx, and the different species of Poten- tilla are sometimes found varying with four or five petals. — Helen E. Wutuey. 48 HARDWICXE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. [Feb.1, 1869. NOTICES TO CORRESPONDENTS. Lbighton's Anoiocarpous Lichens and Monograph of British Graphidere, wanted to purchase.— Address, J. Bow- man, Cockan, Lamplugh, Cockermouth. E. C. J.—Enca/ypta streptocarpa. — R. B. J. B. L. — 1. Bruchytliccium albicans. 2. Grimmia triilio- phylln. 3. Racomitrium ellipticum. — R. B. H. C. Lkslik.— The Cynips is C. lignieola, Hartig ; and the Ichneumon is Callimone Deroniensis, Parfitt. — C. 0. W. J. Mc C— The Blue Bee is Xylocopa violacea.—C. 0. W. D. H. S.— The leaf, fig. 249, is that of Crataegus uxyueun- thoides, evidently. F. G. B. — We cannot revive the subject again after so long delay, especially to add nothing new. J. G. O.— Your observations should have been sent to the journal in which the discussion is conducted. E. J. — The circumstance is not at all uncommon. R. G. — We cannot attempt to name larvae, &c. Why not rear them yourself, and save us the trouble? R. B. — Asplenium Adiuntum-nigrum. A. L. — We can find two or three similar instances within five minutes' walk of our own domicile. G. H. A. and J. B. K.— As a controversy has been going on in Scientific Opinion on this subject, we decline commencing it. Errata. — Some correspondents, who complain of errors in printing their communications, are in the habit of writing such execrable scrawls, that it is no wonder the P. D. gets puzzled. S. S.— English Books printed in India are many of them a disgrace to their authors, and contain more errors than any other books in the language. " Balfour's Cyclopaedia " is no exception, and though only a compilation, and a careless one, it would be difficult to say which preponderates, the right or the wrong. The only satisfaction we can afford you is, that it is the only one published. Carfoi.ogical Books.— Our correspondent (" H. S.") will perhaps find the following list answer the purpose : Parsons, " The Microscopical Theatre of Seeds." London, 1/45. 4to. — Gaertnkr, J., " De Fructibus et Seminibus Plantarum." 3 vols. 4to. Stuttgart, 1/88-1807. — Dumoktier, " Essai Carpographique." 4to. Brussels, 1835. — Couverchel, " Traite des Fruits." 8vo. Paris, 1839. — Richard, " Demon- strations Botaniques, ou Analyse au Fruit considere en general." 8vo. Paris, 1808.— Ralph, T. S., " Icones Car- pologicse." Parti. 4to. London, 184<). A. B. — The common Custard Apple is Anona reticulata, and the Cherimoyer is Anona cherimolia. The zoophyte on the Shrimp is Laomedea dichotoma, common on various sub- stances within tide-marks. There is no reason to suppose that the volunteers have anything to do with it. I. T. — At Wheldon's, Great Queen Street, Lincoln's-Inn Fields. P. B.— No ! especially the binocular. A. C. — Undoubtedly they were little " Hermit Crabs." H. P. — Mr. Pike, of Brighton, furnishes seaweeds for the herbarium. G. J. D.-We could not undertake such a task. A. A., Jun. — Cleaner and better than before, but still capa- ble of improvement. T. A. H. — The fern is Polystichum angular e, var. grandidens, Moore ; see also var. oxu, Lowe. — J. G. B. R. G.— The case-bearing larva? on Junats are those of Coleophora cespititiella, a very common species on the seeds of various kinds of rush. — H. McL. Cossev. — We are decidedly opposed to the use of assumed names, inverted initials, and all subterfuges for disguising the true name or initials of correspondents. If the truth be spoken it needs no disguise. "Timothy Twaddle," in- stead of writing to us may devote the time to his own im- provement, and save postage stamps. J. D. H.— Asplenium bulbiferum what you term parasites are young plants of the fern, produced upon the fronds. T. A. H. — Probably a large variety of Lastrea Filix mas, but from its condition, and absence of fruit, not safe to deter- mine. — J. G. B. H. C.S. — An infinitely better account of the seventeen year locust has just appeared in the American Entomologist. Plana ria.— The following misprints occurred at p. 8. For "Tushellasia," read " Turbellaria ;" for "over gliding," "even gliding;" for " flosculent," " flocculent;" and for " diametically,'' "diametrically." — A. H. E. J. B. may obtain cardboard boxes of all kinds of Mr. Cutter, 35, Great Russell Street, corner of Bloomsbury Street, w.c. Too Late.— Communications not received until between the )2th and 15th of the month, containing specimens for naming, or queries requiring answer from the editor, cannot receive attention until the following month. This notice is occasioned by the great increase of correspondence, especially at those dates. March. — Notes of microscopical objects to be sought for during this month are solicited from our correspondents. EXCHANGES. Minerals in exchange for British shells or others of the same.— Send list of desiderata and duplicates to G, S. Tye, 58, Villa Road, Handsworth, Birmingham. Conchoi.ogv. — Correspondents and exchanges wanted in Terrestrial Conchology. — H. Freedley, Norristown, Pa. U.S. Lepidoptera. — Southern for Northern species. — E. II. Walland, 19, Oakley Street, Chelsea. Sections of Wellingtonia (mounted) Gigantea and Cuticle of Yucca for other objects (mounted). — J. Carpenter, Waltham Cross, Herts. Chalk Fossils (mounted) in exchange for other objects of interest (mounted or unmounted).— Send lists to Rev. J. B. Bartlett, Watton-at- Stone, Hertford. Fossil Infusoria from Kieselguhr, district of Soos near Eger, Bohemia.— Pollen of Lilium Lancifolium Punctatum, or Lilium Lancifolium Rubrum (mounted), in exchange for other (mounted or unmounted) microscopic objects. — Address, inclosing stamped envelope, to C. E. Osborn, 28, Albert Road, St. John's Ville, Highgate, N. Scales of Podura, Lepisma, Atropos, and Hair of Dermes- tes larva (mounted), in exchange for other objects (mounted or unmounted). — J. Shelton, 52, High Street, Bedford. Sections of Heath stem, Oak, and Datura, offered in ex- change for other mounted objects. — Address James Green, jun., 16, Pump Street, Londonderry. Mosses. — PaludellaSquarrosa for any rare species. — Samuel Anderson, Albert Chambers, Whitby. BOOKS RECEIVED. " Popular Science Review." No. 30, January, I869. Lon- don : Robert Hardwicke. " The Quarterly Magazine of the High Wycombe Natural History Society." Vol. II., No. 3, January, 1869. " The Monthly Microscopical Journal." Edited by Henry Lawson, M.D. No. 1, January, J 869. London: Robert Hardwicke. "Young England's Almanac and Naturalists' Calendar," for I869. London: Tweedie. "The American Entomologist," No. 4 (No. 3 not received). St. Louis, Mo. : Studley & Co. " Scientific Opinion." Nos. 9, 10, 11. London : Wyman & Sons. " Land and Water." Nos. 154, 155, and 156, January, I869. London : 80, Fleet Street. "The Garden Oracle and Floricultural Year Book, I869. Edited by Shirley Hibberd, F.R.H.S. London : Groombridge & Sons. " The Dental Register." Edited by J. Taft and G. Watt. Vol. XXII., No. 11, November, 1868. Cincinnati: Wrightson &Co. "American Bee Journal.'' Vol. IV., No. 7, January, I869. Edited by S. Wagner. Washington, U.S. "Newman's Entomologist." No. 61, January, I869.' Lon- don : Simpkin, Marshall, & Co. "The Gardener's Magazine," for January, I&69. Edited by Shirley Hibberd, F.R.H.S. London: E. W. Allen. " Descriptive Catalogue of Flower Seeds." By William Thompson, Tavern Street, Ipswich. " The Canadian Naturalist and Geologist." Vol. 3, No. 4, January, 1868 (sic). Montreal: Dawson Brothers. "The American Naturalist." Vol. II., No. 11, January 7, I869. Salem : Peabody Academy of Science. Communications Received. -J. B.— J. M. C. (ineligible). — S. C. H.--R. B.— E. J.— W. H.— J. G. O.— J. Y. H.— W. W. S.— R. C. B.— C. O. G. N.— W. G. B. (too late).— F. H. — G. S. T.— F. S— H. W. R.— A. A., jun.— J. V.— A. B.— J. W. P. — F. G. B. — W. T.— E. T. S.— S. B.— R. G.— D. H. S. — J. H. — H. J. M. T. — W. K. — J. R. S. C. — — B. T. H. M.— G. R.— S. M.— J. B. J.— J. L. M.— R. T.— H. E. W— L.S.— A. C.-T. P. B.-H. P.— T. A. H.— J. C— J. B. L.— A. P.— W. W.— J. H.— C. E. O.- A. H. E.— J. B. K. —J. B.-B.— H. S.— J. B.-B.— R. H.— W. O. (Dundas).— A. B. F.— A. A., jun.— H. F— C. C. W.-A. B.— W. M.— H.S. — R. W.— J. E.— M. A. J.— O. S— M. F. D.— E. H. W.— T. H. H.— W. H. D.— W. J. D.— A. M. B.— F. S.— F. A. K.— A. J. D.— J. G., jun.— T. S.— R. S.— H. C. S.— H. W. R.— J. S. T— J. W.— J. S.— H. B. B.— H. G. G.— L. A. G.— M. M. —J. R.— E. B— J. G. B.— R. R. W.-E. I.— E. P. H.— S. A.— S. and S.— I. T.— P. B.-H. H. K— J. D. H.-H. H. M.— P. P. A.— S. M.— R. A. S.— S. H.— J. J. S.— W. R. T.— W. H. -T. S.— G. H. A.— J. R.— G. E. F.— F. F.-E. C. J.— E. P. H. —A. M. March 1, 1369.] HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE -GOSSIP. 4!) MYBIAPODS. By MAJOR HOLLAND, R.M.L.l. LEASE, sir, here's one of them nasty mis- chiefull many- legs as I told youpisened the melon-bed so as we never got nothink off of 'em. Nobody can't say as they wasn't took care of, for I was a waterin' and a water- in' on 'em mornin', noon, and night, all along the droughty summer. It stands reasonable-like to natur' as water-melons should take a sight o' water : t wasn't my overdoin' on 'em with mis- ture as rotted the roots off ; 'twas these here plaguey varmint " ! ! Having delivered this oration, and proved to his own entire satisfaction " as how he was right all along, and master was mistook" about poor Curcurbita citrullus having been drenched to death with icy pump-water, the obstinate old gardener deposited his writhing scape- goat on the study table, and retired triumphant to the coach-house, where he whistled loud paeans of victory to the Bramahs and Cochins of the stable- yard. What yellow-brown Myriapod is this ? His flexible body, which he is tying into all manner of knots, is composed of no fewer than eighty-one dis- tinct segments, to say nothing of the odd one at the end of the tail, aud the five which have coalesced to form the head. If we count these five fused segments as one (as we do the four which Pro- fessor Huxley tells us combine together to make up our own human brainboxes), then his body is made up of eighty-three somites, of which the cephalic, the anterior-thoracic, which bears that terrible pair No. 51. of hooked maxillipedes, and the anal are the only three presenting any marked differences from each other, and from the eighty others which are as " strictly uniform " as the helmets of the metro- politan police. How the fellow shuns the light ! Does his con- science trouble him ? Does he feel himself guilty of "pisenin' " the melons, that he wriggles so uneasily until he succeeds in burying himself out of sight in the silk tassel of the penwiper ? A burrowing- troglodyte by nature, I suspect, and on closer ex- amination he proves to be such — Geophilus sub- terraneus (underground earth-lover), of the family GeophU'uhc, of the sub-division Chilopoda (foot feeders), of the order Myriapoda, of the class. Articulata, according to Newport. He has no eyes ; he doesn't want any ; he passes- his life in the dark, underground, tearing up old shreds of farmyard manure and vegetable matter,, always preferring scavengers' work when he can. get it, and doing good service by eating up the helpless, soft, succulent larva? of the hosts of insects that prey upon our crops. The sins of the wire- worm have been laid to his charge; his third cousins the hdidce do undoubtedly steal our potato "sets," and bore into young peas, or rather into old peas just "spritting" and about to send up. young ones ; but it seems doubtful if he himself ever attacks fresh or living vegetables : he seems to be one of nature's many vidangeurs, and because he is found minding his business and eating up rottenness, he is accused of producing it. As well might we say that our sewer-men produce typhus and cholera. But he has even been charged with having caused the potato disease ! because he was found labouring to remove the affected tubers. Beware,, ye brave surgeons who fight with zymotic demons and risk your own lives to lilt up stricken humanity, lest ye be arraigned for producing all the long cata- logue of human ills that figure in our sanitary statistics. Our captive has no eyes ; he has, however, an D 50 HAllDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. [March 1, 1869. ' ocellus," a mere pigment speck behind the base of each of his fifteen-jointed antenna?, and he has the smallest possible tlireadlet of an optic nerve. I ex- pect he cannot see, in the ordinary sense, but can dis- tinguish between the light with which he has nothing to do, and the darkness in which he feels his way about with his antennae when doing his duty like a humble vegetarian jackal, or adjutant. The Myriapods have been placed at different times in different classes of the animal kingdom : in one famous system we find them under the head of Crustacea ; another, in remote times, ranged them with the Hemiptera and Orthoptera as "insects which only undergo a partial metamorphosis. 5 ' They have slight affinities with both, and even with the Annelids ; like the latter, they grow in length by the successive addition of new segments between the penultimate and anal. The lower subdivision, the Chilognatha, by the situation of their repro- ductive orifices, seem to betray Crustacean relation- ships ; but we remember that in the first phase of their development they displayed three pairs of legs only, like the typical hexapod insect. They appear to stand out the strong, well-marked, first link of that long chain which bridges over the mighty gulf which rolls between the creeping worm and the flying insect. The Myriapod is the lowest articulate animal, the Annelid the highest annulose — i. e., according to the old scheme of classification, the latter term has recently been used with a widely extended signification. Ten years ago the sub- division Ckilopoda consisted of four families, including ninety-four genera ; and the lower sub- division, Chilognatha, of four families, containing seventy-five genera; a tremendous total of variations of a type ; but since then they have been shuffled and cut, and lumped and split, like the German States, till nobody knows which is which. " An articulation complete in all its mechanical appliances is not produced in the animal kingdom below the Myriapod. A joint is the symbol of organic superiority ; it is not an arbitrary symbol ; it is a unit in an assemblage of signs which proclaim a newer and higher combination in the arrangements which constitute 'life. 5 At this limit in the animal series the fluids and the solids of the organism undergo a signal exaltation of standard. The system of the chylaqueous fluid exists no longer in the adult organism, it is present only in the embryonic. It is supplanted by that of the blood proper. Coinciden- tally with the 'joint' at the frontier of the articulate sub-kingdom there occurs a heart to circulate the blood, fibrine, and with it an order of floating corpuscles more highly organized in the fluids ; a wondrous development of the muscular apparatus, stria; in the muscle-cell, a rapid increase in the dimensions of the cephalic gangliaj and in those of the organs of the special senses. It is here in the history of the reproductive system that the dioecious character is first unquestionably assumed. These are noteworthy events in the ascensive march of organic architecture." — Dr. Williams, Mag. Nat. Hist., 1854. The armour-plates of the cylindrical lulus are composed of a semi-crustaceous hard substance, but in the Scolopendridce, which our " false wireworm " closely approaches, the integuments are of a flexible chitinous substance, the back of each segment is covered by a plate, the ventral surface by a some- what smaller plate, the epimeral portions, as well as the interspaces between the somites, are covered by a loosely fitting coriaceous membrane of much thinner texture. The circulating system has been a battleground for men with great reputations. The nervous and reproductive systems, and the development day by day from the ovum, have been drawn out with elaborate minuteness by Newport — in Philosophical Transactions for 1841 and 1843— but I have not yet fallen in with a drawing of their tracheary system, which is well worthy of careful study. The spiracular orifices are not placed as in insects between the segments, but in the side of each, a little below the dorsal plate ; they are not minute apertures, nor vertical slits, neither are they furnished with " guards " of setse, or hairs, to exclude dust aud foreign bodies ; but they are circular openings, each with a well-defined hard- looking ring, over which the tough but pliable lateral membrane passes, lining the entrance, which is directed slightly backwards, and can be closed by a sphincter muscle. The tracheae are very large in the anterior segments, occupying no small portion of their internal cavities, but they decrease in diameter in proportion as the segments recede from the head ; possibly there may be ueed for a more abundant supply of oxygen in the region of the brain, and in the first formed portions of the body, than in the equally large but more remote additions which are from time to time developed near the caudal extremity. Let us detach half a dozen pairs of spiracles, with their tracheal appurtenances complete, from the dissected tail end of Geophilus the much maligned, float them on to a slide, and bring the " two-thirds objective " to bear upon them. (Fig. 41.) A ladder of shining silver, a very Jacob's ladder, bright and beautiful enough to have been let down from heaven for the feet of angels. The six uprights aud the cross rungs are all constructed of the same tubular wire rope glistening with a dazzling metallic lustre, and without a flaw anywhere. The tubes are composed of an outer and an inner coat, containing between them the spiral coil, to which they are closely attached ; a delicate membrane also connects the turns of the spiral with each other. It is interesting to compare these animal breathing tubes, with their March 1, 1869.] HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 51 analogues the spiral vessels of the vegetable kingdom ; the latter are easily extracted from the young shoots of asparagus, or from the leaves of the hyacinth. The spring-like coil ensures a free open passage for the air which rushes in by the spiracular orifices, expiration being effected by the contraction Fig, 41. Trachea; of Geophilus subterraneus, x 140. of these elastic channels, by which the effete air is forcibly expelled through the openings by which it originally entered. The main tracheal pass down the axes of the blood- channels, floating in the vital fluid, which they revivify with the oxygen which they thus carry to and through the life-stream. We are told that the air-pipe does not terminate where the wiry-looking spiral comes to an end ; the latter dwindles away imperceptibly to nothing, but the trachea from thence becomes membranous, and, dividing into innumerable branches, which bear to the main trunks the same rektion that the capillaries bear to the arteries, penetrates the substance of the muscles, inconceivably fine branches having been traced accompanying the nerves, while the ultimate plexiform extremes of the system aerate imme- diately the solids. "In all the transparent struc- tures of insects every observer may prove for himself that the blood-currents travel in the same passages as the tracheal, but this is only the case with the primary and secondary branches, never in the capillary tracheal ; the blood corpuscles of the myriapod exceed by several times in diameter that of the extreme capillary membranous tracheal ; it is perfectly marvellous to what inconceivable minute- ness the air-current is reduced in travelling along these tubes." What a simple and efficient plan, what an economy of space is this arrangement of tube within tube, for aerating the blood in a class of lowly creeping things of earth that do not attain to the dignity of lungs ! There is a saving of time too, for the blood is made arterial while on its journey, and thus travels direct (without the delay of passing off to special pulmonary organs) to the performance of its functions, removing, replacing, renewing, sustaining, building up, absorbing. Having accomplished these, and become as it were venous, it passes into the intervisceral spaces, and there, receiving an increment of fresh globules, the products of digestion, completes its circuit by returning through distinct valvular openings into the dorsal vessel from which it was first distributed. " Among the Chilognatha" says Siebold, "the hdidcewce notice- able for the very simple character of their trachean apparatus ; their air-canals neither ramify nor anastomose. With the Glonicriua the tracheal are branched, but do not anastomose ; but those of the Chilopoda are very ramose, and their large trunks intercommunicate at their origin by longitudinal and transverse anastomoses, so that each stigma can introduce air into the entire trachean system." It was chiefly with the view of drawing attention to this last-mentioned fact (a most striking evidence of design) — to this remarkable, example of the exquisite adaptation of the creature's construction to the condition of existence ordained for it by the Creator— that I began this bit of simple gossip about Geophi- lus. In his subterranean career he constantly meets with accidents which link him up in sympathetic association with Brunei and Stephenson, and the Bedouin of the desert. He never bored a practicable highway beneath the bed of Isis, nor made firm the foundations of an iron road across the quaking surface of Chat Moss ; neither has he braved the d2 52 HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. [March 1, 1S69. burning sand-blasts of the Simoom ; yet in his degree he has met with such like critical experiences a hundred times. One day the roof of his tunnel crashed in upon him, and buried a dozen of his segments, squeezing the very breath out of them ; on another day the rain had saturated the rubbish heap he was toiling in, a score or two of his somites were under water, and he had to " batten down " the stigmata belonging thereto to save those portions of himself from drowning ; and yet again, in the scorching dog- days, a hot wind swept the earth, and a dry and thirsty clod, crumbling away, discharged an avalanche of dust which overwhelmed nine-tenths of him : in each and all of these catastrophes Iris life would not have been worth ten seconds' purchase, even with his many spiracles, but for the anasto- mosing branches of his wind-pipes, the cross rungs of his air-ladder, which enabled the air received by the unchoked segments to pass in every direction through the whole system. That there is perfectly free communication from any one spiracle to the whole network of air-passages may be seen by examining the figure which I have given, and if any reader has still a doubt on his mind he may remove it, if he is a dexterous manipulator, by dissecting out the tracheary apparatus of the first chilopodous myriupod he can lay hands on, and, stopping the orifices of all the spiracles but one, he will find that through that one he may inject the whole labyrinth of air-vessels with carmine. I observed that a correspondent, J. G. D., in December last, was much surprised at the display of a phosphorescent light by a centipede he had found. Geophilus electricus, a member of the same family and a near relation of our Subterraneus, must have been the pyrotechnist he chanced upon. " The caustic brown fluid which most Myriapoda when touched emit from a row of orifices, foramina repugnatoria, situated on the sides of the segments of the body, and which exhales an odour like that of chlorine, is secreted by small pyriform glandular follicles situated immediately beneath the skin ; it is from glands upon the sides of the body analogous to these that G, electricus emits a luminous liquid." It would be most interesting to ponder over the three varieties of breathing apparatus mentioned by Siebold, and to note their special adaptations to the life conditions and necessities of the three distinct genera provided with them ; and there are other wonders in the ways and mechanism of each and all of them that one longs to dwell upon ; but we are not essayists here, only cheerful " gossips " of the wayside, who seek to be merry and wise, accurate though simple and amusing. We have run to the end of our tether, and must say good-bye to Geophilus subterraneus and all the myriapods. Bury Cross, Gosport. , J. Y. II. THE CELANDINE. TTTHEN John Gerarde, about three hundred and " * fifty years ago, published a catalogue of the plants in his botanic garden on Holborn Hill, two appeared in it under the names of the Greater and the Lesser Celandine, — names which they have re- tained ever since, though the plants have been widely separated by later botanists. It is not easy to see why they should have had a common name ; and this instance may show us what difficulties Eay and other early English botanists had to overcome in disentangling the confused arrangements of the herbalists— " Celandino," or " the Swallow " so the word signifies, these plants being supposed to flower about the time of the return of that bird ; a fancy not exact in this instance, but beautifully adapted by our great dramatist to the illustration of another flower : — Daffodils, That come before the Swalluiv dares, And take the winds of March with beauty. It may not be uninteresting to contrast, as we cannot compare, the appearance, the qualities, and present position of the Greater and the Lesser Celandine, thus unaccountably linked together. The Chelidonium ma jus of Gerarde, Eay, Linnseus, and all succeeding botanists to this time, now pro- perly placed among the Papaveracecp, is a perennial plant common in the neglected cottage-gardens, where it may be recognized by its umbel of small yellow flowers, its glaucous, pinnated leaves, and the copious, yellow, foetid juice which exudes from every part when broken. Its properties are so active that it is figured by Rhina among poi- sonous plants. He describes it as acrid, stimulating, aperient, diuretic, and sudorific ; if we add the narcotic principle, found in all the poppies more or less, we have a wonderful combination indeed. Botanists and herbalists, from Gerarde to Withering, have all foretold great thmgs of the medical efficacy of this plant ; but it has fallen into total neglect, except among the cottage poultry-keepers, who chop it up for their chickens to make them more lively ! The future of this plant may, however, yet be great. It may prove a specific for some com- plaint which now baffles all known remedies ; but the enthusiastic young physician, after such long disuse, must commence a new series of experi- ments—upon himself first, of course (as Sir H. Davy did with the newly-discovered gases), before he ministers it to his patients. The Lesser Celandine {Chelidonium minus of Ge- rarde, and Ranunculus ficaria of Linnaeus) has no such formidable array of attractions. Its charms arc summed up in very few words — it is our earliest Buttercup. On the verge of winter, long before the Swallow dares, and before the Daffodils dance in the March winds, the Lesser Celandine opens its March ], I860.] HAHDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. flowers in the transient sunshine, and closes them again under every passing cloud. It is found almost everywhere on humid soils, in the laues and hedge- rows, on the edge of coppices and among the grass ; but it is on the banks of streams and watercourses, where the tuberous roots can strike deep, that its chief beauty is seen: there the star-like flowers, resting on a bed of deep green foliage, are, in the early season, conspicuously large and bright. Ere a leaf is on a bush, In the time before the thrush Has a thought about its nest, Thou wilt come with half a call, Spreading out thy glossy breast Like a careless prodigal, Telling tales about the sun When there's little warmth or none. So William Wordsworth addresses this flower of his adoption : — There's a flower that shall be mine, 'Tis the little Celandine. It was near middle life with him before this poetic attachment commenced, for which he seems to reproach himself : — I have seen thee high and low Thirty years or more, and yet 'Twas a face I did not know ; Thou hast now, go where I may. Fifty greetings in a day. And for well-nigh half a century afterwards it cheeered his solitary musings by the waterfalls and in the woods, and he " blessed it for fellowship." The sentiment survives the poet, in the memory of his disciples and friends, in the congenial minds which " make their own delights " in the calm pur- suits of country life, and it is symbolized upon the Laureate's tomb. Tourists to the Lake districts — and there are many — who visit the churchyard and church of Grassmere, when they read the epitaph and do homage to the memory of departed worth and genius, see a flower, with folded petals, sculptured upon the white marble : it is the little Celandine. S. S. ABOUT CILIA. TF we examine any one of those active little infu- -*- sorial animalcules, millions of which are present in every drop of ditch-water, we shall find that their only organs of locomotion are certain hair-like pro- cesses known as Cilia. These cilia are found more or less, with two or three exceptions, in every class of the animal king- dom. In some of the lowest forms of animal organi- zation we meet with we find that they are of the greatest possible use, serving as organs of locomo- tion, or as a means of procuring food by creating currents in the water; whilst in the higher animals — the mammalia for instance— they serve a more sub- ordinate though no less useful office, that of con- veying the mucus found in different parts of the hody to