, ^J'rf'lOi.lili s;^ III ijiSihiiikjir ^ PHOCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OP ARTS AND SCIENCES. VOL. III. FKOM MAY, 1852, TO MAY, 1857. SELECTED FROM THE RECORDS. BOSTON AND CAMBRIDGE: MET CALF AND COMPANY, PRIXIERS TO THE ins'IYERSnT. 185 7. K c^^l'") ^ S'H-l PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. SELECTED FROM THE RECORDS. VOL. III. Three hundred and sixty-second meeting. May 25, 1852. — Annual Meeting. The President in the chair. Professor Lovering presented the annual report of the Treasurer, in his absence, for the past year, a part of which was read by the Recording Secretary. It was then accepted. The annual report of the Committee on the Library was read by Dr. A. A. Gould, and accepted. The annual report of the Committee of Publication was read by Professor Lovering, and accepted. Professor A. Gray, in behalf of the committee to whom was referred the amendment of the third section of Chapter Vn. of the Statutes of the Academy, proposed by Dr. B. A, Gould at the last statute meeting, recommended that it be adopted ; namely, that the second clause of the third section of Chapter VIL of the Statutes of the Academy be replaced by the following : — i' The Council for Nomination shall consist of the President and the two Secretaries, together with three Fellows from each of the three Classes of the Academy, to be elected by ballot at the annual meeting. And it shall be the duty of the Council, in nominating As- sociates and Foreign Honorary Members, to consult the wishes of that section of the Academy to which the candidate, if elected, would belong." VOL. III. 1 5s PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Dr. W, F. Channing exhibited several fine positive photo- graphic pictures on paper, made by Mr. Whipple by simple superposition of the negatives taken on glass. Dr. Channing stated that this process was interesting as the beginning of a new and beautiful art ; the original picture taken by the camera on glass being thus susceptible of indefinite multipli- cation on paper. The Scrutineers reported that the following gentlemen were elected officers for the ensuing year, viz. : — Jacob Bigelow, .... President. Daniel Treadwell, . . Vice-President. Asa Gray, Corresponding Secretary. Benjamin A. Gould, Jr., . Recording Secretary. Edward Wigglesworth, . Treasurer. Nathaniel B. Shurtleff, Librarian. The several Standing Committees were appointed as fol- lows : — Rumford Committee. Eben N. Horsford, Joseph Lovering, Daniel Treadwell, Henry L. Eustis, Morrill Wyman. Committee of Publication. Joseph Lovering, Louis Agassiz, William C. Bond. (Committee on the Library. Augustus A. Gould, D. Humphrey Storer, Benjamin A. Gould, Jr. The following gentlemen were chosen Members of the Council for nominating Foreign Honorary Members, viz. : — Benjamin Peirce, William C. Bond, ^ of Class L Joseph Lovering, of arts and sciences. Louis Agassiz, Charles Pickering, ^ of Class II. John B. S. Jaceson, James Walker, Cornelius C. Felton, ^ of Class III. Nathan Appleton, On motion of Professor Agassiz, it was " Voted, That a committee, consisting of the Secretaries and the members of the Committee of Publication, be appointed to revise the arrangement of the list of members into sections, with a view to its permanent adoption." On motion of Dr. W. F. Channing, it was " Voted, That a committee be appointed to revise the language of Chapter VII. of the Statutes of the Academy." Messrs. W. F. Channing, A. Gray, and B. A. Gould, Jr. were appointed that committee. On motion of Dr. B. A. Gould, Jr., it was " Voted, That in all future nominations of candidates for election to the Academy, the section to which the candidate, if elected, would belong shall be specified in writing." President Hitchcock exhibited some fossil fruits and seeds from the lignite deposit associated with the iron ore at Bran- don, in Vermont. He was of opinion that they belonged to the tertiary formation, but whether to the miocene or pliocene, he was doubtful. On motion of Professor Lovering, it was " Voted, That the thanks of the Academy be presented to Hon. Edward Everett, late Vice-President, to Dr. Augustus A. Gould, late Corresponding Secretary, to Mr. Joseph Hale Abbot, late Recording Secretary, to Mr. J. IngersoU Bowditch, late Treasurer, and to Dr. Henry I. Bowditch, late Librarian, for the efficient and valuable ser- vices they have rendered to the Academy in their respective offices." On motion of Professor Peirce, it was " Voted, That a monthly meeting be held on the second Tuesday of each month of the approaching summer, at eight o'clock, P. M., in the Academy's hall." 4 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Three Iiundred aiid sixty-tliird meeting. June 8, 1852. — Adjourned Annual Meeting. The President in the chair. The Recording Secretary being necessarily absent, Pro- fessor Levering was chosen Recording Secretary pro tern. Professor Levering, in behalf of the committee appointed at the last meeting to revise the classification of Fellows and Honorary Members of the Academy, presented a revised clas- sification, together with the following report. " 1. That the word section be substituted for division, as the name of the subdivisions of the classes ; " 2. That the second section of Class II., originally named the Division of Botany and Vegetable Physiology, be known as the Sec- tioii o^Botany ; " 3. That the third section of Class II., originally named the Di- vision of Zoology and Animal Physiology, be known as the Section of Zoology and Physiology ; " 4. That the first section of Class III., originally named the Division of Moral and Intellectual Philosojjhy, be known as the Section of Philosophy and Jurisprudence ; " 5. That the second section of Class III., originally named the Di- vision of Philology and Ethnology, be known as the Section of Phi- lology and Archceology ; " 6. That the third section of Class III., originally named the Di- vision of Politics, Political Economy, and Jurisprudence, be known as the Section of Political Ecorwmy and History ; "7. That the fourth section of Class III., originally named the Di- vision of Esthetics, be known as the Section of Literature and the Fine Arts ; " 8. That the revised classification of the Fellows, Associate Fel- lows, and Foreign Honorary Members of the Academy, herewith re- ported, be permanently adopted by the Academy." The report of the committee was accepted, and the amend- ments recommended were adopted by the Academy. The classification recommended was laid upon the table until the next meeting, for examination by the Fellows of the Academy. Hon. S. A. Eliot stated to the Academy, that the Corpora- OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. O tion of Harvard University had received letters from Professors Bache and Henry, urging upon their attention the claims of Gould's Astronomical Journal, and inquiring whether some appropriation for its support could not be made from the funds of the Observatory. The Corporation being of opinion that they could not act directly in the matter, and being s-t the same time anxious to promote to the extent of their power this honorable undertaking, had appointed the President and the Treasurer a committee to confer with any committee which the Academy might be disposed to appoint, as to the means best adapted to give a permanent support to this Journal. Mr. Eliot moved that the Academy appoint such a com- mittee of conference. Professor Peirce made some remarks in regard to the great importance of the Journal for astronomers, and to the high esteem in which it was held in this country and in Europe. He stated that its circulation was as large as that of Schu- macher's Astj'onomische Nachr-ichtcn, while, at the same time, it was impossible that this Journal, or any other one of a severe scientific character, should be sustained by its sub- scription list alone. He hoped that steps would be taken to put it upon a permanent basis, and therefore seconded the motion of Mr. Eliot. The resolution was adopted. Messrs. N, Apple ton and Peirce were appointed to act as a committee on behalf of the Academy. Dr. O. W. Holmes exhibited a more nicely constructed model of the microscope recently described by him at a meet- ing of the Academy. He observed that the effects of oblique light were very brilliant in exhibiting certain objects, as, for example, the blood-globules ; and that no difficulty was ex- perienced from the position of his instrument, when fluids were used. He also exhibited the contrivance which he had substituted for the common method of graduating the aperture, so as to darken more or less the field of view. 6 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Messrs. Channing, Agassiz, Eliot, A. Gray, ShiirtlefF, and Emerson were appointed a committee to consider the propriety of a course of public lectures to be given by Fellows of the Academy, or other ways of increasing the fund for publication. Professor Agassiz offered by title two papers: — 1st. Monograph of the North American Crawfishes (Asta- cidea). 2d. Investigation of some Points of the Natural History of the Higher Animals, bearing upon the Origin, Unity, and Di- versity of Man. Three hundred and sixty-fourth, meeting. June 22, 1852. — Monthly Meeting. The Corresponding Secretary and subsequently the Pres- ident in the chair. Professor Agassiz, in behalf of the committee appointed to consider the best means of increasing the Academy's publica- tion fund, reported that the committee were unanimous in rec- ommending that a course of public lectures of a popular char- acter be given by Fellows of the Academy during the ensuing winter ; that the President be requested to commence the course by an address, setting forth the objects and aim of the course, and that each Section of the Academy appoint one of its number to deliver one lecture upon some special subject belonging to, and prominent in, the Section's sphere of re- search. He offered the following resolution : — " Resolved, That the President appoint a committee of twelve, con- sisting of one Fellow from each Section of the Academy, whose duty it shall be to call together their respective Sections for the selection of lecturers ; and to appoint a sub-committee for attending to the necessary arrangements for the delivery of the course of lectures." The resolution was adopted, and the following gentlemen were appointed, the President, on motion of Mr. Emerson, being requested to represent the Section of Botany : Messrs. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 7 , Peirce, J. I. Bowditch, Lovering, Treadwell, Alger, J. Bige- low, Agassiz, H. I. Bowditch, Bowen, Felton, Everett, Eirot. On motion of Dr. B. A. Gould, it was " Voted, That, with a view to the speedy and permanent adoption of some classification of the Academy into Sections, the arrangement as already reported by the committee be printed for better examination by Fellows." Professor Agassiz called the attention of the Academy to some facts in natural history throwing light upon and illus- trating the diversity of origin of the human race. In the first place, he showed that there were a number of animals, among which were particularly to be instanced the anthropoid monkeys, which offered the same difficulties to the zoologist in classifying them that are offered by the different human races. The orang-outangs, which have been divided by some into four species, have been considered by other naturalists as forming but a single one. The genus of long- armed orangs (Hylobates) is considered by some as contain- ing eleven species, while others make but two or three. The lions of Asia and Africa, which, resembling one another too closely to permit of a proper distinction as two species, present points of difference far too marked to allow the idea of any genetic connection. Mr. Agassiz also instanced several other analogous cases among vertebrated animals. Secondly, the areas within which the several varieties of such animals are confined are not very different in extent from those within which distinct human nationalities have been developed and have fulfilled their respective missions, such as Greece, Italy, Spain, &c. The languages of different races of men were neither more different nor more similar than the sounds characteristic of animals of the same genus, and their analogy can no more be fully accounted for on any hypothesis of transmission or tradi- tion than in the case of birds of the same genus, uttering sim- ilar notes in Europe and in America. In the last place, Mr. Agassiz spoke of the character of the , 8 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY differences between the several divisions in man and in many of the lower animals ; divisions too marked to be deemed simply varieties, and yet not sufficiently great to constitute a proper basis for a classification into different species. They might, with more propriety, be termed races. The differ- ent kinds of dogs, breeds of cattle, &c. were instances of this sort of difference. Animals, differing only in race, form more frequent connection with one another than those differ- ing specifically, and the fruit of connections of the latter kind, like the mule, the mulatto, or the mongrel, were inter- mediate between the two parents, and still capable of pro- ducing to a certain extent. , Three hundred and sixty-fifth, meeting'. July 13, 1852. — Monthly Meeting. The President in the chair. Professor Peirce presented a communication upon the Solu- tion of Equations by the Means of Geometric Diagrams. Professor Peirce also presented a communication upon the form assumed by an elastic sac containing a fluid. The positions of unstable equilibrium he found to divide themselves into four special forms, the annular, cylindrical, that of the cylinder with a bilateral character, and the double or multiple cylinder. The ultimate form of the first case is a sphere. He also alluded to the interest of this fact to those who were not themselves mathematicians. For the primitive forms which Professor Agassiz had found to be the four types of the animal kingdom were the same, the Radiata being represented by the sphere, the Mollusca by the cylinder, the Articulata by the bilateral, and the Vertebrataby the double cylinder. Now, as all animal forms begin as elastic sacs, containing fluids, these forms seem the necessary ones for the condition of equi- librium. This led to a discussion, in which Messrs. Eustis and Peirce took part. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 9 Professor Wyman exhibited to the Academy some fossil bones from New Zealand, evidently the thigh-bone, tibia, and tarsus of some one of the largest birds, probably either the Dinornis or Palapteryx. The tarsus was especially interest- ing, as exhibiting the rudiments of two bones besides the de- veloped one, bones of which no traces exist in other birds ex- cept in the embryonic state ; a phenomenon analogous to that occurring in the metatarsal bones of Ruminants. Professor Peirce communicated some observations of Messrs. Southworth and Hawes, daguerreotypists, in relation to photo- graphic images taken for the stereoscope. They had found in practice, that, when two points of view were in a horizontal line, the image as seen in the stereoscope appeared distorted, in consequence of the horizontal lines not being represented in relief, like the vertical ones. They had, however, observed that the best images were produced when the position of the two points of view was such that the vertical component was equal to the horizontal one. Professor Peirce stated that he had seen a number of photo- types taken in each way, and that he was able to confirm the statements of Messrs. Southworth and Hawes, that portraits taken with two points of view on the same level had a pecu- liarly unpleasant effect. Professor Lovering reminded the Academy that Leonardo da Vinci had pointed out the impossibility of representing ob- jects correctly in pictures when their distance from the eyes was within a certain limit. Dr. B. A. Gould said that the circumstance of objects appear- ing in relief when observed in ordinary binocular vision might be explained like the outness recognized in monocular vision, by means of the imaginative and suggestive faculties acting unconsciously on reflection. It seemed but natural that a dif- ference of level in the points of view should be necessary to make relief manifest in systems of horizontal lines. The discussion was continued by Messrs. Peirce, Gould, and C. T. Jackson. VOL. III. 2 10 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Professor Eustis gave a new demonstration of the property of the ellipse, that the snbtangent is independent of the con- jngate axis. He showed that this led to a more simple con- struction than any other given. Three hundred and sixty-sixtli meeting. July 26, 1852. — Adjourned Monthly Meeting. The President in the chair. The Corresponding Secretary presented a paper from Dr. Leidy of Philadelphia, upon the Osteology of the Hippopota- 7md(B. Professor Peirce continued his remarks upon the forms as- sumed by an elastic sac containing fluid, and stated that he had succeeded in reproducing them artificially by the use of gum, the force of gravity being eliminated, as in Plateau's ex- periments, by immersing the gum in a mixture of alcohol and water of the same specific gravity. Three hnndred and sixty-seventh meeting. August 10, 1852. — (Quarterly Meeting. The President in the chair. Dr. Pierson offered a tribute to the memory of the late Thomas Cole, Esq., a Fellow of the Academy ; after a sketch of Mr. Cole's life and labors, he offered the following resolu- tions, which were unanimously adopted : — " Resolved^ That the Academy deplores, in the death of its late Fellow, Thomas Cole, Esq., of Salem, the loss of a valuable and active associate, whose simplicity of mind, sincerity of heart, and in- tellectual acquirements, the result of years of persevering industry, peculiarly fitted him for scientific pursuits, and acquired for him a cordial regard from all who knew him. " Resolved, That the Academy sincerely condole with his bereaved family in the affliction occasioned by his sudden decease. " Resolved, That a copy of these resolutions be transmitted to the family of the deceased." OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 11 Three hundred and sixty-eighth meeting. September 14, 1852. — Monthly Meeting. The President in the chair. Dr. M. Wyman communicated to the Academy the results of some experiments upon animals, with a fluid obtained by distilling water and fusel-oil from chloride of lime, in the usual way of manufacturing chloroform, substituting only fusel-oil for alcohol. A large, strong rat was placed in a quart " beaker-glass " with its mouth upward, and covered with a glass plate. A piece of cotton, well moistened with the fusel-oil compound, was placed in the vessel. In five miimtes, no eff"ect being pro- duced, an equal quantity of the compound was poured upon the cotton ; in thirteen seconds, another and equal quantity added. In thirty minutes the rat was washing its face with its paws, and licking its body ; in forty minutes, it was ap- parently well. Fresh air was admitted into the vessel at each addition of fusel-oil compound. Half a fluid drachm of chloroform was placed in the vessel. In one minute and five seconds the rat had rolled upon its side ; in two minutes it was motionless ; in three minutes and fifteen seconds it was dead. A young kitten, exposed to the compound nineteen minutes, was not injured. It sucked the mother immediately after. Another kitten, of the same litter, was exposed in a similar vessel to the vapor of chloroform. In two minutes it became insensible, and was removed from the vessel ; in two minutes twenty-three seconds it partially recovered, and was returned to the vessel ; in eight minutes it dropped again ; in eight minutes fifty seconds it was gasping ; in nine minutes it was again insensible. It was removed from the vessel, and finally recovered. Several other experiments were tried upon kittens, and upon frogs, both with the fusel-oil compound alone and mixed with the vapor of chloroformj and the conclusion was inevita- 12 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY ble that the vapor of the fusel-oil compound was not alone injurious to animal life, and that mixture with the vapor of chloroform did not modify its effects upon the animals ex- posed to it. The vapor of the fusel-oil compound was subsequently in- haled steadily by Dr. Wyman tvv^elve minutes, without any sensible effects. Chloroform produced a decided effect in two minutes. The fusel-oil compound is vaporizable at a much higher temperature than chloroform, and when a mixture of the two is exposed to the air, the chloroform evaporates, leaving the fusel -oil compound behind. The fusel-oil compound, therefore, is not the cause of the occasional fatal effects of chloroform, as has been alleged. Dr. Wyman stated that these experiments had been made in consequence of a statement which had been published con- cerning experiments on the same subject, said to have been recently made, with very different results. Dr. W. I. Burnett presented a paper upon the Formation and Function of the Allantois. After alluding to the difficul- ties attending the study of this subject, and to the various opinions entertained by different embryologists as to its origin and function, he proceeded to state the results of his own ob- servations. " These were made upon mammals, birds, and reptiles. But as in these three classes there are no essential differences, the phases of formation in birds, which are most convenient for study, may be de- scribed as exponents of the whole. " In the chick the allantois first appears at about the sixtieth hour of incubation. At' this early period, the abdominal plates inclose no organs, except the heart, with its ascending and descending aortas, and the Wolffian bodies. There is then no trace of an alimentary canal, or any of its appendages. "At this early period, the Wolffian bodies consist of two tubes, one on each side of the vertebral column, running from the region of the heart to the caudal extremity. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 13 " From each of these tubes there then project short digitations, which are to be the future uriniferous tubes of this organ ; the original tube becoming the duct of them all in each organ. " These ducts pass down to the last caudal vertebrse, over which they turn and come together; at their point of junction appears a small vesicle, the expansion of their combined extremities. This vesicle — a minute sphere, and scarcely to be distinguished from the extremities of the ducts themselves — is the allantois in its earliest condition. " At first its walls are extremely thin, being of a most delicate merribrane ; but as its size increases, cells appear upon its inner sur- face, and at last a basement membrane is perceived, covered with epithelial cells. All these formative changes have taken place be- neath the investing membrane of the whole embryo, and directly at the point of the branching of the two umbilical arteries. " As the vesicle expands, it pushes out, first, the branches of these arteries which rest upon it, and by anastomosis form a network ; sec- ond, a hood of the membrane investing the whole embryo. In less than a day after this, when the vesicle has attained the diameter of one sixteenth of an inch, the network of vessels united in the hood of the investing membrane has so increased, that it seems to form the vesicle proper, the original membrane being entirely masked. At this period the allantois has very much the aspect of a diverticulum of the in- vesting membrane of the embryo, and to this perhaps is due the opin- ion of Coste as to its origin. " After this it increases rapidly, the spherical vesicle becoming flask-shaped, and extending out quite beyond the caudal vertebrae, around which it passes to reach the dorsal surface of the embryo. Here it meets the amnion, with the membranes of which it partly blends, and in this way serves to conduct to it the umbilical vessels. " Such is its mode of formation. Its functional relations are equal- ly interesting, " I would remark, in the first place, that the Wolffian bodies are truly depurating organs of the blood ; in fact, are the temporary kid- neys of the embryo. We have seen that the allantois appears as the bulbous termination of their combined ducts, at a very early period of embryonic life. But it does not arise until the Wolffian bodies have attained a functional power ; that is, until uriniferous tubes are formed having direct relations with the bloodvessels. Indeed, the allantois, as the receptacular termination of the ducts of the Wolffian bodies, is not formed until a urinary secretion is produced. 14 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY " These facts, joined with the very significant one, that Jacobson found uric acid in the liquid of the allantois at a very early period, seem clearly to indicate that the primary physiological function of the allantois is to serve as a urinary bladder. This office it serves during the whole period of the persistence of the Wolffian bodies, or until the involution of its neck with the intestine changes the ana- tomical relations of its ducts. Its subsequent function, however, is different, and of a more important character. " In the mammalian Vertebrata, the embryo forms vascular and nutritive connections with the mother at so early a period that the new being exists but for a little time under independent conditions. As soon as there is direct vascular connection by means of the chorion, the independent life of the embryo ceases, and its nutrition, respiration, and other necessary functions, are performed by the mother. " But until this period, the allantois exercises a most important function, namely, that of respiration. Its surface is covered with a close network of bloodvessels, closely resembling the pulmonary structure of the lower vertebrat-es. " In the embryos of the ox and goat, so young that no vascular connection had taken place with the mother, I have seen the provis- ional blood-corpuscles (which are at first only simple epithelial cells) become oxygenated, acquiring a red color, from circulating in these vessels. "The allantois is then probably a temporary pulmonary organ; the form of respiration being of the lowest order, and quite in char- acter with the condition of the embryo, that is, aquatic. " While performing this function it extends to the chorion, blends with its membranes, and its vessels pass over to it (the chorion.) In this way the independent relations of the embryo cease, and the Al- lantois as a distinct organ entirely disappears. " In the oviparous Vertebrata, the embryonic conditions are differ- ent. Of these the birds and true reptiles alone have an allantois and amnion. , Here the functional importance of the allantois appears greater than in the division just described. " Undoubtedly it serves here, as in Mammalia, as a urinary bladder during its earliest conditions. But its respiratory function soon ap- pears prominent. It increases rapidly, and ultimately envelops the embryo, yolk-sac, and amnion. With these relations it performs the OF ARTS ANr SCIENCES. 15 function of respiration by two methods : first, by nneans of the oxygen of the liquid in its membranes; and second, by bringing a dense net- work of vessels in contact with the air, which passes through the pores of the shell and surrounds the whole formation. In the latter stages of the embryonic development, it is probable that this second method is most efficient, because most direct. " From these facts we may conclude that the allantois is, anatomi- cally, an appendix of the Wolffian bodies, and not of the intestinal canal, as has been supposed ; that its subsequent connection with the intestine is produced by an involution of the membranes of this last around the peduncle of the former. But whether this connection is ever a direct and tubular one, I have been unable to determine. " Physiologically it is at first the receptacle of the urinary secre- tion of the Wolffian bodies ; but afterwards and ultimately it is a respiratory organ. " These conclusions I have arrived at from direct studies, and it will now be interestingto see how they agree with the general facts of the embryonic development of Vertebrata. " It is evident that, if the allantois is an appendix of the Wolffian bodies, it would be expected to be met with only in those classes where these bodies are found. In other words, wherever we find an allantois, there ought we to find Wolffian bodies, and vice versa. " These relations, I believe, are true. Thus in mammals, birds, and the true reptiles, we find invariably Wolffian bodies and an allan- tois. While in the lower oviparous Vertebrata, as in the Amphibia and fishes, there are neither Wolffian bodies nor an allantois.* " Thus it would appear that the views here advanced of the origin and nature of the allantois, are supported by the general embryologi- cal relations of all the classes of Vertebrata." Professor Agassiz followed with some remarks. After highly complimenting Dr. Burnett's paper, he stated that cir- cumstances had incidentally led him to investigations upon * "A remark is here necessary concerning the reputed Wolffian bodies of Am- phibia. As is well known, these bodies were first described by Mailer more than twenty years since. According to his own description, they differ in almost every respect from the Wolffian bodies of the higher classes. "After much examination during this last summer, I have failed to recognize in their structure and general relations the characteristics of the Wolffian bodies, and have therefore ventured to rank the Amphibia, in this respect, with the fishes." 16 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY the same subject. He coincided with Dr. Burnett in his ob- servation of facts, but wished the investigation extended to inchide the region of the Wolffian bodies. He had satisfied himself that these bodies originated in the capillary system of the pellucid area of the embryo. There is a circulation ^with- in the transparent area of the embryo long before any circu- lation of blood takes place; — a circulation of a transparent fluid containing no blood corpuscles, but consisting of a series of cell nuclei in a transparent fluid. From the resolution of a series of these nuclei the circulation originates, and it is entirely confined to the region of the head, in which the heart is formed. He believed that there were three layers of the blastoderma as first represented by C. E. von Baer, and that these layers are essentially distinct. As soon as the eighteenth hour after incubation, the basis from which the Wolffian bodies grow may be detected ; he believed that these facts had hitherto been entirely overlooked. The terminations of the Wolffian bodies are combined into a vesicle, from which vesicle the allantois is properly a bud. With reference to the physical deductions of Dr. Burnett, he had one objection to make. Naturalists were too apt to describe the functions of the organs of undeveloped animals by phraseology derived from the functions of animals in a more advanced condition. He believed this to be dangerous, and, notwithstanding the analogy between the allantois and a urinary bladder, as shown by Dr. Burnett, he could not coin- cide in the inference. Dr. Burnett said that his views of the Wolffian bodies were quite different from those of Mr. Agassiz, and that he intended to present them, at an early meeting, to the Academy. Professor Peirce described an experiment upon the forms assumed, and the motions which arose, in a globule of oil held in suspension in an alcoholic solution. Professor Agassiz called attention to the analogy between these forms and motions, and those which arise in the earliest embryonic cells. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 17 Three Hiindred and slxty-nintli meeting. October 12, 1852. — Monthly Meeting. The President in the chair. The President, in behalf of the committee appointed to provide for the delivery of the Academy's course of lectures, reported that the requisite arrangements had been completed. The course was given as follows, commencing on Wednesday evening, October 27th, at half past seven o'clock, and continued on successive Wednesday evenings : — By Jacob Bigelow, M. D., President, Introductory Lecture. By Professor L. Agassiz, Genealogy of the Animal Kingdom. By Professor C. C Felton, Relation of Aristophanes to his Times. By George Ticknor, Esq., The Tartuffe of Moliere. By Dr. B. A. Gould, Jr., The Theory of Probability. By Daniel Tread well, Esq., The Progress of the Useful Arts, and their Relation to Scientific Discovery. By President Edward Hitchcock, The Bird Traces of Con- necticut River. By Lieutenant Charles H. Davis, Astronomica] Prediction. By Professor C. C. Felton, Aristophanes, Second Lecture. By Professor Albert Hopkins, Time. By Oliver Wendell Holmes, M. D., The Relations of Poetry and Science. By George B. Emerson, Esq., A Higher Course of Instruc- tion in Science in Reference to Preparation for exercising the Useful Arts. By Hon. Samuel A. Eliot, A Complete System of Public Education. Mr. Horsford exhibited to the Academy specimens of his newly invented safety-lamp and safety-can, and described the precautions which had been taken to guard against accidents. Dr. W. I. Burnett read a paper upon Cartilaginous and Os- seous Tissues. " The cartilaginous tissue, wherever found, is invariably the same. VOL. III. 3 18 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Two varieties, however, dependent upon degree of organization, are met with : — " The first is cellular cartilage, being of a transient nature, ulti- mately to be (Ranged into bone. It is composed of nucleated, well- defined cells lying in a semi-solid, punctiform stroma. " The second is Jibro-cartilage of a permanent nature, and consist- ing of the same cells as the first, but which lie in a network of fibrous tissue, which last is only a further developed condition of the punctiform stroma. " In fibro-cartilage the fibrous tissue may so increase at the expense of the cellular elements, that these last almost entirely disappear, and hence the transition of fibro-cartilage into fibrous tissue. " From this it will appear that all cartilage is originally the same, that is, cellular, appearing as such in the embryo. " Its formation there, according to my own observation, occurs in the following manner. " At those points where cartilage and afterwards bone is to appear, there are seen cells which, as to physical characteristics, cannot be distinguished from those which are to form other tissues. " A part of these cells are condensed into a punctiform stroma, leaving open spaces here and there, in which the original cells in numbers from one to four remain. Thus is ultimately seen a finely granular stroma, inclosing free nucleated cells. This is the true cellular cartilage. " As this stroma is formed closely about the cells, it is not correct to say that cavities are formed in it, and in which the cells lie. For the cell-membrane, lying in direct contact with the stroma, blends with it, the nuclei alone, therefore, being left in the cavity ; but as these are nucleolated, they resemble cells, and should be thus designated. " \n jibro-cartilage the same early changes occur, but the stroma is further developed into a fibrous or fibrillated tissue. Where this has occurred, the cell-nuclei lie in nidiform cavities. " Cellular cartilage alone is developed into bone. This occurs in the following manner. When the ossific matter is about to be de- posited, the vascularity of the cartilage is much increased, having a pinkish hue. Then a kind of liquefaction of the stroma interven- ing the cells takes place, by which the cartilage-cells appear no longer confined irregularly, but are, for the most part, free to assume any relative position. Soon after this, there is seen with them a ten- OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 19 dency to an arrangement in a linear series. The rows thus formed run parallel with the long diameter of the bone, and are separated from each other by the intercellular matrix, which consists of the par- tially liquefied stroma. " It is thus that the future bone may be said to consist of a fasci- culus of tubes filled with cartilage cells. This intercellular matrix constitutes the primitive ossific rete, in which the calcareous salts are first deposited. This first deposition having taken place, the cartilage- cells are situated in cup-like, or rather cylinder-like, cavities. " During this time, however, the cartilage-cells, and the substance immediately surrounding them, are likewise changed from the pres- ence of calcareous matter. " The cells become smaller, and, in contracting, assume irregular forms, and the septa separating the tubes in which they formerly lay become more and more indistinct from the fulness of the cal- careous deposition. Finally, a grayish mass is perceived, having little regularity, and variegated in aspect by the presence of strangely shaped bodies, the future Purkinjean corpuscles. But these processes should be described a Uttle more minutely. During the calcareous deposition, the aqueous portion of the tissue disappeai's, and, the size of the whole being reduced, the cartilage-cells are brought nearer to- gether ; the tissue, therefore, is much more compact, but has not lost its original characteristics. The tubes of which we have spoken form the concentric lamellcB, in which the corpuscles are regularly arranged ; and thus a transverse section shows them to be solid cylinders instead of hollow tubes as before the calcareous deposition. " The cartilage-cells are transformed into the Purkinjean or os- seous corpuscles. This I have clearly observed, and have traced all the phases of the change. Where the cells are in the cup-like cavities, their nuclei are prominent. But as ossification proceeds they gradually crumble away, and by the time ossific matter is deposited in the cell- walls, little of them can be seen. The cells, however, remain in a shrunken state, holding a concentric relation to a continuous cavity of the tube, and which cavity is the Haversian canal. When the carti- lage-cells begin to shrink, radiating lines are seen running from each, and in reaching out in every direction, they meet and join those of contiguous cells, and thus a connection is formed on every side. " The question now arises. What are these canaliculi ? Are they, accordtng to Schwann, prolongations of the cartilage-cell membrane ; 20 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY or, nccorditifT to Owen and others, radiations of its nucleus ? My own opinion is diflerent from either, and for the following reasons. In the firet place, the canaliculi do not begin to form until calcareous matter J.3 deposited, and, as the cell-npembrane is then either filled with cal- careous matter, or partially absorbed, it could not well send out pro- longations. Moreover, these last are often of such a length, and so branch and rebranch upon themselves, that such a mode of formation seems hardly possible. To me it appears most probable that they are the channels of escape of aeriform matters from the interior of the cell. For the cell, situated in the midst of an ossifying mass, would retain for some time its animal matter, and this last would ultimately give rise to gases seeking their escape in every direction by percolat- ing the surrounding semi-solid mass. Canaliculi would thus be formed, and these, converging towards the nearest outlet, have therefore been rightly called ' converging tubuli.' " During these phases of formation, some of the nuclei of the cartilage-cells, or even whole other cells of a small size, may not be dissolved, but become ossified as such. They are then found as cell- like corpuscles scattered through the osseous tissue. It is in this way that 1 account for the occasional presence, in the spongy tissue of the long bones, of small spherical bodies, first discovered in 1849 by Dr. O, VV. Holmes of this city. " Such appear to be the processes of formation of the compact tissue of the bones of the higher Vertebrata, as I have studied them in foetal goats. " The whole process is simply one of substitution, with that con- traction and modification of form which necessarily ensues when a soft is replaced by a sclerous tissue. " This process of substitution is carried out everywhere the same, there being, however, variations in some steps of its progress in the different kinds of bones. The spongy nature of the internal or mid- dle portions of some bones appears to be produced by the absorption, by numerous vessels there situated, of the lighter portion of the primi- tive cartilaginous base, and a consolidation of the remaining portion towards the periphery. " This is a point, however, having an unusual teleological bearing, for by such process bones possess the greatest combined strength and lightness attainable with the same amount of material. - These phases of formation just described belong especially to the OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 21 higher Vertebrata. In the lower classes they are of a much less com- plicated character. Thus in many fishes the concentric lamellce. do not exist, and therefore there has been no linear arrangement of the cartilage-cells. But these cells are ossified in situ, and their canali- culi, radiating thence on every side, give to the whole a most regular and beautiful appearance. " The cartilage of the cartilaginous fishes seems to differ from the common cartilage of the higher Vertebrata. In fact, it cannot be called true cartilage, but is, if I may so express myself, an osseous tissue in a cartilaginous dress. "This may be explained by a few remarks. Valenciennes* has shown that the cartilage of the cartilaginous fishes and of the Cepha- lopoda contains gelatine, and not chondrine. " Miillert has also shown that all cartilage capable of ossification contains chondrine, and not gelatine, and that after ossification no chondrine is found, but all is gelatine. Therefore bones are, so to speak, gelatinous, and not chondrinous ; which, as we have just seen, is also true of the so-called cartilages of the cartilaginous fishes and Cephalopoda. " The tissue forming the skeleton of these fishes, as I have had op- portunities to examine it, is composed of oval or spherical cells like those of common cartilage at an early period. They have become hardened in situ, but not calcarified ; and never have I met any hav- ing canaliculi radiating from them. From these data we may conclude that in these lower fishes there is bone-cartilage, but not true bone." Professor Agassiz said that he believed naturalists, iti con- sidering organic tissues, were altogether too much in the habit of looking at different tissues as if they were entirely distinct bodies, forgetful of the fact that all are derived from one yolk. In considering the first formation of cartilage, we must look to the formation and development of the dorsal cord. We find these cells differing from the blastodermic cells, in be- ing larger, but bearing no resemblance to cartilage-cells, al- though they form the basis from which the cartilage-cells are built up. He had carefully examined these cells, which, however, presented points of extreme difficulty, but had not * Compt. Rend., Nov. 25, 1844. t Poggendorff, Jlnnalen, Band XXXVIII. p. 316. 22 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY yet succeeded in determifiing whether they were the identical ones which were to be transformed into cartilage-cells, or whether, on the other hand, they were the mother cells, from which the cartilaginous cells would derive their origin. Mr. Agassiz further stated that he had examined the car- tilage-like bones of fishes, of which Dr. Burnett had spoken, and that he had found the same results. Professor Eustis gave an account of a formula for the measure of the solidity of a prismoid, and its application to other cases of mensuration. The ordinary formula for the area of a prismoid is J- h {B -\- h -\- ^ TV/), where B and b represent the areas of the upper and lower bases respectively, M the middle section, and h the height. The application of this formula for the men- suration of the sphere and the cone is alluded to in a recent number of the Journal of the Franklin Institute. But still more remarkable cases are those of the paraboloid, hyperboloid, and ellipsoid of revolution, in which the prismoidal formula will be found to give precisely the same results as those obtained by the application of the ordinary formulas from the calculus. Professor Lovering exhibited a new stereoscope just received, and called the attention of the Academy to some points of detail, especially those arising from the difference of effect when the same drawings of a solid are viewed so as to repre- sent it with one side or its opposite nearest to the eye. Dr. Burnett commented on these facts, as demonstrating the proposition that the seat of vision is in the brain, and not in the retina. Dr. B. A. Gould addressed some inquiries to Dr. Burnett concerning the best spider-lines for use in the micrometers of telescopes and microscopes. A discussion ensued upon the qualities necessary in spider- lines for this purpose, in which Messrs. Bnrnett, Eustis, and Gould took part. Dr. Burnett thought that the thread of the Attus or hunting spider was the most desirable in all respects, having almost OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 23 uniformly a diameter of jnst -goVo of 3,n inch, and being whol- ly free from viscosity. The Attus is found at this season of the year on rail fences. Professor Agassiz presented a paper upon the family of the Cyprinodonts. Three hundred and seventietli meeting. November 2, 1852. — Monthly Meeting. The President in the chair. Professor Felton reminded the Academy of the recent death of the Hon. Daniel Webster, Secretary of State of the United States, and Fellow of this body ; and, after an eloquent trib- ute to his memory, offered the following resolutions, which, after being seconded by Mr. F. C. Gray, and advocated by Mr. Parsons, were unanimously adopted. " Resolved^ That the Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences deeply lament the decease of their late Associate, the Hon. Daniel Webster, Secretary of State of the United States. By his death the country is bereaved of her ablest practical statesman, and profoundest political philosopher. Letters and eloquence have lost a most distinguished ornament. Science is deprived of a great and versatile mind, which understood its progress, appreciated its value, recognized its dignity, and mastered its results in the midst of professional labors and public cares, to which his energies were de- voted almost to the last moment of his life. " Resolved, That the Fellows of this Academy tender to the family of their late eminent Associate, their most respectful sympathy in this private and public calamity." Three hundred and seventy-first meeting. November 10, 1852. — Quarterly Meeting. The President in the chair. The Corresponding Secretary laid before the Academy let- ters from the Royal Society of London, and the Academies of Gottingen, Berlin, Vienna, and Munich, referring to publica- tions forwarded to the Academy. 24 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY A communication from the Royal Society of Northern An- tiquaries in Copenhagen, containing circulars relating to the collection of materials for works upon the history of the Old Northern Literature, was laid before the Academy. Dr. William P. Dexter was elected a Fellow of the Academy. M. Brown Lequard, of Paris, personally made the following communication. He stated that he had succeeded in producing muscular ir- ritability, i. e. life in the muscles, after decomposition had commenced, by means of injections of blood, repeated every two or three hours. But the fact of which he wished to speak this evening was quite different. He had found that muscles separated from the body might be maintained in a state of rigidity by the injection of chloroform. After an in- terval of several days, blood might be again introduced, repel- ling the chloroform, and reinducing the irritability of the muscles. In one case, after the lapse of ten days, muscular life had been restored by the injection of blood, though the amount of blood required was much greater than after a smaller interval. Irritability might also sometimes be intro- troduced, though more rarely. In reply to a question of Dr. Pickering, M. Lequard stated that the blood must be as fresh as possible, though it was ca- pable of producing the effect when an hour old. In one case in Paris, he had found that blood which had been drawn for two hours had sufficed. With regard to the proper kind of blood for transfusion, he had found that fibrine was not necessary, so that the operation can be performed with defibrinated blood. Bischoff had dis- covered, that, in those cases where the blood of one animal was poison to another, this quality was due solely to the fibrine, so that defibrinated blood may be used in all cases for transfusion without deleterious results. There is another in- * teresting fact, namely, that animals have more fibrine in their blood when they have not been fed for a long time, than under ordinary circumstances. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 25 Dr. Samuel Kneeland was elected Recording Secretary, in place of Dr. B. A. Gould, who resigned. Three liundred and seventy-second meeting. December 7, 1852. — Monthly Meeting. The President in the chair. Professor Winlock, of Kentucky, made a verbal report on errors he had discovered in Bradley's and Bessel's Observa- tions on the sun, illustrated by diagrams. Professor Peirce observed that this was a very remarkable application of the method of least squares, leading to the dis- covery of such a small difference between the printed obser- vations and the true result. He gave other examples of the detection of errors by the application of this method, showing that even errors are regulated by laws. He remarked, that, with all our accuracy, the diameter of the sun is not yet known ; the best way to ascertain this is by an eclipse, but even this is open to doubts. Professor Peirce alluded to several errors attributed to him in some foreign journals ; — the idea that the orbit of the comet of 16S9 was the same as that of 1843 had been erroneously attributed to him. He believed also that astronomers will yet acknowledge that there are two solutions to the perturb- ing actions of Neptune on Uranus. Dr. J. Wyman offered some remarks on the internal struc- ture of the cranium of the mastodon. He had compared the foramina through which the nerves escape from the cranial cavity with those in the skull of the elephant ; those trans- mitting the trigeminus and facial nerves were of similar pro- portions in the two, and tended to show that the mastodon, as well as the elephant, was provided with a trunk, the large size of the nerves indicating a corresponding development of muscular fibre and of sensitive surface in the face. The form of the cranial cavity, which has not been de- scribed, corresponded with the extraordinary type met with in VOL. III. 4 26 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY the elephant, having similarly narrow and contracted anterior lobes, and having the transverse diameter of the encephalon ex- ceeding the longitudinal. Besides in elephants and mastodons, this last condition exists only in Cetaceans. Dr. Wyman re- marked upon the transition from the genus mastodon to that of the elephant, as shown by the teeth in the different species discovered by Falconer and Coutley in Asia, and upon the sim- ilarity in the forms of the brains, as showing a much closer aifinity between the two genera than had generally been sup- posed to exist. Three Iiundred and seventy-tliird meeting. January 4, 1853. — Monthly Meeting. The President in the chair. Dr. Walter Channing made some remarks on meteorological phenomena noticed by him in a recent voyage to Europe ; among others, on the remarkable brilliancy of the nights in Russia compared with those of more southern latitudes. Dr. W. F. Channing gave an account of the experiments on the velocity of sound, recently made in this vicinity by Cap- tain Wilkes. The discharge of a cannon was made to break the circuit in a telegraph wire, thus marking exactly the time of discharge and the observance of the sound, and avoiding the personal errors of watching for the flash and recording the exact time. He described an instrument of his invention for recording the first vibration of air from the cannon's discharge. The results are not yet fully compared, so as to show the differences arising from the dryness or dampness of the air, change of elevation, intervening hills, &c. The Treasurer announced a donation from the Hon. Jona- than Phillips, of one thousand, dollars, to the general fund of the Academy. Whereupon, it was unanimously " Voted, That the thanks of the Academy be presented to the Hon. Jonathan Phillips, for the generous contribution of one thousand dol- lars to its funds, for the purpose of promoting the progress of science." or ARTS AND SCIENCES. 27 Three hundred and seveiity-fourtli meeting. January 26, 1853. — Quarterly Meeting. The President in the chair. The Corresponding Secretary laid before the Academy a letter from Professor Rokitansky, accepting membership of the Academy. The President, on behalf of the sub-committee appointed last year to carry out the plan adopted by the Academy for a course of lectures in Boston, made the following report : — " That a course of twelve lectures, by members of the Academy appointed for the purpose, has been completed within the last three months in this city. " Through the liberality of John A. Lowell, Esq., of this city, Trustee of the Lowell Institute, the Academy have been furnished with a lecture-room, lights, attendance, and other accommodations, free of all expense. " It will appear by the Treasurer's accounts, that a gross sum has been received from the proceeds of these lectures, which, it is be- lieved, will be sufficient, after payment of expenses, to relieve the Academy from its immediate liabilities. " The Committee are of opinion that the influence of this course of lectures has been beneficial to the Academy, by bringing the in- stitution into nearer contact with the community at large, by making better known its character and claims, and by awakening public sym- pathy and liberality towards the objects of its pursuit. And they are led to believe that a repetition of such a course in future years may be made both creditable and advantageous to the Academy. " Under this conviction, the Committee have made application to Mr. Lowell for an arrangement by which one course of the Lowell Lectures shall be delivered next year by members of the Academy, appointed for the purpose, the proceeds of the course to be devoted to the objects of the Academy. To this application, Mr. Lowell has returned an answer, which leads the Committee to believe that no obstacle will exist to carrying out the plan in a manner satisfactory to both parties. " The Committee therefore recommend the passage of the follow- ing votes by the Academy. 28 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADESIY " Voted, That the thanks of the Academy be presented to John A. Lowell, Esq., for the liberal and satisfactory manner in which he has caused them to be accommodated during the delivery of their late course of lectures. " Voted, That the Academy will appoint twelve lecturers of their members to deliver one course of Lowell Lectures, on such subjects as shall be conformable to the objects of the Lowell foundation, and ac- ceptable to the Trustee of the Lowell fund. " Voted, That a committee be appointed, with full powers to make the necessary arrangements with Mr. Lowell for the above purpose, and also to appoint the lecturers, subject to the approval of the Academy. " Jacob Bigelow, \ Samuel A. Eliot, > Committee. 'George B. Emerson, •' " Boston, January 20, 1853." This report was accepted, with a slight modification in re- spect to the number of lecturers to be appointed ; and the former committee, consisting of Dr. Bigelow, Samuel A. Eliot, and George B. Emerson, with the addition of Professor Tread- well and Professor Peirce, were chosen to take the subject in charge. On motion of Professor Lovering, it was voted that the provisional list of members, printed for the use of the Acade- my, be permanently adopted. On motion of Professor Gray, the list was referred to a committee of three, for their examination, to report at a future meeting. Professor Gray, Professor Parsons, and Mr. Folsom were appointed on this committee. Professor Peirce made a communication on the Ericsson en- gine, which has been regarded as showing that heat can be used over and over again as a motive power. The idea that power once used camiot be used again, he considered a funda- mental rule, which has only a single exception, that of steam ; and even this exception rests on two hypotheses, one assuming as certain the experiments which are said to prove it, and the other assuming that heat is power. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 29 In the first place, he showed that this engine does not use the heat over and over again, and that when the air in the cylinders becomes expanded, in other words, whenever work is done (for no work is done while the piston is descending), heat is lost irrecoverably, and can only be resnpplied by more fuel. In the second place, he showed that, with the same amount of fuel, not so much work was done, nor was it so well done, as by steam. Still it was an exceedingly ingenious and well- perfected method of using hot air as a motive power, and in certain cases may become quite a rival of the steam-engine. He gave a minute description of the different parts of the engine, illustrated by diagrams. In the large cylinder, the pressure never exceeds five pounds to the square inch, and never can, unless the heat be raised above 550^, which is the maximum temperature said to be used in Ericsson's engine ; to get fifteen pounds to the square inch, he must heat his cylinder to 1000'^, or to a red heat. Professor Peirce used 480'^ in his calculations. This engine has four cylinders, nine strokes a minute, six feet to a stroke, and one hundred and fifty square feet of piston ; it is said to consume only six tons of coal a day. Mr. Peirce calculated the working power of the engine to be only 116 horse-power; he compared this with the Baltic steam-ships with 2314 horse-power, twenty times the power of Ericsson's engine. To raise the Ericsson to the Baltic's power, one hundred and twenty tons of coal a day would be demanded, while the Baltic uses only eighty ; so that the economy of fuel, one of the great advantages ascribed to the Ericsson, is in reality in favor of steam-vessels. The power of the Erics- son would be nothing against a head sea, and her speed of eight miles an hour on her trial trip is less than steam-vessels of inferior model made ten years ago. As yet the Ericsson engine has not only not surpassed steam-vessels, but has not even equalled them. As to the alleged saving of heat, the Ericsson loses 60° of 30 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY heat at each stroke, which must be made up ; the maximum heat ill the wire-gauze apparatus is 30^ below the heat iu the cylinders ; all the air iu the cylinders must have sup- plied to it 60^ of heat. At least one half a pound pressure to the inch, and probably much more, is required to force the air through the wire-gauze. Dr. Bowditch alluded to the instrument called the " respira- tor," as analogous in its action to the wire-gauze in Ericsson's engine, iu which the heat is often so retained as to be uncom- fortable to the patient. Professor Peirce observed that this apparatus of Ericsson was undoubtedly of great value for the working of his engine. Professor Tread well remarked that this same analogy to the " respirator " had been brought forward in 1847 in regard to Stirling's engine, which had an advantage over Ericsson's in using the same air over and over again. Air has an advantage of one half or two thirds over steam in the matter of specific heat, and if it could be used as conveniently without forcing- pumps, &c., it would be far superior as a motive power; but as yet the chief obstacles have not been removed. Dr. W. F. Channing observed that Professor Peirce, in his calculations, had used the power necessary to double the speed in a given time as the cube, whereas, in the published accounts, it had been given as the square; and that thus so little power had been left (about | lb. working power to the inch), that it seemed quite providential that the vessel had moved at all. To which it was replied, that when the element "space " is taken in the formula instead of " time," the square becomes doubled, or the cube. Three bundred and seventy-fifth meeting. February 1, 1853. — Adjourned (Quarterly Meeting. The President in the chair. Professor Levering reported that the map of the tornado at Medford was engraved, and that the report, by Professor OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 31 Eustis, was in the printer's hands, and would probably be finished in a few weeks. Mr. Charles Jackson, Jr., in reference to the discussion at the last meeting on the Ericsson engine, said that the calcula- tion showed that the efficient pressure was three fourths of a pound per inch in the up stroke, and nothing in the down stroke, or three eighths of a pound average. He did not be- lieve this was enough to overcome the mere friction of the engine, and thought there must be an error in the facts on which the calculation that gave the result was based. He be- lieved the air-engine, working at about 500°, and cutting off at one half or two thirds of the stroke, would give the same result as a non-condensing expansive steam-engine working with fifteen pounds of steam. Steam at that pressure having about the same weight as common air, but the latent heat of the steam being twice the 500° the air required, and the capacity of water for heat being nearly four times that of air, the steam-engine required eight times as much fuel as the air-engine did. Half the power of the air-engine would be used in working the supply-pump, leaving the air-engine still four times better than the steam- engine even without any regenerator. The amount of heat- ing surface required would be a great deal less with air than with water. In hot-blast iron smelting-furnaces which he has observed, there was five times as much air heated to 600° as there was water boiled off for the engine, and yet the hot- air ovens did not occupy one tenth of the room the boilers required. Professor Treadwell remarked, that it was a matter of every day's observation, that in regard to the heat-cond acting sur- face of iron necessary with air and with water, the advantage was very much in favor of water, even twenty to one. Professor Peirce reaffirmed his statements at the preceding meeting, with a few modifications, not changing his general results. He said that accurate measurements by the Coast Survey showed that the actual speed of the Ericsson was only 32 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY seven miles an hour, which, compared with the speed of the CoUins steamers, would make the Ericsson consume twenty- five per cent, more fuel than the latter. At the former meeting he had not considered the " cut-ofF," which gives a result more in favor of the Ericsson ; thongh this advantage is compensated by the error he made in favor of the Ericsson engine by taking the heat of the cylinders at 480'^, whereas the actual heat used was only 384°. The '' cut-ofF" may be so short that the regenerator would be use- less, the air going in and out at the same temperature, though more fuel would be required in this way. The shorter the "cut-off," the greater would be the theoretical power, provided you could get the air in. The "cut-off" in this engine is at three fourths of the stroke ; for one fourth of the stroke there would be a pressure of three fifths above an atmosphere, and for the other three fourths of the stroke only one fifth above an atmosphere. One pound pressure would be required to force the air out through the wire-gauze, instead of the half- pound previously mentioned ; and one and one fifth pounds pressure to force it in. Dr. W. F. Channing remarked, that the difference in the loss of power from paddles entering the water (which is great in steam-vessels), and the less amount of friction, give more power to this engine. He thought, that, deducting one pound pressure (necessary to force the air through the wire-gauze) in place of half a pound allowed by Professor Peirce, there is a pressure of only one fourth of a pound left ; and deducting from this 40 horse-power (equivalent to two fifths of a pound pressure, by Professor Peirce's calculation) for the loss from the paddles entering the water, and one fifth of a pound of pres- sure for additional friction, there would be a pressure of minus seven twentieths of a pound to an inch inside the cylinder, or, in other words, that the engine was worked by an outside atmospheric pressure acting inwards. Professor Josiali Parsons Cooke and Professor Joel Parker of Cambridge were elected Fellows of the Academy ; the OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 3S former in the section of Chemistry, the latter in the section of Pliilosophy and Jurisprudence. Three hundred and seventy-sixth meeting. March 1, 1853. — Monthly Meeting. The President in the chair. The Corresponding Secretary announced that he had re- ceived a letter from Professor Parker accepting membership of the Academy, Professor Cooke took his seat as a Fellow. Professor Treadwell observed, that the speed of the Erics- son in her trip to Washington was about six geographi- cal miles an hour. He mentioned that hundred-gun ships, of a model far inferior to that of the Ericsson, had made nearly twelve miles an hour in trial trips in England, with steam-engines of 350 and 400 horse-power ; as this was twice the velocity of the Ericsson, the power required would be eight times that of the Ericsson, which was far from the power used. The Ericsson consumed five tons and a frac- tion of coal a day ; to get double the velocity, as in the English vessels, supposing the resistance the same (which it is not, on account of the vastly superior model of the Erics- son), about forty-five tons would be consumed, which is more than was consumed by the steam-vessels above mentioned. So that the experiment, after all, does not promise much in favor of' the caloric engine. Dr. W. F. Channing observed, that it is admitted that there is a saving of about one third of fuel in the caloric engine ; that it must be an important improvement for stationary en- gines, even if it should not be found compact enough for sea- going vessels. An article in the Scientific American gives to the Ericsson 250 horse-power. Professor Treadwell remarked, that very nearly as much power could be obtained from the amount of coal used by the Ericsson, if employed in the generation of steam, on ac- count of the far greater expansive power of the latter. VOL. in. 5 34 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADESIY Mr. Charles Jackson, Jr. said that actual experiments by the thermometer have proved that 360^ of heat are saved by the regenerator, there being only 30^ difference between the temperature of the air going out and that going in. Professor Gray alluded to a very interesting botanical dis- covery in this country, namely, the finding of two species of Trichomanes in the northwest corner of Alabama ; species of a group of ferns, of very delicate texture, usually con- fined to very moist parts of the tropics, or to islands having a damp climate and equable temperature, but not before known to occur within the limits of the United States. The small species of Trichomanes exhibited by Dr. Gray is doubtless a new species, which he proposes to name T. Petersii, in honor of the discoverer, T. M. Peters, Esq. The other is the Trichomanes radicans, found in the south- western parts of Ireland, and also widely scattered in the tropics. Dr. Gray mentioned that the latter is very frequently cultivated in the glazed cases invented by Mr. Ward ; with- out such treatment it is incapable of cultivation. The wide range of the ferns having been alluded to, a dis- cussion arose on the difficult question of specific characters. Many supposed identical species of animals have been found, on close examination and actual comparison, to be different ; and it was questioned whether the same may not be true of the cosmopolite ferns. Three hundred and seventy-seventh meeting. April 5, 1853. — Monthly Meeting. The President in the chair. Professor Horsford made some remarks explanatory of a part of the fourteenth chapter of Leviticus, in which are de- scribed the signs and treatment of " leprosy " in a house. He alluded to the decomposition of sulphate of iron when subjected to decomposing animal matter, and its change into the sulphuret or iron pyrites. This last oxidates readily, and OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 35 is one cause of the stains and some other injuries often seen in stones used for building purposes. He mentioned several buildings which had thus been disfigured, and remarked that the Washington Monument would, in course of time, be de- faced from this cause. The leprosy is described as being " in the walls of the house, with hollow streaks, greenish or reddish, which in sight are lower than the wall." And the remedy is given, — the re- moval, of the affected stones, their replacement by others, and the scraping and plastering of the house. He thought that the " leprosy of the house " alluded to, was caused by the decomposition of this salt of iron ; the greenish color being due to the presence of the sulphate, and the reddish to the peroxide of iron. The limestone used for building in that locality he had found to contain iron pyrites. He also alluded to a leprosy in clothing, arising from a spontaneous change in the improperly cleansed wool from which they were made. Dr. Bigelow, after alluding to a supposed connection be- tween leprosy and this change in the walls of a house, ob- served that the cause of epidemics is completely unknown, and that the reference of them, to specific causes has always been in proportion to the ignorance of the people. Professor Jeffries Wyman made a verbal communication on the effects of physical agents on the development of life. He had repeated some of the experiments of Milne-Edwards on the influence of a low temperature and the absence of light on the development of frogs. The tadpoles experimented upon were those of the common bull-frog (Rana pipiens, Lin?i.). These, under ordinary cir- cumstances, are hatched in the spring, and acquire their full growth during the autumn, when a few midergo their meta- morphosis ; but in the larger number, this does not take place till the following spring, the tadpole period lasting about one year. On the 8th of November, 1851, about thirty tadpoles con- 36 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY tained in a trough holding about a barrel of water were intro- duced into a dark closet in a cellar ; the water was occasionally changed, and they were well supplied with food, consisting of Confervas, leaves, grass, and some animal matter. ' The ther- mometer in the closet ranged from 33° to about 60° F. They measured, at the time of introduction, between three and four inches in length ; as they were probably hatched in the spring, they were therefore about six months old. During the month of September, 1S52, (ten months after they were introduced into the cellar,) a few were removed to another trough, which, though under cover, was exposed to the ordinary light, and the temperature of the air ; these tad- poles soon exhibited signs of metamorphosis ; their legs were developed and their tails absorbed. The remainder have now been seventeen months in the cellar, and if (as there can be little doubt) they were hatched in the spring of 1851, they are now (April, 1853) at least nearly two years old. In the mean time they have not mate- rially changed in size ; the legs, which were mere rudiments when they were introduced, have not increased ; and as far as appears, the tadpoles have no tendency to metamorphosis. Assuming the natural larva period to be one year (and this corresponds with observation), that period has in this ex- periment been extended to nearly double its usual duration. It was noticed, that when the thermometer was at its greatest depression, the tadpoles exhibited a much greater degree of activity than fully developed frogs, exposed in the same closet to the same degrees of light and heat. The tadpoles were frequently moving about, when the frogs were wholly torpid. Tliree linndi-ecl and seventy-eiglith meeting. May 3, 1853. — Monthly Meeting. The Vice-President in the chair. The Corresponding Secretary read a letter from Lieutenant J. M. Gilliss, of the United States Navy, presenting, from the OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 37 Council of the University of Chili, a copy of the Anales de la Universitad de Chile, which was laid on the table. Professor Peirce made a communication on the caloric engine, in reference to the relations of different gases and vapors to heat. Professor Tread well followed, with some remarks on the same subject. Three hundred and seventy-ninth meeting. May 24, 1853. — Annual Meeting. The President in the chair. The attendance of members being very small, on account of the Inauguration of President Walker occurring on the same day at Cambridge, the meeting was adjourned to May 31st, at half past three, P. M. Tliree hundred and eightieth meeting. May 31, 1853. — Adjourned Annual Meeting. The Vice-President in the chair. The Corresponding Secretary aimounced that he had re- ceived letters from the Royal Academy of Sciences, &c. of 'Belgium, and the Royal Society of London, acknowledging the reception of Vol. IV. Part II. of the Memoirs of the Acade- my ; from the Royal Institution of Great Britain, acknowl- edging the reception of Vol. II. of the old Series, and Vol. II. of the Academy's Proceedings, pp. 233-359 ; a letter from M. Vattemare, presenting, from the Secretary of the Statistical Committee of Belgium, fifteen pamphlets on Polit- ical Economy and Statistics, and also urging on the notice of the Academy the advantage of the adoption by all civilized nations of a uniform standard of weights and measures, and of currency ; a letter from the Curator of the Museum of Practical Geology of London, presenting, from the British Government, through Sir Henry de la Beche, several valuable works on Geology, published under his superintendence. 