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e 
THE JOURNAL OF THE 


ASSOCIATED NATURAL History, PHILOSOPHICAL, 
AND ARCHAOLOGICAL SOCIETIES AND FiELD CLuss 
OF THE MIDLAND Counties. 


EDITED BY 
E. W. BADGER & W. J. HARRISON, F.G.S. 


‘*Come forth into the light of things, 
Let Nature be your teacher.” 


Wordsworth. 


,oOLUM Ee Ir 
1879. 


London: David Bogue, 3, St. Martin’s 
Place, Trafalgar Square, W.C. 


Birmingham : Cornish Brothers, 
37, New Street. 


PRINTED AT THE HERALD OFFICE, UNION STREET, BIRMINGHAM. 


As 


iJZU 


se 


JAN 19 


PREFACE. 


The completion of the second volume of the ‘‘ Midland 
Naturalist ” affords the opportunity for reviewing what purposes 
its publication has served ; and the Editors feel satisfied that they 
will not be accused of mis-statement when they say that the 
monthly publication of this magazine has given an appreciable 
stimulus to Natural History studies in the Midland Counties. 
Some valuable papers on Fresh-water Life published in it show 
that one of the Societies in the Midland Union, at least, has been 
busily occupied in the study of a very fascinating and interesting 
branch of Natural History, and with results of a most satisfac- 
tory character. The discovery for the first time in this country 
of Leptodora hyalina and of Daphnia Kahlbergensis (or Bairdii as 


was at first suggested) are some of these results. 


The practical papers on Entomology which have been 


published will, it is hoped and believed, lead to a more general 


‘study of the Insect world, especially among the younger 


members. A sort of reproach seems to have hung over the 
Midland Counties as being a district unable to afford any reward 


to the investigations of the Entomologist: how ungrounded 


PREFACE, 


this, and how truly rich the field is, has been already conclusively 
shown in these pages by several valued contributors, (particularly 
Mr. W. G. Blatch,) to whom we express our gratitude, not only 
for what they have already done, but also (in the anticipatory 
sense of a well-known adage) for favours yet to come, on which 
we rest well assured both we and our readers may confidently 


rely. 


In the admirable address delivered by the President at the 
annual meeting of the members of the Midland Union, at 
Leicester, in May last, (pp. 187-141,) some most suggestive 
remarks were made on the subject of noting down observations 
on points of natural science, and regularly communicatmg them 
for publication in the pages of this magazine. As we have 
frequently pointed out, it would be well if every one of our 
subscribers would consider him or herself as commissioned to 
observe and report on all occurrences of scientific interest which 
may happen within their knowledge. The present volume 
contains many interesting and valuable communications of this 
character, and we sincerely hope that in the coming year their 


number may be very largely increased. 


We have again the pleasant duty of acknowledging our 
indebtedness to our large band of Meteorological observers 
for the valuable assistance we have received from them; to 
Mr. W. B. Grove, B.A., who has rendered us and our readers 
invaluable help in various ways ; and to Mr. Chas. E. Scarse for 


assistance in the preparation of a carefully compiled Index. 


PRINCIPAL CONTRIBUTORS TO THIS VOLUME. 


~ §. Anzrort, F.G.S., Birmingham. 
O. VY. Arun, Bodicote, Banbury. 
Epwarp W. Banczr, F.R.H.S., Birmingham. 
James EH. Baenauu, Birmingham. 
W. G. Buarcu, Birmingham. 
C. Bratz, C.E., Sedgley. 
F. A. Bepwett, M.A., F.R.M.S., Bridlington Quay. 
Henry Birp, M.D., Bath. 
C. Canuaway, M.A., D.Sc. Lond., F.G.S., &c., Wellington, Salop. 
T. Spencer Cospoxp, M.D., F.R.S., London. 
G. OC. Drucz, F.L.S., Oxford. 
H. J. Exwes, F.Z.S., F.L.S., &c., Cirencester. 
H. E. Forrest, Birmingham. 
Rey. W. W. Fowxzer, M.A., Repton. 
Water Granam, F.R.M.S., Birmingham. 
Pumie Henry Gosst, F.R.S., Torquay. 
W. B. Groves, B.A., Birmingham. 
JoHN Guuson, Coventry. 
W. Jerome Harrison, F.G.S., Leicester. 
W. R. Hueuss, F.L.S., Birmingham. 
J. Gwyn Jerrreys, LL.D., F.R.S., &c., Ware, Herts. 
Rey. J. D. La Toucuz, B.A., Stokesay. 
-Joun Levick, Birmingham. 
H. J. Lows, F.R.S., Nottingham. 
Tomas Macautay, M.R.C.S., Kibworth. 
F. T. Mort, F.R.G.S., Leicester. 
C. T. Musson, Nottingham. 
W. Pures, Shrewsbury. 
G. Rogson, Leicester. 
JAmEes Suipman, Nottingham. 
Lawson Tarr, F.R.C.8S., Birmingham. 
C. U. Tripp, M.A., Burton-on-Trent. 
G. H. Twice, Birmingham. 
G. SHerRirr Tyz, Birmingham. 
W. Sournatt, F.L.S., Birmingham. 
Rey. J. E. Vizze, M.A., Forden, Welshpool. 
W. Warraxer, F.G.S., H.M. Geological Survey. 
Wricut Witson, M.R.C.S., F.L.S., Birmingham. 
H. B. Woopwarp, F.G.S., H.M. Geological Survey. 


ILLUSTRATIONS IN VOLUME II. 


PLATES. 


On the Development of the Vorticellide. . 
Crystallisation of Water—Ice Plumes 
Daphnia Bairdii (D. Kahlbergensis) 
Leptodora hyalina 

Anurea longispina and Ceratium longicorne 


Structures of Pitcher Plants, &c. 


WOODCUTS. 


Rheetic Fossils 


The Weber Slide 


PAGE. 


Plate I. to face 85 


Plate II. 
. Plate ITI. 
Plate IV. 

Plate V. 
Plate VI. 


Plates VIL. and VIII. 


” 


” 


109 

96 
217 
225 
241 


265 


Figs. 1 to16, 14 


98 


INDEX. 


Acanthocephala, 112 

Acherontia atrepos, 83 

Age of the Earth, 163 : 

Agency, Mr. Marsden’s Natural History, 
261 

Aleyonidium hirsutum, 26 , 

Allman, (G. J.,) Address at Annual Meeting 
of British Association, 236 

Allport, (S.) and the Wooliaston Fund, 80 

Allport (S.) and W. J. Harrison on the 
Rocks of Brazil Wood, 243 

Alton, Excursion to, 248 

American Predictions of Storms, 261 

@parterly Microscopical Journal, 


Ameceba, 237 

Anderson, (J.,) A Lepidopterist’s Notes on 
the Season of 1878, 65 

Anemone fulgens, 304 

Anemones, Sea, 79 

Animals and Plants, Geographical Dis- 
tribution of, 9 

Answers to Correspondents, 28, 264 

Ant, Natural History of the, 55 

— Protecting Beetles, 144 

qoearetic Ice, Thickness of, 103 

pples and Pears, Exhibition of, 260 

Aquaria, 1, 53, 78, 79, 100, 151, 163, 246 

Aquarium, Marine, 1 

Arachnida, 113 

Arran, Marine Zoology at, 182 

= sy a a Artificial Sea-water for, 


Audiometer, 202 

aren Animals, Geological History 
or, 

Autumn, Gardening Hints for, 301 


Badcer, (EH. W.,) Suburban Gardening, 273, 


Bagnall, (J. E.,) Moss Habitats, 36, 89 

Bagnall, (J. E.,) Cryptogamie Flora of 
Warwickshire, 220, 253, 278 

Bagnall, (J. E.,) Excursion of the Bir- 
mingham Natural History Society to 
Falmouth, 228, 285 

Bagnall, (J. E.,) On Microscopical Pre- 
parations by Rey. J. E. Vize, 73 

Barmouth, Excursion to, 192 

Bathybius Heckelii, 236 

Beale, (C.,) Examination of Drift, 226 

Bedford Natural History Society, 213 

Bee-eater, 188, 210, 235, 258 

Bees in November, (1878,) 19 

— Starving in July, 234 

Beetles, Predaceous Water, of Leicester- 
shire, 57 

Protected by Ants, 144 

—— Bembidium adustum, 212. 


Bewdley Forest, Entomological Rambles 
in, 193, 229 

Birds—Age of, 25 

and their Habits, 83 

Blackbirds, Peculiar, 101 

Hawtinch, Notes on, 122, 123 

Jackdaw, a Venerable, 25 

Migratory, 23,158, 159, 160 

Mortality amongst, 52, 74, 98, 101 

Nest in a Letter Box, 211 

Rare in South Leicestershire, 94 

Thrush Singing at Night, 101 

Unusual Departure of, 76 

(see also Ornithology.) 

Birmingham Natural History Society: 

Excursion to Falmouth, 228 

Excursion to Arran, 182 

Museum for, 285 

Reference Library, Fire at the, 55 
— Restoration Fund, 81 

Bittern Shot, near Leicester, 53 

Blackbirds, 74, 77, 98, 101, 124, 159, 187 

Black Cap, 128, 159, 160 

Bladderworts and their Bladders, 12 

Blatch, (W. G.,) Bewdley Forest, 193, 229 

Blateh, (W. G.) Cannock Chase, 291 

Blatch, (W. G.,) Midland Entomology, 30 

Bolton, (Thos.,) Microscopists’ and Natu- 

paliste’ Agency, 50, 76, 97, 127, 162, 213, 


Books, Scientific, 28, 213, 310 

Borings, (Deep,) 161 

Boston Microscopical &. Society, 25 

Botanical Locality Record Club, Report 
of, (Review,) 69 

Botany—Bladderworts, 12 

Bulbs, Flowering, When to Plant, 


Calendar of Nature, 1878, 152 
Cause of Hardiness in Plants, 58, 


HUTT 


Chey eoanleuaaes alternifolium, 158, 


Placa of Hhguiatel 175 
ryptogamic Flora of Warwick- 
shire, 220, 253 ii 
Defoliation of Trees, 308 
Diphtheria Fungus, 289 
Fertilisation of Orchids, 21 

Ferns of Northants, 44 

Fungi, on the Study of, 145 
Hanes in Plants, Cause of, 53, 


Insectivorous Plants, 12, 265, 295 

Lichens, 81, 84, 129, 206 

Lichen-Flora of Great Britain, 
Ireland, and Channel Islands, 
81, (Review,) 206 

(See also Natural History Notes) 

Miero-fungi, 73, 84 


TE TTA 


il INDEX. 
— OO ese ee SCO Oo — 


Botany—Mogs Habitats, 36, 89 
Moss Flora, 221 

of Falmouth, 228, 285 

— Pollen of the Hazel, 128 

— Pollen, 129 

— Ripening of Fruits, 308 

—— Spring Flowers, 125, 158, 161, 162 
Structure of Pitcher Plants, 265,295 
Scarlet Runners, 284 

Botaurus stellaris, 53 


Brazil Wood, Rocks of, 243 
Brent Tor and Neighbourhood, Eruptive 
_ Rocks of, (Review,) 17 

Bristol Coal Fields, (Review,) 67 

British Association, Meeting of the, (1879,) 
236, (1880) 237 

Fresh-water Fishes, (Review,) 205 

Buckley, ,(Arabella B.,) Fairyland of 
Science, (Review,) 46 

Burnet Moth and Orchis pyramidalis, 21 

Burton -upon- Trent Natural History 
Society, Calendar of Nature, 152 

Butterflies, (British,) Bijou List of, 24 

Buzzard, (Honey,) 22, 235 

in North Notts, 128 


Caldon Low, Excursion to, 248 

Calendar of Nature, 1878, 152 

Callaway, (C.,) The Quartzites of Shrop- 

eRe shire, 39 

Callaway, (C.,) on Pre-Cambrian Rocks, 81 

Callaway, (C.,) Government Grant to, 103 

Cambridgeshire, Post Tertiary Deposits 
of, (Review,) 155 

Camera Obscura, Microscopie, 78 

Cannock Chase, Entomology of, 291 

Caradoc Sandstone, 39 

Carchesium polypinum, 88 

- spectabile, 204 

Cardiff Naturalists’ Society, Transactions, 
(Review,) 205 

Cat, Journey of a, 212 

Caterpillars: How to Find and How to 
Rear Them, 177 

Cells, 237 

Ceratodus, Teeth of the, 21 

Chaffinches, 98, 101, 153 

Charnwood Rocks, Garnets in, 77, 245 

Forest, 139, 168, 243 

Excursion to, 104,117, 173 

Chester Society of Natural 
Proceedings of, (Review,) 156 

Chiff-chaff, 124, 129, 168, 159, 160 

Chrysosplenium alternifolium, 158, 188 

Coal Fields of Bristol, 67 

— History of, 129 

eobuela, (T. 8.,) Parasites of Man, 7, 61, 


Cobbola, (T. §.,) Parasites of Man and 
Animals, 162 

Coccothraustes vulgaris, 77, 122, 123 

Coleoptera, 26, 32, 57, 92, 100, 108, 142, 212, 
216, 229 

Coleoptera, Notes on Collecting, &c., 92, 142 

Colours of Flowers, by F. T'. Mott, 175 

Compost for Flower Beds, 302 

Conchologist, A Query for a, 53 

Conchology, 21, 197 

Conversazione of the “ Midland Union,” 171 

Corn-crake, 187, 210 

Correspondence, 21, 52, 76, 100, 127, 158, 188, 
210, 284, 258, 283, 307 

Correspondents, Answers to, 28, 264 


History, 


Cotteswolds, Ancient Inhabitants of the,77 
Creswell Caves and Crags, 239 
Cryptogamic Botany, 72, 143, 145 

Flora of Warwickshire, 220, 253, 278 
Crystals, Spherical Projection of, 82 
Crystallisation of Water, by W. B. Grove,96 
Cuckoo, 128, 158, 158, 159, 161, 210 

Curlews, 234 


Dale Abbey, 105, 239 

Dallinger, (Rev. W.H.,) Lecture by, 310 

Daphnia Bairdii, (illust.,) 217, 284 

Defoliation of Trees, 308 

Derby, Ornithological Notes from, 101, 159 

Dick, (Robert,) Life of, by §. Smiles, 
(Review,) 207 

Diphtheria fungus, 289 

Distribution, Geographical, of Plants and 
Animals, 9 

Drege Objects under the Microscope, 
18, ‘ 


Pi 

Drift, Black Band in the, 127, 159, 189, 211 

Examination of, 201, 226 

of the West Midlands, 238 

Fossiliferous Bunter Pebbles in,283 

Druce, (G. C.,) Ferns of Northants, 44 

Ducks, Wild, 102 

Dudley and Midland Geological and 
Scientific Society, Proceedings, (illust.,) 
(Review,) 14, 21 


Ear, Human, 25 

Earth, Age of the, 163 

Edison’s Phonograph, 79 

Education in France, 132 

Hel, (Paste,) 129 

Eggs, 102, 129, 259 ; 

Elwes, (H. J.,) Geographical Distribution 
of Animals and Plants, 9 

Endowment of Research, 103 

Enock, (F.,) Insects Mounted Without 
Pressure, 97 

Entomology, 19, 24, 26, 30, 55, 57, 65, 76, 81, 
83, 92, 100, 130, 134, 142, 152, 161, 177, 187, 
193, 210, 212, 215, 229, 934, 247, 256, 258, 
283, 285, 291 

Midland, 30, 193, 229, 291 

Entomological Rambles in the Midlands, 
193, 229, 291 

Entomostracon, A New, (illust.,) 217 

Note on, 284 

Epistylis leucoa, 89 

Ethnology, 77 _ 

Htwall, Excursion to, 287 

Evesham, Vale of, Glacial Deposits, 106 

Exchange, 56, 84, 108, 216, 264, 312 

Excursions (see Societies—Reports of) 


Fairyland of Scienee, by Arabella B. 
Buckley, (Review,) 46 

Falmouth, Excursion to, 228, 311 : 

Fauna of the Quartzites of Shropshire, 44 

Ferns of Northants, by G. C. Druce, 44 

Fertilisation of Orchids, 21 

Festival of Gnaits, 247 

Fieldfares, 23, 76, 98, 128, 159 

Fire at the Birmingham Reference, 
Library, 55 

Fishes, History of British, (Review,) 205 

Fish, Double-headed Salmon, 100 

Query Artificial Food for, 53; 
Answered, 78, 100 


INDEX. 130] 


Fishes, Geographical Distribution of in 
India, 12 

Flower Gardening in Autumn, 301 

Flowers, Spring, 125, 158 

Colours of, 175 

Flycatcher, 187, 188, 210 

Foraminifera, British, ‘80 

Foreign Books, 28 

Forrest, (H. E.,) on Drawing Objects under 
the Microscope, 18 

Forrest, (H. E.,) The Natural History and 
Development of the Vorticellide, 
(illust.,) 85, 109 

Forrest, (H. E.,) On Carchesium Specta- 
bile, 204 

Forrest, (H. E.,) A New Entomostracon, 
(illust.,) 217 

Fossils, 161, 189, 283, 310 

» Rheetic, (illust.,) 14, 22 

Ceratodus, 21 
Fresh-water Tortoise, 189 
Fowl, Wild, 102 
saner (W. W.,) Notes on Coleoptera, 92 


Fresh-water Life, 85, 109, 127, 162, 204, 213, 
217, 225, 241, 258, 280, 283, 284 

Tortoise Fossil, 139 

Shells, 197 

Froghall, Excursion to, 132, 248 

Frost of December, 1878, 50 

Phenomena, 22, 53 

Fruits, Ripening of, 308 

Fungi, 73, 145, 221, 289 


Gall-making Plant Lice, 130 

Gardening, Suburban, 273, 301 

Garden Warbler, 158, 159 

Garnets in Charnwood Rocks, 77, 245 

Geese, Canada, 102 

Geese, (Wild,) 52, 102 

Genesis, Real Character of the Early 
Records of, (Review,) 71 

Geographical Distribution of Plants and 
Animals, 9 

of Fishes in India, 12 

Geological acces: The Woollaston Fund, 


Survey, Memoir, (Review,) 17 

Survey, 55 

Geologists, a Note for, 21 

Geology at the Crystal Palace, 162 

Black Band in the Drift, 127, 159, 
189, 211 

Ceratodus, 21 

Dudley Geological Society’s Pro- 
ceedings, (Review,) 14, 21 

Eruptive Rocks of Brent Tor and 
its Neighbourhood, (Review,) 17 

Examination of Drift, 201, 226 

Excursion to Froghall, Caldon 
Low, and Alton, 248 

Fossil Anstralian Ahimals, 134 

Fossil Fresh-water Tortoise, 189 

Fossiliferous Bunter Pebbles in the 
Drift, 283 

Sones in Charnwood Rocks, 77, 

Geological Record for 1876, 48 

Geological Survey, 55 

Glacial Deposits, 24, 106, 201, 226 

Gypsum Beds, near Burton-upon- 
Trent, 26 

History of Coal, 129 

Lyell’s Students’ Hlements of, 24 


WHEE TET 


Geology—Necroscilla Wilsoni, 310 

New Formations, 104 

Norwich Geological Society, 95 

—— of Hast Somerset and the Bristol 
Coalfields, (Review,) 67 

—— of Shropshire, 158 

— of Shropshire,by Charles Callaway, 


39, 81 
Pitchstone, Microscopical Struc- 
ture of, 107 
Post-Tertiary Deposits of Cam- 
bridgeshire, (Review,) 155 
— Practical, (Review,)16 
—— Pre-Cambrian Rocks, 103, 104 
—— Rambles with a Hammer, 117 
— Rocks of Brazil Wood, 243 
— tere Discharge of Rivers, 


18 
Study of Rocks, (Review,) 155 
Tablets to Mount Specimens on, 25 
The Quartzites of Shropshire, 39 
Two Pre-Cambrian Groups in 
Shropshire, 158 
Geological, (New,) Formation, 104 
Record for 1876, (Review,) 48 
(Norwich) Society, 55 
Geologists’ Association of London, 80 
Gilchrist Lectures, 260 
Glacial Deposits, 24, 106, 201, 226 
Glass, Roman, 130 
Gleanings, 24, 54, 79, 103, 129, 161, 213, 236, 
260,'310 
Gnats, a Festival of, 247 
Goldfinches, 187 
Gosse, (P. H.,) A Marine Aauarium, 1 
Grain, (W.,) Leptodora hyalina, (illust.,) 


Grasshopper Warbler, 159 

Grebe, 22, 211 

Grebe, (Crested,) 22 

Greylags, 102 

Grove, (W. B.,) Crystallisation of Water, 
(illust.,) 96 

Grove, (W. B.,) Scientific Names. II, Pro- 
nunciation, 268, 298 

Grove, (W. B.,) Review of Report of 
Botanical Locality Record Club for 
1877, 69 

Gull, (Glaucous,) 23 

Gypsum Beds near Burton-upon-Trent, 26 


Hardiness in Plants, Cause of,'53, 63 

Hardy Spring Flowers, 162 

Harrison, (W. J.,) Practical Geology, 
(Review,) 16 

HiRISE, (W.J.,)Rambles with a Hammer, 
1 


Harrison (W. J.) and §. Allport on the 
Rocks of Brazil Wood, Charnwood 
Forest, 243 

Harrison, (W. J.,) Meteorology of the 
Midlands, 19, 50, 74, 98, 124, 157, 186, 
208, 233, 256, 282, 306 

Harrison, (W. J.) Rutley’s Eruptive Rocks 
of Brent Tor, (Review,) 17 

Hart, (G. W.,) On Drawing Objects under 
the Microscope, 78 

Hawfinches, 77, 122, 123, 160 

Hazel Pollen, 128 

Heat, Mechanical Equivalent of, 107 

Hedge Fauvet, 98 

Hedgehog, 54 

Helix cantiana, 21 

Hen’s Eggs, Abnormal, 102, 129, 269 


1v INDEX. 


Heslop (Dr.) on Lucretius, 286 

Hicks, (H.,) On New Geological Foima- 
tions, 104 

Hoarfrost, 22 

Houghton, (W.,) History of British Fresh- 
water Fishes, (Review,) 205 

as (W. R.,) Marine Zoology at Arran, 


Huxley, Professor, 24, 46 
Hydradephaga of Leicestershire, 57 


Ice, (Antarctic,) Thickness of the, 103 
Crystals, 96 

Ichthyology, 205 

Illustrations of Rheetice Fossils, 14 
Immersion, (Oil,) Zeiss, 18 
Tepapiiants, Ancient, of the Cotteswolds, 
Insecta, 114 

Insects Mounted without Pressure, 97 
Injurious, 258 
Unsymmetrical, 258 
Insectivorus Plants, 12, 265 

Instinct or Reason, 212 


Jackdaw, Age of, 25 

Jeffrey's (Gwyn) on Pronunciation of 
Scientific Names, 308 

Jukes-Browne’s, (A. J.,) Post-Tertiary 
posite of Cambridgeshire, (Review,) 


Jungermannis, 73 


Larks, 102 

La Touche, (J. D.,) On the Measurement of 
me Sedimentary Discharge of Rivers, 

cieceter, Midland Union Meeting at, 137 
165 

Leicestershire, Water Beetles of, 57 

South, Rare Birds in, 94 

Delgnton, (W.A.,) Lichen Flora, (Review,) 


Lepidoptera, 21, 24, 31, 65, 161, 210, 234, 258 

Leptodora hyalina, (illust.,) 225, 238, 258, 
260, 263, 283, 307, 310 

Levick, (J.,) A New Rotifer, (illust.,) 241 

Levick, (J.,) A Tube-dwelling Stentor, 280 

Lewes, (George Henry,) Studentship, 261 

Library, Fire at the Birmingham Refer- 
ence, 55 

Lice, Gall-making, 130 

Lichens, 78, 81, 129, 206 

Lichen-Flora of Great Buitain, 81, 206 

Life, 29, 236, 310 

— Duration of, 129 

Liverpool, Learned Societies of, Scientific 
Soiree, 80 

Lloyd, (R. M.,)Artificial Sea- water, 151 

Lowe (HK. J.) and Musson (C. T.,) Notting- 
pespetire Land andFresh-waterShells, 
1 

Lubbock (Sir J.) on Leptodora hyalina, 260 

Lucretius and his Philosophy, 286 

Lyell’s Student’s Elements of Geology, 24 


Macaulay, (Thos.,) Rare Ornithological 
Occurrences in South Leicestershire, 


94 
Mackintosh, (D.,) on Glacial Deposits, 24 
Magpie, 153 


Man, Parasites of, 7, 61, 112 

Ancient, 77 

Manures for Gardens, 276 

Marine Aquarium, A, 1 

Zoology at Arran, 182 

Zoology at Falmouth, 228 

Marsden’s Bijou List of British Butter- 
flies, 24 

ge ca (H. W.,) Natural History Agency, 


Martins, 159, 161, 187, 188, 256 
Melicerta ringens, 18 
tubicolaria, 80 
tyro, 80, 163 
Menu Card, a Curious, 214 
Merops apiaster, 188,210, 235, 258 
Meteorology Text Book, 125, 310 
of the Midlands, 19, 50, 74, 98, 124, 
157, 186, 208, 233, 256,282 . 
Symons British Rainfall for 1878, 
Remarkable Rainfall, 259 
American Predictions of Coming 
Storms, 261 
Micro-F ungi, 73, 84 
Micro-spectroscope, (the,) 215 
Microscope, Method of Drawing Objects 
under, 18, 78 
Camera Obscura for, 78 
Enock’s Insect Slides, 97 
For Petrology, 213 
Living Objects for, 97, 127 
Mounting Specimens, 25, 52, 76 
Objectives for, 18, 19 
Sharpus’s Method of Mounting 
Slides, 126 
Slides, 73,97, 108 
Snow Crystals under, 76 
Swift’s College, 19, 213 
Weber’s Slide, (illust.,) 98 
Microscopical Society at Boston, 25 4 
Postal, 49 
Royal Society’s Journal, 80 : 
Journal, American Quarterly, 103 
Preparations, 73, 97, 126 
Micioscopist’s Agency, 50 
Microscopy, 18, 19, 49, 73, 97, 126 
Midland Entomology, by W. G. Blatch, 30, 
193, 229 
100 
Midland Naturalist, (the,) 24, 53 
Midland Union of Natural History Socie- 
ties, 53, 81, 103, 104, 136, 137, 141, 
161, 165, 213 
—— Annual Meeting at Leicester, 81, 
104, 136, 187, 141, 165 
— Conversazione, 136, 171 
—— Report of Council, 167 
—— Excursion to Charnwood Forest, 
136, 173 
— President’s Address, 137 
— List of Societies in, 168 
—— Annual Meeting for 1880 
—— Andthe Bedford Nutural History 
Society, 213 
And the Nottingham High School 
Natural History Society, 103 
Migratory Birds, 158, 159 
Minutest Forms of Life, 310 
Mock Sun, 161 
Mollusea, 21, 164, 197 
Molluscan Threads, 54 
Monads, 310 


Moss Flora, 221 


TTT 


INDEX. Vv 


Moss Habitats, by Jas. E. Bagnall, 36, 89 

Mosses, 73, 220 

Moth, (Puss,) 234 

Mott, (F. T.,) The Scale of Being, 29 

Mott, (F. T.,) Hardiness in Plants, 63 

Mott, (F. T.,) The Colours of Flowers, 175 

Mott, (Ff. T.,) A Festival of Gnats, 247 

Mois, (F. T.,) on Frost Phenomena, 22 

Musson (C. T.) and Lowe (EH. J.) Land 
and Fresh-water Shells of Nottingham- 
shire, 197 

Mounting Specimens for the Microscope, 
25, 52, 76, 97, 126 


Names, Scientific, Pronunciation of, 268, 
298, 308, 310 

Natural History Agency, 261 

Natural History Notes, 74, 98, 124, 152, 158, 
187, 210, 234, 256, 283, 307 

Book Circular, 213 

Natural History and Development of the 
Vorticellidee, 85, 109 

of the Ant, 55 

Nature, Calendar of, 152 

Naturalists’ Union, Yorkshire, 29 

Necroscilla Wilsoni, 310 

Nematoda, 7, 61 

Nest, a Strange Place for a, 211 

Nets for Collecting Coleoptera, 142 

Nightingale, 158, 159, 161, 187, 188, 211 

Nightjar, 210 

Northampton Castle, Excavations at, 54 

Northampton Natural History Society, 24 

Northants, Ferns of, 44 

Norwich Geological Society, 55 

Nottingham High School Natural History 
Soeiety, 103 

Nottinghamshire Land and Fresh-water 
Shells, 197 


Object Glasses for Mioroscope, 18, 19 

Gicistes umbella, 80 

Oil Immersion Lens, 18 

Olton Reservoir, 241 

Ophiocoma, 126 

Ophiolepis Damesii, 22 

Orchids, Fertilisation of, 21 

Orchis pyramidalis, 21 

Ornithological Society, New, 213 

Ornithology, 19, 22, 23, 25, 52, 63, 54, 74, 76, 
83, 94, 98, 101, 102, 122, 124, 128, 129, 133, 
152, 158, 159, 160, 161, 187, 188, 210, 211, 
213, 235, 256, 258, 261, 309, 310 

Ousel, Water, 23 

Owl, 102 


Paleontographical Society, 79, 214 

Palzxontology, 14, 16, 22, 44, 161, 189, 283 

Parasites, 162 

of Man, 7, 61, 112 

Partridges, Scarcity of, 253 

Passages from Popular Lectures, by F. T. 
Mott. II. The Scale of Being, 29 

Paste-eel, 129 

Pears and Apples, Exhibition of, 260 

Pebbles, Fossiliferous Bunter, in Drift, 283 

Pemis Apivorus, 22, 235 

Penarth, Ceratodus at, 21 

Petrology, a Book on, 55 

Microscope for, 213 

Phalarope, Grey, 259 

Phonograph, 79 


Phosphorescent Sea Weed, 260 

Photography, 54 

Autotype Process of, 26 

Pitcher Plants, On the Structures of, 
(illust.,) 265, 295 

Pitchstone, Microscopic Structure of, 107 

Plants and Animals, Geographical Distri- 
bution of, 9 

Plant Lice, Gall-making, 180 

Plants, What ae ee Cause of Hardiness 

in? 

Podiceps Cristatus, 22 

Answered by F. T. Mott, 68 

Pollen, 129 

of the Hazel, 128 

Polyzoa, (Fresh-water,) 26, 52, 76 

Mounting of, 76 

Popular Lectures, Passages from, 29 

Pools. Productive, 284 

Post-Tertiary Deposits of Cambridgeshire, 
(Review,) 155 

Postal Microscopical Society, 49 

Potato Disease, 149 

Pre-Cambrian Rocks, 103 

Groups in Shropshire, 158 

Predaceous Water Beetles of Leicester- 
shire, 57 

Fre gonous, American, of Coming Storms, 


Prionus coriarius, 26 

Prism, Rectangular, 18, 76 

Pronunciation of Scientific Names, 268, 298, 
308, 310 

Protamceba primitiva, 237 

Prothobathybius, 237 

Protoplasm, 236 

Puss Moth, 234 


Quail, 188 


Rails, (Water,) 102 

(Land,) 187, 188 

Rambles with a Hammer, 117 

Railway Cuttings, 127, 159, 489 

near Walsall, 201, 226 

Rainfall, (Remarkable;) 259 

1865—1879, 212 

—— 1878, 52, 213 : 

of November, 1878, 20; December, 
51; January, 1879, 75; February, 
99; March, 125; April, 157; May, 
186; June, 208; July, 233; 
August, 256; September, 282; 
October, 306. 

Rambles, Entomological, 
Forest, 193, 229 

Ray Society, 214 

Razorbill, 102 

Reason or Instinct, 212 

Redstart, 158, 188 

Redwings, 23, 76, 98, 128 

Reports of Societies, see Societies. 

Repton, Pre-Norman History of, 82 

Revivification, 129 


Reviews : 
Locality Record Club 


in Bewdley 


Botanical 
Report, 69 

Cardiff Naturalists’ Society’s Transac- 
tions, 205 

Geological Record for 1876, by W. 
Whitaker, 48 

Geology of East Somerset and the 
Bristol Coal Fields, 67 


vi INDEX. 


Reviews : 
History of British Fresh-water Fishes, 
by Rev. W. Houghton, 205 
Lichen-Flora of Great Britain, Ireland, 
&e., by Rev. W. A. Leighton, 206 
On the Real Character of the Early 
Records of Genesis, 71 
Post-Tertiary Deposits of Cambridge- 
shire, by A. J. Jukes-Browne, 155 
Peni Geology, by W. J. Harrison, 
1 
Proceedings of the Chester Society of 
Natural History, No. 2, 156 
Proceedings of the Dudley and Midland 
Geological and Scientific Society, 
No. 5, Vol. 3, (illust.,) 14 
Robert Dick, Geologist and Botanist, 
by S. Smiles, 207 
Small Heath Literary Magazine, 48 
Study of Rocks, by F. Rutley, 155 
The Eruptive Rocks of Brent Tor, &c., 
by F. Rutley, 17 : 
The Fairy-Land of Science, by 
Arabella Buckley, 46 
Rheetic pera, (illust.,) 14, 21, 22 
Beds, 16 
Starfish, 22 
Rivers, Sedimentary Discharge of, 218 
Robins, 98, 101, 259 
Robson, (G.,) Preduceous Water Beetles of 
Leicestershire, 57 
Rocks, Pre-Cambrian, 103, 104, 158 
The Study of, (Review,) 155 
Eruptive, of Brent Tor, &c., 
(Review,) 17 
Charnwood, Garnets in, 77 
Roman Glass, 130 
Villa at Chedworth, 216 
Rooks, 74, 101, 102, 124, 159, 160, 161, 211 
Rotifer, a New, (illust.,) 241 
Rotifers, 52, 76, 80, 82, 241 
Mounting of, 76 
Rutley, (F.,) The Eruptive Rocks of Brent 
Tor, (Review,) 17 
Rutley, (F.,) Study of Rocks, (Review,) 155 


Salmon, Double-headed, 100 
Sandpiper, 258 
Sarcode, 236 
Scale of Being, 29 
Scarlet Runners, Scarcity of, 284 
Scientific Book Circular, 213 
Names, Pronunciation of, 268, 299, 
308, 310 
Scriptograph, The, 235 
Sea Birds in Birmingham, 211 
Sea: water, Artificial, 151, 246 
Seaweed Phosphorescent, 260 
Seasonable Observations, 161, 188, 189 
Sedimentary Discharge of Rivers, 218 
Sedge Warbler, 159 
Sharpus’s Method of Mounting Micro- 
scopic Objects, 126 
Shells of Snails, How are they Formed, 53 
Land and Fresh-water, 197 
Societies—Reports of: 
Bedfordshire Natural History, 215 
Birmingham and Midland Institute 
Scientific, 25, 56, 82, 105, 132, 164 
189, 215, 263, 284, 310 
Birmingham Natural History and 
Microscopical, 26, 56, 81,104, 131,163, 
190, 214, 238, 263, 284, 310 
Birmingham Philosophical, 82, 286 


Societies—Reports of 

Birmingham School Natural History, 
82, 105, 190, 310 

Burton Natural History and Archeeo- 
logical, 26, 82, 105, 287, 310 

Caradoc Field Club, 106, 216, 238, 288 

Cheltenham Natural Science, 27, 56, 
83, 132,164, 190, 288, 310 

Dudley ‘and Midland Geological and 
Scientific, 106, 132, 191 

Dudley and Midland Geological and 
Scientific, (Review,) 14 

Evesham Field Naturalists’ Club, 106, 
164, 310 

Nori tank Dyan. Natural History, 83, 133, 


Nottingham High School Natural 
History, 84 

Nottingham Neto 27, 108, 134, 
191, 239, 263, 288, 310 

Nottingham Literary and Philoso- 
phinel 27, 56, 84, 107, 134, 164, 191, 239, 


Oswestry and Welshpool Naturalists’ 
Field Club, 240, 263, 288 

Peterborough Natural History and 
Scientific, 27, 192 

Rugby School Natural History, 28, 84 

Severn Valley Naturalists’ Field Club, 
108, 192, 216 

Binal Heath Literary and Scientific, 


28, 56 
Stroud Natural History and Philoso- 
phical, 28, 84, 135, 216, 246, 310 
Woolhope Naturalists’ Field Club, 135, 
240, 264 
Shipman, (J.,) An Excursion to Froghall, 
Caldon Low, and Alton, 248 
Shropshire, the Quartzites of, 39 
Pre Cambrian Groups in, 158 
Siskins, 161 
Sina a Long, 234 
Heath Literary Magazine, (Review,) 


Smiles, (S.,) Life of Robert Dick, (Review,) 


Smith, (Fredk.,) Obituary Notice, 103 

Snails, How are the Shells of Formed ? 53 

Snipe, 102, 258 

Snow Buntings, 77 

Snow Crystals, 52, 71 

Flakes, 127 

in May on Snowdon, 161 

Soiree of Learned Societies at Liverpool, 80 

Somerset, (East,) Geology of the, 67 

Southall, (W.,) Bladderworts and their 
Bladders, 12 

Southall, (W.,) on Artificial Sea-water, 246 

Sparrows, 152 

Specimens, Mounting, 25, 52, 76, 97, 126 

Sporidiifera, 150 

Sporifera, 150 

Spring Gardening, hints, 301 

Spring, Early Signs of, 76 

Hardy Flowers, 162 

Starlings, 23, 74, 98, 101, 128, 301 

Stentor, A Tube-dwelling, 280 

Stephenson, (G.,) Presidential Address 
to the Midland Union of Natural 
History Societies, 137 

Stiper Stones, 44 

Stock Dove, 102 

Stonehenge, 77 

Storms, American Predictions of, 261 

Strix stridula, 102 


“ 


INDEX. vil 


Studentship, (G. H. Lewes,) 261 
Structures of Pitcher Plants, (illust.,) 265 
Suburban Gardening, 272 

Suctoria, 113 

Sun, (Mock,) 161 

“etal 23,101, 153, 158, 159, 160, 161, 187, 


‘Swifts, 161, 187 
Swilt’s Microscopes, 1°, 213 
Symon’s British Rainfall for 1878, 213 


Tablets for Mounting Specimens, 25, 52 

Tait, (Lawson,) On the Structures of 
Pitcher Plants, (illust.,) 265, 295 

Teal, 102 

Telephone, 203 

Temperature, November, 1878, 20, Decem- 
ber, 51; January, 1879. 75 ; February, 
99; March, 125; April, 157; May, 186; 
June, 206; July, 233; August, 256; 
September, 282; October, 306 

Thistles, 100 

Thornewill, (Rey. C. F.,) On Caterpillars: 
How to Find and Rear, 177 

Thrushes, 74.:76, 98, 101, 152, 187, 259 

Higgs, 188, 210, 211 

Tit, Greater, 211 

Tomlinson (H. G.) on Birds and their 
Habits, 83 

Tortoise, Fossil Fresh-water, 189 

Trochosphere of Polyzoon, 26 

Trout, (Embryo of,) Circulation in, 76 

Tube-dwelling Stentor, 280 

Turtle Dove, 188, 210 

Twigg, (G. H.,) Examination of Drift, Rail- 
way Cutting, near Walsall, 201 


Utricularia intermedia, 12 
Utricularia Minor, 12. 


Viper, (Common,) Viperis hornis, 23 

Vivisection, 190 

Vize, (J. E.,) Introduction to the Study of 
Fungi, 145 

Vize, (J. E.,) Microscopic Preparations of 
Fungi, &c., 73 

Vize, (J. E.,) on the Diphtheria Fungus, 289 

Volvox Globator, Life History of, 311 

Vorticella nebulifera, 86 

Vorticellidze,Natural History and Develop- 
ment of, (illust.,) 85, 109 


Wagtail, 188, 258 

Walsall, Railway Cutting near, 201, 226 

Warbler, (Garden,) 158, 159 

(Sedge,) 159 

(Grasshopper,) 159 

Weael, Cryptogamic Flora of, 220, 

By 

Washwood Heath, Black Band in the 
Drift, 127 

Water, (Sea,) Artificial, 151, 246 

Water, Crystallisation of, 96 

Rails, 102, 160 

Beetles, Predaceous, of Leicester- 
shire, 57 

Wax-wing, 101 

Weather of November, 1878, 19; Decem- 
ber, 1878, 50; January, 1879, 74; Feb- 
ruary, 98; March,125; April,157; May, 
186; June, 208; July, 233; August, 256; 
September, 282; October, 306 

Webevr’s Slide for Microscopic Objects, 98 

Wheat-ears, First Appearance of, 212, 234 

Whinchat, 188, 210 

Whitaker, (W.,) Geological Record, 1876, 
(Review,) 48 

Whitaker, (W.,) On Dudley Geological, &c., 
Society’s Proceedings, 21 

Whitethroats, 159, 160 

Wigeon, 102 

Wills, (A.W.,) on Volvox Globator, 311 

Wilson, (Wright,) On the Audiometer, 202 

Winter, (Severe,) of 1878-9, 55 

Winterbotham, (R.,) On the Real Character 
of the Early Records of Genesis, 
(Review,) 71 

Woodpeckers, 101, 160 

Woodward, C. J.,) on Spherical Projection, 
applied to Crystallography, 82 

Woodward, (H. B.,) Geology of Hast 
Somerset, &c., (Review,) 67 

Woodward, (H. B.,) Review of Harrison’s 
Practical Geology, 16 

Woollaston Fund, the, 80 

Wrekin, Church Stretton Area, 39 

Wren, 159, 160 

Wryneck, 102, 128, 160, 188 


Yellow Ammers, 102 
Yorkshire Naturalists’ Union, 129 


Zeiss Oil Immersion Lens for Micro- 
scopical Work, 18 

Zoology, Marine, at Arran, 182 

Marine, at Falmouth, 228 

Zoothamnium arbuscula, 109 


1879. 
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THE MIDLAND NATURALIST. 


“Come forth into the light of things, 
Let Nature be your teacher.” 


A MARINE AQUARIUM.* 


BY PHILIP HENRY GOSSE, F.R.S. 


Since you wish to know some details of the construction and 
working of my new Marine Tank, I send you the following notes. In 
the spring of 1876, I determined to erect an Aquarium, the water of 
which should be in constant circulation ; and I decided to adopt the plan 
of the Crystal Palace Aquarium, viz., that in which the ratio of the 
water in the show-tank to the water in reserve unseen, is as 1 to 5. 


My old kind friend, Mr. W. Alford Lloyd, contemporary and fellow 
labourer from the first in aquarian development, gave me the invaluable 
aid of his counsel in every step of the work; ever suggesting and 
improving, as it went on, with a zeal which could not have been 
exceeded if the scheme had been hisown. The mechanical contrivances 
and fittings were supplied by the eminent engineers, Messrs. Leete, 
Edwards, and Norman, to whose courtesy, skill, and thoroughness of 
work, I bear willing witness. The Tanks were made and put together, 
and the whole erected and set a-going, by mechanics of the place. 


In the servants’ front of my house was an apartment used as a 
lumber room, whose floor was about 12 feet from the ground, with a 
window looking N.W. ‘This window I took out, and enlarged, for the 
reception of the show-tank (henceforth to be distinctively the ‘“‘ Tank”) ; 
and the room itself was dubbed the “‘ Aquarium.” 


The window looked upon a yard, across which was an out-house 
used as a coal-cellar. The farther corner of this house I excavated, for 
the reception of a strong slate tank (the ‘ Reservoir”), which was 
sunk so that its top was level with the ground. 


Another slate tank (the ‘“‘Cistern”) was placed within the roof, 
immediately over the Tank, resting partly on the summit of the stone 
wall of the house, and partly on the rafters, which were strengthened 
for the purpose. 


* In a letter to Mr. William R. Hughes, F.L.S., Birmingham. 


These three vessels were made of squared slabs of best slate, 
varying in thickness from lin. (base) to lin. (sides), which were bolted 
together with iron rods, tightened by screws and nuts at the ends. All 
the internal angles were filled with Portland cement. The Tank had 
that side which faced the interior of the room, made of din. plate-glass. 


J) A MARINE AQUARIUM. 


The dimensions and capacities of these vessels were as follows :— 
Tank 42in. long, 18in. wide, 18in. deep, in the clear; each inch of depth 
equal to 2°73 gallons; 49 gallons in total. Reservoir 623in. long, 35}in. 
wide, 26}in. deep, each inch equal to 8 gallons; 210 gallons in total. 
Cistern 34in. long, 34in. wide, 27in. deep, holding 112 gallons. 


The Reservoir in the cellar was first put together, sunk in place, 
proved water tight, and the earth rammed around it, in May. Harly in 
June a water cart, viz., a hogshead on wheels, was filled thrice with the 
crystal water of Oddicombe shingle-beach, and emptied by a hose into it, 
giving me 210 gallons of pure sea-water in my Reservoir, which was 
protected from dust by a strong and tight cover of wood, divided and 
hinged in the middle for convenience of examination. 


Early in September the whole apparatus of pump, pipes, valves, 
&c., arrived from the engineers, to be described in detail ; and immediately 
the masonry of the house was opened to receive the Cistern and the 
Tank. A large opening having been made in the gable above the window, 
two cross-joists of 4in. square deal were inserted in the ceiling from the 
gable-wall to the centre beam. The base of the Cistern was got up, and 
laid in situ, square and level, save a din. inclination to §.W., that 
it might be emptyable to the last drop. A hole was now drilled in this 
S.W. part of the base, for insertion of the jet pipe, over the Tank; and 
another on the N.E. side, for insertion of the warning pipe. The sides of 
the Cistern were then set-up in Portland cement, bolted together, and 
smoothed within and without. 


The base and sides of the Tank were put into place, first tentatively, 
until the Cistern, and the pump with its pipes, were adjusted ; and then 
finally, cemented and bolted ; and the plate-glass front was bedded in lead 
putty in its grooves, well worked in, and smoothed off. Before this last, 
however, the siphonal apparatus was prepared and affixed, which will 
presently be described. 

Thus, then, the three continent vessels were in place, and appeared 
perfect. But these alone were of little avail. A large volume of sea- 
water, indeed, had been lying for more than three months quiescent in 
the lowest, dark and cool below the earth-level, and still brilliantly 
pure, as a tumblerful dipped out proved. But we wanted to lift this 
water out of the Reservoir into the Cistern in the roof, to transmit it 
thence into the Tank, and thence again into the Reservoir; and to do 
this perpetually, without an instant’s intermission, day and night, by a 
constant circular current. 


The apparatus by which this was effected I must now proceed to 


describe. 
1.—The Pump. This was an ordinary lift-pump, of great strength, 
and great accuracy of workmanship, the materials of which were steel, 


A MARINE AQUARIUM. 3 


vulcanite and glass. The last-named material was strongly reeommended 
to me by Mr. Lloyd, for the pump barrel; a cylinder of plate-glass 
turned and polished within and without, so as to be mathematically 
true, with turned and polished balls of glass to act as valves. These 
can be obtained only from one house in England, that of Chedgey, in the 
Borough, maker and patentee. They are in demand for vinegar and 
other acid-works, for the same reason that made one valuable to me. 
Mr. Lloyd first procured one from the maker, with much personal 
trouble and difficulty, so greatly does the demand exceed the supply ;— 
and then, with characteristic kindness, compelled me to accept it as his 
gift. It is 3in.in diameter internally, and 8in. high; has a capacity of 
13 pint, when making its available stroke of 6in., after allowing for the 
thickness of the piston; and it weighs 4lbs.120z. For this the engineers 
made two metal caps, one above and one below; which were then joined 
by. two metal rods parallel to the barrel, screwed and nutted to the caps. 
To avoid oscillation in pumping, the fulcrum was fixed, independent of 
the barrel, to the stout wooden plank which carried the pump; and a 
“ fork and cradle” motion insured parallelism of the piston-rod by means 
of a “guide,” also fixed independently to the plank. This relieves the barrel 
from all side strains, which might break it. The piston-rod was of 
polished steel; the fulcrum (handle) and loop of iron. 

This pump, firmly affixed to a stout plank, we set upright against the 
wall of the Aquarium, immediately on the right hand of the Tank; and 
at such a height that the surface of the full Tank was level with the 
mid-height of the barrel. Then we firmly bolted the plank to one of the 
rafters of the house. 

2.—The Supply-pipes. But the pump was to be a forcing pump (‘* lift 
and drive”), and not merely a lifting pump. Therefore, the valve ball, 
descending by the up-stroke of the fulcrum, opens a chamber, in which 
there is a second ball. This is so far lifted, by the in-forced water from 
the barrel, as to open a pipe (the Cistern supply-pipe), which proceeding 
up through the ceiling delivers it into the Cistern above. The Pump 
supply-pipe, a stout tube of vulcanite, commencing 6in. from the bottom 
of the Reservoir, passing over its edge, under the surface of the soil, 
across the yard, through the foundation of the house, up the interior of 
the wall, through the ceiling of the ground-floor, joins the bottom of the 
pump-barrel; and, at every down-stroke of the handle, delivers one and 
a-half pint of water from the reservoir into the glass barrel; which 
water is, the very next moment, by the up-stroke, poured into the Cistern 
above. Into the perforate bottom of the Cistern, another tube (the jet- 
pipe) is screwed; which, proceeding vertically downward to within close 
proximity to the surface of the Tank, allows the water to descend by its 
own gravity, and fill the Tank. 

The force and rapidity, with which this descending column of water 
shall enter, are regulated by a series of jets, or thimbles of vulcanite, in 
all which a screw is cut with one common thread, to screw on the 
extremity of the jet-pipe. These are pierced with a minute hole, very 
truly drilled, whose bore is different in each, according to the special 
requirement of the Tank. 


4 A MARINE AQUARIUM. 


—_—— 


3.—The Waste-pipe. A vulcanite pipe leaves the right side of the 
Tank near the front, and carries away the spare water to the Reservoir, 
passing down alongside of the Pump-supply-pipe. The position of its 
exit, about 2in. from the margin, of course determines the level at which 
the water always stands in the Tank. It was at first proposed that this 
should be a simple pipe, screwed into a hole in the side; but this would 
have carried off only the surface-water. To make the circulation com- 
plete, I chose to take it from a point very near the bottom. To ayoid 
the uncouth appearance of a pipe, however, Mr. Lloyd deyised the 
following contrivance. A slab of slate, 24in. wide, lin. thick, and as 
high as the Tank, has a semi-cylindrical groove gouged out of one 
face, but not reaching quite so far as either end. Its upper end meets 
the hole in the side of the Tank at the surface, while its lower end meets 
a similar hole bored through the slab itself. The slab being firmly 
cemented in place, the water in the Tank, entering through the 
horizontal hole, rises in the hidden groove (now become a tube) till it 
reaches the exit-hole in the Tank, when it begins, and continues, to 
trickle out through the waste-pipe. Thus the Tank can never overflow, 
unless the inflow be more copious than the bore of the waste-pipe can 
carry off, or this pipe become choked. To meet the latter peril, a 
strainer was cemented around the interior orifice, in this form: suppose a 
shallow box of vulcanite, to which there is no cover; the bottom drilled 
with a number of holes tin. wide. This is set up on one of its sides, on 
the Tank-bottom, with its lidless top in contact with the lower part of 
the slab, the perforated bottom (now become the side) facing the interior 
of the Tank. It is not cemented, but merely kept in position by a heavy 
piece of the rock-work ; because I need sometimes to remove it, in order 
to cleanse the straining-holes. By this contrivance (while the water can 
freely percolate and escape), since nothing larger than the pin-holes can 
pass, the waste-pipe, which is of lin. bore, clear, can never become 
choked. 

4.—The Siphon. It was judged desirable to have the power of 
lowering the surface in the Tank, and even of emptying it of water, at 
pleasure, without dipping. For this object the waste-pipe was cleverly 
turned into a Siphon, in this wise. The waste-pipe, after leaving the 
Tank, runs horizontally for a foot, before it reaches the pump-plank, and 
turns to the perpendicular. In the midst of this space a stop-cock of 
vulcanite is inserted, which ordinarily is left open, and serves as an air- 
vent. But, if I wish to draw off the water from the Tank, I take the 
tip of the stop-cock into my mouth, and suck strongly, till the salt water 
comes rushing up. This should be sufficient; but in practice I find it 
needful to suck such a mouthful thrice at least, before the up-current of 
water is strong enough to pour continuously, which is manifest to the \ 
ear, as it roars down the perpendicular waste-pipe. I have carefully to 
close the stop-cock with my fingers at each suck, before I withdraw my 
mouth; or the vacuum, in part formed, would be again destroyed. The 
water sucked into my mouth I instantly discharge into the Tank at 
each effort. When the current is set up, the surface in the Tank is seen 
rapidly to descend, until it is as low asI wish; when, the opening of 


A MARINE AQUARIUM. 5 


the stop-cock destroying the vacuum, the outflow instantly ceases; and 
the jet-pipe in due course refills it. 

5 &—The Warning-pipe. In pumping, the Cistern which we are fill- 
ing is out of sight in the roof above. In order to know when it is full, 
that we may not allow it to overflow, a small pipe is inserted into the 
side of the Cistern, an inch below the brim; which, leading down 
through the ceiling, ends at a few inches over the surface of the Tank. 
This is in sight of the person who is pumping, who cannot help hearing 
the babble of the stream, and seeing its sparkle, as it comes suddenly 
pouring down the warning-pipe; and he makes not a single stroke more. 

These were, I think, all the essentials to the working of the scheme ; 
but one or two additions were subsequently made, which I will describe. 
The jet thimbles could never be removed or replaced, without causing 
an annoying splash of water all around one’s person and the furniture. 
To obviate this I had a vulcanite stop-cock inserted into the jet pipe, 
just above the jet. ThusI could close the pipe, before I unscrewed the 
jet; and I had now no more splashing. I have found this stop-cock 
useful in another way. When I siphon-off the water with the object of 
getting rid of the impalpable organic mud and humus, which commonly 
accumulates on the bottom, I remove the jet, and allow the jet-pipe to 
pour down its vertical torrent in full force. Thus all the moveable 
matters held in suspension, are whirled about; and very many of them 
are carried, in the siphon, down the waste-pipe to the Reservoir; where 
they settle quietly on the bottom, the organic parts dissolve, and the in- 
organic slowly accumulate in a thin pellicle on the bottom, requiring to 
be cleaned out, perhaps in a dozen years hence. 

Although the sea-water originally put into the Reservoir was 
brilliantly clear and pure, and the wooden lid was made to fit close, we 
yet thought it prudent to guard against the possibility of extraneous 
matters being drawn into the supply-pipe, during the pumping, and so 
choking it. Accordingly a tight bell-shaped box of vulcanite was made 
to screw on to the bottom of the supply-pipe, about 6in. from the floor 
of the Reservoir. The bottom and sides of this box were drilled with 
many 4in. holes; so that it serves as a strainer, like that at the bottom 
of the waste-pipe. 

The pipes were all made in lengths, with the requisite angles and 
connections ; and were sent from London, carefully numbered, according 
to copious working-drawings. No bend can in the least degree be changed, 
vulcanite being inflexible and brittle. Every piece was fitted and screwed 
to its fellow, and ‘‘payed” with red-lead; some of the joints being also 
“served” with muslin. The lengths beneath the surface of the yard 
were carefully rammed with earth; and those which passed up the house- 
wall were secured to the joist by semi-circles of iron; and then inclosed 
in a narrow box of board, for facility of examination in case of need. 
The new window sash was now hung on hinges from the upper frame, 
and opened outward, to different degrees, by graduated metal quadrants, 
above the Tank ; the area, much wider than originally, was made a bay- 
form recess, which allowed of a little useful angle on each side of the 
Tank. The pump, the pipes, the slate of the tank, were all painted 


6 A MARINE AQUARIUM. 


black; an ornamental rim of polished Spanish mahogany was made to sit 
on the edge of the tank; acurtain was hung to conceal the pump; and 
the room generally made presentable. 


By the end of September the whole was in place, and water was 
admitted into the Tank. Not till the last of October, however, were 
organisms admitted, in the forms of growing Algsw and Fishes. For it 
must not be supposed that all went quite smooth. The pump would not 
draw at first ; we found that the pipes leaked, and would not deliver, till 
we had had much labour. Then the pump would “go back ;” the water 
retiring from the barrel sooner or later, after the pumping had ceased; 
so that sometimes it required more than a hundred strokes of the handle, 
before the water would rise. This difficulty still continues, in a mitigated 
form; itis the only one which we have never quite overcome. Then 
the siphon would not act at all for some time ; but, after several months, 
one day, quite suddenly and unexpectedly, it acted perfectly, and has 
gone well ever since. 


As soon as we were in regular work, I found that my supply of water 
was inadequate. Some had been wasted, too; some had leaked in the 
imperfect fitting of the pipes’ joints. Accordingly a further quantity was 
brought up, which made my stock as follows:—Reservoir, 180 gallons; 
Cistern, 60; Tank, 40; equal to 280 gallonsin all. And this quantity 
has never since needed to be replenished. Its quality seems to have 
steadily improved. Clear and bright as it was at first, and faultless as it 
seemed for the sustentation of animal life; it is very perceptibly better 
now. However it be explained, many creatures that would not live more 
than a few weeks, or even days, a year ago, now continue without 
difficulty, often coming into sight months after their introduction, in full 
health and beauty. 


The manipulation is as regular as clock-work. On Tuesday, 
Thursday, and Saturday evenings, my servant pumps till the warning- 
pipe streams, averaging some 675 strokes. If the larger-bored jets are 
on, there must be supplementary pumping in the intercalated days, to a 
varying amount. For Fishes and the higher Crustacea, &c., we find the 
fuller supply of jet No. 1 requisite, and this profusion takes at least 250 
strokes on each of the intercalated days. The total of 675 strokes is 
performed in about half an hour. 


The jets I use are four; of which the orifices, perfectly true and 
round, graduate from the thickness of a lady’s medium pin (No. 1) to that 
of a cambric needle, (No. 4). With No.1, 18 pump strokes deliver an 
hour’s supply of water into the Tank; with No. 2, about 10 strokes; 
with No. 3, 5 strokes; and with No. 4, about 34 strokes. The orifice of 
each jet is just an inch from the surface of the Tank. A white cloud of 
dust-like air-bubbles is driven perpendicularly downward (about a foot 
with No. 1), after which they can still be followed, with a lens, careering 
to every part of the Tank. 


This communication has already reached a length, which I greatly 
fear will be considered tedious. I will not then attempt to narrate my 
experience, as a Naturalist, in the use of the Aquarium for upwards of 
two years. Suffice it to say, it has been a great success; and has amply 
proved the value of the principle of its construction, viz., perpetual 
circulation, with a large reserve of water. One point I will add, which 
may interest some :—The total cost was covered by £60. 


Sandhurst, Torquay, Noy. 20, 1878. 


PARASITES OF MAN. 7 


Pah Sl Dy sin OF MAaNGt 


BY T. SPENCER COBBOLD, M.D., F.R.S., ETC. 


(Continued from Vol. I., page 328.) 

Five more human nematodes remain to be noticed. Of these, two 
are excessively common in man, anda third, though rare asa human 
parasite, is very abundant in carnivorous animals. The three entozoa 
thus particularised are popularly known as the threadworm, the 
lumbricus, and the cat’s worm. In the present communication I shall 
deal only with the first of these three common species, adding a brief 
notice of the Cochin China anguillules. The threadworm is just one of 
those species about which one does not like to say very much in public ; 
and even that which is whispered about these entozoa in consulting rooms 
has to be conveyed to the victim’s ears with tact and delicacy. As I 
have no professional motives in declaring my meaning I will mention an 
illustrative case, leaving it to the judgment of the Society whether the 
facts be published or not. An unmarried gentleman, the happiness of 
whose immediate future was intimately bound up with his speedy 
restoration to health, freely communicated to me the painful nature of 
his sufferings due to the presence of these little parasites. Thesymptoms 
cannot be stated in detail. Let it suffice me to say that the obnoxious 
guests had invaded the host by myriads, bringing their victim down to 
anemaciated und otherwise pitiable condition. Knowing the essential 
conditions of infection, I ventured to hint that the victim must in 
some way or other have swallowed one or more entire female parasites of 
this species (Oxyuris vermicularis). The suggestion was a hard though 
' happy hit; for it speedily brought the confession that in times of great 
distress the victim had, en revanche, seized hold of the living parasites 
and crushed them between his teeth. As, without doubt, most, if not 
all of the entozoa thus bitten in halves, were female worms, and as, 
moreover, each female parasite encloses myriads of eggs—whose contained 
embryos do not require a change of hosts—it is certain that thousands, 
not to say tens of thousands, of living germs were thus directly 
conveyed to the human territory. In this way the victim, originally 


seeking to revenge himself on the sexually mature parasites, could only 
have produced momentary pangs in the worms themselves, but for 
himself, he had thus unwittingly prepared that far more terrible and 
prolonged revenge which was afterwards exercised, unconsciously, by the 
progenies of the parent worms he had thus mutilated. 

NEMATODA CONTINUED. 
37.—Oxyuris vermicularis, Bremser. 

Synonymy.—Ascaris vermicularis, Linneus. 

Larve.—Only generally known in the embryonic state. Whilst 
within the egg they are at first tadpole-shaped, but under 
suitable conditions of heat and moisture they rapidly assume a 
vermiform character. 


* Read to the Microscopical Section of the Birmingham Natural eo and 
Microscopical Society, December 17th, 1878. On Dr. Cobbold’s behalf M vets 
Hughes, F.L.S., exhibited specimens both of human and equine preriee 
(Oxyuris vermicularis and O. cur vula). The latter species is better known as the 
hacia of the horse; female examples sometimes attaining a length of nearly five 
inches. 


8 PARASITES OF MAN. 


Intermediate host.—Not required. 


Experiments.—Leuckart reared intra-ovular vermiform embryos 
by placing the eggs in moistened paper envelopes and exposing 
them to the action of the sun’s rays. Heller reared them in glass 
tubes filled with saliva and carried about under the arm-pits. 
Hellerand Zenker possessed themselves of specimens of the higher 
larves from the small intestines (post mortem) in a case where the 
patient had swallowed the eggs some days previous to his death. 
I caused a monkey to swallow a quantity of eggs in the hope of 
rearing the adult parasites, but the the result proved negative. 
Possibly at the post mortem examination I overlooked the 
existence of larvee, but I do not think any were present. Lest 
some persons should suppose this kind of experimentation to be 
unwarrantable, I may remark that it had for its object the 
alleviation of human suffering. Others have experimented upon 
themselves with the same benevolent purpose. Thus, Professor 
Leuckart and three of his pupils infested themselves by courage- 
ously swallowing a quantity of the ova. They certainly enjoyed 
the satisfaction of subsequently supplying ocular proof of the 
success of their worm-feedings. 

Remarks.—The common notion that these parasites breed within 
the human body is an error, and it is equally incorrect to say 
that they reside in the lowermost part of the intestinal canal. 
Their head-quarters are the cecum and upper part of the colon. 
It is true that Vix and Leuckart have noticed embryos within 
the large intestine; but Leuckart, Heller, and myself alike 
regard this intestinal hatching as an unusual occurrence. For 
the purposes of infection it is alone necessary that the eggs of 
the worm be conveyed to the mouth and swallowed. Their 
previous immersion in water for any length of time secures their 
destruction, by the bursting of the egg-shells consequent upon 
endosmosis. The eggs are conveyed to the mouth in various 
ways. Ordinarily, children become infested by biting their nails, 
beneath the margins of which the eggs lie concealed. Professors 
Heller, Zenker, and myself have, all mort or less, frequently 
had occasion to demonstrate this fact to our patients. Occa- 
sionally, the eggs are swallowed by accident during sleep. Still 
more rarely whole parasites may be conveyed to the mouth in a 
similar manner. In whatever manner they may have been 
conveyed to the bearer, when once the eggs have gained access 
to the stomach, their shells are dissolved by the action of the 
gastric juice, and the larvae are liberated. Inthe upper intestine 


the larve grow rapidly. Here they undergoone or more changes 
of skin ; acquiring sexualmaturity within a period of less than a 
month. 


Literature.—All standard works. See also my lectures on 
Helminthology, (‘‘Worms,”) and more particularly the very 
admirable article (Darmschmarotzer) by Heller, in Yon 
Ziemssen’s ‘Handbuch,’ or the recently issued American 
edition of the same work. 


38.—Leptodera stercoralis, Bavay. 

Syn.—Anguillula (Rhabitis) stercoralis, Bavay. 

Larve.—These are at first known as minute embryos, measuring 
only ;4, of an inch in length. Subsequently, in the condition of 
immature rehabitiform larve, they acquire alength of about , 
of aninch. All their changes of size and shape, accompanied 
by ecdysis, are undergone within the human intestine. Under , 


PARASITES OF MAN. 9 


favourable circumstances, five days are fully sufficient for the 
complete development and maturation of the parasite. 

Int. Host.—Not necessary. 

Experiments.—None. 

Remarks.—In the full grown state this little nematode is stated 
to be only the »; of an inch in length. It was discovered by 
Dr. Normand in excrementitious matters passed by French 
soldiers suffering from the so-called Cochin China diarrhea, and 
who had been sent home as invalids. This entozoon, by its 
injurious action, supplies another remarkable instance of para- 
sitism as a cause of endemic disease. Drs. Normand and 
Bavay state that the victims are infested to such an extent that 
the number of little worms present in severe cases can only be 
adequately estimated at many hundreds of thousands. Their 
extreme rapidity of growth and maturation readily accounts for 
this excessive degree of infection, which is maintained with 
much persistence, in spite of the dysenteric action which daily 
expels myriads of the parasites in every stage of development. 
I may add that post mortem inspection has shown that the 
anguillules not only occupy all parts of the alimentary canal, from 
the stomach downwards, but that they also find their way into 
the pancreatic and biliary ducts, and even into the gall bladder. 

, Lit.—Normand (Dr. A.) ; Memoire sur la diarrhée dite de Cochin- 

chine, in Archives de Médicine Navale, for Jan., 1877, and 

especially his recent article “Du Role Etiologique del’Anguillule, 

Ibid., Sept., 1878, Bavay ; in Comptes Rendus, for October, 1876. 
39.—Leptodera intestinalis, Bavay. 

Syn.—Anguillula (Rhabditis) intestinalis, Bavay. 

Larvee.—Similar to those of Leptodera stercoralis, but relatively 
larger, and possessing a remarkably long cesophagus, together 
with a blunt instead of a sharply pointed tail. 

Int. Host.—Not necessary. 

Exper.—None. 

Remarks.—The full grown worm is almost three-times the length of 
the preceding species. In the Cochin China victims, it is frequently, 
though by no means invariably, associated with its smaller and 
far more abundant congener. In consequence of its occurring 
in comparatively small numbers, it is not easy to state to what 
extent this worm is concerned in the production of disease. 
Were it as abundant as Leptodera stercoralis, it would doubtless 
prove more destructive to the human bearer. 

Lit.—Bavay; Note sur lAnguillule intestinale ; in the Archives 
de Méd. Navale for July, 1877. 

[vo BE CONTINUED. | 


THE GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION OF PLANTS 
AND ANIMALS. 


ABSTRACT OF AN ADDRESS DELIVERED TO THE CHELTENHAM NATURAL SCIENCE 
SOCIETY, BY H. J. ELWES, ESQ., F.Z.S., F.L.S., &C., ON Nov. 21, 1878, anp 
THE DISCUSSION THEREON. 


Mr. Elwes remarked that the geographical distribution of animals 
and plants is a subject which, until a few years since, was scarcely 
thought of by Naturalists, but has recently received much attention 

. c 


10 GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION OF PLANTS, ETO. 


- 


from several of our most eminent scientific men. Nor is this surprising, 
when we consider the many points of the greatest interest, whether to 
the geographer, geologist, or others, which are brought under considera- 
tion, and how much light is thrown upon the history of the changes 
which have passed over our globe. After reviewing the various authors 
who have been most instrumental in ascertaining and explaining the 
various facts which have been observed, he continued that time would 
not permit his entering upon minute details, but proposed confining his 
remarks to a sketch of the most characteristic features of distribution, 
the reasons for which he would not touch upon, as, however ingenious 
and even probable might be the hypotheses which had been suggested as 
explanations, the majority of them were incapable of proof. From a 
zoological point of view, the great divisions of the world were as follows: 
—I. Palearctic, divided into four sub-regions: (1) Huropean, (2) 
Mediterranean or Mediterraneo-Persic, (3) Siberian, and (4)° Mant- 
churian or Mongolian. The boundaries of each of the foregoing and 
following regions were defined, it being especially noticed that deserts 
and seas form the most natural ones; Il. Ethiopian region, subdivided 
into (1) East African, (2) West African, (3) South African, and (4) 
Madagascar; III. Oriental region, subdivided into (1) Indian, (2) 
Ceylonese, (3) Indo-Chinese or Himalayo-Chinese, and (4) Indo-Malay 
or Malay; IV. Australian, subdivided into (1) Austro-Malayan, (2) 
Australian, (3) Polynesian, (4) New Zealand; V. Neotropical, sub- 
divided into (1) Chilian, (2) Brazilian, (3) Mexican, and (4) 
Antillean; VI. Nearctic, subdivided into (1) Californian, (2) Rocky 
Mountains and Plains, (3) Alleghanies and Eastern United States, and 
(4) Canada. The foregoing divisions are made more upon zoological 
than botanical considerations, but in the main apply to both. The 
Paleearctic region, though of immense extent, does not contain through- 
out its northern and largest portion anything approaching to the same 
variety or number of species that are found in other regions of much 
less extent. Warblers, buntings, thrushes, grouse, waders, and water- 
fowl, are the most abundant and conspicuous families of birds. Deer, 
wild goats, sheep, and rodents, are the most characteristic animals. 
Coniferee and hard-wooded timber trees, fruit trees, and herbaceous 
plants and grasses, are the most remarkable and useful among the 
vegetable forms. About 900 species of birds only are found in the entire 
region, of which not more than 200 or 250 at the most are resident in 
any oue district; but we see in the Himalayas, and in some parts of 
Central and South America 600 or 700 species existing within a radius of fifty 
miles. Insects, butterflies, and beetles, are fairly represented; but in 
Europe these appear to increase in numbers and variety as we proceed 
from N.W. to §.E. In the Mediterranean, the number and variety of 
the plants become proportionately much greater, especially in the bulbous 
forms. The Mantchurian sub-region is characterised by the presence of 
many remarkable forms, as the wild camel on the steppes of the N.W. 
Tibet, and the yak, the saiga antelope, the great wild sheep of the Pamir 
plateau, and among birds especially by the pheasants. Its flora (except 
on the coast of China and Japan) is marked by the absence rather than 
the presence of peculiar or remarkable plants; that of the plateaus and 


ty 


GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION OF PLANTS, ETC. 11 


highlands of Central Asia being poor and stunted, as might be expected 
from the severity of the climate. There is an intimate connection 
between physical geography and distribution of animals and plants which 
enables one to predict with tolerable certainty the character of the fauna 
and flora of any newly explored tracts. The oriental region having 
been already alluded to, it was necessary to offer a few remarks upon 
its subdivisions, and first of all on that of Ceylon. This sub-region 
(which includes the western parts of India) possesses some forms of 
animal life which are not present in the Indian sub-region, such as some 
mammals, as lemurs, tupaia and monkeys, as well as reptiles. Thus 
the Uropeltide and other genera of snakes and lizards are peculiar 
to it. The insects are more akin to those of Malayana than of India. The 
fishes of the Malay sub-region confirm the justice of its separation from 
the Australian region, for the fresh water forms of Siluroids and 
Cyprinoids, consisting of thirteen genera of the former and twenty-three 


_ of the latter, range to Java and Borneo, but do not extend further. 


The Ethiopian region shows a great variety and abundance of large 
mammals with an absence of bears, deer, goats, and sheep. The Hast 
African sub-region is the least peculiar portion of Africa, and is perhaps 
not so well marked as the West, which latter is the home of the 
anthropoid apes, in fact this sub-region has a Malayan affinity. The 
South African sub-region is the most peculiar and interesting of the 
three, especially as regards its botany. It has great numbers of heaths, 
bulbous and succulent plants, composites, &c., and an abundance of 
large game. The Madagascar sub-region is very peculiar; it is the land 
of the lemurs, and in fact if we received a curious bird, having very 
slight affinities to anything known, we should at once suspect that its 
native home must be Madagascar. The Australian region is very well 
marked: amongst mammals it is deficient in the orders present in the 
other regions, except bats and some rodents, while the great family of 
marsupials is almost restricted to it, the ornithorhynchus and echidna are 
peculiar to it. The birds are not quite so restricted to this region as the 
mammals, but we find the lyre birds, parrots, megapodes, emus, casso- 
waries, birds of paradise, and some curious pigeons. The Polynesian 
birds are very few in numbers, while mammals are absent. The New 
Zealand fauna is likewise very peculiar, among its birds is or was the 
moa; while species of another wingless family, Apteryx, still linger; there 
are, likewise, peculiar parrots, as the nestor and the stringops, the curious 
notornis among the rails, and the unique anarhynchus among the 
Charadriidz. We find a great poverty of insects, only eleven species of 
butterflies and no snakes. Itis curious what a deficiency of hardiness 
exists in Australian plants as compared with those of some other regions; - 
rapidly succumbing before introduced species, many of them are with 
great difficulty, if at all, raised in other climes. 


Mr. Symonds congratulated Mr. Elwes on the interesting address 
which he had just delivered, wherein he had illustrated point after point 
with great clearness. 

Mr. Longe, Rev. W. Boyce, and Major Barnard made observations 
upon the failure of New Zealand plants in this climate. 


12 GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION OF PLANTS, ETC. 


Sir William Guise remarked upon the utility of such investigations 
as those of Mr. Elwes, wherein facts were being investigated with 
reference to what they tell us of the past history of the globe. Theorists 
had accounted for some phenomena by suggesting the existence of 
submerged continents or islands that appeared to be constantly dipping 


up and down, but the Challenger had shown that where one of these - 


continents was supposed to exist the depth of the sea is such that it would 
cover the highest mountains now extant. Some facts had not been 
explained, for instance the peculiar flora of St. Helena, or the large 
tortoises of the Galapagos islands, and we required more workers such 
as the author of the present paper, to continue their investigations, for 
we wish to know how these animals and plants got there, and what 
relationship they have with other lands. 


Mr. Day remarked that he had been investigating the geographical 
distribution of the fresh water fishes of India, and his conclusion as to 
the sub-divisions of the Indian region coincided with Mr. Elwes’, that 
there were three separate fish-faunas—the first on the primary hills of 
the western Ghauts, extending into Ceylon, and on the Malay Archipelago, 
by way of the Andaman Islands, and also identical with some Himalayan 
forms; secondly, an African element, which had entered India by 
way of Syria, along with some palzarctic genera; and, lastly, a Malayan 
form, which had been derived by way of Burmah and Siam; and that 
these last two met in the Hindustan sub-region, where the land was of 
tertiary formation, with here and there secondary rocks cropping out. 


Dr. Wright congratulated the meeting on the observations on the 
geographical distribution of animals and plants they had heard that 
evening. The subject was almost a new one, and was only a fragment of 
the truth, the last condition of the earth’s surface presented to the 
investigation of man. The geological evidence tells us of a Mediterranean 
fauna which existed in the Arctic regions. In Australia we find an old 
race of fossil kangaroos, to which those existing are mere pigmies. The 
same with the South American armadillo. Facts still require to be 
collected, and in time we may obtain sufficient evidence to work out the 
problem we are now seeking to discover. 

Mr. Elwes having replied, the meeting adjourned. 


THE BLADDERWORTS AND THEIR BLADDERS. 


BY W. SOUTHALL, F.L.S. 


A notice of a habitat of Utricularia intermedia may be of sufficient 
interest to merit record. I found the plant this autumn near a little 
tarn on the left of the road from Coniston to Hawkshead, Lancashire, a 
little below the water-shed on the Coniston side. The tarn itself has a 
boggy margin, and is girdled with a more abundant vegetation than is 
usual around thetarns of the {Lake district; various sedges, the white 
water lily, and the buckbean, forming the larger portion of it. The 
season was too late for most flowering plants, but a few, as Sparganium 
minimum, & somewhat rare plant, were still in flower. Around the larger 
pool were some small pits of peaty water, and in several of those grew 
U. intermedia, and in others U. minor ; but, as far as my observation went, 
the two species were not intermingled. It is stated in Darwin’s 


BLADDERWORTS AND THEIR BLADDERS. 13 


* Insectivorous Plants ” that they (the Utricularias) ‘commonly inhabit 
remarkably foul ditches.” Here, the water was bright, as was also the 
case in the only other place in which I have seen a Bladderwort growing, 
namely, in Connemara. It is also stated in the same work, on the 
authority of Warming, that ‘‘ they are quite destitute of roots even from 
the earliest period of growth, and float near the surface of the 
water.” These plants were certainly attached to the bottom. 
As to the presence of true roots I cannot speak with certainty, 
~as I had not read the above at the time, and did not pay sufficient 
note; but I brought away from the most shallow pool a piece of 
the turfy bottom undisturbed, on which two young plants were growing. 
They continued to grow when placed at the bottom of a glass vessel, 
about a foot below the surface, and never evinced any d sposition to float 
to the surface. But the Bladderworts seem more amenable to the attacks 
of both mollusks and confervee than any others of the small water plants 
in the same vessel, and the plants are consequently at present in a poor 
condition. Their gemme evidently have powers of resistance beyond the 
other portions of the plant, and will, I trust, grow next year. I should 
add, the observations recorded in ‘‘ Insectivorous Plants” have mostly 
reference to the species neglecta and vulgaris. 


An after-examination of the contents of the bladders by the microscope 
afforded a particularly interesting series of objects, the number and variety 
packed within some of them causing me to wonder how they could have got 
inside. HEntomostraca are prying and lively enough to penetrate into 
any odd corner; but in many of the other captives the power of loco- 
motion is at all events very slow and obscure. ‘There are, it is true, two 
long bristles or antenne that spring from either side of the valvular 
opening of each bladder, and these may act as guides to it, whilst the 
numerous short bristles surrounding the entrance prevent escape. The long 
antennee in some bladders project directly forward from the bladder, and 
in others are bent round underneath. There were bubbles of air in many 
of the bladders. The foreign contents were largely living, but also dead 
and decomposed in the state of a sort of muddy pabulum. . With the 
assistance of my friend, Mr. J. HK. Bagnall, the following list of the 
contents has been drawn up :— 


VEGETABLE Forms.—Motile forms of a unicellular alga very like 
Protococcus. A unicellular alga like Pleurococcus in series of four cells, 
the inner portion green, the outer part of the cells hyaline. Amongst 
Desmids: Cosmarium in conjugation, three species of Closterium—some 
of the bladders contained a large number of these; Penium, Euastrum, 
Ankistrodesmus, Micrasterias frequent. Of Diatoms: Meridion cireulare, 
species of Naviculare and others. Cells of algae, Tyndaridea, and others. 


Aynimat Forms.—Of Rhizopods: Difflugia abundant in one bladder, 
Arcella, and a peculiar bowl-shaped species. Of Entomostraca: Alonaovata, 
numerous and lively ; Cypris, Cyclops, Daphnia. Rotifers: R. vulgaris, 
and other species. Infusoria: Chilodon and Paramecium. Ofthesmaller 
algse, and Desmids particularly, various stages of growth were represented. 
Probably more time and research would have resulted in a yet larger list 
of prisoners. The bladders of U. minor, not only from being most 
numerous, yielded the best results. I was surprised at the large propor- 
tion of animals in a living, or at all events undecayed condition. Some 
of the Crustaceans must have lived inside the bladders for many days if 
not a week or more. For instance, the Alona ovata, which as far as my 
knowledge went did not exist in the water in which the plants were placed 
away from other plants. I may add that perhaps a month afterwards I 
examined three bladders that had been detached and remained at the 
bottom of the bottle. The walls had become very thin, but had retained 


14 BLADDERWORTS AND THEIR BLADDERS. 


their shape. Within there was abundance of debris, but no muddy 
solution. All traces of Entomostraca, except a few plates, jaws, &c., 
had disappeared, though Cyclops was living in the water; the Desmids 
were in full vigour, and alge had grown withinthe bladders, one bladder 
being almost full of Tyndaridea closely coiled. 


Archielos, 


Proceedings of the Dudley and Midland Geological and Scientific Society and 
Field Club. No. 5, Vol. IlI., December, 1877. Dudley: Samuel 
Mills. 


Tuis part brings down the proceedings of the Dudley Society to the end 
of 1877. Itis full of most excellent matter; and other societies may 
learn much from it how to chronicle their proceedings in a satisfactory 
and useful manner. - Judging the Society by this record of its work, it is 
evidently interesting its members in local geology, and placing on record 
facts which will be of use to future geologists. The present part contains 
accounts of the Field Meetings in 1877, which included visits to the 
neighbourhood of Walsall, to Droitwich, where the Rhetic Beds at 
Dunhampstead were examined, the neighbourhood of Dudley, following the 
walk described by Hugh Miller in his ‘‘ First Impressions of- England,” 
to the Stiperstones and the Snailsbeach Lead Mines, to Ludlow, to Ross, 
Chepstow and the Wye, and to Cannock, where they were joined by the 
North Staffordshire Naturalists’ Club. There are papers on “A 
Railway Cutting at Daw End, near Walsall,” by Mr. J. W. Oliver; 


on “A Photograph of a Section of Wenlock Shale from the Wren’s - 


Nest, taken from a sketch under the microscope,” by Mr. Terry; 
‘‘ Analyses of various Limestones,” ‘‘On the Rhetic Section at Dun- 
hampstead Cutting, near Droitwich, and its correlation with the 
same strata elsewhere,” by Mr. W. J. Harrison, F.G.S.; ‘*On Salt,” 
by the Rev. J. H. Thompson; ‘On the Parkfield Fossil Forest,” 
“On an Ink Photograph of the Fossil dAétosaurus Ferratus,’ 
Fraas, ‘‘On the Botany of the neighbourhood of Ross and the lower 
portion of the Wye Valley,” by Mr. Hy. Southall; ‘‘ On the Contents of 
a Hyena’s Den on the Great Doward, Whitchurch, Ross,” by the Rey. 
W. 8. Symonds, F.G.8.; ‘The Bunter Conglomerates of Cannock 
Chase,’ by Mr. W. Molyneux, F.G.S.; and “ Registers of Rainfall in 
1876-7, at Pedmore,” by Mr. EK. B. Marten, the painstaking secretary of 
the Society. These Proceedings are well illustrated. We subjoin, as a 
specimen of the illustrations, woodcuts of the following Rheetic fossils :— 


Fig. 1.—Microlestes Rheticus, Owen. Fig. 10.—Axinus cloacinus, Oppel. 


Fig. 2.—Hy bodus reticulatus, Agassiz. Fig. 11.—Cardium Rheticum, Merian, 
Fig. 3.—Hybodus minor, Ag. Fig. 12.—Anoplophora musculoides, 
Fig. 4—Gyrolepis Alberti, Agassiz. Schlotheim. . 

Fig. 5.—Acrodus minimus, Ag. Fig 13.—Avicula contorta, Portlock, 
Fig. 6.—Sargodon tomicus, Quenstedt. Fig. 14.—Monotis decussata, Goldfuss. 
Fig. 7.—Nemacanthus monilijer, Ag. Fig. 15.—Pecten Valoniensis, Defr. 

Fig. 8.—Saurichthys apicalis, Ag. Fig. 16.—Ophiolepis Damesu, Wright. 


Fig. 9.—Saurichthys acuminatus, Ag. 
In our correspondence will be found an interesting note on these 
Proceedings from the pen of Mr. W. Whitaker, F.G.S. 
E. Wa 8: 


16 REVIEW—PRACTICAL GEOLOGY. 


Practical Geology. By W. Jnrome Harrison, F.G.S. London: W. 
Stewart and Co. Pp. 157, forty-two illustrations. Price 2s. 


Amone the many text-books of Geology it is a difficult, and in some cases a 
delicate task to recommend to the student which particular works to 
read. He cannot commence with too simple a work, one which interests 
the reader and conveys to him a general idea of the principles of geology; 
and once gaining the interest, he will be tempted to undertake the 
reading of some more advanced volume. There isa danger, however, to 
the student when pushing on his enquiries into the larger manuals, of 
becoming to some extent wearied with details, which observation will 
not enable him to enliven. Hence the great value of some practical 
experience in the field. Indeed, Mr. Harrison tells us how he attributes 
the success of his geological classes to a constant insistance on the 
necessity for field work, combined with the close examination, sketching, 
&c., of models and specimens; for an acquaintance with a few facts will 
enable the young student to appreciate the many. In the same way, 
even a hurried visit to a previously unseen tract of country will enable 
the more advanced student to read with interest and intelligence memoirs 
that previously seemed dry and uninviting. 


In the little work before us, Mr. Harrison has furnished the young 
student who is ready and anxious to go out in the field with a guide and 
companion, who tells him what and how to observe. Commencing with 
an account of the apparatus necessary, the author gives instructions how 
to set to work, and then takes his readers over all the British formations; 
pointing out their leading characters and fossils. So that the student 
who is possessed of a geological map, and will read the descriptions here 
furnished, with the map before him, and who will use every, opportunity 
of taking both into the field, may soon expect to become a good 
observer. 


The work is full of useful suggestions; and, besides the purely 
descriptive portions, Mr. Harrison takes care to combine many explana- 
tions of facts, as well as notes on the physical history of the deposits and on 
foreign strata. If some of the formations with which he is more 
intimately acquainted receive an apparently undue share of attention, as, 
for instance, the chapter on the Rhetic Beds, compared with that on the 
Silurian Rocks ; this is a very pardonable favouritism, rather than offence. 
The work has been most carefully prepared and edited, and contains 
references to all the more important researches made known up to the 
time of publication; and the way in which the subject is treated, giving 
evidence of much personal observation and thought, and of much 
heartiness and enthusiasm in the cause of geology, give us great pleasure 
in recommending it to all desirous of becoming practically acquainted 
with the geology of their country. 


H. B. Woopwarp. 


REVIEW—ERUPTIVE ROCKS OF BRENT TOR. 17 


The Eruptive Rocks of Brent Tor and its Neighbourhood. By Franx 
Ruttey, F.G.8., Geological Survey Memoir. Price 15s. 6d. 1878. 


Surety the memoirs of the Geological Survey must be of a very bashful 
and retiring nature, for the amount of ‘imtroduction” which they 
require on making their appearance in public is something remarkable. 
Here we have a small pamphlet of fifty-five pages in a paper cover. The 
first page, in large print, is occupied by Professor Ramsay, the Director- 
General of the Survey, with some general introductory remarks. Then, 
in smaller letters, Mr. Bristow, the Senior Director, paraphrases 
Professor Ramsay—or, perhaps, we ought rather to say the matter is 
vice versa, as Mr. Bristow’s ‘‘ Notice” is dated a week the earlier of the 
two. lLastly,in still smaller type, as becomes his junior official condition, 
the author’s ‘‘ Preface” appears. 

The first chapter consists of some very useful introductory remarks 
on the use of the microscope in petrographical research. In connection 
with this matter, it is greatly to be wished that some competent worker, 
such as Mr. Rutley himself or Mr. Sorby, Mr. Allport or Professor 
Bonney, would write us an English text-book on the subject. At present 
we are mainly dependent on the Germans, Rosenbusch and Zirkel. 


The next chapter gives us a description of Brent Tor and its 
neighbourhood. It is situated on the west of Dartmoor, between the 
Rivers Tamar and Tavy. This district was geologically mapped by 
the founder of the survey, the late Sir Henry de la Beche, in 1839. One 
would have thought that a fresh map of the district on the 6-inch scale 
would have been undertaken prior to the publication of this Memoir ; 
and there can be no doubt that, if Mr. Rutley had had such a map to aid 
him, his labours would have gained greatly in precision and certainty. 


In Part II. we find the result of the microscopic examination of 
twenty-seven rock specimens, thirteen of which are illustrated by very 
carefully executed coloured figures; this is decidedly a valuable contri- 
bution to tbe subject. Finaily, the author states the ‘ deductions” 
which, in his opinion, are to be drawn from the mode of occurrence of 
the rocks in the field, together with the evidence they yield under the 
microscope. He agrees with De la Beche in considering Brent Tor a 
fragment of the nucleus of an old volcano, while the schistose ash beds 
of the neighbourhood possibly emanated from it, both being of carbon- 
iferous age. These beds owe their preservation to their being on the 
downthrow side of a fault ranging from N.W. to S.E., along the eastern 
edge of the Tor. From a reference on page 78, this work appears to have 
been written nearly three years ago, although only now published; and 
this delay of publication also applies to most of the other Memoirs of 
the Geologica] Survey, a delay which is neither just to the authors nor to 
the public. 

Mr. Rutley’s abilities with the pencil are well known, and this book 
is illustrated with six plates and ten woodcuts, which deserve much 
better paper than that upon which they are printed. The four plates of 
chromolithographs of microscopic sections we have already referred to. 

W. J. H. 
D 


18 MICROSCOPY. 


Microscopy. 


i 


Having lately had the privilege of using one of the new Oil 
Immersion 4th, made by Zeiss, of Jena, from calculations of Professor 
Abbe, and on a design of Mr. Stephenson, F.R.M.S., [See Vol. I. (1878) 
Journal of R.M.S8., p. 51,] I would strongly urge on all who can afford to 
buy one to order a glass forthwith. Ihave been engaged during part of 
this year in examining slides of the mastax of Melicerta ringens, sent to 
me by the Rev. Lord Sydney G. Osborne, and have written a paper on 
them, which has been published in the current transactions of the Royal 
Microscopical Society ; but, unfortunately, I had not had, before writing 
my paper, the privilege of viewing the slides through this Oil Immersion 
ath. I have since had that privilege, and I must almost re-write the paper, 
It is simply a magical instrument for bringing out structure for a 
laminated surface, which, under an ordinary ith, looks not merely trans- 
parent, but empty of superficies, like a window-frame with the glass out, 
becomes under this glass one mass of fine lines. Parts of the mastax of 
Melicerta, which I had treated like unoccupied frames, are seen under 
this power to be “ full of matter ”—that is to say, solid areas of transparent 
texture. The glass will not supersede the ordinary ith, because it is useless 
for such intermediate fluids as water; but for all objects immersed in 
the ordinary fluids used in mounting objects for the microscope, it will 
be found to be a great addition to our instruments. This specimen glass 
was lent me by Mr. Frank Crisp, Secretary R.M.S., who, I believe, has 
been amongst the first observers who have realised the value of the new 
power. ‘To gentlemen engaged in the study of tissue and minerals, or, 
indeed, of any transparent objects which will bear immersion in balsam, 
this glass will prove of great importance.—F. A. BepwrLu 


At a recent meeting of the Birmingham Natural History and 
Microscopical Society, Mr. H. E. Forrest exhibited and described a 
simple and easy method of drawing objects under the Microscope. The 
apparatus consists of a three-sided prism, fitted to slide on to the eye- 
piece of the Microscope, and capable of being adjusted to any angle. The 
Microscope is put in a horizontal position, and the light thrown by a 
condenser straight up the tube. The lamp is enclosed in a box or 
cylinder, with a hole on one side the size of the condenser, in order to 
shut off all unnecessary light. The room being darkened, the image of 
the object is seen thrown on to the paper placed underneath, and has 
merely to be traced over with a pencil. The size of the drawing is 
governed by its distance from the prism; the rays diverge, consequently 
the further the paper from the prism, the larger is the picture; and 
by placing the paper on the floor, an image may be drawn 4ft. or 5ft. 
in diameter. The advantages claimed for this little instrument by Mr. 
Forrest are simplicity, cheapness, and superiority to the camera or 
neutral tint glass, in that it really throws the image on to the paper instead 
of only apparently doing so. As seen in operation at the meeting, one 
disadvantage was apparent. The loss of light was so great that it was 


MICROSCOPY. 19 


impossible to use the prism with high powers. Subsequently, Mr. Forrest 
has made a great improvement, suggested to him by Mr. T.Waller. He now 
uses a rectangular prism, instead of the equi-angular one exhibited at the 
meeting, and he informs us that the light both enters and leaves the 
prism perpendicularly ; by this means the loss of light is inconsiderable, 
and even diatoms may be drawn with a1 objective. The position of the 
prism in relation to the eye-piece is as follows :—The base is parallel to 
the horizon, the other equal side being parallel and close to the eye-piece ; 
the hypothenuse thus making an angle of 45° with both the horizon and 
eye-piece. 

A valued correspondent sends the following note on ‘“ Microscopic 
Objectives.” He says ‘‘ That well-known optician, Mr. Swift, of London, 
informs me that ‘at the beginning of the new year I am going to cut the 
price of my objectives down to those of the best continental makers ; 
quality at same time will be guaranteed.’ I have seen and worked with 
paeey of Hartnack’s instruments, but have no hesitation in declaring that 
a ‘ College Microscope’ I have lately had from Mr. Switt is superior to 
any Continental model.” 


METEOROLOGY OF THE MIDLANDS. 


THE WEATHER OF NOVEMBER, 1878. 


BY W. JEROME HARRISON, F.G.S. 


The month opened with a few days of fine weather. Of this time 
the Rey. J. 5. Barber (Spondon) says: ‘‘ Bees were exceedingly active, 
and could be heard at considerable distances from their hives. They 
were busy upon all flowers, especially those of mignonette.” But this 
was not to last; soon the traditional fogs set in, the thermometer fell 
with cold northerly winds and snow, and so continued to the end of the 
month. Rainfall was about an average. At the westerly stations the 
9th was almost without exception the day of maximum fall, which in 
several places exceeded one inch, and produced slight floods. A storm 
on the 15th produced the maximum fall in the central counties, while 
the 24th gave a similar result in the Hast Midlands. On the morning of 
the 12th snow covered the ground generally to a depth of three or four 
inches, and there was another pretty general fall on the 24th. The 
nights were cold and frosts numerous. At Stoney Middleton ‘the 
minimum thermometer recorded below 32° every night during month.” 
Dense fogs prevailed from the 18th to the 21st. Gales from the North 
occurred on the 9th (when barometer fell -882in. in twelve hours at Chel- 
tenham) and 15th. Lightning was seen at Oxford on the 18th, and lunar 
halos on the 6th and 11th. A lunar rainbow was seen by Mr. Griffiths at 
Bishop’s Castle on the 10th, and a solar halo at Loughborough (Mr. 
Berridge) on the 23rd. At Tamworth, “‘an immense quantity of cobweb 
was noticed on the grass on the 20th.” Winter birds, as the Fieldafre 
and Redwing, seem very numerous, and at Nottingham Mr. Johnson 
states that they have taken a great number of the holly-berries. 


20 THE WEATHER OF NOVEMBER. 


| RAINFALL. TEMPERATURE. 
Es Greatest fall). |Greatest ht. Great’st cold. " 
STATION. OBSERVER. S = in 24 hours. 3 ca 
Tn In.) Date. |@ 4 Deg| Date. |Deg} Date. 
GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
Gainscross, Stroud ..........|W. B. Baker, Esq. ........| 2°88] °74 9 10 | 56°0 1 240} +29 
(Otel iee piainiatoraiats o-o(R. Tyrer, Esq. ...0-eseee..|3 00) “64, 10 16 | 512) 10 20:0} 29 
SHROPSHIRE. 
Haughton Hall, Shifnal ....|/Rev. J. Brooke ...........-| 3°60) “7 10 13 | 47°0 9 |240) 27 
Witchorah kis ccc cose. ccs|Ac 1. GOOrge, TAO. <cteccse 3°77| *40 9 TA aia 
WIOOIKEASLON Jieoeseeccecescce Rey. E. D. Carr....... eeeee| 4°22) 1°07 9 21 | 50°0 9 225] 21 
Leaton Vicarage, Shrewsbury Rev. E. V. Pigott ..........| 3°19] °66 9 13 | 50°} 10 237) 26 
More Rectory, Bishop’ 's Castle|Rev. A. Male ...........+..| 478) 1°00 9 21 | 48:0 9 23°0;} 12 
Larden Hall,Much Wenlock..|Miss F. R. Boughton ......} 2°68) 112 9 11 
Bishop's Castle secescvesccees (iu. Griffiths, Hsq. .......+..| 4°28 1°02 9 22 |50°0 9 25°0} 12 
Cardington ........ ...|Rev. Wm. Elliott ..........| 3°84} 1:09 9 16 
Adderley Rectory.... ..|Rev. A. Corbet ...... eeeeee| 208] “F1 9 16 
PUEORENEIG) Winip nip ais\eisia teleiaela aisles Rev. J. D. La Touche......|3°60} “93 9 15 |51'°9] 10 |25°0/12 & 27 
HEREFORDSHIRE. 
‘Whitfield ........... W. Wheatley, Esq. ........| 3°08) 1:06 9 TA le ecaleneeaan 240} 29 
Stoke Bliss .|Rev. G. E. Alexander ......| 3°06] 1°22 9 14 | 510 9 29°0| 26 & 28 
WORCESTERSHIRE. 
Orleton, Tenbury............/T. H. Davis, Esq ..........| 3°21) 110 9 14 | 50°3 8 2770) a7 
West Malvern ...... .|A. H. Hartland, Esq. ......| 2°71] 1°00 9 13 | 470 9 28°0| 28 
PEAMOTE ....cccecees E. B. Marten, Esq. ......../3°24| “91 9 13 |63°0) 19 27°0} 28 
Stourbridge..........00+ oof MLN, D. DOMROK Ts vcvne wince ets 3°15] “84 9 13 | 48 0| 8, 9.18 | 260/12 & 26 
STAFFORDSHIRE. 
Thorganby Villa,Wolverhmtn|G. J. C. Broom, Esq. ......| 3°08) “69 9 14 
IBAMIASEON. pcsscce es sc vlsjs000 «| We MCOLL, MSQsiccsscee 6 15 10 | 49°83) 18 19°2) 28 
Amblecote ........ bones | MTD, SODEEs oni n'a g 11 
Dudley ..... Retars .-.|Mr. J. Fisher .. 9 13 |50°0 Ny) 28'0/11 & 28 te 
Sedgley... eeeeacee +|Mr.C. Beale ....csc..s 9 [14 | 46°0 9 29 0/1 .28, 29 
Kinver . .|Rev. W. H. Bolton ...... . 9 11 | 470) 9 & 17 | 28°9/2 12, v2, 
Walsall -|Mr. N. E. Best ... 9 11 |45°0| lu 29°0/28 (25,26 
Grammar School, Burton .|C. U. Tripp, Esq. 9 19 | 50°0 1 25°0) T 
Patshull Gardens........ Bisbal bol eae Det Ll Pe 2.95) 75) 10 10 | 64-0 4 25:0} 27 
Weston-under-Lyziard R’ Hon.and Rev.J. Bridgeman 2°97] *78 9 16 | 480 9 25°0) 27 
Wrottesley ........--..----+»|H. Simpson, Esq. .......... 2°89) -86 9 11 |49°0} 10 |264) a9 
MPA gyOELI 4 elot ieee nia(e ss nieiatore W. Arnold, Hisq...........+.|2'63| “655 9 12 
Tean Vicarage, near Cheadle|Rev. G. T. Ryves ..........| 2°72] °67 15 14 | 475 220) 18 
Heath House, Cheadle ......|J. G. Philips, Esq........ o- 2/237] 56) 15 11 | 47°0/2, 10, 18/24°0} a1 
‘Alstonfield Vicarage ......../Rev. W. H. Purchas ......| 3°32] -72 9 li | 481 1 j190! 21 ; 
WARWICKSHIRE. 
Coundon, Coventry ..........|Lieut.-Col. R. Caldicott ....| 3°42) °77 15 16 |470/9 & 10 | 29°0)22 & 28 
Coventry mee inalane scletaeicl= --|J- Gulson, Hisq. .....sseen-2|0L| “7 15, | 17 |500) 10 29 U|23, 29.80 
Bickenhill Vicarage... Sisisetn arora loes PV abe Oy US Clveiaieenicte «| 3°02] -96 9 16 | 470 28°0) 
St. Mary’s College, Oscott. ...|Rev. S.J Whitty..... «| 2°84) °70 9 18 |47°8; 10 28°4| 29 
Henley-in-Arden .. .|T. H. G. Newton, Esq....../3°93}1'40] 10 12 |50°0}' 10 28°0/13, 28,29 
Rugby School........ -----|Rev Tf. N. Hutchinson ..../3°84/114| 10 14 | 496] 1240 2 
DERBYSHIRE. 

Buxton .......... sbpicce scons! Hinds SYKCB, FUSQs) secceccees| 470) 208| 5 14 | 475 1 226) 2 
Stoney Middleton..:........./Rev. U. Smith . «=| 2" é 9 6 | 48°0 8 j13°0} 20 
Brampton St. Thomas . Rey. J. M. Mello . 9 15 |50°0} 1&6 | 2380) 20 
Fernslope, Belper........ J. G Jackson, Hsg. ..cc.00s 15 14 | 480 25:0} 21 
Spondon .......-ceeees C. BE. Jones, Hsq. ....cccc0s 24 14 |48°0 25°5| 20 

YORKSHIRE. 
Hesley Hall ..... Fietaeceses B. J. Whitaker, Esq. ....../2°40| 51) 12 17 |49°0) - 2 | 2570; 20 
NOTTINGHAMSHIRE. | 
Highfield House, Nottingh’m|E. J. Lowe, Esq. ..........] 2° 541 10 16 |54'4| 10 253) 27 
Hodsock Priory, Ww orksop ..|H. Mellish, Esq. .. 48) 49) 15 17 |49°7; 10 24°77) 20 
Park Hill, Nottingham....../H. F. Johnson, Esq. . 47, 15 18 | 48°35) 1 27°5)20 & 21 
LEICESTERSHIRE. 
Loughborough ..............|W. Berridge, Esq........../268 53 24 16 | 49°9 3 277| 21 x 
Ashby Magna...... eseeeeeses| eV. H. Willes .... -0./3'41) °63] 24 19 }49°0; 10 
Market Harborough ........ S. W. Cox, Esq..... -.| 3°88! °74 9 18 | 47°C) 9 & 24 |24°0) 28 
Kibworth......... sceccesceee/L Macauley, Ksq. -»./3°46, *69) 15 18 | 
Town Museum, Leicester....!W. J. Harrison, Esq. ....../3°25 56) 24 19 | 49°4 1 |285) 21 
Belmont Villas, Leicester....|H. Billson, Esq. sedieev cues Sa0h Spl ae 19 | 49"0 1 {290} a1 
Syston seccseeess Seneae seins DOE aINeS Oil: su seeeee | B74) °46 9 22 | 45°0 2,5,20,11) 28°0/21 & 22 
Waltham-le-Wold............|E. Ball, Esq. . i 61} 23 1g | 440; 2 (19)260) 21 
Little Dalby Hall....... peels Jones, Esq. S55 58] 24 17 | 47°0) 3, 9, 18 | 25°0) a 
Coston Rectory, Melton......|Rev. A. M. Rendell . 66) 15 18 |510) 10 23°0) 
Belvoir Castle ......... Sages Nie cUR Tan scene 43| 25 | 20/480) 10 | 260/18, 2 
NoRTHAMPTONSHIRE. 
Towcester Brewery..........|J. Webb, Esq....... 58} 15 14 
Castle Ashby .....-.......-..|R. G. Scriven, Esq. .. 54! 10 | 18 | 500/10 & 24 | 280} 9 
Pitsford ...... C. A. Markham, Esq. . 50} 24 18 |51°0; 25 | 280/23 & 30 
Kettering.....-. ; J. Wallis, Esq. ...... 44) OT 19 }50°0} 11 29°0) 9 & 29 
Althorpe .....+...++++eeee+.-|W. FE. Jakeman, Esq. +-|3.24) “64! 16 | 17 | 49°0)10 & 24 | 260/22 & 29 
Northampton..........+0.06.|H. Terry, ESQ. .eceveeeeess|( 2°73) °45} 10 16 | 49'°0) 5 & 10 | 28:0] 8 & 28 
RUTLAND. 
Burley-on-the-Hill ..........)W. Temple, Esq. ........../3°17| 69! 16 17 |520 a 24:0) 9 & 23 
West Deyne, Uppingham ....|Rev. G. H. Mullins ........}3°54) 68} 24 18 | 49°9) 24 289) 12 
Northfields, ‘Stamford ......|W. Hayes, Esq. ............| 3°46] °64) 24 15 | 550 7 28°0 9 
Radcliffe Observatory,Oxford|/Mr. H. E. Bellamy .. 2°28) -44) 27 16/519) 10 |803) 12 
Spital Cemetery, Carlisle ..../T. Bell, Esq. ...... L64) “AG 97 17 | 48°3 1 22°9) 25 
peniistor Hospital...... H. Sagar, Esq. .| 4:09 27 19 |52°4; 10 814| 12 
Altarnun Vicarage ... Rey. G. Tripp........0+-+.-)610/1'06 11 92 }540) 25 |22°0) 20 


CORRESPONDENCE. 21 


i Correspondence, 


Dupizy Geronocican Socrery’s Procunpines.—I wish, from the 
standpoint of a Geological Surveyor, to call the attention of readers 
of the “Midland Naturalist” to the above-named publication of one 
of the Societies of the ‘Midland Union.” ‘Two of the papers, by 
Messrs. Oliver and W. J. Harrison, are on sections on the Midland 
Railway, and these are not confined to descriptive text, but are accom- 
panied by plates which give measured drawings of the sections on a 
large scale, and also plans, so that the exact position of any outcrop, &c., 
can be fixed on the ground when the cutting has been turfed over. 
This careful record of facts that in all likelihood will soon be hidden 
up cannot fail to be valued by field-geologists, to whom there can hardly 
be a more gloomy sight than a large railway-cutting, beautifully smoothed 
and turfed, of which no record has been kept. I would therefore impress 
on members of our many provincial societies to note all facts, however 
trifling they may seem to be; and if any one is in doubt as to how 
such noting should be done, let him look at the publication referred 
to. Others of the papers have small plans to show the place of the 
section or fossils described. Here again is a good example, for the want 
of precision in such matters has greatly lessened the value of many papers. 
As the Dudley and Midland Geological Society ceased to publish its 
proceedings for some years, and has but lately gone into print again, such 
sure signs of life are welcome, and to none more so than to working 
Geologists.—W. WHITAKER. 


Ceratopus at PrnartH.—Aust Cliff was for a long time the only 
British locality which yielded teeth of that remarkable fish the Ceratodus. 
I found a fragment of a tooth at the Spinney Hill Rhetic Section, near 
Leicester, in 1873, (it was kindly identified by Mr. W. Davies, of the 
British Museum,) and Mr. HE. Wilson has since got it, near Notting- 
ham. Ican now record its occurrence at Penarth, near Cardiff, where 
it has been found by Mr. Storrie, of the Cardiff Museum.—W. J. H. 


Herr Cantiana.—At p. 323, Vol. I.,I gave a few notes on the 
distribution of this species in Britain, placing the county of Northampton 
in my list of theoretical habitats. Upon receiving the December number 
of the ‘Midland Naturalist,’ I at once turned to the very excellent 
index, and found that Mr. T. C. Musson, of Nottingham, has recorded 
(p. 50) its occurrence at Kingscliffe, Northamptonshire. He has kindly 
sent me specimens. ‘The only adult shell is smaller than usual, white 
and thin, the latter being an anomalous character, (not uncommon 
among the Mollusca,) seeing that it occurred on the Great Oolite. I 
take this opportunity of correcting a mistake I made in giving Littleton, 
near Hivesham, asa habitat. Mr. Slatter tells me it should have been 
‘¢ Evesham, particularly near the ancient walls of the Abbey enclosures,” 
near Littleton being the locality for Cochlicopa tridens.—G. SHERRIFF 
Tyz. 

FERTILISATION OF OrncHIps.—During the summers of 1874-5, I netted, 
on Boxley Warren, for purposes of exchange with a friend, for dissection, 
over 2,000 Lepidoptera. Of these, thirty-five had the anthers of Orchis 
pyramidalis (a common species here,) adhering to their trunks in the 
manner described and figured in Darwin’s “ Fertilisation of Orchids.” 
They were of the following species:—Meadow Brown, Ringlet, Small 
Heath, Small White, Chalk Hill Blue, Common Blue, Burnet Moth. In 
connection with the last-named species, I had the rare good fortune to 
witness the whole operation. Seeing a Burnet seated on a large head of 
Orchis pyramidalis, I cautiously approached with pocket lens in one hand 

E 


92, CORRESPONDENCE. 


and net in the other. I got close enough to see through the lens the trunk 
thrust first into one flower, then drawn out with the pair of anthers glued 
to the trunk with the natural glue of the orchis anther ; then thrust into 
another flower, thus fertilising it with the anthers of the first flower, and 
then drawn out, now with two pairs of anthers glued on. After three 
pairs of anthers had been attached he became frightened, I suppose at 
my lens, and flew off. I immediately netted him.—F rep. F. GRENSTED, 
Maidstone. 


Tue Rua@ric StarrisH.—(See Mid. Nat., Vol. I., p. 230.).—After 
lecturing to the Cardiff Naturalists’ Society on Dec. 5th, on ‘‘ The Origin 
of Scenery,” I went the next day, under the guidance of Mr. Storrie, the 
indefatigable Curator of the Cardiff Museum, to examine the unrivalled 
Rhetic section, which stretches along the coast from Penarth to 
Lavernock. We obtained many beautiful specimens from the bone bed, 
&c., but I especially wish to note a fine slab, nearly 2ft. square, on which 
were many specimens of Cardium Rheticum, Avicula contorta, and Pecten 
valoniensis, the three characteristic Rhetic shells thus occurring all in 
alump as it were. Between the shells I was delighted to recognise 
several specimens of that lovely star-fish Ophiolepis Damesii ; the bodies 
were crushed, but the arms more finely preserved than I have hitherto 
seen them. This is the first instance on record of the o¢currence of this 
star-fish at Penarth. The slab is now in the Cardiff Museum. In the 
December Number of ‘Science Gossip,” p. 271, I notice “a star-fish ” 
has been found by Mr. T. Stock, at Aust Cliff, another well-known 
Rheetic section. It is remarkable that this fossil, of which I found the 
first specimen near Leicester, in February, 1873, should now turn up at 
almost every section.—W. JERomE Harrison. 


Frost Poenomena.—During the past week the frost and fog together 
have produced some interesting effects. Hoar-frost is always deposited 
on that side of an object which faces the wind, so that the direction of 
the ice-fringes upon the twigs and rails is an accurate register of the air- 
current. This current must be a very light one, or the rime is 
shaken off as fast as it accumulates ; but, however still the air may seem, 
there is generally a slight movement in some one direction, and this may 
readily be ascertained by the direction of the spicules of hoar-frost. On 
Wednesday morning the ice-fringes all pointed towards the north, and 
there was a distinct difference in the whiteness of the landscape as seen 
from the northern and the southern sides. But there was a slight thaw 
on Wednesday afternoon. The air-current (it was scarcely so much as a 
breeze) veered round to the south, and on Thursday morning the white 
side of the landscape was reversed. It continued so till Friday night, 
when the current again got round to the north without any intermediate 
thaw, and on Saturday morning all boughs and rails which had not been 
shaken had a double fringe, one on each side; the northern fringe pointing 
straight to the breeze, the southern one actually curling round from 
south to north in a curious and very remarkable manner, not of course 
from any bending of the individual spicules, but from the unilateral 
deposition of each fresh spicule, producing the form known to botanists as 
a ‘‘scorpioid cyme,” very plainly seen in the flower of the Forget-me-not. 
So great was the deposit of rime on Saturday morning that many of the 
spicules were 1}in. in length, and the leafiess elms were as thick with 
winter foliage as if Midsummer had come back again without its chloro- 
phyll—a ghostly, and yet a wonderful and lovely sight.—F. T. Mort, 
Birstal Hill, Leicester, Dec. 14th. 


OrnitHoLogy.—I have the pleasure of recording the occurrence of two 
-now comparatively rare birds, namely, the Honey Buzzard, (Pernis 
apivorus,) and the Crested Grebe, (Podiceps cristatus ) the former captured 


: 


ee ——— ee ee 


ie. 


CORRESPONDENCE. 23 


at Markfield, within the last fortnight; the latter at Cropston, in the 
spring of the present year.—J. EH, WEATHERHEAD, in the Leicester Journal, 
October 18th, 1878. 


’ OrnitHoLoaicaL Notzes.—Our Stoke swallows took their departure at 
the end of September, but for nearly a fortnight afterwards I observed a 
good many stragglers flying about their usual haunts. On the 9th 
October I saw a great flock, consisting of many hundreds, congregated 
about the lower part of Whitley Common. It seemed to be the final 
muster of the last division of the district, assembled preparatory to their 
long flight. The day was mild, but very rough and stormy. ‘They were 
flying high and low, and the surface of the river by Whitley Bridge was quite 
crowded with them. [I still observed a few stragglers on the 10th and 
11th, but Isaw none after that date. Mr. Phillips, however, tells me 
that he saw four at Stoke Green on the 26th, and two on the 28th. My 
old friend Anthony Hunt, now residing at Hastcote, Northamptonshire, 
was much interested in observing a colony of swallows, who had built 
their nests under the warm thatch of his house. At the usual time of 
emigration they all took their departure excepting one pair whose brood 
were unusually late, and the young birds still unfledged at the time 
departure. The old birds remained behind in the evident hope of 
their being able to follow. On the 16th October they were still 
observed diligently hawking for flies, and feeding their young. The 
morning of the 17th, however, was raw and foggy. The old birds could 
stay no longer, and leaving their young in the nest, they disappeared and 
were seen no more. There are numerous flocks of starlings about the 
neighbourhood; their numbers decrease when the weather becomes 
severe, as many of the flocks retreat to the southern countries for a 
milder climate. A good many of the winter migratory birds have 
returned to us. I noticed the redwing on the 20th, and the fieldfares 
appeared about ten days later. In severe seasons the berries of the 
holly are greedily devoured by these birds. At present, however, many 
of the hollies in this neighbourhood are still quite bright with the scarlet 
berries with which they were adorned last Christmas, looking as if they 
would remain until that season again comes round. On Friday last a fine 
specimen of the ‘‘Glaucous Gull” was hanging at Messrs. Blythe’s. It 
was shot near Flamborough Head. Its colour was whitish grey, not 
having acquired the pure white on the breast of an old bird. The stretch 
across the wings was upwards of five feet. It is now in the hands of 
David Smith to be stuffed and set up, who has also a Tern and a Gull, 
which were driven inland by stormy weather, and shot in this neighbour- 
hood, and a specimen of the Water Ousel, killed near Coventry. This 
pretty little bird is common about rapid mountain streams, but not often 
seen hereabouts.—Joun Guxuson, Coventry, Noy. 5th, 1878. 


THE Common ViPER, (Vipera hornis.)—The viper is very common in 
Devonshire among the gorse bushes, in stony places having a southern 
aspect; also on the southern slopes of the Cotswold Hills. It appears 
early in the spring, and is then ina rather torpid state, and can be easily 
taken or killed. Almost all the vipers that appear early are males, and 
there appear to be more male vipers than females. The male can 
readily be distinguished from the female by the darker marks and spots 
upon its body, and by the gradual tapering of the body from the head 
to the horny apex of the tail. The marks upon the female are lighter, 
inclining to a brown colour, and the tail appears as if affixed to the body, 
which abruptly terminates at the commencement of the tail. In the 
Summer months the viper is not so readily seen, being then more active 
than the common snake, and escapes or conceals itself in the longgrass, 
bushes, or stones, being a timid animal except when attacked. The 
favourite food of the viper is the short-tailed field mouse, although frogs 


94 CORRESPONDENCE—GLEANINGS. 


and grass snails are often found in its stomach. The toad which is often 
found in the stomach of the common snake is not found in the stomach 
of the viper. The reproductive organs in the male and female differ very 
much. The male has a soft roe like a fish, the female a string of oblong 
small bodies—ova—which develope into the shape and size of robins eggs, 
consisting of yellow matter like the yolk of an egg, before there is any 
trace of the existence of a young viper. The young viper does not 
escape from its fine membranous covering until immediately before its 
passage into the world, when it is lively, active, and well provided with 
every means of procuring food, and at once leaves the parent. They 
may be often seen coiled up on a flat stone in a sunny spot when very 
little longer than when they passed from the old one. You often meet 
with very young ones early in the spring, during the summer months, 
and as late as September in the autumn. The young vipers are of a 
reddish or copper colour; something like that of the common blindworm, 
—Hewnry Birp. 


Glewnings. 


Tae Minptanp Nartvuratist.—The Northampton Natural History 
Society has set an example which we commend to the consideration of 
the other societies in ‘‘our Union.” The committee has decided to 
present each member (100 in number) with a copy of the ‘“ Midland 
Naturalist’ during the present year. 


Lyeww’s SrupEnt’s ELemMEents or Groxtocy.—A third edition of this 
popular work has just been issued, revised by Mr. Leonard Lyell, Prof. 
Judd, and Mr. Etheridge. 


Guactan Derrostrs.—Mr. D. Mackintosh, F.G.S., of Birkenhead, who 
is well known as an untiring worker at the Drift of the North and 
North-west of England, has printed a syllabus of a paper he has lately 
laid before the Royal Society. After some introductory remarks, he 
treats of the ‘“ Boulder-supplying capacity” of (1) Criffel in Kirkeud- 
brightshire, (2) the Lake District, and (3) the Arenig Mountains. Then 
the association of flints and lias fossils with Northern Boulders is 
discussed with many other interesting points. Altogether this ‘‘ syllabus” 
is well calculated to whet the appetites of glacialists, and to make them 
wish for a speedy publication of Mr. Mackintosh’s Memoir, either by 
the Royal or the Geological Society. It is, we believe, illustrated by an 
elaborate map. 


‘Ture Busou List or British Burrerruiss,” just issued by Mr. H. W. 
Marsden, of Gloucester, will be welcomed by Lepidopterists as a useful 
pocket companion. It is based on Dr. Staudinger’s List, includes all the 
‘‘yeputed” species, and gives synonymes and authorities. It ought to 
help to break down the wall of exclusiveness with which the English 
Lepidopterist has so persistently shut himself in with his ‘“ British 
Butterflies,” as if he wished it to be thought that they had ‘‘ no connec- 
tion”’ with those ‘‘ over the water.” 


Proressor Huxiry will lecture in Leicester to the Literary and 
Philosophical Society on March 24th on ‘‘ The Structural Characters and 
the Operations of the Simplest Forms of Living Beings.” This subject 
will be especially interesting in connection with the recent researches of 
Dr. W. Jobnston, F.G.S., the Assistant Officer of Health for Leicester, 
who traces the infantile diarrhcea, which has been so fearfully prevalent 
in that town, to the action of various forms of Bacteria, Microscopic 


274 


GLEANINGS—REPORTS. 25 


organisms, on whose ‘‘ operations” Professor Huxley will no doubt give 
full information. 


~ Tanners to Mount Sprcmvens on.—For this purpose wood is 
generally used, but it is expensive, liable to warp, and difficult to cut 
true. Various substitutes have been recommended, such as glass 
covered with paper, &c., but we have lately tried a plan recommended by 
Prof. Miall, of the Leeds Museum, and found it to answer perfectly. It 
consists in using pasteboard three-sixteenths of an inch in thickness, or 
if the tablets are large one-quarter of an inch thick. Any large paper 
dealer will make pasteboard of any required thickness, and cut it to any 
size, with perfect accuracy, bya machine. The tablets may be covered 
with paper of different tints to aid in classification, and the specimens 
should be fixed on with coaguline. 


A Microscorican Socrery, Literary, and Scientific Institution has been 
formed at Boston, (mainly by the exertions of Messrs. F. W. Morris and 
B. J. Stow,) under the presidency of the Rev. G. E. Pattenden, LL.D. 
The first meeting was held in the Art Room, Shoofriars Hall, Boston, on 
Monday, the 16th December, when an address was delivered by the 
President, who said much that was interesting about botany, chemistry, 
geology, and microscopy. He congratulated the promoters upon their 
success in the formation of the society. The meeting then resulved itself 
into a conversazione and exhibition of Natural History and other 
specimens. 


Ace or Brros.—Mr. Gulson writes:—‘*Mr. Miller, of Combe 
Gardens, has sent me the following amusing account of a 
venerable Jackdaw, who is one of his protégés. He says:— 
‘The bird in question was reared in the spring of 1865, by one 
of the under-gardeners here. I know the date is correct. I took 
it from our labour-book, and the young man was only with me one 
spring—that of 1865, in which the daw was reared. The age of the bird 
is now, calculating from June, 1865, 134 years. Jack was left to the 
gardeners as a sort of legacy. I took to the bird and fed it with crumbs from 
my window. He came regularly for his food. For several years this pet 
mated with the wild birds. One he selected, and I believe stuck to all 
through; I know it from the drooping habit of its wings. Their nest 
was in a hole in an ash tree close by. Many a lump of bread did Jack 
carry away from my window to feed his family year after year in that 
hole. Besides his mate, Jack has a great number of relations and 
followers or friends, who come to my window in hard times. Jack is 
blind of one eye, the result no doubt of defending his nest in the hollow 
tree. He also has a crooked leg, but, considering “his age, he is in fairly 
good plumage, and comes for his soft bread regularly. He does not like 
crust.’ Considering the enormous number of young birds which are 
reared every year, the death-rate among the feathered tribes must neces- 
sarily be a very high one, and few can survive to the good old age of the 
bird mentioned above. During a hard winter many sorts of birds find 
subsistence difficult, and their number becomes greatly reduced, but a 
few mild seasons and abundant food soon restore about their average 
number.” 


Aeports of Societies, 


BIRMINGHAM AND MIDLAND INSTITUTE SCIENTIFIC SOCIETY.— 
November 27th.—Mr. G. S. Dunn, B.A., read a paper on the ‘‘ Human Ear.” In 
the course of it he stated that since the so-called Corti’s rods are absent in birds, 
they could not be the means whereby musical tunes are distinguished; but that 


26 REPORTS. 


probably the membrane in which they are situated fulfils this office. December 
3rd.—A party of the members visited the brass-founding establishment of Messrs. 
W. Tonks and Sons. Amongst the processes inspected were those of modelling 
the patterns, moulding, casting, tube-making, brazing, polishing, stamping, 
making brass-headed nails, pickling, lacquering, and tool-making. December 11th. 
—Mr. J. W. Pickering read a paper on “‘ The Autotype Process of Photography,” 
which he described as the reproduction of an artist’s work in monochrome by the 
natural forces of light or actinism and chemical affinity, the materials employed 
being those of the artist’s own palette. Mr. Pickering gave a short history of 
photography, from its introduction in 1839 by Mr. Mungo Ponton, who announced 
it as “‘a process of producing images by the action of light on paper which had 
been impregnated with a solution of bichromate of potash,” to its perfection in 
1864 by Mr. Wilson Swan, of Newcastle, who, by temporarily transferring the 
film to another surface, and washing it from its under-surface, succeeded in 
bringing out the half-tones, and thus rendered the process so complete that auto- 
type pictures are incapable of being affected by the atmosphere. The lecture 
was illustrated by a practical demonstration of the process, and an exhibition of 
a fine series of autotype copies of works of art, lent for the occasion by the 
Autotype Company. 


BIRMINGHAM NATURAL HISTORY AND MICROSCOPICAL 
SOCIETY.—Microscopican GENERAL Merntine.—November 19th—Mr. J. 
Levick exhibited Epistylis grandis, Zoothamnium arbuscula, and Carchesium 
polypinwm, all fed upon carmine. Mr. H. H. Forrest exhibited and described a 
simple and easy method of drawing objects under the microscope, of which 
a brief description will be found under the head “ Microscopy,” at page 18. 
GENERAL Mrretinc.—December 3rd.—Mr. W. Southall exhibited a spike of 
fruit of Gunnera scabra, native of Chili. Myr. W. G. Blatch read a paper on 
“Midland Entomology,” which will be printed in the ‘‘ Midland Naturalist.” 
Bronocicat Section.—December 10th.—Mr. H. E. Forrest read a paper on “ the 
History and Development of Zoothamnium arbuscula and some other Vorti- 
cellidz,” which will appear ina future number. Among the specimens exhibited 
were the rare beetle Prionus coriarius, occasicnally found in the south of 
England, and of which Mr. W. G. Blatch now contributed the male taken at 
Aston, in July last ; and marine organisms, shown in the microscope, by Mr. T. 
Bolton, and identified by Professor E. Ray Lankester as the Trochosphere phase 
or larvee of the Polyzoon, Alcyonidiwm hirsutum. In reference to these, Pro- 
fessor Lankester writes, ‘‘These larvee are very interesting objects for study. 
They have the form of a compressed circular disc, or rather of two discs placed 
one on the other. Thelarger one is bounded by acirclet of powerful cilia, the 
‘architroch’ or ‘primitive ciliated band,’ which appears under one form or 
another in so many invertebrate larve. Onthe upper surface of this ciliated 
disc is carried the mouth, which leads into a very remarkable protrusible 
pharynx. The rudimentary digestive cavity is clearly seen in specimens slightly 
compressed by the cover-glass. The ciliated band is what gives rise later to the 
tentacles of the Polyzoon. These larve have never been well figured in England. 
Last year M. Jules Barrois published a large work on the subject at Lille, with 
many plates.” 


BURTON NATURAL HISTORY AND ARCH OLOGICAL SOCIETY.— 
December 10th.—Mr. Ford read an interesting paper on ‘‘ The Gypsum Beds of 
the Triassic Marls of the Neighbourhood.’ He pointed out that gypsum is 
usually considered to be a chemically-formed rock, deposited in the waters of a 
lake or inland sea by evaporation, in the same manner as rock salt. But no 
instances can be pointed out where beds of gypsum are forming at the present 
day in thismanner; and it seems more likely that they are the result of the mutual 
decomposition of carbonate of lime and some sulphide or sulphate. The 
resulting sulphate of lime (gypsum) being soluble in water would be carried in 
solution through the rocks until it arrived at the water level, where it crystallised 
out, filling fissures, &ec. Gypsum can be traced from Chellaston, by Aston, to 
Thrumpton, Gotham, Beacon Hill, Newark, and Bingham. It is also worked 
near Carlisle, and in the other direction at Fauld and Chartley. A thin vein, 
about 14 inches across, occurs in the bed of the Ouse beyond Goole. The 


REPORTS. a | 


plaster marls extend all under Needwood Forest, and crop out in the valleys of 
the Trent and Dove. At Shobnall, crystallised gypsum or selenite occurs in 
fine veins. The superior quality of the Burton beer is owing to the amount of 
gypsum dissolved in the well waters. Distant brewers are now regularly getting 
this material supplied in sacks, to make the water they brew with somewhat 
similar to the Burton water. The author concluded by proposing an excursion 
_ as spring to Tutbury, the plaster quarries at Fauld, &c., and returning from 
udbury. 


CHELTENHAM NATURAL SCIENCE SOCIETY.—November 21st.— 
The second evening meeting of the Society for this session was held at the Corn 
Exchange. Dr. Wright, after having briefly returned thanks to the Society for 
having re-elected him as President for the present session, introduced the 
subject for the evening—an address on the geographical distribution of the 
existing races of plants and animals, by Mr. H. J. Elwes, F.Z.S., &c., who was 
well known to the scientific public as a most energetic traveller, and as a careful 
collector not only of objects of Natural History but also of facts bearing upon 
ae geography. An abstract of the address and the discussion thereon will 

e found at page 9. 


NOTTINGHAM LITERARY AND PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY.— 
Natura Scrence Secrion.—November 29th.—Lecture on “‘ Trees,” by the Rev. 
G. E. C. Casey, M.A., F.G.S., illustrated by diagrams and photographs. 
December 13th.—“ The Animals of Australia,” illustrated by photographic 
slides from life, by A. H. Scott White, Esq., B.A., B.Sc., F.G.S. 


NOTTINGHAM NATURALISTS’ SOCIETY.—Meeetings have been held 
as follows:—November 20th, paper on ‘“ Insect Architecture,’ by Mr. H 
Johnson. December 4th, exhibition of prize collections of Natural History objects. 
Prizes were awarded as follows :—Botany: 1st prize, Mr. H. Johnson ; 2nd, Miss 
Cross. Conchology: Ist prize, Mr. C. T. Musson. Entomology: 1st prize, Mr. 
W. J. Rawson; second Mr. R. Wix. Geology: 1st prize, Mr. C. T. Musson. 
Microscopical objects mounted: Mr. Thornton. December 18th, paper on 
“Oysters and their Culture,” by Mr. B. S. Dodd. 


PETERBOROUGH NATURAL HISTORY AND SCIENTIFIC SOCIETY. 
—November 6th.—The President (E. Wheeler, Esq.,) read a paper on ‘“‘ Climbing 
Plants,’ mainly based on Dr. Darwin’s work on that subject. The parts of 
plants that climb and how they climb were described. The most common and 
the most interesting plants that twine merely or that have irritable leaves or 
tendrils were also described, and the special adaptability of each climber to 
its work was noticed. A number of pen and ink sketches were exhibited to 
explain the various organs mentioned. November 25th.—Mr. W. Wakeford gave 
an address on oxygen and hydrogen. Mr. Bodger exhibited geological speci- 
mens, consisting of plants from the coal shales; shells and corals from the 
Silurian Rocks; and a few Oolitic plants, of rare occurrence, from the Gris- 
thorpe beds; together with several specimens of various iron-ores. December 
10th.— The Rev. W. Katterns read a paper on “‘ The Food and Organisation of 
Plants.” The paper, which is an introduction to a series upon the growth of 
vegetation, is the outcome of experiments made since 1873. A brief reswmé 
would fail to state explicitly the author’s views, which, it may be stated, differ in 
several particulars from those usually held on the subject. It was decided, 
owing to the importance of the paper, that it should be printed at the expense of 
the Society, for exclusive circulation amongst the members. The Secretary 
(Mr. J. W. Bodger,) read a paper on the substances he had obtained from garden 
soil, which, at the suggestioa of Mr. Katterns, he had analysed. An animated 
discussion took place, which lasted so long that a special meeting had to be 
called for the further discussion of this paper. Mr. Bodger exhibited a number 
- seaweeds and corallines which he had received as a present for the Society’s 

useum. 


28 REPORTS, ETO. 


RUGBY SCHOOL NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY.—December 7th.— 
H. V. Wecisse (o.n ) read a paper on the “ Electric Light, and the Probabilities of 
its general Substitution for Gas.” He argued that this was improbable.—T. B. 
Oldham (m.) exhibited a specimen of Am. Capricornus (named by R. Etheridge, 
Esq.) from a blue clay underlying a brown conglomerate, hitherto regarded as 
the base of the Middle Lias at Crick. He then read a summary of his paper on 
the ‘Geology of Rugby,” which won the Society’s prize.—The President read a 
paper on “The Growth, History, and chief Collectors of the Society’s Entomo- 
logical Collection.”—The Secretary read a paper on “ Tripontium,” now Cave’s 
Hill, an Antonine town on the Watling Street, near Rugby.—Mr.B!oxam discussed 
the paper.—R. D. Oldham (o.nr.) pointed out the importance of the Am. Capri- 
cornus in drawing the line of demarcation between Middle and Lower Lias. This 
is to be done by Paleontology. The Geological Survey, when here, seem to have 
adopted a lithological basis of demarcation. Their line accordingly is wrong; 
the truth is that there is no marked line.—The meeting then terminated. This 
was the last meeting of the year. 


SMALL HEATH LITERARY AND SCIENTIFIC SOCIETY.—The third 
lecture of the series for the present session was delivered in the Congregational 
Schoolroom, Coventry Road,on Monday, December 9th, by Mr. J. W. Oliver, 
(Professor of Geology and Botany at the Birmingham and Midland Institute,) on 
“The Story of the Rocks.” Thesubject was treated in a popular and interesting 
style, and was illustrated by a number of diagrams and specimens.—At the 
ordinary meeting of the Society, held inthe Board Sceools, Jenkins Street, on 
December 17th, a debatetook place on the question, ‘‘ That we are now in 
possession of sufficient evidence to enable us conclusively to accept the theory 
of evolution.” The affirmative was taken by Councillor Lawson Tait, who was 
to have been supported by Dr. John Lloyd, but the latter gentleman was unable 
to be present. Mr. Tait concisely set forth the main claims of the Evolutionary 
Philosophy, after which the Rev. Charles Joseph and Mr. W. J. Bain delivered 
speeches in the negative. The result of the voting of the members showed a 
majority of six in favour of the negative, but, on the vote of members and 
visitors together being taken, the majority was very much larger. The debate was 
a very spirited one, and the attendance larger than at any previous meeting. 


STROUD NATURAL HISTORY AND PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY.— 
—December 10th.—Major Fisher gave a very interesting account of 
‘Modern Falconry,” illustrating the subject with some excellent sketches and 
two living specimens of falcons. 


Buswers to Correspondents, 


Scrmntiric Boorworm.—Foreign books of all kinds may be obtained 
through Mr. D. Nutt, 270, Strand, London, W.C., or from Williams 
and Norgate, 14, Henrietta Street, Covent Garden. The latter firm 
has lately published catalogues, which they will send on application. 
For English and foreign science books consult the ‘‘ Book Circulars” 
of Mr. W. Wesley, 28, Essex Street, Strand. For English science 
books consult the catalogues of Mr. Wheldon, 58, Great Queen Street, 
Lincoln’s Inn Fields; Messrs. Reeves and Turner, 196, Strand; Mr. 
Quaritch, Piccadilly ; or W. H. Smith and Son, 186, Strand. All these 
will send catalogues on application, and expensive books may often 
be obtained in this way at less than half price. 


All communications to be addressed, The Editors of the Mmnanp 
Narturauist, Midland Counties Herald Office, Birmingham. 


PASSAGES FROM POPULAR LECTURES. 929 


PASSAGES FROM POPULAR LECTURES. 
;, BY F. T. MOTT, F.R.G.S. 
IL—THE SCALE OF BEING. 


When a human baby opens its dazed eyes upon this world, what it 
first perceives is simply light and darkness. It distinguishes neither 
forms nor colours. It is mentally in the condition of the oyster, 
the starfish, the worm, and other animals of low type. But a few 
weeks of exercise and experience bring it toits second stage. It perceives 
the outlines of things. It recognises differences of sound and of colour, 
and knows its mother’s voice and face among a thousand. It has. 
reached the condition of a vertebrate animal—a lamb or a sucking pig. 
But it does not stop here; it is only in the bud yet, and has a great deal 
of capacity still to be developed. 

Ina few months it knows a tree from a steam engine, and when it 
sees the picture of a cowit will say ‘‘moo!” But it calls every horned 
creature a cow, and everything with leaves and branches a tree. It is a 
human child, but a very ignorant one; nevertheless, it is already learning 
the elements of science, of which a very large part is simply the know- 
ledge of one thing from another, and of the connections between one 
thing and another; the perception of differences and likenesses, of causes 
and effects, first among visible objects, and then among invisible forces. 