openings, from which it may be easily ex- pelled. They are found on the gills of the tadpole, where they assist the respiration by causing the' water to flow over the branchiee, on the surface of the body of the Spongiadse, the Polypi, the Medusa?,, and the Echinodermata, and also in the alimentary system of many animals. The Unio and Aordon— the common fresh-water mussels — which have no prehensile or masticatory organs, are entirely depen- dant for a supply of food, consisting principally of infusoria, on the motion of the cilia lining the mantle and the surface of the gills, which serves to urge it forward to the region of the mouth. When in rapid motion they have the appearance of a wave quickly passing over the surface to which they are attached, reminding one of the action of ft strong wind on a field of corn. They are seen much more distinctly when the movement is somewhat slackening than when they are in full activity. The motion resembles that of an oar, and it has been found that they can rotate on their axis through a quarter of a circle, so that in the return stroke the blade is parallel to the direction of motion. One of the most curious facts in connection with, the subject is that the activity of the cilia does not immediately cease on the extinction of the life of the animal on which they are found, for their motion has been observed in the tortoise for fifteen days after death, when putrefaction was far advanced, and in the frog for four or five days. The cause of their motion has long been a debatable point among naturalists ; but, as the motion is found after systemic death, it is thought to be connected with the con- tractile substance of which muscles are composed. . If it does not depend upon this substance, it has been argued it must be caused by some substance of the nature of which we know nothing, and of the very existence of which we have no proof, for our most powerful microscopes have as yet been unable to discover the motor power of these interesting processes. It is, however, evident that that power, whatever it may be, must be connected with each cilium, for there can be no doubt that they move individually, and without connection with their neighbours, except as to the direction of their motion. There are various external agencies, by the appli- cation of which the movements of vibratile cilia may be greatly modified or altogether arrested. In warm - blooded animals a cold of 43° E. or under will per- manently stop their motion, but in cold-blooded animals they will bear a much greater degree of cold, a mixture of ice and water having no apparent effect on them. A gentle warmth, such as may be caused by breathing on them, will in many animals revive them after they have become languid. In many marine molluscs, such as the sea-mussel,. HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. [March 1, 18G9. their motion is destroyed by immersion of the animal for a few minutes in fresh water. Professor Lister has made some valuable investigations on this subject. In a paper communicated to the Royal Society in 1858 by Dr. Sharpey (from whom much of our information on this subject has been obtained) he says : — " Having cut off a small piece of the tongue of a frog, killed about an hour before, and placed it upon a slip of glass under the microscope, with just enough water to permit the free play of the cilia, I held near to it a piece of lint soaked in chloroform, keeping my eye over the microscope. The effect was instantaneous cessation of the previously rapid action of the cilia, which now stood out straight and motionless like the hairs of a brush. I now immediately withdrew the lint, after which the same state of complete inaction continued for about half a minute, when languid movements began to show themselves, and after a lapse of five minutes more the ciliary motion was going on pretty briskly in some parts, and ten minutes later seemed to have almost completely recovered." From the same authority we learn that this lan- guid state of the cilia is also produced by ammonia, by freshly-prepared mustard, and by strong acetic acid. The effect of most chemicals cannot be ascertained, as the tissues and the substance of the cilia are destroyed by them. The experiments mentioned are most instructive, and most easy of performance. In several of the lower cryptogamous plants, such as the Vaucheria, cilia are found on the surface of the spores, allowing them to move freely in water, and some of the still simpler Algae are, even when in the adult state, endowed with such powers of locomotion, owing to the presence of these processes, that their vegetable character, though now com- pletely established, was long a matter of doubt. The motion of the cilia found in these situations is of course influenced by external agents in the same way as when they are found in animals. W. MlJRRELL. University College, Goicer Street, N. W. MOSQUITOES. nplIE readers of Science Gossip may possibly -"- remember that more than one writer on the .subject of the Mosquitoes supposed to have been met with in this country last summer, spoke most positively as to the identity of its note with that of the East Indian insect; the loud, clear, ringing sound of which they stated to be widely different from that of the gnat, and so peculiar, that no person who has once heard it can ever mistake it for anything else. At the same time it was stated in more than one journal, that all the mosquitoes captured turned out to be specimens of Culex pipiens, but no explanation was offered as to the strange fact of the gnats' note undergoing such a remarkable change. Being anxious to see whether any light could be thrown on this obscure phenomenon, I applied to a friend who had been in East India, and on whose state- ments I knew I could thoroughly rely. After some delay, over which neither he nor I had any control, I received his answer, which I now give exactly as it reached me, in the belief that truth, even when late, will always be welcome to the readers of Science Gossip. J. L. Milton. "My dear Milton,— During the years 1815-6-7, I made two voyages to India, visiting the port of Bombay twice, and Calcutta once. "Being then young and succulent, my arrival created quite a sensation among the mosquitoes, and their attentions to me by night and by day were more flattering than agreeable. My opportunities of learning the habits of the East Indian animal have thus been considerable. " In July last (1S6S) I spent a few days in the house of a friend at Hampstead. The weather was very hot, and I slept with my bedroom windows widely open. One morning about 4 a.m. I was suddenly awoke by a sound which I had not heard for more than twenty years, but which in a moment set me on the defensive. It is impossible for any one who has suffered as I have done, to mistake the sharp trumpet of the mosquito, and the peculiar and irritating mode of attack. Eor a time I defended myself vigorously, but at last his perti- nacity prevailed, and I allowed him to have his meal, which he took immediately over my left eye- brow. " The consequences which followed were exactly the same as those which used to follow the sting of the East Indian insect — swelling, with intense itch- ing, which gradually increased for about 36 hours, when it slowly subsided, with some desquamation. The whole quite unlike the effect produced on me by the sting of the ordinary gnat, with which, also, I am quite familiar. " The insect which stung me was a mosquito in sound, in manner of attack, in the effects of the sting, and in appearance ; for it was quite light enough for me to see him distinctly when he made his retreat, brandishing his spindle shanks with that air of jaunty defiance which irritates his angry victims almost to madness. What scientific name an entomologist would give him, I cannot tell. He did a mosquito's work upon me. " It. T." Chicago Microscopical Club. — A new Micro- scopical Club, attached to the Academy of Sciences, has recently been inaugurated at Chicago, Illinois U.S. March 1, 1S69.] HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 55 MONSTERS OF THE DEEP.* rpiIE well-known Dutch naturalist", P. Harting, -*- published, in 1SC0, a memoir on certain gigantic cephalopods, some extracts from which (as the work is not easily accessible) may be interesting to the readers of Science-Gossip. The conclusion he draws, or more properly the final suggestion he throws out, appears to me to be particularly valu- able. " It has long been matter of notoriety," he observes, " that cephalopods of an enormous size exist in the sea, although no naturalist has hitherto been favoured .with the opportunity of examining and reporting on a complete animal at his leisure. The largest individual, of which a detailed descrip- tion, accompanied by figures, has been published, is the Ommastrephes giganteus of D'Orbigny. Its total length was II inches, that of the body alone being 17'5 inches." The stories of Olaus Magnus's kraken, and of the colossal poulpe, which Denys de Montfort repre- sents as entangling iu its enormous arms a three- masted frigate, are but wild exaggerations of an incontestable truth. Aristotle assigns to the great calamary of the Mediterranean Sea a length of 5 cubits (or 7 to 8 feet). Moreover, he assures us that one Trcbius Niger had seen a polype whose body, as it lay on the beach, was calculated to be equal to a 70-gallou cask : each arm was 30 feet long, and so thick as scarcely to be embraced by one man ; it weighed about 700 pounds. On the whole, I am inclined to think that this story must not be thrust aside as fabulous ; the simplicity of the description and the numerical data are greatly in its favour. After all, the dimensions given (as we shall see presently) do not much exceed those of individuals whose exist- ence is well-nigh proved by modern writers. Sander-Pang, Peron, Quoy, and Gaimard, have seen animals, or the remains of animals, on the surface of the ocean, with enormous bodies, and arms G to 8 feet long. Madame Graham (quoted by Johnston) saw a cephalopod whose arms were IS feet long; and Schwediaver reports the capture of a cachalot (Physeter) hi whose gullet was found an arm of a cephalopod, which, though imperfect, measured 23 feet in length. In the Hunteriau Museum, London, are preserved the fins, section of arm, heart, and mandible of an onychoteuthis, the length of which, when perfect, could uot have been less than 6 feet. The remains belong to an indi- vidual encountered by Banks and Solander, the companions of Captain Cook, floating on the sea between Cape Horn and Australia, in lat. S. 30'II, and long. W. 110-33. One may well believe, with these descriptions before us, that the fears of the pearl and coral * Science Gossip, Vol. iv. P. 222, 1868. fishers are not altogethe* without foundation. These men declare that they are sometimes seized by huge molluscs of this family, who endeavour to entangle them in their long arms, which are studded with suckers and hooks. In the present day M. Steenstrup has made extensive and valuable researches into the history of these gigantic cephalopods. A portion only of these researches has been published ; but they lead to the conclusion that in the Atlantic Ocean, the Northern Seas, and even the entrance of the Baltic, there exist cephalopods not inferior to those de- scribed by T. Niger, Schwediaver, and Madame Graham. M. Steenstrup demonstrates with a rare sagacity that the singular animal which was cap- tured in the Sound, not far from Malmo, in 1516, and to which the superstition of the natives gave the name of the " Sea Monk," was really a cepha- lopod, allied to Loligo, of a length of 1 Danish ells (8 feet), or, including the tentacular arms, 16 feet. In 1853 an individual, probably of the same species and of nearly the same size as the " Sea Monk," was cast ashore near Aalbeck, in Jutland. The mandible only was recovered by M. Steenstrup, who has named it Architeuthis monaclms .. More recently he has received from the captain of a vessel portions of an individual picked up in the Atlantic — the pharynx alone is as large as a child's head — to which he has given the name of Architeuthis dm, , These are not the only instances brought forward by M. Steenstrup. The question arises — Do these monstrous indi- viduals differ specifically from the smaller kinds, which abound in every sea, and which are perfectly well known to the naturalist ? I am inclined to answer in the negative. Mere size can never form an element in the diiferentiatiou of species, especially in the case of animals, which probably continue to grow during the whole course of their lives. A neglect of this caution has already led to numerous mistakes. Naturalists have fancied they saw dis- tinct species in individuals, which in reality differed only in age: witness the history of the Orang- Outang and the Salmon.* Now the number of cephalopods of small size is incredibly large, and would be still greater but for the incessant depreda- tions of numerous enemies, such as sea-birds, dol- phins, &c. It is not unlikely that a few out of the multitude of survivors make their way to the deeper parts of the ocean, and there in comparative safety continue to increase in size, until at last they acquire those gigantic dimensions, examples of which occasionally come before the world. Itchen Abbas. "VV". W. Spicer. * (Witness also Bewicke's " Solitary Thrush,", which proved to be the Starling in its early plumage ; also the "Whitebait," long looked upon as a distinct species, but lately shown by Dr. Giinther to be the young of the Herring. — W. W. S.) 50 HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. [Makcii 1, 1SG9. SEA ANEMONES. rpiIERE are few more interesting objects than a -*- marine aquarium, especially if — as in my case — the possessor lives in an inland town far away from the "music of the sea," and' the beautiful treasures of the shore that may still be found in nook and cranny or crystal rock-pool, by any one who loves nature's beauties well enough to seek where he may find them. May I give you a little sketch of one of my small aquaria, as I see it while penning this little bit of " gossip ? " In the centre stands a fine plumose anemone — (Actinoloba dianthus) full 4 inches high, with its beautiful fairy plume bending gracefully, like a tree, before the breeze ; to the left, a little behind, upon the tip of a piece of rock, is a fine Anthem (par. rus- tica) waving its satin-like tentacles constantly, never still. On a line with Anthea a little to the right, expanding its ruddy disc surrounded by fronds of the bright green sea-lettuce {JJlva latissima), is a strawberry; and how appropriate is the name when the animal is closed, embedded as it is in green. Next this, a little forward, is a fine parasitic anemone (Sagartia parasitica) with its decisive-looking head, stretching out a beautiful brown-dashed white star of countless rays, magically changing from bloom to bud, from bud to bloom. At the front, shadowed by the Ulva and rooted among the stones that it likes best, is a variety of the daisy anemone (S. bellis). I think it must be Stel- late/, as it is always frilled, never fiat or coin- like. It is pale brown mottled with white, and has one deep brown tentacle very different from the rest. It sometimes erects a column 2 inches in height. The snowy anemone (S. nivea), too, so delicately white, blooms quietly near the base of a dark-coloured weed ; but what is it that rises from among this same weed, so seemingly allied that (not being wiser) you might take it for its flower ? It is a tube worm (Sabella), with a delicate spiral fan of feathers at the end of its tube, the base being firmly embedded in the sand. Upon the tube, close to the flower, a prawn every evening makes its stand, now and then in mere wantonness sailing or flashing from its resting-place and again returning and most unceremoniously disturbing Sabella, who does not at first like such rough behaviour, and forthwith retires, but by and by gets more reconciled to it, and even suffers its plumes to be ruffled by Mr. Prawn, who has doubtless learned that he may venture thus near with impunity, although I know his experience teaches him differently with regard to the ane- mones, as Anthea has had him by the antenna?, and he has had to lug and tug for his life, leaving a por- tion of those necessary organs with the enemy withal. xVlthough imperfectlyjdescribed,'[this little^ aqua- rium is a perfect picture, with its base of sand crowned by rock and shingle intermingled with green and red weed {Ulva and Griffithsia), and brightened by the living beauty of the animals. Now, let me say a few words about the animals I have in captivity, A specimen of the handsome variety smaragdina of A. cereiis, the "opelet,"— increased by fission. For three weeks prior to division it was exceed- ingly restless, much more so than usual — moving about the glass, and never during that period erecting a stem or column, but keeping the disc pressed close to the base, so that it was only \ inch or less in thickness, and always keeping an elliptical or long oval form. At the end of that time the division took place. I did not actually see it, much to my regret, although I had been anxiously looking forward to it, being from home at the time. It split not quite across the middle, the larger part curling up and showing an indication of a mouth, the lesser part not showing any indication of one. Both portions, unfortunately, ultimately sloughed away. Another interesting case of propagation, by rup- ture of the base, has occurred in one of my glasses. This time S. vemista, the orange disc, was the actor. It is a pretty specimen with a white centered disc surrounded by a ring of vivid orange, and having semi-pellucid white tentacles. It was situated upon the edge of a piece of rock, a station it had occupied since August Gth. On Saturday, December 5th, at 10 p.m., it had thrown out a lobe of the base over the angle of the rock, the lobe stretching about 1} inch downward. On Sunday, December Gth, at 10 a.m., another lobe, exactly opposite, was stretched along the level surface of the rock, and the suckers at the end of this and the other lobe were attached firmly to the rock. The animal then began to pull itself strongly, but with an almost imperceptible movement, along the level surface, and by 11'30 had torn off from the base a small portion, about |x| inch. This con- tained a number of acontia (nettling threads) which for some hours after were moving about, after which they were gradually drawn into the still shapeless fragment, the piece assuming the form (i.e., the bud) of an anemone about two days after. It has since continually varied its form and size, but at present, by the aid of a pocket lens, I cannot dis- cern tentacles. It has thrown out a nettling thread upon being annoyed. I may mention that the parent, when it came into my possession, was a poor wasted thing ; but by regular feeding it has regained its beauty both of form and colour, being now a plump (and for a Birmingham anemone) healthy animal. Several gems (Bunodes gemmacea) have been born in one of my glasses, one of them, the offspring of the pretty blush-pink variety, measured, when born, March 1, 1SG9.J HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 57 £ inch across the disc, with tentacles nearly 1 inch long, by far the largest I have seen. It bears all the characteristics of its parent, which died soon after the young one was born. The young of this species have thriven better with me than the adults : is it because they were injured in obtaining them ? Decay seemed to commence at the base, which usually showed a small puncture in the centre. Daisies have been produced by scores. One has two discs. By the by, I have a very interesting bellis that does not appear to be named as a variety. It is wholly burnt umber* disc and tentacles. It has not produced young, although tyriensis, stellata, and two other varieties have all done so. I have had the variety brunnea of A. dianthus with a perfectly-formed young one budding from the column close to the base, but the individual passed out of my possession after I had had it a few days. Of the habits of some of the anemones a few words may be said. A very fine specimen of the scarlet-fringed anemone (S. miniatd), with a eKsk 2 inches in diameter, usually when hungry throws out the interior circle of tentacles to a considerable length, and one or two to 2 inches or more, until they become so pale as to be nearly invisible. Food placed upon the tip of one of these elongated tentacles is instantly drawn towards the mouth ; for lliniata is a gourmand, and ready for any food at all times and seasons. The Snake-locked anemone, S. viduata, in the evening extends its column to 5£ inches, from the summit of which its delicate " cloudy " tentacles droop gracefully over the little cave-dwelling anemones (S. troglodytes), spreading their little stars of mottled tentacles upon the surface of the shingle below. Others of the same species {troglodytes), one with an ochre disc and opaque white tentacles, and the black and white melanoleuca, peer from their crannies in search of the food they prefer not to seek in the daylight. A. dianthus, you will say, has a tolerably " capa- cious mouth," when I tell you that it swallowed a gravity ball half an inch in diameter; but not finding it so dainty a morsel as it supposed, was glad, after keeping it some hours, to give it up again. My experience of the Sagartiadce is that they are free feeders, taking their food readily, and like to receive it regularly— say once a week,— all of them swallow- ing quickly. I give mine oyster, sole, or raw beef, and they seem to thrive well. Anthea I cannot get to look well or live long, but I do not despair of doing so as I gain more experience. * Since writing this I have received a smaller one from Mr. King, of London. I think it is the same that is men- tioned in Mr. P. H. Gosse's.book on Anemones, as having been found by Mr. H. Owen, of Bristol, at Ilfracombe. My largest specimen came from the same place—" of a dark self colour chocolate or umber-brown." All anemones after food repay the attention given them, spreading out their beautiful blooms among the seaweeds with such a persistency of beauty. " An emanation of the indwelling life, A visible token of the upholding love, That are the soul of this wide universe." S. parasitica is a great feeder ; almost any kin d of food meets its palate, and it does not mind how often it receives it. The Vestlet (Cereanthus Lloydii) blooms in quiet beauty at the door of its glass house, through the windows of which you can see its vest- ments minus the sand. And so here, more than a hundred miles from the sea, I have some little rock- pools that for variety of life rival those of nature ; for, as a friend of mine truly says, here "art im- proves upon nature," bringing together many rare and beautiful forms, that to be seen in their native haunts must be sought for far and wide. G. Shekriff Tye. Handsicorth, Birmingham. LIGHT ATTRACTING INSECTS, &c. TN the last number of Science-Gossip a corre- -*- spondent raises the question why many animals, especially insects, are attracted by light, particularly that of a candle or other flame. The idea has some- times occurred to me, though it may appear rather a fanciful one, that possibly the insect might regard the flame as light shining from an aperture through which it might make its escape, somewhat as children imagine the stars to be pinholes in the sky. If a room were thoroughly darkened, with the ex- ception of a small opening, such as a key-hole, through which the outer daylight was allowed to enter, such an aperture would appear from within, by contrast, almost as bright as the flame of a candle, and any winged insects enclosed in such room would be pretty certain to direct their flight to the opening. Moths in a room are probably under a sense of being lost and confined, and as bees hurry up and down the window, so nocturnal lepidoptera knock against the ceiling, or dash into the candle-flame, perhaps equally with the impulse to escape. Insects seem to be under a fixed impression that the direction of the light is "the way out." An uncorked vial may be almost filled with flies if it is laid on the table with the mouth turned away from the window, the idea of a back exit being apparently beyond their capacity, but let the position of the vial be reversed, and in a few seconds it will be tenantless. In collecting provisions for the frogs, &c, in my vivarium, a long test tube is often used for the reception of flies, and after the tube has been laid down, and the insects collected at one end, I have often been amused on reversing it at the steady procession that takes place to the opposite extremity, where the incarcerated insects struggle and thrust 5S HARDWICXE'S SCIENCE- GOSSIP. [March 1, 1S69. one another like the crowd assembled at the entrance to some popular entertainment. Owls and bats living in dark recesses, such as hollow trees and caves, are probably guided to the entrance by such light as the dusky eve affords, and which is doubtless much more luminous to their visual organs than to ours ; but if they also rush to a flame with the intent to escape, probably their senses are dazzled and confused by a light stronger than they are accustomed to, as an ordinary flame scarcely repre- sents an opening large enough for their passage. With regard to bats, however, I have not observed in them any great predilection for singeing their wings ; at least, the Pipestrelle and Long-eared Bat, which occasionally enter our apartments on summer evenings, appear to fly as near as they can to the ceiling, especially hovering in the corners. A Serotine Bat, too, which I had some years ago, and used to let loose in the house in the evening, flew backwards and forwards in a passage without interfering with the light. When scared from sleep, however, by the entrance of torches into their dark cave or other hiding-place, they are said to dash wildly at the light, possibly in making for the entrance. If, however, winged creatures may in alarm mis- take a light for an exit, I do not imagine such can be the case with fish, which throng to a torch : im- prisoned moths and free and independent salmon are very differently circumstanced. Curiosity, or some such motive, would seem to draw fish towards a luminous object, which must be a rare pheno- menon in their eyes. It should not, however, be forgotten that it is not all the animal creation that are attracted by a flame. Passing by those animals which appear to be indifferent to the matter, many — as, for instance, the large carnivora — regard it as an object of dread. It is not with a view of attracting lions or tigers that tra- vellers kindle fires round their bivouac ; these powerful and daring animals slinking from the flames into which the wretched insects cast them- selves as if in a frenzy of delight — somewhat as I read to-day of the burning of a lunatic asylum in America, where the poor insane creatures that were saved danced in ecstasy at the roaring flames and crackling timbers. A few years ago a graphic account was published in some periodical of a visit to the Zoological Gardens by night, with a vivid description of the terror exhibited by the large carnivorous animals when a light was brought in front of their dens ;— they were rendered almost frantic, and their roarings and bowlings continued long after the source of alarm was withdrawn. Other animals besides the beast of prey seem to be affected with the same dread ; as in ancient times, when elephants were employed in war, it is said that the Romans discovered fire to be the best means of repelling these attacks: possibly about this time they invented the Boman candles. In connection with this subject, I would remark that the influence of certain colours on particular animals would be an interesting matter for investi- gation, and one that does not appear tojiave been much followed up. As far as I am aware, red is the only colour that is reputed to be held in antipathy by some animals, and its resemblance to the colour of fire is worthy of notice. If this resemblance has anything to do with the matter, the Eelidse might be expected to show an abhorrence of the colour - r but the constant succession of various coloured dresses before their dens would probably extinguish such a feeling in caged specimens, if it ever existed. Bulls, turkeys, and geese are commonly believed to exhibit a strong antipathy to anything red. In dealing with a savage bull, some caution is de- sirable ; but if any of your correspondents like to try experiments on that animal, I should be happy to read the results. Any one who has turkeys or getse in their poultry-yard might test them with different colours, and if they show fear or dislike, might ascertain what tint produced the greatest effect — whether a flame colour, for example, has more influence than scarlet. This is rather a digression from the original epiestion; but I am not at all certain that the two subjects are wholly unconnected. George Guyon. Yentuor, Isle of Wight. BUTTERFLIES TO THE RESCUE ! ~\X7"E all know that enthusiasm is a good thing if » » exerted in a good cause, and, indeed, to a naturalist some proportion of it is absolutely neces- sary to secure success. Like some other good things, however, it is possible to have too much of it ; or rather, to be more exact, it is very possible to be led by it unconsciously into the committal of errors which seem to arise almost naturally from the onflow of commendable earnestness, but which, being really divarications, we should guard against. A collector of natural objects who has no enthusiasm had better lay aside his implements and look out for some other pursuit ; but if he has enthusiasm, he needs to be cautious lest he should defeat his own ends, and