38 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY The Treasurer presented his report, which was accepted. Professor Lovering read the report of the Publishing Com- mittee, which was accepted. Mr. Lovering announced that Vol. V. Part I. of the Acade- my's Memoirs, and the Map of the Tornado at Medford, were completed, and ready for distribution. Mr. Lovering then made the following communication : — " Within a few weeks, as we all know, two of the former members of this Academy have left us, Mr. John Farrar of Cambridge, and Dr. Peirson of Salem, but under circumstances which strangely con- trast together. One of these gentlemen died at an advanced age, after a painful and unusually protracted illness, the course of which had been long watched with care and sadness by many friends and admirers. The other was cut off by a terrible accident, in the strength and maturity of his years, and while enjoying health and professional activity. It is more than seventeen years since the sweet and dig- nified face of Mr. Farrar has been seen at our meetings. On the other hand, it seems but yesterday that Dr. Peirson was with us, eagerly interested in all questions of science which touched his own profession, and that hearty tribute of respect which he so recently paid to an associate in the Academy and a fellow-townsman has scarcely ceased to be heard, when we are called on to offer a similar memorial to him. " But I rise principally to invite the attention of the members of the Academy to some appropriate notice of the death of Mr. Farrar. Mr. Farrar became a member of the Academy in 1808, and served it in various capacities. " He was the Recording Secretary for fourteen years. He acted on the Committee of Publication for fifteen years. And he was Vice-President in 1829 and 1830. " He also contributed the following papers to the Memoirs of the Academy : — " In the third volume of the Old Series, ' Observations of the Comet of 1811 ' ; — ' Abstract of Meteorological Observations made at Cam- bridge,' from 1790 to 1807 by President Webber, and from 1807 to 1813 by Mr. Farrar; — 'Abstract of Meteorological Observations made at Andover, by Rev. Jonathan French.' " In the fourth volume of the Old Series he published 'An Account OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 39 of the Violent and Destructive Storm of the 23d of September, 1815.' Also, ' An Account of a Singular Electrical Phenomenon, observed during a Snow-storm accompanied with Thunder.' " Not the least important of the services rendered to science by Mr. Farrar was the translation and introduction into general use in the American colleges of the best French text-books in Mathematics, and Physics or Natural Philosophy ; which prepared the minds of teachers and pupils for a system .of instruction in these branches su- perior to that which had hitherto been imitated from the English Universities." Mr. Levering concluded with the following resolutions : — " Resolved, That the Academy are deeply sensible of the loss they have sustained by the long illness and recent death of John Farrar, LL.D., formerly HoUis Professor of Mathematics and Natural Philoso- phy in Harvard College. Although his inspiring presence has not been with us for a period of years which now equals two thirds of a gen- eration, we still' remember with gratitude his various official services to the Academy, and his valuable contributions to science in the flower of his life. We remember still the poetical ardor with which he cultivated his favorite sciences, the fervor and enthusiasm with which he taught them, and the rare fascination and eloquence with which he discoursed upon them. We also remember the silent elo- quence which beamed from his countenance in sickness and even death. For his rich intellectual gifts, and his Christian dignity and courtesy, which many of us enjoyed so long, we would ever hold him in grateful remembrance. " Resolved, That the Corresponding Secretary of the Academy be requested to communicate these proceedings to Mrs. Farrar, and to assure her of the sympathy which the members of the Academy feel in this her hour of heavy bereavement." Professor Peirce alluded in terms of admiration to the im- portant services rendered to mathematical science by Mr. Far- rar, and ascribed to him, more than to any other man, the adoption of the present admirable system of instruction in the mathematical sciences. He seconded the resolutions offered to his memory. Professor Treadwell followed in some remarks on the many 40 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY beautiful traits in the character of Mr. Farrar, and especially on his readiness and willingness to communicate his varied knowledge, and to assist in all ways in his power every stu- dent of science, however humble, who might apply to him for advice and instruction. The resolutions of commemora- tion offered by Mr. Levering were unanimously adopted. Dr. B. A. Gould, Jr. called the attention of the Academy to the decease of another of its members, the late Sears C. Walker, to whose labors astronomical science owes much of its recent advancement. Professor Peirce spoke in the highest terms of the scientific ability and attainments of Mr. Walker, and seconded the reso- lutions offered by Mr. Gould ; which were as follows : — " Resolved, That the Academy have received with profound sor- row the afflicting intelligence of the death of their honored associate, Sears C. Walker, by whose premature decease American science has lost one of its ablest devotees, and this Academy one of its brightest ornaments. " Resolved, That, in the opinion of this Academy, the labors and enthusiasm of our late associate have signally contributed to the re- cent advances of astronomy and physics in our own country, while his able and profound investigations have enriched the science of the world. " Resolved, That we offer to the family of ]\Ir. Walker the assur- ance of our sincerest sympathy in this their great bereavement. " Resolved, That a copy of these resolutions be communicated to the family of our deceased associate." These resolutions were unanimously adopted. Professor Gray, in behalf of the committee to whom was referred the revised list of classified members recently adopt- ed, reported some slight corrections, chiefly from the death of members ; it was then voted that this list be referred to the Recording Secretary for the addition of new members, and be by him transferred to the Publishing Committee for printing. The scrutineers reported that the following gentlemen were chosen officers for the ensuing year, viz. : — OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 41 Jacob Bigelow, .... President. Daniel Treadwell, . . Vice-President. Asa Gray, Corresponding Secretary. Samuel Kneeland, Jr., . Recording Secretary. Edward Wigglesworth, . Treasurer. Nathaniel B. Shurtleff, Librarian. The several Standing Committees were appointed as fol- lows : — Rumford Committee. Eben N. Horsford, Joseph Lovering, Daniel Treadwell, Henry L. Eustis, Morrill Wyman. Committee of Publication. Joseph Lovering, Louis Agassiz, Francis Bowen. Committee on the Library. Augustus A. Gould, Benjamin A. Gould, Jr., Nathaniel B. Shurtleff. The following gentlemen were chosen Members of the Council for nominating Foreign Honorary Members, viz. : — Joseph Lovering, Benjamin Peirce, J> of Class I. Benjamin A. Gould, Jr. John A. Lowell, • Louis Agassiz, J> of Class H. John B. S. Jackson, James Walker, Jared Sparks, J- of Class HL Nathan Appleton, Professor Gray presented a paper entitled, " Caroli a Linne ad Bernardum de Jussieu ineditse, et miituas Bernardi ad Linnaeum Epistolse ; curante Adriano de Jussieu." Referred by the Publishing Committee. vol. III. 6 42 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY The following Foreign Honorary Members were elected : — In Class I. Section 2, Professor C. A. F. Peters, of Konigs- berg. In Class III. Section 1, Professor C. Mittermaier of Heidel- berg. In Class III. Section 2, August Boeckh, of Berlin. In Class III. Section 2, Professor R. Lepsius, of Berlin. In Class III. Section 2, Chevalier Bunsen, Prussian Ambas- sador, London. In Class III. Section 3, G. Grote, of England. William Raymond Lee was elected a Fellow of the Acade- my, in the Section of Technology and Engineering. On motion of Professor Agassiz, it was voted, that the next monthly meeting of the Academy be held on the third Tues- day of June, at half past 7 o'clock, P. M. Tbree hundred and eigUty-first meeting. June 21, 1853. — Monthly Meeting. The President in the chair. The Corresponding Secretary read a letter from William Raymond Lee, Esq., accepting membership of the Academy ; and a letter from the Hon. Timothy Walker, of Cincinnati, acknowledging the reception of the resolutions passed at the annual meeting of the Academy on the death of his brother, Sears C. Walker, Esq. Professor Agassiz made a communication on the family of Cyprinodonts, of which he had discovered some new generic forms, and twelve new species, in a recent visit to the South- ern States. The differences between the sexes are often so marked in this family of fishes, that the males and females have been described under distinct genera. At a former meet- ing he had mentioned an error of this kind, and he was now able to correct another. Poecilia and MoUienisia, described as distinct genera by Cuvier and Valenciennes, he had ascer- tained to be the male and female of the same species, the OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 43 former being the female and the latter the male. When young, both sexes look exactly alike. He had established a new genus, Heterandria, in which the sexual differences were very remarkable ; the position and shape of the ventral and other fins being quite different, which he showed by diagrams. ,The habits of these fishes, living in immense numbers, crowd- ed together in very shoal water, enabled him to explain a figure represented in the fifth volume, Plate 41, of his Fossil Fishes, in which the great number of individuals was remark- able ; and the knowledge of the sexual differences renders un- necessary any hypothesis to account for supposed displace- ments of fins, or the occurrence together of different species. He also had established a new genus, Zugonectes, in which no sexual differences existed. Dr. Burnett read a paper " On the Signification of Cell- segmentation, and the Relations of this Process to the Phenomena of Reproduction. " The phenomena of the segmentation of cells are intimately con- nected with many of the highest conditions of organization, and it be- comes a question of no little interest in physiology, what interpre- tation is to be put upon this process of segmentation. " By the term Cells, I include, not merely the elementary constituent particles of organized forms, but also ova, for it now appears pretty definitely settled that the ovum xs, morphologically, only a cell; of this point, deducible from the observation of various naturalists upon the elementary condition of ova in different lower animals, I have re- cently satisfied myself, from investigations upon the ovaries of insects. Moreover, the segmentation of the ovum as preliminary to the for- mation of a new individual involves physical phenomena not in the least different from those of this process occurring with simple indi- vidual cells. " This process consists, as is well known, in the successive halvings of the nucleus of a cell, the number of the parts produced being, therefore, whether greater or less, the multiple of two in a geometri- ' cal progression. Its physical conditions are, briefly, first, a sulcation of the cell membrane at one point ; the concavity thus commenced gradually deepens and extends through the cell, ending in the com- 44 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY plete halving of the cell, together with its contents; each of the halves thus formed undergoes the same process of division, and so on to a greater or less number of subdivisions, the products being, not seg- ments of a sphere, as would be the case from the division of inorganic matter, but miniature cells, resembling, in every particular except mere size, the original cell. This spontaneous division and subdi- vision of organic matter, by which definite particles reproduce their kind, lies at the very foundation of the successive continuation of all specific organized forms in the vegetable and animal world. " Until late years, this process of segmentation was supposed to belong exclusively to the impregnated ovum, and to be the index of its state of fecundation. Recent researches in histology, however, have shown, not only that it is a very common phenomenon with most in- dividual cells, but also that it may occur in the ovum before fecunda- tion ; that is, is not the direct sequela of this last. In epithelial cells, as also those belonging to various morbid growths, I have watched this process occurring exactly as with the ovum ; and in the ova of the common codfish {Gadus morrhiia), before expelled from the ovaries, and therefore before impregnation, I have seen phenomena indicating that the segmentation of the vitellus had already commenced. " But we will examine the details of this process as occurring where they are mostly completely expressed, in the impregnated egg. Throughout the entire organized world, the development of new indi- vidual forms from the ovum which has its origin in a proper sexual organ, is always preceded by this process, to a more or less complete extent ; this segmentation may, indeed, go on to a certain extent be- fore fecundation, as already remarked, but its continuance ending in the evolution of a new individual form is invariably dependent upon the act of fertilization by the male product, or sperm. I wish to insist upon this point in reference to some remark soon to be made. It may be said further, that not only is the whole individual formed out of the segmentation products, but at those points of the animal which contain tissues of the noblest function is always the most complete ; such, for instance, is the case with the line of the nervous centres. " The sperm-cell being the analogue of the ovum, these same phe- nomena, just described, are observed to precede the formation of the spermatic particle, and I can confidently affirm that no spermatic particle is produced without the occurrence of these preliminary processes. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 45 " With such data, and which are, indeed, all we possess, we ask, What is the physiological signification of this fissurating process in cells ? " To this I would reply, that it seems to be simply an expression of a vitalizing act, — a means by which cell-particles are extended or reproduced on the one hand, and, on the other, by which crude mate- rials of organized matter are kneaded or worked over for the forma- tion of tissue in distinct individual beings. " Thus with simple cells, with the unimpregnated ovum, and with the sperm-cell, this process occurs, leading to a mere reproduction or multiplication of the cells, and which may continue to a greater or less extent ; while, on the other hand, with the impregnated ovum,, these processes, although physically the same, are directed from the fecundating act towards a definite end, that is, the formation of tissues which compose a new being. " In this connection, I may. well allude to those anomalous phenome- na, the successive reproduction of individuals without the aid of the male influence, as occurs with the Aphides. The general character of this form of multiplication of individuals is well known in science ; but what I wish to insist upon now is, that these phenomena, as I have re- cently studied them, have nothing antagonistic to the doctrines of cells just advanced, for the so-called eggs of the viviparous Aphides, and which develop without the aid of the sperm, are, in my opinion, not true eggs, but are rather huds, and therefore development here occurs by a kind of internal germination. But this subject of the develop- ment of Aphides in its details, as I have recently enjoyed the oppor- tunity to successfully study it, I intend to present at the next meeting. " Cell segmentation, therefore, is a vital act of cells as organic par- ticles, and is primary instead of secondary in the grand acts of true generation. " This subject, important as it is in itself, has a wide physiological beari/ig. If such phenomena invariably attend the production of a new individual form from a true egg, can there be, as has recently been advanced by several physiologists, animals composed of only a single cell ? To this question the answer would be in the negative ; and such forms would seem to me no more worthy to be regarded as true animals, than would be the resultant products of segmented epithelial cells. " On the very lowest confines of the animal kingdom there are. 46 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY to be sure, myriads of such forms, and if, in the present state of science, they can consistently be called by any name, I should prefer that of Zooids, or animal-like forms. They appear to me to be inter- mediate conditions of bodies, or a kind of stepping-stones, by means of which some future true animal is to reach its perfect form. Modern research in the class of Infusoria indicates that its component forms are of this kind, and therefore that this whole class is likely to be taken by the remaining classes of the Invertebrata, when more ex- tended study shall, have made us more familiar with their details. I would therefore insist that cell-processes, however closely inter- woven they may be with the expressions of individual life, cannot be considered as constituting the ground-work of its definition. True indi- vidual animal life seems to involve a cycle of relations not implied in simple cells ; in other words, these last must always lose their char- acter as such, in a definite form which belongs to the individual. The true generative act involves conditions which are peculiar and quite distinct from any of the other physiological conditions of life ; it must be regarded as resulting only from the conjugation of two op- posite sexes, — a sexual process where the potential representatives of two individuals are united for the evolution of one germ. The germ-power thus produced may be extended and branched by bud- ding, &c., but it can be formed only by the act of generation ; and the multiplication of animals by the processes of fission or of germi- nation is of no higher physiological character than the mere seg- mentation of cells, or the reproduction of lost parts in the lower animals." Professor Agassiz observed, that there was only an aiialogy between the segmentation of simple cells and the segmentation of the ovum, and went on to show the difference of the phe- nomena presented in the two cases. As to the egg-like bunches, mentioned by Dr. Burnett as found in the bodies of the Aphides, and considered by him as " buds," and not as true " eggs," Professor Agassiz could not agree with him. From the absence of peduncles, these free cells had not the first characteristic of buds, and he was inclined to consider them rather as true eggs. He mentioned the in- stance of turtles, in which there are three kinds of eggs in different stages of fecundation or growth, some to be laid this OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 47 season, and others after a lapse of one or two years, which have received their fertilizing influence from the male this long period in advance. Speaking of the development of eggs, he alluded to the fact that in bees there are two kinds of females produced from eggs, which, in the beginning, pre- sent no differences ; every female bee might become a queen if properly fed and cared for, but from want of the proper sur- rounding influences most of them become sterile. In some species of crabs, he had found also two kinds of females, fertile and sterile, though, unlike the bees, existing in about the same numbers. Dr. B. A. Gould, Jr. made some remarks on the means of diminishing the personal equation, or the best method of get- ting rid of personal errors in transit observations made by different observers. He quoted M. Arago, from the Comptes Rendus for February 14, 1853, in which he claims priority for the method of employing the senses of sight and touch to diminish the personal equation, instead of sight and hearing, as usually employed; this method of tapping at the instant the star passed the threads of the instrument dates back to 1843. Dr. Gould mentioned a similar method employed at Phila- delphia, some time between 1828 and 1832. The best way, he believed, was that employed in our Coast Survey, by the electric clock, by breaking the circuit by a tap of the finger at the instant of the transit. The problems, why sight and hearing should be less ac- curate than sight and touch, why observers should differ from each other, and why the same observer should diff"er from himself in the same manner of observation, 'are exceedingly difficult to solve ; they involve the consideration of tempera- ment, physiological conditions, state of the health, mechani- cal dexterity, &c., which make the subject exceedingly in- tricate. Professor Bache, Professor Peirce, Professor Agassiz, and the President made remarks on the same subject. 48 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Three Iiiindred and eighty-second meeting. August 10, 1853. — Quarterly Meeting. The Yice-President in the chair. The Corresponding Secretary read letters from Chevalier Bunsen and George Grote, Esq., acknowledging their election as Foreign Honorary Members of the Academy. Dr. Gray called the attention of the Academy to the death of one of its Foreign Honorary Members, Adrien de Jussieii, of Paris, and made some remarks on the estimable character and eminent scientific services of this last representative of the illustrious line of the Jussieus. Three hundred and eighty-third meeting. September 28, 1853. — Adjourned Quarterly Meeting. The President in the chair. The Corresponding Secretary read letters from August Boeckh and R. Lepsius, of Berlin, acknowledging their elec- tion as Foreign Honorary Members of the Academy. Professor Joseph Winlock, of Kentucky, now resident in Cambridge, and Rev. Thomas Hill, of Waltham, were elected Fellows of the Academy in the Section of Mathematics. Dr. B. A. Gould, Jr. communicated to the Academy the fact, that there exists an error in the formula given in the blanks for the reduction of transit observations ; and that all the observations in this country, and also the Greenwich ob- servations, are incorrect by the amount of this error, the maximum of which amounts to one third of a second of time. Professor A. Gray laid before the Academy a paper entitled "Characters of some new Genera of Plants, mostly from Polynesia, in the Collection of the United States Exploring Expedition, under Captain Wilkes." (In continuation of those communicated May 4, 1852 ; Proceedings, Vol. H. p. 323.) DICLIDOCARPUS, Nov. Gen. Tiliacearum. Flores polygamo-dioici ? Calyx 3-bracteolatus, 5-phyllus ; sepalis OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 49 crassis eestivatione valvatis. Petala 5, inappendiculata, sestivatione imbricata. Discus hypogynus, annularis, crenatus. Stamina creber- rima, discreta : anthcras biloculares. Ovarium sessile, oblongum, biloculare, pilis parcis circumdatum, stigmate sessili retuso coronatum, , multiovulatum, fl. masc. effoetum sa^pissime exovulatum. Capsula latissime obcordato-rhomboidea, bilocularis, dissepimento contrarie compressa, marginibus alata, ab apice loculicide bivalvis, polysperma. Semina lenticulari-globosa, hinc impressa, margine pilis praslongis crinita ; testa fragili laxa. Embryo albumine carnoso vix brevior; cotyledonibus orbiculatis planis radicula sequilongis. — Arbor ; foliis ovalibus integerrimis ; stipulis caducis ; floribus in cymulis axillaribus parvis. DicLiDOCARPUs RicHii. — Feejcc Islands. DRAYTONIA, Nov. Gen. Ternstroemiacearum. Calyx ebracteolatus, 5-partitus, imse basi ovarii tantum accretus, per- sistens ; sepalis inaequalibus aestivatione imbricatis. Petala 5, obovata, sestivatione convoluta vel convoluto-imbricata. Stamina plurima ; filamentis basi dilatatis breviter monadelphis : antherce biloculares, dorso affixoe incumbentes, loculis apice rima introrsa hiantibus. Ova- rium triloculare (rarius 4 - 5-loculare) : stylus unicus : stigma obtuse trilobum. Ovula in placentis incrassatis, e loculorum angulo centrali prominentibus, plurima, anatropa. Capsula subcarnosa, trilocularis (rarius 4- 5-locularis), apice loculicide trivalvis ? loculis polyspermis. Semina reticulato-scrobiculata. Embryo in axi albuminis carnosi, eodem dimidio brevior, subcylindricus ; cotyledonibus brevibus semi- teretibus. — Arbuscula Sauraujce facie et affinis ; sed differt, stylis in unicum coalitis, ovario triloculari ima basi calycis connate, disco nullo. Draytonia rubicunda. — Feejee Islands. The genus is dedicated to Mr. Joseph Drayton, the principal artist of the Expedition. RHYTIDANDRA, Nov. Gen. Olacacearum. Flores hermaphroditi. Calyx parvulus ; tubo cum ovario connate ; limbo cupulari truncate, margine 6 - 7-denticulato. Corollse epigyna petala 6-7, linearia, conniventia, sestivatione valvata. Stamina 6-7, petalis alterna, libera : filamenta brevissima, intus barbata : antherEe lineares, introrsum adnatse, dithecse, 4-locellat8e, locellis annulato- VOL. III. 7 60 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY rugosis vel cameratis. Discus epigynus scutelliformis. Ovarium in- ferum, uniloculare, uniovulatum ; ovulo ex apice loculi parvi suspense. Stylus elongatus, sulcatus, bifidus, lobis 2 - 3-dentatis ; stigmatibus terminalibus parvis. (Fructus ignotus.) — Frutex sarmentosus ; foliis ovatis obliquis ; pedunculis axillaribus cymulam paucifloram gerentibus. R. ViTiENsis. — Feejee Islands, PELEA, Nov. Gen. Eutacearum. Flores polygami. Calyx 4-partitus, sestivatione imbricatus, cito de- ciduus. Petala 4, restivatione valvata, mox decidua. Stamina 8. Discus brevissimus, integer, seu 8-crenulatus. Ovarium 4-loculare, 4-lobum, SEepius umbilicatum : stylus centralis : stigma 4-lobum. Ovula in loculis gemina. Capsula 4-partita stellariformis (coccis divaricatis), loculicida; endocarpio chartaceo ab exocarpio coriaceo seu lignescente solubili. Semina in loculis ssepissime bina, ovoidea ; testa nitente drupacea. Embryo intra albumen cai'nosum rectus ; cotyledonibus ovalibus ; radicula supera. — Arbores Sandwicenses inermce, odoratse ; foliis simplicibus integerrimis oppositis seu ver- ticillatis coriaceis punctatis venosissimis ; floribus axillaribus. — Genus Melicopi et AcronychicB affine, Deoe Hawaiensium Pele dica- tum. — Species verse Sandwicenses sex, septima dubia Samoensis. 1. P. CLUsiiEFOLiA. — Clusia sessilis, liook. 8f Am. non Forst. 2. P. AURicuLiEFOLiA (sp. nov.) : glabra ; foliis ternis oblongo- spathulatis basi auricnlatis sessilibus ; floribus fasciculatis ad axillas foliorum delapsorum secus caulem virgatum brevissime pedicellatis ; capsula quadripartita. 3. P. OBLONGIFOLIA (sp. nov.) : foliis oppositis seu ovalibus petio- latis ; pedunculis (fl. fert.) in axillis solitariis uni-bifloris petiolum adsequantibus ; capsula quadriloba, coccis subcarinatis. 4. P. ROTUNDIFOLIA (sp, nov.) : foliis orbiculatis sessilibus valde reticulatis ; floribus cymulosis ; calycis lobis ovatis petala subsequan- tibus ; stylo ovario puberulo breviore. 5. P. Sandwicensis. — Brunellia Sandwicensis, Gaud. Bot. Freyc. 6. P. volcanica (sp. nov.) : ramis junioribus petiolis et inflores- centia cymuloso-paniculata hirsuto-tomentosis ; foliis oppositis ovali- bus longe petiolatis majusculis glabratis ; calycis lobis ovatis petalis plus dimidio brevioribus ; stylo gracili ovario tomentoso cequilongo ; capsula (sesquipoUicari) glabra quadriloba, coccis recurvis carinatis. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 51 7. P. ? LUCiDA (sp. nov.) : glaberrima ; foliis oppositis ovalibus seu ovali-oblongis subcoriaceis supra lucidis creberrime penninerviis ; cymis longe pedunculatis multifloris ; ovariis fere discretis. AMARORIA, Nov. Gen. Simarubacearum, Flores monoici vel dioici. Masc. Sepala 6. Petala nulla. Sta- mina 6, petalis opposita : antherse subsessiles. Discus carnosus, pro- funde trifidus, lobis bifidis. Fcem. Sepala 4- 5, parva, persistens. Petala 4-5, linearia, carinata, reflexo-patentia. Rudimenta staminum petalis numero dupla, minima, sub disco incrassato 8 -» 10-crenato in- serta. Ovarium simplex, ovoideum, uniloculare, uniovulatum, vertice stigmate sessili maximo depresso reniformi crasso obtectum. Ovulum sub apice loculi appensum subanatropum. Drupa sicca, nuciformis, ovoidea, subcompressa ; epicarpio tenui ; putamine osseo. Semen amphitropum, exalbuminosum. Cotyledones ovales, planae ; radicula brevissima supera. — Arbuscula Soulamece amarce facie et affinis. Amaroria soulameoides. — Feejee Islands. BRACKENRIDGEA, Nov. Gen. Ochnacearum. Calyx persistens. Antherse Iseves, longitudinaliter dehiscentes. Stigma leviter quinquelobum. Ovulum circa processum e fundo ovarii assurgentem curvatum, hippocrepicum. Semen angustum, circinnatum. Embryo semini conformis, gracilis ; cotyledonibus anguste linearibus ; radicula centripeto-infera. Flores umbellato- fasciculati. — Csetera Gompliicz. 1. B. NiTiDA, sp. nov. — Feejee Islands. 2. ? B. HooKERi. — Gomphia Hookeri, Planch. — Penang. The genus is dedicated to the zealous Assistant Botanist of the Ex- pedition, Mr. William D. Brackenridge. ONCOCARPUS, Nov. Gen. Anacardiacearum. Flores dioici. Calyx cupularis, 5-dentatus. Petala 5, hypogyna, oblonga, sestivatione valvata. Masc. Stamina 5. Gyna3cium nullum. Focm. Stamina nulla } Ovarium pyramidatum, basi 5-lobum, stig- mate sessili truncate terminatum, uniloculare. Drupa depressa, dif- formis, torosa vel lobata, toro incrassato carnoso obconico insidens ; 52 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY putamine osseo sinuoso-multilobato uniloculari monospermo. Semen exalbuminosum, loculo sinuoso conforme ; testa tenui. Embryo transversus ; cotyledonibus carnosis lobatis ; radicula brevissima. — Arbor venenosa, simplicifolia, Semecarpi facie et inflorescentia. Oncocarpus Vitiensis. — Feejee Islands. STREPTODESMIA, Nov. Gen. Legum. Hedysarearum. Calyx persistens, quinquenervis, quinquefidus ; tubo campanu- lato ; laciniis suboequalibus. Corolla Adesmice, sed emarcida persis- tens. Stamina 10, libera. Ovarium 4- 6-ovulatum : stylus filiformis, adscendens. Lomentum corolla marcescente inclusum, sutura cari- nali excisum 3 - 6-articulatum ; articulis subglobosis, a sutura vexillari continua filiformi stylifera spiraliter contorta persistente secedentibus, bivalvibus, monospermis, valvulis Itevibus membranaceis. Semina subglobosa. — Suffrutex intricato-ramosissimus, canescens ; ramulis spinescentibus ; foliis abrupte pinnatis paucijugis ; racemis panicu- latis brevibus, rhachi spinescente persistente ; corolla lutea. Streptodesmia canescens. — E.io Negro, North Patagonia. LUMA, Nov. Gen. Myrtacearum. Calycis tubus turbinatus vel globosus ; limbus 4- (rarissime 5-) partitus ; lobis cestivatione imbricatis. Petala, stamina, etc. Eumyrti. Ovarium 3- (raro 2-) loculare ; placentis multiovulatis. Bacca2- 3-locularis (dissepimentis ssepe evanidis) oligo - pleiosperma. Semina compressa, reniformi-rotundata ; testa membranacea, libera. Embryo curvatus : radicula longa : cotyledones sat magnse, ovales, subcarnosse, fere planse, radiculse accumbentes, seu foliaceas et contortuplicatae. — Frutices vel arbores Chilenses, fragrantes ; foliis coriaceis ; pedun- culis axillaribus uni - plurifloris ; petalis albis. 1. L. Cheeen. — Myrtus Cheken, Feuillee, Spreng. M. Luma, Molina. Eugenia Cheken, Hook. 4* Am. E. apiculata & E. Gil- liesii, Hook. Sf Am. E. affinis, Gillies. 2. L. Temu. — Eugenia Temu & E. multiflora. Hook. ^ Am. 3. L. Cruckshanksii. — Eugenia Cruckshanksii, Hook. ^ Am. 4. L. stenophylla. — Eugenia stenophylla, Hook. ^ Am. 5. L. oBTUSA, — Eugenia obtusa, DC. Myrtus Raran, Colla. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 53 6. L. FERRUGiNEA. — Eugenia ferruginea, Hook. Sf Am. 7. L. coRRE^FOLiA. — Eugenia corresefolia, Hook. Sf Arn. To the genus doubtless belong Eugenia leptospermoides, DC. E. planipes, Hook. 8f Arn. E. Gayana, Barneoud. E. Bridgesii, Hoot. <5* Arn, Myrtus multiflora, Juss.., DC, etc. ASTRONIDIUM, Nov. Gen. Melastomacearum. Flores tetrameri. Petala 4. Stamina 8 : antherse oblongo-lineares ; connectivo augusto basi calcarato. Stigma minutum simplicissimum. Placentce 3 - 4, e fundo loculorum exortffi. — Ceetera Aslronia. AsTRONiDiuM PARViFLORUM. — Feejee Islands. PLEIOCHITON, Naudin, Mss. Nov. Gen. Melastomacearum. Flores pentameri, involucrati. Involucrum generale 3-4-phyllum, singuli floris 2- 3-phyllum. Calycis tubus turbinatus : dentes 5, du- plicati ; exteriores subulati, cum interioribus brevioribus membranaceis obtusissimis inferne connati. Petala 5, ovata, acuta. Stamina 10, sequalia : antherae lineari-subulatEe, apice subrecurvse poro unico tenuissimo apertse ; connectivo exappendiculato. Stylus filiformis : stigma acutum. Ovarium ovoideum, liberum, apice verticillo setarum coronatum, 4-5-loculare. Placentse axiles. — Frutex vel arbor fere glabra ; ramis validis ad nodos setoso-hispidis ; foliis ovalibus crasse coriaceis ; inflorescentia terminali ; floribus cum bracteis foliaceis in- volucrantibus capitato-congestis. Pleiochiton crassifolia, Naudin, Mss. — Organ Mountains, Brazil ? HAPLOPETALON, Nov. Gen. Legnotidearum. Calyx profunde quadrifidus ; lobis triangulatis sestivatione valvatis. Petala 4, obovata, calyce inserta, fere exunguiculata, integerrima, carinata, sstivatione involuta, decidua. Stamina 16 - 20, brevissima, uniserialia, margini disci perigyni tenuis inserta : antherte ovales, fila- mentis subulatis sequilongse. Stylus brevis, apice 4-5-fidus; lobis linearibus patentibus apice stigmatosis. Ovarium depressum, calycis tubo (mediante disci) semiadnatum, uniloculare. Ovula 8, raro 10, e columna centrali geminatim appensa. — Frutex Vitiensis ; foliis Ca- rallice ; stipulis interpetiolaribus caducis ; pedicellis in axillis laxe fasci- 54 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY culatis. (Genus Gynotrochi, Cassipourece, CaralUce, et Crossostyli Forst. (certissime inter Legnotideas collocandse !) affine, sed tetra- merum, polyandrum, petalis integerrimis.) Haplopetalon E.ICHII. — Feejee Islands. SICYOS, Linn., subgen. SICYOCARYA. Fructus ovato-pyramidatus vel oblongus, 4 - 6-angulatus (rarissime triqueter), inermis, pi. m. rostratus ; pericarpio incrassato. Antherae 2-5, sinuosse, basi connatse ; connective angusto. 1. SiCYOS PACHYCARPUs, Hook. Sf Am. — Sandwich Islands. 2. SicYOS MACROPHYLLus (sp. nov.) : foliis magnis cordato-rotundis 3 - 5-lobatis argute denticulatis subtus puberulis ; paniculis masculis umbellato-compositis longe pedunculatis ; pedicellis filiformibus ; fructu ovate 5 - 6-angulato glabrate restrato. — Hawaii, Sandwich Islands. 3. SiCYOS cucuMERiNUS (sp. Hov.): glaber ; foliis late cordatis in- tegris denticulatis; paniculis masculis breviter pedunculatis ssepe tri- fidis racemosis ; fructu oblongo 5 - 6-angulato glaberrimo. — Var. /3. foliis triangulato-cordatis promisse acuminatis. — Var. y. foliis pedati- lobis. — Hawaii, Sandwich Islands. SICYOS, subgen. SICYOPSIS. Fructus ebovatus, turgidus, inermis, hirsutus, infra apicem ebtusis- simum dentibus calycinis subulatis deflexis ceronatus ; pericarpio baccate. Columna staminum apice trifida. Antherae 3 liberse, vel 5 triadelphse ; connective dilatato plane utrinque emarginato. SicYos MONTANUS, PoBpp. & Endl. — Peru. Three bundred and eighty-fourtb meeting. October 11, 1853. — Adjourned Quarterly Meeting. The President in the chair. The report of a committee on social meetings of the Acade- my was taken from the table, and, after some remarks of Messrs. Emerson, Gould, Gray, and the President, adopted. A committee, consisting of Messrs. C. Jackson, Jr., Dr. Cabot, and Dr. H. I. Bowditch, was appointed to make the neces- sary arrangements. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 55 Dr. W. I. Burnett read a memoir entitled " Researches on the Development of the Aphides," of which the following is an abstract : — " My observations were made upon Aphis carycB (probably Lachnus of Illiger, or Cinara of Curtis), one of the largest and most favorable species for these investigations. This was the spring of 1853. The first colony, on their appearance from their winter quarters, were of mature size, and contained, in their interior, the developing forms of the second colony quite far advanced in formation. On this account it was the embryology of the third series or colony that I was able to first trace. A few days after the appearance of the first colony (A), the second colony (B), still within the former, had reached two thirds of their full embryonic size ; the arches of the segments had begun to close on the dorsal surface, and the various appendages of the embryo were becoming prominent ; the alimentary canal was more or less completely formed, although distinct abdominal organs of any kind belonging to the digestive system were not apparent. " At this time, and while the individuals B were not only in the ab- domen of their parents A, but were also inclosed each in its primitive egg-like capsule, — at this time, I repeat, appeared the first traces of the germs of the third colony, C. Their first traces consisted of small egg-like bodies, arranged two, three, or four in a row, and attached at the locality where are situated the ovaries in the oviparous forms of the AphididsB. These egg-like bodies were either single nucleated cells of one three-thousandth of an inch in diameter, or a small num- ber of such cells inclosed in a simple sac. These are the germs of the third generation or colony, and they increase pari passu with the development of the embryo in which they are formed, and this in- crease of size takes place, not by the segmentation of the primitive cells, but by the endogenous formation of new cells within the sac. After this increase has continued for a certain time, these bodies ap- pear like little oval bags of cells, — all the component cells being of the same size and shape, — there being no one particular cell which is larger and more prominent than the others, and which could be comparable to a germinative vesicle. While these germs are thus constituted, the formation of new ones is continually taking place. This occurs by a kind of constriction process of the first germs ; one of the ends of these last being pinched off, as it were, and so what 56 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY was before a single body or sac becoming two, which are attached in a monibform manner. The new germs thus formed may consist each of a single cell only, as I have often seen ; but they soon attain a more uniform size by the endogenous formation of new cells within the sac in which it is inclosed. In this way the germs are multiplied to a considerable number, the nutritive material for their growth being apparently a fatty liquid, in which they are bathed, contained in the abdomen, and which is thence derived from the abdomen of the first parent. When these germs have reached the size of about one three-hundredth of an inch in diameter, there appears on each, near the inner pole, a yellowish, vitellus-looking mass or spot, composed of yellowish cells, which, in size and general aspect, are different from those constituting the germ proper. This yellow mass increases after this \)eviod, pari passu with the germ, and at last lies like a cloud over and partially concealing one of its poles. I would, moreover, insist upon the point, that it does not gradually ex- tend itself over the whole germ-mass, and is, therefore, quite unlike a proligerous disc. " When these egg-like germs have attained the size of a one- hundred-and-fiftieth of an inch in diameter, there begins to appear distinctly the sketching or marking out of the future embryo. This sketching consists at first of delicately marked retreatings of the cells here and there ; but these last soon become more prominent from sulcations, and at last the form of an articulated embryo is quite prominent. " During this time, the yellowish, vitellus-looking mass has not changed its place, and, although it is somewhat increased in size, yet it appears otherwise the same. When the development has proceeded a little further, and the embryo has assumed a pretty definite form, the arches of the segments, which have hitherto remained gapingly open, appear to close together on the dorsal surface, thereby inclosing the vitellus-looking mass within the abdominal cavity. It is this same vitelloid mass thus inclosed, which furnishes the development of the new germs (which in this case would be those of the fourth colony, or D), and this germ development here commences with the closing up of the abdominal cavity, and then the same processes we have just described are repeated. " The details of the development subsequent to this time, the for- mation of the different systems of organs, &c., are precisely like OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 57 those of the development of true oviparous Arthropoda in general ; and although the ovoid germ has at no time the structural peculiari- ties of a true ovum, — such as a real vitellus, germinative vesicle, and dot, — yet if we allow a little latitude in our comparison, and regard the vitellus-looking mass as the mucous, and the germ-mass proper as the serous fold of the germinating tissue, as in true ova ; — if this com- parison of parts can be admitted, then the analogy of the secondary phases of development between these forms and true ova of the Arthropoda can be traced to a considerable extent. " These secondary phases of development need not here be detailed, for they correspond to those described by Herold and KoUiker, of the true ovum in other Insecta, and which, too, I have often traced in various species of the Arthropoda in general. " When the embryo is fully formed and ready to burst from its capsule in which it has been developed, it is about one sixteenth of an inch in length, or more than eight times the size of the germ, when the first traces of development in it were seen. From this last-men- tioned fact, it is evident that, even admitting that these germ-masses are true eggs, the conditions of development are quite different from those of the eggs of the truly viviparous animals, for in these last the egg is merely hatched in the body instead of out of it, and, more- over, it is formed exactly as though it was to be deposited, and its vitellus contains all the nutritive material required for the develop- ment of the embryo until hatched. With the Aphididse, on the other hand, the developing germ derives its nutritive material from the fatty liquid in which it is bathed, and which fills the abdomen of the parent. The conditions of development in this respect are here, therefore, more like those of the Mammalia, and the whole parent animal may be regarded in one sense as an individualized uterus filled with germs ; for the digestive canal with its appendages seems to serve only as a kind of laboratory for the conversion of the succulent liquids this animal extracts from the tree on which it lives, into this fatty liquid which is the nutritive material of the germs. " Omitting the curious and interesting details of the further history of the economy of these Insecta, as irrelevant to the point in discus- sion, we will now turn to see what view we should take of these pro- cesses, and what is their physiological interpretation. In the first place, it is evident that the germs which develop these viviparous Aphides are not true eggs ; they have none of the structural charac- VOL. III. 8 58 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY teristics of these last, — such as a vitellus, a germinative vesicle, and dot ; on the other hand, they are at first simple collections, in oval masses, of nucleated cells. Then, again, they receive no special fecundating power from the male, which is the necessary preliminary condition of all true eggs ; and furthermore, the appearance of the new individual is not preceded by the phenomena of segmentation, as is also the case with all true eggs. Thferefore, their primitive forma- tion, their development, and the preparatory changes they undergo for the evolution of the new individual, are all different from those of real ova. " Another point of equal importance is, these viviparous individuals of the Aphides have no proper ovaries and oviducts. Distinct organs of this kind I have never been able to make out. The germs, as we have before seen, are situated in moniliform rows, like the successive joints of confervoid plants, and are not inclosed in a special tube. These rows of germs commence each from a single germ-mass, which sprouts from the inner surface of the animal, and increases in length and the number of its component parts by the successive formation of new germs by the constriction process as already described. More- over, these rows of germs, which, at one period, closely resemble in general form the ovaries of some true Insecta, are not continuous with any uterine or other female organ, and therefore do not at all communicate with the external world ; on the other hand, they are simply attached to the inner surface of the animal, and their compo- nent germs are detached into the abdominal cavity as fast as they are developed, and thence escape outwards through a porus genitalis. ^' With these data, the question arises. What is the proper interpre- tation to be put upon these reproductive phenomena we have just de- scribed } My answer would be, that the whole constitutes only a rather anomalous form of gemmiparity : as already shown, the vivip- arous Aphididse are sexless ; they are not females, for they have no female organs, they are simply genwiiparous, and the budding is in- ternal, instead of external, as with the Polypi and Acalephse ; more- over, this budding takes on Some of the morphological peculiarities of oviparity, but these peculiarities are economical and extrinsic, and do not touch the intrinsic nature of the processes therein concerned. Viewed in this way, the different broods or colonies of Aphididae can- not be said to constitute as many true generations, any more than the different branches of a tree can be said to constitute as many trees ; on OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 59 the other hand, the whole suit, from the first to the last, constitute but a single true generation. I would insist upon this point as illustra- tive of the distinction to be drawn between sexual and gemmiparous reproduction. Morphologically, these two forms of reproduction have, it is true, many points of close resemblance, but there is a grand physiological difference, the perception of which is deeply connected with our highest appreciation of individual animal life. " A true generation must be regarded as resulting only from the conjugation of two opposite sexes, — from a sexual process in which the potential representatives (spermatic particle and ovum) of two op- posite sexes are united for the elimination of one germ. The germ power thus formed may be extended by gemmation or fission ; but it can be formed only by the act of generation, and its play of extension by budding or by division must always be within a certain cycle, which cycle is recommenced by the new act of the conjugation again of the two sexes. In this way the dignity of the ovum as the pri- mordium of all true individuality is maintained. " In the memoir from which this is an extract, I have entered into a full discussion of those many points suggested by these studies. One of these is the relation of this subject to some of the various doctrines of development, which have been advanced in late years, such as that of Alternation of Generation by Steenstrup, and that of Partheno- genesis by Owen. I have there attempted to show that the phenomena of these doctrines, as advanced by their respective advocates, all be- long to those of gemmiparity, and that therefore Alternation of Gen- eration and Parthenogenesis, in their implied sense, are misnomers in physiology. Another point there treated in extenso is the identity of this mode of reproduction we have just described in the Aphididse with that observed in the so-called hibernating eggs of the Entomostraca, and the like phenomena observed in nearly every class of the Inver- tebrata. They are all referable, in my opinion, to the conditions of gemmation, modified in each particular case, perhaps by the economi- cal relations of the animal." Dr. Samuel Parkman and Dr. Benjamin E. Getting were elected Fellows of the Academy in the Section of Medicine and Surgery. 60 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Three hundred and eighty-fifth meeting. October 12, 1853. — Special Meeting. The President, and afterwards Professor Parsons, in the chair. The President stated that this meeting of the Academy, in committee of the whole, was called for the special purpose of acting upon the reports made by committees on the revision of the Statutes of the Academy. Three hundred and eighty-sixth meeting. November 8, 1853. — Monthly Meeting. The Academy met by invitation at the house of the Presi- dent, — Dr. George Hay ward, and afterwards the President, in the chair. « A letter was read from the Academy of Archaeology of Bel- gium, at Antwerp, presenting the seventh volume of their Annals, requesting an exchange of publications, and a mutual election of Corresponding Members. Professor J. Wyman made some further observations on the effect of low temperature and darkness in arresting the devel- opment of tadpoles. The experiment, at the time of his first observations, had lasted for about seventeen months ; now, at the end of two years, some specimens are living in the same condition, showing no disposition to undergo metamorphosis. Dr. Hay ward related the case of a boy who had recently died from perfectly marked hydrophobia, commencing just thirty days after the bite of the dog. The wound, which was near the angle of the eye, was thoroughly cleansed by suction and cauterized with nitrate of silver, and in a few days seemed quite well ; pain in the wound came on after a month ; the boy became irritable, and much disturbed by cold air and water ; attempts to swallow produced convulsions ; stupidity soon came on, and death took place apparently from effusion in the brain. This disease is perfectly distinct from tetanus. In tetanus, the mind is unaffected, and deglutition is perfect OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 61 except during the paroxysms ; the special nerves are the seat of the disease, and death ensues from asphyxia. In hydro- phobia, not only the spinal nerves, but the medulla oblongata and the brain are affected. There are many cases of hydro- phobia reported, but genuine cases are quite rare. Dr. A. A. Gould mentioned the cases of a family of "bleed- ers," in which this idiosyncrasy of profuse and uncontrollable hemorrhage from trifling wounds was hereditary for four gen- erations. The cases had come under his own observation. Every one of the males was a bleeder, but not one of the fe- males. There was also the usually observed tendency to rheumatic pains in these individuals. Dr. Burnett read a paper on the "Intimate Structure of Muscle," in which he combated Martin Barry's idea, that ani- mal fibre is composed of twin spiral filaments. He consid- ered the spiral arrangement as an accident, and not an essential character ;' he exhibited specimens under the microscope in confirmation of his views. Professor Wyman observed that the same course of develop- ment mentioned by Dr. Burnett as occurring in the formation of muscular fibre, or cells arranging themselves in linear series, then forming fibrillas and strias, he had noticed in the scale of animal life ; as you ascend from the Polyp, where there is nothing but cells, to the higher forms of life, the linear ar- rangement, the fibrillae, and the strias successively make their appearance in the muscular structure. Dr. Storer alluded to the sudden death of J. E. Tesche- macher, Esq., a Fellow of the Academy, and spoke in the highest terms of his attainments in natural science, especially mineralogy, geology, and botany ; and of the qualities which made him in every respect a most estimable man. D. A. A. Gould observed, that, in addition to his purely sci- entific attainments, Mr. Teschemacher was an excellent lin- guist, and eminent for his knowledge of horticulture and agri- culture. His latest investigations had been to ascertain from what kind of plants coal has been formed ; his collection of 62 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY specimens illustrating this point was astonishingly large and rich, and his death will be a very great loss to this little cul- tivated and little known branch of natural science. Three hundred and eiglity-seventh meeting. November 9, 1853. — GIuarterly Meeting. The President in the chair. The Corresponding Secretary read a letter from Professor Mittermaier, of Heidelberg, acknowledging his election as Foreign Honorary Member of the Academy ; also letters from Rev. Thomas Hill, Dr. S. Parkman, and Dr. B. E. Cotting, severally acknowledging their election as Fellows of the Academy. On motion of Professor Peirce, it was " Voted, That the Academy hold meetings for scientific discussion on the last Tuesday of every month, at their Hall." Dr. B. A. Gould, Jr. announced, that a complete catalogue of the books and pamphlets in the Academy's library had been made by the Recording Secretary, and reported sundry regulations made by the Committee on the Library for the cir- culation, return, and safe-keeping of the books. Mr. B. A. Gould alluded to the recent death of M. Arago, a Foreign Honorary Member of the Academy, and oifered the following preamble and resolutions : — " Whereas, when men who have conferred benefits upon their race, or extended the domain of science, are removed from the world, it is but fitting that those who appreciate their services, and especially public bodies, should join in doing honor to their memory, — " Resolved, That the Academy has received information of the de- cease of its illustrious member, Arago, with a profound sense of the loss sustained by science and by humanity, and desires thus to express its sentiments of respect for the memory of the distinguished scien- tific investigator and philanthropist. " Resolved, That a copy of these resolutions be transmitted to the family of the deceased." The resolutions were unanimously adopted. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 63 Professor Agassiz made a verbal communication on some new species of cartilaginous fishes which he had discovered on the coast of the United States, which were especially inter- esting for the study of the relations existing between fossil and living types. America contrasts strongly with Europe in the number of living species belonging to genera of ani- mals which also exist in a fossil state ; the old types are so much more numerous here, that this continent to the paleon- tologist has quite an old-fashioned appearance. The Port Jackson Shark is the only type of its family now represented by a living species in the Old World. He had found on our coast eight genera of cartilaginous fishes not noticed before. The genus Carcharias is not found fossil, and the living species are few. The genus Odontaspis, found fossil as low as the chalk, has two representatives on our coast, one in Long Island Sound, the other on the coast of South Carolina ; to this genus he thinks the Squalus macrodon of Mitchell belongs. To this genus, also, belong most of the fossil teeth of our tertiary deposits ; many of these, previously con- sidered as belonging to the genus Lamna, he was now, from examination of living representatives, able to refer to their true genus, Odontaspis. The old genus Lamna he had di- vided into Lamna and his genus Oxyrhina. Of the genus Galeocerdo, geologically very important, with teeth serrated and curved backwards, he had obtained a species as far south as South Carolina. Fossils of this genus are found in deposits as early as the cretaceous ; the genus Galeus differs in the serrations of its teeth. The large teeth found at Gay Head and Marshfield belong to the genus Carcharodon. Dr. Andrew Smith found a representative of this genus at the Cape of Good Hope. Professor Agassiz had received a jaw of a living spe- cies from Nantucket, and some teeth from Cape Cod, belonging to this genus. This, then, is another of the old types found on our coast. It differs generically from Carcharias ; the dif- ferences do not depend so much on the position of the teeth in the jaw, as on the structure of the teeth, which are hollow 64 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY in Carcharias and full in Carcharodon, though a careful com- parison will reduce the number of established species of fossil Carcharodons. He had also discovered new genera oi S cedes. Of the three fossil genera, Myliobates, Zygobates, and Aeto- bates, the first is found living in the Old World, while the sec- ond and third are unknown there, except as fossils ; all these genera have been found living in North and South America. Of the genus Raia, of which there are vast numbers in Eu- rope, the number is diminished in America by at least one third. Professor Peirce made a communication on a new view of the fundamental principles of Analytic Mechanics. Three hundred and eiglity-eiglith meeting. November 17, 1853. — Adjourned Quarterly Meeting. The President in the chair. The time of this meeting was occupied in the transaction of business. A communication was received from Mr. C. O'Brian, re- questing permission to publish in a scientific periodical, about to be established in Cambridge, the proceedings of the Acade- my. The communication was referred to the Committee of Publication. Three hundred and eighty-ninth meeting. November 29, 18.53. — Second November Meeting. Dr. Charles Beck in the chair. Dr. Burnett made a communication on the development of organs, especially of those of glandular structure ; in which he traced the progress from a mass of cells, arranging them- selves in linear series, through the various stages of lateral saccations or diverticula, and the dichotomous ramifications dividing and subdividing to form the intricate structure of the organs. For instance, the ureter, first formed, undergoes this multiplied ramification till it forms the glandular structure of OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 65 the kidney. This arborescent character of organic development, homologous perhaps with the branching of polyps, reduces the process of development to an extremely simple formula. Professor Agassiz observed that the heart, which he had studied especially in fishes, makes its first appearance as a mass of apparently homogeneous cells ; the interior cells grad- ually soften, forming a cavity, the walls being at the same time proportionally solidified. He did not perceive the ho- mology of the ramification described by Dr. Burnett to the branching of polyps ; the buds of a polyp are not hernial sacs communicating primarily with the parent stem, but solid tu- bercles formed on the outside, gradually becoming hollow and communicating only secondarily with the main trunk. Professor J. Wyman asked if, in the development of the liver, the cells were first formed, and the tubes extended from the intestine to meet them, as BischofF maintains. Dr. Burnett had made no observations on this point in the vertebrated animals. Professor Agassiz made a communication on a new living species of Cestracion from China, and on some fossil teeth of sharks of this family which he had received from the carbonif- erous formation of Indiana. From the examination of these specimens he thinks that all the genera but one — which he made long ago from the scanty materials in Europe (only a single jaw and some dried skins) — will stand ; of the species he is not so confident. The new species, from its distinct bands, he would call Ces- tracion zebra. It is thus characterized : a square-shaped head resembling that of Ostracion; the nostrils open into the mouth by a strong fissure ; the mouth is small, more anterior than usual ; there are singular cheek-like projections on the sides of the head ; the body is massive, and much elevated on the back ; the dorsal fins much falcated, especially the second ; the gill fissures are usually in advance of the pectorals, but in this species the pectorals begin anteriorly under the third gill-fissure ; the spiracles open below the eyes ; the caudal fin VOL. III. 9 66 PROCEEDINGS OP THE AMERICAN ACADEMY has its lower division two-lobed, the lower lobe looking like a second anal fin. The specimen, which he thought full-grown, was about one foot and a half long. The teeth in front differ much from those on the sides and back of the mouth ; they are quite "small in front, gradually becoming larger, and then again smaller ; the anterior teeth are trilobed ; the lobes grad- ually diminish backwards, become flat, and then rounded on their upper surface ; there is a ridge on the median line, the remains of the three cusps. In the New Holland species, the front teeth have the median cusp much the longest, the back teeth being much the broadest. Professor Agassiz compared these teeth with the fossil teeth he had received from Indiana. The teeth of the genus Psam- modus resemble the back teeth of Cestracion, and are marked by numerous minute points ; those of the genus Strophodus resemble Cestracion, having also a central prominence ; in the genus Ozodus, the teeth are undulated, like the second form in Cestracio7i, but with lines radiating from each of the three cusps; in the genus Helodus (perhaps to be suppressed) the teeth have a prominent tubercle, like the anterior teeth of Psammodus ; another reason for suppressing the former genus is that it is always found with the latter ; in the genus Peta- lodus the teeth are much compressed and spreading, with a narrow root. These are the same genera as are found in Europe ; the specific identity he had not as yet determined. Other Euro- pean sharks having no living representatives are also found here. The genus Ctenoptychius, the whole margin of whose teeth is serrated ; the genus Hybodus, with cylindrical teeth, longitudinally striated, like those of Saurians, from the folds of the enamel ; the genus Dendrocladus, having large dorsal spines, sometimes two feet long, which are always found with the teeth. Speaking of the gigantic species which must have borne these spines, he remarked that it was neither the first nor the last created members of any class in the animal king- dom which were the giants of that class ; but rather those created at the middle epochs. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 67 Professor Peirce made a communication, illustrated by dia- grams, on the " collision of solid bodies." He believed that the speculations hitherto brought forward were radically de- fective, and comparatively useless ; the collision of atoms only had hitherto been considered, instead of combinations of atoms. Tbree hundred and niiietietli meeting. December 13, 1853. — Semi-Monthly Meeting. The President in the chair. The Corresponding Secretary announced a valuable bequest of books on the Infusoria, from the late Thomas Cole, Esq., of Salem, a Fellow of the Academy, consisting of Ehren- berg's great work, Kiitsing's Phycologia, Mliller's Animalcula Infusoria, Johnston's Zoophytes, and Recherches Chimiques et Microscopiques sur les Conferves, Bisses, Tremelles, etc., avec 36 Planches, par Girod-Chantrans (4to, Paris, 1802). On motion of President Walker, the following resolutions were unanimously adopted : — " Voted, That the American Academy feel very sensibly the kind remembrance of their lamented associate, Mr. Cole, in the valuable legacy now received, and would express their sincere thanks to Mrs. Cole for the delicate generosity with which she has invested the ex- pressed intentions of her lamented husband with the authority of a bequest. " Voted, That the Librarian be directed to affix to the volumes now presented a statement that they are a bequest from their late asso- ciate, Mr. Thomas Cole." Professor Lovering made a verbal report on the letter of Mr. C. O'Brian, requesting an abstract of the Academy's pro- ceedings, which had been referred to the Publishing Com- mittee. He did hot see any objection to furnishing such an abstract, thereby expressing the willingness of the Academy to grant the request, without implying any sanction or recom- mendation of the journal he was about to establish. It was " Voted, That the Secretary be allowed to furnish to Mr. O'Brian such portions of the records of the Academy as he may think proper." 68 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Dr. J. Wyman exhibited the lower jaw of a mastodon from South America, brought from Chili by Lieutenant Gilliss. This animal ranged the whole of the continent, from 5° north latitude to 40° south. It has been found at great elevations in 34° south, at the height of 1,400 feet above the level of the sea ; in duito, Humboldt found it at the height of 7,200 feet ; Mr. Darwin says it has appeared on the limits of per- petual snow. In these cases the land has been elevated since the deposition of the remains. The number of species found here is doubtful; Cuvier made three, M. augustidejis, M. Humboldtii, and M. Andiiim, of the last two one being small and the other large. De Blainville maintained that there was only a single species. It is not reasonable that M. augustidens should be found here ; from the figures given by Falconer and others. Dr. Wyman thinks there are two species ; all the teeth found are referable to two sizes, one about six inches and a half long, the other from nine to ten inches. The jaw he exhibited confirmed the view that there are two species, one of which is of small size ; it was of small size, yet was that of an adult animal, as shown by the sixth molar. He had also an- other tooth differing so much from the others that perhaps a third species might be made out. It would not be strange if two species were found here, as in India, according to Fal- coner, eight or ten species are found in a limited district. Dr. C. T. Jackson exhibited a branch of the Mistletoe, with the flowers, obtained from an oak-tree of North Carolina. Dr. C. T. Jackson gave some account of the copper and gold mines of North Carolina ; some of the copper mines are old gold mines which were worked till they became unprofit- able from the presence of water ; now, improved machinery permits them to be worked with profit. The principal cop- per ores are the yellow and gray sulphurets. He described in some detail the coal region on Deep River, North Carolina ; the coal is very bituminous, containing little sulphur, and is excellent for the manufacture of gas. He thinks OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 69 there is a true coal basin ; the strata dip down at ^n angle of 20°, then become horizontal, and, as he believes, rise again at about the same angle. He is inclined to think this a portion of the Lias or Oolitic group. Many scales of ganoid fishes, fish and Saurian coprolites, and minute fossil shells, resembling Cypris, are found in great abundance. The plants are not numerous, except in the grindstone grit under the coal ,* they resemble the plants of the Lias of Europe. Some bones, said to be Saurian, and perhaps Chelonian, have been found. Professor W. B. Rogers remarked, that the age of the Deep River coal is probably the same as that of Eastern Virginia. The lithological characters are the same ; the fossil plants, shells, and fish found are the same in the two regions. The topographical relations of the two regions are also the same. He does not believe that there is a coal basin at Deep River, but merely layers one over the other, all dipping at the same angle, running down and thinning out against the rocks below : he doubts if any great amount of coal exists there. On a recent visit to the new red sandstone of Virginia, he found the same fossils as in the coal measures, and the same in the new red sandstone of Pennsylvania. He concludes that all these formations are very nearly of the same age, more re- cent than is generally supposed, and that they belong to the Lias formation. Dr. Jackson was not certain of the existence of a true coal basin there, though he thought there was as much evidence of it as is generally found ; he had not, however, observed the dip at the other extremity of the basin corresponding in angle with that at Deep River. Professor Agassiz remarked, that the age of this deposit was very interesting to him ; the fishes did not agree either with those of the Trias of Southern Germany or the Lias of Eng- land, but seemed intermediate between the two ; he was in- clined to think that the new red sandstone of this country belonged to a group intermediate between the Trias and Lias, of which there was no representative in Europe. 70 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEIHT Professor H. D. Rogers observed that this would indicate a more recent age for the bird-tracks of the Connecticut Sand- stone. Professor Agassiz remarked, in reference to the footmarks of the Potsdam Sandstone* which Professor Owen had de- scribed as those of turtles, but which he at the same time maintained were those of Crustaceans, have now been ad- mitted by Owen himself to belong to the latter ; so that there is no evidence that reptiles have been found below the coal. Professor H. D. Rogers alluded to bones of reptiles having been found in Germany in strata equivalent to the carbonifer- ous limestone, one degree older than the coal. Professor Agassiz doubts if these are reptilian bones. Dr. Hayes connected the coal deposits of the two States by the additional fact, that the chemical constitution of the ac- companying rocks, according to his own examination, is the same. Professor Agassiz presented a list of fishes found in the Tennessee River, in all thirty-three species, and of several genera not found in Europe. He mentioned the fact, that many exclusively American species, found in the Southern States from Virginia downwards, are not found in the more Northern States ; he indicated several localities of small ex- tent, which have fishes exclusively their own, so that any former communication of rivers could not explain their limited geographical distribution. The genera are common over ex- tended localities, but each region has its representative species. Tbree hundred and ninety-first meeting. December 27, 1853. — Semi-Monthly Meeting. The Academy met at their Hall, the Corresponding Secre- tary, and afterwards the President, in the chair. The Recording Secretary being absent, Mr. J. H. Abbot was appointed Recording Secretary ^;'o tern. Professor Cooke exhibited and described some apparatus OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 71 contrived by him for excluding the action of atmospheric air during the process of filtration. By means of it, this process may be conducted either in a confined portion of air, in vacuo, or in any gas. " It is frequently important in chemical analysis to conduct the pro- cess of filtration either in vacuo or in a neutral gas, and especially in an atmosphere free from carbonic acid. In order to overcome certain difficulties, I have been led to contrive an apparatus for this purpose, which I believe to be superior to all others now in use, both on account of its simplicity and its cheapness. The complete appa- ratus is represented in Fig. 1, and some of its parts enlarged appear in Fig. 2. It consists of a wide-mouthed glass bottle, into the neck of which is ground with emory a funnel (a. Fig. 2), having a short but large spout. This funnel is made sufficiently thick to resist the at- mospheric pressure, and its rim is ground so that it may be closed air-tight by a glass plate, or by a brass plate, connecting with an air- pump. Within this outer funnel the common filtering-funnel is placed, resting loosely against its side so as to allow a free passage of air. In order to wash the precipitate, a glass plate having a hole an inch and a half in diameter drilled through its centre {d, Fig. 2) is substituted for the covering-plate. Through this passes the tube of the washing-bottle (/, Fig. 2). The washing-bottle is made in the ordi- nary way, except that it is fitted with a cork, which projects about an 72 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY inch above the neck. The upper end of the cork fits the neck of a glass plate ground on the under side, made as is represented at e, Fig. 2. This plate is about three inches in diameter, and when resting upon the plate d, as is represented in Fig. 1, covers the hole com- pletely, and permits sufficient lateral motion to bring the stream of water on different parts of the precipitate. " Numerous processes in which this apparatus may be applied will suggest themselves to any chemist. I will only mention one in which I have found it very useful. In the ordinary process of separating alumina and sesquioxide of iron from the alkaline earths, the sesqui- bases are precipitated by caustic ammonia, which does not, as is well known, precipitate the alkaline earths when perfectly caustic. Since, however, the best liquid ammonia contains carbonic acid, and as, dur- ing the precipitation and subsequent filtration, carbonic acid is ab- sorbed from the air, it invariably happens that small amounts of the alkaline earths are precipitated as carbonates. It becomes, therefore, necessary to redissolve the precipitate, and repeat the process in order to obtain a complete separation. This repetition, I think, may be avoided by using ammonia gas made caustic by lime, and conducting the filtration in the apparatus just described. The substitution of am- monia gas for liquid ammonia in this process has been made by many chemists. I use for precipitating with caustic ammonia gas the little apparatus represented in Fig. 3. Strong liquid ammonia is placed in the flask, where it is gently heated, and the resulting gas passed through a chloride of calcium tube into the solution. To the end of the bent tube I attach, by means of a caoutchouc connector, a short tube which dips into the fluid. This, when the precipitation is completed, can readily be disconnected, and any adhering precipitate easily removed. The fluid with the precipi- tate I now throw upon the filter arranged in the apparatus above de- scribed. As the process of filtering and the subsequent washing is conducted in a very confined space, which can easily be entirely de- prived of carbonic acid, no precipitation of the alkaline earths is pos- sible, so that they are completely separated from alumina and ses- quioxide of iron at the first precipitation. " I use two sizes of the filtering apparatus, which differ from each other, however, only in the size of the bottle. In both, the diameter OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 73 of the outer funnel is about five inches, but in one size the bottle has the capacity of a pint and in the other of a quart. I employ the larger size only when a prolonged washing of the precipitate is necessary. The cost of the apparatus complete is only two dollars, the price of an ordinary filtering-stand with iron rings." Professor Gray presented a communication entitled, " No- tices of New Species of Mosses from the Pacific Islands," by William S. Sullivant. " The Mosses here noticed are a part of the collections made by the United States Exploring Expedition under the command of Captain Charles Wilkes ; and are presented in this form for the purpose of securing to the Expedition the priority of their discovery. Similar notices of new Mosses and Hepaticse from Tierra del Fuego and Oregon, belonging to the same collections, have already appeared in the second volume of Hooker's Journal of Botany (1850). " 1. Hypnum apertum (n. sp.) : monoicum ; caule prostrato elongate arete repente pinnatim ramoso ; ramis dissitis insequalibus com- planatis ; foliis laxissime bifariam imbricatis suboblique orbiculari- ovatis acuminulatis concaviusculis ecostatis firmiusculis subscariosis pellucidis estriatis integerrimis nitidis minute elliptico-areolatis ; cap- sula suburceolata horizontali pendulave annulata ; operculo hemispha^- rico-conico ; pedicello flexuoso-erecto Isevi. — Hab. On the ground, Tahiti, Society Islands. "2, Hypnubi molluscoides (n. sp.) : pusillum, dioicum ; csespite deplanato intricate mollissimo lutescente ; caule fasciculatim diviso, divisionibus densissime plumseformi-pinnatis ; foliis e basi lata lan- ceolato-attenuatis falcatis secundis vix serrulatis costellis binis brevissi- mis indistinctis minute lineari-areolatis cellulis basilaribus laxioribus majoribus ; perichsetialibus stricto-convolutaceis apice longe attenuatis patentibus ; capsula minuta ovali-urceolata horizontali vel pendula ; dent, peristomialibus lanceolato-subulatis dense trabeculatis, ciliis cari- nato-stereodontibus, ciliolis singulis binisve validis granulosis ssepe rimosis ; annulo segre solubili ; operculo hemisphserico-conico recte rostellato ; pedicello longiusculo gracillimo. — Hab. Tahiti, Society Islands. " 3. Hypnum Wilkesianum (n. sp.) : dioicum, majusculum, sordide rufescens ; csespitibus extensis laxis ; caulibus prostratis rigidiusculis VOL. III. 10 74 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY paucirameis vel dissite subpinnatis, ramulis longiusculis attenuatis teretibus vel subcompressis basi fructiferis ; foliis ovato-lanceolatis concavis patenti-divergentibus incurviusculis ruguloso-striatis basi lata saccato-plicatis, margine toto ambitu serrulatis inferneque recurvis, costa valida ad apicem fere attingente, dense areolatis, cellulis minutis- simis oblongis ; perichsetialibus exterioribus squarrulosis interioribus filiformi-elongatis erecto-flexuosis apice serratis ; capsula cylindraceo- oblonga erecta subaequali annulata basi subattenuata ; operculo longe erecto-aciculari-rostrato ; pedicello flexuoso longissimo ; peristomii den- tibus lineari-attenuatis strictiusculis dense trabeculatis, ciliis e mem- brana eciliolata tenuibus carinatis ; columella emergente ; sporis ma- jusculis ; archegoniis 40- 50 ; antheridiis 35-40 ; paraphysibus floris utriusque copiosissimis. — Hab. Hawaii, Sandwich Islands. " 4. Hypnum Pickeringii (n. sp.) : monoicum, pusillum, plumulo- sum ; casspite compacto ; caulibus inferne sordide rufescentibus superne aurescentibus nitidulis vage ramosis ; ramis erectiusculis apice sub- uncinatis dense subcompresse foliosis ; foliis oblongo-lanceolatis con- cavis filiformi-attenuatis basi patentibus dehinc erecto-incurvis apice subtubuloso serrulato patentiusculo interdum subsecundis ecostatis scariosis, cellulis densissimis valde elongatis transversim striato-granu- losis plus minus minutissime papillulosis, alaribus utrinque binis ternisve subquadratis amplissimis vesiculseformibus hyalinis flavidulis ; peri- chsetialibus oblongo-convolutaceis subito serrato-acuminatis ; pedicello longiusculo tenui debili superne tuberculoso-scaberrimo inferne lasvi ; capsula minuta ovali-urceolata subpendula ; peristomii dentibus linea axili lata pellucida notatis dense articulatis intus valde prominenter lamellosis ; ciliis e lata membrana carinatis foraminulosis capillari- attenuatis ciliolis singulis interpositis ; operculo longissime aciculari- rostrato ; calyptrse junioris cellulis spiraliter dispositis. — Hab. Moun- tains behind Honolulu, Oahu, Sandwich Islands. " 5. Hypnum arcuatum (n. sp.) : monoicum, plumulosum, delicatu- lum ; caule prostrato rectangulariter parce diviso, divisionibus brevi- usculis dense pinnatis, ramulis compressiusculis ; foliis lanceolatis acuminatis serrulatis ecostatis patenti-divergentibus incurviusculis laxe positis distiche directis minute lineari-areolatis ; capsulis incequilaterali- bus annulatis e pedicelli longissimi arcu latissimo apiciali pendulis ; operculo hemispha^rico-conico ; flore masculo gemmiformi caulige- no, antheridiis 8-10 paraphysatis. — Hab. East Maui, Sandwich Islands. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 75 " 6. Hypnubi mundulum (n. sp.) : monoicum, parvulum, delicatulum, pallide lutescenti-viride, laxe implexum ; caule repente parce diviso pinnatim confertius ramuloso ; folils patentibus laxissime disticheque dispositis e basi constricta subauriculata lanceolatis longe acuminatis concaviusculis ecostatis, marginibus erectis superne lenissime serrula- tis tenuissime lineari-areolatis, cellulis basilaribus amplissimis oblongis vesiculteformibus pellucidis ; pedicellis aggregatis tenuibus longiuscu- lis laevibus ; capsula gibboso-brevi-oblonga ; operculo conico acuminu- lato ; perichcetialibus oblongo-convolutaceis ex apice rotundata eroso- dentata subito in acumen longissimum filiforme flexuosum varie direc- tum eductis ; antheridiis 12-15, abunde paraphysatis ; fol. perigon. filiformi-acuminatis. — Hab. District of Puna, Hawaii, Sandwich Islands. "7. Hypnum ? sPECiosissiMUM (n. sp.) : elatum, filicoideum,aures- cente-spadiceum ; caule (plantis masculis tantum visis) primario re- pente radiciformi robusto radiculis atropurpureis densissime vestito, stipites fuscos erectos firmos minute squamseformi-foliosos (veluti nudos) apice in frondem planam ovato-lanceolatam superne pinnatim inferne bipinnatim ramosam ramificatos emittente ; ramis superioribus patentibus strictis hystricose-foliosis, inferioribus patentioribus rectan- gulariter ramulosis, ramulis breviusculis subgeniculato-flexis ; foliis axis centralis majusculis dissitis strictis bifariis elongato-triangulari- lanceolatis longe acuminatis subplanis, rameis ramulinisque multo minoribus confertis erecto-patentibus e basi elongato-elliptica lon- gissime lineari-eductis, omnibus superne argute serratis margine plus minus indistincte incrassato-limbatis costa dorso versus apicem dentata valida percurrente cuspidatis ; areolatione densissima e cellulis minutis linearibus prosenchymaticis maxime pachydermibus com- posita ; perigoniis numerosis valde conspicuis elongato-ellipsoideis acuminatis substipitatis axillaribus in ramorum axisque superiorum longltudine utrinque seriatim positis ; foliis perigon. inferioribus minu- tis ovato-acutis, superioribus convoluto-lanceolatis filiformi-acuminatis usque ad apicem subdentatam costatis, interioribus late ellipticis con- volutis breviter obtuse apiculatis mediotinus costatis ; antheridiis 3-5 majusculis elongatis pedicellatis paraphysatis. — Hab. Feejee Islands. " 8. Hypnubi Ttjtuilum (n. sp.) : monoicum ; caule prostrato ex- tense arcteque repente bis terve diviso, divisionibus densissime pinna- 76 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY tis ; foliis e basi constricta ovato-lanceolatis decurvo-falcatis subrugu- losis lineari-areolatis basi brevissime bicostatis ; capsula horizontali vel pendula suburceolata annulata, ore subobliquo ; peristomii hyp- noidei ciliolis cilia aequantibus ternatim interjectis ; operculo henii- sphicrico-conico ; pedicello Isevi flexuoso-erecto ; flore masculo gemmi- formi cauligeno paraphysato. — Hab. Island of Tutuila, Samoan or Navigators' Group : also Feejee Islands. " 9. Hypnum Draytoni (n. sp.) : dioicum, robustum, speciosum ; csespite laxo lato ; caulibus prostratis elongatis flaccidis turgido-com- pressis parce divisis ; foliis laxe imbricatis distiche-appressis oblongis ovato-oblongisve decurrentibus cochleariformi-concavis obtusis acumi- ne brevi flexuoso terminatis lutescente-viridibus nitidulis pellucidis brevissime furcato-costatis, margine erecto integerrimo, cellulis elon- gatis angustissimis densis, infimis brevioribus amplioribus ; capsula in pedicello Isevi longiusculo rigido horizontali arcuato-oblonga annulata ; operculo conico-acuto ; peristomii dentibus lanceolato-subulatis dense trabeculatis, ciliis aequilongis carinatis imperforatis e membrana latis- sima, ciliolis brevioribus ternatim interjectis ; antheridiis numerosis- simis paraphysatis ; perichsetialibus ovatis seu ovato-lanceolatis, internis oblongo-lanceolatis basi vaginantibus margine superne subcrenato- undulatis. — Hab. Forest at the eastern base of Mauna Kea, Hawaii, Sandwich Islands. " 10. Hypnum aristatum (n. sp.) : dioicum ? robustum, rigidum, flavo-viride ; caulibus 3-4-uncialibus erecto-flexuosis decurvis e massa radiciformi nigra sepulta assurgentibus parce ramosis, ramis elongatis abbreviatisve simplicibus raro subpinnatis hispidulose foliosis ; foliis undique versis confertis erecto-patentibus strictis e basi subcor- data oblongo-lanceolatis costa valida percursis longeque aristatis inte- gerrimis margine inferne recurvis concavis subimplanis e cellulis sub- rotundis minutis densius conflatis; capsulis ovali-oblongis subsequalibus basi attenuatis ; pedicellis breviusculis erecto-incurvis aggregatis prope apicem ramorum ; peristom. dentibus lanceolatis subulatis dense ar- ticulatis, ciliis e membrana plicata lata carinatis lanceolatis attenuatis dorso hiantibus, ciliolis binis interpositis appendiculatis ; perichsetialibus parviusculis laxius imbricatis supra medium patentibus filiformi-eductis indistincte costatis ; vaginula emergente oblonga ; paraphysibus fili- formibus 6-10 septatis ; operculo et calyptra non visis. — Hab. Bay of Islands, New Zealand. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 77 " 11. Hypnum op^odon (n. sp.) : dioicum ? aureo-flavidum,nitidum ; caulibus prostratis irretitis latum densum CEespitem efficientibus brevi- usculis rectangulate divisis, divisionibus dense et eleganter pinnatis parum subbipinnatis ; ramulis complanatis ; foliis confertis ovato-lan- ceolatis acuminatis serrulatis subfalcatis secundis estriatis caviusculis ecostatis vel brevissime subbicostatis margine inferne reflexis, cellulis pallidis tenuissime linearibus, basi alisque 3-5 utrinque amplissimis vesiculseformibus flavidis hyalinis ; perichsetii longiusculi foliis exteriori- bus ovatis, interioribus oblongis striatis, omnibus vaginantibus longissi- rae acuminatis acumine grosse dentato flexuoso ; vaginula emergente copiose paraphysata ; pedicello erecto-flexuoso sesquiunciali et ultra ; capsula cylindraceo-oblonga erecta plagiostoma uno latere curvula in collum subglobosum abrupte desinente ; operculo conico oblique ros- trato ; peristomii dentibus lineari-lanceolatis in axi plus minus fenestra- tis sinuato-articulatis veluti ad latera grosse irregulariter crenato-denta- tis, ciliis e membrana plicata baud lata carinatis carina interrupte hiantibus, ciliolis subnullis ; sporis majusculis. — Hab. Forest at the eastern base of Mauna Kea, Hawaii, Sandwich Islands. " 12. Hypnubi Eudor^ (n. sp.) : monoicum ; caulibus prostratis elongatis complanatis paucirameis lutescentibus nitidis ; foliis laxiuscule subbifariam imbricatis ovato-oblongis obtusis cymbiformi-concavis estri- atis subito tenuiter inflexo-flexuoso-acuminatis integerrimis angustis- sime lineari-cellulatis marginibus erectis basi constrictis, costellis binis indistinctis vix ullis ; perichsetialibus longe cylindraceis apice attenua- tis patentibus ; capsula anguste oblonga erectiuscula subinsequali in pedicellum rubrum longiusculum clavellato-attenuata ; peristomio eu- hypnoideo pallido, ciliolis binis longis ; annulo duplici spectabili ; operculo conico-brevi-rostrato ; calyptra cucuUiformi ; vaginula conico- oblonga eparaphysata : gemma mascula cum paraphysibus. — Hab. Kaala Mountains, Oahu, Sandwich Islands. " 13. Hypnum decurrens (n. sp.): dioicum ? majusculum ; casspite aureo-nitente ; caulibus prostratis elongatis subcomplanatis parce pin- natim ramosis, ramis distantibus incequalibus subuncinatis ; foliis laxi- uscule imbricatis decurvo-subfalcatis e basi cordata auriculata decur- rente lanceolatis tenuiter acuminatis concaviusculis substriato-implanis toto ambitu serrulatis margine erecto cellulis tenuissimis compactis, alaribus majoribus laxis pellucidis subquadratis, costis binis brevissimis subobsoletis ; perichastialibus exterioribus oblongo-ovatis acuminatis, 78 PROCEEDINGS OP THE AMERICAN ACADEMY interioribus e basi oblonga in acumen longissimum ligulatum denticu- latum flexuosum eductis ecostatis ; archegoniis 35 - 40 abunde para- physatis ; pedicellis (in specimine unico fertili binis ex eodem peri- chsetio) breviusculis erecto-flexuosis Icevibus ; capsula pachydermi horizontali gibboso-brevi-oblonga. — Hab. Kaala Mountains, Oahu, Sandwich Islands. " 14. Hypnubi tenuisetum (n. sp.) : monoicum ; caule prostrato longissimo tenui flexili apice flagelliformi parce diviso, divisionibus dissite pinnatis ramulis brevibus ; foliis patenti-dlvergentibus laxe sub-distichis e basi cordata lanceolatis concavis serratis indistincte brevissime bicostatis lineari-areolatis, cellulis marginalibus conspicuis ; capsula minuta gibboso-oblonga pendula ; peristomio (Iceso) hypnoi- deo ; pedicellis numerosis gracilibus longis ; perichsetialibus filiformi- attenuatis flexuosis serratis dorso papillosis : flore masculo gemmiformi cauligeno paraphysato ; operculo calyptraque deficientibus. — Hab. Island of Tutuila, Samoan or Navigators' Group. " 15. Hypnum molliculum (n. sp.) : monoicum, perpusillum, flacci- dum, lutescente-viride, nitidulum ; ca3spite laxo ; caule repente vage diviso, ramis adscendentibus compressiusculis laxe foliosis ; foliis pa- tentibus e basi lata subtruncata concava oblongo-lanceolatis tenuiter longe acuminatis apice cellula unica lineari terminatis brevissime obsolete bicostatis, areolatione laxiuscula e cellulis longissimis flexu- osis basi multo brevioribus latioribus pellucidioribus composita ; cap- sula subgibboso-oblonga ; pedicello debili flexuoso Isevi ; peristomii dentibus late lanceolato-linearibus arete articulatis, ciliis sequilongis carinatis e membrana lata ciliolis singulis interpositis ; foliis perichasti- alibus laxe imbricantibus erectis, superioribus longissime acuminatis ; vaginula emergente ; antheridiis 4-5 baud paraphysatis. — Hab. Forest at the eastern base of Mauna Kea, Hawaii, Sandwich Islands. " 16. Hypnum sodale (n. sp.) : dioicum ? exiguum ; csespite laxo complanato sordide fulvo ; caule decumbente semel diviso, divisioni- bus densissime pennoeformi-pinnatis ; foliis e basi lanceolata attenuatis falcato-secundis ecostatis lenissime serrulatis laxiuscule lineari-areola- tis ; perichsetialibus laxis longe attenuatis flexuoso-erectis apice den- ticulatis ; capsula ovato-urceolata exannulata horizontali pendulave ; peristomii euhypnoidei ciliolis binis breviusculis ; operculo hemisphse- rico recte breviter rostellato ; pedicello tcnuissimo longiusculo. — Hab. Eimeo, Society Islands. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 79 " 17. HooKERiA Tahitensis (n. sp.) : dioica ? caule arete repente radiculoso dense simpliciterque pinnate, ramulis brevibus obtusis basi fructiferis ; foliis laxiuscule subbifariam positis, lateralibus patentissi- mis, ellipticis breviter acuminatis cymbiformi-concavis striatulis apice undulato-constrictis margine reflexis serratis breviter gemello-costatis tenuiter lineari-areolatis subpellucidis minute papillosis fulvo-viridibus nitentibus ; perichcetialibus erectis subconniventibus oblongo-lanceolatis plicatis ciliato-dentatis superne dorso ciliato-papillosis ; capsula exan- nulata erectiuscula cylindraceo-oblonga subincequali ; pedicello brevi- usculo superne papillose ; peristom. dentibus lineari-lanceolatis dense trabeculatis, ciliis brevioribus carinatis e membrana modice exserta, ciliolis rudimentariis ; operculo e basi conica longe subulato-rostrato ; calyptra elongato-mitrseformi pilis erectis simplicibus compositisve obsita basi pilis loriformibus denticulatis fimbriata. — Hab. Moun- tains of Tabiti, Society Islands. " 18. Mniadelphus Vitianus (n. sp. ) : dioicus ; caule adscendente frondiformi simplicii vel raro 1-3 ramoso ; foliis distiche imbricatis e basi oblonga orbiculari-spathulatis toto ambitu marginatis abrupte cuspidatis (cuspide torta) undulato-implanis glauco-viridibus mollibus pellucidis superne laxe rotundato- inferne laxissime oblongo- hexa- gono-areolatis mediotinus costatis ; perichsetialibus laxis ovali-ovatis concavis ; capsula minuta ovali longicoUa subsequali exannulata hori- zontal! ; dentibus peristomialibus dense articulatis linea lata pellucida notatis, pedicello valde tuberculato cygneo-flexuoso basi incrassato ; operculo subulato-rostrato ; calyptra mitrseformi setoso-hirta basi cel- lulis longissimis simplicibus fimbriata : flore masculo gemmiformi stipitato axillari ; antheridiis numerosis, paraphysibus subnullis. — Hab. On decayed wood, Feejee Islands. " 19. HooKERiA DEBiLis (n. sp.) : caule prostrato irregulariter diviso arete repente ; foliis lanceolatis longe acuminatis ecostatis flaccidis dissitius positis varie directis flexuosis laxissime fusiformi-areolatis integerrimis ; capsula clavato-cylindraceo elongata arcuata horizontali ; operculo e basi ampla hemispheerica decurve longissime rostrato ; peristomii dentibus linearibus acuminatis dense trabeculatis dorso rima lata hiantibus^ ciliis carinatis e membrana basilar! angustiore ecilio- lata ; pedicello erecto longiusculo Isevi ; calyptra non visa. — Hab. Feejee Islands : also Samoan or Navigators' Group : growing on a Fern. 80 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY " 20. HooKERiA OBLONGiFOLiA (n. sp.) : liermaphrodita ; caule pros- trato intricato-ramoso complanato ; follis oblongis laxius positis distiche imbricatis denticulatis dense minuteque rotundato-areolatis papillosis bicostatis costis validis fere ad apicem percurrentibus ; pedicello lon- giusculo laevi erecto e caule primario ; calyptra mitrseformi leviter cristato-lineata basi in lacinias 10 - 12 canaliculatas fissa. — Hab. Sa- moan or Navigators' Islands ; parasitic on Ferns. " 21. PiLOTRiCHUM SETiGERUM (n, sp.) : dioicum ? speciosunfi, molle, aureo-nitens ; caule repente radiciformi nudo ramos subsimplices ad- scendentes elongato-subclavceformes bi-triunciales compressiusculos turgide foliosos apicem versus fructiferos emittente ; foliis confertis erecto-patentibus ellipticis acuminatis longitudinaliter valde plicatis su- perne serrulatis ecostatis scariosis lineari-areolatis, cellulis exilissimis pachydermibus horizontaliter seriatis basi rufo-aurantiaceis ; peri- chsetiis exiguis ; capsula (supramaturis et junforibus tantum visis) immersa ovato-cylindracea brevissime pedicellata pachydermi ; peri- chaetialibus inferioribus ovato-lanceolatis acuminatissimis, superioribus elongato-oblongis convolutaceis Isevibus e basi fere ad apicem obtusum grosse dentatum ecostatis dehinc costa in setam longissimam rigidam dentatam excedente instructis ; peristom. dentibus linearibus arete articulatis transversim striatulis linea axili lata notatis ; ciliis e mem- brana latissima plicata; operculo recto longe rostrato ; calyptra mitrse- formi ; archegoniis circa 24 ; parapliysibus dimidio brevioribus. — Hab. Feejee Islands. " 22. Ckyvkma. crrsPiDATA (n. sp.) : monoica, parvula, sordide lu- tescens ; caule primordiali prorepente defoliato ; ramis uncialibus et ultra adscendentibus arcuato-reclinatis pinnatim et fasciculatim brevi- ramulosis ; foliis madefactis erectis, siccis arete adpressis ruguloso- striatis late ovatis acuminatis ovato-lanceolatisve cymbiformi-concavis integerrimis carinato-costatis, costa valida cum apice evanescente, mar- gine inferne recurvo, cellulis minutis subpunctiformibus ; perichostiis in ramulis brevissimis terminalibus numerosis seriatis secundis ; foliis perichfEtialibus interioribus oblongis costa rigida longe excurrente cus- pidatis ; capsula immersa oblongo-ovata breviter pedicellata speciose annulata ; operculo e basi conica oblique rostrato ; peristom. dentibus lineari-lanceolatis linea mediali notatis trabeculatis apice granulosis, ciliis angustioi'ibus sequilongis subappendiculatis ; calyptra mitrseformi- dimidiata apice papillulosa : gemmis. masc. axillaribus subpedicellatis ; OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 81 antlieridiis 5-71onge pedicellatis ; paraphysibus paucis curtis ; foliis perigon. late ovatis recurvo-apiculatis ecostatis sublimbatis. — Hab. Vicinity of Valparaiso, Chili. " 23. Neckera tricostata (n. sp.) : dioica ? majuscula, fusco-lutes- cens ; caule primario repente radiciformi subterraneo ramos erectos inferne atratos defoliatos superne speciose dendroideo-rarnulosos emit- tente, ramulis elongatis flexuosis simplicibus compositisve dense foliosis fructiferis ; foliis erecto-patentibus incurviusculis e basi lata subtrun- cata ovato-oblongis acuminatis concavis carinato-costatis, costa valida cum apice desinente, toto ambitu incrassate limbatis veluti tricostatis superne grosse serratis, cellulis compactis minutis subpunctiformibus ; perichsetii oblongi foliis arete imbricatis, inferioribus subsquamBeformi- orbiculatis, superioribus ad medium erectis oblongo-convolutaceis de- hinc subito horizontaliter reflexis tenui-acuminatis, omnibus ecostatis interrupte pellucide sublimbatis; archegoniis 45-50 paraphysibus numerosis fere duplo longioribus 30 - septatis basi interdum composite cellulatis ; castera desunt. — Hab. Forest at the eastern base of Mauna Kea, Hawaii, Sandwich Islands. " 24. Rhizogonium pungens (n. sp. ) : dioicum ; caespite dense hispido e viridi spadiceo ; caulibus bi-triuncialibus basi fructiferis erectiusculis simplicibus inferne tomento atropurpureo dense vestitis ; foliis laxius- cule dispositis patenti-divergentibus carinato-concavis semiuncialibus (arista inclusa) strictiusculis rigidis pungentibus elliptico-lanceolatis costa valida subtereti in aristam dorso et lateribus grosse dentatam lamina quintuple longiorem excurrente instructis basi-valde incrassatis e cellulis minutis densis subquadratis compositis, margine duplicato- dentato vel potius bilamelloso, lamellis dentatis ; perichsetiis radicalibus brevissime stipitatis ; foliis perichsetialibus exterioribus lanceolatis den- tatis, interioribus oblongis integerrirnis, omnibus laxius reticulatis basi vaginantibus costa excurrente valida dentata longissime aristatis ; arche- goniis longiusculis numerosis (40 - 50) copiose paraphysatis, paraphysi- bus 7— 10-septatis archegonia paululum superantibus. — Hab. District of Puna, southwest coast of Hawaii, Sandwich Islands." Professor William B, Rogers called the attention of the meeting to the different explanations which have been given of the two vertical beams of light which are seen stretching, the one upwards and the other downwards, from a luminous VOL. III. 11 82 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY point, as the flame of a candle, when we view it with the eyelids nearly closed. He said that until lately he had been accustomed to refer this phenomenon to reflection from the surfaces of the two eyelids, the lower surface reflecting the incident rays upwards through the eye, the upper surface in the opposite direction. From the oblique incidence of the light in each case, the minute irregularities of the surface might be supposed to have the effect, by a linear conjunction of images, of prolonging the picture on the retina, just as the ripples on a lake elongate the image of the moon, or of a burn- ing torch when in a suitable position, so as to form a luminous band stretching over the water from beneath the object nearly to the spectator. A similar explanation has recently been suggested by M. Trouessart in the Compt:;s Re?iclus. The seventh number of Poggendorf's Anjialen for the pres- ent year contains a paper on this subject by H. Meyer of Leipsic, in which he refers these vertical beams to refraction. As the eyelids are moved over the eyeball, they gather before them the moisture which continually lubricates the surface of the eye. Owing to the oily secretion of the lids, this moist- ure, instead of spreading on their surface so as to form a con- cavity outwards, is by the opposite capillarity moulded into a converse form, which may be approximately regarded as a quarter-cylinder lying in the angle of junction of each eyelid with the cornea. The light striking the upper of these con- vexities will by refraction be bent upwards through the eye, and that incident on the lower will be bent downwards. In this view, therefore, the upper eyelid is the one concerned in producing the beam which appears vertically under the object, and the lower eyelid in producing that which appears verti- cally over it. But by the hypothesis of reflection the reverse of this must be the case, the beam above the object being due to the action of the upper eyelid, and the opposite beam to the lower eyelid. Professor Rogers mentioned a simple experiment, which proves that' the latter cannot be the true explanation, and OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. S3 which makes it extremely probable that M. Meyer has hit upon the correct one. If, when the eyelids are adjusted so as to develop the two vertical beams in great length and bright- ness, we cautiously lift away the loioer eyelid from the cor- nea without changing the distance between the two eyelids, we observe that the upper beam instantly disappears ; and so, on lifting the upper eyelid, the lower beam vanishes. This is just what ought to happen according to Meyer's view of the origin of the beams. The lifting of the eyelid, by break- ing up the convexity of liquid, must of course put a stop to the fan-shaped refraction, and therefore extinguish the vertical beam corresponding to it above or below the luminous object. As the reflection from the surface of the eyelid would be but little altered by the slight removal from the cornea, we ought on the hypothesis of reflection .either to find the two vertical beams unaltered, or that beam which is on the same side as the eyelid merely a little feebler and shorter. If, again, we revolve one of the eyelids entirely out of the range of action, while the other is retained in its, place, the beam which dis- appears is found to be for the lower lid the upper beam, and for the upper lid the lower beam, as ought to be the case ac- cording to Meyer's explanation. Professor Peirce made a communication on the relations of curves of which the equations are < q n I ' ^^ which the functions are derived from the equations/(a;-{-2/ • V--l)== P -f Q V^=l. Professor Agassiz added some remarks, in which he pointed out some interesting analogies, suggested by Professor Peirce's communication, in certain organic forms in the vegetable and animal kingdoms. Professor Cooke called the attention of the Academy to some remarkable relations he had discovered between the atomic weights of the elements ; and to some new facts which a knowledge of those relations had led him to observe. He considered the common classification of the elements as not 84 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY • founded on correct principles. Disregarding the distinction of metals and metalloids, and guided chiefly, though not ex- clusively, by the mode of combination and crystalline form, and bringing together those elements which bear the closest relations to each other, he had arranged the elements in six groups, the properties of each of which are closely related to each other, while they differ widely from those of any other group. The elements of any one group are, for the most part, isomorphous, and from similar compounds. Arranging the elements of any one group according to their relative af- finities, and commencing with the strongest, he had found that the physical properties follow the same progression. As in organic chemistry differences of properties correspond to fixed differences of composition, he had noticed that, in like manner, in these series of inorganic chemistry, similar differ- ences manifest themselves in differences of atomic weights. In the series in which he had classified the elements, the dif- ferences between the atomic weights of the consecutive mem- bers of any one series is always a multiple of some whole number. In one case it is 9, in another 8, in another 6, in another 5, in another 4, and in another 3. He stated that there are some discrepances between the atomic weights, as at present determined, and those required by his theory ; and that, though in most cases they are within the limits of actual error, in others there is a residual. These remarks Professor Cooke illustrated very fully by referring to the group consist- ing of oxygen, nitrogen, phosphorus, arsenic, antimony, and bismuth. He showed that these elements have the same mode of combination ; that they not only unite with the same num- ber of atoms, but that the resulting compounds have similar properties, and form parallel series with the elements. He stated reasons for believing that phosphorus, antimony, and arsenic exist in two allotropic states. He had succeeded in crystallizing arsenic in regular octahedrons which belong to a new allotropic state of arsenic ; which in this state differs in color, weight, and chemical properties from common arsenic. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 85 He thought there could be little doubt that the members of the nitrogen series are isodimorphs, forming two isomorphous series, one rhombic and the other monometric ; and that it was highly- probable that the residuals he had noticed in some of the ele- ments might be owing to a difference in the atomic weights of those elements in their two allotropic states. An interesting discussion followed Professor Cooke's commu- nication, in which Professor W. B. Rogers, Professor H. D. Rogers, and Professor Peirce took part. It was stated by- Professor Peirce that the number seven, omitted in the common differences between the atomic weights of the elements, was also omitted in the series of fractions representing the relative distances of the planets from the sun, and the distribution of leaves around the stem of a plant. Professor Agassiz made a communication on the funda- mental law of distribution of organic forms. Further remarks on the same subject were made by Professor H. D. Rogers, in respect to its geological relations ; by Dr. Pickering, who de- scribed the method he had followed in his researches respect- ing the distribution of animals ; and by Professor Peirce. Three liiiudred aud ninety-second meeting. January 10, 1854. — Semi-Monthly Meeting. The President in the chair. The Corresponding Secretary, by appointment, acted as Re- cording Secretary, after the reading of the proceedings of the last meeting by J. Hale Abbott, the Secretary pro tern, of that meeting. Dr. Hayes made a verbal communication on the disappear- ance of marsh-gas (light carbnretted hydrogen) in nature, — occurring, as he had ascertained, by its spontaneous combus- tion, converting it into carbonic acid and water at ordinary temperatures, even at 32° Fahr. He had ascertained the same fact in respect to carbonic oxide also. Remarks on this communication were made by Professor Cooke and Professor Horsford. 86 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Professor Cooke made the followins communication : — PonoP =^ 122° 15' PonP = 129 56 RonR = 85 47 a = 1.374 "The above drawing is an accurate representation of a crystal of rhombic arsenic which was picked out from a quantity of sublimed arsenic. The length of the lateral axes is about one third of an inch, and the crystal almost perfect. The angle of P on 0 P was meas- ured by a reflective goniometer, which reads to minutes. The faces were very perfect, but somewhat dull, owing to a slight tarnish. This made it difficult to measure with the usual signals, but the difficulty was easily overcome by making the measurements in a darkened room, and using for the upper signal a horizontal slit cut in a piece of turned iron about four inches in length and one fourth of an inch in diameter, which was fastened to the upper part of a window-sash, and the rest of the window covered with black cloth. The lower signal was a black line drawn on a white card. In this way very perfect and suf- ficiently bright images of reflection were obtained, as will appear from the fact that the greatest difference between twelve measurements did not exceed two minutes. The angle given (P on 0 P) is the mean of the twelve. The other angles were obtained by calculation. " The angle R on R, as given by G. Rose, is 85° 4', by Breifhaupt 85° 26', by Miller 85° 41'. My own measurements gave 85° 47'. This difference, too great to be referred to any errors of observation, is probably occasioned by apparent variations in the angle produced by stride. Of ten or twelve crystals which I have examined, the one described above was the only one which had perfect planes. On some larger crystals, having the same form as the one described, the angle R on R measured approximately 85° 20' and 80° 31'. The variation from the normal angle was evidently caused by striae, which spread out the image of the signal into a broad band formed appar- ently by several images overlapping each other. (In measuring, the brightest portion of this band was selected as the starting-point.) OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 87 These strl© were most developed on the face P, and corresponded to the edges of planes of cleavage, which, as is well known, is eminent parallel to o P. One of these angles is almost identical with that given by Breithaiipt. I place, however, no confidence on the accu- racy of the measurement, on account of the imperfection referred to. It is, however, worthy of remark, that the angles of Rose, Breithaupt, and my own, give semiaxes divisible by fourteen, or so slightly dif- fering from a multiple of fourteen, that the difference is fully covered by the possible errors of observation. We might conclude from this that the three observers had measured angles between different planes of the same series, were it not that the ratios between the parameters are so improbable as will appear from the following table : — E on i? = 85 4 a = 1.402 nearly 14 X 100 Rose. i^ on Ji = 85 26 OT a = 1.388 " 14 x 99 m = -^%% Breithaupt. RonR = 85 4l7na=l.S18 Miller. Ron R = 85 41 ma= I.S14: " Ux98m=j%% Cooke. Dr. Charles Pickering, at the request of Professor Agassiz, exhibited a map illustrating the distribution of quadrupeds over the earth ; and Professor Agassiz exhibited, and com- pared with this, a map which he had just prepared, illustrating the distribution of animals generally. On motion of Mr. Tread well, it was " Voted, That the second monthly meeting of the present month be passed over, on account of the occurrence of the quarterly meet- ing in this month. Three hundred and ninety-third meeting. January 25, 1854. — (Quarterly Meeting. The President in the chair. The Corresponding Secretary read a letter from the Acade- my of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, acknowledging the re- ception of Vol. V. Part I. of the Memoirs of the Academy. Messrs. Treadwell, Emerson, and Eliot were appomted a committee to arrange for a course of lectures before the Low- ell Institute the next season. The course for 1853-4 was 88 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY given as follows, beginning on Tuesday evening, October 25th, at half past seven o'clock : — By Professor Joseph Lovering, What is Matter? By Professor Joseph Lovering, What are Bodies? By Charles Jackson, Jr., Esq., History of the Useful Arts. By Professor H. L. Eustis, The Britannia Bridge. By Professor J. P. Cooke, Light. By Professor A. Guyot, Psychological and Physical Char- acters of the Nations of Europe, compared with those of the American People. By Professor A. Guyot, The same subject continued. By Professor Asa Gray, The Relation of Plants to the Sun. By Professor Asa Gray, The same subject continued. By Dr. A. A. Gould, Aquatic Life. By Professor Joel Parker, The Science of the Law. By Professor H. D. Rogers, The Arctic Regions. Mr. Folsom proposed a plan for printing the additions to the library, as they accrue, with a small form of type and a hand- press, and pointed out its advantages ; the subject was referred to a committee, consisting of the Librarian, Mr. Folsom, and Dr. Gray. Professor Horsford made a communication upon a mode of rendering gutta percha elastic by the action of sulphur and oxide of lead, so as to render it useful as a substitute for india- rubber for car springs and other purposes where elasticity is required, — an important desideratum, on account of the in- creased price of india-rubber. He had succeeded in his en- deavor, but the substance was not equal in value to vulcan- ized india-rubber. Specimens of gutta percha thus prepared, with various degrees of elasticity, were exhibited. Three Iiundred and uiuety-foartli meeting. February 14, 1854. — Semi-Monthly Meeting. The President in the chair. The Academy met at the house of Professor Treadvvell, in Cambridge. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 89 The Corresponding Secretary acted as Secretary, and read the record of the proceedings of the last meeting. Dr. J. Wyman exhibited to the Academy a dissection of the brain, nerves, and electric organs of the Torpedo occidenialis, Storer, which is occasionally captured at Provincetown, Cape Cod, and adjoining localities, during the month of November. As regards its anatomical structure, it does not differ materially from the European species. Dr. Wyman estimated the num- ber of plates or laminae composing the two batteries at between 250,000 and 300,000 ; the number of prisms was about thirty- six to the square inch. He was able to trace the minute structure of the laminae with the microscope, and found the ultimate distribution of the nerves to be the same as de- scribed by Wagner. Each ultimate nerve-fibre on reaching the lamina divides into a series of branches, which unite and form a complete capillary network over the surface of the plate ; but from these branches others are given off, into which the " white substance " of Schwann does not enter. These last branches also divide ; but at the point of divis- ion a large nucleated cell is generally found ; and the fibres proceeding from this terminate in exceedingly slender, mi- nute points, which seem to be lost on the general surface of the plate. Professor Horsford read a paper by his pupil, Mr. Dean, em- bodying the results of a series of experiments on the nu- tritive value of various amylaceous articles of food, estimated from the percentage of nitrogen they respectively contain. Some remarks were made upon this by the President and Dr. Gray. Professor Horsford also exhibited specimens of the fer- ruginous incrustation of the Cochituate water-pipes, which in some places had occurred to such extent as to diminish their calibre by one sixth, and the flow of water as much as twenty per cent. He thought the incrustation did not proceed now at so large a rate as at first. The President, Mr. Tread-^ VOL. III. 12 90 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY well, and Mr. Charles Jackson, Jr. made various inquiries ; but the reason why some pipes were more acted upon than others was not elicited. Dr. Gray exhibited specimens of a Spongilla taken from the Cochituate water-pipes, in which, at some places, espe- cially where there is no rapid flow, this production is said to form with great rapidity. Three Imudred and. ninety-fifth meeting. February 28, 1854. — Semi-Monthly Meeting. The President in the chair. The Corresponding Secretary acted as Recording Secre- tary, and read the record of the proceedings of the preceding meeting. Professor Cooke submitted a memoir upon a subject which he had brought before the Academy at a former meeting, viz. " The Numerical Relation between the Atomic Weights, with some Thoughts on the Classification of the Chemical Elements." This was illustrated by a new classification of the elements in natural groups. Dr. W. F. Channing stated that he had recently assisted in measuring the electricity evolved by two large magneto-elec- tric machines constructed in Providence. These consisted essentially of armatures with inducing coils revolving before magnets. The amount of electricity evolved by the smaller machine was equal in quantity and intensity to that from a series of fifteen Grove's cups in full action. The amount of electricity evolved from the larger machine was equal to that from one hundred and forty-four Grove's cups, arranged two abreast in a series of seventy-two. The interesting fact here is, that galvanic electricity may be obtained from the magneto- electric machine for practical purposes, in greater quantity and at less cost than from the galvanic battery. Professor Cooke communicated the fact, that an alloy of zinc, with a small quantity of antimony, after having been acted OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 91 upon by dilute sulphuric acid, and then washed free from acid and left in water, continued to evolve pure hydrogen for the space of two months, at the ordinary temperature of the air ; in considerable quantities, at the temperature of 60° or 70° Fahr. ; and in lesser quantity, but without interruption, at 32°. Professor Cooke conjectured that this was owing to the zinc being thrown from the passive to an active state by the action of the acid and of the antimony ; but Dr. W. F. Channing attributed it to the galvanic action developed by the acid, in partly detaching the crystals or particles of the antimony from the zinc, so as to form galvanic circuits. Three hundred and ninety-sixth, meeting. March 14, 1854. — Semi-Monthly Meeting. The President in the chair. The Academy met at the house of George B. Emer- son, Esq. The Corresponding Secretary laid before the Academy a letter from Professor Peters, of Konigsberg, acknowledging his election as Foreign Honorary Member of the Academy ; a letter from the Museum of Practical Geology, London, ac- knowledging the reception of the New Series of the Acade- my's Memoirs to Vol. V. Part I., and Yols. I. and II. of the Pro- ceedings ; letters from the Royal Institution, the British Mu- seum, the Linneean Society, the Society of Antiquaries, and Chevalier Bunsen, acknowledging the reception of Vol. V. Part. I. of the Academy's Memoirs, and pp. 233 to 359 of Vol. II. of the Proceedings ; and a letter from the Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, acknowledging the recep- tion of Vol. V. Part I. of the Academy's Memoirs. Professor Tread well made a communication " On the Measure of Force." In the Newtonian theory, the measure of force is the mass multiplied by the velocity, or as the mo- 92 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY mentum; according to the theoiy of Leibnitz and his fol- lowers, it is the mass multiplied by the square of the velocity. The philosophers who have maintained the first theory are chiefly English ; those who favor the latter theory are chiefly Continental. The object of the communication was to render intelligible, by a simple illustration, the truth of the second theory. Dr. A. A. Hayes exhibited and described a modification of the Photometer invented by Ritchie, by which the illuminat- ing power of two flames can be directly compared. He alluded to the diff'erent methods by which the attain- ment of an accurate measurement had been sought for, by in- tercepting light and comparing shadows, and pointed out the objections to them ; concluding by expressing his opinion that Bunsen's mode, in its adaptation by Mr. King, with the im- provements of Mr. Lewis Thompson, gives the nearest ap- proximation to correctness which has been attained. The instrument exhibited, in the arrangement of the two mirrors and admission of light from the two flames, was es- sentially Ritchie's. But the modification which renders it a more accurate indicator, and more generally useful, consists in reversing the position of the mirror-plates, and removing the oiled paper, so that the two beams of reflected light are projected downward in a small darkened chamber upon a printed page. Two rectangles of light, side by side, are thus made to illuminate a page, the printed lines on which pass across the chamber and have the same words occurring within the lighted space from each flame. The page is viewed through a partly opened leaf in front, and being at a conven- ient distance from the eye, a slight inequality in the light on either side is readily seen. In making the experimental comparisons, the centre of one mirror in the instrument was placed at one hundred and twenty inches from a gas flame by moving the light pedestal support- ing it, and on which it slides. A spermaceti candle burning OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 93 128 grains per hour, contained in a spring stand, was placed in line on an adjusting support. Motion of either the instru- ment or candle allowed the line of direction to be found and maintained constant during the experiment. The can- dle was allowed to burn until the projecting wick dropped its light ash away from the candle, when its burning was constant. Dr. Hayes alluded to the fact, that the color afforded by the two beams of light was different ; and this was apparent on the page, that from the gas light being nearly white, while a brown tint was given to the page by the flame of the can- dle. He stated that, as the light of flames is due to the ignition of solid matter, the illuminating power of any com- bustible cannot be inferred from its chemical composition, and although, as a general rule, those gases or vapors which de- posit solid, finely divided matter by heat are found to be the best for illumination, yet the introduction of finely di- vided solid matter into flames composed of hydrogen or at- mospheric air will produce luminous effects with the same variations in color. In observing the page, as illuminated by the two rectangles of light, the eye soon accustoms itself to judging of the sharp- ness of the outline of the letters, irrespective of the color of the paper, and by retiring backward slightly, the vanishing of the letters on either side is distinctly marked, and the candle can be adjusted to produce equality. The distance of the gas light from the centre of one mirror being constant, the ratio of the light is learned by dividing the square of the gas dis- tance by the square of the candle distance. The illuminating power of the gas burned in this city had been the subject of his experiments, from which he obtained the result, that (for the last nine months) the light from one burner is equal to that of about twenty candles. The best solid material for illumination is the sperm candle ; the illumi- nating powers of wax and sperm candles are as twelve to six- teen. 94 PKOCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Professor Gray read the following communication on the age of a large California Coniferous tree. "The age attained by the largest known trees is a matter of consid- erable interest ; but it is seldom that an opportunity occurs of testing it by an actual counting of the annual layers of the trunk. This is said to have been done in the case of the gigantic tree recently felled near the head of the Stanislaus River, on the Sierra Nevada, Cali- fornia, a section of the trunk of which, at twenty-five feet from the ground and hollowed out to a shell, is now on exhibition at Philadel- phia. The trunk of this tree ' was sound from the sap-wood to the centre ' ; and its annual layers are very distinct to the naked eye in pieces of the wood in my possession. The size of this tree is such as to give it a presumptive claim to rank among the oldest of the present inhabitants of the earth ; its length being 322 feet ; the diam- eter of the trunk, at 5 feet from the ground, 29 feet 2 inches, at 18 " " 14 " 6 " at 200 " " 5 " 5 " including the bark. These measurements are copied from Mr. Lobb's account of the tree, published in England, except the height (by Lobb said to be about three hundred feet), which I have given on the au- thority of the proprietor of the section now at Philadelphia. This section was taken at the height of twenty-five feet from the ground, and, ac- cording to the measurement of my friend, Thomas P. James, Esq. of Philadelphia, it is about twelve feet and a half in diameter, including the bark. Mr. James, at my request, has taken careful measurements of the wood itself, excluding the bark. The three diameters taken by him respectively measure 9 feet 6 inches, 10 feet 4 inches, and 10 feet 10| inches : the average diameter of the trunk at the height of twenty-five feet from the ground is a little over 10 feet 3 inches. From the statements which have appeared, it would seem as if the layers had actually been counted, and ascertained to be 3,000 in num- ber. This surely ought to have been done ; but an examination of the statements does not prove that it was. Mr. Lobb's statement, as definite and reliable as any, is, that ' the trunk of the tree in question was perfectly solid, from the sap-wood to the centre ; and, judgiiig from the number of concentric rings, its age has been estimated at 3,000 years.' " The number of layers, therefore, has only been estimated ; and we are not in possession of the exact data on which the estimate was OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 95 founded. The data wanting are the average thickness of the layers towards the centre, giving the rate of the tree's growth as a young and middle-aged tree, when it must undoubtedly, like other trees, have increased more rapidly than in later years. " Dr. Lindley, I find, (in the Gardener's Chronicle,) has accredited the estimate which assigns to this tree an age of above 3,000 years ; stating that ' it may very well be true, if it does not grow above two inches in diameter in twenty years, which I believe to be the fact.' That rate would indeed give 3,500 layers at the height of five feet from the ground, where it is 29 feet 2 inches in diameter. But this measurement appears to include the bark, — to allow for which Dr. Lindley would perhaps give up the odd 500 years. There is a fur- ther consideration. At twenty-five feet from the ground the diameter of the wood is nearly 10 feet 4 inches. Here the rate of two inches in diameter in twenty years would give the trunk an age of only 1,230 years, so that, on these data, the tree in its youth would have been 1,770 years in adding twenty feet to its stature ! Evidently the base of the trunk is enlarged somewhat in the manner of Taxodium and other allied trees, when old. " The section of the trunk at Philadelphia has been hollowed out, by fire and other means, to a shell of 3 or 4| inches in thickness. Of this I have, through the kindness of the proprietor and of Mr. James, a piece of the wood, including nearly three inches of this section. What is now wanted, and what unfortunately I do not pos- sess, is a foot or two of the wood from the central parts of the tree, — a desideratum which may doubtless be supplied hereafter. The data at hand, however, will suffice for determining an age which the tree cannot exceed, unless it be supposed to have grown more slowly during the earlier nine tenths of its existence than during its later years, — which is directly contrary to the ascertained fact in respect to trees in general. Now the piece of wood in my hands exhibits an average of 48 layers in an inch. The semidiameter of the trunk at the place where it was taken is 5 feet 2 inches. If the tree increased in diameter at the same rate throughout, there would have been 2,976 annual layers ; which, allowing 24 years for the tree to have attained the height of 25 feet, would give it an age of 3,000 years from the seed. This corresponds so closely with Dr. Lindley's estimate, that we may suppose him to have employed equivalent data in a similar manner. How great a deduction must we make from this estimate, 96 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY in consideration of the greater thickness of the layers as a younger tree ? The only direct data I possess bearing on this point are derived from a piece of a transverse section, 3| inches deep, of a ' rail ' which the exhibitor says was taken from the trunk at the height of 275 feet from the ground. As its layers, on a breadth of nearly seven eighths of an inch, show only a slight perceptible curvature, it must have come from a part of the trunk still of several feet in di- meter. On this section the exterior inch, nearly all alburnum, con- tains 90 layers ; the next, 60 ; the next, 45 ; the remaining half-inch, 16, making 32 to the inch. That the exterior layers should be thin- ner at this height than those near the base of the tree, is just what would be expected. If we apply this ratio of decrease of the num- ber of layers to the inch as we proceed inwards, to the section at twenty-five feet from the ground, we should, at four inches within that part of the circumference which I have examined, have only 17 layers to the inch, which, taken as the average thickness, would make the tree only 1034 -|- 24 = 1058 years old. But it is not probable that the thickness of the layers increases so rapidly. The data we possess on other trees go to show that a tree, after it is 400 or 500 years old, increases in diameter at a pretty uniform rate for each twenty additional years, on the whole, although the difference in the thickness of any two or more contiguous layers, or of the same layer in different parts of the circumference, is often very great. Still, when we consider how very much thicker are the annual layers of a vigorous young than of an old one, perhaps we should not be war- ranted in assuming more than the average of 17 layers to the inch for the whole section. " Some useful data may be obtained from a tree more nearly re- lated than any other to the two California ones, though of a different genus, namely, the so-called Cypress of our Southern States ( Taxodium distichum). I possess three sections of different trees of Taxodium, reaching from the centre to the circumference. One of these, on an average radius of 27 inches, exhibits 670 layers ; a second, on a radius of 30 inches, has 525 ; a third, on a radius of 22 inches, has 534 layers. The average is 576 layers to a semidiameter of 26 inches, or about 22 layers to an inch. Half of this growth (13 inches radius) was attained at the close of the first century ; while the ex- terior layers of the oldest specimens were only the fiftieth or sixtieth of an inch in thickness. We have reason to believe, therefore, that OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 97 the Wellingtonia (as it is called) of California is at least as rapid in its growth as the Taxodium. We may safely infer, I think, in the absence of other data, that when the tree in question had attained the size of 26 inches in semidiameter, it was only 576 years old. If thereafter we suppose it to have increased at the intermediate rate of 35 layers per inch for the next 26 inches, and at the actual rate of the last century (as ascertained by inspection), namely, at 48 layers per inch, for the remaining 10 inches, we should assign to it the age of 2,066 years as its highest probable age. I think it more likely to be shown, when the wanting data are supplied, that the tree does not antedate the Christian era. There are said to be eighty or ninety such trees, of from ten to twenty feet in diameter, growing within the circuit of a mile from the one felled. When the next of these ven- erable trees is wantonly destroyed, it is to be hoped that its layers will be accurately counted on the whole section, and the thickness of each century's growth carefully measured on the radius. " The tree in question is a near relative of the Redioood of California, namely, the Taxodium sempervirens of Don, of late very properly distinguished as a separate genus under the unmeaning and not eupho- nious name of Sequoia, — a tree now growing in England, and spar- ingly also in our own vicinity, where it is barely hardy. My friend, Dr. Torrey, has for nearly a year possessed specimens of foliage of this tree, which he took to be a new species of Sequoia. The fruit and branches of the juniper-like foliage (probably only one form of a dimorphous foliage, which is common in Cupressinea.) having been received in England from Mr. Lobb by Dr. Lindley and Sir William Hooker, they have recognized in this tree the type of a new genus distinct from Sequoia, to which the former has given the name of Wellingtonia, The wood is, I believe, much the same as that of the Redwood, which tree also attains a gigantic size. The prin- cipal characters yet ascertained are that the cones of Wellingtonia are oblong, and have a thick woody axis. Additional materials are needed to confirm the genus, if such it be." Mr. Paine made the following communication on the ap- proaching eclipse of the sun : — " On the afternoon of Friday, the 26th of May next, there will be an eclipse of the sun visible and generally large throughout the United States, and actually annular in part of the Territories of Washington VOL. III. 13 98 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY and Minnesota, of Vancouver's Island, of Canada West, and of the States of Michigan, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, and Massachusetts. " A central, or very nearly central, solar eclipse, at any place, is indeed of rare occurrence. At the city of Paris only one takes place in the 133 years between 1767 and 1900, and although in Boston we have been more favored than Paris, the phenomenon in the cen- tury and a quarter between 1775 and 1901, and perhaps many more years, occurs here but four times ; namely, in the annular obscurations of April 2, 1791; May 26, 1854 ; and September 28, 1875; and in that which was total, on June 16, 1806. The eclipse of February 12, 1831, was also annular at Nantucket and at Chatham, Cape Cod, but not elsewhere in New England. " From computations, the results of which are more particularly given below, it appears that the path of the central eclipse of the 26th of May first enters upon the earth in the North Pacific Ocean near the Caroline Islands, in Lat. of about 6|° North, Long. 197° West ; thence taking a northeasterly direction, it touches our con- tinent near Cape Flattery in Washington Territory ; it thence passes over Vancouver's Island, British Oregon, Minnesota, Isle Royale, Lake Superior, Canada West, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine, to the Atlantic, where it leaves the earth in Lat. of about 36°, Long. 52°, having in 3''- 41"- 2P-, the time of its continuance thereon, run over 145| degrees of longitude and 56 of latitude. " It, moreover, appears that the duration of the ring, where central, in Washuigton Territory, is four and a half minutes, (which is nearly its longest duration at any place,) and in New York and New England somewhat less than four, although the ring is about ten seconds broader, and the distance between the lines of the northern and south- ern limits of the annular phase about thirty miles greater in the north- eastern than in the northwestern part of the United States. " In the Northeastern States, these limits will be well represented by lines drawn on a map, one from the southwestern part of the island of Montreal, over the southern part of the towns of Gardiner and St. George in Maine, to the ocean, and another from Ameliasburg in Canada West, over EUisburg and Saratoga Springs in New York, Bennington, Vt., Leyden, Sterling, Dedham, Marshfield, and Orleans, in Massachusetts. These lines will be nearly parallel, and distant about 145 English miles, and will include between them the northeastern part of New York, OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 99 nearly the whole of Vermont, all but the northern part of New Hamp- shire, the southwestern part of Maine, and, in Massachusetts, the north- eastern part of the counties of Franklin, Worcester, Norfolk, Plymouth, and Barnstable, nearly the whole of Middlesex, and the whole of Suffolk and Essex. A third line, drawn nearly equidistant between the two others, from the southern part of Isle Royale in Lake Superior to Ogdensburg, N, Y., thence over Middlebury, Vt., Hanover, Sanbornton, Gilmanton, and Rochester, N. H., to the ocean at Cape Neddock in York, Maine, will represent the path of the central eclipse ; as a fourth, from Gibraltar Point, near Toronto, C. W., over Delhi and Kingston, N. Y., Middletown, Conn., to Block Island, R. I., will that of the line of eleven digits of obscuration on the north limb of the sun. " As sixty-three years have passed since the occurrence of the last annular eclipse in New England, and as in the last forty-six years of the present century only one more will take place, it is not doubted that the one of May 26th will be viewed with interest by every spec- tator ; but it is hoped that those observers, within the limits of the ring, who may be provided with a good telescope, will give particular at- tention to the singular appearances which so often have been noticed at the second and third contacts, and which, in consequence of having been minutely described by the late Mr. Bailly, are known by his name, especially as there is some reason for the suspicion that these beads, &c. may be seen or not, at the pleasure of the observer, according as he employs a screen colored red or green. " In the eclipse of February 12, 1831, which was viewed by the writer at the light-house on Monomoy Point, off Chatham, with a red screen, these beads were, just before the formation of the ring, so very conspicuous, that it was difficult to determine with precision when it actually took place, whilst in that which was annular in Washington in September, 1838, and that which was total near Savannah in No- vember, 1834, these appearances could not be perceived by him, al- though carefully looked for through a screen composed of two glasses, one shaded light red, the other light green. " Indeed, it is particularly desirable that at some places there will be two observers furnished with telescopes of nearly the same optical power, but with screens colored green and red, who, after the second contact, shall exchange their instruments for their observations on the third, and shall note carefully the appearances and phenomena by which each contact is attended. 100 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY " The elements of the moon used for the following computations (except the parallax and semidiameter) are the mean of the quantities deduced from the tables of Damoiseau and Burckhardt. Those of the latter were taken from the English and French Nautical Almanacs, but those of Damoiseau were computed for May 26th, 6, 8, 10, and 12 hours of Paris, and thence interpolated for every hour of the me- ridian of Greenwich. Whilst the difference of the tables in latitude is small, or about a second and a half, in longitude it is very consider- able, or eleven seconds. For the parallax, that of Burckhardt was pre- ferred, as corrected by Mr. Adams, one of the distinguished discover- ers of the planet Neptune, who, in a memoir affixed to the Nautical Almanac for 1856, appears to have thoroughly investigated the subject. Path of the Central Eclipse of the Sun over the Earth, Friday, May 26, 185-1, according to the Tables of Damoiseau and Burckhardt, for every Fifth Minute whilst crossing the North Pacific Ocean, and for every Minute of the Remainder of the Time of its Continu- ance on the Earth. Mean Time at Greenwich. Mean Time Gr. Eclipse ( Lat. Nortli. !^entral in Long. West. Mean Time Gr. Eclipse Lai. Nortli. Central in Long. West. h. m. 6 54 s. 55 0 ) 6 38 o / 197 7 li. m. 8 30 s. 0 O I 41 5 144 40 55 0 7 23 195 22 35 0 42 3 142 54 55 2 7 38 194 34 40 0 42 58 141 4 55 6 7 59 193 46 45 0 43 50 139 11 6 57 30 11 18 187 11 50 0 44 39 137 13 7 0 0 13 11 183 18 55 0 45 26 135 11 5 0 16 12 178 35 *8 55 55 45 34.1 134 47.6 10 0 18 37 174 43 9 0 0 46 10 133 2.9 15 0 20 45 171 40 5 0 46 50 130 50.0 20 0 22 40 169 15 10 0 47 27 128 30.3 25 0 24 26 167 0 15 0 48 0.5 126 3.5 30 0 26 5 164 57 16 0 48 6.7 125 33.4 35 0 27 39 163 2 1 9 17 0 48 12.8 125 3.0 40 45 0 0 29 8 30 33 161 14 159 30 Wash 1 ington Ter ritory. 50 0 31 55 157 50 9 18 0 48 18.7 124 32.3 7 55 0 33 14 156 12 ' 19 0 24.4 124 1.3 8 0 0 34 29 154 35 20 0 30.0 123 30.1 5 0 35 41 152 58 21 0 35.4 122 58.5 10 0 36 51 151 21 22 0 40.6 122 26.6 15 0 37 58 149 44 •23 0 45.7 121 54.3 20 0 39 3 148 5 24 0 50.5 121 21.7 8 25 0 40 5 146 24 1 9 25 0 48 55.2 120 48.9 * On the meridian of the place. OP ARTS AND SCIENCES. 101 Mean Time Gr. Eclipse ' Lat. Norih. f Central in Long. West. Mean Time Gr. Eclipse ( Lat. North. Central in Long. West. h. m. s. 9 26 0 48 59.7 120 15.8 h. m. s. o / Isle Royale, Lake . O / Superior. British Oregon. 10 9 0 48 0.7 89 37.3 9 27 0 28 0 49 4.0 8.1 119 42.4 119 8.6 Lake Superior. 29 0 12.0 118 34.5 10 10 0 47 50.2 88 40.0 30 0 15.7 118 0.0 11 0 38.9 87 41.4 31 0 19.2 117 25.1 12 0 27.0 86 41.5 32 0 22.5 116 49.8 10 13 0 47 14.3 85 40.1 33 0 34 0 25.6 28.5 116 14.2 115 38.2 Canada West. 35 0 31.1 115 1.9 10 14 0 47 0.9 84 37.2 36 0 33.5 114 25.2 15 0 46 46.6 83 32.6 37 0 35.7 113 48.2 16 0 31.3 82 26.3 38 0 37.6 113 10.7 17 0 46 14.8 81 17.9 39 0 39.3 112 32.8 18 0 45 57.1 80 7.2 40 0 40.8 111 54.6 19 0 38.0 78 53.9 41 0 42.0 111 16.0 20 0 45 17.5 77 37.6 42 0 43.0 110 36.9 21 0 44 55.3 76 17.8 43 0 43.7 109 57.4 21 15 49.5 75 57.2 44 0 44.1 109 17-5 10 21 30 44 43.5 75 36.4 *45 0 46 0 44.3 44.2 108 37.1 107 56.3 State of Neio York. 47 0 43.8 107 15.0 10 21 45 44 37.4 75 15.3 48 0 43.1 106 33.2 22 0 31.2 74 53.9 49 0 42.0 105 50.9 22 15 24.8 74 32.3 50 0 40.6 105 8.1 22 30 18.3 74 10.3 51 0 39.0 104 24.9 10 22 45 44 11.6 73 48.0 52 0 53 0 37.0 34.7 103 41.1 102 56.8 Lake Champlain. 54 0 32.0 102 11.9 10 23 0 44 4.8 73 25.4 55 0 56 0 28.9 25.5 101 26.4 100 40.4 State of Vermont. 57 0 21.7 99 53.8 10 23 15 43 57.8 73 2.4 58 0 17.5 99 6.5 23 30 50.6 72 39.0 9 59 0 12.9 98 18.6 10 23 45 43 43.3 72 15.3 10 0 0 1 0 7.9 49 2.5 97 30.1 96 41.0 State of New Hamjjshire. 2 0 48 56.6 95 51.1 10 24 0 43 35.7 71 51.2 3 0 50.2 95 0.4 24 15 27.9 71 26.7 10 4 0 48 43.3 94 8.9 10 24 30 43 19.9 71 1.8 JV. E. Con ler of Minnesota Terr. State of Maine. 10 5 0 48 35.9 93 16.6 10 24 45 43 11.6 70 36.2 6 0 7 0 28.0 19.5 92 23.2 91 28.8 Atlantic Ocean. 10 8 0 48 10.4 90 33.5 10 25 0 43 3.2 70 10.1 Greatest north latitude of the central path. 102 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Mean Time Gr. Lat. Eclipse North. Central in Long. West. 1 Mean TimeGr. Lat. Eclipse North. Central Long. in West. h. m. s. 0 I O ) 1 h. m. s. o / o / 10 26 0 42 26.4 68 18.2 10 30 0 37 54.2 55 58.6 27 0 41 43.7 66 13.9 30 12 37 5.7 53 56.7 28 0 40 52.4 63 48.9 i 30 15 36 41.8 52 57.3 10 29 0 39 45.4 60 47.5 10 30 16.1 36 17.4 51 56.8 Duration of the eentral eclipse on the earth, 3^ 41™- 2P-.1. According to the Tables of Damoiseau and Burckhardt, the eclipse at the following places will be annular, and take place as follows, in mean time of the respective places : — Latitude, Boston. Brunswick, Me. Cambridge Obs. O 1 ly 42 21 23 O / 43 53 O 1 )/ 42 22 48 Longitude, 71 3 37 69 55 71 7 30 h. m. s. li. m. s. h. m. s. Eclipse begins, 4 27 12 4 30 47 4 26 52.5 Formation of the Ring, 5 40 28 5 43 10 5 40 8.6 Least distance of centres, 41 27 44 21 41 8.8 Rupture of the Ring, 5 42 27 5 45 32 5 42 9.1 End of the Eclipse, 6 47 33 6 50 8 6 47 16.0 Duration of the Ring, 1 59 2 22 2 0.5 " " Eclipse, At least J" of north limbs, 2 20 21 2 19 21 2 20 23.5 7.25 92.66 ^ 7.37 distance. < of centres, 44.43 40.94 44.30 Distance ( of south limbs. 96.11 10.78 95.98 Point of beginning, 150.5 151.5 150.5 " end. 34.0 38.1 34.0 Latitude, Concord, N. H. Hanover, N. H. Middlebury, Vt. o / » 43 12 30 O / II 43 42 26 O ( 44 0 Longitude, 71 29 72 16 45 73 10 h. m. s. h. ni. s. h. ni. s. Eclipse begins. 4 24 8 4 19 42.4 4 15 3 Formation of the Ring, 5 36 43 5 32 41.0 5 28 32 Least distance of centres, 38 38 34 38.6 30 30 Rupture of the Ring, 5 40 32 5 36 36.2 5 32 28 End of the Eclipse, 6 45 0 6 41 25.4 6 37 42 Duration of the Ring, 3 49 3 55.2 3 56 " " Eclipse, At least ( of north limbs. 2 20 52 2 21 43.0 2 22 39 39.61 50.66 51.33 distance. < of centres. 11.91 0.66 0.19 Distance ( of south limbs. 63.43 51.98 50.99 Point of beginning. 150.8 150.7 150.5 " end. 35.5 36.0 35.9 OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 103 Latitude, Ogdensburg, N. Y. Portsmouth, N. H. Scarboro' Harbor. O 1 II 44 42 0 O ! II 43 4 35 o 1 /; 48 21 49 Longitude, 75 31 30 70 45 18 124 37 12 h. m. s. h. m. s. h. m. s. Eclipse begins. 4 2 40 4 27 47 11 22 52 Formation of the Ring, 5 17 29 5 39 55 0 57 11 Least distance of centres. 19 28 41 52 0 59 26 Rupture of the Ring, 5 21 26 5 43 47 1 1 40 End of the Eclipse, 6 27 46 6 47 54 2 33 41 Duration of the Ring, 3 57 3 52 4 29 " " Eclipse, At least r of north limbs, 2 25 6 2 20 7 3 10 49 50.80 44.32 46.48 distance. < of centres, 0.16 7.35 3.37 Distance { of south limbs, 50.48 59.02 39.74 Point of beginning, 149.9 150.9 101.4 " end, 35.6 35.1 32.0 At the following places the eclipse will not be annular. The obscu- ration at Halifax, N. S., Charlottetown, P. E. I., and Montreal, being on the southern side of the sun, and at the other places on the northern. Charlottetown, Georgetown Halifax, Middletown Latitude North, P. E. Lsland. Obs., D. C. Nova Scotia. Obs., Conn. O 1 46 14 O / // 38 54 26 O 1 ;/ 44 39 20 O 1 // 41 33 8 Longitude West, 63 8 77 4 33 63 26 8 72 38 30 h. m. s. h. ni. s. h. m. s. h. m. s. Eclipse begins, 4 59 31 4 2 33.2 4 59 52.8 4 20 39.6 Greatest obscuration. 6 9 4 5 19 45.2 6 9 47.9 5 35 43.9 End of Eclipse, Duration, 7 12 6 6 27 28.8 7 12 59.0 6 42 21.4 2 21 41.8 2 12 35 2 24 55.6 2 13 6.2 Point of beginning, 154.5 147.1 153.7 149.6 " end. 48.1 21.8 44.8 31.1 Digits eclipsed, 10.147 9.814 10.594 11.013 Latitude North, Longitude West, Eclipse begins. Greatest obscuration, End of Eclipse, Duration, Point of beginning, " end. Digits eclipsed. Nantucltet Obs., Mass. New York C.H., N. Y. Philadelphia Observatory. Portland, Ore- gon. o / // 41 16 56 70 5 40 h. m. s. 4 33 8.8 5 46 46.0 6 52 16.4 o / /; 40 42 40 74 0 30 h. m. s. 4 15 8.9 5 30 55.8 6 37 55.1 39 57 9 75 10 0 h. m. s. 4 10 31.8 5 26 48.8 6 34 6.9 45 30.1 122 27 5 h. m. s. 11 31 59 1 11 10 2 46 57 2 19 7.6 150.3 32.6 11.173 2 22 46.2 148.9 28.2 10.640 2 23 35.1 148.2 25.6 10.306 3 14 58 9°7.9 22.0 10.675 104 PROCEEDINGS OP THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Providence Obs.. R.I. Latitude North, Longitude West, Eclipse begins, Greatest obscuration, End of Eclipse, Duration, Point of beginning, " end, Digits eclipsed, O / II 41 49 32 71 24 15 h. m. 8. 4 26 14.6 5 40 38.6 6 46 47.1 San Francisco, Cdliforiiia. 2 20 32.5 150.2 32.7 11.207 O ; // 37 47 36 122 26 48 h. m. s. 11 25 3 1 3 59 2 45 55 3 20 52 7°6.2 2.8 8.123 Toronto Obs., Canada West. o / » 43 39 24 79 21 30 h. m. s. 3 44 40.6 5 3 50.0 6 13 50.4 Williamstown Obs., Mass. O I II 42 42 49 73 12 37 h. m. s. 4 16 26.0 5 31 54.5 6 38 58.2 2 29 9.8 \ o 148.3 30.6 11.059 2 22 32.2 150.0 33.2 11.301 At Eastham Church, Cape Cod, Mass., in Lat. 41° 50' 26", Long. 69° 58' 40", the least distance of the centres (51".81) will take place at 5''- 46™- 3P- ; diff. of semidiameters 51". 94 ; from which it appears that the line of the southern limit of the ring passes on to the Atlan- tic about two miles south of Nausett lights, or in Lat. 41° 49' 37", Long. 69° 56' 50". At Montreal, Canada, Lat. 45° 31', Long. 73° 35', the least dis- tance, 62". 3, will be at 5''- 26"'- 40'- ; and as the difference of the semi- diameters will be 51".5 only, the eclipse will not be annular there, but probably will be so in the southwestern extremity of Montreal Island. The village of Saratoga Springs, N. Y., Lat. 43° 3', Long. 73° 43', appears to be situated exactly under the line of the southern limit of the ring, as the least distance of the centres (51".2), which occurs at 5''- 29™. 3, is, according to the tables, the same as the difference of the semidiameters. The difference between the absolute or Greenwich times of the be- ginning at Georgetown, New York, Boston, Brunswick, Charlottetown, &c., is quite small, or less than two minutes, or from 9''- 10™' 27'- to 9''12™' 3"' The time at any other place between them, and near the Atlantic, may therefore be easily ascertained with a good degree of accuracy, and without a direct computation, by subtracting its longi- tude from about 9'' ll'"", and in this manner the time of the begin- ning at the following cities and towns was ascertained. The angle of the point at which the first impression will be made on the sun, or at which the eclipse will commence, is reckoned from the vertex to the right hand, and that at which the obscuration will end, from the vertex to the left (except at San Francisco, where it is also to the right), as OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 105 seen through an erect telescope. For one that inverts, it is necessary to add 180^ At those places marked with an asterisk, the eclipse will be annular. Place. Albany, N. Y., Amherst, Mass., *Andover, Mass., Annapolis, Md., Baltimore, Md., Bangor, Me., Burlington, N. J., Burlington, Vt., *Dover, N. H., Eastport, Me., *Exeter, N. H., Gloucester, Mass., * Lowell, Mass., Montreal, C. E., Newark, N. J., Eclipse begins. P.M. Angle from Vertex. h. m. 4 14.0 150 4 20.2 150 4 26.4 151 4 5.0 148 4 4.5 147 4 36.0 153 4 11.7 148 4 14.3 151 4 27.1 151 4 43.5 153 4 27.0 151 4 28.0 151 4 25.5 151 4 11.3 151 4 14.5 149 Place. N. Bedford, Mass., *Newburyp't, Ms., N. Haven, Conn., Newport, R. I., Norwich, Conn., *Plattsburg, N.Y., Plymouth, Mass., *Portland, Me., Princeton, N. J., |*Provincetown,Ms., *Salem, Mass., Springfield, Mass., Trenton, N. J., West Point, N. Y., Worcester, Mass., Eclipse begins. P.M. Angle from Vertex. h. m. 4 28.6 150 4 27.5 151 4 19.5 149 4 27.0 150 4 23.5 150 4 12.2 150 4 29.3 150 4 29.7 151 4 12.5 148 4 31.5 151 4 27.6 151 4 20.5 150 4 12.1 148 4 14.6 149 4 24.1 150 Elements of the Eclipse. I Iea7i Time at Greenwich. Hour. ©'s Longitude. ©'3 Lat. ©• s Right Asc. Declination. Semidiam. Sid. Time. 5 6°5 3 26.60 N.6.05 0 63 6 54.62 O ; // 21 9 35.18 15 48.91 b. m. s. 4 15 44.14 6 5 50.55 .06 9 26.47 10 1.08 48.90 15 54.00' 7 8 14.50 .06 11 58.32 10 26.94 48.89 16 3.86, 8 10 38.45 .07 14 30.19 10 52.77 48.89 16 13.71 9 13 2.40 .08 17 2.07 11 18.56 48.88 16 23.57 10 15 26.35 .08 19 33.97 11 44.31 48.87 16 33.43 11 17 50.30 .09 22 5.87 12 10.02 48.87 16 43.28 12 65 20 14.24 N.0.09 63 24 37.79, 21 12 35.69 15 48.86 4 16 53.14 O's Horizontal Parallax, 8".46 ; Obliquity, 23° 27' 34". 