The more we have learned to comprehend the real differences by 
which objects are separated from each other, and the real likenesses by 
which they are connected together, the further we are from babyhood. 
We are accustomed to reckon a man’s age by the number of years he has 
lived. A better standard would be the number of ideas he has got. The 
use of lectures and classes is to give us afew more ideas than we had 
before—to add a few degrees to our real age. The kindof ideas does not 
very much matter so that they are new to us and true in themselves. 
They are all useful, all add a little to our age, taking us a few steps further 
from the cradle and nearer to heaven. Let us endeavour to gather up a 
few ideas—there may be a new one among them here and there, new to 
some of us at least—about those inhabitants of the world which have no 
speech and little motion, but to which we owe the whole of our physical 
life, and at least one-half of its enjoyments. 

We call these creatures Plants. We class them together as the 
vegetable kingdom, perceiving that there is a mineral kingdom below 
them, and an animal kingdom above them; and we call the study of 
this class of creatures Botany. 


What do we mean when we say that the mineral kingdom is below 
them and the animal kingdom above them? We don’t use these words 
below and above in reference to height, that is, to distance from the 
centre of the earth, as when we say that a man’s nose is below his eyes 
and above his chin. The mineral kingdom is not in this sense 
altogether below the vegetable, for the great mountain ranges of the 
world rise up far above all trace or possibility of vegetation. We use 
them not in reference to a scale of feet and inches, but in reference to a 

F 


\ ene 
7s 


30 PASSAGES FROM POPULAR LECTURES. 


scale of capabilities. We say that plants are higher than minerals, 
because they have more varied and more complex capacities, they can do 
more. And, forthe same reason, we say that animals are higher than plants. 
A mineral, such as a piece of iron, has a definite form, a definite 
colour, it will conduct heat and electricity in definite degrees, and it 
will attract oxygen if it comes near it in the presence of water. But a 
plant has nearly all the capacities of a mineral, and many more | 
besides. It feeds, and breathes, and grows, and reproduces its kind, and 
has a multitude of internal motions and operations going on among - 
its tissues. It does an immense number of things which the piece of iron 
cannot do. The difference between them is wider than the difference 
between a watch and a stone, but it is something of the same kind. 
But, if the plant is higher in the scale of being than the mineral, 
it is a great deal lower than the animal. A dog not only feeds, and 
breathes, and grows, and reproduces its kind, but can move about 
from place to place rapidly and easily ; and has a voice, and eyestosee | 
with, and ears to take in sound, and a brain in which ideas and 
passions are developed. A plant has none of these capacities. 
When we look at the whole material contents of this world, we 
find that there is one marked and striking difference which divides 
them into two great classes—the organic and the inorganic. In the 
first of these divisions every object has a variety of parts, differing from a 
each other, and each part has certain definite work to do in connection 
with a common purpose. We call these parts organs. In a dog there are 
legs for running, a nose for smelling, teeth for eating, and a tail to wag, 
In a tree there are roots to suck up moisture, a stem to support the 
boughs, boughs to carry the leaves, leaves to spread out the sap in the 
sunshine, flowers to produce seed. But in a piece of iron there are no 
organs. It is amass of grains or fibres, all alike, and each doing the 
same work. Soisa stone, sois water, soisthe air. All these together 
we call the inorganic world; animals and vegetables make up the . 
organic world. Life is said also to be a special characteristic of creatures 
which have definite organs. It may be so; but it is not quite proved that 
life is entirely absent from inorganic objects. In crystallisation we have 
a phenomenon in which some of the elementary characters of life make 
their appearance, and in which organic differentiation of parts seems to 
be foreshadowed. Who shall say whether the vegetative force, which 
builds an oak out of an acorn, is not of the same nature as that which 
builds a ‘silver tree” out of a chemical solution ? 


MIDLAND ENTOMOLOGY: ENQUIRIES AND 
SUGGESTIONS. 


BY, W.° G. BLATCH. 


Is any progress being made in the study of Entomology in the 
Midland Counties? Are Entomologists really “few and far between ” in 
central England; or are they, like many of their favourite insects, too 
unobtrusive in their habits? Can anything be done to develop and foster 
Entomological tastes in our local Societies? 


MIDLAND ENTOMOLOGY. 31 


These three questions are a digest of a great number of enquiries 
which I have heard made during the last few months, and they seem 
to indicate that, in at least one leading Society in the ‘Midland 
Union,” Entomology is about to assume a new and more hopeful phase. 
This is very gratifying ; for although I do not admit that this science is 
neglected quite to the extent some would have us believe, I am only too 
well aware that it does not receive the attention it deserves; but, in 
truth, the last remark applies equally to the whole of the British — 
Islands as to the Midland Counties. From all parts we hear the same 
lament that Entomology is too much neglected. It seems to flourish 
most in the south and north, whilst in the east and west it is very little 
regarded. The English and Scotch, respectively, are most attached to 
this pursuit, the Irish being a long way behind both, and the Welsh just 
nowhere at all! But, however interesting it might be to prosecute an 
enquiry into this broader subject, our attention for the present must be 
concentrated upon the narrower theme of ‘ Midland Entomology.” 


How it has come about I am unable to explain, but certain it is that, 
entomologically speaking, the Midland Counties have acquired a bad 
name. In the “ Entomologists’ Intelligencer” for 1857 frequent allusion 
js made to the alleged barrenness of the Midland fauna—especially as 
regards insects—and one writer, in giving counsel to Coleopterists, says : 
“In a general sense, therefore, let the Midland Counties be shunned by all 
as they would the plague!” 'The italics are in the original, and are used, 
I imagine, to intensify the meaning, and to impress upon any rash adven- 
turer in search of Midland insects the utter hopelessness of his design. 
I recollect that, upon my advent into this district, now eleven years ago, 
I was told that I might choose some other hobby than Entomology, 
‘for there are no insects in the Midlands except Nebria brevicollis, Pieris 
rape, Panorpa communis, Musca domestica, and a few others equally 
common!” TI was certainly very much impressed, though not depressed, 
by this information; for, as my object was to make myself acquainted 
with the insects of the locality, and not simply and primarily to acquire a 
“complete collection,’ I was not deterred from prosecuting my 
researches as far as my limited time and abilities allowed. With what 
result? Why, during the very first season I found, almost without 
effort, somany “good things” that my faith in the written and oral 
counsels referred to was greatly shaken, if not wholly destroyed, and 
the conclusion I came to was that this district would prove as 
interesting and productive (in a general way) as any other, if properly 
worked. Subsequent experience, and a comparison of notes with a few 
close but unobtrusive observers, have confirmed the justness of this 
view. 

It would occupy too much space here to give a list of the rarer 
species of insects captured in the district. For Lepidoptera I must refer 
enquirers tothe Transactions (Vols. I. and II.) of the Birmingham Natural 
History and Microscopical Society. The lists there given, however, only 
apply to the immediate neighbourhood of Birmingham, and must not be 
taken as representing the wealth of the Midlands in the particular order 


382 MIDLAND ENTOMOLOGY. 


selected. To the lists as limited there are many additions ready to be 
made; and if they were opened so as to include the wider area, they 
would expand enormously. As they stand, however, indicative of what 
has been accomplished, they are suggestive of much more to be done 
before the knowledge to be obtained of even the Butterflies and Moths of 
our suburban woods, lanes, and fields is exhausted. 


I have no catalogue of Midland Coleoptera to refer to, but I can 
testify that better things are to be found amongst us than Nebria 
brevicollis and Pterostichus madidus, and that the sterility said to prevail 
here exists only in the imagination of those whodraw conclusions from 
insufficient premises. Amongst the species of Coleoptera taken by 
myself, I may mention that I have found at Knowle, nearly in the middle 
of the most midland of the Midland Counties, specimens of the rare 
Trachys troglodytes, whilst Encephalus complicans, Orobitis cyaneus, Calli- 
dium alni, &c., have been frequently found by myself in the same locality. 
It is worth mention here that a fine specimen of the rare Prionus 
coriarius has been presented to me by Mr. Thos. Taylor, whose nephew 
found it last. July crawling on a wall at Aston-juxta-Birmingham. A 
few hours’ hunting on Cannock Chase produced Carabus nitens, C. 
arvensis, Nebria livida, Miscodera arctica, Pterostichus lepidus, Silpha 
opaca, and several other uncommon species. Not far from Burton-upon- 
Trent Mr. Harris, of that place, discovered the rare and curious 
Macronychus quadrituberculatus, a species found nowhere else in England. 
Surely a district in which such insects as these are to be found cannot 
be considered unworthy of further examination. The fact is, as I have 
before hinted, our knowledge of Midland insects is in a very imperfect 
state; and, because little is known, it has been rather hastily and 
unwarrantably concluded that there is little to know. I do not claim for 
the Midlands the insect riches of the east and south, but I do say that 
a great deal more may be discovered here, with a little effort, than has 
ever been dreamed of. The habits of great numbers of our insects are 
so obscure, and the laws and conditions which regulate their appearance 
from time to time so little understood, that it is only by close and 
systematic observation, extending over a number of years, that the 
insect inhabitants of any particular locality can be ascertained. 
Practically the Entomology of an extensive district like our own is 
inexhaustible, something “new” or ‘new to the district” being 
constantly turned up, and it may be taken as an axiom that the more 
closely a locality is examined the more productive will it be found to be. 


Having thus, to some extent, cleared the Midland district from the 
aspersions cast upon it, and shown that it presents a not altogether un- 
promising field for Entomological energy and enterprise, we may now 
fairly ask what is being done towards developing its insect riches. 


It must at once be admitted that, compared with the extent of the 
field and the vast number and variety of its insect denizens, the work 
is sadly neglected. The important and extremely interesting orders 
Hymenoptera and Diptera are scarcely touched, whilst most of the lesser 
orders are almost as much disregarded as if they had no existence. The 


MIDLAND ENTOMOLOGY. 33 


order Lepidoptera appears to be the favourite—about fifty persons 
(probably there are many more) in Birmingham alone (to my know- 
ledge) paying it more or less attention. Only a very few of these, how- 
ever, care for more than the mere capture and possession of the insects, 
the majority not troubling themselves about their natural history, and 
not contributing anything to the general store of information respecting 
them. A few keen and trustworthy observers are, however, to be found 
amongst the number; the names of some of them (Dr. Jordan, e.g.) 
being known wherever Entomology is studied. The order Coleoptera is 
now receiving more attention than heretofore, several of our best 
Entomologists being at work upon it. The progress made, however, 
although appreciable, is not so great as could be desired. Two very good 
reasons (as affecting existing workers) may be given for this, viz., 
because the observers, being, as a rule, widely separated from each other, 
are unable to work much in unison; and because the time, and therefore 
the opportunities, at their disposal for Entomological purposes are 
extremely limited. 

We cannot, I fear, claim that a very decided affirmative has been 
given to the first question at the beginning of this paper, but even a 
feeble response may greatly encourage an ardent lover, and all lovers of 
insects will rejoice to know that some, even if little, progress is certainly 
being made in our knowledge of Midland Entomology. 

In reply to the second question, as to the number, distribution, and 
character of the Entomologists of the district, there is not much to be 
added to what has already been said. The number of real workers is 
comparatively small, they are very much isolated, and, probably the 
natural result of their separation from each other, they are characterised 
by great unobtrusiveness. It is to be hoped that more of the members 
of our societies will enter upon this fascinating study, and that those 
who are already far advanced in the science may be induced to ‘‘ come 
out” of their seclusion, and make known their discoveries for the benefit 
of their less accomplished co-workers. If our Entomologists could by 
any means be brought into easy communication, and prevailed upon to 
unite in systematic action—meeting together occasionally, if possible, for 
mutual intercourse and comparison of notes—I feel quite sure that great 
and rapid strides would be made in their favourite pursuit, and that 
the Midland Counties would soon become famous in the annals of 
Entomology. 

It now remains to reply to the third and last question—Whether 
anything can be done to develop and foster Entomological tastes in our 
societies? All seem to be agreed that it is desirable to encourage the 
study of Entomology; but opinions will no doubt differ as to the means 
by which that end should be sought. That this science is neglected by 
our members generally has already been shown, and it seems to me that 
the first step towards applying any remedy is to find out, if possible, the 
cause of the neglect complained of. At first sight it is not easy to under- 
stand why Botany, Geology, and Microscopy should attract a larger 
number of observers, and be considered more suitable subjects for study 
than Entomology. Such, however, seems to be the case in most of our 


34 MIDLAND ENTOMOLOGY. 


societies, and I think it will not be very difficult, after a little closer 
examination, to show that there are sufficient reasons for the preference. 
Some of these are undoubtedly beyond our power to obviate, but there 
are others that, to some extent, admit of being practically dealt with. 


The superficial but general idea “that insects are unworthy of 
notice because they are so common and insignificant, and that the study 
of flies and beetles is consequently too childish an occupation for any but 
schoolboys,” is not deserving of the troukle of refutation, although it 
must be admitted that it has often hada deterrent effect ; for few persons 
are so thoroughly case-hardened that they can persistently withstand the 
shafts of ridicule—the ridicule, moreover, of their friends. 

That Entomologists should be subjected to derision is neither 
wonderful nor singular; every specialist must expect to receive his share. 
It is as inseparable from those peculiar people who will deviate from the 
beaten track as shadow is from substance. I think it should be considered 
complimentary rather than derogatory, and that instead of shrinking from 
it we ought to welcome it as indicating, in proportion to its intensity, the 
importance of our special pursuit, and the strength of our moral courage. 


The real difficulties are of a more serious nature, two or three of 
which may be discussed. First there is the vastness of the subject. It is no 
joke to face our myriad insect tribes and their myriads of Latin 
and Latinish names. Bruin amongst the bees, and the proverbial 
hornet’s nest, are as nothing to it. Who, unless moved by an 
enthusiasm that blinds to contingencies, would dare to begin 
the attack? The immense number of our species of insects is 
in itself enough to stagger any ordinary tyro; but the classification 
and nomenclature by which they are fenced about form a perfect chevaux 
de frise before which the boldest quails. We cannot, of course, alter this 
state of things. Additions will continue to be made to the number of 
our known insects, and the anomalies of nomenclature and classification, 
the natural outgrowth (an excrescence if you will) of the science, will 
certainly not diminish as new workers appear. The best way of avoiding 
this difficulty is not to see it. The would-be Entomologist must not think 
of the number of insects to be known, and must resolutely shut his eyes 
upon the musty mass of synonymy. His course will then be easy, and 
his progress rapid. He will begin with a single insect, a separate genus, 
or a distinct order, and, as his interest is excited, and his knowledge 
extended, the obstacles he feared at the outset will fade away, becoming 
small by degrees and beautifully less. 


Having advanced thus far, the student would be none the worse for 
a little encouragement from the Society of which he happened to be a 
member. I offer it as a suggestion whether our Societies might not be 
of much use in developing original research by offering to publish mono- 
graphs of obscure genera, descriptions of new and little known species, or 
any other similar work, the result of independent observations. Special 
subjects, beginning with insects hurtful or beneficial to man, might be 
recommended for study, and original memoirs invited; these could be 
examined by a competent Committee, and the best selected for publication. 


Se 


MIDLAND ENTOMOLOGY. B15) 


By these means the science of Entomology would be advanced. 
Entomologists—both old hands and incipients—would be benefited, and 
ouz Societies would crown themselves with honour. 

Having dealt with one of the main causes that operate to deter 
persons from entering upon the pursuit of Entomology, we may proceed 
to consider another of even greater importance, viz., the want of reliable 
and easily accessible works descriptive of the species of insects belonging to 
the several orders. With few exceptions the records of Entomological 
research are scattered about and hidden away in a vast mass of literature, 
consisting of transactions of the various learned Societies, (English and 
foreign,) pamphlets, magazines, &c., and are inaccessible to the ordinary 
student. If it is desired to identify any particular insect, or to find out 
what is known of its natural history, it will probably be necessary to 
consult a dozen different works—English, French, German, and Latin— 
gleaning a little information from each of them. The Botanist and 
Geologist are better off than the Entomologist in the matter of text-books, 
and this doubtless accounts in great measure for the fact previously 
alluded to, that those subjects are commonly preferred to the one 
under consideration. Our Societies could do much to remove this diffi- 
culty by purchasing a copy of every good monograph published, and by 
laying themselves out to secure sets of all the scientific societies’ publica- 
tions—generally expensive and beyond the means of individuals—instead. 
of frittering away their funds in buying the cheaper books which nearly 
everyone could afford to obtain for himself. 

Two very effectual means of fostering Entomological tastes amongst 
us would be the formation of collections and the issue of lists, as 
complete as possible, and to be added to from time to time, of Midland 
Insects, with notes as to localities, dates, and other particulars. Every 
society should have not only a general collection of insects, but a 
collection of the insects of their particular district. These, together with 
the local lists, would form a good base of operations, and afford the 
requisite facilities for gauging his own work, to any one who might 
desire to enter upon thestudy, and would, besides, be extremely valuable 
to the more advanced workers. 

A suggestion has been made that a new class of constituents should 
be added to our societies by the admission of youths with a taste for 
Natural History, under the name of Associates. If that idea should be 
acted upon, it might be worth consideration (bear in mind that it is 
principally to the young we must look for our expected crop of Ento- 
mologists) whether small money or book prizes might not be offered for 
Entomological work, either in the form of original papers, general 
collections of insects, or collections illustrative of particular orders or 
families. 

No doubt there are many other methods by which the taste for 
Entomology could be extended, and very much more could, of course, be 
said in reference to the few rather crude hints I have ventured to throw 
out. This paper, however, is not intended to be more than merely 
suggestive, and the aim of the writer will have been accomplished if it 


conduces in the remotest degree to greater attention being paid in and by 
our societies to the interesting subject of ‘“‘ Midland Entomology.” 


36 MOSS HABITATS. 


MO 625° HA Bub ink Pap 
BY JAMES E. BAGNALL. 


(Continued from Vol. I., page 320.) 

A newly-ploughed field, or, better still, one that has lain fallow for 
some little time, although presenting few charms for the general observer 
of Nature, will be spots to which the would-be bryologist must give his 
particular attention, and during those dreary months which intervene 
between October and April he will, if in any way an enthusiast, find 
plenty of work for his microscope. 

The mosses to be found in such habitats are usually the simplest, 
from a pretty point of view the least noticeable, and the shortest lived of 
any he may study, and when preserved for the herbarium are, perhaps, 
the most disappointing, looking very often more like dried masses of mud 
than aught else, stili these earth mosses or Phascei are worthy of his 
attention. The plan I adopt with these minuter species is not only to 
dry some of them with their underlying mud, but also to mount a 
few specimens of each on the ordinary 3in. by lin. slips of glass, in 
glycerine jelly, for my cabinet, and very pretty objects many of them 
make when thus prepared. 

The older Botanists placed all the Phascci in the genus Phascum, but 
modern Botanists, seeing that the group was a very heterogeneous one, 
have split these Phascei into several genera, suchas Plewridium, Phascum, 
Spherangium, Ephemerum, Archidium, &c. I shall speak only of those 
that I have myself found most frequent. 

Besides these I also find in like habitats such mosses as Pottia 
minutula, Funaria fascicularis, and Tortula wnguiculata. 

The Phascet usually occur in scattered patches, and, being minute, 
require the constant use of the field lens, and rather close searching in 
many cases. Taking their general characteristics they may readily be 
known by their small bladder-like capsules, usually more or less concealed 
by the surrounding leaves, the fruit-stalk being very short in most species, 
and by the absence of a true lid or operculum | Plate IV., Fig. 11.]* 

Pleuridium subulatum is a not unfrequent inhabitant of sandy and 
marly fields. It may also often be found in great abundance in the cleared 
spaces of woods, and isin good condition about April; will be found in 
yellowish patches, often rather extensive ; the capsule is oval, and 
immersed in the awl-shaped bristly-looking leaves; the leaves are rigid, 
and have a broad nerve, which scarcely extends to the tip of the leaf; the 
uppermost leaves are longer than the lower ones, and much narrower. 

Phascum cuspidatum is a frequent denizen of sandy fields, and occurs 
in small scattered light-green patches. The leaves are large for the size of 
the plant, are concave, oblong lance-shaped, and somewhat keeled, with 
the margin turned over towards the under side ; the nerve projects beyond 
the leaf-tip, forming a short cusp-like point; the capsule is roundish and 
more or less hidden among the leaves; leaf-cells quadrate, slightly 
papillose ; spores slightly roughened. 


* All the references in this Article are to Plate IV., Vol. I., facing page 193. 


MOSS HABITATS, 37 


Spherangium muticum is much more rare, occurs in sandy and marly 
fields in dark-green or brownish tufts, looking to the unassisted eye like 
small tufts of minute bulbs. .Itis more minute than the last, and has 
broad, roundish, concave leaves, not keeled, but rounded on the back, the 
nerye rarely reaching the leaf-tip, and the leaves are usually slightly 
toothed in their upper part, and have plane margins ; the capsule is 
round, and quite hidden among the upper leaves; the spores pale, 
roundish, smooth; leaf-cells large. In good fruit, March or April. 


Ephemerum serratum occurs most abundantly in marly fields, but 
may also be found in sandy ones, and looks to the unassisted eye like a 
little patch of green conferva; the lens will, however, show the small 
reddish-brown sessile capsules, surrounded by the narrow lance-shaped 
slightly toothed leaves ; the leaves are nerveless, light-green, with trans- 
parent longish leaf cells; spores yellow, globose, slightly roughened. In 
this moss the protonema [Plate IV., Fig. 3 a] continues throughout the 
lifetime of the moss ; and hence, in a single specimen under the micro- 
scope, the life-history of a moss may often be seen—the protonema, young 
buds, perfect plant, and capsule bearing the spores. Fruit, October to 
April. 

Archidium phascoides I have rarely found in fields, but it does occur 
occasionally in marly fallow fields ; it is very minute, and requires close 
searching, and as the capsule is very small may often be passed over as a 
mere barren tuft of Dicranella varia. It may, however, be known by its 
round capsules and strongly nerved leaves, and by its giving off lateral, 
sterile, whip-shaped shoots from the fertile stem. 

Pottia minutula I find not unfrequent in marly fields, in small, 
brownish-green tufts. The stem is very short, the leaves oblong, lance- 
shaped, tapering to the point, slightly overlapping and spreading when 
moist, erect when dry, margin much recurved; capsule on a short fruit- 
stalk ; mouth naked, i.e., without a fringe; lid large, conical; leaf-cells 
quadrate. 

Tortula unguiculata occurs in every sort of soil, is very variable, and 
often puzzling. Sometimes great glaucous green tufts of this moss will 
be seen without a vestige of fruit, at other times fruiting specimens will 
be abundant. The leaves are oblong, lance-shaped, blunt, with a minute 
point formed by the projecting nerve, margin curved towards the under 
side; leaf-cells dense and quadrate in the upper part, large and trans- 
parent below; leaves much twisted when dry; capsule erect, cylindrical ; 
fringe of thirty-two twisted teeth ; lid awl-shaped. 

Funaria fascicularis occurs in sandy fields, in scattered tufts, and will 
be readily known by its widely lance-shaped toothed leaves, with large 
leaf-cells, pear-shaped capsule, convex lid, and inflated calyptra, (Plate 
IV., Fig. 17,) no peristome or fringe. 

Many of our heath-lands are being rapidly reclaimed; and vexatious 
as it may be to the Botanist to see the haunts of some of his favourites 
destroyed, he will, if wise, feel that it is far better that these lands should 
be made the means of employing labour and adding to the wealth of the 


country, rather than allowed to lie idle, the mere producers of weeds. 
G 


38 MOSS HABITATS. 


But, in the neighbourhood of these reclaimed wastes, the borders of 
many of the fields, and the waysides of the lanes will still retain much 
of their heath-like character, and in such localities I have found the 
mosses of our heath-lands fairly represented. The mosses that I shall 
characterise as heath-mosses are Ceratodon purpureus, Campylopus fragilis, 
Bryum nutans, Funaria hygrometrica, Polytrichum piliferum, and Hypnum 
cupressiforme. These mosses, although abundant on heath-lands in 
Warwickshire, are by no means confined to such localities. 


Ceratodon purpureus will be found abundantly on heathy waysides in 
good fruit about the middle of May, and willbe found forming large dull- 
green patches, the purple fruit-stalk and fruit-giving quite a character to 
the locality. The leaves are lance-shaped, with reflexed entire margins 
keeled on the back ; the capsules oval, slightly curved, furrowed when 
dry, and slightly strumose at the base, (Plate IV., Fig. 13 b ;) lid conical, and 
fringe of sixteen teeth united by transverse bars. The fringe of this 
species forms a beautiful object for the microscope. 


Funaria hygrometrica will be found very abundantly in like places, 
more especially where the soil has been burnt, forming large yellowish- 
green patches, and when abundant has a very striking appearance. The 
leaves are large, very concave; the leaf-cells large, hexagonal ; capsule 
curved, somewhat pear-shaped, purple, and furrowed when ripe, sur- 
mounted by a beautifully marked plane-convex lid; the peristome or 
fringe double, the outer fringe being formed of sixteen beautifully marked 
reddish teeth, the inner of sixteen yellowish teeth ; annulus large. 


Campylopus fragilis, although abundant on our Sutton Park heath- 
lands, is by no means common on the heathy waysides; it will be found 
forming dense yellowish-green patches, the very fragile leaves being 
scattered abundantly over the patches; the leaves are lance-shaped, the 
nerve is broad, forming the greater part of the leaf, and composed of small 
quadrate cells. The cells of the leaf-base are large and transparent. 
The fruit is rare, and is usually found in autumn. 


Bryum nutans is a very abundant moss on damp heath-lands. I 
also find it in very dense masses on thatched roofs. It occurs in large 
dark-green tufts, the lower leaves are oval, lance-shaped, entire, the 
upper ones are longer, narrowly lance-shaped and toothed ; the nerve 
scarcely reaches the tip of the leaf; leaf-cells hexagonal, elongated ; 
fruit-stalk reddish; capsule pendulous, somewhat pear-shaped; lid 
convex, with a small point; fringe double. Fruit in May or June. 


Polytrichum piliferum will be found abundantly on many heathy way- 
sides in loose dark-green tufts, and may be readily distinguished by its 
large thick lance-shaped leaves, sheathing at the base, and terminated by 
a white hair-like toothed point ; the capsules are large, four- 
angled, with a distinct swelling just below the base of the capsule, called 
the apophysis; the fringe is formed of sixty-four teeth, which curve over 
the membranous process closing the mouth of the capsule, (the dia- 
phragm, Plate IV.,21c¢;) the calyptra is large, covering the whole capsule, 
and is clothed with a dense felt of shaggy hairs. 


MOSS HABITATS. 39 


—_———. 


Hypnum cupressiforme occurs on every’ conceivable habitat, but may 
often be found forming extensive yellowish or dark-green patches, the 
foiiage somewhat shining. In habit this moss is most variable, being 
sometimes prostrate, at others erect; but usually the stem is pinnate, 
(Plate IV., Fig. 5,) the leaves curved to one side, more or less ovate, and 
suddenly drawn out to a toothed or entire point ; the fruit-stalk arises 
from the side of the stem, and is surmounted by the curved capsule ; 
the fringe is double, and the lid conical. Although this moss varies so 
much as to be fairly puzzling to the experienced bryologist, I find it may 
be always readily made out if a few of the leaves are taken from the 
stem and examined with the microscope. It will then be seen that they 
are either nerveless or faintly two-nerved, have very narrow elongate 
leaf-cells, but the cells at the marginal base are quadrate and opaque. 


[T0 BE CONTINUED. | 


ERRATA.—Vol. I., page 318, line 18, for wyper surface read wnder surface ; line 19, 
for involute read revolute. 


RECENT DISCOVERIES IN THE GEOLOGY OF 
SHROPSHIRE. 


II.—THE QUARTZITES OF SHROPSHIRE, 
BY CHARLES CALLAWAY, M.A., D.SC. LOND., F.G.S. 


InTRODUCTION. 

In the August number of the “‘ Midland Naturalist,” Vol. I., p. 205, I 
gave the first of a series of paperson my recent work in Shropshire, when 
I described a new area of Upper Cambrian Rocks near the Wrekin. In 
this communication will be found a summary of a second paper read by 
me before the Geological Society of London in June, 1878, and published 
in the August number of the Quarterly Journal. The reader is referred 
to that paper for details. 

OBJECT OF THE PapER. 

On the flanks of the Wrekin and Caer Caradoc are certain beds of 
green sandstone and of quartz rock, which in the Survey maps are 
coloured as “ Altered Caradoc.” The green sandstone I showed in my 
previous paper to be the Hollybush Sandstone, (hitherto recognised only 
on the sides of the Malvern Hills,) and therefore of much greater 
antiquity than the Caradoc epoch. My present purpose is to prove that 
the quartzites are older even than the Hollybush Sandstone. 


A. Wrexin—Cuurca Srrerron Arza. 
1.—Grnerat Description. 

(a.) Wrekin sub-area.—This district contains by far the largest 
horizontal development of the quartzites. They are finely exposed on 
the south-east side of the Wrekin range from its north-eastern extremity, 
half a mile south of Wellington, to its south-west end, a length of about 
three miles. The range is composed of three elevations, separated by 


40 GEOLOGY OF SHROPSHIRE. 


two narrow gorges. The south-westerly, and by far the largest, mass is 
the Wrekin proper, and is 12 miles in length. The north-easterly hill, 
called the Ercal, is of less height than the Wrekin and of about half 
the length. The central hump, Lawrence Hill, is still lower, and 
occupies about a quarter of a mile of the length of the range. The 
quartzites rest against the volcanic axis in a nearly continuous band, 
striking to the south-west, parallel to the axis, broken by the above- 
named ravines, and apparently disappearing towards the summit of the 
chain. They reappear, however, towards the south-west end, and lap 
round the south-westerly spur of the mountain. I have taken numerous 
dips on the flanks of the Ercal, Lawrence Hill, and the Wrekin, and 
find that the direction of dip is on the average a little to the east of 
south-east, and its amount about 45°, ranging between 30° and 55°. 
Other exposures on the flanks of the range are scanty. Judging by the 
shape of the ground and soil indications, the quartzite is probably con- 
tinuous all round the Wrekin range, with the possible exception of the 
two points under the summit, one on each side. 


The thickness of the quartzite, measured at the. north-east end of 
the Ercal and at Lawrence Hill, is about 200 feet. 


Lying to the west of the Wrekin, and connected with the quartz 
rocks just described by a narrow isthmus, is an irregular area of quartzite, 
three miles in length from north-east to south-west, and 14 miles in its 
greatest breadth. Through these strata are thrust up four bosses of 
bedded volcanic rock, the largest of which is Charlton Hill, with two 
small masses immediately to the south, and a larger exposure a mile to 
the south-west. The dips of these quartzites are very varied. In the 
road one-third of a mile south of the spot marked ‘“‘ Charlton, Mill” on 
the Ordnance map, they are displayed in a good section dipping south- 
easterly at 60°, and resting immediately upon igneous rocks. ‘Two or 
three hundred yards to the north-east is quartz rock resting on porphyry 
of the Charlton Hill boss, and dipping to the south at 45°. One-third of 
a mile to the south of this last spot is another exposure of quartzite, 
dipping away to the south from the more southerly of the two small 
volcanic masses. A mile to the east-north-east of Charlton Hill, at the 
village of Rushton, quartz rock strikes north and south at a high dip; 
and a little to the north-west of Rushton the dip is westerly. One-third 
of a mile east of Rushton, in the quarry marked with an arrow on the 
map of the Geological Survey, the quartzite dips to the south at 30°. 
These dips are too irregular to be referred to any one upheaving force. 
Wherever the quartz rock occurs in close proximity to igneous rocks it 
dips away from them; and it seems not improbable that other dips at a 
distance from exposed volcanic masses may be caused by local upheavals 
of volcanic rock which do not appear at the surface. 


(b.) Caer Caradoc sub-area—The quartzite reappears eight miles to 
the south-west of the last area, on the south-easterly flank of Caer 
Caradoc, near Church Stretton, an igneous hill of similar character to 
some of the Wrekin rocks, and evidently belonging to the same series. 
It is also less distinctly exposed at the south-west end of the south-east 


= 


— 7 
‘ 


GEOLOGY OF SHROPSHIRE. 41 


side of the Lawley, a volcanic hill north-east of Caradoc, and separated 
from it by a gap about a quarter of a mile in width. If the quartzite is 
continuous under the superficial deposits which lie in the gap, the band 
will be over a mile in length. At Caer Caradoc it is about 100 feet in 
thickness, and dips easterly at a high angle. The quartzite is overlaid 
by the Hollybush Sandstone, which is well exposed in its lower part, 
dipping south-easterly at 75°; but towards the north-east end of the hill 
the sandstone shows a tendency to lap round it, and dips to a little 
north of east. A short distance to the south-west higher beds of the series 
dip east-south-east at 35°. The Hollybush Sandstone in places is highly 
quartzose, with grains of green earth and decomposed felspar, and is 
almost undistinguishable from certain parts of the basement beds of the 
Caradoc which appear against the same side of the axis a mile to the 
south-west. This similarity, doubtless, helped to mislead the earlier 
surveyors, and is paralleled by the equally confusing resemblance between 
the Shineton and Harnage Shales, which I pointed out in a previous 
paper.* These sources of difficulty, together with overlaps, inversions, 
and numerous and heavy faults, render the district a perfect maze of 
perplexity. Happily, the identity of the sandstones is clearly established 
by an excellent section exposed in a quarry at the north-east end of 
Little Caradoc. 

In the middle of this section is a thin band which deserves special 
attention. It is less than one foot in thickness, and is a dark-coloured 
compact limestone. Associated with it is a little red shale, and near the 
surface of the bed the limestone assumes the same colour. This band is 
very fossiliferous, the most abundant form being apparently trilobitic; 
but it occurs in such a fragmentary condition, and is of such an unusual 
type, that I cannot express any opinion on its generic affinities. 
Brachiopoda are not uncommon: two or three species are undetermin- 
able, save that they belong to the Tretenterata. One form, a minute 
roundish Lingulid, is apparently new. Whatis of more importance for 
our purpose is that the bed contains two well-known Malvern species, 
Kutorgina cingulata, Bill., and Serpulites fistula, Holl., both of which are 
found inthe same formation on the flanks of the Wrekin. The Holly- 
bush Sandstone is thus shown to overlie the quartz rock, as in the 
Wrekin district. It is about 300 or 400 feet in thickness, and extends to 
the south-west for some distance ; but I have not traced it quite so far as: 
the quartzite. Indeed, the exact limits of both formations are not ascer- 
tained, the exposures towards the south-west being very few and slight. 


I have had the good fortune to discover the presence of the Shineton 
Shales in their true place above the Hollybush Sandstone of this sub-area. 
They are seen in the road leading up from the gap towards Shoots Rough. 
The width exposed represents a thickness of about 30 feet, and the dip 
is east or east-south-east apparently at 35°. They are succeeded by the 
Hoar Edge Grits, (Lower Caradoc,) which plunge towards them at an 
angle of 60° or 70°. In the Shineton district the shales are apparently 
conformable to the over-lying Caradoc, and the chief evidence for the 


* Midland Naturalist, Vol. I., p. 206. 


42, GEOLOGY OF SHROPSHIRE. 


greater antiquity of the former is derived from fossils. Here, however, 
the two formations are separated by a fault, which must be of consider- 
able throw, since, as I have reason to believe, neither the upper part of 
the shales nor the lower part of the sandstone is represented. Following 
the shales on the line of strike to the north-east into the ravine between 
the Lawley and the sandstone escarpment of Hoar Edge, where the 
escarpment approaches to within a quarter of a mile of the hill, we find 
them well exposed on the stream, dipping to the east at an angle of 50°, 
which probably represents the true dip more accurately than the shallow 
road-section. I have detected in them Lingulella Nicholsoni and Shineton 
Graptolites. From their general appearance, and from the presence of 
Graptolites, I infer that these beds belong to the middle part of the series. 
There are slight indications, in the shape of the ground and in the soil, 
that the shales run parallel to the Hollybush towards the south-west, 
where both are cut off by the Hoar Edge Grits (Caradoc.) 

(c.) Cardington sub-area.—A little over a mile from Caer Caradoc to 
the south-east is an abrupt ridge of quartzite called the Sharp Stones, 
dipping to the north at from 40° to 50°, and striking east and west for 
about half a mile. It rests upon the bedded volcanic rocks of Cardington 
Hill, and is evidently tilted up by the elevation of that mass. Succeeding 
it to the north is Caradoe Sandstone, with its usual south-west strike, 
apparently unaffected by the upthrust of the older rocks, and probably 
separated from the quartzite by a fault. 

2.—RELATIONS OF THE QUARTZITE TO THE ASsocIATED Rocks. 

Along the south-easterly flanks of the Wrekin range the quartz rock 
rests upon the bedded tuffs and felstones of the volcanic nucleus 
unconformably, the igneous rocks dipping north, while the quartzite dips 
south-east. Towards its base the quartz rock contains fragments 
derived from the older series, consisting of small rounded or unrounded 
pieces of felstone greatly decomposed, but in some cases showing 
distinctly the banded structure characteristic of some of the Wrekin 
felstones. At its base the quartzite is brecciated, both the fragments 
and their cement being quartzose, with the occasional occurrence of 
barium sulphate. This breccia can be ‘traced along the line of junction 
through the Ercal, Lawrence Hill, and some distance along the south- 
eastern flank of the Wrekin. There are also signs of brecciation on the 
cpposite side of the range, near the ravine between the Hrcal and 
Lawrence Hill. This breccia may be a friction breccia, caused by the 
upthrust of the rigid mass of volcanic rock which forms the backbone of 
the range ; and the fact that the breccia is not derived from the rockupon 
which it rests favours this conclusion. There is thus reason to conclude 
that the plane of junction between the younger and older series is a fault. 

In my paper on the Shineton Shales, I have given reasons for 
concluding that the quartzites are also separated from the overlying 
Hollybush Sandstone by a fault. See Quarterly Journal Geological Society, 
Vv. Xxxiil., p. 662. 

3.—THE AGE OF THE QUARTZITES. 

The quartzite is certainly older than the Hollybush Sandstone, for, 

in every observed case, the sandstone rests upon the quartz rock, or is at 


GEOLOGY OF SHROPSHIRE. 43 


least on the outside of it with regard to the axis of elevation. This is 
well seen in the Wrekin sub-area, and stillmore distinctly on the south- 
east flank of Caer Caradoc. 

But the age of the Hollybush Sandstone must first be determined. 
It is commonly placed upon the horizon of the Ffestiniog group, on the 
ground that it underlies the Black Olenus Shales of Malvern, which are 
with great probability correlated with the Dolgelly series. But the 
relations of the Hollybush and Black Shales are very obscure, and it has 
not been shown that they succeed each other conformably. The late Mr. Belt 
considered the Hollybush to be a shore deposit of the Menevian sea; but 
I am willing to accept the former determination till decisive evidence is 
forthcoming. The quartzite, then, is older than the Ffestiniog period. 
But the Hollybush sandstone and the quartzite do not succeed each other 
conformably. In the Wrekin areathedipsare so discordantas to suggest a 
considerable gap. The quartzite, in most cases, dips away from volcanic 
bosses, and the direction of dip is determined by these local upheavals. 
But the dips of the Hollybush are subject to no such law. Their general 
direction on the south-east of the Wrekin, where the quartzite dips 
south-easterly, is to the south-west; but in one place they appear to 
conform to the dip of the quartzite, and at a little distance they plunge 
at a high angle to the north-west (that is, towards the quartzite.) South 
of Charlton Hill, also, the sandstone dips towards the quartzite. The 
apparent conformability of the two formations at Caer Caradoc cannot 
counteract such clear evidence of discordance. Parallelism of strike does 
not prove conformity, since a strike fault might let down the upper of 
the formations without producing any alteration in the dip or strike. 


It is clear, therefore, that the quartzite is older than the Hollybush 
Sandstone by a gap, and consequently cannot belong to any part of the 
Upper Cambrian series. 

Three hypotheses now remain. The quartzite may be on the 
horizon of the top of the Lower Cambrian; or it may belong to the 
Lower Cambrian; or it may be Precambrian. 

(a.) The top of the Lower Cambrian (Longmynd Series.)—The Lower 
Cambrian of Shropshire, as is well known, is a great series consisting of 
fine-grained slates or hardened shales in the lower part, and of sandstones 
and conglomerates above. For reasons which I cannot here detail, I 
believe that neither the base nor the top of the succession is seen, being 
cut out by faults. Does the quartzite represent a lost capping of the 
Longmynd rocks? I think the great discordance between the quartz rock 
and the Hollybush Sandstone decisively negatives this supposition. 


(b.) The Longmynd Series—No band of quartzite has been observed 
in this series from top to bottom. If the quartz rock represents any 
part of the Longmynd succession, where are the beds which on this 
supposition should intervene between the quartzite and the Precambrian 
voleanic series? Or is the quartzite a basement of the Longmynd 
rocks? If so, there should surely be some concordance of dip and 
strike. But the Longmynd strata in their lower part almost uniformly 
dip at very high angles to the west-north-west, whereas the quartzite, 


44 GEOLOGY OF SHROPSHIRE. 


as previously shown, dips away from volcanic bosses at the most varied 
dips and strikes. 


(c.) Precambrian.—On the rejection of hypotheses a and b, the 
balance of probability is decidedly in favour of this supposition. 


4.—TueE Fauna or THE QUARTZITE. 

For years I searched for fossils in vain; but recently I detected on 
the south-east flank of the Wrekin, near the cottage, one good specimen 
of a worm-burrow, apparently Arenicolites, and portions of one or two 
more. -The burrow is a simple loop, resembling a letter U, 2 inches in 
length by linch in breadth. I have proposed for it the name Arenicolites 
uriconiensis. If my view of the age of the quartzite is correct, this 
specimen is, with the exception of the problematical Hozoon, the oldest 
known fossil. 


B. Tue Quarrzite or THE StTrPER STONES. 


The physical characters of this rock have been so well described by 
Murchison (‘‘ Siluria,” chap. iii.,) that it will be unnecessary to make 
additional observations. I have but to add a suggestion on its geological 
age. By the author of ‘“‘Siluria” it is placed on the horizon of the 
Lingula Flags, on the ground that it is below the Llandeilo, and contains 
worm-burrows and fragments of a Lingulid, which, it is candidly stated, 
does not resemble Lingulella Davisii. Geologists of the present day will 
hardly be disposed to accept such evidence as conclusive. The shales 
overlying the quartz rock contain Illenus perovalis, Calymene parvifrons, 
Aiglina, Placoparia, and other Arenig forms. There can, therefore, be 
little doubt that the quartzite is of Arenig age, and, consequently, quite 
distinct from the quartzite of the Wrekin area. This view is confirmed 
by my recent discovery of the Shineton Shales (Tremadoc) in the valley 
to the east of the Stiper Stones. The two rocks can generally be 
distinguished from each other even in hand specimens; and, when they 
are conglomeratic, the pebbles of the Arenig quartzite mainly consist of 
quartz, while the included fragments of the Wrekin quartz rock are 
felsitic. 


THE FERNS OF NORTHANTS. 


BY G. C. DRUCE. 


As might be expected from the geological and physical character of 
the county, Northamptonshire is very poor in ferns, only those with a 
large comital distribution occurring, and then but in few numbers, in 
widely separated localities; driven by cultivation to take refuge in some 
shady spinney or damp hedgerow, and most frequently to be found on 
the western side of the county, where they are favoured with more 
congenial soil and a larger rainfall than the Ceterach and Ruta-muraria 
of the eastern portion of the county. Indeed, so infrequent are the 
ferns that many inhabitants of the district are dubious about the 
occurrence of such universally distributed ones as Filix-femina and 


¢ 


THE FERNS OF NORTHANTS. 45 


Scolopendrium, and can szarcely believe that in a single walk fromits chief 
town as many as twelve species have been noticed. The following is my 
compilation of the localities of the ferns of Northants :-— 

~ Pteris aquilina, L., generally distributed, with the exception of 
the district drained by the Tove, where itis absent or rare. Plentiful 
in Harleston, coming to within three miles of Northampton, where, 
however, last year a plant grew on the brickwork of a wharf, introduced 
there by some spores carried by the river from Harleston. 

Lomaria spicant, Desv., a very rare fern, occurs in Badby Wood and in 
Harleston Firs. In the latter place it disappeared for a year or two, but 
is now again abundant. These, together with the old locality of King’s 
Cliff, are inthe Nenesystem. Mr. French records it from near Brackley, 
and Mr. Beesley from Newbottle, the latter localities probably drained 
by the Cherwell. 

Asplenium Ruta-muraria, L., Wall Rue, occurs at Dallington, within 
two miles of Northampton, on Brampton Bridge, at Overstone, (Mrs. 
Birch,) and very plentiful about our President’s (Lord Lilford) estate, at 
Lilford, as noticed in Morton’s History, tempore 1700; also at Barnack 
and Walcot Hall, and in the west of the county at Sulgrave, Astrop, (Mr. 
E. Walford,) Watford Church, &c. 

A. Adiantum-nigriim, L., very rare, at Duston Stone Pits and Harleston 
Lane, Astrop, (Walford,) and King Sutton, (French,) the two latter 
drained by the Cherwell. : 

A. Trichomanes, L., not given in ‘‘ Top. Bot.” for 32. At Lamport, 
probably an escape; at Great Billing, on Irthlingborough Bridge, Nene 

rainage, and near Towcester, (Norman,) Tove drainage. 

Athyrium Filix-femina, B.,; very fine in Delapre Woods; also, in 
Harleston Firs, Duston, Badby Wood, Yardley Chase, Overstone, (Mrs. 
Birch,) Bedford Purlieus, (Mr. Bodger,) all in Nene system, and near 
Banbury, (T. Beesley.) This is not included in ‘‘ Top. Botany.” 

Scolopendrium vulgare, 8m., Harleston stone pits, Badby, Newnham, 
Clifford Hill, (Law), Nene ; Barby, (H. W. Trott), Avon ; Eydon, Cherwell ; 
and Wappenham, Yardley Gobion, &c., Ouse. It is very frequently 
found growing in the stonework of village wells, some splendid plants 
occurring at Yardley Gobion and Lamport. 

Aspidium aculeatum, Sw., plentiful in Harleston quarries, and also 
in Maidwell Dales, (Law,) the only localities in Nene drainage ; it is very 
frequent in hedgerows in the west of county drained by the Cherwell, Leam, 
and Avon. Ishould place Maidwell Dales as the limits of its easterly range. 

A. lobatum, Harleston, Astrop, (Walford,) Chacombe, (Beesley,) 
Newnham Lane (Notcutt). 

A. angulare, W., Mr. Griffin tells me he has gathered at Badby Woods. 

Nephrodium Filiz-mas, Rich., generally distributed, although less 
frequent easterly. In Delapre Woods occurred a form very near affine. 

N. dilatatum, Desy., Harleston, Duston, Badby Woods, Delapre, 
&c., all in Nene system. 

N. spinulosum, Desv., Harleston, Badby Woods, Yardley Chase, Nene, 
and near Banbury, (French.) 

N. Thelijpteris, Desy., only on authority of Baker’s History, af 
Overstone ; now extinct. 

N. Oreopteris, Desv., recorded from Harleston, East Haddon, and 
Badby, Nene, but not recently found; likely to occur at Badby. 

Polypodium vulgare, L., generally distributed, but rare in Tove system. 

Ceterach officinarum, Willd.,on walls at Barnack, Biggin, (Rev. M. J. 
Berkeley,) Astrop, (J. Beesley.) 

Osmunda regalis, L., Moulton, (Baker’s Hist.,) now extinct. 

Ophioglossum vulgatum, L., generally distributed ; Brampton Meadows, 
nearest locality to Northampton. 

Botrychium Lunaria, Sw., recorded from Harleston Heath, (Baker’s 
Hist.,) not recently found; Oldfield, (Morton’s Nat. Hist.,) extinct. 

_ None of the Club Mosses occur in Northants, and Pilularia globulifera 
is only recorded in Morton’s Hist., from Boro’ fen. 


w 


46 REVIEW—FAIRY-LAND OF SCIENCE. 


Acbtetvs, 


See fhe De 

The Fairy-Land of Science. By Anrapenta B. Bucxiry, Author of ‘A 
Short History of Natural Science,’ ‘ Botanical Tables for Young Students, 
etc.—London : Edward Stanford, 1878, pp. 244, illustrated. 


Tue influence of the master over the mind of the intelligent pupil is 
always manifested. Not that we have any knowledge that the accom- 
plished lady—the Mary Somerville of our day—whose name appears 
above ever studied personally under Professor Huxley, but there can be 
little doubt that the public teaching of our greatest English biologist, 
in addition to her association with the late Sir Charles Lyell as 
his Secretary, has had much to do in moulding her scientific charac- 
ter, and in developing the very interesting and beautiful work 
before us. In his admirable ‘‘ Physiography’—a book which should 
be in the hands of every scientific student—Professor Huxley proposed 
‘*not to trouble his hearers much about latitudes and longitudes, the 
heights of mountains, the depths of seas, orthe geographical distribution 
of Kangaroos and Composite,” specially as such, but he approached the 
study of nature after a fashion of his own by giving in very broad and 
accurate outlines a view of the ‘place in nature” of a particular 
district of England—the basin of the Thames, and all the phenomena 
connected therewith —in fact, a chapter of the history of the 
Universe. 

Here is a little book, a worthy companion of the ‘‘ Physiography,” 
wherein the author contemplates Nature from her own standpoint, and 
in graceful fancy attributes to the doings of the fairies in the ‘‘ Fairy- 
Land of Science,” the wonders and marvels—termed by Philosophers 
“the forces of Nature”—constantly going on around and among 
us. The result is that in this attractive guise any child of fair intelli- 
gence is held spell-bound in the subject as in the narration of a nursery 
story, and, what is better, is drawn on to more advanced studies. Hyvery 
father of a family who wishes his children to know something of 
Natural Science should buy this little book and present it to them as a 
New Year’s gift. And even ‘ the gray-haired boys” may here read and 
learn. 


In her preface the authoress, speaking of its origin, says :—‘t The 
ten lectures, of which this volume is composed, were delivered last 
spring, in St. John’s Wood, to a large audience of children and their 
friends, and at their conclusion I was asked by many of those present to 
publish them for a child’s reading book. At first I hesitated, feeling 
that written words can never produce the same effect as viva-voce 
delivery. But the majority of my juvenile readers were so deeply 
interested that I was encouraged to think that the present work may be 
a source of pleasure to a wider circle of young people, and at the same 
time awaken in them a love of nature and of the study of science.” The 
public are much indebted to Miss Buckley for acceding to the wishes of 
her friends and for the enlarged series of Lectures which she has given 


REVIEW—FAIRY-LAND OF SCIENCE. 47 


us. The titles themselves are sufficiently suggestive of their contents. 
1. “The Fairy-Land of Science, how to Enter it, how to Use it, and how 
to Enjoy it.” 2. ‘Sunbeamsand the Work they do.” 3. ‘The Aerial 
Ocean in which we Live.” 4. ‘‘A Dropof Water onits Travels.” 5. ‘‘ The 
Two great Sculptors—Water and Ice.” 6. ‘‘ The Voicesof Nature and how 
we Hear Them.” 7. ‘ The Lifeofa Primrose.” 8. ‘ The History of a 
Piece of Coal.” 9. ‘‘Beesin the Hive.” 10. ‘‘ Bees and Flowers.” 


Perhaps the most interesting Lecture is that on ‘‘ The Two great 
Sculptors—Water and Ice.” It is an old story told in a new dress. As 
the sculptor fashions his rude block of marble perchance into 
the image of the lovely Galatea, so we have Water described 
as fashioning the face of the earth into the steep slopes and 
gentle curves, ‘the hills, valleys, gorges, ravines, slopes, plains, caves, 
grottos, and rocky shores”—and Ice as breaking up the ground, and 
forming the glacier—its progress and its destiny—with the marks 
it leaves in its erratic boulders and its striations of hard rocks. 


In ‘‘ The History of a Piece of Coal”—after tracing its existence from 
the far-off period when the sunbeams developed the ferns, calamites, lepido- 
dendrons and sigillarias to its presence in the mine and its value to our 
manutfactories, industries, and its essential aid to our comforts, the author 
says:—‘ All this, then, those plants and trees of the far-off ages, which 
seemed to lead such useless lives, have done and are doing for us. 
There are many people in the world who complain that life is 
dull, that they do not see the use of it, and that there seems no work 
specially for them to do. I would advise such people, whether they 
are grown up or little children, to read the story of the plants which 
form the coal. These saw no result during their own short existences, 
they only lived and enjoyed the bright sunshine and did their work, and 
were content. And now, thousands, probably millions of years after they 
lived and died, England owes her greatness and we much of our happi- 
ness and comfort to the sunbeams which those plants wove into their 
lives. They burst forth again in our fires, in our brilliant lights, and in 
our engines, and do the greater part of our work ; teaching us— 

‘ That nothing walks with aimless feet, 
That not one life shall be destroyed, 

Or cast as rubbish to the void, 

When God hath made the pile complete.’” 

The language of the book is simple, graceful, and forcible, and there 
is a reverent spirit pervading it throughout. The engravings are beauti- 
fully executed, and add much to its value, and many are original. The 
experiments are easy and within reach of average youth. With so much 
to commend, it seems almost ungracious to make a suggestion, but we 
think that—as it is intended for youth—the book would be improved 
by giving, as Professor Huxley has in foot notes to the ‘‘ Physiography,” 
the Greek roots of all generic and specific names derived therefrom. 
Authoress, artist, printer, bookbinder, and publisher must be congratu- 
lated on producing one of the most charmingly attractive volumes of its 
kind ever published. 

W. R. Huauss. 


48 REVIEWS8—GEOLOGICAL RECORD, ETC. 


The Geological Record for 1876. Edited by W. Wurraxer, B.A., F.G.S. 

Published by Taylor and Francis. Price to subscribers, 10s. 6d. 
Tuts is the third volume of this most useful and, to every geological 
worker, indispensable book. It contains 415 closely printed pages, 
embracing not only the title, but a short abstract of every paper or book 
bearing upon the science of geology which was published during the 
year 1876, either in the British Isles or abroad, all properly classified, 
together with lists of the new fossils described, &c. Some idea of the 
immense amount of labour involved may be had from the fact that the 
total number of abstracts amounts to nearly 2,400. The British Associa- 
tion has recognised the need for and value of this publication by making 
an annual grant of £100 towards its cost, and the extremely low price at 
which it is published should enable every student to obtain it as a work 
of reference. 


Nowadays it is absolutely necessary to know what other workers 
have done or are doing in the field of research in which we ourselves are 
engaged. For want of this knowledge countless blunders have been 
committed in the past, every science has been loaded with unnecessary 
synonyms, and much duplicate work has been done. 


Mr. Whitaker has long been known as an indefatigable worker both 
in the library and in the field; but in the preparation of the Geological 
Record he has been ably aided by several of his colleagues on the 
Geological Survey and by others. Among these we may mention Messrs. 
Topley, Dalton, Lebour, Drew, Etheridge, jun., Tawney, H. B. 
Woodward, &c., and Profs. Bonney, Rudler, Miall, and Nicholson. 


One of the great difficulties in connection with the work is the fact 
that many authors and societies do not punctually send copies of their 
papers, transactions, &c., to the editor, (at the Geological Museum, 
Jermyn Street, S.W.,) or to the Library of the Geological Society, at 
Burlington House, Piccadilly, where they might be consulted. 


W. J. Be 


The Small Heath Literary Magazine. No. 3. January, 1879. Price 1s. 
Birmingham : Davis Bros. 

Tris excellent magazine, the papers in which are contributed solely by 
members of the Small Heath Literary and Scientific Society, is a most 
praiseworthy publication, and we warmly congratulate the editors on 
being able to issue such an interesting and highly creditable serial. 
Although the subject-matter of the papers is mainly of a non-scientific 
character, we do not think it is out of place to record in these pages our 
warm appreciation of the good work one of the societies in the ‘* Midland 
Union” is doing by giving publicity to the literary productions of its 
members. We sincerely hope it may obtain all the success it deserves. 


Errata.—NorrinGHAMsHIRE ConcHoLoey, &¢c.—Vol. I., page 309, lines 
1 and 14, for Testacella Maugei read T. haliotidea ; on page 308, line 5, 
Notts Ferns, for Polystichum angulare read P. aculeatum. The former is 
also foundin the county. 


4, > 


MICROSCOPY. 49 


Microscopy. 


The annual report of the Postan Microscoricat Socrnty for 1878 is an 
interesting document which every microscopist would do well to read. 
The Society has been in existence five years, and now consists of 140 
members, under the presidency of Mr. Tuffen West, F.L.S., &c. The 
Society was formed to meet a want long felt of a ready means of 
communication between Microscopists living at a distance from each 
other. The members are divided into sections or circuits, twelve in 
each, arranged geographically. At intervals of a fortnight the Secretary, 
Mr. Alfred Allen, 1, Cambridge Place, Bath, sends to each of the 
members whose names stand first in the several circuits a box of micro- 
scopical slides. These are retained for three evenings and then forwarded 
to the names second on the lists, and, after a like interval, are forwarded 
to the third names, and so on, till the circuits have been completed, the 
last recipient returning the slides to the Secretary, who then sets them 
once more in circulation, so that every member in turn sees every 
collection of slides, and is constantly supplied with fresh subjects for 
microscopic examination. ‘ 

But not only are microscopical slides, many of the highest 
interest, constantly distributed among the members, but very often they 
are accompanied by MS. descriptions, and elucidatory drawings 
which materially assist the study and appreciation of the more 
difficult objects. A society such as this, well and energetically managed, 
including many of our best microscopists among its members, cannot fail 
to be very useful. Some idea of the nature and extent of its operations 
may be gleaned from the Society’s last report, and the President’s 
address accompanying it, which, together with list of members, rules, 
&c., can be obtained from the Secretary. 

In consequence of a number of gentlemen of the medical profession 
having recently joined the Society, it has been arranged to circulate a 
special series of histological and pathological slides. These special 
slides will circulate almost exclusively amongst the medical members, 
at monthly intervals, in addition to the usual fortnightly box of 
slides which goes the whole circuit of the Society, whether members 
are medical or otherwise. The Society is also proposing, at the request 
of many members, to circulate a series of slides devoted to botanical 
subjects. These, after going the round of the contributors, it is proposed 
should go the whole circuit of the members. 

' The Society has recently issued a ‘‘ Classified List of Objects ” circu- 
lated among the members from the commencement of its existence to 
the end of its fourth year, (June, 1877,) and we do not think we are far 
wrong in stating that the list consists of 2,000 objects, many of them 
mounted by the members. Some measure of its usefulness and activity 
is indicated by this statement. 

Amongst the rules, which are all carefully drawn up and appear in 
every way fitted to meet the exigencies of a Postal Society, is one 
which provides that ladies may be members of the society. Another 
feature of this society, designed expressly for the purpose of promoting 
friendly feeling, is that each member on admission to the society is 
requested to send his or her carte de visite to the secretary, and as soon 
as a sufficient number are collected they are grouped together and 
reproduced in permanent photography, and sold to the members at the 
lowest remunerative price. We have seen a copy of the last-issued 
group, which contains seventy-three portraits, excellently arranged and 
well printed. This group makes us acquainted with the portraits of 
many well known microscopists, and with several who have contributed. 


I 


50 MICROSCOPY. 


to the pages of this magazine. It only remains to mention that the 
entrance fee is 2s. 6d., and theannual subscription 10s. 


Mr. T. Boutron’s Acrncy for the Distribution of Living Organisms 
amongst Microscopists is, we are glad to find, being widely appreciated 
and made use of. He has already as subscribers of one guinea for 
twenty-six tubes, to be supplied in the course of six months, usually one 
per week, or more rapidly if desired, several Microscopical Societies, 
Science Schools, and many leading microscopists in all parts of the 
United Kingdom. We have glanced at the list of objects sent out by him 
during the past six weeks, and we find amongst them larvae of the Marine 
Polyzoon described at page 26, Raphidiophrys pallida, Epistylis grandis, 
Euglena viridis, Chilodon cucullulus (?), Gicistes crystallinus, Floscularia 
cornuta, Trout spawn, Stephanoceros Hichhornii, Amoeba, Nitella trans- 
lucens in fructification, Volvox globator, many kinds of Rotifers, &c., of 
some of which he has also been able to distribute good illustrations and 
descriptions through the kindness of Professor E. Ray Lankester, Mr. 
Saville W. Kent, and Mr. H. E. Forrest. We can from personal 
experience speak of the satisfactory manner in which Mr. Bolton sends 
out his specimens, and can recommend anyone desiring useful occupation 
for his microscope to make use of Mr. Bolton’s services. His address 
is 17, Ann Street, Birmingham. 


METEOROLOGY OF THE MIDLANDS. 


THE WEATHER OF DECEMBER, 1878. 


BY W. JEROME HARRISON, F.G.S. 


December commenced with five or six days of unsettled weather, 
but on the 7th cold weather set in and continued to the 28th. The 
severity of the cold during this period was greater than in any year since 
1860. Our lowest temperature recorded was at Coston Rectory, near 
Melton Mowbray, (Rev. A. M. Rendell,) 2° below zero, indicated by two 
registering minimum thermometers,and at Stoney Middleton a temperature 
of —1° wasindicated. This was on Christmas Eve. Of the three weeks’ 
frost the Rev. J. Brooke (Shifnal) writes ‘‘ By far the coldest December 
for at least forty-four years;” the Rev. J. M. Mello, (Chesterfield,) ‘It 
is forty-one years since such severe weather set in so early, and such a 
low temperature as 5° (on the 25th) has not been known since 1860 in 
this district ;’ Mr. H. H. Bellamy, (Oxford,) ‘‘The mean temperature 
of December was lower than of any month since 1860, except December, 
1874, which was about the same.” Ice on still water attained from 6in. 
to Tin. in thickness. “The Trent was frozen over, and at Nottingham, on 
Christmas Day, hundreds of people were skating on it” (Mr. H. F. 
Johnson.) From the 11th to the 15th the ‘‘ ragged rime” on the trees 
presented a beautiful appearance, the ice-needles being an inch in length, 
and varying with the direction of the wind, as Mr. Mott has so well 
pointed out (‘‘ Midland Naturalist,” Vol. IL, p. 22.) <A ‘silver thaw” 
set in on the 26th, rain falling and freezing on the roads, which became 
a sheet of ice. Mr. Markham (Pitsford) says, ‘‘The people here were 
able to skate from Northampton to Pitsford and back by Brampton, a 
distance of ten miles on the road.” This was another instance of the 
fact that atmospheric changes first set in in the higher regions of the 
atmosphere, and shows the importance of having meteorological stations 
on the highest points in any country. Rainfall was about an average. 
It consisted largely of snow, which fell heavily on the 18th and 2Ist. 
The barometer was low and unsteady. Northerly and westerly winds 
prevailed, but there was a marked absence of tempestuous weather. 


a 


: 


— 


. Sal Bole 


oe ee ee kT 


THE WEATHER OF DECEMBER. 


51 


STATION. 


GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
Cainscross, Stroud .........- 
Cheltenham .........s..00-+ 
MMOL Gslain cy gsicsenssscees 
SHROPSHIRE. 
Haughton Hall, Shifnal .... 
WELD TEG Bi a5. ci since swie ewes 
PORMECHBOOTE ccm en assccceces 
Leaton Vicarage, Shrewsbury 
More Rectory, Bishop's Gasfie 
Bishop's Castle ~setcadsas 


HEREFORDSHIRE. 
GUT Ee 
Stoke Bliss .. 
WORCESTERSHIRE. 
Orleton, al Rec aeOATOae 
West Malvern ..........00. 
PEOSSOEG) Saceusisccctsccdecess 


Stourbridge............ 
St. Johns, Worcester 
STAFFORDSHIRE. 
Thorganby Villa, W' Sar 
Amblecote .. : 


Grammar School, Burton... 
Weston-under-Lyziard R'tory 
Wrottesley «..........0.5 nae 
SUIBAIIAOEUR, ccewnwneieeecceace 
Heath House, Cheadle ...... 
Alstonfield Vicarage 
WARWICKSHIRE. 
Coundon, Coventry .......... 
Coventry ............ 
Bickenhill Vicarage.. 
St. Mary's College, Oscott.... 
Henley-in-Arden ....... Aathe 
Rugby School..........see00+ 
DERBYSHIRE. 
Stoney Middleton..... acienticd 
Brampton St. Thomas...... 
Fernslope, Belper............ 
Linacre Reservoir ..... 
Willesley Gardens 
TIPE EEE cla dals/aisisinie sic'cie v:eisie.0 
YORKSHIRE. 

TOOW PEPE cecccecececsceses 
NOTTINGHAMSHIRE, 
SUTESIOVE ease ss... 
Highfield House, Notting’ m 
Hodsock Priory, Worksop aa 
Park Hill, Nottingham...... 
LEICESTERSHIRE. 
Loughborough ...........+4- 
Ashby Magna.........ssee00- 
Market Harborough 
Kibworth.......... -acong pera 
Town Museum, Leicester.... 
Belmont Villas, Leicester.... 
VREOD cas ess aes SOdInSCCS ARG 
Waltham-le-Wold.. 
Little Dalby Hall. 
Coston Rectory, Melton...... 
NORTHAMPTONSHIRE. 
Towcester Brewery.......... 
Castle Ashby ..... 
Pitsford ....... 
Kettering..... assed. 
IRTEIGEDIO! wacewcvsccncess 

RUTLAND. 
Burley-on-the-Hill .......... 
West Deyne, Uppingham .... 
Northfields, Stamford ...... 


Radcliffe Observatory,Oxford 
Spital Cemetery, Carlisle 
Ventnor Hospital... ve 
Altarnun Vicarage .......... 


wenn enee 


teen eee eee 


RAINFALL. TEMPERATURE. 
‘S5 Greatest fall bah Greatest ht. Great’st cold. 
OBSERVER. s | in 24 hours. 3 B 
ta.| In. Date. |@ a Deg{ Date. (Deg} Date. 
W. B. Baker, Esq. ........|199}1'36] 29 4|560; 380 |11'0) 24 
R. Tyrer, Esq. ...-.. |; 50) 25 12 |53'5) 30 48} 26 
iJ. Coley, WSs. .s.ceeese 68] 26 7 |630| 381 |15-0] 24 
Rey. J. Brooke . 1 13 |51°0} 81 1/110) 26 
. B. George, Esq. 26 11 80} 24 
Rev. E. D. Carr.. 23 15 |50°0} 81 | 18-0/14,15,17, 
Rev. E. V. Pigott ...... 28 17 |52°3) 381 71| 25 - (25 
Rev. A-Male ssesssseese 28° | 1g | 50:0) 80& 31) 6:0) 25 
.|E. Griffiths, Esq. . 16 |50°0} 80 & 31) 41-0) 24 
Rey. Wm. Elliott 28 18 
Rev. A. Corbet . 1 15 
Rey. J. D. La Touche... 28 | 37 [524] 81 49] 24 
W. Wheatley, Esq. ........| 2°15) °53) 28 15 6:0} 25 
Rey. G. E Alexander......|1°84) ‘34 24 | 43 |52°0} 81 |i00) 24 
T. H. Davis, Esq ..........|2°08, 39) 28 yp | 640) 31 7T7| 25 
.|A. H. Hartland, Hsq. :}1:93| 49] 25 | 47/445] 28 |465) 18 
E. B. Marten, Esq. .. . | 1°78)s)'32) 25 16 |50°0) 31 10:0) 24 
.|Mr. J. Jeffries..... sua .|1'79, 85] 25 13 |50°0| 80 & 31) joo} 24 
G. B. Wetheral, Esq. ......| 188] *80] 26 g {510} 32 | 41-0] 24 
G. J.C. Broom, Esq. . 1°89) 25) 29 13 
Mr. J. Robins........ 159) 80) 26 | 45 
Mr. J. Fisher 1:68] 28] 26 | 35 ]560] 29 |igo| 23 &24 
Mr. C. Beale ...... 172) 52) 26 17 | 480} 30& 81)99-9] 24 
Rey. W. H. Bolton . 1'81| -29) 28 | 76 |46:0| 30&31|490| 24 
Mr. N. KE. Best ...... veeee.( 222] *40] 20 17 | 49°90} 31 Jogo] 14 
C. U. Tripp, Esq. ..........| 241/s46] 26 | 47/530) 31 9:0| 25 
Hon.and Rey.J. Bridgeman 2°47|s)33] 27 | ys | 62:0] 31 30] 25 
I. Simpson, Hsq. .......0e 1°95] °36] 26 | 75 | 49°8) 81 | 49-6) 25 
W. Arnold, Esq......... 2°35)8)50]} 25 12 
J. G. Philips, Esq...... 2'5o] 43} 18 | 73] 49:0] 80 | 47.9] 14 & 25 
Rev. W. H. Purchas ....,./ 0°66] 35) = 1 8 (48'7| 82 [yo-9) 1 
Lieut.-Col. R. Caldicott ....| 1°93} 46} 25 | 46/510) 81 |y4-9) 24 
J. Gulson, Hsq....... 193} *42] 25 7 14-0] 25 
-|J. Ward, Haq.. 201) 45) 27 16 | 440 13°0) 
Rey. S. J. Whitty..........|2°04) ‘44) 25 | 99/511] 80 |y9.7} 25 
T. H. G. Newton, Wsq......|2°15}s)'52} 26 | 44 1530) 381 4:0| 25 
Rey T.N. Hutchinson ....)199) 42) 26 | 45 |52-4} 380 |470| 24 
Rey. U. Smith ............| 1°68] °37) 28 11/490} 81 [40] 24 
Rey. J. M. Mello ..........| 1°82] 56} 25 7 | 490] 80 & 81) 5.9] 25 
J.G Jackson, Esq. ........ 185)s).58) 25 1s |49°0] 30 |490| 28 
C. E. Jones, Esq. ...... seee| L54) 65) 25 abt 
J. Tissington, Esq.......... 2°29) 
J.T. Barber, Esq..... seoeee{ 229] °05] 24 | 49 | 51:9) 81 69| 24 
B. J. Whitaker, Esq. ......|1°53}132] 30 6 |49°0) 381 90] 21 
J.N. Dufty, Esq. -....+.00-| 153) 490} 81 130] 24 
E. J. Lowe, Esq. ......-...|2'50} 75} 26 | 45/599) 81 59| 25 
H. Mellish, Esq. ......-...| 154] °70/ 25 | 45/53) 31 g8| 25 
H. F. Johnson, Esq. ......|2°33} 60} 26 | 45/525) 81 [435] 24 
W. Berridge, Esq..........|187} “45] 26 {49/611} 31 | 5:8] 25 
Rev. BE. Willes ............|177|_“46/ 26 | 30 
S. W. Cox, Hsq..... suvatete| OSL GG)) 227 10 |50°0| 381 8:0} 25 
T Macauley, Esq. ........|1'86] “65) 25 110} 24 
W. J. Harrison, Esq. ....../181} °42} 26 15 | 62:5] 81 69| 25 
H. Billson, Esq. {1 46) 26 52°38) 81 9:8] 25 
J. Hames, jun., E ‘77| *70| 26 14 |47-0| 80 & 31/100] 25 
E. Ball, Esq. . 94) 42) 26 14 | 49-0! 80 16°06, 24 
iGo Jones, Esq. . Senge | Lb4| 40 26 16 |51':0) 81 7:0| 25 
Rey. A. M. Rendell ........ 1°73]s)'37| 25 15 |'6271] 31 |--2:0| 25 
8 
J. Webb, Hsq.....ssseseeeee| 1.81|r).45] 25 15 
R. G. Scriven, Esq. ........|1°53| °48] 25 9}50°0) 31 /;15°0| 24 
C. A. Markham, Esq. ......|1°78| °42) 26 14 |51:0| 81 9:0| 2 
J. Wallis, Esq. ..... ecceeee! 166} *41) 26 16 |50°0) 31 14:0] 25 
W.F. JS akeman, Esq. ....../153} °35) 25 15 |52°0) 381 10:0} 25 
8 
W. Temple, Esq. ......++..|1°63/r)'98} 25 6 }49°0) 30 160! 14 
Rey. G. H. Mullins ........| 1°65/s)"40 25 13 | 516 31 179 25 
W. Hayes, Hsq. .....ee00-3 | 1'39| “49! 26 14 | 415 5 130} 25 
Mr. H. E. Bellamy ........|1'51} °40 11536) 29 56] 24 
TR Be MBCA ciswisinenice vee ay, as roles) "25 41510, 81 50 23 
H. Sagar, BQ. Sccweccccese| 160 29 20 |50°7} 81 241) 15 
IROV. Ge Dapp casts eciseates 608 108 29 13 |53°0| 80 &81| 80) 11 


52 THE WEATHER OF DECEMBER. 


Thunder was heard at Stokesay on the 30th, and a lunarrainbow wasseen 
there on the night of the 31st. The birds suffered greatly from the cold. 
From many places they disappeared altogether, doubtless going south- 
ward in search of a warmer climate. Mr. Ball, of Waltham, says: 
** Previous to the frost, great numbers of small birds were observed going 
southwards. Numbers of rooks, crows, sparrows, and robins perished 
here during the frost.” At More Rectory, (Rev. A. §. Male,) ‘‘ Winter 
birds, fieldfares, &c., were abundant and very tame. One hawfinch was 
killed on the 31st. The rooks were so tame with hunger that they came 
to feed with the small birds atthe window.” At Nottingham, (Mr. 
Johnson,) ‘‘ Great quantities of small birds have died in this neighbour- 
hood, and we have had some fresh arrivals, as bramble-finches and 
redwings.” 


RainFatt oF 1878.—We have received the following returns :— 


(Cloyysnineye USS doe oe soeUS 34:8i1in: | Stoke Bliss ty. : i.e 36°92in. 
Leicester (Town Museum) 29-73in. | Nottingham (E. J. Lowe, 
Spondon....... shen aomoc 32°32in. ISG) Goannoo ss coon oon 32.97in. 
Hodsock Priory.......... 24.88in. | Ashby Magna .......... 27-16in. 
TGS Gooncocadsadon ZT -AUGINE | MOVSUOD tee lelsleieielbelet ise 28°76in. 
IMR! GanaseeocantaauT 29-73in. | Coston Rectory.......... 28°27in. 
(Clagkuclils) Aa so ebogasanadee 37°57in. | Cheltenham ............ 33°18in. 
Adderley Rectory........ 52:16in 


For observers’ names and counties see the monthlylist. These returns 
show an average excess of about ten per cent., chiefly due to the months 
of May and August. It was the fourth year of excessive rains, the last 
“dry season” having been in 1874. 


Correspondence, 


$$$ —_____— 


Snow Crystats.—Information how these may be observed under the 
microscope would be most acceptable.—ENQuiRER. 


FRESHWATER Poiyzoa.—Will some one kindly describe a good method 


for preserving these interesting objects, with tentacles expanded for 
examination under the microscope ?—M. 


Rotirers.—I have tried in vain to preserve these interesting animal- 
cules as microscopical specimens, but have, so far, been most unsuccess- 
ful. Will some reader of the “Midland Naturalist” communicate a 
method which has stood the test of experience ?—J. N. 


Witp Goosrt.—It may interest some of the readers of the ‘‘ Midland 
Naturalist” to know that one of the boys in this village captured, on 
Christmas Day last, a wild goose. The bird lighted in a field near to where 
the lad was singing carols, and was too exhausted to fly further. It 
weighed 10lbs., and measured 7ft. between the tips of the wings.— 
Wm. Exutor, Cardington. 


Tastpts to Mount Specimens on.—Referring to a note on tablets 
for mounting specimens at page 25, I may say that the pasteboard recom- 
mended by Professor Miall answers admirably. But his plan of 
indicating formations or classes by different colours does not answer so 
well, since most of the colours fade very soon. In my own cabinet I 
have, for that reason, adopted one quiet permanent colour.—C. 
Cautaway. D.Sc., Wellington. 


CORRESPONDENCE. ae 


A Rare Brrp.—A fine specimen of the bittern (Botaurus stellaris, 
Selby,) was shot near Leicester, on December 28th, and is now in the 
possession of Messrs. W. Adcock and Son, Taxidermists, 96, Dorset Street, 
Leicester.—C. A. 


How are THE SHELLS oF GARDEN Snams Formep ?—Will Mr. Tye or 
some other conchologist give a description of the mode in which the 
common garden snail developes its shell? By what means does the tiny 
thing by which the baby snail is protected grow with its growth, enlarging 
and yet retaining its proper form, enriched by its typical markings? The 
history cannot fail to prove intensely interesting —H. Cou. 


WHAT Is THE CAUSE OF HarpInEss IN Puants ?—Why does frost kill some 
plants and produce no effect on others? I should be much obliged if 
some one will enlighten me on this most interesting subject. Are there 
any published papers in which the question is well discussed? It seems 
to me a subject of great importance; but I am unaware that anything 
of real value concerning it has yet appeared. Information will be 
valuable to many besides myself.—W. E. 


AqguaRris.—Will some of the readers of the ‘‘ Midland Naturalist ” 
kindly inform me what is the best artificial food for freshwater fishes, 
viz., carp, minnows, perch, tench, dace, roach, &c., as I find a difficulty 
in feeding them properly at this time of the year. Two or three of my 
gold carp were covered with a sort of white fungus, and died in a few 
days after that made its appearance. Can anyone explain this, 
and if there is any cure? Any information on the management of 
Aquaria generally would be esteemed a favour.—H. M., Derby. 


Tar Mipranp Union anp THE ‘“ Mipianp Naruratist.”—I have been 
making enquiries as to the number of members who subscribe for the 
magazine, and I am astonished to find how few show any willingness to 
support a publication which has already done much useful work for our 
Natural History Societies. I desire to offer a suggestion. Let every 
member who is already a subscriber make up his mind to get one, or, 
better still, two fresh subscribers for the current year. To do this need 
involve very little trouble, as among his fellow-members every one can 
surely influence some one by his recommendation. It will be a poor 
return for the gratuitous labours of the editors, and for the enterprise 
and good nature of the publishers, if the Societies in the Union will 
not, each and all, lend a helping hand to ensure the permanent publica- 
tion of the “ Midland Naturalist.” Every student of any branch of 
Natural History in the Midland Counties ought to feel himself bound in 
honour to do what he can to increase the circulation of our valuable 
monthly.—F. E. L. 


Frost PHenomensa.—At page 22 is a very interesting account by Mr. 
F. T. Mott, of Leicester. I will add a line or two as to a very beautiful 
phenomenon which I noticed here on Christmas night last. The first 
great frost of the memorable winter of 1878-9 commenced on the 6th and 
terminated on the 25th of December by a thaw and subsequent rain in 
the afternoon and evening. To this succeeded, about ten o’clock at night, 
a sharp frost. The partially melted snow on the trees and hedges, and 
apparently the rain itself, formed a mass of icicles, covering almost every 
twig and branch of hedge and tree. They were variously club-shaped, 
spindle-shaped, or coral-shaped, and in the gaslight sparkled like brilliants. 
Moreover, as a gentle wind sometimes passed through the trees, a 
peculiar grating sound was heard as the icicles ground against each 
other, not of an unmusical character, as though calcareous matter in the 
nature of coral had been gently rubbed together. This was observed 
between eleven and twelve o’clock at night.—W. R. Hueuzs, Handsworth 
Wood, near Birmingham. 


54 CORRESPONDENCE, 


Hepcrnoc.—My garden is entirely walled-in, and near the bottom 
there is a raised bank supported by a wall of casting pots placed with the 
open ends outwards. In November, 1876, a friend gave me a young 
hedgehog about one-third grown. He lived in the garden, but was only 
visible at intervals of a month or six weeks. Desiring to find where he 
hid himself I carefully searched the garden, and on examining the casting 
pots I observed one about 15in. from the ground filled to the very mouth 
with dead leaves, of which there was a large quantity on the ground near, 
On removing the leaves from the casting pot I found them quite densely 
packed together—not as if they had been loosely cast in, but as if they 
had been subjected to both arrangement and pressure—and about 5in. 
from the mouth of the casting pot appeared the prickles of the hedgehog. 
Query—How came he there? I had no other domestic pet to “ tuck him 
up” after he had got into his cosy bed, and the cats of the neighbourhood 
can hardly be credited with it. Probably some Naturalist can solve the 
question. My own guess is that he filled the hole with leaves, and then 
with a screwing motion of his body used his prickles to draw in the leaves 
after him as he bored his way through them.—R. Huen Burman, 
Handsworth. 


NorrHampron Castir.—Many readers of the “‘ Midland Naturalist” 
are aware that with the progress of the new line of the North-Western 
Railway, by which Northampton is placed on the main line of their 
system, the old Castle of Northampton, built by Simon de St. Liz, willbe 
completely destroyed, the site being required for the sidings of the new 
station. Excavators have for some time been at work, and have now 
laid bare the foundation of the western walls and postern gate, and a 
memorial has been signed asking the North-Western Company to incor- 
porate or utilise in some way this block of masonry}{if possible. A com- 
mittee of Archzologists has been formed to watch the excavations in 
case anything of interest should be unearthed. The walls of the Castle, 
and particularly the south bastion, were interesting, as being the only 
Northants locality for Diplotaxis tenuifolia &c.; and among other 
interesting plants growing on them may be mentioned Hehium vulgare, 
Linaria vulgaris, Sedum album and reflecum, Poa compressa, Antirrhinwm 
majus, Cheiranthus cheiri, &c. Burgess, in his Wild Flowers, I believe, 
alludes to the profusion of Malva sylvestris growing in the Castle moat, 
but this has disappeared, nor can Fritillaria meleagris be now seenin the 
meadows near, although Colchicum autumnale still appears, making the 
fields gay in September within a few hundred yards of this site.— 
G. C. Druce. 


Gleanings. 


OrnNITHOLOGY.—We have received from Dr. E. Rey, of Leipzig, the 
first and second parts of a general (priced) catalogue of birds. The prices 
appear moderate, as the skins are guaranteed to be in good order. 


Moxuvuscan Tureaps.—Mr. G. Sherriff Tye contributed to the Novem- 
ber number of ‘‘ The Quarterly Journal of Conchology” a most interesting 
paper on the threads spun by Mollusks. The paper was read before the 
Birmingham Natural History and Microscopical Society. 


PuHotoGRaPHy.—We have received from Mr. J. Vincent Elsden an 
excellent photographic enlargement of the diatoms Tvriceratium favus and 
T. megastomum. 'These are enlarged toa diameter of from lin. to 14in., 
and the details are brought out with considerable clearness. 


GLEANINGS. 55 


Gronoaican Survry.—The mapping of sheet 70(N.-E. Leicestershire, 
East Notts, and South Lincolnshire) has been all but completed by Mr. 
W. H. Holloway, F.G.8. Very little local work has been done in this 
region, and we trust that a full descriptive memoir will be published 
concerning it. 


Prtrotocy.—We are glad to hear that Mr. F. Rutley, F.G.S., has 
written a book upon this subject, which will be published in a few weeks. 
We pointed out the necessity for such a work in our review of Mr. Rutley’s 
memoir on ‘‘ Brent Tor,” last month, (page 17,) and are glad to find that 
he has anticipated our wishes. 


Naturat History or tun Ant.—The Rev. Henry McCook, of the 
Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, announces the proposed 
publication, by subscription, (four dollars,) of a Monograph of the Agri- 
cultural Ant of Texas. From the syllabus of the work the doings of 
these creatures appear to be of a very extraordinary character, and have 
been minutely studied by the author ‘‘ while encamped in the midst of a 
large colony of formicaries.” There are twenty-four plates, containing a 
large number of illustrations, drawn from nature. 


Norwich Gurotoeican Socrety.—The prosecution of the Geological 
Survey in the Eastern Counties has naturally given an impetus to the 
work of the various scientific societies of that district. As one result of 
this movement, we are glad to see that the Norwich Geological Society 
has commenced the publication of their ‘‘ Proceedings.” Part I. contains 
a list of papers communicated to the Society from its establishment in 
1864 up to November, 1877, and also abstracts of several papers read 
during the session 1877-8. Part II. consists of a very able address 
delivered by the President, H. B. Woodward, Hsq., F.G.S., in which 
much valuable information on glacial topics is contained. 


Tur BiruincHam Rererence Liprary, which included the 
deservedly-famous Shakespeare Library, the Cervantes Library, and the 
unique Staunton Collection (relating to Warwickshire history,) was 
destroyed by fire on the afternoon of Saturday, January 11th, 1879. The 
loss is one deplored by everyone, and many of the treasures destroyed 
can never be replaced. With characteristic energy, Birmingham at once 
set to work to provide funds for the formation of another library as good 
as money judiciously spent can provide. Within a week of the fire more 
than £10,000 was subscribed. Thereis no doubt that £15,000 will soon be 
raised, which is the sum required in addition to the insurance money to 
reinstate the buildings and fill them with the necessary books, &c. 
We have reason to believe that scientific literature will be fully repre- 
sented in the new Reference Library. : 


Tur Present SEVERE WINTER seems to have been plainly foreseen 
by Professor Piazzi Smyth, the Astronomer Royal of Scotland, so long 
ago as 1872. In a communication made by him to Nature, of February 
22nd, in that year, commenting on the observations made with the rock 
thermometers at the Royal Observatory, Edinburgh, during many 
preceding years, he states that the most striking features of the observa- 
tions are (1) the great heat-wave which occurs every eleven years and a 
fraction, and nearly coincidently with the beginning of the increase of 
each sun-spot cycle of the same eleven-year duration, and (2) the extreme 
cold found on either side of the great heat-wave, and he points out that 
the next occurrence of the minimum temperature of the then next cold 
wave might be looked for at the end of last year, (1878,) and the early 
part of the present year, and that the next heat-wave will occur in or 


about 1880. 


56 REPORTS—EXCHANGE. 


Aeports of Sotieties. 


BIRMINGHAM AND MIDLAND INSTITUTE SCIENTIFIC SOCIETY.— 
January 1st.—The Annual Soirée was held in the Bristol Street Board School. 
140 tickets were issued, andthe meeting proved a very enjoyable one. Mr. G. T. 
Cashmore exhibited an arrangement of mirrors for illustrating the law of 
symmetry in crystals. Messrs. P. Harris and Co. lent an induction coil and 
vacuum tubes. Various members contributed telephones, microphone, electro- 
thermoscope, and microscopes. Mr. C. Pumphrey exhibited a number of beautiful 
stereoscopic views of remarkable scenery. At eight o’clock an amusing scientific 
farce, interspersed with experiments and songs, was performed by Messrs. A. 
Cresswell, R. Birbeck, and C. E. Crick. Refreshments were then served under 
the superintendence of Mrs. Cresswell, and dancing commenced and was kept up 
with much spirit until midnight. 


BIRMINGHAM NATURAL HISTORY’ AND MICROSCOPICAL 
SOCIETY.—December 17th.—Mricroscorican GENERAL Meetinec.—Mr. Graham 
exhibited the Cat’s-Eye Pearl from Japan. Mr. W. R. Hughes read the 
seventh of a series of papers on ‘‘ The Entozoa and Ecetozoa,” by T. Spencer 
Cobbold, M.D. January 7th—GernrnraL Mrrtinc.—Mr. J. E. Bagnall exhibited 
Gdipodium Griffithianum from Snowdon, and capsule of Sphagnum to show the 
stomata.—Mr. R. M. Lloyd exhibited some live specimens of the river lamprey 
(Petromyzon fluviatilis.) Mr. W. Southall read the first part of a paper on “ The 
Flora and Fauna of Edgbaston,” but, after having read the first part, at the 
request of the Chairman, he promised to read the entire paper at a future 
meeting. 


CHELTENHAM NATURAL SCIENCE SOCIETY.—January 16. Geo. 
Ferguson, Esq., M.D., M.A., read a most interesting paper on the ‘* Planet 
Mars and its Alleged Habitability.” The paper was well illustrated by diagrams. 


NOTTINGHAM LITERARY AND PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY.— 
Naruran Scrence Secrion.—December 20th.—Mr. Jas. Shipman read an 
interesting report of a Geological excursion made by the members on the 5th 
October to Froghall, Caldon Low, Weaver Hills, and Alton Towers. January 
17th.—Mr. H. M. Ward gave a lecture on ‘‘ Green Leaves.” 


SMALL HEATH LITERARY AND _ SCIENTIFIC SOCIETY, 
BIRMINGHAM.—The annual Conversazione was held in the Board Schools, 
Jenkins Street,on New Year’s Day. A very interesting exhibition was made, 
including specimens from the South Kensington Museum, lent by the India 
Office; Microphone, Microscope, Dichroic liquid, Trap-door Spiders, &c., 
exhibited by Mr. Lawson Tait; a collection of Biological specimens, exhibited 
by Mr. Aaron Franklin ; microscopes, revolving stereoscope, &e., exhibited by 
Miss R. Bailey ; Circulation of Blood in Frog’s Foot, exhibited by the President 
(Mr. Jacob Rowlands ;) Collection of British Birds’ Eggs, exhibited by Mr. C. E. 
Rowlands ; specimens of Freshwater Life, exhibited by Mr. Thos. Bolton; and 
many other objects of interest, exhibited by various gentlemen. There was also 
an amateur dramatic performance. 


EXCHANGE. 


Will give good collection of land and freshwater shells for any 
volume of ‘‘ Science Gossip.” Want all volumes since commencement of 
publication. Also want ‘‘Turton’s Land and Freshwater Shells,” and 
other books on shells.—C. T. Musson, 68, Goldsmith Street, Nottingham. 


THE PREDACEOUS WATER BEETLES. 57 


THE PREDACEOUS WATER BEETLES 
(HYDRADEPHAGA) OF LEICESTERSHIRE. 


BY G. ROBSON, 


Whilst the sciences of Geology and Botany are favourite subjects of 
study with those who possess a taste for Natural History, very few care 
for working up, with anything like thoroughness, the science of Ento- 
mology, particularly some of the obscurer branches, such as the order 
Coleoptera. Botany is regarded as being a very beautiful science, and 
Geology has powerful attractions; but, Beetles! why the very name is 
too much for the sensitiveness of ladies, and even gentlemen shrink from 
handling them. Butterflies and moths have many admirers of both 
sexes, but Beetles, particularly Water Beetles, live almost totally undis- 
turbed in their native habitats. A short account of some of the Water 
Beetles of the county of Leicester may, therefore, be of some use, and 
tend to excite an interest in these little creatures. I am sure this 
branch of Natural History would well repay the labours of any earnest 
worker. Very little seems to be known by the people generally about 
the Hydradephaga or Predaceous Water Beetles, in proof of which it may 
be stated that in all my rambles in search of specimens I never met with 
any, amongst the mass of those who stopped to look on, who could divine 
my object. The pursuit of Natural History is little appreciated by the 
common people. My vasculum has often been mistaken for a candle- 
box, and I am frequently asked questions like this—‘I say, master, 
what have you brought your candle-box out for this warm day?” My 
answer has been—“ Because we want more light.” 


Thave been induced to look up the Hydradephaga of Leicestershire 
at the instigation of my friend and patron, F. T. Mott, Esq., F.G.S. 
Furnished with ‘‘ Stephens’ Manual of British Coleoptera,” a water-net, 
killing-bottle, and other apparatus, all complete, I looked anxiously 
forward to the day when I could try my hand upon this, to me, new 
branch of Natural History. The hoped-for day came at last, and found 
me, with laurel bottle and net, and some misgivings mingled with my 
hopes, ready to take my way, guided partly by instinct, to those hunting 
grounds where I had many times before, with much pleasure, engaged in 
pursuits of a kindred nature. It was rather a cold morning in May when 
TI started on my way to Anstey, and, the season not being very forward, 
my doubts as to my probable success were strengthened rather than 
dispelled. All animated things seemed to be still wrapped in their 
winter sleep, and, standing by the cold, glassy waters of the first pond I 
arrived at, I could not help a half shudder of hopeless feeling creeping 
upon me as I thought I should certainly fail in my new undertaking, 
There was, however, no help for it, but to try my best; so down I got to 
the water’s edge, where I could obtain the most favourable sweep with 
the net. I watched the water drain through the net, anxiously asking 
myself—Is there anything init? Yes, sure enough, there was—strange 
creatures, which, in all my boyish wading, I had never before seen. 

K 


58 THE PREDACEOUS WATER BEETLES, 


Amongst other curious things were some of the beetles I had come to 
seek—a small species, with four light-coloured spots on the elytra, which 
I afterwards made out to be the common Hydroporus palustris. I was, 
however, much pleased with the insect at the time. The same dayI 
caught several specimens of Hyphydrus ovatus, and one of Dyticus 
marginalis, and thought myself well repaid for my trouble. I learned 
one lesson from this first trial, namely, that laurel leaves are of no use 
as a killing agent.* So I obtained some cyanide of potassium, placed it 
in a bottle, and poured over it some plaster of Paris, to keep it in place 
and make a level bottom. 

My next day out, which was in about a week after the first, was 
spent in the same district, but I extended my field of operations. 
Nothing very uncommon was met with this time, excepting Hygrotus 
( Hydroporus ) pictus ; several specimens of Acilius sulcatus also occurred, but 
this species I afterwards found to be common. Inexttried the Charnwood 
Forest district, but soon discovered that if I wanted water-beetles I must 
keep in the valley of the Soar. After this, on every fresh excursion, my 
net brought up some new species. In the Abbey Meadow I first found 
Hydroporus depressus ; from Barkby Brook were captured Hydroporus 
12-punctatus, (duodecimpustulatus,) and Colymbetes (Agabus) maculatus and 
nebulosus—the latter being common in all clear water. Early in Junel 
brought from the Anstey ponds Haliplus obliquus, Laccophilus hyalinus, 
and Colymbetes fuscus; from Thurmaston Sandhole, Hydroporus planus 
and H. memnonius. This last place yielded the rarest species, and, 
excepting the tributaries of the Soar, was the most prolific. It is a large 
extent of land from which ballast has been obtained, and is full of 
bright pools, which, as the summer advanced, became covered with a 
rich growth of conferve. It was here I obtained the single specimen (of 
the season) of Pelobius Hermanni. I tried many times, but never 
succeeded in taking any more Pelobius. 

As the season advanced, I became better acquainted with the 
particular habitats of the various water-beetles, and could almost tell at 
sight, by the appearance of the water, what species were likely to occur. 
I seldom found anything in black muddy ponds except Colymbetes 
(Agabus) Sturmi and bipustulatus, and noticed that all the brightly 
coloured and spotted beetles were found in running or clear water; thus 
Thad C. (A.) vitreus (didymus) from Barkby Brook, and C. (A.) maculatus 
from a brook near Syston. I scarcely ever found many beetles in ponds 
where Lemna trisulca grew, but in those covered with ZL. minor I was 
generally very successful. In streams by which nanthe grew, bright 
beetles were plentiful. I do not know in what relation these plants 
stand to water-beetles; it might be only an accidental circumstance, but 
I always regarded these characteristics as signs. I never found 
Laccophilus hyalinus with L. minutus. The latter, which is the brighter 


* Mr. Robson must have been unfortunate in the laurel he used: or, perhaps, he 
did not keep it dry. Good laurel, properly used, is certainly the best “ killing agent’’ 
for Coleoptera, and it is tobe hoped that Mr. Robson will try again. Cyanide of 
potassium is bad in many ways, but principally because it renders the beetles stiff 
aud hard to set.—Ebs. M.N. 


THE PREDACEOUS WATER BEETLES. 59 


———$—$—$—$——————————————————————————————”— oar 


coloured of the two, being found in the clear water of the Soar, amongst 
the inanthe, and the former in the Anstey ponds. 

One of my best and most successful days was spent in the neigh- 
bourhood of Syston. It was there, in the tributaries of the Soar, that 
I first found Colymbetes (Ilybius) ater, guttiger, and fenestratus, although I 
afterwards found them plentiful all along the Soar, and also at Blaby, 
along with Hygrotus (Hydroporus) confluens and Haliplus fulvus and - 
flavicollis. At the latter place I accidentally broke my net, and as I 
could not subsequently revisit the place, am unable to say what other 
species might have been caught. There is a deep hollow in the Anstey 
fields at one end of which is a wide pond overgrown with duckweed, 
except in the middle, where it is kept clear by the drainage. From this 
I always obtained good specimens, including, besides those already 
mentioned, Hydrobius fuscipes, fulvus, and (Helochares) lividus.* 

Altogether I obtained some fifty species, but did not nearly exhaust 
the field, in which, no doubt, there is still good work remaining to be 
dene. My experience taught me the important fact that whilst some 
species appear to be generally distributed others are only to be found in 
certain localities. Everywhere, for example, in clear water, I found 
Helophorus aquaticus and granularis, but Hygrotus (Hydroporus) reticulatus 
was confined to a pond in Glebe Lane, Belgrave, and H. lineatus to a 
pond at Blaby. 

Hunting for the beetles, under the invigorating influences of fresh 
air and sunshine, was all pleasure ; the real work began when I got them 
home. In the first place Water Beetles are most difficult to mount, and 
I should be glad of any hint that would enable me to improve upon my 
plan. I use gummed card, relaxing the insects by putting them either 
in a damp place or in water.| The cyanide would relax (and spoil) them 
if leftin alongtime. There is a strong contractility in the legs of the 
 Hydradephaga, and this, combined with the position in which they are 
articulated to the body, renders them more difficult to mount than other 
insects. In naming my captures I found the species of Haliplus most 
difficult to make out, but, with the aid of the beautiful microscope 
belonging to the Leicester Museum, all my difficulties were gradually 
overcome. The species of this genus are all small, ovate and convex, 
mostly light testaceous in colour, and have their hinder coxe produced 
behind into a large plate, the effect of which is to make the legs appear 
to be very wide apart. Many species of this and allied genera approach 
each other very nearly and require close examination and study before 
they can be separated. The descriptions in Stephens’ Manual are, 
moreover, so short and vague that no student would be able to get on 
with that alone. A good and cheap Manual of Coleoptera remains to be 
written. 


* These three beetles do not belong to the family Hyd” b 
Palpicornia or Hydrophilide.—EDs., LN, ies ant as 


+ Both these plans are bad. If kept in the chopped-laurel jar the beetles 


yond Be ete relaxed and ready to set at any time. Cyanide must be avoided. 


{ Cox’s “ Handbook of Coleoptera,” 2 vols., 17s. 6d., would be a great improve- 
ment on “Stephens.” It is the best : ublished, and is Jol ists. 
See “ Mid, Nat.,” Vol. I, p. 100.—EDs. M.N. pide gn oe 


60 


THE PREDACEOUS WATER BEETLES, 


In concluding these notes I would urge that none should be deterred 
from the pursuit of knowledge, even amongst the beetles of our ponds 
and streams, by any false notions of distastefulness for the objects to be 
studied. It is our want of knowledge that makes us dislike such things ; 
the more knowledge we obtain respecting them the more interested we 
shall become, and, though we may not see beauty in everything, we 
shall certainly see it in Beetles.* 


Synopsis oF LEICESTERSHIRE HyDRADEPHAGA. 


sal 


HaAuipivs: 
Obliquus, Fab. .. - 
Fulvus, Fab. (ferrugineus.) 
Fluviatilis, Aubé . 42 
Ruficollis, ‘De Geer, (fulvicolis.) 
Lineatocollis, Marsh. .. 
PELOBIUS : 


Hermanni, Fab. .. 35 sO 
Hypuyprvs: 
Ovatus, Linn. .. ts 36 


Hyproporvs : 
Reticulatus, Fab... ae are 
Ineequalis, Fab. .. ate a 
Conflueng, Fab. .. oc ste 
Pictus, Fab. 


Duodecimpustulatus, Ol. 


Depressus, Fab. .. 


Dorsalis, Fab. .. ae 
Memnonius, Nic. tts P 
Planus, Fab. ot an 5 
Nigrita, Fab. oa =: 
Vittula, Hr. 


Palustris, Linn. .. eC 
Lineatus, Fab. .. ote abe 
Novrerus: 


Sparsus, Marsh. (semipunctatus.) 
Laccopuius : 

Minutus, Linn. .. oe As 

Hyalinus, De Geer. -- Sic 
CoLYMBETES : 


Fuscus, Linn... «- ote ot 
Inyspivs : 

Fenestratus, Fab. 40 36 

Fuliginosus, Fab. of 5° 


Ater, De Geer. .. zt 
AGABUS: 

Bipustulatus, Linn. ae oe 

Chalconotus, Pz. ap 

Sturmi, Schon. An sie 

Didymus, Ol. (vitreus. jit 

Nebulosus, Forst. a 

Maculatus, Linn. 
Dyticus: 

Marginalis, Linn. 
AcInivs : 

Sulcatus, Linn. .. xi ais 


Anstey Ponds. 
Blaby and Thurmaston Sandhole. 
Anstey Ponds. 


ea Common in clear ponds. 
Thurmaston Sandhole. 
Anstey Ponds. 
Glebe Lane, Belgrave. 
Anstey Ponds. 


Blaby. 
Anstey Ponds. 


: {eae Brook and Thurmaston 


Sandhole. 
Abbey Meadow, Barkby Brook, 
{ Syston. 

Common. 


' | Thurmaston Sandhole. 


Eventon, (muddy pond.) 
Blaby. 

Common. 

Blaby. 


Thurmaston Sandhole. 


The Soar. 
Anstey Ponds. 


Anstey Lane Ponds. 


Ayleston, Sileby, Syston. 
Blaby and the Soar. 
Syston. 


In muddy ponds. 

Kirby Moat, Blaby. 

Tn all muddy ponds. 

Running streams, Syston, Barkby. 
Common everywhere. 

Streams, Syston, Barkby. 


Common in ponds. 


Common in ponds. 


* It is to be hoped that Mr. Robson will continue to observe the Water 


Beetles of Leicestershire. 


There certainly must be many more species, even of the 


Hydradephaga, to be obtained and reported.—Ebs. M.N. 


| 
sf 


eS ee ee ee 


PARASITES OF MAN. 61 


PARASITES OF MAN. 


4 BY T. SPENCER COBBOLD, M.D., F.R.S., ETC, 


[Continued from page 9.] 

The last two, or rather, I should say, three nematode parasites that 
remain for the Society’s consideration are Ascarides properly so called. 
It has long been the habit of medical practitioners and others to speak 
of the obnoxious little threadworms as Ascarides, whilst they call the 
large roundworms Lumbrici. Both terms are erroneous and misleading. 
The true Ascarides are readily recognised by their three prominent lips, 
associated with a more or less uniform thickness of the body, and a short 
tail which is not finely pointed. The Oxyurides on the other hand have 
_ @ spindle-shaped body, which is finely drawn out behind. Hence their 

generic name. As to the large roundworms, it was, perhaps, not unnatural 
that in early times they should have been called Lumbrici—on account 
of their general external resemblance to earthworms—but it is hardly 
necessary to remark that, as regards their internal organisation, they differ 
essentially from the setigerous annelids; whilst, with rare exceptions, the 
nematodes are unisexual, the oligochztous Terricole are hermaphroditic. 
In the minds of unscientific and non-professional persons the Lumbrici 
are not only still frequently regarded as genuine earthworms, but, from 
time to time, sensational paragraphs find their way into the newspapers 
asserting that live eels have been ejected by the mouth; these so-called 
“eels” being lumbricoid Entozoa. Thus it is that the undisciplined 
mind, incapable of correct observation, conjures up and gives expression 
to notions which, though uttered in times of comparative enlightenment, 
are just as absurd and untrustworthy as certain statements which I 
have previously referred to in this relation as occurring in ancient writings, 
both sacred and secular. 
NEMATODA CONTINUED. 
40.— Ascaris lumbricoides, Linneus. 
Synonymy.—Fusaria, Zeder ; Lumbricus teres hominis, Tyson. 
Larve.—As vermiform embryos, (developed within the egg,) they 
attain a length of nearly ;3, of aninch. As sexually immature 
worms they have been found by Heller in man, post mortem, up 
to the sizes of }in. and din. respectively. The intervening 
stages have not been traced. 
Intermediate host.—Probably not necessary. 


Experiments.—Davaine, myself, and others have frequently 
reared the embryos in water; and whilst still enclosed within 
the egg-shell the embryos have been kept alive by Davaine for 
five or more years. The administration of eggs by Leuckart to 
swine, dogs, rabbits, and mice gave negative results. Davaine 


* Communicated to the Microscopical General Meeting, (Birmingham Natural 
History and Microscopical Society,) February 18th, 1879. On Dr. Cobbold’s behalf Mr. 
Hughes exhibited specimens of Ascaris lwmbricoides, and an example of A. mystax 
taken from the human body. A large Ascaris megalocephala was shown, in 
order to compare the human and equine lumbricoids; other roundworms from a 
chimpanzee, and also from a cat, being likewise exhibited. Mr. Hughes also 
exhibited, from his cabinet, a slide of ova of A. lwmbricoides, put up at the 


General Hospital in 1863, 


62 PARASITES OF MAN. 


also employed eggs, containing the embryos, in a similar set of 
experiments on rats and dogs. He also introduced them into 
the stomach of a cow, in linen-covered flasks. Some embryos 
escaped their shells, but nothing further transpired. Leuckart’s 
experiments on insects also failed. Numerous worm-feedings 
with allied species of Ascaris have given similar general results 
at the hands of Leuckart, Davaine, Verloren, Unterberger, and 
myself. Heller says that the first moult of the larva occurs 
within the egg itself; a second ecdysis taking place before the 
worm arrives at sexual maturity. 


Remarks.—There is every reason to believe that infection com- 
monly occurs by persons carelessly drinking water into which 
the eggs of the worm have been accidentally or otherwise intro- 
duced, and within which medium the embryos have been 
hatched during warm weather. Pigs being infested by the same 
worm, the water from streams or ponds in the neighbourhood 
of pigstyes becomes a dangerous source of infection when 
employed fordomestic purposes. Local endemics are traceable to 
this source. Careful filtration of water containing larvee, before 
use, would probably of itself be an amply sufficient safeguard 
against infection. The determination of the identity of 
Dujardin’s so-called Ascaris suilla of the hog with A. lumbricoides 
of man is due to Schneider. The large lumbricoid worm of the 
horse (A. megalocephala) is an entirely distinct species. In 
consequence of the tendency of lumbricoid worms to wander, 
they frequently give rise to grave symptoms and severe suffer- 
ing to the human bearer; and they occasionally cause death 
by perforating the walls of the intestine. This fact implies the 
possession of great muscular strength. In the year 1863 Mr. 
Hughes read a paper to the Birmingham Natural History Associ- 
ation, in which he described the remarkable contractile powers 
of Ascaris luwnbricoides. Mr. Hughes and Mr. C. J. Bracey, 
(House Surgeon to the General Hospital,) acting together, placed 
living specimens of the worms in water, raised to a temperature 
of about 100° Fahrenheit. This had the effect of keeping the 
parasites alive for several hours, during which time they 
displayed remarkably vigorous movements, their bodies con- 
tracting violently. 


Literature.—Standard Works. See also Heller (Joc. cit., ‘‘ Midland 
Naturalist,” Vol. II., p.8.) In connection with sanitary questions, 
it may be useful to refer to my memoir “‘ On Sewage and Parasites, 
especially in relation to the dispersion and vitality of the germs 
of Entozoa,” in the Medical Times and Gazette for Feb. 25th, 
1871, p. 215, et seq. 


41.—Ascaris mystax, Rudolphi. 
Syn.— Ascaris alata, Bellingham; A. cati, Schrank; A. teres felis, 
Goeze. 


Larvee.—As intra-ovular embryos, the early stages are developed 
whilst the eggs are still within the body of the parent female 
worm. After hatching, and a subsequent residence in the outer 
world, so to say, their passive transference to the ultimate host 
is attended with rapid growth and a final ecdysis.. Leuckart 
has traced these stages of growth in the cat, in whose stomach 
specimens of the larvee were found, measuring only ;, of an 
inch. The final skin is cast when the larve are about } of an 
inch long. From Hering’s observations, it would seem probable 
that a period of three weeks is amply sufficient for the produc- 


PARASITES OF MAN. 68 


ne aedad tt SIE ESN EnNSSnESnESS RRS 


tion of sexual maturity after the larvee have gained access to 
the body of the ultimate bearer. The bearer may be either man 
himself, or it may be a cat, dog, lion, or some other feline 
carnivore. 


Inter. Host.—Not necessary. 


Exper.—Leuckart and others have made direct. feeding-experi- 
ments with the ova, but they have always been attended with 
negative results. 


Remarks.—The determination of the identity of this worm 
with Bellingham’s Ascaris alata rests with myself. In this 
matter I had to oppose the great authority of my respected 
friend and senior, Professor Leuckart, and I had also to over- 
come the opposition of Kiichenmeister, who sought to throw 
doubt on Bellingham’s original discovery, characterising the 
so-called Ascaris alata as merely a young worm, ‘if indeed,” he 
added, “it were a worm at all.” At length, due acknowledg- 
ment of the correctness of my views has been made; and no 
less than seven instances are now on record of the occurrence of 
this parasite within the human body. Historically, this 
entozoon possesses a special interest in the fact that it supplied 
Dr. Henry Nelson with the data on which his remarkable 
thesis was based. In this thesis an important advance was made 
in reference to our knowledge of the embryogenetic process 
undergone by the nematodes. 


Lit.—Bellingham, Dublin Journal, 1839; Nelson, Phil. Trans., 
1851-52; Heller (l. c., s. 361;) Cobbold, Lancet for January, 
18638, and in “‘ Entozoa,” p. 316, et seq. 


42.—Ascaris maritima, Leuckart.* 
Syn.—None. 
Larvee.— Unknown. 
Exxper.—None. 


Remarks.—A solitary sexually immature specimen supplied 
Leuckart with the means of determining the existence of this 
worm as a distinct species. It measured about 13 of an inch in 
length. The specimen was discovered in April, 1865, by Dr. 
Pfaff, at Jacobshavn, near Godhavn, West Greenland. It had 
been ejected from the mouth by a child. 


Lit.—Leuckart, Die menschlichen Parasiten, Bd. IL., s. 877. 


[vO BE CONTINUED. | 


HARDINESS IN PLANTS. 
BY F. T. MOTT, F.R.G.S. 
W. E. (p. 53) asks the interesting, and not very easily answered 


question, ‘‘ What is the cause of hardiness in plants?” The subject has 
been partially investigated by several German botanists, and a good 


, * When in the introductory remarks prefixed to my former communication 
I spoke of only “ five more human nematodes” as remaining to be noticed, I had 
forgotten this comparatively unimportant species.—T. 8. C. 


64 HARDINESS IN PLANTS. 


account of what is known about it may be found in Sachs’ ‘‘ Text Book 
of Botany,” p. 653. It appears that the capacity to resist frost may be 


due to several causes, either singly or in combination. Among these — 
are:—1. The proportion of water to solid matter in the cellular tissue. © 


2. The chemical constitution of the solid matter and the cell-sap, which 
varies slightly in different species. 3. The proportion of foliage to roots, 
and of stomata toleaf-surface. 4. The more or less dense structure of the 
epidermal tissue. Plants are killed by frost not so much through the 
rupture of their tissues in consequence of the expansion of the water 
into ice, as was formerly supposed, but rather through the structural 
and chemical changes which take place in consequence of the normal 
proportion of water being removed from the cell-walls, the cell-sap, and 
the protoplasm. Death is due quite as often to the thawing as to the 
freezing. A rapid thaw will kill many plants which would have 
survived a slow one, because the water which has been separated from 
the other constituents of the vegetable substance may be re-absorbed 
if the thawing is sufficiently gradual, but cannot be re-absorbed if it is 


too sudden. 


Take a cup-full of starch-paste. Freeze it into a solid mass, and 
then thaw it quickly. It will not return to the condition of paste, but 
will have become a soft sponge, with water in the interstices. So the 
cellular tissue of the plant, when its normal proportion of water has been 
once frozen out cannot always re-absorb it, or return to its original 
condition. The cells shrink, become disorganised, and unable to carry on 
the functions of life. 


Tt is well known that some chemical solutions will freeze much more 
easily than others. River water is coated with ice sooner than sea water. 
In like manner the sap of some plants freezes, no doubt, at a lower 
temperature than that of others. Itis almost impossible to freeze a moss. 


The solid cell-walls and protoplasmic bodies contain “water of 
imbibition ” as crystals contain ‘‘ water of crystallisation.” This water is 
held between the molecules of the solid by the force of cohesion. If the 
proportion of water is large as in succulent plants and young foliage, the 
force of cohesion is weak, and the water is easily separated. Hence such 
plants and foliage are less hardy than those of adenser and dryer nature. 
Again, some plants ‘“ transpire” or exhale watery vapour more rapidly 
than others. This seems to be a frequent character of plants indigenous 
to warm climates. To maintain the supply of moisture from the roots 
the soil must be damp and warm. In a climate where the soil becomes 
cold or frozen such plants would die from thirst. 

Plants may become ‘“ acclimatised” by a gradual modification of 
some of their original functions, so as to adapt themselves to the average 
temperature of a new climate. The Portugal cabbage, (Cowve Tronchuda,) 
which some years ago was a comparatively tender variety, is now much 
hardier. 


A LEPIDOPTERIST’S NOTES. 65 


A LEPIDOPTERIST’'S NOTES ON THE SEASON 
. OF 1878. 


BY JOSEPH ANDERSON, JUN. 


That the season of 1878 was but an indifferent one for the 
Lepidopterist seems to have been the general report ; nevertheless, as is 
always the case even in the worst of years, some good species turned up in 
greater or less abundance. In the first place, the most striking circum- 
stance was the almost total disappearance of Colias Hdusa, whilst in 1877 
it literally swarmed, appearing too in places where it had never before 
been observed. In one field, near Chichester, I could have taken double» 
nay, treble the number of clouded yellows than of the common whites— 
Brassice, Rapx, or Napi; and, what is more, my brother andJI, in this 
same field, captured the surprising number of forty of the beautiful 
variety to which Haworth gave the name of Helice. The specimens 
exhibit a great variety of tint, some being greenish white, others by 
daylight a rich primrose yellow; in the size of the marginal spots also 
there is much diversity, in some they are reduced to the merest specks. 
The central spot in the hind wings varies from bright orange to cream 
colour, in nearly every case the whitest insects possessing the most deeply 
coloured spots. I saw but one Hdusa throughout last year, and that was 
on the 25th October. Truly, the species of Colias are most erratic in their 
movements. This strange appearing and disappearing, however, is not 
confined to Colias; we may find the same taking place with many 
species—such as Cardui, Stellatarum, Convolvuli, &c. What is the 
reason? Possibly the same that causes the seeds of divers plants to 
remain for years dormant in the soil, and then suddenly to spring forth 
into rank luxuriance—the fortuitous combination, namely, of certain 
external circumstances—as moisture and heat. 


The past year will certainly be noted for some very successful 
working in the fen districts of Cambridgeshire, such rarities as Meliana 
flammea, Nonagria Obrevilinea, and Hydrilla palustris, having been 
obtained in some numbers. Several specimens of the beautiful 
Dianthecia albimacula were captured at Folkestone, and Pachnobia hyper- 
borea (carnica, Heer, Newmaun,) in the locality where it occurs in Perth- 
shire. These are only a few instances of the ‘“‘ plums” which fell, not 
into the mouths, but into the nets of the more fortunate collectors. 
I cannot myself boast of such captures, my collecting having been con- 
fined to the immediate neighbourhood of this place—Chichester ; still, I 
am induced to think that a record of my own experience may not be 
without interest to others. 


I may mention then first a beautiful buff variety of the small copper 
butterfly, C. Phicas. The larvee of Vanessa Polychloros were excessively 
abundant on elms in our garden. On one little bough which I broke off 
I counted as many as fifty. Some of these produced imagos of a 
remarkably dark and handsome tint, with the first spot on the costa not 
suffused as is usually the case, but divided into two circular spots, the 

L 


66 A LEPIDOPTERIST’S NOTES. 


insect, save that it wants the yellow legs, bearing a great resemblance to 
the continental variety Xanthomelas. Perhapssome may not have noticed 
the liability to variation in the spots on the hind wings of Cynthia 
cardui. One which I took on the wing last July has a bright white pupil 
in one of the spots on the left lower wing, and in another the spots 
amalgamate in such a manner as almost to form a band. This butterfly 
and Vanessa Atalanta were as common as any during the past season. In 
one corner—and in that limited situation only—of a field where they were 
discovered many years since by my friend Mr. Jeffery, Lycena Alsus was 
tolerably plentiful when we visited it last Whit Monday. Here were to 
be seen also, in almost as confined an area, any number of the lovely 
Ophrys apifera and Orchis conopsea in full flower. 


During June and the first week of July I bred eight fine Acherontia 
Atropos from larvze found in the preceding autumn, and in the first week of 
October I obtained three equally good imagos from larve found in July. 
All of these were very noisy insects—one especially, which squeaked in 
the three stages of its.existence. With one exception they emerged 
between five and seven o’clock in the evening. 


Geometers were by no means so plentiful this season as last. I can 
record no good species, the best being Anticlea rubidata, Phibalapteryx 
tersata, Asthena luteata, Timandra amataria, and Acidalia emarginata. 
Mr. Jeffery took several Selidosema plumaria, and a splendid melanic 
variety of Boarmia abictaria. 

My sugaring operations were confined to the trees surrounding the 
house, my visitors to the sugary feast prepared for them including 
Grammesia trilinea and Miana strigilis, (very abundant,) the latter in 
every variety. Of the Mianas, indeed, I captured all except Photedes 
captiuncula. Bryophila glandifera came sparingly, but one was a pretty 
variety, having the upper wings powdered thickly with shining metallic 
scales of a bright green. Dipterygia pinastri, Orthosia upsilon, Caradrina 
cubicularis, Caradrina blanda, Hadena oleracea, Amphipyra pyramidea, 
Anchocelis lunosa, Miselia oxyacanthe, Acronycta rumicis, and Mania 
Maura, were tolerably common; Cosmia diffinis, Cosmia affinis, Agrotis 
puta, Noctua plecta, and Xanthia cerago, less so. Of the gaily coloured 
Catocala nupta several put in an appearance for many nights together, 
and of Agrotis saucia I secured a good series both of the type and 
varieties. My most successful evening, however, was that of August 
23rd, when I had the good fortune to “ box” a fine Leucania albipuncta. 
The instant the light was thrown on the tree it fell to the ground, and 
I feared was lost ; but on my second round, to my great delight, there 
it was again, and the next moment safely deposited in my poison-bottle. 
The “ignobile vulgus” Anchocelis pistacina, Phlogophora meticulosa, 
Tryphena orbona, Tryphena pronuba, Leucania pallens, with many others, 
mustered in full force even on the coldest nights. 


Perhaps after this severe weather we may not be wrong in antici- 
pating a good season for Lepidoptera next year, as it seems to be the 
general opinion that cold, hard winters, are more favourable than warm 
oues to the subsequent development of vegetable and insect life. 


a 


REVIEW—GEOLOGY OF EAST SOMERSET. 67 


Arcbietvs, 


The Geology of East Somerset and the Bristol Coal Fields. By Horace B. 
Woopwarp, F.G.S. Nine plates, twenty-three woodcuts, 271 pp. 
Price 18s. 

T'u1s Geological Survey memoir contains the results of the re-survey of a 

country which has long been classic ground to geologists. It was first 

mapped about thirty years ago by De la Beche, Ramsay, Phillips, and 
others. The revision of the Dristol area (sheet 35) was done by Mr. 

Bristow in 1864, whilst that of the sonthern part (sheet 19) is chiefly the 

work of Messrs. H. B. Woodward, Blake, and Ussher. 


The area described includes a wonderful variety of formations, 
ranging from the Silurian Rocks of the Tortworth district, which may 
be regarded as a continuation of the Malvern and May Hill ridge, up to 
the Cretaceous Rocks, which come on in the sonth near Chard, and in 
the south-east at Mere, &c. 

The physical features of the country are then described. The 
Severn and Bristol Channel form the wesier1 boundary; while on the 
east we have the Oolitic escarpment, rising to a height of about 800 feet. 
The principal rivers are the Litile Avon, Bcistol Avon, Yeo, Axe, and 
Parret. 

The Old Red Sandstone resis upon the Silurian Rocks near Berkeley. 
Tt also forms the central axis of the Mendip Hills, rising at Blackdown 
to 1,067 feet above the sea-level. 


The Carboniferous system is much more extensively developed. 
The Mountain Limestone has a thickness of 3,000 feet. From the north 
of Bristol, at Chipping Sodbury, it curves round to the west by 
Thornbury and Clifton, where the remarkable gorge cut by the Avon is 
well Imown. Thence it passes southwards by Backwell and Brockley 
Castle ; turning rather abruptly to the east it forms the greater part of 
the Mendip Hills, which may be considered to extend from Uphill on the 
Bristol Channel by Axbridge to near Frome. The scenery of this 
southern portion is bare and rugged, with remarkable combes and ravines, 
as at Cheddar, Burrington, &c. Fossils are numerous, especially 
brachiopods, crinoids, and corals, the latter resembling those which form 
the fringing or shore reefs of the present day. 


The Millstone Grit or Farewell Rock is on an average 1,000 feet in 
thickness, but in the Mendip district becomes: reduced to half this 
amount. The Coal-measures proper comprise one main tract—tvhe 
Bristol and Radstock coal-field—and two smaller basins which lie west- 
ward of it, viz., the Nailsea basin and that of Clapton-in-Gordano, which 
has lately been found to extend northwards under the Severn. Mr. 
Woodward also shows the great probability that a covered-up coal-basin 
exists south of the Mendips, about Wedmore, Glastonbury, &c., whilst 
eastwards such a series of basins probably extends by Oxford and the 
neighbourhood of London to connect with the coal-fields of Belgium and 
the north of France. The Bristol Coal-measures exhibit three ‘well- 


68 REVIEW—GEOLOGY OF EAST SOMERSET. 


marked divisions—an upper series, about 2,000 feet thick, containing 
sixteen coal-seams, and a lower series, 2,500 feet thick, with twenty-six 
coal-seams. These are separated by a thick mass of sandstone, 2,000 
feet thick, called the Pennant Grit, which contains only two or three thin 
seams. Altogether there are twenty seams which exceed two feet in 
thickness, producing an aggregate thickness of from seventy to one 
hundred feet of workable coal. The production is about one million tons 
per annum, at which rate of consumption the coal within a depth of 
4,000 feet would last for 4,219 years. 


The Permian Rocks are absent, and so are the Bunter Beds. The 
Keuper marls consequently rest directly upon the Coal-measures. They 
are about 300 feet thick, and the well-known bed, known as the dolomitic 
conglomerate, forms the base. The Penarth or Rhetic Beds are well 
exposed; they obtain a maximum (for England) thickness of 150 feet 
near Castle Carey. A valuable list of British Rhetic Fossils is also 
given. It includes three species of mammals, seven reptiles, thirty-one 
fishes, seven insects, four crustaceans, two annelids, seventy-five 
mollusks, four echinoderms, two corals, and three plants. 


The Lias is very fully described. It is not in this area of great 
thickness, (not exceeding 300 feet,) but palzontologically is very 
interesting. The Midford Sands, classed by Professor Phillips with the 
Oolites, and by Dr. Wright with the Lias, are considered by Mr. Woodward 
to be true passage beds, linking the two great formations together. 

The Oolitic Beds of East Somerset have long been famous for the 
excellent building-stone they furnish. The Inferior Oolite is quarried at 
Doulting, near Yeovil, and at Ham Hill. The chief quarries in the 
Great or Bath Oolite are at Corsham, Combe, Bath Hampton, Farley 
Downs,and Box. We mention these places, as it is usually possible to 
ascertain from the workmen on any new building where the stone comes 
from, but not so easy to obtain a reference to its exact geological 
position. 

The alluvial deposits are also described at length. Bath bricks we 
note derive their name from the discoverer of their manufacture, a Mr. 
Bath, of Bridgwater. They are made from the slime of the river 
Parret. A good accountis given of the minerals of the district, of its 
caverns, water supply, fissures, faults, cliffs, combes, and coast. Mr. 
Rutley describes the igneous rocks, which are illustrated by five beautiful 
plates (three in colours.) Lastly, there is an appendix prepared by 
Messrs. Woodward and Whitaker, including no fewer than 750 titles of 
papers which have been written on the Geology of Gloucestershire and 
Somersetshire. 

Altogether this work does Mr. Woodward great credit. By the 
judicious use of large and small type he has been able to classify his 
information in a way which shows great mastery of detail, combined 
with method and power of generalisation, qualities which are indis- 
pensable to the field geologist, and which are not less necessary to the 
writer who undertakes to make known to the public the results of 
original research of a nature so complicated as those which we have here 


REVIEWS—GEOLOGY OF EAST SOMERSET, ETC. 69 


nt 


clearly set before us. The price of the work compares favourably with 
that of several Survey memoirs lately published, a fact which we suspect 
is also owing to the author’s care in the preparation of his manuscript, 
so as to avoid those subsequent alterations which add so greatly to the 
cost of printing. It was said of Sir Roderick Murchison that he “ wrote 
in type,” and it may be that some of the officers of the Survey imitate 
their late illustrious leader in this respect. 


W. J. H. 


Botanical Locality Record Club. Report of the Recorder for 1877, with 
Quinquennial Appendix, 1873-7. London: West, Newman, and Co., 
1878. 


TuE part now issued completes the first quinquennial volume of the 
Reports of this Club, and appended to it is a summary of all the new 
county-records published by the members of this and the Botanical 
Exchange Clubs, up to the end of 1877. The five reports and appendix 
will form a volume of 308 pages, containing a mass of information upon 
the horizontal and (occasionally) the altitudinal range of British plants, 
additional to that comprised in Watson’s “‘ Topographical Botany.” The 
greater part of these additions has its origin in the breaking up, since the 
time when the details of that work were collected, of many of the old 
so-called variable species into numerous ‘ segregate” forms, the distribu- 
tion of each of which required investigating afresh. But, besides these, 
there are, in fact, new county-records for such plants as Campanula 
rotundifolia and Mercurialis perennis, in cases where (e.g.,in South 
Somerset and Leicestershire) one would have thought there must have 
been abundant evidence of their occurrence. This serves to show that 
there is still work to do before the distribution of common and well- 
marked species will be fully known, to say nothing of the newer 
segregates, in regard to which little has yet been done. 


By some the utility of such investigations is doubted, and it may be, 
perhaps, admitted that there is very little probability of any practical result 
from them, but still enquiries of this kind throw light upon questions of 
great geologic and biologic interest, and on that account approve them- 
selves to those to whom the pursuit of knowledge, merely as knowledge, 
is fascinating. The theories of Edward Forbes upon the succession of 
Florasin Great Britain, and the classification of the British plants into 
types by Hewett C. Watson, are very little known to the average 
botanical student; but that is, I apprehend, owing to the absence of any 
ready access tothem. So long as this knowledge is shut up in books 
which can be obtained only with difficulty, it is scarcely possible to 
expect any wide-spread acquaintance with it. Mr. Watson at one time 
complained that ‘there are hardly fifty botanists in England who 
sufficiently comprehend the philosophy of plant-distribution to take any 
living interest ” in the work which the Record Club pursues. This 
estimate is, of course, now far too small, but the number would be much 
increased if there were more easy means of learning what is already 
known or imagined concerning the “ philosophy of plant-distribution.” 


70 REVIEW—BOTANICAL LOCALITY RECORD CLUB. 


There is a reflection which cannot but be forced upon the miad 
of one who reads these reports, even if he has not already come to the 
same conclusion from his own experience, in regard to the minute 
differences of many segregate species. The botanical world is divided 
into two great camps, each other’s mortal foes, the ‘‘ Lumpers” and the 
‘‘ Splitters.” The latter discovered the inconsistency of many of the 
views held by the former about species, and there is no doubt their 
discovery was a genuine one. But in their anxiety to avoid one extreme 
they have, not unnaturally, fallen into another. To prove this, one has 
only to observe the divergent conclusions often arrived at by two equally 
competent ‘‘ authorities” anent a common bramble-bush, or any of the 
other puzzling genera. The cause lies in the supposed necessity of 
assigning a name to every specimen which may be collected, and when, 
as happens now and then, some unusually perverse plant will not fit in 
with any described species, and the discoverer has not sufficient weight 
to force a new name upon it, it must forsooth be assigned to that to 
which it comes nearest. And of course different botanists may, and do, 
hold different opinions on that point. Many examples of this may be 
found in the pages of these reports, but the members are slow to adopt, 
or at least to express, the natural conclusion, namely, that these segregates 
are often only a selected few out of a continuous chain of forms. 

No botanist now believes in the old theory of fixed species ; all admit 
that Variation has acted to produce the many diverse types of plants. 
But, if so, it is still acting ; we know that when two species are separated 
by well-marked differences, it is only that the intermediate forms have 
disappeared, but there are cases in which the intermediate forms have not 
disappeared, in which species are forming under our very eyes. When 
we gather a Ranunculus, or an Hieracium, or a Rubus, which does not 
agree with any of the forms selected to be honoured with the title of 
species or sub-species, instead of doing violence to nature by (more or less 
arbitrarily) fixing on a name for it, we should rather admit the fact as it 
stands before us. As an example of what I mean, I will take a simple 
case. The old Glyceria fluitans is now divided into two species, G. fluitans 
and G. plicata, which differ considerably in some respects. But there 

.are also found certain intermediate forms, to some of which the name of 
pedicellata is given, and these are ranked as a variety of fluitans. A very 
slight search will, however, enable one to find some form which agrees 
entirely with none of these three; yet according to present practice nine 
out of ten botanists would inflict one or other of the names upon it. 

Somewhere may be read :—‘ A few naturalists deny the existence 
of those intermediate forms which the theory of Variation requires; but 
practical field-workers know that they exist, and are a puzzle and a 
torment to the collector.” This is a false view; they are no torment 
when their true meaning is recognised, and we give up the vain attempt 
to bind infinite Nature in our narrow bonds of ‘described species.” In 
the minute investigation of these varying forms lies the key to much 
that now puzzles us in the theory of Variation. 

The Botanical Locality Record Club has during the last two 
years been making efforts to extend its work to the lower 


REVIEWS—BOTANIOAL LOCALITY RECORD CLUB, ETO. 71 


Cryptogams, for which purpose it has already published a 
“ Catalogue of British Mosses,” (a second edition of which will 
include the Hepatice,) and, in the last report, a preliminary 
list of stations for the Characew. What is required is more members 
who will take up this branch of enquiry. It is probable that, for the 
purpose of the investigations of which these county-records are intended 
to form a basis, the lower Cryptogams will furnish more reliable data 
than the Phanerogams as being less directly influenced by human 
agencies. 


The ‘Recorder” also proposes a scheme for future work in the 
publication of a series of maps, indicating by colouring the counties in 
which each of a selected number of standard species occurs as a native, 
thus ‘fixing types of distribution on the brain through the eye.” It is 
intended, if possible, to publish them with the yearly reports, and it is to 
be hoped that this plan will be carried out. ‘ Concurrently with such 
illustration of distribution would come a partitioning of our native 
British Flora into squads—Geographical Allies, presenting striking points 
of agreement in comital range.” or instance, the ‘‘ Recorder” says that 
Cerastium arvense, Centaurea Scabiosa, and Hchium vulgare have, in West 
Yorkshire, ‘an almost identical horizontal distribution,” but he doubts, 
and with reason, whether the same will hold good of all other counties. 
The subject is one which will furnish abundant scope for further 
enquiry. 

Finally, while congratulating the ‘‘ Recorder” upon the improvement 
in the later reports, which shows that the errors of the earlier ones have 
been carefully taken to heart, it remains only to recommend the Club 
earnestly to those botanists, who, having time for the work, desire to 
have some object in view to supply a constant stimulus to their labours, 
by showing them “what there is to do, and how they can help to do it.” 
The former objections against the members, that they were mere 
*conscienceless grubbers-up of rarities,’ or ‘‘a kind of Co-operative 
Society for the repetition of already published plant-stations,” have 
been disproved, if they ever required disproving, by the really useful 
work which the Society has done, and the way in which it has done it. 


W. B. Grove, B.A. 


On the Real Character of the Early Records of Genesis. By the Rev. 
Rayner WrintersotHam, M.A. London: W. 3B. Whittingham and 
Co., 1878. 

Tuts excellent little pamphlet is written evidently with a sincere desire 
to smooth the difficulties which beset the subject; better still, the writer 
has shaken himself free from the fetters which usually clog the well- 
meant but futile efforts of his fellow-workers in the same field, and boldly 
accepts the established truths of Science. He recognises the importance 
of these early records as lying at the root of Old and New Testament 
theology. Also, thattheir ‘‘ extreme difficulty ” ‘‘ exposes them to assaults, 
made in the name of Science, which are, to a large extent, unanswered 
and unanswerable.” 


72 REVIEW—THE EARLY RECORDS OF GENESIS. 


Christians, happily, no longer oppose Science. It is freely admitted 
that God reveals himself in the Book of Nature as truly as in the Book 
of Revelation, and any apparent conflict between the two records is 
owing to misinterpretation. Many teachers of the Faith, nevertheless, 
unaware how well-founded are the conclusions of Science, shelter them- 
selves under the conviction that scientific opinion may change in the 
direction they desire; but their ground is untenable. ‘‘ Some of these 
well-established conclusions cut right across the statements” of the 
Mosaic Record “‘ as generally understood, and we ought to face the fact.” 
Two instances are given as types—the Creation of the World in six days 
and the universality of the Deluge of Noah. 


Geology has plainly proved that the present order of things was 
brought about only after the lapse of vast ages, and all the plausible 
attempts to torture the Mosaic narrative into meaning something 
different from its literal sense, which might make it and the geological 
record agree, have had, one after another, to be abandoned. 


The universality of the Deluge, andthe utter destruction of animal 
life outside the Ark, are plainly asserted, but scientific evidence disproves 
the statements. The fact that the quadrupeds of ‘Australia are 
marsupials, and are the only marsupials in existence saying one family 
in North America,” is convincing. ‘‘ Will any one maintain that the 
ancestors of the marsupials of Australia really came out of the Ark?” 
«‘ Journeyed together across land and sea from Ararat, nowhere settling, 
nowhere breeding, until they (and they alone) reached their future home ?” 
Probably no one acquainted with Natural History believes that the 
Noachian Deluge was more than local, confined, it may be, to the tract 
inhabited by a particular race of Man. ‘The evidence that man ante- 
dates the antiquity assignable to Adam and Eve ‘as_ historical 
personages”’ is fairly conclusive; and that difference of language existed 
long prior to the Tower of Babel Science has proved. 


The solution of the difficulty suggested by the writer is that, as in 
all other histories, the earliest sacred records are told in mythical form. 
This, in no respect, necessitates the rejection of their “inspiration. 
“Ts it not at least possible,” he asks, ‘‘ however strange at first sight, 
that the Holy Spirit should have employed myths in the first instance, 
even as He employed poems, parables, visions, in other places?” 
Grant that the early Biblical Record is mythical, and the conflict with 
Science ceases. ‘Science and History are left in possession of the 
territory which belongs to them ;” ‘‘ Faith and Religion are left in undis- 
turbed sovereignty within the domain of moral and spiritual truth.” 
“Tt would be folly to say there is no element of historic truth in the 
first ten chapters of Genesis. Unquestionably there is, only that 
element is not distinctly assignable.” As to where myth ends and 
history commences, our author considers there is abundant evidence. 

We regret our space forbids our following the argument further, but 
we trust the foregoing will awaken the interest of our scientific friends, 
and induce them to read the pamphlet carefully themselves. 

5. SR: 


MICROSCOPY. 73 


Atlicroscopy. 