furnish an apt and modern illustration of the truth set forth by the old fable about a certain goose which laid golden eggs. This time of the year is a dull season with the butterfly-collector. Now he sits and ruminates over the captures of the past, aud calls up imagin- ings of captures yet to come. His pins, " once a shin- ing store," stick useless in the cushion, dust ac- cumulates on his setting-boards, and his nets hang melancholy against the wall, or are dragged down and brandished about by a party of juveniles who have invaded his sanctum. Let him bethink him- March 1, 1869.] HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. self, whether he has not sometimes beeu too hasty and excessive in the slaughter he has committed amongst his favourites. A butterfly-catcher should be a butterfly-lover, and if he is really gladdened by the sight of these insects recreating themselves in the sunshine or the shady dell, he will avoid un- necessarily thinning their numbers. We speak of hasty and excessive slaughter — we see occurring too many instances of each. To catch a butterfly, to kill it without examining its appearance, and then to throw it away because it is rubbed, bespeaks an unjustifiable carelessness. The needless accumula- tion of a large number of specimens of each species (useless in cases of varieties) is a foible which, to say the least, is not one of the indulgences of which the entomologist can be proud. We have heard of a collector whose " series " was " three rows " of each insect ! And, for the sake of exchanging to advantage, bofrh butterflies and moths have been swept down by the hundred when a collector came upon a metropolis of some valued species. What- ever may be said in favour of the practice of ex- change — and that much may be said I do not doubt — this certainly may be urged on the other side, that it has a tendency to occasion the destruction of species. I could not but read, therefore, with regret that a society had been formed for the express purpose of facilitating exchanges, and the corre- spondents thereof are recommended to "send as many of each species as possible." Great might be the lamentation in the woodland glades were the visions of the past really true, and the " children of the sun" endued with some measure of human insight and knowledge. For the wholesale slaughter of butterflies has a more immediate tendency to extinguish or diminish a species than the same prac- tice carried on amongst the moth tribes. We have but a very small allotment of British butterflies, and it is easy to see that out of this number some are likely in a few years to become extinct, or at least exceedingly scarce. There are other causes at work here, undoubtedly, besides the collectors : a great deal of beautiful country around our towns is becoming rapidly absorbed by the needs of a growing population, and common and wood sud- denly disappear that land may be rendered arable and food-producing. Many of our butterflies are so very local that a destruction of their food-plant in a few spots, or the capture of a large number by col- lectors, will go far towards making the species die out. Unfavourable seasons, also, have a greater effect upon butterflies than upon moths. They are certainly partially protected by the circumstance that their larva are usually difficult to find ; were it not so, some species would fare still worse than they do now. I appeal to all who hope to be but- terfly-collectors in the coming season, and ask them in the case of rare or local species to avoid all needless destruction. C. NEW VINE DISEASES. TN the month of June, 1SG3, I received from -*- Hammersmith a Vine-leaf covered with minute gall-like excrescences, " each containing," in the words of my correspondent, "a multitude of eggs, and some perfect Acari, which seem to spring from them, and sometimes a curiously corrugated Coccus." A microscopical examination of these objects soon revealed the fact that the excrescences were galls of a peculiar character, caused by the irritation from the sucking of the leaf by the full- grown insect enclosed within the gall (which was partially opened on its upper surface) — that the insect itself belonged to the family Aphida;, and not to the Coccidae (or at least that it was intermediate in character between the types of the two families) — that the eggs were those of the perfect insect itself, which had formed the gall in which it had enclosed itself as in a living tomb, and that the perfect " Acari " were minute young, hatched from these eggs. The information thus gained was, however, zoologically incomplete, from the want of a knowledge of the male insect, which doubtless is winged, and which would have enabled me more satisfactorily to have determined the situation of the insect in the system. Hence, with multitudes ot other semi-complete observations, the matter re- mained unpublished in my portfolio. In the autumn of 1S67, and during the past year, my attention has, however, been several times directed to the same insect, which appears to have become extensively disseminated, and has exhibited its powers of mischief in a most unlooked-for manner, since not only have I received further specimens of the Vine-leaves infested in the manner above mentioned, but have had portions of the roots of Vines sent to me from different quarters, the rootlets of which had been sucked by a wingless insect, which I cannot in any manner distinguish from those of the galls on the leaves. From Cheshire I received in September, 1867, leaves from a young Vine, growing with twenty-five others in a house seventy-two feet long, in which it was the only one attacked, having previously made fourteen feet of wood since it was planted in the Eebruary preceding, the insects being only found in the young leaves within five feet of the top. In the following month the same correspondent sent rootlets from his Vines, attacked by the same insect, and I have since received it from other correspondents in different parts of England, as well as Ireland. In the latter mode of attack the perfect insect makes a wound in the delicate rootlet, by inserting its rostrum into the wood, and sometimes this is so firmly imbedded as to remain in its position when the insect is removed by the hand; decay is thus induced, which "penetrates in the form of little cankerous spots, and sometimes extends 60 HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. [March 1, 18(59. to the centre, cutting off the supply of nourish- ment." In the spring of last year I communicated a notice of this insect to the Ashmolean Society of Oxford, accompanied by highly magnified drawings, which are reduced in the accompanying woodcut, when I proposed to name the insect Feriti/mbia vitisana, in allusion to the tomb-like gall on the leaves formed by the female insect. Fig. 42. Vine Insects (magnified). In France, where the culture of the Vine is of .much more popular importance than in England, the disease has manifested itself with great viru- lence. The manner in which it appears in that country, and the various erroneous opinions which had been formed as to its origin, are noticed in one of your leading articles of the 31st of last October, together with a statement of the examination of the subject made by a commission, at the head of which was M. Planchon, which resulted in the •disease being referred to the presence of the insect now under consideration, to which the name of Rhizaplds vastatrix was applied, a name, as "M. J. 13." well observes, "scarcely applicable, should it turn out, as we suspect will be the case, to be congeneric with the very similar insect which is found in the excrescences on Vine-leaves." At the meeting of the Entomological Society of Erance on the 12th of last August, M. Lichtcnstein i communicated a notice of the ravages of the insect, which was stated to destroy the Vines only on the left bank of the Rhine, from Aries to Orange, to- gether with a notice of M. Planchon's observations, and with the remark that M. Signoret, the distin- guished entomologist of Paris (whose attention has for some years past been devoted to the Coccidas and allied insects), considered that the insect be- longs to the genus Phylloxera. It does not appear, however (although the latter generic name might indicate such a connection), that the entomologists either on the Continent or in America* connect the ravages of the Vine-leaf gall aphis with that of the root insect. The engraving represents, in the middle of its upper part, a portion of the upper side of part of a Vine-leaf greatly reduced in size, with a number of the gall-like excrescences, also slightly reduced. These excrescences are thickened portions of the leaf, the underside of each being swollen into a convex shape and entire, the female insect being enclosed within the cell thus formed, the upper sur- face of the leaf throwing out or splitting into tri- angular portions, as represented in the right-hand figure, the edges of each portion emitting a number of delicate white filaments. The extremity of one of these portions is turned back in the right-hand figure, showing part of the body of the female within the gall, surrounded by its eggs. The full- grown insect itself (which is scarcely half a line, or l-30th of an inch in length) ! is represented on its ventral surface in the left-hand figure. Seen under a high-powered lens, the whole body is swollen and fleshy, aud is covered with minute granulations : the eyes are distinct, minute, and ocelli-like ; the antennae are short, composed of only two very small basal joints and a longer apical one, having appa- rently a very minute setiferous tubercle at its ex- tremity : the long joint appears under the micro- scope to be formed of a great number of very short rings. The sucker is distinct and four-jointed, varying in length according to the size of different individuals : as usual in hemipterous insects, it encloses several very slender setae. The legs are of moderate length, with the tarsus formed of a short basal joint, which on its inner edge emits two short setae, whilst the terminal joint is longer and slightly thickened at its extremity, which is dis- tinctly furnished with two claws. The abdominal portion of the body is comparatively small and eight-jointed. The figure on the left-hand side of the engraving represents a female taken from the leaf-gall, whilst that in the middle of the lower part represents one of the females from the root of the Vine, seen sideways. Amongst the latter were some specimens which had a small black shining lobe on each side of the body, probably the rudi- mental wings of the male insect. — I. O. W., in Gardeners' Chronicle, January 30. The Mole Ciucket {Gnjllotulpa vulgaris).— In Curtis' British. Entomology I find the following : " This insect is supposed to be the ' Will o' the Wisp,' the Ignis fattens, about which so much has been said, and so little proved, the phantom that has eluded the vigilance of the naturalist and the curious for ages ! " Can any of your readers indicate upon what grounds this supposition is based ?— E. 31. March 1, 1869.] HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE GOSSIP. CI A NEW SURIKELLA. IN the early part of last spring my attention was called to a form of Surirella occurring in a slide sent to me by Dr. Capron, of Slierc (Surrey) ; but as it was scarce in the small gathering he had made, I was inclined to consider it an ab- normal state of S. spleml'ula. Some months after- wards I received from my friend, M. de Brebisson, a small quantity of a gathering made by him at Ealaise, in which the form I am about to describe was common, and when I called his attention to it he pronounced it to be a new species, and suggested that it should be called S. coriugera, or Capronii ("Je penserais, plutot, que serait une espece nouvelle que vous pourriez appeler eomigera ou Capronii, comme vous jugeriez le plus convcnable")- Fig. 43. Surirella Capronii, Falaise variety, x 300. This species does not differ from S. splendlda in size, outline, or canaliculi, but differs from that, and all other species of Surirella, in possessing one or more horns, or processes, springing from the longi- tudinal median line, of which they appear to be a prolongation. Some little distance from the apices of the valve the nipple-like process has a short spine on the apex. A careful examination of the under-surface of the valve shows that the process is hollow, but I have not been able to satisfy myself that the spine is tubular; the process near the nar- row end is smaller than that at the broad end of the valve, and points in an opposite direction. The French species differs from ours in possessing only one process (Dr. Capron informs me he has de- tected some valves with two), and is not quite so large. Fig. 44. Surirella Capronii, from Shere, x 300. Surirella Cafroxii, n. sp. E. K— Valve ovate, elongated, alsc conspicuous, canaliculi distinct (3£ to 4 in. '001), reaching median line, valve with one or Fig. 45. Ideal longitudinal) section of valve, and transverse section of valve (central portion). a, «', aire ; b, longitudinal median line or ridge. two spurious processes proceeding from the longi- tudinal median line. Freshwater; Shere, Dr. Ca- pron ; Falaise, M. de Brebisson.* F. Kitton. Microscofic Societies' Soirees.— The Annual Soiree of the Old Change Microscopical Society was held with great success on the 15th of February. That of the Quekett Microscopical Club is an- nounced for the 12th of March, at University Col- lege, Gower Street. * I have great pleasure in naming it after Dr. Capron, whose name is well known to the students of the " Synopsis of British Diatomacere ;" he is, moreover, the discoverer of the species. 02 HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. [March 1, 1869. ENCHANTER'S NIGHTSHADE. Circcea Lutetiana. By Majok Holland, R.M.L.I. THE Onagraeem, or Evening Primrose Order, of which Cirraea is a genus, are in general tetra- merous, the number four, or some multiple thereof, prevailing throughout the floral organs. In Circeea, however, the number is halved, there being but two sepals, two petals, and so on : hence the plant is distichous. In Lopa?zia still further degradation is exhibited according to Lindley, "that genus show- ing but one stamen ; in reality, however, there are two stamens, one of them perfect and bearing an- other, the other sterile and in the form of a spoon- shaped petal." The two specimens of Enchanter's Nightshade represented in the figures which illus- trate this brief paper were gathered near Ivy-bridge in Devonshire. The first, fig. 46, shows the normal flower, which is binary in all its parts, having two sepals (1, 2), two petals (3, 4), two stamens (5, 6), two lobes to the stigma (7, 8), and two cells in the ovary. Fig. 4G. Normal Flower of Circcea Lutetiana. In the second, fig. 47, we have an abnormal or monstrous flower ; a portion of the stigma is trans- formed into the anther of a stamen, and one of the stamens assumes the character of a petal, while in the place of one of the petals we have two distinct sepals: thus four distinct sepals are displayed instead of two. This instructive monstrosity seems to dis- close a tendency in Circsea to revert to the tetra- merous type. In the normal flower each of the two deeply-cleft petals appears to be formed by the coalescence of two coralline leaves, but there are only two sepals, and they present no corresponding indications of coalescence. Fig;. 47. Monstrous Flower of Circma Lutetiana. In the two figures the corresponding numbers ex- press homologous parts. The beautiful doctrine of the metamorphosis of the leaf is illustrated in the retrogression of one member of each of the three internal whorls of the floral organs to the grade next below it. In the common doubling of roses, stamens by simple retro- grade development become petals, perhaps display- ing a metamorphosis in one whorl only ; but in the specimen of Circsea before us three of the floral organs are thus affected. Ou comparing the monstrous with the normal flower, we find one lobe of the stigma converted into an anther, one of the anthers into a petal, and one of the petals into two distinct sepals (3), the latter further affording undeniable proof of the composite structure of the normal petal, otherwise iudicated by its emargination. I was not aware until after I had written these few lines on this interesting subject that the late Professor Edward Eorbes, to whom the original specimens from which these drawings were made were presented, was so much struck by the lessons they conveyed that he caused diagrams to be pre- pared from them for the botanical classes of King's College. Bury Cross, Gosport. March 1, 1SG9."| HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. A LITTLE EROG. XXTHEN riding one day over the Elats, about * " ten miles from Cape Town, we were passing near the edge of a lake where the heath and bush were rather high, and the ground swampy ; a small •frog jumped on to one of our horses. As it was a rare kind which I had never seen before, we caught it, tied it in a handkerchief, and carried it home. It was of a very peculiar delicate cream colour, •sometimes appearing almost gilded, and at other times of a duller pinkish hue ; there was a darker stripe from the eyes down each side. The eyes very large, bright, and prominent, the feet formed like those of the tree frogs, the toes being of a bright orange red colour : the body was little more than an inch in length, and so transparent that it was always easy to see if he had had his dinner or Fig. 48. Cape Frogs in a tumbler. not. The hind legs were very long, enabling it to jump a considerable distance. I placed it in a t umbler with a little water at the bottom, and after a few days I was intending to let it go, not knowing what to feed it on, when suddenly it sprang on to a newspaper after a fly ; seeing this 1 resolved to keep it, and if possible to bring it with me to England. I used to let it loose in the room, and often it would spend hours sitting on the window, generally preferring the glass to the woodwork. It never willingly went into the water, but I often refreshed it with a bath. It was only after some time, by most careful watching, that we discovered the mode by which the prey was caught : it appeared as if the flies walked into its mouth by some sort of fatal fascination exercised over them ; but on its trying to catch flies on a painted post, while sitting on my hand its tongue adhered so tightly, that I had then time to see that it, was by darting out a broad, irregularly shaped, and very sticky tongue under the flies, that he managed to- catch them. Elies were its favourite food, but sometimes a small spider would fall a victim. In cold weather it would remain sitting on the side of the tumbler, and would refuse all food for many days together, but in warmer weather it would become much more active and -eager for food, generally three or four flics would satisfy it, but sometimes it would take as many as eight if they were of a small size ; they were all swallowed whole. I never saw any sign of its changing its skin, and never heard it make any noise. It appeared quite tame and would jump all over me, and feed from my hand. Having never seen any description of this kind of frog in Natural History books, I have not been able to discover its name, and should be much obliged if you or any of your readers could enlighten me. As it was the only one that I ever saw, I believe it to be a rare and certainly a very beautiful little frog. After keeping it for nearly a year, it escaped and I never saw it again. M. E. D. The Oak-feeding Silkworm (Bombyx Tama- mai). — On May 17th I received two or three dozen eggs of this new silkworm ; and in about an hour after they arrived, my first caterpillar was hatched, and put on oak leaves. On the following day, six more came out ; but unfortunately I lost two of them as they wandered away from the leaves. I did not care much about it at the time, as I expected more of the eggs to hatch ; but in this I was dis- appointed, for no more came out. "When about a fortnight old, one of them turned rather black, and soon died ; another fell into the water, and was drowned ; so that my stock was reduced to three caterpillars, and these did well all through their stages. They grew fast, were a beautiful bright green colour, with white spots on their sides, like dia- monds ; and being quite new in this country, were objects of great interest to myself and numerous friends. On July 10th, two of them began to spin up. They seem to be very irritable at this time, and jerk about violently if the branches are touched. The third caterpillar continued eating till the 22nd. The cocoon is much larger, and more exposed than that of the Ailanthus. It is a bright yellow. On Sept. 3rd, the first moth came out — a beautiful creature, of a rich brown colour, measuring 7 inches across from wing to wing; and wishing to keep it in good order for my cabinet, I took its life on the third day, as there seemed no prospect of more. On the 8th, another came out, and laid nine eggs. The other did not come out till the ISth of Sep- tember, so that I had no chance of pairing them. I hope to get some more eggs this year. — S. B. 64 HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GO SSIP. [March 1, 1S69. ZOOLOGY. Ianthina, the Violet Sea-snail. — In the paper cm this creature which appeared in the last number of Science-Gossip the references to the engravings have been accidentally misplaced. In each instance the reference has been placed at the end 'of the paragraph immediately preceding that which the drawing referred to serves to illustrate, instead of being put at, the commencement of the papagraph connected with the illustration. Thus in page 31, the reference (fig. 1?) at the end of 'the third paragraph requires to be neatly erased with a line pen, and written at the beginning of the next, immediately before the word "This." In the same way all the remaining references throughout the article require to be moved from their positions at the end of each paragraph to the commencement of the very next line of the text. Headers interested in the subject will not grumble at making these alterations, which are necessary, and change the meaning of every illustration. — /. T. II., Bury Cross, Gosport. The Cuckoo.— In addition to the communications of "E. G. W." and other correspondents, I venture to send a few more facts respecting the Cuckoo. TV. Jerdan, at one time editor of the Literary Gazette, once took a young Cuckoo from a Hedge- Sparrow's nest, and kept it some months. It grew quite tame, and would sit on a branch while he dug worms for it. It apparently was choked one day. The Cuckoo seems to feed almost entirely upon worms, insects, and caterpillars, although it seems occasionally to eat berries and seeds. A Cuckoo was once placed in a Canary's cage ; caterpillars were placed also in the cage, and curiously the Canary fed the Cuckoo with the caterpillars, while it ate the seeds itself. The Cuckoo seems, accord- ing to some observers, to lay more than one egg — some say five ; and if so, must place them in differ- ent nests, and to do this it appears to use its bill when the nest is so placed that it cannot get at it otherwise. On one occasion a Cuckoo was seen anxiously watching a pair of "Wagtails building their nest. This did not seem to go on so fast as was necessary, for the Cuckoo laid its egg before the nest was finished. The same observer saw one enter a Wagtail's nest, take an egg out, and leave its own in. Two eggs have been occasionally found, in the same nest. The Cuckoo seems to place its eggs in a variety of nests, Wren's, Wag- tail's, Robin's, yellow-hammer's, Linnet's, as well as Sparrow's nests — all seem used. A Wren has been known to leave its own egg to feed a young Cuckoo in a cage. It got to it through a broken pane in the window. A Robin has been known to hatch and nurture the Cuckoo with the greatest care. The Cuckoo does not seem to be the only bird which palms its eggs upon others, as Wilson says that the Cow-bunting of America lays its eggs in other nests, such as the Wren, the Chiffchaff, and the Redstart. These I have taken as interesting notices from a great many others from Loudon's magazine, which every one may not possess. — E. T. Scott. Singular Place toe, a Hen's Nest. —A few miles from this place a farm-house stands in the midst of a rookery. During the summer of 1867, two hens made choice of the deserted nests of two rooks wherein to lay their eggs, and to rear their young. When the chickens were hatched, there arose the difficulty of bringing the little ones to the ground. This was successfully accomplished by one of the hens in the following manner: she first hopped upon a lower branch of the tree than that in which the nest was placed, and by her persuasions induced her little ones to follow ; then on to another branch until the lowest was reached. As this was eight or ten feet from the ground, the only thing that they could then do was to flutter to the bottom. For- tunately a heap of litter broke their fall, and so the whole brood arrived safely in the farmyard. The other hen was either not so successful in persuading her chickens to follow her, or else her courage failed, or it may be she was aware that there was no friendly heap of litter at the bottom. There was nothing left therefore but for her to submit to the ignominy of being brought down by the farmer's boy, who, mounting a long ladder, brought the second brood also in safety to the bottom. — J. S. Tide, Marking- ton. Blackbird's Nest on Christmas-day. — On Christmas-day a gentleman was on a visit to Mr. Henry Herrin's farm at Spennell, near Kidder- minster, and in looking round the farm, amongst other things discovered a Blackbird's nest with two eggs in, next day another egg was added, and the old birds are now sitting on five eggs. — Bir- mingham Bally Bost, January 20th. Land-shell in the Coal Strata. — A friend some time back brought to me some exceedingly handsome specimens, with impressions of ferns upon them of many species, obtained from a cutting of a new railway at Silverdale, North Staffordshire. One small specimen is rather noteworthy from certain little spiral shells, or rather their casts, which are to be seen on the fern-leaves {Keuropterls). These are about the size of the little Spirorbis or Microconchus, so well known as occurring in the coal-strata, rarely if ever, I think, on ferns, but usually on the surface of the shale or indurated mud, and sometimes, as I have seen, on bivalve shells {Anthraconya). The difference of habitat, and a more rapid increase in diameter of the whorl in March 1, 1SG9.] HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 65 i he little shell found on the fern-leaves lead me to suppose that it is a Zonites, which is a pulinonate or air-breathing gasteropode, and which species has not, I think, been previously found in Great Britain, fossil in the coal-measures.— .#. G. Entomology in the Coal-pits.— There is more natural history in mines than people imagine. A lew months ago a friend, employed underground, brought me a beautiful beetle caught in the pit, and which I have only once or twice met with above ground. It was a fine specimen of Astynomus cedilis, a beetle with extremely long antennae, well known to collectors, but not "as plentiful as blackberries." Two other friends during the last summer have sent me numerous specimens of Sirex, the great S. gigas and the smaller S. juvenctis. These hornets, as they called them, had seriously frightened the colliers. No doubt the pine timber which was used for props in the pits was full of the larvae of these insects, as was the case with a large block which I got near the pit mouth, and which I had split up to examine. I think last year the Sirex was unusually frequent in our fir woods. Another longicorn beetle, allied to the Astynomus, was lately brought in to me by my neighbour the timber-merchant; its antennae were also of great length, nearly three inches; it is no doubt Monochamm sutor, the cobbler. Can any of your readers inform me what species of insect it is that cuts pieces out of the leaves of the floating pond-weeds (Potamogeton), and with them makes a domicile for its larvae (Donatio.?)? What insect deposits clusters of regularly arranged brown eggs on water-grass or Poa aquatica ?—E. G. Geophiltts.— Taschenberg in the last issued number of his Wirbellosen Thiere tells the following remarkable tale in reference to an individual of this genus. " In a medical journal published at Metz, Herr Scoutetten states that a woman, 28 years of age, residing near that city, suffered for some months an uncomfortable tickling sensation in the region of the nose, accompanied by a copious discharge from the nostrils and frequent headaches. The symptoms gradually became worse ; the pains extended from the nose to the ear, and then over the whole head. The agony endured by the patient was frightful : it was as though her head was being struck at regular intervals by a hammer, or as if her forehead was being bored through; and often she became delirious, and rushed madly about the house in her vain efforts to find relief. At length after these attacks had continued during a whole year, they were suddenly brought to a close in a most unexpected manner. During an unusually violent fit of sneezing, a living insect was ejected from the nose, which forthwith rolled itself up in a spiral fashion, like a watch spring. It lived some time in water, but quickly died on being immersed in alcohol. The insect was two inches long, of a yellow- colour, and was divided into sixty-four segments, each of which bore a pair of legs. It was evident that it belonged to the genus Geophihts; competent judges pronounced it to be G. elect ricus ; it is certainly either that or its near relative G. carpophihs. No suggestion has been offered as to the manner in which this centipede could have entered its temporary lodging."