1 ; EUipti- city, ^i(jth. Lunar Elements hy Burckhardt and Damoiseau. Hour. Moon's Longitude. B. greater. D. less, by Moon's Latitude North. B. greater, D. less, by Ada Moon's Eq. Par. ms's ■Semidiam- eter. O ; ;; /; / /( // 1 II 1 i\ 5 64 18 40:i6 f^ If^ 64 48 47.79 t^ V^^l 6.5 18 54.58 ^0 6-/9 66 19 5.77 „„ . .. 66 49 10.22 ^^ ^-^^ 5.36 10 56.34^ i; 7 13 43.71 I %% 16 30.90 ^ "^-ll ^l ^^-^O 2 46:82 ^f .\il 2 46.64 24 51.36 ^ 27 37.80 ~ *°-^J 30 24.05 " ^^-^ 0.82 54 34.94 14 54.16 6 5.34 0.73 34.17 53.95 7 5.36 0.67 33.41 .53 74 8 5.43 0.63 32.66 53.54 9 5.51 0.62 31.91 53.33 10 5.60 0.63 31.16 53.13 11 5.67 0.62 30.43 52.93 12 5.70 0.59 54 29.70 14 52.73 VOI,. III. X4 106 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Hour. 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Moon's Right Ascension. Moon's Declination. 14 o 61 61 45 62 16 62 47 63 18 63 50 64 21 64 53 5.22 14.75 27.01 41.99 59.61 19.93 42.94 8.62 31 31 31 31 ; o 9.53^^ 12.26 14.98 17.62 31 20.32 31 23.01 31 25.68 21 0 48.77 9 16.78 17 38.84 25 54,90 34 4.91 42 8.83 50 6.64 57 58.31 8 28.01 8 22.06 8 16.06 8 10.01 8 3.92 7 57.81 7 51.67 Damoiseau's Moon's I Semidiam- Ecj. Par. eler. 54 54 33.58 32.82 32.07 31.32 30.58 29.86 29.16 28.51 14 52.49 52.28 52.07 51.87 51.67 51.47 51.28 14 51.10 Three Iiuntlred and niuety-seventli meeting. March 28, 1854. — Semi-Monthly Meeting. The Vice-President, and afterwards the President, in the chair. The Corresponding Secretary read a letter from the Trus- tees of the Astor Library, acknowledging the reception of Vol. V. Part I. of the Academy's Memoirs, and Vols, II, and III, (as far as published) of the Proceedings; also a letter from Rev, Charles Brooks on the Weather Law. Professor Levering exhibited a bioscope ; an optical instru- ment for giving the motions of life to pictures, and illustrating the great advancement of optical science. This instrument combines the three important modern discoveries of the da- guerreotype, the stereoscope, and the phenakistiscope. The da- guerreotype gives a perfect picture, without solidity or motion ; the stereoscope suggests the idea of solidity without motion ; the phenakistiscope imparts life by motion. The bioscope obtains perfect figures from the daguerreotype. By a stere- oscopic arrangement of mirrors adapted to both eyes, the figures acquire solidity ; and by the revolution of the phena- kistiscope, the figures exhibit the motions of life. It requires some practice to see all that the instrument is capable of showing ; and the combination admits of considerable im- provement. Professor W, B, Rogers made a communication on the natu- ral coke found in the vicinity of Richmond, Virginia. This OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 107 coke is almost entirely free from volatile or bituminous mat- ters, being less puffy than ordinary coke, but less compact than anthracite. In the vicinity of the coal-seams are dikes of trap- rock. One hundred and twenty feet below the surface there is a bed of trap-rock, twenty-five feet in thickness ; below this is a clay-slate, almost vitrified, commonly called " basalt," which has assumed a columnar crystallization ; below this are alternating beds of sandstones and slates. Then, at the depth of sixty feet below the trap, there are ten or twelve feet of this coke, having occasional traces of vegetable remains, and at the bottom of the bed having a small amount of bituminous matter. Twenty feet below this is a half-coky coal, and fifteen feet below this, the ordinary bituminous coal of the country. These strata plainly indicate the graduation and diminution of the heating action in a downward direction. It is very curious, that in the beds of carboniferous slate above the trap there is no indication of this metamorphic action ; there are even seams of coal above it ; the veins of injected material must have been thrown up from beneath, the heating action extending from the interposed trap in a downward direction- This series of strata is therefore interesting, as proving that there were periods of igneous activity during the deposition of these formations. Three hundred and ninety-eiglitli meetingi April 11, 1854. — Semi-Monthly Meeting. The President in the chair. Professor Levering exhibited a model of an instrument for producing great velocities in experimental physics, particularly in optics. The motion is produced by a spring acting upon a train of wheels, and may be very suddenly diminished or increased by friction. With it were performed several experi- ments by the rapid revolution of variously painted cards ; as of mixing the prismatic colors, and any two complementary tints or colors to form white. The instrument is of practical 108 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY use to painters in mixing colors, as the effect of mixing any two colors may be at once seen. Dove, of Berlin, has used this instrument in showing that, when the eye has rested for a certain time on a bright color and then is turned to a white surface, the retina becomes partly insensible to the first color and feels more strongly its complementary color. These ex- periments were also shown. Dr. Hayes exhibited some of the juice of the India-rubber tree, preserved from decomposition by a patent process. By the addition of a weak alkali to the recent juice, a substance prone to acetous fermentation is so changed that the forma- tion of acid is prevented. This has led to many new applica- tions of this useful substance. He exhibited specimens of perfectly pure India-rubber obtained from this milky juice ; the consistence of the latter is between that of milk and cream ; it yields from 48 to 52 per cent, of solid India-rubber. What he wished particularly to draw the attention of the Academy to was the fact, that this substance, in its normal state, is perfectly transparent ; it is curious that from this entirely opaque fluid a transparent India-rubber should be ob- tained by simple desiccation. He exhibited a glass vessel coated inside and outside with this material, which did not in the least diminish the transparency of the glass, and was rec- ognizable only by the touch ; he had found that a considera- ble number of coatings did not diminish the transparency. Dr. Kneeland read an abstract of the views of Messrs. Nott and GHddon, as given in a work just published, entitled " Types of Mankind," in which the strongest arguments are given in favor of the theory of the original diversity of the human races ; based in a great measure on the proofs derived from the Egyptian monuments, that at least four human races have remained distinct in and around the valley of the Nile from ages anterior to 3,500 years B. C, and consequently long an- terior to any alphabetic chronicles, sacred or profane ; the first part of the book ending with the conclusion " that there ex- ists a genus Homo embracing many primordial types or ' spe- OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 109 cies.' " The second and third parts of the work are upon those portions of Scripture which bear upon the origin of man- kind. Dr. A. A. Gould alluded to the alleged fossil human bones from the upper part of Florida, and expressed the opinion of himself, and others who had examined the localities, that they had no claim to be considered as fossil bones. The Corresponding Secretary read a letter from the Geologi- cal Society of London, acknowledging the reception of Vol. V. Part. I. of the Academy's Memoirs. Also letters from the Verein fiir Vaterlaendische Naturkunde, at Wlirtemberg, and the Societe des Sciences Naturelles de Cherbourg, requesting an exchange of publications with the Academy ; the latter Society had already sent one volume of its publications, in octavo. Three liitndrecl and ninety-ninth meeting. April 25, 1854. — Semi-Monthly Meeting. The President in the chair. Letters were read from the Ethnological Society of London, Rear-Admiral Smyth, and the Breslau Akademie der Natur- forscher, acknowledging the reception of Vol. V. Part L of the Academy's Memoirs ; letters from the K. K. Geologische Reichsanstalt of Vienna, and the Academic Royale des Sci- ences de Stockholm, acknowledging the reception, the former of Vol. IV. Part. IL, and the latter of Vol. V. Part L of the Academy's Memoirs, and transmitting also donations of their publications in exchange ; and letters from the Royal Insti- tution of London, the Akademie der Wissenschaften of Vienna and the Royal Danish Academy of Sciences of Copenhagen, presenting their publications. Professor Horsford presented the following paper, offered to the Academy at a former meeting, and since revised and modi- fied, " On the Value of the different Kinds of Prepared Vecre- table Food," by John Dean. 110 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY " The following investigation, carried on in the laboratory of the Lawrence Scientific School, at the suggestion of Professor Horsford and under his direction, had for its object the determination of the nutritive values of the several kinds of prepared vegetable food found in our markets, particularly those allied in constitution to the starches, and is based on the amount of nitrogen contained in each. It is a well-known fact in physiological chemistry, that food to be nutritious must contain the ingredients necessary for the formation of the tissues and bones, as well as for the production of heat and formation of fat. The elements of which the tissues are formed are constantly under- going changes, and the matter which at one time sustains vital activity is excreted, and replaced by new matter derived by means of the blood from the food. It is therefore necessary that food should contain the same substances or elements which are found in the different parts of the animal frame. These are carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, sulphur, phosphorus, and some inorganic bases and salts. It is evident at a glance that they may be divided immediately into two classes, organic and inorganic. It is with the former class that we have chiefly to deal in the following pages. The organic class may be subdivided into bodies containing nitrogen, — with which are commonly associated, besides carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, small quantities of sulphur and phosphorus, — and bodies containing no nitrogen, and conforming near- ly to the formula of starch, Cja H,o Oiq. We have thus divided the ele- ments composing the animal frame, and consequently the elements of food, into three classes, each of which plays its individual part in the animal organism ; — 1st. Bodies containing nitrogen, nitrogenous in- gredients of food ; such are albumen, gluten, &c. 2d. Non-nitrogen- ous bodies, starch, sugar, &c. 3d. Inorganic salts. These, as is well known, are of use in the following manner. The nitrogenous bodies enter into the composition of the tissues. Those containing no nitro- gen contribute to form fat, and from their solution in the blood produce heat, their carbon being gradually burned by means of the oxygen inhaled by the lungs. Lastly, the inorganic salts assist in forming the bones, and enter into the composition of every organ of the body. Their values for the first-mentioned purpose have been the object of the following determinations. " In regard to the specimens analyzed, they were taken in the market- able condition, and as it is often the case that tapioca, sago, and arrow- root are largely adulterated, care was taken to procure them of as OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. Ill good a quality as possible. The arrowroot, which is the most exten- sively adulterated of the three, was tested both by means of the vapor of iodine and the microscope, so that no doubt might exist of its being a pure article. " The determinations were made in the following manner. The dif- ferent specimens were dried in watch-glasses at a temperature of 100° C. (212° F.), and were all dried for the water determinations in their market condition, with the exception of maccaroni, which seemed likely to offer so much resistance to the escape of moisture, that it was pul- verized previously to drying. They were then all pulverized, thorough- ly dried at the same temperature (100° C), and the determinations of carbon, hydrogen, and nitrogen made. The combustions for carbon and hydrogen were effected in the usual manner with oxide of copper, the portion of oxide of copper at the extremity of the tube being in- timately mixed with very finely pulverized chlorate of potassa. The nitrogen was determined as ammonio-chloride of platinum by ignition with soda-lime, according to the method of Varrentrapp and Will. As the amount of nitrogen was exceedingly small in most of the specimens, it was supposed that the chloride of ammonium produced in the hydrochloric acid employed, by the absorption of ammonia from the air, might produce a perceptible effect upon the results of the analyses. Coincident determinations were therefore made with the hydrochloric acid in every analysis, by evaporating portions of acid and bichloride of platinum equal to those actually employed in deter- mining the results of the combustions, collecting the precipitate on a weighed filter as usual, washing with alcohol, &c. It was found, how- ever, in every case, that the filter lost more from washing with alcohol than it gained by the precipitate ; it was therefore necessary to make a small addition, generally about 0.0014 grm. to the amount of ammo- nio-chloride of platinum obtained from the combustion. In making a statement of the results, the nitrogen was taken as the basis of the calculation ; carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and sulphur were distributed to it according to the proportions indicated by the -formulae of nitrogenous bodies. Albumen and gluten agree with each other so nearly in con- stitution, as given in the analyses of Scheerer (Ann. der Chem. und Pharjn., XL. 38), of Mulder, and of Killing {Ann. der Chem. und Pharm., LVIII. 310), that a single formula has been taken, namely, that of Mulder ; — 112 PROCEEDINGS OP THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Carbon 53.5 Hydrogen = 7.0 Nitrogen = 15.5 Oxygen = 22.0 Sulphur = 1.6 Phosphorus 0.4 100.0 The percentage of phosphorus being so small, it has been neglected in the estimations, " The Ccirbon computed by the foregoing formula, deducted from the total amount, afforded a basis for calculating the starch, and as the numerous experiments of Horsford and Krocker have shown so con- clusively that the amount of starch may be accurately calculated in this way, no doubt can be reasonably felt with regard to the justice of so doing. Hydrogen and oxygen are accordingly distributed to the carbon, according to the formula 0,2 H,o Oiq. This being done, a balance of hydrogen remained in every case. It was conceived that this was probably due to the fact that the starches cannot be de- prived of all their moisture at 100° C. ; part is also probably owing to moisture absorbed by the starch whilst weighing, as starch dried at 100° C. is exceedingly hygroscopic, " taking up in a few days ex- posed to the air 35 per cent, of moisture." (Knapp.) This hydrogen was therefore supplied with oxygen according to the formula of water. It will be seen by consulting the results, that the amount of moisture thus obtained is often quite large, and has a very considerable effect upon the averages. It is on this account, perhaps, somewhat to be re- gretted that the moisture was not determined at 120° or 125° C, in- stead of 100° C. " No. I. Corn-Starch, No. 1. " Corn-starch is prepared from maize or Indian corn, by the aid either of the ordinary method of steeping and fermenting, or else by steeping the corn, both before and after grinding, in a caustic or car- bonated alkaline lye, the gluten remaining dissolved in the lye. This specimen was in the state of fine powder. I. 0.869 grm. gave at 100° C. 0.1392 grm. loss. II. 1.127 grm. dried at 100° C. left 0.0038 grm. ash. III. 4.0347 grm. dried at 100° C. left 0.0133 grm. ash. IV. 0.3124 grm. gave 0.5017 grm. CO^ and 0.1857 grm. HO. OP ARTS AND SCIENCES. 11 V. 0.4468 grm. gave 0.7246 grm. CO2 and 0.271 grm. HO. VI. 0.7073 grm. gave 0.0137 grm. NH.Cl. PtCl^. VII. 1.9168 grm. gave 0.032 grm. NH4CI. PtClg. Corresponding in 100 parts to I. II. Average. Carbon 43.79 44.22 44.01 Hydrogen 6.60 6.74 6.67 Nitrogen 0.12 0.10 0.11 Ash 0.33 0.33 0.33 Water 16.01 16.01 Estimated according to the formulae given, we have f Nitrogen 0.11 I Carbon 0.38 Nitrogenous constituents, <( Hydrogen 0.05 j Oxygen 0.16 [ Sulphur 0.01 o 0.71 { Carbon 43.63 Non-nitrogenous constituents, < Hydrogen 6.06 ( Oxygen 48.49 98.18 Water not expelled at 100° C. I hydrogen 0.56 ^ \ Oxygen 4.48 5.04 Ash 0.33 104.26 Reduced to an average percentage we obtain, — Dried at 100" C. Fresh. Nitrogenous constituents 0.69 0.58 Inorganic " 0.32 0.26 Starch, sugar, &c. " 94.16 79.09 Water not expelled at 100° C, and accidental moisture 4.83 4.06 Water 16.01 100.00 100.00 " No. II. Corn-Starch, No. 2. " This specimen differed from No. 1 in being made into lumps in the state in which wheat-starch is usually sold ; it yielded nearly three times as much nitrogen as No. 1, and was therefore not so pure a starch, but better fitted for the purposes of nutrition. 6f its manufac- ture, I was unable to obtain any information. VOL. III. 15 114 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY I. 3.1531 grm. lost at 100° C. 0.3748 grm. II. 2.508 grm. dried at 100° C. gave 0.011 grm. ash. III. 0.3189 grm. gave 0.508 grm. CO^ and 0.187 grm. HO IV. 1.2677 grm. gave 0.0761 grm. NH^Cl. PtClj. Corresponding in 100 parts to I. Carbon 43.44 Hydrogen 6.51 Nitrogen 0.38 Ash 0.43 Water 11.88 Estimated as above, we have C Nitrogen 0.38 I Carbon 1.31 Nitrogenous constituents, ^ Hydrogen 0.17 I Oxygen 0.53 (^Sulphur 0.04 2.43 94.79 r Carbon 42.13 Non-nitrogenous constituents, < Flydrogen 5.85 ( Oxygen 46.81 Water not expelled at 100° C. | hydrogen 0.49 ^ \ Oxygen 3.92 4.41 •Ash 0.43 102.06 Reduced to an average percentage, we obtain Dried at 100° C. Tresh. Nitrogenous constituents 2.38 2.10 Inorganic " 0.42 0.37 Starch, sugar, &c. 92.88 81.84 Water not expelled at 100° C, and accidental moisture 4.32 3.81 Water 11.88 100.00 100.00 " No. III. Tapioca. "Tapioca is a modification of starch, being partially converted into gum by heating. It is prepared from the root of the Jatropha ?nanihot, found in the West Indies, South America, and Africa. The roots are washed, reduced to pulp, and subjected to strong pressure, by which OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 115 means they are deprived of nearly all their highly poisonous juice. As the active principle of this juice is volatile, it is entirely dissipated by baking the pulp upon iron plates. The pulp thus prepared is hard and friable, and is easily broken into lumps, which are laid in the sun to dry. la this state it is known by the name of cassava. It is puri- fied by being stirred up with water and filtered through linen ; the liquid is then boiled down over a fire, being constantly kept in agita- tion. As the water evaporates the starch thickens, and finally be- comes granulated, when it must be dried over a stove. A toler- ably good imitation of it is made by treating potato-starch in a similar manner. I. 1.0577 grm. lost at 100° C. 0.1409 grm. II. 1.383 grm. dried at 100° C. left 0.0016 grm. ash. III. 3.8196 grm. dried at 100° C. left 0.0048 grm. ash. IV. 0.3669 grm. gave 0.5896 grm. CO2 and 0.214 grm. HO. V. 0.3611 grm. gave 0.5774 grm. CO^ and 0.2118 grm. HO. VI. 2.3044 grm. gave 0.041 grm. NH^Cl. PtCL. Corresponding in 100 parts to Carbon Hydrogen Nitrogen Ash Water I. 43.79 6.48 O.IO 0.12 13.32 II. 43.61 6.51 0.12 Average. 43.70 6.49 0.10 0.12 13.32 Estimated in 100 parts, we obtain the following numbers : ^ Nitrogen I Carbon Nitrogenous constituents, •{ Hydrogen Oxygen (_ Sulphur {Carbon Hydrogen Oxygen Water not expelled at 100° C. | J^y^^'oge" ^ ( Oxygen Ash 0.10 0.34 0.04 0.13 0.01 43.36 6.02 48.19 0.43 3.44 0.62 97.57 3.87 0.12 102.18 116 PROCEEDINGS OP THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Reduced to percentage, we obtain Dried at 100° C. Fresh, Nitrogenous constituents 0.61 0.53 Inorganic " 0.11 0.09 Starch, sugar, &c. 95.49 82.77 Water not expelled at 100° C. , and accidental moisture 3.79 3.29 Water 13.32 100.00 100.00 " No. IV. Arrowroot. " Arrowroot is a very pure starch, prepared in the West Indies from the roots of the Marantha arundinacea and indica. The starch is contained in the tubers, in numerous very minute cells. It has been cultivated with the greatest success upon the Hopewell estate, in the island St. Vincent, where it often grows to the height of three feet, and sends out tap-roots to the depth of eighteen inches ; the prepara- tion is as follows : — ' The carefully skinned tubers are washed, then ground in a mill, and the pulp washed in tinned copper cylindrical washing-machines. The fecula is subsequently dried in drying-houses. In order to obtain the fecula free from impurity, pure water must be used, and great care and attention paid in every step of the process. The skinning or peeling of the tubers must be performed with great nicety, as the cuticle contains a resinous matter, which imparts color and a disagreeable flavor to the starch. German-silver palettes are used for skinning the deposited fecula, and shovels of the same metal are used for packing the dried fecula. The drying is effected in pans covered by white gauze, to exclude dust and insects.' (Pereira.) I. 4.4838 grm. lost at 100° C. 0.7404 grm. II. 3.6005 grm. dried at 100° C. left 0.0077 grm. ash. III. 0.3978 grm. gave 0.6325 grm. CO., and 0.2286 grm. HO. IV. 0.3908 grm. gave 0.6209 grm. CO2 and 0.2258 grm. HO. V. 1.3125 grm. gave 0.03 grm. NH.Cl. PtCl.,. Corresponding in 100 parts to I. 11. Average Carbon 43.37 43.33 43.35 Hydrogen 6.39 6.42 6.40 Nitrogen 0.14 0.14 Ash 0.21 0.21 Water 16.51 16.51 OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. Estimated as above, we obtain ^Nitrogen 0.14 1 Carbon 0.49 Nitrogenous constituents, { Hydrogen 0.06 I Oxygen 0.19 [Sulphur 0.01 /• Carbon 42.86 Non-nitrogenous constituents, < Hydrogen 5.95 117 0.89 i Oxygen 47.63 96.44 Water not expelled at 100° C. { hydrogen 0.39 * ( Oxygen 3.12 3.51 Ash 0.21 101.05 Reduced to percentage, we obtain Dried at 100° C. Fresh, Nitrogenous constituents 0.88 0.73 Inorganic " 0.21 0.18 Starch, sugar, &c. 95.44 79.68 Water not expelled at 100° C, , and accidental moisture 3.47 2.90 Water 16.51 100.00 100.00 " No. V. Sago. " Sago is a variety of starch extracted from the pith of palms, many species of which are capable of yielding it. Amongst these are Sagus Riwiphii, Cicas inermis and revoluta, Coryota urens, Bo- rassus Gomato, and several species of Zamia, Corypha, and Mauritia. The starch is obtained from the pith, which constitutes nearly the entire body of the stem of these palms. A single stem is said to yield three cwt. of sago. The stem is cleft open, and the starch col- lected, washed upon sieves, and purified by elutriation with water in vats ; the granulation is performed by forcing the starch through sieves in such a manner that the lumps shall fall upon a hot plate of copper. Each lump is converted into paste, the granules of starch swell up and dry into the irregular, roundish masses, about the size of small shot, which constitute the sago in its market condition. " Sago is sometimes fraudulently imitated with potato-starch, but this 118 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY has a greater tendency to become pasty when boiled. ' The essential property of sago consists in its swelling up in hot water or soup with- out melting, the separate little lumps remaining entire, and forming translucent, stiffly gelatinous, but not slimy globules. Six varieties of sago are distinguished by Planche.' (Knapp.) I. 3.118 grm. lost at 100° C. 0.4001 grm. II. 2.5906 grm. dried at 100° C. left 0.005 grm. ash. III. 0.3791 grm. gave 0.6052 grm. CO^ and 0.2128 grm. HO. IV. 0.3588 grm. gave 0.574 grm. CO^ and 0.2063 grm. HO. V. 1.1509 grm. gave 0.0256 grm. NH4CI. PtCIj. VI. 1.1313 grm. gave 0.026 grm. NH4CI. PtCl^. Corresponding ia 100 parts to I. II. 43.53 43.63 6.24 6 38 0.12 0.14 Ash 0.19 Water 12.83 Estimated as before, we have r Nitrogen 0.13 Carbon 0.45 Nitrogenous constituents, •{ Hydrogen 0.06 Oxygen 0.18 [Sulphur 0.01 {Hydrogen 5.99 Carbon 43.13 Oxygen 47.92 Carbon Hydrogen Nitrogen Average. 43.58 6.31 0.13 0.19 12.83 0.83 97.04 Water not expelled at 100° C. | gy'^^^ 2.08 Ash Reduced to an average percentage, we obtain Dried at 100° C. Nitrogenous constituents 0.83 Inorganic " 0.19 Starch, sugar, &c. 96.65 Water not expelled at 100° C, and accidental moisture 2.03 Water - 2.34 0.19 100.40 Fresh. 0.72 0.17 84.25 203 12.83 100.00 100.00 OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 119 " No. VI. Wheat-Starch. " This was introduced chiefly for the sake of comparing it with the other starches. All the principal facts regarding its manufacture are too well known to require enumeration. I. 2.3346 grm. lost at 100° C. 0.2634 grm. II. 1.8624 grm. dried at 100° C. left 0.0098 grm. ash. III. 0.3758 grm. gave 0.6062 grm. CO^ and 0.2165 grm. HO. IV. 0.3502 grm. gave 0.5661 grm. CO2 and 0.2098 grm. HO. V. 1.7456 grm. gave 0.0516 grm. NH4CI. PtCla- Corresponding in 100 parts to Carbon Hydrogen Nitrogen Ash Water I. 43.99 6.41 0.18 0.53 11.28 II. 44.08 6.65 Average. 44.04 6.53 0.18 0.53 11.28 Estimated as before, we have f Nitrogen I Carbon Nitrogenous constituents, -^ Hydrogen I Oxygen (_ Sulphur {Carbon Hydrogen Oxygen Water not e.xpelled at 100° C. { hydrogen (Oxyj Ash :en 0.18 0.62 0.08 0.25 0.02 43.42 6.03 48.24 0.42 3.36 1.15 97.69 Reduced to average percentage, we have Dried at 100° C. Nitrogenous ingredients 1.12 Inorganic 0.51 Starch, sugar, &:.c. 94.71 Water not expelled at 100° C. and accidental moisture 3.66 Water - 3.78 0.53 103.15 Fresh. 0.99 0.45 84.03 3.25 11.28 100.00 100.00 120 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY " No. VII. Rice Flour. I. 1.5265 gi-m. lost at 100° C. 0.2139 grm. II. 1.2604 grm. dried at 100° C. left 0.0063 grm. ash. III. 0.4318 grm. gave 0.6924 grm. CO2 and 0.2477 grm. HO. IV. 0.347 grm. gave 0.5566 grm. CO^ and 0.197 grm. HO. V. 1.1169 grm. gave 0.2064 grm. NH^Cl. PtCL. VI. 0.6989 srm. gave 0.1577 grm. NH4CI. PtCU. Corresponding in 100 parts to I. n. Average. Carbon* 43.75 43.75 43.75 Hydrogen 6.37 6 30 6.33 Nitrogen 1.40 1.15 1.28 Ash " 0.49 0.49 Water 14.01 14.01 ted according to the formula as before, we obtain ' Nitrogen 1.28 Carbon 4.42 Nitrogenous constituents, •{ Hydrogen 0.58 Oxygen 1.82 _ Sulphur 0.13 8.23 r Carbon 39.33 Non-nitrogenous constituents, < Hydrogen 5.46 ( Oxygen 43.69 88.48 XVater not expelled a. 100" C. { gydrog-' »-|9 2.61 , Ash 0.49 99.81 Reduced to percentage, we obtain Dried at 100° C. Fresh. Nitrogenous constituents 8.24 7.09 Inorganic " 0.49 0.42 Starch, sugar, &c. 88.65 76.23 Water not expelled at 100° C. and accidental moisture 2.62 2.25 Water 14.01 100.00 100.00 OF ARTS AND SCIENCES, 121 "No. VIII. Maccaroni. " Maccaroni is a dough prepared from fine wheat-flour, made into a tubular form about the thickness of a goose-quill. It is prepared to most advantage from the hard Italian wheat, which is richer in gluten than the wheat of more northern countries. This is ground into a coarse flour by means of light millstones, and is made into a paste with hot water. The Italians pile up the pieces of dough one upon another, and tread it well with their feet for two or three minutes. When the dough is properly kneaded, it is placed in a cast iron cylinder, which is kept warm in order to render the dough thin and plastic ; it is then forced through holes in the bottom of the cylinder, which give it the shape of fillets or ribbons, the edges of which are joined together, form- ing the paste into tubes. It is finally dried in the sun. I. 2.7108 grms. lost at 100° C. 0.2684 grm. II. 2.807 grms. dried at 100° C. left 0.0276 grm. ash. III. 0.3666 grm. gave 0.6141 grm. 00.^ and 0.2169 grm. HO. IV. 0.3452 grm. gave 0.5773 grm. CO^ and 0.2048 grm. HO. V. 1.015 grm. gave 0.2599 grm. NH4CI. PtCl^. VI. 1.1739 grm. gave 0.2856 grm. NH4CI. PtCl^. Corresponding in 100 parts to I. II. Average. Carbon 45.69 45.58 45.64 Hydrogen 6.58 6.59 6.58 Nitrogen 1.60 1.49 1.55 Ash 0.98 0.98 Water 9.90 9.90 Estimated as above, we obtain ^ Nitrogen 1.55 1 Carbon 5.35 Nitrogenous constituents, <^ Hydrogen 0.70 Oxygen 2.20 Sulphur 0.16 9.96 r Carbon 40.29 Non-nitrogenous constituents, I Hydrogen 5.59 i Oxygen 44.77 90.65 Water not expelled at 100' 3 ^ ( Hydrogen • \ Oxygen 0.29 2.32 2.61 Ash 0.98 104.20 VOL. III. 16 122 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Estimated in 100 parts, we have Dried at 100° C. Fresh. Nitrogenous constituents 9.56 8.61 Inorganic " 0.95 0.86 Starch, sugar, &c. 86.99 78.38 Water not expelled at 100° C, and accidental moisture 2.50 2.25 Water 9.90 100.00 100.00 " No. IX, Prepared Potato. " The specimen analyzed was finely divided, dried potato, prepared for transportation, use on sea-voyages, «S^c. Of the details of its man- ufacture, I was unable to obtain any information. I. 2.3378 grms. lost at 100° C. 0.2354 grm. II. 2.1046 grms. dried at 100° C. left 0.0842 grm. ash. III. 0.4042 grm. gave 0.6415 grm. CO^ and 0.221 grm.HO. IV. 0.2933 grm. gave 0.4623 grm. CO^ and 0.1614 grm. HO. V. 0.6696 grm. gave 0.1800 grm. NH.Cl. PtClj. VI. 0.7431 grm. gave 0.1912 grm. NH4CI. PtCl^. Corresponding in 100 parts to I. II. Average. Carbon 43.28 42.99 43.14 Hydrogen 6.07 6.11 6.09 Nitrogen 1.67 1.60 1.63 Ash 4.00 4.00 Water 10.07 10.07 ted as before, we obtain ^ Nitrogen 1.63 Carbon 6.28 Nitrogenous constituents, •{ Hydrogen 0.73 Oxygen Sulphur 2.31 0.16 11.11 r Carbon 36.86 Non-nitrogenous constituents, < Hydrogen 5.12 ( Oxygen 40.95 82.93 Water not expelled at 100° C. f hydrogen ' ( Oxygen 0.24 1.92 2.16 Ash 4.00 100.20 OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 123 Estimated in 100 parts, we have Dried at 100° C. Fresh. Nitrogenous constituents 11.09 9.97 Inorganic " 3.99 3.59 Starch, sugar, &c. 82.77 74.44 Water not expelled at 100° C, and accidental moisture 2.15 1.93 Water 10.07 100.00 100.00 " No. X. Farina. " Farina is prepared both from corn and wheat, and is in rounded grains resembling sago in appearance, only smaller. Although I made many inquiries, I was unable to obtain any information respect- ing its preparation from the manufacturers. It is perhaps prepared by washing out a portion of the starch from the finely ground meal, and drying and granulating the residue. The specimen analyzed was prepared from corn. It seems to have less starch and about the same amount of nitrogenous ingredients as Indian-corn meal, an analysis of which by Professor Horsford (Phil. Mag., S. 3. XXIX. 365) gave as follows : Starch 84.90 ; nitrogenous ingredients 13.65. Farina gives : Starch 81.76 ; nitrogenous ingredients 13.61. I. 3.794 grms. lost at 100° C. 0.3908 grm. II. 3.403 grms. dried at 100° C. left 0.0176 grm. ash. III. 0.341 grm. gave 0.5461 grm. CO2 and 0.1988 grm. HO. IV. 0.4322 grm. gave 0.6919 grm. CO. and 0.2583 grm. HO. V. 0.4434 grm. gave 0.1506 grm. NHiCl. PtCla. Corresponding in 100 parts to I. II. Average. Carbon 43.67 43.66 43.66 Hydrogen 6.45 6.64 6.54 Nitrogen 2.12 2.12 Ash 0.51 0.51 Water 10.30 10.30 Estimated as before, we obtain 124 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY r Nitrogen j Carbon Nitrogenous constituents, <( Hydrogen I Oxygen I Sulphur {Carbon Hydrogen Oxygen Water not expelled at 100° C. ! JJydrogen I Oxygen Ash Reduced to an average, we have 2.12 7.32 0.96 3.00 0.21 36.34 5.05 40.37 0.53 4.24 13.61 81.76 ■ 4.77 0.51 100.65 Dried at 100° C. Fresh. Nitrogenous ingredients 13.52 12.13 Inorganic " 0.51 0.46 Starch, sugar, &c. 81.23 72.86 Water not expelled at 100° C. , and accidental moisture 4.74 4.25 Water 10.30 100.00 100.00 1. Tahidar Results of Analyses. Nitrogen. Carbon. Hydrogen. Oxygen. Sulphur. Ash. Corn-Starch, No. 1, 0.11 44.01 6.67 53.13 0.01 0.33 No. 2, 0.38 43.44 6.51 51.26 0.04 0.43 Tapioca, 0.10 43.70 6.49 51.76 0.01 0.12 Arrowroot, 0.14 43.35 6.40 50.94 0.01 0.21 Sago, 0.13 43.58 6.31 50.18 0.01 0.19 Wheat-Starch, 0.18 44.04 6.53 51.85 0.02 0.53 Rice Flour, 1.28 43.75 6.33 47.83 0.13 0.49 Maccarohi, 1.55 45.64 6.58 49.29 0.16 0.98 Prepared Potato, 1.63 43.14 6.09 44.18 0.16 4.00 Farina, 2.12 43.66 6.54 47.61 0.21 0.51 OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 125 2. Tahular View of the Nitrogenous Constituents. Nitrogenous Constituents. Water. Dried at 100© C. Fresh. Corn-Starch, No. 1, (( 11. (( 2 Tapioca, Arrowroot, Sago, Wheat-Starch, Rice Flour, Maccaroni, Prepared Potato, Farina, 0.71 2.43 0.62 0.89 0.83 1.15 8.23 9.96 11.11 13.61 0.60 2.14 0.53 0.73 0.72 1.02 7.08 9.01 9.98 12.21 16.01 11.88 13.32 16.51 12.83 11.28 14.01 9.90 10.07 10.30 3. Tahle for the Starch. Dried at lOOo C. Fresh. Corn-Starch, No. 1, 98.18 83.08 (( (( (( 9 94.79 83.75 Tapioca, 97.57 84.85 Arrowroot, 96.44 80.68 Sago, 97.04 84.61 Wheat-Starch, 97.69 87.01 Rice Flour, 88.48 76.06 Maccaroni, 90.65 82.04 Prepared Potato, 82.93 74.60 Farina, 81.76 73.39 4. Tahle of Equivalents or Weights for an Equal of Nutritive Power. — Arrowroot at 100. Dried at lOOo C. Fresh. Corn-Starch, No. 1, 125.3 121.6 it. u u 2 36.6 34.1 Tapioca, 143.5 137.7 Arrowroot, 100.0 100.0 Sago, 107.2 101.4 Wheat-Starch, 77.4 72.1 Rice Flour, 10.8 10.3 Maccaroni, 8.9 8.1 Prepared Potato, 8.0 7.3 Farina, 6.5 5.9 126 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY " The tables given were all of them calculated from the direct re- sults of the different analyses, and not from the average per cent, state- ments. By comparing the results of the determinations as given in the above tables, we shall arrive at the following conclusions. " A much larger amount of starch is contained in all the speci- mens analyzed, than of nitrogenous constituents. Food, to be prop- erly constituted, should contain the elements which support respiration and furnish fat, as well as those which form the tissues. We shall, however, see, by comparing tables 2 and 3, that the proportions of starch differ very much less when compared with each other, than the nitrogenous ingredients do. The proportions of starch in the first six and last four specimens are about equal to each other, whilst we have in Farina twenty times as great a quantity of nitrogenous constituents as in Corn-Starch No. 1, or Tapioca. I have, therefore, in the last table, given the nutritive powers of the different specimens based upon the amount of the nitrogenous constituents, the starch being nearly enough equal in all to compute their nutritive power upon the nitrogen alone. Arrowroot was taken as the standard. 127.5 parts of corn- starch are required to equal in nutritive power 100 parts of arrow- root, &c. " We shall also see, — " That the specimens analyzed may be divided into two classes, ac- cording to their relative quantity of nitrogen. The first of which will include the starches ; the second, farina, maccaroni, rice flour, and prepared potato. " That the members of the second class are very much better fitted for nutrition than those of the first class, farina being sixteen times as nutritious as arrowroot, and twenty-three times more nutritious than tapioca. " That the members of the second class contain, with the excep- tion of rice, less moisture" than the first. " That two specimens of corn-starch may differ from each other largely, one containing three times as much nitrogen as the other. " That the members of the first group contain from one sixth to one ninth their total weight of moisture which may be expelled at 100° C. ; those of the second, from one seventh to one tenth. " With regard to the ashes we find, — " That potato, dried at 100° C, gives over four times as much ash as any other specimen analyzed. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 127 " That the ashes of corn-starch and farina are chiefly composed of alkalies, and give little or no reaction for carbonic acid. " That all the ashes contain iron. The ash of Corn-Starch No. 1 also gave a distinct reaction for manganese. " Finally, as different specimens of the same article of food may differ in constitution on account of variety in the soil or in the mode of preparation (which latter was probably the cause of the marked difference between the two specimens of corn-starch), these determi- nations cannot be taken as giving an absolute standard of nutritive value, but only as affording a probable index of results and a means of comparison of the nutritive powers of each." Professor Horsford also exhibited specimens of the metal Aluminum, to show its malleability, silver lustre, and other physical properties. It was first obtained by Sir Humphrey Davy, and has recently been prepared by Wohler's method on a more extended scale by Deville of Paris. It is obtained from common alum most conveniently, from 100 parts of which about 5.78 parts of aluminum can be obtained by a very expensive process ; it is made by decomposing the chloride of aluminum by potassium or sodium. Its weight is 2.56. Professor Gray presented the following paper, entitled, " Characters of New Genera of Plants, mostly from Polynesia, in the Collection of the United States Exploring Expedition, under Captain Wilkes (continued)." " ACICALYPTUS, Nov. Gen. Myrtacearum. " Calyx subulseformis, acute tetragonus, clausus ; apice subulato- rostrato operculiformi sub anthesi circumscisse deciduo ; fauce ultra ovarium longe producta. Petala 4, in operculum leviter cohserentia, sub anthesi dejecta. Stamina plurima, discreta, margini calycis tubi inserta : filamenta filiformia ; antherse biloculares, loculis ovalibus. Stylus filiformis : stigma obtusum. Ovarium biloculare, dissepimento tenui. Ovula in loculis 8 - 10, anatropa, subcurvata .'* (Fructus ignotus, forte carnosus indehiscens.) — Arbor vel arbuscula ; foliis oppositis ovatis penninerviis impunctatis ; floribus cymosis terminalibus. " AcicALYPTUS MYRTOiDES. — Fccjee Islands. 128 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY " SPIRiEANTHEMUM, Nov. Gen. Saxifragacearum. " Flores polygamo-dioici, vel hermaphroditi. Calyx quadri-quinque- fidus, osstivatione valvatus, persistens. Corolla nulla. Stamina 8 vel 10, imoe basi calycis inserta, fere hypogyna : filamenta filiformia, fl. masc. exserta, hermaphrodito-fert. calyce haud longiora : antherse didymfE, biloculares, longitudinaliter dehiscentes. Squamulse disci hypogynro fl. masc. 4 vel 5, subcoalit of Class I. Benjamin A. Gould, Jr. George B. Emerson, Louis Agassiz, ^ of Class II. John B. S. Jackson, James Walker, Jared Sparks, \ of Class III. Nathan Appleton, The several Standing Committees were appointed on nomi- nation from the chair, as follows : — Rumford Committee. Eben N. Horsford, Joseph Lovering, Daniel Treadwell, Henry L. Eustis, Morrill Wyman. Committee of Publication. Joseph Lovering, Louis Agassiz, Francis Bowen. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 133 Committee o?i the Library. Augustus A. Gould, Benjamin A. Gould, Jr., J. P. Cooke, Jr. " Voted, That a meeting for scientific communications he held on the last Tuesday of June, at half past seven o'clock, P. M." DONATIONS TO THE LIBRARY, FROM D^EMBER, 1851, TO OCTOBER, 1854. Amasa Walker, Esq. Transactions of the Agricultural Societies in the State of Massa- chusetts for 1851. 1 vol. 8vo. Boston. Charles Brooks. The Tornado of 1851 in Medford, &c. 1 vol. 24mo. Boston. 1852. James P. Espy. Reports on Meteorology. Long 4to. Washington. 1849-51. 1 vol. American Philosophical Society. Proceedings, Vol. V., Vol. VI. No. 51. January to June, 1854. 8vo. Transactions, New Series. Vol. X. Parts II. and III. 4to. Philadelphia. B. A. Gould, Jr., P. D. Astronomical Journal. Nos. 29 to 75. 4to. Cambridge^. 1851, to September 19, 1854. Massachusetts Historical Society. Collections. 4th Series. Vol. I. American Oriental Society. Journal. Vol. III., 1853. Vol. IV., 1854. 8vo. New York and London. Proceedings at the Semiannual Meeting of the American Oriental Society, held in New Plaven, October 13 and 14, 1852. Proceedings at the Annual Meeting held in Boston, May 18 and 19, 1853. 8vo pamph. Netherlands Government. Flora Batava. Aflev. 165 - 174. 4to. Amsterdam. British Government. Observations made at the Magnetical and Meteorological Obser- 134 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY vatory at Hobarton, in Van Diemen Island. Printed by Govern- ment, under the Supei'intendence of Colonel Edward Sabine. Vol. II. from 1843 to 1850, inclusive. 1 vol. 4to. London. 1852. Observations made at the Magnetical and Meteorological Obser- vatory at Toronto, in Canada, under the Superintendence of Colonel Edward Sabine. Vol. II. 1843, 1844, 1845. With Abstracts of the Observations to 1848, and in some Cases to 1852, inclusive. 1 vol. 4to. London. 1853. Report on the Geology of Cornwall, DevA, and West Somerset, by Henry T. de la Beche, F. R. S., &c.. Director of the Ordnance Geological Survey. Published by Order of the Lord's Commission- ers of Her Majesty's Treasury. 1 vol. 8vo. London. 1839. Figures and Descriptions of the Palseozoic Fossils of Cornwall, Devon, and West Somerset, observed in the Course of the Ordnance Geological Survey of that District. By John Phillips, F. R. S., &c. Published by Order of the Lords Commissioners of Her Majesty's Treasury. 1 vol. 8vo. London. 1841. Memoirs of the Geological Survey of Great Britain, and of the Museum of Economic Geology in London. Published by Order of the Lords Commissioners of Her Majesty's Treasury. Vol. I. 8vo. London. 1846. Vol. II. Parts I. and II. 1848. Memoirs of the Geological Survey of the United Kingdom. Figures and Descriptions illustrative of British Organic Remains. Decades 1,2,3,4, and 6. 1849-52. 4to. London. 5 pamph. Museum of Practical Geology and Geological Survey. Records of the School of Mines and of Science applied to the Arts. Vol. I. Part. I. Inaugural and Introductory Lectures to the Courses for the Session 1851 - 52. Published by Order of the Lords Com- missioners of Her Majesty's Treasury. 1 vol. 8vo. London. 1852. IVIuseum of Practical Geological Government School of I\Iines, and of Science applied to the Arts, and Industrial Instruction on the Continent (being the Introductory Lecture of the Session). By Lyon Playfair, C. B., F. R. S. 8vo pamph. London. 1852. Boston Society of Natural History. Proceedings. Vol. IV. 1851-54. 8vo. Boston. Journal. Vol. VI. No. 3. 8vo. Boston. 1853. Address to the Boston Society of Natural History, by John C. Warren, President of the Society. 8vo pamph. Boston. 1853. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 135 Cataloirues of the Animals and Plants of Massachusetts, with a copious Index. 8vo pamph. Amherst. 1835. Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia. Proceedings, Vol. VI., Vol. VII. Nos. 1, 2, and 3. Svo. Phil- adelphia. Journal. New Series. Vol. II. Parts III. and IV. 4to. Phila- delphia.. American Journal of Science and Arts. Second Series. Vols. XIV. - XVII. and Vol. XVIII. Nos. 52, 53. Svo. New Haven. From the Editors. Neto York University. Sixty-fifth, Sixty-sixth, and Sixty-seventh Annual Reports of the Regents of the University of the State of New York. Svo. 3 vols. Albany. 1852 - 54. Fifth and Sixth Annual Reports of the Regents of the University, on the Condition of the State Cabinet of Natural History, and the Historical and Antiquarian Collection annexed thereto. Svo. Al- bany. 1852 and 1853. Catalogue of the Cabinet of Natural History of the State of New York. Svo. Albany. 1853. E. B. 0^ Callaghan. The Documentary History of the State of New York, arranged under the Direction of the Hon. Christopher Morgan, Secretary of State. Vol. IV. Albany. 1851. Svo. Acadhnie Lnperiale des Sciences de Saint Petersbourg. . Memoires. VI""" Serie. Sciences Mathematiques, Physiques, et Naturelles. Tome Septieme. Seconde Partie : Sciences Naturelles, Tome Cinquieme, 5"^ et 6'"^ Livraisons. 1 pamph. Memoires, Sciences Mathematiques, Physiques, et Naturelles. Tome Huitieme. Seconde Partie : Sciences Naturelles. Tome Sixieme, 4"" Livraison. 1849. 1 pamph. Memoires. Premiere Partie : Sciences Mathematiques et Phy- siques. Tome Cinquieme, 3""= et 4™= Livraisons. 1849 et 1850. 2 pamph. Memoires des Savants Etrangers. Tome VI. 4™° Livraison. 1 pamph. St. Petersbourg. 1849. Recueil des Actes de I' Academic 1847 et 1848. 1 pamph. 4to. St. Petersbourg. 1849. Catalogue des Manuscrits et Xylographes Orientaux de la Biblio- 136 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY theque Imperiale Publique de St. Petersbourg. 8vo. St. Peters- bourg. 1852. Memoires presentees a I'Academie Imperiale des Sciences de St. Petersbourg par divers Savants et lus dans ses Assemblees. Tome Sixieme, 2 et 3 Livraisons. 4to. St. Petersbourg. 1848 et 1849. 2 pamph. Memoires de PAcademie Imp. des Sc. de St. Petersbourg, VI'''^ Serie. Sciences, Math., Phys., et Natur. Tome Huitieme. Seconde Partie : Sciences, Natur. Tome Sixieme, 3, 5, et 6 Livraisons. 4to. St. Petersbourg. 1849. 2 pamph. Imperial Mineralogical Society^ St. Petersbourg. Verhandlungen der Russ. Kaiser]. Mineral. Gesell. zu St. Peters- bourg. 1842 - 49. 6 vols. 8vo. 1842 - 50. St. Petersbourg. (Vols, for 1845-47, duplicates.) Schriften der in St. Petersburg, gestifelen Russ. Kais. Gesell. fiir die gesammte Mineralogie. Band I. Abth. 1 und 2. 2 vols. 8vo. St. Petersbourg. (Duplicate.) Administration of Mines of Russia. Annates de PObservatoire Physique Central de Russie, 1850. Parts I. and II. 2 vols. 4to. St. Petersbourg. 1853. Compte-Rendu Annuel, 1852. (Supplement to the Annals.) 4to. St. Petersbourg. 1853. C. Lehman. Novarum et minus cognitarum Stirpium pugillus nonus, addita nova Recensione nee non Enumeratione Specierum omnium Ge- neris Potentillarum, earumque Synonimia locupletissima. 4to pamph. Hamburg. 1851. Lyceum of Natural History of New York. Annals. Vol. V., Vol. VI. Nos. 1 - 4. 1854. 8vo. New York. Joseph Leidy. On the Osteology of the Head of Hippopotamus, and a Descrip- tion of the Osteological Characters of a new Genus of Hippopota- mida). 4to pamph. Philadelphia. Smithsonian Institution. Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge. Vols. III. and IV. 4to. Washington. 1852. Vol. V. 4to. Washington. 1853. Smithsonian Report on Recent Improvements in the Chemical Arts, by Professor James C. Booth and Campbell Monfit. Wash- ington. 1852. Pamph. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 137 Sixth Annual Report of the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution, &c. Washington. 1852. Panmph. Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge. Memoir of the Extinct Species of American Ox. By J. Leidy, M. D. Washington. 1852. Pamph. The Annular Eclipse of May 26, 1854. Published under the Au- thority of Hon. James C. Dobbin, Secretary of the Navy, by the Smithsonian Institution and Nautical Almanac. 8vo pamph. Wash- ington. 1854. Edward Everett. Extracts from the Letter-Press of the Astronomical Observations made at the Royal Observatory, Edinburgh, by the late Thomas Henderson. Vol. X. for 1844 - 47. 4to pamph. Edinburgh. John C. Warren, M. D. Description of a Skeleton of the Mastodon giganteus of North America. 4to pamph. Boston. Royal Society of London. Proceedings. 12 numbers to complete Vols, III. and V. 1830 - 50. Vol. VI. pp. 1 to 336, from December, 1850, to November 17, 1853. 8vo. London. Philosophical Transactions for 1852 (Parts L and II.), 1853 (Parts I. and II.). Vol. CXLIII. 4to. London. Fellows of the Royal Society, November 30, 1852. 4to pamph. Catalogue of Stars near the Ecliptic, observed at Markree during the Years 1848 - 50, and whose Places are supposed to be hitherto unpublished. Vol. I. containing 14,888 Siars. — Catalogue, &lc. during the Years 1851 and 1852. Vol. II. containing 15,289 Stars. 2 vols. 8vo. Dublin. 1851 and 1853. Astronomical, Magnetical, and Meteorological Observations made at the Royal Observatory, Greenwich, in the Year 1851. 1 vol. 4to. London. 1853. Address of the Right Honorable the Earl Rosse, President, read at the Anniversary Meeting of the Royal Society, Tuesday, No- vember 30, 1852. 8vo. London. 1853. Astronomical Observations made by the Rev. Thomas Catton, B. D. Reduced and printed under the Superintendence of George Biddel Airy, Esq. 4to pamph. London. 1853. '■ Emmanuel Liais. Memoire sur la Substitution des Electromoteurs aux Machines a VOL. III. 18 138 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Vapeur, et Description d'une Horloge Magneto-electrique. 8vo pamph. Paris. 1852. Note sur les Observations faites a Cherbourg, pendant PEclipse du 28 Juillet, 1851. 8vo. Cherbourg. 1851. Addition a un Memoire, sur les Oscillations du Barometre. 8vo. Cherbourg. Professor C. B. Adams. Catalogue of Shells collected at Panama, with Notes on their Synonymy, Station, and Geographical Distribution. 4to. New York. 1852. Contributions to Conchology. No. II. Hints on the Geographical Distribution of Animals, with special Reference to the JMoUusca. October, 1852. Society of Sciences, Harlem. Extrait du Programme de la Societe HoUandaise des Sciences a Haarlem, pour I'Annee 1852. Historische en Letterkundige Verhandelingen van de Hollandsche Maatschappij der Wettenschappen te Haarlem. Erste Deel. 4to. Haarlem. 1851. Natuurkundige Verhandelingen van de Hollandsche Maatschappij der Wettenschappen te Haarlem. 8 und 9 Deel. 4to. Haarlem. 1853 und 1854. American Association for the Advancement of Science. Proceedings. Sixth Meeting, held at Albany, N. Y., August, 1851. Published by the Liberality of the Citizens of Albany. 8vo. Washington. 1852., Hoioard Stanshury, U. S. A. Exploration and Survey of the Valley of the Great Salt Lake of Utah, including a Reconnoissance of a new Route through the Rocky Mountains. Printed by Order of the Senate of the United States. 8vo. Philadelphia. 1852. 2 vols. Plates. A. A. Gould. The History of New Ipswich, from its first Grant in 1736 to the present Time, with Genealogical Notices of the Principal Families, and also the Proceedings of the Centennial Celebration, September 11, 1850. By Dr. A. A. Gould. Boston. 8vo. 1 vol. Sir Roderick Impey Murcldson, F. R. S. On the Meaning of the Term " Silurian System " as adopted by Geologists in various Countries during the last Ten Years. From OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 139 the Quarterly Journal of the Geological Society of London for August, 1852. Vol. VIII. 8vo. London. 1852. Jacob Bigeloio, M. D. Address to the Royal Geographical Society of London. Deliv- ered at the Anniversary Meeting, May 24, 1852. By Sir R. L Murchison. 8vo. London. 1852. British Association for the Advancement of Science. Report of the Twenty-first Meeting, held at Ipswich, July, 1851. — Report of the Twenty-second Meeting, held at Belfast, September, 1852. 2 vols. 8vo. London. 1852 and 1853. Academic des Sciences de VInstitut de France. Memoires. Tome XXIIL 1853. Memoires Presentes. Tome XIIL 1852. Comptes Rendus. Tomes XXXIL - XXXVTIL 1851 - 54. Tome XXXIX. Nos. 1 - 7. 1854. Imperial Academy of Sciences^ Vienna. Sitzungsberichte. Math.-Natur. Classe. Bande VII. - IX. 1851 und 1852. 8vo. Wien. Band X. Heft 1, 4, 5. Band XL Heft 1 - 4, bis November 4, 1853. 8vo pamph. Phil.-Hist. Classe. Bande VII. - IX. 1851 und 1852. 8vo. Wien. Band X. Heft 1, 4, 5. Band XI. Heft 1 - 3, bis October, 1853. 8vo pamph. Almanach der K, Akad. der Wiss. zu Wien. 1 vol. 12mo. Die feierliche Sitzung der K. Akad. der Wiss. am 29 Mai, 1852. 8vo. Wien. Verzeichniss der im Buchbandel befindlichen Druckschriften der K. Akad. der Wiss. zu Wien. 8vo. 1852. Almanach der K. Akad. der Wiss. 12mo. Wien. 4ter Zahrcrano;. 1854. Royal Society of Sciences^ Gottingen. Erste Sacularfeier der Konig. Gesell. der Wiss. zu Gottingen, am 29 November, 1851. 4to. 1852. Nachrichten. 1851, Nr. 1 bis 19. 1852, Nr. 1 bis 14. 12mo. Gottingen. Abhandlungen der K. Gesell. der Wiss. zu Gottingen. 5 Band. 1851 und '52. 4to. Gottingen. 1853. Royal Prussian Academy. Abhandlungen der Konigl. Akad. der Wiss. zu Berlin. 1850 - 52. 4to. 3 vols. Berlin. 1851-53. 140 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Monatsbericht. Ausdeija Jahre 1851 und 1852. 2 vols. 8vo. 1853, Januar - Juli. 7 Nos. 8vo. Dr. J. G. Flugel. Kritische Durchsicht der Von Dawidow verfassten Wortersamm- lung aus der Sprache der Ainos. Von Dr. Aug. Pfizmaier. Wien. 8vo. 1851. Kalender der Flora des Horizontes von Prag. entworfen nach zehnjahrigen Vegetations-Beobachtungen von Karl Fritsch. 8vo. 1852. Tafeln zur Reduction der in millimetern abgelesenen Barometer- stande auf die Normal temperatur von 0" Celsius, Berechnit von J. J. Pohl und J. Schabus. 8vo pamph. Wien. 1852.' Tafeln zur Vergleichung und Reduction der in Liingenmassen abgelesenen Barometerstande. 8vo pamph. Wien. 1852. L. Lea., Esq., and G. W. Manypenny. Historical and Statistical Information respecting the History, Con- dition, and Prospects of the Indian Tribes of the United States. Collected and prepared under the Direction of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, by Act of Congress of March 3, 1847. By Henry R. Schoolcraft, LL. D. Illustrated by S. Eastman, Captain in the United States Army. Parts 11. and III. 4to. Philadelphia. 1852 and 1853. Charles T. Jackson, M. D. Congressional Report of Hon. Edward Stanley of North Caro- lina and Hon. Alexander Evans of Maryland, on the Ether Dis- covery. Thirty-second Congress, First Session, 1852. Printed by Authority of the Minority of the Committee. Academia Nature Curiosorum. Verhandlungen der Kaisersl. Leopold. Carol. Akad. der Natur- forscher. Band XXIII. Pars II. 1852. Band XXII. Supplement. 1852. Band XXIV. Pars I. 1854. 4to. Breslau und Bonn. Vorwort zum Vierundzwanzigsten Bande der Verhandlungen der K. L. C. Akad. Besondere Ausgabe. 4to. Breslau und Bonn. 1853. Royal Danish Academy. Oversight over det Kgl. Danske Videnskabernes Selskabs For- handlingen. 1849-51. 8vo. 3 vols. Kjobenhavn. Skrifter 5= Rcekke. Natur. og Math. Afdeling. 2' und 3^ Bind. 4to. 1851 - 53. Kjobenhavn. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 141 Skrifter 5' Rcekke. Histor. og Philos. Afdeling. 1' Bind. 4to. 1852. Tables du Soleil, executees d'apres les Ordres de la Soc. Roy. des Sciences de Copenhague par MM. P. A. Hansen et C. F. R. Olufsen. 4to. Copenhague. 1853. Professor Hausman. Die Mineral Regionen der obern halbinsel Michigan's (N. A.) am Lake Superior und die Isle Royal. Von C. L. Koch. 8vo. Gottingen. 1852. Magnetische und Geographische Ortsbestimmungen im Oester- reichischen Kaiserstaate. 1851. 4to pamph. Prag. 1852. Paleontographical Society. Report of the Council to a General Meeting held March 24, 1851. 8vo pamph. J. S. Bowerbank, Esq. On a Siliceous Zoophyte, Alcyonites Parasiticum. From the Quarterly Journal of the Geological Society of London for No- vember, 1849. Pamph. On the Pterodactylas of the Chalk Formation. From the Pro- ceedings of the Zoological Society of London, January 14, 1851. 8vo. Microscopical Observations on the Structure of the Bones of Pterodactylus Giganteus and other Fossil Animals. From the Quarterly Journal of the Geological Society of London for Feb- ruary, 1848. 8vo. On the Siliceous Bodies of the Chalk and other Formations, in Reply to Mr. J. Toulmin Smith. From the Annual and Magazine of Natural History for 1847. 8vo pamph. London. 1847. F. G. W. Struve. Mersungen zur bestimmung des hohenunterschiedes zwischen dem Schwartzen und Caspichen Meere. Von G. Tuss, Sawitch, und Sabler. 1836 und 1837. 1 vol. 4to. St. Petersb. 1849. Beobachtung der totalen Sonnenfinsterniss am 28 (16) Juli, 1851, in Lomsse. Von Otto Struve. 8vo pamph. St. Petersb. 1851. Resultats des Operations geodesiques de M. M. G. Fuss, Sawitch, et. Sabler, executees en 1836 et 1837, dans la Province la Caucasienne. 4to pamph. St. Petersb. 1849. Stellarum Fixarum imprimis duplicium et multiplicium Positiones 142 PROCEEDINGS OP THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Mediae pro Epocha 1830.0, deductse ex Observationibus Meridianis Annis 1822 ad 1843 in Specula Dorpatensi Institutis. Folio. Petro- poli. 1852. Sur les Dimensions des Anneaux de Saturne. Par M. Otto Struve. 4to pamph. St. Petersb. 1852. Expose Historique des Travaux executes jusqu'a. la Fin de I'Annee 1851 pour la Mesure de I'Arc du Meridien entre Fuglenues 70° 40' et Ismail 45° 20'. Suivi de deux Rapports de M. G. Lindhagen sur I'Expedition de Finnmarken en 1850 et sur les Operations de Lapponie executees en 1851. 4to pamph. St. Petersb. 1852. Walter Chaiining, M. D. Professional Reminiscences of Foreign Travel. 8vo. Boston. L. A. Humiet Latour. A Retrospective Glance at the Progressive State of the Natural History Society of Montreal. By Major R. Lachlan. 8vo pamph. Montreal. 1852. Journal d'Agriculture et Transactions de la Societe d'Agriculture du Bas Canada. Vol. V. Nos. 9 - 12. Vol. VI. Nos. 1 - 4. 8vo. Montreal. The Mayor of Boston. A Memorial of Daniel Webster, from the City of Boston. 8vo. Boston. 1853. Museum (fHistoire Naturelle de Paris. Archives. Tome V. Liv. 4 — Tome VI. Liv. 1-4. 4to. Paris. Catalogue Methodique de la Collection des Reptiles. Deuxi^me Livr. Paris, 1851. Catalogue Method, de la Coll. des Mammiferes de la Coll. des Oiseaux et des Collections annexees. 2 pamph. Paris. 1851. (Through A. Vattemare.) Hon. Robert C. Winthrop. Map of the United States, and their Territories between the Mis- sissippi and the Pacific Ocean, and a Part of Mexico. (Compiled by Order of Congress.) A. August Du7neril. De la Texture Intime des Glandes, etc. 8vo. Paris. 1844. Note sur une nouvelle Espece de Reptile de la Famille des Geckotiens, et appartenant au Genre Stenodactyle. 8vo. 1851. Des Odeurs, de leur Nature et de leur Action Physiologique. 4to. Paris. 1843. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 143 Dr. A. A. Dumeril, et Br. Demarquay. Recherches experimentales sur les Modifications imprimees h, la Temperature Animale par I'Ether et par la Chloroforme et sur le Mode d' Action de ces deux Agents. 8vo. Paris. IS^S. Drs. A. A. Du7neril, Demarquay, et Lecomte. Considerations Physiologiques sur les Modifications que subit la Temperature Animale sous I'lnfluence de I'lntroduction, dans I'Economie de differents Agents. 8vo. Paris. 1852. Annuaire de Therapeutique et de Matiere Medicale. (Through Dr. D. H. Storer.) George C. Rand. Sermon after the Interment of Hon. Daniel Webster. By Ne- hemiah Adams, D. D. Charles Cramer. Brief Astronomical Tables, on a simple Plan for the Expeditious Calculation of Eclipses in all Ages. By W. Drew Snooke. Thomas J. Sumner, Esq., of S. C. Analysis of the Cotton Seed and Plant. 8vo pamph. Phila- delphia. 1852. Charles M. Wetherill, Ph. D. Chemical Examination of two Minerals from the Neighborhood of Reading, Pa., and on the Occurrence of Gold in Pennsylvania. 4to. Philadelphia. On a new Variety of Asphalt (Melan- Asphalt). 4to. Philadel- phia. 1852. On the Neutral Sulphate of the Oxyde of Ethyle, and the Prod- ucts of its Decomposition by Water. 4to. Philadelphia. 1848. On a new Apparatus for the Determination of Carbonic Acid, and on Kemp's Thermostat. 8vo. Philadelphia. W. T. G. Morton. Statements supported by Evidence of Wm. T. G. Morton, M. D., on his Claim to the Discovery of Anaesthetic Properties of Ether, submitted to the Honorable the Select Committee appointed by the Senate of the United States, Thirty-second Congress, Second Ses- sion, January 21, 1853. Washington. 1853. 1 vol. Royal Netherlands histitute. Verhandelingen der Eerste Klasse van het Koninklijk-Nederland- she Institut van Wetenschappen, &c. te Amsterdam. 3° Reeks, 5" Deel. 4to. Amsterdam. 1851 und 1852. 144 PKOCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY f Jaarboek. Voor 1851. 8vo. Amsterdam. Tijdschrift voor de Wis-en Natuurkundige Wetenschappen. 5° Deel. P,2%3°of laatste Aflever. 8vo. Amsterdam. 1851-52. Linncean Sc^iety of London. Transactions. Vol. XXI. Parts I. and II. 1852 and 1853. Vols. XVI. -XIX. 4to. London. 1829-45. 4 vols. Proceedings. Nos. 47 - 53, and 54, pp. 221 - 268. 8vo. London. List of the Society, 1852 and 1853. 8vo. Charter and By-Laws of the the Society. 8vo. London. 1848. Royal Society of Sciences, Upsal. Nova Acta Regice Societatis Scientiarum Upsaliensis. Third Se ries. Vol. I. Part I. 1851. 4to. Upsal. 1851. Royal Institution of Great Britain. List of Members, Officers, &c., with the Report of the Visitors of the Royal Institution of Great Britain, for the Years 1851 and 1852. 8vo pamph. London. 1851 and 1852. Notices of the Meetings of the Members. Part II. July, 1851, to July, 1852. Part III. November, 1852, to July, 1853. 8vo pamphs. London. 1852 and 1853. Wilhelm Braumilller. Almanach der Kaiser. Akad. der Wissen. 8vo. Wien. 1852. Royal Academy of Sciences, Stockholm. Ofversigt af Kongl. Vetenskaps-Akademiens Forhandlingar. Attonde Argangen 1851. Med tio Taflor. 8vo. Stockholm. 1852. Ofversigt af Kongl. Vetenskaps-Akademiens Forhandlingar. Nionde Argangen 1852. Med tre Taflor. 8vo. Stockholm. 1853. Lieutenant- Colonel J. D. Graham. Message from the Governor of Maryland, transmitting the Re- ports of the Joint Commissioners, and of Lieutenant-Colonel Graham, United States Engineer, in Relation to the Intersection of the Boun- dary Lines of the States of Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Delaware. 8vo. Washington. 1850. William Scoresby, D. D., F. R. S., &c. Magnetical Investigations with Illustrations. 2 vols. 8vo. Lon- don. 1844 and 1852. Royal Irish Academy. Transactions. Vol. XXII. Parts III. and IV. 2 vols. 8vo. Dublin. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 145 Proceedings for 1851 - 52. Vol. V. Part II. 8vo pamph. Dublin. John Barilett. Chemical Field Lectures for Agriculturists. Translated from the German of Dr. Julius Adolphus Stockhardt. Edited, with Notes, by James E. Teschemacher. 12mo. Cambridge. 1854. Joseph Leidy. Description of the Remains of Extinct Mammalia and Chelonia, from Nebraska Territory. 4to pamph. Philadelphia. Memoir on the Extinct Species of American Ox. — Descrip- tion of an Extinct Species of American Lion, Felis atrox. — A Memoir on the Extinct Dicotylinse of America. 4to pamph. Phila- delphia. 1852. James Hall. Paleontology of New York. Vol. I. containing Descriptions of the Organic Remains of the Lower Division of the New York System (Equivalent of the Lower Silurian Rocks of Europe). Vol. II. Organic Remains of the Lower Middle Division of the New York System. 2 vols. 4to. Albany. 1847 and 1852. Hon. D. A. White. A Sermon preached at the Installation of Rev. George W. Briggs as Pastor of the First Church in Salem, by Rev. J. H. Morison. 8vo pamph. Salem. 1853. Martyn Paine. Materia Medica and Therapeutics. 1 vol. 12mo. New York. 1848. A Discourse on the Soul and Instinct, physiologically distinguished from Materialism. 1 vol. 12mo. New York. 1849. The Institutes of Medicine. 1 vol. 8vo. New York. 1847. Medical and Physiological Commentaries. 3 vols. 8vo. New York. 1840. Memoir of Robert Troup Paine, by his Parents. 1 vol. 4to. New York. 1852. Gould and Lincohi. ' » Cyclopaedia of Anecdotes of Literature and the Fine Arts, with numerous Illustrations, by Hazlitt Arvine. 1 vol. 8vo. Boston. Annual of Scientific Discovery er Year-Book of Facts in Science and Art, for 1852 and 1853. 2 vols. 12mo. Boston. 1852 and 1853. VOL. III. 19 146 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY M. Alexander Vattemare. Rapport sur les Poids et Measures Metriques envoyes au Governe- ment des Etats-Unis d'Amerique. Par M. A. Vattemare. 1852. (Lithographic.) Folio. Francesco Zantadeschi. Trattato del Magnetismo e della Elettricita dell 'Abate Francesco Zantadeschi. 2 vols. Milan. 1846. Jared Sparks. A Reply to the Strictures of Lord Mahon and Others, on the Mode of editing the Writings of Washington. 1 vol. 8vo. Cam- bridge. 1852. Letter to Lord Mahon, being an Answer to his Letter addressed to the Editor of Washington's Writings. 8vo pamph. Boston. 1852. Remarks on a " Reprint of the Original Letters from Washington to Joseph Reed during the American Revolution, referred to in the Pamphletsof Lord Mahon and Mr. Sparks." 1vol. 8vo. Boston. 1853. G. Tilesius. Namen der Mitglieden, und Statuten des Mimchener Vereins fiir Naturkunde. Von G. Tilesius. 8vo pamph. Munich. 1849. Isis, Encyclopadische Beitschrift. No. 1. 8vo. 1850. Munich. Dr. C. Jelinck. Magnetische und geographische Ortsbestimmungen im Oesterrei- chischen Kaiserstaate. Vierter Jahrgang 1850. Von Karl Kriel. 4to pamph. Prague. 1851. Universidad de Chile. Anales de la Universidad correspondientes al Ano 1843-52. 9 vols. 8vo. Santiago. F. Engel and K. Schellbach. Darstellende Optik. Heft 1, 2, mit 14 Fig. Folio. Berlin. C. F. P. de Martins. Flora Braziliensis. Fasc. XI. Folio. Lipsioe. 1852. Charles F. Wi7isloio, M. D. Cosmography ; or Philosophical Views of the Universe. 16mo. Boston. 1853. Edward Everett. Annual Report of the Superintendent of the Coast Survey, show- ing the Progress of that Work during the Year ending November, 1851. 8vo. Washington. 1852. (Pub. Doc.) OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 147 Carolo Girard. Smithsonian Report. Bibliographia Americana Historico-Natura- lis. A. D. 1851. 8vo pamph. Washington. 1852. Captain J. H. Lefroy^ R. A. On the Probable Number of the Native Indian Population of Brit- ish America. From the Proceedings of the Canadian Institute. 12mo pamph. Toronto. 1852. Journal of the Society of Arts and of the Institutions in Union. Vol. I. Nos. 1 - 51. Vol. II. Nos. 52 - 62, to January 27, 1854. r. S. Hunt., of the Geological Commission of Canada. Theory of Chemical Changes and on Equivalent Volumes. 8vo pamph. New Haven. 1853. J. C. Dennis, F. R. A. S. A Diurnal Register for the Barometer, Sympiesometer, and Thermometer. 1 vol. 4to. London. Asa Gray. Bibliotheque Universelle de Geneve. Janvier et Fevrier, 1853. 4"'= Serie. Nos. 85, 86. 8vo pamph. Geneve. 1853. F. C. Zantadeschi. Ricerche fisico-mathematiche sulla Deviazione del Pendolo dalla sua Trajettoria. 4to pamph. Padova. 1852. H. A. Ratnsay. Letter to Dr. James Bryan, on the Southern Negro, &;c. 8vo pamph. Philadelphia. 1853. Amasa McCoy. Funeral Oration on the Death of Webster. 8vo pamph. Boston. 1853. Royal Academy of Sciences., 8fC. of Belgium. Bulletins de I'Academie. Tome XVIII. Part II. Tome XIX. Parti, et 11. 3 vols. 8vo. Bruxelles. 1851-2. Memoires couronnes et Memoires des Savants Strangers, publies par I'Acad. Tome XXIV. 1850 - 51. 1 vol. 4to. Bruxelles. 1852. Memoires couronnes, etc. Collection in 8vo. Tome V. 1" Partie. 8vo pamph. Bruxelles. 1852. Memoires de I'Academie Royale de Belgique. Tome XXVI. 4to. Bruxelles. 1851. 1 vol. Annuaire de I'Acad. Roy. de Belgique. 18th Year. 1 vol. 16mo. Bruxelles. 1852. 148 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Observatory, Brussels. Annales de I'Observatoire Roy. de Bruxelles. Publies par A. Quetelet. Tome VIII. 2"" Partie. Tome IX. 2 vols. 4to. Bruxelles. 1852. A. Quetelet. Annuaire de I'Observatoire Roy. de Brux., par A. Quetelet, pour 1852 et 1853. 2 vols. 16mo. Observations de Phenomenes Periodiques, pour PAnnees 1849- 51. 3 pamphs. 4to. Bruxelles, 1849-51. Sur les Tables de Mortalite et de Population. Par A. Quetelet. 1 pamph. 4to. Bruxelles. 1850. M. E. Quetelet. Recherches sur les Medianes. 1 pamph. 4to. Bruxelles. 1850. Usher Parsons. Discourse on the Battle of Lake Erie, delivered before the Rhode Island Historical Society. 8vo pamph. Providence. 1853. Colonel Edward Sabine, R. A. Address before the British Association, 1852. 8vo pamph. London. Alexander Vattemare. Renseignements sur la Fabrication des Monaies Fran^aises. Par M. Durand. Folio pamph. Paris. 1852. Me moires de la Societe des Sciences Naturelles de Cherbourg. Vol, I. r Livraison. 8vo pamph, Cherbourg, 1852, Memoires de la Societe des Sciences Naturelles de Cherbourg. Vol, I, 2, 3, et 4 Livraison. 8vo. 3 pamphs, Cherbourg, 1852 and 1853. (From the Society.) Xavier Heuschling. Statistique du Royaume de Baviere. 4to pamph. Bruxelles. 1850. Recensement General. 4to pamph. Bruxelles. 1845, Sur I'Accroissement de la Population de la Belgique, pendant la Periode decennale de 1831 a. 1840, 4to pamph. Bruxelles. 1842. Des Naissances dans la Ville de Bruxelles, considerees dans leur Rapport avec la Population. 4to pamph. Bruxelles. 1843, Sur le Mouvement de PEtat Civil en Belgique, pendant les Quatre Annees 1841 a 1844. 4to pamph. Bruxelles. 1845. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 149 Essai sur la Statistique Generale de la Belgique. 8vo pamph. Bruxelles. 1844. Bibliographie de la Statistique en Allemagne. 8vo pamph. Brux- elles. 1845. Bibliographie Historique de la Statistique en France. 8vo pamph. Bruxelles. 1851. Le rimpot sur le Revenu. 8vo pamph. Bruxelles. 1848. De la Reforme des Impots en Belgique, comme Moyen de soulager le Pauperisme et d'en arreter les Progres. 8vo pamph. Bruxelles. 1844. Des Impots dans leur Rapport avec 1' Agriculture. 8vo pamph. Bruxelles. 1849. Nouvelle Table de Mortalite de la Belgique. 8vo pamph. Paris. . 1851. De rinfluence paludeuse sur la Sante et la Duree de la Vie. 8vo pamph. Bruxelles. 1848. Notice Biographique sur le Baron de Reiffenberg. 8vo pamph. Bruxelles. 1850. Notice Biographique sur Guillaume-Benjamin Craan, Auteur du Plan de la Bataille de Waterloo, etc. 8vo pamph. Bruxelles. 1850. Societe de Phys. et d^Hist. Nat. de Geneve. Memoires. Tome XIII. 1" et 2™^ Partie. 4to. Geneva. 1852 and 1854. 2 pamphs. Societe du Musewn d^Hist. Nat. de Strasbourg. Memoires. Tome IV. 2'"' et 3™^ Livr. 4to pamph. Stras- bourg and Paris. 1853. Edward Hinkley. Tables of the Prime Numbers and Prime Factors of the Com- posite Numbers from 1 to 100,000 ; with the Methods of their Con- struction and Examples of their Use. 1 vol. 8vo. Baltimore. 1853. From the State. Report on Insects injurious to Vegetation. Published by Order of the Legislature of Massachusetts. By Thaddeus W. Harris, M. D. Second Edition. 1 vol. 8vo. Boston. 1852. J. W. Foster, and J. D. WJiitney, United States Geologists. Report on the Geology of the Lake Superior Land District. Part II. The Iron Region, with the General Geology. With Maps. 2 vols. 8vo. Washington. 1851. 150 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Thomas Blaclear, Esq., F. R. S. Contributions to Astronomy and Geodesy. Second Series. 4to pamphs. London. 1853. Edward Everett. The Discovery and Colonization of America, and Immigration to the United States. A Lecture delivered before the N. Y. Hist. Society, June 13, 1853. 8vo pamph. Boston. 1853. Harvard Natural History Society. Annual Address before the Harvard Nat. Hist. Soc, by Kev. Thomas Hill. 8vo pamph. Cambridge. 1853. Professor Owen, F. R. S. Description of some Species of the Extinct Genus Nesodon, with Remarks on the Primary Group (Toxodontia) of Hoofed Quad- rupeds, to which that Genus is referable. 4to pamph. London. 1853. Charles M. Wetherill, M. D. Examination of Fusel Oil from Indian Corn and Rye. 8vo pamph. Arthur J. Stanshury. Map, indicating the Proposed Course of the Steam Navigation between San Francisco and Shanghae. Folio. Baltimore. Colonel J. J. Ahert. A Collection of Tables and Form ulse useful in Surveying, Geodesy, and Practical Astronomy, including Elements for the Projection of Maps. Prepared for the Use of the Corps of Topographical En- gineers, by Captain T. J. Lee, U. S. A. 8vo. Washington. 1 vol. 1853. Second Edition, with Additions. R. W. Gibhes, M. D. Documentary Plistory of the American Revolution, consisting of Letters and Papers relating to the Contest for Liberty, chiefly in South Carolina, in 1781 and 1782, from Originals in the Possession of the Editor, and from other Sources. 1 vol. 8vo. Columbia, S. C. 1853. Colonel Edioard Saline, R. A. On the Periodic and Non-Periodic Variations of the Temperature at Toronto, Canada, from 1841 to 1852, inclusive. 4to pamph. London. 1853. Captain C. W. Younghushand, R. A., F. R. S. On Periodical Laws in the Larger Magnetic Disturbances. 4to pamph. London. 1843. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 151 Charles Girard. Bibliographia Americana Historico-Naturalis, for the Year 1851. 8vo pamph. Washington. 1852. Descriptions of New Species of Reptiles, collected by the U. S. Exploring Expedition, under the Command of Captain Charles Wilkes, U. S. A. Part II., including the Species of Batrachians, exotic to North America, by Charles Girard. Pamph. Researches upon Nemerteans and Planarians, by Charles Girard. I. Embryaire Developement of Planocera Miptica. 4to pamph. Philadelphia. 1854. Edward Everett. Report of the Secretary of the Treasury on the State of the Finances. 1 vol. 8vo. Washington. 1853. (Pub. Doc.) H. F. de Saussure. Monographic des Gu^pes Solitaires, on de la Tribu des Eumeniens, comprenant la Classification et la Description de toutes les Esp^ces connues jusqu'a ce jour, et servant de Complement au Manuel de Lepeletier de Saint Fargeau. 8vo. Cahier 1. Paris et Geneve. 1852. Message from the President of the United States to the Two Houses of Congress at the Commencement of the Second Ses- sion of the Thirty-second Congress. Part. II. 8vo. Washington. 1852. (Containing the Reports of the Secretary of War, the Secretary of the Navy, and the Postmaster-General.) 1 vol. (Pub. Doc). Francis Wayland. A Memoir of the Life and Labors of the Rev. Adoniram Judson, D. D., by Francis Wayland, President of Brown University. 2 vols. 12mo. Boston. 1853. M. M. Dufrenoy et Elie de Beaumont. Explication de la Carte Geologique de la France. Tome deuxieme. 4to. Paris. Joseph Willard. An Address in Commemoration of the Two-Hundredth Anniver- sary of the Incorporation of Lancaster, Mass. With an Appendix. 1 vol. 8vo. Boston. 1853. Observatory of Prague. Magnetische und Meteorologische Beobachtungen zu Prag. Jahr. XI. Jan. - Dec, 1850. 1 vol. 4to. Prag. 1853. 152 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Verhandlungen des Naturhistorischen Vereins der Preussischen Rheinlande und Westphalens. X Jahr, Heft 1, 3, und 4. XI Jahr, Heft 1 und 2. Bonn. 1853-54. 8vo. Dr. J. G. FlUgel Katalog des Miinzkabinetes der Stadtbibliothek zu Leipzig. 1 vol. 8vo. Leipzig. 1853. Dr. Johann Baptist von Weisslrod. Denkschrift iiber die Orientalische Pest in sanitatspolizeilicher Bestichung nebst einer Beilage : iiber den Typhus ikterodes, das sogenannte gelbe Fieber. 4to pamph. Munchen. 1853. Henry Barnard. Educational Documents of Connecticut for 1853, containing Re- ports of SuperintenHent of Common Schools ; of Commissioner of School Fund ; and of Trustees of State Normal and Reform School. 1 vol. 8vo. Hartford. 1853. Academie d''Archeologie de Belgique. Annales. Tome VIL Svo. Anvers. 1850. Little Sf Brown. Catalogue de Livres rares et precieux en vente a la Libraire An- cienne et Moderne d'Ernest Vanachere, a Lille (Nord). Svo pamph. Lille. 