Micro-runel AND oTHER Microscorican Preparations.—The Editors 
of the ‘ Midland Naturalist” have placed in my hands for examina- 
tion a series of beautiful microscopical objects, prepared by the 
Rey. J. E. Vize, of Forden Vicarage, Welshpool, and I am able to say 
that they are very neatly and artistically mounted, and present quite a 
pleasing appearance in one’s cabinet. The medium in which the objects 
are preserved is one well adapted for displaying their minuter structures, 
and is evidently well suited for these organisms, as it does not deteriorate 
with long keeping. Similar preparations by Mr. Vize whichI have had 
in my possession for a long period look as well now as they did when first 
prepared. But Mr. Vize’s preparations are not merely beautiful objects 
for the microscope, they not only gratify the eye by the great variety 
of form to be observed in them, but also possess the higher merit of 
being truly educational. All that I have examined are type specimens, 
and will serve the tyro inscience as reliable guides to specific identification. 

The Micro-fungi Mr. Vize has made a specialty, and speaks with 
authority on this branch of botanical science. Hencesuch preparations 
emanating from him will have a permanent value, and be of constant 
_ service as reference slides. In mosses, lichens, algze, and hepatic I believe 
IT am right in stating Mr. Vize does not depend upon his own judgment, 
although I know that he has done good workin some of these, but he has 
his specimens from our best British and Continental authorities. Hence in 
these cases also the slides will be reliable as type specimens. 

Apart from their value, too, in this respect, many of these prepara- 
tions will be valuable and instructive to the biological] student, and will 
serve well to illustrate some of the phases of cell development. The 
reader of Sachs’ ‘‘ Text Book of Botany” will better appreciate some 
portions of the text of that work after an examination of some of these 
preparations than he could do from the study of woodcut illustrations, 
however carefully drawn. For instance, one of the objects at which I 
have just been looking, viz., a section of Peziza badia, shows at a glance 
the whole process of free cell formation. The sections are well cut, being 
sufficiently thin to show well with the 1 or } objectives every detail. The 
moss preparationsare also very good ; they arethoroughly clean, and have 
evidently been treated with the reagents necessary for bringing out the 
details of cell structure, a matter of great importance in this study ; and 
have been made so delicately transparent that the spores may be seen, 
perfectly, through the walls of the capsule. As objects for black back- 
ground illumination, with low powers, these moss slides are truly 
beautiful. As I have had much experience in similar preparations, I 
can say with truth that to prepare these objectsin so able a manner 
requires both skill and patience. 

The following is an enumeration of the slides submitted to my notice. 

Mosszs. 
Fissidens bryoides, showing perfect plant; leaves dissected from stem to 
show barren flower, capsules, peristome, and operculum. 
Tortula mucronata, leaves dissected from stem and stem sections. 


JUNGERMANNI®. 
Frullania Tamarisci, whole plant; beautiful object for black back-ground 
illumination. 
LicuEns. 


Phlyctis agelea, section of hymenium, showing asci and spores. 
Ricasolia lete-virens, a local species; section of hymenium, showing 
asci and spores. 
Solorina saccata, similar section, showing asci, spores, and paraphyses 
in various stages of development. 
M 


74 MICROSCOPY—-METEOROLOGY. 


Schizoxylon corticola, a very lovely object; rare; showing the granulose 

apothecia in various stages. 

Microrunet. 

Arcyria punicea, section of capillitium and spores. 
Endogone microscopica, showing vesicles ; a very singular object. 
Xylaria polymorpha, uniseriate spores and asci. 
Patellaria rhabarbarina, asci and spores; very beautiful. 
Xenodochus carbonarius, showing articulated spores. 
Myxotrichum chartarum, showing branched flocci and spores. 
Triphragmium ulmarie@, showing trilocular spores. 
Phragmidium bulbosum, showing echinulate spores. 
Peziza badia, 


» granulata, all sections of hymenium ; showing asci, spores, 
Ascobolus furfuraceus, and paraphyses in various stages of develop- 
Spheria acuta. ment. 


Pf acuminata, 
Stegonosporium cellulosum, unilocular spores. 
Peronospora infestans, (potato disease,) resting spores. 
inia conti 2 ; 
ECOL COM. spores in various stages of development. 
»  epilobii, 
James EH. BaGnaun. 


METHOROLOGY OF THE MIDLANDS. 
THE WEATHER OF JANUARY, 1879. 


BY W. JEROME HARRISON, F.G.S. 

New Year’s Day was fairly warm and fine, but in the evening the 
wind shifted to N.E., and a severe frost set in, which lasted to the 13th. 
On this day the wind shifted to $.W., (blowing hard,) and a rapid thaw 
took place. This, however, was not to last. On the 16th the wind returned 
to its old quarter ; the thermometer again fell below freezing point, and 
frost continued to the end of the month. The continuance of easterly 
winds was very remarkable, with, in consequence, a high barometer. 
Snow fell heavily on the 3rd and 18th, but there were frequent falls of 
minute ice spicules and some snow as fine assand. ‘The rain-fall was 
decidedly below the average, not exceeding one-half the usual amount in 
many localities. It fell almost entirely as snow and sleet. The sun was 
hardly ever visible, in fact was never seen during the last eight days of 
the month at most stations. At Stokesay a solar halo was seen on the 
1st, and a lunar halo onthe 2nd. A mock sun, bright with prismatic 
colours, was seen at More Rectory at one p.m. on the 16th. Several 
deaths of human beings, from exposure to the cold, falling into snow- 
drifts, &c., have been recorded in the newspapers. So severe and 
protracted a wave of cold as that which has lately passed over us is 
considered to swell the death-rate greatly. Mr. Wetheral, however, 
writes, ‘‘Itis a fact, so far as Worcester is concerned, that during the 
coldest weather fewer deaths took place than have been known at the 
same period of the year for a long time, in some parishes none whatever.” 
Vegetation was extremely backward. In this respect January, 1879, was 
a marked contrast to the same month in 1878, in the first week of 
which the Rev. J. Caswell (see ‘‘ Midland Naturalist,” Vol. I., p. 77) 
found eighty species of wild-flowers in blossom near Birmingham. Mr, 
Caswell says of the present year: ‘‘ The only species of plants I found in 
flower in the first week of January, 1879, were two, the common chick- 
weed and afew stunted specimens of the daisy.” Small birds were either 
conspicuous by their absence, or came daily to be fed. From Shifnal the 
Rev. J. Brooke writes:—‘ The starlings and throstles have all left us ; 
blackbirds came to be fed and remained; rooks dying unless fed.” 


75 


THE WEATHER OF JANUARY. 


“~~ 


RAINFALL. TEMPERATU RE. 
‘Zoi Greatest fall d\Greatest ht. Greut'st cold. 
STATION. OBSERVER. =) in 24 hous. [© a Siz aid 
= ) 
4 s Tn. | In, Date. te. [A'S |Deg| Date. ;Deg| Date. 
GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
Cainscross, Stroud ..........|W. B. Baker, Esq. ........| 9°00} 1°45 2 4/500} 15 
Cheltenham ........... .|R. Tyrer, Esq. ... “d1| “94 1 15 | 501 1 128] 12 
PROG osha a vies weiss seeees/L. J. Coley, Misq.......0.0-.| 3°5U! 1°02 2 8 | 55°0 1 12:0) 12 
SHROPSHIRE. 
Haughton Hall, Shitmal ..../Rev. J. Brooke ............{160) -33) 4 8 | 48:0 1 |160) 12 
Woolstaston ................/Rev. EK. D. Carr. 164) -41) 17 2/460] 13 14:0) 11 
Leaton Vicarage, Shr ewsbt y|Rev. EK. V. Pigott . of LAT sb! 17 10 | 49°0} 1&138 | 974 2 
More Rectory, Bishop's Castle|Rev. A.Male ......... sees. | 186) 748 2 13 | 520 4 |1c0| 12 
Larden Hall ..............--|Miss F. R. Boughton «.... 175) +35} 17 10 x 
Bishop's Castle .......... E. Griffiths, Bsq. 160} -30| 17 12 |47°0} 18 | 150/11 & 12 
Cardington ......0sc0e0 .|Rev. Wm. Elliott . “88) 45) 14 19 
Adderley oS .|Rey. A. Corbet ..... | 177) -48] 18 8 
Stokesay ..........- TI Rev. J. D. La Touche......|184] -45] 17 7/499] 1 82 6 
HEREFORDSHIRE. 
Whitfield ....................|W- Wheatley, Esq. ........| 2°67] °47] 14 14 60) 11 
Stoke Bliss .............-.---|Rev. G.E Alexander......| 2°87] °53/ 17 13/460) 14 |170}) 
WORCESTERSHIRE. ; 
Orleton, Tenbury....... ..../T. H. Davis, Esq .. veee{ 231] Ba} 17 110/495) 18 |10:0) 12 
West Malvern eS A. H. Hartland, E wee. | 2°83] 62) 17 14/475} 13 |165) 9&10 
PPRMSG YE e cer cs cecscess KE. B. Marten, Bats weee| 2 16) 43 2 11 | 45°0)14 & 15 |18°0} 11 
Longlands, Stourbridge. J. Jefiries Wsq.. we e.| 289] 41) 18 9/460) 14 |{1v0) 11 
Stourbridge............. Mir. JAdGfiries.Sneasmwcenees 165] +41] 18 9/460) 34 |12°0} 11 
St. John’s, Worcester... .|G. B. Wetheral, Esq. ......| 206) °48) 17 9 | 42.0) 25°0 6 
Dennis, Stourbridge ........ Mr. C. Webb ......00. eoes.{ 298] 52) 16 8 |) 440) 14 75) 12 
STAFFORDSHIRE. 
Thorganby Villa, Wolverhmtn|G. J. C. Broom, Esq. ......| 182] 50) 14 9 
¢ Amblecoté ...........e00+0-- (Mr J. ayes aad 1°80} -39) 14 9 
MMOS Yue chewcckiaciecsicsas00./Mr. J. Fisher “65) * 14 8} 460) 18 |18°0|11 & 22 
BBABIEY. 80s. es ERicaihies .|Mr. C. Beale ....... 17 8 |440) 14 19:0) 11 
Kinver . ‘ifRev. W. H. Bolton ...... 17 8 | 600 1 |120) li 
RE aie eas sienje sven .|Mr. N. E. Best .. 18 7 |420| 14 |21'0) 22 
Grammar School, Burton..../C. U. Tripp, Esq. . f 3 10 | 63°0 1 15:0} 6 
Weston-under-Ly ‘giard R't y|Hon.and Rev.J. Br ‘ 17 8 |45°0} 14 130} 11 
Wrottesley ............ Sl s.|es Sitipson, Hisaas.... eal eeO lg 14 8 |515} 1 {i443} 11 
Tamworth .........+........,W- Arnold, Esq.. 00/s)° 18 6 
Heath House, Cheadle ...... J.G. Philips, Hsq... wae enue (eel ODO) ae 6/450] 1g {170} i121 
Alstonficld Vicarage ........|Rev. W. H. Purchas ....,./200] -64} 12 4/395) 15 paps 9 
WARWICKSHIRE. 
Coundon, Coventry ..........{Lieut.-Col. R. Caldicott ....|2°64|s)69] 15 11/430) 14 |290! 11 
WNOOUNV natok dscccseeessec J. Gulson, Hisq. «...........| 253] 68) 18 10/450} 14 |180| 12 
Bickenhill Vicarage:........./J. Ward, Haq...... apne 2'14)g)54) 18 9 ) 42'0 2 |20°0 
St. Mary’s College, Oscott..../Rev. S. J Whitty.........,) 2°04] 45) 18 10 | 491 1 |175] 28 
peers aren Eee cap ev ujis dh. G.(Newton, Esq visas .| 2°61] -69) 17 10} 460) 14 |15°0) 6 &12 
Rugby School.. Rev 'T. N. Hutchinson ....|2°15|s).50/ 18 9/470} 418 |15%5} 12 
DERBYSHIRE. 
Bustonwe eet hs 5.2. .....| tJ. Sykes, Esq. . weee| 2°38] *79] 14 7 | 46°4 A LOND fee nsate 
Stoney Middleton............ Rev. U. Smith ... 141) 54) 14 5 |46°0) 14 9°0} 4, 5, 16 
Brampton St. Thomas ......|Rev. J. M. Mello ..........|] 1°28] -53; 14 6 | 445) 18 90} 20 
Fernslope, Belver............|J- @ Jackson, Bay | 194) +55} 14 8/440} 14 |17°0) 20 
Linacre Reservoir .......... C. E. Jones, Esq. .| 146] -48] 18 6 
Willesley Gardens .......... J. Tissington, Esq. , | 2°26 
Spondon J. T. Barber, Esq... -| 146) -47) 17 7 | 445 1 |162 
Duflield Wm. Dland, Hsq...........| 182 9 
- NOTTINGHAMSHIRE. 
Trish! oe J.N. Dufty, Esq. .........] 1°75 410} 14 |180] 10 
Hodsock Priory, Worksop ..|H. Mellish, Esq. .| 117] :36) 14 14 |} 478) 13 63 4 
Park Hill, Nottingham......)H.F Johnson, Esq. .. bl) +44) 14 7 |443) 14 | 20°0 6 
LEICESTERSHIRE. 
Loughborough .. ..|W. Berridge, Esq.. 156) 44] 18 7 13°0 ii 
Ashby Magna...... secesee./ Rev. . Willes ... 1°54|s)3 18 10 | 40:0 1 150} 22 
Market [Harborough ‘ .|S. W. Cox, Esq. ...... A 182}s)59} 18 9 | 430) 14 |12:0 6 
Kibworth........... Seenativwall, Macanloy. HSC... n. 1°82) 50} 18 10 20°0 
Town Museum, Leicester ....|W. J. Harrison, Esq. . 133) 29] 15 13 | 50°6 1 L7-Ole sett: 
Belmont Villas, Leicester....|H. Billson, Esq. ........../126] -24} 18 9 |45'8) 14 ay tee 8 
POMBUD IU ceteigielsisinis cicycice cic. < J. Hames, jun., Esq. ....../ 104] “45 3 5 | 48°0 1 | 120 6 
. . Waltham-le-Wold...! HABA EISQiisite sis cae tesa daly) 14 8 | 440) 14 [180] 28 
\ Little Dalby Hall............/G. Jones, Esq. ............| 1°09} 36) 14 6/450) 14 |13:0 10 & 23 
x Coston Rectory, Melton....../Rev. A. M. Rendell........ 118) 35] 14 | 9/445) 14 65 6 
Belvoir Castle ....... Seed eal WR EEA TUSC ch ciacaie'sfeisieisie 96] *37/ 15 (8)9 |46°0) 15 |15°0 6 
, NoRTHAMPTONSHIRE. 
Towcester Brewery.. wea{J» Webb, HSQ.....-seseeeees| 2°27/8)'65 ab 10 
; Castle Ashby .|R. G. Seriven, Esq. . 2°15) 54 uf 8 |460) 14 16°0 
Kettering... ae .|J. Wallis, Esq. . wa 1°92|s)'50} 18 10 | 52°0 1 180/11 Es 12 
PtH OOD Eiee ese c cede uc cece cc u|Ge S. GLOOM, HSd-ss..0<'00.0| 18%)! “47 2 9 1450] 14 16:0 
RuTLAND. 
West Deyne, Uppingham ....|Rev. G. H. Mullins .........}1'49 40) 14 9 {44:8} 14 L771) oak 
Northfields, Stamford ......|W. Hayes, Esq. ............| 131, 33) 14 10 |54°0 1 16°0} 12 
Radcliffe Observatory,Oxford|Mr. H. E. Bellamy ......../300/ ‘98 af 9 | 46°8 14 16°6 12 
Spital Cemetery, Carlisle ..../T. Bell, Esq. .........+2++./ 118) °92) 12 4/471) 13 118} 22 
Ventnor Hospital............/H. Sagar, Esq. ; «| 4°31) 1°45 1 16 | 49°2 3 2272) 12 
Altarnun Vicarage ..........|Rev. G. Tripp......eeeee0+2) 6°73) 2°10 3 14 )52°0 1 12:0) 12 


76 CORRESPONDENCE. 


Correspondence, 


= 


Rectanecutar Prism.—Will some one kindly inform me where I can 
obtain the prism mentioned at p. 18?—W. H. C., Folkestone. 

[Of Mr. James Swift, 43, University Street, London, W. ; and probably 
any of the London opticians.—Hps. M. N.] 

Snow Crystats.—The easiest way to examine these is to take the 
microscope into the open air. If snow is falling, place it under some 
screen, or get afriend to hold an umbrella over it. In a few minutes the 
instrument will be of same temperature as the air, and snow-flakes may 
then be caught on a glass-slide, held by a clip, (so thatthe warmth of the 
hand shall be kept at a distance,) and examined one after another.—H. 


Snow CRYSTALS UNDER THE Microscopr.—An apparatus suitable for 
observations of this kind is described and figured in Sachs’ ‘‘ Text Book 
of Botany,” p. 658. Perhaps a simple method would be to place a lump 
of ice in a saucer, close under the stage, and let the snow crystal fall 
upon a glass slip, whose temperature had been reduced to 32°.—F. T. 
Mort, Leicester. 

Movuntine Ponyzoa anp Rotirers.—Some of your correspondents 
(p. 52) enquire how Freshwater Polyzoa and Rotifers can be mounted. I 
have mounted them very successfully by the following process :—Place 
the Polyzoa in a deep cell with some of the pond water; let them remain 
undisturbed till they have expanded their tentacles, then suddenly let 
fall a drop of alcohol into the cell. This kills them instantly. The cell 
is then filled up with distilled water or glycerine, and sealed in the usual 
way. Rotifers may be treated in the same manner, but the cell may be 
shallow.—Tuos. Listz, Wolverhampton. 

Earzty Sians or Sprinc.—A specimen of the Small Tortoiseshell 
Butterfly was captured in the garden of Mr. Lee, Sparkenhoe Street, in 
this town, on the 12th of February. On the same day the first Snowdrop 
opened its blossom in my own garden, Crocuses being an inch or two 
above the ground, Lilacs, Flowering Currants, and Deutzias showing 
green tips to their leaf-buds; and the Nuts (Fill-basket) putting out the 
red styles of their female blossoms. Laurustinus, Sweet Bay, and 
Magnolia have suffered slightly from the long frost, but less damage 
appears to have been done than I expected.—F. T. Morr, Leicester. 


Crrcunation 1N Empryo oF Trour.—On Saturday, February 15th, I 
received from Mr. T. Bolton, 17, Ann Street, Birmingham, atube containing 
the Embryo of the Trout in the “ Alevin stage,” accompanied by an 
admirable descriptive diagram, drawn by Mr. H. E. Forrest. This is one of 
the most beautiful and instructive objects for the microscope I have 
ever seen, and in my opinionis a far better subject for showing the 
circulation of the blood than either the web of a frog’s foot or the tail 
of a tadpole, inasmuch as without the least trouble or preparation, 
beyond placing it in a small zoophyte trough, the whole system of circu- 
lation, from the heart to the farthest capillaries and back again, can be 
observed in the most perfect manner. The pulsative motion of the blood 
in the arteries, as distinguished from that in the veins, which flows in a 
steady, unvarying stream, is made patent to the most superficial 
observer. I have no doubt most of Mr. Bolton’s subscribers derived very 
great pleasure from this interesting specimen, and, as I did, congratulated 
themselves on the result of their subscription to his microscopic agency.— 
Joun F. Goopr, Handsworth. 

Unvusvan Departure oF Brrps.—During the late hard weather the 
Fieldfares, Missel Thrushes, and Redwings quite left us, a most unusual 
circumstance. Up to the middle of December the first two were 


ost Ee 


CORRSPONDENCE. 77 


plentiful, but after that they began gradually to lessen in numbers, and 
from the 1st of January to the 8th inst. (when I observed a small flock of 
avout twenty of the former flying over) I did not see one. Redwings left 
earlier, about the second week in December, and I have only seen one 
(on the 11th instant) since. Song Thrushes have been very scarce, and 
Blackbirds not nearly so numerous as usual. We have had more berries 
on the trees this time than some years when the birds did not leave us. 
Have any of your readers observed alike migration of the Thrush family ? 
It would, I think, be interesting to know if it was general, and if the 
birds left England or merely went south. Five Hawfinches and two 
Snow Buntings (Hmberiza nivalis) have been observed here this season, 
the latter is a very rare winter visitor.—O.V.A., Bodicote, Oxon, Feb. 12. 


Tae Ancient InHABITANts oF THE Correswotps.—In the neighbourhood 
of Cheltenham and Stroud there are distinct remains of the existence of 
four different races of men before the Roman occupation of the country. 
1.—A small, long-headed race, not exceeding 5ft. 5in., occasionally 
discovered doubled up beneath a heap of earth or clay. 2.—A tall, long- 
headed race, exceeding often 6ft., found in round barrows, with central 
kist made of unhewn stone walling, and covered with slabs, several 
bodies being placed together in the kist. 3.—A mixed race, varying in 
stature from 5ft. din. to 5ft. 6in. or 8in. Their remains are found in the 
chambers of long or heart-shaped barrows. No traces of metal have 
been discovered in any of the above burial places. 4.—The remains of a 
short-headed athleticrace. They are connected with the dressed stone kists, 
with cinerary urns, burned bones, and metals. The first race, the most 
ancient, may be represented by the Eskimos; the second race the same 
people, located under more favourable circumstances ; the third race 
may represent the Ancient Gaels, who named the rivers and most 
conspicuous objects, and were the constructors of all the unhewn stone 
works at Avebury, Stanton Drew, &c., &c. The fourth race may be said to 
represent the Welsh Cymri, the Belge of Cesar, or what are called the 
Aneient British. They introduced metals, practised cremation, and 
erected Stonehenge, and all the other dressed-stone works. They were 
followed by the Romans, &c.—Hernry Birp, Bath. 

GARNETS IN CHARNWooD Rocks.—Garnets are of frequent occurrence 
in metamorphic rocks such as gneiss, tale-schist, dolomite, &c. The best 
known British localities are the neighbourhood of Dartmoor, Botallack 
in Cornwall, and Saddleback and Keswick, in Cumberland. I have long 
felt rather surprised that this mineral could not be detected in the rocks 
of Charnwood Forest, and their absence in the coarse slates and grits 
seems confirmatory of the view so ably advocated by Professor Bonney 
and the Rey. E. Hill that these rocks have really not undergone very 
intense metamorphism, and that the crystals of felspar, quartz, &c., 
which they contain were ejected with the other material from volcanic 
vents, and are not products of subsequent alteration. To-day, however, 
in minutely examining some specimens I collected last summer, I was 
pleased to find many small garnets in the curious rock we call gneiss, 
which is found at one point only, viz., Brazil Wood, about half-way 
between Mountsorrel and Swithland. Here this gneiss is in contact 
(unless a diorite dyke intervenes) with the edge of the great granitic mass 
which forms Mountsorrel and Buddon Wood. In the specimen I have 
before me the garnets are very small, (not more than one-tenth of an 
inch in diameter,) almost black in colour, and so thickly crowded that there 
are about fifty in asquare inch. It is possible that this gneiss may turn 
out to belong to a distinct series of rocks from those which form the rest 
of Charnwood Forest, but unfortunately it is entirely isolated by the 
surrounding red marls of the Trias, so that its relations to the slaty series 
cannot be traced.—W. J. Harrison, F.G.5. 

N 


78 CORRESPONDENCE. 


Microscopic CamERA-opscurA.—At page 18 an account is given of a 
method of drawing objects under the microscope, by means of a 
rectangular prism. This method has been in use for a long time. In 
‘Science Gossip” for 1866, p. 233, the following full directions (which 
some of your readers may find useful) are given by Mr. Geo. W. Hart :— 
“‘T remove the cover of the eye-piece, and in place of the camera-lucida 
reflecting-glass I substitute a right-angled prism, fitted in a short tube, 
so that it can be placed close to or removed from the eye-piece for 
adjustment. I have had constructed a wooden frame, exactly like a box 
without a lid. Placing this on a table on end, with the open side next 
the observer, I pass the tube of the microscope through a slit in front, 
this opening being covered with a dark cloth to prevent light entering. 
T also nail another dark cloth on the top of the box, and allow it to fall 
over my head and shoulders; this should be large enough to enable me 
to use both hands. Now, placing the microscope horizontally, and 
putting on the tube so as to throw down a circle of light when the object 
is illuminated, the image will be seen beatifully defined on a sheet of 
paper placed in front of the draughtsman. When it is wished to make a 
coloured drawing, it is well to trace the outline, and then moving the 
paper a little on one side, colour the sketch to correspond with the image, 
which will then be reflected by the side of the tracing. I have used the 
camera in this form for many years, and have wondered that it has never 
been generally used.”—F. Apriu, Hampstead. 


Aquaria.—At page 53, H. M., Derby, asks the best artificial food for 
freshwater fishes when the natural food, &c., is not easily to be procured. 
I beg leave to call his attention to vermicelli; nearly all freshwater 
fish will eat it and thrive thereon. Carp of all kinds take it greedily, 
especially the gold, tench, dace, roach, gudgeon, and minnows, &c. 
Vermicelli has the advantage of being clean, and not discolouring the 
water, as bread does if given too profusely. Of course a little change of 
diet is welcome when it can be got: small red worms or minced raw 
meat; mutton is best, but must be given very sparingly. White fungus 
on carp, roach, &c., is very troublesome, and I think arises principally 
from debility; the fish should be removed as soon as the disease is 
noticed to a separate vessel, if possible. I sometimes take the patient 
out of the water, wipe the fungus off with a silk handkerchief, then 
sprinkle with white sand, and return to the water quickly. The sand 
adhering to the fish causes it to rub itself against stones, &c., which is 
very beneficial. I have had fish quite recover after being treated in this 
way. I can strongly recommend ‘“ The Book of the Aquarium,” by 
Shirley Hibberd, to the notice of H. M.; he will find it a handy little 
volume, and full of practical information, re Aquaria both Sea and Fresh- 
water.—R. G. 


Aquarisa.—Your correspondent (page 53) will find that the small 
crustacea, aquatic larvee, and worms, which may be taken by means of 
a fine net from nearly every pond, pool, or river, are excellent food for 
freshwater fish. If the tank is already sufficiently full of water, take 
some out, and then empty in its place the contents of the can or bottle 
containing your catch of small fry, when it will at once be observed that 
the fish have become very busy in making the acquaintance of their 
newly introduced friends, which they most greedily devour. The spawn 
of snails is also very good food, and may be readily supplied by keeping 
plenty of those interesting creatures as companions in the aquarium. 
Some keepers of aquaria are opposed to the introduction of artificial food, 
as bread, meat, or earthworms; but this will be found to answer well, if 
given in small quantities, and care taken not to leave any uneaten 
portion to decay in the water, which is probably the only source of 


CORRESPONDENCE—GLEANINGS. 79 


mischief. Carp, roach, and dace are very fond of bread, which should 
be pressed in the hand and made pasty, so that it will not fall to pieces 
y-hen put in the water; drop in small pellets, if possible, not more than 
the fishes will take. I used to keep a number of carp, which always 
became excited when bread was on the table at meals, and would 
continue wriggling and swimming against the glass, as though they 
meant to come through, until I gave them a supply, which I never failed 
todo. A pair of wooden forceps which will reach conveniently to the 
bottom of the aquarium are exceedingly useful for removing either dead 
animals, or any other matter which requires to be taken out. I believe 
there is no cure for the fungus which attacks and destroys the fish, but 
it is highly necessary to remove at once any that may be so diseased, 
and to examine well all new specimens introduced to see that they are 
perfectly healthy.—J. L. 


Aquani1aA.—Some of your readers may be interested in the following 
facts :—I have a small bell glass aquarium, which, asa marine aquarium, 
has been very successful, there having been no deaths for upwards of two 
years, and the anemones have throughout maintained a high standard of 
vitality, attributable, I consider, to regular feeding, aeration, and 
scrupulous cleanliness. Numerous young have been cast off, and one 
stone is closely covered with what are apparently larval forms of the 
starfish. During this winter the anemones have been unusually errant 
in their dispositions, and I have three times, on different occasions, 
observed what seem to be conjugations. In each case the first sign was 
the appearance round the base of the animal of the spermatic cords, and 
these in some cases reach the length of an inch and a half. They 
float in the water, and that they are perceived by other anemones is 
proved by the animals moving up, and with their base partially 
covering the extended base of the first. They remain in this state for 
about twelve hours; the emission of the spermatic cords is increased 
till both are enveloped in the coils, which are perfectly visible, and 
between thirty and forty in number. At least I have counted as many. 
After some interval—about twenty-four hours since the first contact— 
the one that has moved up moves away, each closes, and remains in a 
state of quiescence, from which they do not emerge for some days, no 
matter how tempted by food or aeration. I shall be glad to learn if 
any of your readers have noticed similar occurrences.—G. L. B., 
Denmark Hill. 

[We refer our correspondent to Mr. Gosse’s ‘ Actinologia 
Britannica,” (Intr. pp. xxi.—xl., the Reproductive System and the 
Teliferous System,) and he will see that what he calls spermatic cords 


are the ordinary acontia, which have nothing to do with generation.— 
Eps. M. N.] 


Gleanings. 


Patmontocrapnican Socrrty.—Mr. A. H. Scott White, B.Sc., B.A., of 
the High School, Nottingham, has been appointed local secretary for 
Nottingham and neighbourhood. 


Tur PxHonocrara.—The London Stereoscopic Company (who hold the 
sole patent) are now offering to supply Edison’s speaking phonograph, to 
be worked by hand, at a price of ten guineas each, ‘“ subject to their 
non-exhibition for money payment.” 


80 GLEANINGS. 


GrotoaicaL Socrety.—THe Woortaston Funp.—We have much 
pleasure in stating that the Council of the Geological Society have 
unanimously presented to Mr. Samuel Allport, F.G.S., a former president 
of the Birmingham Natural History and Microscopical Society, the 
balance of the Woollaston Fund at their disposal in recognition of his 
researches on British Igneous Rocks. 


Meuicerta Tyro.—Dr. Hudson thinks that the name of this rotifer 
should be changed to M. Tubicolaria, for a reason which we give in his 
own words: ‘I have now little doubt, in spite of the errors in his 
figures and description, that it was this rotifer out of which Ehrenberg 
framed his genus Tubicolaria.” 


Gictstes UMBELLA AND OTHER Rotirers is the subject of a most 
interesting paper by Dr. Hudson, in the current number of the “‘ Journal 
of the Royal Microscopical Society.” This is the rotifer figured by Mr. 
A. W. Wills, in Vol. L., ‘‘ Midland Naturalist,” p. 317, for which he 
there suggested the name of @. longipes. ‘There are plates representing 
the above-named Ccistes and also Conochilus volvox. 


Roya Microscorican Socitery’s JourNAL.—We cordially recommend 
our microscopical readers to become subscribers for this admirable 
journal. The current number, besides the paper above mentioned, 
contains one entitled “‘ A further Enquiry into the Limits of Microscopic 
Vision,” by Dr. Royston-Pigott, F.R.S. ; one ‘On some Recent Forms of 
Camera Lucida,” by Mr. Frank Crisp, LL.B. (Editor of the Journal ;) 
and several others; more than fifty pages of ‘‘ Notes and Memoranda,” 
of: great interest; and a most useful “ Bibliography of recent Scientific 
Publications.” 


ForaminirFERA.—Microscopists who study the Protozoa will be pleased 
to learn that a ‘‘ Catalogue of Recent British Foraminifera” for the use 
of collectors has been compiled by Mr. J. D. Siddall, of Bridge Street, 
Chester, with the assistance of Mr. H. B. Brady. This useful compila- 
tion contains a complete bibliography of the order, together with a well- 
arranged list (founded on that propounded in Dr. Carpenter’s “‘ Introduc- 
tion to the study of the Foraminifera”) of the various families, genera 
and species. Blank spaces are also left for the collector’s notes. 

Sorentiric Sorrzz.—The learned societies at Liverpool held a very 
successful soirée last month at St. George’s Hall, which was attended by 
over 3,000 persons. The large assembly had abundant material 
provided for their entertainment and instruction. Besides an almost 
endless display of natural history specimens, scientific and other objects 
of interest, there were several lectures delivered in different rooms by 
the Rev. W. H. Dallinger, Mr. Waterhouse Hawkins, Mr. James Birchall, 
and others, while in other rooms there were scientific experiments, 
concerts, &c. 

Gnotoaists’ Association oF Lonpon.—We have received from this 
popular and useful society a copy of a new catalogue of their library, 
compiled with great care and fulness by the honorary librarian, B. B. 
Woodward, Esq. The headquarters of the association are at University 
College, Gower Street, London, E.C., where the monthly evening 
meetings are held. The great feature of the association’s work, how- 
ever, is the opportunity offered for field-work by the numerous excursions 
which take place during the summer under the direction of highly 
competent leaders, to points of geological interest in various parts of the 
kingdom. ‘The terms of subscription are moderate—10s, 6d. entrance 
fee, and 10s. per annum—an outlay for which the printed ‘‘ Proceedings” 
are alone a fair return. We are glad to see that the valuable services of 
Professor Morris, as director of excursions and as president, are to be 
recognised by a testimonial. 


“—— 9 


GLEANINGS—REPORTS. 81 


Licnens.—We are able to announce that the Rev. W. A. Leighton has’ 
nearly completed the printing of the third edition of his Lichen-Flora 
of Great Britain, Ireland, and the Channel Islands, which, itis expected, 
will be ready for issue early this month. This new edition is rendered 
necessary by the surprising discoveries of Mr. Larbalestier in the West of 
Treland ; those of Mr. Crombie, Dr. Stirton, and others, in the North 
of Scotland; and Mr. Leighton’s own researches in North and South 
Wales; whereby the Lichen-Flora.of the former editions, amounting to 
1,156, has been raised now to 1,706, thus rendering our lichens in number, 
rarity, and novelty quite equal to those of any country in Europe. 


MIDLAND UNION OF NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETIES. 

The Annual Meeting of the members of the Midland Union of Scientific 
Societies will this year be held at Leicester, on Tuesday and 
Wednesday, the 20th and 21st of May. On the first day there will be a 
meeting of the Council, the General Annual Meeting in the after- 
noon, and a Conversazione in the evening; whilst the chief feature of 
the second day will be an excursion to Charnwood Forest. Further 
details will appear in our next number. 


BIRMINGHAM NATURAL HISTORY AND MICROSCOPICAL 
SOCIETY.—January 21st, MicroscopicaL GENERAL Mrrtinc.—This meeting 
was made special for the purpose of considering the best steps to be taken to 
induce the members personally to assist in contributing to the Birmingham 
Reference Library Restoration Fund. The action of the committee in 
voting twenty guineas from the funds of the Society for that purpose was 
approved, and it was resolved that a circular, with a list of subscriptions already 
promised, and requesting further subscriptions, be sent to each member of 
the Society. A sub-committee was appointed to consider the question 
of the establishment of a Town’s Museum, with authority to take 
action in conjunction with the other scientific societies. January 28th.— 
GronocicaL Sxrction.—Dr. Callaway, of Wellington, delivered an address 
on “The pre-Cambrian Rocks of Shropshire,’ in the course of which he 
gave the reasons which have led him to conclude that the series of devitrified 
pitchstones and volcanic agglomerates which form the axis of the Wrekin and of 
some other elevations in Shropshire, and the quartzite which flanks them, are of 
pre-Cambrian age. They probably correspond with the Pebidian series of St. 
David’s in South Wales, as described by Dr. Hicks, and with the Huronian of 
Canada, and are more recent than the crystalline schists and gneissose rocks of 
Malvern, a patch of very similar character having been mapped by Dr. Holl as 
“burnt rocks” to the east of the Herefordshire Beacon. A vote 
of thanks was pussed to Dr. Callaway for his interesting address. 
February 4th.— Annuat Grmnurat Mentinc.—The report and balance-sheet for 
the year 1878 were read and approved. The following officers were elected for 
the current year:—President, Walter Graham; Vice-Presidents, E. W. Badger 
and W. Southall; Treasurer, C. Pumpbrey ; Librarian, J. E. Bagnall; Curators, 
J. Levick and W. H. Cox; Secretaries, J. Morley and H. E. Forrest. The 
delivery of the retiring President’s address was postponed to a future meeting, of 
which due notice will be given February 11th.—Bronoe1can Srction.—Several 
microscopic objects were exhibited. Mr. W. G. Blatch gave some very 
interesting notes on the rare insects, chiefly Coleoptera, which he had taken 
during the past year. He alluded to the curious fact that severe winters seem to 
be more favourable to the production of rare insects during the following 
summer than mild ones, and pointed out that the coming season 
may, therefore, be expected to be a very rich one, entomologically speaking.— 
February 18th.—Microscoricat GENERAL Mertinc.—Mr. J. E. Bagnall exhibited 
a number of rare mosses from Dr. Lindberg, among others Dicranella Grevilleana ; 


82 REPORTS. 


also some fine mosses from Mr. Cotton, collected near Barmouth. Mr. W.H. 
Wilkinson exhibited the white Christmas rose (Helleborus niger), to show the 
tubular petals, which are assumed to secrete some fluid attractive to insects and 
so to serve as aids in fertilisation. Mr. Thomas Bolton exhibited the fine rotifer 
Rhinops vitrea, and a newly hatched Trout, showing the circulation of the blood 
both in the body and on the surface of the yolk-sac. Mr. J. Levick exhibited 
some remarkably large Amebe, and a free-swimming freshwater alga. Mr.{ W. R. 
Hughes, by request, re-exhibited six beautifully mounted slides recently presented 
to the Society by Mr. F. W. Sharpus. Mr. Hughes read the eighth of a series of 
papers on “ The Entozoa and Ketozoa,” by Dr. T. Spencer Cobbold, F.R.S., illus- 
trated by specimens preserved in spirit, and a slide of ova of Ascaris lumbricoides 
put up at the General Hospital by Mr. Hughes in 1863. 


BIRMINGHAM AND MIDLAND INSTITUTE SCIENTIFIC SOCIETY. 
—January 22nd.—Mr. C. J. Woodward, B.Sc., read a paper on “ Spherical 
Projection applied to Crystallography.” The different methods of projecting on 
to a plane surface the different points on a globe were first explained. A crystal 
was then defined as a body which has precisely similar properties in parallel 
planes, and it was shown that the various planes of a crystal were related to 
certain imaginary lines termed axes. The planes of a crystal might be considered 
each as touching a sphere ina point, anda map of these points constitute a 
spherical projection of the crystal. Reference was also made to symmetry in 
crystals, and some apparatus was shown to illustrate this branch of the subject. 
February 5th.—Mr. C. J. Watson gave a brief description of the phenomena of 
the Glacial Drift, illustrated by specimens and photographs. A resolution was 
afterwards passed that the members should take part in the examination of the 
drift deposits of the neighbourhood according to the scheme propounded by the 
Midland Union. February 12th.—Mr. J. T. Sprague, M.S.T.E., read a paper on the 
“Relations of Electromotive Force and Resistance to Current.” In the course of 
it he said that it was much to be regretted that the British Asscciation had used 
the word “ resistance ” to represent what was really only the reciprocal of con- 
ductivity. The term resistance should have been kept to express the work done 
in any part of, the’ circuit, which varies as the square of the current passing. 
In consequence of this confounding of ideas essentially distinct much confusion 
existed in the minds of physicists as to the conditions under which electric force 
was really transmitted. 


BIRMINGHAM PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY.—February 13th—A paper 
was read by Dr. Saundby, on ‘‘ Recent Metalloscopic and allied Researches.” 


BIRMINGHAM SCHOOL NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY.—January 
24th.—First GENERAL Meetine, Hatr-year.—C. E. B. Hewitt having resigned 
his post as Hon. Sec. to this Society, H. F. Devis was elected Hon. Sec., pro. tem., 
in his place. February 14th.—Paper read by A. B. Badger on ‘‘ The proposed 
Union of the two Sections, Botanical and Entomological, under the name of the 
Biological Section.” It was then proposed, seconded, and carried by a large 
majority, ‘‘ That the Society comprise two Sections, for the study of Biology and 
Geology respectively.” Mr. Turner was unanimously elected President of the 
Biological Section, and J. Chapman Curator. 


BURTON-UPON-TRENT NATURAL HISTORY & ARCHHOLOGICAL 
SOCIETY.—January 21st.—Mr. W. Molyneux, F.G.8., F.R.Hist.8., read a paper 
on “The pre-Norman History of Repton.” After alluding to the grounds for 
thinking it had in turn been occupied by the Ancient Britons and the Romans, 
he next referred to the Saxon ecclesiastical foundation at Repton,in A.D. 653. 
He was of opinion that in the beautiful crypt there still remains a portion of the 
original edifice. A detailed description of the crypt was given. Mr. Molyneux 
further said that in dealing with the pre-Norman History of Repton it must 
always be borne in mind thatthe River Trent was at that time a larger river, and 
occupied considerably more space in the valley that it does now. It was navigable 
for boats, of what was then large tonnage, from its mouth at Gainsborough, 
over its main course as far as Stone, and overits two tributaries, the Sow as far 
as Stafford, and the Tame as far as Tamworth, a condition, he might add, by no. 
means difficult of restoration. It was to these conditions that the Danes were 


REPORTS. 88 


indebted for their successful attack upon the place, as they were enabled to ascend 
the river in fleets of vessels reckoned by hundreds in number. The same 


facilities were, of course, open to the early Britons aud the Romans, and also to 


the Saxons; and there could be no doubt that the white sails and double oars or 
galleys of the two latter races were as frequently seen as those of the Danes. 
At this meeting were exhibited half a dozen specimens of the Death’s- 
head moth, (Acherontia Atropos,) three male and three female, the larve 
of which were found last summer by Mr. George Baker, of 
Waterloo Street, feeding in his garden on Lyciwm barbarum, (the tea tree.) 
February 11th.—Mr. H. G. Tomlinson read a paper on “ Birds and their Habits.” 
After giving some interesting details as to the structure of birds and the varied 
ways in which the different kinds are fitted for their modes of life, some 
particulars were given about nests and eggs. Birds were next considered as 
divided into five orders—birds of prey, perchers, fowls, waders, and swimmers— 
the characteristics of each order being mentioned. Mr. Tomlinson then spoke of 
the habits of some of the birds frequenting Staffordshire and neighbourhood. Of 
birds of prey, the common buzzard was the largest seen there; the hobby-hawk 
was a rare summer visitor, but had been found at Dovedale; the kestrel, 
which might be known by its hovering in the air when in search of food; and 
the sparrow-hawk, a brave little fellow, formerly used in the art of falconry. 
While speaking of hawks, he remarked, as a noticeable fact, that in all birds of 
prey the female was the larger. The reason for this was not obvious. With one 
exception, and that not British, there were no songsters in this class of birds. 
They had also in the neighbourhood the white or barn owl and the tawny or 
wood owl. Owls, in addition to having great powers of‘sight and hearing, have a 
noiseless flight owing to their external wing feathers being detached and made to 
curve outwards, so that the air can pass through them. Of the perchers he first 
described the habits of the titmouse family, including the tom-tit, blue-tit, great 
tit, and long-tailed tit; the fly-catchers—spotted and pied—the kingfisher, the 
crow, rook, magpie, jackdaw, and jay; the tree-creeper; and the wood-pecker 
—the green or “ laughing’ wood-pecker being found at Bagot’s Park and Bretby 
Park, and two other kinds—the lesser spotted and the greater—being occasionally 
found in the neighbourhood. Mention was made of the peculiarities of the 
cuckoo, one being that the young bird has an indentation in the middle of the 
back to assist it in ejecting from the nest in which it has been hatched the eggs 
of the rightful owner of the habitation, or its foster-brothers. This cavity fills up 
when the bird is about twelve days old, and the back becomes the same as that 
of otherbirds. The habits of the swallow, of which four species visit us; the 
wagtail, of which we have three varieties; larks and pipits, including skylarks 
and woodlarks ; the buntings, of which we have the yellow-hammer ; the finches, 
of which we have six varieties ; the common brown linnet, the starling, the 
sparrow, the thrush, including the field-fare, red-wing, and missel-thrush ; the 
blackbird, and a few others were also briefly noticed.—Mr. Tomlinson promised 
to continue the subject in another paper. 


CHELTENHAM NATURAL SCIENCE SOCIETY.—February 20th.—Dr. 
Julius Maier read a paper on ‘‘ The Spectroscope and its application to Solar 
Research,” which was well illustrated. 


NORTHAMPTON NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY.—A meeting was held 
in December for the purpose of hearing a paper read by the Rev. Wm. Thornton, 
F.G.8., on the circumstances of the Liassic strata among the volcanic rocks of 
the West Highlands of Scotland. By request it was of an elementary character. 
It described the physical and geological character of Arran, the coast of Argyle, 
and more particularly Ardnamurchan Point, and the Cuchullin Hills, and Glen 
Sligachan in Skye. It was rendered the more interesting by being illustrated by 
a capital section of the coast of Skye, and some very high class water-colour 
drawings of Ben Cruachan, Glen Sligachan, &c. A hearty vote of thanks was 
awarded to the lecturer. Six new members were elected. Jan. 14th.—Mr. C. 
Jecks read a paper, entitled ‘‘A few Thoughis on Darwinism,” in which Mr. 
Darwin’s leading arguments were very clearly explained. Mr. Jecks referred to 
the insectivorous habits of certain plants, the electric power of the Gymnotus, &c. 
A discussion followed, in which the Rey. 8. J. W. Sanders, the Rev: Canon Scott, 
and Messrs. Scriven, Kunson, and Druce, took part. 


84 REPORTS—EXCHANGE,. 


NOTTINGHAM HIGH SCHOOL NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY.—Of 
this thriving society some very interesting particulars are given in the last 
number of “ The Forester, or Nottingham High School Magazine,” a publica- 
tion of which, we may say in passing, the school may well be proud. It contains 
some capital papers, one in the number before us on ‘“ Mounting Insects as 
Microscopie Objects”’ being particularly goodand practical. The Natural History 
Society consists of nearly eighty members, divided into sections, in which some 
good work is being done. Although only in its infancy, it possesses the nucleus 
of a good natural history library. Atarecent meeting it was decided to offer 
prizes to the members for—(1) Type collection of British Phanerogamic Plants ; 
(2) Collection of Minerals, Rocks, and Fossils, illustrating the geology of the 
Carboniferous formation, with especial reference to the neighbourhood of 
Nottingham ; aud (3) Type collection of British Insects. A lecture is delivered to 
the members every week, and the list of those announced for the present term is 
a most admirable one. 


NOTTINGHAM LITERARY AND PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY. — 
Narurau Scrence: Section.—January 24th.—Mr. G. B. Rothera, the president, 
read a paper on ‘“ The senses and {their environment.” February 14th.—Mzicro- 
scopicaL Mrrrine.—Subject, ‘‘ Comparative Anatomy and Physiology.” Messrs. 
Burton, Jennings, and others showed specimens. 


RUGBY SCHOOL NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY.—february 1st.— 
Exhibited : Various Indian curiosities, by T. B. Oldham, (m.,) including bangles 
or hoops put roundthe arm by the Burmese. Papers: The President read 
portions of the Meteorological Section’s Report for 1878 ; also, the Entomological 
Section’s Report, 1878. T.B. Oldham (m.) reada paper, by his brother in India, 
on “The Growth of Shoots fromthe Roots.” This paper arose from Mr. Cum- 
ming’s note on the subject last term. A discussion followed. The President 
read a communication from W.E. Home (c.) on “The Royal Observatory at 
Edinburgh.” The President read an anonymous paper on ‘‘ The Zulus,” describ- 
ing their history and military organisation. February 15th.—Donations announced : 
Concise Glossary of Architecture and Introduction to Gothic Architecture, by 
J. H. Parker, C.B., F.S.A., from C. E. Sayle, (m.); Medizeval Sepulchral Anti- 
quities of Northamptonshire, by M. H. Bloxam, Esq., F.S.A., (H.,) from the 
author; Roman Pottery, Tripontium, now Caves Hill, from T. B. Olaham and 
C. E. Sayle. Exhibited: Pencil Iron Ore, from Lydal-in-Furness, and Lias 
Limestone, Portrush, by E. Solly, (m.) ; a new form of the Telephone, or rather a 
Galvaniphone, by Rev. T. N. Hutchinson, (a.,) who explained the invention. It 
was used before the society. A distinct though non-articulating sound was 
audible to all, and it was pronounced a decided success. Papers: Mr. Bloxam 
(H.) read portions of a paper on some “ Roman Sepulchral Slabs,” now in a 
fireplace in Warwick Castle. Of theso he exhibited a set of casts. He pro- 
nounced them to be mere “rough copies,” from a Roman slab-cutter’s yard, 
probably in Italy ; R. D. Oldham (c.) read portions of a paper on some “ Experi- 
ments to determine the Modulus of Cohesion of Ice, and their Bearing on the 
Glacial Erosion of Lake Basins.” A considerable discussion followed. The 
President read a continuation of the paper on ‘‘ The Zulus.” 


STROUD NATURAL HISTORY AND PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY.— 
On February 11th, Mr. J. T. Fisher delivered a lecture on “ The Solar and 
Steliar Systems.” 


EXCHANGE. 


Wanted, a Vase, or any example of ancient British pottery, large or 
small, from a tumulus, earthwork, or other position; or a Roman or 
Romano-British pot. Will give in exchange a good collection of 
correctly-named Lichens from the Scottish Mountains, or a collection of 
well-mounted and named slides of microscopic fungi for the microscope.— 
Worzsineron G. Surry, 15, Mildmay Grove, London, N. 


a 


apie rea? 


So 


> 


.. 


H. E. Forrest. del. 


On the Development of the Vorticellides. 


THE VORTICELLIDE. 85 


THE NATURAL HISTORY AND DEVELOPMENT OF 
THE VORTICELLIDA,* 


BY H. EH. FORREST, 


The Vorticells are familiar objects to almost everyone who possesses 
& microscope. Wherever there is water, salt or fresh, the various species 
are to be met with, differing in minor points, but all bearing a strong and 
unmistakable family likeness to one another. They are seen to the 
best advantage with a black background illumination, and when thus 
shown are perfectly lovely. The light seems to ripple and dance over 
their delicate milk-white forms, as the cilia lash the water into a hundred 
. eddying whirlpools. With lightning rapidity, first one and then another 
darts backwards, each tiny stalk coiling up like a python, then slowly but 
gracefully unwinds till at full stretch, when the ciliary wreath again 
displays itself. All is done, too, with the most perfect grace; nothing is 
clumsy or unwieldy in all their various actions, and few, if any, natural 
objects can vie with them for beauty. 


But their charms seem powerless to secure from Naturalists the 
amount of attention which they deserve, and they are usually passed 
over with merely a cursory glance, simply because they are common. It 
is the object of this paper to show that the history of the Vorticellida is 
a deeply interesting, as well as a fascinating study, and by describing 
what is already known of them to point out what avast field for original 
research lies open here for those who have the zeal and patience to 
penetrate a little more deeply into the subject than they have hitherto 
done. 


In order to render it as clear and concise as possible, my paper will 
be confined to four species, typical of four genera, and each will be 
treated of separately. These four species are :— 


(1) Vorticella nebulifera, [Plate I., Figs. 1 and 2.] Stalk long, 
contractile, not branched ; usually gregarious, 


(2) Carchesium polypinum, [Plate I., Fig. 3.] Stalk long, contractile, 
branched, spreading. Bells on one side of branch only. 


Description oF Ficures.—Puate I. 
1.—Vorticella nebulifera, expanded, x250 diameters. a contractile vesicle, b disc, 
c rim, d vestibule, e nucleus. 
2.—Vorticella nebulifera, contracted, x250 diameters. a nucleus. 
3.—Carchesium polypinum, x100 diameters. 
4.—Carchesium polypinum, stem of, x 250 diameters. 
5.—Carchesium polypinum, individual, x 250 diameters. 
6.—Epistylis lewcoa, x100 diameters. 
1.—Epistylis leucoa, individual, x250 Giameters. The arrows indicate the move- 
ments of the contents. 
8 and 9.—Vorticella, showing self-division, x 200 diameters. 
10, 11, and 12.—Vorticella, showing encystation, x 350 diameters. 
13.—Vorticella, showing acinetation, x 250 diameters. 
14.—Vorticella, free embryo, x 300 diameters. 
15.—Carchesium, showing gemmation, x 200 diameters. 


* Abstract of a paper read before the Birmingham Natural History and Micro- 
_ seopical Society, December 10th, 1878. 
+ Ehrenberg soe this species with bells on both sides of the branch, but thig 
is incorrect.—H. H 
oO 


86 THE VORTICELLIDE. 


(3) Epistylis leucoa, [Plate I., Fig. 6.] Stalk shorter, rigid, not 
coutractile, branching irregularly at the top, so as to form a 
large head of bells. 


(4) Zoothamnium arbuscula. Stalk thick, tapering, contractile, and 
branched horizontally at the top, each branch subdividing in 
the same plane. Bells of two kinds on both sides of branches.* 


(1.) Vorticella nebulifera. The name Vorticella, diminutive of 
the Latin vortex, a whirlpool, was given to the genus in allusion 
to the currents which they produce in the water, and this species 
was called nebulifera, cloud bearing, because, from its gregarious 
habits, it imparts a cloudy appearance to the objects to which it is 
attached, In its normal condition [Plate I., Fig. 1] the Vorticella 
is a little bell supported on a long, slender, hollow stalk, which con- 
tains a well developed muscle, easily seen with an obliquelight. Although 
no nerves have been detected in connection with it, its powers of sensi- 
bility and contractility are very great. When expanded the tube is 
straight, but the enclosed muscle is always spiral, and when contracted 
the tube is also thrown into a spiral, [Fig. 2,] and thus shortened. The 
act of contraction is very sudden, but the re-expansion much slower. 
During contraction the ciliary wreath is withdrawn into the body. As it 
slowly uncoils, first the stem straightens, then the centre of the bell rises 
up, and the edges curl over outwards, and, lastly, the cilia are set in 
motion. Of course the converse of this takes place when the animal 
contracts, but then the action is so swift that the eye cannot follow it. 


The body consists of (1)an outer layer, the cuticle, marked with fine, 
dense, parallel strie [Figs. 1 and 2;] (2) an inner cortical layer, in which 
are imbedded a contractile vesicle [Fig. la] and a nucleus, [Fig. 1e,] the 
latter usually invisible unlessreagents are employed to show it; and (3) an 
interior mass of sarcode, containing several globular bodies called food- 
vacuoles. At the top margin of the bell there is a projecting rim 
[Fig. 1c] surrounding a circular space called the disc, [Fig. 1b,] at one 
end of which is a depression called the vestibule, [Fig. 1d,] and at the 
bottom of this the mouth and anus are situated, the latter, however, only 
visible when in use. There is a short esophagus leading from the mouth 
into the interior. The rim is plentifully supplied with cilia, which, by 
their constant action on the surrounding water, sweep a succession of 
minute particles of food into the vestibule, where they accumulate into 
a kind of pellet. When sufficient is collected the animal gulps it down, 
together with a small portion of water, and this mouthful floating into 
the sarcodous interior becomes a food-vacuole. 


It is in the processes of multiplication and reproduction that we 
meet with the most interesting phases of the life-history of the Vorticella. 
These are four in number, viz., fission, gemmation, encystation, and 
acinetation. The first of these, fission or self-division, is by far the most 
frequent, and I have witnessed it many times. When this is about to 
take place, an adult bell begins to alter its shape, becoming first globular, 


This will be illustrated in a subsequent number. 


THE VORTICELLIDE. 87 


then flattened at the top. Presently a constriction appears, extending 
from the top downwards, [Fig. 8,] and this deepens till the bell is cut 
into two halves, only connected by the stem, which is common to both, 
The one which is to remain on the old stem now re-opens its ciliary 
wreath, but on the other, which will ultimately break away, a new wreath is 
formed at the end nearest’ the point of attachment, [Fig. 9.] The new 
cilia appear first as loose hairs, moving listlessly to and fro in the water, 
but these soon lengthen, their strokes increase in vigour and rapidity till 
the bell trembles as if impatient to be off. It now begins to revolve, 
slowly at first, then gradually faster and faster, till the slender point of 
connection snaps, and away shoots the bell, gliding swiftly and merrily 
through the water. After whirling about for some time, it chooses a 
place of rest, settles down, and after brooding over it for some time, 
begins to rise by the growth of a new stalk, which soon attains a 
considerable length. The cilia have by this time disappeared, and a 
third set is formed at the top, so that now the animal resembles in 
every respect the parent from which it sprang. 


Gemmation, or budding, is not of nearly so frequent occurrence. I 
have not seen it myself in Vorticella, though it does occur, but I have 
seen it in Carchesiwm polypinum, [Fig. 15.] The process is very 
similar to the last, but the new animal, instead of being formed from 
one-half of the old one, is produced near its base by the expansion of 
the cuticle into a kind of protuberance or bud, which is nourished, as 
in Hydra, by the parent, the body cavities of both being continuous 
with one another. As in the last case, the bud develops a circle of 
cilia near its attached end, and breaks away to find a home elsewhere. 


The two remaining reproductive processes are inseparably connected 
with the organ called the “nucleus.” This organis present in all the 
Infusoria, and is almost universally believed by zoologists to be of a 
sexual nature, but what are its precise attributes remains at present a 
mystery. But whatever may be its function, the part it plays in the 
two following events is very remarkable. In all the Vorticellide it is 
long and band-like, and in the species now under consideration it is 
curved like the letter C. 


The Vorticella at an-earlier or later period of its existence with- 
draws the disc and circle of cilia, and contracting itself into a ball 
secretes a gelatinous covering or cyst, which gradually solidifies. The 
body of the animal [Fig. 10] now appears almost homogeneous, but still 
contains the nucleus unchanged, and the contractile vesicle, which has 
now lost all power of contraction, and remains permanently expanded: 
The nucleus next breaks up into a number of oval discs, [Fig. 11,] which 
move about in the thin, gelatinous mass into which the substance of the 
parent has become dissolved. The cyst now becomes filled with separate 
little sacs, which finally break through its walls and eject their gela- 
tinous contents with the included embryos into the water, there to give 
rise to anew generation of Vorticelle. I regret that I have never been 
able to see this mode of propagation, and the only author who really 
appears to have observed it is Stein, on whose authority I give it. The 


88 {HE VORTICELLID®. 


fame author is also responsible for the following account, which is thé 
most extraordinary of all. The process has never received any name, 
but it is that which I called acinetation on a former page, and the 
meaning of the term will be evident from the following description :—It 
commences, as in the last, by the encystation of the Vorticella, which in 
this case remains on the old stalk, or develops another. The bell then, 
by ® series of almost imperceptible changes, assumes the forms drawn at 
' Fig, 13, and from its two upper extremities sends out pseudopodia like 
those of an Actinophrys, and knobbed at the ends. This stage has long been 
known to microscopists under the name of Acineta, The nucleus, which 
is distinctly observable, divides into two, and one half becomes converted 
into an active Vorticella, acquiring an ovate form, a circle of cilia round 
one end, and a distinct mouth at the other, and inside it we may 
observe a nucleus and contractile vesicle. When mature it tears its way 
through the membraneous coat of the Acineta, and so becomes free, 
[Fig. 14.] The latter, however, immediately closes up, the nucleus 
divides again, and the process is repeated ud lib. 


When this extraordinary history was first given to the scientific 
world by Stein, it was contradicted, and at the present day is so much 
doubted that Huxley, in his recent work on Biology, when treating of the 
Vorticella, does not even mention it; but I think that Stein’s account is 
doubted chiefly because it lacks confirmation, andI therefore add just one 
grain of evidence in favour of its truth. One evening in October last, 
while examining some Acinetw from Barnt Green, I saw a small Vorti- 
cella burst from the body of one of them and swim away. 


Tn this last series of events we have an example of the phenomenon 
known as the alternation of generations. The Vorticella, instead of 
producing another being like itself, gives rise to an independent animal 
of totally different character, and this in the next generation, instead of 


giving birth to offspring of the same type, produces a Vorticella like the 
original. 


(2.) Carchesium polypinum, [Fig.3.] The name Carchesium is from 
the Greek karchesion, and signifies a goblet or drinking cup, which is 
narrower in the middle than at the top or bottom; polypinum, from 
polypus, a polyp, referring no doubt tothe appearance of the colony 
when expanded. It only differs from Vorticella in being branched, 
all the branches converging downwards to a single stem, [Figs. 3 and 4, ] 
which is spirally waved. Each branch contains a muscle, which 
is not connected directly with the one in the main stem, but is 
attached to the inside of the stalk; every bell, too, has a separate muscle. 
By this arrangement every branch is able to contract without the whole 
colony doing so, and even a single bell may contract without its fellows 
being affected. The colony originates from a single individual, by a 
continuous process of self-division, [Fig. 9;] the new animals, however, 
instead of breaking away, as in Vorticella, remain permanently on the 
old stem. I have observed gemmation in this species, but the two other 
methods of reproduction, viz., encystation and acinetation, I have not yet 
Witnessed, 


THE VORTICELLIDE, 89 


(3.) Epistylis leucoa, [Fig.6.] Thisis amagnificent species, perhaps 
the largest of all the Vorticellide. The main stem is slender, branching 
out at the top into a large cluster of bells. It contains no muscle, and is 
therefore quite rigid, hence the name, from epi, upon, and stulos, a pillar. 
Each bellis nevertheless provided with a short rudimentary muscle, 
[Fig. 7,] which enables it to give a slight twitch when alarmed. On 
account of their large size the bells of Hpistylis are first-rate objects for 
showing the protoplasmic movements. The whole contents of the bell 
may be seen marching slowly up one side and down the other steadily 
and without intermission—an overwhelming proof of the fallacy of 
Hhrenberg’s theory that the vacuoles are independent stomachs all 
connected together, and to the mouth by an intestinal canal—for it is 
obviously impossible that such should be the case, when the whole 
cell-contents, vacuoles and all, revolve within it. 


[TO BE CONTINUED. ] 


MOSS HAR TP ais: 
BY JAMES E, BAGNALL, 


(Concluded from page 89.) 

“Pleasant both to eye and mind, is an old garden wall, dark with 
age, gray with lichen, green with mosses of beautiful hues and fairy 
elegance of form,” and on such habitats a great variety of species of 
moss will often be found; an old wall is the bryologist’s botanic garden, 
where he may leisurely study his pet plants. A slight shower followed 
by bright sunshine, such a day as we often get in May, will often give 
him a pleasurable sight, such as he will long remember, for these 
alternations of wet and dry call into full play the peculiar properties of 
the annulus, and if he have only patience to watch and wait, he will see 
the little lids of many of the capsules thrown off by a sort of magic 
force; and if the moss he is watching be a Bryum or a Hypnum, the 
outer fringe will be thrown back like the rays of a beautiful star fish, 
the inner fringe all the while opening and closing, and the spores 
shot forth, by some hidden force within, a little cannonade of tiny 
balls, seeming as though the fairies were practising their minute artil- 
lery. Or, if continued dry weather has shrivelled up the mosses, so 
that they look more dead than alive, a slight shower will at once 
reanimate the shrivelled tufts, and he will see every moss as it drinks in 
the grateful fluid, waken again into life, the shrivelled-up leaves once 
more assume their natural habit, the whole mass looks like a new growth, 
and the sudden resurrection calls to one’s mind that wonderful desert 
plant Anastatica, the Rose of Jericho. But why direct one’s attention to 
walls for watching phenomena that must be common to all moss 
habitats? Simply because a wall is so convenient, and the whole 
phenomena may be watched in such places without the fatigue of 
stooping. Stone walls, mud walls, and walls of every sort and degree, 
are all worthy of the bryologist’s particular attention, and the older the 


90 MOSS HABITATS. 


walls the richer the spoils as a rule. So prolific, however, in mosses are 
these habitats, that I shall not be able to mention a tithe of what may be 
found by an industrious worker, and hence shall confine my remarks to a 
few of the more frequent species, such as Tortula muralis, T. marginata, 
Grimmia apocarpa, G. pulvinata, Bryum capillare, B. cespiticium, B. 
argenteum, Didymodon rubellus, and Pottia lanceolata. 

Tortula muralis is one of our most frequent mosses, often fillmg up 
the interstices between the bricks of an old wall from its base to its top, 
growing in hoary, bluish-green tufts; the leaves are oblong with blunt 
tips, terminated by white hair-like points, very hoary in some of the 
varieties ; the leaf-margin is recurved, leaf-cells minute and opaque in 
upper part, transparent and elongated below; the capsule is erect; lid 
shortly beaked ; fringe of thirty-two teeth, beautifully twisted. 

Tortula marginata is a more local species, partial to damp stone 
walls, and usually growing on the surface of the stone. At first sight 
not unlike the foregoing, but has narrower leaves, with the margin 
thickened, not recurved, and terminated by a minute green point. The 
fruit-stalk, too, is yellow in this species; reddish in muralis. Fruit 
characters similar to the last. 

Grimmia apocarpa is a not unfrequent denizen of wall tops, forming 
deep green loose tufts. The upper leaves are hair-pointed, with 
recurved margins. The capsules are sessile among the surrounding 
(pericheetial) leaves. Lid slightly beaked; fringe of sixteen teeth, dark 
red, marked with transverse bars and sometimes perforated. 


Grimmia pulvinata is a very common species, growing on walls, and 
often in great masses on thatched roofs, forming round, hoary, cushion- 
like masses. The leaves are densely crowded, and suddenly terminate 
by long white hair points. Fruit-stalk longish and bent downwards, so 
that the capsule is often hidden among the leaves. The lid has a 
straight beak; the teeth of the fringe sixteen, deep red and sometimes 
cloven at the tips. Calyptra mitriform, five lobed at the base. 


Bryum capillare is very fond of old walls, and is very frequent; 
often occurs in large dense dark green masses. The leaves are 
spreading when moist, but strongly twisted when dry, somewhat oblong 
and abruptly hair-pointed. Capsule somewhat pear-shaped, and 
pendulous; lid conical, with a minute point ; fringe double ; outer fringe 
reddish-brown, beautifully barred; inner fringe membraneous, paler ; 
spores small, green. The peristome of this common moss is a most 
beautiful object for the microscopist. 

Bryum cespiticium is also very frequent, growing in close compact 
tufts, of a yellowish or green colour. Usually very much like the last 
at first sight; but in this the leaves are erect (not twisted) when dry, the 
lid yellow, not red as in capillare, and the spores minute and yellow. 

Bryum argenteum may be readily known by its beautiful silvery 
foliage. The leaves are closely imbricate, (overlapping ;) capsule 
pendulous, and passing abruptly into the fruit-stalk. Green forms, 
however, occur ; but may at once be known by the closely-imbricated 
leaves, with large cells. 


eS ee 


se 


MOSS HABITATS. 91 


Didymodon rubellus, so far as my own observations serve, is some- 
what local; is usually fond of old shady walls; and fruits from 
November to February. Grows in dull green tufts, which are reddish 
“below ; the leaves lance-shaped, somewhat clasping the stem at their 
base; margins recurved; leaf-cells minute in upper part, towards the 
base elongated and transparent. The leaves, too, are spreading when 
moist, but twisted when dry ; the capsule is cylindrical ; fringe of sixteen 
simple teeth ; lid slightly curved and beaked. 


Pottia lanceolata I have usually found abundantly on the mud- 
capped walls in the Lias districts of South Warwickshire; growing in 
rather loose dark green patches, often of great extent. The leaves are 
variable in size and form, generally oval-oblong, tapering, with longish 
green points; and slightly keeled on the back. Leaf-cells rather large, 
quadrate above, longer and transparent below; capsule erect; fringe of 
sixteen teeth ; lid beaked. 


A true bryologist should never be afraid of damp and dirty boots; 
if he be, I am afraid he will scarcely care to follow me to the habitats I 
have next to mention, that is, the marshes and bogs, and will thereby 
lose some of the rarest and most beautiful of the mosses. The odours 
of a marsh are not always of so grateful a nature as one would desire for 
a bouquet, but the gems which cluster round its margin, or more boldly 
brave its deeper depths, are worthy to be placed among the fairest of the 
floral world, and speak as loudly of the marvellous skill of the Great 
Designer, as the most beautiful and complicate of God’s creatures. He 
who doubts this should examine with the microscope the wonderful 
structure of a Sphagnum leaf; and ifthe delicate network that he will 
then haye revealed fail to charm, it will be because his power of appre- 
ciating beautiful objects is limited. Among other denizens of these 
watery situations he will find the Sphagnums most abundant, and such 
mosses as Bartramia fontana, Mnium subglobosum, Hypnum cuspidatum, 
Aulacomnion palustre, and many other species, which space will not 
permit me to name. 

Many species of Sphagnum will be found in these habitats, but the 
species I find most widely diffused is Sphagnum cymbifolium. This often 
forms extensive masses, of a pale green colour, and may readily be known 
from the other species by the obtuse leaves, and by the elongated cells 
which coat both stem and branches, (the utricles,) being lined with spiral 
threads. 

Bartramia fontana is a frequent denizen of our Warwickshire marshes, 
but rarely in fruit. It occursin more or less dense tufts of a glaucous 
green colour, and has the stems much matted together by reddish 
rootlets ; the leaves are mostly ovate, with a prolonged point, have 
reflexed margins, and are slightly plicate at the base; the cells are 
small and quadrate; the leaf-margin bluntly toothed; the capsule is 
roundish, curved, marked with deep longitudinal furrows, and reddish- 
brown when ripe ; fringe double; lid convex. 


Mnium subglobosum is a more local moss, but abundant in some 
marshes, occurring in dark-green tufts. The leaves are large, roundish, 


92, MOSS HABITATS. 


blunt, bordered with one or two series of elongated cells, the principal 
portion of the leaf being formed of largish, roundish, hexagonal cells; 
the capsules roundish, with a small, shortly-beaked lid; fringe similar to 
that of the Bryums. 


Aulacomnion palustre is closely allied to the last, is fond of boggy or 
marshy places, and is usually abundant where it does occur; rarely, 
however, found in fruit. This species grows in large yellow tufts; the 
stems are coated by numerous reddish rootlets, and hence are much 
matted together; the leaves are crowded, spreading when moist, much 
twisted when dry, somewhat lance-shaped, roughened with minute 
projections on the surface, and toothed at thetips; leaf-cells roundish ; 
the capsules are very rarely formed, but not unfrequently little green 
stalks are produced, which bear at their tips minute balls of gmme-like 
bodies, by which the plant is perpetuated. 


Hypnum cuspidatum is a very frequent inhabitant of marshes and 
other damp places, and usually fruits abundantly. This species grows in 
tall greenish or reddish brown tufts; the stems are often 4in. to 6in. 
long, pinnately branched ; branches remarkably cusp-like at the tips; 
leaves large, oblong, rather blunt, and nerveless; leaf-cells narrow and 
elongated ; fruit-stalk lateral; capsule curved and turned to one side; 
fringe, consisting of an outer row of sixteen beautifully barred teeth, and 
an inner membrane of sixteen tooth-like processes ; lid conical. , : 

The foregoing notes on moss habitats are, Iam convinced, full of 
faults; they have, however, been given in the hope of calling the 
attention of some of the students of Nature to a vast and very beautiful 
family of plants, and, if they should induce any one to give some of 
his spare moments to this study, they will have served the purpose 
for which they were written. 


NOTES ON COLEOPTERA, &. 


BY THE REY. W. W. FOWLER, M.A. 


Much has been said about the scarcity of Coleoptera in the 
Midlands, but though the southern districts of England undoubtedly 
produce more species, yet the midland districts, if thoroughly worked, 
are by no means unproductive of good things, and in some genera are 
very rich. 

The fact of the matter is, that while Lepidopterists may be counted 
by the hundred or the thousand, Coleopterists may almost be numbered 
by units. It is natural that this should be so, for the butterflies and moths 
are emphatically ‘common objects of nature.” They are conspicuous 
objects for the most part, and thrust themselves upon our notice; they 
are, too, except a few groups, easily made out and easily arranged. 
Beetles, on the other hand, are obscure in their habits, and in many cases 
are very hard to name; the number of British species too—more than 
3,000—is alarming to the beginner; and yet if one really does begin in 


\ 


NOTES ON COLEOPTERA, ETC. 93 


earnest the interest never seems to flag. Work can be carried on at all 
times and seasons without a long idle time in the winter, which falls to 
the lot of Lepidopterists; a very little work and perseverance will 
suffice to give a knowledge of the chief genera, and when this knowledge 
has been acquired, and the student begins to make out his own 
specimens, when the first drudgery has been passed through, he will not 
be likely to give up his study, but will find it ever growing upon him, and 
opening out new fields of interest. 


The scarcity of workers at present has of course the effect of 
limiting the discoveries made, but I need only mention three beetles, all 
discovered in the midland district by one indefatigable worker—Mr. 
J. T. Harris, of Burton-on-Trent—to show that the fields are well worth 
the labour. Macronychus 4-tuberculatus, (aew to Britain,) taken in the 
Dove, near Burton-on-Trent; Bagous diglyptus, (recorded in the 
Entomologist’s Monthly Magazine, for March, 1879, as new to Britain and 
rare even on the Continent,) taken near Burton-on-Trent; and 
Cryptocephalus 10-punctatus, taken in Staffordshire a year after its first 
discovery at Rannoch by Dr. Sharp. 


I would strongly advise any one who takes up the Coleoptera to join 
with it the study of the Hemiptera or bugs. They are found for the 
most part under the same conditions, ard in the same places as the 
beetles, and are very easily mounted and preserved. Still more remains 
to be done in this group than among the Coleoptera, and any one 
working them thoroughly will be very likely to discover new species. 


By ordinary persons beetles and bugs are resolved into one species 
apiece—the black-beetle or cockroach, and the Cimez lectularius, to give it 
its polite name. But it will not take much study to find out that the 
former insect belongsto the Orthoptera, (grasshopper and cricket tribe,) 
and not to the Coleoptera, and is, therefore, not a beetle at all, and that 
the latter is an obscure member of a most beautiful and varied group of 
insects, whose usual habitat is widely differentfrom that of the obnoxious 
insect referred to. 


Believing that many more people would take up this study if they 
knew how to set about it, I venture to offer a few hints as to apparatus, 
mode of preservation and setting, localities, &c., and shall hope in a 
future paper to say more about beetles generally. 


1.—Apparatus.—This is very simple. An old umbrella and a good 
stick for beating, a brass Y to carry a round of cane for sweeping and 
water nets (the former to be made of unbleached calico and the latter of 
coarse cheese cloth) will be all required for summer work; while a fern- 
trowel, a sheet of brown paper, and, if possible, a sieve will be ample for 
winter. The bottle for holding the captures should have a wide cork, 
through which a quill or glass tube should be inserted, corked at the 
top, and through this tube all the beetles caught should be bottled, as 
some will be sure to escape if the large cork be frequently removed. A 
separate bottle should be carried for the larger beetles, as they are sure 
to injure the smaller ones if placed with them. 


P 


94 NOTES ON COLEOPTERA, ETC. 


2.—Modes of Killing, Preservation, and Setting.—The most’ merciful 
way of killing all invertebrate animals is by boiling water, and, if it is 
wished to set the beetles caught at once, it must be the method adopted ; 
for very delicately formed Coleoptera and Hemiptera it is by far the 
best plan in any case; but laurel is the great agent. A few words may 
be spent on this subject with advantage, as the proper use of laurel seems 
very seldom understood. Only the young shoots and leaves must be 
used, and these must be gathered on a dry sunny day, as if gathered wet 
the beetles will soon turn mouldy. The laurel must be chopped very 
fine and kept tightly corked. Beetles killed in laurel cannot be set at 
once, but must be kept for three or four days or more in the laurel until 
the collector finds that they are thoroughly relaxed. If a jar of good dry 
chopped laurel be kept, and after each day’s work the beetles obtained 
be removed from the bottles and placed in muslin bags, and laid in the 
jar, they will keep for any length of time. They must, however, be 
given air every now and then, and the laurel examined for mould; with 
a little care, however, in this way, they will be quite fit to set a year or 
more after their capture. For setting, two camel’s hair brushes—one 
blunt, the other with a hard fine point—a pin with a bent point, some 
gum tragacanth, and some card with a slightly rough surface are 
required. When the beetle wished to be mounted is thoroughly relaxed 
lay it on its back, brush out its legs and antennz with the blunt brush, 
put a little gum on the card, take up the beetle with the hard brush, lay 
it on the card, brush the legs and antenne into their natural positions, 
cut the beetle out, and insert a pin through the card behind it, not how- 
ever too near the body; raise the card half-an-inch up the pin, and the 
specimen, after a thorough drying, will be fit for the box or cabinet. The 
larger species must not be carded, but pinned through the right elytron, 

-and not through the thorax. 

The third point, that of localities, would here take up too much 
space, so I will continue the subject in another paper. 

I would, however, mention that the best books for all students of 
Coleoptera and Hemiptera are the following :—‘‘ Rye’s British Beetles,” 
which may be obtained for 7s. 6d., from Mr. Joel Rowsell, 9, King 
William Street, Strand, London, a very useful book for beginners ; 
*¢ Cox’s Handbook of Coleoptera,” 2 vols., 17s. 6d.; ‘‘ Saunders’ Synopsis 
of the British Hemiptera,” price 5s. The two last may be obtained from 
Mr. E. W. Janson, 35, Little Russell Street, Bloomsbury, London. 


RARE ORNITHOLOGICAL OCCURRENCES IN 
SOUTH LEICESTERSHIRE. 


BY THOMAS MACAULAY, M.R.C.S.L., KIBWORTH. 


I send the following ornithological notes in the hope that they may 
act asa stimulus to others to make observations in this most interesting 
subject, and report upon them in the ‘‘ Midland Naturalist.” 

The district over which these observations extend is a very limited 
one, and moreover is little calculated to yield fruitful results by reason 


4 


ORNITHOLOGY IN SOUTH LEICESTERSHIRE. 95 


of its character—almost entirely destitute of woodland and water, it 
presents but few opportunities for collecting notes, or for observing the 
migration of rare birds—yet with all its drawbacks I have succeeded in 
obtaining sufficient observations to justify me in the hope that they may 
at least prove interesting. 


Many of the facts recorded below are due to the observations of my 
friend, the Rev. A. Matthews, Gumley Rectory, whose name alone in the 
world of Natural History is a sufficient guarantee for their accuracy. 


The observations extend over the last twenty-five years, and the 
most rare birds are given as nearly as possible in the order of date, and a 
list is added of others not so uncommon. 

Rose-coloured Pastor, (Pastor roseus,) seen amongst a flock of 

starlings, near Foxton, no date. 
Raven, (Corvus coraz,) once seen near Gumley, no date. 
Great Snipe, (Scolopax major,) shot near Lutterworth. 
Snow Bunting ,(Plectrophanes nivalis, ) one shot at Laughton, no date. 
Pied Flycatcher, (Muscicapa atricapilla,) seen at Kibworth, 1859. 
Gray Phalarope, (Phalaropus lobatus,) shot near Foxton, 1860. 
Temminck’s Stint, (Tringa Temminckii,) shot at Saddington Reservoir, 
1860. 

Stormy Petrel, ( Thalassidroma pelagica, found dead near Gumley, 1862. 

Goosander, (Mergus castor,) a female, shot near Smeeton, 1862. 
This bird was also seen in 1866 and 1877. 

Golden Hagle, (Aquila chrysaétos,) seen flying W. by Rev. A. 
Matthews, 1863. 

Black Tern, (Sterna fissipes,) shot at Saddington Reservoir, 1865. 

Manx Petrel, (Pufinus Anglorum,) picked up exhausted near Gumley, 
1867. 

Sand Grouse, (Syrrhaptes paradoxus,) five seen near Laughton, 1867. 

Garganey, (Anas circia,) four shot at Saddington Reservoir, 1868. 

Great Northern Diver, (Colymbus glacialis,) seen on Saddington 

Reservoir, where it remained for a fortnight, 1872. 
Black-throated Diver, (Colymbus arcticus,) shot on Saddington 
Reservoir, 1874. 

Red-necked Grebe, (Podiceps rubricollis,) shot on Saddington 
Reservoir, 1874. 

Scaup Duck, (Fuligula marila,) shot on Saddington Reservoir, 1874. 
This bird is not an unfrequent visitor. 

Peregrine Falcon, (Falco peregrinus, )a pair seen near Saddington, 1877. 

Small Spotted Woodpecker, (Picus minor,) a pair nested at Gumley, 
and hatched off on 26th May, 1878. Unfortunately their nest was 
discovered by a boy, who captured and killed the old one and 
destroyed the young. 

fais now pass on to the less rare birds which appear deserving of 
notice :— 

Great Black-backed Gull, (Larus marinus, ) has been seen occasionally. 

Herring Gull, (Larus argentatus,) has been seen occasionally. 

Common Gull, (Larus canus,) often seen. 

Kittiwake, (Larus tridactylus,) often seen. 

Curlew, (Numenius arquata,) often seen. 

Whimbrel, (Numenius pheopus,) often seen. 

Green Sandpiper, (Totanus ochropus,) a constant winter visitor. 

Common Sandpiper, (Totanus hypoleucos,) a constant summer visitor. 

Merlin, (Falco esalon,) often seen in winter. 

Ring Ousel, (Twrdus torquatus,) occasionally seen, one shot at Gumley 

a few years ago. 
Spotted Rail, (Crex porzana,) has been frequently shot, one this year 


96 ORNITHOLOGY IN SOUTH LEICESTERSHIRE, 


Pochard, (Fuligula ferina,) occasionally seen and killed. ~ 

Golden Hye, (Fuligula clangula, ) occasionally seen and shot. 

Quail, (Coturnix communis, ) often seen. 

Wild Goose, probably the Bean Goose, (Anser segetum,) occasionally 
seen, but no specimen has been obtained so as to verify the species. 


T will also add, though not belonging to Leicestershire, the appear- 
ance of five Avocets, (Recurvirostra avocetta,) from the note book of my 
friend Mr. Matthews. They were seen on the Trent, near Newark, in 
1860. 


CRYSTALLISATION OF WATER. 
By W. B. Guove, B.A. 


The frontispiece of Professor Tyndall’s ‘ Light” is an engraving from 
a photograph of what he calls “ a surprising case of crystallisation.” 
The following is the account given of it by Professor 8. H. Lockett, of 
Louisiana State University. ‘In my drawing room I kept a wash-basin 
in which to rinse out the colour from my water-colour brushes. This 
colour gradually formed a uniform sediment of an indefinite tint over the 
bottom of the basin. On the night of the 26th of December last, (1873,) 
which was an unusually cold one for this climate, the water in the basin 
froze. On the melting of the ice the next day, the beautiful figure you 
see on the photographs was left in the sediment. I carefully poured the 
water from the basin, let the sediment dry, and thus perfectly preserved 
the figure.” 


During the severe weather of last December a quantity of rain- 
water was left in a jug in my room, and the impurities of the water were 
deposited in a grayish sediment on the bottom. One night the water 
froze, not only at the top, but also round the sides and bottom where 
it was in contact with the jug. The ice-crystals on the curved bottom, as 
they grew, removed the thin layer of sediment from the smooth surface. 
Consequently, when the ice was melted and the water poured out, a 
beautiful design was seen, in white on a black ground, consisting chiefly 
of gracefully-curved slender plumes. I made a sketch [Plate II1.] of 
one of the most exquisite of these; it is slightly enlarged, but is other- 
wise as faithful a copy as I could produce. It is remarkable how similar 
it is in many points to one of the plumes in Professor Tyndall’s 
engraving. The repetition of the same general plan in the details of 
successive parts is especially a feature in which the two agree, as also the 
backward prolongation of many of the spicules. 


The great interest of these forms lies inthe beautiful curves of which 
they consist. With the idea of a crystal we usually associate that of 
straight lines and plane surfaces, and, although instances to the contrary 
are not uncommon, it is but seldom we meet with curves so graceful as 
those here depicted. They arise from the varying play of the molecular 
forces combined with the adhesion between the molecules and the surface 
on which they are deposited. They form one of the links connecting the 
forms of inorganic with those of organic nature, and recall tous Professor 
Tyndall’s words:—‘‘ Who is the builder in the case of a crystal (of the 

lumes in our frontispiece, for example?) Hither a detached architect 
Biss the business, or these wonderful structures are self-erected, in virtue 
of their inherent forces. In building a crystal nature makes her first 
real effort as an architect. Here we have the first gropings of the 
so-called vital force ; but the most wonderful manifestations of this force, 
though depending upon processes of higher complexity, are, I hold, of 
the same quality as those concerned in the growth of a crystal.” 


MICROSCOPY. 97 


Atlicroscopy. 


Insects Movnrep witHout Pressure.—The mounting of whole 
insect preparations, or special organs, for examination under the 
microscope has always been a favourite pursuit with amateurs. The 
usual method is so well known as to need no description; probably no 
microscopist is without specimens prepared by himself, by friends, or by 
professional mounters. But how few of the objects are really of value to 
the biological student? As usually prepared the ‘‘insect preparations” 
are merely flattened-out and feeble reminiscences of what they were when 
alive ; their more minute organs are frequently obscured, orif any attempt at 
arrangement has been made so as to display the noticeable parts of their 
structures, the conditions of the ‘‘ squashed” mounting almost invariably 
prevent anything like naturalness in the appearance of the object. Mr. 
Frederic Enock, of 30, Russell Road, Seven Sisters Road, London, 
a well-known entomologist, has recently presented to the Birmingham 
Natural History and Microscopical Society a number of preparations 
of insects of a very different kind from those we have referred to. 
Some of them are mounted in deep cells without pressure, and in these 
more particularly the characteristic features of the living insect are 
wonderfully preserved. Not only is the exterior aspect of the insect 
presented unimpaired, but very much of its internal structure also can be 
clearly made out when suitably illuminated. The following is a brief 
description of the exceedingly beautiful slides presented to the 
Birmingham Natural History and Microscopical Society :— 


1.—Head of Sand Wasp, (Cerceris arenaria,) mounted in fluid for 
examination by paraboloid or as an opaque object. In this 
preparation all the parts of the head and mouth of the insect 
are skilfully and beautifully displayed, and an observer could 
profitably spend some hours in its study. Amongst other 
interesting organs to be easily made out are the two kinds of 
eyes, ‘‘compound” and ‘‘simple,” the semi-club-like antenne, 
the powerful jaws, with their fringe of fine hairs, and the 
wonderful labium, with its tiny palpi and delicate ciliated 
ligula. 

2.—Lace-wing Fly, (Chrysopa perla,) mounted in balsam. Every 
part of this interesting insect is well shown, especially the 
strongly-spined wing-rays. 

3 and 4.—The Common Gnat, (male and female,) (Culex pipiens, ) 
exquisitely mounted so as to be attractive to the ordinary 
observer, and useful to the student of insect anatomy. 


5 and 6.—Garden Spider, (Epeira diadema,) (male and female.) The 
mouth parts, spinnerets, and other important organs all well 
arranged for examination by any powers. 


Mr. Bouton sends us the following list of living microscopic objects 
sent out by him during the last nine weeks to his subscribers :— 
‘Specimens of embryo trout and salmon, (cistes crystallinus, Rhynops 
vitrea, Hydatina senta, Euglena viridis, Spirostomum ambiguum, Spongilla 
fluviatilis, and Plumatella repens, just emerging from the statoblast or 
winter egg. With most of these I have sent drawings from life by 
Mr. H. H. Forrest, or copies of published illustrations. I have now 
coming forward Cristatella mucedo, the curious locomotive polyzoan, the 
colonies of which creep about aquatic plants.—Tuos. Bourton, 17, Ann 
Street, Birmingham.” 


98 MICROSCOPY. 


Tur Weser Supe is a simple but useful contrivance which students 
of fresh-water life will find a most helpful addition to their appliances. 
‘* The ordinary concave slide, though better than a plain slip of glass, does 
not fulfil all the requirements of the microscopist, and with such a slide 
it is difficult to keep the object in focus except with very low powers. 
To obviate these difficulties Mr. Weber has reversed the form of the cell, 
and forms his slide as shown in the accompanying woodcut, 


Cn 5 


where A is the convex bottom of the cell, and B the thin glass cover, a 
drop of water being held between them by capillary attraction. When 
the cover is cemented down by means of a little waterproof cement the 
water cannot evaporate, and the whole arrangement forms an air-tight 
aquarium on a minute scale. The open space forms a chamber which 
retains a supply of air, and if the animal and vegetable life are properly 
balanced life may exist in one of these slides for weeks. In the woodcut 
the thickness of the slide &c., is magnified about four times.” This 
description is takenfrom the ‘“ Journalof the Royal Microscopical Society,” 
Vol. IL., p. 56, to the Editor of which we are indebted for the loan of the 
illustration, 


METEOROLOGY OF THE MIDLANDS. 


THE WEATHER OF FEBRUARY, 1879. 


BY W. JEROME HARRISON, F.G.S. 


February proved a cold and wet month, fully maintaining the severe 
character of the winter of 1878-9. Rainfall was above the average, 
but was, perhaps, not so remarkable for its amount as for its 
persistency, there being only some five days on which no rain was 
measured. Snow fell on ten or twelve days, to the depth of from 
three to six inches on the 1st and 24th. Opening with some days of frost, 
a thaw set in on the 6th which continued to the 16th. A thaw also 
marked the last day of the month. The sky was mostly overcast, and 
there were several foggy days. The barometer ruled low, with variable 
winds. At Oxford lightning was seen on the 17th, a solar halo on the 
20th, and lunar halo on the 7th. The absence of small birds was notice- 
able; at Orleton “very few blackbirds, and no thrushes, fieldfares, or 
redwings have been seen ;” at Shifnal ‘‘all the starlings (of which we 
had flocks) deserted us, a few only returning at the end of this month; 
the same with regard to throstles. Blackbirdsremained, and were saved, 
with robins, chaffinches, tits, and hedge-fauvets, by coming to be fed with 
the sparrows ;” at Coundon ‘no fieldfares or redwings seen in this 
neighbourhood since December 10th, when three were picked up dead or 
dying in this garden.” Vegetation was very backward. At Burton-on- 
Trent, hazel and willow flowered on the 22nd. At Coston Rectory the 
aconite flowered about the middle of the month. At Stroud, ‘ only three 
plants in blossom, viz., the butter-bur, hazel, and daisy.” 


— ee 


THE WEATHER OF FEBRUARY. 99 


RAINFALL, TEMPERATURE. 
ra i |Greatest fall|+¢|Greatest ht. Great’st cold. 
STATION. OBSERVER. 5 a in 24 hours. oe 
- ww le ord 
In.| In Date. | 2|Pe8| Date. |Deg) Date. 
GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
Cainscross, Stroud ..........|W. B. Baker, Esq. ........|4° 11] ‘74 8 18 | 54:0 9 20:0] +28 
Cheltenham .............+.+/R. Tyrer, H8q. seccsceseee/ 270) °88) 13 23 | 548 9 12°4) 25 
BELOU 2.2... .ccecccenccevces| Ls Jo COLGY, HSG.eeecceceees| 3°88! “70 9 22|56°0| 10 |19°0) 23 
SHROPSHIRE. 
Haughton Hall, Shifnal ....)/Rev. J. Brooke . 8 17 | 500 9 21:0} 20 
Woolstaston ... seeeeeee|REV. H. D. Carr. BE 15 22 |52°0) 27 20:0} 26 
Leaton Vicarage, hrewsbury Rev. E. V. Pigott. “76 8 20 | 542 7 210} 25 
More Rectory, Bishop's Castle|Rev. A. Male ..... oD 1 23 | 52°0| 9 & 11 | 22°0/28, 24,95 
Bishop's Castle ..............|E. Griffiths, Esq. A 15 20 | 53°0 9 210) 25 
Cardington ...............+.+|ReV. Wm. Elliott .. ? i 17 
Kaderley Rectory............|Rev. A. Corbet .....000.0../ 3°14! 45) 8& 17 | 19 
Stokesay ........ serecececeee|hev. J. D. La Touche......| 2°51) °47 8 16 |544) 27 22°65] 265 
HEREFORDSHIRE. 
Whitfield .............+2+..0-|W. Wheatley, Esq. ....20..|4'05} °52 8 24 14:0) 23 
Stoke Bliss ........ seseeeeeee(Rev. G. KE Alexander....../ 3°34] 86) 15 21 | 540 9 |20°0} 24 
WORCESTERSHIRE. 
Orleton, Tenbury............/T. H. Davis, Esq. ..........| 3°35] °45 8 22 | 548 9 15°0| 95 
West Malvern ............../A. H. Hartland, Esq. ......|3'14| *41) 13 22 | 50°0 9 21%) 24 
PGAMOLE: case feces couse EK. B. Marten, Esq. +-/ 2°99] *41 8 21 | 540 9 22°0| 24 
Longlands, Stourbridge J. Jeffries Esq. 3°01} -40 8 19 | 54:0 9 14:0} 24 
Dennis, Stourbridge .. Mr. C. Webb ... 3°03|s)'40} 19 21 | 520 9 145] 24 
STAFFORDSHIRE. 
Thorganby Villa, Wolverhmtn|G. J. C. Broom, Esq. ......| 2°54) *43 1 21 
Amblecote ...........eeeeee+(Mr. J. RODINS.....000e00000| 2°57) 40 8 21 
POWGIOY woceeeaseccnseesceseee( Mr. J. Fisher . seeees(2'50| 83] 8 & 19 | 21 | 54:0 9 {22:0} 24 
Sedgley........... «s.-+./Mr. C. Beale ...... eeeeeees|2°49/8)'45) 19 19 | 50°0 9 |24°0) 24 
IRE ON, fo acu o's sce 00 +«+-/Rev. W. H. Bolton .......: 2°63) 42 8 19 | 51:0 9 18:0} 24 
MURA aeecisnseetassecesscese/Mz. N. HW. BEBt sacceseceses/ 260] 84) 1&8, | 19] 500 9 260 a 
Grammar School, Burton... GO. UL Lripp; Hisq. |... eee 8°55| °58) «17 21 | 540 9 21:0| 24 
Weston-under-Ly ‘ziaxd R’tory|Hon.and Rev.J. Bridgeman) 2°50} *39 8 23 | 63° 9 20°0] 25 
Wrottesley ..............++../H. Simpson, Hsq. .......2.| 2°40] °47 8 19 |52°6} 10 19°8} 25 
Heath House, Cheadle ......|J. C. Philips. Hsq.........../ 4°09] ‘72 8 20 | 53°0 9 22'0| 24 
Alstonfield Vicarage esevecee( Rev. W. H. Purchas ....0.|4°75| 82) 13 18 | 49°5 9 120} 28 
WARWICKSHIRE. 
Coundon, Coventry . Lieut.-Col. R. Caldicott ....]3°83} *61 8 22 | 510 9 |20:0) 24 
Coventry .........+. J. Golson, Esq, ..2.0.cecesa) 920) “DL 8 20 |53°0} 10 |21°0) 24 
Bickenhill Vicarage... -|J. Ward, Haq...... OR} *48 8 18 | 460 19:0 
Oscott College ....... -»|Rev. S. J Whitty ........0.| 2" 37 1 22 | 54:0 9 20°9] 25 
Henley-in-Arden ............|/T. H. G. Newton, Hsq......| 3°24] °40/ 8 & 13 | 21 | 53:0 9 20:0) 2 
Rugby School...........+....|Rev T.N. Hutchinson ....| 2°88] °45 8 22 | 63'8 9 | 230/23 & 24 
DERBYSHIRE. 
Buxton. Rene reeks: J. Sykes, Hsq.....++++..| 4°72) “73 7 20 | 661 9 109} 2 
Stoney Middleton....... conece| 2:97) OL 8 14 | 50°0 9 110/18 & 23 
Brampton St. Thomas. : ‘Rev. J. M. Mello ..........| 4°18} °70) 7 19 | 52°0 9 1160) 24 
Fernslope, Belper....... J.G Jackson, Esq. q “64 8 22, 1520 9 230} 24 
Linacre Reservoir ... C. BE. Jones, Esq. . F “69 8 17 
Willersley Gardens... -|J. Tissington, Esq. . 78) #14 11 
Spondon . J. T. Barber, Esq.. 2°72) *66 8 21 | 52°8 9 212} 24 
Duffield .. Wm. Bland, Esq.. 3'07| *40 4 22 
Trent College......... Rey. T. F. Fenn, B.A. 2°88] °60 2 17 | 65°0 9 18:0} 28 
NOTTINGHAMSHIRE. 
TETERTOTA Mvanisienivsivsietsesecseeld. Ne DULY, MUBQ. ~csccccees| 444 510 9 | 24°0)2,8,28,24 
Hodsock Priory, Worksop ../H. Mellish, Esq. ... “49 8 20 | 60:2 8 L777 24 
Park Hill, Nottingham,.....|H.F. Johnson, Esq “67 8 17 | 52°5 9 250] 23 
Hesley Hall ................/B. J. Whitaker, Hsq. ......| 2 “41 9 19 |655°0; 10 |22°0) 24 
LEICESTERSHIRE. 
Loughborough ..............]W. Berridge, Esq..........|/2°45| "43 8 19 | 65°4 9 187} 24 
Ashby Magna........... -|Rev. EK. Willes ... -|270) °33} 18 20 |540) . 9 180) 25 
Market Harborough ... -{S. W. Cox, Esq. ..... 2°84) *35 8 17 | 52°0 9 210} 24 
TRG WVOFED  pciciais cleigo estes os pee iy Macaulay, Esq. Ch 2°50) °47 8 18 
Town Museum, Leicester ....)W. J. Harrison, Esq. 1:96} ‘30 9 22 | 548 9 23°6) 24 
Belmont Villas, Leicester....|/H. Billson, Esq. ... 2°09) °45) 24 18 | 55°0 9 24°2) 24 
GROW Rolie civticsepccescce J. Hames, jun., Es 2°71) 50) 25 19 |51°0} 10 23°0) 24 
Waltham-le-Wold. H. Ball, Esq. ....... 2°49] *41 8 19 | 52°0 9 1220) 98 
Little Dalby Hall... G. Jones, Esq. ....... +-{2°17| *35) 13 18 | 52°0 9 20°0) 23 
Foxton Locks.........+. Union Canal Company ....| 2°26] °35 8 17 
Coston Rectory, Melton......)/Rev. A. M. Rendell......../1'87] ‘34 8 22 | 55'5 9 185} 23 
Belvoir Castle ...... escccune| We LNGTAM, WS. wccceseces| 222) 42 9 20 |55°0) 10 16:0} 24 
NoRTHAMPTONSHIRE. 
Towcester Brewery..........|J. Webb, Hsq.....sseeeeeess| 2°98} ‘38 28 19 
Castle Ashby .............+..|R. G. Scriven, Esq. ... H 44) 10 22 | 58°0 9 20:0} 23 
Kettering............s.20s...|0. Wallis, Hsq. .......20+2./2°74| ‘24/8 & 15] 20|54:0] 10 210; 24 
Althorpe .... Megan's? gaara te Groom, EE8q....eeeee0s| 2°57) “37 8 20 | 53°0 180} 238 
Pitsford ...............6.+../C. A. Markham, Esq.......| 2°69! “44 is 18 
RUTLAND. 
West Deyne, Uppingham ....|/Rev. G. H. Mullins ........| 2°16] *52) 15 19 | 54:0 9 19°0] 24 
Radcliffe Observatory,Oxford|Mr. H. E. Bellamy, 5 3°31] -39 8 22 '53°7 9 28°8]} 93 
Spital Cemetery, Carlisle ....|T. Bell, Esq. . 1:20) °26 9 14 | 47'8 7 180} 24 
Ventnor Hospital. . son |LEb Sagar, Esq. sececeece|a'O0| 68 9 24 | 603 8 2671) 24 
Altarmun Vicarage ..........|/Rev. G. Tripp...sseeeeeeees| 902106! 11 23 (53:0! 15 13°0\ 26 


100 CORRESPONDENCE. 


Correspondence. 


Mipitanp Entomotocy.—I am pleased to find that the subject of 
“‘ Midland Entomology ” is being ventilated in the pages of the “ Midland 
Naturalist.” It is now many years since Mr. F. Plant and myself 
worked this county for Coleoptera. My own reason for abandoning the 
local for a wider field was the persistent impediments placed in the way 
of our working all the best hunting grounds, the rich and extensive 
woodlands owned by the present Earl of Stamford. Previous to my own 
and Mr. Plant’s career, the county had been assiduously worked by my 
brother, (H. W. Bates,) and in happier times, before the decease of the 
late earl, when free access to all the best localities was unimpeded. The 
collections then formed are now all scattered. The neat and handsome 
little collection of Mr. Plant was offered at a cheap rate to our Museum, 
but was not taken ; the committee I suppose not being able to discern any 
value in “ beetles,” even although they were a part of our local fauna, the 
obtaining of which ought to be one of the prime considerations in the for- 
mation and management of a local museum. [This was five-and-twenty 
years ago. They would know better now.—Eps. M. N.] Fortunately, 
before this dissemination of our local collections took place, a catalogue 
of all the known Leicestershire species of Coleoptera was compiled by 
myself for publication in Mr. Potter’s ‘‘ History of Leicestershire.” From 
some unexplained cause this history never came to anything, there not 
being, I believe, sufficient subscribers obtained to defray the mere cost of 
its production. A reference to that catalogue, incomplete as it is, will 
show that our county is quite up to the average in the production of rare, 
curious, and interesting species. [By the kindness of Mr. Bates the MSS. 
of this catalogue has been placed for reference in the Library of the 
Leicester Museum.—Eps. M.N.] The occurrence of a local variety of the 
grandest of all British beetles, the Calosoma inquisitor, is of itself 
sufficient to tempt investigators to court instead of ‘to shun as they 
would the plague” our local hunting grounds. Tropideres sepicola and 
Trachodes hispidus also occur to me, the former being new to the British 
fauna at the time of its capture; and the latter amounting to a 
re-discovery. I am glad to find amongst us a Coleopterist of the evident 
calibre of Mr. Robson, whose acquaintance I shall be happy to make.— 
Frepx. Bates, Leicester. 


DovusE-HEADED Saumon.—Among some embryo salmon I have lately 
watched hatching from the spawn, several have shown abnormal develop- 
ment, and I have just found one with two heads, attached together by 
the neck, so that it has four eyes, but only two sets of gills, and one heart. 
In fact all the posterior parts are of the usual normal form of a single 
fish.—THos. Bouton. 


Aquaria.—My experience is that H. M. need not trouble himself as 
to what he shall feed his fish with in the winter season, for they do not 
need feeding during the cold weather. Roach, Dace, and Minnows thrive 
the best with me. Perch soon die. In the summer small red worms 
thrown in are soon disposed of, and either in summer or on mild days in 
winter, when the fish are extra active, bread pressed between the finger 
and thumb and dropped in after making into very small pellets is readily 
taken. A piece of raw meat suspended by a string from a little bit of 
wood will afford amusement, and should H. M. be blessed with blood- 
thirsty beetles he will probably find that it will be a source of great 
satisfaction to them.—C. L. 


TnistLEs.—Two years ago a fox covert near here (Ravenstone) was 
cleared of its underwood, to allow fresh to grow up, and the greater part of 


CORRESPONDENCE. 101 


the timber wasfelled. The next year enormous quantities of the common 
Buck thistle made an appearance, growing to six feet high and so thickly 
together as to be nearly impenetrable. This is the species of thistle so 
epnoxious to farmers. I never remember seeing one in the wood before, 
although they were of not uncommon occurrence in the adjoining fields. 
What could have been the cause of their sudden appearance ?—L. F. 


OrnirnoLocy.—The break-up of the frost revealed the evidence of a 
sad mortality amongst the poor birds. Great numbers were picked up 
dead, especially beneath ivy and hedge bottoms, where they had sought 
shelter. Mr. Arthur Startin writes me that the few days of intense frost 
ending on Christmas Day were very fatal. Mr. Startin says: ‘‘ Since the 
heavy fall of snow the birds have been able to pick up a little food in 
the hedge bottoms, as I have noticed that the dead leaves under my 
fences have been carefully scratched over; during those few severe days 
land unprotected by snow was hard and impervious everywhere. The 
Starlings, being insect feeders, have especially suffered here. I picked up 
myself during those days no less than six of these birds which had fallen 
dead from the ivy on my house. My workmen found several more, and 
also Robins. The breast bones of the poor things too plainly showed the 
cause of death. I had hoped that feeding with the sheep and poultry, 
and also on crumbs, &c., from the house, the birds would have been safe, 
but when I found the true state of the case, too late, I at once gave them 
a little animal food also, and the Rooks discovering this became so confi- 
dent as to come quite close to the kitchen door. [managed to save the life 
of one poor robin—which I found nearly dead—hby placing it in the green- 
house, where it revived and took food, and afterwards, although allowed 
to go out whenever the ventilator was open, it always returned, and has 
now become so tame that it will frequently perch upon my finger and 
take food from my hand. It has even sat upon my beard and picked 
bread from my lips. It is a male bird, and now makes the house ring 
with its song.”—Joun Guuson, Coventry, March 5th. 


OrnitHoLocicaAL Nores rrom Drrpy.—On January 11th a friend of 
mine, who knows the bird perfectly well, saw a Waxwing at Chellaston, 
near here. It was pecking out of a wagon on the railway, but he could 
not see what it was eating.—All winter, up to March 3rd, I had seen very 
few Chaffinches about my garden, but on that day I saw and heard a 
great many, all cocks so far as I could observe. Nearly every tree and 
hedge had its ‘‘ Pied Finch,” as they call them about here, singing away 
with all its might, as if to welcome returning spring.—On the night of 
March 7th, at half-past eleven, I was much surprised to hear a T'hrush 
singing, in a small plantation at a short distance from the house; I 
listened to him for about twenty minutes, and during the whole of that 
time he was singing as loudly and clearly as if it were daytime, perhaps 
rather more in snatches than is usual, but not so much as a Missel 
Thrush. It was a bright moonlight night, with a slight mist, and rather 
cold, in fact the next morning the ground was white with frost, though 
it had been a beautiful day. I have occasionally heard thrushes singing 
on the warm light nights of early summer, but never before so early in 
the year, and I think the circumstance is worthy of record.—Merruin, 
Derby, March 16th. 


OrnitHoLocican Norrs.—I lately procured a female Great Spotted 
Woodpecker, which was killed near here last spring ; it is a very rare bird 
now in this district, and not common anywhere in England. A pure 
white Swallow was shot here about Michaelmas; it had been seen for 
some months. Several peculiar Blackbirds have come under my notice 
lately :—(1) a cream coloured one, shot in the summer; (2) one with 
white on the sides of the head, picked up dead early in January ; (3) a very 
beautiful specimen with several of the quills in the wings and tail pure 


Q 


102 CORRESPONDENCE. 


white, it had been seen about for some time, and presented a curious 
appearance when flying; it was shot in October, and I had it preserved; 
all three were cocks. On December 6thI wasshown a Tufted Duck anda 
Razorbill, which had been received here that morning by a bird stuffer, 
while they were yet warm; they were probably killed on one of the canal 
reservoirs. This is the first time I have heard of the latter bird being 
obtained in this neighbourhood. During December I saw several Water 
Rails and killed two of them ; they are seldom seen except in very hard 
weather. On the 7th of that month I observed some Wild Geese flying 
over but could not make out the species, and on the 14th February two 
were seen on some floods; several more were observed at different times, 
but I did not hear of any being shot. Greylags are sometimes seen here 
on the stubbles, and Brents and Canada Geese have also occurred. Snipe 
have been very plentiful this season, and Bramblings more so than I ever 
remember. I killed a large specimen of the former earlyin December; it 
weighed a trifle over five ounces, the average weight being about 34. I 
heard Larks and Yellow Ammers singing for the first time this year on 
the 8th and 10th of February respectively. Wild fowl were still plentiful 
with us at the beginning of this month. On the 1st I saw hundreds of 
Wigeon and Wild Duck, also a fewTeal and Snipe. They were still here 
on the 8th, but in less numbers. Rooks began building on the 5th inst., 
in one rookery; they are a little late this year owing, I suppose, to their 
sufferings during the winter. On the 6th I noticed our first summer 
migrant, the Wryneck; I also saw a pair of Stock Doves investigating a 
hollow tree where they generally breed. — O. V. A., Bodicote, Oxon., 
March 11th. 


Brown Owxzs.—The following occurrence may be of interest to some 
readers. At the commencement of the late wiuter the natives of a 
certain village near Ashby-de-la-Zouch were alarmed by hearing what 
sounded to them unearthly cries, disturbing the silence of the night, and 
sallied out with lanterns to investigate the cause. The noises suddenly 
ceased, and the village resumed its quiet, but a month afterwards a fine 
specimen of a brown owl (Strix stridula) was unearthed from the sooty 
recesses of achimney. It was a fine bird, measuring 35in. across the 
wings, and it appears that when it had entered the chimney it had been 
unable to escape. The screech of the white owl (Strix jlammea) is a 
familiar sound about here, but the noise which caused the alarm was a 
decided hoot. Some writers aver that both brown and white owls hoot, 
others that only the white does, but I think this 1s an instance in favour 
of the latter assertion.—L. F. 


ApnormaL Hen’s Eees.—About ten years ago, a very large Dorking 
hen’s egg was given my father by the keeper of Allington Lock, about 17 
miles from here. It was larger even than a turkey’s egg. On accident- 
ally dropping it, I was astonished to discover that it contained two yolks 
and another perfect egg, of the usual size, with a shell of the average 
thickness. It is now preserved in Maidstone Museum, with the outer 
shell partly removed, so as to show the smaller egg inside. There are, I 
believe, similar instances on record of one egg inside another. Small 
fowls’ eggs, too, are not unusual, I have two in my collection not larger than 
magpie’s eggs, and another though of the usual length is not larger round 
than a blackbird’s, and terminates in almost a sharp point, a most singular 
looking thing. These are not the results of domestication, for I have a 
jackdaw’s egg not so large asa thrush’s.—F RED F. Grenstep, Maidstone. 

[A double hen’s egg is reported in ‘‘Science Gossip ” for 1868, p. 117. 
In same Vol., at p. 151, is an interesting article on monstrosities in eggs 
in general, in which the writer says, speaking of the extremes of size in 
hens’ eggs, that he has one little above the size of that of a wren’s, and 
another 440z. in weight.—Eps. M. N.] 


GLEANINGS. 103 


Gleanings. 


a - 
Tur Mintann Unton.—We have pleasure in stating that the Notting- 
ham High School Natural History Society has joined the Union. 


Pre-Camprian Rocxs.—The sum of £50 from the Government Fund 
for the Endowment of Scientific Research has been granted, on the 
recommendation of the Royal Society, to Dr. C. Callaway, M.A., F.G.S., 
of Wellington, Salop, in aid of his researches into the relations of the 
pre-Cambrian rocks. 


AMERICAN QuartERLY Microscopican JouRNAL.—We have received 
Nos. 1 and 2 of this excellent periodical, which publishes the transac- 
tions of the New York Microscopical Society. The articles are varied, 
many of them beiug of great value; the illustrations are truly excellent, 
and the paper and printing as good as can be desired. All the societies 
in our Midland Union interested in microscopy should subscribe for 
this journal. It is published by Messrs. Hitchcock and Wall, 150, Nassau 
Street, New York, and the subscription, post free, is 13s. 6d. per annum. 


Freperick Suirz, F.L.S., Assistant-keeper of the Zoological Depart- 
ment of the British Museum, died on the 16th February last, aged 73. 
He was not better known than appreciated by every entomologist engaged 
in the study of the British Hymenoptera. His loss will be most deeply 
felt, and a wide gap has been made in the ranks of true entomologists 
which it will be almost impossible to fill up. All who have been in the 
habit of submitting their captures of Bees and Wasps to Mr. Smith for 
identification will feel their loss more and more as their collections 
increase, for his valuable services in the arduous work of naming speci- 
mens were always most willingly rendered, and he did in a few hours 
what to most others would have been an endless if not impossible task. 
His work on the British Apide is full of original observations. All who 
attended the late Entomological Exhibition at the Royal Aquarium will 
remember how willingly he worked to ensure a successful meeting, and 
how he lent his magnificent and unique collection of British Bees and 
Wasps, ‘‘the work of forty years’ patient collecting and study.” Though 
we shall never meet him again, either in our rambles at Hampstead 
Heath, or in his place at the Museum, (where he had been twenty-seven 
years,) his name and works, and his prompt willingness to help the 
young entomologist will never be forgotten by ‘‘ one who loves to hear 
the music of the Wild Bee.”—F.E. 


THICKNESS oF THE Antarctic Icr.—Dr. Croll has sent us a reprint of 
his paper on this subject, which appeared in the ‘‘Journal of Science” 
for January last. The Southern Pole is enveloped by an ice-cap, which 
reachesto lat. 70°, and has an average diameter of 2,800 miles, the edge 
of the ice-cap at any point being thus about 1,400 miles from the South 
Pole. Its thickness at the edge, where it enters the sea, may be taken at 
not less than 1,400ft., for icebergs, whose total thickness would several 
times exceed this amount, have frequeutly been scen floating from it 
northwards. From the edge the thickness must gradually increase to 
the South Pole. A slope of half a degree would give a thickness of 
. twelve miles of ice at the Pole, which is probably a very low estimate. 
Dr. Croll then applies these facts to'the consideration of the last glacial 
epoch in the northern hemisphere, insisting that the magnitude of the 
ice-sheet which then enveloped Scandinavia and the British Isles has 
been much underrated. In an appended note he states that two of the 
officers of the Scotch Geological Survey, Messrs. B. N. Peach and 
J. Horne have lately found unmistakable proofs that the Shetland Isles 
were glaciated by land-ice from Scandinavia. 


104 GLEANINGS—REPORTS. 


New Geronocican Formarions.—Dr. Henry Hicks now recognises 
three formations in Wales of earlier date than the Cambrian rocks. 
The beds which form them were mapped by the Geological Survey, either 
as igneous, or as altered Cambrian or Silurian rocks. In Pembrokeshire 
he distinguishes beneath the Harlech (Cambrian) group amass of voleanic 
breccias and ashy schists and slates, perhaps 8,000ft. thick, on which the 
Cambrian beds repose unconformably. For this series Dr. Hicks proposes 
the name Pebidian from Pebidiauc, the name of the division or hundred 
in which these rocks are mainly exposed. They in their turn rest uncon- 
formably on compact quartz schists, chloritic schists, and indurated 
shales with beds of dolomitic limestone. The base of these beds is not 
seen, but they have a very high dip, and the thickness exposed is esti- 
mated at 15,000ft. Dr. Hicks has named them Dimetian from Dimetia, 
the ancient name for a kingdom which included this part of Wales. In 
1877 the presence of both these series of rocks was proved in Caernar- 
voushire, in North Wales, and at the last meeting of the Geological 
Society, (Feb. 5th, 1879,) Dr. Hicks stated that he had ascertained the 
presence of a third new group of pre-Cambrian rocks, which forms ridges 
of quartz-felsite in the neighbourhood of Haverfordwest. They lie 
between the Dimetian and the Pebidian rocks, and he proposed to name 
them Arvonian. Of course these names are only proposed provisionally, 
and as a matter of convenience ; but there can be little doubt that the 
great advances made in late years in the study of igneous and 
metamorphic rocks, together with the introduction of the use of the 
microscope, will greatly alter our ideas of the nature of many of these old 
rocks, and will render their thorough re-examination a matter of necessity. 


MIDLAND UNION OF NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETIES. 


Tur Srconp AnnuaL Mretina or Members will be held at Leicester, 
on Tuesday and Wednesday, May 20th and 21st. A circular will shortly 
be issued to all members of Societies in connection with the Union, con- 
taining the full programme of this Re-union of Midland Scientists and 
their friends. The members of the Leicester Literary and Philo- 
sophical Society are working ‘hard to make the meeting a success, 
and the Mayor of Leicester has kindly granted the use of the new 
Municipal Buildings, The Excursion to Charnwood Forest on the second 
day, (May 21st,) itis proposed to divide into two parties, one mainly 
Geological, and the other mainly Botanical, so as to avoid the incon- 
venience arising from the presence of such a large number in a single 
party as would render it unwieldy and unmanageable. Full particulars 
of the proceedings proposed for both days will be published in the May 
number of the ‘ Midland Naturalist.”—-Hpwarp W. Bapveer, W. JEROME 
Harrison, Hon. Secs. to the Council.—Birmingham, March 24th, 1879. 


Aeports of Sorieties, 


BIRMINGHAM NATURAL HISTORY AND MICROSCOPICAL 
SOCIETY.—February 25th.—Gronocican Srcrion.—Mr. W. Southall was 
elected President of the Section.—Mr. T. H. Waller read some notes on “ Fluid 
Cavities, and other Inclosures in Crystals,” giving a short sketch of their general 
characteristics, and of the method in which they have been produced, with some 
of the deductions which have been drawn from observations made on them. 
Specimens illustrating various points in the paper were exhibited, and a section 
of obsidian from Mexico, showing a polarising structure. produced by the 
straining of the glass round some of the included felspar crystals. March 4th— 
GenrerAL Mretinec.—Mr. Thos. Bolton exhibited embryos of trout and salmon, 
and young Plumatella repens and Fredericella sultana, emerging from the stato- 
blasts.—Mr. J. E. Bagnall exhibited three mosses—Fissidens exilis, from Knowle, 


~~ S," 
‘ 


REPORTS. 105 


rare in Warwickshire; Andrea homomalla, recently added to our British flora ; 
and Buxbaumia indusiata from Ballater.—Mr. Lawson Tait read a long and 
elaborate paper on the gland structures of digesting plants, referring chiefly to 
the Nepenthes or Pitcher plants, describing the different zones of cells, glandular 
or otherwise, which line the interior of the pitchers, and the functions which 
each zone performs in capturing, retaining, or digesting insects. March 11th.— 
Briotoeican Secrrion.—Mr. J. HE. Bagnall exhibited Aulacomnion turgidum, a 
moss new to the British flora, and microscopical preparations of other species. 
Also curious specimens of prolification in leaves of Cardamine pratensis.—Mr. T. 
Bolton exhibited a large collection of organisms from Kinver, including 
Melicerta ringens, Limnias ceratophylli, and other rotifers, several species of 
Infusoria, Radiolaria, &e.—Mr. Cotton exhibited a collection of Foraminifera 
from Barmouth, and from the winter quarters of the Alert—Mr. A. W. Wills 
gave some notes on some of the Unicellular Alga, dwelling especially on the 
value of a study of these plants as giving a clear insight into the laws of cell 
structure and growth, and prefacing an account of the family Palmellacez, from 
which his illustrations were chiefly drawn, by a summary of the views now 
generally accepted by botanists on the subject of the morphology of the vegetable 
cell. These remarks were illustrated by a number of specimens, living and 
mounted, belonging to the genera Protococcus, Chlorococcum, Palmella,Tetraspora, 
Glceocapsa, Urococcus, Apiocystis, &e. March 18th.—MicroscopicaL GENERAL 
Merrtine.—Mr. E. W. Badger exhibited mounted specimen of the larva of 
Tortoiseshell butterfly, showing the spiracles and tracheal system; also, on 
behalf of Mr. Fredk. Enock, six beautifully prepared entomological slides, 
presented to the Society by Mr. Enock.—A cordial vote of thanks was passed to 
the donor.—Mr. W. G. Blatch, after some remarks on the above, exhibited a 
minute beetle, Bryaxis Waterhousei, found only at the sea-side in a very few 
localities —Mr. T. Bolton exhibited living edible frogs (Rana esculenta.)—Mr. 
W. R. Hughes exhibited skin of the common sole (polariscope) and Artemia 
salina, the brine shrimp, an Entomostracan found in the salt-pans at Lymington, 
Hants, mounted by Mr. Enock. 


BIRMINGHAM AND MIDLAND INSTITUTE SCIENTIFIC SOCIETY. 
—February 26th—Mr. W. Russell exhibited and described some Electro- 
tasimeters constructed by himseif. Their sensitiveness was shown by their 
indicating the expansion of a strip of ebonite when breathed upon. March 12th. 
—Dr. Wm. Hinds read an interesting paper on ‘“‘ Hyphal or Basal Fungoid 
Tissue.” The subject was illustrated by drawings and microscopical preparations. 


BIRMINGHAM SCHOOL NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY.—February 
28th.—GENERAL Mrntina.—A paper was read by F. Pearson, entitled “ Birds 
and their Nests.” Microscopical objects were exhibited by A. B. Badger. 
Twenty-two new members were elected. March 14th.—GrenrerAL Mrretinc.—A 
paper was read by H. F. Devis, entitled “‘A Walk round Dolgelly ;”’ mounted 
specimens of plants were exhibited by him, including the following :—Impatiens 
Noli-me-tangere, Campanula (Wahlenbergia) hederacea, Asplenium viride, 
Linaria repens. Five new members were elected, who completed the Society’s 
numbers, namely, fifty. 


BURTON-UPON-TRENT NATURAL HISTORY AND ARCHAHOLOGICAL 
SOCIETY.—March 11th.—Mr. J. Charles Cox, author of ‘“‘ The Churches of 
Derbyshire,” read a paper on ‘“ The Recent Excavations at Dale Abbey.” After 
giving an outline of the history of the abbey, he gave an account of the 
excavations. About six months ago there was nothing to be seen but a lofty arch 
standing in the middle of a large grass field. Mr. St. John Hope happened just 
before then to meet with a plan of Dale Abbey drawn by Dr. Stukeley in 1730, 
and he laid the matter before the Derbyshire Archeological Society. It was 
resolved that the ground should be excavated, and after the preliminary arrange- 
ments had been made the work was commenced. After removing about five feet 
of earth they came to the foundations of the abbey, the walls of which were from 
two to between four and five feet above the level of the floors. They had now 
excavated to the boundary of the field, and had discovered the choir, (eighty feet 
long by thirty-five feet wide,) a double aisle on the south, the foundations of the 
central tower, north and south transepts, a square chapel, and other buildings on 
the south side, but the western part had not yet beem excavated owing to the 


106 REPORTS. 


fact that cottages had been built on the site. Four-fifths of the buildings 
found were of the decorated style of architecture. Mr. Cox then gave a list of 
the ‘ finds,” pointing out particularly the large number of encaustic tiles—some 
of which were unique, and were found in their original positions—the high altar in 
situ at the east end of the choir, a number of tombs and monuments, the beautiful 
mouldings, and one large block of Purbeck marble. He described a number of 
other articles which had been found, and, as he had photographs of some of them 
and a large map of the excavations, he was able to make the address interesting 
andexplicit. In concluding, he cited several legends attached to the abbey, and 
appealed to the members of the Burton Society to make the abbey the destination 
of one of their excursions. 


CARADOC FIELD CLUB.—At a recent meeting the following were 
elected officers for 1879 :—President, Rev. J. D. La Touche ;Vice-Presidents: Rev. 
W. Jellicorse, Rev. J. J. Lambert, Mr. Wm. Phillips; Honorary Secretary and 
Treasurer, Rev. William Elliot. The following Field Meetings were decided 
on :—Wednesday, June 25th, Coalbrookdale ; Wednesday, July 30th, Welshpool ; 
Wednesday, August 27th, The Stiperstones; Wednesday, September 24th, 
(Special for Cryptogamic Botany,) The Wrekin. 


DUDLEY AND MIDLAND GEOLOGICAL AND SCIENTIFIC SOCIETY 
AND FIELD CLUB.—March 13th.—At a committee meeting, held this day, the 
following Field Meetings were arranged for, and several new members elected :— 
April 22nd, Froghall, Cauldon Low, and Cornsall Wood, with the North Staf- 
fordshire Field Club; May 20th and 21st, Leicester, with the Midland Union; 
June 18th, Annual Meeting at Dudley and Frankley; July 24th, Shatterford and 
Arley Castle; August 22nd, Cheltenham; September 23rd, Satton Park; 
October 20th, Bushbury, and Evening Meeting at Wolverhampton. 


EVESHAM FIELD NATURALISTS’ CLUB.—January 22nd.—The Rev. 
Canon A. H. Winnington Ingram, F.G.S., read a paper on ‘‘ The Glacial Deposits 
of the Vale of Evesham.” He divided them into four groups. The oldest, 
capping the Craycombe and Lench Hills, had been deposited by a marine 
current from the north, was destitute of animal remains, and composed chiefly 
of quartzose pebbles, many of which were halves of rounded fragments of 
transition rocks. The pebbles had been cloven in two probably by the action of 
intense frost. The next series of drift was also a marine accumulation after an 
elevation of the land, and was found on subjacent eminences, rising from seventy 
to 120 feet above the level of the Avon. This gravel is composed of water- 
worn fragments of older rocks, and includes on Green Hill some very large 
perfect flints with marks of Glacial Striation, transported, no doubt, 
on ice from a south east direction. The beds of gravel and sand at 
Harvington, Norton, and Lenchwick were laid down by the sea after it had 
retired from the higher ground, and left a wider area for animal life. Bones of 
the mammoth and other mammalia appear in this drift, and there are 
signs of a large river from the north having debouched into the 
marine waters. The gravel terraces occurring on both banks of the Avon were 
formed by the river when it flowed in a stream more than half a mile broad. 
The fluviatile origin of these terraces of sand and pebbles is indicated by the 
occurrence of river shells at their base. The presence of antlers of reindeer, and 
bones and teeth of the long-haired elephant and woolly rhinoceros, bespeaks a 
cold climate at the time of their deposition. The association of the teeth and 
tusks of the Hippopotamus major, a congener of which is at present a native of 
South and Central Africa, with the relics of northern animals, may be explained 
by the supposition that the bones of the latter were floated on river ice, from a 
colder territory, or by the hypothesis of intervals of a genial climate occurring in 
the ice age, more suited to the condition of life of the river-horse, which 
could not have existed when the watery element in which it delights was frozen 
over during a great part of the year, and the adjoining land supported only 
stunted birches and mosses and lichens, the food of the reindeer. Fresh-water 
shells in a layer of fine sand at the bottom of those highly interesting gravel 
deposits, near the New Inn at Cropthorne and Little Comberton, testify that they 
owe their origin to the neighbouring rivulets which formerly flowed in a much 
larger volume of water, and so seem to afford a corroboration of Mr. Tyler's 


oe ee 


~—__ 


REPORTS. 107 


theory of the existence of a time of more abundant rainfall, which he styles the 
pluvial period. The Beckford sand and local gravel beds are proved by the 
presence of sea shells of boreal type to be of marine formation and the abundance 
of mammalian remains in them, including Bos primigenius, Bos longifrons, 
and Bison priscus, and the bones of horses, red-deer and bears in the Cropthorne 
and Little Comberton drift help to give a picture of the fauna of the period when 
they were accumulated. Noimplements used by Palolithic man had as yet 
been discovered in the drift of our district, but a very fine polished flint axe 
turned up from the soil of Harvington, probably by the deeper penetration of the 
steam plough, testified to the existence of Neolithic man, who after a long inter- 
val of time succeeded his Paleolithic predecessor. A slate bracer in Mr. 
Ingram’s cabinet and described by Mr. Evans in his work on stone implements, 
may have protected the wrist of some Neolithic savage when he directed his 
arrow against the carnivorous creatures with which he disputed the dominion 
over the beasts of the field. Mr. Ingram agreed with Mr. James Geikie in 
considering the existence of the ice age of which our gravels afford indisputable 
evidence as due to the winters of our hemisphere occurring when the earth was 
in aphelion, or at its farthest distance from the sun, and not as they do now, 
when the earth is in perihelion, or nearest to the sun. A contemporary occur- 
rence of a maximum ellipticity of the earth’s orbit increasing the distance of our 
planet from the centre of heat by 8} millions of miles would necessarily intensify 
the cold. This astronomical phenomenon happening vast ages ago, and the slow 
dripping of stalagmite on cave deposits contemporary with a portion of our gravels 
all agree in corroborating the opinion warranted by the investigation of our 
drifts, that a period of long duration must have elapsed during their accumulation, 
disturbance, and redistribution. In fact, if astronomy affords us an insight into 
the immensity of space, geology offers to our contemplation an infinity of time.— 
March 5th, Mr. J. S. Slater read a paper on ‘“‘ The Reproduction of Ferns,’ illus- 
trated by specimens under the microscope. 


NOTTINGHAM LITERARY AND PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY.— 
Naturat Science Secrion.—February 28th.—Mr. Henry Hartnell read a 
paper on “The Mechanical Equivalent of Heat, and How it has been Deter- 
mined.” The terms ‘“‘ work” and “ energy,” as used by scientists, were explained. 
“ Work” was defined as the production of motion against resistance. ‘‘ Energy ” 
denotes simply the power of doing work. The principle of the conservation of 
energy was explained, and examples given of the different forms of energy. The 
conversion of work into heat, and the experimental methods by which the 
numerical relation between the quantity of heat and the quantity of work has been 
determined, were Jealt with. In establishing the convertibility of work into 
heat, Joule showed that to raise a pound of water 1°F. in temperature required 
the expenditure of as much energy as would raise a weight of one pound toa 
height of 772ft. Joule made experiments in the friction of solids and fluids, in 
magneto-electricity, and in the condensation of gases. In these experiments the 
mechanical energy of a suspended weight was transformed, by the friction of a 
paddle rotating in water, into heat, and the temperature of the water raised. 
Iron discs were rotated in contact with mercury. Mechanical energy was 
expended in generating electric currents by induction, which, in turn, were 
converted into heat, and by comparing the work expended with the heat produced 
the mechanical equivalent was deduced. The experiments in the condensation 
of gases gave approximate results. March 7th.—Mrs. Cowen read a paper on 
‘** A Ramble in the Inner Hebrides.” Starting from Glasgow, steamer was taken 
at Greenock, through the Kyles of Bute, along the lower part of Loch Fyne, 
through Crinan Canal, past the Slate Islands, to Oban and the Isle of Mull. At 
the latter place Loch na Keal and Craig Craiggen were visited. The geology of 
the Island ef Mull was described. The following botanical specimens were 
gathered:—Bog Myrtle, Drosera, Cotton Grass, and Bog Asphodel. The 
Island of Eigg was next visited, and the geology of the Scuir described. 
and illustrated by a photograph taken by one of the party. Specimens of the 
fossil conifer Pinites Eggensis were obtained in the conglomeratic beds beneath the 
pitchstone of the Scuir. From Higg the ramble led through the Sound of Sleat, 
to Raasay, Portree, and Gairloch, and the geology and scenery of the route were 
described. Mr. J. J. Harris Teall, M.A., F.G.S., gave a description of the 
microscopic structure of the pitchstone from the Seuir of Higg, of which the 
following is an abstract :—The matrix is of true pitchstone, with crystals of 


108 REPORTS—EXOHANGE. 


glassy felspar, (sanidine ;) some of the specimens have a felsitic matrix. Under a 
lin. the matrix is brown and granular, and a banded structure may be seen, 
probably produced by the movement of the mass when in a viscous condition. 
The interbedded crystals are of two kinds, 1st, of glassy felspar, which are 
transparent, 2nd, opaque crystals. The glassy felspar crystals are of irregular 
forms, triangular, oblong, &c. In some cases the characteristic faces of orthoclase 
may be recognised. They are traversed by irregular cracks along which, as also 
along the edges, decomposition in certain cases has set in. The glassy felspar 
contains the opaque crystals, and also well marked gas cavities. The opaque 
crystals are more regular in form, and belong to the hexagonal system. I have 
never seen biotite so opaque, but Iam disposed to call them by that name. The 
whole specimen is traversed by irregular cracks, along which decomposition has 
taken place. The cracks are filled with a yellowish deposit. When viewed with 
polarised light and crossed prisms the matrix produces a slight action, showing 
that it might be more appropriately termed felsite. This action is no doubt due 
to the great number of exceedingly fine crystals which can be detected under a 
higher power. The matrix in which these crystals are imbedded may be truly 
glassy. The felspar shows fine colouration, the prevailing colours being blue, red, 
and yellow. In several instances the edges of the crystals are surrounded by 
iris coloured rings, which mark the progress of decomposition. In some cases the 
glassy crystals contain a number of very fine acicular crystals, probably apatite. 
This phenomenon is by no means common. The fine acicular crystals are only 
found as endomorphs along with the opaque crystals. The section of Pinites 
from the Scuir of Eigg shows all the characters of a transverse section of an 
ordinary pine. The annual rings are well marked, and turpentine vessels 
exceedingly rare. The autumn cells are smaller than those formed earlier in the 
year. The decomposed portions show a rude pentagonal or hexagonal structure, 
and in the centre is a small portion of tissue still showing the characteristic 
structure, and from this part radial lines are prolonged. 


NOTTINGHAM NATURALISTS’ SOCIETY.—February 5th.—The Hon. 
Sec. (Mr. L. Lee) delivered an address on ‘“‘ Marine Aquaria,” in the course of 
which he described the methods to be pursued for the successful management of 
aquaria generally. The address was illustrated by diagrams. February 19th.— 
General Meeting, to receive a report from the committee appointed at the last 
Annual Meeting to consider the rules of the society. March 5th.—Mr. C. 
Thornton read a paper on Animalcule, and exhibited specimens of Hydra. The 
paper gave interesting particulars of pond-life. It was illustrated by diagrams. 
Localities were mentioned where animalculz may be found. 


SEVERN VALLEY NATURALISTS’ FIELD CLUB.—March 7th.—The 
Annual Meeting was held at Bridgnorth, when the following were elected officers 
for the year :—President, Mr. T. Martin Southwell ; Vice-presidents: Mr. J. G. P. 
Smith, Mr. A. Mathias, Rev. A. T. Pelham, and Mr. 8. T. Nicholls; Secretary, 
Mr. Rowland W. Ralph, Honnington Grange, Newport, Salop. Field Meetings 
as under were arranged:—May 20th, Bewdley, for Habberley Valley and the 
Severn; June 10th, 11th, and 12th, Barmouth; July 17th, Ludlow. 


EXCHANGE. 


CorzorTEeRA.—Anchomenus puellus, for other local species.—Address, 
W.G. Buarcu, Green Lane, near Birmingham. 


Microscopic Siipes ror Excuance.—Synapta skin ; diatoms from New 
Nottingham, South Jarras, Oran, Kristianstad, Franzensbad, &c.; Helis- 
peltas, Arachnoidiscus, Isthmia, Melosira, &c.; parasites of black rat, 
mouse, pigeon, &c.; Polar: Naphthaline, sulphate of magnesia and copper, 
citric acid, stearic acid, &c.; Polycystina, Foraminifera, and anatomical 
sections stained; also insect slides —Winuiam J. Fuuuer, Broad Plain 
Soap Works, Bristol. 


ae 


RAMBLES WITH A HAMMER. 117 


RAMBLES WITH A HAMMER. 


BY W. JEROME HARRISON, F.G.5. 


In writing an account of some geological walks in the midland 
counties, we wish at the outset to state briefly the purpose of our 
remarks. Selecting, as far as possible, districts which exhibit typically 
certain rocks, we propose to point out how these may be best reached 
and studied in the course of one or more day’s walking, describing the 
sections to be visited, and giving such a general idea of the route as will 
enable the visitor to have a knowledge of any remarkable objects to be 
met with on the way. 


We shall estimate an ordinary summer day’s walk of this kind at 
from twelve to fifteen miles, a distance which will be found well within 
the powers of an ordinary individual of either sex. Only those who 
have tried it can form an idea of the pleasant and thorough way in 
which a country can be seen in this manner, or of the improvement in 
health, as well as knowledge, which result from it. 