— W. W. S. The Cuckoo in Captivity.— As " E. G. W." appears to think that no young Cuckoo has been kept in captivity longer than April 1st, the following notes upon one which lived from June, 1867, until June, 1868, may be interesting to him : it is taken from the Quarterly Magazine of the High Wycombe Natural History Society, vol. i. pp. 1S9-90. " This bird was taken in a half-fledged state from the nest of a hedge-sparrow, early in the month of June. The first food provided for him was a boiled egg, which pleased his juvenile palate— bruised seeds and soaked bread were also given to him. After a few days, worms and raw meat were offered. These provisions were greedily swallowed, though for some time he declined the trouble of feeding himself. During the severe weather, when worms could not be procured, raw meat was preferred ; but cooked meat, vegetables, bread-and-butter, indeed, almost anything was devoured. On Christmas day he dined off turkey and plum-pudding. Hot buttered crumpet is a favourite dish. The bird is extremely tame, the feeling of fear towards any of the house- hold seeming quite unknown Whenever a clatter of plates is heard in the kitchen, an answering note is heard from the cage. The cuckoo descends from his perch, and, should the door be closed, knocks his head against it until a friendly hand attends to his wishes. His eating is not confined to regular meal-times, but he is stuffing all day long : probably the reason so few have lived is that they have never had enough given them to eat. The struggle of instinct at the usual time of departure spoiled his beauty. At night he was constantly found with his wings spread, beating against his cage; darkening the cage did not prevent it : the feathers of his long wings and tail were all broken. The hero of this account became gradually more and more domesticated, and was allowed to wander at will about the premises ; his health was apparently unimpaired, although he became almost featherless ; but, on June 8th, the joint appearance of a strange cat and disappearance of the cuckco left little doubt as to his untimely end."— B. Blackcaps.— While out on the 21st of January, my companion shot a cock-blackcap ; we also saw a bird with it, which I supposed to be the hen. Is it not strange to see Blackcaps paired at this time of the year, and also to see them in England during the winter ? — Forbes Jenkins. CO HARDWICKE'S SC IE N CE -GO SSIP. [March 1, 1SG9. BOTANY. Ferns. — The twelfth volume of the Gardener 's Magazine commences with the new year, and the first monthly part contains fourteen excellent wood- cuts of species of Adiantum, illustrative of consecu- tive papers on that genus. The part contains, besides, a mass of useful information on garden matters. Gall-bearing Plants. — A second list of British Gall-bearing plants is published in the Entomologist's Monthly Magazine for February. The Specific Differences between Potentilla tormenUlla and P. reptans. — I hope Mrs. Watney will pardon me for saying that I am afraid the diagnoses of these two plants, as given by her in the last number of Science- Gossir — in fact, any de- scriptions taken from existing botanical works — are not yet sufficiently definite to enable us, at once, to draw a line between the two species ; and that the query respecting them in " B.'s " excellent article, " Why," remains still, in point of fact, unanswered ; for the very nature of the question shows that doubts had arisen in the writer's mind whether the differences already recognized and described in books were sufficient to justify the separation of them into two species. The characters which Mrs. Watney gives are, no doubt, quite sufficient to dis- tinguish the two extreme forms from one another : indeed, they are so very different in size, in the shape and size of the flower, in the appearance of the radical leaves especially, and in the situations in which they are found, that they arc known at a glance ; and, seeing only these extreme forms, one would scarcely dream of suspecting that they could be anything but specifically distinct. But no sooner do we try to write downjthe distinctions on paper than our difficulties begin. Mrs. Watney herself observes that we often find tormentilla with five petals, and reptans sometimes with only four. She further says, " Potent ilia tormentilla has an ascending dichotomous stem." This character, however, is by no means constant ; and Babington himself describes the stem as " procumbent or ascending," putting the procumbent character first. Again, " P. tormen- tilla has temate leaves." The lower leaves, however, of P. tormentilla arc, according to Babington, quinate, like those of reptans, and I know that when the plant becomes luxuriant, growing somewhere else than on dry heaths, the upper leaves even become sometimes quinate, and stalked instead of sessile. The characters of these two plants differ much in different places, and probably Mrs. Watuey has no difficulty in distinguishing them in her neighbourhood; but where I live they are the most perplexing plants I know, and I can at any time during the summer gather specimens that I am quite unable to refer positively to either species. I find large round flowers on the hedge-banks, appa- rently of reptans ; but when I come to gather them, they have the small, often temate foliage of tor- mentilla ; and I find small square flowers of what appear to be tormentilla, but when I pull the plant up, it is rooting at the joints, like reptans ; in short, we have every conceivable intermediate form ; and the only conclusions I have hitherto been able to arrive at are that either they are not true species, or that they hybridize very readily, or that some fixed character has still to be found by which they may be distinguished. — Robert Holland. Scolorendrum Ceterach. — "Davis's Botano- logy," 8vo., 1813, p. 99, says this fern was fast disappearing about Holyhead, being used as bait for rock codfish. Can any one inform me how it is used ?—JS. M. P. "Scurvy-grass" (p. 43).— In my edition of Hooker & Arnott's "British Flora," published in 1S50 {sixth edition), the Cochlearia officinalis is said to be an annual or perennial.— S. M. P Alder Leaf-buds.— I have perused Mr. Hep- worth's paper on leaf-buds, in your February number, with much interest ; however, he makes but little allusion to the Alder {Alnus glutinosa). This tree, to my thinking, has the most beautiful of leaf-buds ; they are of a rich purplish-red colour, aud in general outline not unlike the W T hite Beam, but are consi- derably longer, and much thicker at the extremity. In March, before the buds are expanded, this tree presents a striking appearance, with the brownish catkins waving in the wind, and is then perhaps the most beautiful of our indigenous trees. — /. F. Robinson. The Shamrock.— As the 17th of March— the day dedicated to Ireland's patron saint— is ap- proaching, I might perhaps be allowed to mention, that in the oft-renewed discussion as to what plant is the true shamrock, there has been no mention of Trifolium minus ; at any rate, I have not seen this species alluded to in connexion with the Shamrock. The Celtic portion of the population are enthusi- astic, here as elsewhere, in honouring their saint's day, and in displaying the national emblem on their persons on that anniversary ; but I have never seen any plant worn as the Shamrock but Trijolium minus. I can only speak for this end of the island ; but if they do wear the Trifolium repens generally over the country, as is stated, we northerners ought to take some credit to ourselves for superior taste. Any one who compares the foliage of these two trefoils, will see that the T. minus is much the more elegant plant. I should like to know if T. repens is really the plant worn in the south and west of Ire- land. — S. A. S., Belfast. March 1, 1869.] ' HARDWICO'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 07 Utricularia vulgaris.— The round, seed-like terminal buds of these plants, that have been lying dormant at the bottom of ponds during the winter, are now about to rise to the surface to shoot out into leaves'and branches. Probably, as it has been a mild winter, many have resumed their vitality, and are, by this time, already floating at the surface. Where the Bladderwort is known to grow, the buds may easily be collected by drawing a light net through the water, sweeping it along the surface of the mud at the bottom. The buds should be well rinsed in Clearwater, when they form beautiful objects for the aquarium. I have kept eight or ten buds through the winter, and they are now beginning to grow. One of them rose to the surface very early, and is already several inches long, and has thrown out a side branch. The bladders are as yet so small as to be scarcely seen with the naked eye: no doubt, they are large enough to support the plant in its present small state ; and they will be developed larger and larger as the plant increases in size and weight. 1 should be greatly obliged to any cor- respondent who would kindly send me a few buds of either U. neglecta or U. intermedia. I think they would come safely in a letter, if stuffed into a quill with the ends plugged with damp moss.— Robert 0. Colland. Scurvy-grass— The Scurvy-grass {CocJdearia ■officinalis) is certainly an annual. I wish your cor- respondent would just try the experiment by culti- vating some plants from seeds. Sow the seeds in July, in drills, and thin out the young shoots, leav- ing at least six inches between every one of them. He will find the leaves fit for use in the following spring; and they really are not a disagreeable addition to an early salad, though they give an unpleasant flavour to the flesh of different animals that feed on them. It is an often- noticed fact that the Cochlearia officinalis is found most abundant in those high altitudes where the dreadful evil for the cure of which it has been so justly lauded prevails. There are large quantities of it in the South-Sea Islands, for ex- ample, and in Iceland too. The Icelanders dress it in various forms ; make a pickle of the leaves, and I prepare different dishes with them ; mix them with whey or bur. The old English name of Spoon-wort originated in the shape of the leaves, they resemble the bowl of an old-fashioned one ; ' hence, too, the French name, Herbe am millers ; and some writers affirm that Scurvy-grass is the true Herba Britannica of the ancients.- Helen E. Watney. Phyllactidium pulchellum.— This interesting water-weed has made its appearance in water ob- tained at Keston, and was exhibited at the late Soiree of the North-London Naturalists' Society. MICROSCOPY. Gizzard of the Mole Cricket (Gryllotalpa mil- garis).— Late numbers of your valuable periodical Science-Gossip, containing descriptions of the gastric teeth of insects and lingual ribbons of mollusca, induced me to work in the same direction, and I have been much pleased with their beauty \ among others, the gastric teeth of the Mole Cricket. As the insect is rather local, it may have escaped the investigations of those of your nu- merous readers who are microscopists. The gizzard of the Mole Cricket is large, with numerous and beautiful teeth, visible to the eye, and when laid open and fiat, forms a fine opaque object.— J. B. Spencer. Gudgeon Scale— The fish-scale figured in the February part of Science-Gossip (page 41) is erro- neously described as that of a Gudgeon (Gobio fluciatilis). It appears to be that of the Pope [Acerina vulgaris). — Henri/ Lee. Fig. 49. Scale of Gudgeon, from specimens furnished by Mr. Henry Lee. Pleurosigma hippocampus.— Mr. Kitton (ante, p. 22) states that this diatom may be found in any pond or mill-stream ; inferring, of course, that it is a fresh-water species. Pritchard describes it (Inf., 919) as marine. Is the species alluded to by both of these gentlemen under this name the same, or is one of them in error as to its habitat ? If not too late, may I take the opportunity of pointing out an inaccuracy on page 133 of the volume for 1867 ? Eig. 141, as it seems to me at least, in the figures of Binmdaria, appears to me to coincide with the description in Pritchard of Fin. {Kav.) acrospharia ; figs. 142, 144 with Bin. {Kav.) dicer- gens ; and fig. 143 with Bin. stauroneiformis {Nan. Brebissonii), instead of as stated in the text. The error, if it be one, may have been corrected ; but, if so, this has escaped my notice.— F. J. IVamer, Winchester. [Answer will appear next month. — Ed. S. G.] 68 HARDWICKE'S SCI EN CE-GOSSI P. [March I, 1S69. NOTES AND QUERIES. Laurel-leaves. — I have long been an ob- server of the two small pores of the common laurel, situated at the base of each leaf, one on each side of the mid-rib, just above the foot-stalk. I believe them to be small glands, containing either honey, or propolis, or prussic acid, ex- tensively sought after by bees in their early working days (whether it is real food, or propolis to cement their comb, or a poison to supply their gland I have no means of ascertaining). The supply they yield seems soon exhausted, and then the pores turn brown, and after that the bees seem to disre- gard them. The common vetch has some such re- ceptacle on the stipules, for the bees are even more busy at a certaiu season in the vetch fields on this part of the plant. — II. W. Bee Odours. — The Bees emit an unmistakeable odour when angry, which I have no doubt proceeds from their poison, which is an extremely volatile acid. I can generally tell the temper of my bees by the presence of this pungent aromatic odour, and no one that has ever been stung on the lip can fail to recognize it ever afterwards. Place a bee on a piece of glass, and force it to protrude its sting against the glass, and the poison may be seen in a small clear drop of liquid on the surface, and the powerful and pleasant odour will at once be detected— IT. W. Mistletoe. — This plant is easily propagated from seed. Squeeze the capsule, and place the seed thus released on any smooth part of the bark of any tree on which it thrives, press it firmly to the bark on which it will stick by its own gluten, and in the. course of twenty-four hours will be found dry and adhering firmly to its bed. Its growth begins the first spring, a germ proceeding from each lobe and fixing itself on opposite sides of the seed, and forming two separate plants, making at first two small green arches, thus it remains its first season. It then separates, and in the second season each germ puts forth two leaves, and after these appear it grows more rapidly ; in about four years it becomes a conspicuous parasite. I would warn all not to fix the seed on to the main trunk of any tree that is cared for, as I have known it kill large apple-trees in the course of eight or ten years; when so placed, the soft green roots penetrate into the very heart of the wood, and I have seen the dead trunks, after time sufficient has elapsed for the shrivelling up and decay of the mistletoe, as though the wood had been bored by a teredo, for the roots make many ramifications. The mistletoe will grow on many soft-wooded trees. I have grown it on apple, poplar, lime, and hawthorn, but have never succeeded on oak or Scotch fir on which it is sometimes seen. — //. W. A Blue-jacket's idea of Technical Terms. — When in command of one of H. M.'s ships last year, on our way home from the Pacific, 1 as usual had my tow net over, which by the by seemed at first to astonish the men, and even some of the officers, but several soon look much interest in the "wonders of the ocean " which came to their notice ; and while mentioning this, I may remark that it seems strange that so few naval men make use of the glorious op- portunity afforded them of studying natural history in all its branches and over the various countries they visit; and I think if those in authority at home were to encourage officers in such pursuits, much good would result to themselves and science in general. It is so in the American navy, and why not in ours? But to return. One evening an old quartermaster came in haste to my cabin, saying, "Please,sir, I've got a 'curio' at last." "Well, Wood- mason, let me see it." He said, " It's all covered with spikes, a fish ! " " Oh ! probably a Diodon," said I. When he brought it— a small fish in a basin — I took it up. "Why, it is a small specimen of Orthago- niscus, perhaps Mola, but I never saw one with spines before; it may be a young one, or other species, that I can't say." The quartermaster looked, scratched his head, and said, "What did you call it, sir?" "Orthagoniscus," and away he went on duty. The officers asked him what the captain said. "Well, sir, I can't tell exactly, but t'was very much like ' O Sally, come kiss us." I need scarcely add there was a shout of laughter at poor old Woodmason's ideas of technical names. The said "O Sally, come kiss us" is now in one of those numerous subterranean passages in the British Museum, unknown except to those who care to work, and in the safe custody of Dr. A. Gvinther. — H. II. Knocker, Commander R.N. Water Wagtail. — On two recent occasions a flight of black and white Water Wagtails, to the number of forty, have appeared on my lawn, their plumage and size rather varied, some looking like young birds. In the summer they are pretty plenti- ful in this neighbourhood (East Devon), and for several years in succession I have had two yellow Wagtail's nests in a blank window covered with creepers, but is it not unusual to see Wagtails con- gregated to the number of forty ?—W. R. B. Wasp. — I have enclosed a wasp which was killed in my dining-room yesterday evening (Jan. 22), as I thought its early appearance might interest some of your readers. — E. B., Clare, Suffolk. Cock Nests. — It is not an uncommon thing to find several unfinished nests in the neighbourhood of a Wren's nest (Sylvia Troglodytes, Lath.) I have found many, but never one that had any lining in it. The popular opinion is, that the cock bird builds these nests, and not having the ability to line them, he leaves them unfinished ; hence they are called in Yorkshire " cock-nests." The fact seems to be, that whilst the hen is sitting, the cock employs his leisure in building. A year or two ago, a wren built her nest under the overhanging tiles of an out- house, the foundation resting in a currant bush, and. the tile forming the dome. Within a distance of forty yards, I found five of these nests ; three were built in the rasp-canes. Whilst the female takes great pains to hide her nest, these rude attempts are generally built in open and exposed places. Prom long and careful observation, 1 believe that the cock-birds give very little assistance, generally, to the liens, in building their nests. — John Ranson. Pigs and Music— In old churches and cathedrals we sometimes find a carving on the miserere of a pig playing upon a bagpipe, and the little pigs dancing around. This seems to indicate a popular notion (at least in times gone by) that pigs have no ear or taste for music ; such a notion, however, seems to be not quite correct : for I once saw four or five great bony pigs standing at a garden-gate, listening with the most evident pleasure to the sweet sounds of a wandering German band. They stood in a row, in perfect March ], 1SG9.] HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. GO stillness, with heads bent a little on one side to catch the melody ; and from time to time gave utterance to their delight in a gentle grunt of satisfaction. The melody that charmed their breasts was one which rose and fell in gentle and continual waves of sound : not very attractive perhaps to educated ears ; but certainly riveting the attention of these untaught creatures, whose desires are commonly supposed to be confined to the quantity and quality of their food, rather than to the enjoyment of the purer delights of sweet sounds. — /. S. Tate. Eujiart (Jumart). — Your correspondent, TV". Gain, will find in Buit'on's Natural History (vol. 22, p. 448, of Sonnini's Erench edition) a full descrip- tion of the character and uses of three different varieties of the Jumart (doubtless the animal referred to by Mr. Gain as the Eumart) sprung from the ass and cow, the bull and mare, and the bull and she ass, respectively. Button expresses his disbelief in the existence of all three, deduced partly from actual experiment, and partly from anatomical con- siderations ; and it may, I think, be assumed that such an animal has no real existence. — II. Rats and Sugar. — A few weeks ago the employes of an eminent publishing firm in the metropolis missed half a pound of loaf sugar and could not account for its disappearance ; shortly afterwards another half pound was missed, and one day last week, a pound was put in a drawer about I p.m., and by 5 o'clock there was nothing left but the bag with a large hole gnawed in it. Next day a rat was seen running backwards and forwards across the passage, and on being disturbed one lump of sugar was discovered, which he was evidently removing to a safe place from his temporary hiding of the night before. Is it a known fact that rats are so fond of sugar ? A month or two since a rat was caught in the same establishment, and during the night she littered with ten young ones.— A. B. Chelsea, S.JI'. Alas poor Hedgehog !— In the July number of Science-Gossip for the year 1SG6, " C. K." states that he observed a hedgehog running about with several bluebottles on it, which were " laying a great number of eggs." Perhaps the following brief notes may interest " C. K." and other corre- spondents who read his query. In August last I caught a hedgehog on the Epsom downs, and brought him home in the hope of a long enjoyment of his company and friendship ; but before he had been in my possession many days my attention was drawn to the fact that flies were in the habit of settling on my pet's nose and about his eyes. Remembering the paragraph above quoted, I kept a close watch upon the hedgehog, but, alas.! it was of no avail, for one day, about two months after the partiality of the flies for our pet had been noticed, he was seized with what appeared to be the cramp, and would eat nothing. The following day he seemed to be much worse ; upon examination a gentle was found crawling out of a small hole close to the eye, and upon further search a considerable number were found among the spines. The poor animal was placed in warm water, by which means several hundred gentles were captured; however, all my work was in vain, for two days after, it was found that he was dreadfully eaten behind the ears, and that his back was in such a state from their ravages that it could be compared to nothing but a sponge. By this time he was too weak to roll him- self up when touched, or to raise himself up when placed upon his side ; his breathing, also, was pain- fully laboured. The poor creature was killed, as his case was hopeless, and it did not seem justifiable to allow him to sutler longer, however interesting the experience gained by so doing might have been. On dissection several gentles were discovered among his entrails, which were very much collapsed, and in one lung three of these terrible " parasites " were found. It would accordingly appear that not. only can the larva eat its way through the skin of the living hedgehog, but penetrate far into the body.—//. 11. Mott, Union Grove, Clapham. Bare British Animaxs.— I am anxious to ascertain, as correctly as possible, the present distribution of the Badger, the Otter, and the Blackrat (Mm rattui), in the United Kingdom. 1 fear all three are being rapidly exterminated. Will any of your correspondents who can testify to the recent occurrence of any of these animals in their own, or any other neighbourhood, kindly oblige by doing so ? Communications on the subject might be sent either to your valuable periodical, or to my own address. I shall be happy to send you a digest of the whole evidence in the course of a few months. — Robert Morton Middleion, J mi., Bunk, West Hartlepool. The American Entomologist for January contains interesting articles on the following subjects : — The Apple Root Plant Louse ; The Parasites of the Human Animal ; A Measly Wild Duck ; Strawberry Worms ; The Strawberry Ealse Worm ; Fungoid Growths; Plums for the Million; The Colorado Grassnopper-; The Nine Pronged Wheel Bug ; Grasshoppers in the State of New York ; Universal Remedies, &c. Uses of Cockchafers. — Through the columns of the Moniteur Scieniifique one learns that nothing- can be better to grease machines with, and prepare salad than cockchafer oil. In Prussia the people have reached the advanced stage of making cock- chafer flour, which at present is only employed for the purpose of making cakes for young pheasants, partridges, and quails. In this country (Prance) an attempt has been made to introduce the white worm or larva of the cockchafer into the kitchen as a sub- stitute for the snail, but gentlemen who are voracious where Helix pomatia is concerned, turn up their noses at the grub of Meloloutlia vulgaris. A servant of the name of Jonglet proposes to extract from the cockchafer colouring matter which, it is said, will make rapid strides in industry and create a small revolution in the commercial world. He states that he can get yellow out of the obnoxious insect of a colour between chromium and gold, and that each cockchafer yields a few centi- grammes. Several specimens of silk dyed with this new colour have been exhibited and much admired. Taken all in all the cockchafer, what with the amount of manure he furnishes when slain in proper quantities, and the uses above mentioned, stands a fair chance of being classed as a valuable insect, and some day we may hear philanthropic persons calling out against their wanton destruction. — Land ami Water, Jan. 23rd. Luminous Centipede (pp. 46 and 47). — The centipede noticed by your correspondent was probably Artl/rouomalus longicornis, which is figured and described in Wood's " Illustrated Natural History." — James Britten. JO HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. LMarch 1, 1S69. Hybernation of : Bees. — Much interested in Mr. Mill's paper on "The Winter Home of the Humble Bee" (Science-Gossip, p. 41), 1 wish to ask, 1, If August is not too early for the hybernation of bees ? 2, If no passage to the cell in question ever existed, how did the bee reach its Some underneath a large ilat stone that had evidently been a fixture for a long time, including of course the heat of July ? 3, May not this bee have been involuntarily confined ? This raises question L How long could a bee endure this torpid state : air and food excluded ? — A. Hall. Flowers dried in Sand. — Will any reader kindly inform me how to preserve the green colour of the leaves and calyces of llowers dried as above ? I have seen many specimens tried, but though looking well when they came out of the sand, the green hue has faded out in a few days or weeks. — C, Barnshury. Museum Curiosities. — Seeing an article headed as above in the last number of Science-Gossip by " LL. B.," I also not long since visited probably the same northern museum, and made acquaintance with possibly the same "elderly man," and under very similar circumstances. On my asking where the fish were kept, he took me to where the fossil sau- rians were. " There," said he, " what do you think of these? " "These, my friend, are not fish, and I want to see them." He replied, "I says they be fish." Then came the similar questions as to " LL. B." Seeing there was fun to be had out of him, I said I should be glad to know about them. "What, sir! Do you never read your Bible?" " Yes," said I, " at times." Then came the account of their getting into the rocks at the deluge. Pass- ing on, he asked me if I had ever seen a fossil salmon in coal. " No, but should very much like to, if such a thing exists." " Well, sir, some of these here philosophers says it is not a salmon, but calls it some long name ; they do give things such names." I asked him if his supposed salmon and thesaurians and all the other fossil animals got into the rocks at the same time. " Yes, most certainly, I tell you the Bible says so." I then told him something about the different formations in remote periods, when he came to the conclusion that fas he said) "I was one of them philosophers. But you see, sir," said he, " we must have something to tell the many people who come here and ask questions." If the elderly man is not profound in scientific acquire- ments, yet his civility to visitors should not be over- looked. For " LL. B.'s " note might tend to deprive him of his place, and alter all surely no great knowledge is required if his duties arc, as " LL. B." says, solely to dust the cases. — //. //. Knocker, Bridlington, 9th Dec. Laurel Berries. — The reason why the berries of this evergreen can be eaten with impunity is, that the pulp of the fruit does not contain any poisonous properties ; the kernel or seed found in the berry possesses the same principle as the leaves ; but most probably persons who eat the pulp do not swallow, or, if they swallow, do not crush, the seed. How very rarely one swallows the stones in a raison, or seeds of a'grape ! Besides, I much doubt whether the essential oil or virulent principle, which contains hydrocyanic acid, and is extracted from the leaves of the laurel by distilla- tion, exists in % ready-formed state in the kernels. I fancy it would only become developed by contact with water, and I am not sufficiently a chemist to tell your correspondent how the juices of the human stomach would act on the seeds ; but I do know enough of the powerfully poisonous nature of the oil to deter me from trying any experiments with the seeds, either on myself or any dumb animal ; for I entertain an intense horror of in- flicting needless pain on one of God's creatures :— Sharers in the woe, the evil, Adam's sin brought on us all, Must man add, by needless torture, To the curse wrought by his fall? I know the seeds, when bruised, will flavour different liqueurs, and that when sparingly administered they do no harm — rather promote digestion: hence it is that hydrocyanic acid is often prescribed by medical men in different diseases. — Helen E. Watney. Fruit of the Hawthorn.