1853. A. D. Bache. Annual Report of the Superintendent of the Coast Survey, show- ing the Progress of that Work during the Year ending November, 1851. Svo. Washington. 1852. With Maps. 4to. 2 vols. I. D. Andrews. Communication from the Secretary of the Treasuary, transmit- ting, in Compliance with a Resolution of the Senate of March 8, 1851, the Report of Israel D. Andrews, on the Trade and Com- merce of the British North American Colonies, and upon the Trade of the Great Lakes and Rivers. Svo. Washington. 1853. Maps. Svo. 2 vols. Batavian Society of Arts and Sciences. Verhandelingen van net Bataviaasch Genootschass van Kunsten et Wettenschappen. Deel 22. 4to. Batavia. 1849. George Newport, F. R. S. On the Impregnation of the Ovum in the Amphibia (Second Series, revised), and on the Direct Agency of the Spermatozoon. 4to pamph. London. 1853. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 153 Royal Society of Sciences, Leipzig. Abhandlungen der Kon. Sach. Gesell. der Wissen. Philolog.- Historisch. Classe. Vol. I., and pp. 1 to 360 of Vol. III. — Math.- Philologisch. Classe. Vol. II., and pp. 1 to 430 of Vol. IV. Berichte, &c. Aus den Jahren 1846 zu 1852. 1853. Fumfter Band, Heft 1 zu 5. 8vo. Leipzig. Thomas Cole. Die Infusionsthierchen als vollkommone Organismen. Von D. Christian Gottfried Ehrenberg, zu Berlin. Text und Atlas. 2 Bande. Folio. Leipzig. 1838. Phycologia generalis, oder Anatomie, Physiologie, und System- kunde der Tange. Bearbeitet von Friedrick Trangott Kiitzing. Text und Tafeln. 4to. 2 Bande. Leipzig. 1843. Animalcula Infusoria Fluviatilia et Marina, quae detexit, syste- matice descripsit et ad Vivum delineari curavit. Otho Fridericus MuUer, cura Othonis Fabricii. 1vol. 4to. Hannise. 1786. Recherches chemiques et microscopiques sur les Conferves, Bisses, Tremelles, etc. Avec 36 Planches, par Chantrans Girod. 1 vol. 4to. Paris. 1802. A History of the British Zoophytes, by George Johnston, M. D., LL. D. 2 vols. 8vo. Second Edition. London. 1847. Robert C. Wintlirop. Archimedes and Franklin : A Lecture before the Massachusetts Charitable Mechanic Association, November 29, 1853. 8vo pamph. Boston. 1853. Addresses and Speeches on Various Occasions, by Robert C. Winthrop. 1 vol. 8vo. Boston. 1852. American Antiquarian Society. Proceedings in Boston, April 27; in Worcester, October 24, 1853. 8vo pamph. Worcester. Smithsonian Institution. Bruckstiicke aus dem Leben des als opfer seiner Wissenschaft gefallenen. Dr. August Friedrich Schweigger. 8vo pamph. Halle. 1830. Ueber Medicinische Missionstalten. Von Professor Schweigger. 8vo pamph. Halle. 1852. Ueber die Natur der Sonne, &c. Von Dr. J. S. C. Schweigger. 8vo pamph. Halle. 1829. Oratio in Academia Fridericiana Halensi cum Vitebergensi con- voL. III. 20 154 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY sociata ffidium Academicarum inaugurandarum causa, 21 Oct. 1831. Ab J. S. C. Schweigger. 4to pamph. Halle. 1834. Denkschrift zur Sacularfeier der Universitat Erlangen am 23- 25 Aug., 1843, in Namen der vereinten Universitat Halle und Wittenberg. Dr. J. S. C. Schweigger. 4to pamph. Halle. 1843. Journal fiir Chemie und Physik, von Dr. J. S. C. Schweigger. Band XIII., Hefts 1, 3, und 4. 8vo. Halle. 1825. Band fQr 1826. 15 pamphs. Jahrbuch der Chemie und Physik fiir 1827. Nos. 1 - 12. 8vo. Halle. 1827. Jahrbuch der Chemie und Physik fiir 1828. Nos. 1 - 12. 8vo. Halle. 1828. City of Cambridge. Catalogue of the Cambridge High School Library. 1 vol. 4to. Cambridge. 1853. (Through James D. Green.) French Minister of Public Instruction. Bulletin des Societes Savantes, Missions Scientifiques et Litte- raires. Conte de la Langue, de I'Histoire, et des Arts de la France. Tome 1". 1" Livraison. Janvier, 1854. 8vo. Paris. Little 4* Broion. A Catalogue of Books, Ancient and Modern, lately selected in London, Paris, and Leipsic ; comprising Useful and Valuable Works in every Class of Literature. 1 vol. 8vo. Boston. 1854. El Observalorio de Marina de San Fernando. Almanaque Nautico, para el Ano 1855, calculado de Orden de S. M. en el Observatorio de Marina de la Ciudad de San Fernando. 8vo. 1 vol. San Fernando. 1853. John B. Henck. Field-Book for Railroad Engineers, containing Formulse, Tables, &c. 1 vol. 12mo. New York. 1854. The Observatory of Cambridge {Eng.). Astronomical Observations made at the Observatory of Cambridge, by the Rev. James Challis, M. A. Vol. XV. for the Year 1843 ; with • an Appendix, containing an Account of the Northumberland Equa- torial and Dome, by G. B. Airy, Esq., M. A. Vol. XVI. for the Years 1844 and 1845. Vol. XVII. for the Years 1846 - 48. 3 vols. 4to. Cambridge. K. K. Geologischen Reichsa7istalt, Wien. Naturwissenschaftliche Abhandlungen, gesammelt und durch OF ARTS AND SCIENCES, 155 Subscription herausgegeben von Wilhelm Haidinger. 4 vols. 4to. Wien. 1847-51. Abhandlungen der K. K. Geologischen Reichsanstalt. Band I. Mit 48 Lithogr. Tafeln. 1 vol. 4to. Wien. 1852. Berichte iiber die Mittheilungen von Freunden der Naturwissen- schaften in Wien : gesammelt und herausgegeben von Wilhelm Haidinger. 7 vols. Svo. Wien. 1847-51, Jahrbuch der K, K. Geol. Reichsanstalt. Bande I., II., und III,, und Band IV., Hefte 1, 2, und 3. Svo. Wien. 1850 - 53. Allgemeine Uebersicht der Wirksamkeit der K. K. Geol. Reichs- anstalt. 4to pamph. Wien. 1852. Professor Gerling. Berichtigungen in den Ueberschriften der Marburger Litho- graphien, fur die Magnetischen Termine. 1848 - 52. Folio Blatt, Marburg. 1852. J. Leport, M. D. De la Cataracte. Memoire couronne par I'Institut Medical de Valence (Espagne). 12mo pamph. Paris et Rouen, 1852. The Observatory of Washington City. Astronomical Observations made under the Direction of M. F. Maury, U. S, N., during the Year 1847, at the National Observatory, Washington, (Vol, III.) 4to, Washington, 1853. Trustees of the Boston Public Library. Catalogue of the Public Library of the City of Boston. 1 vol. Svo. Boston. 1854. Macedonio Melloni. Ricerche intorno al Magnetismo delle Rocce del Socio ordinario Macedonio Melloni. 4to pamph. Napoli. 1853, M. Francois Delessert. Recueil de Coquilles decrites par Lamarck dans son Histoire Naturelle des Animaux sans Vertebres, et non encore figurees, public par M, Benj. Delessert, 1 vol. Folio, Paris. 1841. Icones selectsB Plantarum, quas in Systemate universal!, descripsit Aug. Pyr. De Candolle editse a Benj. Delessert. 5 vols. Folio. Parisiis. 1820 - 46. John C. Warren, M. B. Remarks on some Fossil Impressions in the Sandstone Rocks of Connecticut River, 1 vol, Svo, Boston, 1854. 156 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Society of Geography of Paris. Bulletin. 4^"^^ Serie. Tome VI. et VIL 8vo. Paris. 1853 et 1854. A. C. Kruseman. Verhandelingen nitgegeven de Commissie belast met het ver- vaareligen eener Geologische Beschrijving en Kaart van Nederland. Eerste Deel. 4to. Haarlem. 1853. Dr. N. B. Shurtleff. Eleventh Report to the Legislature of Massachusetts, relating to the Registry and Returns of Births, Marriages, and Deaths in the Commonwealth, for the Year ending December 31, 1852. By Ephraim M. Wright, Secretary of the Commonwealth. 1 vol. 8vo. Boston. 1853. E. Homolle and T. A. Quevenne. Archives de Physiologic de Therapeutique et d'Hygiene. — Memoire sur la Digitaline et la Digitale. No. 1. Janvier, 1854. 8vo. Paris. The Committee. A Discourse in Commemoration of the Founding of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia. By W. Parker Foulke. 8vo pamph. Philadelphia. Academy of Sciences, Arts, and Belles- Lettres, Dijon, Memoires pour Annees 1805, 1821, 1828-29, 1830-32, 1834- 36, 1841-42, 1843 (Seance Publique), 1843-50. 2" Serie. Tome I. 1851. 21 vols. 8vo. Dijon. Rapports sur les Machines a Fabriquer la Papier, etc. 8vo pamph. Dijon. 1815. Rapport fait a I'Academie de Dijon sur les Annales du Moyen Age. Par M. Nault. 8vo pamph. Dijon. 1826. Rapport sur la Statistique du Department de la Cote-d'Or. 4to pamph. Dijon. 1835. Rapport contenant une Notice Historique sur I'Establissement des Fontaines Publiques de Dijon. Par M. Victor Dumay. 8vo pamph. Dijon. 1845. The Breslau Observatory. Bericht iiber die Versammlungen der Naturwissenschaftlichen Section im 1834, abgefaht von deren Secretair H. R. Coppert. 8vo pamph. 1834. Bericht iiber die Versammlungen der Natur. Section, &;c. Von OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 157 deren Secretair H. R. Coppert. Abhandlungen der Schlesischen Gesellschaft fiir Vaterlandische Kultur im Jahre 1838. 8vo pamph. 1838. ' Resultate der von der Section fiir die Sudetenkunde im Jahre 1843, veranlaften Meteorologischen Beobachtungen zu Hysometrischen und Klimatologischen zwecken. 4to pamph. Resultate der von dem Vereine fiir die Sudetenkunde jebzt Geo- graphicen Section der Schlesischen Gesell, fiir Vaterl. Kult. im Jahre 1845 und 1846. Von Dr. Boguslawski. 4to pamph. Auszug aus der Uebersicht cjer Arbeiten und Veranderungen der Schlesisc. Gesell. fur Vaterl. Kult. im Jahre 1840, 1841, 1842, 1844, 1845, 1846, 1847, 1847, 1848. Von Dr. Boguslawski. 9 Blatter. 4to und 8vo. W. C. RedfieU. Cape Verde and Hatteras Hurricane of Aug. - Sept. 1853. With a Hurricane Chart and Notices of Various Storms in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, North of the Equator. 8vo pamph. New Haven. 1854. Commissioner of Patents. Report of the Commissioner of Patents for the Year 1851. Part L, Arts and Manufactures. Part. II., Agriculture. 2 vols. 8vo. Washington. (Pub. Doc.) Edward Everett. Report, &c. for the Year 1852. Part. I., Arts and Manufac- tures. Part. II., Agriculture. 2 vols. 8vo. Washington. 1853. (Pub. Doc.) Report, &c. for the Year 1853. Part. I., Arts and Manufactures. 1 vol. 8vo. Washington. 1854. (Pub. Doc.) Royal Bavarian Academy. Abhandlungen der Phil.-Philol. Classe der Konigl. Bayerisch. Akad. der Wissenschaften. Band VI. 1850-52. Band VII. Abth 1. 1853. Abhandlungen der Historisch. Classe. Band VI. 1850-52. 4to. Munich. Gelehrte Anzeigen. Vols. XXXII. - XXXVII., to July, 1853. 4to. Munich. Dr. J. Roth. Schilderung der Naturverhaltnisse in Sud Abyssinien. 4to pamph. Munich. 1851. 158 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Dr. Wittman. Die Germanen und die Romer in ihren Wechselverhaltnisse vor dem Falle des Westreiches. 4to pamph. Munich. 1851. Beobachtungen des Meteorologischen Observatoriums auf dem Hohenpeissenberg von 1792 - 1850. Von Dr. J. Lamont. Svo pamph. Mimchen. 1851. J)r. Carl Prankl. Die gegenwartize Aufgabe der Philosophie. 4to pamph. Mim- chen. 1852. Architektonische Zeichnunger als Beilage zu den zwei Abhand- lungen iiber das Erechtheum von Edw. Mezger. 4to pamph. Miinchen. 1852. Annalen der Koniglischen Sternwarte bei Miinchen. Von Dr. J. Lamont. Vol. V. Mit Astronomischen Kalender fiir 1853. Svo pamph. Miinchen. 1852. Ueber den Chemismus der Vegetation. Von Dr. A. Vogel, Jr. 4to pamph. Miinchen. 1852. Afrika vor den Entdeckunsen der Portugiesen. Von Dr. Fried- rich Kunstman. 4to pamph. Miinchen. 1853. Br. C. Fr. Plir. Martius. Wesweiser fiir die Besucher des K. Botanischen Gartens in Miinchen, nebst einem Verzeichnisse der in demselben vorhandenen Pflanzengattungen. 12mo pamph, Miinchen. 1852. J. G. Kralinger. Die Classischen Studien und ihre Begner. Svo pamph. Miinchen. 1853. Br. Fr. P. W. Her?nan. Ueber die Bewegung der Bevolterung im Konigreiche Bayern. Svo pamph. Miinchen. 1853. Friedrick Thiersch. Rede zur Borfeyer des hohen Geburtsfestes. 4to pamph. Miin- chen. 1853. Beming Jarves. Reminiscences of Glass-Making. Svo pamph. Boston. 1854. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 159 Four Iiundred and second meeting. June 27, 1854. — Monthly Meeting. The President in the chair. Professor J. S. Cooke presented a memoir " On Stibiobi- zincyle and Stibiotrizincyle, two new Compounds of Zinc and Antimony." This memoir was referred to the Committee of Publication. Four Iiundred and third meeting. ' August 9, 1854. — (Quarterly Meeting. The President in the chair. At the request of the Treasurer, the following vote was laid before the Academy, and unanimously adopted : — " Voted, That the Secretary be directed to inform the executors of our late esteemed associate, Dr. George C. Shattuck, that the Acade- my have received his bequest, a share in the Cocheco Manufacturing Company, and to express their grateful sense of this mark of his regard." A paper was received from Professor Gray, entitled, " Char- acters of some New Genera and Species of Plants in a Col- lection made by George Thurber, Esq., of the late Mexican Boundary Commission, chiefly in New Mexico, Southwest California, and Sonora." The plants described are Ranuncu- lus hydrocharoides ; Argemone fniticosa, Thurber ,• Malvas- trum Thurheri ; Ahutilon Thurberi ; Thurheria thespesioides, a new and striking Malvaceous genus allied to Thespesia; Holacantha Emoryi, a new genus of Simarubaceas allied to Castela ; Guaiacum Coulteri ; Astragalus Thurberi ; Dau- bentonia Thurberi ; Robinia Neo-Mexicana ; five new spe- cies of Dalea ; Hosackia argophylla ; Acacia ? crassifolia, an anomalous species as to the foliage ; Potentilla Thurberi, a new red-flowered species ; Petalonyx Thurberi, an interest- ing addition to the tribe Gronoviese of the order Loasaceas ; Eremiastrum bellioides, an Asteroid genus, intermediate be- tween Erigeron and Bellium ; Melampodium longicorne ; Dy- 160 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY sodia porophylloides ; Psathyrotes incisa ; Bartlettia scaposa, a new genus of SenecionesBj dedicated to the U. S. Boundary Commissioner under whose instructions this collection was made ; Perezia Thurheri ; Stephanomeria Thurberi ; Jac- qiiinia pungens ; and Pilostyles Thurheri, a parasitic flower of the order Rafiiesiaceas, of which it is the only representa- tive in North America. Professor Horsford exhibited an obstruction which had been removed from a wooden pump-log at the Water-Cure establishment of Brattleboro. Vt., formed of a compact mass of small root-fibres, entirely closing the tube of the log. It was three feet in length, and was developed from a slender fibre of the root of a neighboring tree, which had penetrated by a small crevice at a joint in the log. The log had been two years in the ground. Dr. Walter Channing asked for an explanation of the fact, that, in solar eclipses, the luminous spots upon the ground pro- duced by the light which penetrated the foliage were always of the same shape as the uneclipsed portion of the sun. Professor Lovering remarked in reply : — " This phenomenon has been frequently noticed. It excited at- tention in the progress of the great eclipse of 1806, and is men- tioned by Sir J. F. W. Herschel in reference to the eclipse of Sep- tember 7, 1820. The explanation of it which the rectilinear motion of light offers is simple and sufficient. If the aperture is a physical point, a cone of rays will pass through it, having this point as its apex. The section of this cone by a screen at right angles to its axis will have the same figure as the body from which the light comes, and its diameter will be equal to the diameter of the luminous body mul- tiplied by the distance of the screen from the aperture, and divided by the distance of the luminous body from the same point. Hence, for the same body, it increases as the screen is placed at greater dis- tances. If the luminous body is a physical point, and the aperture not, a pencil of rays will pass through, which is a continuation of the cone of which the luminous point is the apex, and the apertures the base. The section of this pencil at right angles to its axis will have the shape of the aperture, and its size will equal that of the aperture OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 161 itself multiplied by the distance of the luminous point from the aperture added to the distance of the aperture from the screen, and divided by the distance of the luminous point from the aperture. Hence it is obvious that the size increases more slowly than the dis- tance of the screen from the aperture, and in the case of a distant object, like the sun, almost imperceptibly. When neither the aperture nor the luminous object is a physical point, each strives to imprint its own figure upon the screen, and the resulting shape will resemble that of the aperture or the object according to the size of the two images which each would separately impress, as calculated above. If the size of the aperture is to the size of the luminous object as the distance between the aperture and screen is to the distance between the luminous body and the screen, the separate images which the aperture and the luminous body will form are of the same size, and therefore their shape is equally influential in forming the resulting fig- ure. When the distance of the screen is thirty feet from the aper- ture, the two images above described are of the same size with solar light if the aperture is between three and four inches. Now when the distance between the screen and the aperture is changed, the size of the image which belongs to the luminous body changes much more than that which belongs to the aperture. Consequently, if the screen on which the images are painted is much farther than thirty feet, the size of the aperture being three or four inches, or if the size of the aperture is diminished, the distance between the screen and the aperture remaining the same, the influence of the sun's form will prevail, and in extreme cases the resulting figure will represent the shape of the sun to the exclusion of all trace of the shape of the aperture. Hence with very small apertures the final image will have no resemblance in shape to the aperture, except when received very near to the aper- ture. But with nearer bodies, as the flame of a candle, the shape of the aperture continues upon the screen at larger distances, or with the same distance when smaller apertures are employed." Four hundred and fourth meeting. September 12, 1854. — Monthly Meeting. The President in the chair. The Corresponding Secretary read letters from Sir William Hamilton, accepting his appointment of Foreign Honorary VOL. III. 21 162 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Member; and from Dr. Walter Channing, resigning the Fel- lowship of the Academy. Dr. Hayes presented a pamphlet, " Reminiscences of Glass- Making," by Deming Jarves, accompanying the donation by some remarks on that art. He stated that at the present time the United States are before all other countries in the man- ufacture of flint glass, both in the quality and quantity of the article produced. Dr. Hayes also presented the report of the committee of the Franklin Institute, with one of his own appended, on E. G. Poraeroy's new process of coating iron with copper, and ex- hibited iron spikes coated by the process described. Professor Lovering exhibited to the Academy Plateau's new instrument, the Anorthoscope, and explained its construction and use. Professor J. Wyman said, that since the previous meeting, in consequence of the remarks then made on the form of the image produced by the sunlight in passing through apertures of various shapes and sizes, he had examined the pupil of the eye in various animals with reference to the point in ques- tion. Professor Wyman described this as it exists, of various shapes ; but he found by experimenting with apertures of similar shapes cut in cards, that the image of the sun trans- mitted through them remained always the same, with the ex- ception of a greater or less penumbra at the circumference. Dr. C. T. .Tackson gave an account of the recent discovery of gold at Bridgewater, Vt., where it is found in a vein of quartz a foot and a half thick, in company with sulphuret of lead, silver and copper pyrites. One ton of reduced lead from this locality yields over six hundred dollars' worth of gold. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 163 Four hundred and fifth, meeting^. October 10, 1854. — Monthly Meeting. The Corresponding Secretary in the chair. Professor Agassiz called the attention of the Academy to the recent decease of one of the Fellows, Dr. Waldo I. Bur- nett, and made the following remarks : — " I rise to perform a sad duty, which, but for my absence, I would have performed sooner. The American Academy of Arts and Sci- ences has sustained a severe loss by the death of its associate, Dr. W. I. Burnett, who, after a protracted illness, expired of consumption. Dr. Burnett had hardly yet entered upon the stage of active life when disease began to shake his constitution ; but such was his devotion to science, such his zeal and perseverance, that, in a state of health which would have prostrated most men, he was unceasingly active and in- dustrious. The consciousness of the probably short duration of his life, of which he spoke occasionally, and always with the greatest calmness, seems to have been a powerful stimulus for him to leave nothing within his reach undone which might advance the cause of science, and secure for himself an honorable place among its devotees. In this respect his short life has been most exemplary. He not only made his way by himself, but he devoted every moment of his time to the increase of his knowledge, rather than to the improvement of his worldly condition. His efforts were crowned with the fullest suc- cess, and the papers he has communicated to the Academy, one of which is already published in its Memoirs, and his other scientific contributions, will ever bear testimony to his industry and skill. He was one of the few among us extensively conversant with the whole range of foreign publications upon the subjects with which he was engaged. In his intercourse with his fellow-laborers in the field of science he was modest, unpretending, and ever willing to aid others. As a friend he was true and open. All these amiable and distin- guished qualities make his departure from among us a real loss to all true lovers of science. I therefore move that the Academy pass the following resolutions, as expressive of its sense of his great moral worth and scientific eminence. " Resolved, That the Academy feels deeply the loss of its distin- guished associate, Dr. W. I. Burnett, who, by his untii'ing industry, his great scientific accomplishments, and his amiable personal quali- 164 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY ties, stood prominent among the rising generation of scientific men in America. " Resolved, That the Academy will cheerfully undertake to print in its Memoirs whatsoever papers he may have left in a condition fit for publication. " Resolved, That the American Academy tenders to the family of Dr. Burnett its sincere sympathies for their irreparable loss. " Resolved, That a copy of these resolutions be sent to the family of Dr. Burnett, and printed in the public papers." These resolutions were seconded by Dr. S. L. Abbot, and unanimously adopted. Professor J. Lovering then rose, and said : — " May I call the attention of the Academy to another loss it has sustained in the recent and sudden death of Macedoine Melloni, the news of which arrived in this country almost contemporaneously with the report of a new paper which he had presented to the French Academy. In the preface to his great work, La Thermochrose, Mel- loni confesses the great admiration w^hich he had felt for nature from his youth : ' Mais rien ne frappait autant mon imagination que le lieu si intime qui reunit les phenomenes de la vie a I'astre brillant du jour.' He began to teach Physics as soon as he left the school-bench, and continued at that employment for seven years, from 1824 to 1831, when the courses of the University of Parma were discontinued. Here he came into valuable contact with Nobili, whose thermo-multi- plier he adopted and perfected with the assistance of the skilful artist of Paris, Ruhmkorff". Political troubles banished Melloni from Italy, but he found an asylum in France, and a kind friend in Arago. He accepted a Professorship in the Department of the Jura, and after- wards went to Geneva for six months. In 1837 Arago prevailed with Metternich to obtain permission for the return of the exile to his home, and in 1839 Melloni was appointed Director of the Cabinet of Arts and Trades at Naples. " Melloni's discoveries in Radiant Heat began with his first memoir presented to the French Academy, in 1833. This was followed in long succession by others in French and Italian to the day of his death, or for a period of more than twenty years. The fruits of Melloni's labors were systematically embodied in his great work, entitled La Thermochrosey ou la Coloration Calorifique, the first volume of which OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 165 appeared at Naples in 1850, dedicated to Humboldt and Arago. The title of this work suggests one of the most brilliant, as well as earliest discoveries of Melloni, namely, the existence of variety among rays of heat similar to those peculiarities of light which are called color. As heat itself does not address the eye, so its varieties cannot. The color of heat, as the phenomenon is metaphorically called by Melloni, is not perceived by the eye, but shows itself in the same way that the colors of light appear in experiments on absorption and prismatic dispersion. Moreover, the transcalency of a body is often dispropor- tioned to its transparency. To these researches may be added those on the radiation and absorption, the polarization and depolarization and interference of heat, with incidental investigations in regard to the heat of moonlight and the action of the eye ; the whole perfecting and almost creating a new branch of physics, for the complete illustration of which Melloni provided in the world-renowned thermo-electric multiplier and other apparatus as arranged by RuhmkorfF. In view of these great services to science, which have established the undulatory character of radiant heat, whatever may be the statical condition of this force, and have placed the name of Melloni among the highest in physical science, I propose the following resolutions : — " Resolved, That the American Academy of Arts and Sciences has heard with deep regret of the sudden death of its illustrious For- eign Honorary Member, Macedoine Melloni. " Resolved, That the Academy fully appreciates the high services which Melloni has rendered to the physical sciences by his brilliant discoveries in Thermotics, which he has exalted to an eminent rank among the oldest and best cultivated fields of research ; and that it recognizes in him, not only an early, long, and deep passion for the study of nature, but also remarkable experimental skill, displayed alike in the contrivance and use of new instruments, as well as un- usual caution of mind and excellence of style in communicating his discoveries. " Resolved, That the American Academy unites with the other scientific associations throughout the world in deploring the sudden going down of one of its most brilliant lights, while in its meridian splendor." These resolutions were seconded by Professor Agassiz, who, together with Professor Gray, offered a tribute to the great 166 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY scientific eminence and moral worth of the deceased. The resoUitions were unanimously adopted. Professor Agassiz gave the result of some of his recent observations on the phenomena accompanying the first ap- pearance of a circulating system in the higher animals. He remarked, that physiologists had hitherto believed that in Ver- tebrata the circulation commences by the formation of true blood, flowing from a cavity formed by a group of struc- tural cells which unite to form the heart ; its currents, which become gradually inclosed by similar structural cells, forming the bloodvessels. The circulating fluid from the commence- ment had been regarded as true blood. Recent investigations had convinced him that this is not the case. The primitive fluid in the bloodvessels is not blood, but liquid albumen. This fact he had formerly demonstrated in the embryo chick and turtle, and he had recently noticed it in the embryo of the Lophhis piscatorius^ or Devil-fish. Owing to the transpar- ency of the fluid, the currents were first made out with great difficulty, but, when closely watched, became evident by the separation of particles from the walls of the channels and their circulation in the current, which were distinctly seen. The albumen is that in which the yolk cells of the ovum swim, and the first blood corpuscles are transformed yolk cells. The blood at first contains, besides its proper corpuscles, yolk cells, structural cells, pigment cells, &c. In observing the em- bryo of Lophius piscatorius, while attentively watching one of the primitive isolated currents during four hours. Professor Agassiz saw blood corpuscles starting, and finally a true blood circulation established, where before there had been merely a transparent fluid albumen moving without granules. Professor Gray presented a short memoir entitled " Note on the Characters and Affinities of Vavcaa, Benth. ; also of RJiytidandra, Gray." This paper was referred to the Pub- lishing Committee. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 167 Four hundred and sixth meeting. November 8, 1854. — Q,uarterly Meeting. The President in the chair. Hon. B. R. Curtis, Hon. Rnfus Choate, and Rev. Ephraim Peabody were elected Fellows of the Academy in the Section of Philosophy and Jurisprudence. Dr. Charles E. Ware was elected a Fellow of the Academy in the Section of Medicine and Surgery. Dr. Thomas M. Brewer and Dr. Silas Durkee were elected Fellows of the Academy in the Section of Zoology and Physiology. Dr. B. A. Gculd communicated elements of the fourth comet of 1854, determined from observations at Berlin and Cloverden ; — together with the results of some further com- putations instituted in consequence of the striking resemblance between these elements and those of the first comet of 1845. These results are given in detail in the Astronomical Journal. Dr. Hayes alluded to the opinion which has been held by some, that after seasons of drought springs flow more freely before rain falls. His attention had been recently called to the subject by hearing, on reliable authority, that in California this phenomenon is observed some weeks before the annual rains. He inquired if any gentleman present could explain it. Professor Levering said that in a paper read before the American Association for the Advancement of Science, during the session at Cleveland, this phenomenon had been attributed to variations in atmospheric pressure, such as produce changes in the barometer ; and he regarded the explanation as a very rational one. Dr. Jeffries Wyman stated that he had been engaged in mak- ing some experiments with a view to ascertain, if possible, the cause of contractility in some vegetable tissues, as in the cap- sules of the common Balsam and the Echinocystis lohata. In these it is well known that, when the seeds are ripe, the seed- vessel bursts open, scattering them to a considerable distance. 168 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY It was Diitrochet's theory, that this action is due to the sudden transfer of fluid from the inner to the outer cells of the wall of the capsule. Dr. Wyman had demonstrated the impossibility of this, by dissecting away the outer layers of cells without im- pairing at all the contractility of the capsule. He had himself come to the conclusion, that the motion is due to the spontane- ous contraction of the cells on the contracting side, in the way that motion is produced in the hydroid polyps. In the con- tracted capsule the cells on the concave side are found to be shortened, while those on the opposite side are elongated. In the Balsam capsule the contraction is so sudden that the shortening of the cells cannot be watched, but in the Echi- nocystis the motion is so gradual that the change can be ob- served under the microscope. When gradually subjected to the action of anassthetic agents, the capsules lose their con- tractility ; but when suddenly placed under their influence, an immediate contraction is the usual result. Four liundred and seveutli meeting. December 12, 1854. — Quarterly Meeting. The President in the chair. Dr. Durkee read a paper on the Common Mosquito, Culex pipiens, giving a description of the microscopic structure of its proboscis, with an account of its development and habits of reproduction. On motion of the Treasurer, the following vote was passed : — " Whereas, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences has re- ceived notice from the executors of the will of the late Samuel Apple- ton, that they have transferred to this society stocks amounting to ten thousand dollars, from the fund left for distribution by Mr. Ap- pleton, — " Voted, That the Academy accepts with much gratification this contribution to the cause of Science from one who found his happiness in acts of beneficence, and that our thanks are due to the executors of his will for the direction which they have given to his bounty." OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 169 Professor J. Lovering made a brief communication, describ- ing new experiments and modes of illustrating the laws of Lig'iiT and Sound, " 1. At the meeting of the American Association for the Advance- ment of Science, at Cleveland, in August, 1853, I gave an account of some changes, and, as I believed, improvements, in the construc- tion of Soleil's apparatus for projecting on a screen the chromatic phenomena of polarization. As the volume which is to contain the proceedings of that meeting has been unusually delayed in its pub- lication, and has not yet appeared, I propose to present now to the Academy the substance of my former paper. The apparatus of which I speak, as made by Soleil, is described in Pouillet's Traite de Physique, and elsewhere ; and a sectional view of it is given on Plate XXXIV., Fig. 21, of the book first mentioned. I here present the ap- Fig. 1. kJl 0 E paratus as I have modified it. Soleil's plan is well adapted to many experiments. If the crystal is small, it is placed near the focus of the large lens, which condenses the light upon it and illuminates it strongly, so that the colored rings, black crosses, &c. developed by the analyzer may be projected upon a distant screen on an enlarged scale. But whenever these experiments are to be repeated with crys- tals of low crystalline power, as quartz, for example, some modifica- tion of the apparatus is necessary. Otherwise, it will be impossible to see anything more than the colored centre without the rings. A more diverging beam of rays is required for the rings. Thus have I been led to the construction of another eyepiece, to be substituted in such cases for that which accompanied the original apparatus. It VOL. III. 22 170 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY is represented in Fig. 2. Tlie two small lens- es, L', having with their united forces a focal length of less than an inch, receive the converg- ing rays as they come from the large lens, L, and make them still more convergent. It is necessary that the quartz should be adjusted very near the focus of the rays, and also that the analyzer should be placed as closely as possible in front of the quartz. Otherwise, this highly divergent pencil of light, after it leaves the focus, will not be able to get through the small area of the crystal and analyzer, and therefore the whole field of view will be curtailed. The crystal and analyzer are held by separate rings, which are supported on uprights which slide independently upon a horizontal bar, and the two rings may, therefore, be pushed as closely together as the thickness of the crystals will allow. " In Soleil's apparatus, there is an opening, such as is seen at O of Fig. 1, similar to that made in magic-lanterns, and for the same object, namely, the introduction of the frame containing the object to be magnified. When Soleil's apparatus is used for the inspection of large objects, such as pieces of tempered glass or artificial selenite figures, they are introduced at this opening, and in these cases the large lens serves as a magnifying-glass, and there is no condensing lens to help the illumination. This defect would not be felt with very large objects, as large, that is, as the lens itself; because the object itself would receive immediately as much light as the lens could throw upon it. But the objects to be examined are seldom, if ever, of this magnitude. Hence, much of the light which might otherwise be saved, is lost for want of a condensing lens. In order that the ap- paratus may retain all the advantages which belong to it in its original form, I have retained the opening 0, which may still be used in any cases where it is prefei'red. But the tube which carries the large lens has been divided at the middle of its length, and one part made to slide in the other. Another opening, O', similar to that in the original apparatus has been joined to one end of the interior tube. By push- ing more or less of this tube into the next exterior one, the objects placed in the new opening can be put at smaller or larger distances from the principal lens, which is to this opening an illuminating lens. The best distance, in any given case, is that which makes the section of the cone of rays by the object equal to that part of its own OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 171 area to be examined. When large pieces of quartz, the tempered glass, or selenite figures, are examined under these circumstances, the superiority of the illuminating arrangement is very decided, and al- lows of the picture being displayed on a much larger scale than would be otherwise practicable. "2. Since Newton's prime experiment on the prismatic dispersion of white light, many contrivances have been used to produce the synthetical counterpart to this grand result of experimental analysis. The various methods of uniting the prismatic colors again, so as to restore the white light, are enumerated by Moigno, in his Repertoire (TOptique, Vol. IV. p. 1370, as given by Dove. " It is desirable to obtain the original pure prismatic tints, and then unite the rays, if possible, by some process independent of refraction, and involving no obscure process. Von Miinchow does this by giving a reciprocating motion to the prism, and Steinheil, by turning a prism, one side of which is ground or blackened so as to intercept the light, rapidly round an axis parallel to the refracting edge. In either case, as soon as the motion acquires a certain velocity, the colored spec- trum vanishes, and a sti*eak of white light appears in its place. This subjective mixture of the colors may be effected in a cheaper manner, by any one in possession of a water-prism, as follows. The light is introduced through one of the inclined glass sides of the prism, at such an angle as to emerge from the upper surface of the water. If the prism stands firmly upon a table, a spectrum will be projected upon the ceiling of the room. But a moderate tap with the finger upon the table will communicate a rapid vibration to the hollow prism, and thence to the water contained in it, and the little change in the re- fracting angle which ensues will make the spectrum dance backward and forward in the direction of its length. As soon as the dance be- gins, the spectrum, which hitherto had been of the usual colors, is converted into a long streak of white light. " 3. The only remaining experiment to which I shall allude in this communication carries us out of the province of Optics, and into that of Acoustics. It is well known that, when a tube filled with air is skilfully blown by the mouth at the embouchure, or a vibration in the inclosed column of air is otherwise excited, it is capable of ren- dering, without any fingering and without holes to finger, a certain series of sounds, which are called harmonics. In the humming-top, we may presume that the reaction is the same between the air inside 172 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY and outside of the top, as it is in the musical pipe : the only difference being, that in one case the air is driven by the mouth against the lip of the embouchure, and in the other the lip of the top is made to strike against the air. I have not been able to find any allusion to the question whether the note which the top yields varies with the force of the blast which the top itself gives by its own motion. But I have succeeded myself in producing two of the harmonics, that is, one besides the fundamental sound. Success in this experiment requires that an extraordinary velocity should be given to the top, greater than is possible except when the top is small. But if a small top is started with great energy, it gives out at first a high sound. As the velocity slackens, this sound dies out, and the top is silent for some time. Afterwards, as the motion diminishes, another and lower sound starts up, which is the one commonly heard in humming-tops, and the only one possible to excite by the usual way of starting the top, if it is large. This curious experiment may be worth recording, as carrying one step further the analogy between the theories of the sounds of the humming-top and of other wind instruments." Mr. Sherwin alluded to a phenomenon accompanying the recent burning of a large building in Cambridge. Tlie ap- pearance to him, at the distance of several miles, was that of a tall column of light elevated about 20° above the horizon, appearing at first like some extraordinary meteoric phenom- enon. It might be accounted for, he thought, by a series of reflections from clouds at different elevations, or perhaps more probably by mirage. In 1811 he had seen a similar appear- ance 24° high, which proved to have been caused by the burn- ing of a paper-mill forty miles off". Professor Horsford exhibited specimens of Cochituate water, together with the various products of his recent examination and analysis of it. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 173 December 26, 1854. — Monthly Meeting. The Academy met by invitation at the house of the Pres- ident. The President in the chair. Professor Felton, at the invitation of the President, gave an account of the present aspect of Greece, from personal obser- vation during a recent visit to that country. He represented its condition as being extremely interesting, from the promise which it gives of literary and scientific development. He spoke of the schools and universities, the public press, the condition of the language, and the prevailing spirit of the people, as giving ground for sanguine expectations of the regeneration of that classic land. Fonr Iiundred and nintli meeting. January 9, 1S55. — Monthly Meeting. The President in the chair. Dr. A. A. Hayes read the following paper on the present condition of the Cochituate water, entitled, " On a Remarkable Change which has taken place in the Composition and Char- acters of the Water supplied to the City of Boston from Lake Cochituate, by A. A. Hayes, M.D., Assayer to the State of Massachusetts." " In the study of the chemical composition of waters used for do- mestic purposes, a wide field is open for inquiries of high scientific interest ; as the accurate comparisons of diffei'ent waters lead us through both departments of modern chemistry, the organic and in- organic. This interest is, however, secondary to the importance of careful inquiries in an economical view, as we have actions of waters on substances with which they come in contact at one point, modify- ing their composidon, so as to render them purer, or less salubrious ; and when a water passes some distance, its characters may thus be made to differ at different points. Not only is the water changed by different bodies with which it is brought in contact, but conduits of masonry or iron are in special cases rapidly destroyed. 174 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY " Although my observations on the water supplied to this city were among the earliest made before its introduction, they have been con- tinued since, and within two years partial analyses have been made almost weekly for the purpose of learning the cause of any changes occurring. The results thus obtained will be given in a future paper, and the conclusions arrived at in a general form, while at present it is my intention to call attention to the condition of the water as it has existed for about ten weeks. " Cochituate water, derived mostly from surface drainage, as it is found in the pond, or lake, belongs to the class of peaty waters so common in New England. It has not characters in common with the green or colorless waters of limestone formations, nor the medium or mixed qualities of our river waters. " In its normal state, it may be considered as a pure water, holding in solution four or five grains of mineral salts in one United States standard gallon ; and these consist of compounds of chlorine with sodium, potassium, calcium, and magnesium. Carbonates and sili- cates of these bases exist, in varying proportions, at different seasons. " Its organic constituents, including the gases dissolved, are those of the most importance, as these give it particular characters, modify- ing its chemical relations, and affecting the taste, color, and purity of the fluid. In the spring and autumnal seasons there are found ulmic, humic, crenic, and apocrenic acids, and sparingly soluble compounds of these acids and bases, including alumina and oxide of iron. With these is a neutral body, which resembles mucilage from gum, and is usually in a changing state, especially while the water is warm in the summer season. The gases dissolved are oxygen, nitrogen, and carbonic acid ; the nitrogen never has the volume relation to the oxy- gen which exists in air, being, except in rare instances, in smaller proportion, and instances have occurred when the nitrogen was no more 4han twenty volumes to eighty of the oxygen. The volume of car- bonic acid also varies ; while about one volume of all the gases exists in thirty-six of normal water. There are present also numerous ani- malcules and infusoria, fresh-water sponges, and abundance of ochrey matter, resulting from the chemical action of the water on the iron pipes. The animalcules indicate a state, which really exists, of a disturbed balance between the fish, the Crustacea, animalcules, and subaqueous vegetation of the lake. Although throughout the year the water, at times increased by rains and melting snow, cannot be OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 175 classed with putrid waters, there are periods every warm season dur- ing which it closely approaches to these in characters. " In the latter part of October last, I was watching for the inci'eased amount of organic acids due to the decomposition of vegetable matter after a season of drought, succeeded by copious rains, when I was great- ly surprised to find the humates and apocrenates giving placp to crenic acid and crenates, accompanied by a perceptible odor of decomposing vegeto-animal matter, such as is emitted by freshly disturbed soil. This odor, which characterizes the humus from animal matter, continued several days ; the water became colorless, while the organic matter, including carbonic acid, increased so as to exceed nineteen times the minimum amount previously found. " The condensed vapor from the water had a strong odor of earth, or precisely that of guano from humid climates, and possessed an acid reaction. No more than mere traces of ammonia could be thus de- tected. When the water was mixed with lime and distilled, the condensed vapor was ammoniacal ; proving that no carbonate of ammonia from the soil was present, but a salt of ammonia ^ due to de- composition. The earthy odor, or so-called taste, was succeeded by one closely resembling that of fresh-water fish, which, with slight variations of intensity, has continued nearly ten weeks. " Before the water throughout the city became thus contaminated, the suggestion arose that the cause was local ; the secondary main pipe supplying my dwelling having perhaps retained some decaying parts of eels or fish. A careful examination of the water was made, and by analysis a portion of oil was separated from water, which had been filtered through muslin to remove suspended impurities. " By distillation the odor could be isolated from the water, which thus lost what was pronounced by good judges to be the flavor of fish- oil ; while the water retained the oil, almost destitute of odor. " The general supply of water to a populous city had thus become very offensive, without any adequate cause appearing, and the evil led to the expression of many hypotheses and suppositions, chiefly without reliable support. As the subject was one which was within the reach of experiment, the course adopted was the following. " A displacement apparatus of glass was charged with recently cal- cined animal charcoal, of medium fineness ; over this was placed a coni- cal filter of clean cotton, so that any water falling on the charcoal would first pass through the cotton filter. The water from a contracted supply pipe was allowed to flow slowly on the cotton filter, and passed 176 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY away so long as the pores remained open. Removing the cotton filter, the charcoal was allowed to drain, the water displaced hy alco- hol, and the alcohol by sulphuric ether, without removing the coal. Some oil was found in the alcoholic fluid, while the aqueous ether was colored by it some tint of yellow, to a light olive color. By evap- oration at 90° to 100°, the ether left some globules of fluid oil, but by far the larger bulk of residue was a soft solid in granules, without crystalline form. By warming this solid with a little acid, a base was dissolved, generally lime, or lime and ammonia, while the oil floated on the fluid and was left by evaporation of the water. As thus obtained, this oil was of a light yellow color, presenting both oleic and stearic acids. Its specific gravity was the same as that of lard-oil. Alcohol dissolved it without residue. A solution of carbonate of soda saponified it when warmed ; proving the acid condition of the oil. With sulphuric acid it blackened, and chlorine changed its color to dark brown. The oil, as separated from the ethereal solution in different experiments, assumed a solid state at 80° or 90° F. Acids eliminated oily fluids constantly, with the emission of a peculiar odor. Treated with car- bonate of soda when the soap was decomposed, an odor resembling that from adipocere was perceptible, generally. When the charcoal, while wet from the water, was distilled, the vapor which was first con- densed had a strong fish-like odor. It would putrefy and run through the changes, resulting in the production ofconfervse. " The mass of the water supply was constantly changing from its state of approach to putrefactive fermentation — in which free crenic acid and crenates appeared, with a large volume of carbonic acid — to its more nearly normal state. At one time, twenty-eight vol- umes of water 'evolved, by boiling, one volume of gases. Twenty-five volumes of the gases were diminished only one volume by phosphorus warmed and left twenty-four hours ; or about four per cent, of oxygen, seventy of carbonic acid, and twenty-six of nitrogen. Such a gaseous atmosphere dissolved in the water could not support animal life, in the higher forms of organization. As the oxygen gas increased in volume, the apocrenates and humates appeared, and the water, which had no action on iron, assumed its ordinary action on this metal. The Crustacea increased in quantity and size, the cyclops and daphnia be- came predominant, and the cotton filters were soon closed by their bodies. Attention was now given to the mass collected on the filter, as had already been done with the sponges and some vegetable organ- isms, including confervse. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 177 " The fishlike odor was mostly retained by the filter, which had not been the case in the earlier experiments, and it became easy to sep- arate from the gelatinous mass on the cotton the oil with the odor, or apart from it. As separated from this mass, the oil possessed a fugi- tive green color at times, but the dried filter, extracted by ether, afford- ed a yellow oil. The variations in color were found to be due to the state of the matter on the filter, which, evidently of animal origin, decayed rapidly, and the oil and odor became merged in a body, much like'adipocere. The water which had been purified by means of animal charcoal was free from taste and odor ; its vapor did not possess odor, and the larger part of the organic matter had dis- appeared. " As the chief contaminating substance in this water was arrested from a current, by even a coarse filter, and the experiments had been repeated so frequently as to leave little else for chemical trials, I placed in the hands of Dr. John Bacon, for microscopical examination, the substance like that from which the odorous oil had been taken. " Dr. Bacon at once detected the source of the oil, the bodies of the Cyclops and daphnia being in large part filled with it. Ten or fifteen globules, of different sizes, could be seen in a single subject ; but the most remarkable fact in this connection is the varied colors of the oil. Under the microscope, while many subjects presented a yellowish- brown oil, some were filled with colorless oil, and not a few had oil apparently of a blackish blue, shading to indigo blue. This fact ex- plains the production of green and olive-green ethereal solutions, and it was found that the decomposing remains were often red and yellowish brown, and then afforded light yellow solutions. No sub- stance but those named, and animalcula, was found among numerous collections, which could afford oil ; the connection between the chem- ical proofs and microscopical observations was most skilfully made by Dr. Bacon, in the way of extracting the oil, while the subject was in the field of the instrument. " At this point in the research, a series of experiments was under- taken which demonstrated that the fluid oil, first obtained by means of animal charcoal, was really due to broken up and dead Crustacea, which were then abundant in the water. Certain modifications of the oil, which had been observed, could be traced to the state of the mass of the Crustacea before the ether was used. As collected at the present time from a portion of water by means of filters of difTerent VOL. III. 23 178 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY degrees of fineness, from coarse to very fine, we have the water on one hand free from taste, while the filters retain the matter which rendered the water impure. A portion of this matter placed in pure water gives to it the taste of Cochituate water, while another portion under the microscope presents only living and dead crustacea. Dr. Bacon has kindly recorded his observations, and allowed me to ap- pend his account of them to this paper, " The experimental evidence, having proved the origin of the so- called ^aste of the water to arise from the presence of an odorous oil contained in the bodies of carnivorous crustacea, there are two practical points to which attention should be called. " Compared with the water of a pond or lake, where a natural balance exists between the fish, crustacea, infusoria, and subaqueous plants, this water is contaminated by an oily food, which affords sub- sistence to an unnatural number of crustacea. To restock the lake with several varieties of fish, and by legislative action to protect their growth and increase, seems the proper course to be pursued in cor- recting the evil. If efficiently carried out, such steps may so improve the quality of the water, that this source of supply will have all the purity of the best known sources, without the variations observed. " While the impurities exist, it is prudent for families to use for drinking, and, if possible, for cooking, only such water as has been passed through a filter. Even coarse, temporary resorts of this kind will remove much that is offensive, while the better filters will com- pletely purify the water." Dr. J. Bacon exhibited under the microscope specimens of Cyclops and Daphnia in Cochituate water, containing visible globules of oil, to the great abundance of which was referable the present impurity in Cochituate water, as suggested by Dr. Hayes ; and read the following paper, entitled " Observa- tions on the Oil contained in the Crustaceans found in the Cochituate Water." " The occurrence of numerous transparent globules in the bodies of the minute crustaceans found in the Cochituate water first at- tracted my notice in the spring of 1854, and I then ascertained by chemical tests that they consisted of oil. Supposing that they were ova in some stage of development, and were probably well known to naturalists, no further observations were made until the bad condition OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 179 of the Cochituate water attracted public notice ; when I called the attention of one of the chemists employed to analyze the water to the presence of this oil, and suggested that it might be the cause of the evil. But it did not appear probable to either of us that a small amount of oil could occasion so serious an effect ; and thus the mat- ter rested until the commencement of the present year, when Dr. Hayes placed in my hands for microscopic examination the gelatinous substance collected by him on cloth filters. The microscope revealed an abundance of oily globules in the bodies of the Cyclops and other minute crustaceans, of which the mass on the filter chiefly consisted ; and the source of the oil obtained in his experiments was at once evident. At this time (early in January) very few confervse or other vegetable organisms were found. The empty siliceous shells of vari- ous Diatomaceae were abundant, as usual, but scarcely any specimens were living, or contained organic matter. Yet the peculiar flavor of the water was as strongly marked as in the autumn, when Confervse and other vegetable organisms abounded. " The crustaceans in which the oil occurs are several species or varieties of Cyclops and Daphnia, and probably other allied genera of the division Entomostraca. In the living animals, the oil is clearly seen, by the aid of the microscope, through the carapace, which is mostly transparent ; and is distinguished by its high refractive power, and other optical characters, from the other contents of the shell. It can also be extracted by ether, and still more satisfactorily by strong alcohol, from the body of the animal, while in the field of the micro- scope. The quantity present is exceedingly variable, not only at different times, but in different individuals collected at the same time. In a few specimens no globules are visible. In others, they are so abundant that the oil forms at least one quarter part of the bulk of the animal. These large quantities occur only in the Cyclops, which is by far the most abundant form present ; the other crustaceans con- tain much less. " Its distribution in the body of the animal is remarkable, being diffused irregularly in globules of various sizes (usually spherical and occasionally ovoid or pear-shaped), and in masses formed by the coalescence of globules ; and it appears to have no definite connec- tion with the internal organs of the animal. Sometimes small globules are seen, even in the last joints of the tail. No sac or envelope is vis- ible around them, as they occur in the animal, or when liberated by 180 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY tearing the body into fragments. Yet globules lying in contact in the body do not unite by moderate pressure, but regain their form when the pressure is relieved. A strong pressure causes them to run to- gether. These facts are compatible with the absence of a proper enveloping membrane. No structure of any kind is visible in the globules. Their color, when isolated, is generally orange red or yel- low ; they range, however, from brownish red to an entirely colorless condition, in different specimens. As the carapace has frequently a tinge of red or green, the color of the oil is of course affected when seen through it. " Finding that the comparatively large size of the crustaceans al- lowed of their almost perfect separation from the other bodies sus- pended in the water, by means of a suitable filter, a quantity was collected from a Cochituate service-pipe, and thoroughly washed with distilled water. They were then introduced, mostly in a living state, into distilled water, in an open vessel. In about half an hour the water began to acquire an odor, and after some hours both the odor and taste resembled closely the peculiar flavor of the Cochituate. In a day or two a decided fishy flavor was developed. The water was now somewhat milky, and on microscopic examination an abundance of colorless oil globules were seen diffused through it, with some gelatinous matter, derived from the bodies of the dead crustaceans, with the fragments of which, together with exuviae, the bottom of the vessel was covered. A large proportion were still living and active. In about a week, the water began to regain its clearness, and the odor and taste nearly disappeared. Many of the crustaceans were still alive, and it was noticed that a progressive diminution in the general amount of oil contained in their bodies was evident in the successive examinations. " In the Cyclops, these globules are found equally in both sexes, and cannot therefore be derived from the ova ; in many of the fe- males, the granular ova-masses in the internal ovaries are seen in company with the globules, but they are not in connection, nor is there any indication of a transition from one form to the other. In the Daphnia, the small pellucid globules which constitute the ear- liest stage of the ova, and also the hibernating eggs, are visible in many specimens, and do not resemble the globules under considera- tion. The male Daphnia is rarely seen, and I do not know whether the oil is found in both sexes, as in the Cyclops". OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 181 " Since the above observations were made, I have learned that these oil globules are briefly described by Von Siebold. See Dr. Burnett's Translation of Von Siebold's Anatomy of the Invertebrata, pp. 310 and 334. This author regards them as fat-cells, and, after stating that they occur in many crustaceans, adds the following remarks : ' The fat which these cells contain plays a part, probably, in digestion and assimilation ; for with these animals the excess of nutriment is de- posited as fat to be used in times of need, as, for example, during the act of moulting. This explains why the quantity found is so variable, or even may be entirely wanting.' I cannot find that they are de- scribed by other authors, nor are the appearances which they present in the crustaceans of the Cochituate represented in any of the figures I have seen." Professor Horsford exhibited the organic matter obtained from thirty-six barrels of Cochituate water ; also similar matter taken from the aqueduct above the Brookline reservoir. Professor Horsford remarked, that the protosalts of man- ganese are sometimes colorless, and sometimes red. This color has been attributed to a trace of cobalt combined with it, while the pure manganese has been considered colorless. It has been found that the pure ore is in reality red, while, when combined with nickel, the compound is colorless. Four' bundred and tenth, meeting. January 31, 1855. — (Quarterly Meeting. The President in the chair. Dr. Gray presented, in behalf of the author, the follow- ing paper, entitled, " Notices of some New Mosses in the Collection of the United States Exploring Expedition under Captain Wilkes, by William S. SuUivant." (Continued from page 81.) "25. Neckera PHYLLOGONioiDEs (n. sp.) : perpusilla, nitidissima ; caule repente radiculoso squamiformi-folioso ; ramis vix uncialibus erectis distantibus simplicibus frondiformibus lineari-lanceolatis com- planatis ; foliis patenti-divergentibus bifariam arctissime imbricantibus lineari-elongatis rectis e basi ultra medium complicatis dehinc exacte 182 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY navicularibus extremo apice leniter recurve brevissime gemello-costa- tis, areolatione e cellulis minutissimis linearibus, apicialibus rhombeis, basilaribus oblongis amplioribus pellucidioribus. — Hab. Luzon, one of the Philippine Islands. " 26. PiLOTRicHiTM ViTiANUM (u. sp.) : majusculum, aureo-lutes- cens, nitidum ; caulibus e basi horizontali radiciformi erectis pinnato- ramosis e flexionis angulo repetito-innovando-continuis primum flagelli- formibus, ramis robustis interdum apice attenuato-elongatis et inno- vando-ramulosis, elongationibus ramulisque rectis gracilibus undique appresso-microphyllis ; foliis rameis quinquefariis spiraliter dispositis confertissimis patenti-divergentibus e basi coarctata oblongis subito acuminatis maxime cymbiformi-concavis (cavitate ante basin acuminis longi subserrati undulato-constrictam abrupta profunda) ecostatis com- pacte angustissime lineari-fusiformi-areolatis, cellulis pachydermibus lutescentibus, inferioribus ad parietes subcrenatis, basilaribus breviori- bus puniceis. (Cset. non lectis.) — Hab. Feejee Islands. "27. Meteoriubi Mauiensis (n. sp.) : fusco-flavescens et pallide virens ; caulibus pendulis flexilibus pedalibus et ultra pinnato-ramosis ramis 1-3 uncialibus dissitis simplicibus raro iterum ramulosis flaccidis flexuosis, vetustioribus apice interdum filiscenti-attenuatis microphyllis ; foliis indistincte 4-5 fariis laxius imbricatis patentibus e basi auricu- lato-cordata subundulata amplectante oblongo-obovatis obtusissimis breve apiculatis cymbiformi-concavis (marginibus e medio ad apicem late inflexis) scariosis minute areolatis, cellulis subtransversim seriatis lineari-oblongis subparenchymaticis maxime pachydermibus ad parie- tes interruptis, utraque ala cellulis majoribus subquadratis aurantiacis in orbem majusculum incrassatum dispositis instructa. (Flo. et fruc. non visis.) — Hab. East Maui, Sandwich Islands ; on the north bank of the Crater, at an elevation of 10,200 feet. "28. Meteorium Brasiliense (n. sp.) : dioicum : dendrophilum, robustum, nitens, inferne spadiceum, superne luteo-viride ; caule pri- mario breviusculo repente tenaci nudo brevissime radiculoso prehensili flexuoso plurimos ramos 2-7 unciales fructigeros rigidiusculos de- pendentes basi appresso-microphyllos simplices vel remote rectangu- lariter brevi-ramulosos exserente ; foliis laxiuscule ubique insertis permagnis trilinealibus (pilo incluso) e basi ampla cordata orbiculari- ovata valde amplexante erecta plus minus horizontalibus oblongo- lanceolatis subtubuloso-convolutis subito in pilum rectiusculum vix OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 183 denticulatum folio fere duplo longiorem productis, basi obscure brevi- costatis membranaceis firmis translucentibus ; cellulis valde minutis suo diametro 6-7-plo longioribus laevibus pachydermicis inter se ob parietium meatus appositos veluti subanastomosantibus utriculo pri- mordiali soluto flexuoso instructis lutescentibus, basilaribus profunda rubro-aurantiacis latioi'ibus subquadratis opacis ; pericha3tiis latera- libus sessilibus parvis ; foliis periebset. subecostatis, inferioribus ovatis muticis apice recurvis, reliquiis erectis convolutis oblongo-elongatis obtusiusculis subito longe piliformi-acuminatis, interioribus brevioribus superne pellucide repando-marginatis archegonia 23-28 paraphysibus paucis inter se valde insequilongis et processibus longissimis piliformi- bus comitata amplectantibus. (Flo. masc. et fruct. non visis.) — Hab. Organ Mountains, Brazil ; on trees. " 29. Meteorium nitidubi (n. sp.) : dioicum : pallide virens, nitens ; caule gracili e basi prostrata ramis sequalibus simplicibus subjulaceis brevibus fructigeris densissime pinnata parce diviso, divisionibus pen- dulis longissimis flexuosis distanter ramulosis, ramulis cuspidatis srepe binatim ternatimve fasciculatis ; foliis rameis erecto-patentibus e basi angusta oblongo-ellipticis cymbiformi-concavis in acumen longissimum piliforme subflexuosum vix dentatum subito productis membranaceis politis minutissime areolatis, cellulis linearibus, alaribus amplioribus laxioribus subquadratis griseis orbiculariter congestis, costa debili supra medium abrupte desinente ; perichsetiis lateralibus subsessilibus ; capsula immersa cylindraceo-oblonga brevissime pedicellata ; pe- ristom, dentibus lineari-subulatis aurantiacis perforatis, ciliis breviori- bus (Isesis) e membrana angusta ortis ; perichsetialibus oblongo-convo- lutis breviter reflexo-acuminatis mediotinus obscure costatis. (Operc. et calypt, non lectis.) — Hab. Vicinity of Rio Janeiro, Brazil. " 30. Hypnum limbatum (n. sp.) : cinclidotoideum, majusculum, fluitans ; caule longissimo in ramos elongates parce ramulosos diviso laxifolioso ; foliis humidis siccisve patentibus oblongo- vel lineari-lance- olatis acuminatis modice carinato-concavis interdum subtortilibus, superne serratis costa valida dorso versus apicem serrata percursis, margine ubique incrassato costroformi circumductis densius areolatis, cellulis parenchymaticis echlorophyllosis superne oblongis subopacis utriculo primordiali plus minus conspicuo instructis, inferne lineari- oblongis subpellucidis. (Flo. et fruct. deficientibus.) — Hab. New Zealand ; on stones in the bottom of streams.^ 184 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY " 31. Hypnum Calderense (n. sp.) : robustum, lutescens, nitidum ; caulibus prostratis ; ramis erectis simplicibus vel parce ramulosis cuspidatis densius foliosis ; foliis divergenti-patentibus vel horizontali- bus rectis plus minus subconvolutis subellipticis longe lineari-acumina- tis (acumine semel bisve torto) superne denticulatis scariosis firmis ecostatis minute areolatis, eel lulls linearibus laevibus pachydermibus subparenchymaticis indistincte oblique seriatis, inferioribus subcrena- tis, alaribus permultis amplissimis oblongis vesiculseformibus intense aureis concentrice dispositis. (Caet. desunt.) — Hab. Caldera, Min- danao, one of the Philippine Islands. "32. Hypopterygium Brasiliense (n. sp.) : monoicum, viride ; caulibus e rhizomate erectis 1-2 uncialibus, inferne simplicibus squa- miformi-foliosis, superne in frondem planam erectam pinnatim divisis, ramis simplicibus vel parce ramulosis ; foliis paululum imbricantibus valde asymmetricis oblique cordato-ovatis acuminulatis anguste pellu- cido-marginatis apicem versus argute serratis semi-costatis, costa sim- plici, minutius areolatis, cellulis sequalibus rhombeis utriculo primor- diali soluto subopacis ; amphigastriis rotundato-cordatis cuspidatis marginatis vix denticulatis continuo-costatis ; capsula horizontali ovali in collum desinente longe rostrato-operculata : calyptrk minuta elon- gato-conica latere fissa rostrum vix tegente ; peristomio hypnoideo luteolo binatim ciliolato ; pedicellis rubris sparsis longiusculis ; peri- chsetialibus ecostatis; antheridiis 7-9 majusculis longe pedicellatis ; paraphysibus brevissimis 5 - 6-septatis, cellula summa cseteris triplo longiore. — Hab. Organ Mountains, Brazil. " 33. Hypopterygium glaucubi (n. sp.) : dioicum ; H. Smithiano proximum, sed differt statura multo minore ; colore glaucescente ; foliis (in sicco vel humido) dense subjulaceo-imbricatis fragilibus minus asymmetricis rotundato-ovalibus brevius acuminatis ; ramis maxime incurvo-deflexis ; amphigastriis pro foliorum ratione majori- bus. (Fr. deficiente.) — Hab. New Zealand. " ALSIA, Nov. Gen. " Calyptra cuculliformis glabra. Operculum conico-rostratum. Peristomium duplex : exterius dentes sedecem lineali-lanceolati : in- terius cilia totidem dentibus alternantia filiformia e membrana angusta carinata, orta ; ciliolis subnullis. Capsula cylindrica, recta vel subin- curva, exannulata, brevi-pedicellata, perichsetio elongate emersa. — OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 185 Florescentia dioica : flores masc. numerosi. Caulis arete repens, de- foliatus ; rami plus minus resupinati, ramulis microphyllis parce breviter subpinnati. Folia ovato- oblongove-lanceolata, Isevia, puncti- formi-areolata. Habitatio arborca. Habitus perichsetium foliorumque areolatio Lasice ; peristomium calyptraque Leskece. " 34. A. Californica : monoica ; ca3spitibus viridibus extensis bisex- ualibus ; caule arete repente nudo radieiformi radiculoso ramos 2-3- uneiales compressiuseulos deorsum direetos modice resupinatos ramu- lis brevibus mierophyllis paree subpinnatos paraphyllisque minutis multiformibus instructos edente ; foliis laxiuseule imbrieatis oblongo- lanceolatis ereeto-patentibus vel e basi erecta patenti-divergentibus concaviusculis margine anguste reflexis apiee plana indistinete serrula- tis vix semi-costatis laevibus, illis ramulorum minoribus gracilioribus, cellulis minutulis rhombeo-rotundatis chlorophyllosis seriatis, mediis basin versus oblongis subpellucidis, alaribus quadratis obscuris ; eap- sula oblongo-cylindracea exannulata breviter pedieellata e perichsetio subimmerso graeili elongato exserta rostrato-opereulata ; vaginula longissime orthotricha ; calyptra cuculliformi angusta ad | capsulse deseendente glaberrima ; perist. dentibus lineali-laneeolatis remotius prominenter trabeculatis inferne flavescentibus striolatis superne griseis punctulato-seabris linea divisuriali conspicua notatis, ciliis fere sequi- longis subuliformibus nodoso-articulatis scaberulis basi membrana an- gusta plieata transversim oblongo-areolata connexis ; periehcEtialibus vaginantibus, superioribus filiformi-aeuminatis pedieellum sequantibus : fio. masc. gemmiformibus valde manifestis tota caulis ramorumque longitudine utrinque crebre dispositis ; antheridiis 4-6 paraphysatis. — Neckera Californica, Hook, ct Am. ; C. Mull. Sy7i. Muse. Frond. 