In clothing we advise stout lace-up boots, a light felt hat, and 
flannel next the skin. A good square-headed hammer is indispensable, 
as also a small compass and the Ordnance or Geological Survey Map of 
the district if possible. A good bag, satchel, or knapsack in which to 
carry provisions, &c., will also be needed; a clinometer, trimming 
hammer, chisel, pocket lens, and tape measure are of course useful, but 
may be taken or left according to the special object of the trip; a good 
plan is to go twice over the ground, on the first visit getting a good 
idea of the nature and lie of the rocks and the salient features generally , 
whilst on the second occasion rocks and fossils may be collected, and the 
sections studied in detail. A note-book and pencil should always be 
carried. 

RAMBLE NO. I.—OVER CHARNWOOD FOREST. 

In selecting a region for a first ramble, our thoughts naturally fell 
upon Charnwood Forest, partly because of the age of the rocks and the 
accessibility of the district, but more especially because we trust that 
many of our readers will during this month avail themselves of the 
annual meeting of the “‘ Midland Union” at Leicester to pay a visit to 
this remarkable outcrop of palewozoic rocks in the very centre of 
England. Charnwood lies within the triangle formed by the towns of 
Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Loughborough, and Leicester. Its shape is an oval 
formed of hilly ridges trending north-west to south-east, the distance 
from Gracedieu to Groby being about eight miles, while the width at 
right angles to this from Bardon Hill to Forest Gate is about five miles, 
Mountsorrel is an outlying mass on the edge of the Soar Valley, two 
miles to the north-east, whilst syenitic bosses crop up as far southwards 
as Sapcote, nine miles from Groby. 

The forest area is formed by crystalline and metamorphic rocks, 
which are, however, at many points covered over by Triassic red marls, 
the latter running up the valleys in long tongues. The metamorphic 

tS) 


118 RAMBLES WITH A HAMMER. 


rocks are a great series of ‘volcanic ashes, grits, breccias, and slates, 


destitute of fossils so far as yet known, and of which the precise age 


(except that they are certainly pre-carboniferous) cannot be decisively 
ascertained. These are pierced and disturbed by syenitic masses of later 
date, and the whole region appears to owe its existence at the surface to 
an extension of the same upheaving forces which elevated the Pennine 
chain. An anticlinal line traverses the forest from north-west to south- 
east, which is also a line of fault. East of this line the strata dip (on 
the whole) at a pretty high angle to the north-east, and on the other 
(western) side we find them inclining in the same way to the south-west. 

The Midland main line from Leicester to Nottingham affords a fair 
view of the eastern ridge, while the branch line from the former town to 
Burton passes along the western side. The line from Ashby to Derby, 
via Melbourne, is of little service to the visitor, as the trains are few and 
fit in badly. 

At least two days are required to ‘‘do” the Charnwood rocks 
properly, of which one should be devoted to the south and east, and the 
other to the centre and north of the chain. One or other of these may 
be taken first, according to the direction from which any person arrives ; 
and, of course, either may be begun at the end which is most con- 
venient. 

First Day’s Wat, from Sileby, by Mountsorrel, Brazil Wood, 
Swithland, Old John Hill, Bradgate Park, Newtown Linford, and 
Groby, to Leicester, (thirteen miles.) Getting out at Sileby, (on 
the Midland main line, seven miles north of Leicester,) we walk 
westwards through the village, stopping to take a brief look at the 
fine church (Decorated Gothic, Henry VI.) and the ancient elm tree 
30ft. in circumference, which grows in the churchyard. Starting from 
the church we may either take the north road and first inspect the 
extensive limestone quarries in the Lower Lias, which lie about halfway 
between Sileby and Barrow-on-Soar, or, avoiding this detour, which will 
be about a mile out of our way, take the west road, which leads straight 
to Mountsorrel. A pleasant half hour’s walk across the alluvium of the 
Soar ends in the main street of the long, narrow village. Turning tothe 
right, we seek the Granite Company’s Offices, and obtain leave to inspect 
the quarry, a request ever kindly granted by the courteous manager, 
(C. H. B. Hambly, Esq.,) himself a good geologist, and one of the earliest 
students of the Royal School of Mines.- Then, walking up a narrow 
passage opposite to the offices, we find ourselves in the midst of a scene 
of great animation. In front rises a grand wall of rock, nearly half a 
mile long, and about 100ft. in height. On the floor lie enormous blocks 
of the rock, and in long lines of wooden huts some 600 men and boys are 
engaged in breaking these up into setts, kerbs, &c. Tiny steam engines, 
the ‘‘ Fairy,” “ Pixy,” &c., are puffing up and down, conveying heavy loadsto 
the powerful steam stone-crushers, and carrying finished material by a 
branch line to the company’s siding near Barrow. ‘The rock is a 
hornblendic granite, consisting of felspar, quartz, hornblende, and a very 
little mica. There are two principal varieties, grey and pink, the difference 
being caused by the variation in tint of the felspar. Embedded in the 


RAMBLES WITH A HAMMER. 119 


stone are many darker more finely crystalline lumps, which may, perhaps, 
be included fragments not quite melted down. A basaltic dyke, known 
as the ‘‘ Great Fault,” runs obliquely across the face of the quarry from 
north-west to south-east; it is of a bluish tint, and is overlaid by breccia 
and ‘‘ mush,” as the workmen style any soft, decomposed rock. Crystals 
of iron pyrites are common in the granite, and a rather rare mineral, 
molybdenite (called ‘‘lead” by the men,) is not uncommon. At the 
entrance of the quarry the triassic red marls may be seen resting on the 
granite; they are much ripple-marked, and contain large blocks of stone 
at their base. Climbing the ridge which bounds the quarry on the right 
hand or northern extremity, we look over into a hollow containing some 
fine examples of glaciated rock-surfaces. Ascending the hill we reach 
the spot once occupied by a windmill, a well-known landmark, removed 
in consequence of the advance of the quarry “face.” Here is a very 
typical felstone dyke, only about eight inches thick, of a compact texture, 
and pinkish colour. Several other dykes or veins of similar material 
occur in the quarry, and are called ‘‘salmon” by the workmen, 
From this point there is a fine view across the Soar Valley 
to the marlstone ridges of East Leicestershire. The rounded 
hill to the south-east is Billesdon Coplow, the promontory due 
east Borough Hill. On the north-west, the great expanse of Buddon 
Wood lies close at hand, where the lily of the valley still flowers, and 
where enormous ant-nests excite our curiosity, and send us with renewed 
pleasure to the perusal of Sir John Lubbock’s papeis on their habits ; 
beetles, too, are many, and include some rare species. But we must turn 
to the west and then south-west, leaving this inviting spot on our right; 
until after walking a mile we reach some cottages, standing on another 
granitic tor, called Kinchley Hill. Going still south-west we cross a 
brook by means of a great slab of Swithland slate which forms a capital 
bridge, and walk along the side of Brazil Wood, until an outcrop of rock 
in the middle of a field on our right induces us to walk up and examine 
it. This little knoll is formed of diorite (felspar and hornblende.) It is 
a coarse, dark rock, and excessively tough, as the rock collector will find 
when he attempts to secure a good specimen. Next we enter the wood 
on our left by a gate, and stand in front of a small quarry of gneissic 
rock, while within a few yards there is a final outcrop of Mountsorrel 
granite. The gneiss and diorite occur at this point only, and to discover 
their relationship to each other and to the granite it will be necessary 
to make a small excavation to lay bare the line of junction. Returning 
to the field path we walk on, noticing Swithland Hall (Lord Lanesborough’s 
seat) on the south-east (left hand,) and in ten minutes enter the village of 
Swithland, where, if needful, we can recruit at ‘The Griffin.” Con- 
tinuing our walk westwards we reach the cross-roads, where large 
deserted slate quarries afford us our first glimpse of the metamorphic 
series. Standing on the edge of the pit we can discern the bedding and 
dip (30° H.N.-E.) by means of the stripe, or variation in tint of the beds 
owing to difference of texture and weathering. West of theroad are the 
lovely grounds and house of The Brande, where the late Mr. Alfred Ellis 
loved to encourage the residence of every wild animal and bird native to 


120 RAMBLES WITH A HAMMER. 


the district (see his letters to the Times on the habits of the badgers who 
made their home here.) Turning to the left hand and going southwards 
we enter a bye-road which leads through Swithland Wood. Here is 
a quarry of great depth, (about 250 feet,) worked by Messrs. John Ellis 
and Sons. The slates are of a dull blue tint, not cleaving so well as the 
Welsh slates, but producing a roofing material which is practically ever- 
lasting. The dip is E. 30°. No fossils, we have already remarked, are 
known to occur in any Charnwood rocks, yet every student would do well 
to search these Swithland slates. Prof. Morris once told us that long 
ago he devoted three days to the task, and felt some chagrin at his 
want of success; but ‘“‘never despair” must be the watchword, and it is 
our firm conviction that these Charnwood strata will yet at some point 
or other yield us evidence of life. How all-important such a discovery 
would be it needs no words to point out. Other attractions of Swithland 
wood are the many rare mosses, and the snakes and blind-worms which 
may be found by turning over a few of the large stones. Going south, 
and clambering, if necessary, over one or two stone walls, we strike the 
straight piece of road which runs up Ling Dale, and which, with its 
northern continuation to Sheepshed, runs so nearly along the line which 
separates the eastern and western dips, that it deserves the name of the 
“ Anticlinal Road.” Turning to the left (south-east) and walking down 
this road we reach Holgate (Hall-gates) Lodge, and enter Bradgate Park 
on the right. The path runs right through this famous demesne, leaying 
Holgate Hill on the right, and with a large reservoir (140 acres) on the 
left. Soon we pass the ruins of Bradgate House, once the home of Lady 
Jane Grey. A little quarry on the left hand (across the brook) shows 
quartz-grit, and fine slates. Old John Hill, capped by a tower, (a 
modern erection,) rises on the right hand to a height of about 720ft., its 
sides and top show well the banded slates so characteristic of Charnwood ; 
they dip 60° south. Close at hand (south-west) is the village of Newtown 
Linford, where artists flock in summer to sketch the fine “bits” of 
scenery in the neighbourhood, and where, at the ‘Bradgate Arms,” (Beck’s,) 
every want can be supplied. 


Taking the south road, (nearly opposite the little old church,) a 
mile’s walk brings us to Groby Pool, a fine sheet of water, forty acres. 
Further on is a large syenite quarry (left-hand side of road) where the 
Triassic marls are very finely exposed, dipping away from the igneous 
rock. Now we near Groby Village, and observe a mound on the right, 
the only vestige of the old castle ; close by is part of an old manor-house, 
the residence of Elizabeth Woodville, afterwards the queen of Edward IY. 
Then turning to the left (east-south-east) we have a four miles’ walk over 
the Trias to Leicester. 


Srconp Wark, from Bardon Hill to Green Hill, High Towers, 
Charley, Nanpantan, Forest Gate, and Loughborough. 


Bardon Station is on the Leicester and Burton branch of the Midland 
Railway. As many trains do not stop there, it may in some cases be 
more convenient to get out at Coalville (the next station towards Burton) 
and join the route here given at the Forest Rock Inn. 


eee ee eee 


RAMBLES WITH A HAMMER. 121 


The north-east road from Bardon Station leads to the Birch Tree 
Tun, at the back of which is an exposure of pinkish slates and grits (dip 
80° south-west.) Then, making for the tall chimney of the crushing mill, 
a wood on the right contains a knoll of rock, composed of volcanic breccia, 
irregular masses of slate, &c., embedded in an ashy matrix. At the 
entrance of the lower quarry is a bed of finer breccia, and further in a 
remarkable shale-bed (called a “fault” by the workmen,) and thirty 
yards further a remarkable rock, (on the left hand,) containing large 
quartz and felspar crystals. The main mass of the quarry, (which the 
men ¢all ‘“ good rock,”) is apparently a highly altered slate. The floor of 
the upper quarry is sixty feet above the one below, and a path leads 
thence to the top of the hill, (902 feet,) the highest point in Leicester- 
shire. This is an important trigonometrical centre, and here we see the 
cairn built by the Ordnance Survey. The view is most extensive, 
extending to Black Tor in Yorkshire, (fifty miles north-west,) Lincoln 
Minster, (483 miles north-east,) Stow-on-the-Wold, (fifty-nine miles 
south,) the Wrekin, (fifty-two miles west,) the Longmynds, (sixty-six 
miles west,) &c., and embracing an area of over 9,000 square miles. 
Facing north-east, the forest region lies spread out at our feet like a 
map. Markfield Knowl on the right shows its cone eaten half away by 
the remorseless quarrying to which it has been subjected. We recognise 
Old John with its tower, whilst right in front rises Beacon Hill. Near 
the northern foot of Bardon is Green Hill, on which is a conspicuous 
house having a turret and cupola, (Thos. Nevinson, Esq.) The ridge 
running to the left forms High Towers, Peldar Tor, &c., and just at its 
south-west foot runs the great Coleorton fault which bounds the Leices- 
tershire coal-field, the coal seams rising as they approach it till they 
become vertical. Prof. Hull estimates the ‘‘throw” of this fault at 
2,200 feet. 

Descending the north-west side of the hill through brushwood and 
fern we quickly reach Green Hill, a porphyritic rock, the embedded 
crystals of quartz and felspar having probably been ejected from a 
volcanic vent, a theory which their broken condition goes far to prove, 
This bed is probably identical with the one already described in Bardon 
Quarry, and shows that that hill has been thrown forward by a cross 
fault; the same bed is again seen further north-west at Peldar Tor. 
Gaining the high road we turn to the left, and then cross a field on the 
right ascending the High Towers ridge. Here a bed of breccia, containing 
immense masses of slate, is well exposed; some of these are six feet 
long, and strangely contorted. A little reservoir is close at hand, 
Timberwood Hill lies next on the right, and Ives Head is the bold 
prominence in the north-east. 


Walking along the ridge it is just possible that a call at the Forest 
Rock Inn may be deemed desirable, which will involve a slight detour 
to the left, (south,) where the inn stands at the cross roads. Returning 
along the north-east road, we leave on the left the Roman Catholic 
Reformatory and the well-known Monastery of St. Bernard, (founded in 
1835, Cistercian order, buildings designed by Pugin,) and enter a private 
road on the right, leading to Charnwood Lodge. Here is a wonderful 


122, RAMBLES WITH A HAMMER. 


mass of agglomerate, standing like a wall, and full of fragments of all 
sizes, the ruins in all probability of some long-vanished volcanic cone. 
Continuing north-east across the moorland we reach the Hanging Stone, 
an immense block of breccia, poised on a lower mass; this was once a 
logan or rocking-stone. The Oaks Church now lies close to on the 
north; the rocks near it are grey grits and pale slates, (dip south-west.) 
Keeping to the right we cross Blackbrook, and walk south-east for 14 
miles to the cross roads at Bawdon Lodge, and then turn north (to the 
left.) Now we cross the anticlinal line, leaving the grassy outline of 
Charley Knowl on the left ; half-a-mile on, and to the right is Whittle 
Hill, famous for its little quarry in a bed of compact siliceous slate, 
which yields whet-stones of the first quality, known to workmen all over 
England as ‘‘ Charley Forest Hones,” (dip east 35°.) Here we are close 
to Beacon Hill, (south-east,) and can admire its fine outline; its height 
by aneroid is 850 feet. Regaining the Loughborough road, we walk still 
northwards, crossing the ridge, and noticing the grand rhododendrons of 
Longcliff on the left hand ; half-a-mile further on we ascend Nanpantan, 
the little hill on the right, where banded slates are splendidly exposed. 
Walking on to Loughborough, a deserted quarry on the right-hand 
shows a volcanic breccia, in which the imbedded fragments of slate, &c., 
stand out with remarkable clearness from the ashy glistening matrix. 
From this point it is 23 miles to the station. 

The metamorphic rocks of Charnwood, the ashy slates, grits, breccias, 
agglomerates, &c., would seem to have been ejected from a series of low 
cones in the neighbourhood of a tranquil shallow sea, or large 
lakes. Their total thickness is not much under 10,000 feet. They 
much resemble the Borrowdale series of the lake district and so may 
be of Lower Silurian age, but Dr. Hicks has lately found volcanic 
rocks in his pre-Cambrian (Pebidian) beds. As no fossils have yet been 
found, and as the oldest rock in the neighbourhood is the carboniferous 
limestone, which at Gracedieu, on the north end of the forest, is known 
to rest unconformably on the slates, the age of the latter must remain for 
the present an open question. The syenitic masses are plainly intrusive, 
and are therefore of later date. For detailed information the reader 
should consult an admirable paper by Prof. Bonney and the Rey. H. Hill, 
“ Quarterly Journal Geological Society,” Vol. xxxi. p. 754, and Vol. xxxii. 
p. 199, 1877-78, or my book on the ‘“ Geology of Leicestershire and 
Rutland.” 


NOTES ON THE HAWFINCH. 


Tur Hawrincn apout Dersy.—It seems to be the general opinion 
of ornithologists that the Hawfinch has of late years both extended 
its range in this country and become more plentiful; see the 
account of the bird by the late Mr. Henry Doubleday, in the 
‘“‘ Magazine of Zoology and Botany, ” (Vol. I., p. 148,) which is epitomized 
in Yarrell’s ‘‘ British Birds” (4th ed., Vol. II., p. 99 et seg.); and see 
also the remarks of Professor A. Newton, the editor of that edition, 
(Vol. IL., p. 100,) where he says ‘‘Even while compiling the present 
account of it, the editor has received overwhelming proofs, in addition to 


NOTES ON THE HAWFINCH. 198 


the evidence to the same effect published since Doubleday’s paper 
appeared, of the constant spreading and ever increasing abundance of 
the Hawfinch.” Mr. Stevenson indeed suggests in his most interesting 
book, ‘‘ The Birds of Norfolk,” (Vol.I., p. 214,) thatthe frequent discovery 
of its nests of late years may be due to ‘‘ The more careful researches of 
modern Naturalists,” but if this were really the true explanation, I think 
we should hardly find such a careful observer as Gilbert White writing, 
‘‘ Birds of this sort are rarely seen in England and only in winter.” 


The species is saidin Yarrell (4th ed., Vol. IT., p. 100) to be still alocal 
one, there being ‘‘ Yet wide districts in which it is absolutely unknown.” 
Such being the case, I thought a short record of its occurrences in the 
immediate neighbourhood of Derby might not be uninteresting to the 
readers of the ‘‘ Midland Naturalist.” I thinkit may be said correctly 
that, although the Hawfinch is not a very common bird here, it is a 
resident all the year round and regularly breeds; it has occurred very 
frequently this winter. 

1.—In the spring of 1874 a nest was found at Littleover, at the top 
of asmall larch about 12ft. high. The nest was composed of 
dried grass upon a foundation of twigs, the whole was very 
loosely put together; the eggs were of a dull green, streaked and 
spotted with a light brownish olive green, and indistinctly with a 
light purplish colour. 

2.—End of April, 1877, a pair nested in the churchyard at Darley 
Abbey. One of the old birds was shot. 

3.—In August 1878 four were shot in Mill Hill Lane, almost in the 
town, they were male, female, and two young ones. Most likely 
the old ones had bred in the neighbourhood. 

4.—December 12th, 1878, one shot and another seen in Littleover 
Lane. 

5.—Ist week in January, 1879, another seen at Littleover. 

6.—January 13th, 1879, one caught by a cat at Quarndon. 

7.—Several specimens were also seen during the late severe frost, 
about Belper and one at Spondon Hall, ‘Journal of Derbyshire 
Achzological and Natural History Society,” (Vol. I., p. 128). 

8.—One at St. James’ Parsonage Derby, on February 25th, 1879, 
which, overcoming its usual shyness, fed with the sparrows 
within two feet of a sitting room window. — Derby Mercury, 
February 26th, 1879. 

I may add, in conclusion, it is a thousand pities that this handsome 
species should be so ruthlessly shot as is generally the case, since, if only 
a little mercy were shown it, it would probably soon become much com- 
moner than it is at present.—Mururn, Derby, March 16th. 


Tae Hawrincn at Matvern.—The Hawfinch (Coccothraustes vulgaris) 
has been more numerous about Malvern this season than usual. I have 
heard of it and seen it in small flocks of six to eight in number and have 
received several fine specimens. This interesting bird was formerly con- 
sidered scarce in this neighbourhood, but, probably owing to there being 
more observant eyes than formerly, it is now known to be anything but 
uncommon ; partly too, perhaps, from its natural shyness it has often 
escaped the eye of the tyro ornithologist. Being naturally a shy bird, it 
avoids the neighbouroood of man, and hides itself in woods or other 
secluded spots. Its favorite resort here is a small fir plantation, where it 


124 NOTES ON THE HAWFINCH. 


may be detected by its sharp, shrill note at the approach of danger, similar 
to click, click, click. To get within gunshot of it requires much caution. I 
have invariably noticed, when I have seen the bird in small flocks, one of 
them will perch itself on the extreme top of the highest tree, and there 
act as sentry, keeping a sharp look out. If the flock be once disturbed it 
is a chance if you get near it again. 

I am under the impression the Hawfinch remains here all the year. 
I have upon two occasions found its nest upon the Malvern Hills, in the 
fork of hawthorn bushes, about six to eight feet from the ground, and on 
another occasion at Malvern Wells, in an old apple tree, where, not being 
disturbed, it reared four young birds, which I saw a few days after flitting 
about the trees in the orchard. In each ‘case the nest was very carelessly 
built, and extremely shallow ; it seemed scarcely deep enough to contain 
the bird. It is some years since, while living in Essex, near Bishop 
Stortford, on the borders of Takeley Forest, that my attention was first 
drawn to the Hawfinch. It used to visit a fir plantation regularly every 
year in the month of February. I have seen there from twenty to thirty 
in a flock. It never seemed to stay longer than a week or so. I once, to 
my great delight, it being my first year of collecting bird’s eggs, found in 
the forest a nest containing four eggs. On one or two occasions I have 
dissected the stomach of these birds. In one killed in December, 1878, I 
found remains of hollyberries, apple, and arbutus; in another, in February 
last, there were apple and seeds of, I think, the Scotch fir, with four 
hawthorn seeds. I hope other correspondents interested in this beautiful 
bird will communicate their observations.—W. Hpwarps, Malvern. 


METEOROLOGY OF THE MIDLANDS. 
THE WEATHER OF MARCH, 1879. 


BY W. JEROME HARRISON, F.G.S5. 


March commenced pleasantly, with dry weather, a rather high 
barometer, and south-westerly winds. This state of things con- 
tinued till the 14th, when a radical change took place, the barometer 
falling half-an-inch in twenty-four hours, and wind shifting to the east. 
Snow fell to the depth of one or two inches. A rapid recovery, however, 
took place, and there were a few glimpses of sunshine between the 18th 
and 20th. From the 22nd to the 28th there were strong north-east 
winds, extremely cold and dry, very bitter and trying, bearing out the 
old adage that east winds are “‘ neither good for man nor beast.” Snow 
fell at intervals from the 25th to the 28th. The last three days of the 
month were warmer with westerly winds. 

March was decidedlya dry month. At the majority of stations the 
total fall did not amount to oneinch. The temperature was about 1} 
degrees below the average. There was a thunderstorm near Ludlow on 
the 14th ; lunar halos were seen at Orleton on the 5th and 30th; at 
Loughborough, 4th and 30th; Stokesay, 31st; Leicester, 30th. The 
ploughed fields were in good condition for sowing, the frost having 
reduced the clods to powder; but all gardening operations were very 
backward. The grass looked brown, and no buds had burst in the 
hedgerows at the end of the month. At More Rectory blackbirds com- 
menced whistling on the 9th, and wood-pigeons to coo on the 11th, 
stone-curlews returned very early in the month; at Shifnal rooks began 
to build on 6th,and ringdoves’ coo heard on 17th; snowdrops full out 
on 4th, crocuses 12th, apricot blossoms 29th, celandine on 30th. At 
Coventry the note of the little chiff-chaff was heard on the 30th. At 
Cheltenham bats were seen flying on evening of 19th. 


THE WEATHER OF MARCH. 125 


—— SFMT rerehoweoooeeeeeOr =. ae 


RAINFALL. TEMPERATURE. 
Ss Greatest fall J /Greatest ht. Great’st cold, 
STATION. OBSERVER. Ss in 24 hours. ue, 
t Prac | Gin: Date aS Deg} Date. |Deg| Date. 
GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
Cainscross, Stroud ...... ....|W. B. Baker, Esq. ........| °72] °30) 28 6|70°0| 19 26°0| 14 
Cheltenham ......... Ecieties POON, GUSG: cclevescuscle -| 28] °22) 80 14 |} 59°68) 19 23°0 2 
RUSTIC Rates Win) ssa’ one « ais .|L. J. Coley, Wsq............| 1°02) °32) 29 11 | 5y'0| = 20 240} 21 
SHROPSHIRE. (19 
Haughton Hall, Shifnal ....|/Rev. J. Brooke ......... 89) 17) «16 15 | 54 01d, 12, 18,) 23°0 2 
Woolstaston ....... Suackuass Rev. E. D. Carr.. 155] 50) 17 17/615} 31 |220| 26 
Leaton Vicarage, Shrewsbury|Rev LK. V. Pigott .. .| 1°04] *39) 17 16 | 57°3) 12 28 2 
More Rectory, Bishop’s Castle|Rev. A. Male .......... | 1°48) °88} 17 16 | 53.0} 18 23°0} 13 
Larden Hall, Much Wenlock.|Miss F. R. Boughton ......|1°07| 17] 16 16 
Bishop’s Castle ..............|E. Griffiths, Esq. ..........{ 1°55} 40) 17 | 15/570) 7 |230) 18 
Cardington ......... Fonaneccd(ROv. Wim> KIO ccecncecaf tte] 392) 17 13 
Adderley Rectory............|/Rev. A. Corbet .......0.06.| “94| *21 5 14 
Stokesuy ...................|Rev. J. D. La Touche......{121] 81] 17 | 14/570] 7 |284) 18 
HEREFORDSHIRE. 
Stoke Bliss ............-..-.-|Rev. G. BE. Alexander......| 79] 18] 28 | 16|5s0/ 9 |280) 2 
WORCESTERSHIRE. 
Orleton, Tenbury. T. H. Davis, Esq ..........| ‘81| 10} 28 |15]609) 9 |223) 2 
West Malvern . A. H. Hartland, Esq. *e7| 21) 14 11/600) 9 | 25°0/23,24, 25 
KE. B. Marten, Esq. .. 67} “12) 16 14 |58°0 9 |280} 12 
J. Jeffries Esq. *62| *10} 28 11 |58:0| 29 240) 1 & 13 
Dennis, Stourbridge Mr. C. Webb ....... “59 17] 16 | 11 | 585) 9 2a.) 12 
STAFFORDSHIRE, 
G. J.C. Broom, Esq. ......) °65| 10} 15 | 14] » 
Mr. J. Fisher ........ ‘70! -25| 16 | 14 |58-0|9, 19, 29,| 260) 1 & 13 
..|Mr. C. Beale ...... bb] 11) 16 15 | 54:0| 19 (80) .9°0/28, 24, 25 
.|Rev. W. H. Bolton 63) 13} 28 | 14/5570) 19 | 25:0) 1 & 12 
3 Mr. N. E. Best .... 64] -09| 28 | 17 | 52-0/12,29, 80) 26/12, 28, 24 
Grammar School, Burton..../C. U. Tripp, Esq. .. *s6| “17/16 17 | 600] 29 | 260) B& 18 
Weston-under-Lyziard R'tory|Hon.and Rev.J. Bridgeman} ‘96] 34) 16 | 15 | 580] 5 & 16 | 24-0) 2 & 13 
Wrottesley ..................|E. Simpson, Esq. .......... 59] 17] 16 «| 11 | 555] 20 [225] 18 
Heath House, Cheadle J. C. Philips. Esq..... 110] 30} 16 | 15/570) 19 |250) 18 
Alstonfield Vicarage .. Rev. W. H. Purchas 157| °33] 16 14 | 55°0 9 |204) 26 
WARWICKSHIRE. 
GOVONERY c..c0cc+scess- .|J. Gulson, Misq. ...... sevess} °90] *15] 29 & 30] 15 | 57:0) 20 | 26°0 2 
Coundon, Coventry ...... ..|Lieut.-Col. R. Caldicott ....} °79] ‘16} 28 15570} 19 |270/ 1% 12 
Bickenhill Vicarage..........|J. Ward, Esq...............| 96] 18} 28 8 |53°0 27°0 
Oscott College .......... ‘|Rev. S.J Whitty ..........| 78) ‘24) 16 |13 59-0) 19 |256| 18 
Henley-in-Arden ............|T. H. &. Newton, Bsq......| °90] 12) 16 |13]590| 9 |25°0) 18 
Rugby School...............,|Rev. f. N. Hutchinson ....| °68} 12} 28 | 12/640) 19 |262/ 18 
DERBYSHIRE, 
Pret Onetees so scscsc.ces(He J- Sykes, Weq..s.50.000s 2-69} 68} 16 |15|5e4| 9 |223) 18 
Stoney Middleton............/Rev. U. Smith .... 169| 44) 16 |18|54:0| 19 |19°0) 7 & 24 
Brampton S. Thomas ......)Rev. J. M. Mello.. ‘78| 21] 16 9 |e610) 9 {2:0} 8 
Fernslope, Belver............|J. @ Jackson, Esq. .} 1:36] °3: 16 16 |56:0/ 19 |260| 18 
Willersley Gardens ..........|J. Tissington, Esq.. .| 179 8 
Spondon ..................../J. T. Barber, Esq... -| 94] 81] 16 13 |560/ 29 |244] 12 
- NOTTINGHAMSHIRE. 
Tuxford ..... Banas esiias%« Ses DUNe Duty, Hq. wces.s ssc. 68 540} 19 | 250) 12 
Hodsock Priory, Worksop ..|\H. Mellish, Esq. ..........| 88} ‘14 16 | 15 |591' 29 26-4) 14 
: Park Hill, Nottingham....../H.F. Johnson, Esq. ......|114| 271 16 |13|569) 19 |293/ 2 
Hesley Hall ................|B. J. Whitaker, Esq. ......| °93} ‘21 17 y2|}61:0| 12 |27°0| I4 
LEICESTERSHIRE. | f 
Loughborough ..............|W- Berridge, Esq.......... so] 14, 16 |16]612) 19 |267) 18 
: Ashby Magna.......... .|Rey. E. Willes .... -79| 21| 29 |13/ 610} 19 |200) 18 
| Market Harborough .. .|S. W. Cox, Esq..... -g3| 15} 28 «#113 |570| 19 |.3°0) 18 
SOEUUUMSNR Te pieisigic leicisceciescccse T Macaulay, Esq. .. *e1| *16, 28 18 
; Town Museum, Leicester ....|W. J. Harrison, sq. .....-| °68] 12) 28 | 14/610] 19 |266) 8 
; Belmont Villas, Leicester....|H. Billson, Esq. .......... -70| 13} 28 |14|6¢0) 19 jars} 18 
; Ripa Oise catiis + se .|J. Hames, jun., Hsq. .... -65| *16| 28 &30| 8 |65:0| 20 |270) 13 
Waltham-le-Wold.. .|E. Ball, Esq. .. :..{ 98} 13] 16 | 14/560) 19 |2s0) 2 
Little Dalby Hall............)G. Jones, Esq. .. Toe] 268], 218) “30 14 | 630} 19 |22°0) 13 
; Coston Rectory, Melton...... Rey. A. M. Rende suse ah S68) PEL 930 14/600} 19 |215) 2 
. Belvoir Castle ..:...........|W. Ingram, Esq. ........../1:02} °26 81 | 16|600) 20 [25:0} 48 
NoRTHAMPTONSHIRE. 
Towcester Brewery..... Peers WeWODD; LAG nsiccieeseemsistel) eOOlpeto|| 180 13 
Castle Ashby ................|R. G. Scriven, Esq. ........| 99] 18) 29 |12]580/ 7 ,2S°0} 12 
; Kettering....... $3 UideeWallis;HGsQ> vsvccvceeses| 92) 12|| +29 14.1570} 20 j27°0! 18 
Althorpe . C.,S. Groom, Esq...........| °63} 10) 31 14 ,57:0| 19 | 25°0/ 2,8,9 
Pitsford ....................|C. A. Markham, Esq......./ *83| ‘11} 30 18 |62°0) 19 |250) 12 
5 Northfields, Stamford ......|W. Hayes, Msq.........2++-) ‘97] ‘40] 18 } 10/600} 29 |26°0) 2 
Ventnor Hospital.... ../H. Sagar, Esq. 73] °20) 18 12 | 576 9 81°6] 25 
Altarnun Vicarage ..........| Rev. G. Tripp.. «-)1°87| *35) 19 18 64:0) 20 25°0 2&14 


Merroronocy.—I should be much obliged if some one would tell me 
the name of a good and comprehensive text book on general Meteorology, 
tolerably up to date. It must be in either French or English.—H. M. 


Sprinc Frowers.—In March I noticed Whitlow Grass in flower on 8th, 
Coltsfoot 10th, Chickweed 12th, Cardamine hirsuta 17th, Lesser Celandine 
27th, and Saxifraga oppositifolia on 30th.—Stroud: 8. J.C. Chickweed 
flowered on 8th, apricot on 30th.—Burton-on-Trent: C. U. T. 


126 MICROSCOPY. 


YY? 
Alicroscopy. 


Mr. SuHarrvs’s Metnop or Movuntinc.—Mr. Sharpus, an amateur 
microscopist, of London, and an esteemed corresponding member of the 
Birmingham Natural History and Microscopical Society, has lately 
presented to that Society specimens of his microscopical preparations of 
Kchinoderms and other objects. 

All these objects are so remarkable for their exquisite beauty as 
microscopical preparations, that they are valued by the Society as perfect 
models of what such objects should be. Mr. Sharpus has, therefore, 
been asked to give, for the benefit of our readers, an account of the means 
by which such admirable results were obtained, and he has kindly 
acceded to the request. Perhaps the most noticeable for beanty are the 
minute star-fishes, Ophiocoma rosula, O. neglecta, and Asterina gibbosa. 
About these Mr. Sharpus writes:—‘‘It is imperative that they be 
prepared immediately they are taken from the sea. They must be killed 
by being plunged into cold fresh water, and then placed in weak liquor 
potasse. The time for remaining in this varies so much with different 
specimens that it is impossible to say anything more definite than that 
care must be taken to remove them before they show signs of breaking 
up; then wash repeatedly in distilled water, and dry on blotting paper, 
in sunshine if possible. No pressure must be used. Mount either as dry 
opaque objects, or in balsam.” 

As to the Pedicellarize of Uraster rubens, and U. glacialis, the direc- 
tions are:—‘‘ Remove a ray and macerate it in liquor potasse till the 
‘pedes’ leave the skin upon the liquor being agitated; wash in distilled 
water, and select the most perfect specimens for mounting. They can 
be fixed to the slide with gum tragacanth, to which has been added a 
little gum acacia. The pedicellariz and ambulacral discs of Echinus 
may be obtained from a specimen that is dried. Treat with liquor 
potassze, but with extreme care, lest the segments of the calcareous disc 
separate.” Amongst the objects presented were heads of Vanessa, 
Bombyx, &c., which were singularly clear and perfect. Of these Mr. 
Sharpus says :—‘‘ They were boiled in weak liquor potasse until the pig- 
ment in the eyes, and all else that could be dissolved, had disappeared ; 
they were then washed, and boiled in distilled water for five minutes. 
They are mounted in glycerine.” 

‘Palate of Buccinum was placed in liquor potasse for a day, ora 
little more, then washed in distilled water, stroking it with a sable brush, 
in the direction of the teeth, to clean it.” 

Mr. Sharpus assures us that extreme care, great patience, and some 
little experience are the essentials of his success in the mounting of 
these objects, and that with these essentials, and perseverance, equal 
success may be attained by any one. 

It will interest our readers to know that, solong ago as 1875, Mr. 
Sharpus exhibited to the Birmingham Natural History and Microscopical 
Society preparations of Ophiocoma neglecta, which he believed proved that 
that star-fish certainly was viviparous. Mr. Hughes, F.L.8., read before 
the Society, on the 16th February in that year, a paper upon these 
preparations, describing their peculiarities, and pointing out the extra- 
ordinary nature of the fact which these specimens seemed to prove. So 
startling, however, was the assertion that a star-fish could be viviparous, 
that the Society dared not accept it fully from the evidence then laid 
before them. The observations of Sir Wyville Thomson, which have 
since been published, prove that Mr. Sharpus was right in his conclu- 
sions, and that certainly he was one of the discoverers of this astonishing 
fact in the lite-history of Ophiocoma. JosEPH Brace. 


4 


MICROSCOPY—CORRESPONDENCE. 127 


Fresuwater Lire.—Mr. Bolton’s little “tubes” only need to be 
known to be more generally subscribed for. The other evening we had 
the contents of four different tubes under observation, and we could not 

“help wishing that all our readers who own microscopes would put them- 
~ selves in communication with Mr. Bolton, (17, Ann Street, Birmingham,) 
and get a supply of the good things he is continually distributing over 
the country. One tube contained a colony of Plwnatella repens, most of 
them emerged, others just in the act of emerging from the statoblasts. Who 
that has seen the lovely lophophore of this beautiful polyzoon needs any 
description to recall it, and what words would give an adequate idea of it 
to those who have not? In another tube there was a supply of Nitella 
translucens, (in which the circulation of the sap was visible,) to which 
were attached innumerable bunches of Carchesitum polypinum, so 
well described in our last number by Mr. Forrest. A third tube 
contained another kind of Carchesium, much like an Hpistylis, 
which, so far as we know, has not yet been described. There were also 
specimens of Puludicella Ehrenbergi, Limnias ceratophylli, Hydatina 
senta, Buglena viridis, and numerous other interesting objects. We 
warmly advise all microscopists to subscribe to Mr. Bolton for a regular 
supply of living freshwater objects, which he distributes in a manner 
rendering their examination as easy as it is possible to be, for he usually 
forwards with each tube illustrations and descriptions of the objects, 
- which are invaluable to those who are unacquainted with the objects sent. 


Correspondence. 
$$$ —___— 

Snow Fraxes.—Whilst walking home on the 26th of March, about 
one in the morning, snow began to fall very gently, but instead of the 
usual powdery or feathery appearance, each flake consisted of a distinct 
plate, in some cases perfect six-pointed crystals. I measured some of the 
plates, and the largest were as much as Zin. across. On taking up a handful 
the appearance was most peculiar. Instead of the white opaque body 
one usually sees, the mass was pearly, and although very familiar with 
Boracic acid, I should have found some difficulty in deciding between a 
handful of that body and the snow. The effect near the lamps was 
very beautiful, more especially as the road became covered, the ground 
appearing covered with luminous points, which scintillated like stars as 
one walked along, whilst the falling crystals reflected iridescent hues. 
The effect in the country, on igniting some magnesium wire, was very 
brilliant. It was a cold dull night, barometer falling.—F’. KE. L., Burton- 
upon-Trent. 


Buack Banp In THE Drirt.—lI have recently noticed a curious bed 
in the drift, near Birmingham, of which a short account may be interest- 
ing. It occurs in a new railway cutting at Washwood Heath, on the 
Birmingham and Coleshill Road, and consists of a black band of about 
four to six inches in thickness. It appears to resemble peat, for it dries 
brown, and contains sufficient vegetable matter to make it burn in the 
fire. Traces of vegetable structure can be seen with a lens, but it is not 
very distinct. Above this bed lie about twelve feet of sand, and it rests 
upon a thin bed of white, tenacious clay. Below this is a thick bed of 
sand and pebbles, of which the thickness cannot be seen, but which 
evidently reposes on the red marl of the Triassic system. The black 
band terminates rather abruptly towards the north, but the excavation 
has not been carried far enough, as yet, to show how far it extends in 
other directions. I have never met with a similar formation in the drift, 
but should like to know if itis a common occurrence.—A. H. Arkins, 
Birmingham. , 


128 CORRESPONDENCE. 


PouLeN or THE Hazen.—Examining the pollen from the cultivated 
hazel in my nuttery (the Fill-basket variety) with a magnifying power of 
about 400 diameters, I find that although when dry the grains look 
nearly all alike, when moistened with water they vary greatly. Three 
distinct forms are distinguishable, two of which (I will call them A and B) 
are triangular in shape and show three projections of the intine ; but while 
A is of equal transparency throughout, B has only the projections trans- 
parent. The third form (C) is slightly larger than the others, the 
triangular shape of A and B is but faintly indicated, the projections of 
the intine are not developed, but there is a distinct granular opaque 
nucleus in a transparent sac. I conclude that these variations are due 
to differences of ripeness in the pollen-grains; that in C, the growth of 
the intine being less advanced, the absorption of water has swelled the 
extine and caused a separation between the two tissues, leaving the intine 
as a central nucleus ; while in A and B, the extine being already broken 
through at the three angles, it is the intine which has absorbed the water 
and so increased the prominence of the projections. The difference 
between A and B consists probably in this, that A being a little riper the 
intine has burst at the three projections and discharged the granular 
fovilla, leaving only the transparent sac. On close examination a slight 
raggedness may be seen at the apex of each projection in A.—F. T. 
Mort, Birstal Hill, Leicester. 


Notres on OrnnitHotocy.—During the past severe winter our usual 
winter visitors disappeared in a very marked way. At the commence- 
ment of the frost, on the 7th December, Fieldfares and Redwings were 
unusually abundant, Starlings also were as numerous as usual. After 
the frost had lasted a fortnight, all three disappeared entirely and were 
no more seen until the frost fairly broke up. This did not take place 
until the 2nd February, so that during eight weeks I did not see a single 
specimen of either genus. As soon as the frost broke up, and they 
could hunt for their food on the grass, the starlings returned at once, 
but the fieldfares were not seen again till the 15th February, and since 
that time have only been occasionally observed, and in very small flocks. 
The same may be remarked of the redwings. There is no one of our 
migrants which remains with us so long as the fieldfare; arriving about 
the third week in October, I have observed it passing on its return 
journey as late as May 10th, (1877,) a period of nearly seven months. 
On 29th March I heard the welcome voice of our first arrival, the Chiff- 
chaff. This was followed on the 4th April by the Blackeap. On the same 
date (4th April) I saw a Wheatear, and on the 7th I heard the Wryneck. 
I see in the last number of the ‘“‘ Midland Naturalist ” a report of the Wry- 
neck being heard in Oxfordshire on the 6th March. Without for one moment 
suggesting a doubt of the accuracy of the observation, it would be inter- 
esting to know whether the bird was seen as well as heard, as the date is 
at least three weeks earlier than usual. In this county it never appears 
earlier than the first week in April, and generally later, preceding the 
Cuckoo, whose ‘‘mate” it is, only by a few days. In the ‘ Birds of 
Oxfordshire,” published about thirty years ago by the Brothers Matthews, 
in the “‘ Zoologist,” they give the date of the arrival of the Wryneck in that 
county as from the last week in March to the third week in April. If 
the bird were not seen, but only heard, I might suggest the possibility of 
mistaking the call-note of the Kestrel during the pairing time, (which 
would correspond to the date mentioned,) for the note of the Wryneck, 
from which it would be very difficult indeed to distinguish it. On the 
29th March I observed three Dotterel on a newly-turned fallow near 
Kibworth. These birds are rarely seen here.—T. Macaunay, M.R.C.S.L., 
Kibworth. 

Buzzarp 1x Nortu Norrs.—It may interest some of your readers to 
know that a common Buzzard (Buteo vulgaris) was killed near here on 


: 


CORRESPONDENCE. 129 


April 8rd. The bird had been constantly seen in the neighbourhood 
since Christmas; it frequently took rabbits from the keepers’ traps. The 
enly spring migrant which I have noticed as yet was a Willow Wren 
(Phylloscopus trochilus), or Chiff-chaff (P. collybita), I am not quite certain 
which, on April 5th. Very few signs yet of birds beginning to build.— 
H. Meuuisu, April 8th. 


Asyormat Hen’s Eacs.—Noting a paragraph on the above subject 
in your last number, I was led to hunt up a note concerning an egg laid 
by a Brahma fowl last September. The egg was 3gin. long by 24in. 
diameter. On breaking it was found to contain another egg in a perfectly 
sound shell, measuring 24in: long by 2in. diameter, the intermediate 
space containing only white albumen. The inner egg was complete and in 
no way differing apparently from an ordinary egg. The same fowl has 
laid many very large eggs, mostly double-yolked, both this season and last. 
—F. E. L., Burton-upon-Trent. , 


Correction.—In my notes in the April number, page 102, I made 
some remarks on geese, which it would be better for readers to erase 
altogether, as some confusion has arisen as to species.—O. V. A., 
(Bodicote, Oxon,) April, 1879. 


Gleanings. 


Tur History or Coau.—This is the title of an excellent lecture by 
the Rev. Thos. Wiltshire, M.A., F.G.S., published by Spon, (price one 
shilling.) It gives in a thorough, yet concise and readable manner, an 
account of this important mineral, as known to the ancients, and also 
all that is known as to its, use and development in Great Britain. 


Licnans.—Mr. Charles Larbalestier, B.A., proposes to issue during 
the ensuing summer and autumn fasciculi of the Lichens of the Channel 
Islands, England, and Ireland. Many of the species will be new to 
science or extremely rare. For particulars apply to the Author, Roche 
Vue, St. Aubin’s, Jersey. 


Pottmn.—A comprehensive and valuable paper on the subject of 
“Pollen” was recently read at Natal, before the Natal Microscopical 
Society, by Mr. Maurice §. Evans. A copy of this paper has been sent 
to us by the Secretary. We congratulate our distant microscopical 
friends on having among their members such good original workers in 
science as the author of this paper. 


Doration or Lirr.—We quote the following from the Proceedings 
of the Geologists’ Association (Vol. V., p. 336.) At a meeting at the 
British Museum the keeper of the botanical department, Mr. Carruthers, 
‘informed the members that he had revived Bauer’s specimens of the 
minute annelid, Vibrio, known as the ‘paste eel,’ after it had been 
‘pectously dead’ for sixty years.” This is the finest instance of 
“‘revivification ” which we have yet come across, and one might incline to 
feel sceptical were it not that the high scientific reputation of Mr. 
Carruthers forbids such an idea. 


THE YorKSHIRE NAtuRAuists’ Union commenced the season of 1879 by a 
visit to Ingleton, on the 14th of April last. A special train from Leeds 
and Bradford conveyed about sixty members. Ingleton is situated at 
the confluence of two mountain streams which drain the slope of 
Greygreth, (2,250ft.,) Whernside, (2,414ft.,) and Ingleborough, (2,373ft.,) 

U 


130 GLEANINGS. 


three of the loftiest mountains of the West Riding. The party broke up 
into sections and explored in different directions, under the guidance of 
qualified leaders, some devoting themselves to geology, others to botany, 
and others again to ornithology. The sections reassembled for tea, at 
the Ingleborough Hotel; afterwards sectional meetings were held, and 
then a general meeting, at which the Rev. W. Fowler, M.A., vice presi- 
dent, occupied the chair. The sectional reports were then presented. 


Gatt-marine Prant Licz.— The life-history, and the agamic 
multiplication of the aphidide have always excited the interest of 
entomologists, and have even attracted the attention of some of the 
most eminent of our naturalists. Vol. V. (1879) of the ‘Bulletin of the 
United States Geological Survey” contains some biological notes by 
Dr. Riley, in which he recounts the following remarkable history :— 
Schizeneura Americana is a species of aphis which infests the leaves of the 
American elm, sometimes in such numbers as to cause all the leaves to 
fall. If during the winter the cracks in the bark of one of these trees 
that was badly infested with this leaf-curling species the previous 
summer be examined, there will pretty surely be found here and there 
a small dull yellow-coloured egg, about ‘5mm. long, probably still covered 
with the remains of the female’s body, quite dried up. Out from this 
egg, in the early spring, will be hatched the little crawling creature 
which constitutes the first generation in a very remarkable series. This 
‘‘stem-mother” begins to feed, and causes the leaf to swell up and 
pucker until it at last curls over the tiny form. After three moults, and 
the temperature being warm, it commences to people the leaf with 
young at the rate of about one every six or seven hours. The second 
generation, though they never grow to be at all as large as the stem- 
mother, are like her in many respects. ‘They accumulate in vast 
numbers, some of which, scattering, form new colonies. Their issue 
forms the third generation which are destined to become winged. 
These winged forms are short-lived, but they lay twelve or more 
pseudova at average intervals of about half an hour, The young plant- 
lice from these form the fourth generation, the members of which are 
very active, running swiftly. They are of a brown colour, and are some- 
what like in general appearance to those of the second generation. In 
this stage they swarm over every portion of the tree, and their necessities 
cause them to migrate, in which effort masses of them get destroyed. 
The fifth generation is very similar to the fourth. It gives rise to forms 
like the fourth, but without wings. These give origin to the sixth 
generation. All of these acquire wings. These abound in the latter end 
of June and early part of July. They congregate on the bark, seeking 
out sheltered cracks or crevices, in which they deposit their young. 
These form the seventh generation, and are sluggish, of the colour of the 
bark, the females a little larger than the males. They have no mouth. 
They live for several days without motion. The female seems to increase 
in size by the enlargement of her one single egg. Both sexes soon perish, 
leaving among their shrivelled bodies the shining, brownish, winter egg, 
with which we started ; so, after a long series of vegetative reproductions, 
at last the time comes for the renewing of the race by this zygospore-like 
body. Surely in this lies a hint to our plant-growers. It would be easier 
to destroy a single egg than stop a stream of agamic-produced forms 
extending to six generations. 


Roman Guass.—The Leicester Town Museum contains many 
specimens of Roman g]ass vessels, but probably none exceed in interest a 
small fragment of a circular vessel, perhaps a drinking cup, which was 
found in Hast Bond Street, Leicester, in 1874, and presented to the 


= 


GLEANINGS—REPORTS. 131 


museum by T. Fielding Johnson, Esq. The fragment is 3 inches in 
diameter, and 24 inches in height. It represents rather less than 
one-half of the upper portion of the entire vessel. Ona panel, 18-inch 
in depth, are seen the figures of two gladiators, armed with helmet, 
shield, and short sword, apparently wearing greaves on their legs, and 
clothed in short tunics. One lies prostrate on his back, and the other 
stands near him, in a threatening attitude. The figures are about 
1} inches in height, and the scene was evidently repeated, perhaps all 
round the bowl, as a portion of the erect figure can be seen again near 
the broken edge. On the upper margin of the vessel, above the figures, 
is the following inscription :—* SPICVLVS COLVMBVS CALM.....VS.” 
The two last letters appear on the left hand side of the fragment, and 
appear to be the termination of the whole inscription, which probably 
ran round the entire vessel. In this vessel we probably have the record 
of some famous gladiatorial contest, the names of the combatants 
being very likely those recorded on the margin of the vessel. The glass 
itself is of a greenish blue tint, and is now beautifully iridescent. It 
must have been blown in a mould, as the figures are in relief on 
the exterior, with corresponding hollows within. A description of this 
interesting fragment, together with an excellent drawing by A. H. Paget, 
Esq., appears in, the number lately issued (Vol. IV., Part 4) of ‘The 
Transactions of the Leicestershire Architectural and Archeological 
Society.” 


Acports of Societies, 


BIRMINGHAM NATURAL HISTORY AND MICROSCOPICAL 
SOCIETY.—Gerotocican Srction.—March 25th—Mr. T. Bolton exhibited 
embryo salmon covered with embryo swan mussel. Mr. Crick exhibited pollen 
of mistletoe. Mr. Lawson Tait presented to the Society a photograph of the 
birthplace of Dr. Charles Darwin, for which the best thanks of the Society were 
tendered to him. Mr. Atkins exhibited a specimen of apparently vegetable 
matter from a depth of 20ft. in the drift sand, just above a bed of clay, in a 
cutting on a new line of railway near Birmingham. Mr. ©. J. Watson exhibited 
a series of rocks from Charnwood Forest, sent by Mr. W. J. Harrison. of 
Leicester, as a typical collection for comparison in boulder examination. 
Genera Meerine.—April 1st.—Mr. T. Bolton exhibited Paludicella Ehrenbergi 
showing the hybernaculum or winter-bud; Cristatella mucedo emerging from 
the statoblast; Anurea squamula, a free-swimming Rotifer; and Stentors 
Epistylis, Ophrydia, &c., from Barnt Green. Mr. GC. E. Crick exhibited the 
mistletoe, showing male and female flowers; Daphne laureola ; and a fasciated 
stem of Dogwood. Mr. J. E. Bagnall exhibited Plagiochila asplenioides from 
Wylde Green, Grimmia apocarpa from near Wolverhampton, and Chiloscyphus 
polyanthus from Sutton Park; also, on behalf of Dr. Braithwaite, Blasia 

usilla, collected by Jensen in Jutland, showing the gemma-like bodies in situ. 

r. C. Pumphrey exhibited Glyciphagus plumiger, and some foraminifera from 
a marsh near Cambridge. The Rev. H. W. Crosskey read a very interesting 
paper on “The Glacial Phenumena of the Vosges Mountains.” Bronocican 
Secrion.—April 8th.—Mr. J. Levick exhibited a Stentor of a pink colour, which 
he believed to be of an undescribed species. Mr. E. W. Badger exhibited a 
beautiful series of hybrid Primroses (Primula altaica and P. auriculiflora ) and 
a number of duplex cowslips from Mr. R. Dean, Ealing, and read some notes 
from that gentleman on the specimens. Mr. J. E. Bagnall exhibited a mosg 
Physcomitrium fasciculare, from Marston Green ; also sections of the capsules, 
shewing columella and band of primary mother-cells, and another section in a more 
advanced stage, showing the spore mother-cells én situ. Mr. T. Bolton 
exhibited some zoospores of an alga in early stages of development. Mr. W. G 
Blatch exhibited several beetles belonging to the Pselaphide. Mr. J. E. Bagnall 
exhibited Hierochloe borealis, and gave some notes on its geographical distribu- 
tion ; he also exhibited a number of wild flowers sent from Algiers to Mr. 
Derrington. Muicroscorican GeneraL Mzerine.—April 15th.—Mr. J. Levick 


182 REPORTS. 


exhibited Hydatina senta, and Mr. Bolton Batrachospermum moniliforme. Mr. 
H. E. Forrest exhibited a specimen of the common snake, (Natriz torquata,) and 
pointed out the differences in size, colour, and form of the tail between this 
species and the viper. Mr. W. R. Hughes read the ninth and last of a series of 
papers on the ‘“ Parasites of Man,” contributed by Dr. Cobbold. At the con- 
clusion of the paper a cordial vote of thanks was passed to Dr. Cobbold for his 
valuable series of papers, and for the many specimens which he had sent to 
illustrate them. A vote of thanks was also passed to Mr. Hughes for his kind- 
ness in reading the papers. 


BIRMINGHAM AND MIDLAND INSTITUTE SCIENTIFIC SOCIETY. 
—March 26th.—Mons. Z. Camelinat read a paper on ‘“ Scientific and Industrial 
Education in France.” He described the various abortive attempts which had 
been made since the first revolution to impart scientific training to the working 
classes, and proceeded to describe the two technical schools now actually at 
work in Paris. The one of these, that of the Boulevard de la Villette, is intended 
for a model for large industrial towns. The pupils are received at thirteen years, 
and their average cost to the town is £10 per annum. The other school, that of 
the Rue Tournefort, will serve as a model for the smaller towns and agricultural 
districts. Here the pupils are received at eleven years, and cost annually £4. 
In both the pupils stay three years. The studies consist of general subjects, 
together with instruction in the use of all kinds of tools. At the end of the 
second year the student selects his favourite trade, and then devotes the greater 
part of his time to it, so that when he leaves the school he is able to earn the full 
wages of a practised workman. It is proposed to make these schools compulsory 
all over France. April 8th.—A party of the members visited the tar-distilling 
works of Mr. J. C. Major, Monmore Green. The processes of obtaining naphtha, 
naphthalene, benzole, carbolic acid, anthracene, creosote, pitch, and other 
substances were inspected with much interest. April 9th.—Mr. C. E. Crick read 
apaper on “Plant Life,” which was illustrated by numerous microscopical 
specimens. Good Friday, April 11tbh.—There was an excursion to the Severn 
Valley. The party proceeded by rail to Droitwich, and walked thence through 
Westwood Park to Ombersley. Just outside the park a very interesting quarry 
in the Keuper sandstone was visited. The rock abounds with carbonised stems 
of trees, and contains considerable quantities of copper ore. The path through 
Lord Sandys’ park to Holtfleet was then taken, and the valley kept to Hampstall, 
where tea was provided. After visiting several woods in the vicinity, where 
some good botanical finds were made, the party recrossed the river and walked to 
Hartlebury station, having spent a most pleasant day. 


CHELTENHAM NATURAL SCIENCE SOCIETY.—April 17th.—At the 
usual monthly meeting a paper on ‘‘ The Ideas of Harmony and Symmetry, and 
the part they have played in Astronomical Discovery,” was read by C. H. 
Hinton, Esq., B.A. The next meeting will be the last of the Session, which has 
been a successful one. 


DUDLEY GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY.—The first field meeting of the 
year was held on Tuesday, April 22nd, jointly with the North Staffordshire 
Naturalists’ Field Club, at Froghall, under the leadership of Mr. Rigby, of Leek. 
Between sixty and seventy members of the two clubs, including many ladies, 
assembled at Froghall, special through carriages being provided by the courtesy 
of the London and North-Western Railway and the North Staffordshire Railway 
Companies. Proceeding about half a mile to the foot of the tramway to the 
Caldon Quarries, the whole party were drawn up the incline. On arrival at the 
quarry there was, by the kind arrangement of Mr. Fraser, the manager, a 
tremendous blast of rock, in which 9cwt. of powder was used and about 6,000 
tons of stone dislodged, which came crumbling down from the face of an escarp- 
ment about 200 feet high. After examination of the fragments the rest of the 
fine quarry was visited, and at intervals numerous smaller blasts to split the 
larger fragments took place. The top of Caldon Low was then ascended to see 
the extensive view. Some specimens were secured of the characteristic fossils 
and of the various ores, spars, and crystals found in the limestone, which con- 
tains crystals of silica, some perfect microscopic specimens of which, about 


——- 


REPORTS. a3 ¢54 


enough to fill a small thimble, were shown as having been obtained from 3lbs. 
of the rock dissolved. The descent was then made in the wagous as before, 
each going independently by its own gravity controlled by a brake. After a meat 
tea, the club separated, with mutual congratulations on a successful and interesting 
excursion. 


NORTHAMPTON NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY.—The annual business 
meeting was held on the 20th March, J. B. Hensman, Esq., in the chair.—Mr. 
Thomas Bailey, Treasurer, read the balance sheet, from which it appeared that 
after paying all expenses, including rent, binding of books, periodicals, mounting 
of photographs, and repaying balance due to treasurer, there was a balance in 
hand of £8.—The President, (Lord Lilford,) was re-elected, and the Vice-presidents, 
(Rev. S. J. W. Sanders, F.G.S., Rev. G. Nicholson, and William Hull, Esq.,) 
were re-elected, the Rev. William Thornton, F.G.S., being added to the number. 
The committee was re-elected, as were also the sectional officers, the only change 
being Sir Herewald Wake, president, and Mr. W. 8%. Godfrey, secretary of the 
entomological section. The secretaries of excursions are Mr. T. Cordeux and Mr. 
William Barton. The Secretary was re-elected, and then read a digest of the 
society's work during the year:—‘‘ The progress of the Northampton Natural 
History Society during its third year’s existence has been fairly successful. I 
purpose, with your permission, to give a short réswmé of its work. In April, 
after the publication of our last report, the Rev. H. W. Crosskey delivered a lecture 
on ‘ The Glacial Epoch,’ dealing in a vigorous manner with the difficulties of the 
subject, placing clearly before the members the conditions and causes of the 
glacial drift. Owing to the miserably wet weather of May, but one excursion, an 
evening walk from Brampton Station, was made, the pleasure of this being 
marred by the rain coming on, and preventing any work being done. In June, 
on the first fine day, a wagonette full of members proceeded to Cransley and 
Broughton, the first halt being at Rushden, where, by permission of W. 
Clark Thornhill, Esq., the gardens and grounds of Rushden Hall were visited. 
These are interesting to botanists as being the first locality discovered in England 
for truffles, and in Morton’s history the wilderness is stated to be the habitat of the 
fiy orchis, but on this visit neither of the previously-mentioned plants were seen. 
The triangular lodge and other objects of interest having been seen, the company 
proceeded to Rothwell, where the church and bone-crypt were inspected. At 
Foxhall, the botanists were delighted with exploring a piece of bog land, in which 
many plants, new records to Topographical Botany, were found. Lamport was 
made a resting place for tea, after which, by Sir Charles Isham’s permission, the 
party strolled about the gardens of Lamport Hall, the rockery, with its many 
interesting flowers and ferns, being much admired. The photographical section 
obtained views of Rushton Hall, Rothwell Church, &c., which were inserted in 
the album. Evening walks to Hunsbury Hill, Clifford Hill, and Harleston Plain 
Woods took place during June and July. In August a numerously-attended excur- 
sion was a8 to Fotheringhay, where the castle and moat were inspected, Mr. 
Holding reading a paper on ‘ The History of the Collegiate Church of Fothering- 
hay’ in the existing building. A pleasant drive was then enjoyed by Wansford 
to Burghley, the botanists walking from Wittermg to Southorpe, and through 
Burghley Park to the mansion. After the art treasures had been inspected, the 
party visited Stamford, from whence, after tea, the, company made the home 
journey. Specimens of Asperula cynanchica, Gentiana Amarella, Menyanthes 
trifoliata, Epipactis palustris, Schanus nigricans, and many other rare plants - 
were obtained. In September, by the kind invitation of our President, a visit 
was paid to Lilford Hall, and a most enjoyable day was spent in seeing the 
splendid collection of birds, and examining the beauties of the neighbourhood. 
Some of the party visited Barnwell Wold, where the wild pear was gathered, and 
others went to Barnwell Castle and the picturesque village. In the photographic 
album are views of Barnwell Castle, Lilford Hall, and Lilford Bridge. Besides 
these excursions, the photographic section made a few special excursions. The 
Opening meeting of the winter session was held in the Guildhall, Lord Lilford 
presiding, being supported by Sir H. Wake, Rev. William Thornton, and the 
vice-presidents. Lord Lilford gave an address, but confined his attention princi- 
pally to the occurrence of the diurnal raptores, enumerating, among other species 
found in Northants, the golden eagle, the peregrine falcon, &c. Mr. Scriven 
gave the report of the photographic section, and mentioned their intention to 
photograph the remarkable trees of Northants. Mr. A. Perry said that out of the 


134 REPORTS. 


sixty-five British butterflies, there was good YWuthority for thirty-eight having 
been captured in Northants ; but his list of moths was but poor, numbering only 
130. In botany twenty-three new species and twenty varieties had been found, 
including Lythrum flexuosum, a casual not before reported to occur in Britain, 
and the roses were also many of them local and rare. The geological report was 
principally on the magnificent present of the Marquis of Northampton to the 
town museum. In November, Mr. Beeby Thompson gave a lecture on ‘The 
Lower Forms of Animal Life, and their Physiological Relation to the Higher.’ In 
December, the Rev. W. Thornton, F.G.S., read a most interesting paper on ‘ The 
Occurrences of the Northampton Liassic Strata among the Volcanic Rocks of the 
West Highlands.’ In January, Mr. C. Jecks read a paper on ‘ Darwinism.’ In 
March, Mr. A. J. Richardson read a paper on ‘ The Age of the Earth.’ The micro- 
scopical and botanical sections had also had a meeting. The library has been 
increased by Lord Lilford’s handsome gift of twenty volumes of ‘The Ibis’ and 
the ‘ Birds of the West Highlands.’ The periodicals, &c., of the society had also 
been bound into thirteen or fourteen volumes; these can be seen at any time by 
applying to Mr. Jeffery. The photographs have been mounted and bound in two 
handsome volumes. An herbarium has been commenced, and includes about 200 
specimens. The list of members now contains 105 names, exclusive of some few 
removed or seceded. It is trusted that the circulation of the ‘ Midland Naturalist’ 
among the members may increase not only the number of members, but also the 
love for, and interest in, all branches of natural history. The working up of the 
various branches of natural history is peculiarly our own subject, and for this 
object many observers are wanted. The balance sheet compares favourably 
with that of last year.” 


NOTTINGHAM NATURALISTS’ SOCIETY.—March 19th.—Mr. C. T. 
Musson read an interesting paper on ‘‘ The Curiosities of Natural History.” 
March 20th.—Annual soiree at the Mechanics Large Hall. It was a decided success, 
and gave general satisfaction. April 2nd.—Mr. Musson continued his paper on 
“The Curiosities of Natural History.” April 16th—An address by Mr. L. Lee 
(hon. sec.) on “ Corals, Living and Fossil,” illustrated by diagrams and specimens, 


NOTTINGHAM LITERARY AND PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY.— 
Naturant Science Secrion.—March 28th.—A lecture was delivered by A. H. 
Scott White, B.Sc., B.A., F.G.S., &c., on “The Geological History of the 
Animals of Australia.” This was a continuation of the subject lectured on early 
this session, and after quoting from what was then said, to explain the relation 
of marsupials to other mammals, the lecturer proceeded to explain that geological 
history is compiled in nearly the same way as any other history, for although 
we have no documents to search, yet we have the fossil remains of the animals; 
and these give us facts more certain than any obtained from writings. The 
geologist was compared in his task with Dr. Schliemann, who, working on the 
supposed site of Troy, found traces of five cities which had arisen one after 
another, and one on the ruins of the other. From each stratum of débris, Dr. 
Schliemann could tell much of the people who had lived in the corresponding city, 
and when he came to the last stratum he could tell the relative—although not 
the actual—age of that city. The lecturer proceeded to explain and illustrate the 
nature of fossils; and inasmuch as in the case of marsupials all the remains 
consist of bones, the difficulty of the geologist’s work was pointed ont, and 
reference was made to Cuvier, the founder of the science of paleontology ; of 
this distinguished man a fine likeness was exhibited. Ona ‘‘ Table of Strata” 
the positions where marsupial remains have been discovered were pointed out 
and the localities given seriatim, as each set of bones was exhibited by means of 
slides. The following were the principal examples referred to :—Keuper, 
Microlestes and Dromatherium ; Stonesfield Slate, Amphilestes, Amphitherium, 
Phascolotherium, and Stereognathus; Purbeck Beds, Triconodon, Plagiaulax, 
Spalacotherium, and Galestes; Gypseous series of Montmartre, Didelphys. 
The lecturer pointed out the similarity not only of the fauna but 
also of the flora of the Mesozoic period to that which is now peculiar 
to Australia, and brought his subject to a close by referring to and 
exhibiting photographs of the remains of the giant pachydermatous 
marsupials, Diprotodon and Thylacoleo, which have been discovered in 
the bone caves of Australia. April 4th—My. EH. Smith, M.A., read a paper on 


s+ <a, 


~~ 


REPORTS. 185 


“The Classification of Insects,” illustrated by photographic and other lantern 
slides. Many of the slides were photographed from mounted specimens by 
Mr. J. Burton, Portland Road, Nottingham, and were much admired by the 
members. April 14th.—An excursion was made to Stanton-on-the-Wolds, 
Grimston, and Wartnaby. This was the first excursion of the season, and, owing 
to the unfavourable state of the weather, a number of members were prevented 
from joining. Mr. EH. Parry, the engineer of the new line of railway now in 
course of construction between Nottingham and Melton Mowbray, kindly made 
arrangements for a special train to be placed at the disposal of the party, by 
means of which the journey was quickly and conveniently made. Starting from 
Nottingham at ten a.m., Stanton tunnel was soon reached; here the party 
alighted to examine the deposits of boulder clay in the cutting, and a section 
prepared by Mr. Parry was exhibited, which showed that in the tunnel (a 
thousand yards long) and its approaches the whole mass of the hill, 
to a height of 80ft. above the line, was composed of glacial drift. At the north 
end of the tunnel is a low outcrop of Rhetic shales, and Lower Lias limestone 
(10ft. exposed) at a little further south. At the south entrance‘of the tunnel the 
drift was well shown in a vertical section of 50ft. to 60ft. in height. The boulder 
clay is a stiff clay of a purplish brown colour, and, with the exception of an 
isolated pocket of earthy grit, did not appear to contain any interstratifications 
of sand or gravel, although, at the north end of the tunnel, a bed of clean, coarse, 
gritty sand, having a thicknessof 14ft., was observed. The majority of rock 
fragments contained in the clay are more or less perfectly smoothed or polished, 
and are often beautifully striated. The formation most abundantly represented 
is the Lower Lias limestone, the rounded blocks being often of large size. 
Less commonly nodules of fine-grained limestone, from the Rhetics, 
are found, and these, along with fragments of marlstone, Upper 
Keuper marl, and fibrous gypsum, may have come from no great distance. 
Boulders of millstone grit (one of which measured 8ft. in height by 11ft. 9in. in 
circumference), of encrinital carboniferous limestone, coal measure sandstone, 
and quartzites, probably from the Bunter pebble beds,—which also occur—must 
have come from a greater distance, as also must the pebbles of chalk and chalk 
flints, occasionally met with. This vast deposit appears to have been the result 
of the action of icebergs or floes, which, drifting along from the east and north 
became stranded in shallow water, and impinging on the shales of the Rhetic 
and Lias crumpled and kneaded their soft materials like so much dough, while 
tearing up, polishing, and striating the blocks of the harder limestone bands 
which those rocks contain. The engineer states that the surface of the Lower 
Lias limestone met with inthe tunnel beneath the boulder clay was striated in 
situ, the strie trending in an approximately north-east'and south-west direction. 
Regaining the train the party proceeded to Dalby. Here some time was spent 
in hunting for Lower Lias fossils in the waste heaps of the Grimston tunnel, and 
amongst others the following were obtained :—Gryphea arcuata, Unicardium 
cardioides, Cardinia Listeri, C. gigantea, Plicatula spinosa, Pholadomya 
ambigua, Lima gigantea, Ostrea Liassica, Crenatula ventricosa, Modiola 
scalprum, Pecten, Rhynchonella variabilis, Terebratula, Cerithium, Plewrotomaria, 
Serpula, Pentacrinus, Ammonites, Belemnites, Montlivaltia Hamiei, &c. After 
a visit to @ quarry in the marlstone at Wartnaby, the party soon after sought 
on io “ special,” and after a rapid run of ten miles reached Nottingham by six 
o'clock. 


STROUD NATURAL HISTORY AND PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY.— 
The annual meeting was held on April 24th. After the transaction of formal 
business, the President delivered an address. There was a most interesting 
conversazione and exhibition of a wonderful collection of scientific apparatus, 
experiments, natural history specimens, &c. 


WOOLHOPE NATURALISTS’ FIELD CLUB.—The annual meeting was 
held at Hereford, on April 15th. The general financial statement of the Club was 
read, and the dates and places of field meetings for the year fixed. The report of 
the Pomona Committee, with the Treasurer’s statement, were also read. After 
the members had dined together, the President, the Rev. H. W. Phillott, M.A., 
delivered his retiring address. 


136 ANNUAL MEETING. 


MIDLAND UNION OF NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETIES. 


SECOND ANNUAL MEETING AT LEICESTER, 
ON TUESDAY & WEDNESDAY, MAY 20TH & 2187, 1879, 


AnnvuaL MEETING. 


The Annual Meeting will be held in the Council Chamber of the Town 
Hall, Leicester, on Tunspay, May 20th, at half-past Three o’clock, the 
President of the Union (George Stevenson, Esq.) in the chair. The 
business of the Meeting will be to receive the report of the Council and 
the Treasurer’s accounts ; to fix the place of the next Annual Meeting in 
1880 ; to appoint the Officers; to consider any suggestions that members 
may offer; to discuss the work of the Union during the coming year; 
and to transact all necessary business. The President will open the 
meeting with an Address. 


CoNVERSAZIONE. 


A Conversazione will be held in the Leicester Town Museum, 
(entrance in Hastings Street,) on Tuesday Evening, May 20th, the 
arrangements for which are under the direction of the Leicester Literary 
and Philosophical Society. There will be an exhibition of objects of 
general Scientific interest, Microscopy, the various departments of Natural 
History, Archzology,and Art. Members of Societies in the Union willing 
to contribute specimens, or to exhibit or to lend microscopes, will oblige 
by at once communicating with Mr. W. Jerome Harrison, Town Museum, 
Leicester. At intervals, a selection of Instrumental Music will be 
performed, under the direction of Mr. H. Nicholson. 


The charge for admission to the Conversazione will be 2s. 6d. Doors 
open at half-past Seven. Morning dress. Tickets are now ready, and 
can be obtained by members for themselves and for friends not members 
of the Union, through any of the Secretaries of the Societies in the 
Union; or direct from Mr. W. J. Harrison, Town Museum, Leicester. 
Tickets can be obtained up to Hight p.m., on Saturday, May 17th, at the 
Leicester Town Museum. 


EXCURSION. 


On Wednesday, May 21st, there will be an excursion to Charnwood 


Forest. This will be divided into two parties, one of which will be 
devoted chiefly to Geology, under the guidance of Mr. W. J. Harrison, 
F.G.S.; the other to Botany, under the guidance of Mr. F. T. Mott, 
F.R.G.S8. The two divisions will leave the Museum together at nine o’clock 
A.M., in carriages, and will continue together as far as Woodhouse 
Eaves. They will then separate, the Geological party taking a some- 
what wider circuit, and arriving at Newtown Linford an hour later. 
Both will return together at 6 30, arriving in Leicester at 7 30. A 
detailed account of the district (together with a map of the route) will 
be provided for all those intimating their intention of joining the 
Excursion. See also ‘‘ Rambles with a’-Hammer,” by W. J. Harrison, 
F.G.S., at page 117 of this number. 


Tickets for either party 7s. 6d. each, including meat tea. Tickets 
must be applied for not later than Saturday, May 17th, and may be 
procured from Mr. W. Jerome Harrison, Town Museum, Leicester. 
Applicants will please to state distinctly whether they intend to join the 
Geological or the Botanical party. 


a 


ANNUAL MEETING—PRESIDENT’S ADDRESS. 187 


MIDLAND UNION OF NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETIES. 


SECOND ANNUAL MEETING AT LEICESTER, 
MAY 20rn, 1879. 


ADDRESS BY GEORGE STEVENSON, ESQ., PRESIDENT OF THE UNION. 


Tf my predecessor regretted that his attainments in science did not 
sufficiently qualify him to preside over your first annual meeting, pray 
believe me when I assure you that by an unfortunate coincidence the 
same cause of regret oppresses me in a double degree. For not only am 
I rushing into a region where even he fears to tread, but, after reading 
his address, I know too certainly how much less I am able to direct your 
inquiries. It is, however, a consolation to me that the success of these 
meetings and of your organisation depends so much less upon the 
President for the year, whom chance has given you, than upon the spirit 
which impels us to unite for local research, and, if possible, to advance 
the interests of science. It is the more earnest and united cultivation 
of this spirit in the prosecution of our work that I would respectfully 
urge upon your consideration. We have an organisation comprising 
representatives from the active centres of scientific life in the midland 
districts of England. We have a medium for discussion and corres- 
pondence in the “‘ Midland Naturalist,” conducted by gentlemen who are 
not only excellent editors, but themselves able explorers and lecturers. 
We have, or may have, a fund adequate to such enterprises as the scope 
of the Union may justify us in undertaking. Our Council has problems 
of local and scientific interest numerous and important enough to invite 
and reward co-operation ; and all we require is that hearty union and 
concentrated exertion for selected and specific objects which will, by the 
convergence of so much power upon them, ensure their attainment. I 
venture to urge this policy with the more earnestness because it is 
practical, and may be fruitful ; and because little systematic effort in 
this direction has, I believe, as yet been made. I observe in the ‘‘ Midland 
Naturalist” that transactions and reports of some of the Natural 
History and other Scientific and Literary Societies are collected, but not 
with much tendency, as to any one subject, to a definite result. Your 
late President suggested various topics, few of which have left their traces 
in the pages of our periodical recorder ; that of Dr. Spencer Cobbold being 
an exception, but which had been previously commenced. Now, most of 
the Societies to which I have referred, if constituted like our own 
in Leicester, address themselves mainly to supply such general and 
popular expositions of science as fall within the scope of the average 
mind and education of the people. But the prosecution of special 
topics of inquiry or research is relegated in our Society to the section 
that is organised with reference to the specific subject. In large 
towns, as in Birmingham, separate societies exist for prosecuting the 
definite objects in question. But, either through a section of the Society, 
or the Society itself, a connected series of observations and researches 
might be undertaken and collected from the Midland district; and, 


Vv 


188 ANNUAL MEETING—PRESIDENT’S ADDRESS. 


at the next annual meeting, the subject may be exhausted. Tho result 
may be an important contribution to the established facts of science. In 
any case it can hardly fail to create a larger and more intelligent area for 
the consideration of those higher problems and ultimate facts on which 
the world respects the judgment of British scientists. If no such result 
rewards our ambition, the useful effect may be to make us more 
thoroughly conversant with the natural history of our own immediate 
“district, to create a body of trained observers, and to revive the love of 
such pursuits in our elementary schools. The secrets of nature lie 
scattered in such rich profusion about and beneath our feet, that some 
scientific treasure-trove is sure to reward our patient research. The 
microscope and the test-tube have converted the ground we tread, the rocks 
we climb, and therivers and seas we fathom, into new worlds of life—*‘ Old 
and yet ever new ”—no longer to be assailed merely with the hammer or 
sounded by the plumb-line, but to be gently questioned by our finest and 
most sensitive instruments in order that their delicate tongues may 
tell in wondrous words ‘“ the story of their birth.” The exuberance of 
the minute forms of animal and vegetable life, shown by the highest 
powers of our instruments, as Professor Huxley graphically states, to 
defy arithmetic to reckon, affords a fresh and inexhaustible range of 
inquiry. Indeed, the pleasures of imagination constitute a new 
stimulus to the pursuit of science, and reward some of its noblest 
achievements, by suggesting new worlds for conquest. 


Let me then give point to these words by urging that during the 
coming year this Union should undertake the investigation, and, if 
possible, the solution of a definite subject. Some of my learned and 
scientific friends, more capable than myself of suggesting problems for 
useful work, think that you might select subjects for observation with 
the distinct understanding that at the next meeting the Council shall 
present a report founded upon such communications as they have 
received. It has been thought desirable that quarterly meetings of the 
Societies, or of the sections of the Societies, should be held for the 
purpose of keeping up and recording the work of the Union. From 
these, reports should go to the ‘‘ Naturalist” to be collated by the Secre- 
taries for the Council, who should meet half-yearly, if practicable. In the 
‘Midland Naturalist,” (Vol. I., p.242,) Mr. Harrison has proposed a scheme 
for exhaustively examining the Glacial Deposits of the Midland district ; 
and the modus operandi is very fully shown. The Birmingham Society 
has already joined in this quest; I trust that by extensive and systematic 
co-operation the subject may be successfully prosecuted and reported upon 
at your next meeting. 


It has been suggested that as in Meteorology the Union now possesses 
a band of eighty observers, provided with excellent instruments, regularly 
reporting the weather, notes of rainfall, and, if practicable, of tempera- 
ture also, should be taken at the loftiest points of the district. Changes 
commence in the upper regions of the atmosphere, and are often detected 
days before they are visible in the lowlands. Rain-gauges should be 
established on three or four of the Charnwood hills, the Wrekin, the 


ANNUAL MEETING—PRESIDENT’S ADDRESS. 139 


Malverns, Cotswolds, and other elevations, and our local registrar of 
the weather would gladly give practical hints as to the character of the 
instruments most likely to give useful results. Entomology is another 
subject far from exhausted as to the field for observation in the Midlands. 
Mr. Frederick Thompson Mott, to whose ability and talent for organisation 
our Leicester Society and the Union owe so much, advises the investiga- 
tion of the life-history of some one species of plant or animal, until it is 
fairly ‘‘run down,” and he instances the earth-worm, the common 
Brake Fern, or the migratory Thrushes, as affording ample scope for such 
an exhaustive treatment to be undertaken by each Society, or the Natural 
History section of each Society. He also commends to the acuteness of the 
collective Union the attractive topic of ‘“Vegetable Odours,” their chemistry, 
the conditions under which they are given off, and the functions of them, 
if any. That such functions exist we no more doubt than that 


“Nothing walks with aimless feet.” 


The question of the causes of colour in plants deserves elaborating, and 
the dates of the flowering of common plants, and of the appearance of 
insects and migratory birds generally, would involve small but very 
useful labour, if accurately observed. It is interesting to find how 
regularly some people note these things with apparently no idea of con- 
necting their notes with any scientific purpose. It would be a gain to 
Science could we prevail on the muliitudes who will tell you of these 
things to jot them down. Then, when “found and noted,” our new facts 
should be deposited in the ‘‘ Midland Naturalist” for the ensuing month. 
The habits of animals present a wide field. The ant-nests of Buddon 
Wood have an economy and mode of life well worth our study. Sir 
John Lubbock has only opened a region which is replete with problems 
of highest interest. So closely do these litile beings, and some of our 
domestic animals, approach, in their marvellous institutions, sagacity, and 
subordination, the proud confines of human intellect that we may note 
their habits and capabilities withoutfear of not growing wiser. 


Icannot leave this subject, nor could the Union meetin Leicestershire, 
without paying a tribute of respect to the memory of a gentleman who 
has been so distinguished by his pursuits in Natural History as Mr, 
Alfred Ellis, who has so recently passed from our midst. Belonging to a 
family highly esteemed amongst us for their support of education and social 
improvement, Mr. Alfred Ellis added to his other qualities a remarkable 
interest in the habits and instincts of wild animals, and by a vigilant 
provision for their wants, succeeded, like his friend, the late Charles 
Waterton, in surrounding his home at the Brand, in Charnwood Forest, 
with safe retreats for all manner of persecuted birds and animals. They 
seemed to appreciate the sympathetic thoughtfulness of their guardian ; 
and the various nooks, rocks, aud waters about his lovely forest residence 
contain many creatures whose prolonged and happy existence rewarded 
his care. Letters to the Z’imes occasionally gave to the public interesting 
details of their habits, as he observed them, and his active intervention 
with gamekeepers and others for their protection may be worthily 
imitated by members of this Union whose influence extends over so wide 
an area. His memory deserves to be held in honour by all Midland 


140 ANNUAL MEETING—PRESIDENT’S ADDRESS. 


Naturalists, in whose hands he placed a powerful help when he taught 
us that there was scarcely one of the so-called inferior natures too wild 
and refractory to be conciliated by kindness. 


As a practical step, it is thought that a model of the district, as 
worked by each society, would help each section or field-club, and should 
be constructed on the scale of the largest Ordnance map, (six inches to 


mile,) so that the contour of the district and every special spot can be 
clearly marked. 


For Geological members, Leicestershire, inits Charnwood Rocks, offers 
special attractions. Professor Judd lately told us he had rarely visited a 
district that comprised, in so small a space, so many illustrations or so 
much material for study. The points for observation and inquiry set 
down in the notes for the excursion will furnish topics for com- 
parison with similar formations in other parts of the district. In 
following the course of the Rhetic beds from the Severn to the Humber, 
Mr. Harrison has described them as forming part of the strata disclosed 
in some clay pits on the east side of the town. Striking illustrations of 
the glacial drift, and of the erratic boulders of the Midlands, are also to 

‘be seen near Leicester. 


In the name of my fellow townsmen, I beg to give you a hearty 
welcome to Leicester. In the town you will find that, having built on 
the earliest foundations of our national life, the ground beneath usis a 
series of strata, which have been laid successively by ancient Britons, 
Romans, Saxons, Danes, and Normans. Our Museum has vestiges of 
each and all of them, and by slow degrees each layer and each race 
received and shows ‘‘its form and pressure.” The various convulsions of 
the social fabric are seen here and there in a rock of one condition or 
formation of life, protruding through and marking the general crust of 
the other. So the past in our old town ties itself in with the new. 
This cannot be altered any more than in the face of nature; 
and we do not regret it, because it contributes an element of 
individuality and variety to the scenery of our social life. 
' Perhaps we are not so rapidly overrun with modern ideas as other and 
newer districts, but we may not part so readily with what is good in older 
notions. So much for our people. In the town we shall show you, if 
not the very habits in which our ancestors lived before and during and 
after the Roman rule, yet the ornaments they wore, the pavements they 
trod, parts of the fanes in which they worshipped, and the urns to 
which their ashes were consigned. Mr. Kelly, our eminent local 
archaeologist, will, with Mr. Reeve and Mr. Nevinson, describe them. 
In the county we shall show you Charnwood Forest, with its microcosm 
of Geology, and under the guidance of your able secretary you will 
enjoy a clinical demonstration which the previous researches and 


speculations of Whewell and Sedgwick, of Jukes, Ansted and Judd 
have invested with special interest. 


Mr. Mott will take such as prefer the Flora of our county through its 
selected haunts, and tell you all that is as yet ascertained upon a subject 
he has made his own. 


OO  — ————— 


ANNUAL MEETING—PRESIDENT’S ADDRESS. 141 


Once more, let me respectfully remind you that it will afford our 
Society much gratification if the result of your visit to Leicestershire 
iunay be such a united and exhaustive treatment of some subject of 
scientific pursuit as shall make it memorable—if not for some fresh 
conquest, yet for the increase of that steady habit of local observation 
and the cultivation of that scientific spirit which must tend to make our 
information more accurate, and our views more philosophical. 


The Leicester meeting of the Midland Union, held on Tuesday and 
Wednesday, May 20th and 21st, under the presidency of G. Stevenson, 
Esq., whose address is given above in full, was a most successful and 
enjoyable one. It attracted a goodly muster of members from nearly all 
the Societies, who were entertained with unbounded hospitality by their 
Leicester friends. A full report of the proceedings will be given in our 
next number. How the visit of the Union was regarded by the local 
press will be gathered from the following extract from the Leicester 
Chronicle of May 24th:—‘*The second annual meeting of the Midland 
Union of Natural History Societies, which took place in Leicester this 
week, was in every respect a marked success. The attendance at the 
conference, conyersazione, and excursion must have exceeded the 
sanguine expectations of the promoters; the arrangements fully 
sustained the strain to which they were thus subjected; the atmospheric 
influences were propitious and genial—in short, everything combined to 
render the event as enjoyable as it was fortunate. The Presidential 
address was a model of what all inaugural discourses should be. 
Though creditably brief, it gracefully and admirably summed up the 
raison d@étre of the Union, and pointed the way to new discoveries 


and conquests amid the open secrets of field, rock, and wood. The great 


desideratum in this branch of investigation at the present day is 
painstaking, p2rsevering, and above all, organized and systematic 
research. To spread the available fund of talent and energy over the 
whole of the vast field of enquiry is simply to fritter away inestimable 
possibilities of usefulness, and court failure. If, therefore, the Union 
does no more than gather up and concentrate upon a few important 
problems, the hitherto desultory and discursive labours of our naturalists, 
it will thoroughly justify its claim to the thanks and support of the 
community. Research without organization, comprehensive co-operation, 
and method, must necessarily be alike inefficient and uncertain. But let 
the Union adopt the admirable plan of concerted action in specified fields 
of study, with periodic meetings, reports, and comparison, and the inves- 
tigations will be redeemed from the double evil of confusion and barren- 
ness. The Leicester students of natural history are peculiarly fortunate in 
possessing within easy reach a storehouse of treasures likeCharnwood Forest. 
It is much to be regretted that the taste for the study is still imperfectly 
developed, and that only the comparative few of our vast population 
ever realise the inexhaustible mine of health and wealth which has been 
placed almost at their very doors. We hope the Midland Union may 
either directly or indirectly create a popular taste for the sweetest 
influences of Nature’s loveliness. The naturalist, by his pensive rambles 


142 NOTES ON COLEOPTERA. 


amid field, forest, and wild, derives a pleasure of the purest and highest 
order. To him a day of communion among the beauties of Charnwood 
is a source of unalloyed enjoyment and inestimable profit. Such a well- 
spent holiday expands the mind, invigorates the body, and refines and 
elevates the heart. The worshipper of Nature returns home in every 
respect happier, better, wiser, with a rich store of joyous memories to 
lighten the burden of labour and care amid the struggles and conflict of 
every-day life.” 


NOTES ON COLEOPTERA—IH. 


BY THE REV. W. W. FOWLER, M.A. 


[Continued from page 94.] 
In my last paper I endeavoured to give a few hints as to collecting 
and preserving Coleoptera. I now propose to speak of the chief localities - 
in which they may be found. 


Beetles are truly ubiquitous. The woods, the fields, the ponds, the 
streams, all possess their particular species, and even the interior of 
our houses is not free. The death watch, which has caused so much 
groundless alarm to superstitious minds, and given rise to so many ghost 
stories, is nothing more than a tiny beetle of the genus Anobium that 
burrows in old furniture, and makes the little round holes with which 
we are all so well acquainted. The clicking noise is produced by the action 
of its mandibles upon the hard wood, the sound not being audible by 
day, but plainly heard in the silence of the night. 


There is, however, one great exception to the ubiquity of beetles, an 
exception which makes one hesitate to apply the term to them at all— 
none have hitherto been found in the sea. In brackish ponds a few yards 
from the sea (e. g. Lymington Salterns) they abound, but in the sea itself 
there are none. This is the more strange as vegetable life (certainly 
entirely cryptogamous) is plentiful in the sea. Crustaceans, too, are 
found in both fresh and salt water, and mollusca also abound in both. 
It seems strange that although many of the forms of animal life above 
them as well as below them are found in both salt and fresh water, the 
Insecta proper seem so carefully to avoid the sea; the explanation is 
probably to be found in their transformations. 


To give any idea of the localities in which the various species of 
beetles are found would require a volume, and it is impossible in a short 
article to do more that point out likely places, not for particular genera 
or species, but for Coleoptera generally. 


In doing this it is as well perhaps to classify them roughly under the 
particular methods and instruments of capture recommended in my last 
paper. 

The Beating Net (an old umbrella serves the purpose thoroughly, 
well.)—The best time for using this is in May and June, though in the 
early autumn many good things may be obtained. The best trees are 


NOTES ON COLEOPTERA. 143 


hazels, aspens, oaks, and hawthorns—the latter when in bloom yield a 
very large number of species. The beating net may be also used to very 
zreat advantage in osier beds. Many species of Telephorida, (soldier 
beetles,) Chrysomelidw, (golden-apple beetles,) and Curculionidae, 
(weevils,) always occur in these in abundance. 


The Sweeping Net.—This is of use on any warm day from spring to 
late autumn ; but a sunny day, with a warm south wind after rain, will 
produce a hundred-fold greater result than a very dry day, with the wind 
even a point or two to the north or east. It is often astonishing what 
the beetles do with themselves—they are swarming, perhaps, one day, 
(or even one hour,) and eutirely gone the next. If one finds a good thing 
in plenty it is no good to leave taking more of it until the next day, for 
the chances are there will not be a specimen to be found. The same 
rule applies to beating; moreover, during the heat of the day, from 
eleven or twelve to about four, beetles seem to take a siesta, for trees 
and plants on which they are abundaut morning and evening will be 
found during this time to have not asingle insect upon them, as the 
writer of this article has found by unpleasant experience. It is very 
annoying when one has only a few hours, perhaps, in a good place, and 
has to rush to catch an evening train, to leave a very likely spot just as 
the good things are coming out. 


Damp places are far more productive for sweeping than dry ones. 
The strips of grass on the edges of cliffs, especially if the field they form 
a border to happens to be a corn or vetch field and has just been cut, 
are exceedingly productive. Corners of fields and woods generally 
abound in species, but a great majority of these species have their 
peculiar plants, and so a knowledge of Botany, to a certain extent at 
least, is absolutely necessary for the student of Coleoptera. 


The Water Net.—Stagnant pools and running streams alike produce 
beetles in multitudes, and a little use of the water net will soon give 
experience in their localities; a tiny puddle in summer will often yield 
more in a few minutes than a large pond in some hours’ work. The 
Palpicornia are often found in the mud or weeds just at the margin, and 
should be carefully looked for there; and certain species of Curculionids, 
e.g. Phytobius, are semi-aquatic, and are only to be obtained by searching 
the water weeds. The moss on the edge of waterfalls must also be 
mentioned, as many beautiful species, not found elsewhere, are found 
underneath it. 


The fern trowel is a very useful implement all through the year, for 
digging beetles out of sandy banks, (where many of the Geodephaga, 
especially Bembidia, abound,) for searching at the roots of trees, and also 
as a bark ripper. Many species are found in old wood and under bark, 
and it is often inconvenient to carry a large implement; but if one really 
wants to work wood-feeding beetles, a small strong hatchet is absolutely 
necessary. A tack extractor also makes a very useful bark-ripper. Old 
trees on the ground often contain a great quantity of species, and are of 
course easy to examine ; but many of the best wood-feeding beetles are 


144 NOTES ON COLEOPTERA. 


obtained by sugaring old trees, and so attracting them at night out of 
their burrows. In winter, sifting old leaves over paper will often produce 
many rare things, especially Pselaphide and Scydmcenide. Moss, too, 
is very productive, and the taller tufts of grass, either in winter or 
summer, if dug up carefully (here our fern trowel again comes into play) 
and shaken over paper, will never fail to put something into our bottles 
if all else fail. The damp bottom layer of a haystack in the coldest 
weather (as we might naturally expect) will be found, as a rule, full of 
Coleoptera and Hemiptera. 


The grass cut from our lawns and stored in the sun is a very good 
trap for several rare species—a single hot bed will almost produce 
work enough for a whole season, and its effect is heightened by putting a 
little moss in one corner ;—the latter is an excellent trap for Euplecti; 
many people find these hard to get a series of, but I have seen them 
in numbers by adopting this plan. Dead birds and animals contain 
Necrophaga in abundance; heaps of decaying sea weed on the 
sea shore should always be examined, as many species, never found 
elsewhere, occur in such places, and ordinary species are found in 
profusion. 


When a tree has been cut down in the autumn it should always be 
carefully watched in the spring when the sap rises, as many species 
(Epurza,Ips,Longicornes,&c.,) come to feed on the juice. Old granaries and 
meal boxes, old houses and old cupboards, old vessels and old sea piles 
all possess their beetle inhabitants ; the small weevils known as granary 
beetles are amongst the most destructive of our Coleoptera, and often 
do incalculable harm to stored grain. 


There is only one other locality that I would here speak of, and 
that is ants’ nests. Various beetles live in ants’ nests and in ants’ nests 
only. The relations that they bear to their hosts are not yet discovered, 
but they are on the most friendly terms; in fact, on a nest being 
disturbed, one of the first cares of the ants seems to be for their 
protégés, and they may be seen carrying off beetles larger than them- 
selves to a place of safety. 


Midland Naturalists have a very good opportunity of working this 
group, for the ants’ nests abound in Bewdley Forest and elsewhere, and 
contain many good species. 


As a rule there is no doubt that the Midlands have not been so 
productive of Coleoptera or Hemiptera as the Southern districts and 
the coasts. This isin a great measure owing to the general character 
of the soil—for chalk and sand always produce more species,—but there 
is many a spot and many a district in the Midlands, hitherto unworked, 
that would prove well worth the labour expended upon it. More workers 
are wanted, and if they come forward the Midlands will soon be able to 
bear a very fair comparison, to say the least of it, with the so-called 
more favoured districts. 


es ee 


THE STUDY OF FUNGI. 145 


AN INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY OF FUNGI.* 


BY THE REV. J. E. VIZE, M.A. 


There are very few people who study the interesting plants called 
Fungi. Hence a leading object in preparing a paper on the subject will 
necessarily be to try to allure some one onwards to their study, or at all 
events, if their study would occupy too much labour and research, to 
unfold a fragment of their importance in the vegetable world, and so to 
get for them a little more consideration than has been granted them up 
to the present time. 

The wonder is that fungi have been so much neglected, because they 
would, if studied, fill up many a period of time which now is probably not so 
well employed. If a man be fond of his microscope, he will detect in them 
shapes as various as the most ardent lover of change can desire; he will 
find tints, among the colours of black, brown, and yellow, as gradual and 
progressive as anywhere; he will notice symmetrical forms as exquisite 
as gracefulness can be ; he will be able to make many a valuable addition 
to his own knowledge, and confirm the opinions of others, or confute 
them, by noticing what he sees; he will get a steady progression from 
one form to another, from one order to another, until he finds how the 
works of God ramify in every direction, and are all in themselves perfect. 
There is a rich fund of science coupled with pleasure among the fungi to 
the man who merely takes his microscope and examines slides under it; 
but the microscope need not be used merely as a means of looking at a 
pretty thing; the adjunct of a camera will prove of great service, drawings 
should be made and always to one uniform scale of considerable magni- 
tude. After making the sketch, the draughtsman may use his talent 
with the brush, and drive care and idleness away by colouring the 
magnified drawings on paper from the object still visible under the 
instrument. 


But suppose there be no microscope, and that the privileges just 
named be not easily attainable, if such a thing be possible in these days, 
when first-rate instruments are to be purchased at so low a price. Well, 
of course, a great loss is sustained; but even then there are in fungi 
forms so large that, at a rough estimate, one-third of the British fungi 
need no more than the unassisted eye for their examination. Nor should 
it be forgotten that the present extensive use of the microscope is of 
recent date, that the pioneers of mycology had not the advantages we 
have ; yet, to the honour of some of them be it said, they often surprise 
us who try to aspire to their knowledge. Hence none need despair. 
There is such a vast field of work before us all that the fungi may be 
worked with or without the microscope; the whole range may be studied 
at once, or it may be divided and sub-divided, and there will still be work 
for a lifetime. 

See too the advantages attaching to the study of fungi from their 
being within reach of everyone. If you have a garden attached to your 


* Read before the Chester Natural Science Society, February 22nd, 1877. 
x 


146 THE STUDY OF FUNGI. 


house, there you are certain to find specimens. Is your house damp? 
The wall-paper will supply you with an object to examine, possibly three, 
four, or more, from the same strip of paper. The linen hanging up in 
your cupboard will supply you, if not moved occasionally. Keep your 
cheese until it becomes decayed, there will be something to admire in it. 
Put your hazel nuts away, then see in course of time the beautiful pink 
that grows upon them. Look at your apples, in those wart-like spots you 
have fungi again. The diseased house-fly on the windows will furnish 
specimens, and the cellar is a most prolific spot. But leave home, and go 
for a walk: the leaves of the trees, the bark, the branches stripped of 
their bark, will all yield supplies. Go to the lanes, the hedges, the 
ditches, the inside of a wood, still better the edge of it. Look at the 
gate-posts, the stiles, the grass under your feet, the corn-field, the 
decaying sticks, the utterly rotten wood; all these positively invite us at 
some period or other to study the fungi. 


But all is not so smooth as you may perhaps suppose from what you 
have hitherto heard; there are difficulties to be overcome, severe 
difficulties, and it is only fair that both sides of the question should be 
placed before you. Let us seethen some of the troubles connected with 
mycology. Pre-eminently stands the want of books with plates of any 
excellence. There are sofew men who study this special department of 
botany that the inclination to publish dwindles away from want of 
support. Anyone who attempts it may feel pretty sure that he will not 
be repaid for his trouble. Also, since few copies of any work that may be 
published are produced, their value in a number of years becomes 
proportioned to their rarity. Corda’s ‘‘Icones Fungorum,” by no means 
costly at first, is now worth £28. Sowerby’s ‘‘ English Fungi” seems to 
be almost unobtainable. Still, if any one really cares to examine the 
fungi, the want of books need not deter him; he can make his own 
drawings, and he can obtain a copy of Dr. Cooke’s ‘‘ Handbook of Fungi,” 
a work which embraces the information contained in Mr. Berkeley’s 
‘‘Qutlines of Fungology,”’ and in those yaluable papers of Messrs. 
Berkeley and Broome scattered here and there in the ‘Ann. and 
Mag. of Natural History.” He can also cope with the times, and the 
most recent ones too, by subscribing to that record of cryptogamic botany 
issued every quarter called ‘‘ Grevillea.” 


Another difficulty is that of assigning the correct name to a plant. 
Some fungi are in outward appearance very much like others, the orthodox 
place of which is very remote from theirs. In fact so difficult is it to say 
decidedly what a plant is without microscopic help that the higher 
authorities rarely venture to name anything off at once, or, if they do, it 
is with the understanding that a critical examination shall be made of it 
when opportunity offers. Of this we may be sure, that study will unfold 
the name and place of many a plant which perhaps is unknown for a long 
time, and of another thing we may be more certain still, that, when it is 
known that aman really does his best to ascertain his plants, there is 
such a feeling among the lovers of mycology that every one is ready to 
help his friend, and give all the assistance in his power. 


THE STUDY OF FUNGI. 147 


Now about fungi themselves, What is their place in the vegetable 
kingdom? How are they especially to be distinguished from their allies? 
Acknowledging that all lines of demarcation are optional and therefore 
not necessarily rigid, there are certain means by which fungi are 
separated from their close companions, Algw~ and Lichens, An Alga 
draws its nourishment through the whole ofits surface from the water in 
which it grows, or the excessively moist place of its existence, which is 
the same to it as water. Besides this, it is propagated by means of 
zoospores, tetraspores, &c. Lichens are propagated by means of sporidia 
contained in asci, also by green bodies, which occur in their frond or 
thallus, called gonidia. Fungi are propagated by spores or sporidia, and 
they are nourished from the substance on which they grow through their 
mycelium. They never have gonidialike lichens. ‘‘ Their fructification 
consists either of cells attached externally to threads, which either arise 
immediately from their mycelium or from a special fructificative tissue, 
and which are then called spores, or of similar bodies produced in little 
sacs or tubes, and then called sporidia.” A singular fact is observable 
about fungi, so singularindeed that it has been proposed to assign them a 
special locality between the animal and vegetable kingdoms; they absorb 
oxygen and give out carbonic acid ; hence in this respect their office seems 
to be like that of an animal, in confirmation of which you will never 
find a fungus with the beautiful green colour of vegetables; but, if there 
be green at all, it is invariably of a metallic tint. 

Let us now examine some of the uses of fungi. Amongst other 
things they assist in destroying vegetable matter which would otherwise 
be most offensive and pestilential ; decaying plants, unless fungi attacked 
them, would be simply intolerable. M. Roumeguére, in a work published 
in 1870, called ‘‘ Cryptogamie Illustrée,” gives a list of 220 fungi which 
grow on the different parts of the Fagus sylvatica, and yet the beech is 
one of the mildest examples we could select, inasmuch as the leaves are 
anything but fleshy, and their decay would cause less smell than many 
others when decomposition sets in. How beautifully God has arranged 
for this decay without injury to our health. The spores and sporidia— 
in familiar language, the seeds—of fungi are wafted through the air in 
myriads, they are infinitely small, but of such specific gravity that in due 
course of time they fall and settle on some object. Multitudes of course 
perish from lack of the exact spot and accompaniments necessary to 
cause growth. Many begin to vegetate, but their requirements are not 
there in full, they die in their very cradle. But supposing a spore or 
sporidium finds everything adapted for it, how does it grow? It does so 
by means of its mycelium. Moisture, which is essential to the life of 
fungi, causes a process to start from the spore, which elongates, 
branches out in all directions, and penetrates even into the hardest 
woods; and, as it feeds upon the parts that it touches, consumes the 
matter around it, and so rapidly hastens decay. By this beautiful 
arrangement, the very substances which are poisons to us form its 
food. If there were no fungi there would be far more illness. 


It is very singular how different forms of fructification proceed from 
the same mycelium. If a mycelium produced only one form of fruit, 


148 THE STUDY OF FUNGI. 


some of the species might be lost, but there is less prospect of euch an 
event now, because from the same low form of fungus will arise one, 
two, three, four, or more different kinds of fruit, all of which are capable 
of becoming again the starting points of their species. For instance, 
there are the dust-like productions called conidia, then the macroconidia, 
the pycnidia, the stylospores, the ascospores. Many an interesting 
research has shewn this to be the case, and proof after proof is furnished 
by those who investigate these things, that the moulds are the fore- 
runners of higher forms of fungoid life. These furnish interesting 
materials for those who take up the study of fungi. The ease of the 
study is not increased thereby, but the pleasure and the profit are. 

How useful is the vinegar plant. And what is it but a vegetable 
production, caused by the growth of the mycelium of a fungus (Penicil- 
lium crustaceum) in saccharine liquor, when not in a state of fructification ? 
The fermentation of the dough of bread is due to the growing of a 
fungus, by which the bread is made light and wholesome. It is a species 
of Torula, which forms the yeast; this feeds upon the sugar of the flour 
and sets free carbonic acid gas all through the dough, and, when it is 
placed in the oven, the gas is driven off entirely, the fungus is baked, 
its vitality utterly destroyed, and its remains, which of course do not 
come out with the gas, are eaten as part of the bread. Thus every day 
of our lives we are fungus-eaters. 

Whilst we have spoken of the uses of fungi, it cannot be denied that 
there are many instances in which they do great injury. Smut is very 
often found in fields of corn, although it has now by artificial means 
been rendered less common than formerly. It destroys the good qualities 
of the ear at any early period of its growth. Bunt does the same, 
differing however from smut, inasmuch as its presence is not so easily 
ascertained. Human beings suffer occasionally from the attacks of 
fungi. There is a disease from which the natives of India sometimes 
suffer, called the fungus-foot of India; strange to say, the disease never 
ascends higher than the base of the leg-bone, just above the ankle. Mr, 
Berkeley has given an excellent paper on this malady in the “ Intellectual 
Observer” of 1862. The first case he mentions is one in which the bones 
were ‘perforated in every direction with roundish cavities varying in 
size from that of a pea to that of a nut or pistol bullet, the cavities 
being filled up with a dense fungous mass of a sienna red within, but 
externally black, and resembling a small dark truffle. From these 
cavities canals lead to the surface, from which a purulent foetid discharge 
is poured out, often accompanied by little pieces of the fungus.” Two 
other kinds of foot fungus are recorded by Mr. Berkeley in the same 
paper. 

In our own country there is a disease to which we are liable, 
which causes a good deal of unpleasantness rather than pain. I mean 
ringworm. Ringworm is a fungus, it has its mycelium, and bears its 
spores, which are very minute and easily conveyed through space. 
Whether the spores would develop if the skin were perfectly healthy, 
or whether some weakening cause be needful, is not for me to examine. 
Insects also are liable to be attacked with fungoid parasites. The silk- 


“tr 


es, 2 


THE STUDY OF FUNGI. 149 


worms in France have suffered severely. Wasps have been seen alive 
infested with a growth which would eventually deprive them of life, 
Between twenty and thirty species of ascigerous fungi have been recorded 
as parasitic on insects. One of our British specimens is very beautiful. 
It grows in autumn on the pupz of moths buried in the ground, and is of 
a splendid orange-red colour, scarcely two inches high, its clavate head 
being covered with tubercles. The contrast between the scarlet head of the 
fungus and the green grass in which it grows is very gladdening to the 
sight of a mycologist who has never before seen it. 

The potato disease alsois afungoid growth. A popular idea prevails 
that the potato disease comes down with the warm rains of summer, and 
this notion originates in the fact that the leaves are seen to be diseased 
after the showers of July. When there is a dry season, the leaves are 
free from the brown spots which indicate the disease. But the rain by 
no means has the disease in itself; it only causes the spores to grow. 
Moreover, the spots on the leaves are not the first startings of the disease, 
they are only proofs that it is at work elsewhere. The first part affected 
is the tuber ; the resting-spore, (oospore,) which has lain dormant nearly 
the whole year, is ready to mature in June and July, and if it gets 
sufficient moisture sends out mycelium, which penetrates any tuber it 
touches, extends up the haulm, and goes to the leaves, there showing its 
presence by a brown spot. It protrudes through the stomata, forming a 
grey tint or bloom upon the leaf. This bloom consists of a branched 
growth upon which are borne two kinds of spores, both of which are 
capable of growth during the moist summer weather, but neither of which 
will exist through the winter. One kind of spore we call conidia, or dust 
spores; these are wafted to another leaf or stem, where they will grow, 
if they can find a stomate to enter. They will even start into 
existence on any damp spot, but die quickly unless they can meet 
with a potato or some closely related species. The other kind 
of spore is called a zoospore. Its structure is very different; 
it is capable of division into a number —say eight—of atoms. These 
have two lash-like tails, with which they can propel themselves for hours 
or even days together. They are more able to propagate the disease than 
the others, because of their wonderful power of locomotion; hence a 
warm wet day or night is very favourable to the spread of the disease. 

But the question arises, if these two kinds of spores do their 
destructive work only in the summer and die, how is the disease 
propagated through the winter? This is the puzzle which has harassed 
the minds of the ablest men of the day, and the solution of it has gained 
for my friend Mr. Worthington G. Smith a gold medal. Mr. Smith 
collected a great number of the brown-spotted leaves, and kept them 
moist during the whole of the winter at the cost of a «good deal of labour 
and trouble. The consequence was that these moist leaves produced a 
quantity of mycelium threads, including the long-looked-for missing link, 
which is called the resting-spore. If it could be destroyed we should be 
free from the potato disease. Every diseased potato you leave to be 
buried in the ground deposits vast numbers of these resting-spores, the 
haulm you put tothe manure heap to rot for future use only increases 


150 THE STUDY OF FUNGI. 


the disease. This spore, unlike the others, requires to be fertilised, an 
office which is performed by a smaller body which grows near it on 
the mycelium. After their union the oospore is capable of withstanding 
the cold, and awaits its time to grow; it may, for all we know, live for 
years, until it finds suitable conditions for growth. As yet there has not 
appeared anything to destroy it, and certainly the difficulty of its destruc- 
tion must be enormous. Wet seasons and wet places promote its growth 
more than dry ones. The same ground should not be used for successive 
years for the growth of the potato. The haulm and eyery root and 
rootlet should be burned. Those varieties of potato whick are least 
affected by the disease, such as the very earliest sorts, should be 
encouraged, so should the red kinds of winter potato rather than the 
white. It is not as though the common kind of potato only were 
attacked. Hleven of the Solanacex, the family to which the potato 
belongs, are recorded as having developed the disease, so has Arthoceris 
viscosa. 

In conclusion, let me now give you some idea as to the division of 
the fungi. The fungi are arranged under two divisions: 1st, the Sporifera, 
in which the spores are naked; 2nd, the Sporidiifera, in which the spores 
are in sacs or asci. The first division is subdivided into four families, the 
second into two. In all these families the name is derived from the 
predominance of some feature in each. 

Hymenomycetes, from Gr. humén, a membrane, and mukés, a mush- 
room ; the fruit being formed on a membrane, which is either naked from 
the first or soon becomes so, if originally enclosed in a volva. 

Gasteromycetes, from gaster, a belly, where the fruit is produced in a 
closed receptacle. 

Coniomycetes, from konis, dust; the dust-like spores forming the 
chief character. 

Hyphomycetes, from huphé, a woven mass of threads. 

Physomycetes, from phusa, a vesicle or bladder, where the fruit 
arises from the tip of a thread, penetrating into the vesicle which forms 
a covering for the fruit. ‘ 

Ascomycetes, from ascos, a sac, where the fruit is formed within asci. 


The families are subdivided into thirty-one orders, the orders into 
368 genera up to the publication of Dr. Cooke’s ‘‘ Handbook of British 
Fungi,” and the species up to that time (1871) amounted to 2,809. But 
within the the last few years a great number of species has been 
recorded as new to Great Britain, and this number does not now represent 
by hundreds the fungi that are known as British. 

In concluding my paper, it must not be thought that I have 
exhausted the subject. Nota word has been said about the luminosity 
of fungi, their ubiquity, and the advantage gained in studying them from 
the fact that they are to be found every day in the year, as compared 
with flowering plants which can only be obtained during a limited season. 
Not a word has been said about their geographical distribution, and very 
little about their hybernation, and their various modes of fructification. 
These points may be left for a future time. 


bi ole 


ARTIFICIAL SEA-WATER. 151 


ARTIFICIAL SEA-WATER. 


BY R. M. LLOYD. 


Having had occasion to make some artificial sea-water, and not feeling 
satisfied with Mr. Gosse’s formula, I calculated one as below from Dr. 
Schweitzer’s analysis of sea-water at Brighton. Ifound Mr. Gosse in error 
with regard to the amount of sulphate of magnesia, his quantities are 
also very confusing, being partly given in “ounces avoirdupois” and partly 
in “grains troy.” It is, however, unnecessary to be very exact in the 
respective quantities of the different substances. Plants and animals 
will thrive in water compounded according to Mr. Gosse’s direction. 
The composition of the sea, moreover, varies not only in different places 
but in the same place at different times. The most important point, is to 
have the water of the right specific gravity, which may be told by some 
form of hydrometer, preferably a hollow glass ball so weighted that it 
will just float when the water is of the right density. 


DR. SCHWEHITZER’S ANALYSIS. 
Parts in 1,000. 


VERORT sp iolciy: cep s smteceV pila precie > 964'74 100, 1bs. = 10 gallons, 
Chloride of Sodium ........ 27 06 44:92 oz. = 4402. 15 drs. 
Chloride of Potassium .... 17 12807. i= Loz. 4drs, 
Chloride of Magnesium .... 3°67 6090z. = 602, 2drs. 
Bromide of Magnesium .... 03 05:07. = 1 dr. 
Sulphate of Magnesia ...... 2°30 38loz. = 302. 13 drs. 
Sulphate of Lime .......... 1:40 232027. = 202. 5 drs. 
Carbonate of Lime ........ *03 510z/1 = 1 dr. 
Iodine and Ammonia ...... traces 

1000° 


It is quite unnecessary to use distilled water. Clear stream water, 
or that from a deep well, is to be preferred. Ordinary pump water must 
be avoided. 

As chloride of sodium (common table salt) usually contains 
chloride of potassium, it will be sufficient if the weights of the two are 
added together, and that quantity of common salt used. The salt should 
be well dried before it is weighed. 


Chloride of magnesium must be kept in a closely stoppered bottle 
until required, as it rapidly absorbs water from the air. 

Bromide of magnesium. This being in such a small proportion, 
may be entirely disregarded if thought well. 

Sulphate of magnesia. This, as ordinarily sold under the name of 
Epsom salts, consists of rather more than half water of crystallisation, 
(63 parts in 123.) It is, therefore, necessary to make allowance for this, 
and instead of sulphate of magnesia 3°81 oz. — 3 oz. 13 drams, read Epsom 
salts 7°82 oz. = 7 oz. 13 drams. 


Sulphate of lime is only soluble to the extent of one part in about 
400, and, as sea water contains about one part in 700, if a saturated 
solution of rather more than half the quantity proposed to be made be 
formed, and then the clear supernatant solution poured off, filtered, if 
necessary, and added to the other portion, the whole will contain about 
the proper proportion. 

Carbonate of lime. As this occurs in the water proposed to be 
used, and only in a very small proportion in the sea, it is quite unneces- 
sary to take any further notice of it. 


152 CALENDAR OF NATURE. 


CALENDAR OF NATURH, 1878. 


KEPT BY MEMBERS OF THE BURTON-ON-TRENT 
NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY. 


Explanations : lf., in leaf; fl., in flower. 


OBSERVER. 
Jan. The winter months of 1878 were a very wet 
and mild : Or Us 
» 27.—Heavy fall of snow ‘and rain, causing high flood in 
the Trent ete a iP 


,, 9$1.—First skating since March 1st, 1877 
Feb. 2.—Woodbine, if., Dunstall y 

Small White "Butterfly (Pieris rape) taken 

», 17.—Wasp seen at Bretby .. 
Bee seen at Grammar School. A _ remarkably 

warm day (therm. 60°.) oe as ee 

Bee seen at Walton-upon-Trent. 

» 23.—Currant, lf., at Grammar School. 
Gooseberry, lf., at Grammar School. 


fe ee 
qd pBdd 
H aXAb 


Thrush’s Nest, three eggs, locality eesti E. B. 
» 24-—Hybernia leucophearia taken 6 Pete One 
5, 25.—Rhubarb, lf., Grammar School. 3K ve) CULES 
Mar. 3. —Tortoiseshell Butterfly (Vanessa urtice) seen - C.F. E: 
» 4.—Hybernia progemmaria and H. rupicapraria taken. C.F. T. 
», 6.—Robin’s Nest, with five eggs, Stapenhill x ge 
Pink Ribes, fl. 

Tzeniocampa instabilis came out of pupa .. nie Cee 
»  9.—Celandine, fl., locality Tatenhill ae oe oo Gy He 
Coltsfoot, fi., Tatenhill De Je 33) “Gp 
Primrose, fl., a 5B ate ae Geka: 
Violet, fl., 66 Be ar se, .2* Guba 
Wood Anemone, fi.,_,, oe i pi. Gs: 
Daisy, fi., 3 ote se An « (‘GSR 
Cuckoo-flower, f1., 95 54 a Es 2>G.#-U. 
Gorse, fl., 33 a ay $3 G. F. U. 
Thorn, lt., 2 AY o% A G. F. U. 
Briar, lf., as aXe uo ate > (GPE De 
Honeysuckle, lf., a AL of ote os | Gap 
Dog’s Mercury, fl., _,, fe oe 56 Pte ee) ee Oi 
Elder, If., a A 5G aly oe), Ge Fa; 
Currant, li., 3 ae Sc bs +. Gee 
Gooseberry, lf., 3 G. F. U. 
Raspberry, lf., Fe = Ag os .. Gale: 
» 16.—Ground Ivy, fi., ¥ ey ot es 3. Glew 
Speedwell, fl., Fi # Ww 2. Ga: 
Wild Strawberry, fi., ,, « (163B a 
Hazel, fi., s >, Gaaieae 
», 20.—Palm Willow, tale - Gaeta: 
», 20.—Thrush’s Nest, with young birds, Rangemore : J. M. 
5, 22.—Crow’s Nest, with eggs, Egginton : H. B. 
», 23.—Dandelion, il., Needwood Forest ele ii . Wee 
Wood Anemone, fi., Bretby .. ae 5 a Biol Ors 
Cowslip, fi., Bretby a eG. 
Hedge Sparrow’ s Nest, three eggs, Branstone se F. G. 
Wild Duck’s Nest, three eggs, Branstone if Git 
Robin’s Nest, three eggs, Egginton .. HE: 

», 24.—The Eurydice gale; thick snow at Burton, 1 12 30 to 
1 30 P.M. aP C. U.%. 


CALENDAR OF NATURE. 153 


Mar. 26.—Hard frost (thermometer on grass fell to 12°) 
April 10.—Swallows seen, Burton-upon-Trent oe 
, 11.—White Butterfly, Branstone .. 
», 14.—Horse Chestnut, lf., Grammar School 
Cherry Tree in blossom, Branstone .. 
fo Forget-me-not, fl., Tatenhill ae ae ae 
_ Bluebells, says Tatenhill. . fe Br seri 
», 22.—Adder’s Tongue, fi., Tatenhill . Bc we =a: 
Candock, Stitchwort, Branstone 
Broom, fi., Barton - 
May, fi., Catton .. 
5, 27.—Water Daisy, near Sinai Park. . 
», 29.—Corncrake heard, Yoxall 3 
», 30.—Chaffinch, three eggs, Branstone 
May 1& 6. Early erowth of vegetation much cut by frost. 
,  1.—Horse Chestnut, fl., Manor Croft 
»  3&—Wood Pigeon, two eggs, Repton 
» 4,—Magpie, six eggs, Bretby 
3,  0.—Cuckoo heard, Stapenhill 
»  %—Hawthorn pad Laburnum, fl., the Ceneana a " scanty 
blossom generally, owing “es wet weather wp CO: 
9.—Apple blossom falling .. 
10 to 18.—The Trent at times in high flood ; rain more or 
less every day from 6th to 28th. 
», 11.—Dragon Fly, Stapenhill .. : on 
» 15.—Limes, lf. 
» 17.—Laburnum, If., Bagot’ setae S- 
Damson Trees in full bloom, Bagot’s Park.. 
June 2.—Glow Worm, palace! ‘ oF 
»  4.—Took S. populi 
»  9.—Took A. cardamines, M. “piriviata 
»  6.—lime, fl. .. aA oe eta 
»  %—Took H. humuli, R. " crateogata, I. lactearia, 
t E. alchemillata, E. exiguata, EH. vulgata, C. rus- 


QQ 


aa 
AS eptsSeussnus se eaaac 
BE PHR RE Qe agagddesenh 


QaQaqn4e8 
GiQdd 
BHAHAWAH PF 


sata x Cake 
x»,  8.—Took larve of C. spartiata Cod. 
» 10.—Wild Rose, fl. Cina. 


» 10.—Took H. ‘velleda, EK. dolabraria, T. pidndularia, 
EH. heparata, A. luteata, C. pusaria, C. corylata, 
HH. castigata, A. betularia, H. _ grisealis, 
H. dentina, H. prasinana, C. propugnata, larvee 
of D. cceruleocephala, B. quercus, H. defoliaria.. C.F. T. 
», 12 and 13.—Trent in flood. 
» 12.—Took (Swynnerton Woods, Stafford,) F. piniaria, 
M. liturata, H. crassalis, N. plecta, X. rurea, 
R. tenebrosa, H. thalassina, EH. lucipara C. 
» 13.—Took (Burntwood, Stafford,) L. marginata, 
M. hastata, L. pectinitaria, C. exanthemaria, 
P. lacertula, larves of T. SHSEORE Be perfumaria, 
C. flavicornis .. 
» 17.—Took (Eyam, N. Derbyshire) Ke ulmata 2 
a 1S ..,, A A F. atomaria, E. albu- 
lata .. 
», 19.—Took (Miller’s Dale) A. ‘menthastri, CAL fuliginosa, 
M. montanata 
» 21.—Took (Burton) A. psi .. 
» 23 to 28.—Very hot weather: on 26th ees 90° ‘at Bur: 
ton, 95° at Nottingham ; on 26th, :24 inch of 
rain fell in fifteen minutes during a thunderstorm 


i 
= 


aa 2 aa 
Be ee HA 


Y 


154 CALENDAR OF NATURE. 


June 25.—Took A. incanaria, M. brassicee C. F. 
», 27.—Took S. janira, M. albicillata, L. didymata, im neb- 
ulosa, P. gamma, 5S. olivalis : CHE: 
» 28—Took T. amataria, C. bilineata, P, chrysitis, 
M. strigilis, H. proboscidalis ; Cane 
July 1.—Took H. oleracea, A. triplasia, A. putris, A. excla- 
mationis, M. typica C.583 
»  938.—Took (Eyam) B. repandata, E. palumbaria. . Pree O41 
»  4—Took H. pamphilus, Z. filipendule, T. cheero- 
phyllata ¥ A ie ae a Pte Ol fh 
» 6.—Took L. cesiata, A. rumicis, M. fasciuncula, 
A. myrtilli aie 4 Pee Of ie 
» %—Took E. nanata, P. forficalis RF hs C.F. 
» 9.—Took (Kyam) L. Alexis, N. mundana, dt io) Che 
» 12.—Took H. lupulinus, A. fumata, A. aversata, 
C. fulvata at GRAS 
» 17.—Took (Burton) E. rectangulata, E. sambucalis Ovky 
», 18.—Limes’ leaves falling ae C. U. 
», 19 & 21.—Therm. 90° in shade, 150° j in sun 7 cia Me 
», 19.—Took O. potatoria, P. syringaria, Y. elutata, E. 
mensuraria, L. impura, P. iota, B. urticalis . C. F. 
» 22.—High wind from N.E., blowing down branches, &c., 
from trees. 
Aug. 3 to 18.—Rain more or less every day, except one os) (GAGE 
», 16.—Took H. wavaria, T. orbona, larve of A. psi, and 
P. bucephala .. CLik: 
», 17.—Tooklarve of S. populi, tea oleracea, ¢ and D. vinula Clk: 
», 24.—Took pup of N. typhz 5 CoE 
» 29.—Took A. niveus .. C. F. 
Sept. The autumnal tints appeared unusually early. 
» 93 —Took C. testata .. > bs zfs x «df AGES 
an ts —Took C. spartiata . C.F. 
24 to 26.—Three frosty nights brought o on n rapidly the fall of 
leaves, especially from limes and chestnuts Cou: 
» 24,—Took (Swinnerton) A. rufina, A. saucia, X. ferru- 
ginea, P. meticulosa .. C. F. 
», 26.—Took larve of F. piniaria, E. ‘nanata, E. minutata, 
A. porphyrea, A. myrtilli, imago of T. variata C.F. 
Oct. 5.—Very fine warm day, therm. 73° in shade .. 22, Game 
» 14.—Took O. dilutata . os, Combe 
» 27.—Deep and early snow in the Peak of Derbyshire Cx 
» 30.—Snow at Burton .. C. U. 
Novy. Frequent falls of snow characterised this month. 
i 2 - | Trent i in flood. 
25 & 30.—Dense fogs. 
», 26,.—H. aurantiaria emerged from pupa .. C.F. 
Dec. Frost occurred every night till the 30th. " Skating 
began about the 6th. Trent at Drakelow bore 
skating on 14th, and on the 23rd at the Recrea- 
tion Ground. A rapid thaw occurred on the 30th 
and 31st.. : < DU 
» 17.—H. defoliaria emerged from pupa a5 oe - Ce 


[We are indebted to the courtesy of the Burton-on-Trent Natural 
History and Archeological Society for permission to insert the foregoing 


interesting calendar.—Eps. M.N.] 


REVIEWS.—THE STUDY OF ROOKS, ETO. 155 


Arcbietus. 


The Study of Rocks. By Franx Rurtry, F.G.S. London: Longmans, 
Green, and Co. 

This is a new volume of Messrs. Longmans’ well-known cheap series of 
«‘Text-Books of Science.” Mr. Rutley is petrologist to the Government 
Geological Survey, and in the book now before us he supplies a want 
much felt by English geologists, viz., a thorough and correct introduction 
to the study of rocks. To be able to recognise and correctly describe 
rocks, at all events any which we shall be likely to meet with in this 
country, is a power which must be diligently sought after by every student 
of geology. Such a knowledge, we have no hesitation in saying, can 
neither be aquired from books alone nor from specimens alone, but any 
one who will combine the two, who will carefully study Mr. Rutley’s 
work, while at the same time he examines collections of rocks and 
minerals, such as may be seen in any public museum, or obtained by 
exchange, or purchased from dealers, cannot fail to lay the foundation of 
a sound practical knowledge of this subject, which will be of great value 
to him at every succeeding step in the science of geology. In the intro- 
ductory chapters of this book Mr. Rutley gives, in a clear and concise 
manner, an account of the structure and phenomena of rock masses. 
He then gives very valuable and practical information on the formation 
of a rock collection, and on the examination of rocks, especially by the 
aid of the microscope. This part concludes with an account of the prin- 
cipal rock-forming minerals, their megascopic and microscopic characters. 

In Part II. the author describes the several species of rocks under two 
main heads—Eruptive and Sedimentary. This portion of the work is 
especially interesting, as it contains the latest, and, indeed, new, inform- 
ation on many points of interest and importance. This portion of the 
book would bear much amplification, so that in future editions (which 
will certainly be called for) the descriptive petrology might well form a 
second yolume. Altogether, it is certain that all practical workers in 
geology will hail as a great boon the appearance of this book, for it fills 
a distinct gap in the (English) literature of the science, whilst we may 
further hope that it will promote clearness of ideas and uniformity of 
nomenclature. 


W. J. 4H. 


The Post-Tertiary Deposits of Cambridgeshire. By A. J. Juxes-Browne, 
B.A., F.G.S. Cambridge: Deighton, Bell, and Co. 


Tus work is the Sedgwick Prize Essay for 1876. It constitutes an 
interesting and important contribution to the study of one of the 
‘‘burning” geological questions of the day—the origin, nature, and 
classification of the deposits of the Glacial Period. In the first two 
chapters Mr. Jukes-Browne furnishes a history of the work already done 
in this direction, both generally (chap. I.) and in the county of Cambridge, 
(chap. Il.) He next briefly denotes the physical features of the county, 
and then enters more fully into an account of the Great Chalky Boulder 


156 REVIEWS.—POST-TERTIARY DEPOSITS, ETC. 


Clay, which he believes to be the lowest glacial deposit present. The 
gravels and sands which occur sometimes in, sometimes below this great 
clayey deposit, he regards as local only, and not forming part of the 
Middle Glacial Sands of Mr. Searles V. Wood, jun. As to the mode*of its 
formation, Mr. Jukes-Browne considers that the Chalky Boulder Clay 
was formed by matter dropped from bergs and coast-ice in a sea open to 
the north, but with land to the south and west. When this area was 
again elevated, the coarse hill gravels (with what are called the 
“ Plateaux ” and “ Flood” gravels) were formed on the highest points as 
they rose above the sea by the action of currents on the boulder clay. 
The elevation increasing, rivers would begin to flow over the new land 
surface, and from their action the several series of river gravels would 
result. Altogether this essay is a valuable contribution to the geology of 
the district to which it relates. The author is upon the staff of the 
Geological Survey, and we shall look forward with interest to further 
accounts from his pen describing in other districts the deposits of which 


he has given us so good an account in Cambridgeshire. 
W. J. 4H. 


Proceedings of the Chester Society of Natural Science. No. II. Chester: 
Printed for the Society. Price 2s. 6d. 


Tuts Society is evidently doing good work, and the pamphlet which has 
just been issued does the members very great credit. It contains a 
number of thoughtfully and ably written papers on the geology and the 
fauna and flora of the Chester district, and is illustrated by an 
autographic print, taken from a photograph, of a specimen of Stigmaria, 
from the coal measures of Trefnant, near Ruabon. Mr. A. O. Walker, 
F.L.S., contributes two very interesting papers, viz., ‘‘ Observations on 
Phenomena connected with the Deposition of Sediment at the present 
day in the Estuary of the Dee, and their bearing upon Older Deposits ;” 
and ‘ Notes on the Lower Coal Measures between Bagillt and Holywell.” 
Mr. George W. Shrubsole, F.G.S., contributes a paper ‘ On the Origin of 
Rock Salt,” in which he contends that ‘‘ rock salt has been derived from 
the evaporation of water.” Mr. W. Shone, F.G.S., supplies a valuable 
paper on “‘ The Drift Deposits of West Cheshire,” with the lists of the 
foraminifera, ostracoda, mollusca, polyzoa,  cirripedia, annelida, 
echinoidea, and spongida, found by himself and other members of this 
society. Dr. H. Stolterfoth, M.A., contributes an excellent ‘‘ List of the 
Diatomacez found in Chester and district and Cwm Bychan, N.W.” In 
this list are some very rare species. There is a very able paper by Mr. 
J. D. Siddall **‘ On the Foraminifera of the River Dee,” giving descrip- 
tions of several species new to the British fauna which have been found 
in this river ; together with extensive lists of the species found by him, 
many of them very rare. Mr. T. Shepheard gives an excellent account 
of the ‘‘ Freshwater Polyzoa found in the neighbourhood of Chester,” with 
descriptions and notes. There is also a lengthy communication by Mr. 
J. Price, M.A., on ‘‘ Proliferous Leaves and Notes thereon,” being an 
account of some original investigations made by him on Cardamine 
pratensis. Mr. Price finds that every leaflet of this plant will germinate 
and give origin to a new plant. This paper is worthy of the attention of 
all botanists. Mr. H. J. Baillie contributes ‘‘ The City Flora,” and gives 
a list of over 400 flowering plants and ferns found within the “ city of the 
county of Chester.” These proceedings are well printed, and free from 
typographical errors. 
J. E. B. 


THE WEATHER OF APRIL. 157 


METEOROLOGY OF THE MIDLANDS. 
THE WEATHER OF APRIL, 1879. 


BY W. JEROME HARRISON, F.G.S. 