— One of your cor- respondents draws attention to the local names given to the fruit of the Hawthorn. In the East Riding of York, about Hull, they are popularly called "Cat-haws" — a name I never heard any- where else, and the origin of which I could never ascertain. An old rhyme says : — " Hips and haws, Frosts and snows." If there be any truth in this popular distich, we are likely to have a severe winter, for they are both plentiful. — John Hanson, York. Mushrooms.— The great abundance of mushrooms this season has enabled all classes to partake of this savoury and nutritious condiment. Have any of your correspondents observed iustances this autumn of their producing much disturbance even in vigorous systems, and that quite independently of the tough- ness of parts of their texture ? The gamekeeper at this place, who has freely eaten them through the summer, and cannot have gathered other fungi in mistake, was, as well as a groom, excessively sick last week after eating some. At the same time some of this household, as well as others in the neighbouring vicarage, were effected in much the same way. The mushrooms were gathered by differ- ent persons and in various fields. An opinion exists here that mushrooms are affected by the first frost. Whether this is the case or not, their young and white caps and rosy gills gave no indication of a change. — C. F. Fbog Parasites. — Walking by a small stream in North Wales, in which was a quantity of the lank ribbon-like water grass that floats on the surface, a frog attracted my notice, squatting high and dry in a position of apparent motionless contentment. Not disturbing it, I passed on, and saw another, and another, all in the same state of inert stupidity ! Wondering at their inactivity, I stooped down close, to look at them, and lo, the lid of the head, if I may so call it, was off, and the brain-pan, full to the brim, alive with a wriggling mass of maggots, each about three-eighths of an inch long! How did the enemy get, into head-quarters ? From some fly the poor Frog had eaten, or by an external attack and deposition ? — W. Broicne. NewNudibkanchiate Mollusc. — This addition to our fauna, discovered in the Victoria Docks at one of the excursions of the Quekctf Microscopical ( Jlnb, was exhibited at the meeting of the Zoological Society of London on the 28th January, by Mr. W. S. Kent, and named Emhletonia Grai/ii. March 1, 1869.] IIAPDWICKE'S SCIENCE- GOSSIP. 71 "Piece op Coal." — Had my "piece of coal" known it would have fallen into such severely critical hands as those of Mr. Dalton, it would, I am sure, have refrained from sacrificing any tech- nicality to picturesque description. Mr. Dalton might have credited the "piece of coal" with know- ing something about its own history, although, per- haps, it was not so fresh from the "manuals" as himself. His two "gross mistakes" sink into nothing when examined. "With regard to the "hilly barrier" of which the coal spoke, let him refer to Mr. Godwin- Austin's paper "On the Pos- sible Extension of the Coal Measures beneath the South-Eastern part of England." He will there find the " hilly barriers " mapped out for him, and not only so, but the statement made that "the Rhenish aud Belgian coal-beds are the remains of a succession of fringing bands of dense vegetation, occupying a continuous tract of coast-line." He speaks of the Midland and Northern coal-measures of England in a similar manner. "What does this mean but that in the "deeper water" other deposits, notably limestone (always a deep-sea deposit), must have been going on ? Mr. Geikie, in his " Story of a Boulder " (1858), gives almost a similar statement to that of my unfortunate piece of coal. After describing the various forms of vegetable life in morass and on land, he says, " But the lifelessness of the Carboniferous forests was amply compensated for by the activity that reigned in river, lagoon, and sea. Coral groves gleamed white beneath the waves," &c. If the latter was the case, then "coral" limestones must have been forming. Is Mr. Dalton aware that in the Mid-Lothian coal- field the coal-seams actually intercalate among the mountain limestones ? He had best study Professor Huxley's doctrine of " synchronism" Every natu- ralist must know that similar geographical con- ditions existed in Carboniferous times to those that now prevail. In shallow seas, shingle, sandstone, &c, were deposited; in the deeper parts, limestones. The Carboniferous period was no exception to the rule, as my "piece of coal" well knew. Let Mr. Dalton leave the rigidity of his manual classifica- tion, and he will see that because the "piece of coal " spoke of limestones being deposited synchro- nously with the coal-beds, it did not therefore declare that the mountain limestone as we have it does not stand in the relations to the millstone grit, &c, otherwise than as he himself puts it. This, however, should be a lesson of how easy it is to twist a general description into a series of technical errors. — J. E. Taylor, Norwich. Lamperns ("L. S.," p. 45).— Jenyns' "British Vert," edition 1835 ; Garrett's " British Eishes," 1836 ; Couch's " British Eishes," 1S65, all (and, as 1 believe, continental authorities do) make the lamprey {Petromyzon marinus) and the lampern {Petromyzon fluviatilis) distinct fishes, the latter rarely exceeding 15 inches, the former sometimes more than twice that length, besides other im- portant distinctions. Both fishes are caught in the Severn. General accounts give the lamprey as the fish which caused the death of Henry I. — 8. M. P. Pipits. — Could any of your readers inform me if they have seen pipits, commonly called titlarks, in flocks ? I have myself seen ten or twelve together, which could not have been the family bred last summer, for I believe four or five eggs are the ordi- nary number. — Forbes Jenkins. The Lamprey. — The lampern and the lamprey are to be seen in different baskets in Worcester Market. The lamprey is the smaller and more delicate animal, with its leech-like mouth and row of breathing (?) holes on each side of the head, living by suction in the mud. It is the veritable fish immortalized in English history as the cause of Henry I.'s death, still, as then, called the " royal fish ; " and I was told at "Worcester that the first dish caught for the season is still sent to the Queen as her prerogative. And oh, gentle reader, tell it not above a whisper ! but were you to taste of this dish, cooked in its orthodox manner, with rich gravies and port wine, you would look for evermore with lenient indulgence on poor King Henry's last weakness, only wondering that all the monarchs of England ever since have not followed his example. — E.H. J!'. Laurel-leaves (pp. 21 and 15). — "Don" observes of the laurel (Ceras/is lauro-cerasus), "leaves . . . furnished with two or four glands beneath ; " of C. Lusitanica (the Portugal laurel) he notes, "leaves . . . glandless." 1 notice that " H. W. W. " says that the marks are mostly two in number; while "S. M." says there are four, "rarely only two." On the many leaves I have examined two is the prevailing number, but on one or two I observed three. Curiously enough, I have never, as far as I can recollect, seen the bees on the leaves, although we have plenty of laurel in our garden. — James Britten. Glowworm. — Your correspondent " E.J.D."asks, upon p. 45, how far north the glowworm has been found. Some time ago, when I was at the Trosachs, in Perthshire, my cousin and I went out for a stroll at night along the shores of Loch Achray, and, although it was getting rather late in the season, being the end of September, we saw several of the brilliant lights which betoken the presence of this curious little beetle. Having captured one or two of the creatures, we carried them up to our hotel, and displayed them in the coffee-room, to the asto- nishment, I remember, of the whole array of visitor-tourists, who crowded round to gaze upon the novelty. — Edward Banks. Luminous Centipede. — In November, 1866, I found several specimens of the luminous centipede. Its name is Geophilus phosphor ea. Prom the descrip- tions, I believe it to be exactly the same as those mentioned by your correspondents last month, but the phosphorescent quality is common to the genus. It is therefore, of course, natual, and does not pro- ceed from a wound. — M. G. F. Dendritic Spots on Paper.— Some observa- tions and correspondence on this subject will be given, if possible, in our next. — Ed. S.-G. Bees a Pemedy. — In a curious work, by Samuel Purchas, M.A., in 1657, called a "Theatre of Poli- ticall Flying Insects," amongst other curious pre- scriptions are the following:—" Bees powdered cure the wind collick. Take twelve or fourteen bees powdered in anything every morning, &c, &c. Honey mixed with powdered bees, and so taken, is healthful for the crudities of the stomach."— 7/". T. II iff, Epsom. Young Starlings in January.— A gamekeepei on the Apley estate found a starling's nest with young ones in it on the 9th of January last.— Ed- icard Bunlcs. li HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. [Maech 1, 1SG9. NOTICES TO CORRESPONDENTS. Am. communications relative to advertisements, post-office orders, and orders for the supply of this Journal, should be addressed to the Publisher. All contributions, books, and pamphlets for the Editor should be sent to 192, Piccadilly, London, W. To avoid disappointment, contri- butions should not be received later than the 15th of each month. No notice whutener nan be taken of communica- tions which do not contain the name and address of the writer, not necessarily for publication, if desired to be with- held. We Jo not undertake to answer any queries not specially connected with Natural History, in accordance with our acceptance of that term ; nor can we answer fineries which might be solved by the correspondent by an appeal to any elementary book on the subject. We are always prepared to accept queries of a critical nature, and to publish the replies, provided .some of our readers, besides the querist, are likely to be interested in them. We cannot undertake to return rejected manuscripts unless sufficient stamps are enclosed to cover the return postage. Neither can we promise to refer to or return any manu- script after one month from the date of its receipt. All microscopical drawings intended for publication should have annexed thereto the powers employed, or the extent of enlargement, indicated in diameters (thus : x 320 diameters). Communications intended for publication should be written on one side of the paper only, and all scientific names, and names of places and Individuals, should be as legible as possible. Wherever scientific names or technicalities are employed.it is hoped that the common names will accompany them. Lists or tables are inad- missible under any circumstances. Those of the popular names of British plants and animals are retained and regis- tered for publication when sufficiently complete for that purpose, in whatever form may then be decided upon. Address No. 192, Piccadilly, London, W. J. R. M.— The black shining threads with small globose heads are Blucor phycomyces, a fungus. Mildness of the Season. — We have resolved to commit all the multitudinous communications we have received on this subject to a snug locker to await a sharp frost. A. F.-We think that the fumart is settled. T. P. B. — If you please. E. C. T. (Formosa).— The eggs of an insect, probably Lepi- dopterous. R. G. 1, Stoke) .—The last answer was not for ycu. The curious object is not yet identified. F. F.— A complete list of British beetles will be found at the close of Rye's " British Beetles" (Reeve & Co.), but no "manuals" containing descriptions of genera and species since " Stephen's Manual " (1839), now almost obsolete. G. J. D. should make friends with some ornithologist, or purchase an elementary book on the subject. We have no space to spare for descriptions of the typical form of a duck's foot or a squirrel's tail. A. M.— We cannot name objects from description. Consult Douglas & Scott's " Hemiptera Heteroptera " (Ray Society). No Name.— If correspondents persist in withholding their names and addresses, or using fictitious ones, they must be content if their queries remain unanswered. S. J. N.— Not in our line. H. W\, F. J. W.— Ineligible for exchange column. E. T. D.— Polyporus versicolor, very common and variable. H. W. G. — There was one, but it appears to be almost, if not quite, extinct. We know of no other. W. P. — The fruit of a palm, perhaps a Calamus. D. P. P.— We have no doubt of it, although not in flower. F. W. — It is clearly a Myriapod, probably Polydesmus com- plunatus. — F. M. J. CD. — 1. Fontinalis antipyretica. 2. Bartramia pomi- formis. 3. Tortula Hornschuchiana. — R. B. J. C. M.— 1. Hypnum palustre. 2. H. uncinatum. 3. H. irriguum. 4. Blindia acuta. 6. H.praslongum. — R. B. W. E. — 1. Hypnum cnprcssiforme. 2. Somalia trichoman- oides.—B. B. T. S.— The " Barilla, ria paradoxa attached to a splinter of floating Dantzic timber" explains itself. It came from a marine or brackish station with the diatoms on it. Can it be shown that this same species is found in the canal, Regent's Park, or any other fresh water not in communica- ion with a tidal river ? E. W.— Cooke's " Structural Botany " (Is. fid.), published by Robert Hardwicke: Bentham's " Handbook of the British Flora " (12s.), published by Reeve & Co. The least expenshe microscope worth purchasing is three guineas. EXCHANGES. . American Lepidoptera or Cocoons for those from any other locality, and to correspond for that purpose. Good specimens only exchanged. — W. V. Andrews, 130, Charlton Street, New York. Dendritic Spots on Paper, probably Crystals of Iron Pyrites or Cobalt. Specimens wanted for examination and analysis. — A. L., 61, Buckingham Road, N. Lamp and Wing op Lamp Insect (unmounted) offered for good mounted objects or pup?c of British Lepidoptera. — E. Sharp, The Grove, Woodchurch Road, Orton, Birkenhead. Cornish Plants (dried) for others.— Send lists to R. V. T., Withiel, Bodmin. British Lepidoptera.— Wanted specimens of Deilephila, Cha-rocampa or Sesin. for others.— C. R. Doward, 41, Copen- hagen Street, Worcester. Chalk Fossils offered for Silurian or other Formations; or Shells, English or Foreign.— B. A., Post Office, Faversham. Grammatophora marina (balsam or unmounted) for other Diatoms (mounted or unmounted).— J. W*. S., Crown Park, Montenotte, Cork. Lepidoptera.— L. Artu.rerxes, C. Plant aginis, A. suj'iisa, &c, for others.— J. Purdue, Ridgeway, Plympton, Devon. Lepidoptera for exchange.— Send lists to D. C. B., 42, Preston Street, Brighton. Plants of the Variegated Daisy (Bellis perennis Aucubm folia) for any British Lepidoptera, or Pupre of ditto, Sec — A. Mitchell, Wolsingham, Darlington. Skins of the Grasshopper Warbler (Sylvia locvstella) for pupa: of Lepidoptera.— Thomas H. Hedworth, Dunston, Gateshead. Rare British Jungermanni.=e.— Wanted to purchase, or in exchange for other plants, by B. C. du Murtier, Montague du Pare, Brussels. Dr. O. Morch, ", Frederiksborggade, Copenhagen, offers Greenland Shells in exchange for Exotic Shells. Goon Fossil Sections of Teeth, Bones, Scales, &c, of Fish, for good Slides of Photographs.— Joseph Taylor, West Cramlington, Northumberland. Ferns. — An American correspondent wants certain British and any continental Ferns in exchange for North American. — Address, at first, to the Editor of Science- Gossip. BOOKS RECEIVED. " Proceedings of the Essex Institute." Vol V., No. 8, for October to December, 186;. Salem : Essex Institute, I86S. "Naturalists' Note-book." No. 2b", February, 1 869. Lon- don : 196, Strand. "The Gardener's Magazine." Part XXXVIII., February, I&69. London : E. W. Allen. " The Monthly Microscopical Journal." No. 2, February, 1869. London: Robert Hardwicke. " Scientific Opinion." Nos. 12, 13, 14, 15. London : Wyman & Sons. "Land and Water." Nos. 15", 158, 159, Hk>, January and February, istig. " Hooper & Co.'s (Florists) General Catalogue for I869." Hooper & Co., Covent Garden Market. "The American Entomologist," No. 5. Studley & Co., St. Louis, Mo., U.S. "Le Naturaliste Canadien." No. 1, December, 1868. Quebec : 8, Rue de la Montagne. Basse Ville. " Tommy Try, and what he did in Science," by C. O. G. Napier, F.G.S. London : Chapman & Hall. "L'Origine de la Vie," par le Docteur Georges Pennetier. Troisieme edition, irimo., 1868. Paris: J. Rothschild; Lon- don : Wheldon. " Causeries Scientifiques, decouverteset Inventions Progres de la Science et de l'Industrie," par Henri de Parville. 12mo. Huitieme annee, 1868. Paris: J. Rothschild; London: Wheldon. " Proceedings of the Bristol Naturalists' Society." Vol. III., No. 9, December, 1868. Communications Received.— J. Y. H.— A. H.— H. W R. M. M.— R. N.— J. R. M.— R. L. H.— R. H. E— A. F A. L.— E. B— W. L. B.— R. G.— W. R. B.-P. G.— H. H. M N.-E. P. H.— B.— W. H.-J. R— G. E. F.-E. C. J.-F. F W. R. T.— W. F. K.— H. H. K.— M. F. D.— E.T. S— J. W.— G. G.— J. S. (commonly used).— T. S.— J. S. T.— S. M.-F. — R. V. T.-D. A. P. W.— J. C. D.-F. W.-M. G. F.— J. R. S. — S. J. N.— J. B. S.-J. M. P.— J. H. S.-S. A. S.— H. W. — T. H., Jun.-W. B — E. B.-F. I. B.— J. C. M.— E. W C R.D.— H. L.-H. W.-D. C. B.— G. C— S. S— J. B W. H. P. -J. E. T.-J. F. D.— J. H. M.— J. P. G.— T. D A. J. D.— E. P.— R. H.— J. B.— J. S.— F. J. W.— J. W. S j F . r.—W. G.-C. B. F.-B. A.— W. F.— A. B. F.— W. P. — F. K. V.— J. P.— J. W.-S. A. S.— A. L.— E. S.— F. J S. M. P.- J. B. (Oldham).— E.—E. H. W.-W.T. I.— E. A. — H. E. W— A. S.-T. G. P.-J. S.— H. L.— I. W.-H. T S. M.— E. D. B.— T. H. H.— E. M.— J. W. G.— H. B. B.- M.— C. W.-H. W. G.— T. P. B— E. T. D. April 1, 1S69.] HAKDWICKE'S SCIENCE GOSSIP. 73 PHBONIMA. By MAJOR HOLLAND, R.M.L.I. T is a still, soft summer evening, Her Majesty's stately frigate is gliding silently over the un- ruffled bosom of the South Pa- cific : she is on no warlike errand now, though her artil- lery is ready at the roll of the drum to hurl forth deadly ^^/^ 5ji h-on showers if need be ; she * A\% «&X^ is on a blessedly beneficent mission, fathoming the deep bed of ocean, searching for treacherous sunken rocks and unknown shoals, and marking down the unseen dangers in the new charts that are being- constructed on board, to direct peaceful traders across the wide waters and to warn them where hidden perils must be guarded against. Hands accustomed to sword and rifle are working the deep-sea-lead ; officers are registering notes of winds and currents and the variations of the compass, and taking astronomical observations to fix the latitude and longitude of mountain-peaks and headlands. They have left the Pijis, and are south of the Friendly Islands ; " Michaeloff," an out- lier of a coral group, is in sight on the starboard-bow ; the towing-net, which has been trailing smoothly astern, has just been drawn in by the weather-beaten old quartermaster, and a sun-brown, seafaring natu- ralist is bending over it, eagerly searching for and sorting out his prizes : he has got a good haul, he is in a glorious cruising ground, where nature seems to have done her very utmost to fulfil the fiat of her Creator, " let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life." Eh ! what strange forms he has got ! What won- drous living things he is transferring to his glass jar No. 52. of clear blue sea-water— the sea is blue here, and not of a muddy green. We may not stop to tell of one-twentieth of the marvellous creatures he has secured ; but here is one — stick a one ! — for all the world like a new-boiled prawn with its head and shoulders jammed into a mother- o' -pearl thimble and its tail flapping restlessly outside, sending it tumbling head over heels as if making violent efforts to extricate itself. We must have a gossip about this ocean stranger : a stranger he, or rather she, is in her living state to all our marine zoologists whose personal operations do not extend to the high seas, they never see her "in the flesh," but have to form their opinions respecting her and her race from dried mummies preserved on glass slides, or from sodden and sometimes mutilated specimens sent home " from abroad " in pickle bottles. This is an amphipodous crustacean, a Phronima, apparently the Phronima sedentaria of Latreille ; though sedentary in the ordinary sense she is not, but one of the liveliest little creatures imaginable, full" of comic capers, throwing summersaults all day long with her tub on her head, like Diogenes gone mad, or a street acrobat. But before we proceed any farther, let us refresh our memories on crusta- cean matters in general. The skeleton of the Crustacea is external, and is made up of the tegumentary envelope, which in some of the class always continues soft, but in the greater portion is very firm, forming a shelly case or armour, in which all the soft parts are contained. In many (our captive of the towing-net being one of them) it remains semi-corneous, in a condition very similar to that of insects, with which, more- over, it corresponds very closely in chemical com- position; chitine in combination with albumen being the principal elements. The pigmentum, which gives the various tints, is an amorphous matter diffused through the outer layer of the superficial membrane, being secreted like this by the corium. The epidermic layer hardened in dif- ferent degrees is the part which mainly constitutes E 74 HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. [Apkil 1, 1869. the 'tegumentary skeleton of tbe Crustacea. Like the bony skeleton of the vertebrata, it consists of a great number of distinct pieces connected together by means of portions of tbe epidermic envelope which have not become hardened, in the same way as among the higher animals certain bones are con- nected by cartilages. In the typical crustacean this external framework is divided into twenty-one rings or segments, more or less easily separable or distinguishable from each other : the common shrimp affords us a ready and familiar example, " la squille est de tous les crustaces celui oil les vingt-et-un segmens du corps sont les plus distincts," says Milne-Edwards. We all remember how in many other instances and in other members of the animal kingdom, several of these segments coalesce or become fused together to form the head or the carapace. These twenty-one segments, by a kind of general agreement, are placed in three great divisions of seveneach, and are commonly spoken of as the head, the thorax, and the abdomen, by people who are content to use common terms ; or as the Kt(pa\ov, 7rtpalov } and ir\kov, by others who prefer somewhat dubious Greek. The common crabs and other walking genera that frequent the beach or the sea-bottom, whose main strength and organs of locomotion spring from the thoracic regions, have the abdomen but slightly developed, and are called BracJiyura — short-tailed — while the swimmer families, whose largely developed abdomens are furnished with powerful muscles and natatory appendages, are styled Macroura — long- tailed, — the intermediate families being known as Anomoura — irregular-tailed. We need not refer to a host of other distinctions ; suffice it to add that our " subject " wearing her visual organs in her head, and not on the top of long stalks, like some of her distant cousins, belongs to the Edriophthalmia — sessile eyed— section ; and in virtue of possessing two sorts of feet ; viz., ambulatory feet on the thorax, and natatory feet on the abdomen, belongs to the order Amphipoda — both-footed. The head of this pelagic crustacean is exceedingly elongated, and its axis, instead of coinciding with that of the body, is at right-angles to the latter ; the back of the head is very largely developed, the rounded fulness of the poll containing a mass of eye-facets, the rounded tapering columns from which convene and blend with the rays of the rather small black lateral eyes, which are placed immediately above the mouth, the aperture of which is situated at the inferior extremity of the head. Two minute bi-jointed antennse, with short stiff hairs or setae on the terminal joint, arise from the outer margin of the head, just above and in front of the lateral eyes. The maxillary limbs constituting the jaws, corres- pond with those of ordinary masticating crustaceans, and need not be noticed in detail. The seven seg- ments of the thorax bear seven pairs of legs, the two first pairs of which are gnathopods subservient to the prehension of food; the third pair are usually thrown forwards across the head, for a special purpose, as we shall see ; the fourth pair are the longest of all ; the fifth are stoutly chelate, possessing a consider- able range of motion, but appear to be normally directed backwards, with the nanus downwards, and the pollex, or moveable thumb, superior : the sixth and seventh pairs resemble the third and fourth, and terminate in simple claws ; the seventh pair being commonly thrown back across the abdo- men, for the purpose of antagonising the third pan- before mentioned. The first three segments of the abdomen are each furnished with a pair of natatory feet — swimmerets, — the footstalks— protopodites, — of which, are very large and have an inflated appearance ; the three next segments taper away and are but slightly developed, having their swimmerets modified into mere bifid setaceous appendages; the diminutive telson which terminates the abdomen being, as usual, devoid of any. The fourth, fifth, and sixth thoracic segments bear each a pair of respiratory vesicles or branchial sacs of a laterally compressed oval shape, connected with the posterior and inferior part of the epimeral plates behind the articulations of the corresponding limbs, the posterior pair are the largest, and the anterior pair the smallest ; in each a loop of blood- vessels may be traced, the exterior of the sac being invested with a tesselated pavement of epithelial cells with large nuclei. Milne-Edwards states that there are five pairs " d' appendices vesiculeux," each of the seven thoracic segments " excepte le premier et le septieme" being furnished with them; but the specimen. now before us has very decidedly only three pairs, and the microscope fails to detect any trace of rudiments even of others. The mouth, the large chela;, and the remarkably stout footstalks of the swimmerets are tinted a deep rich red approaching to purple, the pigment in this in- stance is not amorphous, but is contained in beautiful stellate cells, the remainder of the body is hyaline. Here we have Phronima disporting herself in a glass vase of her native element : the tough gelatinous transparent barrel-shaped tube open at both ends which we see her carrying, is apparently a portion of the tube of " the aggregate salpian " Pyrosoma, from which the zooids have been washed away; just as our common Hermit-crab, Pagurus Bernardus, utilises a wrecked and empty whelk-shell to shield his unarmoured hindquarters, so does this most remarkable oceanic crustacean use the castaway covering of the stolon of a Tunicary as a shelter for her young : probably it is the female only that we find thus accoutred with a ready-made second-hand midamental case. I doubt if the male ever assumes the office of nurse, but I regret to say that I cannot speak positively either way. The April 1, 1S69.] HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 75 external surface of tins ocean cradle abounds in tubercles which, as well as other parts of its walls, are perforated with rounded and puckered orifices through which currents of water are observed to pass : an external membrane and an internal lining containing between them a pulpy substance, are distinctly visible : the length of this case is precisely five-eighths of an inch, and its breadth half an inch. The ova and the young are secured by a filmy band running round the interior about half way up it, they are indistinctly visible through the case as shown in the illustration. ^ \ ^ Fig. 50. Phronima sedentaria, x 2. Drawn from life by Dr. J. D. McDonald, R.N., F.R.S., F.L.S. The mother when swimming, has her head and the three first segments of the thorax inserted into the tube which she holds fast by means of the third pair of legs — which have been mentioned as being habitually thrown forwards across the head — which have their claws .firmly driven into the lining membrane of the case, in front of her head. The formidable " pinchers " of the fifth pair remaining outside " clear for action " in readiness to meet an enemy, and the swimmerets on ordinary occasions are busily paddling as repi-esented in the drawing. Sometimes on the approach of danger she draws the whole of her body within the tube, and apparently to guard against the risk of being shaken out by the shock of a collision, drives the claws of the seventh pair of thoracic feet (which seem to be normally directed backwards for the purpose) into the lining: the anterior (third) pair being, as we have seen, similarly directed forwards ; she has thus a firm " set " against a jerk coming either way. Her great compound eyes placed not only in the sides, but in the top and back of her head, enable her to take in with one marvellously comprehensive glance the whole circle of her brood; the objects of her maternal solicitude, they are never " from under her eye ;" no human beings are under such complete and constant supervision as the fry of Phronima. The specimen from which our '- illustration was drawn, was kept alive for ten days. She was a creature of the liveliest habits, whirling about in rapid gyrations, and turning summersaults, tub foremost, with a very comical effect. She never progressed in right lines, but first ascended at an angle of about 75° with her ventral aspect towards the spectator, then suddenly twisting sharply towards the left, she threw her tail up, and came down head foremost at a like angle, bringing her right side and the back of her head into view. Sometimes she was seized with a mania for waltzing, spinning round and round without materially shifting her ground, like a buoy moored in a strong tideway : merry little Phronima was often placed on the wardroom mess-table by particular request, her strange antics affording much amusement : but she pined for the liberty of the free ocean, and drooped, and died " universally respected and regretted." It does indeed seem strange that the preservation of the species, the safety of the broods of this tiny inhabitant of the deep, should hang upon the apparently doubtful contingency of the mother picking up just at the critical moment a suitable piece of the broken skeleton of another and widely different creature : but the plans of the great Master- builder however inscrutable to us, never fail ; and we see, if we study the glorious pages of nature's outspread book intelligently and reverently, that, the ends aimed at are ever infallibly attained. " We see on every side of us innumerable adaptations and contrivances, which have justly excited in the mind of every observer the highest admiration. There is for instance a fly (Cecidomyia) which deposits its eggs within the stamens of a Scrophularia, and secretes a poison which produces a gall on which the larva feeds ; but there is another insect (Misocampus) which deposits its eggs withm the body of the larva within the gall, and is thus nourished by its living prey ; so that here a Hymenopterous insect depends on a Dipterous insect, and this depends on its power of producing a monstrous growth in a particular organ of a particular plant. So it is in a more or less plainly marked manner in thousands and tens of thousands of cases, with the lowest as well as with the highest productions of Nature." With this quotation from Darwin, let us wind up our gossip about this little- known and seldom seen Amphipodous Crustacean, trusting that time and the towing net may yet enable us to obtain fuller and more perfect details for the information of our readers. Bury Cross, Gosport. 