2. p. 117. — Hab. California; entrees." George Livermore was elected a Fellow in the Section of Philology and Archaeology. Professor Horsford read a joint communication by Professor Frederick Wiihler of Gottingen and John Dean, on Tellurme- thyle. Professor Agassiz made a communication on the alternate generation of Oceania tubulosa and Thaumantias, showing that they arise from polyp-like stalks, known as Syncoryne and Campanularia, and mentioning some interesting partic- voL. III. 24 186 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY ulars concerning these Medusa-like forms, which he proposed to embody in a paper to be presented at a future meeting. Professor W. B. Rogers made a communication on the sub- ject of binocular vision, giving his own explanation of the phenomenon, and illustrating it by the aid of the stereoscope. This communication was followed by remarks from Pro- fessor Agassiz, Dr. Pickering, Dr. W. F. Channing, and the President, on various phenomena connected with the laws of vision. Dr. Durkee exhibited filterings from the water of a lake in Haverhill, showing animal forms containing oil, similar to those found in Cochituate water at the present time. Foui' Iiundred and eleventli meeting. February 13, 1855. — Monthly Meeting. The President in the chair. Mr. G. P. Bond presented, in behalf of W. H. Emory of the U. S. Topographical Engineers, a paper, entitled, " Discussion of Observations for the Isodynamic, Isogenic, and Isoclinal Curves of Terrestrial Magnetism on and near the Line of the Boundary Survey between the United States and Mexico, made in 1849, 1850, 1851, and 1852, under the Orders of Major W. H. Emory, Astronomer of the Boundary Commission," — being a continuation of the article on the same subject in Volume V., page 1, of the Academy's Memoirs. Mr. Bond also exhibited some diagrams of the planet Sat- urn, and mentioned various facts concerning it ; namely, that the inner edge of the rings is constantly approaching the planet itself; that the ball is seen through the rings, which are consequently transparent ; that the color is different in different parts of the rings, the equatorial regions being white, the temperate region reddish, and the polar bluish. He also mentioned that the shadow of the ball upon the ring can be seen on both sides of it, being on one side rather faint, but on the other quite decided. This anomalous appearance he first OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 187 noticed in October, 1S52, and as yet he could give no satisfac- tory explanation of it, nor of the singular shape of the shadow, the convexity of which was towards the ball, instead of from it, as it might be expected to be. His observations were made with the great Cambridge Refractor in the years 1852, 1854, and 1855. Four liundred and t'welftli meeting. March 13, 1855. — Monthly Meeting. The President in the chair. Professor Lovering alluded to the fact, that at a previous meeting the opinion of Arago had been referred to as favorable to making the subject of " Table-moving," so called, a matter of scientific investigation. Since that meeting he had him- self examined the new edition of Arago's complete works, and had found nothing to justify such a conclusion ; on the contrary, he found that Arago declared himself satisfied that the appearances in question are founded in imposture. Four hundred and tliirteeutli meeting. April 10, 1855. — Monthly Meeting. The President in the chair. After the record of the preceding meeting was read and approved. Professor Agassiz confirmed from his own knowl- edge the statement of Professor Lovering at the preceding meeting concerning Arago's opinions of the so-called " Spir- itual Manifestations." And yet, he said, notwithstanding the unanimous opinion of the committee of the French Acad- emy, to which the subject had been referred, that the whole thing is a matter of imposture, the authority of that learned body and that great philosopher is constantly appealed to as favorable to the alleged reality of the appearances in question. Professor Agassiz made a communication on the subject of the classification of Polyps. He remarked that Cuvier in- 188 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY eluded under Polypi what are now known as Hydroids and Bryozoa. Milne-Edwards has demonstrated that the latter are not Polypi, — their structure not being truly radiate, — but the lowest order of Mollusks, and he called them Molluscoids. Polypi and Hydroids, however, are still grouped together. By Ehrenberg these are called Anthozoa, — which he divides, further, into two groups : Zoocoralia those which are free, and Phytocoralia, those which are attached ; but mider these groups he has made a very unnatural distribution of the families, as the young and adult of the same species may difier in this re- spect, the young being sometimes attached, when the adult is free. Professor Agassiz exhibited in illustration a speci- men of Manicina areolata from Florida, the young of which are sessile, whilst the adults are free. Milne-Edwards sub- divided Polypi into Actinoids, Alcyonoids, and Sertularians, which he considers as coequal groups, a division chiefly based on the character of the tentacles and calycle ; but Professor J. D. Dana has at last shown that the first two form one natu- ral group, and the Sertularians another, thus for the first time uniting the types of the class of Polyps together into one di- vision. Professor Agassiz is however of opinion, that the Hydroids should be removed from the class of Polypi, and referred to that of Acalephas. They are pedunculated Me- dusse in the same sense that Crinoids are pedunculated Aste- roids. The true Polypi are divided by Dana into two orders, the Actinarians and Alcyonoids. Professor Agassiz thinks he has detected indications of superiority and inferiority of struc- ture between these orders, founded on the structure and num- ber of the tentacles, &c. Thus in Alcyonoids these are fringed and definite in number and position, being two in the long axis, and in three pairs on the sides, while in Actinoids they are simple, and there is not the same regularity of number and position. The former should therefore be regarded as rank- ing higher than the latter. Among Actinoid Polyps some are simple, while others are compound individuals. The former would at first seem to stand highest in the scale, whereas they OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 189 are in reality the lowest, as their tentacles are indefinite in number. Among the Actinoids there are species provided at first with one mouth, which afterwards contracts and divides into two, each being surrounded by its row of tentacles, the animal being thus double above, but single below ; and the division may be repeated, so that the number of mouths shall be four, belonging apparently to as many individuals, while in reality they are but one, being united below. The multiplication is indefinite in many types. Such a pecu- liar structure naturally leads to the question, What defines the individual in this case, — the possession of a single mouth, or the union of all the branches below ? In Meandri- na a number of mouths are surrounded by a single row of tentacles, and there is one common digestive cavity. In a Madrepore, which has sprung from a single egg, the main polyp may preserve its position at the top of the stem, while buds are pushed out from the stem, constituting a community of individuals subordinate to the principal one. This shows distinctly that polyp communities are combining into higher unities. Among some of the Alcyonoids, as in Renilla, Pen- natela, &c., a community of individuals based upon a single stem, each polyp being provided with its own set of tentacles, and all communicating with a common cavity, has the power of changing its position and moving about freely, exhibiting a new kind of individuality, a community moving as a single in- dividual. Among the Polypi, then, the compound individual presents the higher type, and Alcyonoids, which are all com- pound animals, are higher than Actinoids, among which alone simple polyps are found. This position accords with the reve- lations of geology, the former never occurring as fossils in an- cient formations, while the latter have built up all the coral for- mations of past geological epochs. Dana has shown that the Actinoids bud in two ways, some dividing at the top, others budding laterally. Professor Agassiz regards the Madrepores as the highest, on account of their tentacles being definite in number, and some preserving a top animal ; next he places 190 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY the top budders (Asteroids), while those that bud laterally (the Caryophyllians) rank lowest. This order of arrangement corresponds in general to the geological succession of Polypi from the lowest formations upward. Again, every coral reef rising from the bottom of the ocean shows in its various stages a succession of species reminding us of the same gen- eral plan. Professor Agassiz remarked, that the study of this class of animals is greatly embarrassed by difficulties growing out of the fact, that the general features vary much in communities of the same species, so that these features cannot be so much depended upon for characters as the intimate structure of the individual polyps. He was inclined to believe that many of the genera of this class recently described by naturalists are based on evanescent characters, in fact upon different stages of development of well-known types. Dr. A. A. Hayes called the attention of the Academy to a new species of wax, a specimen of which was on the table, and made the following remarks : — " The commercial relations of our country, extending along the rivers of South America, are making known to us the products of the vast forests of the interior, many of which have a high value in the arts and are new to commerce. Among specimens received by me is the peculiar wax before us, respecting the origin of which I possess only a meagre amount of information. ' It is obtained by boiling the deep green leaves of a shrub resembling laurel, abounding in the forests back from Para and Bahia, and is used to some extent as a sub- stitute for wax in the manufacture of candles.' " This wax has a light tint of greenish-yellow color, transmitting nearly white light through thin portions ; it is hard, the angles of the fragments scratching gypsum. Its fracture is slightly conchoidal, lustre more dull than that of ordinary wax. By rubbing, it becomes electrically excited, and takes and retains a fine polish ; it is brittle, without softening when compressed between the fingers. " The average sp. gr., determined on many specimens, is at 60° F. 1.000, or the same as distilled water. When heated to 120° F. for some time, it loses moisture, and exhales a pleasant balsamic odor, not unlike that of pinks. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 101 " 100 parts at 212° F. became a transparent fluid after frothing, having lost 2.10 per cent of volatile matter, this being mostly aqueous moisture due to the process of manufacturing it, and the dry wax on cooling becomes slightly darker in color. Made into candles, it burns with a deep opaque yellow flame, a thin stream of smoke creep- ing from the apex ; its decomposition in this way showing an excess of carbon, as the carbo-hydrogens burn in the air. This important character forbids its application as a substitute for wax, or for afford- ing light in confined spaces ; otherwise, its high melting-point would render it very valuable in many situations, when our ordinary mate- rials fail. When mixed with tallow, the latter becomes harder, and the apparent melting-point of the mixture is higher than that of tal- low. But the resulting mixed mass softens at a temperature of 100° F., and the new wax does not break up in the act of combustion, so as to unite with the carbo-hydrogens of the tallow, with which it is mixed. Its application in this way does not therefore promise a val- uable result. " Alcohol of sp. gr. 0.821, when boiled on the dried wax, dissolves a small portion, which separates in part by cooling, in the form of a hydrous mass, becoming white. The cold solution evaporated disen- gages a balsamic odor; the coating it leaves, when dry, has the char- acters of the original wax. " In sulphuric ether, the same characters are preserved, the matter dissolved beins; identical with the orisiinal wax. " Benzole is the appropriate solvent for this wax ; it melts in it, dis- solving largely, so that on cooling the solution becomes a soft mass. A more dilute solution allows the pure wax to deposit in beautiful snow-white granules, which, while wet, are transparent, becoming opaque on drying. These granules when magnified appear generally to be composed of aggregations of spherules, forming mammillary concretions ; but in rare cases radiating lines occur within them, in- dicating the existence of a polarizing force too feeble to form a recti- linear solid. " Chloroform dissolves the wax freely, and the results of cooling and evaporation are the same as occur with benzole. " These characters sufficiently prove that this wax does not, like many other kinds, divide into a more fluid and a more solid body, when subjected to the action of solvents ; and its unity in this respect is its most strongly marked peculiarity. 192 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY " In alkaline solutions, by ordinary treatment, no saponification takes place, after long boiling. The wax retains a little alkali after it has been washed in water, and the compound is to a small extent soluble in water, but has not the characters of soap. This alkaline wax will absorb a considerable quantity of an alkaline solution, in which it has been boiled ; washing in water removes the excess of alkali, no defi- nite compound being formed. " When distilled from a nearly closed vessel, it leaves 0.44 per cent of carbon and ash, the latter amounting to .10 only. " This wax can be supplied, should a want exist commercially, at a price intermediate between that of tallow and the ordinary wax. The only application at present known in which it exhibits useful proper- ties is in forming a basis for a preparation used in waxing furniture and polished wood-work." Mr. J. H. Abbot exhibited profiles of two routes for the Pacific Railroad, drawn by order of government ; also profiles of the highest grades of all the working railroads of the United States. He also exhibited a mineral from a digging in Cali- fornia, taken twenty feet below the surface. It was a re- markably pure specimen of hydrate of alumina, with a minute quantity of hydrate of silica. Mr. T. S. Hunt made a communication on the chemical law of equivalent volumes. He showed that the law applies to all solid bodies that are homoeomorphous. Dr. Durkee exhibited under the microscope the circulation of the contents of the cell of Chara. Four Kiiudred and fonrteeutli meeting. May 8, 1855. — Monthly Meeting. The President in the chair. Professor Agassiz stated that, since the preceding meeting, he had received one hundred and fifty specimens of one and the same species of coral, Mussa angulosa, Oken, the examination of which had satisfied him of the truth of his observations at the previous meeting, that many of the species described by authors are but immature specimens of species OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 193 passing under other names. Dr. A. A. Gould, who had ex- amined the specimens, confirmed Mr. Agassiz's statement. Dr. C. T. Jackson read the following extracts from a letter of M. L. Elie de Beaumont to himself, dated Paris, March 23d, 1855. " You will see in the Comptes Rendus, that M. Gaston Plantc has discovered at Meudon, near Paris, the remains of a gigantic bird, which is nearly as large as those which left their foot-prints in the new red sandstone (Gres bigarres) on the borders of Connecticut River. This unexpected discovery will perhaps excite an interest among American geologists, inasmuch as it will diminish the incre- dulity with which many persons have opposed, during a long time, (and erroneously as I think,) the interesting discovery of Ornithich- nites " We have established in Paris a Meteorological Society on a plan analogous to that of the Geological Society, and shall seek to bring together and publish and compare the meteorological observations made in all countries of the world ; and shall be very happy to have collaborators in America, and to exchange publications with the Scientific Societies of Boston." Professor Agassiz said that he was inclined to doubt whether all the so-called footprints of birds in the Connecticut River sandstone, were in reality produced by birds. Possibly they may have been made by animals of a type not now existing, in their organization coming between reptiles and birds. He was inclined to this opinion, from having noticed that in many of the tracks the impression of the so-called hind toe is round- ed off, without any trace of the imprint of a nail, giving it much more the appearance of a heel-mark. Among the im- pressions, that of a so-called tarsus is apparent, and it is an un- usual circumstance for birds to support themselves upon this joint in walking; the only species in which this takes place being the Cypselus, or Swift. Professor O. W. Holmes exhibited a new microscope by Nachet, constructed upon a very small and compact scale, and yet available for working pnrposes, the highest power being about six hundred diameters. VOL. III. 25 194 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Mr. G. p. Bond stated that he had found that the horizon- tality of the axis of the Great Equatorial at Cambridge is sub- ject to a regular disturbance, its position going through a succession of changes almost uniform every year. This he ascribed to the unequal action of temperature upon the two supporting pillars. The western pier rises from March to September, and is depressed during the remainder of the year. Mr. Bond exhibited a diagram, showing by a series of curves the rate of elevation and depression through different months, for the past five years. The amount of departure from a horizontal position is ^ of an inch in all. Mr. Bond also said that he had been making some investi- gations to ascertain whether the attraction of the moon has any effect on the motion of a pendulum, and consequently upon the rate of a clock. He had found this last to be changed to the amount of j^jg of a second daily. At the equator the moon's attraction changes the weight of a body only Yooocoo of the whole ; yet this force is sufficient to produce the vast phenomena of the tides. Four Iiuiidred and fiftcentli meeting. May 29, 1855. — Annual Meeting. The President in the chair. The Treasurer presented his report for the year, which was certified by the Auditing Committee. The Committee on the Library reported, and their report was accepted. Professor Agassiz referred to the allusion in the Report to the Smithsonian Institution, and expressed in strong language his sense of the indebtedness of the scientific world to that Institution for its enlightened efforts to diffuse knowledge, particularly as a medium of exchange of publications. In conclusion, he moved that the thanks of the Academy be pre- sented to the Smithsonian Institution, for its efficient agency in effecting for the Academy its exchanges with foreign OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 195 Societies and individuals. The motion was unanimously adopted. Professor Levering made a report in behalf of the Com- mittee of Publication, Francis C Gray, Esq. called the attention of the Academy to the proposed work of Professor Agassiz on American Natu- ral History. He made an earnest appeal in its behalf, urging gentlemen to individual effort to obtain subscribers, as in no other way could so expensive an undertaking be carried through. Six hundred subscribers, he stated, would be ne- cessary to pay the mere cost of the work. His remarks were seconded and enforced by the President. Mr. Francis Parkman was elected a Fellow of the Acad- emy, in the Section of Political Economy and History. The Corresponding Secretary announced the decease of the following members of the Academy during the past year : — Foreign Honorary Members. Prof. Carl Friedrich Gauss, Gottingen. Macedoine Melloni, Naples. Sir Henry de la Beche, London, Associate Felloivs. Prof. J. P. Norton, New Haven. Dr. R. M. Patterson, Philadelphia. Dr. N. Drake, Cincinnati. Prof. J. L. Kingsley, New Haven. Resident Fellows. Dr. W. I. Burnett, Boston. Dr. Samuel Parkman, Boston. Dr. B. A. Gould, Jr., addressed the Academy in relation to the recent calamity which had befallen Science in the death of Gauss, and concluded by offering the following resolutions, which were seconded by Professor Lovering, and unanimously adopted : — 196 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY " Whereas this Academy has recently received intelligence of the afflictive event which has deprived it of its illustrious Foreign Member, and the world of a great master in mathematical, astronomical, and physical sciences, — " Resolved, That the American Academy of Arts and Sciences would unite with other learned institutions throughout the world in expressing its sense of the immense loss sustained by Science in the death of Carl Fried rich Gauss. " Resolved, That the Academy has regarded with pride and admi- ration the long and brilliant scientific career of the venerable ' father of sciences,' whose usefulness has been permitted to extend to. the last hours of a life longer than is ordinarily permitted to mortals, al- though it closed with the full brilliancy of its noon. " Resolved, That the Academy offers its condolence to the bereaved family of the illustrious dead," Dr. 0. T. Jackson exhibited drawings of a microscopic view of a fungus on the surface of a yellow rose. Dr. Jackson also read the following analysis of water from the Sacramento River, California. " 7 cubic centimetres, equal to 2^ fluid ounces nearly, gave of solid matter 0.4 grains. This was found to consist of Silicic Acid, 0,08 Soda and Chloride of Sodium, . . 0.22 Sulphate of Soda, ..... traces. Organic matter, . . . . . 0,10 0.40 This water contains no salts of lime." The election of officers was held in the usual form, and the following were chosen : — Jacob Bigelow, .... Presiderit. Daniel Treadwell, . . Vice-President. Asa Gray, Correspo?idijig Secretary. Samuel L. Abbot, . . . Recording Secretary. Edward Wigglesworth, . Treasurer. Nathaniel B. Shurtleff, Librarian. The following gentlemen were chosen Members of the Council for Nomination, viz. : — of arts and sciences. 197 Joseph Lovering, "J J. I. BowDiTCH, }■ of Class I. Benjamin A. Gould, Jr. Louis Agassiz, John B. S. Jackson, ^ of Class II. Jeffries Wyman, James Walker, Jared Sparks, ^ of Class III. Nathan Appleton, The several Standing Committees were appointed, on nomi- nation from the chair, as follows : — Rumford Committee. Eben N. Horsford, Joseph Lovering, Daniel Treadwell, Henry L. Eustis, Morrill Wyman. Committee of Publication. Joseph Lovering, Louis Agassiz, Francis Bowen. Committee on the Library. Augustus A. Gould, Benjamin A. Gould, Jr., J. P. Cooke, Jr. Auditing Coiiimittee. Charles Jackson, Jr. Thomas T. Bouve. Four hundred and sixteexktli meeting. August 8, 1855. — duARTERLY Meeting. The President in the chair. The Recording Secretary read a communication addressed to him by J. J. Dixwell, Esq., requesting in behalf of Dart- mouth College that the Publications of the Academy be pre- sented to that Institution. On motion of Dr. A. A. Gould, seconded by Professor Asa Gray, it was voted, that, in accordance with the request of Mr, 198 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Dixwell, the new series of the Academy's Transactions be pre- sented to Dartmouth College. Four hundred and seventeenth, meeting. September 11, 1855. — Adjourned Quarterly Meeting. The President in the chair. Professor Joseph Henry, of the Smithsonian Institution, ad- dressed the Academy on the subject of the induction of elec- trical currents at great distances from the primitive current, and on the oscillating movements which he had detected in these currents, giving a positive or negative character at any given point at different times. He also gave an account of the numerous experiments he had made to establish the facts which he had announced. Dr. A. A. Hayes remarked, that " The facts communicated by Professor Henry are of high in- terest and importance, in their bearing on any theory of electrical action. The phenomena presented in the observations of Professor Henry correspond, in a remarkable manner, with those taking place when a hydro-electric current acts on a conductor of the first class. In the case of a continuous polarization, the central parts of such a conductor exhibit no power of decomposition, even when the current is feeble. A simple experiment, which illustrates this condition of a polarized conductor, may be made by immersing a curved wire in a solution of metallic salt, the metal of which can be displaced by the metal of the curved wire. If a wire of soft bright iron, bent in the form of a horseshoe magnet, have its bend barely dipped into an acid- ulated solution of sulphate of copper, the copper will be deposited on it as it would be on a straight wire. But if the curved wire be lowered into the solution, or if at first it be at once immersed, the deposition of copper by displacement occurs at the free extremities of the wire and extends towards the bend from them. It ceases, however, before it reaches the bend, or central part, which never receives more than the slight coating due to the instant exposure in immersing it. This experiment may be varied by modified curves of the wire ; but how- ever numerous the forms of the bends, the central part of each wire or plate is null in its action as an electrode." OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 199 Dr. A. A. Hayes read the following commnnication on a specimen of native iron from Liberia, Africa : — " It is with pleasure that I submit to the inspection of the Academy a specimen of Native iron from Liberia, believed to have been taken from the tract of country bordering the St. John's River, recently ac- quired by the New Jersey colony. This specimen was placed in my hands by Rev. Joseph Tracy, Secretary of the Massachusetts Coloni- zation Society, for examination, and its physical characters at once arrested my attention, as differing from those of any artificially pro- duced iron. As I deem the discovery of native iron existing unal- loyed a matter of much interest to naturalists and chemists, it is proper that the evidence on which the statement rests should be sub- mitted somewhat in detail. In the African Repository, Vol. XXX, No. 8, August, 1854, at page 240, is a letter from Rev. Aaron P. Davis, a resident missionary at Bassa Cove, from which the following ex- tracts are taken. ' I send you a piece of African ore, just as dug from its native bed, or broken from among rocks. I have seen and con- versed with a number of natives, who affirm that it is actually the pure ore, or just as taken from its native bed. I obtained a piece through Hon. George L. Seymour, who had tried in vain to dissect it : and I being of that craft, he brought it to my shop for that purpose. When he brought it, it appeared like a craggy rock, of yellowish color on its surface, and, with a very small exception, it could not be sepa- rated but by heat and hard pounding with my largest sledge-hammer and a chisel prepared for the purpose. I also send you a teaspoon which I made of some of the ore, which in its crude state is supe- rior to the iron brought here for sale by English merchant-vessels.' ' I am told by the natives that it is plentiful, and about three days' walk from our present place of residence (Bassa Cove) : it is gotten by digging and breaking rocks. It is also said to be in large lumps. In these parts the natives buy no iron, but dig it out of the ground, or break the rocks and get it, as the case may be.' " The largest specimen before you, when received by me, bore on one side the impress of the chisel, the coarse fracturing of a tough metal, and marks of oxidation by fire ; it was further identified by William Coppinger, Esq., of Philadelphia, as the piece received with the letter of Mr. Davis. Mr. Coppinger gave the specimen to Rev. H. M. Blodgett, who sent it to Rev. Joseph Tracy, from whose hands I received it. Soon after I had expressed to Mr. Tracy my belief 200 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY that the specimen was native iron, he placed before me a large amount of written evidence, showing that malleable iron, sufficient in quantity to meet the wants of the natives, is obtained by heating and then by fracturing the rocks of the country. The writers use the term ore incorrectly, as Mr. Davis does, apparently in the belief that iron ores increasing in richness become malleable. The metallurgical knowledge of the natives is so limited, that they are unable to produce copper from the carbonate of copper (malachite), which they carry five or six hundred miles as a medium of traffic ; while their weap- ons of iron, which I have examined, show the characters of native iron, after it has been heated and hammered. " Physical Characters. — On developing the internal structure of the mass of iron, by immersion for a few moments in strong nitric acid, and immediately after washing in a mixture of lime and v/ater, it was apparent that the minute crystalline particles were arranged in a manner closely resembling those of the pure iron * in meteoric iron, and entirely unlike the particles in artificial iron. " Where the mass had been heated, and had received blows, there was an approach to the appearance presented by artificial iron, but the internal parts, and nearly the whole of the mass, showed no marks of percussive or laminating action. By the more complete develop- ment of the structure, certain points appeared which were evidently extraneous matter. Under the microscope these points showed crys- talline minerals, which when separated proved to be quartz and octo- * " The character which is here noted has a higher value in a research of this kind, than would have been inferred from a cursory examination. In a descrip- tion of the remarkable meteoric iron, published in the American Journal of Science, November, 1844, I alluded to the fact, that these masses are not made up of iron alloyed with nickel and other metals, but consist of jmre iron, through which are mixed portions of an alloy of nickel and iron, and iron and nickel and other bodies, as distinct electro-negative matter, in relation to the pure iron. The Texas meteoric mass and the small particles of the Western meteorolite liad the same mechanical constitution. Since the first publication of my results, these re- searches have been extended, so as to include the metals of commerce and the well-known alloys. The numerous analyses made on these forms of matter have not yet shown an exception to the condition, that the metal existing in the largest proportion is in part pure ; while one, two, three, or more alloys may exist, dis- tributed through it. When we take the results on a mass of crude iron in the state of pig-iron, and on portions of the less and more malleable iron, of the differ- ent steps of the manufacture, we not only pursue the constituents chemically, but the mechanical state of the iron is at the same time open to view. A mass of pig- iron thus becomes associated with meteoric iron, in the mechanical arrangement OP ARTS AND SCIENCES. 201 hedral oxide of iron. A mineral with a lime and soda base was also found. The iron was most readily acted on by chemical agents, where it was in contact with these minerals ; exposure of a surface to the action of an acid not only brought them to view, but produced cavities at the points where they existed ; showing degrees of porosity influenced by their number. " The sp. gr. of the most compact portion was 6.708. Its color was lighter gray than any sample of artificial ductile iron I have seen. Repeated bending back upon itself did not separate one fragment, but generally flaws appear and thin portions break when doubled close. The presence of the minerals imbedded is felt, when we file or saw the metal ; but when heated and hammered, these fuse into slags, and the metal spreads and draws off", like the best irons, yet showing the cavities and flaws where the simple minerals had existed. " Chemical Characters. — It dissolves with effervescence in diluted hydrochloric acid, and if the acid and water are perfectly pure, the evolved gas has no odor. 200 grains were dissolved in hydrochloric acid, the hydrogen gas was passed through pure alcohol kept cool, and was then allowed to bubble through an ammoniacal solution of nitrate of silver. The alcohol had not acquired odor, nor was there any coloration or change in the silver solution. The solution of iron was turbid, but soon deposited suspended matter, which was light-gray colored ; some heavy white sandy grains, and some dark, nearly black particles, had fallen. After collecting and drying these substances, of its parts, and generally consists of perfectly pure and malleable iron, disturbed in the arrangement of its crystalline particles by the interposition among them of a compound of iron and carbon and of graphitic carbon, besides sulphides, phos- phides, and arsenides of the alkaline metals. In the ductile iron, these bodies have been nearly all removed by heat and mechanical operations, and new features impressed upon the metal. By simply removing the interposed foreign matter, by chemical means solely, crude iron is left malleable, and its particles then show their sub-crystalline forms, but not as they exist in the pure iron of the more per- fect meteoric masses. All manufactured iron presents them arranged in lines and interlaced by the action of the hammer, or extended in bundles in the act of draw- ing ; while the laminating mill breaks them down, shingling them over and felting together their serrated edges, in striking analogy of effect to the operations of textile manufacturing. The mechanical texture of a mass of iron cannot be shown fully by the simple step of immersion as above given, but this is sufficient to enable one to observe whether the crystals have arranged themselves as aggre- gates, or been broken up and disturbed by violence, and often will serve to show> the kind of mechanical action employed." VOL. III. 26 202 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY thev were placed under the microscope, which showed the heavier bodies to be quartz, with some facets and fragments of octohedral crys- tals, proved to be magnetic iron-ore. The Hght body was silicic acid, rendered gray by iron oxide. " Chlorine was passed into the filtered iron solution, which, after being heated and cooled, was precipitated in a partly closed flask, by gase- ous ammonia passed into it in excess. After being heated by a vapor- bath, the precipitate was separated by fiher and washed. " The filtrate and washings evaporated were reduced to a dry mass, which afforded a minute quantity of soda and lime : no other sub- stance was present. " Separate parcels of the precipitate by ammonia were used for the detection of Phosphorus, Arsenic and Boron, Alumina, and other earths and oxides : a little silicic acid only was found. " 50 grains of the filings of the iron were wet with a few drops of perfectly caustic soda solution, mixed hastily with crystals of pure nitrate of soda and chlorate of potash, and heated in a nearly closed platina crucible rapidly to bright redness twenty minutes : no defla- gration occurred and the fused salts were colorless. " The crucible, after cooling, digested in a closed vessel with re- cently boiled pure water, gave its soluble part to the water. After subsidence, the clear fluid was added to a dilute saturated solution of lime in ammonia in one vessel, and to a dilute solution of barvta in another. These vessels were closed, and left twelve hours, and then presented nearly transparent solutions ; no precipitates had fallen, but both showed the presence of silicic acid. The absence of sulphur and carbon was thus proved, and other trials confirmed these results. " Analysis. — la the following analysis, and in repetitions, different slabs of the metal were used, so as to obtain an average percentage composition of the mass. " A solution in pure water of about one hundred and fifty grains of pure sulphate of copper was used as a medium in which the iron dis- solved replaced by electrolysis the copper deposited on the negative electrode of platinum connected with a small constant battery. " 26.30 grs. of iron solved in the fluid and 29.78 grs. of copper were deposited on the platinum, while 0.32 gr. of matter was pre- cipitated. " The equivalent of pure iron being 28, the deposit of copper should have weighed 29.71 ; an accordance as near as the experi- ments allow. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 203 " 0.32 gr. of matter consisted of angular portions of quartz, frag- ments of crystals of magnetic iron-ore, and a flock of silica : no trace of carbon was observed under the microscope. " 26.60 grs. was the total loss from the iron. " The partly ferruginous solution decomposed by an excess of hydro-sulphuric acid, evaporated and calcined, afforded barely traces of lime and soda, which in every case have been found to result from the solution of this iron. " 100 parts of a sample of this iron, therefore, consist of Pure iron, ...... 98.87 Quartz, iron ore, and silicate, . . 1.13 100700 " Another sample, more nearly an average, from the centre of the mass, afforded in 100 parts, Pure iron, 9S.40 Quartz crystals, magnetic iron ore, and sili- cate of soda and lime, . . . 1.60 100.00 " The little slabs which had been the positive electrodes had not disengaored a bubble of cas, which always occurs when the metals affording alkaline bases are alloyed. They also exhibited in their substance the cavities which had contained the mineral bodies found. " I was desirous of making some comparative experiments on a specimen of iron having the characters of native iron, as distinguished from meteoric iron. ^ly friend. Professor B. Silliman, Jr., kindly sup- plied me with two slips from the specimen well known as having been found at Canaan, Conn. He expressed to me at the time a doubt respecting the certainty of this mass being native iron. " On subjecting this specimen to analytical trials, it was soon de- termined that it is an alloy, consisting of iron, iron and carbon, and pure graphite. " 100 parts afforded Pure iron, ...... 93.057 Carbon, ...... 2.666 Iron from carbon, .... 1.361 Graphite, ...... 2.916 100.000 204 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY " In the arrangement of the alloy of carbon and iron, and the lamina of graphite, it differed in no respect from ' Kishy ' iron which has been allowed to repose in a heated state, and is unquestionably an arti- ficial iron, — a product of the blast furnace." Professor Agassiz said that he had received, through the kindness of Dr. Green, of Commodore Perry's Japan Expe- dition, the bag containing the immature young of a vivipa- rous fish from Japan. He regretted that the whole of the parent fish had not been preserved, but he hoped to be able from the embryos to make out the characters of a new genus, which may be regarded as the Asiatic representative of this interesting type. The specimens were from the shores of Simoda. Professor J. P. Cooke gave in detail the processes by which he had obtained perfect octohedral crystals of arsenic. He was led to do so by the fact that their genuine character had been called in question. Dr. A. A. Hayes confirmed, from his own knowledge, the fact of the production of such crystals in other ways. Four hundred and eigliteeutli meeting. October 9, 1855. — Monthly Meeting. The President in the chair. The Recording Secretary, in behalf of the author, presented the following paper, viz. : " Descriptions of New Species of Fossils, from the Cretaceous Formations of Nebraska, with Observations upon Baculites ovatns and B. co77ipressus, and the Progressive Development of the Septa in Baculites, Am- monites, and Scaphites. By Professor James Hall, of Al- bany, N. Y." Professor J. P. Cooke exhibited and explained a printed chart of his classification of the chemical elements, The plan was the same as one already published by him, with some modifications. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 205 , Four hundred and t'^ventietli meeting. November 14, 1855. — Stated Meeting. The President in the chair. The following gentlemen were elected Fellows of the Academy, viz. : — John C. Gray, of Boston, Professor James Russell Lowell, of Cambridge, Professor Francis J. Child, of Cambridge, and Richard Greenough, of Boston, in the Section of Literature and Fine Arts. Rev. William A. Stearns, D. D., of Amherst, in the Section of Philosophy and Jurisprudence, Professor Albert N. Arnold, of Newton, in the Section of Philology and Archaeology. The following, nominated by the Council, were elected Foreign Honorary Members, viz. : — Dr. Fr. W. A. Argelander, of Bonn, in the Section of As- tronomy. Victor Regnault, of Paris, in the Section of Physics and Chemistry. L. D. Vicat, of Paris, in the Section of Technology and Engineering. Richard Owen, of London, in the Section of Zoology and Physiology. Sir Benjamin Brodie, of London, and P. Rayer, of Paris, in the Section of Medicine and Surgery. Archbishop Whately, of Dublin, and Victor Cousin, of Paris, in the Section of Philosophy and Jurisprudence. Franz Bopp, of Berlin, and Friedrich von Thiersch, of Munich, in the Section of Philology and Archasology. Francois Guizot, of Paris, in the Section of Political Econ- omy and History. Professor Gray laid before the meeting a bronze medal commemorating the three eminent botanists, Bernard, Antoine Laurent, and the late Adrien de Jussieu : presented by the Jussieu family. 206 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Professor Joseph Lovering asked the attention of the Acad- emy to the following remarks on motions of rotation. " Since the time of Foucault's celebrated experiment for illus- trating the rotation of the earth by the stability of the plane of oscillation, increased attention has been given to the law of inertia as determining the stability of planes of motion. The planes o( rota- tion conform to this general rule of stability. Astronomy furnishes the only examples of perfectly free rotating bodies: and astronomy, here, as elsewhere, must be invoked, whenever it is required to give an exact experimental illustration of the fundamental laws of mechan- ics. Artificial experiments realize but imperfectly this perfect free- dom of the spinning earth and other planets. Besides the top and the devil-on-two-sticks, in which ' philosophy in sport has been made science in earnest,' there are Bohnenberger's less familiar apparatus, first described in 1817,* and Johnston's Rotascope.t The necessity has recently been shown of adding to the description of the former the r\e\v condition of placing the axis of the apparatus parallel to the earth's axis to avoid the disturbance of the earth's rotation, and the new application of the instrument, when otherwise placed, to detecting this rotation, t " In 1853, Pliicker published an account of Fessel's apparatus for experiments on the laws of rotation ; "^ and in 1854, Magnus pre- sented to the public an account of his Polytrop, also designed for similar illustrations. || " 1. Pliicker preludes his description of the Fessel machine with some remarks on Poisson's mathematical investigations on the subject of rotations,^ and alludes to Poinset's successful attempt to make the motions generally hidden under the veil of mathematical analysis more sensible to the imagination and the eye.** Poinset thinks t' at, if many new truths are contained in analysis, they are buried in it for all but a ie\w gifted minds. ' Thus our true method is but this happy mixture of analysis and synthesis, where calculation is employed only as an instrument, a precious instrument, and necessary without doubt, because it assures and facilitates our progress ; but which has of itself * Ann. Gilbert, LX. p. 05. t SiHiman's Journal, XXI. p. 265. \ Ann. Pogg., XC. pp. 350, 351. § Ann. Pogg., XC. p. 174. II Ann. Pogg., XCI. p. 298. 1 Journ. de Polytechn. Ecole, XVI. p. 247. ** Elemens de Statique, 8th edition, 1842. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 207 no peculiar virtue; which does not direct the mind, but which the mind must direct lil;e any other instrument.' " The origin of FessePs machine was as follows. About 1851 this skilful artist of Cologne, who a few years before had distin- guished himself by his beautiful Wave-machine, particularly adapted for iUustrating the mechanical laws of light, was examining the wheel of a model steam-engine, and observed that, while rolling it on his hand, the horizontal axis did not require to be supported at both ends, while there was a tendency in the axis to move in a horizontal plane. Fessel's practical skill, aided by the suggestions of the eminent physi- cist Pliicker, resulted in the construction of the following apparatus. The wood-cut represents the apparatus, not exactly as figured in the Annalen of Poggendorf, but as constructed by Luhme, and now ex- hibited. It is about half the size of the model. Upon a heavy base, A, stands a hollow brass column, B, inside of which turns a steel pin, C, terminating at the lower end in a point. At right angles to this pin are fastened the metallic arms D D. On one of these arms, and at the distance of two inches from the pin, is fastened a vertical ring. Inside of this ring is placed a metallic disc, E, loaded at the edge ; and which turns, independently of the ring, upon the axis F G. The motion is communicated by a thread wound upon the axis of the disc. At h is 20S PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY a hinge, working on a horizontal point, which allows the ring contain- ing the disc to move in its own plane. This motion can, however, be prevented by a revolving slide underneath. In some experiments the slide is placed so as to prevent the motion on the hinge, and the arms are balanced upon a fixed and pointed rod which is pushed into the brass column. For this purpose there is a little cap under i, and a counterpoise which slides on the opposite arm to balance the disc. The top has less friction than Bohnenberger's or Fessel's apparatus. Also in Fessel's machine the disturbing force is the whole weight of the disc and ring, and not, as in Bohnenberger's machine, simply an excess of weight on one side of the rotating body. Hence the pre- cession is more rapid in the first than in the last. " If the disc is not rotating, it naturally drops down upon the hinge 7«, from its own weight. " But when the disc is made to rotate rapidly by means of the thread, and then left free, it seems inditferent to gravity, and, instead of dropping, it begins to revolve about the vertical axis. So that the axis of the disc acquires a motion similar to the Precession of the Equi' noxes in Astronomy. The motion of revolution is opposite in direction to the rotation of the disc. When one of these motions is the great- est, the other is the least. If the motion of revolution is increased artificially, the disc appears lighter. If this motion is retarded, the disc appears heavier. Reciprocally, if the gravity of the disc is arti- ficially increased, the motion of revolution is greater. If the gravity of the disc is artificially diminished, the motion of revolution is less. This variation in the gravity of the disc is easily effected upon an iron disc by means of a magnet. If the action of gravity is prevented by the slide which confines the hinge, there is no motion round the horizontal axis. " The following popular explanation is given of these peculiari- ties of motion.* Place the disc in a vertical plane and make it rotate. The tangential motion of each particle has a horizontal and vertical component. As soon as the disc begins from its weight to incline from its original vertical position, the horizontal components still remain parallel to the new position, but the vertical components do not. If the upright edge of the disc nearest to the eye is ascend- ing, this edge is pushed to the left and the opposite edge to the right. These two forces, resulting out of the deviation of the original vertical * Ann. Pogg., XC. p. 348. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 209 components from parallelism with the disc, act as through a bent lever to turn the whole disc round a vertical axis in a direction oppo- site to its rotation. This can be shown experimentally by pressing with the fingers upon these two parts of the edge. As soon as the motion round the vertical axis begins, the horizontal components of the original rotation no longer retain their parallelism with the disc. But the tendency to preserve this parallelism, in other words, the tendency of the disc to preserve unchanged its plane of rotation, gen- erates forces which act on the top of the wheel to the left and on the bottom of the wheel to the right. These forces, acting by leverage, tend to lift the wheel, as may be seen by pressing in the same way with the fingers. When friction is excluded, this uplifting force is an exact balance of gravity, and the wheel neither rises nor falls. " The results of these experiments are remarkable, as showing how differently gravity acts upon a body at rest and upon the same body in motion. When it acts upon a body at rest, it tends to give it a motion round a horizontal axis, but not about a vertical axis. When a body is rotating in a vertical plane, gravity tends to give it no de- scending motion round a horizontal axis, but simply to turn it upon a vertical line. This apparent mechanical paradox is beautifully illus- trated in the Precession of the Equinoxes. The disturbing influence of the sun and moon, which represent the gravity to be considered in this astronomical example, would make the equator drop down into coincidence with the ecliptic, if the earth were not spinning on its axis, and would make the precession an unknown phenomenon. But the same forces, acting upon the rotating earth, move the line of equi- noxes backward, and leave the obliquity essentially unchanged. It follows, from the experimental illustration, as well as fromthe mathe- matical theory, that, if the disturbing forces were greater, the preces- sion would be greater; and if the earth's rotation were diminished, ccEteris paribus, the precession would be increased. " 2. The Pohjtrop of Magnus consists of two rotating vertical discs, arranged upon an axle, as the two wheels of a carriage. These discs can be set in motion by cords wound upon the hub of each disc, the free ends of the cords being attached to the same handle. The axle which carries the discs is movable at its centre around a vertical and also a horizontal axis, but either of these motions can be prevented at pleasure. If both discs are made to rotate in the scane direction, or if only one disc rotates, it^is not easy to turn the whole apparatus on VOL. III. 27 210 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY its horizontal axis. But if the machine is prevented from moving round a vertical axis, there is no difficulty in disturbing it around its horizontal axis. " Thus it appears in this experiment, as well as in those made with the Bohnenberger and Fessel machines, that a force acting upon a free body is prevented from producing motion in its oivn direction by the conical motion which exists around a rectangular axis. The same experiments can be made with the Bohnenberger apparatus, by hold- ing or releasing the middle ring. In mechanics, a body has lost its stability of rotation when it has lost its freedom : and the most complete stability is consistent with perfect freedom. Astronomy hangs up for ever in the sky a splendid illustration of this principle. It cannot be that a less noble law prevails in the kingdom of mind than in that of matter. When the two discs are made to rotate in opposite directions with the same velocity, there is no stability, even when the apparatus is most free. For the tendency of the two rotations when combined with a foreign disturbance being to produce equal and opposite conical motions, the result is the same want of stability as if there was no conical motion in either direction." * Professor Felton made a short communication on the Pnyx and Bema, at Athens. He remarked that Greek topography is to a great extent a restored science, indebted for its present form and precision to the labors of modern scholars, and to none so much as to Colonel William Martin Leake. A map was exhibited, on which the physical features of Athens were delineated, and the sites of the principal antiquities indicated. Another map was also shown, exhibiting the hill of the Pnyx, with the Bema, carefully drawn according to their exact meas- urements. The meaning of the names was explained, and it was remarked, that, if these objects are what they are now generally supposed to be, the spot is not only one of the most interesting in Athens, but in the world. The references in the ancient writers were then reviewed in the following order : — 1. Thucydides, B. C. 471. 2. Aristophanes, 444, in several plays, — the Acharnians, Ecclesiazousae, Knights. * Ann. Pogg., LXXXVIII. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 211 3. Plato, 429, in Critias, descriptive of a former imaginary condition of Athens. 4. -^schines, 380. 5. Demosthenes, 385. It was remarked, that, during the Macedonian and Ro- man periods, the Pnyx was not used, and is only mentioned incidentally, or by way of allusion. 6. Plutarch, A. D. 40, in the Life of Theseus and Life of Themistocles, an anecdote of the Thirty Tyrants. 7. Lucian, 120, in the Fishers. 8. Julius Pollux, 183. 9. Timasus, 3d century A. D., in Lex. Plat. 10. Hesychius, 380. 11. Proclus, 412, Com- mentary on Plato. 12. Souidas, in the eleventh century. Then came the Crusaders, and the periods of the Dukes of Athens, and of the Turkish domination, during which the knowledge of Athenian topography almost disappeared. The opinions of the early modern travellers were mentioned. In the seventeenth century, Spon thought it was the Areiopa- gos : Wheeler, the Areiopagos or Odeion. In the eighteenth century, Stuart and Revett believed it to be the Theatre of Regilla. Chandler, 1765, expressed the opinion that the structure was the Pnyx, or place of the popular assemblies of the ancient Athenians, and from that day to a recent period no doubt has been entertained that the levelled space, supported below by a heavy polygonal wall, was the Pnyx, and that the stone platform was the Bema, or stand on which the orators took their place when they addressed the people. In 1836, the University of Athens was founded, and Pro- fessor Ulrichs, one of the German scholars appointed to a chair in the institution, began to entertain doubts of the correctness of the received opinion. In 1842, Professor Welcker of Bonn, one of the most eminent scholars of Europe, visited Athens, and, in company with Ulrichs, went up to the Pnyx. On ex- amining the place, he found reason to coincide with the impres- sions of Ulrichs. Since that time he has carefully studied the subject, and in 1852 published in the AhlLaiidlungen der Koniglichen Academie der Wisserischaften of Berlin a very elaborate dissertation, in which he embodies the results of his studies, and arrives at the conclusion that the Bema is an 213 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY ancient altar to Zeus Hypsistos, or Jupiter the Highest, and that the levelled space, with the old supporting wall, is the ancient Pelasgicon. This essay was answered by Professor Ross, formerly of Athens, now of Halle, in a pamphlet, pub- lished in 1853. Welcker replied by another pamphlet in 1854. Professor Felton gave a summary of the arguments on both sides, and stated that the subject had occupied much of his attention while in Athens ; — that he had come to the con- clusion that the received opinion is correct ; — and, in con- firmation of this view, went at some length into an examina- tion of the authorities, especially Plato, Demosthenes, Plutarch, and Proclus, citing a passage from the last-mentioned author which had never been considered before, and which was pro- nounced to be almost, of itself, conclusive : and quite conclu- sive, as the last term in a cumulative argument, the expres- sions being precisely applicable to the shape of the supposed Pnyx, and to no other place or structure in Athens. Four Iiiiudred aiid t'vventy-first meeting. December 11, 1855. — Adjourned Quarterly Meeting. The President in the chair. The following gentlemen were elected Associate Fellows ; viz. : — Rev. Moses A. Curtis of South Carolina, and Professor Charles W. Short, M. D., of Louisville, Ky., in the Section of Botany. Drs. J. P. Kirtland, of Cleveland, Ohio, and J. C. Dalton, Jr., of New York, in the Section of Zoology and Physiology. Professor Dennis H. Mahan, of West Point, in the Section of Technology and Engineering. Hiram Powers, Thomas Crawford, William C. Bryant, and Washington Irving, in the Section of Literature and the Fine Arts. Professor W. B. Rogers exhibited to the Academy a set of Schonbein's test-papers for ascertaining the amount of ozone OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 213 in the atmosphere, and explained their use and the great importance of the observations based upon them. Professor Rogers also exhibited a series of diagrams ex- planatory of certain conditions of binocular combination not hitherto described, and intended especially to demonstrate the form of the curve which results froyn the binocular union of a straight line ivith a circular arCy or of two equal circu- lar arcs with one another. " First. Of the binocular resultant of a straight line and a cir- cular arc. " Assuming the optical centres of the two eyes as fixed during the act of combination, the centre of the eye directed to the circular arc may be regarded as the vertex of a cone whose surface includes all the positions of the optical axis of that eye as successively directed to the different points of the arc. This cone will of course be right or ob- lique, according to the direction in relation to the plane of the paper of the line joining the optical centre with the centre of the circle of which the arc is a part. The axis of the other eye, in ranging from end to end of the vertical line, vibrates in a plane which during the binocular combination intersects the conical surface in an attitude depending on the distance between the optical centres, the place of the diagrams, and the relative position of the component lines. " The two optical axes, directed each moment to corresponding points of the vertical line and arc, meet in the conical surface, forming optically a series of resultant points which together compose the binoc- ular resultant curve. This curve must, therefore^ he a conic section^ the nature of which will depend on the direction of the cutting plane in reference to the conical surface. " Considering the several cases in which the arc is convex towards the right line or concave towards it, and in which the combination is effected before or behind the plane of the diagram, all the results may be thus summed up. " («.) When the arc is convex to the right line and they are united beyond the plane of the diagram, or when the arc is concave to the line and they are combined in front of it, the binocular resultant may be either an ellipse, a parabola, or an hyperbola; but in either case it will turn its convexity obliquely towards the observer. " {I.) When the arc is concave to the right line and they are united 214 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY beyond the plane of the diagram, or when it is convex to the line and they are combined in front of the diagram, the binocular resultant is always an arc of an ellipse turning its convexity obliquely away from the observer. " Second. Of the binocular resultant of two ciradar arcs. " In this, as in the preceding combinations, the optical centres are to be regarded as immovable during the experiment. Each eye, while viewing the successive points of the arc presented to it, revolves in such manner as to carry the optical axis around in a conical surface. Thus two conical surfaces are generated, having for their respective apices the centres of the two eyes, and including all the directions which the optical axes assume in combining the successive pairs of corresponding points of the circular arcs. In general terms, therefore, the binocular resultant in all such cases may he described as the curve line in lohich the surfaces of the two visual cones Jinter sect one an- other. " It is only, however, under special conditions that the resultant thus formed is a plane curve. When the circular arcs presented to the two eyes are of unequal curvature, the visual cones by their intersection produce a curve which cannot be included in a plane, but lies in an in- flected surface ; and this accordingly is the form which the resultant takes whenever circular arcs of unlike curvature are combined either with or without a stereoscope. " The several effects of the binocular union of circular arcs of equal length and curvature may be thus summed up. " (a.) When the arcs are convex to one another, and are combined behind the plane of the components, or when they are concave to one another and combined in front of this plane, the resultant may be either an hyperbola, a parabola, or an ellipse ; but in either case it will be convex towards the observer and in a veitical plane. " (&.) When the arcs are concave to one another, and are combined behind the plane of the components, or when they are convex to one another and combined in front of this plane, the resultant is always an arc of an ellipse concave towards the observer and in a vertical plane. " Whenever, in any of the combinations referred to, the resultant curve takes the position of the sub-contrary section of the cone, it of course becomes an arc of a circle.'''' Professor C. C. Felton exhibited to the meeting a series of OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 215 silver coins of Athens, which he had lately received from Mr. George Finlay, of Athens, and made some remarks, of which the following is the substance. " Mr. Finlay is the distinguished historian of the Byzantine Enn- pire. He has resided in Athens for many years, occupied with historical studies and archseological researches. The ancient coins of Greece, and the coins of the Byzantine Empire, of which he has a large and valuable collection, have been much attended to by him, both on account of their intrinsic interest and for the illustrations they afford of numerous points in history. " The excellence of the Athenian currency has been often the theme of eulogy. The practical sense of the Athenian people was as remarkable as their genius for literature and art. We are apt to forget, in our admiration of the Parthenon adorned by the sculptures of Pheidias, and of the tragedies of Sophocles and the orations of De- mosthenes, that the same people were equally eminent in commerce, manufactures, and agriculture ; that they had devised a judicious sys- tem of public revenue, and well understood the theory and practice of credit in commercial and banking operations. At an early period, the silver coinage of Athens acquired a general currency throughout the commercial world. So well did the Athenians perceive the advantage of this, that they retained, even during the periods of the highest ex- cellence in the fine arts, much of the rudeness of the earliest mintage : so that the coins of Macedonia, and of many of the colonial states, far surpassed, in beauty of design and execution, the coins of Athens. This adherence to the archaic style was intentional ; it was the result of practical wisdom, abstaining from change, in order not to affect the established credit of the ancient currency. " The principal authorities on ancient coins are Spanheim, Eckhel, Mionnet, Boeckh, Hussey, Cardwell, and Humphrey ; together with the lists of the coins in the public and private collections of Europe. " The silver coins now exhibited are, — 1. Terpabpaxfiop. 2. Apax^r]. 3. Tpw^oKov. 4. "O^oXos. 5. TpiTTjuopiov. 6. 'Hp.iol3uXiov. 7. Teraprrjfxo' piov. These coins have been carefully weighed by Professor Hors- ford, with the following results: — Troy Weight. French Grammes. lerpabpaxp^ov (four drachmas), 255.99 gr. = 16.5778 ApaxM"? (drachma), 63.20 4.0929 Tpio^okov (three-obol piece, or half-drachma), 30.70 1.9883* Troy Weight. French Grammes, 10.50 gr. == 0.6802 7.27 0.4711 3.47 0.2250 1.50 0.0984 216 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY "0/3oXoy (obol, one sixth of a drachma), TpiTTj^opLOP (three fourths of an obol), 'Hjxio^oXiov (half- obol), 'YeTapTTjjxopiov (quarter-obol), " The weight of the Attic drachma, as deduced from the relations of the Attic silver weights, and from numerous comparisons of existing specimens, has been estimated by Hussey at 66.5 grains ; by Boeckh, at 67.4. If we assume 67, which is nearly the average of the two, the weight of the tetrad rachmon, usually estimated at 266 gr., will be 268. The tetradrachmon now exhibited has lost, taking the larger estimate, 12.01 gr. ; taking the smaller, 10.01 gr., or a little less than five per cent. The drachma has lost 3.80 gr., or about six per cent. The triobolon has lost 2.80 gr., or nearly nine per cent, and so on ; the smaller the coin, the greater generally being the loss. But in all cases the loss is surprisingly small, the difference between this tetradrachmon and the standard weight being a less percentage than that between some American dollars of different dates. Cardwell states that, of twelve drachmas described in the Hunterian Catalogue, the heaviest weighs 66^ gr., and only one weighs less than 60. Of the tetra- drachma, of which the Catalogue enumerates one hundred and two, seventy range over a difference from the standard weight of not more than 10 gr., assuming the standard weight to be 266 gr., or 12, as- suming it to be 268 gr. Of fourteen tetrad rachma in the British Museum, the heaviest weighs 264 gr. "The drachma now exhibited is evidently very old, — probably belonging to the sixth or the early part of the fifth century B. C. On the obverse is the head of Athena (Minerva), in the ^ginetan style ; on the reverse, the owl, with the olive-branch at the left and the legend A e on the right. The following is an exact copy. " The figures on the smaller coins are traceable, though some of them are much worn. " The tetradrachmon has on the obverse the head of Athena helmeted and crested. On the reverse, the owl standing upon a diota, on which is the letter H, and under it another H. The legend is OF ARTS AND SCIENCES, 217 AGE, the first letter being on the left of the head of the owl, and the other two on the right. Below are names of three persons, probably magistrates. • The first is AHEAAIKON, occupying two lines, partly on one side and partly on the other of the owl. The next, in- scribed on the left of the owl, is r O P r I A 2 , in three lines. And the third, which could be made out only by a careful examination, under different lights, is A E I N I A 2 , the first two syllables being on the left in two lines, and the third on the right of the owl. On the right of the owl, in the space between the syllables K 12 N and A 2 , there is a winged Pegasus, leaping. The three names are, then, Apellicon, Gorgias, and Deinias. T he following figure represents the coin very faithfully. "Eckhel (II. 219, 220) describes two coins of the time of Mithri- dates VI., the first of which has the names of Mithridates and Aris- Hon, the second has Arisiion and Philon^ with three letters of a third, H r I ; to these he subjoins a third, with the names ApeUicoii, Gorgias, and part of a third name, Diosio. Of the date of the first two there can be no doubt ; whether the third is synchronous with them de- pends upon the identity of the Apellicon with the person bearing that name in the second. It seems highly probable that the tetra- drachmon now exhibited belongs to the same period as the last of those described by Eckhel, in the passage referred to, since two of the names are the same on both. " The winged horse is common on the coins of Mithridates, and the political connection between that monarch and the tyrant Aristion ex- .plains the introduction of the name of Aristion on a coin of the King of Pontus, and of his symbol on an Athenian coin struck by Aristion. Aristion was a Peripatetic philosopher, who, having taught in various places, was sent on a mission to Mithridates, and afterwards became tyrant of Athens. Sulla laid siege to Athens in B. C. 87. Aristion set fire to the Odeion and fled for refuge to the Acropolis ; but the Acropolis having been taken, Aristion was dragged from the altar of VOL.. III. 28 218 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Athena and put to death. Apellicon was also a teacher of philoso- phy and a book collector, and, like some modern collectors, could not resist the temptation of stealing books, when he was unable to come honestly by them. He was obliged to flee from Athens, but returned during the tyranny of Ai'istion. He died just before the siege of Athens by Sulla, and his library was seized by the right of conquest (another form of stealing), and carried by the conqueror to Kome. He is noted in literary history for the possession of an auto- graph copy of Aristotle's works, which he procured in Asia IMinor, and afterwards edited. Apellicon may be placed about 80 B. C. " There was an Athenian Gorgias, one of the teachers of Cicero the Younger, and mentioned by him in a letter to the accomplished freedman Tiro. Cicero pere had ordered the young man to dismiss Gorgias, on account of his questionable morals. Whether the Gor- gias of the tetradrachmon is the same person, cannot be determined. He may have been of the same family, since young Cicero was in Athens about 44 B. C. He (Cicero the Younger) writes thus, after giving an account of his studious occupations : ' De Gorgia autem, quod mihi scribis, erat quidem ille in quotidiana declamatione utilis ; sed omnia postposui, dummodo preceptis patris parerem. AiapprjSrjv enim scripserat, ut eum dimitterem statim.' (Ad. Div. Lib. XVI. 21.) " This incident shows that the name of Gorgias was not unknown at Athens, about the period to which the coin is referred. The teacher of Cicero may have been the son of the colleague of Apellicon. I find no Deinias of this period. He probably had something to do with the mint, and has left no other record of his name. " Besides the valuable and interesting coins above described, I have, from the same accomplished scholar, a series of about eighty copper and bronze coins, embracing the common copper coins of Athens, sev- eral colonial pieces of Greek cities, with portraits of Roman emperors, seven imperial coins, with very characteristic portraits, belonging to the first three centuries ; a series of coins of the Eastern Empire, commencing with Justin I. A. D. 518 - 527, and ending with Isaac II. Angelos, A. D. 1185- 1195, the last emperor but three before the con- quest of Constantinople by the Latins ; and a series of six silver coins, among which are one of a Prince of Achaia, one of Manuel of Trebi- zond, 1238 - 1263, and a very rare silver coin of the Duke of Athens. All these are valuable in an historical point of view. During the Mid- dle Ages, the Byzantine empire supplied the currency of Western OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 219 Europe, and her gold pieces are known in Western literature as Bezants, or Byzants. Mr. Finlay is the only writer who has set forth the financial, political, and literary history of Byzantium in its true light and its real importance. " It is proposed here, however, to consider only the Attic copper coins, in addition to the silver pieces. They are, — 1. The Chalcus (XaXicovs) and duplicate. 2. Half-Chalcus. 3. Two-Lepta piece. 4. The Lepton, the smallest product of the Attic coinage. Now, as there were, seven lepta in a chalcus, and eight chalcoi in an obolos, we can conveniently construct a table of the values of the Attic currency, in our own money, by taking these and the preceding data, comparing the weight of the silver pieces with our own standard dollar, and making an allowance for the difference of alloy, which was much smaller in the ancient mint than in our own. " Assuming the weight of the drachma, as above determined, to be 67 gr., and the per cent of alloy to be the same as in the American dollar, the drachma will be worth 16.26 cents. Adding a small per- centage for dilFerence of alloy, and we have, almost exactly, the sixth pai't of a dollar, or 16.66 cents, for the value of the Attic drachma. As the drachma is the unit to which the rest of the series bear a definite proportion, we may construct the table as follows, beginning with the smallest copper coin : — 1 Lepton = $ 0.0004 or ^Ij of a mill. 7 Lepta = 1 Chalcus = 0.0034 or SyV mills. 8 Chalcoi = 1 Obolos = 0.0277 or 2 cents 7yV mills. 6 Oboloi = 1 Drachma = 0.1666 or 16 cents 6^^ mills. 100 Drachmai = 1 Mna = 16.666 or 16 dollars 16 cents 6y'^(j mills. 60 Mnai = 1 Talanton (Talent) = $ 1,000, or one thousand dollars. " The tetradrachmon exhibited above is worth, according to the same rule of estimation, 63 cents 6| mills ; it has therefore lost a little less than three cents. The drachma is worth 15 cents 7 mills; it has lost 1 cent 9-|- mills, — a larger rate of loss than that of the tetradrachmon, which would have been, according to this proportion, 7 cents 8 mills. But the problem of settling the comparative value of money in different ages, in reference to daily life, is another, wholly different, and much more difficult question, if indeed it can be settled at all. The comparative value of money changes with every moment of time, and every degree of latitude and longitude. If we take the price of wheat as a standard of comparison, even that is equally 220 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY fluctuating ; the state of the market being affected by many influences, some permanent and regular, others casual, and all together making the price of wheat, or any other article of daily consumption, or the wages of labor, just as uncertain as the worth of money itself. This subject requires a more careful investigation than it has yet received." Four linndred and t^vcnty-second meeting. January 8, 1856. — Monthly Meeting. The President in the chair. The Corresponding Secretary read letters from Dr. John C. Dalton, Jr., Rev. Dr. M. C. Curtis, and Dr. C. W. Short, accepting their appointment as Associate Fellows. Dr. A. A. Gould exhibited some engraved stones found in the vicinity of Beyrout, bearing Phoenician characters, and purporting to be of great antiquity. Professor Levering exhibited a specimen of copal contain- ing lizards, belonging to Captain Bertram, of Salem. Professor W. B. Rogers, referring to the ozonometer ex- hibited by him at the last meeting, stated that he had re- cently been testing it ; and had observed, during the great snow-storm of January 6th, that the quantity of ozone in the atmosphere was very great. At the time of the present meet- ing there was scarcely any. Professor Rogers also gave an account of an experiment of allowing the water from a Cochituate pipe to flow with full force into a glass globe, having an outlet the axis of which was at right angles to that of the orifice by which it entered. After a short time, the water in the globe took on a rotatory motion about the axis of the outlet, and a column of air was seen to enter from the outlet in the centre of the stream of water, and extend more or less deeply into the globe in proportion to the force with which the water was allowed to enter. When the experiment was tried with a globe with two outlets, at opposite sides, the air column passed quite through it, and the water escaped as a hollow expanding cylinder at each orifice. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 221 Four Iiundred and ttvcuty-foui'th meeting. February 12, 1856. — Monthly Meeting. The President in the chair. The Corresponding Secretary announced the receipt of letters from Guizot, Vicat, Richard Owen, and Sir Benjamin Brodie, accepting the Foreign Honorary Membership of the Academy. Professor Agassiz addressed the Academy at length on the subject of Classification in Zoology. The divisions of the Animal Kingdom, he said, are natural, not artificial. They are based upon ideas emanating from the Author of nature. So far as the systems of naturalists have been in accordance with these ideas, they are true, but not their own ; so far as they have been at variance with them, they have been their own, but are artificial, and not true. Professor Agassiz pro- ceeded to remark upon Cuvier's system of classification, and the ideas on which it was based, characterizing it as, in the main, in accordance with the plan of creation. He dwelt particu- larly upon the class of Reptiles, and spoke of the divisions which different naturalists had made in it. He defined the ideas which are the basis of the division into families and orders. He showed on embryological grounds that the sepa- ration of Turtles as a class (proposed by Strauss) was un- natural. He had observed distinct characters of superiority and inferiority among them, which he had adopted as the basis of a division into sub-orders,, by which he was enabled to classify the species under a natural arrangement, corre- sponding to the families adopted by Dumeril and Bibron, but which are not true families. Professor Agassiz illus- trated his remarks with colored drawings, intended for pub- lication in the forthcoming volume of his Contributions to American Natural History. Dr. A. A. Hayes exhibited an ingot bar of pure Alumi- nium, lately received from Paris, obtained by the method and under the eye of M. Deville, who has so largely contributed 223 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY to science and the arts, by producing this metal in masses. A brief description of its physical characters, including its sonorousness per se, as commented on by M. Dumas, was given ; and Dr. Hayes added, that his own observations had led him to conclude that this metal has a large capacity for heat, rising in temperature slowly, and losing its excess gradually. Generally, its mechanical characters may be com- pared with those of alloyed or standard silver, while in chem- ical relations it differs remarkably, by approaching more closely to those of the noble metals. A perfectly pure sample, many times heated and cooled, had its surface only slightly changed ; while fragments long exposed to the temperature of melting silver did not melt and coalesce. This effect is noticeable in pure gold-filings also, and may arise from molec- ular changes, induced by the absorption, without combina- tion, of oxygen ; as it is not observed under suitable fluxes. This metal alloys readily with other metals, and can be easily transferred from the positive to the metal negative^ of a gal- vanic series, in the mode of electro-plating. When condensed by hammering, or laminating, it loses its white color in part, acquiring a leaden hue ; the white color can be restored by producing the " mat " surface of the silversmith. M. Deville's process for obtaining the metal is founded on the substitution of sodium for the aluminium of the chloride of aluminium, in a state of vapor, and the subsequent fusion of the alumi- nium, under a flux of chloride of sodium and aluminium. In M. Deville's hands, the process for sodium, as a first step in the production of aluminium, has become one of the most beautiful and effective known in chemistry. A mixture of equal equivalents of carbonate of lime and carbonate of soda is heated in an appropriate vessel, with just so much carbon as will form carbonic oxide with the oxygen present, and the sodium is distilled off from the mass, not only pure, but often continuously. In reply to a question by the President, Dr. Hayes stated that this had been called a new metal erroneously. It has OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 223 long been known to chemists, and seven years since sus- picions were entertained that its characters had been imper- fectly observed, and that it might prove a malleable metal. These suspicions have been more than confirmed, and a metal of high value has been given to the arts. The importance of the labors of M. Deville is more appar- ent when considered in connection with general chemistry. Aluminium, before his researches were commenced, was known to us as a spongy, gray metal, which in a heated state attracted oxygen and returned to its earthy condition. Certain charac- ters made up its description, and these presented little attrac- tion, as they promised no useful application. So soon as the genius of Deville enabled him to throw the clear light of ex- perimental results on this subject, chemists saw that he had not only rendered more sure what was known, but had created as it were a neio assemblage of char'acters to be in- cluded under the term alummium. Nor was this all ; he has added another to the class of bodies represented by carbon, which, in different physical states, possess distinct chemical relations. The consideration of this relation of physical state, or con- dition, to chemical action, as a study, has been much ad- vanced by the discoveries of M. Deville ; and so beautiful is the illustration, that the field of research thus newly opened through his means is attracting, and will continue to engage, the highest efforts of the best-disciplined minds in its enlarge- ment. In reply to the question of price, as affecting economical application. Dr. Hayes remarked that it was unsafe to limit the diminution of price in a chemical product, especially where the material of manufacture is abundant. The first iodine he used cost at the rate of forty dollars per ounce ; it has been as low as seventeen cents for the same quantity, and yet the sources are by no means common. Phosphorus was in common use at sixteen dollars per pound, and when the price declined to eight dollars, stocks were secured in ex- 224 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY pectation of increased price,, which at present is about seventy cents. Sodium, in consequence of M, Deville's experiments, is now abundant at a low price, and the list might be extend- ed; proving that, when demand arises for any product like aluminium, the cost of production can be surprisingly reduced. As the metal has many special applications, hardly a doubt ex- ists of its extended consumption. Dr. A. A. Gould referred to the loss which the Acad- emy had sustained in the recent decease of Dr. Thaddeus William Harris, and offered the following resolutions : — " Resolved, That the Fellows of the Academy deeply deplore the recent decease of Dr. Thaddeus William Harris, one of the older and most distinguished of their number, and would mingle their sympa- thies in the sorrow of his bereaved family. " Resolved, That as a bibliographer and an archseologist, in rela- tion especially to the history of our own country, he held a distin- guished rank ; that as a naturalist he has not been surpassed by any of his countrymen, and has exhibited a patience, thoroughness, and accuracy of observation in the various departments of Natural His- tory, a truthfulness in the delineations both of his pencil and his pen, and a singular facility in employing language intelligible to the com- mon reader and at the same time fulfilling all the requirements of science, which render him a model for the interrogator of Nature ; and that, through a long life of untiring industry, he has accumulated and published a mass of original observations, of an eminently prac- tical bearing, which have won for him high consideration both at home and abroad, and will constitute for him an enduring monument. " Resolved, That while both the scientific and the practical world are largely indebted to him for his published papers, it is to be re- gretted that very many others of equal importance, which are known to have been prepared, or are in process of preparation, remain un- published ; and that the Academy tenders its assistance in their pub- lication. " Resolved, That in view of his unobtrusive and virtuous life, and the eminent though unclaimed distinction due him as a man of science and letters, a committee be appointed to prepare a Memoir of his Life and Labors, to be published by the Academy." The resolutions were seconded by Professor Agassiz, who OF ARTS AND SCIENCES, 225 added, that Dr. Harris had had few equals, even if the past were inchided in the comparison ; and they were adopted unanimously. In accordance with the last resolution. Dr. A. A. Gould was chosen a committee to prepare a Memoir of the Life and Labors of Dr. Harris for publication by the Academy. Four Iiundred and tAventy-flftli meeting. March 11, 1S56. — Monthly Meeting. The President in the chair. Professor liOvering exhibited L'' Appai^eil Regulateur de la Luiniere Electrique, as contrived and constructed by M. J. Dnboscq, of Paris, and presented the following translation of his description of the mechanism : — " If two metallic wires are attached to the two poles of an ener- getic voltaic battery, and the free ends of these wires terminate in thin rods of compact carbon from gas retorts or of graphite, at the moment when the two carbon rods touch, a vivid spark is seen to play between the nearest points. If the two rods remain in contact, they grow warm gradually up even to a red heat ; next, a part of the carbon is inflamed, burns, and disappears ; another portion seems to be volatilized, and litde by little the two extremities of the carbon rods, which touched one another, separate more and more, from waste of material, without on this account any cessation of the current cir- culating in the pile, the wires, and the carbon rods. The part of the rods which has disappeared is found to be replaced by a luminous purple jet, in which incessantly whirls an incandescent vapor of carbonized particles, which the negative pole seems to abstract from the positive pole, or which the latter projects towards the former. The distance between the carbon points has a limit, depending on the in- tensity of the current, beyond which the purple light is extinguished, the incandescent jet ceases, and the current is interrupted. In a vacuum this distance is much greater than in air, since the elec- tricity, not having the atmospheric pressure to overcome, darts from the carbon even before the points have arrived at contact. But the carbon, which is volatilized and condensed upon the sides of the re- voL. HI. 29 226 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY ceiver which contains the rods, interferes with the ease of the experi- ment in void spaces. It is necessary, therefore, to be content with the length of arc which can be obtained in common air, and to seek only to regulate as far as possible the consumption of carbon, and the distance at which the extremities of the rods must be held in order that the luminous arc produced shall have its maximum intensity. The first contrivances for attaining this end were not successful. The carbon rods were pushed together by the hand in proportion as they diminished in length ; but they received not the necessary regularity or proportional quantity of motion. Petrie in England and Foucault in France had simultaneously the idea of applying the electrical cur- rent itself to regulate the advance of the carbon points, which were to conduct this same current under the form of a luminous jet. The regulator of the electrical light, by Duboscq, rests upon the same principle as the apparatus of the two physicists just named. In the regulator of Duboscq, represented in the wood-cut, an electro-magnet, excited by the action of the electrical current which circulates in the copper thread q of the coil B, inside of which is enclosed an iron coqe, F, placed in the base of the instru- ment, attracts into contact a piece of soft iron, K. To this is attached a bent lever, L, which turns at x upon a horizontal axis, and is pressed up by a spring, s, and rests at 0 against a short lever, having its axis of rotation horizontal. This small lever carries at cZ a steel nib, the object of which is to check the toothed wheel r. This wheel has a fly, and an endless screw, V, to which a movement can be given by a second wheel, r', the pinion of Which of Class I. Benjamin A. Gould, Jr. Louis Agassiz, Jeffries Wyman, J> of Class II. John B. S. Jackson, James Walker, Francis Bowen, J> of Class III. Nathan Appleton, The several Standing Committees were appointed, on nomi- nation from the chair, as follows : — Rumford Committee. Eben N. Horsford, Joseph Lovering, Daniel Treadwell, Henry L. Eustis, Morrill Wyman. Committee of Publication. Joseph Lovering, Louis Agassiz, C. C. Pelton. Committee on the Library. Augustus A. Gould, Benjamin A. Gould, Jr., J. P. Cooke, Jr. vol. hi. 33 258 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Auditing Committee. Thomas T. Bouve, Charles E. Ware. Professors Treadwell and Lovering and Mr, J. P. Hall were appointed a committee to consider the subject of the meteorological observations of the Academy. Professor Gray made a brief communication on the placen- tation of certain Ge7itianaceoi, and the variable sestivation of the corolla in certain ScroplmlariacecB. His former pupil, Mr. Henry James Clark, of Cambridge, had recently shown him that in most of our North American Gentians the ovules are spread over the whole parietes of the ovary, either irregularly or in vertical lines on the veins ; and on examination, the same thing was found to occur in Bartonia, Muhl. [Centaii- rella^ Michx.) even more strikingly, the innumerable small ovules being thickly crowded over the whole inner surface of the ovary, just as in Oholaria ; and even the somewhat cruciform shape of the transverse section of th^ ovary of Oho- laria is repeated in Bartonia paniciilata. These observa- tions may be considered as decisive of the question of the true position, in the natural system, of Oholaria, so long viewed as anomalous ; its affinities to the GentianacecB, long ago suggested by Nuttall, and advocated by Professor Gray in the third volume of the Memoirs of the Academy, being now per- fectly confirmed. For this very placentation, which was nat- urally thought to indicate a relationship rather with the Oro- hanchacece (in which, however, this particular arrangement does not occur), now proves to be a confirmation of its affinity with the Gentianacece. The only remaining obstacle to this view is the imbricated sestivation of the corolla of Oholaria ; a character which Pro- fessor Gray could not consider of very great consequence, since a different deviation from the usual convolute eestivation is well known to occur in one tribe of the Gentian Family (the Menijanthece). And as an instance of the occasional breaking down of this character, even in cases where it is generally stable and systematically important, he referred to OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 259 the ScrophulariacecB, and to some observations made by his pupil, Mr. Clark, several years ago, upon Mimulus^ showing that this genus of the AntirrJiinidece not rarely has the lobes of the lower lip of the coralla external in aestivation, as in the RhinanthidecB. Professor Gray had recently noticed the same thing in an anomalous still unpublished Pentstemon, which presented both modes of aestivation in different flower-buds of the same inflorescence. The Corresponding Secretary communicated, from the au- thor, the following " Synopsis of the Cactacecc of the Territory of the United States and Adjace?it Regions, by George Engelmann, M. D,, of St. Louis, Missouri, " The only Cactus known to Linnaeus from the countries north of Mexico was his Cactus Opuntia (Opuntia vulgaris). Long after him, more than forty years ago, Nuttall, the pioneer of West Ameri- can botany, discovered two Mamillaricz and two Opuntice on the Upper Missouri, and again, twenty years later, in California, a new Echinocactus, About ten years ago we became acquainted with nu- merous new Cactacese, in Texas through Mr. F. Lindheimer ; in New Mexico through Dr. A. Wislizenus ; and in Northern Mexico through the same explorer and Dr. J. Gregg : some others (and among them the giant of Cacti) were indicated in the Gila country by the then Lieutenant W. H. Emory. Soon afterwards Mi'. A. Fendler col- lected several new species about Santa Fe. Mr. Charles Wright, a few years later (1849), discovered in Western Texas and Southern New Mexico still other undescribed Cacti. " But the greatest addition to our knowledge of the Cactacese of the southern part of the United States was made by the gentlemen con- nected with the United States and Mexican Boundary Commission, at first under Colonel Graham, and subsequently under Major Emory. Science is indebted principally to Dr. C. C. Parry, Mr. Charles Wright, Dr. J. M. Bigelow, Mr. George Thurber, and Mr. A. Schott, for val- uable collections of living as well as dried specimens, and for full notes taken on the spot. " About the same time, Mr. A. Trecul of France, and after him Dr. H. Poselger of Prussia, traversed Southern Texas and Northern Mexi- co, collecting many Cactaceoe, and increasing our knowledge of this interesting branch of botanical science. 260 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY " The Pacific Railroad expeditions since 1853 have opened fields not before explored ; and Dr. Bigelovv, the botanist and physician of Cap- -tain A. W. Whipple's expedition along the 35th parallel, availed him- self of these opportunities in a most successful manner ; while Dr. F. V. Hayden, almost unaided in his adventurous expedition, has ex- tended our knowledge of the northernmost Cactaceaj in the regions of the Upper Missouri and Yellowstone Rivers. " The last, but by no means least addition, was made in 1854 and 1855, by ]VIr. Arthur Schott, during the exploration under Major Emory of the country south of the Gila River, known as the Gads- den Purchase. " Most of the materials brought together by these different explorers have come into the hands of the writer ; but few of the discoveries made since 1847 and 1848 have been given to the public ; — partly . because the material on hand very often was incomplete, and partly because it seemed desirable to publish the whole in an elaborate form with the Reports of the Boundary Commission and those of the Pacific Railroad Surveys. These reports are now in preparation ; but the splendid plates which are to illustrate the natural history of these plants cannot be finished for some time ; it is therefore deemed ad- visable now to publish short descriptions of the new species, and sys- tematically to arrange them with those before known. CACTACE^. Tribus I. TUBULOS^, Miquel. Subtrib. 1. Parallels. Cotyledones margine hilum versus spec- tantes, lateribus seminis parallelae. I. MAMILLARIA, Haw. Ovarium baccaque Iceves. Semina fere exalbuminosa. Cotyledones abbreviatae, plcrumque erectaj, subconnatce. — Plantse mamillato-tu- borculatee ; inflorescentia laterali s. verticali. Subaen. 1. Eumamillakia. Flores ex axillis tuberculorum anni prioris nunquam sulcatorum : ovarium plerumque immersum versus fructus maturitatem emergens. <^ 1. PoJyacanthoi, Salm. 1. M. MiCROMERis, E. in Bound. Comm. Rep. : parvula, simplex, globosa ; tuberculis minimis verrucffiformibus confcrtissimis ; areolis OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 261 juniorlbus solum lana laxa vestitis ; aculeis setiformibus cinereis pluri- seriatis, in plantis junioribus sub 20 cequalibus lineam longis, radi- antibus in tuberculis floriferis 30 - 40 undique stellato-porrectis, supe- rioribus 6-8 longioribus clavatis ; floribus minimis subcentralibus. Var. /3. Greggii : major, tuberculis majoribus aculeis paucioribus rigidioribus. From El Paso eastward to the San Pedro River. Var. /3. near Saltillo. From | to 1| inches in diameter ; ^3. often 2 inches or even more in diameter; tubercles -| - 1 line long, spines | - 1| lines long, in /3. 1 - 2 lines long ; uppermost spines of each areola in the fully developed plant 3 to 4 times as long as the others, and strongly clavate, surrounded by long and loose wool, which, together with the upper part of the long spines, breaks or falls off after fructification. Flowers (and even fruits) nearly central, 3 lines in diameter, light pink. — Near M. 7nicrothele, Muhlenp., which, however, has 2 central spines. 2. M. LAsiACANTHA, E. 1. c, : parvula, simplex, globosa ; tubercu- lis teretibus ; aculeis setiformibus pilosulis s. denudatis 40 - 80 pluri- seriatis omnibus radiantibus ; floribus lateralibus albidis. On the Pecos River, in Western Texas : fl. in May. — Plant | to 1 or even 1-| inches high, and scarcely less in diameter; tubercles 2-3 lines long, spines 1| - 2| lines long. Flower whitish or very pale pink, 6 lines long. — M. Schiedeana, Fihrenh. seems to be similar, but is much larger, and has large tubercles with woolly axillas, etc. § 2. Crinitcz, Salm. A. Aculeis centralibus rectis. 3. M. PUSiLLA, DC, var. Texana, E. 1. c. : ovato-globosa, pro- Hfera, csespitosa ; tuberculis teretibus axilla longe-lanatis ; aculeis pluri-seriatis, extimis 30 - 50 capillaceis crispatis, interioribus 10 - 12 rigidioribus brevioribus albidis, intimis 5-8 longioribus rigidis rectis versus apicem fuscatis ; floribus lateralibus rubellis. On the Rio Grande, near Eagle Pass and southward : fl. April - June. — Plant 1-2 inches high ; spines 3-6 lines, flowers 7-10 lines, long. — Seems scarcely distinct from the well-known West In- dian M. pusilla. B. Aculeis centralibus uno alterove uncinato. 4. ? M. BARBATA, E. in Wisl. Rep. : aculeis radialibus biseriatis, centrali singulo deorsum hamato ; floribus subcentralibus ; seminibus tenuiter scrobiculatis. 262 PROCEEDINGS OP THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Cosiquiriachi, west of Chihuahua. This species has borne flower and fruit with me, and my notes and my recollections indicate that they were central : hence the mark of doubt above, as to the proper position of this species here, where all the other closely allied forms belong. 5. M. PHELLOSPERMA, E. in B. C. R. (M. tetrancistra, E. in part, Sill. Jour. Nov. 1852) : ovata, subsimplex ; tuberculis teretibus axilla la- nata setigerls ; aculeis radiantibus 40 - 60 biseriatis, exterioribus brevi- oribus tenuioribus, centralibus 3-4 robustioribus atrofuscis inferiore s. pluribus hamatis ; floribus lateralibus ; bacca pyriformi subsicca coc- cinea ; seminibus globosis rugosis nigris massa fusca suberosa majore arilliformi auctis. From the Gila to the eastern slope of the California mountains. — The name originally given had to be altered, because very rarely, if ever, are 4 hooked spines seen. In the original description this and the next species were confounded. — Plant 2-4 inches high. Radial spines 4-6 lines, central ones 5-9 lines long. — Apparently near M. ancistroides, Lem., which, however, has the radial spines all homogeneous. 6. M. Grahami, E. 1. c. : subglobosa, simplex s. demum e basi ra- mosa ; tuberculis ovatis, axilla nudis ; aculeis radiantibus 20-30 uni- seriatis, centrali sursum hamato fuscato, additis sajpe 1-2 superiori- bus rectis ; floribus lateralibus rubicundis ; bacca ovata virescente ; seminibus minutis scrobiculatis nigris. Mountains from El Ejxso southward and westward to the Gila and Colorado, and up the latter river : fl. from June or July to August. — Plant 1-3 inches high ; hooks much longer than the radial spines, which are 3-6 lines long. Flowers below the top, nearly one inch in diameter. Berry and seed small, the latter only 0.4 line long. 7. M. Wrightii, E. 1. c. : depresso-globosa, simplex ; tuberculis teretibus axilla nudis ; aculeis radiantibus sub 12 albidis ; centralibus sub-binis uncinatis fuscis vix longioribus ; floribus lateralibus (?) pur- pureis ; bacca subgloboso-ovata majuscula ; seminibus scrobiculatis . nigris. New Mexico, on the Pecos and near the Copper Mines. — Plants 1|- 3 inches in diameter. Spines 4-6 lines long. Flowers fully one inch in diameter, bright purple, with narrow acuminate petals. Berry large and purple : seed 0.7 line long. 8. M. GooDRicHii, Scheer : ovato-globosa, subsimplex ; tuberculis OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 263 brevi-ovatis axilla lanata setigeris ; aculeis radiantibus 11-15 albidis, centralibus 3-4 fusco-atris, inferiore paulo longiore deorsum unci- nate ; floribus lateralibus. San Diego, California. — Two or three inches high. Radial spines 2-|- - 3| lines long ; the lower central spine a little longer. Flowers apparently yellowish-white, and half an inch in diameter. § 3. Setosce, Salm. 9. M. BicoLOR, Lehm. : depressa, ovata, s. cylindracea, prolifera ; axillis lanatis ; tuberculis parvulis conicis ; aculeis exterioribus 16-20 tenuissimis recurvato-radiantibus, centralibus 2-4 rigidis, majoribus albis apice nigris interdum subpollicaribus, supremo plerumque longis- simo incurvo ; floribus parvulis purpureis ; stigmatibus 5. Abundant on the calcareous hills of the Rio Grande below Laredo, Texas, Dr. Poselger: fl. June and July. — Plant 3-12 inches high, the larger specimens 2-3 inches in diameter ; radial spines 1-2, lower central ones 4-5, the upper 6-10 lines long. Flower about 9 lines long. § 4. Ce7itrispincs, Salm. (All our species are simple and have a milky juice.) 10. M. Heyderi, Muhlenpf. (1848): simplex, depresso-globosa ; tuberculis elongatis pyramidatis subquadrangulatis ; aculeis radianti- bus 10 - 20 rectis, inferioribus longioribus, central! singulo breviore ; floribus lateralibus sordide rubellis ; baccis elongato-clavatis ; semini- bus parvis rugulosis fulvis. Var. a. APPLANATA (M. applanata, E. in PL Lindh. 1850) : vertice applanato s. depresso, aculeis radialibus 15-22. Var. /3. HEBiispHiERiGA (M. hemisphserica, E. I. c.) : vertice con- vexo, aculeis radialibus 9 - 12. From San Antonio and New Braunfels, Texas, to Matamoras and westward to El Paso : fl. April, May. — Var. a. is the Northern and Western, and ^. the Southern form. — M. decUvis, Dietr. seems to belong here ; but I have never met with a description of this plant. 11. M. BIEIACANTHA, E. in B. C. R. : hemisphserica ; tuberculis quad- rangulato-pyramidatis compressis ; aculeis paucis (5-9) rigidis rectis s. recurvatis, inferioribus paulo longioribus, centrali singulo erecto s. sursum flexo et cum ceeteris radiante ; floribus et baccis prsecedentis. Western Texas and New Mexico. — Very similar to the last ; but tubercles larger, more compressed, more loosely arranged ; the spines fewer and stouter ; perhaps only a variety of it. 264 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY 12. M. GXTMMiFERA, E. in Wisl. Rep, Similar to the last two, but stouter ; flower larger, darker, but otherwise little different. Radial spines 10 - 12 ; the lower ones much stouter and longer than the upper ones : central spines 1 or 2, shorter. § 5. LongimammcB, Salm. 13. M. sPH^RicA, Dietr. : prolifera, csespitosa ; tuberculis ovato- elongatis acutatis ; aculeis setaceis radialibus 12 - 14, centrali singulo subbreviore vix robustiore ; floris magni tubo supra ovarium emer- sum constricto elongate ; petalis flavis acuminato-aristatis. Hill-sides on the Rio Grande near Eagle Pass ; also Corpus Christi, on the Gulf. — Single specimens clavate, but often forming dense hemispherical masses. Tubercles 6-8 lines; spines 3-5 lines long. Flower 1| -2 inches long. Fruit not seen. Subgen. 2. Coryphantha. Flores e basi tuberculorum hornotino- rum aculeiferorum sulcatorum, vel in vertice ipso oriundi : ovarium emersum. § 1. AllifiorcB. 14. M. PAPYRACANTHA, E. in PI. Fcndl. (Mem. Amer. Acad. 1849). This interesting plant has been collected only in a single specimen, near Santa Fe, which, together with the dried flowers, is in my pos- session. Shape of tubercles not well distinguishable, doubtful whether sulcate or not ; the lower ones proliferous. Spines compressed, flex- ible, of the consistency of stiff paper ; 8 radiating and 3 or 4 central ; the lowest one of these longest and broadest. Flowers white, central, an inch or more in length and width. Fruit not seen. § 2. FlavifiorcB. * Laxijlorce. (The originally central flowers are pushed aside by the continuous development of new tubercles.) 15. M. NuTTALLii, E. : simplex s. prolifera, csespitosa ; aculeis ra- dialibus 10 - 17 setaceis rectis plerumque puberulis albidis, centrali singulo robustiore ssepius deficiente ; sepalis fimbriatis et petahs flavi- dis apice parce denticulatis lanceolatis, s. lineari-lanceolatis acutis ; stigmatibus 2-8 erectis vel patulis ; bacca subglobosa tuberculis breviore coccinea ; seminibus globosis scrobiculatis nigris. Var. a. BOREALis (M. Nuttallii, E. h c. Cactus mamillaris, Nutt. Gen., 1818, non Linn.) : subsimplex ; aculeis setaceis 13-17 cum centrali sajpe deficiente puberulis ; stigmatibus 2 - 5 ; baccis semini- busq'ue minoribus. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 265 Var. /3. c^spiTOSA (M. similis, E. in PI. Lindh. 1845) : csespitosa ; aculeis radialibus 12 - 15 puberulis, central! plerumque deficiente ; llpribus baccis seminibusque majoribus ; stigmalibus 5 patulis. ; Var. y. robustiok, E. in PI. Lindh. 1850 : subsimplex ; tuberculis longioribus laxioribus, aculeis robustioribus Icevibus, radialibus 10-12, centrali singulo ; floribus majoribus ; stigmatibus 7-8 patulis ; semini- bus ut in /3. Plains east of the Rocky and New Mexican Mountains. Var. a. on the Upper Missouri ; /3. from Kansas River to New Braunfels in Texas ; y. from the Canadian River to the Colorado of Texas. The heads are one or two inches in diameter ; the csespitose masses of /3. often a foot broad ; spines 3-8 lines long. Flowers 1-2 inches long and wide, of a greenish or reddish or pure pale yellow color. Seeds 0.8- 1.1 lines in diameter, more regularly globose than in most other Cactacse. 16. M. ScHEERii, Muhlenpf. 1847 ; /3. ? valida, E. in B. C. R. : magna, ovato-globosa, subsimplex, glaucescens ; tuberculis remotis patulis magnis e basi lata subcylindricis supra sulco profundo glandu- lis paucis munito (juniore lanato) subbilobis ; areolis junioribus dense lanatis ; aculeis 10 - 20 rectis robustis basi bulbosis albidis s. citrinis apice fuscatis, radialibus 9 - 16 ; centralibus 1-5 validioribus angu- latis ; floribus flavis ex axillis junioribus tomentosissimis. Sandy ridges in the valley of the Rio Grande near El Paso : fl. July. The largest of our Northern Mamillarice, 7 inches high and 5 in diameter; tubercles 1-1| inches long; spines 10-18 lines in length, very stout, especially the central and lower radial ones. Flower 2 inches long, yellow. Fruit not seen. — M. Scheerii from Chihuahua, according to Prince Salm's description, is a smaller plant, with single central spines one inch in length, and 8-11 much shorter radial spines ; the areolse are described as naked : — nevertheless our plant is probably only the northern form of this species. 17. M. KOBUSTisPiNA, A. Schott, in litt. : simplex s. cffispitosa ; tuberculis patulis teretibus magnis sulcatis ; areolis junioribus dense tomentosis ; aculeis radialibus 12 - 15 robustis inferioribus robustiori- bus ssepe curvatis, superioribus rectis fasciculatis paullo tenuioribus, centrali singulo valido compresso recurvato, omnibus subpollicaribus cornels apice atratis ; floribus luteis ex axillis junioribus tomentosis- simis ; seminibus magnis obovatis fuscis Isevibus. Sonora, on grassy prairies : fl. July. Tubercles nearly an inch VOL. III. 34 266 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY long, and an inch distant from one another; spines 9-15 lines long. Flowers 2 inches long, characterized by a very slender, constricted tube, very diiTerent from the wide tube of the foregoing species. Seeds fully Ig lines long, larger than those of any other Mamillaria examined by me : embryo with some albumen, curved ; cotyledons foliaceous ! approaching the structure of the seed of most Echinocacti. 18. M. RECURVisPiNA, E. in B. C. R. : simplex, depresso-globosa ; tuberculis ovatis profunde sulcatis confertis ; areolis obliquis ovatis, aculeis radialibus 12 - 20 rigidis recurvis intertextis albidis corneisve, aculeo centrali singulo (raro binis) robustiore longiore decurvato ; floribus flavicantibus extus fuscatis ex axillis junioribus villosissimis. Sonora : fl. July. Single heads 3-8 inches in diameter ; tuber- cles 5-6 lines long ; spines 4-9 Hues long, upper ones often a little longer than the lower ones ; central spine 6-10 lines long, darker. Flowers 1| inches long. — This plant bears the closest resemblance to the next species, and must perhaps be classed with it ; but in the dry specimen before me the flowers are not exactly vertical, as in that species. * * DensiJlorcB. (Flowers and fruit remain central in the very woolly vertex of the plant, no new tubercles being developed be- fore the fruit falls ofi"; berries of all the species known to me oval, green ; seeds brown, smooth.) 19. M. coMPACTA, E. in Wisl. Rep. : simplex, depresso-globosa ; tuberculis abbreviato-conicis sulcatis confertis ; areolis ovato-lanceo- latis, aculeis radialibus 13-16 rigidis recurvis intertextis albidis cor- neisve, aculeo centrali erecto plerumque deficiente ; floribus flavis extus fuscatis minoribus. Cosiquiriachi, west of Chihuahua : fl. June and July. Plant 2-4 inches in diameter ; distinguished from the last species by the acutish (not obtuse) tubercles, the more elongated areola, the erect central spine, which however is wanting in most specimens, and principally by the smaller and truly vertical flowers. Spines 5-10 lines long ; flower 1;^- 1^ inches long and wide; seed 0.7 line long. 20. M. PECTiNATA, E. in B. C. R. : simplex, globosa ; tuberculis conicis abbreviatis, summis floriferis teretibus longioribus sulcatis ; are- olis oblongis ; aculeis 16-24 rigidis recurvis intertextis suba^qualibus s. in tuberculis summis superioribus longioribus fasciculatis omnibus radiantibus cornels s. albidis ; floribus magnis sulphureis. On the Pecos River, in Western Texas : fl. July. — Plant 1-2 OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 267 inches in diameter. Lower tubercles 2-3, floriferous ones 5-6 lines long ; spines 3-5, upper fasciculated ones 6-9 lines long. Flower 2| - 3 inches in diameter ; seed 0.9 line long. 21. M. Echinus, E. 1. c. : simplex, globosa ; tuberculis tereti- conicis ; areolis orbiculatis ; aculeis rectis s. pauUo curvatis intertextis albidis ; radiantibus 16- 30 summis pauUo longioribus, centralibus 3- 4, inferiore robustissimo subulate porrecto, superioribus 2 - 3 et cum radiantibus erectis ; floribus magnis. With the former. — Plant l2--2| inches in diameter; tubercles 5-6 lines long ; lower and lateral spines 4-6, upper ones 6-10 lines long ; upper central spines of the same length, and the lower central one a little shorter. This last one is unusually stout, subulate from a very thick base, and perpendicular on the centre of the plant, which gives it a very peculiar aspect. Flowers apparently about 1^ or 2 inches long. 22. M. scoLYMoiDES, Scheidw. (1841): globosa s. ovata, subsim- plex ; tuberculis conicis, supei'ioribus elongatis incurvis imbricatis ; aculeis radiantibus 14-20 rectis s. plerumque recurvis albidis s. cor- neis, superioribus longioribus, centralibus 1 - 4 longioribus obscuriori- bus curvatis, superioribus sursum versis cum radialibus implicatis, inferiore robustiore longiore decurvo. South of the Rio Grande ; not yet discovered in our territory. — Plant 2-3 inches high ; tubercles 5-8 lines long; radial spines 5- 10 lines, the central ones 9-16 lines long. Flowers yellow, 2 inches long. — Perhaps this and both the foregoing species are only forms of the Mexican M. cornifera, of De Candolle. Only a close examination of these plants in their native wilds will enable us to decide this point. 23. M. CALCARATA, E. in PI. Lindh. 2, 1850 (M. sulcata, E. in Pl.Lindh. 1, 1845. M. strobiliformis, Muhlenpf.? non Scheer) : glo- bosa, prolifera, csespitosa ; tuberculis e basi dilatata ovatis conicis ; aculeis albidis, radialibus 8-10 rigidis subulatis rectis s. pauUo re- curvis, additis subinde ex summa areola aculeis adventitiis 3-5 fas- ciculatis tenuioribus, centrali singulo robustiore subulate recurvato, in plantis junioribus deficiente; floribus magnis sulphureis intus basi rubicundis. Texas, from the Brazos to the Nueces rivers : fl. May. — Larger heads 2-2^ inches in diameter ; csespitose masses a foot or more large ; tubercles spreading, or in older flowering plants often some- what adpressed and imbricate, 7-9 lines long; spines 4-8 lines 268 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY long. Flower 2^ - 2^ inches long, and of same diameter. Seeds a line long. § 3. Ruhrijlorce. * Sepalis integerrimis. 24. M. coNOiDEA, DC. (M, stroblliformis, E. in Wisl. Rejj. non Scheer) : found only south of the Rio Grande. * * Sepalis fimhriatis: 25. ? M. PoTTSii, Scheer : cylindrica, subramosa ; tuberculis ovatis obtusis levissime sulcatis, axillis sublanuginosis ; aculeis radialibus numerosissimis gracilibus albis, centralibus 6-12 validioribus expan- sis basi nodulosis apice sphacelatis ; floribus magnis e viridi rubellis ; baccis roseis. Texas, on the Eio Grande, below Laredo, and from there to Chi- huahua. — I have not seen this plant ; the description is taken from Salm and Poselger. 26. M. TUBERCULOSA, E. in B. C. R. : ovata s. ovato-cylindrica, sim- plex s. ad basin parce prolifera ; tuberculis e basi rhomboidea ovatis abbreviatis obtusis profunde sulcatis demum suberosis persistentibus confertis, axillis villosissimis ;• aculeis exterioribus 20-30 rigidis albi- dis, interioribus 5-9 robustioribus cJEsio-purpureis sphacelatis, su- perioribus longioribus erectis, infimo breviore robusto porrecto s. deflexo ; floribus in vertice densissime tomentoso centralibus pollicari- bus dilute roseis ; baccis elongato-ovatis rubris ; seminibus minimis scrobiculatis. On the mountains near El Paso, and eastward. : fl. May and June. Plant 2-5 inches high ; tubercles 24- - 3 lines long, dry and hard, not fleshy unless very young, nor shrivelling when old, but losing the spines and covering the lower part of the plant like corky protuber- ances. Outer spines usually 2-4, rarely 5 or 6, lines long ; interior spines 4-9 lines long ; those of the upper tubercles forming a tuft of grayish-purple color on top of the plant. Flowers very pale purple, one inch in diameter. Berry red, three fourths of an inch long, one fourth of an inch thick, crowned with the remains of the flower. Seeds short, thick, about half a line long. — The short, corky tubercles, with very deep grooves, and very woolly when young, together with the long red fruit, distinguish our species from all the allied forms. 27. M. DASYACANTHA, E. in B. C. R. : simplex, subglobosa ; tuber- OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 269 culis teretibus laxis leviter sulcatis ; axillis subvillosis ; aculeis rectis tenuibus setaceis patulis, exterioribus 25-35 albidis, interioribus 7 - 13 longioribus purpureo-fuscis, centrali infero requilongo ; baccis cen- tralibus ovatis ; seminibus obovato-globosis nigricantibus scrobiculatis. El Paso and eastward. — Specimens before me are 1 J - 2^ inches high, and a little less in diameter ; tubercles 4-5 lines long ; spines more slender and soft than in the allied species, often capillary, spreading, but not radiating, 6-12 lines long, only the lower exterior ones a little shorter. Seeds about half a line long. Very nearly allied to the next. 28. M. viviPARA, Haw. : simplex s. cfespitosa ; tuberculis teretibus laxis leviter sulcatis ; aculeis rectis rigidis, exterioribus patentissime radiantibus albidis 12-36, centralibus 3-12 robustioribus longiori- bus obscurioribus, singulo robustiore porrecto deflexove, ceteris sur- sum divergentibus ; floribus subcentralibus purpureis magnis ; baccis sublateralibus ovatis viridibus ; seminibus obovatis scrobiculatis fulvis. Var. a. VERA : depresso-globosa, simplex s. plerumque prolifera, csespitosa; aculeis radialibus 14-20, centralibus 3-8. Var. ? |3. RADiosA : ovata s. subcylindrica, simplex s. e basi ramosa ; aculeis radialibus 12-36, centralibus 3-12. Subvar. a. radiosa BOREALis : subglobosa ; aculeis radialibus albidis 12 - 20, centralibus 3-6 purpureo-maculatis ; floribus minoribus. — h. radiosa Neo- Mexicana : ovata ; aculeis radialibus albidis 20 - 36, centralibus 3-12 supra purpurascentibus sphacelatis ; floribus majoribus. — c. RADIOSA Texana : ovato-cylindrica ; aculeis radialibus albidis 20- 30, centralibus 4-5 flavis s. fulvis ; floribus seminibusque magnis. M. radiosa, E. in Plant. Lindh. 2. 1850. In the Western plains, and on the Rocky Mountains : var. a. on the Upper Missouri and Yellowstone Rivers ; /3. a. in Northern New Mex- ico ; (3. b. from Western Texas to New Mexico and Sonora ; )3. c. in Texas, west of New Braunfels. — The extreme forms are certainly very unlike one another, but the transitions are so gradual that I cannot draw strict limits between them. Even the proliferous growth of the original M. vivipara is not constant, and I have seen many simple specimens from the Upper Missouri. The simple ones seem to flower better than the proliferous ones, which are often sterile. — Plants from 1 to 5 inches high, 1^-2 inches in diameter ; tubercles 4-6 lines long; spines always rigid, 3-10 lines long. Flowers different in size, 12^-2^ inches in diameter, beautifully purple, with numerous narrowly lanceolate acuminate petals. Seeds | - 1 line long. 270 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY 29. M. MACROMERis, E. in Wisl. Rep. (M. dactylothele, Lah.) : simplex s. e basi ramosa, ovata ; tuberculis magnis patulis, laxis, tenu- iter ultra medium sulcatis ; aculeis tenuibus elongatis rectis s. pauUo curvatis exterioribus 10 - 17 albidis, centralibus sub-4 longioribus robustioribus subangulatis, fuscis s. nigricantibus ; floribus ex areolis supra-axillaribus in tuberculo ipso oriundis magnis ; bacca subglo- bosa viridi ; seminibus parvis Icevibus fuscis. In the valley of the Rio Grande, from Southern New Mexico to the middle course of the river near Presidio, and even lower down : fl. July and August. — A most remarkable species in many respects, and forming a transition to Echinocactus, though the mamillate form is so very striking. Plant 2-4 inches high ; tubercles variable, 6-8 or 10-12 and even 15 lines long. Radial spines ^-l^ inches long ; central ones often l^- - 2^ inches in length. Axils always naked. Flower springing from the lower end of the groove, which runs down about two thirds of the tubercle, 2^-3 inches in diame- ter, rose-colored or purple ; not rarely with a few sepaloid scales on the ovary (and fruit). Seeds thick, but only 0.6 - 0.8 line long. Subgen. 3. Anhaloniubi. (Gen. Anhalonium, Lem. Ariocarpus, Scheidio.) Flores e basi tuberculorum hornotinorum triangularium subinermium vel in vertice ipso oriundi : ovarium emersum. 30. M. FissuRATA, E. in B. C. R. : simplex, depresso-globosa s. ap- planata ; tuberculis e basi applanata crassis extus infraque Isevibus, supra sulco centrali Villoso lateralibusque glabris profunde quadripar- titis sulcisque transversalibus superficialiter multifidis, inermibus ; floribus e villo longo sericeo centralibus roseis ; baccis ovatis vircs- centibus in lana densa occultis ; seminibus nigris tuberculatis. On the limestone hills, near the junction of the Pecos with the Rio Grande : fl. October. Heads 2-4^ inches in diameter; tubercles 6 - 10 lines long, and a little less broad ; central longitudinal groove in the very young ones bearing dense silky wool over half an inch long, which by age becomes dirty and matted, and finally disappears entirely in the very old ones. The lower end of the groove, which only extends down as far as the rough or verrucose part of the tubercle goes (about two thirds downward), bears the flower and fruit, very much like the floriferous areola of the last-mentioned species. Flower about one inch long and wide. Seed very roughly tuberculated, different from that of any other Mamillaria examined by me, but quite similar to that of other Anhalonia. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 271 II. ECHINOCACTUS, Link. & Otto. Ovarium emersum baccaque sepalis stipata. Semina scepe albnmi- nosa. Cotyledones plus minus foliacece plerumque hamatse. — Plan- tse subglobosoe, costatae ; inflorescentia vertical!. § 1. Hamati, Salm. 1. E. ScHEERii, Salm : globosus s. ovatus ; costis 13 obtusis inter- ruptis ; tuberculis supra ad medium sulcatis ; aculeis radialibus 15 - 18 setaceis, centralibus 3-4 angulatis variegatis, superioribus rectis longioribus sursum divaricatis, inferiore robustiore breviore hamato ; floribus minoribus flavo-virescentibus ; bacca virescente ; seminibus fuscis. About Eagle Pass, on the Rio Grande : fl. August to October. — A most elegant little species, l|-2 inches high; larger spines black and white variegated; radial ones 3-6, central ones 6-12 lines long; floriferous areola united by a groove of 1-2| lines in length with the spines, resembling the groove of the CoryphanthcB, especial- ly of Mamillaria macromeris. Green flower an inch long, much less in diameter. 2. E. BREVi-HAMATUS, E. in B. C. R. : obovato-globosus ; costis 13 compressis obtusis interruptis ; tuberculis supra usque ad basin sulca- tis ; aculeis radialibus 12 teretibus albidis, centralibus 4 complanatis, lateralibus rectis sursum versis pauUo longioribus, summo debiliore et infimo robustiore deorsum hamato brevioribus ; floribus minoribus rose is. On the San Pedro, and about Eagle Pass : fl. April. — Very similar to the last; but larger, 3-4 inches high, with fewer spines, the lower central usually hardly longer than the upper radial ones, about one inch long ; lower radial spines shorter, and upper central ones longer. The rose-colored flowers are 12 - 16 lines long, much less wide. Fruit unknown. 3. E. Whipplei, E. &b B. in Pacific R. R. Rep. : ovato-globosus ; costis 13 - 15 interruptis ; aculeis radialibus 7 compressis albidis, centralibus 4 longioribus robustioribus compresso-quadrangulatis, sum- mo latiore longiore, infimo robustiore deorsum hamato ; seminibus magnis nigris. On the Colorado-Chiquito, in Western New Mexico. — Plant 3-5 inches high ; exterior spines 6-9 lines, upper central spine 12- 18 272 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY lines long, and ^ - 1^ lines broad ; other central spines a little shorter. Seed very large, over 14- lines in the longest diameter. — Principally characterized by the few radial spines and the very broad upper cen- tral one, which with the former forms an almost regular circle. 4. E. POLYANCISTEUS, E. & B. 1. c. : ovatus, s. ovato-cylindricus ; costis 13 - 17 interruptis ; aculeis radialibus sub-19 complanatis albis, superioribus latioribus longioribus, inferioribus setaceis, centralibus difformibus, summo complanato elongate sursum curvato albo, reliquis 5-10 teretiusculis purpureo-fuscis, superioribus 2 rectis, ceteris un- cinatis. Eastern slope of the California mountains, at the head of the Mo- jave River. — Plant 4-10 inches high, 3- 4 in diameter; radial spines ^ - 2 inches long ; upper central spine 3-5, the others 1 J- - 3^ inches long, the lowest shorter than the others. The number of the hooked spines varies from 3 to 7, according to age and development. 5. E.UNCiNATUs, Hopf., var. ? Wrightii, E, in B. C. E,. : glauces- cens, ovatus ; costis 13 interruptis ; tuberculis usque ad basin sulca- tis ; aculeis radialibus 8, inferioribus 3 uncinatis fuscis, reliquis 5 rectis, centrali singulo angulato complanato flexuoso hamato elongate erecto stramineo apice fusco ; floribus fusco-purpureis minoribus. Near El Paso and on the Rio Grande below : fl. ]\Iarch and April. — Plant 3-6 inches high, 2 - 3| inches in diameter ; the tuft of long, erect, straw-colored spines is very characteristic. Lower hooked radial spines about an inch long ; upper ones a little longer ; central spine 2-4 inches long. Flowers l-l^ inches long. Berry fleshy, scaly. Seeds much compressed. — The Mexican E. uncinatus has 7-8 radial spines, similarly arranged, and 4 central spines ; the three upper ones not much longer than the upper radial ones and straight, the lower one elongated and hooked. The flower and seed differ also to some extent. 6. E. SETisPiNus, E. in PL Lindh. 1845 : globosus, ovatus s. sub- cylindricus ; costis 13 compressis acutatis angulatis ; tuberculis bre- vissime sulcatis ; aculeis radialibus 10-16 setaceis; centrali subsin- gulo robustiore terete fusco uncinate s. flexuoso curvato ; floribus magnis flavis intus coccineis ; bacca pisiformi coccinea ; seminibus tuberculatis. Var. a. habiatus : aculeis radialibus sub 12, centrali hamato ro- busto. — E. hamatus, Muhlenpf. E. Muhlenpfordtii, Fen. Var. /3. sETACEUs : minor; aculeis pluribus, centralibus 1-3 tcnui- oribus vix hamatis. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 273 Texas, from the Colorado to the Rio Grande, and westward as far as the San Pedro River : fl. April to October. — It is unnecessary fur- ther to describe this well-known and well-characterized species, which is now frequently cultivated ; the compressed ribs, setaceous spines, small red berry, and tuberculated seeds easily distinguish it from all its allies. 7. E. siNUATUS, Dietr. (1851): globosus ; costis 13 compressis acutiusculis interruptis ; aculeis radialibus setaceis, 3 superioribus et 3 inferioribus rectiusculis fuscatis 1, lateralibus 2-6 tenuioribus albi- dis flexuosis, rarissime hamatis ; centralibus 4 robustioribus, 3 supe- rioribus rectis purpureo-variegatis, inferiore compresso seu canalicu- lato elongate flexuoso vel hamate stramineo ; floribus magnis flavis ; bacca ovata viridi ; seminibus minutissime punctatis. Country along the Rio Grande near Eagle Pass, and from there eastward. — Intermediate between the foregoing and the next species, and considered by Dr. Poselger a connecting link between them ; but easily distinguished from the former by the larger size, thicker ribs, flattened central spine, and by the shining, finely dotted seeds ; from the latter, to which it approaches much more clasely, by the more compressed and less strongly tuberculated ribs, the smaller number of stigmata (8 - 12), smaller fruit, and much more finely dotted seed. — Poselger considers this a variety of E. setispinus. His E. setispinus, var. rohistus, has the same seeds, and no doubt also belongs here ; it is said to have all the 4 central spines, and some of the radial ones, hooked. E. TrecuUanus, Lab. belongs here, or perhaps to the next. 8. E. LONGEHAMATUS, Gal.: subglobosus ; costis 13-17 obtusis tuberculato-interruptis ; tuberculis breviter sulcatis ; aculeis radiali- bus rigidis subteretibus, infimis summisque ternis, lateralibus 2-6 longioribus ; centralibus 4 robustis angulatis annulatis, quorum infimus deorsum hamatus rectus seu flexuosus, additis subinde 2-4 superiori- bus cum radialibus superioribus fasciculatis ; floribus magnis flavis ; stigmatibus 15-18; bacca oblonga virescente squamosa ; seminibus lucidis exsculptis. Var. a. CRASsispiNUS : aculeis robustissimis radialibus 8- 11, cen- tralibus 4 angulatis, infimo flexuoso plus minus hamato. E. flexi- spinus, E. in WisL RejJ. non Sahii. Var. /3, GRAciLisPiNus : aculeis gracilioribus 16-20, exterioribus 12-14, centralibus 4-8, infimo elongate hamato. E. hamatocan- thus, Muhl VOL. III. 35 274 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Var. y. BKEVispiNUS : aculeis gracilioribus radiallbus 8-11, cen- tralibus 4 teretibus cum infimo hamato radiales vix superantibus. East pf El Paso, near the Pecos and San Pedro Rivers, and along the middle course of the Rio Grande : var. a. south of the Rio Grande. Fl. July and August. — Plants from | - 2 feet high ; the larger ones ovate ; areolae distant ; spines very different in size, in the different varieties ; radial spines 1 - 3|, central spines 1| - 6| inches long ; flowers 2| - 3| inches long ; seeds similar to the last, but with much larger pits. § 2. Cornigeri. A. Heter acanthi. 9. E. WisLizENi, E. in Wisl. Rep. : giganteus, globoso-ovatus ; costis 21 compressis crenatis ; areolis elongatis ; aculeis radialibus summis infimisque 6 robustis rectis seu curvatis, lateralibus 14 - 20 (additis subinde summis brevioribus fasciculatis) tenuibus elongatis flexuosis ; centralibus 4 robustis angulatis annulatis rubellis, 3 supe- rioribus rectis, inferiore canaliculato deorsum hamato ; floribus flavis ; bacca ovata squamosissima ; seminibus reticulatis. Valley of the Rio Grande about El Paso, and thence to the Upper Gila : fl. July and August. — Plant 2-4 feet high ; diameter smaller ; radial spines 1-2, central ones 1^-3 inches long. Flowers 2^ inches long. 10. E. Lecontei, E. in P. R. R. : giganteus, obovato-clavifor- mis ; costis 20 - 30 compressis crenatis ; areolis elongatis ; aculeis radialibus summis infimisque 6-10 robustis angulatis plus minus curvatis, lateralibus 10 - 16 (addidis subinde summis brevioribus fas- ciculatis) tenuibus elongatis flexuosis, centralibus 4 robustis com- pressis annulatis cornels, 3 superioribus sursum inferiore subinde subhamato deorsum curvatis ; floribus flavis ; bacca ovata squamosa ; seminibus scrobiculatis. On the lower parts of the Gila and Colorado Rivers, and in Sonora : fl. August and September. Very similar to the last, but a more slen- der, often quite clavate plant ; larger specimens 3-4 feet high, and of only one third that diameter ; arrangement of spines similar, but generally 5 (not 3) radial spines below the lowest central one ; cen- tral spines more compressed, upper ones curved, lower one rarely somewhat hooked ; flower, fruit, and seed smaller ; seed more ob- long and pitted. OP ARTS AND SCIENCES. 275 E. INGENS, Zucc, in the number and arrangement of spines, is the simple type of our more northern species : it has on the oval areolae 4 stout cruciate central spines, 3 upper and 3 lower radial ones, and only 2 slender lateral spines. Seeds smooth. The flower seems to refer it, however, to the Eriocarpi. B. HomcBacantM. * Lepidocarpi. 11. E. Emoryi, E. (in Emory's Rep. 1848, and B. C. R.) : gran- dis, ovatus ; costis 13 - 20 obtusis tuberculatis ; areolis ovatis ; acu- leis radialibus 7-8 suboequalibus robustis subangulatis annulatis paullo recurvatis rubellis 1-2 pollicaribus, centrali singulo recurvo s. sub- hamato paullo robustiore ; floribus magnis purpurascentibus. Lower Colorado, and principally in Sonora : fl. August and Sep- tember. Larger plants 2| - 3 feet high ; spines usually 1-2, and, in a large specimen from Guaymas, nearly 3 inches long. Flowers about 3 inches long. Fruit unknown. 12. E. viRiDESCENS, Nutt. : globosus, simplex seu raro ramosus ; costis 13-21; aculeis robustis compressis annulatis plus minus cur- vatis rubellis, radialibus 12-20 infimo breviore magis curvato ; cen- tralibus 4 angulatis robustioribus longioribus, infimo rectiore longi- ore ; floribus virescentibus ; bacca squamosa ; seminibus minutissime scrobiculatis. San Diego, California. — Less than a foot in diameter, globose or flattened ; radial spines 5-10 lines long, 3 upper central ones a little longer, and lower central spine 12 - 18 lines long. Flower IJ- inches long. 13. E. CYLiNDRACEUs, E. in Sill. Jour. 1852 : ovatus seu subcylin- dricus, plerumque e basi ramosus ; costis 21 vel pluribus ; aculeis ro- bustis compressis annulatis plus minus curvatis flexuosisve rubellis, radialibus sub- 12, aculeis adventitiis sub- 5 gracilioribus supra ssepe adjectis, infimo hamato, centralibus 4 angulatis robustissimis cruciatis, superiore latiore sursum recto, inferiore decurvato ; floribus flavis ; bacca squamosa. San Felipe, on the eastern slope of the Californian mountains : fl. in June. — The largest specimens seen were 3 feet high and one foot in diameter ; the branches or young single plants are globose. Ra- dial spines 1-2 inches long ; central spines 1 - 1^ lines broad, about 2 inches long. Similar to the last, but well distinguished by the char- acters indicated. 276 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY * * Eriocarpi. 14. E. POLYCEPHALUS, E. & B. in P. R. R. : ovatus seu demum cylindricus, e basi ramosus ; costis 13-21 acutis ; aculeis robustis compressis annulatis plus minus curvatis rubellis, radialibus 4-8, in- fimo deficiente, superioribus (si exstant) gracilioribus ; centralibus 4 angulatis compressis, superiore latiore suberecto vel sursum curvato, inferiore longiore decurvo ; floribus flavis dense lanatis ; bacca sicca ; seminibus magnis angulatis. On the Mojave, Colorado, and Gila Rivers : fl. February and March. — Single only when young, forming bunches of 20-30cy- lindric equal-sized heads when older ; the largest seen were 2 - 2| feet high and about 10 inches in diameter. Exterior spines 1-2, in- terior ones 1|-3|, inches long. — Shape very much like the last, but the flower very distinct. 15. E. Parryi, E. in B. C. R. : simplex, globosus vel depressus ; costis 13 acutis ; aculeis robustis angulatis annulatis albidis, radialibus 8-11, rectis s. paullo curvatis superioribus gracilioribus, infimo defi- ciente, centralibus 4 paullo longioribus robustioribus, infimo longiore decurvo ; bacca sicca dense lanata. West and southwest from El Paso. — Plant always single ; largest specimens 8-12 inches high by 10 - 15 in diametei'. — Very similar to the last ; but apparently distinct by the manner of growth and the white spines. Unfortunately, no seeds were collected. 16. E. HORizoNTHALONius, Lcm., var. centrispinus, E, in B. C. R. : glaucus, depressus seu demum ovatus ; costis 8 obtusissimis latissimis ; areolis orbiculatis basi truncatis; aculeis robustis compressis annulatis recurvatis rubellis demum cinereis, radialibus 5-7 superioribus de- bilioribus, infimo deficiente, centrali singulo robustiore decurvato ; floribus purpureis dense lanatis ; bacca sicca lanata ; seminibus mag- nis angulatis. From Douana, above El Paso, to the Pecos, and southward : fl. April and May. — Plant 2-8 inches high and 3 - 6 in diameter; spines f - 11 inches long, nearly equal. Flower 2| inches long, but partly enveloped in dense wool. The original E. liorizonthalonius is said to have no central spine, and linear-lanceolate acuminate pale rose-colored petals : in our plant the petals are oblong-lanceolate and obtuse. 17. E.Texensis, Hopf. (E. Lindheimeri, E. in PL Lindh. 1845) : OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 277 depressus ; costis 13 - 27 acutis undulatis ; areolis cordatis ; aculeis robustis annulatis, plus minus curvatis rubellis, radialibus 6-7 infimo deficiente, centrali singulo robustiore compresso decurvato ; floribus roseis dense lanatis ; petalis laciniatis aristatis ; bacca coccinea lana- ta ; seminibus Isevibus lucidis. Southern Texas, and Northeastern Mexico, from the Colorado to Saltillo ; not westward beyond the San Pedro River : fl. April and May. — Heads 8-12 inches in diameter, flat, or very old ones some- times globose ; spines from ^-2 inches long. Flowers about 2 inches long. ^ 3. Theloidei, Salm. 18. E, BicoLOK, Gal., var. Schottii, E. in B. C. R. : ovatus ; costis 8 oblusis interruptis ; aculeis radialibus 15-17 rectis, summis 2-4 longioribus latioribus compressis, centralibus 4, summo latiore longi- ore ; floribus majoribus purpureis. Mier, on the Rio Grande : fl. September. — Plant 4-6 inches high, 2-3 in diameter; upper radial spines about 1 inch, upper central one 1| inches long ; lower radial and central spines reddish variegated. Flower 2-3 inches long, bright purple or rose-colored, — Distin- guished from the Mexican E. hicolor, principally by the larger num- ber of radial spines, and the greater length of the upper central spine, which is carinate underneath. § 4. Intertexti. 19. E. iNTERTEXTUs, E. in B. C. R. : minor, ovato-globosus ; cos- tis 13 acutis interruptis ; tuberculis sulcatis ; aculeis rigidis rubellis apice fuscatis, radialibus 16-25 arete adpressis, superioribus 5-9 tenuioribus subfasciculatis, infimo robusto brevi ; centralibus 4, superi- oribus 3 radiales superiores excedentibus cum iis implicatis, inferiors singulo abbreviato porrecto ; floribus parvis in vertice dense lanato congestis roseis ; bacca vix squamata sicca ; seminibus lucidis sca- phoideis. Var. /3. DASYACANTHUS, E. 1. c. : ovatus ; aculeis setaceis longiori- bus purpureo-cfEsiis, radialibus patulis, centrali inferiore ceteris paullo breviore. From El Paso to the Limpio, and southward to Chihuahua : var. /3. more common about El Paso : fl. March and April. — Plant 1 to 4, the var. /3. even 6 inches high, 1-3 in diameter; spines 2-6, cen- tral ones 1-9 lines long, in /3. 6 - 8 and central spines 9-11 lines long. Flower about 1 inch long. Fruit 4 lines in diameter. 278 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADESIY E. UNGXJispmus, E. in Wisl. Rep., from the countiy between Chi- huahua and Parras, belongs here. The fruit described as belonging to this species is that of E. uncinatus. Subtrib. 2. CoNTRARiEiE. Cotyledones facie hilum versus spectan- tes, lateribus seminis parallelse. III. CEREUS, Haw. Ovarium baccaque sepalis squamiformibus in axillis plerumque pul- villigeris stipatse. Stamina tubo floris breviori seu elongato infun- dibuliformi gradatim adnata. Semina fere exalbuminosa. Cotyle,- dones abbreviates seu foliacese, plerumque hamatas. — Plantse cos- tatffi, inflorescentia laterali. Subgen. 1. Echinocereus, E. in Wisl. Rep. : ovarium aculeola- tum : tubus floris abbreviatus, subcampanulatus : stigmata crassa viri- dia : semina tuberculosa : cotyledones suberectse. — Plantse humiles, saepe subglobosce, e basi ramosse vel ramosissimse. § 1. Pectinati, multicostati ; areolis confertissimis plerumque elon- gatis, aculeis rigidis brevibus pectinatis. * Viridijlori. 1. C. viRiDiFLOKUS, E. in Wisl. Rep. : ovatus seu demum cylin- dricus, simplex vel parce ramosus ; costis sub-13; areolis ovato-lance- olatis ; aculeis arete radiantibus 12 - 18 cum superioribus 2-6 setaceis, lateralibus casteris longioribus, inferioribus plerumque purpureo-fuscis, cseteris albidis, central! plerumque nuUo, subinde singulo robustiore variegate ; floribus versus apicem lateralibus e flavo virescentibus minoribus ; baccis ellipticis parvis ; seminibus tuberculatis. Var. a. MINOR : subglobosus ; aculeis gracilibus brevibus. Var. /3. CYLiNDRicus : major, elongatus ; aculeis rigidioribus longi- oribus. Throughout Western Texas and New Mexico. Var. a. about Santa Fe and northeastward : /3. east of El Paso. Fl. May and June. — The small form is 1 -2 inches high, with spines rarely more than 2 lines long: the larger form, /3. is 3-6 or more inches high, its spines 2-5 or 6 lines long : central spines, when present, longer and stouter. Flower about 1 inch long. 2. C. CHLORANTHDS, E. in B. C. R. : cylindricus, simplex, seu parce ramosus; costis 13-18; areolis ovatis ; aculeis laxe radiantibus 12- OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 279 20 cum superioribus 5-10 setaceis plerumque albidis ; centralium 3-5 superioribus 2 brevioribus purpurascentibus, inferioribus 1-3 longioribus deflexis albidis ; floribus in caule inferiors lateralibus e flavo virescentibus minoribus ; baccis parvis ; seminibus tuberculato- scrobiculatis. Common about El Paso: fl. April. — Stems 3-10 inches high, 1| - 2 inches in diameter ; radial spines 2-5, central ones 9 - 15, lines long. Flowers very similar to those of the last species, but seeds different. * * Flavijlori. 3. C. DASYACANTHUS, E. in Wisl. Rep. : subcylindricus, simplex vel e basi ramosus ; costis 16-21; areolis ovatis ; aculeis 20-30 patulis cinereis apice saepe rubellis, interioribus 3-8 pauUo robustio- ribus deflexis ; floribus subterminalibus magnis ; bacca subglobosa ; seminibus tuberculatis. Var. /3. MINOR : aculeis paucioribus ; bacca minore. Common about El Paso : fl. April. — Plant 5-12 inches high, densely covered with numberless spines. Flowers 3 inches wide, yel- low, an uncommon color in Cerei. Fruit an inch in diameter ; in var. j3. only half as large. 4. C. CTENOiDES, E. in B. C. E.. : subsimplex, ovatus, 15-costatus ; areolis lanceolatis ; aculeis albidis, radialibus 14-20 pectinatis, cen- tralibus 2-3 uniseriatis brevibus ; floribus magnis. Eagle Pass on the Rio Grande : fl. June. — Plant 2 -4 inches high, thick in proportion ; spines 1-4 lines long. Flower large. — Simi- lar to the last, but distinguished by the characters given, which, with the exception of the yellow flower, bring it close to C. pectinatus. * * * Ruhriflori. 5. C. PECTINATUS, E. (Echinocactus pectinatus, Sclieid.) : ovato- cylindricus, 18 - 23-costatus ; areolis lanceolatis ; aculeis radialibus 16 - 20 subrecurvis pectinatis apice roseis, centralibus 2-5 brevissi- mis uniseriatis; tubo floris purpurei pulvillis 60-70 aculeolos rigidos 10-15 gerentibus stipato. Var. jS. ? AEMATUS, Poselg. : costis 15 - 16 ; aculeis radialibus 16-20, centrali singulo cseteris longiore. Var. y. ? RiGiDissiMus, E. in B. C. R. : costis 20 -22; aculeis e basi bulbosa subulatis rigidissimis albidis seu rubellis 15-22 centrali- bus nuUis; florum subverticalium tubo pulvillis 80 - 100 dense stipato. 280 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY South of the Rio Grande, Chihuahua, &c. — The var. /3. from Mon- terey may belong either here or to the next species. The var. y. from Sonora, without any central spines, and with very rigid radial ones, 1 - 4| lines long, is not yet sufficiently known to decide about its affinities. 6. C. c^spiTOSUS, E, in PI. Lindh. 1845 : ovato-cylindricus, 12 - 18-costatus ; areolis lanceolatis ; aculeis radialibus 20-30 rectis seu subrecurvis pectinatis albidis, centrali nullo vel raro, uno alterove bre- vissimo ; tubo floris purpurei pulvillis 80 - 100 aculeolos capillares 6-12 obscuros lanamque longam cineream gerentibus dense stipato. Var. a. MINOR : aculeis brevioribus gracilioribus non intertextis ; floribus minoribus. Var. iS. MAJOR : aculeis longioribus robustioribus intertextis ; flori- bus majoribus. Var. y. CASTANEUs: aculeis rubellis seu castaneis. From the Canadian near Delaware Mount, to the Rio Grande, and south to Monterey ; west not farther than the San Pedro River: fl. in May and June. — This species, now not rare in cultivation, seems to be sufficiently distinct from the preceding, and may always be recog- nized by the characters indicated. 7. ? C. ADUSTUS, E. in Wish Rep. : ovatus, 13 - 15 costatus ; areo- lis ovati§ seu ovato-lanceolatis ; aculeis radialibus 16-20 adpressis albidis apice adustis, lateralibus inferioribusque longioribus., summis setaceis brevissimis, centrali nullo seu valido porrecto atrofusco. Mountains west of Chihuahua : flower and fruit unknown. — Echi- nocereus radians^ E. is the form with stout central spines. 8. .? C. RUFispiNtrs, E. 1. c. : ovato-cylindricus, 11-costatus ; areolis lanceolatis; aculeis radialibus 16- 18 adpressis intertextis, lateralibus cseteris multo longioribus fuscis recurvatis, centrali singulo valido fusco porrecto ; flore infundibuliformi, tubo subelongato, limbo pa- tulo ; stigmatibus 8 tenuibus albidis. Mountains west of Chihuahua : fl. in I\Iay. — Stem four inches high: radial spines 4-9 lines, central one about an inch, long. Flower difl^erent from that of all other Echinocerei in the lencth of the tube (over 2 inches long, and half as wide) and the whitish stig- mata. Seems to form a transition to other sections of the wenus. 9. > C. LONGisETUS, E. in B. C. R. : subsimplex, ovato-cylindricus ; costis 11- 14 tuberculatis ; areolis orbiculatis; aculeis setaceis albis. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 281 radialibus 18 - 20, centralibus 5-7, quorum 3 inferiores elongati deflexi. Santa Rosa, south of the Rio Grande. — Stem 6-9 inches high ; tubercles well marked ; lower radial spines 5-7 lines long, much longer than the upper ones ; lower central spines 1-2 inches long. Flower said to be red. § 2. Decalophi. * Purpurei ; fiorihus diurnis. 10. C. Fendleri, E. in PI. Fendl, : ovato-cylindricus ; costis 9 - 12 ; areolis subconfertis ; aculeis basi bulbosis, radialibus 7-10 rectis seu curvatis albidis et fuscis, inferioribus robustioribus, centrali va- lido sursum curvato atrofusco plerumque elongate ; floribus sub ver- tice lateralibus magnis ; seminibus obliquis tuberculato-scrobiculatis. New Mexico, from Santa Fe to below El Paso, and from east of the Pecos to Zuni : fl. in May and June. — Stems 3-8 inches high, not many from the same base ; spines very variable, but always very bulbous at the base, and some of them white, some deep brown or black, and others party-colored ; radial ones | - 1 inch, and the cen- tral one 1-2 inches long. Flower 2| - 3| inches in diameter, of a deep purple color. Berry 1 - l^- inch long, edible. Seed deeply and irregularly pitted by the confluence of many of the tubercles, un- usually oblique. 11. .^ C. MojAVENSis, E. & B. in P. R. R. : ovatus, dense caes- pitosus, glaucescens, 10 - 12 costatus ; areolis remotis ; aculeis va- lidis curvatis, radialibus 7-8, lateralibus robustioribus longioribus, centrali sin^ulo sursum curvato elonjrato. Var. /3. ? ZuNiENsis : 10-costatus ; aculeis debilioribus 4-angulatis bulbosis rectis vel flexuosis, radialibus 8, summo longiore robustiore ; centrali recto seu sursum curvato longiore, omnibus bulbosis. On the Mojave River in California, and /3. farther east, on the Col- orado Chiquito. Ovate heads 2-3 inches high, forming dense cecspi- tose masses ; upper and lower spines 9-15 lines, lateral ones 15 - 25 lines long, central spine l-2--2| inches long, dusky. Var. /3. is distinguished by having the upper radial spine almost as stout and long as the central spine, the former being 12- 18, the latter 18-24 lines long. Both seem to be distinguished from the nearly allied C. Fendleri by havin* the lowest spines weakest, while in that species they are the stoutest of the exterior ones. The resemblance to C. VOL. III. 36 282 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Fendleri induces me to place this species here, though the flower remains unknown. 12. C. ENNEACANTHUs, E. in Wisl. Rep. : ovato-cylindricus, viridis, csespitosus, 7-10 costatis ; aculeis rectis, radialibus 7-12 (plerum- que sub-8) albis, inferioribus longioribus ; centrali singulo (rarius 2 — 3) basi bulboso teretiusculo seu compresso angulato albido vel stramineo ; ovario pulvillis 25 - 35 aculeolos 6-12 gerentibus sti- pato ; seminibus tuberculatis. In the Rio Grande valley from El Paso to Laredo, and lower down, and far into Mexico : fl. April and May. — A very csespitose plant, of a wrinkled or withered appearance ; 3 - 6 inches high ; spines above 3-5, below 8-16 lines long; lateral ones intermediate; central spine extremely variable, in smaller specimens terete, in very perfect ones elongated, flattened, 8 or 10 - 15 or 20 lines long. Flowers 2-3 inches long and equally wide: ovary and tube covered with numerous bunches of spines. Fruit about an inch long, edible. 13. C. STRAMiNEUs, E. in B. C. R. : ovato-cylindricus, csespitoso- conglomeratus, 11- 13-costatus, Isete viridis ; aculeis radialibus 7- 10 rectis vel curvatis albis suboequalibus, centralibus 3-4 angulatis elon- gatis sGepe flexuosis ; floribus magnis purpureis ; ovario pulvillis 30 - 40 aculeolos subsingulos gerentibus stipato ; bacca magna fasciculis aculeolorum elongatorum stipata ; seminibus tuberculatis. Mountain slopes, from El Paso to the Pecos and Gila Rivers : fl. June. Often from 100 to 200 heads in one hemispherical mass, each 5-9 inches high; radial spines mostly 8, f - 1-^, central ones 2-3|- inches long, younger ones dirty yellow and brown, like old straw. Flower 3-4 inches long, very full, bright purple. Berry 14- -2 inches long, luscious. 14. C. DUBius, E. in B. C. R. : ovato-cylindricus, ccespitosus, pal- lide viridis, 7 - 9 costatus ; aculeis radialibus 5-8 albidis, superiori- bus ssepe nuUis, centralibus 1-4 angulatis plus minus elongatis sospe curvatis ; floribus pallide purpureis ; ovario pulvillis sub-20 aculeolos 1-2 gerentibus stipato ; bacca minore aculeolata ; seminibus tuber- culato-scrobiculatis. Sandy bottoms of the Rio Grande at El Paso: fl. May and June. Stems 5-8 inches high, somewhat csespitose, of a pale green color, and a soft flabby texture : ribs broad, fewer ; radial spines 6-12 or 15 lines long ; central spines Ig- - 3 inches long,*flowers 2^ inches long, with fewer and narrower petals. Fruit 1 - Ig- inches long, covered OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 283 with bunches of spines which, as in the last species, on the flower are indicated only by few and short bristles. Seed with tubercles conflu- ent, and leaving pits between them. Nearly allied to the two last, but sufficiently well distinguished by the characters given. 15. C. Engelmanni, Parry in Sill. Journ. 1852 : ovato-cylindricus, 11-13 costatus ; aculeis radialibus sub-13 albidis, superioribus cfeteris multo brevioribus, centralibus 4 longioribus angulatis rectis, 3 superi- oribus fulvis arrectis, inferiore longiore albido porrecto seu deflexo ; floribus lateralibus ; seminibus tuberculato-scrobiculatis. Var. iS. CHRYSOCENTRUS, E. & B. in P. R. R. : aculeis radialibus 12- 14 albidis, centralibus 3 superioribus validis vitellinis erectis, infe- riore albo compresso deflexo. Var. y. VARiEGATUs, E. & B. 1. c. : aculeis radialibus sub-13 albi- dis, centralibus 3 superioribus recurvatis divaricatis nigris corneo-vari- egatis, inferiore longiore albo decurvo. Lower Gila, Colorado, and westward to the California mountains : fl. June and July. — Stems 5-10 inches high ; radial spines slender, 3-6 lines, central ones 1-2 inches long. Fruit near the top of the plant. — Dr. Bigelow collected a little farther north, on Bill Williams's Fork, the two forms which I have put under /3. and y. ; though they differ from the species by having the fruit lower down on the plant ; the arrangement of the spines, however, is entirely identical. Var. (3. has very stout central spines, 2-3 inches long, of a deep golden- yellow color, and the lower one shorter. In var. y. the central spines are only 1-2 inches long, much curved, and the upper ones white and black mottled. * * Coccinei ; florihus diu noctuque apertis. 16. ? C. GONACANTHUS, E. & B. in P. R. R. : ovatus, subsimplex, 7-costatus ; areolis remotis ; aculeis robustis angulatis ssepe curvatis, radialibus 8 flavidis ssepe basi obscuris, summo cseteris multo majore centralem multangulatum validum ssepe flexuosum subsequante. Near Zuni, in Western New Mexico, under cedars. — Radial spines 8-15 lines long, upper one and central spine 1^-2^- inches long, remarkably stout, angular and channelled. — I have not seen the flower of this plant, but place it here from its resemblance to the next species ; on the other hand, it seems to be allied to C. Mojavensis. 