. RAINFALL, TEMPERATURE. 
; Ss) Greatest fall 33 Greatest ht. Great’st cold. 
STATION. OBSERVER. s e in 24 hours. S B 
; Tn.| In., Date. AS Deg| Date. |Deg| Date, 
———————————————————E sie —— | eal 
GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
Cainsecross, Stroud ..........|W. B. Baker, Esq. ........| 2°65) °72) 20 6 |650} 8 |260) 2 
Cheltenham ..... «.+|R. Tyrer, Esq. +6 | 2°59] ‘58 6 20 | 562] 27 26'5 4 
TS eee seoeee|T. Je Coley, HSQ..sesseeeee-| 2°36] 69], 7 | 151590; 23 [29:0] Js - 
SHROPSHIRE. 
Haughton Hall, Shifnal ..../Rev. J. Brooke ............| 2°49} “40/9 17 | 56:0) 26 | 23:0) 18 
Woolstaston ....,....02.000+ Rey. E. D. Carr... --| 2°82) °43 9 21 | 63°0 8 |{200) 18 
Leaton Vicarage, Shrewsbury|Rev. E. V. Pigott ..... 3°01] ‘61 9 25 | 569 4 HELO eye 
More Rectory, Bishop’s Castle|Rev. A. Male ...,..... 2°25) 86] 26 | 24 1670) 26 «| 230] 1g 
Larden Hall, Much Wenlock.|Miss F. R. Boughton . 2°80) *67 9 21 
Bishop's Castle ....... ++++--.|H. Griffiths, Esq. ... 2°16} °29) 26 21 | 68:0 4 |230) 4g 
Cardington... +--/Rev. Wm. Elliott... ++ | 3°87] “61 9 20] 
BtOKesay ncecsceeees sseeeees|Rev. J. D. La Touche......} 2°29} '26] 20 21/693) 27 |23°6) 48 
HEREFORDSHIRE. 
Whitfield ..............+..+..|W. Wheatley, Esq. ... a41} “45} 6 | 20] 240) 18 
Stoke Bliss .......... seeeeee+|hov. G. E, Alexander. 2°78) 28} JL | 20/570) 27 |260) 49 
WORCESTERSHIRE. 
Orleton, Tenbury. .|T. H. Davis, Esq... 2°96) 40) 6 | 20/578; 27 | 238) 43 
West Malvern . .|A. H. Hartland, E 2°95) “44 6 17 | 55°0 4 |245) 49 
Pedmore ..... 2764} “34 6 23/600} 27 | 280) j¥ 
Longlands, Sto’ 237| 82) 6 | 21 |) 620] 26 | 28°0! g war 
Dennis, Stourbridge . 2°40] 28] 6 =| 21/570) «24 | 27" 
STAFFORDSHIRE. 
< Thorganby Villa,Wolverhmtn|G. J.C. Broom, Esq, ......|2°84| 42} 23 | 20 
Dudley .|Mr. J. Fisher ...... veeseees| 2°66)5)'40] 80 | 19 | 62-0 28°0) a9 
Sedgley -|Mr. C. Beale ..... ‘ «| 2°84] “35 G | 17 | 540) 26 & 27/280; ag 
Kinver .. .|Rey. W. H. Bolton . 33} 26 | 19 | 67-0 26°0/ Jo 
Walsall...... Miata he seus os | MTON, Hi Besb.)..', ‘ 56] 23 | 20 | 540) 7 &26 | 27°0) ag 
Grammar School, Burton....|C. U. Tripp, Esq. .......... 268] “49) 99) | 18 | 58'0) 2, 27, 29/250; 9g 
Weston-under-Lyziard R’tory|Hon,and Rev.J. Bridgeman] 2°91] ‘69} 23 18 |59°0) 27 | 130) og 
Wrottesley .................-/E. Simpson, Esq. ..... eee. /3°37| “67] 26 18 | 55°0/5, 27, 28/241) 43 
Heath House, Cheadle .|J. C. Philips. Esq...... .|} 2°86] “76} 28 | 16 | 56'0 26°0] 43 
Alstonfield Vicarage ........|Rev. W.H. Purchas ....,.{3°01| “63} 23 | 16/66] 10 |224| 44 
WARWICKSHIRE. 
Coventry ...-...sseeceeeces ..|J. Gulson, Esq. ....... sos] 2°67] 46) 6 | 16} 60:01 26 
Coundon, Coventry.... -|Lieut.-Col. R. Caldicott ....| 2°87] “49} 6 | 18 |58°0/ 26 |29°0| 194618 
Bickenhill Vicarage. . w|J. Ward, Eaqes.scscceee ... {| 2°98] °53} 19) | 14 | 47-0 31:0 
Oscott College .... ...|Rev. 8. J. Whitty..........{2'78] “61) 238 | 18/569) 26 |265] 43 
Henley-in-Arden .. ...|T. H. G. Newton, Esq...... 3:09] “64) 23 | 17 |59°0} 27 27-0} 4g 
Rugby School........,.......|Rev. T. N, Hutchinson ...,| 2°15] “44/28 [18 /59:0/ 26 274! 99 
DERBYSHIRE. 
Baxtoniss cise. ona +o /H, J. Sykes, Haq. ...seeceee 8:27] “42} 20 | 19/532] 26 |199/ 43 
Stoney Middleton..... seveees|Rov. U. Smith ............/3°30]} 08) 23 | 15 |54:0/8, 25, 26/12°0] 39 
Brampton §. Thomas .|Bey. J. M, Mello.......... 9°73) 1°00} 10 9/610} 21 | 220! 43 
Fernslope, Belver............|J. G. Jackson, Hsq. ........| 2°60} “48 9 18 |57°0} 26 |26°0) 4s 
Linacre Reservoir .... ../C. BH. Jones, Esq. .....0. eee] 3°07} “61 9 17 
BOWED coe sencinss c's, -.|J. T. Barber, Esq...........|2°67] 54] 9 |17 57:0} 26 |257) 
NOTTINGHAMSHIRE. 
SUUISAOM ieee scaecss sacs se +-.|J. N. Dufty, Esq. -.... : 60°0} 29 1250} 49 
Hodsock Priory, Worksop ..|H. Mellish, Esq. .......,../2°67] ‘54, 9 |19]|600/ 26 (296) 43 
Park Hill, Nottingham...... H, F. Johnson, Esq. . 07] 75] 9 |14)575) 7 [803] G9 
Hesley Hall ..... meettebact B. J. Whitaker, Esq. . 43) 10 | 14/630} 27 |29°| 49 
LEICESTERSHIRE. 
Loughborough .......... +++-|W. Berridge, Esq... 246] *46 9 15 | 68'3 7 {277) 9 
Ashby Magna................|Rev. E. Willes . 241| 61] 23 | 18/610) 26 | 24°0/19 9.99 
Market Harborough ........|8. W. Cox, Esq.. 2°20) *45] 12 15 |58'0| 26 | 23°0)  ’y9’ 
DIS WOFtD 0. <a seecoc4.-- ..|T. Macaulay, Esq. . 2°35|8) 44) 12 17 
Town Museum, Leicester W. J. Harrison, Esq. eee} 211/849) 14 18 |67°9} 26 |28'5) a9 
Belmont Villas, Leicester H. Billson, Esq. ....... +-| 2°18) 38) 9 18 | 616 7 |29°0| 19 & 22 
BISREUME siocesccue's tee seeds J. Hames, jun., Esq. ......|1°63] °88} 14 | 15 |60°0} 5&8 | 280) 19 & 15 
Waltham-le-Wold TSR HAG. ain cases cnc nets 8'16| “44 9 16 |58°0); 26 270) #41 
Little Dalby Hall G. Jones, Hag. si... . eee. 2°63] “86 7 14 |60°0} 26 | 23°0! 19 & a2 
Foxton Locks ........ -./Union Canal Company ..../1°88| *385} 13 18 
Coston Rectory, Melton....../Rev. A. M. Rendell........| 2°66] °51| 23 18 | 685 7 |210) 92 
ORTHAMPTONSHIRE. 
Towcester Browery.......... J. Webb, Hsq........+.+-+2-| 2°18) 53} 12 13 
Castle Ashby ..... seeeeeeeess/R. G. Scriven, Hsq. ....... | 2°78 69] 28 16 | 61 8:0! 1 
Kettering..... Sadeoeen seer » [Sis Wallis, Haq.’ sci ccecesccs 8°84) *70| 28 17 | 59°0! 27 & 28) 28°0} 13 
AUTON \n<c.se00+000> Se C. 8. Groom, Hsq....... »-oo( 184} “411 6 | 13 | 59 260] 11 & 17 
(215214) 7 eee eeener ee eee ae Cc, A. Markham, a alee 2°07) °b38] 12 17 |62:0} 27 |260) 19 
RUTLAND. 
West Deyne, Uppingham ..../Rev. G. H. Mullins ........ 8°08] *60} 23 16 |57°2) 26 269) 12 
Northfields, Stamford ......|W. Hayes, Hsq......... eeee| 2°64) 45 9 14/600} 27 |25°0) 19 
Ventnor Hospital............ W. T. Ryder, Esq...«..... + | 3°63) 1°20) 15 6|678) 27 |28°7) 12 
Altarnun Vicarage ........../Rev. G. Tripp.......eseee0) 8°27) °60) 20 & 24) 19 62°01 21 (22°0} 12 


158 THE WEATHER OF APRIL. 


The first few days of the month were fairly warm and fine, but the 
weather soon relapsed into the cold, sunless, showery character which 
has characterised the long and dreary winter, which, even now, (May 
23rd,) can scarcely be said to have passed away. From the 11th to the 
15th snow fell more or less at every station. The fall of the 12th was 
heavy, and on Easter Sunday (13th) from five to eight inches of snow 
covered the ground. JHasterly winds continued to prevail, and, with 
almost nightly frosts, so checked vegetation generally that the hedges 
were black and bare up to the last day. The temperature may be 
estimated at five or six degrees below the average; rainfall about the 
average. From the 27th to the 30th thunderstorms were experienced 
with hail. The Rev. J. Brooke (Shifnal) writes :—‘ The coldest Haster- 
day for at least forty-five years, the min. temperature being 23°, and 
the max. 40°; the next nearest being 1836, (April 3rd,) when min. was 
32° and max. 44.” Mr. T. H. Davis, (Orleton)—‘‘ The coldest month of 
April that has occurred for more than twenty-four years.” We are 
indebted to our meteorological observers for the accompanying notes of 
spring birds and flowers. 


Dates or Sprinc Frowers.—Brampton S. Thomas—Anemone nemo- 
rosa, Mercurialis perennis, fl., 11th; Elder, Hawthorn, 1., 29th ; Ranun- 
culus Ficaria, fl., 30th. Strowd—Fl. on 1st, Wood Sorrel; 5th, Goat 
Willow (stamens;) 8th, Caltha palustris; 9th, Periwinkle, Wood 
Anemone, Daffodil; 10th, Red Dead Nettle; 14th, Cinquefoil; 25th, 
White Dead Nettle, Ground Ivy; 29th, Fragaria vesca, Cowslip, Ranun- 
culus aquatilis, Wood Spurge; 30th, Avthusa cynapium, Cardamine 
pratensis, Adoxa moschatellina, Chrysosplenium alternifolium. 


Micratory Birps, &c., HEARD OR SEEN.—Castle Ashby—Swallows, a few 
on 20th, main body on 26th; Cuckoo heard on 28th; Nightingale, May 
7th. Woolstaston—Swallow, 21st ; Cuckoo, 23rd. Coston Rectory—Cuckoo, 
22nd. Shifnal—Swallow, 23rd; Cuckoo, 22nd; Sand Martin, 14th; 
White Butterfly, 29th ; Yellow-tip Humble Bee, 4th. Market Harborouyh 
—Swallow, 19th; Cuckoo, 21st. Weston-uwnder-Lyziard—Swallow, 25th. 
Bishop’s Castle—Swallow, 24th ; Cuckoo, 21st. More Rectory—Swallow, 
19th; Cuckoo, 21st; Redstart and Garden Warbler, 22nd. Cheltenham— 
Swallow, 20th; Cuckoo, 27th. Much Wenlock—(One) Swallow, 25th; 
Cuckoo, 23rd. Tenbury—Swallow, 17th ; Cuckoo, 20th; Chiff-chaff seen 
on Ist. Handsworth Wood—Cuckoo, 25th. 


Correspondence, 


a 


CHRYSOSPLENIUM ALTERNIFOLIUM.—This plant, stated in most works 
on Botany to be “rare,” or ‘‘not common,” I have found in several 
parts of this neighbourhood. Will any of the readers of the ‘‘ Naturalist,” 
who have seen it elsewhere, tell me where it is to be found ?—OssERvER, 
Stroud. 

Two PrecaMBRiIAN Groups IN SHRopsHIRE.—I have recently obtained 
clear evidence of a second Precambrian formation, near Wellington. In 
Primrose Hill, the south-westerly spur of the Wrekin, I have come upon 
an exposure of hornblendic gneiss, with a high dip to the N.E. 
Associated with this bedded rock are a red granitoidite and a well- 
crystallised diorite. The identity of these rocks with some of the 
common Malvern types in my cabinet is undoubted, and the strike 
precisely corresponds with that of the Malvernian series. This meta- 
morphic group is unconformably overlaid by the tuffs and rhyolites of 
the Wrekin. I have just returned from a visit to St. David’s, where I 


CORRESPONDENCE. 159 


was struck with the close resemblance between the lower part of the 
Pebidian and the ashy slates and hialleflintas of Lilleshall Hill. These 
Lilleshall rocks I have also detected on the flanks of the Malvern Hills. 
Thus light begins to dawn upon the obscurity which has hitherto 
enveloped these ancient and difficult rocks. This is the first announce- 
ment of the discovery of a second series in Salop, but I must not do more 
than state the bare fact at present.—C. Cannaway. 


Brack Banp iy tHE Drirr.—t hope Mr. Atkins will examine care- 
fully the black band referred to in last month’s notes. A similar band 
was described by the late Dr. Ick, Curator of the Birmingham Philo- 
sophical Institution, as occurring at Saltley. Several horns were found 
in the deposit, and also nuts of the common hazel. It would seem likely 
that organic remains should be found in the bed Mr. Atkins describes.— 
C. J. Woopwarp. 


Notes on OrnitHotocy.—Whatever may be the effect of severe 
weather upon the arrival of our Spring migrants on our shores, it certainly 
causes them to put in an appearance in the Midland Counties at a later 
date than usual. Thus, nearly all the dates below mentioned are later, and 
some of them markedly so than in former years. The Chiffchaff and Black- 
cap, mentioned in my last notes, were observed later than for three years. 
The Sand Martin’s arrival is the latest record I have by nine days. The 
Swallow, House Martin, Willow Wren, and Cuckoo were all late, whilst 
the Nightingale has been heard on an earlier date for seven consecutive 
years past. At the time I write (May 12th) the Swifts have not yet arrived. 
I have thirteen arrivals to chronicle, viz. :— 

April 11.—Lesser Whitethroat (Sylvia curruca.) 

» 17.—Swallow (Hirundo rustica.) 

», 21.—Willow Wren (Sylvia trochilus.) 

» 25.—Sand Martin (Hirundo riparia.) 

» 25.—Nightingale (Philomela Luscinia.) 

», 26.—House Martin (Hirundo urbica.) 

» 29.—Common Whitethroat (Sylvia cinerea. ) 

» 80.—Tree Pipit (Anthus arboreus.) 

» 380.—Cuckoo (Cuculus canorus.) 

May 1.—Garden Warbler (Sylvia hortensis.) 

“t 4.—Wood Wren (Sylvia sibilatriz.) 

< 6.—Grasshopper Warbler (Avicula locustella. ) 

xs 8.—Sedge Warbler (Salicaria Phragmitis.) 
Several others are overdue, and are probably here, but I have failed to 
observe them. Two small flocks of Fieldfares were seen passing on 
April 12th, others on 19th, and the last party on 22nd. A nest of Black- 
birds was hatched off on April 15th, but the young brood succumbed to 
the severity of the weather. Rooks were hatched on April 20th. A 
friend writes me that she heard the Nightingale in Derbyshire on 
April 17th. In the last number of the ‘“‘ Midland Naturalist,” a corres- 
pondent in North Notts notes the advent of a doubtful migrant, either 
Sylvia rufa or S. trochilus. From the date given, April 5th, it was 
probably the former, but, as the birds themselves are so easily distinguished, 
and their notes are so different, there ought te be no doubt as to which 
it was. I shall be very glad to compare my dates with those of any other 
observers in the county of Leicester if they will correspond with me.— 
Tuomas Macaunay, M.R.C.S.L., &c., Kibworth. 


OrnitHoLocicaL Nores rrom Drrsy.—A birdstuffer here, a short 
time since, showed me a Dipper, (Cinclus aquaticus,) which he said had 
been shot in Christmas week, on a small brook near the Workhouse. 
That interesting pile is just on the outskirts of the town, and the brook 
is a small stream running through the red marl, and averaging in width 


160 CORRESPONDENCE. 


about a yard. The Dipper is common on two of our Peak rivers, the 
Wye and the Dove, and I have very little doubt on the Derwent also, 
though I cannot call to mind that I have ever noticed it there. But the 
place it frequents nearest to the brook above-mentioned is at least fifteen 
miles away, and the occurrence of a species, like the Dipper, loving rocky 
limestone streams, ona little lowland clay brook, quite close to a large 
town, is, I think, remarkable.—The same birdstuffer said he had not had 
a single Brambling brought to him during the past winter. Usually he 
has them in abundance.—I have heard of two more Hawfinches being 
killed near Derby lately, at Mickleover and Quarndon. In my note on the 
Hawfinch, p. 123, line 21, for “light” read “ bright.”—Mzruiy, Derby, 
* 18th May, 1879. 

OrnitHoLocicaL Notss.—A few swallows were seen here early. Mr. 
Bill and Mr. Kirby both saw one on the 8th April, and the Cuckoo was 
heard at Keresley on the i6th. Mr. Miller, of Combe Gardens, writes 
me that he saw the first pair of swallows there on the 20th, and on the 
25th these birds seemed to have settled down to their work. The Night- 
ingale was heard in High Wood on the 22nd. Mr. Miller writes :—‘‘ The 
late season has made no difference to the rooks, for they commenced the 
repair and re-building of their nests punctual to a day—in the first week 
of March. I have ample opportunity of observing them. In a tree 
within gunshot of my sitting-room window are about twenty-five nests. 
In this tree, which is a large oak covered with ivy to within three feet of 
the highest branches, there are breeding at the same time the rook, the 
ringdove, the stock pigeon, the starling, the sparrow, and, for aught I know, 
the blackbird and thrush. Later in the season the turtle dove is not an 
unusual frequenter of this tree. Besides this being my natural history 
tree I also call it my weathercock, for, as we have east wind prevailing 
more or less throughout spring, during the time the east wind is 
blowing the rooks sit on the branches with beaks eastward, tails west- 
ward. You can understand it to be a great pleasure, after a long tack of 
east wind, to come down one fine morning and find the rooks all sitting 
with beaks westward and tails to the east.” Of the summer migrants 
the chiff-chaff, willow wren, and wryneck seem to be about in their usual 
number, but I have seen and heard very few of the other small songsters. 
The blackcap, garden warbler, whitethroat, redstart, and others are all 
due about the middle of April; but whether their numbers have been 
thinned by cold in their southern climate, or whether they are late in 
their arrival, there is certainly an unusual deficiency in the number of 
these little visitors at present.—JoHn Guuson, Coventry. 

OrnitHoLocicaL Norrs.—With regard to the Wryneck mentioned in 
my notes in March, and in the last number of the ** Midland Naturalist,” 
I did not see the bird, but only heard it. I heard it again on the 19th 
March, near the same place, and was quite convinced that it was of that 
species. I much regret not having gone to the place, so as to have made 
it a certainty. ‘‘ Merlin,” in the last number, wishes to know if the 
increase of Hawfinches has been observed elsewhere. For some years 
I only heard of one specimen haying been killed just here, but this 
season five have been observed; three of them were shot (one being a 
bird of the year,) the other two, a pair, frequented our garden for some 
months, and during the frost fed with the other birds. They were last 
seen about the end of February. A Coot was shot here on March 14th. 
It is almost a rarity in this district; the absence of large pieces of water 
may account for this. I saw two Water Rails is different places during 
that month; this bird seems to have become more common lately. 
Early in April Chiffchaffs and Willow Wrens arrived, notwithstanding 
the wintry weather, which, however, does not seen to have affected our 
migrants in as great a degree as might have been expected. On the 
8rd April a pair of Lesser Spotted Woodpeckers were observed on some 


. 
g 


Ee 


CORRESPONDENCE—GLEANINGS. 161 


poplars in this village; although rare, a few of these birds are seen 
every year. The last large flock of Fieldfares I saw was on April 5th. 
On the 16th of that month I heard young Rooks calling from the nests. 
I was rather surprised to hear them so early, as the old birds were rather 
behind hand in beginning nesting operations. The first Swallow I saw 
was on the 19th April; they were not, however, plentitul till the 27th. 
House Martins were not here till the 26th; a very late date. The 
Cuckoo was first seen on the 27th; but was heard on the 20th. On that 
day I observed several small birds feeding on the tops of some fir trees, 
which on examination turned out to be Siskins. This seems late for them 
to be here. Icountedeight. A flock of yellow Wagtails, about twenty, 
was seen on a fallow on the 21st, strange to say in company with one 
grey and a pair of the pied species. On the 4th May I put up a Mallard 
and Duck from off the Cherwell, where they are no doubt going to nest. 
A Swift was seen on the 10th of that month, and on the same day I saw 


\ two male Redstarts.—O. V. Arun, Bodicote, Oxon, May 14th, 1879. 


SEASONABLE OssERvAtIONS.—I heard the welcome note of the Cuckoo 
(Cuculus canorus) for the first time on April 24th, 1879, April 17th, 1878, 
April 22nd, 1877. Swallows (Hirundo rustica) first seen April 22nd, 1879, 
April 17th, 1878, April 27th, 1877. Window Martins (Hirundo urbica) 
first seen April 26th, 1879, April 23rd, 1878, April 28th, 1877. Nightingale 
in full song April 25th, 1878, and May 6th, 1879. I have observed 
Potentilla fragariastrum in flower April 24th. Primula veris, Taraxacum 
dens-leonis, and Cardamine pratensis April25th. Wild Cherry (Prunus 
avium) in sheltered places April 27th, not observed in more exposed 
places till May 6th. Prunus spinosa by April 30th. Sazxifraga tridactylites 
by May 3rd. Lamium album and Geranium rotundifolium by May 5th. 
The Wild Bullace and Wild Plum were in flower in the hedges May 6th. 
Anthriscus sylvestris in flower May 11th; Cerastium glomeratum, Ribwort 
Plantain, (Plantago lanceolata,) Beech, (Fagus sylvatica,) and Sisymbrium 
alliaria on May 13th; and Wild Pear (Pyrus communis) on May 14th. 
Brimstone Butterfly first seen March 19th, Tortoiseshell Butterfly 
March 28th, Red Admiral and Peacock Butterflies seen on April 8th, 
White Cabbage Butterfly first seen May 4th. Wood Crowfoot (Ranun- 
culus auricomus ) in flower by May 4th.—Rosrrr Rocers, Castle Ashby, 
Northampton. 


Gleanings. 


Minanp Unton.—The Annual Meeting next year will be held at 
Northampton, on the invitation of the Northampton Natural History 
Society, the President of which is the President-elect of the Union. 

Derr Borines.—In Hertfordshire the Colne Waterworks Company 
have long been engaged in putting down a deep bore-hole to obtain an 
additional supply of water. We understand that at a depth of about 
1,000ft. they have struck Silurian rocks. The bores being of great 
diameter have yielded numerous fossils of Wenlock species. 

Mock Sun.—On April 19th, whilst in the train from Ashbourne to 
Rocester, I saw, between 6 15 and 6 40 p.m., a brilliant example of mock- 
sun, varying in colour from white to yellow-and-red. It was near the horizon, 
about 20 degrees from the setting sun.—C. U. Tripp, Burton-on-Trent. 

Snow in May.—A correspondent in the Times says there is yet (May: 
21st) enough snow on Snowdon to enable mountaineers to enjoy their 
favourite occupation within a few hours of London. The gullies which 
descend from the peak towards Glaslyn are still full of-snow. This he 
adds is most unusual at this time of the year. 


162 GLEANINGS. 


Fresuwater Lirs.—Mr. Bolton, 17, Ann Street, Birmingham, informs 
us that, in continuation of his report (pp. 97 and 127) he has sent the 
following additional objects to his subscribers :—Young Cristatella mucedo, 
just developed trom the statoblast ; Syncheta mordax ; Embryo of fresh- 
water Mussel, Anodonta cygnea; Nitella translucens, with Carchesium 
polypinum; Batrachospermum moniliforme ; Elver, or young Eel; Spawn 
of Perch; Melicerta ringens; Melicerta tubicolaria (or tyro;) Pandorina 
morum; Volvox globator; and Fredericella sultana. ‘These were, as usual, 
all illustrated by drawings from under the microscope by Mr. H. EH. 
Forrest, or by copies of Dr. Hudson’s, Professor Allman’s, Oersted’s, or 
other drawings, with appropriate descriptions. It is interesting to know 
that Mr. Bolton has found a new habitat for the rare rotifer, Melicerta 
tubicolaria, (or tyro,) of which Dr. Hudson gave a most interesting account 
and drawings in the ‘‘ Monthly Microscopical Journal,” November, 1875, 
(vol. xiv., p. 225.) 


Harpy Spring Frowers ofthe undermentioned kinds were exhibited 
in bunches, by Mr. W. Ingram, of Belvoir Castle, at the Conyersazione at 
Leicester, on the 20th of May, on the occasion of the visit of the Midland 
Union. They were in superb condition, and showed what glorious decor- 
ative resources for our gardens we have in plants which are sufficiently 
hardy to withstand the severity of such a winter and spring as we have 
just passed through. We urge our horticultural readers to make a note 
of this list, and select from it for the enrichment of their gardensfor next 
and future years. All the plants should be planted in the Autumn. 
Arabis albida, Alyssum saxatile compactum, Alpine auricula, Anemone 
apennina, A. fulgens, A. nemorosa plena, A. Robinsoniana, Cowslips and 
Oxlips in variety, Corydalis nobilis, Doronicum austriacum, Epimedium 
macranthum, E. sulphureum, Gentiana acaulis, Iris pumila, I. pumila 
cerulea, I. pumila bicolor (Ingram), Lamium maculatum, Leucojum 
zestivum, Lonicera fragrantissima, Lunaria biennis white and red, 
Muscari botryoides, Myosotis dissitiflora, Narcissus maximus, N. poeticus 
tripedalis and other varieties, Omphalodes verna, Orobus vernus, Primula 
acaulis, many excellent varieties obtained by cultivation, P. cortusoides 
amcena, Phlox verna, P. subulata, Pulmonaria azurea, Saxifraga cordi- 
folia, S. crassifolia, Scilla amoena, Triteleia uniflora lilacina, Uvularia 
grandiflora. No one who saw these lovely flowers will ever forget how 
beautiful they were. 

Parasires—A new work by Dr. Spencer Cobbold, F.R.S8., is 
announced, (publishers, Messrs. Churchill,) in which the author treats of 
the subject of parasites as it affects the whole animal kingdom. The 
Atheneum says the volume is divided into two books, the first dealing 
with the parasites of man, and the second with those of animals, including 
birds, reptiles, fishes, &c. Great attention has been given to the depart- 
ment of epidemics, (epizodty,) both as regards public health and the 
welfare of our domesticated animals. 


GroLocy AT THE CrysTaL Panace.—Do many of the visitors seek out 
the interesting illustrations of geological facts which are to be seen in the 
Palace and its grounds? Inside the building there is a good exhibition 
of flint implements, of specimens of fuel peat, lignite, all the varieties of 
coal, &c., and also sections showing the structure of the London Tertiary 
Basin. In the grounds there is, near the lake, the representation of a coal- 
field, the rocks, limestones, sandstones, grits, clays, and shales having 
been brought from the Yorkshire and Derbyshire coalfield. Mineral 
veins and caverns are seen, faults may be noted; Permian and Devonian 
beds are shown above and below. On the shores and islands of the lake 
are full-size restorations of various extinct animals, as the Labyrinthodon, 
Ichthyosaurus, Iguanodon, Palzotherium, &c. These were executed 
under the direction of Mr. Waterhouse Hawkins and Professor Owen. 


GLEANINGS—REPORTS. 163 


Tar Acre or THE Harra.—Mr. A. J. Richardson recently read a 
paper on this subject before the members of the Northampton Natural 
History Society, in which he dealt with the various theories which have 
been propounded, giving in detail the geological, biological, and physical 
estimates of the antiquity of the earth, and the methods by which the 
calculations were made. The discrepancies were stated as very wide, 
the physicists arguing that from sixty to eighty millions of years was 
the most that could be deduced from physical reasoning, whilst the 
biologists were of opinion that not less than 200 millions were sufficient to 
account for the vast quantity of species present on the globe, the geologists, 
however, being satisfied with an intermediate demand of somewhere 
about 120 millions. The theories of Croll’s glacial epochs and many 
other very interesting points were fully explained, and in such a manner 
as to keep the attention of the meeting with the lecturer through the hard 
facts and mathematical formula which necessarily had to be quoted. 


Aeports of Societies. 


BIRMINGHAM NATURAL HISTORY AND MICROSCOPICAL 
SOCIETY.—Gronocican Sxrcrron.—April 22nd. Mr. C. T. Parsons sent a 
curious monstrosity in the flower of a fuchsia.—Mr. H. EH. Forrest exhibited 
Cladophora cegagropila, a remarkable alga, which grows in large balls at the 
bottom of afew English lakes. It is supposed to acquire its globular form from 
being rolled about by currents at the bottom of the lake.—Mr. J. H. Lloyd gave 
an account of the rocks of the Lizard district, illustrated by a map and a large 
number of specimens.—Mr. S. Allport shewed some sections of the same rocks. 
Generat Meetine.—April 29th. Mr. Thos. Bolton exhibited in the microscope 
an elver, or young eel, shewing the whole internal organisation with great clear- 
ness.—Mr. T. Roberts exhibited spawn of the toad—Mr. J. Levick exhibited a 
double flower of the garden anemone, and in the microscope—tadpole of frog, 
showing the circulation of the blood in the gills, and the action of the cilia which 
clothe them externally on the surrounding water.—Mr. J. E. Bagnall exhibited 
valves of Pellia epiphylla, and endothecium of crocus, to shew the fibro-cellular 
tissue ; Mniwm subglobosum, a moss from near Shirley ; and Cardamine pratensis 
shewing prolification of the leaves, sent by Mr. J. Price, M.A., of Chester. 
May 6th.—GernreraL Mrrrine.—Mr. R. M. Lloyd exhibited Suecinea virescens, 
a very rare mollusc, found by himself at Acocks Green.—Mr. T. Bolton exhibited 
spawn of Perch, (?,) showing curious radial strive in the albumen.—Mr. J. EH. 
Bagnall exhibited Peziza trechispora, a micro-fungus, from canal bank, Wilne- 
cote, and Viola hirta, from Wooton Wawen.—Mr. W. H. Wilkinson exhibited a 
number of mosses from the Malvern Hills, comprising, among others, male and 
female plants of Polytrichum piliferum and juniperinum ; also Marchantia 
conica.—Mr. H. E. Forrest exhibited and read some notes upon a living specimen 
of Hydractinia echinata, which had lived in a small marine aquarium, belonging 
to Mr. A. E. Bayliss, for six weeks. He described the alimentary, male, and 
female polypites, and the two kinds of defensive zooids, and pointed out the 
remarkable specialisation exhibited by them, no one polypite fulfilling two 
functions. He also called attention to the curious relationship existing between 
the Hydractinia and the Hermit Crab, the two being always found in 
company. This specimen was an example of a triple comensalism, the shell 
being occupied not only by the crab and the hydrozoon, but also by a 
species of Nereis. Mr. W. R. Hughes said that the bond which united 
them was probably one of mutual advantage; since both the Hydractinia 
and the Nereis would profit by the crumbs dropped by the hermit crab.— 
Brotocican Srction.—May 13th. Mr. T. Bolton brought for exhibition the very 
rare thecated rotifer, Welicerta tyro, which he had recently foundin a new habitat. 
Mr. Forrest read a paper by Mr. W. A. Lloyd, the curator of the Aquarium now in 
course of construction at Aston, and formerly for many years of that at 
Sydenham, ‘‘On the Principles of Aquaria.” After reviewing the history of 
the earlier attempts to keep marine animals in confinement and the gradual 
development of the art of aquarium management, the author gave a highiy 


164 REPORTS. 


interesting account of his own experiments, the result of which was seen in his 
long and successful maintenance of the Aquaria at Hamburg and at the Crystal 
Palace, and then passed on to a description of the system of circulation and 
aération which is about to be carried out at Aston. He also fully discussed the 
problem of the application to the purposes of the Aquarium of “ artificial” or 
compounded sea-water, and gave particulars of the formula by which it may be 
best prepared. A vote of thanks was cordially given to Mr. Lloyd for his paper, 
which was profusely illustrated by a great number of beautifully executed 
diagrams, drawings, &c. Considerable discussion ensued, in the course of which 
Mr. Jones, the consulting chemist to the Aston Company, gave many highly 
interesting details as to the materials required. to the total amount of fifty tons, 
in the manufacture of the artificial sea-water for the Aston Aquarium, and the 
modus operandi to be pursued in that very important operation. The Chairman 
of the Section (Mr. W. R. Hughes, F.L.S.) presided. 


BIRMINGHAM AND MIDLAND INSTITUTE SCIENTIFIC SOCIETY. 
—April 23. Mr. Josiah Austin read a paper on the vegetable alkaloids used in 
pharmacy. Their occurrence in nature, preparation, and effects on the human 
frame were described; and it was shown how much more satisfactory it is to 
prescribe these chemically pure substances instead of the raw materials, which 
contain such variable amounts of the active principles. Specimens of aconitia, 
atropia, strychnia, morphia, and quinia, with the plants from whence they are 
obtained, were exhibited. 


CHELTENHAM NATURAL SCIENCE SOCIETY, May 22nd.—Mr. Day 
read a most interesting paper on ‘‘Vivisection, and what it has done for Science.” 


EVESHAM FIELD NATURALISTS’ CLUB.—April 17th.—Mr. T. J.Slatter 
in thechair. Mr. A. H. Martin yveported the following appearances of migratory 
birds :—Chiffchaff, April 2nd; Swallow, April 7th; Sand Martin, April 7th. 
Mr. T. E. Doeg read an interesting paper on ‘‘ Some of the Birds of our Neigh- 
bourhood,” illustrated by numerous specimens of their eggs. May 8th—_Mr, F. 
Wright in the chair. Resolved that the first excursion shall be on Saturday, 
May 24th, to Buckland. 


NOTTINGHAM LITERARY AND PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY.— 
Natura Science Section.—April 18th. Mr. B. Sturges Dodd read a paper on 
‘The Stone and Wood-Penetrating Molluses of our Coasts.” Mr. Dodd 
directed attention to the power possessed by certain bivalve mollusea of boring 
in sand, wood, peat, and stone. The Phoiades are the chief orders to which he 
referred, dated geologically from the Lias period. They were gregarious, and 
five species, all tolerably common, were to be met with on our coasts, inhabiting 
the littoral and coralline zones. They were phosphorescent, and lived and died 
in the holes which they excavated. The boring instinct was manifested at a very 
early stage; the animals being found in wood when so small as to be almost 
invisible. Some authorities stated that successive generations occupied the same 
hole, each individual living between the valves of the shell of its predecessor; 
and nests of five or six shells were sometimes found, one shell within the other. 
The Gastrochaenidae are distinguished by the case in which they are enclosed 
when arrived at maturity. This case appeared to be formed by a secretion of the 
mantle. Several exotic species are known, one boring in coral and another in 
granite. Several hypotheses have been advanced to account for the manner in 
which the Teredo, Pholas, and their allies bore into hard substances. The perfora- 
tions are formed by means of the shells, which act as a sort of auger; the holes 
are made by rasping, by means of silicious particles embedded in the animal’s 
body, currents of water set in motion by means of cilia, or the animals 
secreted an acid, the process being completed by rasping.—May 2nd.—Mrcro- 
scopicAL Mbntinc.—Subject: Geology and Paleontology. Messrs. G. B. 
Rothera and J. Burton exhibited slides under microscopes. Mr, E. Wilson, F.G.8., 
exhibited a collection of fish teeth, obtained by him from Ticknall, and gave a 
description of them.—May 9th. Mr. J. Shipman read a paper on his recent 
Ea a of coal measures, exposed at the surface, in the Trent Valley, at 

urton.” 


ANNUAL MEETING. 165 
MIDLAND UNION OF NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETIES. 


SECOND ANNUAL MEETING, AT LEICESTER. 


The Council of the Union met at one o’clock in the new Leicester 
Town Hall, on Tuesday, May 20th, 1879. There were twenty-six 
delegates present, representing sixteen societies. After the reading of 
the Secretaries’ report, and the preparation of the business to be laid 
before the general meeting, the Council adjourned to the Royal Hotel, in 
Horsefair Street, where they were entertained at luncheon by the 
President, Mr. George Stevenson, together with the office bearers of the 
Leicester Literary and Philosophical Society, the Mayor of Leicester, 
(C. Stretton, Esq.,) C. Packe, Esq., (President-elect of the Leicester 
Literary and Philosophical Society,) &c. 


During the progress of the Council meeting the visitors who were 
not engaged in officially representing the societies to which they belonged, 
were conducted to the principal objects of antiquity in Leicester by the 
members of the Archeological Section of the Literary and Philosophical 
Society, the arrangements having been made by the chairman (Mr. W. 
Kelly) and the hon. sec. (Mr. A. H. Paget.) The company met at the 
Museum, and proceeded to the Newarke, where Mr. W. Kelly, F.R.H.S., 
explained the celebrated gateway, pointing out that it was the principal 
entrance to the newest part of Leicester Castle, and derived its name 
of the New-works gateway in consequence. He further mentioned that 
a collegiate church formerly stood on the site of Mr. HE. §. Ellis’s house, 
and that the St. Mary’s vicarage house and the residence of Mr. Lawrence 
Willmore were at one time canons’ housesin connection with the church, 
Trinity Hospital was shown, and then the party walked on the turret 
gateway, which Mr. Kelly said was the old entrance to the Castle Turret, 
Thirty years ago, at a contested election for the county, part of the 
masonry fell, fortunately without doing any injury to anybody, and 
with a view to make the place a picturesque ruin(!), the old dome, 
which was perfect, was taken down by order of the Duchy of Lancaster, at 
the suggestion of Mr. §. Hardy. The stone work is now, unfortunately, 
crumbling away. Mr. T. Nevinson then explained the characteristics of 
St. Mary’s Church, pointing out the interesting relics of Norman and 
early English work to be found there. He said the earliest part of the 
edifice would be erected about 1107, but other parts were added in 1170 
and 1280. Mr. Kelly next conducted the party through the Castle, showed 
the traces of Norman architecture there, and then the Guildhall was 
visited. Mr. Kelly mentioned how the hall came into the possession of 
the Corporation after the dispersion of the Corpus Christi Guild, spoke 
of the uses to which it was put, and the circumstance that Shakespeare 
probably played in the hall. The Mayor’s Parlour and Town Library 
attracted much notice, especially the chimney-piece in the first named 
apartment. St. Martin’s Church was next entered, Mr. Nevinson 
explaining the principal features in the fine edifice, which, he said, how- 
ever, was not so interesting as St. Mary’s. A portion of the party then 

AA 


166 ANNUAL MEETING, 


proceeded to St. Nicholas’ Church, in some respects, perhaps, the most 
valuable of allin the town from an archeologist’s point of view. The 
early Norman work was pointed out by Mr. Nevinson and the vicar, (the 
Rey. T. W. Owen,) and both gentlemen agreed that some portion of the 
building was probably Saxon. Mr. Owen exhibited the first register of 
marriages and burials bearing date 1559, a deeply interesting volume, 
which he has had bound to better preserve it. Walking from the church, 
the house in St. Nicholas Street, in which it is supposed Bunyan once 
resided, and in which Dr. Watts on one occasion passed the night, was 
noticed, and the journey of the company was brought to a conclusion by 
a visit to the Jewry Wall and the Roman Pavement, which is preserved 
in situ, in a cellar close by. 


GENERAL MEETING. 


The annual meeting was held in the Council Chamber of the Town 
Hall, at half-past three o’clock, Mr. Grorcz STEVENSON, of Leicester, (the 
President,) occupying the chair. The attendance, which numbered about 
seventy, included Mr. E. W. Badger, of Birmingham, and Mr. W. J. 
Harrison, of Leicester, the two honorary secretaries; the Rey. H. W. 
Crosskey, Dr. Deane, and Messrs. W. Graham, W. R. Hughes, G. H. 
Twigg, J. Morley, J. Rabone, A. Scruton, J. F. Goode, C. J. Watson, 
Alfred Hughes, C. Pumphrey, J. Levick, F. Underhill, H. Burman, 
Lawson Tait, H. J. Devis, and Bernard Badger, (representing various 
Birmingham societies;) Messrs. George Perry and Thomas Bolton, 
(Dudley,) Mr. Edwin Wheeler and the Rev. W. Katterns, (Peterborough,) 
Colonel Basevi and Major Barnard, (Cheltenham,) Messrs. J. S. Hedder- 
ley, L. Lee, A. H. 8. White, G. B. Rothera, and J. Mosley, (Nottingham,) 
W. Phillips, (Shrewsbury,) the Rev. C. F. Thornewill, (Burton-on- 
Trent,) the Revds. O. M. Feilden and G. G. Monck, (Oswestry,) Messrs. 
F. T. Mott, T. Carter, C. Packe, J.P., W. Kelly, A. Paget, A. H. Paget, 
J. B. Everard, E. Clephan, W. Kempson, M. Maxfield, E. L. Stephens, 
W. Pilsbury, F. J. F. Kirby, H. §. Jones, and W. Emmerson, (Leicester,) 
the Rev. J. D. La Touche, (Stokesay,) the Rev. J. E. Vize, (Forden,) 
the Rev. J. M. Mello, (Chesterfield,) &., &c. 


After the minutes of the last meeting at Birmingham had been 
read by Mr. HK. W. Bapesrr, and duly confirmed, the Presipent proceeded. 
to deliver his address, which has already appeared in full in our pages 
(see Vol. II., p. 187.) 


The Rev. H. W. Crossxry, F.G.S., moved a vote of thanks to the 
President for his admirable address, and expressed his agreement with 
the advice given by Mr. Stevenson. They might solve many problems 
by instruments which were at hand, and many discoveries might be 
made in every field of science if they would set about the work. The 
advice which the President had given them was sound, and if they were 
determined to make discoveries he believed they would succeed. He 
trusted that meeting would be the starting point in systematic effort in 
several scientific directions, and that the Chairman would be repaid for 
his address by seeing the members of the Union act on the advice 
which he had given. If they pursued scientific pursuits they would 
find a fund of enjoyment which would be most refreshing to them in 
the present day, when there was so much excitement, and so many 
differences, both on politics and religion, and when so many things 
were reckoned by their mere money value. In answer to those who 
wondered how it was they could take such interest in the studies that 


ey 
ms 


ANNUAL MEETING—GENERAL BUSINESS. 167 


had been referred to by the President, he might observe that all of them 
found in those studies their own sufficient reward, and he believed that 
in the heat and pressure and bustle of this modern life such studies were 
amongst the most reinvigorating and ennobling influences that could be 
brought to bear upon themselves and the society in which they moved. 


The Rey. J. E. Vize seconded the motion, which was carried by 
acclamation, and briefly acknowledged by the Presipenr, who, in so 
doing, referred to the able and beneficial work which Mr. Vize, as a 
microscopist and a studeiit of fungi, had lately done in his examination 
into the origin and precise nature of the diséase known as diphtheria. 


The following Report of the Council was then read by Mr. W. Jznome 
Hargison :-— 


At the first Annual Meeting of the members of the Union, 
held last year at Birmingham, the report of the Council included a 
general account of the origin and progress of the movement to that 
date. With regard to its origin, we may briefly recapitulate that the 
idea of a combination of the Scientific and Literary Societies of the 
Midland district was one which had occurred to many minds in matiy 
quarters, but that the actual commencement and practical inauguration 
of the work are due to the members of the Birmingham Natural History 
and Microscopical Society, who invited the other Societies of the 
Midlands to send delegates to a meeting, which was held in Birmingham 
on August 28th, 1877, at which the scheme was duly discussed, a council 
or governing body elected, and the Union constituted. 


The first Annual Meeting of the new Union of Natural History 
Societies was held in Birmingham on Monday, May 27th, 1878. The 
attendance was numerous, and all the arrangements were prepared and 
carried out with great precision and success, under the direction of a 
committee appointed by the local scientific societies, and by Mr. H. W. 
Badger, upon whom, as the resident hon. sec. of the Union, there fell 
a great portion of the work. The excursion on the second day, Wed- 
nesday, May 28th, attracted a large attendance, and the arrangements 
for this were ‘well carried out by the officers of the Dudley and 
Midland Geological and Scientific Society. 


Of the present—the second Annual Meeting—it is as yet too early 
to speak. The winter has unfortunately been a very severe and 
prolonged one, and instead of the “sunny hours” which should 
characterise ‘‘ flowery May,” we have louring skies with cold east winds 
and rain, which cannot but have a detrimental effect upon the numbers 
attending from a distance. The Council desire, however, to record their 
recognition and appreciation of the earnest and thorough manner in 
which the Literary and Philosophical Society of Leicester has engaged 
in the arduous task of preparing for the accommodation, entertainment, 
and instruction of the many people of many tastes who are here met 
together. The Scientific Conversazione to be held this evening in the 
Museum Buildings isa new form of entertainment in Leicester, and the 
Council earnestly hopes that it may to some extent forward an appreciation 
of, and a liking for, scientific pursuits among the busy workers in this 
populous and flourishing town. To-morrow’s excursion to Charnwood 
Forest only requires fine weather to prove most enjoyable, and also for 
those who have not previously visited that region, surprising in the 
character of its rocks and scenery. Leicester is to be congratulated on 
the vicinity of so splendid a field for the exertions of workers in natural 
science ; if our grandfathers could have foreseen the spread of a love for 
the study of nature among all classes, and have foreseen too the great 
increase in the population of this country, we may think that instead of 


168 ANNUAL MEETING—GENERAL BUSINESS, 


“enclosing” and ‘‘disafforesting” Charnwood, as they did in the early 
part of this century, they would have retained it as a national park, 
have planted it, and cared for it, and preserved it a safe home for all that 
is wild and free in the native fauna and flora of our country. This is 
what it is proposed to do with the New Forest in Hampshire, and the 
Council, on behalf of the members of this Union, desire to express 
their entire sympathy with the Hon. Auberon Herbert in his efforts in 
this direction. 


The official organ of the Union, the ‘‘ Midland Naturalist,” has been 
duly published monthly. It has attained a recognised position among 
scientific periodicals, and the testimonials from all quarters as to its 
success have been numerous and encouraging. It chronicles monthly 
the doings of the various societies of our Union, and many most inter- 
esting and valuable contributions on points both of local and general 
interest have already appeared inits pages. Itis disappointing, however, 
to find that such a comparatively small proportion—not more than one- 
sixth—of the members of the Union are subscribers to what is really 
their own magazine. Every member should support it, not merely by 
his own subscription and by recommending it to his friends, but by 
recording and promptly forwarding to the editors all interesting facts of 
natural history and general science which may happen in his (or her) 
locality. The volume for 1878 forms a book of some 350 pages, and, as 
a permanent record of Midland science work and workers must always 
be of interest. Only a very few sets of this first volume are now left. 
For the extremely moderate price at which the magazine has been puk- 
lished, and the very satisfactory nature of its printing and general get 
up, the Council desire to thank the publishers most sincerely. 


As to the work of the past year the Council have to report that the 
following societies have joined the Union during the past twelve months: 


1.)—Peterborough Natural History and Scientific Society. 
2.)—Nottingham High School Natural History Society. 
3.)—Small Heath Literary and Scientific Society. 


The complete list thus includes twenty-four Societies, viz. :— 


Birmingham Natural History and Microscopical Society. 
Birmingham Philosophical Society. 

Birmingham and Midland Institute Scientific Society. 
Birmingham School Natural History Society. 
Burton-on-Trent Natural History and Archeological Society. 
Caradoc Field Club. 

Cheltenham Natural Science Society. 

Derbyshire Naturalists’ Society. 

Dudley and Midland Geological and Scientific Society and Field Club. 
Hyesham Field Naturalists’ Club. 

Leicester Literary and Philosophical Society. 
Northampton Naturalists’ Society. 

Nottingham High School Natural History Society. 
Nottingham Literary and Philosophical Society. 
Nottingham Naturalists’ Society. 

Oswestry and Welshpool Naturalists’ Field Club. 
Peterborough Natural History and Scientific Society. 
Rugby School Natural History Society. 

Severn Valley Naturalists’ Field Club. 

Shropshire Archeological and Natural History Society. 
Small Heath Literary and Scientific Society. 

Stroud Natural History Society. 

Tamworth Natural History, Geological, and Antiquarian Society. 
Woolhope Naturalists’ Field Club. 


ANNUAL MEETING—GENERAL BUSINESS. 169 


The number of members is now about 3,000, and the great object of 
the Union is to make these members and their work known to one 
another, to unite them in single efforts, and to endeavour to guide them 
in lines of useful inquiry which shall lead to the increase of scientific 
knowledge, the education and development of the observing faculties, 
and so far as is possible the good of our fellow men. Already during the 
past year many pleasant friendships have been formed, and some 
scientific investigations started through the medium of our Union; 
working together and with definite aims we hope to achieve solidity and 
thoroughness in our undertakings, to supply advice and information to 
those who are in need of it, and to prevent the waste of time and energy 
with which the scientific record of the past is teeming. 


The Treasurer’s report will give particulars of the income of the 
Union during the past two years. £11 4s. 10d. was received up to last 
meeting, and £11 10s. 4d. since, making a total of £22 15s. 2d. The 
expenditure for the two years amounts to £28, details of which will be 
submitted to you. A resolution was passed at the last Annual Meeting 
«That it be a recommendation from this meeting that the annual sub- 
scription be raised, and that hon. secretaries be requested to report to a 
future meeting of the Union the opinion of their societies upon the 
subject.” The opinions of such societies as have been communicated are 
almost unanimous. One society has expressed its willingness to pay 
whatever annual contribution your Council may fix; the others either 
recommend that it shall not exceed threepence per member, or state that 
they will not pay a larger sum. So long as the Union is not engaged in 
any work involving much expenditure, a nominal subscription will 
probably meet all disbursements; but, in an organisation numbering 3,000 
members, it must be obvious that a sum of one penny per member must 
be totally inadequate to defray even the cost of a circular to each member 
and the postage thereof. Three-fourths of the cost of the programme 
of the Birmingham meeting were defrayed by the local conversazione 
committee, who were so fortunate as to provide the members with a most 
instructive and enjoyable meeting, which was self-supporting. What 
will be done in the present year remains to be seen, though your Council 
are satisfied that the local Society has done everything in its power to 
ensure the success of our gathering. At the same time they cannot but 
feel that as the meetings of the Union must in turn be held in 
smaller towns where the members will be few in number, it behoves 
them to adopt such measures as will place at the disposal of the Union 
funds to supplement where needed those which may be forthcoming from 
the locality, For they cannot but think that these annual gatherings of 
naturalists in various parts of the midland counties must result in 
increased attention to the study of natural science, and they feel assured 
that all who have any interest in the encouragement of such studies will 
gladly co-operate by contributing where necessary to the expenses 
incurred by those who undertake the onerous duty of providing for the 
entertainment of such a large number of visitors as our experience so far 
justifies us in expecting at our annual meetings. Your Council, there- 
fore, recommends that the annual subscription be raised to threepence 
per member. 


Your Council have received an invitation from the Northampton 
Naturalists’ Society to hold the annual meeting in 1880 at Northampton. 
They have had much pleasure in unanimously deciding to recommend 
this meeting to accept the invitation. 

The Council regret to state that they have received the resignation 
of Mr. W. Jerome Harrison, one of the hon. secs. He has, however, 
consented to continue his connection with the ‘ Midland Naturalist” as 
one of its editors. Mr. Harrison has resigned from a conviction that it 


i170 ANNUAL MEETING—GENERAL BUSINESS. 


on 


is necessary and will be beneficial for the Union that one of the hon. secs: 
should belong to the town in which the annual meeting is held. 


The report was received on the motion of Dr. Dzanz, seconded by 
Mr. A. Pacer. 


Mr. A. H. Scorr Wurrr moved the adoption of the report, suggesting; 
however, that the subscription for school societies should be one penny 
instead of threepence per member. 


The Rey. C. F. THornewiuu seconded the proposition. 


Mr. Lawson Tarr, in supporting the resolution, expressed his opinion 
that the Council should have power to reduce the subscription from 
threepence to a penny in the case of any affiliated society they thought 
proper. 

Mr. E. W. BapcEr supported the suggested reduction, saying that 
he looked forward to the time when not only the endowed grammar 
_ schools of the large towns, but board schools in all parts of the country, 

would have their Natural History Societies, and that many of them 
might join the Union. (Hear, hear.) 


The Presipent endorsed Mr. Badger’s remarks. He said he believed 
that the reflex action of such studies would haye the highest value in 
the development of the character of boys and young men. 


The report was then adopted, the suggestion of Mr. Lawson Tait 
being accepted. 


The Treasurer’s report, which was read by Mr: BapeEr, and showed 
a balance of £5 10s. against the Union, was, on the motion of Mr. Morr, 
seconded by Mr. Carrer, also adopted; a vote of thanks being at the 
same time accorded to Mr: Badger for his serviees to the Union. 


On the proposition of Mr. Mosury, Messrs. E. W. Badger (Birming- 
ham) and G. C, Druce (Northampton) were appointed hon. secretaries, 
and Mr. H. E. Forrest (Birmingham) was elected assistant hon. secretary. 
Mr. Egbert D. Hamel (Tamworth) was re-elected treasurer. 


Mr. Harrison read a letter which he had recéived from the hon. sec. 
of the Northampton Natural History Society, inviting the Union to hold 
its next annual meeting in 1880 at Northampton. On the motion of the 
Rev. O. M. Fieipen, seconded by the Rey. G. G. Moncx, and supported 
by Dr. Dzanz and Mr. Roruera, it was resolved to accept the invitation. 
It was stated by the Nottingham representatives that they hoped to 
invite the Union to visit that town in 1881.* 


On the proposition of Mr. Granam, seconded by Mr. Lawson Tarr, 
and supported by Mr. W. R. Hucuzs, a vote of thanks was passed to the 
Leicester Literary and Philosophical Society and the Leicester School 
of Art for their complete arrangements for the gathering of the Union 
this year, to the Corporation for allowing that meeting to be held in the 
Council Chamber, and to Mr. W. Jerome Harrison for his services as 
secretary. ; 


The PresmeEnt responded, and a vote of thanks to him for his 
conduct in the chair terminated the proceedings. 


After the meeting several gentlemen went on a visit to the Roman 
pavement in Jewry Wall Street, directed by Mr. A. H. Paget, while 
others inspected the muniments of the Corporation at the Town Hall, 
Alderman Paget pointing out their character and special points of 
interest. 


* A formal invitation for 1881 has, since the meeting, been forwarded by the 
Nottingham Literary and Philosophical Society to the Hon. Sees. of the Union. 


eg ee 


THE CONVERSAZIONE, UTE 


THE CONVERSAZIONE 


Was held in the Leicester Town Museum, on Tuesday, May 20th, 
froin 7 30 to 10 30 pm. A scientific conversazione was a novelty in 
Leicester, but the arrangements for the evening were so well planned, 
and so ably carried out, that we fancy the members of the 
Leicester Society will make an annual thing of it in future, so pleased 
did the local visitors appear to be with the rich stores of scientific 
objects which were exhibited and explained. The Leicester Town 
Council had resolved on permanently connecting the old and new 
Museum Buildings by a handsome structure which will serve as 
a receptacle for the Roman pavements, columns, &c., in which 
the Museum is so rich, Unfortunately this could not be completed 
in time for the meeting of the Midland Union, so a temporary corridor 
was put up connecting the new Lecture Hall with the Museum; the 
walls of this corridor were completely covered by scientific diagrams, 
lent by Mr. W. J. Harrison; some very fine diagrams illustrating 
botanical subjects were lent by Mr. F. T. Mott, others of rock sections, 
&c., were shown by Mr. Frank Rutley, and meteorological diagrams, by 
R. H. Scott, Esq., F.R.S.; these were all hung in the lower rooms of the 
Museum. In the New Lecture Hall a long centre table supported about 
forty microscopes, whilst on tables ranged against the walls were placed 
exhibits in general science, geology, biology, archeology, &c. The walls 
of the Lecture Hall were covered with a fine collection of pictures, lent 
chiefly by the Rev. A, A. Isaacs and Mr. G. Stannage, in which 
the works of the local artists, Messrs. Fulleylove and Ward, were well 
represented. In the adjoining rooms of the School of Art an excellent 
collection of the works of past and present students had been arranged 
under the direction of the Head Master, Mr. Wilmot Pilsbury. 

In speaking more in detail of the various exhibits we may class 
them under the following heads :— 

Microscopy.—Mr. Washington Teasdale (Leeds) exhihited some very 
fine specimens of ruled patterns on glass, also sections of Neriwm oleander, 
showing cellular tissue breaking through cortical layer to form a leaf-bud, 
&e.; Mr. J. Levick, specimens of pond life; Mr. W. R. Hughes, numerous 
specimens of echinodermata and other objects illustrating marine zoology, 
prepared by Mr. Sharpus, of London; Miss Beale, three boxes of 
biological objects for the microscope; Mr. F.T. Mott, microscope arranged 
horizontally for drawing and measuring objects; A. Paget, Hsq., fine 
binocular microscope; Mr. Thos. Bolton, two microscopes, with a large 
selection of living objects, rotifers, diatoms, &c., and revolving table, with 
slate top, for microscopical purposes; Mr G. C. Turner, micro-photo- 
graphs; Mr. EH. Wheeler, of London, 1,000 microscopical preparations, 
no two alike, including Nobert’s lines, Miller’s typen-platten, with three 
microscopes; Rev. J. EH. Vize, microscope and slides of hepaticee, fungi, 
lichens, mosses, &c.; Mr. J. Potts, circulation in frog’s foot, &c.; Mr. 
Young, a Ross’s binocular, with photographs, insects, &c. ; also microscopes 
and miscellaneous objects by Dr. Emmerson, and Messrs. A. Baines, 
J. Morley, J. W. Burton, C. J. Watson, F. Parsons, F. Rutley, (rock 
sections,) &c., &e. 

Brionocy.—Mr. B. Sturges Dodd (Nottingham) showed a very fine 
collection of British stone and wood-boring mollusca, with large illus- 
trative diagrams ; specimens of Atlantic ooze and foraminifera, from great 
depths; British hydrozoa, and British marine alge; Mr. H. F. John- 
son, (Nottingham,) a pair of kestrel hawks, with six eggs; Mr. J. E. 
Weatherhead, a series of skulls of hippopotamus, dugong, &c., shells, 
as Triton, Fusus, Chiton, Magilus, &c., fine echinoderms, &c.; Mr. F. T. 


* Mott, a collection of expensive and rare books on biological subjects ; Mr. 


Theo. Walker, some exquisitely-prepared groups of British birds, set up 


172 THE CONVERSAZIONE: 


as in their native haunts, with all their natural surroundings. These 
have been done by Mr. Walker, as a gift to the new Natural History 
Museum at South Kensington. . 

Grotocy.—Mr. W. J. Harrison exhibited a complete series of the 
crystalline and metamorphic rocks of Charnwood Forest; Mr. J. R. 
Gregory, (London,) a grand group of Trigonia clavellata, fern Adiantites 
Hibernica, from the old redstone of Kiltorcan; polished specimens of 
Labradorite, Hippurites; and large photographs of a restoration of the 
mammoth ; Mr. J. HE. Weatherhead, select specimens of minerals and 
fossils; Mr. J. S. Hedderly, (Bulcote,) flint implements from the coast 
of Lincolnshire; Dr. C. Callaway, Pre-cambrian rocks from Shropshire 
and South Wales; Mr. E. Wilson, (Nottingham,) Ceratodus altus, (tooth,) 
mountain limestone, fish-teeth from Ticknall, &c.; Mr. EH. Hollier, 
(Dudley,) a magnificent collection of trilobites and other Silurian fossils 
from the neighbourhood of Dudley; Mrs. Islip, drawings of glaciers, &c.; 
Mr. C. Packe, geological maps, &c., of the Pyrenees; Mr. P. Mackennal, 
polished rocks, &c. 


ArcumoLocy.—Mr. H. Longhurst, collection of Egyptian antiquities ; 
Mr. J. E. Weatherhead, Roman pottery and Loseby ware. 


GeneraL Scrence.—Mr. W. J. Lancaster (Birmingham) had a very 
successful electric lamp, electric suspender, zoescope, and a large collec- 
tion of physical apparatus, including telephones, (Reiss transmitter,) 
microphones, &c.; Mr. E. T. Loseby, a new method of insulating the 
wires of induction coils, and spun glass as a substitute for “‘ spider-lines ” 
in telescopes; Mr. F. Parsons, a collection of pneumatic, electrical, and 
photographic apparatus; Mr. T. Bolton, the collographic process of 
printing, by which numerous facsimilies were printed off from drawings 
done by the spectators ; Mr. W. P. Marshall, the ‘“‘ rigid chain,” devised 
by Dr. Hopkinson. Mr. Marshall has devised new experiments for this 
apparatus; he throws the rapidly revolving chain altogether off the 
‘pulley, and it continues to retain its shape for some seconds whilst rising 
through the air or moving along the ground; Mr. W. S. Franks, a five- 
inch achromatic refracting telescope, with equatorial stand. Spectro- 
scopes were placed in a separate darkroom. Mr. C. Packe exhibited his 
large instrument which very widely divides the D line, and others were 
shown at work by Messrs. H. T. Loseby, J. W. Burton, &e. 


MisceLLANrous.—Mr. Barfield’s carvings on wood and marble were 
much admired, as also were paintings on porcelain, by Abbott, exhibited 
by Mr. P. Mackennal. 


The extensive collections in the Town Museum attracted the atten- 
tion of visitors from a distance. The collection of Roman antiquities is 
very extensive and abounds in fine specimens, whilst the Natural 
History, Geological, and other collections, are also on a very large and 
complete scale for a provincial Museum. The Institution is rate- 
supported, and is also the head-quarters of the Leicester Literary and 
Philosophical Society, whose members have always taken the greatest 
interest in its prosperity. 

Among other attractions of the Conyersazione we must not omit to 
mention Mr. H. Nicholson’s excellent band, which discoursed sweet music 
throughout the evening. The refreshments were well served by Mr. 


Roberts. The total number of visitors was about 400, and as the weather - 


was propitious, it appeared to be generally felt that the affair was all 
that could be desired. The whole of the arrangements had been made 
by the Council and sections of the Literary and Philosophical Society of 
Leicester, the principal workers being Messrs. F. T. Mott, T. Carter, 
A. Paget, W. Kempson, E. F. Cooper, G. H. Garnar, C. Baker, and 
W. J. Harrison. 


ra 


EXCURSION TO CHARNWOOD FOREST. 173 


EXCURSION TO CHARNWOOD FOREST. 


The programme of the second Annual Meeting of the Midland Union, 
hela in Leicester, was carried out on the second day by an excursion to 
Charnwood Forest. A par ty of about 200 left the Museum at 9 30 a.m., 
being divided into two sections—one botanical and the other 
geological. we 


The botanical party numbered eighty-five, and were under the guidance 
of Mr. F. T. Mott, F.R.G.S. Among the visitors of well-known scientific 
reputation were Mr. W. R. Hughes, Mr. T, Bolton, Mr. J. Morley, 
Mr. J. Levick, Mr. W. P. Marshall, all of Birmingham; Rev. J. D. La 
Touche, of Stokesay; Rev. J. E. Vize, of Forden, Shropshire; Mr. 
G. B. Rothera, of Nottingham; Rev. O. M. Fielden, and others. The 
President of the Union, George Stevenson, Esq., with Miss Stevenson 
and Miss Florence Stevenson, were also with this party. The route was 
by Groby Pool, through Bradgate Park, Swithland Wood, Woodhouse 
Eaves, the Hanging Rocks, Beacon Hill, Hammercliff, Ulverscroft, and 
thence to Newtown Linford for tea. The lateness of the season making 
vegetation very backward was unfortunate for the botanists, but the 
weather was so mild and genial that this first foretaste of summer made 
up for the absence of many of the usual flowers. The Moonwort 
(Botrychium Lunaria) was found in two unexpected places. A specimen 
was taken from each locality for preservation in the herbarium of the 
Leicester Museum, in order that a permanent record of the discovery 
might be secured; but, with a self-control worthy of the members of a 
scientific society, but too seldom exercised among amateurs, the 
remaining fronds of this rare fern were left untouched, that it might not 
be extirpated and lost to Charnwood Forest like its congener Osmunda 
regalis. Alchemilla vulgaris, Cardamine amara, Chrysosplenium oppositi- 
folium, Polygonum Bistorta, Carex precox, Teesdalia nudicaulis, and a few 
‘others of the usual early spring flowers, were gathered in fine condition. 
Several of the party interested in microscopic fungi found a rich collect- 
ing ground in Swithland and other woods. About twenty species of 
mosses were collected, chiefly in Bradgate Park. Volvox globator was 
taken from a pond on Beacon Hill, and a fine colony of Melicerta ringens 
was procured by Mr. Levick, on a spray of Ranunculus aquatilis in Ulvers- 
croft fish pond. During the stay at the Hanging Rocks, where the party 
‘sat down on various rocks and crags for lunch, Mr. F. T. Mott delivered an 
address on the “‘ Colours of Flowers,” which appears in the present number, 
(page 175.) On the conclusion of the address, the party ascended Beacon 
Hill, enjoyed for a few minutes the magnificent panorama visible from the 
summit, and then drove to Hammercliff, walking over the hill to the 
‘fish pond below. Here it was necessary to cross the broad weir which 
discharges the surplus water, and the only bridge was a narrow plank 
about nine inches wide and thirty feet long. The ladies and some of the 
more ponderous gentlemen looked aghast at this prospect. But necessity 
is the mother of courage as well as of other things, and the whole party 
camé bravely and safely over, Mr. T. Carter distinguishing himself by 
the gallant assistance which he rendered to the ladies. The ruined 
Priory of Ulverscroft was then visited, and the party drove off to 
Newtown. The time was well kept, and Beck’s was reached at four 
o’clock, the appointed hour, where a substantial and well prepared tea 
was awaiting them. Afterwards the party enjoyed a pleasant ramble in 
Bradgate Park. The geologists arrived an hour later, and both parties 

BB 


174 EXCURSION TO CHARNWOOD FOREST. 


returned home together, reaching Leicester at 7 30. The success of the 
excursion was heartily acknowledged, and was largely due to the exertions 
of Mr. G. Hull, one of the secretaries of the Society. 


The geological party made their first halt at the syenite quarries 
near Groby Pool. Here Mr. Harrison pointed out the character of the rock— 
a crystalline aggregate of reddish felspar and green hornblende, with some 
quartz. Thered marlsof the Trias were seen dipping away from the syenite 
in all directions. Passing the botanical party at Groby Pool, the carriages 
drove rapidly through Bradgate Park to Swithland Wood. Here the 
deep slate pit was examined, and the stripe which denotes the eastward 
dip of the strata specially noted. Passing on through Woodhouse Haves, 
the visitors next (by the kind permission of Mrs. Herrick) passed over 
the fine ridge of the Hanging Rocks. Here the leader enlarged on the 
physiography of the district, showing how the Charnwood Hills stood 
up above the surrounding plain by reason of their superior hardness, 
which enabled them better to resist denudation. Driving round Beacon 
Hill, the interesting quarry for hones, at Whittle Hill, demanded a 
flying visit. The rock here isa siliceous slate of fine texture. From 
this point to the Oaks Church the ground was quickly covered, and 
the party again dismounted to examine the stretch of wild moor- 
land which lies between this point and the Forest Rock 
Hotel. The mode of formation of logans, or rocking stones, was 
pointed out by Mr. Harrison, and both at this point and at 
the great mass of volcanic agglomerate, which stands like a wall 
further on, the evident volcanic nature of the strata was described. 
Showered out from volcanic cones—perhaps many in number—the 
material of our Charnwood rocks formed stratified deposits, either on 
land or in shallow seas or lakes. These have since been greatly altered 
and denuded by the natural agents always at work—rain and rivers, 
frost, ice, and snow, chemical and electrical actions. They have 
alternately been depressed below, and raised thousands of feet above the 
sea level, until we find them at the present time forming a low chain of 
hills in the very centre of England, of strange and somewhat bizarre 
appearance when compared with the heavy clay land formed by the 
carboniferous, triassic, and liassic strata by which they are surrounded, 
Whilst baiting the horses at the Forest Rock Hotel, the High Towers 
ridge, with its singular breccia bed, was noted with interest, and the 
position of the great Coleorton fault, which runs at the foot of the ridge, 
and separates the Forest Rocks from the coal measures, was pointed out, 
Passing Bardon Hill, the Markfield syenite quarries were examined with 
much interest, and here the party had the advantage of the guidance 
of Mr. J. B. Everard. From this point Newtown Linford was soon 
reached, and tea enjoyed at the well-known Bradgate Arms, whose 
resources were taxed to the utmost, but provided satisfactorily for every 
one. A pleasant walk in Bradgate Park closed a very enjoyable and 
satisfactory day. Among the gentlemen from a distance of scientific 
reputation who accompanied the geological party were the Rey. J. M. 
Mello, of Chesterfield; Rev. T. F. Fenn, of Trent College; A. H. Scott- 
White, Esq., and Dr. Dixon, of Nottingham; Mr. E. Hollier, of Dudley; 
Mr. J. T. Cook, of King’s Lynn; Major Barnard, of Cheltenham; Mr. 
W. H. Holloway, of the Government Geological Survey, &c. 


The success of this combined excursion was great beyond anticipa- 
tion. The arrangements were most complete in every respect, and, as in 
addition the day was gloriously fine, nothing was left to be desired. Mr. 
Harrison and Mr. Mott earned the grateful thanks of every excursionist 
for the admirable manner in which they conducted and instructed their 
respective divisions. 


THE COLOURS OF FLOWERS: 175 


THE COLOURS OF FLOWERS. 
BY F. T. MOTT, F.R.G.S. 


There is a school of modern philosophers who assert that flowers 
are produced by insects, that their sole purpose is to attract insects, that 
their forms and colours have no other function whatever, and that 
without insects they could never have come into existence. Now, 
although I believe in the doctrines of evolution and selection, I do not 
believe in this. I think those doctrines are made to cover too wide a 
field; that their extreme advocates regard them too one-sidedly, and do 
not sufficiently take account of other natural laws and forces which are 
of equal importance. We may admit that insects have helped and 
hastened the development of coloured flowers, as a man who widens the 
channel of a stream helps and hastens the discharge of water, but that 
flowers could never have existed without insects seems to me an untenable 
theory. This one fact alone is I think fatal to it, viz., that before insect 
selection could possibly come into play colour must have been already 
developed to some extent; and surely the organic forces which were 
competent to originate colour are competent to perpetuate and to 
increase it, only give them time. It seems evident that there is in 
vegetable life some profounder cause for the development of coloured 
blossom than the mere external influence of insects. What is that 
cause? Consider what colour means. Everyone is now supposed to know 
that white light is compounded of a variety of coloured lights, which may be 
classified into three primary types, thered, the green, and the violet—the 
red being those in which the ether-waves are longest, the violet those in 
which they are shortest, and the green those in which they are of inter- 
mediate length. The colour of any object depends upon its power to 
stop, or neutralise, or absorb some of these waves, and to reflect the 
balance. A blue object is one which absorbs the long red waves and 
reflects the green and violet, the combination of these without the red 
giving the sensation of blue to our eyes. A yellow object absorbs the 
short violet waves, and reflects the red and green, whose combination 
produces yellow. A red object absorbs both the green and the violet, and 
reflects the red only, and so on. If all the waves are reflected without 
absorption or alteration, the object has a shining appearance, like glass 
or water, or some glazed leaves. But when they are not only all 
reflected, but very much scattered by a number of surfaces which are not 
parallel, then the object appears white. If all the waves are absorbed 
and none reflected the object is black. If some waves of all the different 
lengths are reflected, while some of them are absorbed, the colour will be 
grey. It would be white, only that there is too little light reflected 
altogether to produce the effect of white. Grey is simply a dark and 
feeble white. In the same way brown is a dark feeble yellow, olive a 
dark feeble green, and lead colour a dark feeble blue. Now look at the 


176 THE COLOURS OF FLOWERS. 


colours which surround us in the vegetable world. The type of a perfect 
and complete vegetable is a flowering tree or shrub, such as a hawthorn, 
an apple, or a laburnum. In plants of this kind we have all the 
great systems of vegetable structure fully developed—the stem, the 
foliage, and the blossom. In herbaceous plants aud all monocotyledons 
the stem system is imperfect; in cactuses and some euphorbias the 
foliage is never developed; in grasses, conifers, and many forest trees 
the flower system is defective; but in a true flowering tree you have 
everything complete. Look then at an apple tree or a laburnum; the 
prevailing colours in the stem and branches are brown, grey, or olive: in 
the foliage, green; in the blossom, white, pink} and yellow. And this 
relation of colour to each system of structure will bé found throughout 
the vegetable world with few exceptions—dark feeble colours in the stem 
system, the primary green in the foliage, and the brilliant secondaries 
in perfected blossom. Now look a little deeper and see why this should 
be so. Stems are grey or brown because they absorb nearly all of the 
three component colours of white light, and in nearly equal proportion, 
reflecting a little of each. Leaves are green because they absorb two of 
the component colours, and reflect nearly the whole of the other! 
Flowers are yellow, blue, or pink because they absorb only one of the 
component colours, reflecting the other two. Hére, then, is a regular 
gradation from the stem, through the foliage, to the flower. First three 
colours are absorbed, then two, and, lastly, one. How is this to be 
accounted for? It is not pretended that insects have anything to 
do with differentiating the foliage from the stem: Why should 
their jinterferencd be thought nécessary in differentiating the 
flower from the foliage, which is a precisely analogous process? 
Ié is surely a process dependent upon the fundamental laws of organic 
growth: I think an explanation may be found, but it is, perhaps, tog 
abstruse to be more than hinted at in this address. The absorption of 
light waves depends upon the molecular structure of the material on 
which it falls) Where such material contains molecules capable of 
vibrations of all lengths mixed up together, all the light waves will bé 
absorbed. This is probably the condition of vegetable stems. Whén the 
molecules are so far sorted out and reduced to order that they will only 
vibrate in two modes, two only of the primary colours are absorbed, and 
the other reflected. This is the condition of leaves. When actual 
uniformity of molecular conditions is attained only one colour can be 
absorbed, the other two must be reflected, and the object appears brilliant 
with one or other of the showy secondary colours. This is the condition 
of flowers. I believe it can be shown that the reducing to order, and, 
finally, to uniformity of & group of very diverse moleculés is one of the 
essential conditions of organic life; that the gradual development of 
colour is a necessary result of this A Sst law; that, therefore, coloured 
flowers were to be expected at a certain epoch in the development of this 
world, and that their number and brilliancy will still increase as the ages 
roll forward. Insects may help the process, but the great flood of 
organic life would not be stopped in its career though every bee and 
butterfly should perish: 


ee 


CATERPILLARS} . 177 


CATERPILLARS : 
HOW TO FIND, AND HOW TO REAR THEM.* 


BY THE REY. C. F. THORNEWILL, M.A. 


I must confess to a certain amount of apprehension with regard to 
my subject of this evening how far its title may have tended to frighten 
away some proportion of my possible auditors. To many persons—and 
more especially perhaps to those of the faiter sex—a caterpillar is an 
exceedingly repulsive creature, kiiown chiefly as a disagreeable intruder 
at thé dinner-table when a careless cook has served it up in the company 
of the vegetables on which it feeds. To the British schoolboy—at all 
events in the days before natural science was so extensively taught in our 
schools as it is now—it was principally known as a thing to be stamped 
upon, or Sometimes used as an instrument of torture upon a nervous 
schoolfellow; and I have recently heard of it, strange to say, as an 
unwitting agent for the encouragement of gambling, it being reported 
that the desolate condition of a certain estate in this neighbourhood is 
due to tlie former owner having lost all his money by betting upon races 
of caterpillars. “To stich base uses,” as the immortal Shakespeare has¥ 
it, ‘‘ may we all (even caterpillars) return.” 

_ But to-night I am going to speak of caterpillars as they appear to 
the eye of the Naturalist; and especially to that of the Entomologist. 
And to these—more particularly of course to the latter—a caterpillar, 
when not riditulously common, is a treasure to be picked up with avidity, 
watched over with solicitude, and reared with cate through all its stages, 
until it finally appears as a ‘‘ bred specimen” in the well-secured drawers 
of his cabinet. One of the best specimens in my own colléction, a fine 
Acronycta Alni, has such a history as this. I found the caterpillar, a 
splendid fellow in black and gold, crawling across the path one day in 
1877, as I walked down from my house into the town; and, although I 
could have bought a perfect specimen from a London dealer for 15s., I 
felt quite as much pleased as if I had found a sovereign. 

But I have undertaken to-night to give you some information upon 
two points connected with caterpillars, viz:, how to find, and how to rear 
them. There are two members of this Society, if not more, who could 
have told you all about it much better than I can; but I tried both of 
them in vain, and at last I followed the advice of the proverb, “If you 
want a thing done, do it yourself.” 

First, then, lei me give a few hints—partly gathered from my own 
éxpérience, and partly derived from books—upon the best methods of 
finding catérpillars. There are three such methods commonly employed, 
viz., Searching, beating, and sweeping; and of these three the first is of 
course by far the most scientific, and therefore the most to be recom- 
mended to the earnest student of nature. It consists in the examination; 
more or less minute, of the objects upon which the insects feed, with a 


* This paper was red at the meeting of the Burton-on-Trent Natural History 
gre Archzological Society, on Tuesday, April 8th, by the Rev. C. F. Thornewill} 
., Vice-President of the Soc ciety. 


178 CATERPILLARS. 


view to the detection of their presence; and, although this may seem at 
first sight a very hopeless method of proceeding, it is remarkable how 
much success may attend it if pursued systematically and perseveringly. 
Two points, if borne constantly in mind, will help the collector greatly, 
and they are these :—First, that it is impossible for a caterpillar to live 
tipon a plant without leaving some traces of its presence; and second, 
that we may generally expect to find in the outward appearance and 
colouring of the caterpillar some resemblance to that of the objéct upon 
which it rests. The great thing, then, in finding caterpillars is to 
educate the eye to discern the distinctions which exist between them 
and the objects on which they feed; and this sometimes is no easy 
matter. Some caterpillars resemble so closely pieces of stick, leaf-buds, 
&c., that it is almost impossible to detect them by any method short of 
actual touching. And the habits of many render them almost equally 
difficult of discovery. As a rule, caterpillars feed almost entirely by 
night ; and during the day they rest either upon some patt of the food- 
plant, or upon some object near to it. The best time for searching, then, 
js unquestionably at night—or, perhaps, to speak more accurately, in the 
dusk of the evening. At this time, aided by a lantern, we may some- 
times take in favourable situations many species which are not otherwise 
easily to be procured, especially among the Noctuw#. And, indeed, it 
may be taken as a general rule that the caterpillars of this family are 
rarely to be taken during the day. Like the perfect insects into which 
they develop, they prefer the darkness and security of night; and if we 
wish to obtain them it is by night that we shall meet with the greatest 
measure of success. Some of even these, however, may be sought for 
during the day in their retreats. For example, the caterpillars of 
Orthosia Upsilon may be found sometimes in great abundance under 
loose pieces of bark on willow trees at the beginning of May, while 
Cirrhedia xerampclina, a decided rarity, is to be met with about the 
same time among the loose rubbish and grass at the roots of ash trees. 
Not a few caterpillars are likewise to be found—at least, so it is said— 
during the early months of the year among the dead leaves, which may 
be gathered into a large bag and breught home to be examined at our 
leisure. The majority of the caterpillars, however, which we find during 
the day-time, belong either to the order of Bombyces or to that of the 
Geometre. The former of these are not difficult to discover, being 
generally hairy, often brightly coloured, and feediag in much more 
exposed positions than do other caterpillars. It is as well, however, to 
be cautious about touching them, as the hairs often come off, and in 
some cases—as, e.g., Liparis chrysorrhwa—possess irritating properties 
which produce painful swellings on the hands. The caterpillars of the 
Geometre, on the other hand, are destitute of hairs and perfectly 
harmless; they lie during the day closely pressed to the mid-rib of a 
leaf, or the branch of a tree, the green species usually choosing the 
former situation, while those of a brown or buff tint prefer the latter. 
The best way to find them in such situations is to get underneath the 
tree and look up through the leaves against the sky, when the cater- 
pillars will frequently be seen. Some of them, however, as well as some 


uy 
~ 
\ 


CATERPILLARS. 179 


species of Noctus, spin together two or more leaves into a sort of hut, in 
which they live by day, coming out at night to feed; and in order to 
obtain these we must of course examine the spun-up leaves. In this 
way Tethea subtusa, Cymatophora flavicornis, and several other species, 
may sometimes be obtained in abundance. Searching for caterpillars, 
however, is just one of those things in which practice makes perfect ; 
and a little study of books at odd hours to see what species we may 
expect to find at any particular time, and upon what plants they feed, 
will enable us to save ourselves a vast amount of time and trouble. 
There are various manuals upon the subject—the best, in my opinion, 
being Merrin’s ‘‘ Lepidopterist’s Calendar,” which contains a list of the 
eggs, caterpillars, pupee, and perfect insects to be found in each month of 
the year, and may be had interleaved with writing paper, on which to 
record the results of our own expeditions, a thing well worth doing in 
any case. But we are still without one list which to my mind would be 
even more useful—a list of plants, with the caterpillars which feed upon 
each. I wish I had the time and the ability to compile such a list, and 
thereby earn the gratitude of Entomologists for generations. 

IT might go on to say a great deal more upon the subject of searching 
for caterpillars; but it is time that I passed on to make a few observa- 
tions upon two other methods of obtaining them, which, though less scien- 
tific, are certainly more expeditious—I mean ‘‘ beating” and “‘sweeping.” 
The former of these methods is employed to obtain those species which 
live upon the leaves of trees and shrubs, while the latter is used when 
we are desirous of getting those which feed upon grasses, dock, heather, 
and other low-growing plants. And the apparatus required, for beating 
at all events, is very simple, consisting of a large umbrella—an appendage 
which may be found useful in other ways likewise—lined with some 
light coloured material, or possibly even whitewashed inside, so as to 
render the contents more visible. This implement is unfurled when 
wanted, and placed upside down under the branch or shrub where we 
suppose caterpillars to be, while with the other hand we hold a stout 
stick, with which we strike the branch sharply and pretty heavily, when 
the caterpillars will fall into the umbrella, and may be picked up at our 
leisure. I remember upon one occasion last year obtaining about fifty 
caterpillars of Fidonia piniaria in this way, as the result of three or four 
strokes upon the boughs of a Scotch fir. 

For ‘‘ sweeping” we require a separate instrument, in the shape of a 
stout net, with the bag made of ‘‘cheese-cloth” or coarse canvas, and 
altogether more strongly made than the ordinary net. With this in 
his hand, the collector walks through the heather, fern, grass, or ‘‘ what 
not,” sweeping his net first to the right, then to the left, through the 
herbage, almost as if he were mowing, and stopping after every half- 
dozen sweeps or so to examine the result of his labours. I have not done 
much in this way myself, but in some situations it is a very effective 
method. 

The caterpillars, when obtained, should be (with as little handling 
as possible) placed in boxes for conveyance to our homes, a leaf or twig 
of the food-plant being in all cases placed with them, and different species 


180 CATERPILLARS. 


being, asa rule, placed in different boxes, a course which will save a 
great deal of trouble when we get them home. It is well, too, to be on 
the look-out for cannibal caterpillars, and to make ourselves familiar as 
soon as possible with their appearance. Such bloodthirsty creatures as 
Cosmia trapezina, Scopelosoma satellitia, and Crocallis elinguaria, should 
obviously be left in no company but that of their own species, though 
even this is not always safe. And any collector who may meet with the 
ugly caterpillar of the goat-moth, Cossus ligniperda, had better put it in a 
tin box, if he wishes to get it home safely, as its powerful jaws will make 
short work of any wooden receptacle. 


Supposing, however, that the collector has arrived at home in safety 
with his captures, he has still a great deal to do before the perfect 
insect appears as an addition to his cabinet. As soon as possible the 
caterpillars should be placed in a roomy box, furnished with a supply of 
the plant upon which they feed, and so arranged as to admit air and a 
moderate amount of light. Much light is not a good thing, except in the 
case of the hairy Bombyces, which seem to need it in order to keep 
damp from their long coats, and revel in the hot rays of the morning 
sun. But air is imperatively necessary; and in the cases of some 
species nothing less than absolute exposure in the open air will suffice to 
bring them to maturity. An example of this occurred to me last year. 
I had a number of caterpillars of Polia Chi, which I had reared from the 
egg. I had been warned that they required very liberal ventilation, and 
this object I sought to effect by putting them close to an open window. 
But it was allin vain, my caterpillars died off one by one, and not one 
lived to undergo the change into a chrysalis. Matters of this description 
can only be learnt by experience, and it is almost impossible to give any 
definite rules with respect to them. It is well to remember, however, as 
a general rule, that caterpillars want plenty of fresh air, and will ale 
thrive in the close atmosphere of a living room. They should be kept, if 
possible, either in an out-house or in some place without a fire, and with 
abundant ventilation, but not exposed to the direct rays of the sun. 
With respect to cages, the best are undoubtedly those of the ‘‘ meat- 
safe” pattern, made of wood, with sides of perforated zinc, and a glass 
front, which are sold by the London dealers for 2s. 6d. each. These, 
however, are somewhat expensive when one goes in largely for breeding, 
and are likewise not very well suited for single specimens. I have made 
use now for some years of small tin canisters, such as are used to contain 
cocoa; these, with a piece of gauze stretched overthe top instead of a lid, 
‘and confined in its place by an indiarubber band, answer very well, 
though, of course, those caterpillars yhich go into the earth to change 
must be placed in another cage when approaching the period of their 
transformation. 


For very young caterpillars I use the lids of the same canisters, with 
a gauze lid as before. But more experienced collectors than myself 
obtain the greatest success by placing the young larvee in a tumbler, with 
a piece of glass laid on the top, thus forming an air-tight house, which 
will keep the food fresh for some time. And this is a matter of great 
importance. The great majority of caterpillars object very strongly to 


— Ss 


~ 


CATERPILLARS. 181 


dry or withered food; and it would obviously take too much time to 
provide fresh leaves for them every day ; besides which, they should be 
moved or handled as little as possible. In some way or other, then, the 
food must be kept fresh ; and this is effected either by sticking the stalks 
into damp sand, or else by putting them into a small bottle of water. In 
the latter case, we must take care that the water does not run out, by 
placing or supporting the bottle in an upright position; and, in addition 
to this, we must provide against the larve getting in, and coming in 
consequence to an untimely end by drowning. This they are prone to 
do ; and, in order to circumvent their propensities, it is well to wrap the 
food-stalk round with cotton wool, paper, or some other material, so that 
it may fit accurately into the neck of the bottle. By this means, food 
may be kept fresh sometimes for weeks, and much time and trouble 
saved to the collector. 

With regard to food, a few hints may probably prove of service. Of 
course, when we can, we should feed our caterpillars upon the tree, 
shrub, or plant upon which they are found in astate of nature. But 
sometimes, from various causes, this is impossible. We may not know 
upon what plant, out of several growing together, a caterpillar has fed; 
or we may have taken it at a distance from home, and be unable to 
obtain a fresh supply. In such cases as these, what are called ‘ substi- 
tute foods” come in very usefully; and upon this subject some valuable 
remarks may be found upon pages 34-38 of Dr. Knaggs’ ‘‘ Lepidopterist’s 
Guide,” which is in the library of this society. 


But, speaking generally, our best chance of success will lie in 
offering to the caterpillars some plant belonging either to the same genus 
or to the same family as that upon which it feeds naturally; and for 
this purpose a little botanical knowledge is requisite. Sometimes, how- 
ever, we do not know even so much as this; and then we must fall back 
upon what are called “ generally favourite foods,” such as knot-grass for 
the larve of Geometers, and plantain, dock, and lettuce for those of 
Noctusz. Itis not a good plan, however, to crowd the breeding cage, 
either with food or with too many caterpillars. We shall stand a far 
better chance of rearing the perfect insects if we confine ourselves to a 
moderate number of caterpillars than if we take all we can find. And it 
is desirable to remove all dead stalks of food, as well as other decaying 
matters, pretty frequently, if we wish to ensure the well-being of our 
charges, taking care, however, to look the old food well over, as other- 
wise we shall be very likely to throw away some of the caterpillars with 
At. It will be necessary, too, to supply now and then fresh water to the 
bottles which hold the food, and likewise to examine the fresh leaves 
before we put them in, so as to avoid introducing with them slugs, 
earwigs, beetles, or spiders, which will sometimes do great damage 
before they are discovered. Against cannibal caterpillars I have 
cautioned you before. But there are other enemies still worse, because 
very difficult (almost impossible) to guard against—I mean the tribe of 
Ichneumons, It is hardly too much to say that more than half of the 
caterpillars which we find abroad have already within their bodies one or 
more mortal foes in the shape of the larve of Ichneumons, which will 

CC 


182 CATERPILLARS. 


gradually eat away the whole inside of their victims, leaving nothing but 
the empty skin. Of course the earlier in life we obtain our caterpillars 
the more likely they are to be free from these pests, though we shall 
naturally have more trouble in rearing them. It is a choice of evils; 
but certainly it is worth while to take any amount of trouble rather than 
have our hopes destroyed by the appearance of a vicious-looking Ichneu- 
mon in the place of the moth we were so anxiously looking for. 

It is well to provide a few pieces of bark and a little moss, or a few 
dead leaves, in our breeding cages for the caterpillars to hide under 


when not feeding, as they often enjoy a dark and cool place; and these 


also prove very useful when they are changing to the pupa state. We 
should also be careful to disturb our charges ag little as possible while 
they are changing their skins, as they are then peculiarly liable to injury. 
But after all the best way to learn all the ‘‘ dodges” with respect to 
caterpillar-rearing is to practise it regularly and steadily, observing 
carefully the habits of the different species, and treating them in 
accordance with what we know about their habits.. Let me conclude by 
strongly recommending this practice of rearing caterpillars to all the 
young collectors who may be present. There are plenty of discoveries 
to be made in this field of observation. Thecaterpillars of our butterflies 
are many of them hardly known, and those of many moths very little 
more so. And until we know the habits of the caterpillar we can tell 
very little comparatively about the perfect insect. Above all, it is in this 
stage of the insect’s life that we can exercise upon it most abundantly 
that faculty of observation which exists in all of us, but which requires 
exercise in order to bring out its full capacity, which, if we exercise it 
as we should do, will enable us indeed to find 


Tongues in trees, books in the running brooks, 
Sermons in stoues, and good in‘everything. 


MARINE ZOOLOGY AT ARRAN.—IL* 


BY W. R. HUGHES, F.L.§. 


The third marine excursion of the Birmingham Natural History and 
Microscopical Society, and the second annual one which was made to the 
Island of Arran for a week in the middle of July of last year, quite 
fulfilled the expectations of its promoters, and increased our knowledge 
of the marine zoology of the district, besides adding to it three specimens 
of Nudibranchs which have not been recorded in the very useful and 
interesting hand-book of the Island written by the late Dr. Bryce. A 
larger number of members than usual joined the party, which consisted 
of six ladies and twenty-two gentlemen. And it is significant as 
indicating the humanising influence which the study of natural history 
has upon the mindsof those brought into communion with it, that the 
number included gentlemen of diverse political and religious opinions 
who do not often unite together for a common work; and as a natural 


* Abstract of paper read before the Birmingham Natural History and 
Microscopical Society, 17th June, 1879. 


MARINE ZOOLOGY. 183 


result the most perfect unanimity and bon accord existed during our visit. 
Anyhow this is a gain to humanity if not to science! The general 
arrangements were similar to those adopted on our previous excursion 
but m many respects we improved upon them, and gained valuable 
experience. For the first time we had the advantage of a small steamer 
daily at our command, and, although the Lizzie was not 
altogether equal to our expectations, the saving of time and 
consequent addition to comfort was important. 


As before, our dredgings were mainly confined to Lamlash 
Bay, the richest and most attractive ground. In the ‘Midland 
Naturalist,” Vol. I., page 11, I gave an account of our captures 
during 1877, and, as we again took specimens of most of the species 
therein recorded, it is only necessary here just to allude to the 
additions which are of any special interest. The district, as stated 
previously, is richest in Echinoderms, and we secured specimens of 
every species observed on our last visit, with the exception of the some- 
what rare aberrant form of T'hyone papillosa. As a set off, however, 
we took a magnificent specimen of Luidia fragilissima, or Lingthorn, 
the glory of the late Professor Forbes, who has so graphically described 
its extremely brittle nature and its liability to break itself up into 
fragments immediately, if not even before, the dredge comes up. This 
star-fish is exceedingly interesting, not only from its comparative rarity, 
but because, as Forbes said, it is the ‘‘ most remarkable and largest of 
all our British star-fishes.” It is intermediate between the true star- 
fishes—those having ambulacral suckers—and the sea-urchins. 
Our  specimen—notwithstanding the ‘proverbial friability of the 
species—came up in the dredge entire, and a bucketful of pure sea- 
water having been speedily provided for its reception, we were enabled 
to examine and admire it and its moving spines and suckers in all their 
beauty. The specimen measured upwards of 18 inches across, was 
of brick red colour above, the under surface and lateral spines being 
a delicate straw colour. Well knowing its extreme friability, every 
means were taken to secure the specimen intact. It was preserved 
in sea-water for three or four hours, and, in order that when killed it 
should be unbroken, we carried it to a deep portion of the “brawling 
burn” in the grounds attached to the Brodick Hotel, and plunged it 
into fresh-water. Great and lasting, however, was our disappointment 
on returning to the hotel to see the rays one by one detach themselves 
at their junction with the disc, and presently not a single ray remained 
attached. If we had followed our ‘“‘ Carpenter,” we might have killed 
the specimen without dismembering it, by immersion in glycerine; or, 
better still, by allowing it to die gradually in sea-water. In connection 
- with the Echinoderms it should be mentioned that, although we were 
six weeks earlier than last year, and hoped by this we might secure 
some specimens of Antedon (Comatula) rosaceus in the stalked condition, 
not a single one was taken, all being in the free form, and many of 
them mature adults. It seems probable, therefore, that the specimens 
in the stalked condition which we took at Torquay in September, 1873, 
were the result of an abnormal second brood. 


184 MARINE ZOOLOGY. 


The very beantiful Nemertean annelid, Carinella annulata, another 
of the specimens taken, has been described by Dr. McIntosh as “ one 
of the most handsome and graceful of the whole order.” It was 
about two feet in length, the snout being wider than the rest of the 
body, and bluntly rounded anteriorly. The mouth is small. It is 
eyeless, with a white patch on the snout. The rounded body, 
when living, was of a rich red colour, passing into pink, striped 
longitudinally, and banded across at intervals by white belts. The 
development of Carinella has not yet been traced, but in an allied 
genus, Lineus, Johannes Miiller, as referred to by Professor Huxley, 
(Anatomy of Invertebrated Animals, p. 186,) has shown that the ciliated 
embryo which leaves the egg is speedily converted into a body like a 
helmet with ear-lappets. The lappets are ciliated, and between them, 
where the head would fit into a helmet, is the mouth aperture, leading 
into a pouch-like alimentary cavity. Miller termed this larva Pilidiwm 
gyrans. That portion termed the Mesoblast gives rise to an elongated 
vermiform body, wherein the characteristics of a Nemertean soon appear. 
The worm on detachment carries with it the alimentary canal, the ciliated 
integument being left to perish. Professor Huxley observes ‘‘that in this 
remarkable process of development the formation of the Nemertean 
body may be compared on the one hand to that of a segmented mesoblast 
in Annelida, and on the other to that of an Echinoderm within its 
larva.” The process of contraction and elongation peculiar to individuals 
in this order is wonderful, a specimen measuring several feet being 
capable of contracting to as many inches. 


The three Nudibranchs referred to were all taken in Lamlash Bay. 
Doto coronata is a very beautiful and delicate animal. As usual, this was 
found on its favourite habitat, Plumularia falcata. Its filiform trumpet 
sheathed tentacles, and its body only half an inch in length, spotted 
all over, as well as the branchiz, with brownish purple, made it a most 
charming object viewed by the two-inch objective, the pulsations of 
the heart (about sixty per minute) being readily perceived. Doris pilosa, 
another delicate little creature, is also not more than half an inch long, 
of pale, yellowish-brown colour. The branchial plumes of pearly white, 
freckled with brown, are exceedingly beautiful. Only one specimen was 
taken. Ancula cristata, also about half an inch long, is an elegant little 
Nudibranch. Its pellucid, tapering body, which permits the viscera to be 
plainly seen within, and its laminated tentacles and branchial plumes 
tipped with bright orange-yellow, mark it as one of the most beautiful 
of a beautiful tribe. We took many specimens of the little creature. 
Although not recorded in Bryce, the late Dr. Johnston is said by Alder 
and Hancock to have taken it off Holy Island, near which it was dredged. 


One of the most interesting features of our last excursion was the 
effective display of microscopes. Under the able hands of Mr. Levick, 
Mr. Bolton, and Mr. Pumphrey, we were always sure of having any 
object of note well exhibited in the ladies’ drawing room, in the evening, 
with everyfacility that ‘‘ black back-ground” and other modes of illumi- 
nation could afford. An improved tow-net, which was specially devised 
for us by Mr. Henry Allport, was used constantly with admirable effect. 


~_——_ 


MARINE ZOOLOGY, 185 


This consisted of a metal rim, with lattice wire to keep out large 
objects, such -as jelly-fishes, fitting into a stout outer rim of iron, to 
which was attached the bag made of bunting or muslin. Three small 


Spring swivels attached as many lines to the rope which towed at our 


stern, or was left during the night, as the Lizzie lay at anchor in Brodick 
Bay, and collected a most interesting series of objects. We had thus the 
rare opportunity of examining the beautiful pseud-embryo stages of 
Bipimaria and Pluteus, from which are developed the star-fish and sea- 
urchin. These pseud-embryos, or ‘ zooids,” are formed on a type quite 
different from that which characterises the adult animals, being bilateral 
instead of radial. In the last edition of his ‘‘ Handbook to the Micro- 
scope,” p. 609, Dr. Carpenter says, ‘‘ This pseud-embryo seems to exist for 
no other purpose than to give origin to the Echinoderm by a kind of 
internal gemmation, and to carry it to a distance by its active locomo- 
tive powers, so as to prevent the spots inhabited by the respective 
species from being overcrowded by the accumulation of their progeny.” 
Many other interesting larval forms, such as those of the crab and 
barnacle, were taken, as well as Radiolarians, Rotifers, and the Noctiluca 
miliaris, to which the phosphorescence of the sea on our coasts is mainly 
to be attributed. A small but very interesting collection of Algz was 
taken and mounted by our most obliging friend, Mr. George Miles.| 


Several times during our dredging we had an opportunity of 
seeing the sea under exceptionally favourable conditions, not 
frequently observed. The weather was brilliantly fine, and had 
been so for several weeks before our visit. The wind was §S.H. 
and almost a dead calm, and the sea smooth as oil, and clear as crystal. 
Not the slightest amount of sand or other detritus appeared mixed with 
the water, and thus we saw objects almost as plainly as though we were 
looking into a gigantic Aquarium. The bottom was in some places 
coyered with the Chlorosperm algx, Ulva latissima, and Enteromorpha 
compressa, like a lovely green grass plot. Between these, here and there, 
appeared a delicate Rhodosperm. Above these in places waved long 
broad fronds of the Oar-weeds (Laminaria) or slender filaments of the 
Whip-weed (Chorda.) Star-fishes and large sea-urchins were scattered 
among the vegetation, and the refraction of the light made some of 
them look, as our genial and accomplished friend, Mr. Sam. Timmins, 
(who has himself described it in his charming article on our visit in the 
Daily Post of 20th July, 1878) remarked, like “living turquoises.” Occa- 
sionally fishes, both of large and small size, darted across. The depth in 
many places was between twenty and thirty fathoms. 


And now we are looking forward hopefully to our forthcoming excursion 
to Falmouth. The Cornish coast has long been celebrated for its rich stores 
both of vertebrate and invertebrate marine life. The names of distinguished 
marine Naturalists who have investigated the fauna are as household 
words to us: Borlase, the historian, and Jonathan Couch, the eminent 


' ichthyologist, and his gifted son Richard Q. Couch, who passed away so 


early in life ; and Charles Peach, the Coastguardsman Naturalist, and the 
venerable W. P. Cocks. In many respects the fauna will be a contrast to 
that of Arran, which we have twice seen; but I venture with all confi- 
dence to say that, as hitherto, we shall be more than satisfied, and that 
we shall return, if not with any additions to the already well gleaned 
ground, certainly with large additions to our stock of knowledge and 
a increased admiration for and interest in the wonders of the ‘“ great 
eep. 


DD 


THE WEATHER OF MAY. 


BY W, JEROME HARRISON, F.G.S. 
RAINFALL, 


METEOROLOGY OF THE MIDLANDS. 
THE WEATHER OF MAY, 1879. 


TEMPERATURE. 


‘S5 Greatest fall +3 |Greatest ht. Great’st cold 


OBSERVER. = | in 24 hours. 3 b 


GLOUCESTERSHIRE, 


Cainscross, Stroud ..... eoe..|W. B. Baker, Hq. ..sccees 

Cheltenham ......... .|R. Tyrer, Esq. .... s 

MULOMM ven ais eeieain' pete .|S. J. Coley, Esq.... 
SHROPSHIRE. 

Haughton Hall, Shitnal .|Rev. J. Brooke .. 

Woolstaston .......... .|Rey. E. D. Carr 


Leaton Vicarage, Shrew: y|Rev. E. V. Pigott 
More Rectory, Bishop's Castle|Rev. A. Male .... 
Larden Hall, pean Wenlock.|Miss F. R. Bough 


Bishop’s Castle . .|E. Griffiths, Esq. 
Cardington....... .|Rey. Wim. Elliott .. 
WEORGHHIY, sins cs. dia tieesce ween Rey. J. D. La Toue 
HEREFORDSHIRE. 
WHREAEIG Sooo dese esas’ ..|W. Wheatley, Esq. ........ 
MtORG BES ois saasesman ...|Rev. G, H. Alexander...... 
WORCESTERSHIRE, 
Orleton, Tenbury.....+..++++ T. H. Davis, Esq ...... eooe| 2" 
West Malvern ..... .|A. H. Hartland, rg -| 3" 
GOMOrA ieee a cijua evince .|E. B. Marten, Esq. 
Longlands, Stourbridge. .|J. Jeffries Esq. Sact5 , 
Dennis, Stourbridge ........ Mr ORWEDD incsicecinc cons 
STAFFORDSHIRE. 
Thorganby Villa,Wolverhmtn|G. J. C. Broom, Esq. ...... 5 
nN Oa a ob (:) 01) | 3" 
Mr C. Beale ...... 


:/Mr. N. E. Best .... 
Grammar School, Burton....|C. U. Tripp, Esq. 


Weston-under- Lyziard R tory Hon.and Rey.J. Bridgeman a > 


Wrottesley ......... Spee eae His SITE BOM USCS cnlesisiment 
Heath House, Cheadle . .|J. C. Philips, Esq.. 
Alstonfield Vicarage ........ Rev. W. H. Purchas ...... 

WARWICKSHIRE. 


Coundon, Coventry .:........|Lieut.-Col. R. Caldicott .... . 


Coventry ely sie leew dele) 
Bickenhill Vicarage. 
St. Mary’s College . 
Henley-in-Arden . 


.|J. Gulson, Esq. ........ 
.. (J. Ward, Esq..... 
Rev. 8. J Whitty.... 
T. H. G. Newton, Esq. 


Rugby School.. Rey. T. N. Hutchinson 
DERBY; 

IBUEXUOM eisicis sin winte E. J. Sykes, Esq. 4 

Stoney Middleto: Rev. U. Smith : 


J. G. Jackson, Es 
Rev. J. M. Mello 
.|C. EK. Jones, Esq. . 


Fernslope, Belver. 
Brampton 8. Thomas. 
Linacre Reservoir ... 
Willersley Gardens. 


BPONGON aa aesl siete ee see see [Ses BALDEL, MORO: oceccacice 
NOTTINGHAMSHIRE. 

WLGRle yet sees cc cue ye cmcne B. J. Whitaker, Esq. ..... 

MTigrsef OLE! Me civics cieisie clciea ele eet J. N. Dutty, Esq. beet te 

Hodsock Priory, Worksop ..|H.Mellish, Esq. .. 

Highfield House, Nottingham|E. J. Lowe, (RG scaces “ 

Park Hill, Nottingham......|H.F. Johnson, Esq. ...... 

LEICESTERSHIRE. 

Loughborough . sococsus| We BEIMOPG:, FRG ce cents 

Ashby Magna........ ..|Rev. E. Willes .... ao 

Market Harborough . ..|S. W. Cox, Esq..... 

KID WOFED s- weccavecsece ..|T Macaulay, Esq. 


Town Museum, Leicester . .|W. J. Harrison, Esq. 
Belmont Villas, Leicester. ...|H. Billson, Esq. peice 


BSVSHOM oct cese oan rats ..|J. Hames, jun., Esq. 
Waltham-le-Wold. ete | ss SO Seo ciste sielk ates) 
Little Dalby Hall. ~0jGu JONES, SG. ccvscenscces 
Foxton Locks ....... ..|Union Canal Company .... 
Coston Rectory, Melton...... Rev. A. M. Rendell ........ 
NORTHAMPTONSHIRE. 
Towcester Brewery.......... J. Webb, Hisq.....ccsccseces 
Castle Ashby ....... .|R. G. Scriven, Esq. a 
Kettering......... .|J. Wallis, Esq. .... 
Althorpe ........06. C. 8. Groom, Esq. 
(PIGSRON cia owesiicuie cis ao «.e..{C. A. Markham, Hsgq....... 
RUTLAND. 
Burley-on-the-Hill .......... W. Temple, Esq. ...... 
West Deyne, Uppingham....|Rev. G. H. Mullins 
Northfields, Stamford ...... W. Hayes, Esq..... 
Radcliffe Observatory, es = Bellamy, Esq 
Ventnor Hospital..... 5 T. Ryder, Esq.. 


Altarnun Vicarage ......... “Rev. fen Trippicecoceceesues 


Seas 
In.| In. Date, |42|De8| Date. 


wo 
r= 


T)Jas. Tissington, Esq seeeale 


Sak EGR BEES 
oust sis Soscs 


Deg Date. 
27:0} 10 
2374) 10 
270) 8 & 10 
265 3 
28 0) 2 
25°0 6 
26°0 3 
310 2 
280) 2&3 
265 8 
24:0 
810); 2&9 
25°7 8 
28°0 9 
81°0 2 
260) 2&9 
255 9 
28°0) 9 
310 
26:0, 2&9 
32°0 
240 10 
27°0} 10 
29°8 2 
280} 10 
180) lb 
29°0; 9 
71:0) «22 
45°0) 
286] 10 
26°0 3 
260} 10 
230) 10 
10 9 
27°0| +10 
25°0| 1p 
20%) 10 
260} 10 
30°0 a 
23°8) 3 
249) 10 
32°3) 9 
25°4] 10 
24:0] +18 
220} +10 
26°8} 10 
262} 10 
25°0| +10 
30°0 2 
21-0 3 
193] 10 
29°0| 9 
80°0} 10 
240 9 
26°0) 3 
230} 10 
28°1 10 
25°0 5 
29°6 9 
320 8 
2501 8&8 


—-". 


a 


THE WEATHER OF MAY. 187 


Another cold, almost wintry, month, making the seventh in 
succession with a temperature below the average! Polar winds prevailed, 
varying from N.E. to N.W., but of moderate strength, with some calms. 
The nights of the 3rd and 10th were extremely cold; the protected 
thermometer falling at many stations to from 7° to 9° degrees below 
zero. The thermometer exposed on the grass at Leicester registered 
12-2° on the 10th. Snow fell at several stations on the Ist, 7th, 9th, and 
26th. During the first three weeks the barometer ranged high, the 
pressure during the last week being nearly half-an-inch lower, indicating 
the passage of numerous depressions from west to east, accompanied by 
very unsettled weather. Rainfall rather above the average. Thunder- 
storms occurred on the 1st, 11th, 14th, 26th, and 28th; that of the 14th 
was accompanied by a remarkable gloom, lasting at Buxton from nine to 
10 45 a.m., and commencing at Orleton (near Tenbury) at 215 p.m. All 
observers concur in noticing the great backwardness of vegetation 
generally, which is estimated at one clear month behind the 


average. 


Naturat History Nores sy Osservers.—Tenbury—Cherry trees in 
blossom on 3rd; Damson, 7th; Pear, 23rd; Apple, 27th. Pitsford, near 
Northampton—Swallows first seen on 3rd. Weston-under-Lyziard—Cuckoo 
first heard, 4th; Landrail,19th. Waltham-le-Wold—Hawthorn blossomed 
on 31st. Alstonfield—Vegetation more backward than in any season 
remembered. Ash tree only flowered towards the close of the month, 
and on the hills here still (June 5th) shows no leaf, although it does so 
in the warmer valleys to the south of us. Wych Elm (Ulmus montana) 
had, in the more forward instances, leaves barely half-grown on May 81st, 
while some of the later varieties had no leaves at all, only the nearly 
fully-formed seed vessels; Beech had leaves three-parts grown; Sand 
Martin seen on May 12th; Swifton May 14th. Cheltenham—Walnut Trees 
killed by frost of 10th; still black and leafless at end of month. More 
Rectory, (Bishop’s Castle )—Bats flying on evening of 12th; Goldfinches 
andBlackbirds are abundant; Thrushes more rare ; Common Wren scarce ; 
Landrail heard on 29th. Shijnal—Oak only in tender yellow leaf on 
29th, and some just bursting; Asparagus cut on 4th; Wild Cherry 
flowered 16th; Turtle Dove arrived 16th; Swifts, 17th; Martins, 21st; 
Flycatcher, 27th; Orange-tip Butterfly, 27th; Nightingale heard on 7th. 
Castle Street, Bishop’s Castle—Switts arrived on 1st; Corn-crake heard on 
ilth. Stoney Middleton—Oak and Ash just opening into leaf on 81st. 
Park Hill, Nottingham—Everything extremely backward ; a spinney near 
here which at the beginning of May last year was over four feet high in 
4ithusa and Nettles, was this year scarcely over the boot tops. The 
number of nests built in holly hedges is extraordinary, they being the 
only ones capable of concealing anything. Strowd—List of flowers and 
date of blossoming :—1lst, Blackthorn, Foetid Hellebore; 7th, Garlick, 
Hedge Mustard; 8th, Veronica polita, Ranunculus acris, R. auricomus, 
Prunus domestica; 10th, Saxifraga tridactylites ; 12th, Polygala vulgaris, 
Orchis mascula, Carex precox, Luzula campestris ; 18th, Alchemilla vulq.; 
19th, Cardamine amara, Viola tricolor, Yellow Dead Nettle; 21st, Barbarea 
. vulg., Ajuga reptans, Plantago lanceolata; 22nd, Blue Bell, Geranium 
Robertianum, Mehringia trinervis, Orchis Morio, Stellaria nemorum; 
26th, Woodruff, Forget-me-Not, Potentilla Tormentilla, Arum maculatum, 
Geranium lucidum ; 27th, Tufted Vetch, Plantago major, Sherardia arvensis, 
Euphorbia helioscopia; 28th, Saniculé Europea; 29th, Allium sativum, 
Lychnis dioica; 30th, Cochlear. officinal.; 31st, Carex pendula, Valerian. 
oficin. Highfield House Observatory, Nottingham—Narcissus, Wall Pears, 
Wild Cherry, fl. on 8th; Blackthorn and plum, fi. on 11th; Wild 
Hyacinth, fl., 23rd; Wisteria, fl., 25th; Lily of the Valley, Bird Cherry, 
fi., 26th ; Landrail heard on 11th; Flycatcher arrived on 28th. 


188 CORRESPONDENCE. 


Correspondence. 


CHRYSOSPLENIUM ALTERNIFOLIUM.—In answer to ‘‘ Observer's” enquiry, 
I beg to say that I have found this plant twice this spring, once (about 
the middle of April) at Plaxtol, near Sevenoaks, and again (in May) at 
Loose, near Maidstone.—J. Tuornuinu, Maidstone. 

Ber-rater.—I exhibited a fine specimen of that very rare bird, 
Merops apiaster, (Bee-eater,) at our Society’s meeting on June llth. It 
was shot near Derby, the day before.—L. Luz, Nottingham. 


OrntrHotocicaAL Notres.—In my notes for last month, instead of 
“Merlin” (to whom I apologise for the mistake) I should have put the 
name of ‘‘Mr. Edwards,” in respect of notes on the Hawfinch.—O. V. 
Artin, Bodicote, Oxon, June, 1879. 


Turusy’s Haas, &¢:—Whilst out near here last month I found a 
thrush’s nest, in which three out of the five eggs were perfectly plain 
and free from spots, the other two only having a very few. I should be 
glad to know if this is a common occurrence. On Whit-Tuesday, whilst 
rambling in some woods about eight miles from here, I came across a 
patch of Paris yuadrifolia, and upon looking for any unusual forms, I 
found two plants with five leaves, but the other parts of the flower ran 
in fours, asis usual. On the same day I found very fine white specimens 
of Myosotis sylvatica and Scilla nutans.—H. F. Jounson, Nottingham. 

OrnirHotocican Norrs.~-This notice will complete the list of 
summer migrants, as the time for their arrival has now expired. Since 
my last communication I have noted the Swifts on May 14th, Redstarts 
May 15th, Yellow Wagtail May 23rd, Landrail June 8th, and Spotted 
Flycatcher June 13th. I have no doubt Ray’s Wagtail was here on an 
earlier date, as I have observed the bird as early as the middle of April, 
and therefore the above date must not be considered as that of the 
arrival of the bird, but of my chance observation of it. It is not 
common, and may easily escape being seen for some time after its 
arrival. I have now recorded the arrival of twenty-three species, and 
there are of course some which have escaped notice, such as the 
Common Flycatcher, the Night-jar, the Whinchat, the Turtledove, the 
Quail, the Ring Ousel, the Red-backed Shrike, all of which have been 
seen in this neighbourhood in former years, and are doubtless here now, 
though overlooked. This would bring our list of ordinary summer 
migrants in South Leicestershire up to thirty at least. Some day I hope 
to be able to make the record complete. I hope your Oxfordshire corres- 
pondent will not feel offended if I say that he has not established beyond 
doubt the fact of the arrival of the Wryneck in that county as early as 
the first week in March. Should he succeed in proving that this bird 
ever takes precedence of all the spring migrants, and is heard three 
weeks in advance of the Chiffchaff, it will be something new. Mean- 
while I venture to think that my theory, that the note was that of the 
Kestrel, is much the more probable. In your last issue I notice, as a 
curious coincidence, that your correspondent at Castle Ashby gives you 
the same date as myself for the arrival of the House Martin and the 
Nightingale-—Tuomas Macaunay, M.R.C.8.L., &c., Kibworth, June 14th. 

SrAsoNABLE Notres.—Owing to the long-continued wet and cold 
weather, the spring and summer flowers are unusually backward this 
year. I first noticed the Purple Orchis (Orchis mascula) and the Crab 
trees (Pyrus malus) in flower, May 19th ; Buttercups, (Ranunculus bulbosus 
_ and R. repens,) Stellaria Holostea, Veronica Chamedrys, Ajuga reptans, Orchis 
Morio, and Bluebell Hyacinths (Scilla nutans) were in flower by May 
Qist ; Viburnum Lantana and Paris quadrifolia by 22nd ; Hawthorn, whieh 


CORRESPONDENCE—REPORTS, 189 


is very late this year, 23rd ; the Horse Chestnut and Lilac trees, Asperula 
odorata, Rumex Acetosella, Poterium Sanguisorba, May 29th; Ranunculus 
acris, Ranunculus sceleratus, Berberis vulgaris, Arenaria trinervis, Vicia 
sativa, and Myosotis arvensis, May 31st; Potentilla anserina, June 2nd; 
Laburnum, Geraniuin Robertianum, Oxalis Acetosella, Valeriana dioica, and 
Veronica Beccabunga, June 4th ; Geum urbanum, June 7th ; Lychnis vesper- 
tina, Polygala vulgaris, Potentilla Tormentilla, and Butterfly Orchis, 
(Habenaria bifolia,) June 9th; Lotus corniculatus and Geranium dissectum, 
first seen in flower June 12th; Malva rotundifolia and Rhinanthus Crista- 
galli in flower June 15th.—R. R., Castle Ashby. 


SrasonaBte Nores.—May 11th, Maythorn, bud, (flowered about 30th ;) 
16th, Oak, fl.; White Nettle, fl.; 17th, Wild Plum, fi.; 19th, Apple, 
fl.; 20th, Nightingale, at H. G. Tomlinson, Esq.’s, (Woodlands;) 24th, 
Ash and Sycamore, fl. ; Early Purple Orchis, also a white variety ; Glow- 
worm first seen.—C. U. Tripp, Burton-on-Trent. 


Discovery or A Fosstz Fresu-warer Tortoise IN NorrotK.— 
Remains of the common European Emys lutaria, obtained from the 
Post-glacial Freshwater-bed at Mundesley, have lately been brought 
under the notice of the scientific societies in Norwich. The specimen 
has been placed in the hands of Mr. E, T. Newton, F.G.S., and will 
shortly be described in the “Geological Magazine.” In the meantime 
the fact of this discovery is of considerable interest, for only one other 
record exists of the occurrence of Testudinate remains in post-pliocene 
deposits in this country. The earlier discovery was communicated by 
Prof. A. Newton, (see his paper ‘‘ On the Zoology of Ancient Europe,” 
read before the Cambridge Phil. Soc., 1862,) and this consisted in the 
finding of remains of two individuals of the same species of Tortoise in 
a peat-bog at Hast Wretham, in Norfolk.—H. B. W. 


Brack Banp In tHE Drirt.—In reply to Mr. Woodward’s letter, 
which appeared last month, I regret that I have but little to add to my 
former communication. I was sorry to find that the bed in question 
does not extend far in the direction the cutting is being made, but appears 
to have its greatest dimensions at right angles, i.e., east and west. The 
result is that the section is all but obliterated by the sloping banks which 
form the sides of the cutting. It was, however, too much decomposed to 
yield many recognisable remains, and after a careful search I have only 
found one good specimen. This appears tobe a fragment of a twig from 
some tree or shrub, and is about two inches long by one-eighth of an 
inch thick. JI have made enquiries from the foreman of the work, but 
the men have not met with anything sufficiently remarkable to attract 
their attention.—A. H. Arxins, Birmingham. 


Areports of Societies, 


BIRMINGHAM AND MIDLAND INSTITUTE SCIENTIFIC SOCIETY. 
—Wauit-Monpay, June 2nd.—Excursion to SToNEHOUSE AND D1strRicr.—A 
party of twenty-four members and friends left Birmingham at 6 30 for Stone- 
house. Thence the way was taken, under the guidance of Mr. C. Pumphrey, 
over Doverow Hill to Randwick, just beyond which a quarry was found yielding 
an abundance of fossils. A most charming wood was next traversed, and many 
interesting plants collected. The walk was continued tothe ancient camp on 
Standish Beacon, where a grand view was disclosed of the valley of the Severn, 
with the range of the Cotswold Hills stretching to the south, and on the other 
side the Malvern, May, and other hills. Signs of rain appearing, the party made 
a speedy return to Stroud, where tea was obtained. Afterwards some of the 
more enterprising of the party walked through the rain over the hills to Stones 
house, collecting fossils on the way. 


190 REPORTS. 


BIRMINGHAM NATURAL HISTORY AND MICROSCOPICAL 
SOCIETY.—Gerotogican Srcrion.—May 27th.—Mr. Bolton exhibited 
Brachionus pala, one of the large shielded Rotifers, with two eggs attached. 
Mr. Waller exhibited photographs of some rock sections. Mr. C. Pumphrey 
gave some account of the Geological excursion to Charnwood Forest, on the 
occasion of the meeting of the Midland Union of Natural History Societies, at 
Leicester. Some discussion on the scheme for the united observation of glacial 
phenomena having taken place, the minute on the subject of the 22nd of October 
last was read. GENERAL Mrxntinc.—June 3rd.—Mr. J. Morley exhibited 
bulbs of Crocus nudiflorus, from the Quarry, Shrewsbury. Mr. J. W. Cotton 
exhibited Drosera rotundifolia, Polygala vulgaris, Pinguicula vulgaris, and 
Pedicularis vulgaris. Mr. J. H. Pumphrey exhibited Prunus Padus, the Bird- 
cherry, from Millersdale, Derbyshire. Mr. H. E. Forrest exhibited Tremella 
mesenterica, afungus, from Shrewsbury. Miss Ryland exhibited Geological 
Specimens from Charnwood Forest. Mr. Walter Graham exhibited Helleborus 
viridis and other plants of the limestone, from the Doward Hill, near Monmouth ; 
also, teeth and bones of extinct animals, from King Aurthur’s Cave, Herefordshire. 
BroLogicat Sxction:—June 10th.—Mr. J. E. Bagnall exhibited Jungermannia 
excisa and J. spherocarpa, also Saxifraga granulata, from Sutton Park; Tetraphis 
pellucida, in fruit, from New Park, Middleton, a moss rarely found in this condi- 
tion; also specimens of the long and short styled forms of Primula, the former of 
which is hairy, the latter only papillose. Mr. T. Bolton exhibited six slides given 
to the Society by the Rev. Lord 8. G. Osborne, shewing the effects of carmine 
staining on animal and vegetable tissues. Mr. H. E. Forrest exhibited Hydra 
vulgaris, showing the ova and sperm-sacs; Trifoliwm repens, showing leaves with 
three, four, five, six, and seven leaflets ; Spirogyra quinina, showing formation of 
spores from the contents of contiguous cells in the same filament, and various 
other fresh-water algee. Mr. J. Levick exhibited Pandorina morum and Uroglena 
wvolvox, both from Sutton Park; and read a few notes on the latter. Mr. M. 
Browne exhibited Huchelia Jacobew, the Cinnabar moth, taken at Bath: 
MicroscopicaL GENERAL Mrntinc.—June 17th—Mr. A. W. Wills exhibited 
Several species of Spirogyra and Zygnema, showing formation of spores in con- 
jugating filaments, and in contiguous cells of the same filament. Mr. W. P. 
Marshall exhibited newt and newt-embryos, shewing the circulation in the gills 
while within the egg. Mr. J. E. Bagnall exhibited Cephalanthera ensifolia, 
Myosotis wmbrosa, and Helianthemum vulgare, from Oversley Wood. Mr. J. W. 
Cotton exhibited Botrychium Lunaria, the Moonwort, from Barmouth. Mr. T. 
Clarke exhibited slides of Crystals of Sulphate of Copper. Mr. W. R. Hughes 
read some interesting notes on the marine excursion to Arran last year, including 
full descriptions of the more remarkable animals captured, and illustrated by 
preserved specimens of the Nemertean Annelid, Carinella annulatd and stalked 
examples of Antedon rosaceus, in various stages of development. 


BIRMINGHAM SCHOOL NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY.—May 9th, 
Annual General Meeting, the President (Rev. A. R. Vardy) in the chair. The 
officers for the ensuing year were elected, as follows :—President—Rev. A. R. 
Vardy. Vice-Presidents—Rev. E. F. M. McCarthy, Rev. J. H. Smith, R. Levett, 
Esq., J. Turner, Esq. Hon. Sec.—H. F. Devis. _Curators—Biological Section, 
J. Chapman; Geological Section, — Stokes. A. B. Badger exhibited Philodina 
roseola and Floscularia ornata. May 16th, General Meeting.—A paper was read 
by A. W. Swayne, on ‘A Walk at Llanthony.” June 6th, General Meeting.—A 
paper was read by J. Chapman on “ The Fertilisation of Plants.” 


CHELTENHAM NATURAL SCIENCE SOCIETY.—We mentioned at 
page 164 that Mr. Day had addressed the. members of this society on the 
question “ What has Vivisection done for Science?” We have since been 
favoured with a sight of a reswmé of the paper, and heartily regret that our 
limited space does not allow us to offer a statement of the admirable way in 
which he put the answer. We cannot, however, debar ourselves of the pleasure 
of stating that a more thoughtful and well-reasoned exposition of the views of 
most intelligent biologists on the subject has not been seen by us. Mr. Day 
stated his views most dispassionately, and showed most conclusively that the 
interests of suffering humanity would be sacrificed, and the advance of scientific 
enquiry seriously retarded, if properly conducted experiments on the lower 


REPORTS, 191 


animals were rendered illegal. We must content ourselves by giving Mr. Day’s 
concluding remarks. He said:—* I have, although but briefly, sketched out how 
it bas occurred that discussions upon vivisection have been raised during the last few 
years by those who do not believe anything has been discovered by their means. 
LThave traced some of the advantages which humanity has reaped from these 
investigations, more especially as regards the circulation, the nervous system, 
and the therapeutic action of drugs; how, by its lessons, some prophylactics 
have been discovered, and the mode of treating asphyxiated persons has become 
more clear; how the changes in structures induced by disease have been followed 
out, step by step, and some organs, formerly unsuspected, are found to be the 
seat of certain complaints; how, by means of anesthetics, operations have 
become painless, and, owing to the discovery of the antiseptic treatment, the pain 
of after treatment (as well as the mortality) has been greatly reduced; and, 
lastly, how by these means some poisoners have been convicted, and some 
persons unjustly accused have been saved from the gallows. But there are still 
many strong places to be attacked, remedies are required for many epidemics, as, 
for instance, cholera or fevers ; or for poisons, as those of serpents ; and curative 
agents, for the removal of disease; while a great boon would be an equally 
efficacious but saferangsthetic than chloroform. The question is now narrowed 
into these grounds, first, that some experiments on living creatures are a 
necessity, but shall such be carried out in the wards of our hospitals and amongst 
patients? or on the convict population? or on the lower animals? Most of usi 
this room have been asked to sign petitions to except the lower animals from all 
experiments, thus throwing such upon human beings. The medical profession 
ae to this plan, preferring the ancient adage, Fiat experimentum in corpore 
vily.” 


DUDLEY AND MIDLAND GEOLOGICAL AND SCIENTIFIC 
SOCIETY AND FIELD CLUB.—The annual meeting of this Society 
was held on Wednesday, June 18th, at the Museum, Dudley. The 
report of the committee was read and adopted and the accounts 
passed. Dr. Fraser was elected as president for a second year, and some 
few names added to fill up vacancies in the committee. Mr. William 
Madeley was elected as secretary, an office which he held some years ago. A 
hearty vole of thanks was given to Mr. Marten, the retiring secretary. After 
slight luncheon, the members to the number of about forty started for the third 
field meeting of the season. Driving to Halesowen, after a look at the remains 
of the Manor Abbey, they inspected some interesting cuttings on the new line of 
railway from that place to Northfield, and then had a lovely walk, under the 
guidance of Mr. J. Amphlett, of Clent, from Romsley, through the romantic 
valley, near Farley Coppice and Shut Mill, to Walton and Hagley, having the 
usual meat tea at the Lyttelton Arms. 


NOTTINGHAM LITERARY AND PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY.— 
Annuat Mezutine.—May 29th, 1879. The following officers for the year 1879-80 
were elected :—President, Rev. R. A. Armstrong, B.A.; Vice-Presidents, Rev. Dr. 
Dixon, F.G.S., R. Enfield, T. A. Stephenson, M.D., J. White, F.R.C.S. ; 
Treasurer, G. B. Rothera; Hon. Librarian, H.E. Hubbart; Hon. Secretaries, 
Isaac Mosley, A. H. Scott-White, B.A., B.Sc.; Council, J. Beddard, M.B., 
A. Brunner, M.A., E. Goldschmidt, A. L. Kohn, W. H. Ransom, M.D., C. L. 
Rothera, B.A., R. Simon, E. Smith, M.A., A. C.;Taylor, M.D., E. Wilson, F.G.S. 


Correction.—In the title of a paper read by Mr. J. Shipman before the 
Natural Science Section, May 9th, (vide “ Midland Naturalist,” Vol. II., page 
164, bottom line,) for “‘ Burton ” read ‘‘ Beeston.” 


NOTTINGHAM NATURALISTS’ SOCIETY.—May 21st.—A special general 
meeting was held to consider the subject of {an amalgamation with the Notting- 
ham Literary and Philosophical Society. It was decided, with only one 
dissentient, not to amalgamate. May 28th.—Meeting of the Botanical Section 
for the exhibition of specimens collected during May. Mr. A. G. Webster 
exhibited specimens of Lathrea squamaria, found on the root of the elm, and 
Paris quadrifolia. Other members exhibited specimens of Saxifraga granulata, 


192 REPORTS. 


Geranium lucidum, &e. June 3rd.—A few of the members set out for a ramble 
in the neighbourhood of Loughborough, where, having arrived, they started by 
the Leicester road for Quorndon, on the left hand side of which, in a dyke, 
feeding on grass, was found, in abundance, the larva of Odonestis potatoria, 
(the Drinker Moth.) From Quorndon they passed on to Mountsorrel to inspect 
the Granite Quarries there. The deep ravine was grand and majestic. 
Quorndon Wood was then visited, where a rich flora was found, including 
Convallaria majalis, (Lily of the Valley,) and Asperula odorata, (Sweet 
Woodruff,) Yellow Lamium, (Lamium galeobdolon,) Saxifraga granulata, 
Trifolium procumbens, Geranium lucidum, Ferns, &c. 


PETERBOROUGH NATURAL HISTORY AND SCIENTIFIC SOCIETY, 
—On June 2nd the members of this society had an excursion to Bedford 
Purlieus, permission having been granted to the society by Herbert E. Watson, 
Esq., steward to the Duke of Bedford. The party, consisting of twenty-three 
ladies and gentlemen, were under the guidance of the secretary, Mr. J. W. 
Bodger. The first halt was called at Alwalton, where half an hour was 
pleasantly spent in looking over the church; some interesting wall plants were 
obtained here. Chesterton Church was next visited, the Rev. — Gaudy kindly 
conducting the party and pointing out and describing the beautiful monuments 
erected to the memories of the Drydens and Nevilles; giving at the same time 
an account of these families. A lovely view of the surrounding country was 
obtained from the roof of the building. The rev. gentleman also showed the 
party over his gardens and surrounding grounds. Part of the programme had 
to be omitted, and the next stage was to the Purlieus, the favourite dwelling of 
many rare Northamptonshire plants. After dining the party dispersed by 
various paths into the depths of the wood, and returned laden with spoils. 


SEVERN VALLEY NATURALISTS’ FIELD CLUB.—Excursion To 
BarmovutH, June 10th to 13th.—Twenty-five members and friends of this club 
arrived at Barmouth on the afternoon of Tuesday, June 10th, quarters having 
been provided for them at the Cors-y-Gedol Hotel. A walk was taken to the 
panoramic view, a point on the hills above Barmouth, whence was seen in great 
beauty the scenery of the Mawddach, including the mountain ranges of Cader 
Idris and the Arrans. The sunset was one of remarkable beauty, the rich red 
afterglow continuing till ten p.m. On Wednesday, the 11th, the party drove 
along the north side of the estuary to Llanelltyd and thence up the valley of the 
Mawddach to a point where they alighted, and after a walk of two miles reached 
the Falls Pistyll-y-Cain and Pistyll-y-Mawddach, both of which were seen to 
great advantage, the sun shining brilliantly at the time. Near these Falls may 
be traced the junction of the Lingula Flags with the Cambrian Grit; outbursts 
of igneous rock (greenstone) are frequent. Lodes of metallic ore are numerous 
in the district. Near the Falls the party saw costly apparatus for gold washing, 
connected with the gold mine abandoned some years ago. Lead mining is, 
however, still carried on close to the Falls, the water from which supplies the 
power for driving the machinery for grinding and washing the ore. The 
Trilobite Paradoxides Davidis has been found near the Falls of the Mawddach 
Valley, but it is very scarce. A thunderstorm passing over prevented the visit to 
the third Fall, Rhaydr Du, and after sheltering at the little inn, Tyn-y-Groes, 
the party visited the small but picturesque ruins of Cymma Abbey, and after a 
drive back through the same noble scenery, reached Barmouth about six P.M. 
Thursday, June 12th.—An unsettled showery day, but the morning was on the 
whole favourable. The party drove by the Harlech Road to Llanbedr, and 
thence to Dolrheiddiog, whence they walked to Cwm Bychan lake and through 
the magnificent scenery beyond it, traversed by the path paved by the Romans 
with masses of Cambrian rock quarried on the spot, and known as the Roman 
steps. Weather cut short the walk after the summit had been reached, and in a 
pouring rain a retreat was made to the carriages, and Barmouth was reached 
about six P.M. In passing through the gorge of Cwm Bychat to Trawsfynydd, @ 
fine section ig obtained of the lower Cambrian grits and slates, and the scenery 
is remarkably wild. Friday, June 13th.—The party returned home by Cambrian 
Railway, leaving Barmouth at 12 35 p.m., Shrewsbury being reached at 4 45 P.M. 


ENTOMOLOGIOAL RAMBLES IN THE MIDLANDS. 931 


ENTOMOLOGICAL RAMBLES IN THE MIDLANDS. 
No. I—BEWDLEY FOREST. 


BY W. G. BLATCH. 


In a former paper on ‘Midland Entomology” I tried to prove, 
amongst other things, that the oft-repeated statement about the Midland 
Counties not producing any but the commonest insects was a fallacy. I 
now propose to take my readers, mentally, to several of the best hunting 
grounds in the district, especially such as lie within easy reach of 
Birmingham, and to point out some of the more interesting insects, from 
a collector’s point of view, to be obtained from them. 


Foremost amongst these is undoubtedly Bewdley Forest, and we 
have accordingly chosen that for our first Ramble. 


Some “forests” to which I have been introduced are hard to find, 
and harder to see when you have found them, almost every distinctive 
feature having been long since swept away by the march of civilization ; 
but this does not apply in the present case, the forest for which we are 
now bound being perfectly genuine. 


Wyre Forest (its right name) is several miles in extent, and is 
situated between Bewdley, Cleobury Mortimer, and Arley, at the junction 
of the three counties of Salop, Stafford, and Worcester. Its distance 
from Birmingham is 224 miles, and the railway journey occupies (by 
certain trains) about an hour. There are several ways of entering the 
forest, those most generally used being the Arley and Bewdley routes. 
The first is preferred by many Botanists and Entomologists, but the 
latter is perhaps the best, all things considered ; we will therefore follow 
it on this occasion. Upon leaving the station we make for the fine bridge 
over the Severn, connecting Wribbenhall with Bewdley, and, having 
crossed it, turn down the steps on the right and go up the river-side as 
far as the quaint little church at Dowles. We then cross a bridge, turn 
sharp to the left, and, by ascending Dowles Brook, soon find ourselves 
surrounded by dense woods, and busily engaged in our entomological 
pursuits. 


But, in truth, before we had left the side of the river our attention 
had been arrested by the myriads of dragon-flies, stone-flies, and other 
insects which sport amongst the rank herbage margining the bank, and 
our nets had been busily occupied in securing specimens of the pretty 


little moths, Emmelesia albulata and E. decolorata, that flit about so 
EE 


194 ENTOMOLOGICAL RAMBLES IN THE MIDLANDS. 


softly and yet so merrily amongst the grass, strongly contrasting with 
the imposing colours, and fussy, whirring flight of the Burnet moths, 
Zygena filipendule, and Z. trifolii, which accompany them. The sweeping- 
net of the Coleopterist has also been vigorously plied whilst walking along, 
and yielded upon examination quite a host of nice beetles, far “ toonumerous 
to mention.” Amongst those “ bottled” the Phytophaga preponderate, 
and include Lema puncticollis, Crepidodera rufipes, Podagrica fuscipes, 
Psylliodes chrysocephala, Apteropeda graminis, and Coccidula rufa. The 
Sternoxi were represented by Lacon murinus, Cryptohypnus quadripustu- 
latus, Limonius cylindrus, L. minutus, Athoiis hemorrpoidalis, A. longicollis, 
Corymbites pectinicornis, C. cupreus, C. tesselatus, C. quercus, and 
C. holosericeus ; Dasytes plumbeo-niger, Gidemera lurida, Hedobia imperialis, 
and the curious Notoxus monocerus are also amongst our captures. Before 
leaving this spot, being reminded of the beetle-hunter’s maxim, ‘‘ Leave 
not a stone unturned,” we carefully overhaul the stones and rubbish 
lying beside the river, and are rewarded by finding some good beetles, 
including Clivina fossor, C. collaris, Chlaenius. vestitus, Stomis pumicatus, 
Trechus discus, and several species of Bembidium. We also find under 
stones close to and in the water Orectochilus villosus, and on the sand 
and mud Cryptohypnus riparius, C. pulchellus, Potamnius substriatus, and 
Parnus prolifericornis. 