76 HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. [April 1, 1S69. LAND LEECHES. /"VUR correspondent " G. Pi." will be glad to ^ learn that by sending to Mr. Buckland the land leeches, the habits of which so puzzled him, he has contributed to the settlement of a very in- teresting question connected with the natural his- tory of this country. When Dr. Gray, in 1S50, claimed for Trocheta subviridis a place in the British Fauna, [in consequence of Mr. Hoffman having found one individual of this species in the Regent's Park, it was objected to his supposition of its being indigenous in Britain that the ovum, or the leech while young, might have been taken into the viscera of a deer or other animal in its own native country previously to its being shipped for England. Dr. Murie, in fact, believed that he had found another specimen in the viscera of a Moluccan deer dissected at the Zoological Society's Gardens in 1865, and described it in a paper which he read before that Society in November of the same year, as being identical with that previously fouud by Mr. Hoffman and commented on by Dr. Gray. When I ventured to state my opinion that the leccbes sent up to us by " G. B." were Trocheta subviridis of Dutrochet, many eminent zoologists were very naturally inclined to doubt the correct- ness of my identification of them. But I am glad to say there is no longer any doubt about it. " G. P." was kind enough to send me fresh specimens, and I have submitted them to Dr. Gray and Dr. Baird, of the British Museum, and also to Dr. Murie. They all agree that the leeches in question are of the species to which I assigned them, and Dr. Baird has kindly given me permission to pub- lish for the benefit of our readers the following letter which I received from him : — " My dear Sir, — The land leeches which you brought here yesterday belong certainly to the Trocheta subviridis of Dutrochet. I put them into weak spirits to kill them, but after placing them in stronger spirits, the colour has nearly gone from the leeches and imparted itself to the spirits, which is now of a fine green hue ! The specimen sent some few years ago by Mr. Bartlett from the Zoological Gardens, is also a true Trocheta; but the one brought by Dr. Murie, and which he has described in the Zoological proceedings as the Trocheta sub- riridis, is not a Trocheta at all, but must belong, from the structure of the oral and especially the ventral sucker, either to a peculiar species of Jhniiopsis, or to anew genus not hitherto described. I thought at the time when Dr. Murie brought the specimen here that it might belong to the genus Trocheta, but now I find it does not. If you can procure for us some more specimens I should be very glad, and any other species of the suctorial annelides will be thankfully received. Yours very truly, W. Baird (British Museum, March 6th, 1S69)." I have also received an interesting letter on the subject from the Rev. W. Houghton : — "My dear Sir, — I am very much obliged to ' G. R.' and to yourself for the two leeches which I received on Saturday night. They were quite lively when I turned them out. One I have dis- sected, the other remains for future observations. There is not the slightest doubt as to the species, it is the veritable Trocheta subviridis of Dutrochet, and thus your first opinion is fully confirmed. As I said, this discovery is interesting, as it proves that this sub-terrestrial species is an undoubted member of the British fauna. Moquin-Tandon enumerates as many as six varieties of this leech ; they only differ in colour. The two sent to me are the common variety ; one was about six inches long- when extended, the other was smaller. I observed on the specimen I dissected nine very minute black eye-spots, five on the first segment and four on the third ; the normal number is eight, but in the leech family the eye-spots often vary. I could not detect the teeth which Moquin-Tandon has described and figured as characteristic of Trocheta ; I have no doubt they too are occasionally absent; neither eyes nor teeth can be of any real use to the pos- sessor. The digestive apparatus in this species consists of a muscular triple-folded oesophagus, stomach with no coecal appendages, and straight simple intestine, showing in this respect a closer affinity to Nephelis than to its apparently more allied genera, Hcemopsis, Aulastoma, and Hirudo. Neither of the individuals seemed at all at home when placed in a vessel full of water ; they dropped to the bottom, and after moving about for a time fixed themselves there. I could not prevail on either of them to swim. Dutrochet considered Trocheta entirely terrestrial, but M. Moquin-Tandon asserts that he has kept many individuals alive in water more than fifteen days. Eurther observations are wanting to clearup this point. The allied generaswim readily enough, and, as we know, live in the water for the most part. Is Trocheta a curious exception to the rest ? If ' G. R.' should meet with more of these leeches about the beginning of June, and would kindly send me some, I should be obliged to him. About the middle of that month the leeches lay their eggs or cocoons, in which the young are developed. Again thanking you and ' G. R.' for the trouble you have taken, Very sincerely yours, " W. Houghton." Dr. Gray's description of Trocheta subviridis as belonging to the British fauna is thus confirmed. The individuals which have led to this result were found near Horsham ; but I have little doubt of our soon receiving them from other localities. "G. R." says he has heard of them in Hants, and I am in- formed by one of my own relatives that at Linfield, in Sussex, about twenty-five years ago, land leeches were so abundant in the fields and on the footpaths Apkil 1, 1869.3 rlARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 77 through them, that the ladies of the family who resided there at the time avoided them in their evening walks. It is not unlikely that these annelides may prove to have been all this time under the eyes of zoologists in their own head- quarters, for Mr. Bartlett tells me that he has often seen leeches on the greensward in the Regent's Park Gardens. "Whether they are Trocheta or of some other genus, remains of course to be seen. I request the attention of our correspondents to the concluding paragraph of Dr. Baird's letter. Any British leeches, large or small, will be received with thanks by Mr. Buckland or myself for the autho- rities of the British Museum and for our own examination.— Land and Water, March 13, 1869. Henky Lee. INFLUENCE OE LIGHT ON INSECTS. T IGHT, though not actually necessary to the -" maintenance of insect life, has nevertheless so strong a bearing on it, that the proportion.of insects existing without it is infinitesimally small. Among them are certain Coleoptera, found in the monster caves of Carinthia, which pass their whole existence in total darkness, and which are without any organs of vision. Indeed, wherever insects are compelled to go through life without coming in contact with the sun's rays, the eyes are sure to be either obsolete, or so imperfect as to be practically useless : such is the case with Claviger testacevs, Preyss, which lives under stones in ants' nests : and also with Sphodms leucophthalmus, L., Tridonychus terricola, 111., and a few other species, when bred in cellars or similar places, where the light never penetrates. Numbers of insects, which see perfectly well, prefer to remain in retirement during the day, and only issue forth when the sun has sunk into the west. Most of us know to our cost, how active the gnats become in the summer's evening : and many too have listened to the "drowsy hum" of the dor beetle, or watched the "mazy dance " of the May fly: still later the glowworm lights her lamp, a signal to whole hosts of moths and beetles to come forth and seek their mates, or search for prey ; not to mention the crickets, cockroaches, earwigs, bugs, lepisma, &c., all of which, like guilty things, hurry back to their retreats with the first blush of dawn. Most of the night-loving insects are so affected by the sudden appearance of light, that when a candle is introduced, they rush madly into the flame, as though they were deliberately anxious to commit suicide. " The moth circling round the flame " has many a time and oft served " to point a moral and adorn a tale." The true cause of this eccentric proceeding has never yet been satisfac- torily explained. It has been suggested that their eyes do not absorb (as in most insects), but reflect the light : an organisation which enables them to distinguish objects in a state of partial darkness, but which leads to their destruction when the light is strong. Blinded, as it were, by excess of radiance, they lose all discernment in the blaze, and perish in the flame. The larvae as a rule seek their food only in the day time : still there are some night feeders, to whom the light is distasteful, if not hurtful : as for instance, the caterpillar of the shark moth (Cuciillia umbratica (L.), the buff arches {Thyatira derasa, L.), and the heart and dart moth [Agrotis exclamationis, W. V.). It is, however, in the colouring of the outer integument, that the potent agency of the solar ray is shown most conspicuously. Speaking generally, the stronger the light, the more intense and brilliant is the hue, and the more delicate is the play of colour. Such larva; as are produced below the soil or in shady spots, to which the light of day has little access, are constantly white and colourless ; and this bleached appearance clings to the perfect insect so long as the conditions remain the same. Leunis, in his "Thierreich," tells us, "that he accidentally left a bug {Acantlria ledularia, L.) shut up in a box for no less than six months : on again opening the box, he found the animal alive and surrounded by young ones, all of which, together with the mother, were quite white, and ' transparent as glass.' " On the other hand, insects, which pass their lives " from the cradle to the grave " in broad daylight (as for example butterflies and chrysomelids), are far more gaily tinted, than the nightflying moths and Coleoptera, which have never been exposed to the solar rays. The influence of light, as might be expected, shows itself very remarkably in regard to the geographical zones : the insects of the tropics being, as a rule, far more elegantly and brilliantly coloured than those which are confined to the temperate and arctic regions. On looking over a well stocked museum, a very fair guess may be made, at a single glance, as to the quarter of the globe to which we may assign many of the Lepidoptera, the Nymphalids, the Morphos, the Uranias, by the side of which our peacocks j emperors, and admirals look dingy and homely to a degree. What a striking contrast is presented in the two nearly related beetles, Entimus imperialis, Eabr., the gorgeous diamond weevil of Brazil, and our common hedge weevil (Polydrosus micans,Germ.). Nature seems to revel in the glorious ornamentation which she has scattered without stint over the brilliant Entimus, whose wing-covers especially are encrusted with scales, which rival the noblest precious stones in the exquisite play of light reflected from every part of their surface, and which are still further set off by being embedded in hollows on a jet black background, of a velvety lustre. Nor are Nature's lavish gifts confined to this single 78 HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE- GOSSIP. [April 1, 1869. species : hundreds of other curculionids are to be found in these sunny regions : Eustales, Platyomus, Cyphus, Lordops, Chrysolobus, Naupactes, &c, whose elytra, when prepared for the microscope, give [one rather the idea of rich caskets of fairy jewels, than a mere collection of beetles' wings. On the other hand our tiny Polydrdsus can boast only of a series of long narrow scales, pretty enough in themselves, having the same glittering character as in its more richly clothed relations ; but withal so minute, and having such slight powers of reflection, as scarcely to render the insect more remarkable than its neighbours : at the same time, the bold elevations and broad furrows, so con- spicuous in the wing-covers of Entimus, are reduced in Polydrosus to dots and stripes which can only be discerned by means of a lens. Again, reflected light and the special colour of the locality in which they live, are not without their influence on insects. We find, for instance, the hue of some (whether larva, pupa, or imago), corres- ponding with that of the soil, the tree bark or other part of a plant, on which they may be destined to live. Thus we may see in almost any garden in the summer season, how the rose aphids accommodate themselves to the colour of the leaf or twig to which they are fixed; green aphids being found upon green shoots, whereas if the latter are red, the animals upon them are tolerably sure to be red too. Elaphrus riparius, L., a not uncommon beetle on the sides of ponds and ditches, is of a light brown colour on gravel, but changes to a green when bred, as it often is, among tufts of grass. Pacilus lepidus, Fabr., P. cuprens, L., Harpalus /emus, Fabr., H. azureus, Fabr., Selatosomus cp.h&us, Steph., and a host of others are liable to important changes of colour dependant on locality. The pupa of the lesser Tortoiseshell Butterfly (Vanessa ur'tica) is naturally of a golden colour, but on a wall or fence, where it is often found, it becomes reddish, or grey, or even so dark as to be nearly black. The inhabitants of ponds and streams are not exempted from the law which confers such subtle power on the solar ray. Light, as is well known, decreases in intensity with the depth of the water through which it is made to pass ; and is, besides, broken up, in its passage through the denser medium, into its component parts. The first to be refracted is the blue ray; and in agreement with this we find that insects of a more or less purple tint, such as Gyrinus, occupy the surface. This is followed by the green and yellow rays, and here predominate the olive coloured or yellowish brown genera, Dyticus, Haliplus, &c. Nor must we forget to notice the strange influence exercised on the insect world by the thick darkness which usually in summer time precedes the out- burst of a violent thunder-storm. As the sun hides itself behind the heavy clouds, we may see the little animals making every effort to shelter themselves from the coming deluge. Butterflies seek the covert of a spreading leaf, or the rough chink of overhanging bark. The smaller beetles and Physa- pods nestle down into the centre of the corolla, ou which they were previously feeding, and remain still and quiet ; while even the industrious bees give over their labours and swarm back to their hives with all speed. While the greater part of the in- sect world is thus flying before the threatening clouds, the gnats renew their gambols with re- doubled energy, and the bloodthirsty Horse-fly {Hcematopota piuvialis, L.) plies his work on man and beast more vigorously than ever. Even these, however, vanish with the first heavy raindrops ; and then all is quiet, and Nature seems to wait the storm silent and awe-struck. But no sooner has the last of the thunder clouds passed across the face of the sun, than forth come the fugitives to their former scenes of activity ; swarms of insects of every hue and every form issue from their places of concealment; beetles creep out of holes and corners; butterflies display their gaudy wings on the still dripping flowers ; and once more the whir and hum of countless tiny organisms fill the warm air and give fresh life to the field and garden. " By myriads forth at once, Swarming they pour, of all the varied hues Their beauty-beaming parent can disclose ; Ten thousand forms, ten thousand different tribes, People the blaze."— Thomson's Seasons. ANIMAL FROM SALT LAKE. A SHORT time since, Mr. S. A. Briggs, of -*-*- Chicago, sent to the Editor a rough camera lucida sketch of an animal found in water from the Great Salt Lake, which he was unable to identify. The communication and sketch were submitted to P. H. Gosse, Esq., F.R.S., who desired further par- ticulars before hazarding an opinion on its zoological position. Those further observations since sent to Mr. Gosse, have kindly been placed at our disposal for publication, with a reduced copy of the camera lucida sketch. That gentleman's reply may pro- bably appear hereafter, with Mr. Briggs's consent. Although our knowledge of this creature is at pre- sent very small, it may have an important history "looming in the future." My Dear Sir, M. C. Cooke, Esq., of London, has sent me your note to him of the Gth inst. respecting an unknown form which I found in a bottle of water sent me from Great Salt Lake. As in your note you express a desire to know more of it, and as I am extremely anxious to have its position determined, I beg to inclose a duplicate of the camera drawing I sent Mr. Cooke, upon which Apeil 1, 1869.] HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 79 I have placed a few additional lines, and to give you all that is known by me of its story. Lieut. Stansbury, in his exploration to Great Salt Lake in 1849, speaks confidently of its waters being devoid of life, or any signs of life, save the cast skins of some insect (perfect form not found, and name unknown), which in certain portions of the lake were very numerous, lying beneath the water on the muddy bottom. From that time till now no observer seems to have referred to this feature of the natural history of the lake. In October 1868, Major-Gen. G. K. Warren, a Ihoroughly scientific man, and one of the Special Commissioners sent out by our Government to see that the Pacific Pailroad is being properly built, was these few days in turpentine, and giving it finally a balsam mounting. Standing so long as it did in the live-box, the salt began to crystallize, and the result was that in taking it out I lost a portion of the snout and a very little of the tail. I am unable to find any indication of eye-spots. It has eight pairs of short legs, each with ten* toes, terminating in a sharp, black, curved claw, like that of a dog. The animal is | of an inch in length, about equally divided between the body, including the head and the tail. The tail near its termination divides as indicated in the figure. The animal evidently had power to vary the position of these terminal appendages, as at one time, when I first took him from the water, they projected directly Nat SKze 51. Animal- raou Salt Lake (magnified). at Salt Lake. He noticed that the lake was much higher than when he last saw it, and several feet higher than when Stansbury was there in 1849. Desiring to ascertain how nearly it approached saturation, and to compare it in this respect with Stausbury's analysis, he filled a champagne bottle with it, and sent it by express to our Academy of Sciences, the Secretary of which sent it to me for a report. The quart bottle contained hundreds of crustacea, which I identified as Artemia salina, Leach, and of the singular form whose figure I inclose, but that one specimen. Desiring to exhibit the stranger to our Academy, and not daring to attempt a permanent mounting of it till after the meeting, I placed it in my live-box with some of the salt-water from the lake, made the camera drawing at once, and then kept it a week just as it was, exhibited it at the Academy, and mounted it some days afterwards, soaking it for backward in a straight line with the main portion of the tail. Just after the tail leaves the body are the two organs indicated, in which I could detect no structure differing from the tail proper. The anus I have indicated thus * . It is near the posterior pair of legs. Occupying the larger portion of the interior of the body is the oblong sac lettered A. I was unable by any devices to throw light through it so as to make out its structure, but believe it to represent the digestive apparatus. Extending the whole length of the body are the respiratory tubes. They were plainly visible in the head, and through- out the tail, passing to the very extremities of both pairs of appendages, and being much knotted as in- dicated near the posterior portion of the body. * I count ten claws on two feet not belonging to the same pair, and on the other fourteen feet I count nine claws, unmistakably with indications of the tenth in nearly every instance, so I think I am safe in saying ten claws to each foot. so HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. [Apeil 1, 1869. When I made the figure I could not distinctly make out what became of them when they reached what I call the digestive apparatus ; but my balsam treatment developed the fact that these tubes traversedlthe surface of this sac, crossing each other several times, and I have filled in the lines to in- dicate this. Mr. Warren called to see me when passing through town, and said that he saw several of these animals in dipping up the water, and that he supposed the bottle contained three or four at least, though the crustaceans were far more abundant. Mr. Warren further told me that when alive, it moved itself by jerking its tail up to its head, first on one side and then on the other, which seemed to give it great satisfaction, each jerk completing the round of its enjoyments. The colour of the animal, when alive, is a beauti- ful chestnut, and my specimen in balsam is now of a fine amber colour. I should say that a transverse section of any.'part of [the body or tail (except, of course, at the points where the legs, &c, join) would be very nearly, if not quite circular. I have already made arrangements for a search for more, when the warm weather shall come. Is not the appearance of the Artemia salina in these waters worthy of note ? No authorities within my reach refer to it as occurring in this country at all. And if, as stated by Carpenter in his Zoology, it only appears as at Lymington when the water is approaching condensation, it seems to me some in- teresting speculations at least might be developed. With, &c. S. A. Bkiggs. P. H. Gosse, Esq., Sandhurst, Torquay, England. EATS. " A B." must be rather a novice in housekeep- -£*-• ing arrangements, not to have known that rats are quite as partial to sweets as mice, and, being considerably more powerful, it is astonishing the havoc they soon make in a whole loaf of sugar, when once they find access to it. I really have been surprised at the things rats have carried off, and must confess that when I first began to "keep house" I suspected "the rats" were to take the place of " the cat " in my esta- blishment. I was living in the country in a very old house in South Wales, and I fancied I should like to make a few alterations in the larder — alter- ations that would effectually prevent " the rats " from committing further ravages. I had been reading one of Soyer's books, and took the idea from it. I had a large deal board, a table in fact without legs, suspended from the ceiling by four iron rods, meat hooks were fixed in rows all along the under side of it, on which I desired cook to hang the undressed meat, joints, poultry, &c, and on the top of it there' was ample room for any cooked meat and pastry. I also had some light movable steps made for cook to mount in order to enable her to reach this uovel safe. " Now, cook, I trust I shall hear no more of the rats." " I am sure, ma'am, I hope so too. Drat the nasty things," was the reply ; and for one entire week no losses were reported, but one Tuesday morning I found cook looking exceedingly anxious, and just as I was about to enter the larder she said — " Please, ma'am, the rats have eat the ducks Mrs. Davis brought down last night." (My cook always prefaced any little information of an unpleasant nature with "please, ma'am.") J I felt sceptical at the moment as to her having hung up the ducks, but I saw at a glance she had done so when I entered, for there were literally the hanging skeletons, and her fault had been forgetting to take away the steps. The rats must have stood on the top rail and eat the flesh off the bones, while resting on their hind feet, for the steps were not sufficiently high to have enabled them to get the ducks off the hooks. " Drat 'em, I believes they must have got on one another's shoulders to reach those ducks," ex- claimed cook. The notion of rats "giving each other a back " was rather too rich for my gravity, and cook escaped the expected lecture. Some months after this, a small parcel, containing two silk neckties and some new gloves, was missing from among other parcels on the hall table, and when, the rats having become nearly masters of the premises, ferrets were engaged and a downright war waged against them, both the silk handkerchiefs were discovered, nibbled into bits, forming part of a rat's nest under the cellar wall. Last year, when living in Hampshire, my cook there informed me that some fine greengages, which I had purchased on the previous day with the intention of making a tart, had been carried off by rats. They positively had demolished nearly a pie-dish full, there were three or four half eaten plums remaining, sufficiently bitten to point out the real delinquents. Helen E. Watney. SPOTS ON PAPER. By the Editor. IT is two or three years, at least, since some cor- respondents first forwarded us specimens of white paper with small dendritic spots upon them, and, from the first, we have felt convinced that these spots (all the same although from different persons) were inorganic. Recently the subject has been revived, and in December, 1S6S, we quoted, in reference to them, from the Gardener's Chronicle. "The spot on paper is a doubtful plant, named by Agardh and Lyngbye Conferva dendritica. It is April 1, 1869.] HAKDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. SL perhaps some chemical production, but, if not, a fungus, and not an alga.- Schumacher called it Dematium olicaceum, making it a fungus." We then added that an experienced analytic chemist had given his opinion, casually, that the spots were inorganic, and probably iron pyrites. In January, "J. T. Y." affirmed that "they are unquestionably fungoid growths," to which, in a note, we objected that we considered our correspondent far too con- fident in his opinion. Since this note appeared, another correspondent has been testing the few specimens he could obtain, and through us appealed to our readers for more. He ("A. L.") states, "I have succeeded in ascertaining that they consist of some compound of the metal copper, but what com- pound I cannot yet say (most likely the sulphide or Fig. 52. Dendritic spot. oxide), as I have not sufficient material at my dis- posal. At about the same time we received a long and ingenious speculation by "A. S.," which added no information ; and however suggestive it might be, did not give or suggest a plausible solution of the mystery; hence its publication would be useless. Those who are willing to assist "A. L." in con- firming his opinion, and in determining what com- pound of copper the crystals arc, cannot do better than forward specimens.* Another correspondent (" S. M.") has suggested a solution of the positive assertion of "J. T. Y." in the fact that fungoid spots do also occur on damp paper. He says : " Spots on paper are not always fungoid growths. They are of two or three kinds. On examining some which I noticed lately as occur- ring in a volume of Grote's Plato I was reading, I found the spots to be some form of crystallization of iron, doubtless due to some small spot or blot of printer's ink. There were two or three groups of spots, and however small, presented a feathery ap- pearance. With a two-inch object-glass, the spots * A. L., til, Buckingham Road, London, N. appeared like a piece of dark seaweed. There is always a centre or nucleus, the blot (?) from which the little branches ray out. " Curiously enough, in the very same volume the fungoid spots also occur very frequently. They are, however, minute, possessed of the refreshingly long name olMyxotrichum chartarwm (Kunze). See Annals and Magazine of Natural History, January, 1SG2, Note ou this fungus, by Arthur H. Church, B.A., Oxon, E.C.S., &c, where there arc clear details of this fungus, which 'is generally found on damp straw or paper,' and where very careful and beautiful drawings of it are given. The spots on paper of both kinds are pretty nearly cir cular, arising from the little blot forming the nucleus in the one case, and from the mode of growth of the fungus in the other. The fungus spots, however, are nearly always yellow or a deep golden brown ; the other spots are nearly black. The farmer I have noticed always pierce right through the paper, and the spores I have seen scattered and germinating on that part of the pages of the book in immediate contact with the first or mother fungus, while the other spots merely ray out on the surface like the frost on the window- pane." The appearance of this fungus on paper could hardly be confounded, even by the unaided eye, with the inorganic spots. This My.rotrichum con- sists of an agglomeration of branched threads, bear- ing near the base clusters of spores, and with the apex dark-coloured and curved, projecting beyond the entangled mass of threads. Another fungus, belonging to the same genus, was described by the Rev. M. J. Berkeley, in 1S3S, and called by him Myxotrichum defleantm. It forms little patches consisting of small downy grey balls. From these arise a number of radiating threads fur- nished with a few opposite deflexed branchlets. The sporidia are collected in patches about the base of the threads. This also is found growing on paper. Then, again, we have two other small fungi, very similar so far as external appearance goes, which flourish under like conditions. These, however, are very different in structure, ' and belong to a higher group of fungi, because the sporidia are en- closed in special membranaceous sacs or asci. One of these is called Chattomium chartarwm. The "spot" consists of a brittle thin peritheciuin, covered with bristly hairs, and containing, inter- nally, long narrow asci, in each of which are dark- coloured, lemon-shaped sporidia. The base of the perithecium appears to be attached to a dark radia- ting mycelium. The other species, first found in 183S, is Ascot richa chartartim, and is thus described : — " At first appearing under the form of a minute branched Sporotrichum, interspersed with globose brownish conidia. As it advances in growth, 82 HARDWIC.KE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. [April 1, 1SG9. globose black peridia become visible among the flocci, clothed with and supported by alternately branched, obscurely jointed filaments, the branches of which generally form an acute angle with the stem. The ramification of these is very peculiar, the stem and main shaft of each subdivision being almost constantly abbreviated and surmounted by the branchlet given off near the apex ; this, again, is often abbreviated, and another branchlet given off, which again surpasses it ; and occasionally the same circumstance takes place a third time. The apices are clavate and colourless; the rest of the filaments, when viewed by transmitted light, brown, even, and pellucid; a few globose conidia are usually attached to them. The peridium is thin, black to the naked eye, of an olive-brown under the microscope, filled with a mass of linear extremely transparent asci, each containing a single row of broadly elliptic chocolate sporidia." A mould, described by Link as Oidium chartarum, may possibly be nothing more thau an early condition of one of the foregoing. There are two other moulds whicb appear on paper. One, called Stachj- botrijs atra, is usually on millboard. The threads are erect and branched, bearing heads which consist of a whorl of colourless very short brancblets, each of which bears a brown septate spore, so as io form a globose head of spores. The other is named Sporo- cybe alternata, and is greyish-black, forming little orbicular patches : it is so small as scarcely to be visible with- out a lens; the threads are almost erect, and branched in a zig-zag man- ner, each branch being slightly swolleu at the tip, and studded with oblong sporidia. I think that I have enumerated all the fungi which habitually establish themselves on paper - , some rarely, others commonly ; or at least all which belong to this country. Not long since, some paper from Burmab came into my possession, which was covered with a species of C/uetomium, described by Corda as Chcetomium Indicum, perhaps the most beautiful of all in that genus ; but this cannot be regarded as a British species, although developed after its arrival. No one who becomes- acquainted with the fungi found upon paper will, like " J. T. Y.," confound them with the dendritic spots, so long a puzzle ; now, apparently, nearer solution. The confusion which seemed to exist in the minds of some readers must be my excuse for this— rather too lechnical— communication. "TOMMY TRY." rnHE beach at Exmouth, throughout a great part -"- of its extent, is sandy, and affords a consider- able number of shells. Of these I obtained in a few days about thirty species, of which the greater part were marine, but there were one or two land and fresh -water kinds, whicb had doubtless floated down the river Exe. I noticed on the sand large numbers of Medusae, which varied from the size of a crown-piece to nine inches in diameter. These appeared to be of two species, the most common of which was of an opale- scent white, with stripes of lilac ; a second was of a smoky white, with darker marks of the same colour. I was anxious to take home some of these, but on handling them I received a sting similar to that from a nettle. I afterwards heard that a species of this class is called the " sea-nettle." I avenged myself Fig. 5:f. Auriculated aurelia {AtateUa aitrita). for the sting by afterwards chopping up many of these animals with my spade. The rocks further down the river afforded nume- rous limpets — Patella vulgata and P. pellucida ; the dog-whelk, Purpura laplllus ; and a peculiar species of alga?, which, although truly cryptogamic, bad somewhat the appearance of the grass wrck, Zostera marina. This plant reminded me of some weed which had been brought home by a sea captain from the Bahama banks, and was believed by him to be the same as the' floating marine plants which served to assure the mutinous crew of Columbus of the existence of land in that part of the world. It met Apkil 1, 1869.] HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 83 him at the gates of the New "World, to strew his path, as it were, with flowers of the ocean, to hail the triumph of its conqueror and its king. This simple weed opened to me a new domain — the vast world of chemistry. I put some of the weed in a bottle of fresh water, to compare it with that brought from the West Indies. It had been there about a fortnight, when I noticed a great change in the water, from a colourless state to a hyacinthine violet, resembling the modern magenta; and I have since thought that a reaction had takeu place similar to that which occurs during the formation of a litmus, cudbear, or archil. My female friends at once exclaimed that I had rediscovered the purple of Tyre. I dipped dolls' clothes of different materials in the dye, to which I added a small proportion of soda and alum; calico which I stained with it appeared of a bright purple- red colour, which it retained for years. — From " Tommy Try," by C. 0. Groom Napier. EPISTYLIS. HAVE found the species of Epistylis here -*- figured of frequent occurrence upon Cyclops quadricornis ; upon which it multiplies to so great an extent as materially to interfere with its progress through the water, appearing to the naked eye as a little cloudy mass about the Cyclops. It consists of a great number of vorticella-like bodies attached to a many-branched transparent pedicle. The indivi- dual animals are frequently so crowded, and in such constant motion, that it is difficult to make out their structure. In the figure only a few are repre- sented, for the sake of clearness. As in Vorticella, a fringe of cilia surrounds their mouths, the course of which on one side is bent into a little hollow, out of which such things as the animal rejects as unfit for food are driven by the strong current produced by the action of the cilia. Those things which are selected for food (with a rapidity of choice which is exceedingly wonderful) are gathered into a vacant place immediately below the mouth (e), from which they quickly pass into other parts of the body, and are gradually dissolved and absorbed. W r hen they are fed with indigo or lake, the particles are greedily devoured, and appear as very dark blue or bright red fusiform spots in the body. When the animal is disturbed, the fringe of cilia is withdrawn into the body (b, d), but it is quickly protruded again, the lip, as it were, turning back in order to allow the ciliary motion to proceed without hinderance. The integument of the body is striped with very minute transverse wrinkles, but this structure can only be well seen when the creature is sufficiently still to allow of careful focussing, or happens to come exactly into focus. The body contains granular matter and a vacuole, as in Vorticella, which occurs a little below the mouth, and which appears and disappears with a certain amount of regularity. It is a question whether this disappearance arises from the motion of the animal, by which the vacuole is thrown out of focus, or whether it results from the closing to- gether of the sides of the vacuole. It seems to me that the disappearance arises from thellatter cause ; for when the vacuole has disappeared, no change of focus will cause it to reappear ; which, of course, would occur if the vacuole were there. And when the vacuole is in sight, and the focus is altered, it does not disappear, but remains as a blurred spot. It appears to me that the edges close together, for the definition remains sharp up to the moment of disappearance. Fig. 54. Epistylis, x 23S. The individual animals are readily detached from the pedicle (/, g), and swim about by means of their cilia, seeking some unfortunate Cyclops upon which to settle and found a new colony. Single animals occur attached to such ; aud it is apparently by the longitudinal division of the body and a portion of the pedicle, that the one animal becomes at length a large colony. In one of the animals when free I have noticed a peculiar spiral formation or nucleus (/). They occur in the Podophrya stage (fig. li), a condition of still life through which many of the family of Vorticellina seem to pass. J. S. Tute. £4 HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. [Aran, 1, 18G9. A NEW INSECT PROM CEYLON. THIS new and very interesting kemipterous in- sect, to which I have given the name of Tingis hystricellus, was discovered in Ceylon and collected from the Bringall plant by Mr. Staniforth Green, a gentleman long resident in that island. All the species of the genus to which it belongs are small, but the present species is exceedingly minute ; the largest of the specimens I have yet seen scarcely attaining to i of an inch in length. When examined, however, in the microscope, it is an elegant insect, and, properly mounted as an opaque object, it makes a fine binocular slide for the low powers. of the genus may therefore well be called " world- wide." The character which at once distinguishes the Tingis hystricellus from all other known species of the genus, is the complete armature of spines, which project from various parts of the head, thorax, and elytra. Each of these spines, when examined by a somewhat higher power, is found to have a sharp point or seta, projecting as from the open end of an investing sheath. The integument of the elytra, as well as that composing the dorsal surface of the thorax, appears like a thin membrane nearly as transparent as glass, supported by a strong reticulation bearing the spines, which radiate in every direction. The metathorax //€*L ^>0 Fig. 55. Tingis hystricellus, x 20. Ventral and dorsal aspect. Very little appears at present to be known with respect to its habits and economy. Mr. S. Green says :— "It is common here, and hundreds of examples may be found upon a single plant. Those I now enclose were dried between the. leaves of a book, and afterwards exposed for a couple of hours to the direct rays of a hot sun. All I can say of its habits is that it sticks close to the under side of the Bringall leaf, and there undergoes all its changes, from the larval to the perfect state. The larva; are black." Tingis is a genus of Pabricus, described in the " Systema Rhyngotorum" (p. 124). Various species of Tingis are found nearly all over the world. In the cabinet of the British Museum may be seen specimens from England and Prance, some of them nearly as small as the species -here figured; as well as several from Africa, North America, and the Philippine Islands. Other species are found in Sweden, and in fact all over Europe. A large num- ber inhabit South America, and four or five have been taken in the island of Ceylon. The distribution extends far backwards, simulating, as it does in many allied genera, a large pointed scutellum. The pupa is exceedingly interesting, being of a dark brown colom - , and covered with white spines : those along the sides of the abdomen are compound or branched, and each branch has a projecting seta. These compound spines are not found on the imago. Some of the species in the cabinet of the British Museum are very beautiful, not only in form, but in colour. They all show a tendency to a reticulated structure of the elytra; but the present species differs from all of them in the quantity of spines bristling over the dorsal surface. It is, in fact, a little insect porcupine, and fully justifies the specific name of hystricellus. I believe that mounted specimens of these insects are, or will be shortly, to be procured of Mr. Baker, in High Holborn. Por the opportunity of figuring and naming this pretty species of Tingis, I have to thank Mr. Curties, P.R.M.S., who has kindly placed his specimens at my disposal. Kensington. II. C. Richter. Afril 1, 1869.] HARDWICKE'S SCIEN CE-GO S SIP. 85 THE HERON. (Ardea cinerea.) A S we traverse the marsh, with dog and gun, in -*-*- pursuit of snipe, we may almost depend upon seeing a Heron, but seldom indeed can we get near enough to take a good look at him ; his long neck and equally long legs enable him to keep such j, sharp look-out, that on the least approach of much tact and exertion to approach a Heron, as to stalk a deer, but should you succeed in getting near him unperceivedly, you will be amply repaid in observing his movements, and may finally bring him to bag, and study him at table with lemon and cayenne. We speak from experience. We have made many a successful stalk, and can confidently state that a young Heron, nicely roasted, with the adjuncts Eig. 50. The Herox. danger, he unfolds his broad wings, and first flapping for some yards along the ground, he rises slowly into the air, and sails away to a safer haunt. But should you detect him at a distance before he sees you, there is a chance of your being able to •stalk him, especially should he happen to be in the bed of a river, or stream. It will often require as above named, forms a dish by no means to be despised. . On most parts of the coast the Heron may be seen at low-water, fishing in the little pools which have been left by the receding tide : here he finds crabs, shrimps, and other delicacies ; but instead of being sociable, Hkc the gulls, and redshanks, and so HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. [April 1, 1S69. inviting a friend to join him at dinner, be goes to his own particular pool, like an old gourmand to his club, and keeps the best of everything to himself. We have watched him on the rocky weed-covered shore of Northumberland, on the shining sands of Lancashire, and on the dreary mud-flats of the Sussex harbours, and have found him always the same ; shy and suspicious, even where seldom disturbed, he seems to have a wonderful eye to danger, and we almost believe can distinguish a gun from a stick or an umbrella. Now and then upon a rocky coast, we have stalked him under cover of a friendly boulder, and while our heart beat loud with the rapid exertion and excitement, we have shot him just as he had detected our head above the rock. And what a triumph have we felt in standing over his prostrate form, and smoothing his expansive wings, feeling in that moment a sufficient reward for having crawled on hands and knees, perhaps three hundred yards of treacherous ground, slipping over sea-weed, and through salt-water pools. But it was never thus on the mud flats ; there no friendly barrier intervened to screen our approach, and we could only advance near enough to be just out of shot, when the large wings were unfolded, and we were left to stand and gaze wistfully after the coveted prize. Now and then at early dawn, we have come suddenly upon a Heron while busily employed under the steep bank of a brook, and have thus been enabled to knock him down with snipe shot before he could get out of range. It was ludicrous to observe the surprise of the bird when he first became aware of our presence, and with a hoarse croak clumsily endeavoured to get away. On one occasion, accompanied by a red setter, we were stalking a Heron, when the dog, over-anxious, ran forward and attracted the attention of the bird, which immediately took wing ; instead of flying away, however, he hovered over the dog, looking down at him nke a hawk. We crouched down and gave a low whistle, and the dog coming back, actually brought up the Heron within shot, when we fired and killed him. The bird seemed to follow every movement of the dog, and was so intently eying him, that he never saw us until the gun was raised ; he then turned at once to make off, but too late. On the coast, the Heron feeds at low water during the day, and in unfrequented marshes he may also be caught fishing in broad daylight ; but when compelled to get his living at reservoirs, ponds, and rivers, which are oftencr visited by his enemy, man, he prefers to come just before day- break or after dusk. In autumn, when the brooks run dry, we have frequently noticed the impressions of his long toes, visible for miles on the soft mud, showing the great extent of ground traversed in his patient search for food. Pish, frogs, mussels, and even water-rats, are all included in the Heron's bill of fare. He will take young water-fowl too from the nest, and after pinching them all over in his formidable bill, and holding them under water till they have become well saturated, he throws up his head, opens his mandibles, and the " Moorhen souche " disappears. Some years ago we paid a visit in the month of May to a certain reservoir in Yorkshire, where the Pochard {Anas ferina) was known to have bred, our object being to ascertain whether this duck was then nesting there, and to learn what other fowl were on the water. We might say a good deal of that pleasant excursion, but must confine our attention for the present to the Heron. At one end of the reservoir is, or was, a thick bed of willows, extend- ing out some distance from the shore. The water at this spot is shallow, with a muddy bottom. Coots and Moorhens were numerous and noisy, swimming about amongst the willows, and collect- ing materials for their nests. We lay upon the grass at the edge of the water, peering quietly through the willows, and learnt a good deal of the private life of these water-fowl. While we were gazing, a Heron, which must have flown unuoticed up the water, dropped suddenly in the shallow, within twenty yards of our ambush. Here was an opportunity for observation : scarcely venturing to breathe, Ave watched with interest every motion of the great grey bird. His long black crest and pendent breast feathers showed him to be fully adult, and we thought at the time we had seldom seen a Heron in finer plumage. With head and neck erect, he took a cautious glance all round, as if to satisfy himself that he was unobserved, and apparently assured, he then looked down at the water ; for some minutes he never altered his position, till at length, bending slowly and gracefully forward, he suddenly struck the water with his bill, and recovered a small fish. A pinch, a toss of the head, and it had disappeared down his throat. He then drew himself together with apparent satisfac- tion, wiped his bill upon his long breast plumes, and, slightly altering his position, prepared, as an angler would say, to make another " cast." At this moment we incautiously moved a little to one side to avoid a willow bough and obtain a better view, when his quick eye instautly detected the move- ment, and in another second he was flying down the water in the direction whence he had come. There are few sights more gratifying to a natu- ralist than a heronry. We have had the privilege of visiting three : one at Walton Hall, Yorkshire, the scat of the late Charles Waterton ; one at Mdton, near Peterborough, belonging to the Hon. George Pitzwilliam ; and one at Wanstead, the property of Lord Cowley. Did space permit, we might give a detailed and interesting account of all we saw on these occasions, but we can do no more than offer a April 1, 1869.] HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE GOSSIP. S7 few brief remarks on the general appearance and situation of the heronry last named. The date of our visit was the oth of April, and the birds were then sitting on their eggs. The Heron is one of the few waders which resort to a tree for the purpose of nidification, and a stranger sight than a number of these great birds perched at the top of a lofty elm, can scarcely be imagined. Twenty years ago, the Herons at Wanstead Park tenanted some trees at a different spot to that which they now frequent. At present they occupy some tall elms upon an island in the largest piece of water in the park. The keeper informed us that there were about thirty pairs. We proceeded to the boat- house, and after bailing out the boat which was nearly full of water, steered for the Herons' island. A good glass enabled us to see the birds very clearly, and most of them were in splendid plumage. The nests were placed at the very tops of the trees, and many of them were occupied by a sitting bird. Here and there a Heron stood erect upon a bough, with head and neck drawn in, looking for all the world like a cold sentinel, with his bayonet between his teeth, and his hands in his trousers' pockets. As we approached the island several loud croaks were heard, and the sentinels took wing, the sitting birds being the last to leave. Taking it for granted that the bird which sat the longest was the most likely to have eggs, we selected a tree from which a Heron flew as we reached it. It was a wych-elm about forty feet high, and the nest was placed amongst the topmost branches. After a fatiguing climb, owing to the absence of boughs for a considerable distance, we reached the top, and paused to rest before looking into the nest. And now was the anxious moment. Were our exertions in vain ? Was the nest empty, or were we to be rewarded with the sight of eggs ? The nest was large enough to sit in, composed ex- ternally of large twigs, chiefly elm and willow, and lined with smaller twigs, fibre and dry grass. It overhung our head to some extent, so that we were obliged to pull away a portion of the side before we could see into it, when, to our delight, four beautiful eggs were displayed, their bright bluish- green colour contrasting well with the dark fibre on which they were laid. The wind blew in gusts, and it was no easy mat- ter to get them down safely ; but at length we succeeded in getting them into our handkerchief, and holding the ends together in our mouth, brought them down without a crack. They were consider- ably incubated, showing that they had probably been laid about the end of the third week in March. The Heron, indeed, is one of the earliest birds to breed. The young, when first hatched, present a very remarkable appearance, and are fed by their parents for a long time before they can shift for themselves. A friend once kept a Heron on his lawn, and a very amusing bird he was. When first captured, he was very sulky, and refused all food. Pearing he would starve, the owner forced some fish down the bird's throat, but the next moment saw it re- turned upon the grass. The process was repeated with the same result, and a third time my friend endeavoured ineffectually to overcome the obstinacy of his captive. At length, reflecting how the Chinese treat their trained Cormorants, by fastening a strap round the neck to prevent the fish from going doicn, he tied a piece of tape round the Heron's neck, to prevent the fish, in this case, from coming vp. The experiment was perfectly success- ful, and the bird finding it impossible to disgorge, at length abandoned the attempt, and subsequently fed himself. Pish were placed for him in a fountain on the lawn, and he evinced great delight in taking them from the water. One day a rat was observed helping himself to the Heron's food. The rightful owner caught him in the act, and with one blow of his formidable lull felled him to the ground. Seizing him, then, before he could recover, he carried him squeaking to the fountain and ducked him. After shaking him well under water, he held him up for examination. The rat spluttered and squeaked in abject terror,.and again was he submerged. The dose was repeated, until the unfortunate rat at length succumbed, and being by this time nice and tender, the Heron pouched him, and his then elon- gated form was seen distending the thin skin of the bird's neck in its passage downwards, until it finally disappeared for ever. J. E. Harting. DRAWING PHOM THE MICROSCOPE. THE difficulty experienced by all microscopists of delineating upon paper, with accuracy, the varied objects placed under the instruments, is only partially overcome after many years' tedious practice and observation. The well-known and long-tried Dr. Wollaston's prism, and the neutral- tint glasses, although having many objections, have still retained their position as mediums for drawing : the difficulty always is, being- unable to see the point of the pencil. When I say always, I mean a person who is about to make, perhaps his first drawing, not those whose eye is tutored with years of experience ; although we know that it is not certainty with them. The outline being followed, and drawn with tolerable accuracy, the fine and delicate detail must be filled in by observation, from the instrument, as every microscopist is aware. Suggestions and appliances have from time to time been devised, whereby the object may be followed on tracing- paper from greyed glass. So far so good ; but every ss HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GO SSIP. [April 1, 1869. one is aware a drawing looks very objectionable when finished upon tracing-paper : further, there is a considerable loss of light in passing through the medium or paper. What we require is, in being- able to draw upon a piece of card or Bristol board. To this cud I have made many experiments, and the most successful and (I may be pardoned for adding) very satisfactory aud simple means I beg to place before your readers. I enclose a rough sketch to simplify the description. A is a ring containing two mirrors, milled head B, aud clamp it by the tightening screw. By using the flat mirror you obtain brightly illumin- ated and full of detail, ou your card or paper a view the same size as presented by the microscope ; but by using the concave mirror you obtain a much larger picture, without, of course, altering your ob- jectives, and by raising your instrument a little (of course altering the light at the same time) you rapidly enlarge your diagram. I hope this little appliance may be of some service in that most difficult of all drawing (microscopical) ; Fig. 57. Drawing Apparatus. one a concave of about G-inch focus, the other a flat one. B is a small milled head to regulate the angle of rays : on the opposite centre there is a little larger milled nut, whicli clamps the mirror tight to the arms C. D is an ordinary clip, lined with cloth to prevent scratching the lacquer, with a milled bead E, to clip it tight to the body of microscope F. G represents the card or paper for drawing upon. To use this apparatus proceed thus : — 1st. Place the microscope in a horizontal position ; direct the rays of light from a Bockctt or other lamp, carefully ex- cluding all rays not concentrated upon the mirror, or, in other words, concentrate all the rays you can from your lamp on to the concave reflector, so as to illuminate as powerfully as you can. 2nd. Take out the eyepiece and slip the clip Don to the body; do not tighten the clamp E until the eyepiece is in, as it will help to support the pressure exerted on the tube, as many instruments have rather thin bodies. 3rd. Set the angle of the mirror by the aud should any of your numerous readers require further instruction, it will be cheerfully given by your constant subscriber, W. SCANTLEBURY. Microspores.