By beating the sallows at the mouth of the brook we obtain 
specimens of Cryptorhynchus lapathi, which fall into the umbrella 
apparently lifeless, and look like dry bird-droppings. We know these 
actors of old, or we might throw them away, not imagining them to be 
living beings. From the same trees we obtain those insect gems 
Crepidodera nitidula, C. helxines, C. aurata, and C. chloris, as well as 
(from alder) Campylus linearis. By the side of the brook, on the fig- 
worts, Scrophularia aquatica and C. nodosa, we find the pretty tesselated 
beetles Cionus scrophularie, C. hortulanus, C. blattarie, and C. pulchellus, 
vhilst, on the rising ground on the right, by sweeping amongst wood- 
sage, we obtain the compact little Gonioctena litura, which, when 
captured for the first time, is almost always mistaken for a species of 
Cryptocephalus. A few steps further, on the railway bank, real Crypto- 
cephali may be found, viz.:—C. aureolus and C. mori, the latter, 
a pretty shining black insect with orange spots, on Hypericum 
perfoliatum, sometimes in numbers. On the same plant, and 
in the same place, we take Chrysomela varians and C. hyperict. By 
beating the broom, growing so luxuriantly all around us, we find the 
larvee of Pseudopterpna cytisaria and Chesias spartiata, as well as the 
uncommon (atleast in our district) Apion fuscirostre. Having left the 
railway we descend towards the brook again, plucking a handful of moss 
from the bank as we go. From this we shake out on to a sheet of paper 
carried for the purpose the curious, almost spider-like weevil, Orobitis 
cyaneus, and the tiny seed-like Mniophila muscorum, besides some 
Pselaphide, including Bryaxis juncorum, Pselaphus Heisei, Scydmenus 


ENTOMOLOGIOAL RAMBLES IN THE MIDLANDS. 195 


Godarti and Cephennium thoracicum. Stopping to examine some fine 
plants of the rather rare Helleborus viridis, we notice, close by, a dead 
hedgehog, strongly appealing to our sense of smell, and not in vain, for, 
knowing that what is so offensive to us is considered a rich treat by 
certain members of our favourite order of insects, we carefully and 
expectantly turn it over and examine it, being rewarded for our pains 
(literal meaning, if you please!) by several fine beetles. Amongst them 
are two or three species of Choleva, the Burying Beetles Necrophorus 
humator, N. mortuorum, and N. vespillo; Silpha littoralis, S. thoracica, 
and S. sinuata, also come forth in plenty; whilst Histers positively 
abound, and WNitidula bipustulata, Omosita colon, and O. discoidea, 
Swarm upon the remains of poor “‘spiny.” Of course there are also 
a good many ‘“Staphs ”—Aleochara, &c., but nothing to be specifically 
noted. 


In rising from our unsavoury, but, withal, profitable beetle-trap, our 
attention is riveted on a handsome caterpillar feeding on the hawthorn 
above us, and which we recognise as the larva of T'richiura crategi (one 
of the Bombycidz,) which, if we take it home and carefully feed it, will 
become a moth in August or September, proving an acquisition to our 
cabinet. 


We are now fairly in the forest, and find so much to claim our 
attention that it is at first somewhat bewildering. A little too early for 
the Silver-washed Fritillary, Argynnis paphia, the dark variety of which, 
valezina, also occurs here; and the Purple Hair-streak, Thecla quercus, 
(of which two or three laggard larvee, which ought to have completed 
their feeding and changed to pups before this, have fallen to the beating 
stick,) we are gladdened with the sight of scores of ‘‘ Pearl borders,” 
Argynnis euphrosyne and A. selene, flitting about all around us, the former 
somewhat worn and showing signs of living beyond its time. Ah! what 
have we now? Not a Black-veined White, certainly, visions of which 
have more than once crossed our minds, and which is reported to have 
been formerly found here ; nor a Camberwell Beauty, a butterfly assuredly 
netted here, once at any rate, not many years ago; but, fluttering in our 
net, we have a very interesting butterfly, nevertheless, viz., the “ Greasy 
Fritillary,” Melitea artemis. This is soon boxed, and the net again in 
requisition. This time we have taken two curious day-flying moths, 
‘Mother Shipton” and ‘‘ Mother Shipton’s Likeness,” Huclidia mi and 
FE. glyphica, the former having a droll caricature figure of a human face 
on each fore-wing. Here also is Phytometra enea, likewise a lover of 
sunshine; and, flitting about in the shady parts of the walks, the prettily 
speckled Geometer, Venilia maculata. Sitting onthe flowers in the hot 
sunshine, busily sipping their sweets, are several specimens of the small 
Angle-shades moth, Euplexia lucipara, and in yonder shady opening in 
the wood, moving with ghost-like flight, is the Wood-white butterfly, 
Leucophasia sinapis. Having boxed as many as required of the former, 
and netted the latter while at rest on a “‘lady’s smock,” we pass 
towards a number of large purplish flowers, descried growing just within 
the margin of the wood, and which prove to be those of two species of 


196 ENTOMOLOGICAL RAMBLES IN THE MIDLANDS. 


Geranium, G. sanguinewm, and G. sylvaticum. Whilst moving towards 
these, we notice a large and strikingly beautiful moth sitting on an oak 
leaf, and of course stop to examine it. It is one new to us, and we feel 
all the thrilling pleasure of a “first find.” We gloat over it—the deli- 
cately outlined markings, and the silvery, pearly-gray gloss on the wings 
are inexpressibly exquisite, and a fine crest on the thorax, gently stirred 
by a passing zephyr, seems to be waved at the will of the insect. It is 
so lovely, and spreads all its riches of beauty so unsuspectingly before us, 
that we shrink from the idea of laying violent hands upon it. But the 
moth is the Silvery Arches, Aplecta tincta, and our cabinet hitherto 
knows not the species! Acquisitiveness overcomes sentiment, and in @ 
moment the rarity is ours! In capturing it (of course you must under- 
stand that ‘ perfect coolness” steadied our hands!) we rustle the tree, 
and out fly two other prizes, by name Limacodes testudo and Lithosia 
mesomella, which soon share a similar fate. 


Now for the Geranium flowers, in which we find, quite in the 
centre of the blossoms, a chubby, rugose, intensely black-backed, white- 
bellied little weevil, which feigns death and falls to the ground at your 
slightest touch of the plant on which it is resting. Thisis a good catch, 
and rejoices in the name of Coeliodes geraniit. We take plenty ‘ for 
selves and friends,” but scarcely seem to diminish their numbers. Two, 
male and female, in one flower, are common, and often three-—-generally 
one male and two females—occur in a single bloom. They eat the petals 
of the flower, and seem to like such fairy-food, as indeed they ought. 
But, tempting as these little beauties are, we must move on, seeking 
‘‘fresh fields and pastures new.” Lo! here, ‘‘ where the bee sucks,” is 
fine sport. In front of us is a grand specimen of the Guelder rose in full 
bloom, and swarming with insects. Where shall we begin, and what 
shall we take first? Beetles first, decidedly, and Longhorns before 
everything, and so we attack accordingly. Clytus arietis, Rhagium 
inquisitor, R. bifasciatum, Toxotus meridianus, Pachyta collaris, P. octo- 
maculata, Strangalia quadrifasciata, S. armata, Leptura livida, and 
Grammoptera ruficornis—all are here, and all are captured. Some of 
them so covered with pollen-dust that it is hard, at first sight, to tell 
what they are. This is particularly the case with Pachyta collaris, which, 
instead of his usual genteel blue-black coat and red waistcoat, looks asif he 
had been made tipsy and then rolled in a baker’s trough, “for a lark.” 
We are glad to have him, though, and feel already more than satisfied 
with our success. There is, however, more work yet to be done before 
retracing our steps. But first let us think of responding to an increas- 
ingly powerful appeal from the ‘inner man,” and, with that view, make 
bold to enter the house at Cooper’s Mill, placed hereabouts as if on 
purpose to meet our gastronomic requirements. Mrs. Weaver, always 
kind and obliging, provides a bountiful supply of ham and eggs, and 
brews some excellent tea, upon which, with plenty of her own home- 
made bread, we regale ourselves with the relish inspired by good fare 
and keen appetites. 


[To BE CONTINUED.] 


NOTTINGHAMSHIRE LAND AND FRESHWATER SHELLS. 197 


NOTTINGHAMSHIRE LAND & FRESHWATER SHELLS. 


BY E. J. LOWE, F.R.S., ETC., AND CG. T. MUSSON, 


The following list of the Nottinghamshire Mollusca may be of use to 
some readers of the ‘“‘ Midland Naturalist.” It is corrected to the present 
time, June, 1879. 

AQUATIC. 
CLASS I. CONCHIFERA OR BIVALVES. 
FAMILY I., SPHZRIIDA. 


GENUS I., SPHERIUM. 
Spherium corneum, very common. 
var. Pisidioides, Canal at Beeston. 
var. flavescens, ‘at Beeston. 
var. nucleus, at Beeston. 
rivicola, common in the Trent and the Canals. 
ovale, rare, Canal at, Beeston (B. 8. Dodd.) 
lacustre, Ponds at Beeston and Barton. 
var., brochoniana, Clumber Lake and Attenborough. 
GENUS II., PISIDIUM. 
Pisidium amnicum, common in the Canals and River Trent, at Beeston. 
fontinale, ditch at Barton. 
var. pulchella, dyke at Beeston and Stanton-on-the-Wolds. 
var. cinerea, Beeston and Lenton. 
pusillum, Canal at Nottingham and elsewhere. 
var. obtusalis, rare at Beeston. 
nitidum, Beeston and Nottingham Meadows, not common. 
roseum, rare at Sawley. 


FAMILY II., UNIONIDZ. 
GENUS I., UNIO. 

Unio tumidus, common in the Trent and the Canals. 
var. radiata, not uncommon in the Canals. 
var. ovalis, common. 

pictorum, common in the Trent and the Canals. 
var. radiata, Highfield House Lake. 
var. curvirostris, ,, op ¥ 
GENUS II., ANODONTA. 

Anodonta cygnea, common. 
var. rostrata, Canal, Beeston. 
var. radiata, Canal, Wollaton. 

anatina, Canal, Wollaton, and several varieties. 


FAMILY I11., DREISSENIDA., 


GENUS DREISSENA. 
Dreissena polymorpha, common. 


CLASS Il. GASTEROPODA OR UNIVALVES. 
ORDER I., PECTINIBRANCHIATA. 
FAMILY L., NERITIDA. 
GENUS NERITINA. 
Neritina fluviatilis, common on submerged stones, 


FAMILY I1., PALUDINIDA. 
GENUS I., PALUDINA, 
Paludina vivipara, common. 


198 NOTTINGHAMSHIRE LAND AND FRESHWATER SHELLS. 


GENUS I1., BYTHINIA. 
Bythinia tentaculata, very common. 
var. decollata, Lenton and Attenborough. 
Leachii, rare, ditch, Nottingham Meadows. 


FAMILY III., VALVATIDA. 
GENUS VALVATA. 
Valvata piscinalis, common. 
var. depressa, common. 
cristata, ditches at Bulwell, Attenborough, and Nottingham, very 
plentiful. 


ORDER II., PULMONOBRANCHIATA. 


FAMILY LIMNAIDZA. 


GENUS I., PLANORBIS. 
Planorbis lineatus, brook at Oxton Bogs, and Highfield House Lake. 
nitidus, rare, in Canal at Lenton and Nottingham, and Highfield 
House Lake. 
nautileus, plentiful in ditch at Bulwell, and lake at Highfield 
House. 
albus, rare, Bulwell and Lenton, and Canal at Nottingham. 
glaber, Beeston and Mapperley, in ponds. 
spirorbis, common. 
vortex, “9 
var. compressa, Stanton-on-the- Wolds. 
carinatus, common 
complanatus, ,, 
corneus, » 
contortus, very plentiful at Bulwell, Colwick, and Canal at 
Nottingham. 
GENUS II., PHYSA. 
Physa hypnorum, plentiful at Beeston in ditches and ponds. 
fontinalis, common. 
var. curta, Beeston Meadows. 
var. inflata, Lenton. 


GENUS III., LIMNAA. 
Limnea glutinosa, rare, Beeston Lock, in backwater of Trent. 
peregra, very common. 
var. ovata, very common. 
var. oblonga, common. 
var. acuminata, ,, 
var. decollata, not uncommon. 
auricularia, Canal at Nottingham and Wollaton. 
var. acuta, lake at Highfield House. 
stagnalis, commcn. 
var. fragilis, common. 
palustris, very common. 
var. tincta, Beeston and Lenton. 
var. corvus, Sawley. 
var. decollata, not uncommon. 
truncatula, plentiful in Trent at Beeston, ditch near Mansfield, 
also at Edwinstone and Lenton. 
var. elegans, Beeston. 


GENUS Iv., ANCYLUS. 
Ancylus fluviatilis, common on submerged stones. 
var. albida, plentiful in a stream at Bulwell. 
var. capuloides, Tottle Brook. 
lacustris, Beeston and Radford. 


NOTTINGHAMSHIRE LAND AND FRESHWATER SHELLS. 199 


TERRESTRIAL. 


FAMILY I, LIMACIDA. 


GENUS I., ARION. 
Arion ater, common. 
hortensis, ,, 
flavus 5S 
unnamed species, Highfield House. 
GENUS III., LIMAX. 
Limax flavus, Lenton and Nottingham. 
agrestis, common. 
arborum, trees at Wilford and Welbeck, &c. 
maximus, Welbeck, &c. 
levis, Highfield House. 
marginatus, Highfield House. 


FAMILY II., TESTACELLIDA. 
GENUS, TESTACELLA. 
Testacella Haliotidea, Welbeck Gardens, (R. A. Rolfe.) 


FAMILY Il., HELICIDA. 
GENUS I., SUCCINEA. 
Succinea putris, common, and several varieties. 
virescens, Sawley, Thrumpton, and Lenton. 
elegans, not uncommon. 
GENUS Il., VITRINA. 
Vitrina pellucida, common. 
GENUS III., ZONITES. 
Zonites cellarius, common. 
alliarius, - 
nitidulus, ,, 
purus, Wollaton, Pleasley, and Creswell Crags, not uncommon. 
. radiatulus, common. 
nitidus, op 
excavatus, rare, at Attenborough. 
erystallinus, common. 
fulvus, plentiful at Wollaton, Stanton-on-the-Wolds, &c. 
glaber, Highfield House, Sawley, Wollaton, &c. 


GENUS Iy., HELIX. 
Helix aculeata, not uncommon at Thrumpton, Wollaton, and Stanton- 
on-the- Wolds. 
aspersa, common. 
nemoralis, common, 
var. hortensis, plentiful on a roadside at Stanton-on-the- 
Wolds, and at Bulwell, rare. 
var. hybrida, plentiful in a lane at Basford and Wollaton. 
var. minor, Thrumpton. 
arbustorum, Hazelford and Thrumpton. 
concinna, common. 
hispida, ro 
var. albida, not uncommon. 
rufescens, rare. 
sericea, rare, Clifton and Highfield House. 
revelata, Stanton-on-the-Wolds. 
fusca, rare, Highfield House. 
virgata, (1 sp.,) Lenton Hall. 
caperata, Creswell Crags, plentiful, also MRuddington, and 
Stanton-on-the- Wolds. 


200 NOTTINGHAMSHIRE LAND AND FRESHWATER SHELLS. 


Helix ericetorum, Stanton-on-the- Wolds. 
var. alba, 3 
rotundata, very common. 
var. turtoni, Highfield House. 
pygmea, not uncommon, at Wollaton and elsewhere. 
rupestris, not uncommon. 
pulchella, not uncommon. 
var. costata, not uncommon. 
lapicida, one live specimen and fifteen dead ones at Creswell 
Crags; also at Pleasley Vale, under stones and leaves, on 
magnesian limestone district. 
GENUS Y., BULIMUS. 
Bulimus obscurus, not uncommon at Stanton-on-the-Wolds, Colwick, 
Creswell Crags, and Pleasley Vale. 
GENUS VI., PUPA. 
Pupa umbilicata, very plentiful at Sutton-in-Ashfield and Creswell 
Crags ; also at Chilwell. 
var. edentula, Highfield House. 
secale, Nottingham Castle. 
ringens, rare, Highfield House. 
marginata, rare, Highfield House. 
GENUS VII., VERTIGO. 
Vertigo pygmea, rare, Widmerpool and Pleasley Vale. 
substriata, rare, Highfield House. 
edentula, plentiful at Widmerpool, and rare at Wollaton. 
antivertigo, Highfield House. 
pusilla, Highfield House. 


GENUS VIII., BALIA. 
Balia perversa, rare, Colwick (B. 8S. Dodd.) and Highfield House. 


GENUS IX., CLAUSILIA. 
Clausilia rugosa, very common. 
laminata, one dead specimen at Pleasley Vale. 


GENUS X., COCHLICOPA. 
Cochlicopa tridens, five dead specimens at Pleasley Vale; also recorded 
at Highfield House, Beeston. 
lubrica, very common. 


GENUS XI., ACHATINA. 
Achatina acicula, one dead specimen at Attenborough; also recorded 
at Radcliffe, (Rev. J. Peach,) Highfield House, and Tollerton. 


FAMILY IV., CARYCHUDA. 


GENUS CARYCHIUM. 
Carychium minimum, very common. 


It will be seen from the above list that the total number of species 
is ninety-nine. 


[We commend the above list to the notice of working Naturalists, 
and shall be glad to receive any additions to it, or fresh localities for 
the rare species from other workers in the county. We should be 
glad, too, to publish similar lists of the shells of other counties. 
The best work by far on the subject is Dr. Gwyn Jeffrey's British 
Conchology, Vol. I., (sold separately,) Land and Freshwater Shells, 
Van Voorst, 10s. In this work 121 species are described as inhabiting 
the British Isles, so that the county of Nottingham appears to be 
well represented by the ninety-nine species above recorded.— 
Eps. M.N.) ' 


EXAMINATION OF DRIFT. 901 


EXAMINATION OF DRIFT. 
RAILWAY CUTTING, NEAR WALSALL. 
BY G. H. TWIGG,. 


On June 14th, 1879, some members of the Birmingham Natural 
History Society, on the suggestion of Dr. Deane, visited the above locality, 
and subsequently I have examined it upon two other occasions. The 
railway is intended for a loop line to connect the South Staffordshire 
Railway with the Grand Junction Line, and starts from a point near the 
level crossing over the former, about one mile south of Walsall Station, 
and proceeds in a south-westerly direction, joining the latter line near 
James Bridge Station, the total length not exceeding one mile. The 
cutting commences before reaching the main road from Walsall to Wed- 
nesbury, and it is in the section lying to the east of this road that the 
principal boulders have at present been found; those which I have per- 
sonally examined occurred in a deposit of fine soft clay varying in colour 
from red to grey, and mixed up with beds of gravel. They are as 
follows :— 


Fine-grained Basalt boulder ae ae fas heoe aay So SH 


” ” ats oa 14” diameter. 
Decomposed 5 FS is AS 90" te 
” ” ” se oy 24" Aj 
Partly decomposed a » With geodic cavities 


(similar to Toadstone) 12” a 
a i) » butsmaller cavities 28" x 15” x 15” 
Carboniferous Sandstone boulder ne ae Sf 50 os BLOM Sa BIC went EC 


Red ” ? oe ae +h is oe 12” diameter. 
” ” ” ee ee ee ee ee 8” ” 
Carboniferous Sandstone (with plant remains) .. Ac era 14” a 
” ” ” ee oe ee ee 12" ” 


The two boulders with geodic cavities appear to have one of their 
constituent minerals decomposed, the cavities now being filled with a 
pink mineral in which radiating marks are discernible; in the larger 
boulder this decomposition does not seem to have gone so far, for there 
are found on the face of a newly-fractured surface what appear to be 
green crystals, one point only of which is yet tinged with pink; but 
whether these are crystals of Augite or Olivine, or some other mineral, I 
have not been able to determine. 


The cutting in this direction has not yet reached the turnpike road, 
but some hundred and fifty yards on the west side of the road other 
operations have been going on, and the cutting there exposes a deposit of 
quite a different character, the clay giving place to gravel, to which 
succeeds a considerable thickness of sharp white sand. Through this sand 
the cutting is not yet complete ; but a little further on, at a point opposite 
to Bescot Hall, another cutting is being made, in which the deposit is 
distinctly stratified and has a dip of 8° north, the strike running in the 
same direction as the cutting, and along the banks the beds can be traced 
parallel and horizontal for some distance. The dip is shewn very distinctly 

FF 


202 EXAMINATION OF DRIFT. 
ee 


on the face at which the men are at work, and when last visited the 
beds occurred in the following order :— 


Top soil and gravel.. ate Sh ae -. 9 feet. 
Red sand, with thin seams of drift coal. se oi -» 18 inches, 
Band drift coal ee ne as a4 55 6G oi VLE Bae 
Greysand .. ee ee ze ee oe A. TA 
Gravel .. é 46 As Ac =- Ae oct Julies 
Coarse sand .. ae no ae 50 oa as & Gee 
Gravel, with drift coal aa ae on a ae aie. Eee 
Sand .. ae aie oe a aie os oon Lae 
Band drift coal . aia of si 54 GA a ° 30 bam 
Fine dard a4 A as ne os. baie 
Gravel, with drift coal in large pieces ac 3 54 337 18 


The beds of sand in this section thin dat into the pelts of gravel 
towards the south, so that the latter beds are some inches thicker on the 
north side than on the south side of the cutting. 

The whole locality abounds in pebbles of igneous rocks, but by far 
the most abundant are those of quartzite, and many of these are from 
6in. to 8in. diameter. Striated pebbles have not yet been found, nor do 
the boulders examined appear to have any striations; the underlying 
formations are the coal measures, and coal crops out in the immediate 
neighbourhood. The nearest localities for basalt are Pouk Hill (one and 
a half miles due north), and Rowley Hill (five miles south); and for 
quartzite, the Lickey Hills (twelve miles south). 

These cuttings cannot fail to give instructive information to anyone 
making a careful examination, and this should be done at once by who- 
ever desires to do so, as the line is being rapidly proceeded with, and the 
sides are smoothed down and the boulders cleared away as the work goes 
on, so that the aspect of the deposit is rapidly changed. Anyone, there- 
fore, who is interested in the subject, and has opportunity to visit the 
spot frequently, would be enabled to report upon it more completely and 
to greater advantage; and I commend this locality, as one well worth 
reporting upon, to those who may be examining the drift deposits of the 
district. 


THE AUDIOMETER. 


BY WRIGHT WILSON, F.L.S., HON. SURGEON TO THE BIRMINGHAM AND 
MIDLAND COUNTIES EAR AND THROAT INFIRMARY, ETC. 


Recently I had the pleasure of introducing this instrument to the 
notice of the Birmingham and Midland Institute Scientific Society. It 
is the latest outcome of those wonderful inventions—the telephone and 
microphone. The apparatus was contrived by Professor Hughes in the 
course of experiments made by him in electric induction, as recently 
described by him to the Royal Society. It consists of a battery, a micro- 
phone, two primary coils, a secondary coil, and a telephone. The 
secondary coil is movable on a boxwood bar ; at one end is fixed the large 
primary coil, which contains 100 metres of insulated wire; at the other 
end is the small primary coil, having only six metres of wire. The 
secondary or induction coil has 100 metres of wire. The horizontal bar 
on which it slides is graduated into 200 parts; this is the reading scale 


THE AUDIOMETER. 208 


for hearing, and is divided into twenty centimetres, each of which is 
subdivided into ten, thus giving 200 units. The secondary coil depends 
entirety upon the current which is induced in it by the passage of a 
current through the primary coil, and is not in connection with the 
current from the battery, The telephone is in the circuit of the induced 
eurrent, and has no other source of electricity. The microphone is nothing 
more than a small apparatus by means of which contact may be made or 
broken. For instance, a small electric bell, deprived of its bell, becomes 
a microphone in the sense in which it is applied to the audiometer. 


The law from a knowledge of which this instrument was evolved is 
that a current passing through a wire will cause, within a certain 
distance, a current of an opposite character and direction in another wire 
placed near it. Ifa telephone is placed in the primary circuit, having a 
contact breaker or microphone in the same circuit, then every make or 
break sound will be heard in the telephone. Every time that contact is 
made or broken the secondary coil receives or loses an induced current, 
consequently the sounds produced by making and breaking contact are 
heard in the telephone, which is in the circuit made by the induced 
current. If, then, the secondary coil be steadily and slowly moved away 
from the large primary coil, the induced current becomes weaker and 
weaker, the sounds produced by the microphone or contact breaker become 
fainter and fainter, until the secondary coil arrives at a point called zero 
on the scale, where no sound can be heard at all. This is the place where 
the two primary coils exactly balance the secondary coil, which lies 
between them, andis also the average limit of hearing power in the 
healthy adult. Now, if the secondary coil be moved still further towards 
the lesser primary coil, the induced current begins to return, but is 
weaker than that which is induced by the larger primary coil. 

By this instrument many morbid conditions, a knowledge of which 
is indispensable to a correct diagnosis, can be observed with an amount 
of cértainty comparable to that derived from the use of a reliable 
thermometer in fevers. Throat deafness may now be diagnosed from 
deafness resulting from disease of the external ear, and the actual 
impairment ascertained. A chart may be keptof the daily progress of 
the case, and from it, in the course of time, valuable and reliable 
deductions will be made. 


In examining patients with the audiometer many curious effects are 
noticeable. The power of hearing is found to differ in both ears in 
nearly all persons; it varies with the height of the barometer, with the 
amount of air in the lungs, with the temperature, and many other as yet 
ill understood causes. These causes will soon be classified, and then the 
future of deaf people will have a brighter look than it has ever had, and 
the treatment of their diseases must then assume a more definite position 
in the world of medical science. Besides the treatment of deafness this 
instrument is invaluable in all examinations of men’s bodies for life insur- 
ance, the army, navy, telegraph service, railway servants, and others where 
good hearing as well as good sight is indispensable. Bya slight modifica- 
tion the audiometer can be converted into an electro inductive balance, 
and becomes available for the analysis of metals ; so delicate is it that it 
is said to have detected the 1,000th of a grain of silver in an alloy. 
Mr. W. R. Morris has exhibited this form of sonometer, as it ought 
to be called, to the society, when spurious coins were detected and the 
amount of waste due to wear and tear was shown upon the scale. It is 
difficult to say what uses this instrument will yet be put to, but it is 
clearly an exceedingly useful instrument for scientific research. 


204 ON CARCHESIUM SPECTABILE. 


ON CARCHESIUM SPECTABILE. 


BY H. E. FORREST. 
Among the numerous, rare, and beautiful forms of animal life which 
were obtained from the Barnt Green Reservoir in such abundance last 
Autumn, by members of the Birmingham Natural History and Micro- 
scopical Society, was a species of Carchesium. I had the pleasure of 
spending several evenings with Mr. J. Levick in examining these rich 
gatherings, and both he and I noticed the wide difference between this 
and the common Carchesium polypinum, which also occurred in the same 
water. Since then I have received through Mr. Bolton a gathering of 
the same, made by Mr. Thompson, the secretary of the Microscopical 
Society of Liverpool. Mr. Bolton tells me he has also found it at the 
Hyde, near Stourbridge, and at the end of June, 1879, I found it again in 
the river Avon, at Evesham. 


As C. polypinum was the only species of the genus with which I was 
acquainted, I thought, at first, that this was a new species; but as my 
knowledge of the literature of the subject was insufficient, I forwarded 
specimens to Mr. W. Saville Kent, of London, asking him if there was 
any described species which agreed with it. With great courtesy he sent 
me descriptions of no less than four species other than C. polypinum, and 
expressed his opinion that the one in question was Carchesium spectabile, 
an opinion which upon mature consideration I fully endorse. Mr. Kent 
writes that there is no good published figure, and that Ehrenberg’s scanty 
and somewhat vague description seems to be all that is known of it. It 
is as follows: ‘Bodies conical-campanulate, dilated anteriorly ; polypary 
two lines in height, forming an obliquely conical bush of considerable 
size.” 

This description is perfectly correct, but very meagre, and the following 
additional particulars will probably be found useful, as I feel sure that 
when once public attention has been called to it, it will prove to be quite 
@ common species. 


Carchesium spectabile grows in little tufts attached to weeds or roots 
in stagnant or slowly running water. The colonies are in the shape of a 
solid cone, while C. polypinum grows as a hollow cone. The bells are 
placed thickly together on the stalks, and when the cilia are in motion 
the rim is everted and dilated beyond the bell, but not so much as in 
C. polypinum. It is very sluggish in its habits, and its sensibility to 
irritation is so slight that in order to make it contract its pedicel it is 
necessary to tickle it with a bristle. This peculiarity may easily cause it 
to be mistaken for an Hpistylis. It has a curious habit of investing itself 
all over with minute particles obtained from the surrounding water, and 
is often so entirely buried in this dirt as to be almost invisible. The 
cleanest specimens I have seen were those from the river Avon, but even 
they exhibited this tendency, though in a minor degree. Students of 
Infusoria are anxiously awaiting the issue of Mr. W. Saville Kent’s work, 
in which this and the other known species will be well and amply figured. 


REVIEWS—BRITISH FRESHWATER FISHES, ETC. 205 


Acbietvs, 


A History of British Freshwater Fishes. By the Rev. W. Hoventon, 
M.A., F.L.8., Rector of Preston-on-the-Weald Moors, Wellington, 
Salop. In two handsome volumes, extra large 4to. Price (to sub- 
cribers only) £3 10s. Applications for copies should be made to the 
Author at the above address. 

Tis work, being the production of an author in our own district, calls 
for special notice. Mr. Houghton is known to be an accomplished 
naturalist, and has already published several popular books on Natural 
History. The present volumes are of a more solid character. They 
contain a well-written description of every known British freshwater 
fish, illustrated by exquisitely coloured figures. Some of the Salmonide 
are figured for the first time. Each chapter is headed with a finely- 
engraved landscape, illustrating scenes dear to the angler. An introduc- 
tion, on the classification and structure of fishes is clearly written and 
copiously illustrated, the comparative anatomy of the several types being 
well displayed. The get-up of the work is really magnificent. It is at 
once the most complete monograph of this branch, of natural history 
which has been published, and a most elegant ornament for the drawing- 
room table. The book is so good that we wish it were cheaper. 


C.C. 


Cardiff Naturalists’ Society—Report and Transactions for 1878. 
Tas is the eleventh report of this large society, which includes 421 
subscribing members. During the year fourteen lectures of a generally 
scientific nature were delivered, eight of which were given by local 
members, and the other six by professional scientists of high standing. 
The work of the sections of the society appears to depend (as in most of 
our local societies) upon a very few of the members. Mr. Franklin 
G. Evans furnishes an excellent detailed meteorological report; but the 
feature of the volume is the account by Messrs. T. H. Thomas and John 
Storrie, of the ‘‘ Tridactyl Uniserial Ichnolites in the Trias, at Newton 
Nottage, near Porthcawl, Glamorganshire.”. This article, with its illus- 
trations, may be considered asia continuation of the excellent series of 
detailed accounts of local geological features which have appeared in 
back volumes of the Cardiff Naturalists’ Society, and which are chiefly 
due to the energy and love for thorough geological work of Mr. W. Adams, 
the founder of the society. The footprints described are five in number, 
and occur on a large slab of dolomitic conglomerate, (Keuper,) which has 
been removed to the Cardiff Museum. They are each about 9in. in 
length by 6in. in width, three-toed, and generally very similar to the 
footprints of Brontozowm, found so plentifully in the sandstones of 
Connecticut, also of triassic age. They also much resemble the tracks 
of the emu and cassowary of to-day. Such a discovery as this should lead 
dwellers in triassic districts to examine more closely the sandstone beds 
which are now so much neglected from the belief that they contain no 
organic remains, W. J. 4H. 


206 REVIEWS—THE LICHEN-FLORA OF GREAT BRITAIN. 


The Lichen-Flora of Great Britain, Ireland, and the Channel Islands. By 
the Rev. W. A. Lricuron, B.A., &c. Third edition. Shrewsbury: For 
the Author. 1879. 

WE hail this book with pleasure as a valuable contribution to the Lichen 

literature of our country. It is now more than a quarter of a century 

since the Ray Society published a volume by the same author, “ British 

Species of Angiocarpous Lichens,” which was the first systematic attempt 

made to derive distinguishing specific characters from the spores, their 

form, size, and mode of septation. The present work being the result of 
the many years of subsequent close and careful application of the author 
to the study of Lichens may be accepted as the most complete, while it 
is the latest, British work on the subject. The branch of botany with 
which this deals is confessedly difficult, but the difficulty is much 
enhanced by the absence of useful handbooks like the present, and we 
look forward to a fresh impetus being given to the study in this country 
by its appearance. The Lichen-Flora of Great Britain, including the 

Channel Islands, comprises no less than 1,710 species, forms, and varieties. 

If we deduct fiom these the forms and varieties we have 1,133 species, 

which are distributed into 77 genera, and these again are arranged under 

22 tribes, the whole forming four families, viz.: Byrssace1, ConLEMACET, 

Myrianeracer, and Licnenacer. Three of the larger genera, Lecanora, 

Lecidea, and Verrucaria, comprise no less than 677 species, considerably 

more than one-half the whole Flora, but, by a very easy method based on 

the character of the spores, these genera are sub-divided in such a manner 
as very much to facilitate their study. The classification adopted is 
mainly that of Dr. W. Nylander, with such modifications as the author 
considered necessary, and we are glad to find that there is no great 
departure from that with which we are already familiar. A diagnosis of 
every species, the material on which it grows, its synonyms, references to 
plates when they exist, geographical distribution, as well as the distribu- 
tion in Britain, according to Mr. Hewett Watson’s well-known method, a 
specification of the exact habitats, with the names of those gentlemen on 
whose authority it is recorded, are given. The chemical reaction used so 
extensively by all leading Lichenologists is given in cases where it is ob- 
tained to assistin the determination of species. Some botanists smile at the 
adoption of this method of testing, as being chemistry and not botany, but 
we see little chance of its being abandoned so long as it serves to help 
with the other characters of a plant in the distinguishing of species. Mr, 

Leighton has wisely devoted a little more space in the introduction than 

was given in former editions to explain the method of applying the 

chemical tests, about which there should exist no uncertainty in the mind 
of the student, as serious errors may result from their misapplication. 

Another valuable addition is the microscopic measurements of the spores, 

taken from Mudd’s “ British Lichens,” the writings of Dr. Nylander and 

Thos. M. Fries, supplemented with the author’s own measurement. 

Those from the first-mentioned of these authors are the least reliable, 

and should in all cases be carefully tested by those of Nylander, Fries, 

and Leighton, which may be safely depended upon. A few points of 
much interest are touched upon briefly in the introduction, such as the 
morphology and physiology of Lichens, and the Schwendenerian theory of 
their parasitism on fungi, which we should have been pleased to have 
seen greatly extended. A list of authors cited, and published Exsiceati 
quoted, are given at the end, with a full glossary of terms and a copious 
index of species. W.P. 


S— eer, is 


REVIEWS—ROBERT DICK. 207 


Robert Dick, Geologist and Botanist. By Samurnt Sumzs. 
London: J. Murray. 

On the last occasion when Mr. Smiles narrated the work of one of 
Scotland’s humbler sons, to whom the name of working Naturalist could 
be fittingly applied—we refer to Thomas Edward—one could not but 
admire the manner in which the writer entered into his theme, and 
described with vivid clearness the struggles, successes, and disappoint- 
ments which rendered the life of Edward so strikingly interesting. Conse- 
quently, it was with feelings of considerable expectation that we took up the 
life of Robert Dick, and after perusal we can cordially recommend it to the 
notice of such readers of the ‘Midland Naturalist” as have not already 
made themselves acquainted with it. The life of Dick may be briefly 
epitomised as follows: He was born among the lovely scenery of the 
Ochils in Scotland, at Tullibody, in 1811, his father being an officer of 
excise; his mother died when he was very young, and, as his father 
married again, the boy’s home was rendered unpleasant to him by the 
unlovying step-mother, who appeared to be jealous of any kindness paid 
to the children of the first marriage, so at the early age of thirteen 
Robert was apprenticed to a baker, and his life then was by no means of 
a romantic character; his work commenced at three in the morning, 
and he continued to drudge till seven, eight, and sometimes nine at 
night. The afternoons were his pleasant time, for then he had to deliver 
bread in the neighbouring villages, and it was on these walks that he 
began to take interest in Botany. At seventeen he left Tullibody to find 
work as a journeyman, and left it for the last time, as he was never able 
in his after life to spare money to visit it again. At the age of twenty 
he:started for himself at Thurso, and here he remained all his life, at 
first succeeding well in trade, but eventually, through competition, 
seareely making enough to supply himself with necessaries, but working 
hard till within a few days of his death. 

The county of Caithness was atthe time Dick went there a terra 
incognita to Naturalists; but, by his own unaided exerticns, he made a 
complete collection of its flowers and ferns, his botanical reputation, 
however, resting mainly on his discovery of the Hierochloe borealis, or 
holy grass, a plant previously reported from Forfarshire by Don, but only 
on his own rather risky authority. Dick discovered this grass in several 
places on the River Thurso, growing on the boulder clay; besides this, 
he found Osmunda regalis and Ajuga pyramidalis in the county. Their 
discovery, although not reported till many years afterwards, brought a 
flood of correspondence upon the finder, and he distributed many speci- 


- mens of the holy grass, of which the writer possesses one, which came 


through Mr. W. L. Notcutt—the gentleman whose list of Daventry plants 
in Northants is used by Watson in ‘‘ Topographical Botany.” Dick also 
gave Mr. Notcutt a splendid series of old red sandstone fossils; for 
Geology was taken up with ardent and unflagging interest by the Thurso 
baker, and it was principally by his aid that the geology of Caithness was 
made out; his discovery of shells in the boulder clay, and his supplying 
fossils of Diplopterus, Osteolepis, and Asterolepis to Hugh Miller laid 
science under great obligations to him. 


208 REVIEWS—ROBERT DICK. 


Indeed, there was hardly a subject upon which Miller applied to him 
for information on which Dick did not give him invaluable aid. Agassiz 
and Sir Roderick Murchison testified to his claims on science, the latter 
again and again doing him homage. Among his most intimate friends 
was Charles Peach, born at Wansford, in Northamptonshire, and like 
himself an untiring labourer among the records of the rocks. Peach 
found fossil fishes in Cornwall, but eventually removed to Peterhead, 
where he added to the list of British fishes Yarrell’s blenny, Ray’s 
bream, and the anchovy, and then (he was in the Preventive service) 
came to Wick, when he and the baker became great friends. Dick 
pursued his researches with the greatest zeal, the principal part of his 
geological and botanical work being done between ten at night and eight 
in the morning, walking, as he says, sometimes fifty miles without 
sitting down, and with only afew biscuits to eat; and this not as an 
occasional thing, but repeatedly in order to visit afern or search for traces 
of the boulder clay, or hammer out some fish from the rocky cliffs of 
Dunnet Head. 

On laying down the book one cannot help regretting that with all 
the wealth of England a man like this could not have been provided 
with something to render the latter end of his life more comfortable. 


The book is illustrated with some capital views, though the one of 
Wansford is not very good, and that of Morven exaggerates its height — 
and steepness. 

G. C. D. 


METEOROLOGY OF THE MIDLANDS. 
THE WEATHER OF JUNE, 1879. 


BY W. JEROME HARRISON, F.G.S. 


June witnessed no improvement in the weather of this (atmo- 
spherically speaking) most disagreeable year. There were never two 
consecutive days without rain, which indeed fell on twenty-five days out 
of the thirty. Thunderstorms were frequent, and those of the 3rd, 8th, 
Oth, 12th, 24th, 25th, and 29th were general and severe; on the 1ith 
there fell at Bishop’s Castle 1-10 inches in twenty-five minutes! Tem- 
perature was greatly below the average, and there was little sunshine ; 
Mr. Davis, of Orleton, writes :—‘‘ The mean temperature here of June is 
34° lower than the average; the rainfall has only once been exceeded 
(viz., in June, 1860) during the last forty-nine years. Up to the Ist of 
July this year the maximum of thermometer in shade has never reached 
70°, this has not occurred for the last fifty-four years.” 

The barometer did not fluctuate much, but ranged somewhat low ; 
light south-westerly winds prevailed, which gained, however, in intensity 
during the last week of the month. ‘Owing to the soaked and chilled 
condition of the soil, all garden crops, grass crops, and cereals have 
advanced nothing on the condition noticed last month, and are alla full 
month later than usual.”—Rev. U. Smith, Stoney Middleton. 


{HE WEATHER OF JUNE. 209 
Coen ee en Ee a 


THE WEATHER OF JUNE, 1879. 


RAINFALL, TEMPERATURE, 


Ne 

iy, |Greatest fall .,d|Greatest ht. Great’st cold 

3A in 24 hours. 2 2 —o es 
oO ” 

ae In.| Date. |@ Ee Deg! Date. |Deg, Date. 

ee | | | a= 


STATION, OBSERVER, 


7 — 


GLOUCESTERSLIKE, 
Gainscrogs, Stroud ......+++-|W.B. Baker, Haq. ..--es4-| 6:80/120) 80 | 21 | 840/24 & 25 | 820; # 
Cheltenham ...... .{R. Tyrer, Esq. ...e.eeeeeee| 4°34] 82} 80 26 | 68°38] 18 B62 
StLOUd .orseseecevseeeeseress|S: Jo COlGY, HBG... seseeeeee| 4:86} ‘67 8 26 |72°0} 16 53°0, 
SHROPSHIRE. ; i 
Haughton Hall, Shifnal ...,|Rov. J. Brooke .....4..4+4.] 5°21) 99] IL | 35 | 690/14,17,20 8702, aoa 
Woolstaston .........---+---|Rev. B.D. Carr...eseeeeeee{G13| 107] _7 | 26 | 690117 & 19 pest ; 
Moro Rectory, Bishop's Castlo|Rev. A. Male ....-....se0+-|6:47/135) | 35 | 720) 18 [870 
Larden Hall, Much Wenlock.|Miss F. R. Boughton ......| 5°28 , pi 5 
Bishop’s Castle ..,...++-+++++ es Grifitine) Bea. paiiscceeensiOl4 Bi 4 Ve 69'0 5 | 370) 
CRIOIPLOD cceceuactccccccses ov. Wm. Elliott ........../ 6°03) 4" : , “3 
Stokosay ..........sss++-+e+,|Rov. J. D. La Toucho,.....|6°71/116] 7 | 26/680) 6 js26) 2 
HEREFORDSHIRE. 
Whitficld ........+0.+.+4+.+4.]W. Wheatley, Esq. 4.4.46.) 7°84) 100) 12 | 25 | ag0| 2 
Stoko Bliss .........eeseeeees Rey. G. E. Alexander......| 5°92 °72) 80 | 25750} 10 | 390 
WORCESTERSHIRE. 
Orleton, Tenbury...........-|T. H. ae ..{ 603} “98} 80 | 36) 698) 20 | 35'0 H 
West Malvern ...i.....-.00e .H. - eeesee| 5:22] °82) 16 | 2470'S) 20 | 365 ; 
POUMUTOls seco evcccccscsecees ; 491) “60) 380 271810} 16 |41°0 & 
Longlands, Stourbridge......|J. Jeffries. Bsq.........+00+ 4'74| 58] 30 23 | 760/20 & 23 360 rf 
Dennis, Stourbridge ........ C. Web 461] 62) 16 | 25/605) 65 860 
Thorganby Villa, Wolyerbmtn|G 65] 7 | 28 
mtn|G. J. C. Pree 
DUNGY reste eM Fisher 2222] gaa] 81], 7 | a8 {exo} 30 [seo] 1&8 
SUID thee seivesiacy’ Of POEEEEEE! 20] 68] 7 | 26 | 680) 20) |4r0) 1&S 
ADVAN Gessntagrencek sees sees veces | 419] “69 7 83.740] 14 | 87:0 4 
GWAR Site eh conosco esece eco Mr. N. 1. Best ........2...{5°21| 66) 7 | 26|710) 5 |400) 2 
Grammar School, Burton....|C. U. Tripp, Esq. ..... seen. | 8°96] 2°25) 7 25 | 740} 14 | 36:0 4 
Weston-under-Lyziard R’tory)Hon.and Rev.J. Bridgeman] 4°73 met 7 27 70 20 86°0 x 
Wrottosley ..............0..+|H, Simpson, Wsq. ....+..4e+| 4°30) (69) 7 | 24 | 705/21 & 17 | 80°0 Py 
Heath House, Cheadle ......|J. C. Philips, Esq...........|6'26}125) 7 ~~ ‘| 24 | 65°0) 6 & 14 | 39°0 a 
Alstonfield Vicarage ........)Rev. W. H. Purchas ....../7°89|114) 80 | 23/700) 17 |810 
WARWICKSHIRE, 
Coundon, Coventry ..........|Lieut.-Col. R. Caldicott ....|5:82| 88] 7 | 25/710) 28 | 43°0}1, 8, & 4 
COVENETY ....ceeeeeseseeseees(J» GuIBON, HS. «eeeeeeeeee-| 5°16) “93 7 24/710) 28 | 38°0 2 
Bicke: Vicarage.......+e\J. WAT, HB... ccssevee wees | 5°25] “78} 80 26 | 68°C 47°0 if 
St. Mary’s College ..........|Rev. 8. J Whitty..........|4°65| ‘74 7 | 24 | 67:9) 20 9°1 Pa 
Henley-in-Arden ..,,.....,../T. H. @. Newton, Esq......|6°15| 72} 80 | 26 | 70°0} 6 & 15 | 87°0 2 
Rugby School......... seeeees/Roy. T. N. Hutchinson ....| 448} “81 7 24 | 690 4 = | 89°4 5 
DERBYSHIRE. 
Stoney Middleton............/Rov. U. Smith ..cssseeeees] 4°40} 81] 11 | 20} 660) 17 |250) 4 
Fernslope, Belper.......... 6°05| “97 7 26 | 70'0/14,198&20) 87°0 5 
Brampton 8. Thomas........)/Rev. J. M. 6°53) 1°25 7 19 | 68°0/20 & 28 | 83°0 5 
Willersley Gardens .........-|Jas. Tissington, Esq.......}7°98|112} 11 | 19 
Spondon ........+.e+0+0.0+s+|J. LT. Barber, Esq.......2+..| 6°25/1°26) 11 22 | 653 85:0 2 
Duffield ........eeeeeeceeee| We Bland, ESQ. cecseeveses| 642] “96 7 24 
NOTTINGHAMSHIRE. 
Hesley Hall .............+--|B. J. Whitaker, Eaq. ......| 8°89] *98 8 21/740) 20 |880 5 
Duxford © ..........0..-2.++++|I. N. Dufty, Haq. ...se00006| 4°43] “B1| 7 810) 24 | 420) 3G 4 
Hodsock Priory, Worksop ..|H.Mellish, Esq. .........-|3°12| 60 7 20 |68'9} 20 | 840 5 
Highfield House, Nottingham|R. J. Lowe, Esq. ..........|4°53} “74) 7&8 | 25/722) 17 | 873 5 
Park Hill, Nottingham......|H.B. Johnson, Esq. ......|4°97| 80] 7 | 21/690) 1d |42°8) 1 
LEICESTERSHIRE, 
Loughborough ...........-..|W. Berridge, Hsq.......+..| 4°93] 68) 7 =| 22/707) 14 | 361) 5 
Ashby Magna.........+...+++|ROV. KE. WilleS .....eee0006] 4°78) “M4 30 25} 740/ 14/870) 2&5 
Market Harborough ........|S. W. Cox, Esq. ..sseseeeese| 423) “63 7 | 23)660) 28 |8s0) 5 
Kibworth..........++...+....|1 Macaulay, Esq. ........|5°22| “64 7 25 = 
Town Museum, Leicester ....|W. J. Harrison, Haq. ......|434| °79) 7 & 90 | 24 |68'3/ 28° } 8975) 2&5 
Belmont Villas, Leicester....|H. Billson, Esq. ..........|4°41/ °62) 30 26 | 715 6 )895 1 
SystON ......++0.seseee0eeee+/J. Hames, jun., Hag. ....../4'06| 61] 7 | 26/750) 11 |se2} 2 
altham-le-Wold............|E. Ball, Esq. ......0s --|401} °68 7 23 |69'°0, 10 38°0) 3 
Little Dalby Hall............|G. Jones, H8q. ....+sse000+/4'00) “64 7 | 22/790) 28 |s3a0l 5& 
Foxton Locks ..............|Union Canal Oompany .... 
Coston Rectory, Melton......|)Rev. A. M. Rendell ........| 419) 80 7 21 | 685} 28 80'8 5 
Belvoir Castle .............. eae +. | 3°65) “75 8 25} 710) 21 33°0 5 
NORTHAMPTONSHIRE. 
Towcester Brewery 6°47| 1:38 7 a4 
Castle Ashby 4°74) °72| 26 28 | 72" 14 1:0) 8& 4 
Kettering 3°77| *63 7 21 | 70°0|15,20&21) 41-0 
Althorpe ; 416, 99 7 24 |'70 14 60} 1&4 
Pitsford .......... -.|C. A. Markham, Esq. 436 93 7 25 | 760) 5 & 14 | 360 
RUTLAND. 
Burley-on-the-Hill .... W. Temple, E 
West Deyne, Uppingha: Rev. G. H. M "81 2 23 | 701 5 39°83 2 
Northfields, Stamford ......|)W. Hayes, Esq. . “74 7 19 | 740 7 |840 5 
Radcliffe Observatory, Oxford|H. K. Bellamy, Esq. 50) +30 28 |68°1| 28 | 404 z 
Ventnor Hospital............ W.T. Ryder, Esq 17 2 6 | 642/17 & 27 | 45:0) 4& 5 
Altarnun Vicarage ,.........|Rey. @. Tripp...» eel FEL ITIL 16 § 28°77 16 2°0 4 


210 THE WEATHER OF JUNE. 


Natunat History Notzs py Onservenrs.—Highfield House Observa- 
tory, Nottingham.—The following plants came into flower—Ilst, Azalea 
pontica; 2nd, Chestnut; 4th, Crowfoot; 5th, double White Narcissus; 
11th,Rhododendrons, Lilac, Laburnum, and double White-thorn ; 12th, 
Hawthorn; 21st, Snowball Tree; 26th, Silene nutans and Syringa. 
Alstenfield Vicarage.—Vegetation backward to a degree unknown to 
persons now living. Veronica Chamedrys only began to flower June 2nd. 
The Ash tree is scarcely in full leaf June 30th. The fruit of the Wych 
Elm only just now falling, June 30th. Hawthorn not fairly in flower 
until 26th. A flight of the Painted Lady Butterfly began to appear on the 
12th, some of the specimens seemed hybernated. Cheltenham.—First 
Strawberry picked 29th, Currants just ripening 30th. Kibworth.—Haw- 
thorn, fl. 8th. Shifnal__Farmers on strong soils could not get in their 
swedes or cut their hay till the close. No butterflies except a few White 
and Orange Tip. Ash only bursting into leaf on 5th. Apples, of which 
there was a great.show, all falling off. Nota rose in blossom except on 
the wall. Bishop’s Castle—No harvest commenced yet (July 4th}, and 
grass beginning to rot at the roots. Chesterficld.—Hawthorn, fl. second 
week in month. . Burton-on-Trent.—First Hawthorn, fl. on 5th, in general 
bloom on 12th ; Horse Chestnut, fl. 6th ; Geranium molle, fl. 7th; Guelder 
Rose, fil. 30th. Stroud.—Veronica arvensis, fl. 5th; Hawthorn, 8th; 
Papaver Rheas, Iris Pseudacorus, Aquilegia vulgaris, Scrophularia nodosa, 
Bunium flecuosum, Thymus Serpyllum, Potentilla nemoralis, Vicia sativa, 
Onobrychis sativa, Arabis hirsuta, Linum catharticum, Anthyllis vulneraria, 
Lotus corniculatus, fl. 19th; Rosa canina, fl. 21st; Lychnis dioica, L. flos- 
cuculi, Fumaria officinalis, fi 23rd; Lathyrus pratensis, Hippocrepis comosa, 
fl, 26th ; Atropa Belladonna, Sambucus nigra, fl. 30th 


Correspondence, 


os 


VANESSA CarDUI is this season much more numerous than usual. 
A good many have already been caught. Itis generally rather uncommon 
just here:—O. V. Apuin, Bodicote, Oxon, July 3rd, 1879. 


AcRoNYCTA ALNI, NEAR Nortrncuam (from the Entomologist.}—The 
larva of the rare Acronycta alni, which Mr. Watchorn found at Cotgrave, 
in August last, came out on Tuesday, June 3rd, a perfect imago, and was 
exhibited at this Society's Room on Monday, June 9th.—J. Brooxs, 
Hon. Sec. Nottingham Working Men’s Naturalists’ Society. 


Tur Brer-cATER IN DERBYSHIRE.—The note at page 188 of the occur- 
rence of the Bee-eater in this county is very interesting. But if the 
writer would kindly tell us the precise locality of the specimen, whether 
male or female, whether any others were killed or seen, whether it bore 
any marks of captivity, by whom it was killed, and its destination, and 
any other particulars he may be able to give, the value of the note to 
future writers on the Ornithology of the county would be immensely 
increased.—Meruin, Derby, 17th July, 1879. 


OrnitHoLocicaL Notes.—A correspondent in the ‘ Midland 
Naturalist” for last month asks about Thrush’s eggs without markings. 
A few years ago I found a nest of 7. musicus containing four or five eggs, 
(I do not remember which,) two of which had the markings of a pale 
brown, in the others they were entirely wanting. The Spotted Flycatcher 
was observed here on the 21st, Corncrake on the 22nd, Whinchat (rare 
just hore) on the 24th May, Turtledove June 18th, (doubtless this arrived 
before.) and Nightjar (rare) June the 27th. The Cuckoo was still in full 


CORRESPONDENCE, PL 


song here on the 4th of this month. This is not in accordance with 
“in June he changes his tune.” Rooks were very irregular in hatching 
this soason. I heard young calling from the nests from April 16th till 
June 2nd. I was told of a fine male Cirl Bunting observed at Chinnor, 
a few miles from Thame, in this county, on the 13th inst.; it was not at 
all shy, and allowed my informant to get within a yard or two of it. 
Allow me to assure Mr. Macaulay that I am not offended with his 
assertion with regard to the Wryneck ; if he will refer to my notes in the 
June number, he will see that I was aware I had not made it a certainty. 
About ten years ago, two, a pair probably, of Great Grey Shrikes were 
killed near Hook Norton, about eight miles from here, at-the end of 
March or beginning of April, (March that year being very warm.) Oneis 
in the possession of Mr. J. Gardner, of Warwick, who had them both in 
the flesh, and who kindly furnished me with the particulars. I fancy 
this was rather late for them to be here, considering it was a mild spring ; 
and it seems as if they might possibly have bred in the neighbourhood 
had they been left.—O. V. Artin, Bodicote, Oxon, July 19th, 1879. 


OrnitHotocicaL NotEs.—The migrant season being over, I have very 
little to communicate. In my last notes “ common flycatcher” should be 
“pied flycatcher.” A Greater Tit, Parus major, built her nest in a strange 
place—a letter box. The box is about eighteen inches deep, and the 
opening for letters at the top, in front, 34in. wide by lin. deep, and through 
this the parent birds conveyed the necessary materials for the nest. The 
nest was built on the bottom of the box, and during the building, laying, 
sitting, and rearing and feeding the young brood, the box was daily used 
by the postman, every letter and paper being dropped into the slit above 
and falling on to the young birds, or on to the parent sitting, yet no 
notice was taken of the disturbance. The box had an opening, falling 
outwards on a level with the nest, and through this the letters, &c., were 
daily removed without any apparent notice on the part of the old bird, 
who often remained on the nest during the operation. On one occasion, 
I visited the nest a few days after the young were hatched, and opening 
the flap, not only inspected the bird on the nest, but first stroked her 
gently with my hand, and then finally lifted her off the nest and 
released her, which she allowed me to do without manifesting the 
slightest fear. I have in my collection two Thrush’s eggs, taken this 
year, no larger than a Redbreast’s. I have also seen this season two 
eggs of the same bird, curious as a variety. The ground colour is a 
lighter blue than usual, and the spots are reddish brown instead of 
black, much the same in colour as the Missel Thrush’s. Ido not know 
whether this variety is common or not, but I have not met with it 
before. The Nightingale was last heard here on the 24th June.—T. 
Macaunay, M.R.C.S.L., &c., Kibworth. a 


SEA-BIRDS IN BrruincHam.—The unsettled weather of late has brought 
under the observation of Mr. W. Wyatt, of the Edgbaston Reservoir, the 
following sea-birds:—Larus canus, L., two or three; Larus, (species 
uncertain,) immature; Sterna fluviatilis, (Naum.,) or Sterna macrura, 
(Naum.,) two; and one Colymbus septentrionalis, Lath., immature. As 
usual, one or two Grebes, Podiceps cristatus, L., visited the pool, but, 
engl not interfered with, did not remain for long.—Monvacu Browne, 


Buack Band 1n tHE Drirt.—(See antec, p. 189.) This deposit should 
be carefully examined: it may agree with the black implement-bearing 
bed at West Stow, Bury St. Edmunds, in which vegetable remains, fine 
bones, hairs, &c., are found in association with implements and flakes of 
Paleolithic age. Flint-flakes should be looked for, and the material of 
the black band carefully examined under the microscope.—W. G. Smrrx, 
125, Grosvenor Road, Canonbury, London, N. 


912 CORRESPONDENCE. 


BemBIDIuM ADUSTUM, Schaum, (RUPESTRE, Dawson,) IN THE MIDLANDS. 
—It is with great pleasure that I record the capture of this extremely rare 
beetle, which I have found in some numbers on a very small spot of 
ground in the neighbourhood of Tewkesbury. Until re-discovered by 
myself, only a very few indigenous examples were known. These were 
originally in the Stephensian cabinet; were said to have been found at 
Swansea, and upon them Dawson founded his description of B. rupestre, 
with which the Tewkesbury beetle perfectly agrees. Mr. H. C. Rye, to 
whom I sent specimens, endorses my insect as adustum, and warmly 
congratulates me on its capture —W. G. Buaton, Green Lane, near 
Birmingham, 22nd July, 1879. 


Reawrer sHowine THE Dares during the last fifteen years on which 
Wheat-ears were first seen in the neighbourhood of Kettering :— 
Rainfall to 30th June 


each year. 
1865, June 5th ate ae =o 10°50 inches. 
1866, ,, 12th oP “i ae 10:31 ae 
1867, .. 9th ve a 5 10'Oi-4e. 
1868, May 30th 3¢ se 5. PG liye aye 
1869, June 9th aie ee ric LO ee 
LSTOFy yt ule a ee ae O'ab. fuse 
1871, ,, 16th ap ie ae 829 ee 
1872 ess Lown Sie aie os 14:99" 
1873, ,, 14th i : ss Orit rae 
1874, ,, 2nd ss ae: re co a0 eas 
TOP Ds) 55) Aol se at a: SD are 
1876, ,, 16th ia a a 2-30 ees 
1877, ,, 16th ee ae <6 111650 5s 
1878, ,, llth ae a5 ae 1283 ee 
1879, July Ist Ap aN ae 1555 
JoHN WALLIS. 


Instinct on Rrason?—The instinct by which quadrupeds will some- 
times find their way is quite as difficult to understand as that which 
teaches the bird to find his path through the air. When we removed 
from Coventry to our Stoke cottage, on the 7th May, our town cat 
accompanied the family. She travelled inside the brougham in a close 
hamper, and could see nothing beyond her basket. On her first arrival 
at Stoke, puss looked wildly about her and could not understand the 
change; but after a full inspection of the premises from the cellar to the 
roof, and the surroundings of the house, she settled down, apparently 
delighted with the pleasures of country life, and spent a fortnight very 
happily. Then suddenly she took it into her head to re-visit her friends 
in Priory Row, where, on my arrival on the 23rd, I found her, having 
trotted two miles by field or road she never could have seen, and about 
three-quarters of a mile of it through the intricate streets of Coventry. 
The sight of birds has been proved to be excessively long and keen, and 
it seems to be proved that the vultures and other birds of prey discover 
their food by sight, and not at all by scent; but the cat, which creeps 
along the ground, cannot get a bird’s-eye view from any great height. 
How she can take her bearings and steer across an unknown country is 
one of the mysteries of instinct.—Jonn Guuson, Coventry. 


[We should be glad to be favoured with any good, unpublished 
instances of remarkable sagacity or ‘“ instinct” on the part of animals, 
which may come within the knowledge of any of our readers.— 
Eps. M.N.J 


i Ss Pee se 


_GLEANINGS. 213 


Gleanings. 


Mipnanp Union.—The Bedfordshire Natural History Society and 
Field Club has joined the Midland Union of Natural History Societies. 


Tur Boox Cirounar of Natural History and Scientific books, just 
issued by Mr. Wesley, 28, Essex Street, Strand, London, is devoted to 
Ethnology, Botany, Conchology, Entomology, Ornithology, &. 


New OrnirHotoctoan Socrety.—An association, to be called the 
*“Willughby Society,” has been founded for the purpose of reprinting 
searce ornithological works, commencing with Tunstall’s “‘Ornithologia 
Britannica.” The annual subscription is £1, and Mr. F. D. Godman, 
10, Chandos Street, Cavendish Square, London, is the secretary. 


Microscorr ror Petrrotoay.—Mr. Swift, the well-known optician, has 
lately supplied to the Science and Art Department anumber of microscopes 
constructed after designs furnished by Professor Judd, specially for the 
purpose of examining rocks. The instrument is of strong and simple 
construction ; it has a 14inch objective and a coarse adjustment only, but 
the latter works with the greatest smoothness. ‘The stage is of black 
glass, rotating, with a divided circle. The polariser is fixed below the 
stage by an attachment which enables it to be thrown in or out of position 
by atouch of the finger; the analyser is placed in the body tube, 
immediately above the objective, andis manipulated with equal facility. 
We can testify to the excellence of the workmanship and to the convenience 
of the instrument for the purpose for which it has been designed. Its 
price is, we believe, £8. With the addition of a micrometer eye-piece, a 
quarter-inch objective, and a double noge-piece, it would form perhaps 
the best cheap working instrument for general scientific purposes with 
which we are acquainted. 


Frersuwatrr Lirr.—Mr. Bolton, 17, Ann Street, Birmingham, 
informs us in continuation of his report, (pp. 97, 127, and 162,) that he has 
sent the following additional objects to his subscribers :—Brachionus pala 
and B. urceolaris; Uroglena volvox; the “Glass” Larva of Corethra 
plumicornis; a very rich gathering of rotifers, including Asplanchna 
Brightwellii, Triarthra longiseta, Synchata mordax, Polyarthra platyptera, 
Rhynops vitrea, and Anurga aculeata; some leaves of Myriophyllum 
spicatum, literally covered with Floscularia cornuta, and other rotifers, 
infusoria, desmids, and diatoms; Goniwm pectorale, and Nostoc commune. 
All these were sent out with admirable drawings and short descriptions. 
Mr. Bolton joined (by invitation) the marine excursion of the Birmingham 
Natural History and Microscopical Society in charge of the microscopes 
and apparatus, and took advantage of his visit to Falmouth to send out 
to his subscribers specimens of the beautiful Discophora, Lucernaria 
auricula, with a drawing from life by W.P. Marshall, C.E., and deserip- 
tion by Professor Huxley. Mr. Bolton has now issued a portfolio of 
drawings and descriptions of Pond-life Organisms, (1s. post free,) which 
will be very useful to students. Mr. T. J. Slatter (on seeing Mr. Bolton’s 
report, p. 162) writes, on June 2nd, that he had also found a new habitat 
for Melicerta tubicolaria, and that he had a flourishing colony on 
Nitella in the aquarium in his drawing-room. 


Symons’ Britisn Rarnraun ror 1878.—This volume furnishes another 
proof of the untiring industry and minute accuracy of its editor. Probably 
in no other country would it be possible for such an organisation to be 
established and controlled by a single private individual. Here we have 


214 GLEANINGS—REPORTS. 


ws A 


some 2,000 observers in all parts of the British Isles recording with care, 
and by means of accurate instruments, the principal meteorological 
phenomena—especially rainfall; while in Mr. Symons they have a leader 
who is ever ready and competent to give advice, and by whose keen eye 
every return is checked, whilst by his collation, preparation, and publi- 
cation of the results obtained most valuable data are made known, and 
the observers are encouraged to perseverance and regularity. From 
P: 105 we quote the following as the average rainfall for each of the three 
<ingdoms in 1878 :— 

England .. 7s Ar .. 38°28 inches. 

Scotland .. 4c sF sett OLL6 eee 

Treland .. -. © Oz OGG 


and Mr. Symons’ summing up on these figuresis, ‘‘in England and Wales 
an average fall, in Scotland and Ireland rather a deficiency, but not 
extreme in any part.” The above is, however, the result of the average 
of the few stations on Mr. Symons’ list where continuous observations 
have been carried on since 1850, and we can nowhere discover what is the 
average rainfall for 1878 when the returns from the whole of the recording 
stations are taken into account ; nor can we find the average fall in each 
of the twenty-three “divisions” which Mr. Symons establishes for the 
British Isles. These figures if they could be given would, we think, be 
of considerable interest and importance. Finally, we may extract the 
“extremes of rainfall in 1878 :”— 


Largest rainfall at The Stye, Cumberland .. .. 149-04 inches. 
Least rainfall at Keadby, Lincolnshire és WES 17°35 - 


Ray AND PALMONTOGRAPHICAL Socinties.—We are requested to state 
that the Local Secretary has received from the Rev. Thomas Wiltshire, 
the London Secretary, a small parcel of 8vo. lithographs of the curious 
appropriate menu designed*by E. W. Cooke, Esq., R.A., F.R.S., for the 
anniversary dinner of these societies, held in 1877, and that he will be 
happy to forward (to the extent of the supply) a copy to any member of 
the ‘Midland Union” on receipt of a halfpenny wrapper or large-sized 
stamped envelope, addressed W. R. Hughes, 23, Union Street,Birmingham, 


Deporis of Soriettes, 


BIRMINGHAM NATURAL HISTORY AND MICROSCOPICAL 
SOCIETY.—GrotoctcaL Suction.—June 24th. Mr. Waller showed a spike 
of Cotyledon umbilicus, from near Penzance, 30in. in length. It had also 
several supplementary spikes growing from the principal one.—Mr. Levick 
showed Volvox globator, Paludicella Ehrenbergii, Alcyonella fungosa, and an 
Amphileptus which he has been unable to identify with any recorded species.— 
Mr. Morley gave some particulars as to the arrangements for the marine 
excursion. He also showed some nature-printed British ferns, including varieties 
of Scolopendrium vulgare, Polystichum angulare, Blechnum boreale, and 
Athyrium Filix femina. In the discussion which arose Mr. Hughes gaye an 
account of an observation on a specimen of Ophioglossum vulgatum, in Mr. 
H. Allport’s collection, which showed that the fronds are thrown up from a 
creeping subterraneous rhizome, and are not solitary as usually they apparently 
are.—Mr. Southall reported that the cutting in the drift gravel, near Walsall, 
was visited on the 14th June, and specimens obtained of the included rocks. 
July 1st.—Grunerau Mrenrina.—Mr. A. W. Wills exhibited a freshwater alga 
belonging to the Oscillatoriacese, genus Spirulina.—Mr. J. Leyick exhibited 


> REPORTS. 915 


econ brachionus, & beautiful free-swimming Rotifer—Mr. J. E. Bagnall 
exhibited, on behalf of Mr. T. J. Slatter, Lathyrus Aphaca, in flower, from 
Evesham ; also, on behalf of Mr. J. W. Cotton, Habenaria chlorantha, Melam- 
ge ae Vicia Orobus, and Orchis conopsea, all from Barmouth. Mr. 

. RK. Hughes exhibited the skins of two moles found dead on his grassplot at 
Handsworth, and a short discussion followed as to the possibility of their having 
killed each other. Mr. H. E. Forrest exhibited a rare infusorian, Carchesium 
spectabile, (of which an account is given on page 204,) and read a letter from 
Mr. W. Saville Kent relating to it. July 8th—BurioLocican Srction.—Mr. H. EH. 
Forrest exhibited Trichodina pediculus, a pretty little infusorian, shaped like a 
kettle-drum, with a circle of cilia at both the upper and lower edges. Itis 
parasitic on Hydra. Mr. Barratt showed ‘tadpoles of frog in various stages of 
development, from the appearance of the hind legs to the atrophy of the tail. 
Mr. W. G. Blatch exhibited Pterostichus lepidus and Cymindis vaporariorum, 
two coleopterous insects new to the district, found at Cannock Chase; also a new 
and improved form of collecting bottle devised by himself. July 15th.—Muicro- 
scopicaL GENERAL Mertine.—Mr. W. Wright-Wilson, F.L.S., exhibited a duck 
affected with a nervous disease, preventing it from performing any co-ordinated 
movements, due possibly to the presence of a cystic worm pressing upon the cere- 
bellum. Myr. Montagu Browne, F.Z.S., exhibited Acronycta alni, the alder moth, 
very rare in this district. Mr. W.R. Hughes, F.L.S., then gave a very interesting 
preliminary account of the recent marine excursion to Falmouth. He said that 
scientifically it had been the most successful of the four marine excursions; the 
dredging, having been carried on in fifty fathom water, had resulted in many rare 
and interesting forms of animal life. On the present occasion he confined 
himself to noticing the living specimens only, which had reached Birmingham, 


the preserved ones being reserved until they had been more thoroughly 
examined. 


BIRMINGHAM AND MIDLAND INSTITUTE SCIENTIFIC SOCIETY. 
—June 28th.—Excursion to DupDLEY anp District.—On arrival at Dudley the 
party walkéd through the Castle Grounds to the Foxyards open workings, to see 
the outcrop {of the thick coal; the coal in the workings being obtained direct 
from the surface, and worked as a quarry to a depth of twelve yards. The bed 
of ironstone which overlies the coal at the east end of the quarry was next 
examined, and in the nodules numerous specimens, containing plant remains, were 
found. The party then walked along the south-west flank of the Wren’s Nest 
Hill, and secured some characteristic Silurian fossils. Passing under the hill 
through the tunnel, the visitors were charmed with the picturesque view which 
presents itself on emerging into the daylight caverns on the other flank. The 
party then re-entered the Castle Grounds, took tea at the Lodge, and returned to 
Birmingham about nine, having thoroughly enjoyed the afternoon. July 19th.— 
An excursion was made to California Clay Pits, Weoley Castle Quarry, and the 
Permian Breccia at Northfield. 


BEDFORDSHIRE NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY.—June 26th.—At the 
monthly microscopical meeting, (Mr. G. Hurst, F'.S.8., presiding.) the Mayor of 
Bedford, Mr. T. G. Elger, F.R.A.S., Hon. Sec., read the first part of a paper on 
“The Micro-spectroscope.” Having described the corpuscular and undulatory or 
wave theories, Mr. Elger next detailed very strikingly some of the more noticeable 
phenomena of light. He then explained, illustrating his remarks by diagrams, 
the construction of the micro-spectroscope and its adaptation to the microscope. 
He pointed out that the absorption observed in objects examined by means of 
it is caused by the peculiar molecular structure of the various substances, which 
refuses to allow light of certain colours to pass, and hence causes dark bands 
and lines to appear in those parts of their spectra where the absorption occurs. 
He showed examples of absorption in a variety of substances, solid and fluid. 
Among the former he exhibited the absorption which takes place in glass of 
various colours, in films of gelatine coloured with aniline dyes, &c., and among 
the latter the spectra of chlorophyll and of other preparations from plants of 
different kinds. The concluding portion of the paper is to be given in October. 
A hearty vote of thanks was unanimously accorded to Mr. Elger. 


216 REPORTS—EXCHANGE. 


CARADOC FIELD CLUB.—The first Field Meeting was held on Wednesday, 
June 25th, at Buildwas. Visited Benthall Edge. Address by G. Maw, Esq., on 
“ Glacial Drift in the neighbourhood.” After luncheon at Benthall Hall, and 
examining Mr. Maw’s valuable collection of Alpine plants,é&c., to Lincoln Hill Lime 
Caverns and Buildwas Abbey, with paper on latter by F. Rawdon Smith, Esq. 


NORTHAMPTON NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY.—June 16th.—It was 
resolved to publish a quarterly journal for the society, each number to contain 
a photograph of one of the trees of the county, with description and measure- 
ments, or other object chosen by the committee ; papers read before the society 
reports of the meetings ; a diary of occurrences in natural history ; meteorological 
report, &c. An editing committee was appointed. 


SEVERN VALLEY NATURALISTS’ FIELD CLUB.—The Severn 
Valley Naturalists’ Field Club visited Ludlow and neighbourhood on Thursday, 
July 17th. Carriages met the party at Ludlow Station, the drive being first to 
Oakley, where the party alighted and walked through the park up the valley of 
the Teme and on through the Downton Walks to the Hay Mill and Brow Bridge. 
Near this last named point the carriages took up the party for the return drive 
to Ludlow, via Burrington and Mary Knoll. This district is “ classic ground” to 
the geologist, and under the guidance of the Rev. J. D. La Touche and Theophilus 
Salwey, Hsq., the party were able to examine many points of geological interest. 
Proceeding from the old Red Tilestones, the passage beds were examined in the 
section at Tin Mill. Before reaching Forge Bridge the Downton sandstone was 
seen finely developed. At Forge Bridge the celebrated bone bed was found, and 
specimens were obtained from it, as also at another point in the walk. In the 
Downton Walks the upper Ludlow rock was reached, this being finely exposed 
as far as Hay Mill. At Bow Bridge the Aymestry limestone is finely developed 
in a perpendicular escarpment 60ft. to 70ft. in height. Mr. Theophilus Salwey 
read an interesting paper on the points of geological and archxological interest 
in the district. During the return drive the escarpments formed by the Wenlock 
and Aymestry limestones to the right and to the left of the road afforded a 
striking illustration of the result of the action of denudating forces upon an 
originally perfect dome of these strata. Till within the last hour of the drive, 
when a heavy shower fell, the day was fine and warm, and the excursion through 
the lovely valley of the Teme afforded a most enjoyable day to the party, which 
consisted of thirty-eight members and friends of the club. Time did not suffice 
for a visit to the church, castle, and museum at Ludlow. 


STROUD NATURAL HISTORY AND PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY.— 
July 3rd.—This was the annual field day of this society, and Chedworth the place 
fixed for the excursion. Mr. E. Witchell, F.G.S., president, Mr. C. Playne, 
ex-president, and thirteen other members formed the party. They travelled from 
Stroud to Cheltenham by train, where a break and horses were in readiness, 
by which they were conveyed through a beautiful and interesting country to the 
Roman Villa, at Chedworth. The villa is situated on the line of the Roman Fosse 
Way, and diverges from the Roman Road known as Icknield Street leading to 
Oxford. It was discovered about the year 1866 on property belonging to the 
Earl of Eldon, who spent a considerable sum of money in its excavation, and also 
in erecting a museum and necessary covering for the remains. The discovery is 
said to have been made by a Mr. Farrer, whose attention was called to it in con- 
sequence of some tesselated pavement having been brought to light in digging 
out a ferret that had buried itself in a coppice wood, which at that time covered 
the remains. The villa proper forms three sides of a square, and the few 
buildings on the south side appear to have been offices or servants’ apartments. 
The President read several extracts from the Rev. 8. Lyson’s paper to 
the Cotteswold Club, giving an interesting account of the neighbourhood. 
The party returned by way of Puesdown and Andoversford. 


EXCHANGE. 


Coleoptera—Silpha littoralis, from Bewdley Forest, for local Coleoptera or 
Lepidoptera,—l’. B. Taylor, 36, Chapman Road, Small Heath, Birmingham. 


Plate IV 


ee 


H. E. Forrest, del. 


Daphnia Bairdii. 


ON A. NEW ENTOMOSTRACON. S17. 


ON A NEW ENTOMOSTRACON. 


BY H. E. FORREST. 


A short time ago Mr. Thomas Bolton sent me some water from 
Olton Reservoir, containing, amongst other things, a curious 
Entomostracon, which he wished me to examine and draw. At the first 
glanc3 I saw that it was a form new to me, and forthwith set about 
drawing it. That done, the next thing was to find out its name, but 
vainly did I search through and through Baird’s “‘ Entomostraca”—it 
was not there. All that could be discovered about it was that it belonged 
to the Hutomostraca, order Cladocera, family Daphniade, and genus 
Daphnia. Baird describes seven species, viz., Pulex, Psittacea, Vetula, 
Schefferi, Reticulata, Rotunda, and Mucronata, but the one in question was 
none of these, and I have therefore the pleasure of describing it as a new 
species, unless it has already been described in some other work unknown 
tome. Every Naturalist, and especially every student of Entomostraca, 
will feelthat it is but a just and graceful tribute to the name of one who 
did so much good work for science at a time when very little was known of 
these little creatures, if this new species be dedicated to Dr. W. Baird, 
the author of ‘The Natural History of the British Entomostraca,” 
especially as no other animal is so named. I therefore christen it 
Daphnia Bairdii, if it has not yet received any other name. 


The appearance of Daphnia Bairdii in the microscope is irresistibly 
comic. It has an immense head which terminates upwards in a sharp 
point, exactly as if it were wearing a ‘“‘ dunce’s cap,” and in this its one 
goggle eye rolls about with an air of supernatural wisdom. Its body is 
transparent and almost colourless. It hasthe following characters in com- 
mon with the seven other members of the same genus :—Head produced 
downwards into a prominent beak, from the base of which spring the two 
very small, one-jointed, superior antenne (a.) The inferior antennz (bd) 
are large and powerful, two-branched, one branch three-jointed and bearing 
five sets, the other branch four-jointed and bearing four sets. It has five 
pairs of feet (c) all enclosed within the carapace. The following characters 
distinguish it from its congeners :—The valves of the carapace or shell are 
oval, transparent, nearly colourless, and the surface is marked with striz 
crossing each other obliquely. These markings are not nearly so apparent 
asin the other Daphniz. The head is very large (larger than in any other 
species) and almost an equilateral triangle. The lower extremity of the 
valves terminates in a long, sharp spine, which is finely serrated; the 
edges of the valves, too, are sparsely serrated to about half-way up. 
Length from top of head to extremity of spine, 1-20in. The individual 
drawn on Plate IV.is an adult female, and has within her carapace and 
behind her body a young one, almost ready to issue forth. This young 
one is seen edgeways, and it will be noticed that the triangular head 
is not rounded but flattened at the sides, like an admiral’s cocked hat. 
In young specimens the body is more rotund than in the adult, and 
the top of the head is not nearly so sharply pointed. Daphnia Bairdii 
does not appear to be very prolific, as I never saw more than two eggs in 
one female. The male I have not yet seen, though I have searched for 
it, and hope to obtain it eventually. Anyone desirous of seeing living 
specimens of this interesting animal can obtain them from Mr. T. Bolton, 
17, Ann Street, Birmingham. 

HH 


918 MEASUREMENT OF SEDIMENTARY DISCHARGE OF RIVERS. 


ON THE MEASUREMENT OF THE SEDIMENTARY 
DISCHARGE OF RIVERS. 


BY THE REV. J. D. LA TOUCHE. 


I propose in this paper to give a short account of some experiments 
which were made a few years ago with the object of estimating the quan- 
tity of sedimentary matter carried down annually by the waters of the 
Onny, a small stream in Shropshire. Unfortunately, at the very time 
when the arrangements for making these observations were matured and 
about to bear fruit, it was found impracticable to carry them further, 
since just then an extensive scheme of irrigation was started by an 
enterprising landlord, which involved the withdrawal at occasional 
intervals of large volumes of water from the stream, and thus my plans 
and methods of measurement were utterly disconcerted. Possibly 
others may be more favourably circumstanced; and I now record 
the results of my experiences in the hope that they may thereby be 
helped to pursue an investigation which requires but the simplest 
apparatus to carry it on, and which can hardly fail to lead to very 
interesting and important results. That such was the opinion of Sir 
Charles Lyell was shown by the energy with which he supported and 
encouraged my attempt, and advocated and succeeded in obtaining 
from the British Association a grant of money in two successive years to 
defray the expenses incurred in its prosecution. 


Every one must be struck by the condition of a river in full flood. 
The water, at other times quite clear, is then loaded with sediment; this 
sediment is an exact measure of the work done by atmospheric influences 
carried on over the whole area drained by that river. Starting from the 
rocky ridges which generally crown the water sheds and higher lands, all 
along the slopes of hills and through the undulations of the surface, down 
to the valleys at the bottom of which flows the stream that carries off 
the water which falls on the whole area, a slow, but ceaseless, and mighty 
atmospheric action is for ever grinding up the hardest materials and 
reducing the rocks, through the successive stages of greater and lesser 
fragments, stones, pebbles, gravel, sand, and lastly, soil, to an impalpable 
powder, which floats readily in the water of the river for a sufficient time 
to permit its transportation over many miles on its way to the sea. 


Here, as everywhere else in creation, the law of eternal change is 
maintained. Continents and all that is erected on them are swept away 
and give place to other continents to be built up out of their materials. 
What, however, we are now concerned in, is the fact that the measure- 
ment of this mud furnishes a proximate means of calculating the rate of 
geologic change ; and, if we could eliminate the errors which attend the 
computation, would help us to correct those vague and unsatisfactory 
statements in which the words ‘“ millions and billions of years” figure so 
freely, exciting, I fear, the not altogether unmerited incredulity of the 
unscientific. It is evident that if we could form any reliable estimate of 
the number of cubic yards of solid rock which in the form of mud are 


MEASUREMENT OF SEDIMENTARY DISCHARGE OF RIVERS. 219 


carried down annually by a stream and divide this into the cubical con- 
tents of the basin excavated by its action, we should have as a quotient 
the-number of years the operation took to accomplish. Of course many 
disturbing elements enter into the calculation to complicate it and render 
it more or less uncertain; and these must not be lost sight of. It may 
be that the average rainfall of past ages was very different from the present, 
or that climate had a different effect in modifying atmospheric action. 
Still, as a step towards removing our difficulty in the way of cyclic com- 
putation, to estimate the sedimentary contents of rivers is a problem of 
considerable importance. 

The elements required for this calculation are, the quantity of water 
passing a certain spot in a given time, and the quantity of sediment in a 
given bulk of such water. 

The mode I adopted to ascertain the first was as follows. Having 
chosen a reach of the river as straight and as free from obstructions as 
possible, I erected a post, painted white, and divided into feet and decimals 
of a foot, zero corresponding with summer leyel. By this was regis- 
tered from time to time the height of the river. Along the bank a space 
of one hundred feet was measured off and three cross sections made, one 
at each end and the other in the middle of the measured space. From 
these it was easy to construct a mean section. When it was desired to 
note the volume of discharge, the speed of the surface was ascertained 
by throwing in small pieces of wood and marking the time that elapsed 
while they passed the measured hundred feet. Then by the use of certain 
tables, to be found in Neville’s work on hydraulics, it was possible to 
arrive at the mean quantity of water that passed this spot per minute. 
It is necessary previously to construct a table from the data furnished 
by the average cross section, which gives the wetted surface of the river 
bed for each decimal mark on the gauge. 

So much for the volume of water. The amount of sedimentary deposit 
held in suspension was determined by taking at intervals of the flood 
measured bottles of water, then allowing the mud to subside, which it 
sometimes required two or three days to do completely, decanting off the 
clear liquid, carefully drying the residuum on weighed filter paper, and 
afterwards weighing the whole in a balance which indicates correctly to 
the 50th of a grain. The solid matter contained in a given quantity of 
water was thus determined, and the remaining calculation was easy. 

The object of registering the height of the stream on the post or 
gauge is to save the necessity of repeated observations on its velocity. 
The speed varies, of course, with the height, but is constant at any par- 
ticular height. I found that by ruling a sheet of paper with lines at 
right angles and at equal intervals, thus covering it with a number of 
small squares, the divisions in one direction expressing equal heights on 
the gauge, and those in the other the speed of the stream measured in 
seconds and feet, and marking on these lines a number of observations, 
the curve of a rectangular hyperbola was traced, which enabled me 
to construct a table giving the mean volume of water proximately at any 
time when an observation had been missed, when, as during the dark- 
ness of the night, it would have been impossible to make it. 


220 MEASUREMENT OF SEDIMENTARY DISCHARGE OF RIVERS. 


In the foregoing observations I had to rely on the accuracy of Neyille’s 
tables. I have, however, reason to believe that much has yet to be 
learned as to the discharge of rivers. The state of the bed, as well as its 
average inclination, materially affect the rate of the current, and must 
modify each case. In the portion, too, of the Onny which I selected I 
found afterwards that a mill sluice, which was sometimes open and 
sometimes closed, destroyed the value of much of my work. Many 
places, however, might be selected in which these sources of error do not 
exist, or in which they might be reduced to a minimum. 

The following, taken from the record of my observations, may help 
to illustrate what has been said. The rainfall is taken from an average 
of four rain gauges situated in different parts of the basin of the Onny, 
an area of about eighty-four square miles. 


Grains in } Discharge of 


Hour of | Height on P . 
Date. 100 oz. of | sediment per | Rainfall. 
Day. eamee: Water. | minute, in lbs. 
1870. 

March Ist .... "54 
Sp eM ecieg|) LO) -Antrs ‘60 12°31 362 “64 
12 M. 23°73 847 

6 P.M. *80 36°00 1318 
10 P.M. "85 
ppl Ore 9 AM. ‘70 14:45 711 16 
12 mu. 29°85 2128 
1 P.M. 1:20 
4PM. *40 99°54 2104 ‘00 
eben LO AGI, 7G 3°19 116 


It will be seen that the rainfall of the lst March produced its effect 
on the 2nd, and that of the 2nd one much greater on the 3rd, when the 
maximum was reached. 

Remembering that the breadth of the Onny is not more than some 
forty feet, the fact that at the rate of 2,128lbs. of mud per minute is 
sometimes carried down its bed in suspension is striking. But, besides 
this, a quantity of sand and pebbles must be rolled along the bottom, of 
which no account is taken here. The difficulty of arriving at any esti- 
mate of these in large streams is very great, but I would suggest that it 
might be possible to do so in smaller ones by simply sinking a suitable 
box in the bed when the water is low: into this the larger particles would 
fall and remain for further examination, while the sediment in suspension 
would pass away. 


THE CRYPTOGAMIC FLORA OF WARWICKSHIRE. 


BY JAMES E. BAGNALL. 


In compiling this portion of the Warwickshire Flora I have 
endeavoured to bring together the various notes given from time to time 
on this subject, which are at present scattered through various works, 
so that those botanists who may feel inclined to follow up these investiga- 
tions may be able easily to see what has been done already, and also 
to decide, with little trouble to themselves, whether the plants they 
find have been previously recorded, or are additions to our county flora. 
In compiling such lists as this the great difficulty is to settle the 


CRYPTOGAMIC FLORA OF WARWICKSHIRE. 291 


synonymy of the plants, many of the names of the older botanists 
being now obsolete, and some transferred to other and frequently very 
diffcrent plants from those intended by past recorders. In the Lichens 
and Fungi I have found it extremely difficult in many cases to decide 
what plant such an author as Purton meant by the name under which 
he recorded it. To take a single instance, Purton records from Oversley 
Wood a rare Lichen under the name of Lichen digitatus; in ‘‘ The 
English Flora,” Vol. V., page 240, this is called Scyphophorus digitatus, 
and by Leighton, in ‘‘ The Lichen Flora of Great Britain,” page 68, it 
bears the name of Cladonia digitata. Thus in three standard works the 
same plant is placed in three different genera. Nor is this a singular 
instance. Hence if I should omit to notice some of the plants recorded 
by the older botanists it will be because I have been unable to trace them 
to their modern name. / 

In the Fungi I have received great assistance from the notes of that 
eminent fungologist, the late Mrs. Frederick Russell, of Kenilworth, and 
I have to thank her niece, Miss Worsley, for having so courteously 
allowed me to copy the list of Fungi found by her aunt in the neighbour- 
hood of Kenilworth, Warwick, &c.—a most extensive list, the result of 
many years’ careful and successful study of these plants. 

The Moss Flora, with one or two exceptions, is compiled entirely 
from my own note book, and the sign! after the name of a locality 
indicates that I have myself collected and examined the plant cited 
from that locality. Authentic specimens which I have seen from localities 
given on the authority of other collectors I have indicated by the sign ! after 
the name of the recorder. 

The past records of Warwickshire mosses are very scanty, the 
only works within myreach in which any such records are given being 
Purton’s “ Midland Flora” and Perry’s ‘‘ Plante Varvicenses Select,” 
the notes in the latter being entirely copied from the first-named work. 
Unfortunately. Purton has not given localities for any but the rarer 
mosses, and has, therefore, left it uncertain whether the mosses recorded 
as ‘‘common,” “frequent,” &c., were found by him in Warwickshire or 
in other parts of the Midlands. Ihave only recorded those mosses for 
which he gives a Warwickshire station, although I am convinced that 
many that I omit were found by him in this county. 

The Moss Flora of Warwickshire is by no means an extensive one, 
and our really rare species are few in number compared with those of such 
counties as Surrey, Kent, or Gloucester. Still the county has yielded a 
few rare species, and has the merit, if merit it be, of having added at 
least two new species to the British Flora. The present list is, I am 
convinced, an imperfect one. Much of the county has been at present 
neglected, and to many districts I have been able to make only flying 
visits. From the neighbourhood of Rugby I have no notes. The Edge 
Hill district has only once been visited by myself; and I know of no 
records from that part of the county which lies south-west of the Edge 
Hills; in fact, so far as I have been able to make out, very little has yet 
been done in the southern portion of the county, and I am convinced 
that much good work still remains to be done. 


DOP, CRYPTOGAMIC FLORA OF WARWICKSHIRE. 


This list will include the Musci, Hepatic, Lichens, and Fungi. The 
Alge I shall leave for a more competent botanist. 
The following is a list of the books used in this compilation, with the 
abbreviations employed in these papers :— 
Purt.—‘ A Midland Flora,” 2 vols.,1817. T. Purton. 


Purt.—‘ An Appendix to the Midland Flora,” in two parts, 
1821. T. Purton. 


HK. F.—‘‘ The English Flora,” Vol. V., Part Il. Rey. M. J. 
Berkeley, M.A., F.L.S. 


MUSCI. 


The classification adopted is that of ‘The London Catalogue of 
British Mosses,” by C. P. Hobkirk and H. Boswell, 1877, a classification 
which in my opinion has the merit of being a very natural one, and 
which will probably be adopted by the majority of working botanists. 


In the following list I have only quoted the synonyms of the ‘‘Midland 
Flora,” and the three works on British mosses most generally in use in 
this country, which are indicated as under, 

Wils.—Wilson—* Bryologia Britannica,” 1855. 

Berk.—Berkeley— Handbook of British Mosses,” 1863. 

Hobk.—Hobkirk—“ Synopsis of British Mosses,” 1873. 
SECTION I.—ACROCARPI. 


SPHAGNACER. 

1.—Sphagnum acutifolium Ehrh. Marshes and bogs, local. A very 
varying species, both in size and habit, often tinged with a reddish 
tint, fruiting in Autumn. Abundant in Sutton Park! Coleshill 
Bog! Trickley Coppice, in drains! New Park! July, August. 

Var. patulum Schimp. On elevated grassy places, rare, growing 
in smaller, looser tufts, of a pale green colour, apparently rare in 
fruit. Fruiting in Autumn. Sutton Park! near most of the 
streams. Coleshill Bog! . July, August. 

2.—S. jimbriatun Wils. Iv marshes and bogs, rare. Sutton Park! 
in marshy ground above Blackroot Pool, destroyed by railway 
embankment in 1876, not found there since. Marshy ground in 
Bentley Park, near Atherstone, 1878 ! duly. 

4.—S. squarrosum Pers. Boggy places, rare. Sutton Park! near 
Bracebridge! Blackroot! Windley! and Powell’s Pools! readily 
known by its very squarrose leaves. July, August. 

Var. b. teres Angst. Marshes, rare. In marsh by Windley Pool, 
Sutton Park! 1876.* 

7.—S. intermedium Hoffm. S. vrecurvum, Beauv., Hobk., Berk. 
S. cuspidatum, b. recurvum Wils. In bogs and marshes, very 
variable, local, rare in fruit. Abundant in Sutton Park! but 
usually barren. Coleshill Bog! fruiting. Trickley Coppice, in 


drains ! July. 
8.—S. cuspidatum Ehrh. Near streams, rare. In a drain in Trickley 
Coppice! 


11.—S. subsecundum Nees. 8. contortum, b. subsecundum Wils. Turfy 
bogs, marshes, local. Sutton Park! Coleshill Bog! Haywoods, in 
first drive below Woodman’s cottage! Spring Wood, near Hockley! 
Cut-throat Coppice, near Solihull! July, 


(a zr Boe somewhat in doubt as to the plant I find here being the true S. teres 
ngst. 


CRYPTOGAMIC FLORA OF WARWICKSHIRE. 298 


Var. b. contortum Schultz. §. contortum Wils., Berk., Hobk. 
In marshes, bogs, and watery places, local, rare in fruit. Sutton 
Park frequent! Coleshill Pool! Coleshill Bog! Arley Wood! 
Bannersly Pool! Drive by Chalcote Wood! Cut-throat Coppice, 
near Solihull! In fruit in a small bog, near Great Packington. 

Var. b. contortum, forma rufescens, Nees and Hsch. occurs in 
small pools in bog, near Packington Park! July. 

Var.c. turgidum Mull. §S. contortum, c. obesum Wils., Hobk. In 
small pools, bog near Packington Park! In bogs above Blackroot 
Pool, Sutton Park! 

Var. d. auriculatum Lind. In drains and wet bogs, rare. Above 
Blackroot Pool! Pool Hollies Wood! near Long Moor Mill Pool in 
drains! Sutton Park. 

13.—S. rubellum Wils. Hlevated places in bogs, rare. On the turfy tufts 
formed by Molinia cerulea in Coleshill Bog! fruiting in July. Dr. 
Braithwaite puts this as a variety of 8. acutifolium in his Sphag- 
naceze Britannice Exsiccate, No. 36, as I think correctly. July. 

16.—S. papillosum Lind. Var. b. confertum. In bogs and near 
streams, rare. Sutton Park! fruiting in bog above Blackroot Pool! 
near stream above Bracebridge Pool! Pool Hollies Wood! July. 

17.—S. cymbifolium Ehrh. In bogs and marshes. S. latifolium 
E. B., 1405. Coughton Lane ; Purt. Vol. II. The most frequent 
Warwickshire species; rare in fruit. Sutton Park! abundant, 
fruiting in Pool Hollies, 1875! Poor’s Wood, Honily! Brown’s 
Wood, near Solihull! Arley Wood! Trickley Coppice! New Park, 
Middleton! Coleshill Bog, fruiting 1876! bog near Packington 
Park! in quarry near Cornels End, fruiting! Fruits, Autumn. 

Var. b. squarrosulum Bry. Germ. In bogs, rare; in several 
places in Sutton Park! Bentley Park, near Atherstone, 1878! 

Var. c. compactum Schultz. On grassy hillocks near streams. 
This form I have only found in Sutton Park! 

WEISSIACER. 

27.—Systegium crispun Hedw. Phascum crispum Wils., Hobk. On 
' banks in fields, rare. In a field near Powell’s Pool, Sutton Park, 
1877! Fruiting, early Spring. 
31.—Gymnostomum tenue Schrad. On sandstone rocks and walls, rare. 
On stone wall at Edgbaston! sandstone rocks, canal, near Row- 

ington! sandstone embankment, Waterworks Reservoir, Aston! 
Fruiting Autumn. 

35.—G. microstomum Hedw. On banks in a sandy or marly soil, local. 
Edgbaston (Cameron!) Olton, canal bank! Maxtoke, near the 
Priory! Sutton Park, on banks near Powell’s Pool! 1877, Baker’s 
Lane, near Knowle! 1879. Early Spring. 

39.—Weissia viridula Brid. Weissia controversa Hedw., Wils., Hobk., 
Berk. Banks, common; near Knowle! Sutton Park! Acocks 
Green! Marston Green! &c. 

Var. b. stenocarpa. Banks, local; near Knowle, Olton Canal bank. 


Spring. 
40.—W. mucronata Bruch. On marly and clayey banks, rare. Olton 
Canal bank, March, 1868! on banks near Duke End ! Spring. 


42.—_W. cirrhata Hedw. On trees, thatch, old palings, &c., frequent. 
Middleton Park! Olton! Solihull! Sutton Park, Maxtoke, near 
Priory! Arley, &c. Spring. 

50.—Dicranella crispa Hedw. On sandstone rocks, very rare. On sand- 
stone rocks, lane out of Sandy Lane, Milverton, April, 1877! Itis 
probable that this species may be found abundantly in some of the 
districts on the Permian, as I find it plentiful on the Permian 
Rocks by the Hamstead Canal, Staffordshire. Fruiting, November. 


224 CRYPTOGAMIC FLORA OF WARWICKSHIRE. 


54.—D. cerviculata Hedw. Dicranum cerviculatum UHedw., Wils., 
Hobk., Berk. On damp, turfy heaths and banks, near streams, 
somewhat local. Frequent in Sutton Park! Coleshill Heath! 

55.—D. varia Hedw. JDicranum varium Wils., Hobk. On clay 
banks and heathy waysides, not common. Sutton Park! Plants 
Brook! Great Packington! canal bank near Knowle! Solihull! 
Shrewley Common! canal bank near Rowington! November. 

56.—D. rufescens Turn. Dicranwm rufescens Turn., Wils., Hobk. 
Very rare. On sandy banks, Tythall Lane, near Solihull! As I 
find this moss abundant on the Permian sandstone, near Ham- 
stead, I think it probable that it may be also found in like places 
on the Permian rocks of Warwickshire. November. 

59.—D. heteromalla Hedw. Dicranum heteromallum WHedw., Wils., 
Hobk., Purt. Common. Ragley Woods! Oversley Wood! Purt., 
Vol. I1., p. 545. Sutton Park! Curdworth! Marston Green! &c. 
A form with very dark-green strongly cirrhate leaves occurs on 
damp banks, and is most frequently barren. Sandy and damp 
banks. November to April. 

64.—Dicranum montanum Hedw. On the roots of oak trees, very rare. 
This plant was a new addition to the British moss flora when I 
first found it in 1870, and was abundant in Lower Nuthurst. The 
tree on which it grew has since been felled, and it is now only 
sparingly represented. Figured and described by Dr. Braithwaite, 
under the name of Weissia truncicola (De Not.,) to which species it 
was then referred, but afterwards decided to be Dicranwm montanum 
by Dr. Lindberg. See ‘‘Journal of Botany,” October, 1871, tab. 
119, fig. 2. Recorded from Abbey Wood, Kent, ‘ Journal of 
Botany,” January, 1877, E. M. Holmes, Esq. 

71.—D. scoparium Ll. Hedge banks, heaths, and woods, local. Rare 
in fruit. In fruit Brown’s Wood, near Solihull! Tythall Lane, 
Solihull! School Rough, Marston Green! Oversley Wood! Poor’s 
Wood, Honily ! July, August. 

72.—D. majus Turn. Woods, rare. Kirsley, near Coventry, in fruit, (T.Kirk !) 
Brown’s Wood, near Solihull! Hart’s Hill Hayes! July, August. 

73.—D. palustre Brid. D. Bonjeanii, De Not. On banks, heaths, 
marshy places, old thatched roofs, &c., not rare. Sutton 
Park! always barren. Marston Green! abundant on an old 
thatched roof, Reddicap Hill, near Sutton ! August. 

75.—D. spurium Hedw. On damp heaths, very rare. On Coleshill 
Heath, (H. Webb!) This plant I have looked for frequently in 
the locality cited, but have never seenit. I have an authentic 
specimen collected by H. Webb from this locality. 

84.—Campylopus flecuosus Brid. Dicranum jflexuosum Purt. ‘Rocks, 
high moors. The specimen which I found upon some very high 
ground in Ragley Woods was in close tufts.” (Purt., Vol. IL, 
p. 544.) I have never seen this moss in Warwickshire, but do not 
think Purton would make a mistake in the species. 

88.—C. fragilis B. and 8. C. densus, b. fragilis Wils. C. densus 
Berk. Heath lands, local. Sutton Park, frequent on heath 
lands, but very rarely fruiting. September. 

90.—C. pyriformis Brid. CC. torfaceus B. and §., Wilson, Hobk. 
On damp heath lands and the sides of streams and drains in a 
peaty soil, local. Abundant in fruit on boggy heath land above 
Blackroot Pool, Sutton Park, 1875. Coleshill bog, 1876. Ibelieve 
that the variety b. Miilleri also occurs in Sutton Park, but I have 
never been able to get perfect specimens, so as to place the matter 
beyond a doubt. July, August. 

[ro BE CONTINUED. | 


PlatevV, 


3 oo! 


) 


ey BS 


H. E. Forrest, del. 
Leptodora hyalina. 


Fig. A x 50 diameters. 
Fig. B, side view of Thorax and part of Abdomen x 60 diameters. 


LEPTODORA HYALINA. 295 


ea on 


LEPTODORA HYALINA. 


BY WALTER GRAHAM, F.R.M.S5., PRESIDENT OF THE BIRMINGHAM 
NATURAL HISTORY AND MICROSCOPICAL SOCIETY. 


About three weeks ago a few members of the Birmingham Natural 
History and Microscopical Society visited a pool in the neighbourhood of 
Olton, which, being private property, is not often examined. Four of the 
party proceeded in a boat to endeavour to ascertain what treasures the 
water contained. The first dip caused no small excitement. A bottle of 
water, apparently containing diluted pea soup, was eagerly examined by 
one after another, for among the masses of a minute alga (Clathrocystis 
eruginosa) were swimming sundry apparently animated chips of thin glass. 
What was this translucent creature? was the question. The glass larva 
was speedily dismissed, but even the class to which the unknown capture 
belonged was doubtful, the best guess hazarded being that it was a larval 
form of some Entomostracan. Specimens were carefully secured for 
examination under higher magnifying power than pocket lenses afforded, 
and this examination revealed the fact that the mysterious stranger was 
no larval form, but a fully-developed Entomostracan, both eggs and young 
being detected beneath the carapaces of some specimens. But still its 
name was wanting. ‘“ Baird,” and the ‘“Micrographical,” and “ Pritchard” 
failed us, but Professor Ray Lankester came to our aid, for, on having 
specimens submitted to him, he pronounced it to be Leptodora hyalina, &% 
species new to Great Britain, though found in Sweden and Germany. 
Curiously enough the same “ dips” which gave us Leptodora gave us also 
another new British species, which is described at page 217. 

In the hope that other students of this class may meet with 
Leptodora, the following imperfect description is given, which, with the 
help of the accompanying plate, (Plate V.,) drawn by my friend, Mr. H. 
EB. Forrest, may enable them to identify the crystalline stranger. 
Leptodora belongs to Baird’s Legion Branchiopoda, OrderII., Cladocera, 
Family I.,Daphniade. The head is elongated, not beaked. Superior 
antenne long, and studded with sete. The inferior (or propulsive) 
antennex are large and very powerful, producing a motion similar to that 
of aman swimming. The first joint occupies fully half the length of the 
antenna. From it two equal branches proceed, which are four-jointed, 
and are studded with sete, while the first joint is smooth. On each side 
of the head, immediately under the eye, is a small organ covered with 
cilia. The feet are ten in number, close together, and setaceous. 

The carapace is extremely hyaline, divided into seven segments ; the 
tail is produced into two curved extensions resembling that of an earwig, 
excepting that in Leptodora these extensions are furnished with long, 
slender set. The body is long and narrow, and so translucent that the 


Rererences to Puate V. 


Fig. A._Leptodora hyalina, x 50 diameters. 
Fig. B.—Ditto, x 60 diameters. a, Pulsating vessel. b, Eye. c¢, Organ of hearing (?) 
dito5, Feet. d@6, Superior antenne. ¢, Tube or intestine. f, Inferior antenne. 
se EE 


226 LEPTODORA HYALINA. 


internal organs can be clearly seen. A large contractile organ is situated 
immediately behind the eye, connected by two nerves (muscles?) with 
the muscular centre between the inferior antenna. A pulsating vessel 
occupies the first segment behind the antennw. A long straight tube or 
intestine passes from the first or head segment to the last segment but 
one, where it enters a wide ccecal vessel, somewhat convoluted or corru- 
gated, which terminates at the bifurcation of the tail. Both male and 
female specimens were secured, the female differing in having a larger 
carapace, extending over the first and second segments of the body behind 
the inferior antenns, under which carapace the ova and young are 
retained until the latter are sufficiently developed to leave the parent. 
The young resemble the parent, but are thicker in proportion to their 
length, and the antenne are shorter than in the adult. 

The specimens taken (adult) varied from Hin. to nearly Zin. in length 
by about 3-64in. across the body, immediately in front of the inferior 
antenne. 

Sir John Lubbock has called attention to the capture of this species 


in some remarks made before the Biological Section of the British 
Association at Sheffield. 


EXAMINATION OF DRIFT. 
RAILWAY CUTTING NEAR WALSALL. 
BY O. BEALE, C.E. 


Referring to the paper with this heading (ante, page 201) I wish to 
make a few remarks, notes of a late visit to the work. ° 

The excavation, though not to the full depth, has now reached the 
Walsall and Wednesbury road, which has been temporarily diverted. The 
character of the deposit at this point seems to have undergone a con- 
siderable alteration from that obtaining near the junction with the main 
line. At this latter place the deposit was exceedingly uncompacted, the 
sand appearing to have little or no cohesion, and being of a rather pale 
colour. Under the road, on the contrary, the colour is many shades 
deeper, the cohesiveness, also, is increased to almost the compactness of 
a conglomerate, and the pebbles composing the gravel are of a more 
uniform size than those at the beginning of the work. 

Crossing the road to the cutting atthe James Bridge end of the line, 
T find that in the progress of the work here a difference is exhibited in 
the character of the deposit. 

The appearances here indicate, I think, that there must have been a 
considerable shoal or sand bank near the site of the old pools at the back 
of Bescot Hall. The white sand shown at this point may or may not be 
the top of this shoal, but judging by present appearances it looks probable 
that the top of the shoal was situated almost exactly on the site of the 
pools. That there was a shoal here may be inferred, I think, trom the 
purity of the sand, its comparative freedom from pebbles and stones, (if 
not their entire absence,) and the rise of the deposits towards this point 
from either end of the new line. The thin band of drift coal and smut 


EXAMINATION OF DRIFT. AAT 


is now not far off the top of the cutting, and may be expected to be 
found on the surface in the course of the next fifty or sixty yards. This 
band of coal and smut, if found only on the north side of the shoal, would 
indicate that the current of the then existent sea set in a southerly 
direction, and that the coal was abraded from the outcrop of the fire-clay 
and bottom coals between here and Bentley. 


One thing that struck me in Mr. Twigg’s paper was the absence of 
all note or remark as to the wavy appearance of the various bands of 
the deposit at this north end, indicating, as I take it, the shallowness of 
the water, or the depth and strength of the wave force. The appearance 
is very curious, and is well worthy of examination. The waviness 
referred to is shown in Fig. 67 of Richardson’s ‘‘ Geology and Paleontology,” 
1851 edition, though not from the same cause as in the woodcut. 


I should also like to direct attention to another cutting on the Old 
Grand Junction Line of Railway, about half-way between Newton Road 
and Great Barr Stations, where we find another instance of, I think, a 
shoal, but of very much grander dimensions than that just referred to 
near James Bridge. It begins near the present bed of the Tame, a little 
lower down than the Old Forge Pools, and runs inland for about a mile 
and a half, under “ the Hem” on the Ordnance one-inch maps, towards 
the Birmingham and Walsall Road. The section exhibited in the 
railway cutting shows the base rather more than half a mile wide, and 
the height of the bank or shoal is about 80ft. above the present level of 
the stream, or about 60ft. to 65ft. above the level of railway. At the 
bottom of this cutting we have sand, and as we go up we get sand mixed 
with pebbles, at first few in number, but increasing in quantity till we 
come to the top, where we get the ordinary drift gravel of the district 
capped with clay. 

- Ata height of about 25ft. to 30ft. above the rail level there may be 
found, sometimes in considerable quantities, pebbles or water-worn 
pieces of coal, varying in size from that of amarble to that of a cocoanut. 
These are principally found on the east side of the cutting, and from the 
configuration of the ground here it would appear as though this bank or 
shoal began to be formed against the high ground upon which the Walsall 
Road is situated, and was gradually extended to the point at which we 
now find it below the Old Forge. 

The whole of the various deposits, with their associated foreign 
contents, suggest the belief that the general contour of the country, as 
it exists at present, remains unchanged from the date of the last great 


immersion, and that no great dislocation or contortion has taken place 
during the many ages that must have elapsed since that immersion. 


I have, in these remarks, inadvertently used the words “ the ordinary 
drift gravel of the district,” but I do not think the gravels here are the 
ordinary drift gravels of the district. I think the gravels and pebbles 
about here are the gravels and pebbles of the bottom and shores of the 
sea—as it then existed—exactly similar to the gravels and pebbles lining 
the bottom and shores of now existing seas, and are in no sense to be 
confounded with the drift gravels covering such a large area of these 
Midland Counties, the component parts of the latter being principally 
derived from far distant localities, while those of the former are, on Mr. 
Twigg’s evidence, derived from sources comparatively near. 


298 EXCURSION TO FALMOUTH. 


EXCURSION OF THE BIRMINGHAM NATURAL 
HISTORY SOCIETY TO FALMOUTH, 
JULY 57x vo 137rH, 1879. 


BY JAMES E. BAGNALL. 


Although we had cold and wet weather during our excursion to this 
neighbourhood, a fair amount of botanical work was done, but in this 
note I can merely glance at some of the general features, reserving my 
full report for the present. In the immediate neighbourhood of Falmouth 
about 350 species of flowering plants and ferns were noticed, and adding 
to these the plants seen in our longer excursions to Land’s End and 
Lizard Point, over 400 different species were observed during our visit. 
Many of these were very rare, and some of them special to the locality 
in which they were observed. But for the backwardness of the season 
and the inclemency of the weather, our list would probably have been 
very much longer. 

The coasts and cliffs in the immediate neighbourhood of Falmouth, 
so far as I was able to notice, appear to be barren rather than prolific in 
truly seaside plants, such as the Saltwort (Salsola Kali,) Seablite, (Sueda 
maritima,) the Glasswort, (Salicornia herbacea,) Sea Lavender, (Statice, ) 
Glaux maritima, Sea Holly, (Eryngium maritimum,) and other such plants. 
Still, I was very much pleased with the flora of the cliffs, covered as they 
were with masses of the Ladies’ Fingers, (Anthyllis,) which were still 
beautiful, though past their prime. Dense patches of Stonecrop (Sedum 
Anglicum) greeted one’s eye frequently, growing constantly in company 
with the rare variety of the Sand Spurrey, (Spergularia rupestris,) which 
is one of the common plants here. Dark-green tufts of Sea Plantain, 
(Plantago maritima, ) glaucous tufts of beautiful Thrift, (Armeria maritima, ) 
tangled masses of Sea Beet, (Beta maritima,) forests of the golden- 
flowered Black Mustard, (Brassica nigra,) here and there straggling 
patches of Scurvy Grass, ( Cochlearia officinalis and danica,) Wild Carrot, 
(Daucus carota,) and abundance of the comparatively rare Alexanders, 
(Smyrnium olusatrum,) which is said to have been introduced here, but 
if so it is now well established and abundant; splendid specimens of the 
Navelwort, (Cotyledon Umbilicus,) bearing spikes of flowers more than a 
foot long, with large patches of the Pellitory (Parietaria officinalis,) and 
here and there the more rare Samphire, (Crithmum maritimum.) 'These 
are the principal and most striking plants on the cliffs round Falmouth 
Bay. 

About a mile from Falmouth is a fine freshwater pool, called Swan 
Pool, in which I found the Sea Sedge, (Scirpus maritimus,) and Scirpus 
Tabernemontani, and Ranunculus Baudotii, all fairly abundant. 

The lanes about here are many of them very charming, beautifully 
bowered over with trees, and all so charmingly green, greener even than 
Warwickshire lanes, and rejoicing in such wonderfully verdant banks, 
often many feet high and clothed from top to bottom with a very 
profusion of growth. Wherever a particle of soil could lodge, something 
beautiful seemed to vegetate luxuriantly. The Hart’s Tongue( Scolopendrium 


" 


EXCURSION TO FALMOUTH. 229 


vulgare) was remarkably abundant, and in many cases the fronds were 
more than two feet long; beautiful tufts of the Black Spleenwort, 
(Asplenium Adiantum-nigrum) occurred on every bank, and plants were to 
be found varying from tiny fronds scarcely an inch in length to fine 
fronds considerably more than a foot long. Fine forms of Polystichum 
angulare were very frequent on the marly banks, whilst more rare, 
although fairly abundant, in some of the lanes was the hayscented Shield 
Fern (Lastrea emula.) On some of the banks near Swan Pool, I found a 
fine crop of Agrostis setacea, a plant I had never before seen growing; 
and on the rocks near Maen Porth and other places the English Clary 
(Salvia Verbenaca) and Fennel (Feniculwm vulgare) were abundant. 

It was very pleasing, too, to see some fine specimens of the Sea 
Spleenwort (Asplenium maritimum,) in caves near the Swan Pool, but in 
eyery case too far out of reach to be obtainable. Some splendid plants, 
however, were obtained by my friend Mr. Morley, near Mawnan, and 
with his usual generosity distributed to less fortunate fern seekers. I 
was also struck with the fine tufts of the Royal Fern (Osmunda regalis, ) 
which were occasionally seen, but only rarely what I should consider ag 
native, and some of the specimens of the Lady Fern, (Athyriwn filix- 
femina,) were very beautiful and far more graceful, and in some cases 
much taller even than Osmunda. 


ENTOMOLOGICAL RAMBLES IN THE MIDLANDS. 
No. I—BEWDLEY FOREST. 
BY W. G. BLATCH. 


(Continued from page 196.) 


Having indulged in a fair amount of rest and refreshment, we long 
to resume our charming and instructive ramble, and are soon out again 
amongst the insects, at the first step meeting with “good things.” One 
of the lads here brings us a fine male specimen of the Stag- 
beetle, Lucanus cervus. Just outside the door, close by the Mill, 
two species of Dyschirius turn up, viz., D. politus and D. globosus ; 
and, in the same place, troops of Steni, like soldiers clad in 
close-fitting armour, some of them having their lead-coloured wing- 
cases relieved with orange spots, are marching busily to and fro ; amongst 
them we recognise (and capture) the aristocratic-looking Dianous cwru- 
lescens, Stenus biguttatus, S. bipunctatus, 8. guttula, S. bimaculatus, S. Juno, 
and others. The neat and extremely active little Bembidiwm articulatum 
abounds, as also do Hlaphrus riparius and E. cupreus. Flying around a 
sallow by the mill-stream are numerous specimens of Hoplia philanthus, 
and from the same kind of trees a little further on are beaten two 
species of Clythra—tridentata and quadripunctata, the first-named being 
quite a red-letter capture. From nut and alder we beat Phyllobius 
calcaratus, and C. pyri; from birch, Apoderus coryli, Zeugophora sub- 
spinosa, and the marvellously beautiful larva of the scarce Vapourer 
moth, Orgyia gonostigma ; and from young oak, Attelabus curculionoides. 


930 ENTOMOLOGICAL RAMBLES IN THE MIDLANDS. 


On the large flowers of the ‘‘ Moon-daisy” we find Strangalia melanura 
and Grammoptera tabacicolor—two desirable Longhorns ; and on the milk- 
weed, (spurge,) especially by the brook-side, Strangalia nigra. Some 
species of Donacia are sunning themselves on the flags and Potamogetons, 
but we content ourselves with securing D. bidens and D. typhe ; the latter 
bears a purplish-coppery streak on each elytron, and is rather scarce in 
our parts. Amongst the stones by the brook swarms of Bembidia disport 
themselves, and examples of the following species are captured :— 
B. obtuswm, eneum, Mannerheimi, decorum, monticola, brunnipes, tibiale, 
atroceruleum, bruxellense, flammulatum, varium, punctulatum, &c., and in 
company with them a beetle new to us: it is red and black, runs with its 
tail curled over its back, and looks vastly like a Myrmedonia. To catchit 
and put it in a small glass tube is a momentary operation ; the pocket-lens 
is then brought to bear on it, and we discover that our new friend is 
Deleaster dichrous, another name to be recorded in red ink. A bit further 
up the brook, on a spot from which every breath of wind is excluded by 
the encompassing woods, and where the sun’s rays seem to actually 
broil us, are more good things, calling for the further use of “ink of 
sanguine hue!” What have we found now? Why, that graceful, girl- 
like beetle, with the slender waist, Tachyusa constricta, which we haye 
not seen since taking it by the Mole at Leatherhead, and in company 
with it is the most curious and droll of all small beetles. Stoop down 
and look atit. You cannot see it? Lie down on the sandy bank of the 
stream and look closely. Do you now see a number of small grains of 
mud moving slowly about as if endowed with life? See, they march to 
and fro, hither and thither, evidently controlled by some hidden intelli- 
gence, and mark how certain of them seem to possess a powerful 
attraction for each other. As long as you lie quiet and look on, their 
activity appears rather to increase, but put forth your hand and touch 
the ground on which they move, and instantly all is stili. Take one up 
as soon as it begins again to stir, and examine it: you will find upon 
rubbing it gently between your fingers, and thus removing the mud-case 
enclosing it, a small, roundish, rather long-legged, coarsely-punctured, 
black beetle, about three-quarters of a line in length, the Georyssus 
pygmeus of naturalists. It always covers itself with a coating of mud 
in this droll way—no doubt finding some advantage in it—not improbably 
protection from its active little neighbour Tachyusa constricta, and the 
hosts of Lycose and other spiders that watch and hunt for prey in the 
damp places in which it loves todwell. This amusing though diminutive 
beetle is the only representative of its family and genus in this country, 
and is generally considered to be a coast insect; besides on this spot, I 
have taken it only at Luccomb Chine, in the Isle of Wight. 

Having bottled as many constricta and pygmaeus as required, and the 
stooping posture having made our heads and backs ache, let us for a few 
minutes assume the recumbent attitude on yonder heather-clad and 
shady slope, previous to breaking fresh ground. What is the matter? 
Ants? ‘Yes; and how they bite!” But never mind; even ants have 
their entomological uses. Where’s their nest? Under this stone, 
perhaps; so over it goes! And what do we see? Not only ants, but 


ENTOMOLOGICAL RAMBLES IN THE MIDLANDS. 231 


positively some of those curious beetles of which we have often heard as: 
inhabiting ants’ nests are here—Dinarda Miirkeli, Atemeles emarginatus, 
Myrmedonia humeralis, and M. canaliculata. Well, we have our revenge 
upon the ants for their keen bitings; but suppose we make other 
reprisals before abandoning them? Let us attack that large nest on the 
right, first tying our sleeves tightly at the wrists, and tucking our 
trousers in our socks, to prevent the ants making unpleasant reprisals 
upon us. Spreading a large sheet of paper on a convenient heather bush 
some distance from the nest, we advance upon the enemy, and boldly 
and quickly plunge our hands into the midst of their citadel, part of 
which we take away and carefully shake over the paper. This operation 
is repeated two or three times, care being of course taken not to destroy 
the nest, and upon reckoning up our captures we find ourselves in 
possession of more Dinarda and Myrmedonia, Megacronus inclinans, 
Thiasophila angulata, Oxypoda formicetorum, Myrmetes piceus, Monotoma 
angusticollis, and hosts of Homalote. From the mouth of one of the ants 
we took a fine specimen of Myrmedonia humeralis, much larger than 
itself, which it appeared to be carrying, with affectionate care, to a place 
of safety. Gladly would we renew the combat, but, remembering that 
*‘ discretion is the better part of valour,” we desist. (To tell the plain 
truth, the ants are too many and too active for us, and we feel compelled 
to retreat!) Upon reaching neutral territory we rest ourselves, pick off 
- the stray ants which persist in following and worrying us, and examine 
by means of our glasses the queer-looking beetles captured from their 
friends, (or enslavers, as the case may be,) and which, but for our inter- 
ference, would probably have passed the rest of their lives in the midst 
of a colony of Formica rufa, in comparative darkness, and surrounded 
with an atmosphere of formic acid. Looking through your glass you 
observe that such of the beetles as are peculiar to ants’ nests, as Dinarda, 
Atemeles, &c., have their armour-plates, so to speak, sculptured in a 
special style, the whole upper surface of the body, especially the thorax 
and elytra, being beautifully chased in such perfection of execution as to 
shame even the most skilful worker in fine gold, who, were he willing, 
might learn valuable art lessons from these obscure and despised insects. 


The questions you naturally ask as to the reason why of these beetles 
being domiciled with the ants are not easily answered. What the 
connection between them is—whether the ants attract the beetles, or the 
beetles fascinate the ants—whether the motives of either or both are 
those of friendliness or self-interest—is at present involved in mystery. 
It has been observed, as we ourselves have seen, that the ants certainly 
manifest some degree of attachment to their guests, and we know that, 
though very destructive to insects generally, they cherish these particular 
species with praiseworthy devotion and care. The subject is one of 
much interest, and the temptation to pursue it almost irresistible, but 
we must choose some other opportunity to speculate upon it. Both time 
and insects fly, and if we stop to talk now we shall soon find the hour of 
departure close upon us, and our entomological sport curtailed. Let us, 
then, now cross the brook and ascend the wooded hill, beating the birches 
and other trees as we go. Here are various species of Rhynchites in 


230, ENTOMOLOGICAL RAMBLES IN THE MIDLANDS. 


abundance—R. pubescens being one of them—and on the leaves of young 
oaks the curious and active Agrilus viridis, which must be bottled quickly, 
or it will be gone. By beating a crab tree we secure a specimen of the 
remarkable pupa of Ledra aurita, a fine name by which entomologists 
recognise a rather rare member of the “bug” tribe; from a small grove 
of young aspens we obtain Saperda populnea, Gonioctena rufipes, and 
G. viminalis ; the sallows close by yield a new Longhorn beetle, which it 
is a great pleasure to see, viz., Liopus nebulosus, as well as some larvee of 
Notodonta ziczac. In beating the margin of the wood a number of moths 
are disturbed, and, amongst others, are recognised and secured 
Angerona prunaria, Melanthia albicillata, Melanippe hastata, and the 
very pretty Ennychia octomaculalis. After disposing of these, we 
examine the proceeds of our beating exertions, and find lots of nice 
things, including the stick-like larvee of Phigalia pilosaria and Amphydasis 
prodromaria ; two odd-looking spiders, Epéira bicornis and E. conica, and 
a perfect swarm of wood-ants, which manifest an almost boy-like predi- 
lection for climbing up every available tree. On the flowers of a 
rhododendron, by the side of a small stream, are observed a number of 
gaily-decorated little moths, busily engaged sipping nectar, and as they 
prove to be Anarta myrtilli—a species that is ‘‘ wanted ”—we carefully 
box a few specimens. Turning over two or three stones lying near us 
brings to light a single example of the elegant beetle Cychrus rostratus, 
together with specimens of the glow-worm, Lampyris noctiluca, the female 
still bearing the semblance of its larva-hood, and the male looking like a 
beetle ‘‘ Friend” in his straight-cut suit of sober brown-black. This 
species may be taken abundantly in the forest at night—the females - 
amongst the herbage, and the males flying—both of them exhibiting their 
wonderful light, that of the female, however, being by far the most 
intense. I have found larve of this insect feeding on living snails, Helix 
aspersa and H. nemoralis. 


Our steps are now resolutely set in the direction of the keeper’s 
cottage, where we propose to take tea previous to quitting this fascinating 
region. But our resolution is soon put to the test and found wanting ; 
for, although our success has been beyond our hopes, we are not able to 
pass by a likely-looking beetle-trap without subjecting it to examination. 
Hence that group of suspended moles, dead and dry, is tapped over the 
inverted umbrella, and lo! quite a shower of the beautifully-tinted 
Dermestes murinus drop out. Those rotting fragments of an old saddle 
must also be looked over with care. What! Insects there? Yes! here 
is Trox sabulosus, sixteen fine specimens, in appearance like bits of caked 
mud. That these apparently inanimate objects are endowed with vitality 
certainly seems open to question, until, holding one upside-down between 
your fingers, and applying gentle pressure laterally, you see the abdomen 
slightly move, and hear a sound almost like the wailing of a sickly infant. 

But we really must not linger over this wailing mimic; our time has 
nearly run out, and tea and train must now occupy the leading place in 
our thoughts, to the exclusion of beetles and butterflies. It is hard, how- 
ever, to drag ourselves away from the many attractions by which we are 
surrounded here, and only when a sort of compromise is mentally entered 
into, to the effect that we will take the first opportunity of returning, do 
we, reluctantly yielding to the force of circumstances, consent to rejoin 
the current of social life, which, during one day, we seem to have quitted 
for Fairy Land. 


THE WEATHER OF JULY. 


233 


METEOROLOGY OF THE MIDLANDS. 
THE WEATHER OF JULY, 1879. 


BY W. JEROME HARRISON, F.G.S. 


Ss 
STATION. OBSERVER. Fall 
Ae 
In. 
——— ee 
GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
NEMDINETRI erence csccecs (te. LYYOX, HSQ. cesevcocsuvs 3°61 
Stroud ...ccesereeee Meeivsisme cio We COLOY, TSG vccecs vtavies 3°45 
SHROPSHIRE. 
Haughton Hall, Shifnal ....|/Rev. J. Brooke .....-...005 3°69 
Woolstaston .....ccccceseces Rey. H.D. Carr. ccc scccecve 312 
More Rectory, Bishop’ § Castle ev. A. Male: cecccravapene 2°84 
Bishop's Castle ........ Se adet E. Griffiths, Esq. .........- 3°58 
MUBEOITIPEOR cv cuscs cece cccess Rev. Wm. Elliott...... sees} 2°89 
HERBFORDSHIRE. 
MRMASEENL Cridyiisaciccsccacccss W. Wheatley, Esq. ........| 2°18 
Stoke Bliss ..........se008 ...|Rev. G. EH. Alexander...... 2°61 
WORCESTERSHIRE. 
Orleton, Tenbury.........- ..|T. H. Davis, Esq. ..........| 3°44 
West Malvern .......c..0008 A. H. Hartland, Esq. ...... 3°29 
PEAMOLE Fo. oii... cece ee E. B. Marten, Esq. ........ 3°67 
Longlands, Stourbridge ..|J. Jeffries Hsq........ eeeee| 3°39 
Dennis, Stourbridge .. . C. Webb ..... AROSAS o+| 837 
STAFFORDSHIRE. 
Thorganby Villa,Wolverhmtn|G. J. C. Broom, Esq. ......| 4°69 
Dudl Mr. J. Fisher ..... | 3°71 
.|Mr. C. Beale ... 3°20 
Rey. W. H. Bolton 447 
.|Mr. N. E. Best . 3°50 
. ai Go Oey REED Ds FU s cowise su, sinine 2°50 
Weston-under-Lyziard R’ tory Hon.and Rev.J. Bridgeman| 4°75 
Wrottesley ........... eevee. |H. Simpson, Hsq. ......2...| 5°28) 
Heath House, Cheadle ......|J. C. Philips, Hsq...........| 3°67 
Alstonfield Vicarage PecsteeathGys Wei. POECRAS! Succes 4°42. 
WARWICKSHIRE. 
Goundon, Coventry .......-..|Lieut.-Col. R. Caldicott ....] 3°31 
Coventry . aeeb ene cocnee(d- Gulson, Hsq. ...ceccecees 319) 
Bickenhill Vicarage... Ree cebincl si WALD, ISG... cceee meeawiee 3°87 
St. Mary’s College .......... Rev. S. J Whitty ......000: 3°19 
Henley-in-Arden ........+ ..-|Z. H. @. Newton, Esq...... 3°31 
Rugby School................|Rev. T. N. Hutchinson ....| 3°56 
DERBYSHIRE. 
Stoney Middleton..........--|Rev. U. Smith ...........-| 3°74 
Fernslope, Belver............|J. G. Jackson, Esq. ..... 8°41 
Brampton 8. Thomas.....-.- Rev. J. M. Mello .......... 3°02 
Linacre Reservoir.........+.- C. KE. Jones, Esq.....e+0+00-| 3°08) 
Spondon ....................|J- L. Barber, Hsq.....ce000- 2:99 
DUTICI De uaupiles avo s->ess.e) W. SANG, Had, co ccecccence] 259 
NOTTINGHAMSHIRE. 
Hesley Hall ........... «+..-(B. J. Whitaker, Esq. ......| 3°66 
PREC OMI Toes a berey diseecses MeN DULty, MUS. cleicccnsace 3°82 
Hodsock Priory, Worksop .-|/H. Mellish, Hisq. .......0.. 2°98 
Highfield House, Nottingham|E. J. Lowe, Esq. .......... 3°67 
Park Hill, Nottingham Tokens H.F. Johnson, Esq, ...... 3°46 
LEICESTERSHIRE. 
Loughborough ......... seees|W. Berridge, Hsq..e.sseee 2°66 
Ashby Magna...........sse0es Rev. E. Willes ........0000 3°27, 
Market Harborough ........ Baws Cox. HAG. <itesecactne 413 
USTOWOLED sicicclocisnceneccceccce uu Macaulay, CoG raenGeeoc 8°82 
Town Museum, Leicester ....|W. J. Harrison, Esq. ......| 3°72 
Belmont Villas, Leicester... [E BillsonssHisq. lsisc8 cise 3°69 
RURAIEM Sale aicletslals nig'a\= == ©\cle\ciale « J. Hames, jun., Esq. . 2°74 
Walthamelc-Woid .|E. Ball, Esq. ..... 3°93 
Little Dalby Hall G. Jones, Esq. 3°96 
Foxton Locks ........ ‘.|Union Canal Company 2°99 
Coston Rectory, Melton .|Rev. A. M. Rendell , 
NORTHAMPTONSHI®: 
Towcester Brewery.. -+|J. Webb, Esq. *8i 
Castle Ashby ........ -.|R. G. Scriven, Esq. 5 
PEGEEOTING socc cc cc est ceececes J. Wallis, Esq. 3 
Althorpe ........... Raeries fe [Grae TOOM, HRC sles « sess 3 
BUESLOFE * .. 00.5 en cceee «++eee./C. A. Markham, Esq....... 3°28 
RUTLAND. 
West Deyne, Uppingham....|/Rev. G. H. Mullins ........ 8°38 
Northfields, Stamford ......|W. Hayes, Esq. ........2+.+/ 2°77 
Ventnor Hospital............|W. T. Ryder, Esq.......+.| 3°73 
Altarnun Vicarage ..........'Rev. Jd. POWer ..seseseeses| 777 


TEMPERATURE, 


Greatest ht.|Great’st cold 


RAINFALL. 
Greatest fall |S¢ 
in 24 hours. S bm 
In., Date. | 3 Deg} Date. 
1:10 13 22/770} 29 
“81 1 18 | 73°0 19 
“76 13 20 |75°0| 29 
“6d 13 23 | 50 28 
“48 18 22/770) 28 
125 13 21 | 76°0 29 
“42, 19 17 
36) 14 21 
“46 13 19 |740) 29 
“86 13 22/772) 29 
"45 12 21 | 81% 29 
66 14 20 |}810} 18 
“45, 14 17 | 8270/29 & 30 
“60 14 20 | 76°.|28 & 29 
150} 14 19 
63} = 20 20 | 82°0/29 & 80 
"62 14 19 |72°0} 29 
92 14 17 | 80°0 29 
63 i4 22 | '75'0 28 
“b4 19 19 |80°0) 28 
1:06 18 22 | 82:0 29 
1°80 14 18 |'76°2} 29 
70). 19 19 | 72°0}28 & 29 
Ti 8 16 | 76 0j28 & 29 
“47 8 16 |78°0} 28 
“46 13 16 | 77°0 30 
“56 13 22 |'73'0 
“43 20 20 | 753 29 
“b8 14 17 |79°0} 29 
“Bl 19 19 | 758) 29 
90} 20 17 |73°0} 29 
50]. 19 19 |77°0|28 & 30 
“64 19 14 | 755 28 
“83 19 18 
*b2) 19 20 | '71:3/28 & 29 
“46 19 19 
oy 6 ner 17 |79°0) 380 
82:0) 28 
62 21 17 |77'8} 28 
‘b7/ 14 19 | 74:2) 18 
“45 19 17 |75°7| 29 
*35| 8 & 31 | 20 | 781 29 
‘bd 13 19 | 79°0 99 
“75| 20 23/750} 30 
“69 20 22 
“75 13 23 |75°6} 28 
“78 13 18 
39) 81 23 | 78'0/29 & 30 
“58 13 0 | 78°0 28 
“60 21 21 | 85:0; 29 
44) 20 19 
“7; 21 22 | 742/28 & 29 
“61; 20 16 
“40 20 19 | 78°C 29. 
"65 20 20 | 75°0 Pe 
“61 20 19 | 75°0 
50) 20 20 |81°0|29 & 30 
46) 21 19 |748) 28 
“74 us 17 |840) 29 
119 19 12 |68°9} 29 
147 il 24 |85°0} 30 


Deg} Date. 
440) 11 
45:0} 11 
440) 26 
450 5 
44:0 6 
460 6 
40°0 

47'0|5, 0, 26 
420 6 
440) 16 
460 5 
420 5 
43°5, 5 
440) 5 & 26 
45°0 5 
44:0] 26 
47:0} 10 
45°0 11 
46°0} 6 & 11 
45°9| 27 
43°0 2 
35°9 1 
49'0 5 
45:0) 6 & 11 
49:0 

44°38 11 
440 6 
44°0 6 
35°0/10 s ay 
45°0 

43°0 B 
42'8, 

43°0} 12 
450) 1 
431) 26 
45°7 11 
484] 10 
462} 11 
42°0} 11 
43'0| 6 & 25 
465) 11 
45:0} 11 
43°0 1 
410} 11 
38°7 26 
47:0! 6 & 10 
47°0 11 
45:0) 10 
42°0) 25 
44°83) 11 
39°0} 12 


499} 11 
47015. 16, 25 
KK 


234 THE WEATHER OF JULY. 


July proved a rainy, ungenial month, with an average temperature of 
from four to five degrees below the average. Cloudy skies, with south- 
westerly winds, often strong, prevailed till the last week of the month,when 
there were a few bright summer-like days. The barometer was unsteady 
and not high. Severe and general thunderstorms occurred on the 13th 
and 14th. MHay-cutting not general till the 27th, and all farming opera- 
tions much hindered and damaged by the weather. From the 11th to 
the 17th, the wind blew from the east, and fogs are reported from several 
stations. Solar and lunar halos were seen at Nottingham on the 
30th. 