— I have found the macrospores spoken of by E. W. Binney at the meeting of the Manchester Philosophical Society, January 26th, 1869, in shale from above the Low Main scam of coal at Cramlington, Northumberland. They are flattened and disc-like in appearance, and in one or two instances the triangular markings arc seen the same as in the microspores of Lcpidostrobus. ]na section of Lepidostrobus now in my cabinet the tri- angular markings on the microspores are well shown in some, and in others the spores are seen breaking up at the triangular marking into sporules. Whe- ther the macrospores break up in the same way or not I think has yet to be determined.— John Butter- worth. April 1, 1S69.] HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. SO ZOOLOGY. Cynips aptera— At the meeting of the Ento- mological Society (February 1st) Mr. F. Smith stated that he had on one occasion found a mass of barnacle-shaped galls on the bole of an oak in Bishop's Wood, Hampstead, from which a number of specimens of a wingless Q/nips had been produced, which could not be distinguished from Q/nips aptera, reared from the currant-like galls on the rootlets of the same tree.— Gard. Chron. Daddy Longlegs again.— For the last week or two the Hackney Downs have presented a singular appearance from an eruption of the brown larvae of Tipula oleracea, which have " wriggled " out of the turf in myriads, and, swarming on the paths, have been crushed to death in thousands by the passers by. They are especially numerous around the lamp-posts, lying in strata quite an inch in thick- ness, the dead and dying masses of larvae affording by no means an agreeable spectacle. Immense numbers of the perfect insect occurred on the Downs and other open fields in this neighbourhood last autumn, as was humorously recorded by " S. B. J. S." in the November number of Science- Gossip. The ugly little animals, now so prematurely making their debut, are doubtless the unfortunate descendants of that long-legged host, whose light- seeking propensities will perhaps account for the masses of their bairns at the -lamps ; although, the ground there being gravelled and quite destitute of grass or roots, it is somewhat difficult to conceive how they found sustenance, unless, indeed, the passion of their race for enlightenment is developed so strongly in the adolescent " daddies " as to impel them to quit their burrows in the turf and seek it even on the paths of death. A considerable number of a species of coleopterous larva accom- pany the tipulse. — W. Cole, Clapton. The Moa or Dinornis.— Two very valuable ad- ditions have recently been made to the museum of the Natural History Society in Newcastle-on-Tyne. One is an almost complete specimen of Binornis casuarinus, and an almost perfect leg, foot, and pelvis of a larger species, Binornis robustus. The former bird stands a height of upwards of five feet, and the leg of the latter is more than five feet in height, and must have belonged to a bird of not less height than ten feet. The bones which when united form the specimen of B. casuarinus do not belong to one bird, but have been gathered and classified from a large miscellaneous collection of Dinornis bones received from New Zealand, and presented to the museum at various times by Mrs. Dodd, Captain Collinson, and Captain Llyte. Skeletons of six species of Dinornis are exhibited in the Can- terbury Museum, New Zealand ; one or more speci- mens of Dinornis are exhibited in the British Museum; a very fine specimen is, I believe, exhibited in the York Museum ; and, so far as I know, no other provincial museum, except ours in Newcastle, possesses a complete specimen of this reputedly extinct gigantic bird, the New Zealand Moa. The bones of the Newcastle specimen are in a tolerably good condition of preservation, but, owing to their having lain for a considerable period in swampy marshy localities, they are somewhat friable, and require great care and skill in fitting up the skeleton, to avoid the breaking or seriously damaging the bones. Mr. J. Hancock, with his usual skill, has accomplished a very difficult self-imposed task, and deserves credit for his patience and skill. — T. P. Barkas, Newcastle-on-Tyne. Parrakeet Breeding. — A lady with whom I am acquainted had two pairs of the small Australian ground or warbling parrakeets {Psittac'uhe) brought over by her son last year. Towards the end of the year one pair became very restless ; she therefore put in the corner of their cage the outside case of a cocoa-nut, with a small aperture for them to enter, and, on looking into it some days after, to her agree- able surprise, she found two bluish-white eggs had been laid. The hen bird sat on the eggs very closely for some days until a young parrakeet made its appearance, much to the joy of its parents. It is now about a month old, and is in perfect health. The plumage is the same as the full-grown birds, but not so brilliant. The remaining egg was addled, and the old birds ejected it from the nest.— E. B. Burton. Nesting of the Lesser Bedpole. — Yarrell gives Halifax as the southern limit of the lesser redpole in the breeding season. This, however, would seem to be an incorrect statement, for even in that writer's time Mr. Woileyhad found the bird breeding anuually in Nottinghamshire. Since that time nests have been found in Derbyshire, Stafford- shire, and (as it is reported) in more southern coun- ties. Perhaps some of your ornithological readers may feel interested in the testimony which I can give as to the lesser redpole breeding in Leices- tershire. Some time ago, when on a nesting excur- sion with my friend Mr. W. Theed, of Carlisle, I found a nest of the lesser redpole, placed in a thorn hedge, on land belonging to Mr. Kirby, of Humb'erstone, in Leicestershire, within a few feet of the frequented bridle-path leading from that village to Barkby. There was little, if any, attempt on the part of the bird to seclude its nest ; for, although well matted in by thorn on the hedgeside, it was glaringly conspicuous to even the casual stroller along the field, if near the hedge. Moreover, I failed to perceive the elegance of structure which is apparent in the usual architecture of this bird in the nest in question, the chief materials employed 90 HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. [April 1, 1869. being moss, and dry grass of many degrees of fine- ness : it was extravagantly lined with the catkins of the willow. Besides this profuse lining, I detected what appeared to me to be the down of the colts- foot, but on this point I will not entirely pledge myself. This nest contained four eggs in the second week of June. I feel myself quite justified in being very strongly convinced that the lesser redpole is by no means an uncommon breeder in Leicester- shire, or indeed throughout the entire Midland district, for I have often met with it in May and June, in various parts of the county. There can be no mistaking it at sight, for ere many minutes it betrays itself to the observer by its tit-like evolu- tions. In the winter they will come with the siskins. I have met with both species, the latter sometimes in flocks, at Rothley, Stretton, and Enderby, in Leicestershire, always in the vicinity of stunted trees. — Edward Peterson. Sand Lizard. — Many naturalists (Mr. Wood amongst others) speak of the impossibility of keeping these little creatures in captivity. It may be interesting to them to learn that Mrs. King, the wife of the well-known Mr. King, in the Portland Road, has not only kept adult sand lizards all the winter, feeding them on raw beef, but has even succeeded in making them breed: she had some babies of this species in her possession a few days ago, fed on milk, and as lively as possible. — F. L. H. Voracity of Sea Anemone. — Dr. Johnston tells us (Brit. Zooph.) of a crass (Tealia crassi- cornis) that swallowed a valve of the great scallop. This extensive mouthful was, however, quite equalled by one I witnessed a few days ago. A crass, about 2 A inches in diameter, was found with two mussels half in and half out of its rapacious maw. The mussels were nearly three inches in length, and were standing upright in the mouth of the crass. The sharp angles of the molluscs did not appear to inconvenience it in the least : the only difficulty seemed to be the stowing away of two creatures three inches long in a cavity that could not at its greatest elongation measure more than two.— F. W., Tenby. The Badger and Otter. — Badgers are still to be met with, though rarely, in Buckinghamshire. One taken in this county was recorded in Science- Gossip, I., 87. Three or four years ago a female badger and four young ones were dug out, with considerable difficulty, near Fingest ; and last year one was captured at Naphill, near High Wycombe. An account of one taken at Oxford will be found in the Field of Feb. Gth. A female otter, three feet in length, and weighing 15. \ lb., was shot on an islet in the Thames, near White Place, Cookham, Berks, on the 10th of August, 18G8 : her four young ones were destroyed at the same time. See Quarterly Magazine of High Wycombe Nat. Hist. Soc., II., 48. — James Britten. Helix lamellata. — This tiny snail is a rare inhabitant of woods hereabouts. Thompson in his " Natural History of Ireland " mentions two locali- ties, each of which is about four miles distant from Belfast. The shell is a real sylvan gem, that well rewards the patient collector for his persevering toil. Urged by an ardent zeal that must stand for our excuse, I was, in company with a friend, one afternoon trespassing in a wood, despite the warning intimation " Trespassers Prosecuted." My friend had succeeded in finding three specimens of Helix lamellata, when lo there appeared on the scene the dreaded gamekeeper, or caretaker, and his attendant dog ! The man was civil, however, as indeed I generally find such men to be when they meet with naturalists poaching on their domains. He was curious to see what it was for which we were making such careful search : by the help of a pocket lens, my friend delighted him, by showing what a charming little beauty of a shell tenanted his woods, and we got off with the conviction that the grounds were not guarded by a churl, who would be very severe on us if caught again inside the fence. But my object iu mentioning H. lamellata was to encourage collectors who may feel disheart- ened by repeated unsuccessful attempts to find shells that they are in quest of. I had searched for this shell in its two local habitats not less than nine or ten times, and secured in all only three specimens ; however, being in Colin Glen one day early in the present month (March), I made another effort to find this Helix. The second leaf I lifted yielded a shell, and then near three hours were spent without rising from this spot. The result was sixty-five specimens captured, before the approach of evening put an end to the search ; but the shells were by no means exhausted ; the number could have been doubled, had time permitted. Thompson mentions taking twenty-one specimens on one occasion iu this same glen. Helix lamellata was the dominant form in this productive heap of beech- leaves ; the associated species were H. fulca, II. 2)ygmea, Vertigo edentula, some Zonites, and Cary- chium minimum, but none of these species was abundant. I think it is likely that much labour is thrown away looking for shells at the wrong time, and that there is for each species a season and weather, when it is out iu greater force than usual. — S. A. Stewart, Belfast. Wren's Nest at Christmas. — The Brighton Examiner notes the fact of a wren having built her nest at Beeding, Sussex : the bird commenced feathering it on Christmas day, and now (Jan. 2Gth) there are several eggs laid. — D. C. Bate. April 1, 1869.] HAEDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 91 BOTANY. Winter Mushroom. — While Mr. Leeming, of Casterton, Westmoreland, was out this morning (Wednesday, February 17th), looking after bis stock, he found in a meadow two mushrooms, each about six inches in circumference; and in point of flavour, they were, I can affirm from actual experience, equal to any I tasted last year, when they were so prolific. — S. Morris. Capsella bursa -pastoris. — The plants usually united under this name seem to vary very greatly from one another, irrespective of soil or situation. The undersigned, who has been investigating tbis variation for a year or two back, would esteem it a favour if local botanists would kindly forward him specimens of the forms existing in their locali- ties for examination and comparison. The speci- mens may be either fresh or dried, but should as far as possible have fully formed seed-pouches, and should be gathered with the roots attached. British or continental specimens will equally oblige. — Charles P. Hobkirk, Honoria-street, Huddersfielcl. Potentilla. — There are several British species of this genus, some of them exceedingly pretty. The P.fragariastrum, for example, with its small white flowers, always attracts my eye, they look so like the wild strawberry bloom, and, as they appear in our hedgerows early in spring, I have often known children mistake them for the latter, exclaiming, "Oh, don't pick those, or we shall not have any wild strawberries." Then comes the " silver-weed," Potentilla anserisna, a roadside plant with yellow flowers and pinnate leaves, the leaves being easily distinguished by a soft white down which grows on them. Another member is the P.fruticosa, a rather rare northern flower, with yellow blossoms and piu- nate leaves. The flowers of this species are not so large as those of the P. anserisna, and the plant is partial to shaded spots ; is found mostly in bushy places. The cultivated kinds of Potentilla are so well known that they need no description here, and the P. reptans and the P.formentilla have already been noticed. I somehow fancy the flowers of the latter are smaller than those of the P. reptans, but as I am a very humble botanist, I will not presume to differ from W. Holland in regard to the difficulty of distinguishing between the two species in ques- tion, or venture to affirm that they are not the same under different aspects, soil, &c, &c. — Helen B. Watney. Scolopendrium ceterach.— This plant was used as a bait for cod, just as a piece of red cloth is. Its under side is of a bright brown colour, and a little glossy, which makes it still more conspicuous when used as a bait. It is merely stuck firmly on to a hook and dragged after a boat, or sunk in deep water. It is no doubt mistaken by the fish for the sandworm which a good long frond carefully arranged on the hook somewhat resembles. — H. W. Cochlearia oieicinalis is rather biennial than annual. It sheds its seed early in the summer, and the seedlings grow to a considerable size by the autumn, and flower the following spring. It might possibly under cultivation, and sown in the early spring, arrive at maturity within the year, but its habit in the wild state is such as I have detailed it. The Cochlearia Danica, which is, perhaps, only a variety of the former, is smaller, but thicker and more succulent in the leaf, and more pungent to the taste, and would, I think, be the best plant to cultivate for the table. — H. W. Scurvy-grass {Cochlearia officinalis) is, as far as my observations extend (and I have now been living close to the seaside for the last two years), a peren- nial, and I therefore must beg to differ from Helen E. Watney as to her statement that it is certainly an annual. — Samuel A. Brenan, Vicar of Cushcndun. The Shamrock.— In answer to "S. A. S.," Bel- fast, respecting what kind of trefoil is used by the Irish, I have always found Trifolium mimes the one preferred, and not Trifolium repens, as aiiy black spot on the leaves is considered by the lower orders as a blemish. This I have observed in co. Dublin, Wicklow, Meath, Westmeath, Louth, Fermanagh, and this part of Antrim. — Samuel A. Brenan, Cushendun. Sundew. — Withering (Botany, ed. III. 1796) states that his friends, Messrs. Whately and Gardom, witnessed the leaf of Drosera anglica curl over so as to enclose a fly, which had been previously entangled in the glandular hairs ; the more distant hairs bending towards the victim to hold it more tightly. Both (quoted by Withering) saw the same occurrence in Germany. Latterly an American entomologist gives an account of a like kind, in the American Naturalist. Will any entomological or botanical reader say whether he can confirm this singular phenomenon ? Drosera (Sundew) is so nearly related to Bioncea muscipnla (Venus' s Ply-trap) that such a faculty is very possible. I never saw it myself, and Withering says that he failed in his experiments. — W. W. Spicer, lichen Abbas. Botanical Allusion in Tennyson.— Tennyson, in the first stanza of the 111th section of " In Me- moriam," writes thus of the spring time : — " Now fades the last long streak of snow, Now burgeons every maze of quick, About the flowering squares and thick By ashen roots the violets blow." Our laureate is usually accurate in all that he says about nature, and I should like to know, whether violets do occur more frequently under the shade of the ash than elsewhere.—/. B. S. C. 92 HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. [April 1, 1SC9. MICROSCOPY. Pleurosigma hippocampus. — The habitat of this diatom is " marine or brackish water." I have never found it in fresh water, and am not aware of any authority for its being so found. In Pritchard's " Infusoria " it is described as marine ; in Smith's " Synopsis " as of brackish water ; in Kutzing's "Bacillarien" the locality given is the Baltic; Rabenhorst (" Die Siisswasser Diatomaceen ") says that it (Gyrosigma hippocampus) is properly marine, but is found throughout Italy, Sicily, and the neigh- bouring islands along the coast in shallow water and brackish puddles [lialbsahigen pfiitzen) ; the "Mi orographic Dictionary" says mariue or brackish water. Will Mr. Kitton be good enough to say in which of the British so-called fossil earths this diatom may be found ? The inaccuracies (Science- Gossip, 1867, p. 133) pointed out by your corre- spondent Mr. Warner were noted by me at the time in my copy of the Gossip; his corrections are right except as to fig. 142. Pigs. 142 and 143 are both representations, evidently copied from Smith's " Synopsis," of Pin. stauroneiformis (S.), which I have sometimes found to vary much both in outline and absence or presence of central coste.— H. B. If Mr. Warner refers to the "Synopsis" he will find Pleurosigma hippocampus stated to be a brackish- water form. Pritchard's book states it to be a marine form, but refers to Rabenhorst's "Siisswasser Diatomaceen." I have found it in gatherings from Horning, Ormesby, Heigham — all fresh -water localities. It is probably like Navicula amphisbecua, and grows equally in fresh and brackish water. The references to the figures are, of course, wrong. Pimmlaria stauroneiformis = figs. 142 and 143 ; Pinnuktria divergens = fig. 144; Pimmlaria acro- asphari={\g. 141. It is a mistake to put much stress on the habitats of diatoms. I have Terpsinoe musica from barnacles scraped from a ship's bottom, and also from a fresh-water stream in the Mauritius : in both cases it grew luxuriantly. Cyclotella punctata is found in very brackish water, and also in water without a trace of salt; indeed, specimens I have are from perfectly fresh water. Cyclotella Kutzingiana is found under precisely the same conditions. See Dr. Arnott's paper in the Microscopical Journal on " What are Marine Diatoms?"— J. Kitton. Pine Pollen.— The common pine here is, I believe, Finns pinaster, which produces a vast amount of pollen, and which, with the flower scales, are pretty objects; the outer scales covering the flower are also interesting with low power. Some years ago the south wind brought quantities of pine pollen from the forests, and which was arrested by the rain-water standing in pools in the streets, and caused among many people no slight alarm, as they imagined there had been a fall of sulphur, and wondered what might crop up next.— G. S., Oporto. Anatomy op the Fly. — A treatise on the Anatomy and Physiology of the Blow-fly, illustrated with eight coloured plates, is announced by Mr. B. T. Lowne ; and, from what we have seen of it, this treatise promises to be an acquisition to micro- scopical science. VoRTiCELLiE, or Bell Infusoria.— Among the most common and yet most interesting of the In- fusoria are the Vorticellse, or bell animalcules. 1 have examined a great number of specimens of the Vorticella microstoma from the water in which hyacinth bulbs have been growing. They consist. of a bell-shaped body attached to a thread-like muscular stalk, which anchors them to some con- ferva or unicellular growth. On being alarmed, the thread contracts into a spiral, and the ridges of the bell close over the mouth in an instant, making everything snug. A dark pith may be noticed run- ning down the stalk. This Ehrenberg takes for a muscular fibre, but M. Dujardin, who seems as a natural consequence to combat Ehrenberg's views,, supposes the outer layer to consist of contractile tissue. The row of cilia inside the bell keep up constantly a double whirlpool, causing two tides as it were to flow into the mouth of the bell, bringing the various spores or green granular matter always present in the water into the mouth of the bell, rejecting most of them again by what seems to be- an anal aperture situated in the cell-wall above the ridge of the bell. I again and again observed some of these green granules slipped into the substance- of the body, and gradually assimilated with it. This is more easily observed on mixing a drop of water coloured with carmine-lake, the granules being red, and the stream out of the exit aperture coming out like smoke from a chimney, discolouring the water for a considerable distance. The manner in which these animalcules multiply is very interesting. The body, at first rather elongated, taking the oval in- stead of the circular form, gradually the oval divides,, and, taking the form of two circles pressed together, these gradually separate, the bell opens, lateral cilia appear on the sides of Vorticella;, and finally it separates altogether and swims off to hang on its own hook, or rather its own thread. I certainly observed nothing in the way of an alimentary caual, and many of the nuclei appeared to me to be nothing but the granules present in the water, and taken in the body as nourishment. I observed other nuclei of more regular appearance brought out distinctly by the carmine, and which separated at the division of the body, and they seem probably to be nuclei or germs of the separated animalcule. As this is the season of the year when the Infusoria can be so easily obtained, they should be examined by all able to do so, and as much light as possible thrown upon their somewhat obscure organizations.—//. Ashby, Port low, co. Waterford. April 1, 18G9.J HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 9:5 NOTES AND QUERIES. Fruit of the Hawthorn. — The word cat-haws, inquired about in Science-Gossip, p. 70, is evidently allied to cat-kin, the diminutive of cat : it is applied to the pendulous blossom of some trees, from a faucied resemblance to a kitten's tail, and hence extended, as your correspondent informs us, to the "fruit of the "hawthorn."— A. Hall. Hair and its Restorers. — In the present day, when the human hair is the object of so much attention to the fair sex, the following receipts, taken from the work alluded to in your last number, by Samuel Purchas, 1657, may be read with interest :—" Pound bees dead and dry in the combs : mingle them with honey, and annoynt bald places of the head, and the hair will spring afresh." "The ashes of bees ground with oyl make hair white." " Water distilled of honey four times by a limbick, so that the honey were first boiled, makes beautiful hair, and the hair wet therewith doth not only become yellow, but softer, and increaseth like- wise, especially if it be done in the sun."— W. J. II iff, Epsom. _ Habits of House Mice.— Some few years since, I had a regular nightly visitant to my bed- room, in the shape of a singing mouse: it came booming round the apartment with such vocal power that, after the first novelty had worn off, we voted it a nuisance, had a cat, and soon heard no more of it. I have now another visitant, a much quieter animal : it rustles about a good deal on first entering, but after a while subsides into a gentle and very peculiar murmuring sound : it is soporific, a constant sibilation without any / in it ; a hushing musing sound ; a perpetual sh' sh' shiver. And here is a great and wonderful analogy, it is really ymssitating, i.e. " to gently murmur," that mysterious word, from musso, mussare, quasi yovao, that has given us the " lulling " theory of the historical name Lollard. This analogy of mus, a mouse, and mussito is really very close. I would ask your naturalistic readers to define the singing of a mouse, aud also the murmuring above named — how are they produced, and how far universal among the murid(B.— A. Hall. Hybernation op Bees. — I see that your corre- spondent, Mr. A. Hall, has some doubts about the hybernation of the humble bee. My own experience goes to corroborate Mr. Mill's discovery. Whilst pupa-digging last month (February) I turned up a humble bee in a very torpid condition. I very much regret that the pupa-digger had mutilated his cell, so that I could not accurately determine whether an entrance did or did not exist : there was no stone on top, and, as far as I could_ see, it was merely a cell rudely dug in the earth without any attempt at smoothing. The bee was on its back, not, as in Mr. Mill's cell, on its side. As to Mr. Hall's theory, that the bee had been involuntarily confined, I regard that as quite out of the question. With regard to question 4s, I think that bees could exist for a length of time without air and food, or at least with only as much air as could penetrate through the soil. I know that I have this winter dug out, at the root of a tree in stiff and clayey soil, a newt, at the depth of at least three inches below the surface: this newt, though at that time very sluggish and almost lifeless, is now a lively inhab- itant of my aquarium. If he could thus endure hunger and want of air, why not a humble bee ? I if think that it would be very interesting i some of your correspondents were to keep, during the ensuing summer, a colony of humble bees. This would not be a difficult task ; a flower-pot partially filled with mould and covered with gauze, would serve for their habitation. The results, I am sure, would be interesting. The formation of the winter cell could then be clearly seen, and Mr. Hall's doubts satisfactorily cleared up. The only singular point, however, in my opinion is that it does not appear to be noticed by entomologists. Westwood (introduction to Mod. Class., vol. ii., page 281), says "they form societies of about fifty or sixty individuals, occasionally, however, amounting to two or three hundred. They construct their dwellings underground in meadows, pastures, or hedge-rows, generally employing moss for this purpose 1 few impregnated females alone survive" Here he speaks of their making common dwellings, but altogether omits the fact of their constructing solitary ones. He alludes to a few females surviving till the spring, but is surprisingly silent on the subject of their forming any dwelling in which to brave the inclemency of the winter. The only reference I can find to their hybernation is in Maunder's " Treasury of Natural History," page 332 :— " These (the larger females) live in a sort of chamber distinct from the rest, but, as it would appear, without any supply of food." I earnestly hope that these short remarks may stimulate the readers of Science-Gossip to investigate further this very interesting subject.—//. 11. O'Farrell. Leeches.— I have on many occasions been obliged to avail myself of the services of leeches, and, feeling thankful to them for the relief they have afforded, have always been pained at the torture they are made to endure by salt, squeezing, &c, to make them disgorge the blood they have swallowed. Some short time since, on using them, I determined, in the face of strong prejudice, to see if I could keep them alive without using any of the means alluded to, and, as yet, have succeeded in doing so. I was told it was cruel kindness, for they might live after the salt, but must die without ; but I am glad I persevered, as I think I shall be able to prove the fallacy of the popular belief. When they do live after being subjected to the salt process, they are poor shrivelled things, with indentations on the skin wherever the salt has touched. Mine, after being- well washed, were put in a globe with cold water, plenty of sand at the bottom, and some Anacharis, with water-snails, water-shrimps, water-fleas, &c. ; and some antiquated leeches which we have kept as our " clerks of the weather." I should be glad to know whether any one else has tried to do away with what is, I am convinced, a needless piece of cruelty to a creature so valuable to suffering humauity. — //. Origin of Life.— A succinct account of this subject is presented in a small French volume just issued under the title of "L'Origine de la Vie," by Georges Pennetier. It contains the case stated on behalf of spontaneous generation, with the objections of the panspermists, and may be accepted as a summary of the discussions between Pasteur and Pouchet, and their several adherents. There is a good show of cheap woodcuts, which is accomplished by repeating them over and over again, sometimes three or four times. This is hardly a commendable way of " making up " an illustrated book, which we do not advise our English publishers to follow.