Natrurat History Notes py OpserveRs.—More Rectory.—The curlews 
have been restless during the month, crossing our valley to the neigh- 
bouring hills. Ashby Magna.—Fruit and flowers, as well as vegetables, 
very backward. Hay harvest did not begin in this parish till July 15th; 
much has been well got in the last three days of the month. Waltham- 
le-Wold.—Wheat not in ear till the 20th. Hundreds of acres of oats and 
barley will not come into ear at all. Bees, both old stocks and new 
swarms, are starving. Loughborough.—Harvest operations fully six weeks 
late. Burton-on-Trent.—lst, wild Yellow Iris, fl.; 4th, Elder, fi., first 
hay cut; 9th, White Rose, fl.; 7th, Woodbine, fl.; 18th, Barley in ear; 
hay-making general, but damaged by floods. Shifnal—Apples, of which 
there was a great prospect, almost all fell off; no butterflies. Peas first 
gathered 11th, Strawberries 13th. Stroud.—List of flowers noticed and 
time of blossoming:—Ilst, Butterfly Orchis; 2nd, Prunella vulgaris, 
Dulcamara, Sedum acre, Aconitum Napellus, Meadow-sweet; 4th, Eye- 
bright, Common Ragwort; 8th, Viper’s Bugloss, Scabiosa columbaria, 
Galium uliginosum, Digitalis purpurea, Ranunculus Lingua ; 12th, Epilobium 
montanum, Alisma Plantago, Stachys sylvatica, Achillea millefoliwm, 
Medicago lupulina; 15th, Juncus uliginosus, Centaurea nigra, Malva 
sylvestris, Valeriana rubra; 17th, Great Mullein, Geranium pratense, 
Lonicera Periclymenum; 18th, Chlora perfoliata ; 20th, Campanula rotun- 
difolia ; 24th, Bee Orchis; 26th, Malva moschata, Reseda Luteola, Linaria 
vulgaris; 31st, Red Bartsia, Corn Cockle, Wild Basil, Red Pimpernel, 
Common St. John’s Wort. Nottingham, Highfield House Observatory.— 
8rd, Rhodendrons, Ghent Azaleas, Double Scarlet Thorn, Laburnum, 
Brown Iris, and Hemerocallis flavus still in bloom; 6th, Snowball Tree, 
Heracleum gigantewm, and Yellow Briar in fi.; 12th, Elder in fl., Straw- 
berries ripe; 20th, Deutzia scabra in fi.; 21st, Portugal Laurel in fl.; 
27th, Spirea erifolia in fi., also Deutzia scabra plena; 29th, Spirea 
palmata in fl.; 31st, Roses in full glory, some Rhododendrons yet in fi. 
Moseley, near Birmingham.—August 20th, a large pyramidal Pear Tree is 
this day in full bloom, as though it were Spring; Roses were more than a 
month late in blooming; they have continued in great beauty up 
to now. Pek 


Correspondence. 


ee 


A Lone Stezr.—On July 6th, 1875, I found five larve of the Puss 
Moth (Cerura vinula) feeding upon willow. These I placed in a breeding 
box, with their food stuck into damp sand, and after a time they spun 
their cocoons in the cornersand on the sides of the box, and four of them 
emerged all right in the following May, (1876.) The remaining one I 
fancied dead, but did not examine the cocoon, and not wanting the box 


CORRESPONDENCE. 235 


again it was put away in an empty room, and there it remained until 
August 1st, 1879, when the box was wanted for a purpose which 
necessitated cleaning it out. In doing this I pulled the five cocoons 
down, and was much surprised to find the pupa in the one which I had 
looked upon as dead still alive and really “‘ kicking.” On closely examining 
this cocoon I noticed that the larva had spun it in a horizontal position just 
below the sand, and in a corner of the box, one end joining the left-hand 
side, leaving the other end free, from which the moth ought to have emerged 
had not the larva made a strange mistake by changing to the pupa with 
its head towards the end joining the wood on the left-hand side of the box, 
and which it could not possibly penetrate. How long it might have 
remained alive of course no one can tell; however, on being placed on the 
mantel-shelf, in a cool room, the moth emerged, after having been in 
the pupa state for more than four years!—EFRrep. Enocx, 30, Russell 
Road, London, N. 


Tue Buz-naterR (Merops apiaster) to which reference is made at 
pp. 188 and 210, was shot at Mapperley, near Derby, on June 10th, 1879. 
It was a male bird, in very fine plumage, and was set up by me for the 
person who shot it, but I afterwards purchased it for the Nottingham 
Free Museum, to which I am taxidermist. There was another bird 
shot before the one I had, which I did not see; probably afemale. The 
bird I had was a wild one, and had not been kept in a cage. I shall be 
very pleased to give any further particulars of it to anyone who may 
call on me.—L. Lez, Naturalist and Taxidermist, 26, Drury Hill, 
Nottingham. 


OrnitHoLocy.—A very fine specimen of the ‘‘ Honey Buzzard” was 
shot by Mr, Beech’s keeper in the Brandon Woods. Itis now at David 
Smith’s. Its crop was found stuffed with caterpillars, grubs, dragon flies, 
and other insects, npon which this species usually feeds. It rarely takes 
small birds, or anything larger than caterpillars and insects. It often 
takes bees, but appears to have no fondness for honey, as its name would 
imply. A pair of ‘‘ Hobbies” were also shot at Combe by Lord Craven’s 
keeper a few weeks since. The nest and eggs were also taken from a high 
tree, in which they had built.—J. Gunson, Coventry. 

Tar ScriprocrapH.—Directions for making and using :—Materials 
for making the pad: 1oz. gelatine, 60z. glycerine (common,) loz. lump 
sugar, 40z. water, 240z. barium sulphate. Heat the gelatine, water, and 
sugar in a water bath, well stir the barium sulphate with the glycerine, 
and incorporate all together. Pour into a tin mould, 1lin. by 7}in. by fin. 
deep. To make the ink, rub up the solid aniline violet with gum water, 
and thin with methylated spirit untilit flows freelyfrom the pen. Touse 
the apparatus: Write on any paper; when dry, place face downwards on 
the pad ; allow to remain about a minute; then peel the paper off. Then 
lay on the slab unglazed paper, and smooth with the fingers. Fifty to 
100 copies may be taken. When sufficient copies are taken, remove the 
writing witha wet sponge. When the pad becomes deteriorated, re-melt 
it. ddditional Notes: The pad should remain twelve hours after being 
made before being used, and before being used should be sponged. The 
mixture should be strained through muslin to remove lumps of barium 
sulphate. Care should be taken to avoid bubbles, which would cause an 
uneven surface. If the writing is difficult to remove from the pad, hot 
water may be used, though this causes the pad to wear away faster. It 
is not necessary to remove all traces of the writing, as they will diffuse 
themselves in the course of some hours in the slab. If the original 
writing still shows a metallic lustre, it may be used to give another 
negative for printing from.—C. J. Watson. 


936 GLEANINGS. 


Gleanmgs. 


Tue British Association commenced its forty-ninth annual meeting 


on Wednesday, August 20th, at Sheffield, under the presidency of Prof. 


G. J. Allman, M.D., LL.D., F.R.S., &c., who delivered the inaugural 
address, in which, as he himself described it, he gave “‘in as untechnical 
a form as possible, some account of the most generalised expression of 
living matter, and of the results of the more recent researches into its 
nature and phenomena.” Our limited space precludes any attempt at 
even the briefest outline of this erudite and admirable address, a verbatim 
report of which is given in Nature for August 21st, to which we refer our 
readers. All we can dois to give very briefly the substance of a few 
of the introductory sentences. 

SarcopE, as Professor Allman in this address pointed out, was the 
name given more than forty years ago bv Dujardin to the structureless, 
semi-fluid, contractile substance of which the bodies of some of the 
lowest members of the animal kingdom consist. 

Protopitasm.—Hugo yon Mohl found a similar substance to sarcode 
occurring in the cells of plants which he was studying, to which he gave 
the name protoplasm. Max Schultze demonstrated that the sarcode of 
animals and the protoplasm of plants were identical. Subsequent 
researches have confirmed Max Schultze’s conclusions, and it has further 
been rendered certain that protoplasm les at the base of all the 
phenomena of life, whether in the animal or the vegetable kingdom. 
“Thus,” says Professor Allman, ‘‘has arisen the most important and 
significant generalisation in the whole domain of biological science.” 

Tur Puysican Basis oF Lire, says Huxley, is protoplasm. Wherever 
there is life, from its lowest to its highest manifestations, there is proto- 
plasm ; wherever there is protoplasm, there, too, is life. Co-extensive 
with the whole of organic nature, it becomes to the biologist what the 
ether is to the physicist; only that instead of being a hypothetical 
conception accepted as a reality from its adequacy in the explanation of 
phenomena, it is a tangible and visible reality, which the chemist may 
analyse in his laboratory, the biologist scrutinise beneath his microscope 
and his dissecting needle. 

Tur Cuemican Composition of protoplasm is very complex and has 
not been exactly determined. It may, however, be stated that proto- 
plasm is essentially a combination of albuminoid bodies and that its 
principal elements are therefore oxygen, carbon, hydrogen, and nitrogen. 
Tn its typical state it presents the condition of a semi-fiuid substance—a 
tenacious, glairy liquid, with a consistence somewhat like that of the 
white of an unboiled egg. 

Minure GRaNnvues are, under the highest powers of the microscope, 
frequently found disseminated in protoplasm in countless multitudes. 
Protoplasm may also be found to be absolutely homogeneous, and 
whether containing granules or not, it is certain that nothing willbe found 
to which the term organisation can be applied. 

Barnysius HarcKkenm is the name which Huxley gave to a peculiar 
slimy matter dredged in the North Atlantic by the naturalists of the 
exploring ship Porcupine, from a depth of from 5,000 to 25,000 feet. It 
is described as exhibiting, when examined on the spot, spontaneous 
movements, and as being endowed with life. Specimens preserved in 
spirits were subsequently examined by Huxley, and declared by him to 
consist of protoplasm, vast masses of which probably extend in a living 


state over wide areas of sea bottom. Haeckel has since subjected - 


Bathybius to careful examination, and he believes he is able to confirm in 


GLHANINGS. 237 


all points the conclusions of Huxley. The more recent investigations of 
the Challenger Expedition do not support these conclusions, but, as 
Professor Allman observes, ‘‘It is not easy to believe that the very 
elaborate investigations of Huxley and Haeckel can thus be disposed of.” 

Proropatuysius is the name given by Bessels (one of the explorers 
of the more recent and ill-fated Polaris Expedition) to masses of living 
undifferentiated protoplasm dredged from the Greenland Seas; but they 
are in all essential particulars undistinguishable from the Bathybius of 
the Porcupine Expedition, and so far Bessels’ observations confirm those 
above recorded. 

PRoTAM@BA PRIMITIVA is a name given by Haeckel to ‘little protoplas- 
mic lumps” found inhabiting the fresh waters in the neighbourhood of 
Jena. These, when placed under the microscope, were seen to have no 
constant shape, their outline being in a state of continual change, caused 
by the protrusion from various parts of their surface of broad lobes 
and thick finger-like projections (termed Pseudopodia,) which, after 
remaining visible for a time, would be withdrawn, to make their appear- 
ance again on some other part of the surface. They may be compared 
to minute detached pieces of Bathybius. 

Monera is the name given to agroup, including several other beings as 
simple as Protameba, described by various observers, and especially by 
Haeckel, who has given the name on account of the extreme simplicity 
of the beings included in it. 

Ama@Ba, a stage somewhat higher in the development of proto- 
plasmic beings, was the next thing glanced at by Prof. Allman. Widely 
distributed in the fresh and salt waters of Britain, and probably of almost 
all parts of the world, Amvbe are small particles of protoplasm closely 
resembling the Protameba just described. Like it they have no definite 
shape, and are perpetually changing their form, throwing out and drawing 
in thick lobes and finger-like pseudopodia, in which their body seems to 
flow away over the field of the microscope. They are, however, nc longer 
the homogeneous particle of protoplasm which forms the body of 
Protameba. Towards the centre, a small globular mass of firmer 
protoplasm has become differentiated from the remainder, and forms 
what is known as a nucleus, while the protoplasm, forming the extreme 
outer boundary, differs slightly from the rest, being more transparent, 
destitute of granules, and apparently somewhat firmer than the interior. 
There is also a “contractile vacuole,” a little rhythmically pulsating 
cavity of very frequent occurrence among those creatures which lie low 
down in the scale of life. 

Cuius.—Although for 200 years the Amaba has been sought for in 
all likely places, and its Protean changes have never ceased to be a source 
of amazement, it is only the science of our own days which has revealed 
its biological importance, and shown that in this little soft, nucleated 
particle we have a body whose significance for the morphology and 
physiology of living beings cannot be over-estimated, for in Amaba we 
have the essential characters of a cELL, the morphological unit of organi- 
sation, the physiological source of specialised function. 


BritisH Assocration.—At a recent meeting of the Leicester 
Corporation it was unanimously resolved, on the motion of Alderman 
Barfoot, to invite the British Association to hold its annual meeting in 
Leicester at the earliest possible date. Leicester has never before been 
able to invite the Association for want of a sufficiently large room in 
which to hear the President’s address; this need has now been supplied 
by the erection of the Royal Opera House. The invitation was, we 
understand, very favourably received by the Council of the British 
Association, so that after Swansea (1880,) with Professor Ramsay as Presi- 
dent, and York (1881,) we expect an excellent meeting at Leicester in 1882. 


238 GLEANINGS—REPORTS. 


Drirt oF THE West Mipnanps.—An important paper on this subject 
by Mr. D. Mackintosh, F.G.8., appears in No. 139 of “‘ The Quarterly 
Journal of the Geological Society,” just published. Three sources of 
boulders are indicated :—(1) Granite of Criffel, &c., in Kirkcudbrightshire ; 
(2) Eskdale Granite and Felspathic Rocks, from the Lake District ; (3) 
Felstones, &c., from the Arenig Mountains of North Wales. The agency 
of transport is believed to have been floating ice. On the south-west of 
the Clent Hills, between Hagley and Bromsgrove, and in less numbers 
near Birmingham, are many Arenig blocks; between Bridgnorth and 
Wolverhampton, and on Bushbury Hill enormous numbers of boulders 
(chiefly Criffel) occur. Here a warm current may have melted the bergs. 
The “ great Cannon Hill Park boulder” at Birmingham, is referred to the 
Arenig area. In the discussion which followed the reading of the paper, 
Mr. J. F. Campbell instanced the Straits of Belleisle, almost in the same 
latitude, as a place where a similar state of things now existed. 


Aeports of Societies, 


BIRMINGHAM NATURAL HISTORY AND MICROSCOPICAL 
SOCIETY.—Gnronocican Srction.—July 22nd. Mr. W. Southall mentioned 
that the Reed Warbler (Salicaria arundinacea) had built in the reeds surround- 
ing a poolat the back of his house, in Edgbaston. Mr. J. Morley exhibited some 
plants sent from Barmouth by Mr. J.W.Cotton. Genera Meetine.—July 29th. 
Messrs. Bolton and Levick exhibited a very remarkable animal found in Olton 
Reservoir by the members at the excursion thither on the previous Saturday, 
supposed to be the larva of some Entomostracon. Mr. J. Levick also exhibited 
Oeratium cornutum, a very curious Infusorian from the same place; also, 
Conochilus volvow and Volvox globator. Mr. J. E. Bagnall exhibited Marchantia 
conica, in fruit, from Sutton; and, on behalf of Mr. T. J. Slatter, Monotropa 
hypopitys and Geranium pratense, var.album. Mr. W. Graham exhibited a fine speci- 
men of a supposed species of Cycas from the coal measures, Rowley. GmrNERAL 
Meerrine.—August 5th. Mr. H. HE. Forrest exhibited beautiful living speci- 
mens of the two Hydrozoa, Campanularia verticillata and Halecium Halecinum ; 
also Ohiton cinereus; allfrom Penmaenmawr. He also showed portions of the 
two first in the microscope, with the polyps expanded. Mr. Thos. Bolton 
exhibited Doto coronata and Nymphon gracile from the same place. Mr. W. BR. 
Hughes exhibited some curious spawn from a pool near Hamstead, di: posed in 
festooned chains. Mr. H. E. Forrest read a short paper on a supposed new 
Entomostracon, for which he proposed the name of Daphnia Bairdii (see page 
217.) Brotocican Section.—August 12th. Mr. T. Bolton made a communication 
to the Section respecting a very beautiful and wonderfuily-transparent Ento- 
mostracon, recently captured by members of the Birmingham Natural History 
and Microscopical Society at Olton Reservoir, which has been identified by 
Professor E. Ray Lankester as Leptodora hyalina of Lilljeborg, a species 
hitherto recorded as found in Sweden and Germany only. At the sathe 
meeting, Mr. Bolton exhibited the somewhat rare Entomostracon, Polyphemus 
pediculus, which oceurs at the present time in enormous quantities, along with 
Volvox globator, in Sutton Park; also, Ceratium (Peridiniwm) cornutum, one of 
the Cilio-flagellate Infusoria, the elegant Diatom, Campylodiscus spiralis, &e. 
Messrs. Crick, Butterfield, and Caldwell contributed collections of local plants. 


CARADOC FIELD CLUB.—Second Field Meeting of the Caradoc Field 
Club, at Welshpool, on Wednesday, July 30th. Visited Trilobite Dingle, and 
quarry of basaltic rock near the town. Some of the party walked to exposure 
of Bala beds at Moel-y-Garth; remainder to the top of Powis Castle Park, 
returning to Welshpool through the Castle gardens, &. There was a large 
attendance of members. 


a 


REPORTS. 939 


NOTTINGHAM NATURALISTS’ SOCIETY.—July 31st was set apart for 
the annual excursion of this Society, and the district chosen was that of Creswell 
Crags, to which, by the kind permission of the Duke of Portland, were added 
the-abbey and grounds of Welbeck. Creswell Crags are situated some half- 
mile from the village. They consist of a north and south cliff, the rocks in some 
places reaching sixty feet in height, and forming a picturesque defile in the local 
ridge of limestone through which flows the river Wollen, recently dammed up 
as a lake, a stream or shirebrook which parts Nottinghamshire from Derbyshire. 
At the foot of the northern cliff are two extensive caves, which, along with the 
one in the southern or Nottinghamshire cliff have recently been explored by the 
Rev. J. M. Mello, Chesterfield. Mr. L. Lee, honorary secretary of the Society, 
had arranged for the caverns to be illuminated. The Derbyshire portion of the 
caves was first examined. The lines of the recent floors were traced, and no 
small surprise was expressed at the great amount of debris which in the course 
of the explorations had been removed therefrom—debris which, as the prospectus 
of the excursion set out, contained remains of the cave lion, leopard, cave 
bysena, machairodus, woolly rhinoceros, mammoth, wolf, grizzly bear, brown 
bear, bison, reindeer, and the Irish elk. The Nottinghamshire cave was also 
examined. At the mouth or entrance of this cave, amidst scenery which was 
classed by some of the members as the grandest they had ever seen, 
the company were favoured with a discourse upon the physical 
features of the district by Mr. William Stevenson, in the course 
of which he pointed out that the Creswell Caves were attributed to 
aqueous action, and were referred to one. or more of the numerous submersions 
which the country has been subject to in recent geological times. With regard 
to the animals whose remains were found in the debris of these caverns, it was 
pointed out that the presence of fragments of bones was but poor evidence of 
the animals themselves inhabiting the caves, as their remains were found in the 
alluvium of the valleys and in the fractures and minor fissures of the rocks; but 
the evidence of their inhabiting the district was held to be incontestible. The 
oldest or extinct species pointed to convulsive actions of nature, in the form of 
mighty floods, where the bones of the animals themselves were gathered, along 
with the fragments of local and other rocks, and washed into these fissures or 
caves in the rocks, the preservation of the same being attributed to the calcareous 
nature of their surroundings. The lecturer dwelt at some length upon the 
explorations carried on in the Pleasley Valley by the Nottingham Naturalists’ 
Society in 1865, and the additions thus made to the local museum, especially in 
the jaw of the Felis lynx, a carnivorous animal, no remains of which, with the 
exception of a solitary tooth in the British Museum, had previously been found 
in the deposits of this country, and he concluded by describing the Pleasley 
Caves as being analogous to those in the Creswell neighbourhood. ‘The Society 
made another visit to the same locality on August 21st. 


NOTTINGHAM LITERARY AND PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY.— 
Excursions in July and August:—July 10th.—Hxcursion to Stoke-on-Trent, 
Trentham, and Longton. August 16th.—The second excursion of the season 
was to Dale Abbey. A party of members numbering nearly thirty went by train, 
at 230P.m., to West Hallam, and walked thence to Dale. Heavy rain prevented 
anything from being done until after tea, when the party, under the guidance of 
Mr. Scott White, inspected the remains of the Abbey, which have recently been 
brought to light by the exertions of the Derbyshire Archeological Society, in 
excavations on the site of the Abbey. Inthe absence (through illness) of Mr. J. 
Charles Cox, a paper by Mr. Hope was read by Mr. White. From this it appears 
that the Abbey was founded in 1160, as a monastery of Austin Canons. About 
half the area of the Abbey buildings have been laid bare, consisting of a choir, 
with a double quasi-aisle to the south, central tower, nave, with north aisle, and 
north and south transepts, with a large chapel on the east of the north transept. 
After a close inspection of the Abbey, the monuments and encaustic tiles which 
are preserved in several sheds in the village were examined. For full particulars 
of these reference should be made to Mr, Hope’s paper inthe “ Journal of the 
Derbyshire Archeological Society” for this year. The church and hermitage 
were afterwards visited, and the party returned to Nottingham at a late hour, 
vid West Hallam. 


940 REPORTS. 


OSWESTRY AND WELSHPOOL NATURALISTS’ FIELD CLUB.-— 
The third excursion for 1879 took place on July 31st. Meeting at Selattyn, the 
party took the way by the Tower, and along Otfa’s Dyke to Craignant, and then 
over the hill by Bronygarth to Brookside, where they were most hospitably 
entertained’ by Major Barnes. Some fine specimens of the Frog Orchis 
(Habenaria viridis) were found, and also Sweet Cicely (Myrrhis odorata.) The 
geologists found numerous fossils and fragments of fossils in the blocks of mill- 
stone grit on Selattyn Hill, and in the old limestone quarry at Yr Orsedd, by 
Offa's Dyke, were found some nicely preserved specimens of Lithostrotion minus, 
L. floriforme, Alveolites, and Zaphrentis among the corals, and good specimens 
of Productus Youngianus among the mollusca, together with numerous minute 
fossils, chiefly spines and stems of Encrinites. After tea Mr. D. C. Davies, F.G.5., 
gave a short address on the principal objects of interest observed during the day. 
He explained the order of strata in the Ceiriog Valley, referring particularly to 
the carboniferous limestone and the millstone grit, along which principally the 
excursion had been made. The boulders of Scotch granite, seen on the top of 
Selattyn Hill, were also referred to in connection with the drift deposits. The 
address, which will probably appear in the proposed new volume of the Proceed- 
ings of the Society, concluded with a reference to the increased interest and 
beauty which a general knowledge of geology attaches to the extensive land- 
scapes the excursionists had that day beheld. 


STROUD NATURAL HISTORY AND PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY.— 
August 7th, a short excursion was made (twenty-two members and friends 
present.) The meeting place was Frocester Court, where the old Tithe Barn of 
¢he Abbots of Gloucester was examined, and the fine timber work of the roof much 
admired. Mr. Chapman courteously received the visitors and admitted them to 
the Elizabethan Manor-house, built in 1554. Thence the members proceeded to 
Frocester Hill, where, under the President’s guidance, the geologists made 
an examination of the bed of the Lower Oolite, rich in ammonites and belemnites. 
The botanists made search in the wooded slopes, and found some fine beds of 
Polypodium vulgare. The next point of interest was the long tumulus near 
Buckholt, which was uncovered some years siice, exposing the various chambers. 
The construction was explained by Mr. Witchell. The excursionists then had, by 
Mr. Leigh's kind permission, a very pleasant walk through Woodchester Park, 
the beautiful scenery of which was much appreciated; on many of the lakes 
were water lilies in abundance and perfection. The botanists concluded their 
yesearches by an unsuccessful quest for clubmoss in the ferny hills, amidst 
bracken and thistle five feet high. The ramble was followed by tea at Thees- 
combe House, where the members were most hospitably and kindly entertained 
by Mr. and Mrs. Charles Playne. 


WOOLHOPE NATURALISTS’ FIELD CLUB.—July 29th.—The third 
field meeting for the season was at Downton, on which occasion a. goodly 
number of ladies, invited by special tickets, honoured the members with their 
presence. The day being fine, the drive over the beautiful hill of Mary Knoll was 
most enjoyable. Immediately under this hillis the wooded valley of Hay Park, 
where the Earl of Bridgewater’s children lost themselves, and gave occasion to 
Milton to write ‘‘Comus.” At Aston the members inspected the little Norman 
church, the Rev. J. H. Clay, the incumbent,explaining its interesting architectural 
features. At the Hay Mill the party left the carriages and wended their way 
through the beautiful and romantic scenery in the gorge of the river Teme to 
Downton, where many varieties of ferns flourish. On the bridge in front of 
the Castle a halt was made to collect the visitors together. The private grounds 
and conservatories were then visited, and under a wide-spreading beech tree the 
President took the chair, and the business of the club was transacted. The 
President read an interesting paper written by Mr. Timothy Curley on the 
*‘ Monastic Remains Discovered in the Construction of the Ludlow Cattle 
Markets,” for which a cordial vote of thanks was passed. The beautiful grounds 
and the chief rooms in the Castle were kindly thrown open to the members and 
their friends. The return journey was made through Oakley Park (the seat of 
Lord Windsor) to Ludlow, where a meat tea was provided at the Feathers Hotel. 
The Museum ut Ludlow was visited by some of the members, who expressed 
themselves highly gratified by the excellent taste displayed in the arrangement of 
the valuable collection by Mr. Charles Fortey. 


- 
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Win SU P, re 4 
aT eran nai, ye 


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A New Rotifer, &c,. 


A NEW ROTIFER. DAI 


A NEW ROTIFER. 


BY J. LEVICK, 


In July last a visit was made to Olton Reservoir by a few members 
of the Birmingham Natural History and Microscopical Society, when I 
had the good fortune to find that curious Hntomostracan, since proved 
to be Leptodora hyalina, a description and figure of which are given at 
page 225. This species had been discovered before only in Sweden and 
Germany. 

Upon carefully examining the contents of my bottles under the 
microscope, I noted other rare things, and became very desirous of 
hunting again in the same locality. 

By the kind courtesy of our esteemed member, Mr. C. T. Parsons, 
T have been able to revisit the pool, which is private property, upon several 
occasions, and have now the pleasure of recording the discovery of a 
most strange-looking Rotifer, (Plate VI., Fig. 1,) which is new to this 
country, and has only most recently been known even to science, and to 
which I had given the provisional name of Anurea tricornuta. 

I sent a sketch and mounted specimens to Dr. C. T. Hudson, to whom 
I am much indebted for his kind aid, and who expressed his belief that 
my Rotifer was the same creature as one discovered in Niagara water by 
Professor D. §. Kellicott, of Buffalo, U.S., who gave a description and 
figure in the “ Journal of the Royal Microscopical Society” of April last, 
under the proposed name of Anurea longispina. 

Notwithstanding that I am unable to make my Rotifer agree with 
the Professor’s details and drawing in some important points, the general 
characters are so nearly alike that I have no doubt our Rotifers are 
identical. I must refer your readers to the before-named publication for 
his account of it, and will here give only such particulars asI have been able 
to make out in the short time the Rotifer has been under my observation. 


As seen in the microscope it is a formidable-looking creature, and may 
be compared to a three-pronged fork with a handle. Its extreme 
length is about 1-40th of an inch; it has a hard glassy lorica, which 
reflects light nearly as brilliantly as does the silicious epiderm of a 
diatom ; it has four spines, three anterior and one posterior, the former 
roughened or serrated the whole length, the latter only towards the end 3 
the long frontal spine is straight, starting from the upper terminal edge 
of the carapace, those at the angles curved outwards and downwards; the 
posterior spine is also slightly curved, all being perfectly rigid, having no 
hinges or joints. 

A reference to my sketch (Plate VI., Fig. 1) will give a better idea of 
the form of the lorica than I can do in words, but it is described by the 
Professor as “‘ ovate-cuneate ;” it is convex on the dorsal and somewhat 


REFERENCES TO PLATE VI. 


Fig. 1.—New Rotifer, Anwrea longispina, x 240 diameters. 
Fig. 2.—Ceratiwm longicorne (?) x 300 diameters ; from Olton. 
Fig. 3.—Ceratiwm longicorne (?) x 300 diameters from Sutton Park. 


LL 


DAP, A NEW ROTIFER. 


hollowed on the ventral side, the hollow deepening towards the posterior 
end, where the female carries the egg attached. 

Tt has one round red eye, centrally situate, level with the base of the 
long frontal spine, and viewed from the ventral side the mastax is seen 
a little to the left, working away in the usual manner, having I believe 
four pairs of teeth upon which its prey is continually falling. 

Curiously enough in the first specimens gathered the eye-spots were 
two, nearly close together, both round and red, and of equal size; 
but in those since taken, evidently in a more advanced stage, 
many of them carrying the egg, one eye only appears, much larger, but 
in other respects the same. This phenomenon is new to me in Rotifer 
life, and I have carefully preserved mounted specimens showing both 
characteristics. It is common enough in some species for the eyes to 
disappear altogether; but this is the first instance I have met with in 
which two small spots, apparently, coalesce and form one larger eye. 


The trochal lobes, as shown in the sketch, commencing with the two 
central short horns, are more protruded than is usual when the 
creature is swimming, the specimen figured being held under slight 
pressure ; they are furnished with six small tufts of cilia, which under a 
low power appear almost continuous, and are protected by four short 
horns, which, unlike the long spines, will bend inwards. 

The capacious stomach is of very simple form, looking like a long 
sack. It occupies about one-half the enclosed space, starting from the 
gizzard, passing down the left side, and forming a constriction towards the 
end, and in the specimen now under examination a rhythmical expansion 
and contraction is continuously taking place. 


Professor Kellicott figures a pair of well-defined ‘‘ wheels” which 
are not to be seen in my Rotifers, and are probably a mistake. 

Like its congeners, it is heavily weighted with its case, and its power 
of propulsion is comparatively slight. Itswims either forwards or back- 
wards at about the same speed, and appears to prefer deep water for its 
habitat, being most abundant from three to five feet below the surface, in 
apart of the pool free from plants or mud; it lives but a short time after 
being gathered. 

Its companions at Olton were two other forms of Anurea, viz., 
A. aculeata and A. stipitata, with several species of Peridiniga, either 
with or without horns, the form I have sketched at Fig. 2 being the most 
abundant. This bizarre-looking creature, about 1-100th of an inch in extreme 
length, (possibly the Ceratium longicorne of Perty,) is new to me in fresh- 
water life, the horned species of Peridinium being usually found only in 
salt water; it belongs to that order of ciliated organisms which are 
besides furnished with one or more flagella, and therefore named cilio- 
flagellata. 

Its congeners are well-known among the marine forms of phos- 
phorescent protozoa, and its outline will be recognised as not unlike some 
of the species found at Arran last year, when the microscopists of the 
Marine Excursion party were busy seeking Noctiluca. It is ofa yellowish 
green colour, has a rough and apparently calcareous carapace, which is 


A NEW ROTIFER. 9438 


deeply marked with hexagonal areole; a ciliated furrow or groove 
passes round the widest part, and it is besides furnished with a long 
flayellum, starting from the base of the central frontal horn, where is to be 
seen a bright clear space, of an irregular oval shape, probably a vesicle, 
though I have observed no contraction nor any signs of its purpose. It 
swims either forwards or backwards, with a rolling motion. 


Fig. 3 is a somewhat different form, taken at Sutton Park last June, 
and figured by my friend Mr. H. E. Forrest, which had, besides a vesicle 
more centrally situate, three very distinct red spots, which in some 
analogous species have been variously set down as eyes or eggs, and 
upon which I am unable to throw any light. 


ON THE ROCKS OF BRAZIL WOOD, CHARNWOOD 
FOREST. 


BY S. ALLPORT, F.G.S., AND W. JEROME HARRISON, F.G.S. 


This geologically interesting locality has already been briefly 
described in the pages of this magazine (Vol. II., p. 119,) and the occur- 
rence of garnets in the ‘“‘ gneiss” noted (p. 77.) Quite recently, a micro- 
scopical examination of the so-called gneiss convinced one of us that it 
was an excellent example of contact-metamorphism, similar in character 
to that observed round the margins of large masses of granite. <A visit to 
the wood was at once made, and the result of a few hours’ work was the 
collection of two heavy bags of specimens, and an interesting addition to 
the known geological facts of the district. 


Brazil Wood lies on the east side of Charnwood Forest, between 
the villages of Swithland and Mount Sorrel. It is in a valley occupied 
by the Keuper Red Marls, which cover over the intervening space between 
the slate quarries of Swithland and the great granitic mass of Buddon 
Wood and Mount Sorrel. Only in Brazil Wood do we get any indication 
of the line of junction of the slaty and granitic masses, this line being 
everywhere else covered over and concealed by the red marls. The 
wood is about one hour’s walk (three miles in a straight line) from Sileby 
Station, on the Midland main line. 


In the field next to the wood on its north-west side there is a small 
knoll of diorite, which is distant only about 100 yards from the granite, 
and the latter appears to be connected with the Buddon Wood mass by 
an exposure at Kinchley Hill, half-way between. 


Entering Brazil Wood from the direction of Mount Sorrel, we see on 
the left hand (north-east portion of wood) a small conical hill of granite, 
about 750 yards in circumference at the base, and rising from 7Oft. to 
100ft. above the surface; on the right hand (south-west part of wood) is 
a smaller knoll of a rock which has hitherto been called “gneiss.” On 
the western side of the granitic mass on the lower edge of a very small 


244 ROCKS OF BRAZIL WOOD, CHARNWOOD FOREST. 


quarry, is a dyke of diorite, first noted by the Messrs. Hill and Bonney. 
(‘‘ Quarterly Journal of Geological Society,” Vol. XXXTYV., p. 223.) 

The rock forming the conical hill has the same mineral constitution 
as that of the larger granitic masses above mentioned, although it differs 
from them in appearance. It is a rather fine-grained hornblendic 
granite, having all the constituents well crystallised, and in a remarkably 
fresh state of preservation. It may ke regarded as a good typical 
example of this variety of granite, and forms a very beautiful prepara- 
tion for the microscope. 


The so-called gneiss is almost wanting in two of the essential 
characters of that rock; it contains scarcely a trace of felspar, 
and the foliation is very imperfect. The only recognisable minerals 
are mica and quartz, and as the mass of the rock is rather fissile 
in one direction, it might be called a micaceous schist, in 
order to distinguish it from the typical mica schists, from which it 
differs in some respects. These rocks will be more fully described 
hereafter. 


The knoll of “gneiss” is separated from the granite by an interval 
of 35 yards, and this depression is occupied by soil and vegetation, so 
that the main junction of the two great masses of igneous and aqueous 
rock cannot be observed. Masses of a dioritic rock have been found on 
the surface of this interval or passage both by ourselves and Messrs. 
Hill and Bonney, and the relation of the three sets of rock (viz., the 
granite, ‘‘ gneiss,” and diorite) to each other has hitherto been a matter 
on which nothing certain was known. 


By observations recently made we are enabled to prove that the 
granite is clearly intrusive in the “gneiss,” and that the latter rock is 
probably the result of the alteration of clay-slates belonging to the 
Forest series. 


An opening has been made in the “ gneiss;” it has been worked 
back 25 yards from the edge nearest the granite, soas to expose a “face” 
50ft. in width and 33ft. in height. It is worked for road metal for the 
immediate vicinity, and a large heap of broken stone usually lies on the 
floor of the quarry. Onthe “face” the remarkable contortions of the 
rock at once attract attention, those in the south-west corner being very 
abrupt and “diagrammatic.” The mass of the stone is of a dark- 
purplish hue; the broken surfaces glitter with flakes of mica; it is 
excessively tough and much jointed, the joints being frequently curved 
and showing marks of slickensides. 


In the north-west corner of the quarry (where excavations have 
recently been made) we noted a rock of very different character to 
the ‘‘gneiss” above described. Here, underneath a tree, whose roots 
penetrated its yielding substance, we found a mass of decomposed 
granite, 5ft. in width. As this passes downwards it sends off narrower 
veins into the gneiss, which reach nearly to the floor of the quarry; but 
the main granitic vein turns southwards and enters the face of the quarry, 
enclosing here a lenticular piece of the metamorphic rock, which measured 


a 


ROCKS OF BRAZIL WOOD, CHARNWOOD FOREST. 245 


3ft. by 2ft. On examining the opposite or south end of the quarry, we 
here also found veins of granite running up the face and overlying the 
contortions before mentioned, and further small veins penetrating the 
rock even in the very centre of the quarry. At some points the line 
of junction of the two rocks was sharp and distinct, but at others the 
two appeared to be blended together for at least a few inches. Near 
the junction innumerable garnets were found to be developed in the 
gneiss, and a few occur also in the granite. Some of them exceed one- 
eighth of an inchin diameter, and are finely crystallised. 


At the north end of the pit we noticed, embedded as it were in the 
*‘oneiss,” four distinct patches of a bedded rock, resembling an altered 
ashy slate. These occurred one above the other at intervals of two or 
three feet, and had a north-westerly strike. These may be portions of a 
band of rock interbedded with the gneiss, and “ pinched” by it during the 
contortions which it has undergone. They reminded one of us of the 
banded ashy Charnwood slates. 


Ascending to the top of the knoll of gneiss we find a ridge 30 yards 
long, running N.N.W. by §.8.H. The northern end has been quarried 
into, but at the southern extremity we found an exposure of granite 
which is probably in situ, and represents the outcrop of another vein 
striking through the gneiss. The knoll is thickly covered with vege- 
tation, and many of the rocks are overlaid by a considerable thickness of 
moss; but we found a little cliff running along the S.W. side, which 
proved to be composed of a rock having a distinct cleavage, and to have 
the characters of an altered and slightly indurated clay-slate; it 
contains numerous small garnets. The cleavage is nearly vertical, 
and runs N.W. and §.E.; the strike, as far as we could detect, is afew 
degrees more to the west. This slaty rock is interbedded with a more 
compact and less cleaved bed. 


The discovery of these slaty rocks is another point of interest, as 
none have been previously observed to the east of the Swithland slates. 
The strike of the beds and their general appearance renders it almost 
certain that they belong to the Charnwood series, and we attribute their 
present crystalline structure to the action of the intrusive granite. 


We thus have in this small area an excellent exampleof the junction 
ofigneous with aqueous rocks, and of the gradual change produced in the 
latter as they approach theinjected mass, It is at present the only good, 
well- exposed, and readily accessible example with which we are 
acquainted in this district, for the line of junction in this area seems to 
be generally also a line of weakness, along which the rocks are shattered, 
so that they have readily decayed and left a hollow which is usually 
filled with soil; it is so, indeed, in this case, but the numerous veins sent 
forth from the granitic mass can here be clearly traced invading and 
altering the aqueous rock. 


These various rocks present several other points of interest, and 
their microscopical investigation has been undertaken by one of us, the 
results of whose work will probably appear in a future number. 


246 ARTIFICIAL SEA-WATER. 


THE ARTIFICIAL SEA-WATER AT THE 
ASTON AQUARIUM.* 


BY WILLIAM SOUTHALL, F.L.S. 


To Philip Henry Gosse, the eminently well-known Naturalist, who, 
with his pen and pencil, has made so many of us familiar with the 
wondrous beauty of the inhabitants of the sea, belongs the credit of the 
introduction of the Marine Aquarium. In the second edition of his 
excellent book, ‘‘ The Aquarium,” published in 1856, he gave the world 
the benefit of his thoughts and experiments, by publishing a formula for 
producing easily and cheaply a supply of artificial sea-water such as had 
been found sufficient for the purposes of small aquaria. Many other 
formule have since been suggested, and nearly all, like that of Gosse, 
have been based on the analysis of Brighton sea-water, published by Dr. 
Schweitzer in the ‘‘ Philosophical Magazine” for July, 1839. However 
much such made-up water has answered the purposes required, 
theoretically it has been at fault, inasmuch as in chemical composition 
it has not been identical with real sea-water, and on this account, 
perhaps, many Naturalists have been unable to keep certain animals 
alive in such water, and have affirmed that made-up sea-water is so 
lacking in certain elements or properties as to be unfit for the main- 
tenance of marine animals in a state of health. Opinions being thus 
divided, the boldness of the directors of the Aston Lower Grounds 
Company, in deciding to use none other than artificial sea-water in their 
magnificent Aquarium, is to be admired; and Naturalists all over the 
country are looking with interest upon the scheme now carried out for 
the first time in England on a really great scale. The following tabular 
statement of the composition of the concocted sea-water may, therefore, 
be deemed interesting. In the first place, it may be stated that 
the fine series of tanks and the underground reservoirs are capable 
of holding, in the aggregate, 300,000 gallons, and sufficient water has 
been made to fill the whole of the show and reserved tanks, 
and to nearly fill the reservoirs, enough space only being left to accommo- 
date the contents of a few tanks in case leakages should occur. My 
firm (Southall Bros. and Barclay) was appointed to manufacture the 
water, and about fifty tons of chemical substances have been used. 
Each ingredient was subjected to analysis, and allowance made in every 
case for water of crystallisation, hygroscopic moisture and impurities, 
and the various coustituents of the well-water used were also allowed 
for in calculating the working formula. The analysis of Dr. Schweitzer 
was taken as a basis, supplemented by our own analysis of water recently 
taken near Brighton, a mile from the shore; and from the latter the 
data necessary for the required amounts of iodine, &c., were obtained, 
As a result, the water in use in the Aquarium contains the following 


a 


* Read before the Birmingham Natural History and Microscopical Society 
September 23rd, 1879, 


a 


be 


ARTIFICIAL SEA-WATER. 247 


compounds in solution, and in the proportions given, from which it will 


Grains Grains 

per Gal per Gal 

Sodium chloride .............- 18941 Magnesium nitrate ..........6. 03 

Potassium chloride............ 53°6 Sodtampnitrate: de «acetescct den 02 

Magnesium chloride .......... 256°6 ORIEL ALON ciwewaded sieerneeme O1 

Magnesium bromide .......... 2°0 SUIGH, ierdes fan sia ticlastels nema aee ene 10 

Magnesium sulphate .......... 160°7 Todide of Sodium.............. traces. 

Calcium sulphate............6. 98°4 Ammoniacal salts and organic \ slight 

Calcium carbonate ............ 5'8 PELL OT Vsjaleinte/ntarpiets sl aselele eierers traces. 
Magnesium carbonate ........ 1'5 


For the thorough admixture of the water in the various tanks, and 
the preparation and filtration of solutions, a considerable length of time 
was required; and it is only at the present date that the water is assum- 
ing what may be termed its permanent and representative character. 
Time will prove how far the sanguine anticipations of its promoters will 
be realised; so far it is certain that all animals hitherto placed in 
the tanks, under fair conditions, have done exceedingly well. 


a SET VAL OR. iG NAT. Ss 


BY F. T. MOTT, F.R.G.S. 


On the evening of September 1st, between six and seven, after a 
fine, sunny day, the sky being clear, and the full moon just rising as the 
sun went down, there was a grand festival among the gnats. Above the 
tops of trees and hedgerows in the low meadows north of Leicester 
these little Diptera were out in immense numbers. I calculated that 
there might be about three millions of them to a mile of hedgerow. They 
assembled in groups of various shapes, sometimes a vertical column from 
6ft. to 20ft. high, and 1ft. to 3ft. diameter, rose from a tree top like a 
pillar of smoke. Sometimes a sheet 4ft. or 5ft. high and 10ft. long hung 
above the hedgerow, but seemed never more than a foot or so in thick- 
ness. The following evening, at the same hour, the sky being more 
clouded, a few gnats only were to be seen; but on the evening of the 6th, 
with the sky again cloudy, there was a still more remarkable display of 
gnat life. The little creatures were out again in millions, but this time 
the vertical column formation was adopted by nearly the whole of them. 
These columns rose from the hedges on either side of the road, and were 
visible for half a mile a-head at irregular distances, averaging, perhaps, 
12ft. or 15ft. They formed an avenue of such a singular and unusual 
appearance that everyone who passed along the road paused at intervals 
to watch and wonder at them. This piece of road is about half a mile 
long, on the top of an embankment which carries it over the low 
meadows and the river. At the farther end there are a number of 
trees, and from the top of nearly every tree three or four of the strange, 
smoke-like columns could be seen standing up in the air, always straight 
but not always vertical, some of them being inclined at small angles. Tt 
was altogether a very curious sight. It has not occurred again, and I do 
not remember to have seen anything like it before. 


948 A FESTIVAL OF GNATS. 


On watching one of the columns closely, it was apparent that all the 
gnats had their heads one way, facing the breeze, which, however, was a 
very light one. It was a calm evening; what air-current there was came 
from the south-east. It seemed to be sufficient occasionally to press 
back the column a few inches from its normal position, and whenever 
this happened the whole body of gnats jerked themselves forward again 
with one perfectly synchronous impulse. How this was accomplished it 
is difficult to understand. But in fact their whole manceuvres were 
mysterious, and suggested a variety of questions. 

What do these little creatures do during the day, and what do 
they feed upon ? 

What was the object of their evening exercises? They were in 
constant motion, but seemed never to jostle one another. 

Why on that particular night did they arrange themselves in vertical 
columns, with such a general uniformity of shape and size? 

How, in their rapid and perpetual motion, were they able to 
maintain their formation with such precision that at a short distance 
the columns seemed quite stationary ? 


How did they contrive to keep such perfect time in their sudden 
leaps against the wind ? 

Many of the phenomena of insect life seem to suggest that these 
little animals have some sense—perhaps several senses—quite unknown 
to us vertebrates. May there not be other “gateways of knowledge” 
besides the five by which it enters our fortified brains? Why not an 
electric sense, which should vibrate to electric currents, as the ear to 
sound or the eye to light? 


AN EXCURSION TO FROGHALL, CALDON LOW, 
AND ALTON.* 


BY JAMES SHIPMAN. 


It was seven o’clock in the morning of the 5th of last October, and 
a somewhat cheerless grey mist hung low overhead, as a small party of 
the Natural Science Section of the Nottingham Literary and Philo- 
sophical Society steamed out of the Midland Station on a visit to the 
famous ironworks at Froghall, the limestone quarries at Caldon Low, 
and to lovely Alton—the last geological excursion of the season. Anyone 
but the most astute meteorologist, and one conversant with the sudden 
atmospherical changes of the last two years, would have predicted 
something more substantial than mist. As it was, however, we were 
all destined to be agreeably surprised by the bright day that was in store 
for us. The charmingly picturesque valley of the Churnet about Alton, 
up which we glided as we approached our destination, was not seen to 
much advantage under the circumstances. But there was still the steep 


* Read before the Natural Science Section of the Nottingham Literary and 
Philosophical Society, Dec. 20th, 1878. 


EXCURSION TO FROGHALL, CALDON LOW, AND ALTON. 249 


slope of Bunter Pebble Beds on either hand, with strips of the sombre 
crimson, but mostly mossy and variegated, conglomerate peeping here 
aud there from between the clustering ferns and wild flowers and 
foliage that almost clothe them; while above, rising abruptly into a 
perpendicular craggy cliff from the top of the Bunter slopes, could be 
seen the massive white and pink sandstone of the Lower Keuper, like 
a thick bed of basalt, capping the hills all round. 


We alighted a little after nine at the Froghall Station, where we 
were met by Mr. Fraser, the manager of the Caldon limeworks, and, 
haying refreshed, we walked on to the wharf, about half a mile 
distant, along a valley formed by the junction of a small stream 
descending from the limestone country to the north with the 
Churnet. We had left the terraced hills of the Triassic Rocks, 
and were now fairly on the Lower Coal Measures or Gannister 
Rocks, which in our front, over to the north and west, rose into 
bold dimpled hills crowned with thick tufts of pine, rather characteristic 
of the Lower Coal Measures. Beyond lay the picturesque Millstone 
Grit, rising sharply from the almost:featureless Yoredales, while 
perhaps the Carboniferous Limestone of the Weaver Hills formed the 
shadows which filled the background. The Cheadle coalfield, across the 
eastern edge of which our path lay, is about 1,000ft. thick, and forms 
one of those “basins” into which the Coal Measures of North Stafford- 
shire have been thrown on the west, called the Goyt Trough. 

The ironstone, for which the Gannister Rocks at Froghall have long 
been famous, was stored at the wharf in banks about 20ft. high, broken 
up into slabs, and separated into different qualities ready for transit to 
the smelting furnace. The hematite is of the usual dark-brown or 
blackish colour, being streaked with light-brown along the planes of 
bedding, giving it somewhat of a stratified appearance, the joints being 
mostly filled with calcite.* Some geodes in this ironstone yielded very 
minute six-sided prisms of calespar. The ironstone is usually found 
associated with dark, chocolate-coloured shales, and rests on from Ift. to 
14ft. of gray orreddish slaty clay, forming the lewest bed of the Gannister 
series in this district. It varies in thickness from lin. to22in. Aremark- 
able feature connected with this ironstone is that it is only found 
developed in what seem to have originally been “basins,” between 
saddles or folds of the already crumpled Millstone Grit; for over the 
more elevated underground ridges of the grit it is found to be represented 
by a mere trace of reddish ochre. The shales below it present similar 
phenomena. 


Froghall is also the terminus of the tramway from the Caldon Low 
limestone quarries, and here was the machinery for crushing the stone 


* An analysis of this ore, given in ‘‘ The Iron Ores of North Staffordshire,” shows 
that this hematite consists of :— 


IRETOSANO OF INON «|. cjcewice scr 52°83 Sulphuric acid! c.5. 2.0. c0ce 
Protoxide of manganese.... 0'81 Silicate see a aie ce 

ILA Cpa DOR GE Ose COOrEnS 14°61 WSET SA wants case 

WESSMESI A «5 <.:0:0sinivie's vies e.e'e.0 5 70 Organic matter... 5 
WATHODIC ACID wc ccciscccecsce 18:14 - 

Phosphoric acid ........+6.. 0°32 Total amount of iron...... 36°98 


250 EXCURSION TO FROGHALL, CALDON LOW, AND ALTON. 


into road-metal. The process being similar to that in use in other 
localities, however, it need not be described. Lying about among the 
limestone, were some massive geodes, where the prisms of calcite were 
four or five inches long; and although very interesting as mineralogical 
specimens, they seemed to be regarded as refuse here. A fine red clay, 
brought dowa in large quantities in the trucks from the limestone 
quarry, was evidently of some commercial value, for the women as well 
as men connected with the canal boats were actively engaged in taking a 
cargo of it on board. It somewhat puzzled us to know what formation it 
could have been derived from. Among other things we learnt here that 
the limestone, of which there were such stores all round, contained too 
much iron to be useful for agriculture, but that it made the best of 
fluxes for smelting. 


Taking our seats in a specially prepared tram-wagon, we soon found 
ourselves gliding, without any visible motive power, up a gentle incline 
cut through the dark gray shales of the Lower Coal Measures. Mean- 
while the curtain of dark clouds and haze which had hitherto given an 
air of cold solemnity to the excursion now swept swiftly across the sky, 
and with bright sunshine and the bluest of blue skies overhead, and 
amid charming scenery, almost romantic, we were presently making our 
way along one of the spurs of high ground that stretch from the Weaver 
Hills down to Froghall. 

We ‘pulled up” at Oldridge to examine a curious pillar, or 
“needle,” of what seemed to be the Third Grit (of the Survey) resting on 
the shoulder of the ridge along which the tramway passed. The ground 
around was smooth and grass-grown, sloping rather steeply into an east- 
and-west valley, which widened out to the west. The ‘“ needle” itself 
was about 25ft. high, in some parts being as perpendicular as if it had 
been chiselled by hand, and about 12ft. in diameter. It consisted of 
reddish-brown grit with quartz pebbles, and showed distinct oblique 
lamination, in one face inclined at 45° to south-west. It was difficult, 
even on the spot, to come to any fair conclusion as to the exact process 
by which the pillar got formed, for there was no exposure near with 
which to compare it, and time was too short to examine the hill around. 
We know, however, that the Third Grit is usually massive and well- 
jointed, and the fine edges formed by its outcrop are among the most 
noticeable features in the scenery of this part of Staffordshire. It 
may be inferred, then, that this columnar mass represents the ruins of 
an ancient ‘‘edge” or cliff, produced partly by the scooping out of the 
east-and-west valley—the lower part of which is probably in the Yoredale 
formation—and partly due to the physical structure of the grit of which 
it is composed. Similar pillars are met with at Belmont Chapel on the 
north side of the Cheadle coalfield. 

Partly owing to faults and partly to the general outcrop of older 
rocks going west, the sections exposed by the line revealed a complex 
alternation of Yoredale rocks, Millstone Grit, and Carboniferous Lime- 
stone, and at one point we passed through a tunnel in the Yoredale 
rocks, 500 yards long. We were soon in sight of Caldon Low, a flattened 
mound of limestone on the western edge of the Weaver Hills, which rose 


2 
<5 
—— 


a 


EXCURSION TO FROGHALL, CALDON LOW, AND ALTON. 251 


in graceful treeless but grassy swells from the sterile-looking stretch of 
Yoredale shales. The limestone quarry is about 500 yards long and 
140ft. high ; and we learnt that there was a similar quarry on the other 
side of the hill. Gunpowder is preferred here to dynamite for bringing 
down the rock on account of its greater economy, dynamite being too 
swift and not lifting so efficiently. We had a good opportunity of 
observing the action of gunpowder, as several ‘‘ shots”? were fired while 
we were examining the limestone and the curious veins of calespar 
which traverse it in every direction. It had been arranged, however, 
that an unusually heavy shot should be prepared against our visit; so 
we devoted the time still required to complete its preparation to 
examining the crescent-shaped quarry. At the south-eastern horn of 
the quarry there was what appeared to be a fault, bearing N.N.E., 
and the space between the walls of the fissure (about Sit.) was 
filled with subangular pieces of limestone coated with radiate prisms of 
calespar half an inch long, and also contained hematite; the whole 
being imbedded in red clay cemented by carbonate of lime—the same 
red clay, in fact, as we had seen earlier in the day at the wharf, 
Everything being ready for the great shot, we took up position among 
the rocks at the other end of the cliff, whence the cavern containing the 
powder could be seen, about 400 yards off. Highteen hundredweight of 
powder was used for the charge, and it exploded with a stupendous 
reverberating roar, lasting about ten seconds, and accompanied by the 
rattle of thousands of tons of rock as a large area of the cliff crumbled 
down into the quarry. 

Behind the rocks on which we stood was a gap, or “pocket,” in the 
cliff, about 30ft. deep, andas many wide, reminding one of an abandoned 
lode working. It was an old disused clay pit, and once contained one of 
those remarkable deposits of white clay and sand which have been 
observed in several spots on the Weaver Hills, in Wales, and in Iveland.* 
Mr. Binney, F.R.S., who saw the ‘“ pocket” in its best days, says it was 
filled with bluish-white and pink clay, with various coloured sands, and 
strings of quartz pebbles, in lenticular alternations, curving inwards 
towards the middle. The middle of the deposit was occupied by a 
vertical bed or ‘“‘ pipe” of rounded pieces of grit and white quartz pebbles, 
mixed with sand, about 5ft. wide; and Mr. Binney regards this as 
proof that the ‘ whole of the clay and sand now found in the hollow of 
the limestone was the débris of the Millstone Grit formerly lying above 
them,” though he quaintly adds, that “there must have been some 
strange commotion to account for the position of the pebbles.” There 
was little to be seen of the clay now, however, as the middle of the 
deposit had been scooped out, and the Drift capping from above had 
almost completely obscured what remained. One of us here chanced to 
pick up a boulder of greenstone in the Drift. It most resembled one of 
the Derbyshire “ toadstones,” though it could scarcely have become so 
well rounded during the Glacial Period, and was most likely washed out 
of the Millstone Grit, during which period it was probably broken off its 
parent rock, and worn into a boulder. We saw no fossils here. 


* See papers by Mr. G. Maw, F.G.S., “ Geological Magazine,” 1866, 


252 EXCURSION TO FROGHALL, CALDON LOW, AND ALTON. 


As the afternoon was advancing we left Caldon Low, and with it our 
estimable cicerone, Mr. Fraser, whose courtesy, information, and arrange- 
ments left nothing to be desired, and striking across the country to the 
south-east, presently descended into the embouchure of a ravine in the 
limestone, with the slopes of Wardlow rising to above 1,000ft. on the left 
and a much lower ridge on the right. Our path was dotted on either 
side by old clay pits about 20ft. deep. These showed that the bottom of 
this valley was filled with deposits of white clay, covered with a thick 
deposit of red Drift sandand pebbles. The water at the bottom of the pits, 
however, prevented any examination of their steep sides; and there was 
no halt till we got to the Ribdin pit, about a mile south of Caldon Low. 
Here was a very extensive opening, about 40ft. deep, in the white clay 
deposits, forming the western slope of the valley, where it had widened 
out somewhat. The section revealed about 30ft. of white and yellow 
fine tough clay, with irregular patches and broad bands of well rounded 
quartz pebbles, and large angular blocks of Millstone Grit, Lower Keuper 
pebbly sandstone, and occasional rounded boulders of chert. Neither 
contortion nor bedding could be made out; but irregular masses of 
yellow clay or pink sandy clay reared themselves up in the midst of 
white clay in the most perplexing manner; yet the deposits had 
evidently been very slowly accumulated, and were capped with a thick 
deposit of Drift. Many of the blocks embedded in the clay had so far 
decomposed as to preserve only their original outline and sandy texture, 
but were as soft as the clayey matrix; others had altogether melted 
into the clay and given ita pink tint. Curiously enough there were no 
traces of limestone among the débris. These argillaceous deposits are 
said to extend more or less over a stretch of nearly two miles from north- 
west to south-east, but the rock on which they rest could not be seen, 
though it is mapped as Carboniferous Limestone. They occupy a position 
about 1,000ft. above the sea. Similar deposits have been met with in 
North Wales and in Tipperary, at heights of from 800ft. to 1,000ft., mostly 
in deep cavities in the Carboniferous Limestone, and always below the 
Drift. They may not all be of the same age, but in nearly every case 
the same mineral characters are found associated—soft chert breccias, 
white and buff clays, dark laminated clays, and carbonaceous beds. 
The cavities in which these deposits occur appear to have been formed 
after the manner of sand pipes in the Chalk—hby the slow dissolution of 
the limestone, into which the superincumbent beds of grit or sandstone 
appear to have gradually subsided. 


It was difficult to tear ourselves away from so interesting a spot, 
for there was sufficient here alone to furnish a good day’s work. Regain- 
ing the main road, however, near Three Lows, we kept the ridge of 
Yoredale, capped at intervals by Millstone Grit, on to Farley. The 
scenery was exceedingly pretty all the way, but as we descended into the 
valley of the Churnet, at Alton, it became magnificent. It was now too 
late to examine any of the fine exposures of the Lower Keuper at Alton, 
so that a very agreeable lunch at the “Shrewsbury” terminated a 
capital day’s labours. 


_— 7" 


ms 


~e 


CRYPTOGAMIC FLORA OF WARWICKSHIRE. 953 


THE CRYPTOGAMIC FLORA OF WARWICKSHIRE. 
BY JAMES E. BAGNALL. 


(Continued from page 224.) 
BRUCHIACER. 
92.—Archidium phascoides Brid. Moist heaths. Edgbaston, (Cameron !) 
Shores of Coleshill Pool! April, 1868 and 1871. Very rare. April. 


93.—Pleuridium nitidwnm Hedw. Phascum nitidum Wils., Hobk. Local, 
but probably frequently overlooked. Moist banks, damp sandy and 
marly fields. Shirley! on banks near Harlswood Reservoir! field 
by Powell’s Pool, Sutton Park! Autumn, Spring. 


94.—P. subulatum L. Phascum subulatum Wils., Hobk. Banks and 
fields, frequent ; Acocks Green Railway bank! Olton! Packwood! 
wood near Maxtoke Priory! fields in Tythall Lane, Solihull! 
Oversley Wood! Sutton Park, 1879! Spring. 


95.—P. alternifolium B. and S. Phascum alternifolium Wils., Hobk. 
Banks and fallow ground, rare or overlooked. In fields near 
railway station, Marston Green! Old clay pit, near Hrdington 
railway station on banks ! Spring. 


LEUCOBRYACER. 
96.—Leucobryum glaucum L. Moist heathlands and heathy bogs, 
local. In many parts of Sutton Park! but always barren. 
Coleshill bog ! 
POTTIACER. 
109.—Spherangium muticum Schreb. Phascum muticum Wils., Hobk. 
Moist banks and fallow fields, local. In sandy fields Coleshill 
Heath! Tile House Green, near Knowle! Fields by Powell’s Pool, 
Sutton Park! Autumn, Spring. 
111.—Phascum cuspidatum Schreb. Moist banks and fields, common. 
Coleshill Heath! Solihull! Canal bank, Acocks Green! Sutton 
Park! &c. March. 
Var. e.curvisetum Dicks. Fields, rare. Sparingly in a fallow field 
above Coleshill Pool, March, 1869! 
115.—Pottia minutula Schwg. Marly and sandy fields, not rare. Fields 
near Shirley! Solihull! Acocks Green! Sheldon! Red Hill! 


Bearley ! Hartshill! Astley! Maxtoke! Winter and Spring. 
116.—P. truncata L. Fallow fields, banks, heathy footways, very frequent. 
Acocks Green! Sutton Park! Kingswood ! Autumn, Spring. 


117.—P. intermedia Turn. Pottia truncata, b. major Wils., Hobk. 
Fields and walls, not rare. Fields near Westwood Coppice, Sutton 
Park! Acocks Green! Exhall, on marly banks! Bearley! Shirley! 
Kingswood! marly banks near Henley-in-Arden! stone quarries, 
Hartshill! wall tops by Arley Hall! Spring. Mr. Mitten con- 
siders this to be a variety of P. lanceolata. ‘Journal of Botany,” 
IX., 1871. 

118.—[P. Wilsoni Hook. Banks in a sandy soil. This species has been 
found by Mr. E. W. Badger, jun., at Moseley, Worcestershire, on 
banks, and may probably be found in Warwickshive. ] 


123.—P. lanceolata Dicks. Anacalypta lanceolata Wils., Berk., 
Hobk. Marly banks, wall tops in lias soils, &c. Plentiful on 
banks Chesterton Wood! Tythall Lane, Solihull! Lias wall tops 
at Harbury! Kineton! Fenny Compton! Edge Hills! Canal bank 
near Bearley! growing with P. intermedia, at Arley Wood! 2 

March. 


954 CRYPTOGAMIC FLORA OF WARWICKSHIRE. 


128.—Didymodon rubellus B. and §. Walls and banks, frecuent. 
Shortwood Coppice! walls of Kenilworth Castle! Sutton Park! 
Canal bridges between Oltou and Knowle! Kineton, on lias walls! 
Arley! Hartshill! Erdington, old clay pits! October. 
132.—D. sinuosus Wils. Tortula sinwosa Hobk. Walls and tree 
roots, rare. On wall of bridge uear Healey-in-Arden! On roots of 

tree stump just outside I"enny Compton! very abundant on railway 
bridge in road from Birdingbury to Norton, 1878! Always barren. 
137.—Ditrichum flexicaule Schwg. Trichostomum flexicaule Wils., 
Hobk. Leptotrichum flexicaule Berk. On marly banks, very 

rare. Abundant on marly bank, at Marl Cliff, just within the 
county ! Barren. 
141.—Trichostomum tophaceum Brid. Walls and clay banks, local. Dam 
of Bracebridge Pool, Sutton Park! Erdington, in old clay pits! 
Canal bridge, near Olton Pool! walls near Avley Wood! Fine form 

on dripping banks, canal near Rowington! fruiting in Spirng. 
148.—Tortula rigida Schultz. On walls in lias districts, rare. Wall 
tops just past church, ab Harpurzy! wall of farm, Green Lanes, 

near Wilmecote! Fenny Compton! Kineton! Fruit, Winter. 
149.—T. ambigua B. and 8. On walls and banks. Local in North 
Warwick, more frequent in Sonth Warwick on lias soils. Walls 
between Nuneaton and Hartshill! near Arley Wood! Astley! 
Bearley! Harbury! Fenny Compton! Snowford, near bridge! &e. 
Fruit, Winter. 

150.—T. aloides Koch. Onclay banks and mnd-capped walls, local. 
Clay banks, Bearley! Red Hill, near Alcester! near Stratford- 
on-Avon! walls near Nuneaton, with last species! Canal bank, 

near Olton! Marston Green! &c. Winter. 
151.—T. cavifolia Schpr. Pottia cavifolia b. gracilis Wils.  Iuocal. 
Abundant on walls capped with lias mud. Fenny Compton! 
Harbury ! March. 
153.—T. atro-virens Sm. Desmaiodon nervosus Br. and Sch., Wils. 
Trichostomum convolutum Bvid., Berk. On marly banks in las 

soils, Ona marly bank on the Alcester Road, three miles from 
Stratford-on-Avon, December 1875. I only found a single tuft on 

this occasion, and have not since been able to find more. It is a 
remarkable moss to find so far juland. Winter. 
154.—[ 7. cuneifolia Dicks. On banks in the coal measures. This species 
I bave found near Halesowen, near Birmingham, on the coal 
measures fairly abundant. It may probably be found in similar 

soils in Warwickshire. ‘There is no doubt as to the Halesowen 
plant. It has been submitted to Dr. Braithwaite, and was also 
pointed out by meto Dr. Fraser and Rey. J. H. Thompson. As 

this is a maritime species, its occurrence so far inland is remark- 

able. ] Fruit April. 
156.—T. marginata B. and §. On sandstone walls and the stonework of 
bridges, local. Sutton Park! Walls of Rowington Hall! Walls of 
Meriden Park! Sandstone walls, Guy’s Cliff! Allesley ! Milverton! 

May, June. 

158.—T. muralis L. On walls. Very common in all districts Ihave visited. 
Var.b.incana. A very hoary form, more rare than type; growing 

on the mortar of brick walls, canal bridges, near Bearley! Hatton! 
Wilmecote! Abundant on wall at Guy’s Clif! March, April, 

Var. c. estiva Schultz. On damp sandstone walls. On stone coping 


near Powell’s Pool, Sutton Park! stonework of dam, Bracebridge 
Pool, Sutton Park! 


a 


CRYPTOGAMIC FLORA OF WARWICKSHIRE. 255 


Var. d. rupestris Schultz. On old walls and marly banks, more local 
than type. Canal bridge, near Shrewley Common! wall of farm 
near Rose Hall, Alcester! near Grafton, on banks! stone walls 
near Fillongley ! 

159.—T. unguiculata Dill. Walls, banks, fields, &c., in most soils, very 
frequent and very variable. Marston Green, &c. ! 

Var. b. cuspidata Schuliz. On mortar coping walls near Hartshill! 
on lias banks near Wixford ! December, 

160.—T. fallax Hedw. Banks in marly and sandy soils, local. Shustoke, 
on railway bank! Marston Green, on railway bridge! Erdington, 
in old clay pits! Sutton Paik! November, 

163.—T. rigidula Dicks. Wall tops; more frequently in lias distiricts. 
Wall of churchyard, Ufton, near Southam! Harbury! near Henley- 
in-Arden ! November, 

164.—T. spadicea Mitt. Trichostomum rigidulum Wils., Berk. Banks and 
damp walls, local. Bearley! Red Hill, on lias soil on footways! 
Ballards Green, by Arley Wood! bridge near Henley-in-Arden! 
Always barren in these districts. 

165.—T. cylindrica Tayl. T. insulana De Not. T. vinealis b. flaccida 
Wils. On banks, &c., rather local. Near Claverdon, on the way 
for High Cross! Sutton Park, Bracebridge Pool, and Druids Well! 

166.—T. vinealis Brid. Banks and walls, rare. Wall of Milverton 
churchyard ! 

167.—1'. Hornschuchiana Schultz. On the mortar and walls and on the 
ground in marly soils, local. Canal bridge, Shirley Heath! 
Bearley! lane near Fillongley! Yarningale Common! Ballards 
Green! Very rarely fruiting. Spring. 

168.—T. revoluta Schwg. On the mortar of walls, not rare. Near Soli- 
hull! Fillongley! Shirley Heath! Bearley! Binton! Sutton Park! 
Shrewley Common! All in fruit. May. 

169.—T. convoluta Hedw. On walls and waysides, local. Sutton Park! 
abundant on heathy places by Whitacre Railway Station! wall of 
cottage near Meriden Shafts! Railway bank, near Gravelly Hill! 

May, June. 

171.—T. tortuosa L. On old walls, very rare. Somewhat sparingly on 
a canal bridge near Olton! I have not seen it elsewhere in the 
county, but have noticed it in the above station for ten years. 


175.—T. Brebissoni Brid. Tortula mucronata Brid., Berk., Hobk. Cincli- 
dotus viparius, b. terrestris B. and §., Wils. On roots of trees near 
rivers, rare. Banks of the Avon, near Bidford! in fine fruit on 
banks of Alne, near Aston Cantlow! on old bridge, near Holywell! 

near Henley-in-Arden ! Fruit May. 
176.—T. subulata L. On sandy banks, walls, and tree roots occcasionally. 
Near Oakley Wood! Copt Heath! Harbury! on walls Guy’s Cliff ! 
Packwood! Kingswood, Fillongley ! May, June. 
177.—T. levipila Brid. On trees, sometimes on stone walls, not rare. 
Copt Heath! Rowington! Ufton! Edge Hills! Harbury! Binton! 
Oakley! Offchurch and Birdingbury! Milverton! Quarries near 
Warwick! May, June. 
178.—T. latifolia B. and §. On roots of trees and woodwork near 
streams, rare. Wooden bridge and alders by stream near 
Holywell! on willow trunks, banks of Avon, near Bidford. 
Bridle road from Chadshunt to Drayton Bassett! Always barren. 
179.—T. ruralis L. Thatched roofs, walls, &c., rare in North Warwick, 
frequent in South Warwick. Temple Grafton! near Oakley 
Wood on trees! wall by Chesterton Windmill! near Hartshill! 
Maxtoke Shustoke! Coleshill! Spring. 


956 . CRYPTOGAMIC FLORA OF WARWICKSHIRE. 


180.—T. intermedia Brid. Tortula ruralis, b. minor Wils. Wall tops and 
lias banks. Banks near Temple Grafton! walls Edge Hills 
Binton! Harborough Magna! Fillongley! Harbury in fruit! May. 

181.—T. papillost Wils. On trees and old pales, local. Old pales 
Olton Canal! foot-bridge near Holywell! on elms near Alcester 
Lodge! on ash trees Marl Cliff! abundant on elms between 
Alcester and Stratford! near Birdingbury! Marston Green! 

Always barren. 
185.—Ceratodon purpureus L. Heaths, banks, walls, &c., very common 
in all the districts I have visited. May. 


[0 BE CONTINUED. | 


METEOROLOGY OF THE MIDLANDS. 
THE WEATHER OF AUGUST, 1879. 


BY W. JEROME HARRISON, F.G.S. 


Still another wet unsummerlike month! The frequent and heavy 
rains were only diversified by severe thunderstorms, and, with a 
maximum temperature hardly ever rising above 70°, it was difficult to 
realise that we were in what should be the hottest period of the year. 
The storms on the 2nd and 16th were very remarkable. The former 
gives us the maximum rainfall for the East Midland stations, and the 
latter for the West Midlands; at the Southern stations the 19th was the 
day of heaviest fall. About the storm of the 16th Mr. Davis, of Orleton, 
writes, ‘‘ Another great storm of lightning and thunder set in on the after- 
noon of the 16th, and continued till after midnight, with great darkness 
and heavy rain till 8 p.m. on the. 17th, producing great floods.” 
The average temperature for the Midlands was 57°. The hay 
harvest was much interfered with, and along the Soar Valley (Leicester- 
shire) a great quantity of mown hay was washed away by floods; the 
corn harvest had not commenced at the end of the month. 


Naturau History Norses py Osservers.—Alstonjield Vicarage.—Hay- 
making still unfinished; many fields of grass still uncut. Oats showing 
little prospect of ripening. Swallow tribe are leaving unusually early; 
the Swifts left on the 11th, although a pair of these birds were seen flying 
rapidly to the southward over this house on the evening of the 23rd. 
The greater portion of the swallows seem to have retired from this 
part soon after the swifts. A few swallows and some house martins still 
remain here. The Painted Lady butterfly has been seen several times 
this season. Shifnal—One Humming Bird Sphinx seen on 5th; several 
Painted Lady butterflies on and after 14th; a few Tortoiseshell, but 
not one Peacock. Gooseberry bushes stripped by the caterpillar; slugs 
and grubs still most destructive. Caterpillars of the Mullein moth 
(Cucullia verbasci) found feeding on Verbascuwm virgatum. Spondon.— 
Lilium candidum, which generally blooms towards end of June, only 
commenced flowering on August 3. Until the last week of August 
but few butterflies have been seen; now Pontia brassice is becoming 
plentiful. No wasps seen since very early spring. Stroud.—List of 
flowers and date of blossoming: 1st, Linaria minor; 4th, Mentha sativa ; 
7th, Geranium dissectum, Moneywort, Potentilla reptans, Teucrium 
Scorodonia, Convolvulus arvensis, Circea lutetiana, Sagittaria sagittifolia, 
Campanula glomerata, Sambucus Ebulus, Goat’s Beard, Bird’s Nest, Hyperi- 
cum pulchrum, Epilobium angustifolium, Lithospermum officinale, Humulus 


’ 
| 
4 
€ 


THE WEATHER OF AUGUST. 957 


Lupulus, Tamus communis, Erythrea Centaurium, Agrimonia Eupatoria, 
Filago Gallica, Nymphea alba; 14th, Burdock, Chrysanthemum inodorum, 
Sedum dasyphyllum; 21st, Convolvulus sepium, Lythrum Salicaria. 
Altarnun.—The third very wet month in succession. As disastrous as 
1860 for hay, corn, and ‘‘ turf” (peat) harvests. A little corn cut in the 


last week ; oats promising well; wheat and barley poor. No turf cut yet, 
and much hay still on the fields. ‘Trees browning very early, especially 
sycamores. 
. 
RAINFALL. TEMPERATURE, 
a So Greatest fall /$J| Greatest ht. Great’st cold 
STATION. OBSERVER. s = in 24 hours. | . ne 
Shia | BEAU DD icee 43|Deg| Date. \Deg| Date. 
GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
Cheltenham ............0.s0jH. TPCT, MSG. cocedecesees 16 19 |771| 12 |414) 24 
PII Mtetecis's ses sicaccascecas|S- Je COLCY, SQ. .cccccccces 17 18 |73'0) 13 460} 30 
SHROPSHIRE. 
Haughton Hall, Shifnal ....)/Rev. J. Brooke ..........+. 17 18 | 740/11 & 12 | 395; 19 
Whitchurch ......... ......./A. B. George, Esq...... Gente 17 19 
Woolstaston ..... .-|Rev. E. D. Carr....2..0. ane 16 22/720} 28 43°0) 9 
Leaton Vicarage ............ EB. VY. Pigott, Esq.......... 16 20 |75°0} 12 391) 10 
More Rectory, Bishop’s Castle| Kev. A. Male ......... aera 16 22|760} 12 |400) 24 
Larden Hall ................|Miss F. R. Boughton ...... 16 20 
Bishop's Castle . ....|E. Griffiths, Esq. ..... 16 20 |76012 &15 |41:0| 10 
Cardington ........ ...-|Rev. Wim. Elliott .. 16 20 
HEREFORDSHI 
Stoke Bliss ......... «+eeeee.s|Rev. G. EK. Alexander...... 16 17 | 750) 12 410) 31 
WORCESTERSHIRE. 


Orleton, Tenbury:...:.......|/T- H. Davis, Esq .........: 
: West Malyern ..... A. H. Hartland, Esq. ...... 
Pedmore ..................../E. B. Marten, Esq. ........ 
Longlands, Stourbridge. ..... J. ae ISG iete:s afe'e sioielebe 
Dennis, Stourbridge ........|/Mr.C. Webb ....cececeeess 
STAFFORDSHIRE, 
Thorganby Villa,Wolverhmtn|G. J. C. Broom, Esq. ......| 5°81/135} 17 20 
UE teetaomedtcyess anes | MY. 0, HISDED wweetacencenes| OU) Loul 17 22/800} 12 40'0} = 381 
./Mr. C. Beale .......0¢000..| 4°93) 113 17 23 | 72°0 12 410130 & BL 


Sedgley... 3 
Kinver . .s..|Rev. W. H. Bolton ........|5°91/1:29) 16 18 |79°0| 11 |36%0} 381 
Walsall ..(Mr. N. E. Best .... 5°01] 1°38 17 22 | 73°0 12 42-0 31 
Grammar School, B m..../C. U. Tripp, Esq. ...... ..| 6°00] 1°50, 2 19 | 79:0} 13 | 400/10 & 80 
Weston-under-Ly ‘giard R’ tory Hon.and Key.J. Bridgeman) 659) 1-74) 16 22 |76°0) 11 43°0/30 & 3. 
MUPOLLEHIOY O50... cle. E. Simpson, Esq. ..........| 5°36) lo6} 16 17 | 768) 138 43:0} 31 
‘ Heath House, Cheadle ......|J. C. Philips, Esg...........| 726/164] 17 19 |74°0) 12 440/30 & 31 
Alstonfield Vicarage weseee.s)ReV. W. H. Purchas ......| 740/106} 17 18 |}724) 12 
WARWICKSHIRE, 
Coundon, Coventry ..........|Lieut.-Col. R. Caldicott ....| 5°20) 1:17 2 19 |'76°0| 12 }42°0) 81 
Coventry Migitra-dicis lcs‘ eee|J. Gulson, Hsq.......... oo. /O 18/115) 17 20 |75°0,; IL -{40°0) 381 
Bickenhill Vicarage. ae SHO GOWWHYEL, MUA. <5 Cbd oleic dae 5°59) 115} 17 19 | 72°0 43°0 
St. Mary’s College . ..../Rev. S.J Whitty..........| 5°47) 1°46 2 19 1 75°8}| 12 442} 30 
Henley-in-Arden ............|T. H. &@. Newton, Hsq......| 798} 150, 16 20 |78'0)11 & 12 |42°0) 24 
DERBYSHIRE. 
Stoney 6 Rey. U. Smith ............|5°53/ 90] 27 18 | 74:0) 12 33'0 
Fernslope, Belver. .|J. G. Jackson, Esq. ««..| 0°40] 1°19 2 20/740; 1 45°0|8, 10, 30 
Linacre — C. E. Jones, Esq. 4°23) 68} 16 19 
J.T. Barber, Esq. | 246) 1°12) 3 21 | 70:1 12 35°0} 81 
W. Bland, Esq. .......0.044| 6°24) 1°39 2 18 
NOTTINGHAMSHIRE. ’ 
Hesley Hall ................)B.J. Whitaker, Esq. ......| 4°22] “80 3 21|770) 12 43°0 9 
MAMPI weesies css 2s .--.-|J. N. Dufty, Esq. Mrataeite «| 2°79 70°0 4 410} 31 
Hodsock Priory, Worksop ..|H. Mellish, Hsq. ..........| 3°53] °77, 2 20 |74:9} 12 |42°1} 10 
LEICESTERSHIRE. 
Loughborough ..............|W. Berridge, Eisq..........|3°59; 1:02 2 16/780) 1 {|421]- 10 
Ashby Magna...........0..+6) Rev. WH. Wiles. ....ses00005] £63) 1°25 2 20.)77°0} IL 420} 10 
Market Harborough ........|S. W. Cox, Hsq.............| 03°49] °92 2 72'0) 1d 840] 281 
Kibworth.................e../T Macaulay, Ksq. ........|£#11| ‘81 2 20 
Town Museum, Leicester ....|W. J. Harrison, Esq. ...... 401) 118 2 19 | 752 43°5 8 
Belmont Villas, Leicester....|H. Billson, Esq. a «| 3°92 
RIVELOD!S pocedssds aoc J. Hames, jun., E 2 19 |} 840) 18 430) 10 
Waltham-le-Wold. ../E. Ball, Esq, 2 16 |74:0} 11 43°C 
Little Dalby Hall..... ..../G. Jones, Esq. . A 2 2t | 850 2 4270} 10 
Coston Rectory, Melton......)/Rev. A. M. Rende. «.|36 2 21) 720). 12 37) 
NoORTHAMPTONSHIRE. 
Towcester Brewery.......-..|J. Webb, Esq.......... eseee| 369} “87{ 19 16 
Castle Ashby ......... .|R. G. Scriven, Esq. ... 3°6 19 16 | 75°0|12 & 15 | 42:0) 31 
euierine’..<......---- ..|J. Wallis, Esq. ... 19 13 | 74 13 50°0/10, 30 OL 
Althorpe .. ..(G. S. Groom, Esq........ 2 15 | 72 11 360} 3L 
Pitsford C. A. Markham, Esq....... 4°21) 1-00 2 16 | 80° 12 42:0 9 


RUTLAND. 
West Deyne, Uppingham ....|Rev. G. H. Mullins ........| 2°87| *82 2 16 | 77 
Northfields, Stamford ....../W. Hayes, Hsq............./3°31| "74} 16 15 | 80" 


15 a6°0| 10 


0 
0 
0 
0 
2) 12 438} 10 
0 
7 
2 
0 


Ratcliffe Observatory........|/H. R. Bellamy, Es 19 17 | 75" 12 |40°8| 81 
. Ventnor Hospital... W. T. Ryder, Esq. 19 10 | 69° 10 521 30 
Altarnun Vicarage ..... .|Rev. J. Power, M, 20 23 | 79" 12 410} 80 


958 CORRESPONDENCE. 


Correspondence, 


os 


TIngurious Insrcts.—The whole of the gooseberry and currant bushes. 


in this neighbourhood are entirely denuded of leaves by the larve of a 
sawfly. They are here in countless thousands. The bushes are dreadiul 
objects, not a vestige of green left on them, but plenty of fruit. Other 
pests are abundant, but partial; but the gooseberry grubs are everywhere. 
—V. R. Perkins, Wotton-under-Hdge, Gloucestershire, August 8th, 1879. 
(From the “‘ Entomologist.”) 


Unsymmetricat Insects.—About five or six years ago, some friends 
of mine were butterfly catching on Boxley Warren, about 24 miles 
from Maidstone, when they netted a specimen of the Common Blue 
(Polyommatus alexis.) The two wings on the one side of the body were of 
the usual bright blue of the male, while strangely enough the other two 
wings were brown, edged with red spots, exactly like those of the female. 
This insect, though sadly battered and in a bad state of preservation, is 
still in the collection of a friend of mine, of this town. There are, I 
believe, other instances of similar ‘“‘ unsymmetrical” insects on record.— 
Frep F. Grenstep, Maidstone. 


Ber-rater, &c.—In my late communication to you respecting the Bee- 
eater shot near Derby, I said that there were two shot. Since I wrote 
the second one has been purchased by a gentleman near Mansfield, and 
sent to me to be re-stuffed. It is now atmy place, and I shall be willing 
to show it to anyone who may call. It may interest some of your 
ornithological readers to know that I have in my possession a young 
specimen of the Shag or Green Cormorant, (Carbo cristatus,) shot on the 
top of afactory in the middle of Nottingham, and also that two other 
specimens, both young, were caught alive in an adjoining strest, and that 
a fourth was shot about two miles from where the others were got.— 
L. Lez, Naturalist, 26, Drury Hill, Nottingham. 


Lepropora Hyarima.—This interesting and singular Entomostracan, 
whose capture in this country for the first time was recorded at page 225, 
has since been found in considerable abundance at Edgbaston Pool, 
near Birmingham, a fact which leads to the hope that it may be found 
in other localities. As Leptodora is making some little stir among the 
savans, and had the honour of being introduced to the British Association 


asa ‘distinguished stranger,” it is only fair to say that its first captor 


was Mr. John Levick, one of the curators of the Birmingham Natural 
History and Microscopical Society, to whose ingenious deyices for 
obtaining specimens, and keenness in detecting them, the members of the 
Society and others are indebted for this and many other interesting 
“finds.” WALTER GRAHAM. 


OrnitHoLocicaL Norzs.—We had several pairs of Wild Ducks 
breeding here this season. I was told of six nests in one double hedge. 
They were late, some of the nests having eggs in them the second week 
in May. The bulk of the Swifts departed on August 12th—two days 
later than last year. I saw a solitary one on the 22nd, but none since. 
I have heard several Nightjars this season ; usually they are rare. Snipe 
arrived very early. I saw five on August 8th. Towards the end of that 
month about a score were seen, and on September 6th I saw over a 
hundred get up from one reed-covered meadow. Three procured were 
probably immature birds, being darker coloured than winter-killed 
specimens. On the same day I saw a Green Sandpiper on the banks of 
our stream—the Sorebrook. The Snipe were quite as numerous a few 
days ago. In changing to winter plumage the chin of the Pied Wagtail 
seems to be affected first. One I shot on the 7th inst. had the back very 


ee 


———s 


CORRESPONDENCE. 259 © 


little changed, throat spotted with black, and chin quite white. Two 
observed on the 18th had the back lighter, and throat pure white. Our 
taxidermist showed me a specimen of the Grey Phalarope, killed on 
the Cherwell, in this parish, a few years ago. The occurrence ot this 
little Arctic bird so far inland is, I think, noteworthy. It, however, I 
believe, visits our coasts every autumn on its migration. We have a 
great dearth of Blackbirds, Song Thrushes, and Robins, especially the 
last. Before the winter they were very plentiful, but one may*now go 
for weeks and not see a Robin—the frost killed them off.—O. V. Apu, 
Bodicote, Oxon, September 19th, 1879. 


RemarKastE RAwraty.—On the 2nd August there was a remarkable 
rainfall on the Clent Hills and at Halesowen, being 2°75in. at the latter 
place. This caused a flood on the Stourremarkable alike for its height and 
suddenness. It was almost all the red water coloured by the Permian 
clays of Clent Hills, as the branches of the river coming from the Dudley 
area were not much swollen. On the 16th the rainfall was more general, 
and measured nearly three inches over a large area, while near Hartle- 
bury it was more than seven inches, and was thought to be a water- 
spout. From appearances observed over that district by residents at 
Wollaston, near Stourbridge, this certainly seems to have been the case, 
as a very dark black cloud was observed to descend quickly in a funnel- 
shaped mass to the earth, the lower end waving about in a singular 
manner. The havoc on the railway near Kidderminster, and the 
bursting of Stone and Spennels Pools, cutting up a turnpike road with a 
deep trench across it, showed plainly a most unusual and concentrated 
rainfall. One garden and orchard, rather hemmed in by a railway and 
natural embankments, was filled up, the water remaining for days 
half-way up the lower storey of the house and up to the lower branches 
of the trees, as there was no outlet for it EH. B. Marrmn, Pedmore, near 
Stourbridge. 


RemargasLteE Hee.—On collecting the eggs from my hen roost on 
2nd September last, I found in one of the nests an egg with a perfect 
shell, but of a very small size, scarcely, if at all, larger than a robin’s or 
house sparrow’s egg. The surface was very rough, being dotted over 
irregularly with projecting lumps of calcareous matter. I tried to blow 
it with my mouth, in the manner common to school boys, but could not 
force through the hole a drop of anything, and on rubbing the pin on my 
finger could find no trace of moisture. I droppedit into aglass of water, 
when it sank like a stone, without even a bubble of air escaping through 
the holes. I then cut it open with my knife, and found it filled with a 
globule of extremely tenacious glairy albumen, without a vestige of 
yolk. Ihave the impression that when an ovary is removed from a hen 
it is usually found to contain a large number of immature eggs, varying 
in size from a small pea to the full size of the yolk of a perfect egg, and 
that the substance forming such immature eggs isthe yolk. Further 
that the white of the egg is formed over and around the yolk after it 
has become detached from the ovary and during its passage through the 
oviduct, and that finally the shell membrane and shell are deposited 
over all. Such being the normal order of development, is it not remark- 
able that a globular lump of albuminous substance, resembling as 
closely as possible one of the little transparent jelly fish frequently 
found on the sands at Scarborough, and not surrounding a yolk, should 
become coated with membrane and shell, and be laid in the usual nest 
as if it had been a perfect egg? When a hen lays an ege without a shell 
she usually avoids the nest and drops the egg anywhere, but in this case 
she was evidently prompted to seek the nest, as though she were going 
to lay a proper egg. I may say that I have a mixed lot of fowls, but I 
believe this egg was laid by a white Brahma.—Cuas. L. Roruera, 
Beeston, Notts. 


260 GLEANINGS. 


Gleanings. 


Aw Exuteition or Appies AND Pears has been arranged for by the 
Pomona Committee of the Woolhope Club, to be held at Hereford on 
October 29th and 30th. The Hon. Secs., Messrs. J. R. Symonds and 
H. C. Moore, will forward schedule of prizes on application to them, at 
the Free Library, Hereford. 


Giucurist Lecrures.—Through the exertions of the Rey. J. Page 
Hopps, a course of six lectures, in connection with the Gilchrist Trust, 
will be delivered in the Temperance Hall, Leicester, on Wednesday 
evenings, commencing October Ist. The lecturers announced are Profs. j 
Martin Duncan and Williamson, Dr. Carpenter, and Mr. Proctor. The ; 
charge for admission is one penny to each lecture. : 


PHOSPHORESCENT SEA-WEED.—During a recent stay at Barmouth I 
found on a dark night a mass of sea-weed, recently left by the receding 
tide, which was most beautifully phosphorescent. On taking up a piece 
of the weed and rubbing my hand gently along it the phosphorescence 
became still more luminous, and the luminosity remained for fully 
half an hour. The smell of phosphorus was also most perceptible. On 
getting to my lodgings I found the weed covered with Sertulariz, and I 
imagine the light-giving Noctiluca miliaris had adhered in great numbers to 
the horny dwellings of the hydrozoa, though I was not able to 
find it.—H. 


Mr. Bouron’s Stupro.—At the Sheffield meeting of the British Asso- 
ciation, Sir J. Lubbock, Bart., M.P., F.R.S., read a paper on the rare and 
interesting species of Entomostraca, Leptodora hyalina, new tothis country, 
which had been recently found near Birmingham. He said he had received 
the specimens from Mr. Bolton, of Birmingham, and took the opportunity 
of acknowledging the valuable aid that Mr. Bolton was rendering to 
microscopic enquiries by sending numerous specimens by post by means 
of his excellent plan of little tubes, giving great pleasure to his corres- 
dondents, and important aid in spreading the knowledge of many rare and ; 
beautiful objects. Professor E. Ray Lankester, F.R.S., speaking upon Sir : 
John Lubbock’s paper, said he was very glad to add his testimony to the 
value and excellence of the work Mr. Bolton was doing in the supply of 
living microscopic objects. He sent regularly by post to his subscribers, for 
avery moderate subscription, a numerous supply of living objects in little 
tubes; and their value and interest were much increased by lithographed 
descriptions and drawings of the objects that were sent with them. He 
hoped this excellent plan would receive the support of microscopists 
generally, to enable Mr. Bolton to keep up so desirable a work. He also 
remarked that through Mr. Bolton’s agency he had seen many interest- 
ing objects which otherwise he would not have seen. Mr. Bolton 
informs us that since his last report (page 213) he has sent out to his 
subscribers, in addition to the two new Entomostraca figured last month, 
(Plates IV. and V.,) some marine Infusoria, Kondylostoma patens ; 
Vaucheria, one of the fresh-water confervoid Alge, in an early stage; the 
interesting clustered Rotifers, Conochilus volvox and Lacinularia socialis ; 
the Pitcher Rotifer, Brachionus urceolaris, and the large Kntomostracan 
Sida crystllina—all accompanied by drawings and descriptions. Mr, 
Bolton has found Lacinularia socialis and Cristatella mucedo lately im 
great abundance. 


GLEANINGS. 261 


Grorcr Henry Lewes Sruprnrsnie.—This Studentship has been 
founded, in memory of Mr. George Henry Lewes, for the purpose of 
enavling the holder for the time being to devote himself wholly to the 
prosecution of original research in physiology. The Studentship, the 
value of which is slightly under £200 per annum, paid quarterly in 
advance, is tenable for three years, during which time the student is 
required to carry on, under the guidance of a director, physiological 
investigations to the complete exclusion of all other professional occupa- 
tions. No person will be elected as a ‘‘George Henry Lewes Student” 
who does not satisfy the trustees and director first as to the promise of 
success in physiological enquiry, and second as to the need of pecuniary 
assistance. Otherwise all persons of both sexes are eligible. Applica- 
tions, together with such information concerning ability and circum- 
stances, as the candidate may think proper, should be sent to the 
present director, Dr. Michael Foster, New Museums, Cambridge, not 
later than October 15th, 1879. The appointment will be made and duly 
advertised as soon as possible after that date. 


American Prepicrions or Commne Storms.—Much curiosity has been 
excited as to the method by which notices of storms travelling eastward 
over the Atlantic have been telegraphed from New York to the London 
office of that enterprising paper, the New York Herald. Kminent meteor- 
ologists have pointed out that itis long odds against a storm leaving 
the American coast at any date preserving its character and direction 
unchanged across the 3,000 miles of ocean which it would have to traverse 
before reaching this country. But it seems to have been forgotten that 
swift ocean steamers are continually proceeding from Europe to America, 
arriving at New York a little before an ordinary cyclone, which they met 
with say in the mid-Atlantic, could reach England. These steamers are 
probably boarded immediately on their arrival in America by the agents 
of the Herald, their logs overhauled, any storms through which they 
passed are examined in connection with those which have left the 
American shores some days previously, and from the information so 
gained telegrams are prepared and sent off. There can be no doubt but 
that if it were possible to maintain some five or six ocean stations—light- 
ships of some kind—at distances of from 100 to 500 miles west of 
Treland, and in telegraphic communication with our coast, our Weather 
Office could accurately foretell every storm approaching us from that 
direction. Whether it will be possible to fix and maintain such stations 
is a question for our inventors. 


Mr. Marspen’s Narursan History Acrency.—No branch of Natural 
History has made greater advances within the past few years than that 
which deals with the relationships of the faune of different countries, and 
the attendant phenomena of variation or similitude. The studies of 
Ornithology and Entomology specially lend themselves to this branch of 
enquiry, and as a consequence of the greater attention paid by critical 
students to this subject there has sprung up a considerable branch of 
business devoted to the sale or exchange of rare and foreign birds and 
their eggs; and insects and their larve. The advantages of a well- 
conducted agency of this nature must often have been experienced by 
those who may have had occasion to work out special groups, or to 
institute comparisons of allied forms of birds or insects. We have 
recently had an opportunity of visiting Mr. H. W. Marsden, of Glouces- 
ter, who has for many years conducted such an agency with a gradually- 
increasing amount of success and a proportionately-enlarging sphere of 
usefulness. We have been much interested in his extensive stock of rare 
birds, eggs, and insects from all parts of the world, but more especially 
from those regions which Mr. Sclater has named the Palearctic, 
embracing Europe and Amurland. Mr. Marsden spares no pains to 


262 GLEANINGS—REPORTS. 


secure examples of newly-discovered species. His correspondents include 
dealers, amateur collectors, and men of science in every part of Kurope 
and America; and a new species, which may turn up in Lapland or im 
Syria, soon finds its way to his cabinets. It is only by extending such a 
business to its widest limits that low prices and the highest facilities of 
exchange are secured. So far as we can judge from an experience of 
many continental houses, Mr. Marsden offers his clientéle exceptional 
advantages. Our space does not permit of our mentioning other objects 
which form part of his business, but we can cordially recommend any 
one interested to pay him a visit. 


Acports of Societies, 


BIRMINGHAM AND MIDLAND INSTITUTE SCIENTIFIC SOCIETY. 
—August 4th, Excursion to Habberley Valley, &c.—August 23rd, Excursion 
to Maxstoke.—September 10th, seventh Annual Meeting was held in the Council 
House. There was a large attendance of members. The President (Mr. R. 
Birbeck) in the chair. The report gave an encouraging account of the present 
state of the society, the number of members being 134. During the past year 
fifteen papers have been read, and eight excursions made to places of interest. By 
subscription and a grant to the committee a first-class binocular microscope had 
been purchased for the society. The Librarian reported that fifty vols. had been 
added to the library, and 760 books issued during the year. The report was 
unanimously adopted, and a vote of thanks passed to the officers and committee 
for their services during the year. The following elections were then made:— 
Mr. C. J. Watson, president ; Mr. R. Hipkiss, vice-president ; Mr. C. R. Robin- 
son, treasurer ; Mr. G. Patchet, librarian ; Mr. W. H. Cox, hon. sec. At the conelu- 
sion of the formal business, the retiring President, Mr. Robert Birbeck, gave a 
short history of the society from its commencement in 1572 to the present time. 
The society, he said, had now completed the seventh year of its existence. Its 
formation was initiated by Mr. C. J. Woodward, and a preliminary meeting was 
held in October, 1872, attended by about six students in the science classes, and 
the result was the establishment of a society which had been of inestimable 
advantage to Institute students, especially where valuable works on science were 
needed for reference. About 60 papers had been read before the society during the 
period mentioned,and these had been listened to by large numbers of members. About 
forty excursions had been organized and successfully carried out, and the library 
of the society, which at first only mustered about 33 books, has now the very 
best works on scientific subjects which are in existence, and numbers 393 
volumes. In its second year the society organized a movement amongst the 
students of the Institute for the purpose of augmenting the Institute Building 
Fund, and the sum realised was £173 13s., and during the year just ended an 
effort was made by the members, under the guidance and management of the 
society, to assist the fund being raised for the restoration of the Free Libraries, 
when the very handsomesum of £205 was collected. In addition to this the Society 
had just purchased a very excellent microscope for the use of its members. The 
Society had been prosperous, for its managers had kept steadily in view the 
prime object of its founders, the assisting by every reasonable means of Institute 
students, and when the inexpensive character of the society is considered—only 
3s. a member per session—it must be a cause for surprise and regret that its 
numbers—now 140—are not doubled. Why should not the society gather to 
itself the members of the literature and language classes, and its library become 
proportionately enhanced in its range, and thus become what some at least wish 
it to be a truly representative society of the Institute students? May the 
present committee have this under serious consideration, and see if something 
cannot be done soon to bring about so desirable a state of things. At the conelu- 
sion of the address, a hearty vote of thanks was passed to Mr. Birbeck— 
September 17ih, the President exhibited a collection of minerals and fossils from 
Castleton, Derbyshire. 


REPORTS. 263 


BIRMINGHAM NATURAL HISTORY AND MICROSCOPICAL 
SOCIETY.—Microscorircan GenerRaAL Mrrrinc.—August 19th. Mr. 'T. Bolton 
exhibited an alga, supposed to be a young state of Anteromorpha intestinalis 
which had appeared in one of his aquaria. Mr. J. Levick exhibited Lacinularia 
socialis and Plumatella repens, from Barnt Green; Mr. W. H. Wilkinson 
Painassia palustris and Pyrola rotundifolia, from Southport; Mr. J.W. Cotton sent 
for exhibition a specimen in spirits of Loligo vulgaris, the Squid, from Barmonth ; 
Mr. W. Graham exhibited Argulus foliaceus, from Spurrier’s Pool. GEOLOGICAL 
Srcrion.—Angust 26th. Mr. W. Southall exhibited a number of plants fom 
the West of England, including Bartsia viscosa, Brassica nigra, (wild,) Verbascwm 
virgatum and V. nigrum, Scirpus maritimus, Radiola millegrana, Arenaria 
rubra, and Glaux maritima; Mr. W. B. Grove two of the beautiful cater- 
pillars of the Vapourer moth, (Orgyia antiqua;) Mr. W. H. Wilkinson 
specimens of ‘several species of Libellula ; Messrs. Caldwell and Butterfield 
specimens of Bromus asper, Corydalis lutea, &c. ; Mr. C. J. Watson micro- 
scopic sections of a boulder from the drift at the Pleck cutting, near Walsall. 
He also exhibited the printing apparatus called the Scriptograph, (see page 235 ) 
Greyerat Mrrtinc.—September 2nd. Mr. W. B. Grove contributed Raphidia 
viridis from Sutton Park, and an embryo snail, showing pulsation of the heart, 
and ciliary action on the foot. Mr. H. E. Forrest exhibited a goldfish from the 
aquarium at the Aston Lower Grounds, having two tails, united together along 
their upper edges in the shape of an inverted V; Mr. Montagu Browne 
the femur and part of the tibia of the extinct Dinornis of New Zealand; Mr. J. 
Levick a supposed new species of Rotifer. Brotocrcan SECTION.— 
September 9th. Mr. W. Graham announced that the rare Entomostracan Lepto- 
dora hyalina, recently found by members of this society at Ulton, and not beiore 
recognised in England, had been again taken in enormous quantity in Edgbaston 
Pool, on occasion of the visit of the members, by dipping to a depth of about four 
feet from the surface. He also exhibited a new form of portable microscope, 
manufactured by Mr. Parkes, of this town, and possessing the essential points of 
a good instrument at a very moderate price; also, a compressorium of improved 
construction, ensuring actual parallelism of the two surfaces. Mr. Bolton con- 
tributed Ophrydium sessile, Leptodora hyalina, Hyalodayhnia Kahlbergensis, 
Aleyonella fungosa, Piwmatella repens, aud Spiregyra Miillerit, all from 
Edgbaston Pool. 


NOTTINGHAM NATURALISTS’ SOCIETY.—September 8rd. A special 
general meeting was held to consider several subjects of special interest to the 
society—September 17th. There was a discussion on the origin, extent, and 
chemical composition of the Magnesian Limestone. The debate was commenced 
by the Hon. Sec., who gave a description of the Permian rocks generally, 
particularly with regard to the character of the red sandstones and marls, of 
which a great variety were exhibited from the cutting of the Bennely and 
Bulwell Railway, together with about 100 specimens of fossil teeth from the 
caves of Cresswell Crags. Votes of thanks were awarded to the Hon. Sec. for 
his address, and to Mr. Bull for his assistance in procuring the rock specimens. 


OSWESTRY AND WELSHPOOL NATURALISTS’ FIELD CLUB AND 
ARCHAMOLOGICAL SOCIETY.—The fourth excursion took place on Thursday, 
September 4th. The day was fortunately fine. ‘The members and friends met 
at Whitchurch, and walked first to Pan Castle, a flat-topped mound of some size, 
and nearly square, with a moat round it. It was probably a fortified place of 
considerable strength ; the country on one side being low and marshy may have 
formerly been under water, or could possibly be submerged ; while on the other 
side, where the ground is higher, there is a deep ditch cut, at a little distance 
from the mound, probably used as a hiding place for the defending garrison. 
From Pan Castle the route lay by Iscoed Park and Wolvesacre Hall, (where 
there is a portion of an old moat,) and then along the Wiches Brook, which 
divides Flintshire from Cheshire, past one of the Salt Springs. It is a 
round pit, two or three yatds across, and close to the brook side, into 
which the overflow runs. The water of the spring is very salt indeed, 
and the edge is white in places with a thin incrustation of salt. 
It is not used now. The party then left the Wiches Valley, and proceeded 
along a Roman road to Malpas, said to have received its name in ancient times 


964 REPORTS—EXCHANGE. 


from its bad roads. There they did justice to an excellent tea at the Wyvern 
Hotel, and then visited the church. It is a handsome Perpendicular structure, 
much needing restoration, with some very fine and beautifully preserved monu- 
ments with recumbent figures in alabaster in cach of the chancel aisles. The 
chief botanical finds were Parnassia palustris (Grass of Parnassus) and Mimulus 
luteus, growing in a bog between Whitchurch and Malpas. A resolution of con- 
gratulation to the President of the Society, the Bishop of Bedford, on his 
advancement to the Episcopal dignity, was passed, with deep regret at his 
retirement from the Presidentship. 


WOOLHOPE NATURALISTS’ FIELD CLUB.—August 29th. The fourth 
field meeting of this club was held on the Radnorshire Hills, near Hay. 
Mr. E. H. Cheese, of Hay, kindly undertook to pioneer the party, and from his 
local knowledge was enabled to afford much information to the club. After 
crossing the Wye by the fine iron bridge at Hay, and passing the picturesque 
village of Clyro, the party arrived at Court Evan Gwyn, where the remains of 
an old border fortalice were examined. Thence, ascending the steep sides of 
Clyro Hill, a magnificent view was obtained of the surrounding country. The 
plain of Herefordshire, bounded by the Malvern and Clee Hills on one side, and 
the valley of the Wye lying beneath, with its grand background of the Black 
Mountains and the Brecon Beacons on the other hand, formed a panorama that 
will not readily be forgotten, and was thoroughly appreciated by the party, one of 
whom exclaimed, ‘ Call this Italy, and the whole world would come to see it !” 
A descent was made into the valley where the well-known bog of Rhos Goch lies. 
After visiting the site of another stronghold of by-gone days the party separated 
—some going to explore the bog, and the others up asteep hill to Bryngwyn 
Church. Here, at this quaint old Welsh church, the party were courteously 
received by the incumbent, the Rev. J. Hughes. The church has. been recently 
restored. There is an interesting old cross in the church-yard, and what appears 
to be the cover of a stone coffin or tomb iet into the wall of the porch; a very 
old yew is standing near the cross. A gold coin, supposed to be a Burgundian 
noble of the fourteenth century, was found in the earth of the floor of this 
church when it was being repaired ; the coin belongs to Mr. F. Banks, who had 
kindly sent it for exhibition; it is in fine preservation, and was an object of 
great interest to the members. The route afterwards lay along the valley to 
Painscastle. A halt of a couple of hours was made here, and the site of the old 
castle was visited. Several very interesting botanical specimens were found at 
Rhos Goch Bog, including Zriglochin palustre, Utricularia vulgaris, Lastrea 
T helypteris, and the Royal fern, Osmunda regalis. After a delightful drive over 
the Begwyn Hills, the party arrived at Hay, where they dined at the Crown 
Hotel. Subsequently, after the ordinary business of the Club had been trans- 
acted, Mr. Cheese read an interesting paper on Painscastle. A botanical paper 
was read by Dr. Holmes, of Leominster, on ‘‘ The Uses of some Wild Plants.” 


EXCHANGE. 


Fine series of Izneous and Metamorphic Rocks of Charnwood Forest 
offered for good specimens of Rocks or Fossils from any other localities. 
Junction specimens of the Igneous and Aqueous Rocks, and specimens 
of Argillaceous Mica-schist with garnets also offered.—F.G.8., 3, Mel- 
bourne Road, Leicester. 


Books for Exchange.—Twelve vols. ‘Popular Science Review,” 
five vols. the ‘‘ Geologist’s Magazine.” Wanted Insect or Fossil Cabinets, 
good Lower Lias Fossils, or offers.—F'.G.S., 3, Melbourne Road, Leicester. 


ANSWER TO CORRESPONDENT. 


H. F. Devis.—Your plant is one of the sub-species of Fumaria 
capreolata—I think the more rare sub-species, Fumaria muralis (Sonder.) 
It is difficult to decide these plants from dried specimens.—J. E. B. 


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Plate VII. 


Structures of Pitcher Plants, &c. 


Plate VIII. 


Structures of Pitcher Plants, &c. 


-_ mae rere. 


‘an 


THE STRUCTURES OF PITCHER PLANTS. 265 


NOTES ON THE STRUCTURES OF PITCHER PLANTS. 


BY LAWSON TAIT, F.R.C.S., PROFESSOR OF ANATOMY TO THE 
BIRMINGHAM ROYAL SOCIETY OF ARTISTS, ETC. 


The following notes comprise a series of jottings on the 
structures of these interesting plants, made whilst I was investigating, at 
the suggestion of Mr. Darwin, their digestive powers. Some of the 
observations are, I know, not new, and others I am equally certain will 
not be admitted without further corroboration. They were made at a 
time when leisure was more abundant to me than it is now, and I may 
therefore be excused if I say that I am not likely to travel over the 
ground again, and shall therefore leave any corrections which may be 
necessary to be made by future observers. 


Mr. Darwin was the first to use the term ‘“ quadrifid” to describe 
certain structures inside the pitcher, which I think he shows are asso- 
ciated with the process of absorption. The term is a very useful one, 
and I have adopted it, and modifications of it, to describe certain 
epithelial structures which are of very frequent and constant occurrence 
in pitcher plants. They consist merely of modified epithelial cells, the 
walls of which are lined with a thin layer of protoplasm and divided 
into arms, so that the cell is composed of a set of branching tubes, con- 
ducting to one stem, in which is placed the cell nucleus. The number 
of arms is very various, and therefore I generally speak of these bodies 
as multifids. They are most numerous, and are most fully developed on 
the outsides of pitchers covered by the lid from the access of rain, and 
they are especially large and numerous on those parts of the pitcher 
where water is most apt to lodge. Thus, in a pitcher of a young plant of 
Nepenthes Rafflesiana they are largest at the point where the stem bends 
at the base of the pitcher, and in the curvature; the spot where of 
course water would be longest in evaporating from the surface of the 
pitcher. Over the general surface of the pitcher they are much smaller, 
and indeed are mostly to be found only as aborted buds. (Plate VII., Fig. 1.) 


In the reversed coriaceous pitchers of anold plant (N. Raflesiana) 
they are often to be found only as buds slightly raised above the general 


Rererences To Puate VII. 


Fig. 1.—Mnultifid and bud from Nepenthes Rafflesiana. 

Fig. 2.—Included gland, Drosera rotundifolia, 

Fig. 3.— Ad 33 Pinguicula alpina. 

Fig. 4.— 4 - Sarracenia flava. 

Fig. 5.—Ostiole from pedicel of Drosera gland. 

Fig. 6.—Tubular trichome from fourth zone of young pitcher of Sarracenia 
purpurea. 


REFERENCES TO Piatt VIL. 


Fig. 7.—Glandulous lacuna infested with fungous growth, Sarracenia rubra. 

Fig. 8.—Nucleated lacunar expansion from lip of Darlingtonia. 

Fig.9.—First and second zones of Sarracenia purpurea, showing sudden 
transition. 

Fig. 10.—Nectaries of Darlingtonia. 

Fig. 11.—Secreting gland of Nepenthes distillatoria, in section, showing the hood. 

Fig. 12.—Ditto, at upper part of glandular zone. 

Fig, 124.—Ditto, at lower part of glandular zone. 


Lone) 


266 THE STRUCTURES OF PITCHER PLANTS. 


epithelial surface, and not dipping under it. Their contents consist of 
light brown protoplasm lining the walls, somewhat viscid, and within 
that a more fluid and slightlyidarker substance. When a piece of the 
pitcher on which they are situated is snipped off they rapidly shrivel, 
and the arms separate. But if a drop of water be placed on the frag- 
ment and then gently shaken off it will be found that while it does not 
adhere to the general surface, some of it has been retained by the arms, 
which have gathered together, just like the hairs of a brush wetted with 
water, and in a few minutes they become quite plump. 


When this experiment was performed with water containing phosphate 
of ammonia (after Darwin’s plan, but not with such extremely dilute 
solutions,) the protoplasm was found in some instances, but not in all, 
to become turbid and to separate into ill-defined masses, and the nucleus 
went through slow changes in outline. Decaying or digested animal 
matter did not, in any of my experiments, produce these changes. The 
distribution of these structures, which will be given more in detail 
when speaking of individual pitcher plants, and the result of my 
experiments induce me to believe that they are absorbents of water and 
such nutrient material as may be dissolved in water without special 
preparation. 

In certain pitchers the multifid buds, instead of appearing wholly 
above the epithelial surface, are seen to dip partially under it, and this 
may be seen in favourable instances to advance till the epithelium almost 
meets over the top of the bud. In this case the protoplasm of the bud 
may be seen marked by distinct divisions, varying in number from two 
to nine, the latter being the largest number which I have seen. These 
divisions of the cell seem to send up processes which appear at the 
surfaces between the interstices of the epithelium, and such modifications 
are generally associated with a peculiar system of intercellular canals to 
be afterwards described. This involution of multifid buds is seen in 
many surfaces, but it is especially associated with the absorption of 
decayed or digested animal matter. When the epithelium completely 
covers these structures I propose to call them included glands, for 
similar, if not absolutely identical glands, are found in the tissues of 
many plants, some of which are already known as digesters, (Drosera, 
Fig. 2, Pinguicula, Fig. 3,) whilst others are not suspected_to have such 
functions. 


Dr. John Lindley described these structures in Nepenthes as long 


ago as 1848, and Mr. A. W. Bennet has also described them in Drosera 
and Pinguicula under the term ganglia, but without entering into any 
explanation of their function. (‘‘ Popular Science Review,” Oct., 1875.) 
In very many cases where they are included they may be seen to occupy 
lacunar enlargements in the system of intercellular canals, and even 
where no such canals can be’ seen they occupy the spaces between the 
large cells of the parenchyma (as in Pinguicula) in a position where their 
aid would be almost as effectual. In some cases, as in the lids of some 
Sarracenie (rubra and flava, see Fig. 4) and in the pedicels of 
Droseracex, they have intimate relations with the intercellular canals 


—--”. 


THE STRUCTURES OF PITOHER PLANTS. 267 


without being included by the epithelium, and then I give to them the 
name of ostioles. On the pedicels of the Droseracess they are seen to be 
»apillary in some instances. (Fig. 5.) These ostioles never have air 
bubbles in them as the stomata invariably have, unless they have been 
removed by maltreatment; and they are smaller than stomata, being 
"035mm. in their largest measurement, whilst the latter are almost 
uniformly :05. Cells do not radiate from stomata as they do from 
ostioles. Their relations to other parts, their special distribution, and 
the fact that I have seen their contents undergo changes when the 
fragment of leaf has been bathed in a solution of phosphate of ammonia, 
and once in the case of Drosera intermedia, when the leaf was bathed in 
_a solution of peptone, the result of digestion in a Nepenthes pitcher, 
make me certain that their function is the absorption of the food of the 
plant. 


Another variety of epithelial absorbentis the tubular trichome found 
in certain pitchers. It is always associated with a system of intercellular 
canals, and seems really to be developed from the protoplasm contained 
in these canals more than from a cell, the cell wall apparently going to 
constitute the lining membrane of the tube, its protoplasm disappearing. 
At the upper side of the margin of the base of the trichome its proto- 
plasm can be seen to be continuous with that of the intercellular canals; 
and in the growth of the hairs this can be seen to be deepening in colour 
and increasing in quantity at the lower part, so as to form the process of 
the trichome. This observation can be best made at the lower part of 
the fourth zone of a young pitcher of S. purpurea (Fig. 6.) At the free 
extremity of these tubular trichomes there must be a true stoma, though 
I cannot pretend to have seen it. But I have seen a bubble of air enter 
at the extremity of the tubule, and I have traced its slow passage, coin- 
cident with the shrivelling of the fragment examined; and the air 
bubbles may be made to alternate with short columns of water by alter- 
nately wetting and drying the surface. 


The systems of intercellular canals to which I have referred are 
best seen on such surfaces as absorb digested food. Thus on the inner 
surface of a Nephenthes pitcher examination by high powers will 
demonstrate these canals beyond dispute. They are walled and contain 
protoplasm, for its columns may be seen broken at irregular spots. They 
are undoubtedly absorbents, for I have repeatedly satisfied myself that 
they were larger in pitchers which had been fed, had digested and were 
absorbing their food, than they were in virgin or starved pitchers of the 
same plant; and the fact that the tubular trichomes of Sarracenia are 
developed from the protoplasm contained in these canals is a further 
argumentin favour of this view. The most complete proof of the actual 
existence of these canals is to be obtained from diseased epithelial 
surfaces where fungous growth is found to be extending into them from 
an ostiole and distending them. In several pitchers of S. flava and also 
of S. rubra, I have found the ostioles so infected that their characteristic 
protoplasm had been destroyed, but their canals were so dilated that the 
connecting systems between the ostioles could easily be traced and 


268 THE STRUCTURES OF PITCHER PLANTS. 


canals could also be seen dipping deeply down into the parenchyma of 
the lid. The appearances seen strongly reminded me of the effects of a 
poisoned wound of the finger upon the superficial lymphatics of the 
forearm. (Plate VIIL., Fig. 7.) 

In the lip of Darlingtonia I have seen them with nucleated lacunar 
expansions (Fig. 8) quite identical with similar appearances which I have 
already described in the human umbilical cord, (Proceedings Roy. Soc., 
No. 163, 1875.) In many cases, however, they do not possess distinct 
walls, but seem to be mere tubular interspaces between cells. 

The last structure found in pitcher plants to which I shall make 
special reference is the secreting gland. These are limited to the 
Cephalotus and Nepenthes. In the former they are buried in a pit 
excavated in the parenchyma and lined by epithelium. They are 
constructed of modified epithelium, arranged very much like the 
elements of the glands of the Drosera and Dionza as described by 
Darwin. They are probably also absorbents, their two actions 
alternating ; but of this I have no evidence save the analogy with the 


glands of Drosera. 
[TO BE CONTINUED. | 


SCIENTIFIC NAMES.—IT. PRONUNCIATION. 


BY W. B. GROVE, B.A. 


(Continued from Vol. I., p. 152.) 

The rules concerning the pronunciation of words come under two 
heads, (1) as to the sound of single letters, (2) as to the syllable upon 
which the accent falls. Upon the second head, in the case of Latin, at 
least, there is very little difference of opinion, but with regard to the 
first the ideas of many persons are in a transition state. The old-estab- 
lished idea was that each nation should follow the precedent of its own 
language in determining the sound of the various letters in Latin words. 
But, though this was the theory, the practice, at least among our- 
selves, was very different, and the accepted model was a combination of 
diverse styles, together with a little of no style at all. 

In the case of scientific nomenclature the confusion is worse 
confounded on account of the medley of sources from which it is derived. 
Sometimes when a native name of a plant or animal formed part of the 
scientific name, or when some discoverer with an appellation full of unclas- 
sical consonants and diphthongs was to be immortalised, an attempt was 
made to diminish the incongruity by Latinising the word on the same 
principle on which the Romans themselves converted the words which 
they adopted from other nations, as when they changed Caradoc into 
Caractacus. But thisis seldom done now, and the practice sometimes leaves 
the original form of the altered name uncertain, and thereby fails after 
all to immortalise anybody in particular. No apology is now thought 
needful for placing a word which is pure Greek side by side with one 
which is pure Javanese, e.g., Strychnos Tieuté, a tree which grows in Java. 
The old principles will no longer suffice, and any change will most likely 


SCIENTIFIC NAMES—PRONUNCIATION. 269 


be in the direction in which opinion now seems to be tending, viz., that, 
when we borrow the words of a foreign nation, we must borrow the 
pronunciation too, however unlike that may be to our own. This is done 
to some extent already, and if we once adopt the principle we shall have 
no tenable ground left for refusing to apply it to the classical tongues. I 
will proceed to indicate the chief points in the “ old” pronunciation of 
Latin. Besides giving a number of the ordinary rules, I have also 
endeavoured to investigate the truth about some cases in which I believe 
the common practice or belief to be faulty. 

One most important point to.be remembered is that every vowel must 
be pronounced ; there areno silent vowels—thus, vulgare has three syllables, 
Cardamine and Trichomanes four each. The final syllables of such words 
have the sound of the final syllables of the words duty and duties. It is 
sometimes indicated in books by accenting the letter, thus é or 2 or (less 
properly) é. Another point is that each of the vowels can be either long 
or short; thisis called its “quantity,” and is marked in all the dictionaries, 
in every case where it is required, by the signs ~ for long and ” for short. 
The usual sounds of the vowels are given in the following pairs of words :— 

Ban, bane; mét, méte; pin, pine; con, cdne; tun, tine; cyst, cyme. 

It is a general rule that one vowel immediately preceding another 
is short; in this case the quantity need not be marked. Thus Gladiolus 
will be found marked as given; the i is short by position, as it is called, 
before the 0, and the word if fully marked would appear as Gladiolus. 
From this rule we must except all cases where the vowel preceding 
represents either of the Greek long vowels @ and 6, or diphthongs, which 
are necessarily long. So the o in Polyzéa is long, and the i in Conium, 
(Gr. koneion, “‘hemiock,”) as also in many other words in -iwm, which 
custom, however, seems to permit us to pronounce short. 

When it is said that all vowels must be pronounced separately, of 
course the case of two vowels forming a diphthong is excepted. The 
chief diphthongs occurring in true Latin words are these five :—2, o, 
(both pronounced like e in méte,) au, ei, and eu, (pronounced as in laud, 
height, and Europe ;) in Greek there are the additional ones a and ou, 
represented by the first two of the above five, (with afew exceptions, as 
in dioicus and Aira,) and ov represented by u. (See “‘ Midland Naturalist,” 
Vol. I., p. 152.) Consequently, whenever in words formed from true 
classical sources we have any two vowels coming together which are not 
among the above-mentioned five, we may generally conclude that they 
do not form a diphthong, and must be pronounced separately. For 
example, Hézoén, Aizoén, Hypecoiim, bromoides, each of which consists 
of four syllables; aizoides, conoidetis, pyrenaicum, each five; and 
hiéracioides, seven. Sometimes, even the five combinations first men- 
tioned are not diphthongs, especially when they come at the end of a word— 
as Hippophaé, Hierochloé, Isoétes, Silaiis, Nereis, Rhetim, Heracletim, 
graminetis, &c. It should be noticed that wu, standing between s, q, or g, 
and a vowel, is pronounced like win English; thus swecicus begins like 
sweet, and so with Suseda, Quercus, Lingua, &c. 

The consonants, in the old style, are pronounced almost exactly ag 
in English, even to the extent of giving ti, si, and ci, in such words as 


270 SCIENTIFIC NAMES—PRONUNCIATION. 


Spartium, Blasia, and Vicia, the peculiar sounds which occur in the 
respective English words, nation, occasion, and vicious; this, however, 
is not always done, and I shall have more to say on this point hereafter, 
as also on the habit of not pronouncing the initial consonant in such 
words as Pteris and Psamma. Chis always hard, as in monarch, ¢.g., 
Chara, Chelidonium, Colchicum, and j must be sounded like y in a few 
words, viz., Leucojum, Thuja, Najas, Hpigejos, majalis, &c. The j here, 
in fact, is only a misleading way of writing i, as may be proved by the 
derivation ; e.g., Convallaria majalis is the lily ‘‘ of May,” maialis. These 
words are sometimes written Leucoium, Thuya, &c., and it would be 
better to do so always. It will be seen hereafter that the sound which 
we are compelled to give to j in these cases is that which, in the “‘new” 
style, is given to it in every case. 

In determining upon which syllable the accent should fall, we are to 
consider whether the last syllable but one (called the penult or 
penultimate) is long or short. 

(1) If the penult is long, the accent falls on it, as in Myosu’rus, 
Sola’num, Eri’ca, Anemo’ne, Ginothe’ra,Trienta’lis, Ibe’ris, Isa’tis, Caki‘le, 
Rese’da, Jasio’‘ne, Potamoge’ton, Sila’iis, Conochi‘lus; thisrule must always 
be strictly observed. Some of the words given above and others (of 
which Cotyle’don Umbili’cus is especially a trap for the unwary) are 
habitually mispronounced, but though we may and indeed must now 
say Ane’mone asan Huglish word, we ought to speak of Anemo’ne nemoro’sa 
as a botanical name. It is worth notice that in a passage of one of our 
poets, the word has its original accent :— 

‘‘Let me the blue-bell’d hyacinth behold, 
The silver anemone of the wood, 
And golden primrose intermingled well.” 
Hurdis, (1763—1801.) 
But in most cases the persistent tendency of the English people to 
throw the accent as far back as possible has effected a change :— 
«« And then fades silently 
One frail and fair anemone.” 
Shelley, (1792—1822.) 

(2) When the penult is short, it used to be taught in our schools that 
the accent must always be placed on the last syllable but two, (called the 
antepenult,) asin Vi’cia, Cle’matis, O’xalis, Co’marum, Hippo’phaé, &c. 
This arbitrarily assumes that the accent can never fall farther back than 
the third syllable from the end—a limitation for which no reason can be 
assigned. It is better, in a certain class of words, to adopt a practice 
which is now gaining ground, and is embodied in the following rule :— 

(3) In such words as_ Glididlis, place the accent not on the 7, 
Gladi’olus, but on the a, Gla’diolus, and so in all cases where a short 
penultimate vowel is immediately preceded by a short vowel, e.g. 
Co’didlum, Ca‘Icédlus, A’rgidlus, He’pialus, Rho’didla, Lu’tédla, gra’védlens, 
Amblyidon, Bra’chyidus, Cra’niide, Trigo’niade. We thereby avoid 
lengthening a vowel which, from its position before another, is short. 
But the conventional mode of accenting thei, e, or y is so well estab- 
lished that few have as yet adopted the rational method here advocated. 


——_:. — 


— 


ta 


a 


ee 


SCIENTIFIO NAMES—PRONUNCIATION. ort 


This is the whole secret ‘of placing the accent correctly, and it is 
seen that accuracy depends upon our knowing whether the last syllable 
but one is long or short. Of course if the word has only two syllables 
there is no choice, asin Rhe’um, Thu’ya; and it only remains to indicate, 
as far as possible, the cases in which rules can be given for words of more 
than two syllables. 


(1) Ithas been said that a vowel immediately preceding another is 
short; a few exceptions have been already mentioned incidentally, as 
Coni‘um, Sila‘iis, Aizo’én, and there is also the large class of generic names 
ending in -ea and -ewm, as Ostre’a, Prote’a, Centaure’a, Staphyle’a, Hera- 
cle’um. A small number of these, which are simply adjectives, are accented 
onthe antepenult, as Aza/lea, Casta’nea, and the same must be done with 
all other adjectives ending similarly, such as lu’téa, purpu’réa, crusta’céa, 
the -ea in which has quite a different origin ; through ignorance of this some 
persons affect the barbarous pronunciation lute’a, purpure’a, etc. 


(2) There are a number of terminations in which the penultimate 
is generally long :— 

-ides, -ida, (meaning “like,”) as deltoides, 7.e., delto-ides, Molluscoida ; 
compare Petaloides, Crinoidea, Nematoideum (see “Midland 
Naturalist,” Vol. I., p. 150.) Though in all such words the o and 7 should 
be pronounced separately, in truly naturalised words they form a 
diphthong of course, as anthropoid, colloid, eycloid, &c. 

-Glis, as Trienta‘lis; exc. O’xalis, Corydalis, Cau’calis. 

-chilus, “a lip,” as Conochi‘lus, Cetochi‘lus. 

-Imus, -énus, -Gnus, etc., as alpinus, Elati’ne, Paludi’na, veluti‘num, 
Lapsa‘na, Dicra’num, Ole’nus, Sile’ne ; exc. Fra’xinus, Ri’cinus, Car’pinus, 
Pla/tanus, Ba/lanus, Ra’phinus, Caly’méne, Stropho’meéna, and all those 
ending in -crinus, as Penta’crinus. 

~igo, -dgo, -tigo, as Verti’go, Planta’go, Asper’ugo. 

-ites, etc., as Phragmi’tes, Limeni‘tis, piperi’ta, Ananchy’tes. 

-nema, ‘a thread,” as Trichone’ma, Hyalone’ma. 

-Otus, etc., ‘an ear,” as Stephano’tus, Dio’tis. 

~urus, “a tail,” as Lagu’rus, Podu’ra, Hippu’ris. 


There is also the termination -oda. When preceded by p the o is 
short, as will be seen below; but, in most other cases, it is the same 
ending as occurs in the Greek word dendrédes, ‘‘ like a tree,” and must be 
pronounced similarly. Thus the Ostraco’da are the (bivalve) ‘“ shell-like” 
group of the crustacea. So Cesto’da, Nemato’da, Tortrico’des, &c. This 
ending should be -odea in the plural, and some authors write it so, as 
Ostraco’dea, etc. 

(3) The chief terminations in which the penult is generally short are :— 

-ides, -ide, -idide, etc., as Pota’mides, H’quide, Cra’niadee. It will 
be seen that the first of these—ides—may be invariably distinguished 
from the termination -ides, and those related to it, by the absence of the 
inserted 0, which occurs in all such words as hypnoides, and here it may 
be noticed that the absence of this o is a sufficient reason why the 
derivation given in all botanical books that I have seen for Ceratidium, 


272, SOIENTIFIC NAMES—PRONUNCIATION. 


Oidium, antheridium, pistillidium, gonidium, etc., is incorrect. On 
referring to any work which professes to give the origin of these words, it 
will be found somewhat like this :—Gonidium, from gonos, seed, and eidos, 
form. But in that case it must be gono-idium, as I have explained ante 
Vol. I., p. 150. The fact is that these words are diminutives, an anther- 
idium meaning strictly ‘‘a little anther,” oidium “ a little egg,” and so 
on. In the same way the name of a genus of spiders, Theridion, though 
stated by Staveley to mean “resembling a beast of prey,” really means 
‘‘a little beast of prey,” as may easily be seen by comparing it with the 
actual Greek words kunidion, ‘“ alittle dog,” and thwridion, * a little door.” 

-olus, -téilus, etc., as Sa’molus, Gla’diolus, Py’rola, Mi’mulus, Inula ; 
exc. Iu’/lus. These are generally diminutives, thus Gladiolus means 
‘¢ a little sword.” 

-icus,.-dcus, etc., as Lu‘mbricus, Beto’nica, Sta/tice, Doro’nicum, 
Di‘psacus, A’phaca, Tara’xacum ; exc. Urti’ca, Myri’ca, Eri’ca, Verbena/ca, 
Pastina’ca ; Hypericum should also be accented on the penult, it is said, 
but on rather doubtful grounds, and custom renders Hype’ricum preferable. 

-stoma, -stomum, *‘ a mouth,” as Cyclo’stoma, A’stomum. 

-gonus, etc., ‘an angle,” as Poly’gonum. 

-ptéron, -ptéryx, etc., “a wing,” as Di’ptera, Micro’pteryx, Thely’pteris, 
Proto’pterus. 

-poda, etc., ‘a foot,” as Cephalo’poda, Cope’poda, Macro’podus. 

-odon, -odus, ‘a tooth,” as Leo’ntodon, Cera’todon, The’codus. 

-trichum, etc., ‘a hair,” as Lepto’trichum, Calli’triche. 

In addition to these it must be remembered that the inserted 7 or o 
in compound words is short; this, however, only becomes important 
when the last component consists of only one syllable. There are many 
words ending in -pus, ‘a foot,’ which come under this head, and are 
frequently mispronounced, as lLy’copus, Orni’thopus, Lo’phopus, 
Ma/’cropus, Coro’nopus, Campy’lopus, Cy’stopus. 

Sometimes a difficulty is found about placing the accent in ‘‘ compli- 
mentary ” names, and here a little latitude is undoubtedly permissible. 
But perhaps the practice which has the most authority in its favour is 
that which places the accent generally on the penult, as in Watso’ni, 
Graha/mi, Rober’ti, Colema/nni, but on the antepenult in all which end 
in -eri or -ii, as Fo’rsteri, Bre’weri, Ga/llii, Hichho’rnii. In the latter case 
the vi is pronounced é-eye, not eye-eye. In complimentary generic names 
the accent is placed on the syllable preceding the termination, -a, -ea, or 
-ia, as Liste’ra, Grevi’/llea, Hooke’ria. In order to tell how to accent such 
words as Lastrea, Saussurea, we must first know their origin. If they 
are formed on the analogy of Ostre’a, Centaure’a, the e, which represents 
a Greek diphthong, must be long; but if the e merely represents an 
unaccented part of the name of some naturalist, to whom the genus is 
dedicated, as Greville, Saussure, etc., it would necessarily be short, being 
used instead of the more usual i in order to retain the form of the word. 
Thus Brownia and Brownea would commemorate respectively Brown and 
Browne, but there would be no ground for making a distinction in the 


pronunciation. 
[To BE CONTINUED. ] 


“ 
e 
Se 


ata. 2 


ete tele 


SUBURBAN GARDENING. 273 


SUBURBAN GARDENING. 


BY EDWARD W. BADGER, F.R.H.S. 


INTRODUCTORY. 


Of all the varied pursuits which have given pleasure to mankind, or 
filled up leisure hours agreeably, none have been more warmly or 
deservedly praised than Gardening. No part of John Milton’s glorious 
poem is more generally appreciated than his glowing descriptions of our 
first parents’ delightful occupations as they tended the plants which 
adorned the Garden of Eden; and this, apart from the literary beauty of 
the poem, is no doubt to be accounted for by the universality of the 
delight which mankind has in tilling the soil, and cultivating fruits and 
flowers. What greater pleasure can be afforded a child than giving it a 
tiny garden of its own? Many a wearied man of business finds his most 
cherished recreation in the quietude of his garden. No occupation is 
more suitable to the later years of life than the gentler pursuits of 
horticulture; and even when age or infirmity debars from active par- 
ticipation in the work, the results of others’ labours are capable of 
affording the purest of pleasures. Strange as it is, still it is too true 
that we English people, with all our love for gardens and gardening, are 
individually but indifferent gardeners. 


At the request of some of our readers, I have decided to prepare 
some papers on Gardening, and, in doing so, shall endeavour to combine 
practical directions with such references to the principles on which they 
are based as will I hope assist occupiers of small gardens to make good 
use of them. I hope it will not be considered out of place for these 
articles to appear in the ‘‘ Midland Naturalist.” I think I shall be able 
to show that gardening is a pursuit well adapted for our working 
naturalists who are fortunate enough to have a plot of ground attached 
to their houses, and I am quite sure a man will be a better gardener for 
being a naturalist too. I hope to be able to prove that “ rule of thumb” 
gardening processes are less educative, less pleasant, and less profitable, 
than those which are based on a knowledge of the “why” and 
‘‘ wherefore ” of what is done or needs doing. 


Suburban gardening is always more difficult than gardening in spots 
where the air is uncontaminated by smoke and impure exhalations, such 
as prevail in and about populous places. Small gardens surrounded by 
high walls, where sun and air penetrate but feebly, demand much skill 
for their successful management, for they are necessarily heavily bur- 
dened with disadvantages as compared with plots of the same size fully 
open to light and air. Then, as a rule, the smaller the plot the more it 
gets crowded, so eager is the anxious occupier ‘‘to make the best” of 
his limited area; this adds another difficulty, and, in the outset, I would 
desire to point out that the bulk of garden plants, whether such as are 
grown for their flowers, or such as are grown for food, are almost 
invariably allowed too little room for their complete development. 

ee 


274 SUBURBAN GARDENING. 


Dwellers near our manufacturing towns whose success in business 
enables them to live away from their places of business, surrounded by 
plots of ground capable of unlimited adornment, are as a body aspirants } 
after successful gardening. But their failures, even when cost is no 
consideration, are far more frequent than their successes. Money is 
often lavished in vain, because of the lack of needful guidance. The 
ordinary villa garden is almost always at the mercy of the ignorant 
jobbing gardener, whose sole purpose in life seems to be to make his 
employer spend money in vain. He is always striving after the (to him) 
impossible, for he knows nothing, or next to nothing, of what he pretends 
to have mastered; anda glorious pursuit, capable at once of being a 
refreshment and delight, is often, from ‘‘lack of knowledge,” barren 
and resultless, except in disappointments. 

Noone unfamiliar with the routine mismanagement of villa gardenscan 
have the least idea of the waste of resources every day going on inall parts 
of the country. It seems the lot of those who have such gardens, and who, 
themselves knowing nothing of gardening operations, rely for the culture 
of their precious plots on totally unqualified men, to labour and spend 
money in vain. The sums spent unproductively in this way are enormous. 
The most feasible remedy for this state of things would be for our 
suburban residents to strive after a personal knowledge of the principles 
of successful gardening. This is the ties which will soonest yield 
satisfactory results. It each for himself will only master the details of 
successful practice they will as a body very soon find their own reward, 
and the ignorant persons they employ to ‘“‘do their gardens” will no 
longer be able to trade on their employers’ want of knowledge, but must 
be content to ‘‘ do as they are told.” 


AUTUMN CULTIVATION. 

The year of gardening operations commences as soon as the summer 
crops are gathered and the ground is unoccupied. It is a great mistake 
to leave the remains of crops to ‘‘ cumber the ground.” They should be 
cleared off as soon as possible, and either placed on the rubbish heap to 
decay, or, which is preferable, particularly where the garden is small and 
the house uear at hand, they should be partially charred, and the ashes 
added to the compost heap. There is another method of dealing with 
them, and that is to bury them deeply in trenches. In one way or other 
they should be got rid of as soon as possible for the sake of health, tidiness, 
and economy. The exact time for doing this will vary as the summer is 
prolonged or short ; but at the earliest time when crops no longer remain 
to be gathered the ground should be prepared for those which are to 

ollow. 

The work of preparation may be divided into two parts: (1) cultivation 
whereby the surface soil and that immediately below it are loosened and 
their positions altered, the whole being afterwards thrown up in rough 
ridges so as to expose the largest amount of surface to atmospheric 
influences ; and (2) the addition of fertilisers, usually in the form of stable 
or mixed farm-yard manure; or in some other way replacing what crops - 
have withdrawn from the soil. 


; 


alien 


SUBURBAN GARDENING. 275 


In many gardens, the usual plan is merely to dig the ground one 
spade’s depth. This, though generally done, is far less effective than 
trenching, which almost always is a more satisfactory method. Some 
portion, at least, of every garden should be trenched annually. 
The reasons for doing this are many. In the operation of 
trenching, the surface soil, which is more or less exhausted, and 
usually stored with oxygen, gets placed lower down, and under- 
goes a period of rest, at the same time that it will slowly part with 
its store of oxygen; the lower soil is brought to the surface, and being 
invariably enriched with a reserve of fertilising substances, these are 
rendered available for the support of a crop. By exposing soil to 
atmospheric influences it is acted upon in a variety of ways. It is 
sweetened, the particles of which it consists are separated, and so acted 
upon by oxidation and other processes that some portions which hitherto 
have lain dormant are rendered fit for ready absorption by the roots of 
plants, and their growth and development are thereby materially 
assisted. The mechanical effect of trenching is also of great value, for 
water is admitted more freely, and when the ground is properly drained, 
by nature or artificially, as every well-ordered garden should be, where- 
ever the water passes through there air will follow, and the importance 
of this to the development of healthy and productive crops cannot be over- 
estimated. Then again, crops grown on deeply-stirred soil are able to 
withstand the vicissitudes of our varying summers far more easily than 
on soils stirred only to a shallower depth ; in rainy ones the roots are less 
injured by wet, and in dry ones they are least affected by a protracted 
drought. 

There are various methods whereby land may be prepared for 
succeeding crops, but those known as trenching and bastard trenching 
are the only ones which the amateur need be familiar with. 

TRENCHING. 

For deep soils, trenching is the best method. Trenching isa term 
used to describe the digging of ground twenty to thirty inches deep. It is 
performed as under :—From one end of the plot to be dug take out a trench 
two feet wide and two spades deep, wheeling the soil to the other end 
of the plot. Next loosen the bottom of the trench with a fork in order to 
assist in deepening the soil available for the roots to ramify through. 
Mark off the ground into widths of two feet. Then commencing at the 
width nearest the already opened trench, fill into it the surface soil or 
“top spits ” of the two feet space next to it; then throw the bottom spits 
of trench No. 2 over the top spits placed at the bottom of trench No. 1, 
in such a way that when finished a ridge like this A shall be left. 
Having loosened the bottom of trench No. 2 with the fork, fill it up with 
soil from No. 3 in the same way as No. 1, and so proceed until the plot 
is finished. Manure should be dug in during this operation in greater or 
less quantities according as the ground is poor or rich. ; 

BASTARD TRENCHING. 

When the soil is shallow—that is, when not more than a single 

spade’s depth is of good quality—a method called bastard trenching 


\ 


276 SUBURBAN GARDENING. 


should be used. The plan is this:—Mark off the plot into two feet 
widths. Dig out the first of these one spade’s depth, and wheel the soil 
to the other end. Loosen the bottom of trench No. 1 as deep as possible 
with a fork, and mix with the soil a sufficient quantity of manure and 
vegetable refuse, and throw on this the surface soil from the next two 
feet space, mixing manure as may be needed. Leave the surface in a 
ridge and as rough as possible. Treat No. 2 in the same way, and each 
of the other two feet widths in succession. 


Ground prepared in either of these ways in the antumn will be in 
admirable condition for seed sowing next spring. If the ground is too 
sandy or too clayey, the occasion of the annual trenching may be taken 
advantage of to make such additions to it as may alter its texture. In 
the former case marl should be added; in the latter lime or sandy 
soil, though, if manure be applied at the autumn digging, the application 
of lime had better, in most cases, be deferred till spring, some little 
time before seed sowing. Whenever land is dressed with lime, particu- 
larly for the purpose of altering its texture, it should be dug in at once, 
so that the atmosphere may not rob it of its energy. 

MANURES. 


Every crop, especially every heavy crop, withdraws from the ground 
fertilising elements. However rich soil is naturally, its stores are yearly 
diminished if it is persistently cropped, and if materials replacing what 
has been withdrawn are withheld. The constant replacement of what is 
withdrawn, in some form or other, is therefore necessary to maintain the 
crop-producing powers of a garden. If a nice adjustment of supplies to 
withdrawals be always maintained, the normal capacity of production 
will, of course, be preserved. It must be obvious to all who think about 
the subject that the ordinary methods of manuring are more or less 
haphazard, but experience has proved that manure consisting of the 
products of the stable, cow-house, and piggery, in sufficient 


quantity, is all-sufficing for most garden crops. In our gar-— 


dens we grow peas, beans, cabbages, and other vegetables, and 
each takes away from the land something. The skilful cultivator 
tries to ascertain what this something is, and to replace it at the 
first opportunity. If the crops grown in a given {space were allowed 
to decay there the soil would receive back all that had been taken from it 
with something added; but our garden crops are more profitably con- 
sumed as food, and the withdrawn substances replaced in another form 
at once convenient and effectual. 

The Rev. Henry Moule, vicar’ of Fordington, impressed by a sense 
of the importance of maintaining the fertility of land at the least possible 
cost, as well as by other considerations, has for years advocated the 
return of human excreta, mixed with dry earth, as the most effectual and 
least expensive method, at the same time {that it afforded a solution of 
one of the most pressing problems of the time. Where his plan can be 
properly carried out, no one, we think, can ‘question its value. In the 
country it can often be carried out easily and economically; but at 
present, for want of perfect self-acting, apparatus, and the difficulty of 


: 
: 


SUBURBAN GARDENING. 277 


obtaining a sufficient supply of dry earth at nominal cost and trouble, we 
fear the difficulties are too great to prevent its general adoption where its 
velue would be greatest—in our large towns and their suburbs. Wherever 
the nightsoil can be systematically mixed with dry earth, easily moved, 
stored under a shed, and frequently turned over for a few months before 
being applied to the land, Mr. Moule’s system can be employed with 
great advantage, and what too often proves a fearful nuisance may be 
disposed of and utilised as a valuable enricher of the land. 


Farm-yard manure, where obtainable, when well mixed and saturated 
with the drainage from cow-sheds and stables, is one of the best forms in 
which to apply food to the soil for the production of most of our garden 
crops. Garden refuse, pea and bean haulm, the remains of all crops, in 
a state of partial decomposition, may be dug into the ground with 
advantage. Clippings of hedges, prunings of trees, &c., partially charred, 
should also be employed as fertilisers. There is scarcely an article of 
any kind made of organic matter which is not available to swell and add 
valuable substances to the compost heap. 

Artificial manures suitable for the various sorts and conditions of 
land, replacing what has been withdrawn by the last crop, or supplying 
what will be required by the next, are readily obtainable anywhere. The 
requirements of the cultivator and the condition of the land must of 
course settle what kind of artificial manure can be used most judiciously. 

Speaking generally, the best time to apply manure of a permanent 
kind is when the ground is being prepared in the autumn. By being 
well incorporated with the soil it will be slowly acted upon by it, and 
will impart some of its more soluble parts to the soil in immediate 
contact with it, which will then be in the fittest condition to afford sup- 
plies of food to the roots of plants in the spring, whenit is most needed, 
that is, when active growth commences. 

On light sandy soils an application of marl, rich in carbonate of 
lime, &c., is more than equivalent to an ordinary manuring, for it is 
much more durable in its effects, and supplies ingredients of great value 
to plants in which the soil is naturally deficient. If marl be easily 
obtainable enough may be added, with advantage, to so change the 
texture of a light soil as to incline it towards stiffness. It must, however, 
be remembered that marls differ very much in quality. In some samples 
only five or six per cent. of carbonate of lime is present; others contain 
as much as eighty per cent. Marls also differ as to the proportions they 
contain of phosphate of lime and potash, and the quantity and compo- 
sition of the silicates. A rough and ready method for ascertaining 
whether lime is present is to place a small piece of marl in some good 
vinegar ; if active effervescence ensues, the presence of lime is indicated. 
If effervescence does not take place lime is absent, or present in too small 
quantity for the marl to be worth applying. 


Where garden ground approaches in character to clay great benefit 
will be secured by burning a quantity of it annually, and afterwards 
applying it asa manure. Burning clay causes the particles to lose their 
adhesiveness, and if this burnt earth be added to a stiff soil in sufficient 


278 SUBURBAN GARDENING. 


quantity it will give a new character to it by rendering it more permeable 
by water and air, and the roots of plants will be found to ramify through 
itmore easily. Hedge clippings, &c., may be utilised to burn heaps of clay 
soil, and will contribute to the enrichment of the heaps. Sir Oswald 


Mosley made a number of experiments with burnt clay, and found its — 


value very great indeed. I quote the following remarks from his pen. 
He says:—‘‘My gardener sowed two beds of onion seeds. The beds 
were each eighteen yards by twelve; one was manured with good stable 
dung, the other with a mixture of burnt clay and vegetable ashes. The 
produce of the first did not exceed five bushels of an inferior size. The 
latter was twenty bushels of onions as large as those imported from 
Portugal. The latter also kept best. An application of the same burnt 
mixture has been applied with equal success in my fruit garden. I am 
so fully persuaded of the excellence of this kind of manure that Iintend 
to adopt it generally on my farm.” ‘The burning of soils appears to 
increase the amount of soluble potash in them. Im an experiment 
made by Dr. Voelcker, he found that unburnt clay contained 0-269 per 
cent. of this ingredient, whilst after burning it contained 0-941 per 
cent. of potash soluble in acidulated water. Soda, too, when present in 
soils, has its soluble parts increased by burning. On the other hand the 
proportion of soluble phosphoric acid and of ammonia are diminished by 
the process, which is rather against it. But then it must be remembered 
that burnt earth acquires a greater aptitude for absorbing ammonia from 
the atmosphere. On the whole, the use of burnt clay is strongly to be 
recommended. In burning clay care must be taken not to employ too 
much heat. The clay must never be so far baked as to be coverted into 
a brick-like substance, but only so much that the lumps of burned clay 
will readily crumble with a little pressure. 
[TO BE CONTINUED. |] 


THE CRYPTOGAMIC FLORA OF WARWICKSHIRE. 


BY JAMES E. BAGNALL. 


(Continued from page 256.) 
CALYMPERACEZ. 
189.—[Encalypta vulgaris Hedw. Banks. This species I have found on 


sandy banks near the Lickey Hills, in Worcestershire. It may 


probably be found on similar habitats in Warwickshire. ] 
192.—E. streptocarpa Schwg. On the mortar of old walls, rare. On 
a small bridge at Earlswood, near Reservoir! on stone walls near 
New Fillongley Hall! Always barren. 
GRIMMIACES. 
194.—Grimmia apocarpa L. Schistidiwn apocarpum B. and §8., Wils., 
Berk. On walls, frequent. Olton Canal bridge! Elmdon! 
Binton! Coleshill! Shrewley Common! Pinley! 
Var. b. gracilis N. and H. On stone walls near Fillongley! 
Var. c. rivularis N. and H. On stones in stream. Out of large pool 
at Arbury! Spring. 
197.—G. crinita Brid. On the mortar of old walls, very rare. Onan 
old bridge near Hatton! ‘This interesting moss was new to our 


‘CORYPTOGAMIC FLORA OF WARWICKSHIRE. 279 


British flora when found by myself in June, 1872. It was then 
fairly abundant; unfortunately the next year the bridge was 
partly pulled down for repairs, and nearly the whole of this moss 
was thereby exterminated. I was pleased to notice in 1876 that it 
had begun to make headway again. I believe this is at present 
the only British station. It is ably described by Dr. Braithwaite, 
in *‘ Journal of Botany,” July, 1872. duly. 


199.—G. pulvinata Dill. Wall tops, very common in‘all the districts. Spring. 


206.—G. trichophylla Grev. Wall tops, rare. Wall of Lapworth 
Churchyard! on Radford Canal bridge, near Leamington! Not 
found in fruit. 

221.—[Racomitrium aciculare Ll. Stone walls. This species I find 
abundantly on walls of new red sandstone near Halesowen. It 
may probably be found on like habitats in this county.] 

224.—R. heterostichum Hedw. Stone walls, rare. Pinley, near 
Coyentry (T. Kirk)! This I also find near Halesowen. Spring. 

225.—[R. fasciculare and R. lanuginosum I also find on stone walls near 
Halesowen. Probably both may also be found in Warwickshire. ] 


228.—R. canescens Hedw. Trichostomum canescens Purt. ‘¢Shores of 
Coleshill Pool” (Bree) (Purt., Vol. III., p. 85.) Heathy waysides, 
local. Near Berkswell Railway Station on main road to Kenil- 
worth! near Four Ashes Lane leading to Monkspath! Lane from 
Solihull to Sharman’s Cross! Always barren. 

230.—Ptychomitrium polyphyllum Dicks. Stone walls, rare. Near 
Binley, Coventry (‘T. Kirk)! [Abundant on stone walls near Hales- 
owen. | Fruit March. 

233.—Zygodon viridissimus Dicks. On roots of trees, local in northern 
part of the county. Copt Heath! near Oakley Wood! between 
Stratford and Redhill! Lane to Harbury Railway Station, 
abundant! Bridle road from Drayton Bassett to Chadshunt! 
Frequent between Offchurch and Long Itchington! Bishops 

4 Tachbrook! Barren. 
241.—Ulota crispa Hedw. Orthotrichum crispum Hedw., Wils., Hobk. On 
trees, rare. ‘‘Allesley, Bree,” (Purt.) Coppice in Whew-porridge 


Lane, near Solihull! Shelly Coppice! dune. 
242.—U. intermedia Schpr. On trees, rare. Chalcot Wood, near 
Umberslade! 


247.—Orthotrichum saxatile Brid. O. anomalum Hedw., Wils., Berk. Local, 
on stone walls. Bridge near Henley! near Wilmecote! near Holy- 
well! Binton! Harbury! Kineton, Edge Hills! Spring. 

252.—O. obtusifolium Schrad. On ash trees, very rare. Abundant on a 
small ash tree near Binton, 1876-78! I have carefully examined 
every other tree in this district that I could have access to without 
being able to find this moss again. 

253.—O. affine Schrad. On trees, &c., frequent, more especially in South 
Warwickshire. Olton! Copt Heath! Rowington! Chesterton 


Wood! Wolstone Heath! Edge Hills! &c. June. 
260.—O. tenellum Bruch. On trees, rare. Between Stratford and Red 
Hill! near Offchurch ! June. 


[O. stramineum Hornsch. Is very likely to be found on trees in the 

lias districts ; at present I have not found it.] 
262.—O. diaphanum Schrad. On trees, walls, and stones, frequent. 
Castle Bromwich! Alcester! Morton Morrell! Wolstone Heath! 
Sherbourn! Hampton Lucy! &c. May, June. 


280 CRYPTOGAMIC FLORA OF WARWICKSHIRE, 


264.—O. Lyelii H.and T. On trees, ash, and elm, local. Near Solihull! 
Chadshunt! Copt Heath! proreaieeatons Ladbrook! Offchurch ! 
&c. Never noticed in fruit. 

265.—0. leiocarpum B. and §. On Ontario ee rare. Near Rowing- 
ton Village! May. 


267.—0. rivulare Turn. ‘On stones and a water wheel at Bidford Grange ~ 


—Bree.” (Purt., Vol. IIT., p. 388.) 
FUNARIACEZ, 


279.—Ephemerum serratum Schreb. Phascwm serratum Wils., Hobk. In 
fallow fields, local or overlooked. Sutton Park! Acocks Green! 

near Solihull! Olton! wood near Maxtoke! Coleshill Heath! 
March, April. 
283.—Physcomitrella patens Hedw. Damp marly places. Damp marly bank 
near Fillongley Hall! Autumn. 
285.—Physcomitrium pyriforme L. Gymnostomum pyriforme Purt. ‘‘ Bank 
bounding mill pool at Oversley,” (Purt.) On moist banks, &c., 
local. Sutton Park! Aston! Water Orton! Dukesbridge! April. 


288.—Funaria fascicularis Dicks. Physcomitrium fasciculare Wils., Hobk. 
Entosthodon fascicularis Berk. Heathy waysides and fallow fields, 
rare. Coleshill Heath! fields near Maxtoke Priory! in a field 


near Ufton Church, 1872! Sutton Park! April. 

290.—F. hygrometrica Li. Walls, heathy waysides, &c., very frequent. 

Occurring in all the districts. May, Novem ber. 
BARTRAMIACER. 

292.—Amblyodon dealbatus Dicks. On damp turfy heaths, near pools, 

very rare. Sutton Park! April. 


299.—Bartramia pomiformis L. On dry shady banks, local. ‘Lane 
from Spernall Ash to Middletown” (Purt.) Sutton Park! Middle- 
ton Heath! Curdworth! Marston Green! April. 


307.—Philonotis fontana L. Bartramia fontana L., Purt., Wils., Berk. 
Marshes, rare in fruit. ‘‘ Cookhill,” (Purt.) Near Windley, Keepers’, 
and Ponca ee Pools, Sutton Park! waysides near Four Ashes! 
April. 

[fo BE CONTINUED. | 


A TUBE-DWELLING STENTOR. 


BY J. LEVICK. 


I have been much puzzled for some time past by a curious tube- 
dwelling Infusorian, which I have found occasionally upon the weeds 
brought from Barnt Green, (a locality to which we are indebted for so 
many interesting and beautiful forms of fresh-water life,) and until 
recently have been quite unable to make out what the creature could be, 
the specimens being so small and deeply embedded in foreign matter that 
only a glimpse of the tube and ciliated disc could be obtained. 


I had nearly come to the conclusion that my new find was one of the 
species of Freia, possibly F. elegans, to which it appeared to bear great 
resemblance, notwithstanding the difficulty that that genus of Infusoria 
is described as marine only. 


EE 


A TUBE-DWELLING STENTOR. 281 


After frequent search, however, I was rewarded by finding a much 
larger specimen, having an extreme length of about 1-22 of an inch, and I 
bow find it to be a Stentor, with the ciliated disc most curiously shaped, 
its general outline being not unlike that of the human ear, especially as 
seen in one position. 

The disc instead of being nearly round and at right angles to the 
body, asin S. Miilleri or S. polymorphus, stands upright with a frontal 
lip-like continuation in opposition, forming a cavity which might make a 
suitable seat for a Trachelius ovum or other similarly shaped Infusorian, 
and looks under the microscope like the old-fashioned bonnet, known as 
the coal-scuitle pattern. 

The body is trumpet-shaped and without cilia, the whole surface 
being furnished with long contractile hairs or bristles, like the rays of an 
Actinophrys, which are ranged at equal distances, and, asit turns about in 
its tube, give it quite a chevausx de frise-like character, 

The disc has, besides a row of these setw round its margin, a fine 
wreath of cilia, and behind a funnel-shaped mouth, also ciliated to its 
termination, is seen a large contractile vesicle, a moniliform nucleus 
being, in my specimen, just traceable. \ 

Its colour is dirty white, and it dwells in a roughly constructed tube, 
formed by a sticky secretion, and, the particles of rejected matter, which 
are continuously falling upon its disc, diatoms, fragments of alge, and 
anything else coming in its way being utilised for the purpose of building 
up its tube, it has the ragged appearance often seen in the cases of 
some of the caddis worms. 

These particles are precipitated by the action of the cilia, and trickle 
down its side, making their way through the setz so closely to its surface 
as to appear almost as though enclosed within the animal, the tube being 
perceptibly augmented even whilst under observation, and certainly 
giving the idea that it is under the control of the creature, whether they 
are thus guided to its base or driven off, a point I have felt pretty sure 
about in other Stentors, which, I believe, accomplish this by reversing 
the action of the cilia on the body, at one time working them upwards, 
and at another downwards, 


It is not social in its habits, as Ehrenberg styles its congeners, which 
often form a white gelatinous mass, and live in groups, but is isolated, and 
most easily distinguished from other Stentors. I have not yet recognised 
it in its free state, and, judging from the smallness of the specimens 
found, it would appear to form the tube at the beginning of its career. 


Turning to the Transactions of the Royal Microscopical Society for 
April, 1870, I find a new tube-dwelling Stentor described and figured by 
Dr. Charles A. Barrett, under the provisional name of Stentor Barrettii, 
which, I have no doutt, is identical with mine, though his has a well- 
formed smooth tube. 


This is the second, if not the third, addition to the ever charming 
family of Stentors, for which we are indebted to the before-named 


locality—Barnt Green. 
QQ 


282, THE WEATHER OF SEPTEMBER. 


METEOROLOGY OF THE MIDLANDS. 
THE WEATHER OF SEPTEMBER, 1879. 


BY W. JEROME HARRISON, F.G.S. 


RAINFALL. TEMPERATURE, 
Ss | Greatest fall/5-J|Greatest ht.Great’st cold 
STATION. OBSERVER. s zl 24 hours.- 32 . 
In.| In| Date. |@ ‘3 Deg} Date. |Deg| Date. 
GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 
Cheltenham .......cceccceee R. Tyrer, Esq. .ccoccsecces| 326) 72) 7 16 | 66°7 8 35°6 
Mirondil passer ensoceb cen seer 8. J; CoLCY; ESQ. 0 cence vence| S82) Gal)» D4 16 | 67°0 3 |389°0| 1 & 25 
SHROPSHIRE. 
WAaughton Hall, Shifnal ....|Rev. J. Brooke .......-.+ 2°69) 60) 24 17 | 67-0 6 330} 30 
WWOOIRtABHON ye cactus ecisinsies REV; 3, D AGRE Jc ccibisccese 8°93) 1:06 7 20 |675| 3&6 |375) 2 
Leaton Vicarage ..........++ Rev. E. V. Pigott.......... 2°87| -69 7 17 | 69°0 8 33°0} 38) 
More Rectory, Bishop’s Castle|Rev. A. Male ........... oo.| 3°31] °93 % 22 | 72°0) 6 |800) 380 
Warden Hal es wccssleaccrcace Miss F. R. Boughton ...... 3°08) °67 7 19 
Bishop’s Castle E. Griffiths, Esq. .......00+ 3°25 16 | 710 35°0) 380 
ALAIN PtON cna ie vascpqasn'e ens Rey. Wm. Elliott ..... eeeee| 3°69] “94 7 7 
HEREFORDSHIRE. 
Sigkavblins we dies dsccevcces Rev. G. E. Alexander......| 423/156} 30 17 | 66°0 8 |460/ 7&9 
WORCESTERSHIRE. 
Orleton, Tenbury.........+ ~[i. H. Davis, Hsq ...esecces 3°25) -44) 13 18 | 773 6 83°0} 380 
WWEEE Malverny ocd cise sec veal A. H. Hartland, Esq. ...... 3'14| °67 23 15 | 710 3 37°0 
TRSSUIMLOLE (areec(t siemicisimajoiciisias # E. B. Marten, Esg. ........ 3°60) 59) 28 18 | 67°0| 4 &17 | 370 
Longlands, Stourbridge...... J. Jeffries Hsq...secssesces 3°63) °56| 24 & 28) 17 | 70°0) 2, 6, 7 | 340] 24 & 29 
Dennis, Stourbridge ........ Mr. C. Webb...... HO RORR SO oe 3°45] °78) 24 14 | 72:0 360 
STAFFORDSHIRE. 
Thorganby Villa,Wolverhmtn|G. J. C. Broom, Esq. ...... 2°89) *59} 28 19 x 
WMO GISY piace mses sinic\nivicviace Mire MIBREP oso cieje nici | 3" 52) 24 20 |78'0} 28 34°0| 24 
BEAR Ye ida cdblsidvlesisletievsinweis Mr. C..Beale '. 1.5. eee oo] 3" 68} 928 19 | 65°0 3 88°0| 24 
Kinver ...|Rev. W. H. Bolton i) 28 20 |67°016 & 7 |32)| 29 
Walsall Mr. N. E. Best ...... 52) 24 20 | 650 3 |380) 24 
Grammar .)C. U. Tripp, Esq. 60} 28 17 | 740 4 35°0| 380 
Weston-under-Ly Beet R tory Hon.and Kev.J. B 53] «24 18 |70°0| 3 & 6 |33°0} 3c 
IWEOGUGBIGY: oeicccins <iciae oie .|E. Simpson, Esq 58] 28 16 | 68-2 4 37°4 0 
Heath House, Cheadle . .|J. C. Philips, Es 48) 28 13 | 68° 3 380, 30 
Alstonfield Vicarage ........ Rey. W. H. Purchas .. 61 8 14 | 67°8 3 815} 30 
WARWICKSHIRE. 
Coundon, Coventry .......... Lieut.-Col. R. Caldicott ....|3°14) 56} 28 15 | 66:0) 2 & 7 | 42" 
GOVENEFY <cnec cc cccacsceceece J. Gulson, Esq. ....... 3°32) *62 23 18 |680| 7 & 8 |38| 1&30 
Bickenhill Vicarage.........- J. Ward, Hsq......... 3°39} ‘59/ 2+ 14 | 63°0 37'°0 
St. Mary’s College .......0-- Rev. S. J Whitty...... 3°15] *54| 28 18 | 71:0 3 366} 30 
Henley-in-Arden .......e008 T. H. G, Newton, Esq.. 327| °60' 23 13 | 70°0 3 3860 1 
Rugby School.......... a mopinc OVS Es Ne Hutchinson ....| 2°96 62| 23 16 | 6'8 3 37°2| 30 
DERBYSHIRE. F 
Stoney Middleton........++++ Rey. U. Smith ..... saves) a: ‘67 8 12 | 670) 4 |29°:0) 29 
Fernslope, Belper......+.++++ J. G. Jackson, Esq. .. 3°21) *60)} 28 15 | 67°0 7 (340) 30 
Linacre Reservoir .......-.+ 0. EK. Jones, Esq. .. 36 8 15 
SNODAOD Gs seis 0 aicieepinuy eins J. T. Barber, Esq... 58} «28 16 | 65°0 30°0 1 
ThivtiiGit bp at esa ao oe asc -++|W. Bland, Hsq. .......-00e- "88| 44) 18 15 
NOTTINGHAMSHIRE. 
Blesley Halll .i..-c.eeecssecls B. J. Whitaker, Hsq. ......| 1°64) -41} 14 |10/71:0}) 4 |30°0) 380 
Hodsock Priory, Worksop ..|H. Mellish, Esq. ..........| 2°06] *41] 13 15 | 710 3 308) 80 
Park Hill, Nottingham......)H. F. Johnson, Esq 92) 24 15 | 67°5 7 39°0| 26 
LEICESTERSHIRE. 
Loughborough ..........e8- W. Berridge, Esq.......... 3°39] °68) 24 15 | 70°9 3 82°7| 380 
Ashby Magna.......csseceoes Rev. E. Willes .... -| 3°41] 69) 23 17 | 70°0 6 83-0] 30 
Market Harborough ........ S. W. Cox, Esq..... =| 2°87} °80}' 23 64:0} 1 &15 |31°0) 30 
Leh iG) NBS Ripesecse-cebuen T Macaulay, Esq. .. -/ 3°14 61]. 23 19 
Town Museum, Leicester ....|W- J. Harrison, Esq. -| 3°33} 68) ~ 14 15 | 6971 3 35°2) 30 
Belmont Villas, Leicester....|H. Billson, Esq. ...... -| 3°29) 65) 138 16 | 69°0 3 84°8} 30 
BYSCOR Se). a newicnicinploe «ine sen, J. Hames, jun., Esq. 8°12) *59 13 16 | 72°0 4 35°0| 30 
Waltham-le-Wold.. E. Ball, Esq. ........ «| 3°47] 60) 24 14 | 68°0 7 (360) 24 
Little Dalby Hall.. G. Jones, Esq. .... | 3°23] 50) 13 15 | 75,0 4 320 30 
Coston Rectory, Melto Rey. A. M. Rendell .. 3°29} 61] 13 17 | 68°0 8 29°3| 27 
NoRTHAMPTONSHIRE. 
Towcester Brewery J. Webb, Esq... 2°95) *52) 23 13 
Castle Ashby ... R. G. Scriven, Es 2°72) °65) 28 18 390, 29 
Kettering....... J. Wallis, Esq 2°54) *61] 23 17 | 67°0 8 |420) 25 
ATH Orie acduencs vacsecs .|G. S. Groom, Esq.. -| 2°90] -72| 28 15 | 65°0 7 (1330) 29 
Pitsford EEG eer a C. A. Markham, Esq....... 2°67} °*70) 28 14 | 73°0 3 1330) 29 
UTLAN. 
West Deyne, Upiinehacnt: .|Rev. G. H. Mullins ........ | 2°95) *80} 23 17 | 68°3 8 369) 25 
Northfields, Stamford ...... W. Hayes, Hsq. .........00- 2°58] °68} 23 14 | 60°0 1 33°0| 15 
Ratcliffe Observatory........ H. E. Bellamy, Esq........ 2°89| ‘56] 28 15 | 680 3 40°3} 24 
Ventnor Hospital .|W. T. Ryder, Esq... «.-| 3°46] °92) 23 6 | 68°6 6 43°2 25 
Altarnun Vicarage .....+-.-- Rev. J. Power, M.A.........! 5°17) 1:00 9 16 | 76°0} 7 35°0' 1 & 30 


The first week of September turned out dry and fairly fine, and 
there was another interval of similar weather between the 14th and 20th; } 
with these exceptions, however, rain fell almost daily, and in sufficient 


ee 


THE WEATHER OF SEPTEMBER. 283 


quantities to cause the total fall at most stations to exceed the average 
by from ten to twenty per cent. The 13th, 23rd, 24th, and 28th were the 
days of maximum fall, the heaviest record for one day, however, being 
1:56 inches, on the 30th, at Stoke Bliss. There was much fog and haze, 
with heavy dews, in the latter halfof the month. The barometer, on 
the whole, ranged high, but was unsteady. Westerly winds prevailed, 
with little sun. Owing to the continuance of unfavourable weather, 
the harvest was everywhere late. Although much corn was cut by the 
end of the month, it lay sodden in the fields. We have to go back to 
1860 to find a similar record. 


Narurau History Nores py Opservers.—Haughton Hall, Shifnal.—A 
very few wasps have at length appeared; Peaches attempted to ripen by 
the 30th; Figs hopeless; no Mushrooms. More Rectory.—The fruit crop 
is generally dwarfed in size and poor, excepting the nuts; Whinberries, 
however, have been abundant on the hills. I have not seen or heard of a 
Mushroom. Cheltenham.—Peaches and Nectarines on open south brick 
wall just ripe by the 27th; Brimstone Butterflies emerged from chrysalis 
on the 20th. Uppingham.—Crops and fruit very backward. There is a 
heavy crop of Plums, which, however, is only half ripe. Other fruit very 
bad. Burton-wpon-Trent.—Horse-chestnut, Lime, and Birch began to 
shed their leaves on the 25th. Spondon.—Cnothera Lamarckiana, which 
usually blooms in June, did not commence flowering till this month, 
although close to a hothouse and facing south. Altarnun.—All hope of a 
peat harvest has been given up; scarcely any Partridges in N. Cornwall, 
except old ones; the young birds were drowned. 


Correspondence, 


Fossmuirerous Bunrer Prpstes iN THE Drirr.—Well-rounded 
quartzite pebbles derived from the Bunter conglomerate occur in great 
numbers in the Chalky Boulder Clay of Leicestershire. Whilst examin- 
ing this deposit in Mr. Townsend’s brick-yard at Countesthorpe, about 
five miles south of Leicester, I broke open a liver-coloured quartzite 
pebble which contained a good specimen of Orthis redux, a well-known 
Lower Silurian fossil. In the ‘‘ Geological Magazine ” for 1878 (p. 239) I see 
Mr. Jennings records the same fossil in a precisely similar matrix from 
the vicinity of Nottingham.—W. J. Harrison. 


Lrpropora HyaLina.—In reading over Mr. Graham’s interesting paper 
on this remarkable animal, (page 225,)I could not help noticing one 
passage, which is most certainly incorrect. It runs as follows :— Lepto- 
dora belongs to Baird’s Legion Branchiopoda, Order II., Cladocera, 
Family I., Daphniadz.” Now this is obviously wrong, for Leptodora does 
not belong to the Cladocera, much less to the Daphniade. If Mr. 
Graham will turn to the definition of the order Cladocera in Baird’s 
Entomostraca he will find that one of the most essential characters is that 
the limbs are all enclosed within the carapace. In Leptodora the limbs 
are all entirely free, and the carapace is almost atrophied. ‘How can 
these contrarities agree?” There is no need to say more than that if we 
attempt to reconcile it with the characters of the family Daphniade we 
fail utterly. Will Mr. Graham kindly let us know to what order and 
family Leptodora does belong? ‘The so-called auditory organs are 
evidently antenne. They are what Baird calls the superior antenne, 
and in the male are long and spear-like. The long swimming limbs are 
the inferior antennsw, and the limbs marked d1 tod 6 (Plate V.) are all 
true legs; d 6 is not an antenna.— ENQUIRER. 


284 CORRESPONDENCE—REPORTS. 


Darunia Barrpu.—Since I wrote my paper on this new Entomo- 
stracon, (see page 217,) I have been informed that the animal had been 
previously found near Berlin, and described by Schédler in his work 
entitled ‘‘ Die Branchiopoden der Umgegend von Berlin,” (Berlin, 1858,) 
under the name of Hyalodaphnia Kahlbergensis. There is no doubt, how- 
ever, that it is a true Daphnia; and since it agrees in every particular 
with the characters of that genus given by Baird, I see no reason why it 
should be placed in a separate one. Schédler’s specific name must, of 
course, take precedence of mine, by reason of its priority, and the name 
should then be Daphnia Kahlbergensis. I have the pleasure to record that 
this species has been found not only in Olton Reservoir, but also in 
Edgbaston Pool and Spurrier’s Pool, and we may, therefore, hope to keep 
it amongst us not as an ‘illustrious stranger,” but as a familiar friend. 
H. H. Forrzsr. 


ScartetT Runners.—I have noticed but few rows of this useful 
vegetable during the present year which have borne anything like a 
moderate crop of pods. I presume itis primarily due to the abnormal 
character of the year, in the course of which we have had such a large 
number of wet days. This insalubrious weather also accounts for the 
absence of bees, which are necessary for the fecundation of scarlet 
runner bean flowers. The following extract from Dr. Darwin’s ‘ Cross 
and Self Fertilisation,” p. 150, will, perhaps, prove interesting. He 
says: ‘‘ The flowers of Phaseolus multiflorus are so constructed that hive 
and humble bees, which visit them incessantly, almost always alight on 
the left wing petal, as they can best suck the nectar from this side. 
Their weight and movements depress the petal, and this causes the stigma 
to protrude from the spirally wound keel, and a brush of hairs round the 
stigma pushes out the pollen beforeit. The pollen adheres to the head 
or proboscis of the bee which is at work, and is thus placed either on the 
stigma of the same flower or is carried to another flower. This plant 
grows well and flowers in Nicaragua, but as none of the native bees visit 
the flowers not a single pod is ever produced.” Mr. Belt mentions a case 
(‘ Nature,” 1875, p. 26) of a late crop of P. multiflorus, near London, 
which was rendered barren by the humble bees cutting, as they frequently 
do, holes at the bases of the flowers instead of entering them in the 
proper manner.—H. W. B. 


Aeports of Societies, 


BIRMINGHAM AND MIDLAND INSTITUTE SCIENTIFIC SOCIETY. 
—September 24th. Mr. A. J. Shilton gave a very interesting paper upon 
“‘ Tiluminating Gas.”’—October 8th. Mr. C. B,. Caswell, F.C.S., read a paper upon 
“ Alkalimetry.”—October 18th. The members visited the new railway now 
being made between Halesowen and Northfield. 


BIRMINGHAM NATURAL HISTORY AND MICROgcopicaL 
SOCIETY.—Microscorican GENERAL Mezrinc.—September. 16th—Mr. T. 
Bolton exhibited a living specimen of Ophiocoma neglecta, the gray Brittle-star, 
from Llandudno. Mr. Wright Wilson exhibited a section of diseased liver stained 
with an aniline dye, which acted differently on the healthy and diseased parts so 
as to produce two colours. He also made some remarks on Calveria hystria, a 
species of Sea Urchin found by Sir Wyville Thompson, at a depth of 445 fathoms, 
and presented to the Society the part of the Transactions of the Royal Society 
which contains figures and descriptions of the only perfect specimen yet found. 
Mr. J. Levick exhibited a new rotifer, Anurewa longispina, (see page 241.)— 
GroLocicaL Sectron.—September 23rd.—Mr. R. M. Lioyd mentioned the diffi- 
culty he had found in keeping alive the new Entomostracon, Leptodora, and 


—=<- ~~ 


REPORTS. 285 


exhibited a cast shell of crab from his aquarium. Mr. Badger exhibited 
a very abnormally tasselled form of Pteris serrulata, grown by Mr. 
Chas. Williams, of Moseley Lodge, and read a letter about it 
from Mr. Thomas Moore, F.L.S. Mr. W. Southall read a paper on 
the making of the artificial sea-water for the Aston Aquarium. (See page 246.)— 
GeneraL Mrrtrnes.—September 30.—Mr. W. G. Blatch exhibited larve of 
Vanessa Cardui, remarkable only for their occurrence so late in the season ; 
beautiful cocoon of a spider, Ciniflo ferox, in the shape of an egg, suspended by a 
silken cord; and arare beetle, Amara patricia, new to the Midlands, found at 
Cannock Chase. Mr. W. B. Grove exhibited Schizogonium murale, from a wall 
at King’s Norton. Mr. J. Levick read the paper on ‘‘ A New Rotifer and Infusorian ” 
printed at page 241. Mr. W. Graham gave an interesting account of a marine and 
dredging expedition organised by the Aberdeen University. Mr. H. KE. Forrest 
reported that he had found Ophrydium versatile, a remarkable Infusorian, 
at Shrewsbury.—October 7th.—Mr. T. Bolton exhibited living male and 
female of Leptodora hyalina. Mr. J. Levick read some notes upon a curious 
Stentor, which he had found at Barnt Green. (See page 280 for description.) Mr. 
Montagu Browne, F.Z.S., read a paper ‘On the Desirability of Establishing a 
Museum in Birmingham, with some remarks on the Collection at Aston Hall.” 
He characterised the latter as a collection of caricatures of nature, huddled 
together without even a pretence of scientific arrangement or correct nomen- 
clature, and propounded the following scheme for the establishment of a scien- 
tific museum, centrally situated, and equally instructive to the student and the 
mere sightseer. That two moderate-sized rooms should be obtained, in one of 
which should be collected specimens illustrating the fauna, flora, geology, and 
mineralogy of Great Britain, with especial regard to local natural history. 
That these should be mounted with characteristic surroundings (i.e., rock birds 
on rocks, waders in marshy ground, &c.) In the second room might be 
arranged groups of animals, &c., such as were likely to be of use for educational 
purposes. He said that if the two rooms were provided and fittings obtained by 
public subscription, the objects would be speedily forthcoming; indeed, that he 
himself was prepared and willing to present them with a large number of 
British birds. At the conclusion of the paper, a discussion took place; 
in which Messrs. E. W. Badger, W. R. Hughes, W. Wright Wilson, 
H. E. Forrest, R. W. Chace, and J. Levick took part, all the 
speakers substantially supporting Mr. Browne’s suggestions.—BroLoGIcAL 
Secrion.—October 14th.—Mr. J. Bagnall exhibited Medicago denticulata, M. 
maculata, Lolium temulentum, and Bromus patulus, from a farmyard at 
Kenilworth ; he considered all of them to be casuals introduced with foreign 
seed. Riccia glauca and Anthoceros punctatus, Hepatice from a marly field at 
Leek Wootton. The peculiar distinctions in fruiting characters were pointed out 
and microscopical preparations of them were exhibited. Mr. J.G. Cotton exhibited 
Eye of Trilobite, Asaphus caudatus, from the Wren’s Nest, Dudley. Mr. J. 
Bagnall then read his report of the Botanical Section of the Falmouth Excursion, 
in which he stated that upwards of 400 species of flowering plants, grasses, and 
ferns had been recorded or collected during the excursion, the greater part of 
which were found in the Falmouth district, (Falmouth to Helford, a distance of 
about six miles,) most attention having been given to this neighbourhood. Hach 
day’s excursion and proceedings were then duly recorded, and the most noticeable 
plants found during the excursion were exhibited. An account was also given of 
the excursion to Land’s End and Lizard Point, and the rare plants taken on that 
occasion were exhibited. The geographical range in Great Britain of each plant 
exhibited was given, and an analysis of the whole flora of the district 
worked, so far as represented in the list made during the excursion, was given, 
as follows :—220 belong to what Hewett C. Watson calls the British type of 
distribution, or to that intermediate type which he designates British-Hnglish, 
z.e., species widely spread through South, Middle, and North Britain; 150 to what 
Hewett C. Watson calls English type, or to that intermediate type which he 
calls English-British, z.e., species chiefly seen in South or South Middle Britain ; 
seventy to what he calls the Atlantic type or species, chiefly seen in West 
England ; twenty to the Germanic type or species, chiefly seen in Hast England ; 
four are what he designates local species, and are coufined to single or few 
oo The paper was illustrated by sixty-eight specimens of the plants 
collected. 


286 REPORTS. 


BIRMINGHAM PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY.—The annual meeting of 
the members of this society was held on Thursday, October 10th, in the Board 
Room of King Edward’s Grammar School, Birmingham. Dr. Heslop (the 
president) presided. The Rev. H. W. Crosskey (one of the hon. secs.) read the 
annual report, which stated that the number of members was118. During the 
year there had been three withdrawals and twenty-four new elections, 
Dr. Heslop was re-elected President. The other officers having been 
elected, Dr. Heslop delivered the annual address. He proposed to ask 
their attention that evening to the life and poems of Lucretius. The sum 
of Lucretian philosophy was that all things sprang spontaneously from 
matter, and that out of the concourse of atoms, their varied motions and com- 
binations, all the phenomena of nature arose; that the mind, soul, and body 
came into existence, developed, and died together; that the sum of things was 
fixed; that by infinite adaptations ever going on some things disappeared, or 
rather were restored again into the primal elements, while other things 
came into existence and maintained themselves; that there might be gods 
dwelling in the upper ether, but that providence was not their function, 
the universe being self-dependent. Finally, that the laws of nature were 
eternal and inviolable, the monsters and chimeras of mythology being idle 
tales, and that the punishments fabled to be in store for us in a place 
of torment “do all exist for us in this life.” Lucretius had no conception, or 
but the dimmest conception, of those forces which play so great a part in 
modern science, much less of their relations to each other. He ascribed far too 
serious a part to the fear of death as a motive influence on man’s mind ; and he 
seemed to be unaware, as many modern writers on the same subject seem to 
be unaware, that the views of death held by persons in their health and strength 
are very different from those held by the same persons whea afflicted by pain, 
disease, or moral suffering. Especially Lucretius exaggerated fear of the gods 
and of death as the chief basis of the religions emotions. He was apparently 
unconscious that these emotions are intertwined with our nature under all 
conditions of human life, altogether irrespective of the origin to which he 
ascribed them. The most ardent faith in the existence of a supreme First 
Cause, and of our dependence on that Being, was able to exist in the same 
breast which knew no fear of death. The greatest fault of Lucretius was his 
confidence in his theories, as offering complete solutions of the problems of life 
and nature. When he left the mysteries of matter, motion, and death, Lucretius 
planted his foot on surer ground. There they were free to admire 
a descriptive power, an insight into nature, a vigorous handling of 
man, life, and society, not equalled by any ancient author excepting 
Homer. Lucretius loved to think of nature as free from the dominion of 
her proud lords; he loved to think of men as free from degrading superstitions. 
Yet even he was obliged to admit that the first beginnings of things swerved, 
though ever so little, from their lines of motion, and so made the phenomena of 
the world possible. He admitted that varied deities dwelt in the bright ether, 
above the gliding signs of Heaven, though he refused to believe in their power or 
their desire to influence the course of nature. He saw as intensely as the most 
orthodox béliever, that when men deviated from justice, gave themselves up te 
ambition, or yielded to their passions, the conscience was able to punish them 
with a severity equal to that inflicted on the fabled tenants of Tartarus; yet he 
did not admit that this inner monitor reposed on any external sanctions. 
This, then; was the compromise effected, doubtless after painful struggles 
and much thought, in the mind of Lucretius between the popular religion of his 
day and his knowledge of the facts of life and nature. It was not for them to say 
whether his standpoint was correect—whether the reconciliation he arrived at 
between the sensuous and the supersensuous was a logical reconciliation. If it 
was correct for him, they were precluded from denying its validity. The con- 
science of each investigator was his only court of appeal. If a man’s conscieuce 
was to be his guide and his strength, it could only be strong and helpful when it 
was kept in constant work. It was probable that the exercise of external authority 
over it might yield a crop of hypocrisy ; it was impossible that it could give a 
stock of strength. Here, to dominate was sooner or later to drown. An eminent 
scholar, educated in the school in which they were assembled, lately told a 
notable congregation in Westminster Abbey that ‘“ every fact which is added to 
our knowledge of man or of the world illuminates our knowledge of God.” This 


a 


dh 


i Wl | 


REPORTS. 287 


was a reflection which he gladly left in their minds as he took leave of Lucretius. 
—Oa the motion of the Rev. A. R. Vardy, seconded by the Rev. H. W. 
Crosskey, a hearty vote of thanks was accorded Dr. Heslop for his address. 


BURTON NATURAL HISTORY AND ARCHAOLOGICAL SOCIETY.— 
September 27th.—An afternoon trip to Egginton and Etwall completed the 
excursion programme for 1879. Mr. R. Thornewill acted as the leader, and the 
party numbered about forty persons. Arriving at Egginton Junction, the party 
proceeded to the church. The members duly examined the objects of interest 
in the church, and the leader discoursed upon its history and architectural 
features. The building is supposed to have been erected about the year 1300. 
After visiting the gardens at the hall, the party went to Etwall. In the church- 
yard there is a fine old yew tree and some beautiful elms, and in the adjoining 
vicarage grounds are two magnificent specimens of the latter, known to have 
been planted in the year 1701. Two gravestones were pointed out as having been 
erected at the heads of their intended graves by two eccentric parishioners some 
years before their decease. Each stone had a full inscription engraved, leaving 
space for the dates and ages. Both persons are now buried, one very recently, 
and in the other case the final particulars are not yet inserted. On visiting the 
church the register was first inspected. Commencing as far back as 1558 there 
are many entries of quaint interest. The most curious feature, however, is the 
register of burials under the Woollen Act, 1678 to 1681—an Act passed to compel 
all persons to be buried wrapped in woollen, in consequence of the depressed 
state of the woollen trade. In each case the relatives of a deceased person had 
to make an affidavit before a magistrate that the Act had been complied with, 
and there was a penalty of £4 for settine at nought this ultra-protectionist 
enactment. The church belongs chiefly to the ‘‘ Perpendicular” period. There 
isa stone lectern, and in the south windows are some remains of fourteenth 
century glass, representing the three persons of the Trinity, and St. Helen, the 
patronsaint of the church. There are brasses to the memory of the Port family 
in excellent condition, bearing date 1557; also a fine raised stone tomb, 
beneath which lie the remains of Sir John Port, the founder of Etwall Hospital 
and Repton School, also his first and second wives. The party adjourned to the 
Hawk and Buckle Inn, had a capital tea, and then a formal meeting was held, at 
which new members were nominated. The Burton Chrovicle makes the following 
remarks on the work of this active society :—‘It may be remarked that the 
Natural History and Archeological Society has thus far achieved an undoubted 
success in its operations. There is probably no other organisation in the neigh- 
bourhood that is fulfilling so useful a mission. Pleasure and profit are combined 
in a pre-eminent degree. The summer excursions make one familiar with objects 
of interest in the neighbourhood, which might otherwise have remained unnoticed 
and unknown to very many. It is something to visit old churches, and halls, and 
battlefields, and so call up the times and the circumstances in which our 
ancestors lived, and so compare the past with the present; it is something 
to search deeply into the hidden mysteries of nature and read the 
testimony of rocks, the language of flowers and plants, and discover 
more fully the Divine handiwork in the world of animal and insect“ife; it is 
a further advantage to leave for a time one’s daily round of labour and step out 
from the narrow world of ordinary life into a larger and freer atmosphere. Nor 
are the winter operations of the society of less importance, for in the evening 
meetings there are presented for consideration subjects of the deepest import 
concerning various branches of science in the province of the society’s work. 
There are a few people who affect to ridicule such researches and speak somewhat 
scornfully of beetle and butterfly collectors. Let them do so if they will, and so 
close their eyes to nature’s marvels and their ears to the many Divine voices 
around them. A reverent naturalist prefers to say— 

To me the meanest flower that grows may give 

Thoughts that do lie too deep for tears. 
The same sentiment is equally true of God’s creatures, even the smallest, and 
the history and habits of any one of them fill a page in that glorious book of 
nature, which is, as Lord Bacon has well said, simply ‘the word of God revealed 
in facts,’ and these facts are interesting and profitable to the intelligent and 
thoughtful of every class of the community.” 


288 REPORTS. 


CARADOC FIELD CLUB.—September 25th.—A special meeting for the 
study of cryptogamic botany was held at the Wrekin. The morning was very 
inclement, cold, and wet, and heavy rain continued during the greater part of 
the day. Consequently only some six or seven members assembled at Wellington 
station, where they were met by Dr. Callaway, Rev. W. Houghton, and Mr. R. 
Anslow. The weather prevented much search for the special objects of the 
meeting, and the day was spent in examining the geology of the hill, on which 
Dr. Callaway’s recent labours have thrown so much new light. After the annual 
dinner at the George Hotel, Shrewsbury, papers were read by the Rev. W. 
Houghton “ On the Common Liverwort,” and by Mr. T. P. Blunt, “ On some 
relations of Light to Vegetation.” 


CHELTENHAM NATURAL SCIENCE SOCIETY. — At the annual 
meeting held on Thursday, the 2nd October, Dr. T. Wright, F.R.S., was 
re-elected president. The first ordinary general meeting was held on Thursday, 
October 16th, when, after the usual business routine, the President gave a short 
address, stating the use the Society had already been to the town of Cheltenham, 
noted the progress it was making, and urged on his hearers to take up some 
special subject of natural history. He ended by giving an outline of the 
proposed arrangements for the formation of a library in connection with the 
Society, and then introduced Col. Basevi, who read a paper on the “ Structure of 
Mosses,” which was well illustrated by diagrams and over 200 mounted specimens 
of mosses from various parts of the world. Col. Basevi exhibited under the 
microscope various slides showing parts of the structure of mosses. 
Some of the objects, showing the fructification, had been, he stated, kindly given 
to him by the Rev. J. E. Vize, of Forden. 


NOTTINGHAM NATURALISTS’ SOCIETY.—October 1st. Mr. B. S. Dodd 
read a paper on sponges. He pointed out the special arrangement of the sponge 
to bring about a current by inhalant and exhalant apertures, the inhalant being 
called pores, the exhalant oscula. The mode of reproduction was illustrated by 
diagrams showing the peculiar arrangement of a gemmule of the fresh-water 
sponge (Spongilla). pecimens of horny and siliceous sponges were exhibited, 
and likewise an oyster-shell perforated by the boring sponge (Cliona). Various 
orders of the second sub-kingdom, Coelenterata, were referred to, but especially 
the order Hydrida, of which Hydra viridis was taken asa type. Meduse were 
in some instances shown to be reproductive buds of one or other species of 
Hydrozoa. A discussion followed.—October 15th. Mr. A. H. Simpson gave a 
lecture on water, showing how, by electricity, it was resolved into its two gases, 
the oxygen appearing at the positive pole, hydrogen at the negative one, and 
concluded the experiment by showing how it was reproduced from the same 
elements by an electric current. The power of water, as water and as steam, 
was explained, and how its evaporation and collection in the clouds was the 
cause of rain. Its expansion on being converted into ice and the advantages 
resulting therefrom, both physically and economically, were next noticed. 
Various experiments with each of its twoconstituent gases were performed, to 
the surprise and amusement of the audience. The construction of the lime- 
light was fully explained, by which a number of views of the Falls of Niagara, 
representing winter and summer, were shown on a screen. 


OSWESTRY AND WELSHPOOL NATURALISTS’ FIELD CLUB AND 
ARCH OLOGICAL SOCIETY.—The last excursion for 1879 took place on 
Tuesday, September 30th. The meting place was Newtown, famous for its 
trade in Welsh flannel, a prettily situated town on the banks of the Severn. 
After a visit to the ruins of the old church, the route lay over some very hilly 
country to the village of Kerry. Here there is an interesting old church, in 
which is a monumental tablet to Giraldus Cambrensis, the antiquarian. Close 
to the Vicarage there is a fine camp, and two tumuli in a field just outside the 
village. The whole neighbourhood abounds in entrenchments, ditches, camps, 
tumuli, and other similar relics of antiquity. The scenery about Kerry is very 
picturesque. There is a branch line from Abermule Station on the Cambrian 
Railway to Kerry, by which the party returned to Oswestry. 


DIPHTHERIA FUNGUS. 289 


PEE sDIPETHE BRIA. FUNGUS.* 
; : BY THE REV. J. E. VIZE, M.A. 


I wish to direct attention to a fungus doing its deadly work not 
in the vegetable but in the animal kingdom, namely, diphtheria, which 
certainly is fungoid, and belongs to an ally of Peronospora, namely Oidium, 
under the order Mucedines. It might possibly be thought strange 
that I, a parish priest, should be arrogant enough to refer to a subject 
which certainly would far more readily and easily be treated by some one 
in the medical profession. But sometimes this disease comes so near 
to one whose work is not medical that we must attend to it whether 
we like it or not. Such has been my duty lately, for my parish has 
had diphtheria in it since last October, and the National Schools have 
been closed for several weeks and are likely to be for some time. There 
have been several deaths amongst the children, although the great 
majority of the attacks have been light. Those light attacks seem to be 
really the most subtle and dangerous, because the sufferers are not 
isolated and are therefore liable to spread the disease. It should not 
be forgotten that, generally speaking, the first outbreaks are light; and 
why? Speaking not from a medical but from a botanical point of view, 
the answer is very easy. The fresher the spore, (the seed,) the more 
vigorous it is. Hence, if an attack comes from an enfeebled spore, the 
virulence of the growth is quite weak compared with that from a spore 
recently communicated from a patient. 


When the medical officer, Dr. Thursfield, called upon me to urge 
the closing of the schools, we became mutually interested in the 
diphtheria question, and the doctor urged me very strongly to investigate 
the diphtheria Oidium. It was arranged that some of the diphtheria 
fungus should be sent to me, and this was done with every possible 
measure of precaution to avoid the risk of contagion. Having received 
the fungus, I mounted some for microscopical examination, and then 
found that the specimens showed unmistakably an Oidium growth. In 
the manipulation of the slides every precaution was taken to prevent the 
escape of even a fragment of thefungus. And here I would point out the 
great importance of precautionary measures whenever diphtheria breaks 
out. I would particularly urge the burying or burning of all linen used 
by an infected person; for a frightful source of the spread of diphtheria 
is the use of pocket handkerchiefs, &c., which, even after washing in 
cold water, might still contain the spores of Oidiwm—and these are the 
germs of the diphtheria fungus. As a rule these germs are only the 
elementary states of higher fungi; for various species of Oidium develop 
into different kinds of blight. It was to find out the more highly 
developed fungus of the Oidiwm of diphtheria that I have run the risk of 
having it sent to me; and if I or my co-workers could discover this, we 


* Part of a lecture delivered at Chester, January 30th, 1879. 
RR 


290 DIPHTHERIA FUNGUS. 


should be doing good service. The spores are so minute that 64 millions 
of them would lie upon a square inch of writing paper. 


By some it is supposed that diphtheria is caught from cows suffering 
from “ garget,” and is communicated with the milk; to such I would say 
—examine under the microscope the milk from a cow thus diseased, and 
if there be any spores in it just like the Oidium,then you have safe ground 
on which to go. My own notion is that “ garget” has little or nothing to 
do with diphtheria; but, if it has, then it would seem likely that the 
spores of Oidiwm were eaten by cows in herbage near the mouths of bad 
drains or such like spots, and so passed through their system and into 
the milk. I believe that the cows may be left out of the investi- 
gation, and that in certain seasons there will be outbreaks of the 
illness because those seasons are, from atmospheric conditions or other 
causes, favourable to the more abundant growth of the Oidium in drains, 
When that takes place the spores escape into the air, and are carried 
about in all directions; but are not (even when they reach the throat 
injurious to anyone unless the throat is ripe for their development. One 
prolific source of the disease is bad drainage. A surveyor examining a ; 
sewer from which diphtheria had broken out was seized with the disease 
and suffered severely. The Oidiwm was in that sewer, and most likely had 
produced its resting-spore, according to the gradation of seasons. In the 
drains you may look forit; destroy it you never will; but you may pessibly 
check its severity. No one ever caught the illness yet without the Oidium 
or a riper stage of the fungus being present. No sore throat can produce 
an attack of diphtheria unless the fungus is there. Some people seem 
to think that these growths come of themselves, but it is utterly 
impossible that they can. Do trees or flowers spring up spontaneously ? 
or is spontaneous generation the source of animal life? All would deny 
this. But it may be asked—How is it that, if these fungus-spores 
abound in the air, they are so eccentric in their choice of throats in which 
to grow? The reply is very simple. Hundreds of acorns fall in the 
autumn from one tree, and how is it that so few ever grow? The 
fact is, they do not meet with a spot just suitable for germinating, and 
cannot grow. So with the diphtheria fungus; many thousands of 
people may inhale the spores, but their throats may not offer the 
conditions necessary for growth. 


Then, again, with regard to the development of the disease. There 
might be several children attacked in one house, some get well easily, 
others with difficulty, others die. How is this? The solution might be, 
and probably is, that their throats were more or less ready for the 
growth of the Oidium. According to the state of the throat, so the ‘ 
disease is intensified or not. It is very singular that the fungus is so 
apt to attack children, as compared with adults; the Medical Officer of i 
my own parish has recorded that 71 deaths out of every 100 are those of 
children between one and ten years. The feeding grounds, the dens of 
infection, are schools (especially National Schools) and workhouses, 
because therein children congregate so much. 


eee oe 


DIPHTHERIA FUNGUS. 291 


There is one point in which some of you may perhaps be able to 


‘help me. The diphtheria fungus grows in the mucus of the throat, at 


the top or some distance down the trachea. Existing in so moist a 
habitat, how is it that it is so contagious? I can understand the 
spreading of the spores by carelessness in the use of pocket handkerchiefs 
and the like; but I cannot understand how a child’s breath or a corpse 
can carry the spores about, unless when there is an absence of moisture 
altogether and the spores escape when dry, after evaporation has taken 


‘place. 


I hope that none will carry away the idea that fungi are, asa rule, 
so hurtful in their work as might be supposed from what I have said of 
this one form. They are often mighty instruments in arresting disease 
and death, although they sometimes destroy life. Nevertheless the rule 
is certainly not to hasten death, but to keep health. Animal life could 
not be prolonged to anything like the proper extent if it were not for the 
despised moulds, which teach us that purity is a grand reality, for what 
would the half-drained sewers and damp places be if the Oidium of 
diphtheria did not in its growth imbibe for its own existence the poisonous 
gases which otherwise would be insufferable? We are thus taught 
lessons which it will be to our cost if we do not follow. We are taught 
that animal and vegetable refuse must not lightly be permitted to 
accumulate ; the sooner it is applied to its real use, namely, the 
enriching of the soil, the better. Soil deodorises, economises, and 
profits by these refuse materials; they are the very things which the 
earth requires. 


ENTOMOLOGICAL RAMBLES IN THE MIDLANDS, 
II.—CANNOCK CHASE. 


BY W. G. BLATCH. 


(Continued from page 196.) 

Next in order of importance to Bewdley Forest as a resort for 
Midland Entomologists must be reckoned that extremely interesting 
district known as ‘Cannock Chase.” Situated almost in the heart of 
Staffordshire, and covering a very considerable portion of the extensive 
area lying between Lichfield, Penkridge, Stafford, and Rugeley—easily 
accessible, withal, from any of those stations—the ‘‘Chase” ought to be 
better known to local Naturalists than it seems to be. Those who have 
visited it need no recommendation of its attractions, but to those who at 
present are strangers to that region I would say: ‘Go, take a half- 
holiday as soon as you can, and spend it there.” But as, I suppose, for 
the purposes of these papers, I am, for the time being, ‘“‘ Guide, 
philosopher, and friend,” I must not only point to the goal, but lead the 
way, We will, therefore, if you please, consider ourselves as fairly 
started on our second Ramble. As he “who hesitates is lost,” we will 
not bewilder ourselves by discussing the various routes by which our chosen 
ground can be explored, but at once decide to attack it from Rugeley. 


992 ENTOMOLOGICAL RAMBLES IN THE MIDLANDS. 


This willbe attended by the additional advantage of admitting of friends 
from other districts joining our party at the Trent Valley Junction. 
Crossing the Trent and passing through a part of the town, we are soon 
in the open country, the wide stretch of undulating heather-clad ground 
before us indicating unmistakably that we are on the very threshold of 
Cannock Chase. As we presson, eager and hopeful, we are struck by the 
peculiar features of the spot, forming as they do a perfect contrast to the 
scene of our first Ramble. Instead of dense woods hemming us in on 
every side, we have before us an extensive moorland tract, covered with 
heather and bracken and a thick carpet of bilberry, cowberry, and crow- 
berry, the only woodland features being, now and then, a straggling 
thicket of haggard, storm-torn birches, and, in the distance, a long, 
narrow strip of coppice, known as the “ Huntington Belt.” Boggy 
ground is not uncommon, whilst here and there we come upon a bright 
sparkling streamlet dancing merrily along its pebbly course. 

At Bewdley, we were so hemmed in by copse on copse, piled in 
massive and silent grandeur around and above as far as the eye could 
scan, that frequently the absence of “ air in motion” affected usin a way 
and to an extent scarcely credible. In the midst of our sport, almost 
gasping in the stagnant, humid air, a feeling of solemnity has suddenly 
sprung up in our minds, as if the guardian spirit of the region had, in 
passing, touched us with his invisible form, and evolved sensations of 
mystery and awe from the depths within. Here, on the contrary, where 
sportive breezes seem perpetually to play, languor is unknown, and we 
tread the springy soil with a buoyancy and freedom almost ethereal. 


But not only do we notice a change of soil and landscape, even the 
insects are, for the most part, of types divergent from those to be found 
at Bewdley. Thisis, of course, only what might be expected from the 
totally different conditions under which they exist. Our method of pro- 
cedure must also be altered to suit our new surroundings. The umbrella 
(for beating into) and the sweeping-net are useless encumbrances 
here, but the digger and knee-pad are absolute necessities. The 
digger (a strong fern trowel is best) will save the fingers in turning over 
stones and refuse, the knee-pad (of stout leather) will save the operator 
from headache and backache, and will prevent the knees and trousers 
being cut by sharp pebbles. As was the case in describing our Bewdley 
Ramble, we have not time to do more than merely hint at the charms of 
the “chase” to sightseers, but must limit ourselves strictly to the 
entomological features of the locality. The novelty of the ‘first view” 
having worn off, and having satisfied ourselves that our instrumenta belli 
are effective, we proceed to explore this ‘‘fresh field,” in the hope that 
the result will prove it to be another ‘‘ happy hunting ground.”  A¢ first 
we see onlya few common species of moths and beetles, the Heath Moth, 
Fidonia atomaria, being, fromits abundance, a perfect nuisance, and the 
dull, puffy Adimonia suturalis dropping in hundreds from the heather at 
the slightest touch. Look into this drain-hole by the roadside, and see 
how thickly these beetles, alive and dead, strew the bottom. They have, 
evidently, fallen over the sides, and are too lazy, or too stupid, to make 


ee ee ee, 


ENTOMOLOGICAL RAMBLES IN THE MIDLANDS, 293 


their escape. Under a solitary oak tree are some insects flying in a 
Curious manner ; we catch afew and find them to be the “ Rusty Gun- 
barrel,” <Athous hemorrhoidalis, a beetle of the Skip-jack tribe. The 
“Fox” and the “‘Emperor” moths are dashing about with their usual 
swiftness and irregularity, as if madly and vainly trying to escape from 
demons of the air that confront them at every turn. About those bright 
green patches, indicative of the triumph of the bilberry over its less 
vigorous plant rivals, swarms of green Hair-streak Butterflies, Thecla rubi, 
flash about in the sunshine; and itis amusing to watch their evolutions 
and to note how, in certain lights, they become quite invisible. This 
butterfly is a perfect mimic. With its wings open it resembles the 
darker foliage and the russet soil; with its wings closed it cannot be 
distinguished from the green leaves of the bilberry, upon which it delights 
to settle, and you would certainly pass it by, only that it betrays itself by 
flying up as you approach. But here is work for the digger, to turn over 
these stones strewed about the turf. What numbers of Bradycellus 
cognatus and the pretty little B. similis! Here are also, though less 
commonly, their congeners, B. distinctus, B. verbasci, and B. harpalinus. 
What is this beetle, looking somewhat like a giant Dyschirius 2? It is 
shiny, bronze-black, beautifully rounded in outline, its thorax being 
almost globular, and its abdomen oval, and looks altogether like an insect 
of “high degree.” Its name is Miscodera arctica, and this is a new 
locality for it, the most southern one yet discovered. Another prize. 
This time it is Cymindis vaporariorum, like the preceding a mountain 
species and rather rare, taking its day-rest under a paltry piece of old 
shoe leather! Thus we find another species new to the district, and at 
the same time learn an important lesson in beetle knowledge, viz., that 
under the smallest and most unlikely bit of rubbish may lurk an insect 
prize! ‘It never rains but it pours.” Here is another red-letter 
capture, and a beauty it is too. How it gleams in the sunshine, its 
changeful tints resembling the effects of shot-silk, only that they are 
more gorgeous. What long deep lines mark the base of the thorax, and 
altogether what a lovely outline it bears! It can benothing else but the 
very desirable Pterostichus lepidus. Satisfied of this, we eagerly hunt for 
more, and find them, tco, both males and females, the latter having their 
elytra duller and more softly silky, the thorax showing a brighter coppery 
appearance. 

The generally common species of Pterostichus seem to be entirely 
absent, even the ubiquitous P. cupreus not showing up; but here are a 
pair of P. versicolor, which we of course capture. ‘This insect is regarded 
by some Coleopterists as being a variety only of P. cupreus, but having 
examined a considerable number of specimens in which the diagnostic 
characters appear distinct and constant, I have no doubt about its being 
a good species. The genus Calathus is well represented, the following 
species being found freely :—C. cisteloides, C. flavipes, C. melanocephalus, 
with, its variety, nubigena, and C. piceus. Considerable dexterity is 
required for the capture of these beetles, (especially the shiny and quick 
C. flavipes,) which ‘‘ screw” themselves into the soil before you have time 
to see fairly what they are. 


294 ENTOMOLOGICAL RAMBLES IN THE MIDLANDS. 


This seems to be a rich field for Geodephaga. Besides those already 
named, we have secured a fine series of the beautiful though common 
Cicindela campestris, including some striking varieties, bronze instead of 
green, and having small black specks on the elytra in place of yellow 
spots. Dyschirius globosus, Patrobus excavatus, Taphria nivalis, and 
Olisthopus rotundatus occur in abundance, as also do many species of 
Amare and Harpali. Of Amara fulva we pick up two, and are fortunate 
enough to secure three examples of the rare A. patricia. Amongst the 
small pebbles in the roadway Bembidium lampros (the variety velox 
occurring sparingly,) B.brunnipes, and B. femoratum abound. Upon lifting 
a larger stone we are gladdened with the sight of two beautiful beetles 
and a rare moth, the former being Corymbites encus, male and female, 
one a dark bronze, the other a deep blue, and the latter the Glaucous 
Shears Moth, Hadena glauca. 

Pressing on over the moor in the direction of the Huntington Belt, 
we reach ‘Deakins’ Grave,” 760ft. above sea level. Here we pick 
up the variety griseus of Harpalus ruficornis, and a dead and damaged 
specimen of Nebria Gyllenhalli, two northern insects ; more Miscodera and 
Pterostichus lepidus turn up; also a very fine example of Calathus 
nubigena. 

But we must push on through the heather towards Hednesford. As 
we go we start up great numbers of the very beautiful little moth Anarta 
myrtilli, together with hosts of ‘‘ Crambs” and other moths. 


The pool seems full of water beetles, and on the margin we find 
many species of Geodephaga and Brachelytra. At one end, on the leaves 
of Polygonum amphibium, are to be seen hundreds of specimens of Galeruca 
nymphee in all stages of development, and under a dead dog occurs a 
“ fine fresh specimen of Silpha opaca. 

Our way now takes us over a not very interesting part of the 
Chase towards Norton Bog and Reservoir. The walk pulls the 
‘‘kinks” out of our legs, and on arriving at the Reservoir we are 
prepared for more work. Close to the margin of the water is a 
mass of rubbish washed up by the ‘‘ waves;” we turn it over, and are 
rewarded by seeing Carabus nitens, perhaps the most strikingly coloured 
of all the British Carabide. It is accompanied by C. granulatus and 
several Anchomeni, including the handsome but common 4. margina- 
tus. Amongst the gravel we take quite a host of Bembidia, this being 
apparently the favourite locality on the Chase for the very interesting 
little beetles comprisedin this genus. The following species of Bembidium 
fall victims to our prowess: rufesccns, obtusum, biguttatum, eneum, gutiula 
Mannerheimi, quadrimaculatum, quadriguttatum, articulatwm, lampros, 
nigricorne, bipunctatum, decorum, monticola, brunnipes, tibiale, atroceruleum, 
femoratum, littorale, flammulatum, and punctulatum, not by any means a 
bad day’s sport in themselves, even had we “bottled” nothing else. 
But there are afew more things yet to be added to our list. By digging 
in the marly bank we turn out two or three specimens of the ludicrously 
awkward Nebria livida, very interesting as occurring in the Midlands, the 
headquarters of this beetle being on the coasts of Yorkshire, Norfolk, &c. 


Dee an a> 


a 


ENTOMOLOGICAL RAMBLES IN THE MIDLANDS. 295 


A short distance furthur on our diggers bring from their hiding-places 
three beautiful specimens of the rather rare Trechus brunneus. 

Our time has now nearly run out and we must think of returning. 
Before leaving this spot, however, we turn over one of the drowned dogs 
lying about, and pick outa supply of the Histers and other Clavicorns 
that have taken possession of his carcase. But though there are plenty 
of beetles we are soon glad to retreat, the ‘‘high” state of our quarry 
being too much for at least one of our five senses. We therefore hasten 
towards Brownhills Railway Station, with the view of catching the next 
train homeward. On the way we capture Carabus arvensis running on 
the heath, C. catenulatus under a stone, and a single specimen of a pine- 
feeding weevil—Hylobius abietis—which seems to be altogether out of 
his reckoning here. This beetle suggests a topic for conversation, and 
our journey home is bereft of much of its tediousness by an animated 
discussion on the migrations (both local and general) of insects. Our 
second Ramble thus ends as happily as did the first, and our party 
separates with evident signs of unabated energy, indicated by the eager 
enquiry, ‘‘ Where shall we go next, and when?” 


NOTES ON THE STRUCTURES OF PITCHER PLANTS. 
BY LAWSON TAIT, F.R.C.S., PROFESSOR OF ANATOMY TO THE 
BIRMINGHAM ROYAL SOCIETY OF ARTISTS, ETC. 


(Continued from page 268.) 


SARRACENIA. 

Of this family Dr. Hooker makes two groups, in the first of which 
the lid does not cover the mouth of the pitcher, whilst in the second the 
lid does not admit rain to the pitcher. These groups are united by the 
fact that in some of the first the lid covers the mouth of the pitcher in 
the young state of the plant, but does not do so when the plant is old. 


In S. purpurea the lid never covers the pitcher, and to this plant I 
first directed my attention, for it seemed to me that it would prove to be 
in organisation the least removed from a mere water pitcher. I examined ° 
many specimens of this plant, some grown under glass in this country, 
and some brought living from its native soil. My observations on the 
structure may be summed up in the description of a mature pitcher of a 
native-grown plant, nine centimetres in length. The outer surface was 
scattered with stomata and multifid buds. From the margin of the lip 
down the inner surface of the true pitcher, for a distance varying between 
two and three centimetres, the epiihelium is of peculiar shape, known 
as sinuous. On this zone stomata are very abundant. There are numerous 
stiff hairs, not tubular, but made up of long rod-like cells. (Plate VII., 
Fig. 9.) These sete are all pointed downwards, towards the cavity of the 
pitcher, and must, evidently, be of service in preventing the egress 
of insects who may wish to travel outwards. It would be 
very interesting to Jnow what special appliances enable 


296 THE STRUCTURES OF PITCHER PLANTS. 


Xanthoptera semicrocea and Sarcophaga sarracenie, said by Professor 
Riley to be the only two insects which can escape from the pitchers of 
the Sarracenia, to overcome this formidable chevaua de frise. In the 
case of the latter insect it is probable that the grub is deposited in the 
pitcher by the mother before the special armature of the first zone is 
developed. This development afterwards leads to the peculiar method 
of escape of the mature grub in a way serviceable to the plant in which 
it has fed. Sparsely scattered over this surface are multifid buds, 
raised above the epithelial level for the greater part of their bulk, but 
slightly dipping below it, being therefore transitions from the 
multifid bud to the ostiole. I have failed to find anything which I could 
regard as nectaries on this surface. It ends quite abruptly in a line of 
crescentic markings, armed with stunted setz, and when wetted it does 
not throw off water. (Fig. 9.) The second zone presents to the naked 
eye a remarkable bald appearance, and when wetted it throws off the 
water, a circumstance which seems to be due to a peculiar arrangement 
of the epithelium. Hach cell is produced into a mammillary process, 
(Fig. 9,) pointing downwards, and is marked by a number of flutings, 
like the back of a pecten shell, these flutings converging towards the 
apex of the process. The process of each cell overlaps the upper margin 
of the cell immediately below it, and in this way a subsidiary barrier is 
formed which must prevent the egress of insects small enough to ¢reep 
between the large sete of the first zone. On this surface the inter- 
cellular spaces are evidently canalicular, and multifid buds abound, but 
they are covered by the altered epithelium. Whether this covering 
means that they are only hidden by the peculiar development of the 
epithelium, or are really embedded, I am unable to say. This zone is 
about six millimetres wide, and ends as abruptly as it begins. I have 
failed to obtain any evidence of secretion from this surface, and there- 
fore I regard its glandular structure as purely absorbent. Stomata are 
of very occasional occurrence on this surface. In the third zone the 
epithelium is of the sinuous pattern, with well marked intercellular 
canals and very abundant included glands. These bodies are 
entirely covered by the epithelium, the divisions of their proto- 
plasm appearing, however, very close under the surface. They are 
about :065 of a millimetre. There are no stomata on this surface. The 
transition from the third to the fourth and most extensive zone is rapid, 
but not quite sudden, and consists in an alteration of the cells of the 
epithelium from the sinuous shape into irregular polygons. The sub- 
epithelial cells are, however, of the sinuous shape, a fact which may 
account for the view expressed by Dr. Hooker, that this fourth zone has 
no cuticle. There are no stomata to be found in this zone, and no 
subepithelial glands, the place of the latter seeming to be taken by the 
tubular trichomes already described. These trichomes are not nearly so 
stiff and strong as the set on the first zone, and the surface on which 
they are situated is peculiarly retentive of water, the innumerable hairs 
taking it up between them like a sponge. I have not seen spiral vessels 
in the tissue of Sarracenia purpurca. All my efforts to discover the 
presence of any ferment having digestive properties in the fluid taken 


a 


ioe 


THE STRUCTURES OF PITCHER PLANTS. 297 


from S. purpurea have failed. Fluid taken from pitchers containing 
insects generally gives a distinctly alkaline reaction, and in the few 


“instances where I have obtained a faintly acid reaction, it has seemed to 


me to be due to the presence of ants. In virgin pitchers, fed with 
albumen, no acid reaction has ever been obtained, and the albumen 
rapidly decomposes. I may here state that the ordinary method of 
testing these fluids by litmus paper is crude enough not to be always 
trustworthy. A more delicate way is to make a concentrated solution of 
litmus in distilled water, and add to it about ten per cent. of absolute 
alcohol. A drop of this should be placed on a white porcelain plate, 
side by side with a drop of the fiuid to be tested, and the drops then 
made to touch. An amount of acid may thus be detected which will 
escape the eye of the observer if litmus paper be used, and there can be 
no possibility of error. I draw the conclusion, therefore, that the 
glandular structure of S. purpurea is purely absorbent, that its pitchers 
are merely passive insect traps, and that the advantage gained for the 
plant by the destruction of flies is to be attributed entirely to their 
maceration. Another argument in favour of this, the importance of 
which will be seen by and by, is that flies continue to live an indefinite 
time after having been introduced into a Sarracenia pitcher containing 
fluid. The very interesting observation of Prof. Riley concerning the 
habits of the Sarcophaga sarracenie would show that considerable 


advantageis gained for the plant by the direct application of the insect 
debris to the roots of the plant. I am quite certain from my experi- 
ments with the nutrition of Nepenthes that if S. purpurea had a secre- 
tion at all like it, no insect could visit the latter with impunity. A series 
of experiments made during the summer with test tubes of various 
sizes and diameters, and containing fluids of various kinds, have con- 
vinced me that as far as the common house fly is concerned, no specially 
disguised or attractive form of trap is required. But there is no doubt 
that the addition of the coloured venation on the lip of the S. purpurea 
must make it more attractive to certain kinds of insects, as Sir John 


. Lubbock has shown that bees are greatly influenced by colour. The 


armatures of the upper zones must also be advantageous by imprisoning 
the insects. It will be seen, then, that I differ from Dr. Hooker in that 
I regard the first and second zones of the S. purpurea as the truly deten- 
tive surfaces, and the third and fourth as absorbent. 


S. flava.—l examined the pitchers of a young plant in which the lip 
covered the mouth of the pitcher. Ii I may argue from the facts 
observed in Nepenthes this ought to be the most active condition of the 
pitcher. I found spiral vessels in the lid, and numerous stomata and 
ostioles. The latter in this case suggested that they may be the local 
centres for the growth of epithelium, for the cells in their immediate 
neighbourhood were all small and seemed to radiate from the ostiole as 
from a centre, and the intercellular canals seemed to grow with them 
(see Fig. 7, also Fig. 4 from S. rubra.) There were also a few multifid 
buds. The first and second zones of this pitcher resemble those of 
S. purpurea. The third has short tubular trichomes and no glands, and 
the fourth has long tubular trichomes. This variation in the third zone 
is noteworthy. I found no evidence of secretion here, and when the 
pitcher was over-fed, whether by albumen or naturally by a too large 
fly, the decomposition spread to the parenchyma of the leaf and killed it. 

[TO BE CONTINUED. | 
SS 


298 SCIENTIFIC _NAMES—PRONUNCIATION. 


SCIENTIFIC NAMES.—II. PRONUNCIATION. 
BY W. B. GROVE, B.A. 


(Continued from page 272.) 

It may be interesting to some, if, before I enter upon the details of 
the reformed Latin pronunciation, I give a few particulars concerning 
the circumstances of its introduction. The great authority upon the 
subject is the Rev. H. A. J. Munro, formerly Latin Professor at Cam- 
bridge. Mr. Munro remarks that “it is a delusion to suppose that’ there 
is a foreign as opposed to an English method. In England itself there is 
no one unvarying system.” ‘To insure complete uniformity is an 
impossibility,” but it seems to him “ desirable to endeavour in theory 
after a worthy ideal, even if in practice we should many of us fall short 
of it.’ These and other reasons having been urged by a few enthusiastic 
spirits, the Oxford Philological Society proposed several alterations, and 
the head masters of some of the greatest schools in England met and 
discussed the matter. At their request, Professor Munro, in conjunction 
with the Latin Professor at Oxford, published in 1873, a “ Syllabus of 
Latin Pronunciation,” * in which the full extent of the proposed changes 
is enunciated. The question has since been discussed in various reviews 
and periodicals.+ I find that at the present time some of the most 
important schools, as Eton, Harrow, and Rugby, have not yet adopted 
the reform. Among the schools that have adopted it are Marlborough, 
the City of London, Liverpool College, and most of the schools of the 
Girls’ Public Day School Company. 

The new pronunciation of Latin affects chiefly the vowel sounds. It 
is well known that in this respect the English language stands nearly 
alone; in most of the other European tongues—especially those which 
had their remote origin in the Latin—the greater part of the vowels is 
pronounced as in the following table :— 


a as in fan, father. @ = ain fate. 

e as in fen, féte, (fate.) au = ow 1n cow. 

i as in fin, fatigue. eu = you. 

o asin hop, hope. et as in height or veil. 

w as in full, rude. ce =  otiin coin or like @. 


This is believed to represent (minute distinctions excepted) the 
vowel-sounds of the ancient Romans. Thus @ has the so-called broad 
(Scotch) sound; @ and @ have the sound which we generally give to @ in 
our own language ; 2? has the sound which we generally give to €; and the 
two sounds of w are the same as those of 00 in pool and book. But while 
this may be considered’ certain, the remaining diphthongs, especially e 
and ei, are still doubtful. Little seems to be known of the sound of y in 
classical words ; at present we must be content to pronounce it like 7. 


Among the consonants the changes are fewer; c is always hard like 
k, g is always hard as in get and girth, j always equalsy in yard. The 


* Deighton, Rell, and Co., Cambridge. ; : 
+ See the “Academy,” February—Jdune, 1871. “Contemporary Review,” April, 1871. 


SCIENTIFIC NAMES—PRONUNCIATION. 299 


remaining consonants may be pronounced as at present; by some v is 
sounded like v, by others like w. It is not my business here to enter 
into the reasons which have led to the conclusion that these are the 
proper sounds of the letters, but it may be noticed that j and i were 
originally the same letter, and may be presumed to have been 
pronounced the same, while the evidence in favour of the hardness of 
c and g is overwhelming. 


But here, to prevent misapprehension, it must be observed that no 
one proposes to introduce this change into English words, as is some- 
times imagined. No one wishes us to pronounce circle, kerkle. In all 
truly naturalised words English habits will of course prevail; even the 
ill-used Cicero, when occurring with English words in an English 
sentence will be pronounced as at present; the reformation only applies 
to classical words used as such, and those formed in imitation of them. 
Tt will be certainly some time before it will be generally accepted, but 
its ultimate triumph seems at least probable. In the case of g there is 
not so much difficulty, as many English words contain a hard g before 
e ori, as gear and gift; but there seems to be a considerable reluctance 
to apply the same principle toc, though we have a precedent in the word 
sceptic, and also in Celt, Celtic, which are sometimes pronounced as if 
written with ak. If we adopt the ‘‘ reformed ” principles, we must sound 
all scientific names in this way, as, for instance, Cerastium and Geum ; 
but the practice seems as yet so like an affectation that very few have 
adopted it. The novelty once overcome, it will be found that to an 
unprejudiced ear the new sounds are, to say the least, as euphonious as 
the old. The greatest obstacle lies in such words as Geranium and 
Cyclamen, which are used in English in an unchanged form. It seems 
strange to pronounce these in different ways at different times, as must 
be done in that case. Thus we may talk of scarlet Geranium as at 
present, but we should say Geranium coccineum with ahard g and c. Now 
to pronounce in this two-fold way words which are spelled alike is no 
more than is done every day by those persons who can speak more than 
one language. No one thinks of pronouncing the German general like the 
Euglish general, or the French voyage like the English voyage, though 
they may have the same spelling and meaning. 

There is one point in connection with the reformed scheme which finds 
admirers even amongst those who do not adopt the changes in the sound 
of the letters. I mean the pronunciation of the vowels strictly according 
to ‘“‘ quantity.” As was explained above, (p. 269) every vowel-sound has 
two varieties, called respectively ‘‘long” and ‘‘ short,” but in the former 
conventional mode of pronouncing Latin this distinction was grossly 
neglected. Thus, génus was generally pronounced with the e long, as if 
written jeenus; the word Ptéris is often similarly mispronounced. To 
take another instance, it is usual to say ‘‘dulce ddmum,” but the o is 
short, and the word should be pronounced thus—dom-um. To apply 
this principle, however, to scientific names requiresan acquaintance with 
the quantity of the vowels in the different words, which can be obtained 
only by frequently consulting the dictionary, and is within the reach of few. 


300 SCIENTIFIC _NAMES—PRONUNCIATION. 


Finally, I must mention that in the reformed pronunciation all the 
consonants must be sounded no less than all the vowels. Thus in all 
such words as the following the initial letters must be heard :—Bdella, 
Cnestis, Ctenodus, Gnetum, Psammobia, and Pteris. Also the consonants 
must preserve their proper sounds under all circumstances, so that thet, s, 
and c in such words as Spartium, Blasia, and Vicia have the same sound 
as in other words where they are not followed by i and a vowel. The 
two latter practices might be adopted with advantage by even those who 
will consent to no other change, and are capable of a wider application. 
For instance, I do think that those who pronounce Calcium 
‘* Calshium,” Strontia ‘‘ Stronsha,” etc., carry their love of the corrupt 
sounds of the English language to an unreasonable extent. 

Having now touched on the chief topics connected with the pronun- 
ciation of Latin, we come to the far more difficult case of words 
derived from the modern languages. I have already laid down the 
only principle which seems to me to affcrd the slightest hope of 
general agreement upon this point. It is useless to attempt to tinker 
at the matter by dealing with special sounds, such as ch, as has been 
done by some; we must adopt one broad rule, which will comprehend 
all questions, or leave the present chaos undisturbed. 


There are three cases of which examples may be found: (1) a word 
may be borrowed from a foreign language without undergoing any 
change—in this case we borrow the pronunciation also ; (2) the word may 
be Latinised—in this case it will be treated exactly as a Latin word; (3) 
it may have a Latin ending tacked on to a ‘‘ barbarian” stem—in this 
case we must take the pronunciation of the stem from one language, and 
of the termination from another. This would sometimes produce a 
curious result, were it not that the ending is generally simple, such as -a, 
-ia, or -ii. In some few cases the ignorance or inadvertence of authors 
has perpetrated worse combinations, e.g., Indigofera anil, of which indigo 
is French, -fera Latin, and anil Portuguese. 

A word by the way to prevent misconception: in speaking thus, I 
must not be understood to mean that ignorance of the niceties of Latin 
and Greek etymology is ofitself blamable. It is so only when it pretends 
to be knowledge, and forms the incorrect assemblages of letters, which 
some naturalists (and also some barbers and tailors) elaborate. Looking 
at the jaw-breaking names often imposed upon innocent little creatures 
or plants, it might be thought that the number of euphonious combinations 
was nearly exhausted. So thought Charles Kingsley, when he said that 
men of science had been obliged to invent what we may suitably call 
these cacophonic appellations, ‘‘since they took to breaking up one 
species into ten.” But itis not so; the number of smooth-sounding 
pleasant names is not only not exhausted, but practically inexhaustible. 
Even if Pleuroschismatypus were a correctly formed and very expressive 
term, we would readily exchange it fora simpler word. But I do not 
agree with those who are horrified at such names as Schweyckherta and 
Razoumowskia, they must stand on the same footing as Daltonia, Cruik- 
shankii, and Fothergilli. We are not the only scientific people, and there 


A. 


2.30 


SCIENTIFIC NAMES——PRONUNCIATION. 3801 


are probably some who find the three latter as hard to pronounce 
correctly as we do the two former names. 

This brings us face to face with the difficulty of discovering the true 
sound of the letters in foreign words, but all that is wanting is a ready 
means of access to information on the subject, and a desire to learn on 
our part. The number of sounds really different from those which we 
ourselves use is fewer than is imagined, and still fewer are difficult for 
our tongues to pronounce, at least approximately. Absolute accuracy in 
allthe nice shades of intonation which sometimes occur is out of the 
question, and besides quite unnecessary.* 

In conclusion, then, I will sum up the system I propose for the 
pronunciation of such words as Lachenalia and Grabowskii. Let the 
vowel-termination have the sound already assigned to itin Latin words, 
(according to the reformed scheme,) and let the body of the word be 
pronounced as nearly as possible the same as in the language from which 
it is derived. This, however, is rather an idealto be aimed at than a 
result to be attained, but it is not less worthy of pursuit than the far 
more unattainable ideal, in such cases, of a uniform Latin or a uniform 
English pronunciation. 


penD. U RB ACN? GAT RD EN eb Neg 


BY EDWARD W. BADGER, F.R.H.S. 


[Continued from page 278.} 


SEASONABLE HINTS FOR AUTUMN. 


The gardener is unceasingly called upon to exercise forethought. 
Scarcely an operation is performed by him the effect of which is imme- 
diate ; in nearly all he does he has ‘‘ to labour and to wait” for results. 
Whether he tills the ground, sows seeds, hybridises, grafts—whatever he 
does, he is dependent on the future for the fruition of his work. He 
cannot be successful in his pursuit unless he is always looking forward: 
hence moralists have seen that the work in which he is engaged is a 
good school for the training and development of his better nature. No 
part of his occupation is usually more pleasurable than the anticipatory 
work of autumn and winter. This is the time of year when he makes 
alterations in the arrangement of his beds, when he lays his plans for 
removing defects or supplying deficiencies with which previous seasons 
have made him acquainted. It is the time when he selects bulbs and 
early flowering plants for the adornment of his beds and borders, when 
the renovating spring time once more arrives and vegetation enters 
again on its annual period of active growth. Itis also the time for the 
careful uplifting and re-planting of fruit and other deciduous trees and 


* The nonsense which bas appeared on this topic in several periodicals is 
amusiny. Those who know little about it generally instance the German ch as a 
g eat stumbling-block ; but, with strange fatality, they always quote as an 
example the word Fuchsia. Now it happens that in that word the ch has exactly 
the sound of k, and as a botanical name it should be pronounced Lddksia, 


802 SUBURBAN GARDENING. 


shrubs, which are overcrowded or unhealthy, or which, growing too 
vigorously, require a gentle check to induce a sturdier and more compact 


style of growth. And now it is that he makes new plantations of nearly 


all sorts of trees, except evergreens. 

I have already indicated the method of renovating and 
preparing the soil by trenching or double digging. This plan 
can generally only be employed in that part of the garden 
which is free from crops, and is scarcely applicable to the portion 
devoted to flowers, except in such beds as have been entirely filled with 
summer flowering plants of annual duration, or those which are too tender 
to winter out of doors, and which are usually known as “bedding out plants.” 
Such beds when empty should be annually deeply dug and renovated by 
the addition of good turfy loam and partially decomposed manure. If they 
are to be used, as in suburban gardens they mostly will be, for “spring 
gardening,” this work should be done at the earliest possible time after 
the summer occupants have been remoyed, so that the planting of bulbs 
and other flower roots may be done before severe winter weather sets in; 
thus doing what will be conducive to a fine display of flowers in the 
spring by affording ample time for the plants and bulbs to get well 


rooted. In beds not required for spring bedding the digging and renova-. 


tion being done, the surface should be left as rough as possible, so that 
the largest amount of surface may be exposed to the sweetening and 
disintegrating influences of air and frost. 


This, too, is the period when the mixed flower borders should be 
enriched and stored with material for the supply of food to the occupants 
in the coming year. Every herbaceous plant and patch of bulbs left in the 
ground should have its place marked by a tally, so that unnecessary 
disturbance or injury may be avoided. Where there is sufficient 
room between the plants and bulbs the vacant spaces should be gently 
forked with a small steel digging fork, (such as everyone should possess 
for use in the flower garden,) so as to loosen the soil as much as possible. 
Having gone over the bed or border in this way, 3ome well-prepared 
compost should then be scattered all over it so as to finish it off neatly, 
though it will be better to avoid raking the surface. A handy workman 
will know how to complete the work in such a fashion as to leave it 
pleasant to look at, though sufficiently rough to get a good deal of benefit 
from the atmosphere and the varying temperature of the winter- 
Raking is a very unsatisfactory and deadening operation. It gives a 
smooth appearance to the soil and that is its only recommendation, but 
it produces a firm compact surface, very detrimental to the well-being of the 
plants, and I therefore advise the almost entire avoidance of the process, 

The preparation of the compost to be used in the renovation of 
flower borders may fitly be described here, as I fear none but good 
gardeners know anything about it. A moment’s consideration should 
satisfy any one that if plants are grown as they commonly are in the 
mixed flower border year after year in the same spot, and it is con- 
sidered undesirable or inconvenient to move them very often, the soil 
in which they are planted must annually get more and more impoverished. 


a> 


SUBURBAN GARDENING. 803 


To compensate for this continual withdrawal from the stores of the soil 
an annual supply of such food as the plants require should be 
added at the surface, which is the only available spot. Every shower 
of rain will act on this surface dressing and carry some of its fertilising 
properties downwards, while the roots of the plants nearest the surface 
will be nourished directly and encouraged. ‘This will give a general 
indication of the kind of compost most likely to answer the purpose. 
It should be rich in suitable materials, and in a condition easily soluble, 
‘It should not be littery in appearance, for it is to be applied to the 
ornamental part of the garden. This compost will vary according to cir- 
cumstances. It should be prepared as opportunity offers and may consist 
of such thoroughly decomposed vegetable matter as can be most easily 
obtained, foremost among which may be named leaves of trees decayed 
into leaf mould, top-spits of old turf, especially of a loamy texture. Both 
these ingredients supply excellent food for nearly all sorts of plants, and 
when they have been turned over a few times, and are well pulverised, 
the food is in a condition of which the roots will rapidly take advantage. 
Well rotted dung, soot, and almost any other fertiliser, may go to 
enlarge and enrich the compost heap, the formation of which should be 
always going on in some reserve spot from whence it can be easily 
conveyed to any part of the garden where it may be wanted. This 
compost may be made still more valuable by the admixture of some of 
the good artificial manures which are now everywhere obtainable, and 
which supply easily soluble food for plants in general. By careful 
admixture the artificial manure will get evenly distributed; and, as it 
rarely happens that much of it is wanted at any one spot, the compost 
heap may well be made the means of causing its distribution in such 
doses as are compatible with its own richness and the wants of the 
plants it is applied to. This will be found a good plan for avoiding 
the injuries which sometimes occur through concentrated chemical] 
fertilisers being applied in too large quantities, a cause of much mischief 
when they are applied by the inexperienced. 


As has been hinted above, now is the time for planting 
many kinds of bulbs out of doors. Most of them will thrive 
in beds and borders prepared as above described. Crocuses should 
be got in the ground directly they are received from the seeds- 
man, for they rapidly deteriorate, and are usually ready to com- 
mence forming roots as soon as they can be purchased. Snowdrops, 
Winter Aconites, and all other early blooming bulbs, should also be 
planted early. They should be placed not less than two inches below 
the surface, and where the soilis light in texture they may be planted 
deeper with advantage, especially Crocuses, if they are intended to 
occupy the same spot for more than one year, their habit being to 
grow nearer the surface every year. Tulips and Hyacinths may be 
planted somewhat later, and batches may be reserved to be planted 
later still to provide a succession of bloom. Both sorts of bulbs are 
plentiful and cheap. Where quantities are grown, it is as well to grow 
masses of the same kind together, so as to ensure uniformity in height, 


804 SUBURBAN GARDENING. 


style of growth, &c., and very pretty effects may be produced by such an 
arrangement of the groups that the colours of the flowers may contrast 
and harmonise well. But, 1m the bulk of small gardens, for the owners 
of which these hints are chiefly intended, mixed beds will be found the 
most useful. For instance, an interesting display may be made in the same 
bed by planting together mixed Hyacinths and single and double Tulips, 
using both early and late blooming kinds to prolong the show of flowers. 
These bulbs should occupy the central portions of the bed. ‘Then 
around the larger bulbs a border of lines or patches of mixed Crocuses 
will find a proper place, and plants of Daisies, Forget-me-Nots, ( Myosotis 
dissitiflora,) and dwarf-growing Wall Flowers may be planted thinly all 
over tue bed, giving it a furnished appearance even in winter, and adding 
to its charms In spring. 


Among the hardy bulbs which should be grown, Scillas will generally 
be included. There are many kinds, but the two I shall recommend are 
Scilla amena and S. sibirica; they should be planted in clumps of not 
less than six bulbs each, a couple of inches apart all ways. Then the 
Narcissus family will afford early and late flowering kinds, most of which 
are very beautiful. These may remain in the same spot for several years 
with advantage. The kinds now to be purchased cheaply are so numerous 
I cannot attempt their enumeration ; any seedsman will supply a collec- 
tion on receiving an order, and as none are without beauty I do not think 
any one willbe disappointed by leaving the selection to the tradesman 
from whom he buys his bulbs. Of course no cne will omit to secure a 
goodly number of the single and double Poet’s Narcissus; and none of 
the family will yield more pleasure or lighten the garden with brighter 
beauty than clumps of the bunch-flowered Daffodil (Polyanthus Nar- 
cissus.) A well-selected collection will furnish a succession of flowers 
from February till June. 


Dog’s-tooth Violets are charming in leaf and flower; the Wood- 
hyacinths, of which we have now many lovely kinds, are easy to grow 
and beautiful; Triteleias, too, deserve a place everywhere, and their 
beauty is enhanced when Anemone apennina is grown in association with 
them. And having mentioned Anemones, I cannot resist advising the 
planting in every garden of Anemone fulgens. This is an early blooming 
kind, producing lovely flowers of the brightest scarlet. Half-a-dozen 
roots should be planted together, so as to ensure a decided effect. Other 
sorts of Anemones should also be planted for early blooming, the middle 
of October being generally regarded as the best time. For the later 
period of flowering, the roots should be planted at the end of January on 
adryday. I must rot pass from bulbs without a word about Irises. 
Many of them are as varied and beautiful as Orchids. The bulbous 
kinds best known are those called English Irises and Spanish Irises, the 
latter blooming earliest, and having the smallest flowers, which are, 
however, most lovely. Both sorts should be planted forthwith. Jvris 
reticulata is a gem which blooms from February to April, opening its 
sweet-smelling flowers in a temperature too low for the development of 
Narcissus blooms. Then there are the Flag Irises in numberless variety, 


SUBURBAN GARDENING. 805 


the most exquisite of all being the Japanese sort, Iris Kempferi, which 
thrives and blooms best if planted in sandy peat. It is necessary to beay 
this in mind, as this Iris does not bloom freely in all soils. 

The plants on which, next to bulbs, we mainly rely for the decora. 
tion of the garden in the spring must of course be planted at once. I 
have already alluded to them incidentally, and I will merely, as a 
reminder, mention such ag may be relied on to assist in producing an 
effect which I am glad to say is yearly becoming more common—a 
garden gay with bright flowers during some of the early months :— 
Alyssum saxatile, Arabis albida, the variegated form of same, Aubrietia 
Greeca and grandiflora, Alpine Auriculas, Cheiranthus alpinus, Daisies, 
(white, pink, red, and crimson,) Dielytra, Forget-me-not, Hepaticas, 
(particularly H. angulosa,) perennial Candytuft, Pansies, Polyanthuses, 
Primroses, (double and single,) Silene pendula, Veronica incana, Violets, 
Violas, and Wallflowers. To these many others might easily be added, 
but from this list enough may be selected for most small gardens. I 
will not pass from this subject without recommending any who may 
wish to know more about spring gardening to buy a little book, (published 
at the “Journal of Horticulture” Office, in London,) by Mr. John 
Fleming, the famous gardener at Cliveden, the title of which is “ Spring 
and Winter Flower Gardening.” Its price is half-a-crown. 

Roses should be planted now in preference to spring; first, because 
deciduous trees are best transplanted while in a state of rest, and 
especially just after the leaves have fallen; and, secondly, because in 
purchasing plants from the nurserymen the best plants can be obtained 
early in the season. Roses should be planted in rich, deep soil, heavily 
manured, inclining to stiffness naturally, or made so by the addition of 
marl. Standard roses are often preferred, but they are shorter lived 
than dwarfs budded low on Manetti or seedling briar stocks, or grown on 
their own roots. Roses on the Manetti will thrive in lighter soils than 
those on the briar; but they must be so planted that the point of 
junction between stock and scion is a couple of inches below the surface 
of the soil. It is therefore necessary to know whether the plants are on 
the Manetti or not, as failure to attend to the foregoing direction will be 
injurious to the plants. 

All kinds of hardy herbaceous plants may now be planted. Of these 
I will only mention two kinds, which are not so well known as they deserve 
tobe. Pyrethrums are some of the flowers in which the florist has worked 
the most wonderful improvement during recent years. They are cheap 
and perfectly hardy, and the best forms are very double. Their colours 
are most varied, for we have whites, lilacs, pinks, reds, crimsons, and 
purples of various shades. The flowers are early, plentiful, and most 
enduring. For a lasting, useful autumn flower nothing is better than Ane- 
mone Honorine Jobert. It is tallin growth, and yields a profusion of large 
white flowers, most valuable for cutting. Itis very hardy and easy of culti- 
vation. This and the Pyrethrums should be planted at once in good soil, 
and plenty of room allowed for the proper development of the plants, for 
the finer they are the better they will bloom. 


[TO BE CONTINUED. ] 


806 THE WEATHER OF OCTOBER. 


METHOROLOGY OF THE MIDLANDS. 
THE WEATHER OF OCTOBER, 1879. 


BY W. JEROME HARRISON, F.G.S. 


——— 


RAINFALL. 
oj Greatest fall> 
STATION, OBSERVER. o: H jin 24 hours. Aa F 
g & 
In.| Inj Date. |22 @|Deg| Date. 
GLOUCESTERSHIRE 
Cheltenham ....... JR. Tyrer, Esq. ..sesseceees|112| 29} 24 13 | 65:0 4 
Stroud ....e.eeeeeeeeeeeeeeee |S. J. COlCY, ESQ. ssseeeeeee+| 124) “46 1 9 | 67-0 8 
SHROPSHIRE. 
Haughton Hall, Shitnal ....|Rev. J. Brooke .........++- 142) °86] 24 12 | 61:0 1 
Woolstaston ............+...{Rev. E. D. Carr...eseeeee+-| 159] °48] 24 | 17 | 63°0/10,11,12, 
Leaton Vicarage ......... 1°52] *61) 24 13 | 62°1/1&4 (18 
More Rectory, Bishop ’s Castle|R 4 .| 1°40) *25) 24 17 | 640 6 
Darden Hall .......0+ Miss F. R. Boughton . ooccce| 147! 50) 24 18 | 63°0 4 
Bishop's Castle ..... ‘E., Griffiths, Esq. ..........} 119} 28} 19 12 | 62°0 8 
Cardington......... Rey. Wm. Elliott ..........| ‘81| 27} 24 7 
REG KOSEY, «lets asec clen's Rey. J. D. La Touche......| 120) 38) 24 13 | 62°9 6 
HEREFORDSHIRE 
Stoke Bliss ...........+..08.-|/Rev. G. H. Alexander......| "97) "19) 24 185 | 62'0 4 
WORCESTERSHIRE. 
Orleton, Tenbury............|T. H. Davis, Esq. ......+---|1'07| ‘21) 24 12 | 650 4 
West Malvern ..... .-|A. H. Hartland, Esq. ......|2 22) 21 17 | 645 4 
Pedmore ...0...... -|E. B. Marten, Esq. ........ "B7| "31) 24 15 | 64" 3 
Longlands, Stourbridge. ..|J. Jeffries. ESq..........0..| 126] °8 24 12 | 64°0| 1, 4,7 
Dennis, Stourbridge Ceiets ween MIO) WDD casecctesocses[ial| “4 24 lo | 640 5 
STAFTORDSHIRE, 
Thorganby Villa,Wolverhmtn|G. J. C. Broom, Esq. ......| 1°06) -25} 2 & 24 | 16 
Dudlavieere see cae cee ee fees Mr. J. HISRGY ac cccveececce| 2 d%) Ob) Bt 2 
Sedgley.. aa scie ants --|Mr.C. Beale ........s000+-| “06] “84] 24 16 | 600) 5&7 
Kinyer .. an ..|Rev. W. H. Bolton 116} -26} 24 15 | 630 4 
Walsall.. Mr. N. E. Best .. 99] *29) 24 13 | 60°0 4 
Grammar 8 .|C. U. Tripp, Esq. .......0+- "94) “25 2 15 | 670 5 
Weston-under-Lyziard R’ tory Hon.and Rey.J. Bridgeman 137] *4u} 24 19 | 63°0 af 
Wrottesley ..................|H. SUMpSON, Hsq. ....+.0ee- 99] 29) 24 12 | 617 6 
Heath House, Cheadle . J. C. Philips, Esq...........| 1°27) °33 2 13 | 62°0 5 
Alstonfield Vicarage ... .|Rev. W. H. Purchas ....../ 2°03) ‘53) 19 10 | 61:0 5 
Farley, near Cheadle . C. L. Wragge, Esq. ........|1'89) 39} 1 |17/615) 5 
(Oa km00res cs «ne. seoveeee |i. Kettle, H8d....seesseee-| 261) “39 648} 5 
WARWICKSHIRE. 
Coundon, Coventry ..........|Lieut.-Col. R. Caldicott ....|1:04| 34) 2 | 12 | 620) 1&4 
Coventry ....s.0000., .|J« Gulson, HSq...e..ecrees «| 185] 717 2 16/640) 5 
Bickenhill Vicarage... AM AN edo BOE TR aqeeerrmnecor, 87] °35) 21 5 | 500 
St. Mary’s College . .|Rev. 8. J Whitty.. 2] e88t es a7 24 il 64°9 5 
Henley-in-Arden ..|L. H. G, Newton, Esq.. 118] 30) 2 | 412/655) 4 
Rugby School......... -|Rev. Lf. N. Hutchinson ....| 117] “28 1 13 | 662 £ 
DERBYSHIRE. 
Stoney Middleton............|Rev. U. Smith ............|119) 26} 14 9 | 610) 4 & 5 
Fernslope, Belper............|J. G. Jackson, Esq. ........| 111} °30 2 13 | 62:0) 1&5 
Linacre Reservoir ... |. EB, Jones, Hag. ........| “83] 20] 14 10 
BDODGON issn sie vinecine .(J. T. Barber, Esq...........| 116) °35 2 13 | 60°0 
Wafeld” voc csscssccscce .|W. Bland, Esq. ..........0-| 130] “31 2 i4 
NOTTINGHAMSHIRE. 
Hesley Hall .............+.-|B. J. Whitaker, Esq. ......| “96 24] 14 | 13/660) 7 
IP TERLORG) Us ieiciaisieisislas seine Seseed Sa Ne DULGY, AM scasemasa) ie 59'0) 2&4 
Hodsock Priory, Worksop ..|H. Mellish, Hsq. ..........] “84) “21] 14 13 | 69°5 L 
Park Hill, Nottingham......|/H. F. Johnson, Esq........{114) 32} 2 | 11/628) 5 
LEICESTERSHIRE. . 
Loughborough ..............|W. Berridge, Esq..........| 66) 12} 1&14 | 18/671) 6 
Ashby Magna............. ...|Rev. E. Willes ............| "77 22} 24 | 10/660) 4 
Market Harborough ......../S. W. Cox, Esq. ... *B9| *14 2 11 | 610} 1&5 
Wei wOktlce. saccscusiemedies ./I Macaulay, Esq. . --| 70] *15] 23 9 
Town Museum, Leicester ..;.|W. J. Harrison, Esq. . *91| *30, 2 15 | 640 6 
Belmont House, Leicester....|H. Billson, sq. ........ “90} *30 2 it | 65% 6 
Systonts sa. ceerenetes. seeeees[d» Hames, jun., Esq. ......| °75) 17] 1&2 | 18) 63-0) 7 
Waltham-le- WWGldiciscccetcie cell Ms Ball, Esq. ....-0 «e| °20) *2C 1 us 580 5 
Little Dalby Hall............ G. Jones, Esq. ....... “79) °23 2 12 | 650 4 
Foxton Locks «.....+.++ ...-.)Union Canal Company ....| ‘52| ‘20 2 ale | 
Coston Rectory, Melton......|Rev. A. M. Rendell........| °75| "20 2 1, | 618) 5 & 19 
NoORTHAMPLONSHIRE. 
Towoester Brewery. J. Webb, Esq.......05 67} 20) 19 8 uy 
Castle Ashby ...... .|R. G. Scriven, Esq. . *62| °16) 24 4 640/44 
Kettering...... 6 «see. (d- Wallis, Esq. ....... *63/ “21; 24 12 | 62°0/ 2,5, 6 
TMIBHORDS betidactos «nagniac #. co Cs 8. Groom, Esq...........| °09) "20] 24 10 | G2" ry 
RuTLAND. Ly oy pee 
West Deyne, Uppingham....|Rev. G. H. Mullins ........] ‘66) °13 2 15 | 63°6 6 
Northfields, Stamford ...... W. Hayes, Hsq.....0.ss000.| ‘56] “11} 19 10 | GU | 1 
Tatcliffe Observatory.....+0+ ea YY aie a natin tae nee plo ze zt 10 oe 4 
le seaeees . er 5 “18 B 0 jhe 5 
Ventnor Hospital. y . a | al 6y'0! 4 


Altarnun Vicarage +...++.+++'Rev. J. Power, MiAwcssecsst 404 108 


TEMPERATURE, 
3|Greatest ht.Great’st cold. 


——”- To 


Deg}! Date. 

245] 16 

£2:0| 17 

270] 16 

320} 16 

25:0] 16 q 

260/16 

83:0| 16 

260} 16 

266] 16 ! 

300} 15 { 

273| 16 

295] 15 

30'0 15 

26:0) 15 

260) 15 : 
4 

33°0| 15 & 16 ‘ 

27:0! 15 

81:0] 15 

28'0| 16 

28:0] 16 

302, 16 

31°0) 16 

27:0] 26 

287| 16 ; 

272] 16 ; 

330/15 | 

320] 16 

32:0 

311] 16 a 

810 16. 4 

31:0] 16 

29°0| 15 & 25 

320] 26 

29:0) 14 

320] 29 

300} 26 : 

282] 26 q 

360] 15 8B 

80:0 26 t Z 

260] 16 a 

26°0 26 i 

27°0| 26 

330; 16 

#40 16 

310} 16 

28:0} 15 

260} 16 

25:0] 28 

33%] 15 

33°¢] 16 

30% | 15 & 25 

815] 16 

296 26 

2] 165 

15] 16 

2] 16 


Fat 


q* 


THE WEATHER OF OCTOBER. 307 


At last we can record a cessation of the continuous wet which marred 
the summer of 1879. Although little rain fell, yet the effect of previous 
“downpours and the thorough saturation of the ground was visible in the 
damp condition of the atmosphere, and the consequent heavy fogs which 
prevailed, more especially during the first half of the month; for the 
same reason there was little sunshine. Light easterly winds prevailed, 
with a high barometer. The harvest was in the main secured by the 
middle of the month, but was very deficient in quantity and quality. 
Narurat History Nores sy Ossmrvers.—Spondon.—Of moths, 
Mamoestra brassice has b2en abundant, and of course destructive. Very 
few Plusia gammz have been seen. Burton-upon-Trent.—Wasps very late 
and scarce; Ladybirds plentiful. Nottingham.—Scarcely any wall fruit 
has hal the right flavour, and all had the appearance of wanting more 
sun. Coventry—A wonderful crop of plums and damsons, but they 
have not for the most part ripened well, or come to much perfection. 
The dull and sunless character of the season has deprived the fruit of its 
usual flavour. Cheltenham.—A sharp frost on the 16th, causing the 
leaves to fall rapilly from some trees, and giving others their beautiful 
autumnal tints. By the end of the month the elm trees and oaks alone 
kept their foliage, that of others—as horse chestnuts and walnuts—being 
all off, or very much thinned. JWrottesley.—Fieldfares first seen on the 
5th. More Rectory.—A few Redwings seen on 29th. Strowd—Swallows 
finally left on 9th. Hodsock Priory.—First gray Crow, (Corvus cornizx, ) 
seen on 24th. Shifnal.—The harvest at length completed by the middle 
of the month; but all grain, although not greatly damaged, most 
deficient in yield. Damsons, an immense crop, 2d. per quart. Hazel- 
nuts also abundant. Apples almost a failure, but Pears abundant, 
although many sorts cracked all over. Only one Peacock Butterfly seen 
as yet; notasingle Red Admiral. A Humming-bird Sphinx caught on 
27th. Farley, near Cheadle-—Turdus merula seen only occasionally; T. 
musicus become almost a rara avis in this neighbourhood. October 5th, 
noticed a few Blackberries ripe ; Hazelnuts fairly plentiful, and ripening 
to full kernel; same evening observed Spirea ulmaria, (Meadow Sweet,) 
still in flower. October 9th, Elm and Mountain Ash becoming rapidly 
bare. October 13th, top of Sycamore bare. October 16th, gathered 
some fine Wild Strawberries, quite ripe, and very fully matured. 
Ostober 18th, samples of Hlm, Sycamore, and Lime generally bare. 
October 20th, Harebell still in flower. October 21st, some Horse 
Chestnuts quite bare. October 22nd, ‘‘ Hips and Haws” plentiful and 
fully ripe. October 25th, top of Beech bare; Acacia bare. October 
26th, Harebell still in flower; same day noticed quantities of unripe 
Blackberries—a very little ripe fruit, blighted, (evidently by the recent 
frost.) October 29th, Birch, Wild Cherry, Lime, and Beech generally 
bare ; Elm, Sycamore, and Horse Chestnut “‘ universally” bare; Yellow 
Gorse in flower. October 30th, saw a Digitalis purpurea, (Foxglove,) well 
in flower. Geranium pratense (?) generally in flower at end of month. 


Ph Au f 
Correspondence, 
— es 
Lepropora HyALINA.— ‘‘ Enquirer” is quite wrong in saying (p. 283) 

that in the order Cladocera the limbs are always enclosed within the 
carapace. If he will refer to Baird’s Entomostraca, (p. 62,) he will find 
that the whole body except the head is so enclosed ; (but not the feet.) 
In the first family Daphniade, there are five or six pairs of feet, all 
enclosed within the valves of the carapaces, (p. 62;) but in the second 
family Polyphemide, there are four pairs of legs, not contained within 
the shell; (p. 111.) Therefore the Leptodora is not excluded from the. 
Cladocera on account of its feet being without the carapace—W. S 
Beaumont, Bowdon, Cheshire, 


308 CORRESPONDENCE. 


PRONUNCIATION OF ScrenTIFIc Names.—In the last number of the 
“Midland Naturalist ” I notice a most useful article by Mr. W. B. Grove 
on the above subject; and as I have taken some pains in my work on 


British Conchology to accentuate the scientific names, I venture to make - 


one or two suggestions to the author of the article. The first is with 
respect to the name of the oyster, ostrea, dorpeov; the e does not represent 
a Greek diphthong. Mr. Grove has twice placed the accent on the 
middle syllable ; but it ought to be on the first syllable, the middle being 
unquestionably short. This quantity is given by all Latin poets, 
Lucilius, Horace, Juvenal, Ovid. A scholar might well stare if he heard 
the name O’strea edu’lis mispronounced by making the middle syllable 
in the first word long, and in the second word short. Polygonum, being 
the name of a plant, is derived from yévv, a knee, and not from ywria, 
an angle; so that the penultimate syllable is properly short. If it had 
been derived from ywyvia, the penultimate syllable would of course be 
long. Polygo’nuwm (a polygon,) as well as trigo’nus, tetrago’nus, pentago’nus, 
and heptago’nus are cases in point. Hypericuin (hypericon, a plant = 
dmepikiv) Clearly has both the middle syllables short; and therefore 
custom has adopted the right pronunciation. I may also mention that 
by the well-known rules of the British Association for zoological nomen- 
clature the names of families should end in ide. It would consequently 
be irregular to say Craniade. See page 271, line 6 from the bottom.— 
J. Gwyn Jurrreys, Ware Priory. 

THe Derouiarion oF ‘TREES AND MRIPENING oF Fruits.—A 
yearly record of observations on the defoliation of our common 
trees and shrubs, the ripening of their fruits, with notes on the quantity 
and quality, can scarcely fail to be of interest and use to many lovers of 
nature. The following notes on the subject may not be unacceptable to 
some other readers of the ‘‘ Midland Naturalist :’—Dewberries, or the 
fruit of Rubus cesius, were this year ripe by August 26th; very few and 
small this year. Summering Apples were ripe about September 4th. 
Limes began to turn yellow by September 7th. A very poor show of 
Blackberries this season; Rubus rhamnifolius and R. corylifolius ripe 
about the 8th, the more common kind, R. discoler by 20th. Drupes more 
harsh and watery than usual. Plums ripened about the second 
week in the month ; a very fair crop. Fruit of Lonicera Xylostewm ripe 
about 17th. Hazel Nuts and Filberts were very plentiful, many 
of them were small and unsound; ripened about 24th. Wild Plums 
ripe by 24th. Sycamore, Walnut, and Lime trees cast their leaves 
about 25th. Fruits of Viburnum Opulus, Lonicera, Solanum,Tamus, Bryonia, 
and Snowberries, (Symphoria racemosa, ) ripened about the end of the monta. 
Apples and Pears, both wild and cultivated, are rather scarce this year, 
although there were a few trees scattered about that bore a fair crop. 
Crabs and Poplar trees cast their leaves about October 8th. Hips and 
Haws ripe by 10th; very few in some places, more in others. Hlder- 
berries ripened about 10th; a very good crop this year. Damsons ripe 
about 14th. Sloes began to ripen by 15th. Many Ash trees are loaded 
with keys, (samare,) which ripened about 18th. The leaves fell from the 
fertile trees before the barren ones. Chestnuts began to fall about 13th ; 
very few, and small. Fruits of Viburnum Lantana, Cornus sanguinea, and 
Ligustrum vulgare ripened about 20th. Beech, Birch, Maple, Alder, 
Chestnut, Elm, and other trees shed their leaves by 24th. Berries of the 
Buckthorn and Spindle trees ripe by the first weekin November. Leaves 
of the Oaks, Aspens, Buckthorn, Hawthorn, Pear, Hazel, and many 
other trees falling in the second week in November. Many of the trees 


began to show their peculiar autumnal hues unusually early this year 


owing to the long continued wet weather.—R. R., Castle Ashby, Novem- 
ber 13th, 1879. 


CORRESPONDENCE. 809 


OrnirpoLocicAL Notes rrom OxrorpsHire.—A fine specimen of 
Richardson’s Skua was killed at Milcombe, in this county, on 
October 15th. It is, I believe, the first occurrence of the bird in 
this district. A Common Skua was obtained at Hydon, Northamp- 
tonshire, on the 18th of that month, and on the 7th instant a Cormorant 
was shot on Clattercut Reservoir. The occurrence of these sea birds so far 
inland, considering the fine weather we have been lately enjoying, is very 
unusual. Two Turtle Doves were seen on September 29th—a very late 
stay. I did not notice Fieldfares, nor could I hear of any being seen, till 
the 22nd ult., when I observed a flock of about a hundred flying over. 
Several Spotted Crakes were brought to Mr. Wyatt, the taxidermist at 
Banbury, during last month, all killed in the neighbourhood; also one 
Hawfinch. The former bird is believed to breed on the Cherwell. Mr. 
Wyatt informs me that he has had young birds once or twice. A Red- 
legged Partridge had its nest this season on the thatch at the corner of a 
corn stack about five feet.from the ground—an uncommon situation, I 
should imagine. The bird, however, seldom breeds here ; it is the only 
instance I know of its doing so in this parish; a few years ago it was 
unknown ; now it is gradually increasing. Song Thrushes and Black- 
birds are here now in large numbers, feeding on the berries of the yew; 
they are doubtless migrants, as during the summer they were far from 
plentiful. These berries are very attractive, and even draw a few Missel 
Thrushes into the gardens, shy as they usually are at this time of year. 
Greenfinches also come in small flocks. Snipe have been plentiful. I 
put one up from amongst some cut beans—an unusual place. A few 
Jack Snipe have been shot; the first was on September 24th, rather an 
early arrival. They do not come to us, as a rule, before the middle of 
October. I have recently obtained a young Hobby; it was taken about 
four miles from here, and reared by hand; I find it far more docile than 
the tame Kestrels I have come across—in fact, I have generally found the 
latter bird rather vicious.—O. V. Artin, Bodicote, Oxon, November, 1879. 

OrnitHoLocicaL Norrs.—I have not at present seen any Fieldfares 
or Redwings, which indicates an absence of the very cold weather in the 
north, which drives them southward. I have noticed some large flocks 
of Peewits, which are very interesting to watch; I suppose they have 
rather enjoyed the wet season, as they usually congregate in the autumn 
over the low and marshy lands. I have sometimes observed a large 
battalion of them wheeling about for some time and then dividing into 
companies, flying off to their feeding ground, where they alight and seek 
their food, which consists of slugs, worms, and insects. For two or three 
nights I had the pleasure of hearing the distinct note of a Brown Owl in 
the Combe Woods. It is several years since I heard one. I suppose the 
poor bird met with the usual fate, as after a few nights I heard no more 
of him. The equinoctial storms have driven some of the sea birds as 
far inland as our midland district, and several species of the gull tribe 
have been seen in this neighbourhood. A ‘‘Pomerine Skua,” not a 
common bird even on our coasts, was lately caught alive on Wyken 
Slough. The bird was nearly starved and too weak to make its escape. 
The Skua breeds in Iceland and the north of HKurope, but visits our 
shores in autum and winter, and is occasionally driven inland, as this 
was. Itis a very strong and powerful bird, of rapid flight, and rapacious 
habits. The Skuas are said even to drive away the eagles, and are 
encouraged and preserved by the shepherds in the countries where they 
build as a protection to their flocks. It appears to be a young bird, the 
legs and upper part of the beak being of a bluish colour. It would 
measure about three feet across the extended wings. Mr. Elkington, of 
this town, has also a nice specimen of the “‘ Spotted Crake,” which was 
lately shot at Whitley.—Joun Guuson, Coventry, November dth. 


310 CORRESPONDENCE—GLEANINGS—REPORTS. 


Swartows.—At this place a nest of young Swallows ‘‘flew” on) the 
last day of September this year. The eggs were hatched about the 
middle of the month.—W. 8. Gresuny, Overseal, Ashby-de-la-Zouch. 


Gleanings. 


Boranican Catanogur.—Mr. Wheldon, the well-known bookseller of 
58, Great Queen Street, Lincoln’s Inn Fields, has lately issued an extensive 
catalogue of botanical works, second-hand and otherwise, which may be 
of service to many of our readers. 


Merrroronocican Booxs.—Those who are interested in the science of 
Meteorology should write to the editor of the ‘‘ Meteorological Magazine,” 
Mr. G. J. Symons, 62, Camden Square, London, for his “ Catalogue of 
Duplicate Old, Books, by Airy, Buys Ballot, Ellery, Forbes, Glaisher, 
De la Rue, Piazzi Smyth, &c.” 


LEpPropoRA HYALINA.—Some doubt appears to exist as to the proper 
mode of pronouncing the generic name of this entomostracan. Its 
etymology, however, plainly points out the correct pronunciation. Itis 
derived from Xerros thin, and dopa, a hide or skin, in allusion to the 
thinness or transparency of the body. The ‘‘o” in dora is short, so in 
the word Leptodora, the penultimate being short, the accent must be 
placed on the anti-penultimate thus :—Lepto’dora, not Leptodo’ra. 


Tur Minutest Forms or Lirs.—The Rev. W. H. Dallinger, F.R.M.S., 
recently delivered a lecture at Birmingham on the investigations of the ~ 
minutest forms of life, in which he and his fellow-worker, Dr. Drysdale, 
have been so long and successfully engaged. In a most lucid and 
interesting manner he gave some of the results of their laborious 
researches, and skilfully managed to convey a clear notion of such an 
abstruse subject as the life history of monads and other minute organ- 
isms to a mixed audience, most of whom were probably totally unfamiliar 
with the subject. It was one of the best lectures we ever heard. 


Necroscuuta Winsont.—At the May meeting of the Geological Society 
a paper was read by H. Woodward, Hsq., LL.D., F.R.S., F.G.S., on 
Necroscilla Wilsoni a supposed Stomatopod Crustacean from the Middle 
Coal Measures, Cossall, near Ilkeston, Derbyshire. The specimen 
described was found by Mr. EK. Wilson, of Nottingham, in a nodule of clay 
ironstone. It consists of the four posterior abdominal somites and the 
telson. The author discussed its zoological characters, which led him to 
regard it as approaching the Stomatopoda rather than the Isopoda. 
He thought it probable that Dr. Dawson’s Diplostylus is allied to this 


newly-discovered form, for which he proposed the name of Neeroscilla 
Wilsont. 


Areports of Societies. 


BIRMINGHAM SCHOOL NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY.—GrneEran 
Mertinc.—September 26th. Paper on ‘“‘ Hydra,” by Bernard Badger, and living 
specimens of II. fusca, viridis, and vulgaris —GuNERAL Muntine.—October 10th. 
Paper on “ Composite,” by Charles. Cristatella mucedo was exhibited by 
Badger.—GrnrrnaL Mertinc.—October 24th. Paper ou ‘‘ Remarkable Beetles,” 
by J. Dammann; specimen of Sexton Beetle exhibited—GunERAL MEETING.— _ 
November 7th. Paperon ‘ Vegetable Cells,” by H. Devis. 


REPORTS. 811 


BIRMINGHAM NAILURAL HISTORY AND MICROSCOPICAL 
SOCIETY.—Microscorican GrneraL Menrine.—October 2ist.—Mr. A. W. 
- Wills read a very interesting paper on the structure and life-history cf Volvox 
globator, illustrated by beautifully executed coloured diagrams and specimens in 
the microscope. Hedescribed at length the gonidia, which stud the surface of 
the globe, the network which connects them together superficially, and the 
primordial utricle beneath, in which they are imbedded, each gonidium being 
provided with two cilia projecting through orifices in the latter. He next 
described the asexual reproduction of Volvox, when a single gonidium here 
and there enlarges and sub-divides continuously until it becomes a spherical 
mass of green cells, closely appressed to one another so as to be roughly 
hexagonal, but subsequently increasing the space between them until the 
whole forms a perfect Volvow sphere like the original, and a little before 
reaching maturity bursts from the parent sphere through an orifice, rather 
smaller than itself, formed at the north pole of its axis of revolution. This 
process may be repeated through many generations, but at length atrue sexual 
method of reproduction occurs, a true spore being formed by the union of two 
gonidia, supposed to have the properties of male and female elements. This 
spore remains dormant through the winter, and develops into a fresh Volvoz 
by sub-division in the following spring, but Mr. Wills had never seen this 
take place. He suid that some observers were of opinion that the male and 
female gonidia occurred in the same sphere, others in different ones. Probably 
both may happen. He had not been able in every case to verify the results 
of Williamson, Busk, ard others; and in some few respects his observations 
differed from theirs. |GnonoGican Srcrron.—October 28th—Mr. Montagu 
Browne exhibited a specimen of the Blue Shark, (Squalus glaucus,) captured 
near Great Yarmouth, t3/t. in length, and weighing nearly half aton. Mr.R. H. 
Burman exhibited a pebble of quartz from the drift near Walsall, containing 
what appeared to be a flake of gold. Mr. J. W.Cutton sent some specimens of 
Manganese and the rocks in which the veins occur at Barmouth. Mr. T. H. Waller 
exhibited sections of opalised wood, |from California. Mr. Watson exhibited dog- 
tooth and fluor spar, toadstone and bitumen, from Castleton, Derbyshire. Mr. J. 
Morley presented to the society, on behalf of Mr. Tressider, of Falmouth, some 
rock specimens from West Cornwall. Mr. R. H. Burman read an interesting 
paper on the geology of Falmouth and neighbourhood, illustrated by specimens 
of the slates, sandstones, granite, and serpentine of the district. GrmnrraL 
Meretinc.—November 4th. Mr. Thos. Bolton exhibited Ophrydium versatile, 
from Walsall, anda number of Rotifers. Mr. J. F. Goode exhibited a female 
Diaptomus castor, with spermatic tube attached to the-operculum vulve. Mr. 
W. H. Joues exhibited living specimens of Ophiocoma neglecta,which had been kept 
in artificial sea-water for three months. - Mr. W. G. Blatch read an interesting 
paper on entomological work in winter, showing the fallacy of the popular notion 
that insects are only to be found in summer, by describing the results of an 
afternoou’s hunt in Sutto. Park, and the successful results of the various modes 
adopted for procuring insects. At the conclusion of the paper, a discussion took 
place, in which Fratilein Lauprecht and Messrs. J. Morley, J. E. Bagnall, J. F. 
Goode, H. E. Forrest, aud others took part. The discussion drifted away from 
the subject of the paper to that of ‘‘ garden pests,” and elicited from Mr. Blatch 
& promise to give the society, at some future time, a paper on two of the 
commonest of these, the larve of the Sawfly and the Magpie Moth. 
Brionocicat Section.—November 11th.—Mr. J. E. Bagnall exhibited Leueobrywm 
glaucum, in fruit, from Massachusetts; and the Protonemaof an Hepatica, 
probably Pellia epiphylla, shewing peculiar stalked bodies arising from it, 
described by Luerssen as “ brood buds” (Brntknospe.) Mr. J. F. Goode exhibited 
ova of an Entozoon from the intestinal canal of a sprat. Mr. H. W. Jones exhibited 
Callionymus lyra, the yellow scalpin, found amongst a lot of sprats in the fish 
market; and living specimens of a species of prawn, Palemon varians. Mr. 
A. W. Wills exhibited Cylindrospermum humicola, a minute Alga belonging to the 
order Oscillatoriacee ; and zygospores of Spirogyra, in various stages of germina- 
tion. M.G.8. Tyeread his report on the Mollusca taken by members of the 
Society during the recent excursion to Falmouth, from which it appears that the 
total number of species taken was sixty-three, but that from the absence from 


_ among the party of any experienced conchologist many species were unrepresented 


which peer untedily would have rewarded a more systematic examination of the 
ground, 


312 REPORTS—EXCHANGE. 


BIRMINGHAM AND MIDLAND INSTITUTE SCIENTIFIC SOCIETY. 
—October 29th, Mr. E. Evans read a paper on “ Scientific Culture.” November 
12th, Mr. Wright Wilson exhibited and described a ‘‘ New Acoustic Apparatus.” 


BURTON-ON-TRENT NATURAL HISTORY AND ARCHHOLOGICAL 
SOCIETY.—November 11th.—The President, (Mr. H. G. Tomlinson,) read his 
second paper on “‘ Birds and their Habits,” the substance of which will be given 
in a future number, A cordial vote of thanks was given to the President. 


CHELTENHAM NATURAL SCIENCE SOCIETY.—November 5th.—An 
extra meeting was held at the Ladies’ College, when J. Fisher, Esq., of Stroud, 
gave an admirable paper on “‘ The Spectroscope and its application to Solar and 
Stellar Physics.” The paper was illustrated by a very powerful instrument, and 
electric apparatus by Browning. About 120 persons were present. 


EVESHAM FIELD NATURALISTS’ CLUB.—The annual meeting of this 
club; was held on November 11th, Mr. T. J. Slatter in the chair. Mr. Slatter 
was elected president, Mr. J. 8S. Slater treasurer, and Mr. J. H. Pumphrey 
secretary pro. tem., Mrs. Martin, and Messrs. T. E. Doeg, A. H. Martin, FP. 
Wright,’and J. S. Slater were elected the committee. The annual report stated: 
‘* Your committee in presenting their seventh annual report, regret that the club 
has not recovered from the depression which they deplored last year, and can 
only hope that during the next twelve months it may take a fresh start, and 
flourish more vigorously than before. The numbers of the club have neither 
increased nor diminished, being twenty-eight. Owing to the bad weather the 
usual excursions during the summer have had to be abandoned. The evening 
meetings were held monthly during the winter, the following papers being read : 
‘Some Common Minerals,’ by the Rev. M. Wood; ‘ The Glacial Deposits of the 
Vale ‘of Evesham,’ by the Rev. A. H. W. Ingram; ‘The Reproduction of 
Ferns,’ by Mr. J. S. Slater; and‘fome of the Birds of our Neighbourhood,’ 
by Mr. T. E. Doeg. The financial position of the club is more satisfactory than 
it ever has been, the treasurer having a balance in hand of £4 16s. 1d.” 


NOTTINGHAM NATURALISTS’ SOCIETY.—November 5th. Mr. J. 
Shipman read a most interesting paper, entitled ‘‘ Notes on the Alluvial Deposits 
of the Trent Valley in the Neighbourhood of Nottingham.” As the paper will 
be printed in a future number, it is needless to give a resumé of it. 


NOTTINGHAM LITERARY AND PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY.— 
October 2nd, Soireé. October 3rd, Gilchrist Lecture, R. A. Proctor, Esq., F.R.AS., 
subject ‘‘ The Birth of the Solar System,” illustrated by the oxyhydrogen light. 
October 9th, inaugural address by the President, Rev. R. A. Armstrong, on ‘*What 
is Science.” Ocober 24th, Gilchrist Lecture, Dr. W. B. Carpenter, C.B., F.R.S., 
subject, ‘A Piece of Limestone,” illustrated by the oxyhydrogen lantern. 
October 30th. Gilchrist Lecture, Prof. P. M. Duncan, F. R.S., subject “‘ Energies 
within the Enrth: Mountain Making,” illustrated by the oxyhydrogen lantern. 
November 20th, J. H. Brown Esq., subject, ‘‘ Festus.” 


STROUD NATURAL HISTORY AND PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY.— 
November 11th.—Mr. E. Evans read a most interesting and instructive paper on 
“The Birds of Gloucestershire,” which we hope may be published at length in 
a future number. The paper was illustrated by a fine collection of birds, so 
arranged as to make inspection easy. 


EXCHANGE. 

Land and Freshwater Shells in exchange for Books on Conchology, 
Botany, and Geology, or Shells.—C. T. Musson, 68, Goldsmith Street, 
Nottingham. 

A good series of Terebratula punctata and Rhynchonella: tetrahedra 
(two dozen of each) from the Middle Lias of Leicestershire, for any other 
Fossils.—F. G. §., 3, Melbourne Road, Leicester. 


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