17. C. TRiGLOCHiDiATUS, E. in Wisl. Rep. : ovato-cylindricus, 6-7 costatus, parce ramosus ; areolis remotis; aculeis 3-6 robustis an- 284 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY gulatis compressis rectis seu curvatis laxe radiantibus ; floris coccinei staminibus petala obtusa subsequanlibus ; stigmatibus 8 - 10. Northern New Mexico, at Santa Fe, and to the east and westward : fl. June. — Stems 4-6 inches high, 2-3 in diameter, with sharp ridges and very shallow grooves; spines 6-15 lines long. Flower 2-3 inches long ; petals rigid. Fruit unknown. 18. C. PHCENicEUS, E. in P. R. R. (C, coccineus, E. in Wish Rep. non Sahn.) : ovatus seu subglobosus, obtusus, ccespitosus, 9— 11-cos- tatus ; areolis ovato-orbiculatis subconfertis ; aculeis setaceis rectis, radialibus 8-12 albidis, superioribus cseteris pauUo brevioribus, cen- tralibus 1-3 basi bulbosis teretibus paullo robustioribus ; staminibus petalis brevioribus ; stigmatibus 6-8. Northern New Mexico, from the Upper Pecos to Santa Fe, Zuni, and the San Francisco mountains : fl. May and June. — Heads 2-3 inches high, 2 inches thick, generally forming dense hemispherical masses, often of a foot or more in diameter ; radial spines 3-6, central ones 5-10 lines long. When there are several, the lowest one longest. Fruit unknown. C. CONOIDEUS, E. & B. 1. c. : ovatus, versus apicem acutatus, co- noideus, e basi parce ramosus 9-11 costatus ; aculeis radialibus 10-12 gracilibus rigidis, summis brevioribus, centralium 3-5 in- fimo 4-angulato elongato demum deflexo. Rocky places on the Upper Pecos, and perhaps San Francisco mountains. — Heads 3-4 inches high, few, of unequal height from one base; upper radial spines 2 - 5 lines, lateral ones 6—15 lines long ; upper central spines hardly longer than the lateral ones ; lower one 1 -3 inches long, angular and often compressed. The Mexican C. acifer, Otto, seems similar, but is a higher plant, with much stouter spines. C. Rcemeri, Muhlenpf. A. G. Z. 1848, from Western Texas, may belong here or to C. enneacanthus. A specimen among Dr. Bigelow's collections seems to unite this form with C. plixniceus^ where for the present it is perhaps best to leave our plant, as a variety or sub-species. 19. C. poLYACANTHUS, E. in Wish Rep. : ovato-cylindricus, crespi- tosus, subglaucescens, 9-13 costatus ; aculeis robustis rigidis rectis albidis seu rubello-cinereis, centralibus 3-4bulbosio paullo robusti- oribus Ecquilongis seu longioribus, junioribus ssepe fusco-variegatis ; stigmatibus 8. Common about El Paso, and thence to the mountains of Chihuahua: OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 285 fl. March and April. — Heads 5-10 inches high, 2| -4 in diameter; upper radial spines i, lateral and lower ones f - 1 inch long ; central spines hardly longer, or the lower sometimes 14 - 2^ inches long. Flowers 2-3 inches long, profusely covering the plant for four or six weeks. Seed the largest of any Echinocerei known to me, 0.8 -0.9 of a line long. 20. C. RcEMERi, E. in PI. Lindh. 1850 : ovatus, csespitosus, Icete viri- dis ; costis 7-9 tuberculatis interruptis ; areolis orbiculatis, junioribus breviter tomentosis ; aculeis teretibus robustis albidis sen junioribus flavidulis demum cinereis, radialibus sub-8, centrali singulo robustiore porrecto; floribus lateralibus infundibuliformibus limbo erectiusculo ; pulvillis ovarii tubique 16-18 albo-tomentosis aculeolos 3-5 geren- tibus ; sepalis interioribus 7-8 ovato-oblongis carinatis obtusis mu- cronatis ; petalis 9-12 obovato-spathulatis obtusis integris concavis rigidis suberectis ; stylo longe supra stamina albida sursum rosea ex- serto ; stigmatibus 6-7 petala Eequantibus erecto-patulis viridibus acu- tiusculis. In the granitic region about the Llano River, Western Texas : fl. May : fruit unknown. — Often 5-12 from the same base, densely csespitose ; single heads 3-4 inches high, 2 - 2J- in diameter ; areolce 6-8 lines apart ; radial spines 5-12 lines long, upper ones usually a little shorter than the rest ; central spine 10- 15 lines long. Flower 2 inches long and only one in diameter, remaining open day and night for a whole week, if the weather is not too warm. — Allied to the last species ; but distinct by the shorter heads, fewer ribs, fewer and paler spines, and smaller flower, with less numerous parts. 21..? C. PAUCisPiNUs, E.in B. C. R. : ovato-cylindricus, parce ramo- sus vel simplex, 5- 7-costatus ; areolis remotis ; aculeis robustis 3-6 radiantibus fuscatis, centrali nullo vel raro robusto subangulato. Western Texas, from the San Pedro to the mouth of the Pecos. — Stem 5-9 inches high, 2 - 3 in diameter ; spines 9-16 lines long, dark-colored, the central one almost always wanting. Flower and fruit unknown. 22. .'' C. HEXAEDRTJS, E. & B. in P. R. R. : ovatus subsimplex, 6- costatus ; areolis remotis ; aculeis rectis rigidis tenuibus angulatis, ra- dialibus 5-7 flavo-rubellis, inferiore breviore, centrali pauUo robusti- ore (juniore fuscato) ssepe deficiente. Near Zuni, in Western New Mexico. — Heads few in each plant, or single, 4-6 inches high, 2-2^ inches in diameter. Radial spines 2S6 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY mostly 6 lines, lower ones 6-10 lines, upper ones 8-15 lines long; central spine, if present, 12- 15 lines long. § 3. Pentcdoplii. 23. C. Berlandieri, E. in B. C. R. : humilis, perviridis ; caule dif- fuso subtereti articulato ramosissimo ; tuberculis conicis 5 - 6-fariis ; aculeis 6-8 setaceis brevibus radiantibus albidis, centrali sin^ulo multo longiore fusco ; floribus magnis ; petalis angustis recurvatis ; seminibus tuberculatis. On the Nueces, in Southern Texas : fl. May and June. — Stems 1^ - 6 inches long, one inch thick ; radial spines 4-5 lines long, cen- tral one 6-12 lines long, toward the base of the branches shorter. Flower 2-4 inches lon^. o 24. C. PROCUBIBENS, E. in PI. Lindh. 1850 : humilis, perviridis ; caule diffuso subtereti 4- 5 angulato articulato ramosissimo; aculeis 4-6 radiantibus albidis, centrali nuUo vel singulo paullo longiore ob- scuro ; floribus magnis ; petalis obovato-spathulatis patulis seu sub- recurvis ; seminibus tenuissime verrucosis. On the Rio Grande, below Matamoras : fl. May and June. — Similar to the last; but more slender, 6-8 lines in diameter; radial spines 1-2 lines long, central one, if present, 2-3 lines long. Flower above 3 inches long. § 4. Graciles. 25. C. TUBERosus, Poselger : e radice tuberosa tenuissimus, teres, sursum incrassatus, demum articulatus, 8-costatus ; aculeis minutis setaceis, 9-12 radiantibus, centrali singulo longiore sursum adpresso ; flore subterminali ; seminibus minutis scrobiculatis. Between Laredo and Mier on the Rio Grande. Tuberous root J- - 1| inches thick. Stem above 4 - 8 lines thick; radial spines hardly 1 line, central ones 2-3 lines long. Seed smaller than in any other Echinocereus, 0.4 line long, with the tubercles confluent. Subgen. 2. Eucereus. Caulis elongatus : fasciculi aculeorum ste- riles et florigeri similes : floris tubus elongatus, sa^pissime aculeolis capillaceis munitus : stigmata pallida : semina la^via seu raro ru- gosa: embryo hamatus. 26. C. Emoryi, E. in Sill. Journ. 1852 : prostratus ; ramis adscen- dentibus 15-costatis ; areolis confertis ; aculeis setaceis rigidis flavis. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 287 radialibus 40 - 50 stellatis, centrali unico longiore robustiore ; flore flavo breviusculo ; bacca aculeatissima ; seminibus magnis lucidis. On hills near San Diego, California, growing in thick patches. — Stems several feet long ; branches 6-9 inches high, 1^ inches in diameter. Fruit very spinose, with seeds over one line in length. 27. C. VARIABILIS, PfeifT. : erectus, 3-4 angulatus ; areolis remo- tis ; aculeis 4-6 brevibus radiantibus, 2-4 interioribus validis elon- gatis ina3qualibus divaricatis, centrali deflexo ; flore magno albo noc- turno ; bacca coccinea aculeolata ; seminibus magnis Isevibus. On the lower Rio Grande: fl. in May and June. — Well known from all parts of tropical America. Fruit 3 to 10 feet high, 2 inches in diameter; larger spines 12-18 lines long. Fruit 2-3 inches long, nearly 2 inches in diameter. 28. C. Greggii, E. in Wisl. Rep. : gracilis, e radice crassa napi- formi erectus ; ramis 3-6-angulatis, rufescentibus ; areolis confertis ; aculeis e basi bulbosa abrupte subulatis brevissimis nigricantibus, ra- dialibus 6-9, centralibus 1 - 2 ; floris elongati albidi tubo aculeolis capillaceis flexuosis munito ; bacca sessili obovata apice rostrata ; seminibus rugosis. Var. a. cisMONTANUS : areolis elongatis ; petalis latioribus. Var. /3. TKANSMONTANUS : areolis ovato-orbiculatis ; petalis angusti- oribus. From Western Texas to Sonora, and south to Chihuahua : fl. May and June. — Root a large fleshy tuber, sometimes 6 inches in diame- ter. Stems 2-3 feet high, 9-12 lines thick, usually 4- or 5-angled ; spines ^ - 1 line long, very sharp ; lower ones longer. Flower 6 or 8 inches long, 2-2^ wide. Fruit 1 - H inches long. Seed 1| - 1| lines long. Subgen. 3. Lepidocekeus. Caulis elongatus : fasciculi aculeo- rum steriles et florigeri similes : floris tubus brevior squamosus : phylla numerosissima : stigmata pallida : semina Isevia : embryo ha- matus. 29. C. GiGANTEUS, E. in Emory's Rep. 1848 : erectus, elatus, parce erecto-ramosus, 18-21-costatus ; aculeis 12-16 radialibus insequalibus, centralibus sub-6 robustis basi bulbosis cornels basi nigris cseteros superantibus, infimo longiore deflexo ; floribus subterminalibus albidis ; bacca obovata demum 3 - 4-valvi. From the Lower Gila north to Williams's River (better known 288 PROCKEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY among western travellers as Bill Williams's Fork), and south into Sonora : fl. May - July ; fr. July and August. — A now well-known plant to travellers and botanists, 30- 50 feet high, 1-2 feet in diam- eter ; central spines 1^ - 2| inches long. The yellowish-white flower 3-4 inches long. Fruit 2-3 inches long, often pear-shaped, and opening with 3 or 4 irregular recurved valves. 30. C. Thukberi, E. in Sill. Journ. 1854: caulibus erectis vel ad- scendentibus pluribus elatioribus articulatis 13 - 14-costatis ; aculeis 7—15 gracilibus fusco-atris valde injequalibus ; ovario tuboque im- bricato-squamato ; bacca globosa magna. Sonora, west of the Sierra Madre : fl. June and July. — Stems 5- 15 from one root, 10- 15 feet high, 4-6 inches in diameter; spines slender, flexible, from 5-18 lines long. Flowers 3 inches long, white. Fruit like a large orange, of delicious flavor. Subgen 4. Pilocereus. Caulis elatus : fasciculi aculeorum steri- les a floriferis tenuioribus longioribus distinct! : floris tubus brevis squamosus : phylla pauciora : stigmata pallida : semina Itevia : em- bryo hamatus (in specie nostra !). 31. C. ScHOTTii, E. in B. C. R. : caulibus erectis vel adscendenti- bus pluribus elatioribus articulatis 4 — 7-costatis ; areolis in articulis sterilibus remotis ; aculeis brevibus robustis, radialibus 4-6, centrali unico ; areolis in articulis floriferis confertis ; aculeis 15-25 longiori- bus setaceis flexuosis e rubello cinereis ; floribus carneis minoribus, tubo gracili decurvo ; bacca parva. Sonora, towards Santa Magdalena : fl. July. Stems 8-10 from the same base, often growing in dense clusters, 8 or 10 feet high, with 2-4 articulations, 4 or 5 inches in diameter. Spines of the sterile part of the plant 3-4 lines long, on the fertile joints 1-4 inches long, pendulous, forming a reddish-gray beard, in which the flower (not 2 inches long) is somewhat hidden. Seeds large : coty- ledons hooked, exactly as in the last two species. This is evidently a Pilocereus^ but with the seed of a true Cereus, thus reuniting the former with the latter. Trib. II. ROTATiE, Miquel. Aphylla3 seu folioste. Flores tubo abbreviate subrotati. Cotyle- dones facie versus hilum spectantes seminis lateri contrarian (incum-» bentes). OP ARTS AND SCIENCES. 289 IV. OPUNTIA, Tourn. Ovarium sepalis subulatis caducis axilla pulvilligeris instructum. Semina magna, compressa, discoidea, ssepe marginata, albida. Coty- ledones foliacese, circa albumen curvatfE, plerumque incumbentes. — Plantae articulatse ; articulis complanatis seu teretibus plus minus tu- berculatis ; foliis subulatis caducis axilla pulvillos setosos plerumque aculeiferos gerentibus ; aculeis apice retrorsum hispidis. Analysis. I. Petala parva, subulata, suberecta. Subgen. 1. Stenopuntia. II. Petala lata, obovata scu obcordata. 1. Articuli complanati : embryo circa albumen par- cum spiraliter convolutus. Subgen. 2. Platopuntia. A. Bacca succosa : margo seminum ple- rumque angustior {Sarcocarpece). a. Glabraj. * Bacca parva subglobosa. § 1. Microcarpece. * * Articuli magni : aculei pauci compressi. § 2. Grandes, * * * Articuli minores: acu- lei setiformes. § 3. Setispince. * * * * Articuli minores : aculei pauci, robusti, te- retcs. § 4. Vidgares. b. Pubescentes. § 5. Pubescentes. B. Bacca sicca: margo seminum jDlerum- que latissimus. § 6. XerocarpecB. 2. Articuli cylindracei : embryo circa albumen co- piosius subcircularis. Subgen. 3. Ctlindropdntia. A. Articuli abbreviati, clavati. § 1- Clavatce. B. Articuli cylindracei, elongati. ^ 2. Cylindricce. Subgen. 1. Stenopuntia, E. in B. C. E,. Articuli complanati : flores parvi : petala subulata : stigmata pauca. 1. O. STENOPETALA, E. 1. c. : prostrata ; articulis magnis ; aculeis 1-3 cum minoribus 1-3 ancipitibus deflexis atrofuscis ; ovario pul- villis confertis stipato ; sepalis petalisque subulatis suberectis ; stylo inflato ; stigmate simplici. On the battle-field of Buena Vista, south of Saltillo. Nearly al- lied to the Mexican 0. grandis, Hort. Angl., which has very simi- lar flowers, but is an erect plant, with few and white spines, and 2 or 3 acute stigmata. VOL. III. 37 290 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Subgen. 2. Platopuntia, E. 1. c. Articuli complanati : Acres magni : bacca pulposa vel rarius sicca : semina late marginata : em- bryo plusquam circularis circa albumen parcum spiraliter convolutus : cotyledones semper contrarise. § 1. Micro carpece : suberectce : aculei plurimi, colorati : bacca parva subglobosa, 2. O. Strigil, E, in B, C. R. : suberecta, articulis ovatis orbicu- latisve ; pulvillis confertis ; aculeis 5-8 radiantibus deflexis rufis apice flavis ; bacca parva late umbilicata rubra ; seminibus parvis anguste marginatis. Between the Pecos and El Paso. — Plant 2 feet high ; joints 4-5 inches long ; spines an inch or less in length. Fruit 6-7 lines long. § 2. Grandes : erectae seu procumbentes : articuli magni : aculei pauci, validi, compressi, plerumque colorati : bacca major vel mag- na, plerumque ovata. * Suiinermes. 3. O. Ficus-Indica, Mill : cultivated south of the Rio Grande, un- der the name Nopal Castillano. *■ * Flavispince. f Erectce. 4. O. Tuna, Mill : cultivated about the old missions in the southern parts of Upper California, under the name Tuna. Specimens gath- ered at Beaufort, on the coast of South Carolina, (probably introduced,) may belong here. 5. O. Engelmanni, Salm : erecta, grandis ; articulis obovatis ; pul- villis remotis setas stramineas rigidas insequales aculeosque 1-3 com- presses stramineos basi rufos gerentibus ; floris flavi intus rubelli ova- rio subgloboso ; stigmatibus 8 - 10 ; bacca obovata late umbilicata ; seminibus minoribus. From the Canadian River to the mouth of the Rio Grande, and westward from the Gulf to Chihuahua and El Paso : fl. May and June. — Plant 4-6 feet high ; joints a foot long or less ; leaves subu- late, 3-4 lines long ; larger spines 1 - 1| inches long. Flower 2^ - 3 inches in diameter. Fruit usually 2 inches long, 1| in diameter, juicy, but of a somewhat nauseous taste. Seeds 1^-2 lines in diam- eter. A plant observed by Dr. Blackie on Bayou Bccuf, Western Lou- isiana, 5| feet high, joints 9 inches long, reddish-yellow flowers, is pi'obably this species. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 291 O. Lindheimeri, E. PI. Lindh., is partly this same plant, partly a hybrid form between it and perhaps O. Rafinesquii, with narrow clavate fruit. O. Engelmanni, var. ? cyclodes, E. & B. in P. R, E,. : articulis orbiculatis ; aculeis validioribus subsingulis ; bacca parva globosa ; seminibus majoribus. On the Upper Pecos, in New Mexico. Joints 6-7 inches, and fruit 1 or 1^ inches in diameter. O. DTJLcis, E, in B. C. R., is a doubtful plant, of which we have not material enough. It has been found near the middle course of the Rio Grande, near Presidio del Norte, &c. It is similar to O. En- gelmanni, and may be a form of it ; but it is lower, more spreading, with a similar but very sweet fruit, and small, regular seeds. The following may be considered as a subspecies : — O. occiDENTALis, E. & B. in P. R. R, : erecta, patulo-ramosissima ; articulis grandibus obovatis vel rhomboideis ; pulvillis remotis setas graciles confertas et aculeos 1-3 validos compresses deflexos albidos basi obscuriores et inferiores paucos graciliores gerentibus ; floris flavi intus rubelli ovario obovato ; bacca obovata late umbilicata ; se- minibus majoribus. On the western slope of the California mountains, near San Diego and Los Angeles : fl. June. — Plant 4 feet high, forming large thick- ets ; the joints 9-12 inches long ; pulvilli with very fine closely-set bristles ; spines about one inch long. Apparently distinct from 0. Engelmanni by its manner of growth, the very fine bristles, and the larger seeds. There are also some indications of another form, growing on hills and plains near San Diego, California, and on the neighboring sea- beach, with higher and more upright growth, and coarser bristles on the pulvilli, but which I cannot well distinguish from 0. Engel- manni. I have seen no fruit or seed of it. 6. O. CHLOROTicA, E. & B. in P. R. R.: caule erecto aculeis flavis numerosissimis fasciculatis armato ; articulis orbiculato-obovatis palli- dis ; pulvillis subremotis setas difformes confertas aculeosque 3-6 in- sequales compresses stramineos gerentibus ; floris flavi ovario pulvillis confertis stipato ; petalis spathulatis. Western Colorado country, between New Mexico and California, from the San Francisco mountains to Mojave Creek. — Plant 4-6 feet high, forming large and sometimes spreading bushes ; the trunk 292 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY covered with spines 1-2 inches long ; joints 8 - 10 by 6 - 8 inches in length ; spines 4- - IJ- inches long. Ovary with nearly 50 pulvilli, while the foregoing species have not more than 20. ft Procumbentes. 7. O. PROCUMBENS, E. & B. 1. c. : prostrata ; articulis orbiculato- obovatis grandibus pallide viridibus ; pulvillis remotis setas stramineas rigidas valde insequales et aculeos 2-4 validos compresses angulatos stramineos basi obscuriores gerentibus. San Francisco mountains to Cactus Pass, in Western New Mex- ico. Joints 9-13 inches long, always edgewise; pulvilli 14--2 inches apart ; spines 1-2 inches long. Similar to 0. Engelmanni^ but prostrate, with more distant pulvilli, and stouter spines. No flower or fruit seen. 8. O. ANGUSTATA, E. & B. 1. c. : prostrata vel adscendens ; articulis elongato-obovatis versus basin angustatis ; pulvillis remotis setas ful- vas graciles aculeosque paucos (2 - 3) validos compresses stramineos seu albidos versus basin rufos deflexos gerentibus ; bacca obovata tuberculata ; seminibus magnis. From Zuni, west of the Rio Grande, westward to the Cajon Pass, in the California mountains. — Joints 6-10 inches long, only 3 or 4 wide. Spines similar to those of the last species ; bristles much more delicate. Fruit 1 J- inches long ; the umbilicus flat, but immersed. — Well distinguished by the shape of the joints. * * * Fulvispince. 9. O. MACROCENTRA, E. in B. C. R. : adscendens ; articulis magnis suborbiculatis tenuibus ; pulvillis subremotis setas graciles breves ful- vas gerentibus, summis solum aculeos 1-2 prselongos subcompres- sos fusco-atros proferentibus; floris flavi ovario ovato ; stigmatibus 8 ; seminibus majusculis. Sand-hills on the Rio Grande near El Paso : fl. May. — Two or three feet high, with very striking round joints, 5-8 inches in diame- ter, and blackish spines as much as 2 or 3 inches long. Nearly allied to the next species. 10. 0. phjEACANTha, E. in PI. Fendl. : diffusa, adscendens ; articu- lis obovatis crassis glaucescentibus ; pulvillis subremotis setas graciles stramineas seu fuscatas longiores gerentibus, plerisque aculeos 2-5 p us minus compressos fuscos proferentibus ; floris flavi ovario abbre- viato ; stigmatibus 8 ; bacca cuneata pyriformi ; seminibus majusculis. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 293 Var. a. NIGRICANS : aculeis brevioribus acute angulatis et nigri- cantibus. Var. /3. BRUNNEA : pulvillis remotioribus ; aculeis longioribus obtuse angulatis brunneis sursum albidis. Var. y. MAJOR : suborbiculata ; pulvillis remotis ; aculeis breviori- bus paucioribus pallidioribus. New Mexico : fl. May. Var. a. is found on the Rio Grande near Santa Fe ; /3. in similar sandy locations near El Paso ; and y. in mountainous regions near Santa Fe. — Joints 4-6, or in y. even 8, inches long; spines mostly 1-2 inches in length. Flower about 2 inches in diameter, with a short ovary. Fruit 1^-1| inches long, slender, much contracted at base so as to appear almost stipitate. O. MojAVENSis, E. & B. in P. R. R. : prostrata ; articulis grandi- bus suborbiculatis ; pulvillis remotis ; setis fulvis ; aculeis 3-6 validis infra fuscis. On the Mojave, west of the Colorado. — The material is too scanty to make out where it belongs ; but perhaps it is only a form of O. phceacantha. 11. O. Camanchica, E. & B. in P. R. R. : prostrata; articulis adscendentibus majusculis suborbiculatis ; pulvillis remotis plerisque armatis ; setis stramineis fulvisve parcis ; aculeis 1-3 compressis fuscis apice pallidioribus, superioribus elongatis suberectis, cseteris deflexis ; bacca ovata late umbilicata ; seminibus majusculis angu- latis hilo excisis. Llano Estacado, on the Upper Canadian River. A large, exten- sively spreading plant ; the joints 6-7 inches long ; spines l^- - 2 or even 3 inches long. Fruit large, juicy. Seeds 2-3 lines in diame- ter, very irregular and deeply notched at the hilum. 12. O. TORTisPiNA, E. & B. 1. c. : prostrata ; articulis adscendenti- bus majusculis suborbiculatis ; pulvillis subremotis ; setis stramineis seu fulvis ; aculeis 3-5 majoribus angulatis ssepe tortis albidis cum 2-4 gracilioribus ; bacca ovata late umbilicata ; seminibus majuscu- lis orbiculatis. On the Camanche plains, east of the elevated plateau of the Llano Estacado. — Similar in size and habit to the last species, its western neighbor, with more numerous spines than any other of our Opuntice with juicy fruit. Seeds regular, and only very slightly notched at the hilum. 294 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY § 3. SetispincB : adscendentes : articuli plerumque minores : aculei pauci, teretes seu vix angulati, graciles, flexiles, pallidi : bacca minor. 13. O. TENUisPiNA, E. in B. C. R. : articulis majusculis obovatis basi attenuatis Isete viridibus ; pulvillis subapproximatis setas graciles breves fulvas gerentibus plerisque armatis ; aculeis 1-2 elongatis al bid is cum 1 -4 brevioribus inferioribus ; floris flavi ovario clavato ; petalis obovatis retusis ; bacca oblonga profunde umbilicata ; semini- bus minoribus. Sand-hills near El Paso : fl. May. — Joints 3-6 inches long, 2-4 wide ; leaves very slender, hardly 2 lines long ; upper spines sub- erect, or spreading, 1^ - 2J- inches long ; flower 22- - 3 inches in diam- eter ; seeds less than 2 lines in diameter, very irregular. — Similar in many respects to 0. phceacantha, which grows with it ; but readily distinguished by the spines and fruit. 14. O. SETISPINA, E. in Salm, H. D. : articulis suborbiculatis par- vis glaucis ; pulvillis confertis setas flavidas gerentibus, omnibus arma- tis ; aculeis 1-3 longioribus subangulatis et 3-7 brevioribus plus minus deflexis, omnibus gracillimis. Pine woods in the mountains west of Chihuahua, Dr. Wislizenus. Joints not over 2 inches long; pulvilli only 3-4 lines apart ; longer spines 1 - Ig- inches long, very slender, like bristles. Flower and fruit unknown. 15. O. FiLiPENDtJLA, E. in B. C. R. : glauca ; radicibus nodoso- incrassatis ; articulis minoribus orbiculatis seu obovatis seu oblance- olatis tenuibus ; pulvillis approximatis setas virescenti-flavas graciles numerosas gerentibus armatis vel inermibus ; aculeis, si adsunt, 1-2 elongatis subangulatis cum 1-2 minoribus, omnibus albidis ; floris purpurascentis ovario gracili ; stigmatibus 5 ; seminibus minoribus tumid is. . Alluvial bottoms of the Rio Grande near El Paso, and eastwai'd on the Pecos : fl. May and June. — The long knotted roots, the small bluish joints, with the very small leaves and very long bristles, to- gether with the purple flower, and thick very narrowly margined seeds, distinguish this species from all others. Plant 6-12 inches high, joints Ig- - 3 inches long, 1-2 wide ; pulvilli 4-6 lines apart ; lower spines 1-2 inches long. Flower 2^ inches in diameter. Seed hardly 2 lines in diameter. ^ OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 295 § 4. Vulgares : procumbentes vel adscendentes : articuli plerumque minores : aculei validi, subteretes vel nulli, albidi vel obscuriores : bacca clavata. 16. O. Rafinesquii, E. in P. R. R. : diffusa ; radice fibrosa ; articulis obovatis vel suborbiculatis perviridibus, foliis elongatis patulis ; pulvil- lis subremotis setas graciles rufas gerentibus plerisque inermibus ; aculeis paucis marginalibus validis rectis singulis erectis patulisve, uno alterove minore deflexo subinde adjecto, rufo variegatis ; alabastro acuto ; ovario clavato pulvillis 20-25 stipato ; petalis 10-12; stig- matibus 7 - 8 ; bacca clavata. Var. MICROSPERMA : subinermis : seminibus minoribus angustius marginatis. Sterile, sandy, or rocky soil in the Mississippi valley, from Kentucky to Missouri, and from Minnesota southward : fl. May and June. — Joints 3 - 5 inches long ; leaves 3-4 lines long; spines 9-12 lines long, sometimes entirely wanting. Flowers 2J--34- inches in diame- ter, yellow, often with a red centre. Seed 2^ lines, or in the variety less than 2 lines in diameter. — This species had been confounded with the Eastern 0. vulgaris by all our botanists, with the exception of Rafinesque, who pretended to distinguish three species, viz. O. hu- 7nifusa, 0. ccBspitosa, and 0. mesacantha (sometimes erroneously accredited to Nuttall), which cannot be made out, and which I have ao-ain united under their author's name. — The following is probably only a Southern variety of this species : — O. GRANDiFLORA, E. : subadsccndens ; articulis majusculis ; pulvillis remotis ; setis tenuissimis; aculeis subnuUis ; floris grandis ovario elongate; petalis sub-10 latissimis ; stigmatibus 5; bacca elongata clavata. On the Brazos, Texas. — Joints often 5-6 inches long; pulvilli nearly an inch apart. Flowers 4^-5 inches in diameter, red in the centre ; petals 2 inches long or more, and IJ- wide. Dr. Biselow collected on his tour from Arkansas to Santa Fe sev- eral forms, which, though somewhat distinct, are perhaps not entitled to be considered species. The true 0. Rafinesquii does not seem to occur west of the western line of Missouri and Arkansas. The West- ern forms or subspecies are : — O. CYMOCHiLA, E. & B. in P. R. R. : diffusa ; articulis orbiculatis ; pulvillis subremotis stramineo- seu fulvo-setosis plerisque armatis ; acu- leis 1-3 robustioribus albidis basi fulvis patentibus deflexisve, additis 296 PROCEEDINGS Or THE AMERICAN ACADEMY ssepe 2-3 minoribus ; stigmatibus 8 ; bacca obovata ; seminibus un- dulato-marginatis majusculis. Var. ^. MONTANA : subinermis ; stramineo-setosa. Along the Canadian River east of the Llano Estacado, and on that plain. Vav. ^3. near Albuquerque. — Joints 2^-- 3 inches in diameter, in /3. larger; longer spines 1-2 inches long. Fruit short, pulpy, sweet. Seed 2^ lines in diameter, with a very sharp irregularly wavy or twisted border. — The var, /3. seems to unite the common 0. Raji' nesquii with this form. '^ O. sTENOCHiLA, E. & B. 1. c. : prostrata ; articulis obovatis ; pulvil- lis remotis stramineo-setosis, superioribus solum armatis ; aculeis sin- gulis albidis patulis, 1-2 minoribus deflexis ssepe adjecti% ; bacca obo- vata clavata ; seminibus crassis anguste marginatis. Zuni, Western New Mexico. — Joints 4 inches long and 3 wide ; spines 1-1:|- inches long. Fruit green or pale red, very juicy, 14 or sometimes even 2^ inches long. Seeds quite peculiar, i-egular, much thicker in proportion than those of most other Opuntics, and with a very narrow edge. — Another form, with smaller and rounder joints, more spines, smaller fruit, but similar seeds, was found in the same neighborhood. All the forms described above have fibrous roots. The following are principally characterized by their bulbous or tuberous roots, but can hardly be otherwise distinguished from the forms already de- scribed. Both are found westward of the range of 0. Rafinesquii proper, and may be considered as subspecies, the peculiarities of which are readily propagated by seeds. O. MACRORHizA, E. in PI. Lindh. part 1 : prostrata, ssepe adscen- dens, radicibus tuberosis ; articulis obovato-orbiculatis perviridibus ; pulvillis subremotis rufo-setosis, superioribus solum armatis; aculeis singulis validis ssepe variegatis patulis, 1-2 gracilioribus deflexis sub- inde additis ; alabastro acuminato ; petalis circiter 8 sulphureis basi miniatis ; stigmatibus 5 ; bacca obovata basi clavata, umbilico lato ; seminibus subregularibus compressis minoribus. Sterile, rocky places on the Upper Guadalupe River, in Texas : fl. May and June. — Roots in young specimens fusiform, in old ones enlarged to fleshy tubers, sometimes 2 or 3 inches in diameter. Joints 2J - 31 inches long, the leaves and bristles the same as in O. Rafinesquii. Flowers 3 inches in diameter. Fruit green or pale purple, smaller and sweeter than that of 0. Rafinesquii. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 297 O. FusiFORMis, E. & B. 1. c. : subprostrata ; radicibus elongato-fusi- formibus ; articulis orbiculatis ; pulvillis setas elongatas virescenti- fuscas gerentibus, plerisque vel solum superioribus armatis ; aculeis 2-3 gracilibus albidis deflexis seu patentibus ; floribus minoribus ; stigmatibus 8; bacca ovata ; seminibus majusculis subregularibus. Kansas and Nebraska, in the regions of the Cross-Timbers, from the Canadian to the Bio; Bend of the Missouri. — Roots elono-ated tubers ^ - 1 inch in diameter ; joints about 3-4 inches long ; spines an inch or a little more in length, slenderer and paler than in O. Rajinesquii. Flowers 2-2^ inches in diameter. Seed 2£ lines wide. This plant has been distributed by me under the name of Opuntia hulbosa. 17. O. Fusco-ATRA, E. in P. E.. R. : diffusa ; articulis orbiculato- obovatis tuberculatis ; pulvillis subremotis magnis griseo-tomentosis, inferioribus solum inermibus ; setis numerosis robustis longiusculis fuscis ; aculeis subsingulis robustis fusco-atris suberectis, altero bre- viore deflexo ssepe adjecto ; floris flavi ovario conico pulvillos 12 - 18 fulvo-villosos et fusco-setosos gerente ; stigmatibus 5. Sterile places in prairies, west of Houston, Texas : fl. May. — The stout brown, or above almost black spines, and the thick bunches of unusually stout brown bristles on. the small joints, give this plant a very distinct appearance. Joints 2^-3 inches long ; pulvilli 6-9 lines apart; bristles 2-3 lines long; spines 1-1| inches long, the lower one, when present, about half as long, but hardly less stout. Flower nearly 3 inches in diameter ; ovary an inch long, rather slen- der, its pulvilli covered with long grayish-brown wool, and the upper ones with a few bright-brown bristles. 18. O. VULGARIS, Mill. : diffusa, prostrata ; radice fibrosa ; articulis obovatis seu suborbiculatis crassis Isete seu pallida viridibus plerumque inermibus ; foliis ovatis cuspidatis fere adpressis ; pulvillis subremo- tis parvis subimmersis setas paucas abbreviatas virescenti-stramineas gerentibus ; aculeis rarissimis singulis robustis variegatis suberectis ; alabastro subgloboso obtuso ; ovario clavato pulvillis sub- 10 stipato ; petalis sub-8 ; stigmatibus 5 ; bacca obovata clavata ; seminibus regu- laribus crassis crasse marginatis. From the southeastern coast of Massachusetts to Georgia and Flor- ida ; apparently only in the low countries east and southeast of the Alleghany Mountains, generally not far from the sea-coast : fl. May and June. — Joints 2-4 inches long and 2 - 2^ in diameter, rather thick and fleshy. Leaves 2-2^ lines long, generally appressed, only in VOL. III. 38 298 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY very vigorous specimens more patulous : spines, when present, less than 1 inch long, but stout. Flower about 2 inches in diameter, pale yellow. Seed 2^ lines in diameter. It seems to be well distinguished from 0. Rojinesquii (which grows only west of the Alleghanies) by the smaller size, paler color, small pulvilli, usually the absence of spines, the smaller flower, with all the parts less numerous, and especially by the short, thick, and more or less appressed leaves. § 5. Puhescentes : erectse seu procumbentes : articuli pubescentes : folia minuta : aculei subnuUi. * FlavijlorcB. 19. O. MiCRODASYS, Lchm. : erecto-patula ; articulis oblongis obo- vatis seu orbiculatis pubescentibus Isete viridibus ; foliis minutis ; pul- villis confertis inermibus lanam flavidam setasque numerosas gracilli- mas flavas gerentibus. Only south of the lower Rio Grande, near Rinconada, etc. — Plant 2-4 feet high; joints 2-3 inches long, l|-2 wide; pulvilli ^-^ of an inch apart. 20. O. RUFiDA, E. in B. C. R. : erecto-patula ; articulis late-obovatis seu suborbiculatis pubescentibus ; foliis longe acuminatis ; pulvillis confertis setas rufidas graciles numerosissimas gerentibus inermibus ; floris flavi ovario obovato pulvillis numerosis instructo ; stigmatibus 7 in capitulum congestis. Common about Presidio del Norte, on the Rio Grande : fl. May. — Stem 2-4 feet high, much branched ; joints 3-6 inches long ; leaves 2| lines long. Flower 2| inches in diameter, with 40-50 pulvilli on the ovarium. — Apparently near 0. microdasys and 0. puberula ; dis- tinguished from the former by the rounded joints, larger leaves, and red-brown bristles ; from the latter by the entire absence of spines, and of the purplish spot which in that species surrounds the pulvillus. Further investigations are necessary to decide about these closely allied forms, as about most species of this intricate genus. * * RuhriflorcB. 21. O. BASiLAKis, E. &. P). 1. c. : humilis ; articulis obovatis seu triangularibus glaucescentibus pubescentibus e basi proliferis ; foliis minutis ; pulvillis subconfertis fulvo-villosis setas gracillimas demum numerosissimas fulvidas et subinde aculeolos setiformes caducos ge- rentibus ; floris purpurei ovario obovato pulvillis plurimis instructo ; OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 299 stigmatibus 8 in capitulum congestis ; bacca obovata late umbilicata (sicca ?) ; seminibus magnis crassis subregularibus. On Williams's River, the Colorado, and the Mojave, and down to the Gila : ■ fl. April and May. — Habit very different from any other of our Opimtice ; the stout obovate or fan-shaped joints (5-8 inches long) originate from a common base, forming a sort of rosette. Leaves only one line long, 4-6 lines apart; pulvilli red-brown, somewhat immersed. Flower about 2| inches in diameter ; ovary with 40 - 60 pulvilli. Fruit apparently dry, thereby approaching the next section. Seed 3 lines in diameter, 2 lines thick. Mr. Schott has observed, on the dividing ridge of the California mountains, west of the mouth of the Gila, and again in the Santa Cruz Valley, Sonora, a very similar but suberect species, 3 feet high, spineless, inclined to assume a purplish hue, which he seems to have confounded with O. hasilaris. Can it be 0. riijida, or is it an undescribed species ? § 6. Xerocarpece : diffusce : articuli suborbiculati vel tumidi : aculei plurimi : bacca sicca aculeolata : semina eburnea, magna, plerum- que latissime marginata. *"" Articuli compressi siiborhiculati. 22. O. HysTRiciNA, E. & B. 1. c. : diffusa ; articulis obovato-orbi- culatis ; pulvillis subconfertis setas pallidas rutilasve gerentibus, omni- bus armatis ; aculeis 5-8 superioribus validis elongatis angulatis seu tortis patulis vel deflexis, inferioribus 5-7 gracilioribus radiantibus ; bacca ovata aculeolata, umbilico planiusculo ; seminibus maximis. West of the Rio Grande, to the San Francisco mountains. — Joints 3-4 inches long ; pulvilli 5-6 lines apart, unusually large ; longer spines 1| - 3 and even 4 inches long, brownish ; lower radiating ones white, 4-9 lines long. Fruit an inch long ; upper pulvilli with 4-6 bristly spines. Seeds 3i lines in diameter, among the largest in this genus. 23. O. MissouRiENSis, DC. (Cactus ferox, Nutt. Gen.) : prostra- ta ; articulis obovatis vel suborbiculatis tuberculatis ; foliis minutis ; pulvillis subconfertis stramineo-setosis, omnibus armatis ; aculeis 5 - 10 exterioribus radiantibus setiformibus albidis, 1-5 inferioribus ro- bustis albidis seu rufescentibus ; floris flavi intus aurantiaci ovario obo- vato vel subgloboso spinuloso ; stigmatibus 5-10 viridibus ; bacca spinosa, umbilico piano ; seminibus magnis irregularibus. 300 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Vai'. a. RUFISPINA, E. & B. : articulis orbiculatis ; aculeis interiori- bus 3-5 validis fuscis ; bacca ovata. Var. ^. PLATYCARPA, E. : articulis obovato-orbiculatis ; aculeis in- terioribus subsingulis validis fuscis ; bacca depresso-globosa late um- bilicata. Var. y. MiCROSPERMA, E. : articulis aculeisque prcecedentis ; bacca ovata breviter aculeolata ; seminibus minoribus anguste marginatis. Var. S. suBiNERMis, E. : articulis elongato-obovatis, pulvillis sub- remotis inferioribus inermibus, superioribus aculeos paucos breves gerentibus. Var. e. ALBisPiNA, E. & B. : articulis late obovatis ; aculeis 6-12 omnibus albis gracilioribus ; bacca ovata. Var. C- TRicHOPHORA, E. & B. : articulis ovatis ; pulvillis confertis ; aculeis 10-18 setiformibus (in articulis vetustis numerosioribus) capil- laceis flexuosis ; bacca ovata ; seminibus maximis. From the Upper Missouri to the Canadian ; principally occupying the western plains, but also on the mountains towards Santa Fe and west of it. — The last-mentioned variety (which I would consider a distinct species, were it not for the var. albispina, which seems to unite it with the others) has been found only on the mountains near Albuquerque : all the other forms occur on the Upper Missouri, and a. and e. also on the Canadian. Other and intermediate forms of this variable but nevertheless well-characterized species will no doubt be found in the wide territory inhabited by it. It flowers in May and June. — Joints 2-4, rarely 4-6 inches long, and 2 - 3| inches wide, light green ; leaves 1J--2 lines long; larger spines 1 - 1|-, rarely 2 inches long, in S. not more than 3-6 lines long. Flowers 2-3 inches in diameter, with short green stigmata forming a compact head. Fruit 1-1^ inches long, with shorter or longer spines, and a rather shallow umbilicus. Var. /S. has a remarkably large flat fruit. Seed generally about 3 lines, but in y. only 2 lines, in diameter. 24. O. SPH^ROCARPA, E. & B. 1. c. : diffusa ; articulis orbiculatis tuberculatis ; pulvillis confertis stramineo-setosis plerisque inermibus, summis solum aculeos 1-2 deflexos patulosve majores gerentibus, adjectis ssepe 1-3 brevioribus ; bacca globosa vix aculeolata ; semi- nibus mediis. Mountains near Albuquerque, New Mexico. — Joints 3 inches in diameter, strongly tuberculated ; pulvilli 4 or 5 lines apart ; spines 6-12 lines long, reddish-brown, often single or 2 or 3 together, with OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 301 or without smaller ones, which never occurs in any form of O. Mis- souriensis, where a large number of small setaceous spines is found, whether larger ones are present or not. Fruit 9 lines in diameter, with a small flat umbilicus. Seeds 2^ lines in diameter. * * Ariiculi tumidi ovati. 25. O. ERiNACEA, E. & B. 1. c. : adscendens ; articulis ovatis seu teretiusculis ; pulvillis confertissimis omnibus armatis ; aculeis 5-10 gracilibus rubellis, 3-5 elongatis ; bacca ovata aculeolata ; seminibus magnis subregularibus. Near the Mojave, between the Colorado and the Californian moun- tains. — Joints 2-24- inches long, 1 - It broad, and ^--f thick, some- times almost cylindrical, densely covered with large white pulvilli, which are only 2-3 lines apart. Spines 6-14 or even 20 lines long, slender but stiff. Fruit an inch or more in length. Seeds nearly 3 lines in diameter. 26. O. ARENARiA, E. in B. C. E.. : adscendens ; articulis obovatis compressis seu teretiusculis tuberculatis ; foliis minutis ; pulvillis sub- confertis pallide setosis ; aculeis 1-4 robustioribus albidis fuscatis- ve, cum inferioribus brevioribus 2-6 albis ; floris sulphurei ovario obovato ; petalis emarginatis ; stigmatibus 5 ; bacca oblonga spinulo- sa ; umbilico infundibuliformi ; seminibus magnis irregularibus. Sandy bottoms of the Rio Grande near El Paso : fl. May. — Spreading 2-3 feet, |- - 1 foot high ; roots stout, creeping horizon- tally ; joints 11-3 inches long, 1-2 inches wide, and -| - f thick, more strongly tuberculated than the allied species ; leaves only a line long ; pulvilli 3-5 lines apart, very bristly, especially on the old joints; upper spines 9-15 lines long. Flower 2-2| inches in di- ameter. Fruit about an inch long. Seeds 2^-3 lines in diameter. This is the only one of our Cactacece on which the Cochenille has been found. 27. O. FRAGiLis, Haw. (Cactus fragilis, Nutt.) : subdecumbens ; articulis parvis ovatis subcompressis tumidis vel subglobosis vix tu- berculatis nitide viridibus ; foliis minutis ; pulvillis subconfertis magnis albo-tomentosis, vix setulosis ; aculeorum 1-4 robustiorum summo valido angulato fuscato porrecto, ceteris debilioribus pallidioribus pa- tulis seu radiantibus ; aculeis inferioribus 2-6 gracilibus albis radi- antibus ; floribus minoribus ; bacca ovata vix spinulosa, umbilico in- fundibuliformi ; seminfbus paucis magnis subregularibus. 302 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Fertile prairies, or sterile places, on the Upper Missouri and Yel- lowstone, to the mountains and south to Santa Fe. — Size and shape of the joints variable ; fruit-bearing joints compressed, 1| - 2 inches long, 1- 1|- wide, and |-f thick ; others smaller and more tumid. Leaves a line long, hardly longer than the large pulvilli, red. Pul- villi 4-6 lines apart, bristles very few, short, whitish, on the old joints a little more numerous, coarser, dirty yellow. Lower radiating spines 2-4 lines long; central spines 6-10 lines long, the other interior spines 3-8 lines long, often similar to the smaller lower spines. Fruit rather fleshy through the winter, getting dry in spring, nearly an inch long, with 20-25 pulvilli, of which only the upper ones bear a few short spines. Seeds few, usually only 5 or 6 in each fruit, 3 lines in diameter, with a wide and thick obtuse corky margin. — Often sterile, but abundantly propagated by the fragile joints, 28. O. BRACHYARTHRA, E. & B. 1. c. : adsccndens ; articulis ovatis orbiculatisve tumidis ssspe subglobosis tuberculatis ; pulvillis confer- tis parce setulosis ; aculeis 3-5 validioribus 1-2 fuscatis patulis vel suberectis, cseteris deflexis ; floris parvi ovario subgloboso pulvillos 12 - 15 vix aculeolatos gerente ; stigmatibus 5. Inscription Rock near Zuni. — The short and tumid joints (10- 15 lines long) resemble the joints of a finger; the pulvilli 2-4 lines apart, even in the oldest parts of the plant with very few bristles ; longer spines 9-12 lines long, terete. Ovary less than half an inch long. Flower apparently an inch in diameter. — Perhaps too near O. fragilis ; but in the absence of good flowers and fruit, it is im- possible to say whether it does not belong to even a different section, perhaps to the Glomerate^, Salm. Subgen. 3. Cylindropitntia, E. in B. C. R. Articuli cylindracei : flores magni vel parvi : bacca plerumque sicca : semina immai'ginata seu vix marginata : embryo circa albumen copiosius subcircularis ; cotyledones contrarian seu obliquse, subinde parallelse. § 1. ClavatcB : prostratse : articuli breves, clavati, adscendentes, tex- tura lignosa laxe reticulata : flores flavi majusculi : bacca sicca, pulvillis numerosis setosissimis stipata, floris rudimentis persisten- tibus coronata. 29. O. CLAVATA, E. in Wish Rep. : articulis breviter clavatis la!te viridibus ; tuberculis ovatis ; foliis subulatis minutis ; aculeis albidis OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 303 scabrellis, interioribus 4-7 complanatis, inferioribus deflexis latioribus supra striatis subtus carinatis, superiore triangulate erecto ; aculeis exterioribus 8-10 gracilioribus undique radiantibus ; baccse pulvillis setosissimis ; seminibus rostratis. Santa Fe and Albuquerque, on the plateaux : fl. in June and July. — Dense spreading masses, with joints 1^-2 inches long; tubercles 6-8 lines long ; larger spines 6-15 lines long, and the broadest one f - H lines wide. Flower 2 inches in diameter. Fruit yellow, 1J-- If inches long, an inch in diameter, covered with 30-50 large pul- villi. Seed 2^-3 lines in the longest diameter. Cotyledons mostly oblique, or, as in most other Opunticc, incumbent. (The expression is not etymologically correct, but I use it to designate the direction of the face of the cotyledons towards the radicle.) 30. 0. Parryi, E. in Sillim. Journ. 1852 : prostrata ; articulis ova- tis basi clavatis ; tuberculis oblongo-elongatis ; setis paucis ; aculeis angulatis scabris rubellis demum cinereis, interioribus sub-4 validi- oribus compressis, exterioribus 4-8 divergentibus, extimis 6-10 gracilibus radiantibus ; bacca ovata pulvillis sub-40 setosissimis stipa- ta ; seminibus erostratis. On the Mojave, west of the great Colorado. — Joints 2^-3 or 4 inches long, attenuated below and somewhat so above; tubercles 9 lines long ; inner spines 12- 16 lines long, and the larger ones some- what flattened, but less than a line wide ; exterior spines 3 - 8 lines long, in two series. Fruit 1^ inches long. Seeds about 2 lines in diameter. — The original specimens of Dr. Parry were found farther south, near San Felipe. He describes the joints as 4 - 8 inches long, with shorter whitish spines or tubercles 6-12 lines long, and the flower as greenish-yellow. The Mojave plant is nearly allied to the last species, but may be distinguished by the shape of the joints, the narrower, darker-colored, more numerous spines, and the smaller and more regular seeds. 31. O. Emoryi, E. in B. C. E,. : articulis cylindricis basi clavatis glaucis ; tuberculis oblongo-linearibus elongatis ; setis paucis ; aculeis plurimis rufis, interioribus 5 -9 validioribus triangulatis, compressis, exterioribus 10-20 pluriseriatis undique radiantibus; floribus flavis extus rubellis ; bacca pulvillos 35 - 50 setosissimos infcriores aculeo- latos gerentibus ; seminibus valde insequalibus irregularibus. Arid soil, from El Paso through Sonora to the desert of the Colo- rado : fl. August and September. — The stoutest species of this sec- 304 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY tion. Joints 4-6 inches long, curved, 1 - H inches in diameter; tubercles 1 - 1^- inches long; longest spines I5--2I inches long, 1^-1 line wide ; the exterior spines gradually smaller, and less angu- lar. Fruit 2 - 2i inches long, partly armed with spines 4-8 lines long. Seeds from 2^ to 3^ lines in diameter. Cotyledons oblique or accumbent. 32. O. ScHOTTii, E. 1. c. : articulis clavatis ; tuberculis elongatis ; pulvillis pauci-setosis ; aculeis rubellis scaberrimis, interioribus sub-4 cruciatis, superiore triangulate, cseteris supra planis subtus convexis, latioribus ; exterioribus 8-10 radiantibus gracilibus ; bacca ovata pulvillos 35 - 40 pauci-setosos gerente ; seminibus rostratis. On the arid hills near the mouth of the San Pedro and Pecos, Western Texas. — Distinguished by the broad and very rough spines, which are dirty red, the larger ones with a white margin, and by the smaller number of bristles both on the pulvilli of the joints and of the fruit, where they are mostly turned upwards. Joints 2 inches long; tubercles 8-9 lines long; spines 11-2 inches long; the radiating ones only 4-9 lines long. Seeds 2 lines in diameter. Cotyledons oblique. Dr. Gregg has collected a similar plant near San Luis Potosi ; which at present I know not how to distinguish from O. Schottii. The spines are stout, perhaps less rough, and narrower, 12 - 15 in number; some of them borne on the upper margin of the pulvillus, which I have never seen in O. Schottii. Tubercles an inch lonff. 33. O. Grahami, E. 1. c. : radicibus fusiformibus ; articulis clava- tis ; tuberculis oblongis ; foliis ovatis cuspidatis ; setis demum pluri- mis ; aculeis gracilibus rubellis, interioribus 4-7 teretiusculis angu- latisve, exterioribus 4-6 brevibus ; bacca pulvillos sub-30 setosissi- mos gerente ; seminibus erostratis. Sand^ bottoms of the Rio Grande near El Paso : fl. June. — Joints 1^-2 inches long; tubercles 6-7 lines long; leaves thicker and in proportion shorter than in most other species, nearly 2 lines long. Fruit similar to that of O. clavata. Seed 2i lines in diameter or more. Cotyledons regularly incumbent. 34. O. BULBisPiNA, E. 1. c. : radicibus fusiformibus ; articulis par- vis ovatis sa^pe ex apice proliferis fragilibus ; tuberculis ovatis brevi- bus ; pulvillis parce setosis ; aculeis teretiusculis scabrellis basi bul- bosis, interioribus 4 cruciatis, inferiore longiore, exterioribus 8-12 radiantibus. OP ARTS AND SCIENCES. 305 Saltillo, Mexico. — Spreading masses with joints an inch long or less ; tubercles 4-6 lines long ; interior spines 4-6, exterior ones 1^-3 lines long. Apparently near the South American O. pusilla, Salm., and perhaps belonging to the OjmnticB glomeratcc^ rather than here. Fruit unknown. § 2. CylindriccR : adscendentes vel erectse : articuli longiores, ovato- cylindrici seu elongati : textura lignosa compacta, tubum reticula- tum vel truncum compactum formans : flores magni seu parvi, pur- purei vel raro flavi : bacca sicca vel subcarnosa, floris rudimenta plerumque dejiciens, aculeata seu inermis. * PolyacanthcB : lignum plerumque reticulato-tubulosum ; articuli crassiores distincte tuberculati : aculei plures seu plurimi : flores plerumque rubri : semina immarginata. t Humiliores : diffuse ramosse : articuli subclavati : flores plerumque flavidi : baccse siccse, aculeatse. 35. O. Davisii, E. & B. in P. R. Rep. : caule dense lignoso ramo- sissimo divaricato ; articulis junioribus erectis elongatis basi attenuatis ; tuberculis oblongo-linearibus ; aculeis interioribus 4-7 subtriangu- laribus rufis vagina straminea laxa indusiatis divergentibus ; aculeis inferioribus 5-6 gracilibus ; bacca ovata pulvillis sub-25 aculeigeris stipata. On the Llano Estacado, near the Upper Canadian River ; common. — Spreading and somewhat procumbent, about 18 inches high ; the only one in this section with dense wood. Joints 4-6 inches long, rather slender ; tubercles 7-8 lines long ; interior spines 1-1^ inch- es in length; lower ones 3-6 lines long. Fruits (all sterile, and per- haps not properly developed) an inch or more in length. 36. O. ECHiNocARPA, E. & B. 1. c. : erectiuscula ; ramis numero- sis patentissimis ; articulis ovatis basi clavatis ; tuberculis ovatis con- fertis ; aculeis majoribus sub-4 albidis stramineo-vaginatis, 8-16 mi- noribus undique radiantlbus ; flore flavo (?) ; bacca globosa depressa seu hemisphaerica late profundeque umbilicata pulvillis sub-40 aculea- tissimis stipata ; semlnibus late commissuratis. Var. i3. MAJOR : elatior ; articulis elongatis ; aculeis longioribus laxius vaginatis paucioribus ; baccis globosis pulvillos pauciores (25) gerentibus. In the valley of the Lower Colorado ; /3. in Sonora. — Var. a. is a VOL. III. 39 306 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY low shrub, 6-18 inches high ; joints 1-24- inches long ; tubercles 4- 5 lines long ; spines not over an inch in length. Flower appar- ently yellow, about l^- inches in diameter and somewhat persistent on the fruit. Fruit very shallow, saucer-shaped, with few large seeds. Var. /3. is 4 or 5 feet high ; joints 8-10 inches long ; interior spines 1 - If- inches long. Fruit globose or even ovate, with 25 pulvilli. Seeds the same in both. 37. O. SEKPENTiNA, E. in Sill. Journ. 1852 : erectiuscula seu sub- prostrata ; articulis elongatis cylindricis ; tuberculis ovatis ; aculeis 7-9 albido- seu rufido-vaginatis ; flore flavo extus rubello ; bacca subhemisphserica late et profunda umbilicata villosa aculeatissima. Near the sea-coast about San Diego, California. — Sometimes 4-5 feet high, but often prostrate ; joints 6-12 inches long ; spines less than one inch long. Flower cup-shaped, 1|- inch wide. Fruit ap- parently like that of the last species, but " long woolly " and with fewer pulvilli, also often crowned with the persistent flower. Seed unknown ; said to be large. — Closely allied to the foregoing species. Can this be Nuttall's Cactus Californicus (Cereus, Torr. Sf Gr. FL), with cylindric branches, yellow flower, and spiny fruit ? ft DeciducB : arborescentes : articuli tumidi, perfragiles : tubercula depressa : flores purpurei : baccse srepissime steriles, proliferse. 38. O. PROLIFERA, E. 1. c. : ramis divaricatis; articulis ovatis seu ovato-cylindricis perviridibus versus ramorum apicem congestis ; tu- berculis obovato-oblongis prominulis ; aculeis 8 -10 obscuris strami- neo- seu rufo-vaginatis, singulo centrali, cseteris patulis ; flore rubro ; bacca ovata aculeolata plerumque sterili prolifera. On arid hills about San Diego, CaUfornia, forming extensive thick- ets. — Stems 2-4, and sometimes even 6-7, inches in diameter, 3- 10 feet high ; joints 3-6 inches long and Ig- - 2 in diameter ; tuber- cles about 6 lines long ; spines 6-14 lines long, the lower ones shorter. Flowers red, salver-form, 1| inches in diameter. 39. O. FULGiDA, E. in B. C. R. : ramis divaricatis ; articulis ovatis seu ovato-cylindricis glaucescentibus versus I'amorum apicem conges- tis ; tuberculis ovato-oblongis prominulis ; aculeis 5-9 subEequalibus laxe vaginatis undique stellato-porrectis ; flore purpureo parvo ; bac- ca ovata inermi vix tuberculata ; seminibus parvis rostratis. Mountains of Western Sonora : fl. July and August. — Plant 5-12 feet high; joints 3-8 inches long ; tubercles rather elongated, 6-7 OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 307 lines long; spines''l-l|- inches long, hiding the whole plant with their lustrous sheaths. Flower about one inch or less in diameter. Fruit fleshy, 1-1^ inches long, usually sterile. Seeds smaller than in any other Opuntia examined, 1 - 1^ lines long. 40. O. BiGELOVii, E. in P. R. R. : ramis erectis adscendentibusve ; articulis ovato-cylindricis pallide virescentibus congestis ; tuberculis subhemisphosricis depressis confertis ; aculeis 6-10 robustioribus et totidem gracilioribus inferioribus ; ovario tuberculato ; bacca tuber- culata subinde (sterili ?) aculeolata ; seminibus parvis. On Williams's River, of the Californian Colorado. — Stem 3-4 inches thick and 10 - 12 feet high ; the branches forming a dense contracted head, with joints 2-6 inches long ; tubercles 3-4 lines long ; larger spines about an inch long, smaller ones 4-7 lines long. The three foregoing species represent this subsection west of the California mountains, and east of them both south of the Gila and north of it, and seem to be well distinguished from one another by the characters indicated. f ft Cristatm : frutescentes vol arborescentes : articuli cylindrici : tu- bercula plerumque cristata prominula : flores purpurei : baccse in- ermes seu rarius aculeatse. 41. O. Whipplei, E. & B. in P. R. R, : caule erecto seu rarius subprocumbente divaricato-ramoso ; articulis cylindricis ; tuberculis ovatis confertis ; aculeis brevibus cinereo- seu stramineo-vaginatis, 1 - 4 majoribus, 2-8 brevioribus deflexis vel radiantibus ; flore rubro ; bacca subglobosa tuberculata flava inermi ; seminibus regularibus. Var. a. LiEviOR : humilior, aculeis paucis deflexis. Var. /3. spinosior: elatior, aculeis plurimis radiantibus. From Zuni westward to Williams's River (a.), and south of the Gila (jS.) : fl. in June. — The first state is from a few inches to 3 - 6 feet high ; the second forms small trees 8-10 feet high. Joints 5- - f inch in diameter ; tubercles about 5 lines long ; spines very variable, be- tween 3 and 9 lines long. Flower (of var. /3.) 1;^- \^ inches in di- ameter. Fruit about an inch long. 42. O. ARBORESCENs, E. in Wish Rep. (O. stellata, Salm.) : arbo- rescens ; ramis verticillatis horizontalibus vel pendulis ; articulis verti- cillatis cylindricis ; tuberculis cristatis prominentibus ; aculeis 8-30 stellato-divaricatis ; flore purpureo magno ; bacca subhcmisphserica tuberculato-cristata flava inermi ; seminibus regularibus. 308 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY From north and east of Santa Fe and the Llano Estacado, to Zuni ; extending southward deep into Mexico : fl. May - July. — Northward 5-6, south 10-20 or more, feet high ; easily characterized by the horizontal and verticillate branches, etc. 43. O. ACANTHOCARPA, E. & B. in P. R. R. : arborescens; ramis alternis adscendentibus ; articulis cylindricis ; tuberculis elongatis ; aculeis 8-25 stellato-divaricatis ; bacca subglobosa tuberculata acu- leata ; seminibus multangulatis. Mountains of Cactus Pass, between Santa Fe and the Western Col- orado. — Stems 5-6 feet high ; branches few, alternate, and separat- ing from the stem at an acute angle. Joints (as in the preceding) 4 - 6 or 8 inches long, about 1 inch in diameter ; tubercles 9-10 lines long ; interior spines 1 - 1:|- inches, exterior ones 4-10 lines, long. Spines of fruit on the depressed tubercles 3-6 lines long. Seeds large, unlike those of any other Opuntia seen by me. 44. O. MAMiLLATA, A. Scliott in litt., B. C. R. : arborescens, divari- cato-ramosissima ; articulis crassis abbreviatis perviridibus ; tuberculis tumidis ; aculeis 4-6 brevibus plerisque deflexis ; flore parvo purpu- reo ; bacca obovata inermi ; seminibus parvis. Sonora, on the Sierra Babuquibari, in fertile soil : fl. July and Au- gust.— Stems 5-6 feet high ; joints 3-4 inches long, 14- inches in diameter; the swelling tubercles very prominent; spines 3-9 lines long, sometimes almost wanting. Flowers an inch or less in diameter. 45. O. Thurberi, E. in B. C. R. : frutescens, erecta ; articulis cylin- dricis gracilibus elongato-tuberculatis ; aculeis 3-5 brevibus diver- gento-deflexis ; flore miniato. Bacuachi, Sonora : fl. June. — Much moz'e slender than any spe- cies yet enumerated in this subgenus. Joints ^ inch in diameter ; tubercles 9 lines long ; spines 3-8 lines long, the lowest one the stoutest. Flower 1| inches in diameter. * * Monacanthce : lignum densum : articuli graciliores obscure tu- berculati : aculei singuli : flores flavi seu rubri ; semina plus minus marginata. 46. O. Wrightii, E. 1. c. : frutescens, erecta ; articulis cylindricis gracilibus elongato-subtuberculatis ; aculeis subsingulis porrectis vel subdeflexis ; flore miniato. On steep mountain-sides, from the Limpio to the Pecos, and in Northern Mexico : fl. June and July. — Shrub 2-4 feet high, 1-1^ OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 309 inches thick. Joints 4 lines in dianneter ; tubercles depressed, 7-9 lines long; spines 8- 10 lines long. Flower about 1 - 1^. inches in diameter. 47. O. ARBUSCULA, E. 1. c. : arborescens, erecta, capitato-ramosis- sima ; articulis Isete viridibus elongato-subtuberculatis ; aculeis sub- singulis porrectis vel subdeflexis ; flore flavo-virescente. On the Lower Gila, near Maricopa village : fl. June. — A truly arborescent form, with a solid trunk of 4 or 5 inches in diameter, 7- 8 feet high ; joints 2-3 inches long, about 4 lines in diameter ; tu- bercles indistinct, about 6 lines long; spine 9-12 lines long, often with 1 or 2 smaller ones under it. Flower li inches in diameter. 48. O. VAGINATA, E. in Wisl. Rep. (partim) : frutescens, erecta ; ramis erectiusculis ; articulis subtuberculatis ; aculeis subsingulis ; bacca obovata tuberculata coccinea. Albuquerque, New Mexico, and southward. — Shrub 3-5 feet high, 1-1^ inches thick ; joints 3-4 lines in diameter ; tubercles rather distinct, 6-9 lines long. Fruit 8-9 lines long. Seed about 2 lines in diameter. Perhaps a stout form of the next species. 49. O. FRUTESCENS, E. in PL Lindh. 1845 : frutescens, erecta ; ra- mis erectiusculis ; articulis teretibus ; aculeis subsingulis ; flore parvo virescente ; bacca obovata baud tuberculata coccinea. Var. a. LONGispiNA : articulis nascentibus stipitatis ; aculeis validi- oribus longioribus laxe vaginatis. Var. /3. BREvispiNA : articulis nascentibus sessilibus ; aculeis graci- lioribus brevioribus arete vaginatis. From the Colorado of Texas to Matamoras and Saltillo, westward to Sonora and the Californian Colorado : fl. June to August. — Var. a. is the usual Western form ; /3. occurs only in Texas and Eastern Mexico. — Shrub 3-5 feet high, stem 1- l^- inches thick ; joints 2- 3 lines in diameter ; indistinct tubercles 3-5 lines long ; spines in a. 1-2 inches, in /3. 4-6 lines, long. Flower 7-9 lines in diameter. Fruit 5-9 lines long. Seeds few, usually li lines in diameter. 50. O. TESSELLATA (O. ramosissima, E. in Sill. Journ. 1852) : fru- tescens, erecta seu diffusa, divaricato-ramosissima ; articulis gracili- bus tessellato-tuberculatis csesiis ; tuberculis 5-6 angulatis planis in- ermibus seu aculeum elongatum paucosque minutos gerentibus ; flore purpurascente parva ; bacca setosissima sicca. Valley of the Lower Colorado from Sonora to the California moun- o 10 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY tains : fl. May to September. — Stems 2-6 feet high, at the base 1-3 inches thick ; joints- 3-3^ lines in diameter, ashy gray ; the singular flattened and angular tubercles 2^-3 lines long ; spines H- 2 inches long, crowded together at the upper end of each year's growth, very loosely sheathed. Flower purple, half an inch in diam- eter. Fruit 9-10 lines long, covered with reddish-brown bristles. Seed 2 lines or less in diameter. * * * The material for the present study of our Cactacece is not as full as would have been desirable in the examination of so difficult a family. Hence it may sometimes have happened, that what I have endeavored to distinguish as species are forms which properly belong together ; or I may have combined as one species incomplete speci- mens of quite distinct plants. The fear of confusing heterogeneous plants under one name, and the desire to indicate to future explorers all the different forms known to me, combined to induce me to pro- ceed as I have done. For those who naturally may be horrified at the idea of 117 species of Cactacece. in a territory where, a few years ago, scarcely half a dozen were known, I will indicate how the mass of material may be comprehended under fewer types. Of Ma7)iillarice the species 1-9 are quite distinct, and can in no manner be united ; 10-12 might perhaps be considered as forms of a single species; 13- 17 are all very distinct; 18 and 19, 20-23, 25 and 26, 27 and 28, may possibly be forms of only four types, instead of 10, as I have enumerated them, thus referring my 30 species to 22 types. In the genus Echinocactus the following species might be united : 1 and 2, 7 and 8, 9 and 10, 12 and 13, 14 and 15, — leaving 15 in- stead of 20 types. The following species of Cereus will perhaps bear reduction : Nos. 1 and 2, 3 and 4, 5-7, 10 and 11, 12-14, 16 and 17, 18-22 (though some of them, of which I do not even know the flowers, may prove to belong even to different sections !), 23 and 24, — thus redu- cing my 31 species to 18 types. Ojmntia is a still more difficult genus, and mistakes are here most easily made. Many of them are as yet very incompletely known ; and without being able to compare a great number of living specimens OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 311 in their native state and in all stages of development, it can hardly be expected that any one should know beforehand what constitutes the specific characters in these plants. I have tried to unite the forms which seemed to justify such a proceeding (see, e. g. O. Rafoiesqiiii, here made to comprise quite a suite of forms as subspecies). Still it may be thought that a greater reduction was yet desirable ; but with our present data this would involve great danger of jumbling hetero- geneous materials together. Nos. 5 and 7 (of which latter neither flower nor fruit is known) can perhaps be united ; also 9 and 10, 11 and 12, 13 and 14, 16 and 17, 19 and 20, 22-24, 25-28,29 and 30, 31 - 33, 35 - 37, 38 - 40, and 48 and 49, — leaving 31 types, 29 of which are indigenous to our territory, and two cultivated. Geography of the Cactus Region of the United States. The localities where our Cacti grow are so little known to those who have not made the geography of the West a particular study, or are familiar with the publications of our Western explorers, that it seems necessary to add a few explanatory remarks. Texas, as at present organized, is bounded southeasterly by the Gulf of Mexico, into which the following rivers mentioned in the fore- going pages empty, following the order from east to west : the Brazos, the Colorado with the Llano, the Guadalupe with the Pierdenales and San Antonio, the Nueces, and the Rio Grande. The latter forms the southern and southwestern boundary as high up as El Paso. On it are the towns of Matamoras (not far from its mouth), Mier, Lare- do ; and higher up, Presidio del Rio Grande ; then Fort Duncan or Eagle Pass (southwest of which is Santa Rosa, in the State of Coa- huila) ; next comes the mouth of the San Pedro or Devil's River' (a small river or rather torrent running southward), and not far from it the mouth of the Pecos or Puerco, which rises at the north-north- west in the upper parts of New Mexico. Between the mouth of the Pecos and El Paso we notice only Presidio del Norte, San Elizario, and a " canon " below the latter. The valley of the Limpio, a little more to the northward between the Pecos and El Paso, is a remark- able locality ; probably because there porphyritic rocks take the place of the cretaceous formation of the more eastern districts. Chihuahua is the well-known capital of the Mexican State of the same name, south of El Paso. 312 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY The Canadian River is a southern tributary of the Arkansas, run- ning eastwardly very nearly under the 35th degree of latitude, and bounding on the north the elevated plains known as the Llano Esta- cado, in the northwestern parts of Texas and the adjoining regions of New Mexico. The Upper Rio Grande runs through New Mexico from north to south ; the capital, Santa Fe, is not far from the river, in lat. 35|-° ; and the town of Albuquerque is a little below. Doiiana is a small place on the river, above El Paso. El Paso itself, where the Rio Grande breaks through the mountain ranges, changing its heretofore southern to a southeastern course, is the central point of our Cactus region, partly from its geographical position, and partly because many of our explorers have made it the centre of their operations. The present southwestern boundary of the United States runs from El Paso irregularly westward through the former Mexican State of Sonora, to the Colorado " of the West," or " of California," which comes from the South Pass in the Rocky Mountains, and runs south- westward and southwardly. Its principal tributaries rise in the east ; those most important to us are the Little Colorado or Colorado Chi- quito, under the 35th and 36th degree of latitude ; Bill Williams's Fork, or Williams's River, as it is lately styled, further south ; and in lat. 33° the Gila River, which rises near the " Coppermines," north- west of El Paso. Proceeding from Santa Fe westward, we find the Indian town of Zuni, on the head-waters of the Little Colorado ; then the San Fran- cisco mountains ; the Cactus Pass, at the head of Williams's River, and this stream itself. All this territory is at present included in the political organization of New Mexico, though uninhabited by whites. West of the Colorado, in lat. 35°, is the Mojave or Mohave River, ■rising in the Sierra Nevada near the Cajon Pass ; lower down, oppo- site the mouth of the Gila, the country is a sandy desert extending westward nearly to San Felipe, on the eastern slope of the California mountains in the same latitude. On the western sea-coast the town of San Diego is the only interesting point for the plants under review. Geographical Distribution of the Cactacece in the Territory of the United States. As to the geographical distribution of the Cactacece, our territory may properly be divided into eight regions, viz. : — or ARTS AND SCIENCES. 313 1. The Atlantic Region ; which has only a single Opuntia, and that peculiar to it. Along the Southern coast some West Indian species may yet be expected. 2. The Mississippi Region, including the Western States, pro- duces another Opu7itia, which, in difTerent distinct forms, extends into the 3d, 4th, and 5th regions. 3. The Missouri Region ; namely, the Northwestern or Upper Missouri Territory to the Rocky Mountains. It furnishes Two Mamillaria of the subgenus Coryphantha, both extending into the 4th and 5th region ; and Three Opuntia:, one of which only is peculiar. 4. The Texan Region ; namely, the eastern and inhabited parts of Texas, westward to the San Pedro, and northward including the terri- tory south of the Arkansas River. This region produces Five MamillaricB, two of them peculiar to this district ; Three Echinocacti, none of which are found in any other of our regions ; * Six Cerei (five Echinocerei and one Eucereus), all of them pecu- liar to this district ; and Six Opu7itice, of which only three are restricted to it ; among them is only a single cylindric Opuntia. This region contains therefore altogether twenty species, fourteen of which are peculiar to it. 5. The New-Mexican Region ; namely, Western, uninhabited, mountainous Texas, and Eastern New Mexico to the eastern head- waters of the Colorado of California. This region is our richest Cactus district. It has furnished sixty-five species, fifty-five of which are peculiar to it, viz. : — Nineteen MamiUarice, (eight EumamillaricB, ten Coryphanth V tt o v rj p a X py (T T a Tis XaX?/ AC a I r ov TT a p ovT a ttAt/ (Tiov p. t] \ av 6 avrj St TrXao-tco? avru) yive ( rat T] TT ovrj p la . " I brought the writing home in this shape, and whiled away some of the hours of a long National Hotel illness with a critical examina- tion of the documents. " On reading the passage, it becomes at once obvious that it has a rhythmical iambic beat, although the verses are not indicated by the way of writing, the reason being that the teacher wished to fill up the whole space with his copy. On further examination, they prove to be three iambic trimeters, constructed with the license of the comic senarius. It is necessary only to change the order of two words, SiTrXao-i'cBs and aur<5, in order to make the second foot in the third line correct. The passage will thus stand, adding breathings and accents : "Orav TvoiSiv irovrjpa, ^^pjjo-Tci tis Xakjj Kui Tou Trapovra ttXtjctIov pr] \av6dptj AvTw bnrXaalcos yiver fj TvovTjpia. " These trimeters may be literally translated as follows : When, doing ill, a man prates virtuous words, Nor hides the secret from the stander-by, Twofold to him becomes the wickedness. " The style of these lines, and the peculiar turn of thought, remind one at once of the Fragments of Menander's comedies, several hun- dred of which have been preserved. The neatness of the expression, the subtile satire, and the elegance and spirit of the epigrammatic or ARTS AND SCIENCES. 375 point, are quite in the manner of the accomplished Athenian. But a judgment of style on internal evidence alone, in a matter so remote from our own times, is not confidently to be relied upon. At all events, it seems quite certain that the passage is taken from some poet of the New Comedy, which delights in general delineations of character, and in sententious expressions embodying the wit and wisdom drawn from the observation of society ; and, without further examination, it appeared to me more like the manner of Menander than that of any other Fragments that have come down to us of the works of that genial school. The tablet is very curious, because it contains more writing than any hitherto discovered, excepting those Latin tablets of the second century to which allusion has already been made. It is also curious, as containing a passage hitherto unknown, if not of Menander, certainly of some poet of the same Athenian age ; and it is curious, because it shows that children in ancient times, in learning to write, had copies set them embodying some apophthegm, or moral sentiment, or condensed phrase of practical wisdom, or some side view of character, just as they do in our own schools. In fact, our ' Evil communications corrupt good manners,' quoted by St. Paul and translated by TertuUian, is from Menander. " In the tablet which I suppose to have been used by a scholar, the master's copy is at first correctly followed ; but the poor boy seems to have got wearied with such close attention, and towards the end ven- tured to write a word on his own account ; for, instead of ylverai, we have (})dapT](T€Tai^ which spoils both sense and metre. " In order to settle, if possible, the question as to the authorship of the lines, I examined all the Fragments of the Attic comedians to be found in any of the collections, the National Hotel distemper continu- ing to afford me the requisite leisure. The result of this examination showed that the turn of expression, and several of the individual words, occur in many of Menander's known Fragments, but only once or twice in those of other poets. For example, passages beginning with oTav, signifying when this or that happens, then the result will be so and so, — as in Frag. V. of the ItXoKiof, or the Necklace. "0(TTis Trevrjs o)V (rju iv aaTei ^ovKerai " hdvyiOTepov iavrov enidviKt ivoielv • 'Orav yap els rpvcj^uiVTa /cat axo^rju ayeiv Avvajxevov ep^Xeyj/t], tot avTov ecrT Ibelv 'Q,s adXcov ^fj KOL ToXaiTTcopov ^iop. 376 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY Who, being poor, would in the city live. Desires to make himself more sad in heart : For when he sees the rich man's luxury And how he lives at ease, then too he sees How hard a life and wretched is his own, " Also Frag. VI. of Aeia-ibaiiicov, the Superstitious Man. Frag. III. of er,cTavp6s, and in the XIX., XX., XLV., XLVII., LVIL, CXLVIIL, CLXIL, and CLXV. of the unplaced Fragments. For example, in LVIL : Oral' TTevrjs &V Kal yanelu tls ik6[iepos Ta [xera yvvaiKos €Tri8ex^Tai p^pTj/xara AvTov 8iB " The word XaXe'co meant originally to prate or halhle. It is used in this sense exclusively by Aristophanes ; but soon after his time it began to be employed as the equivalent of Xe'yco, to speak., or talk. It is used by Menander generally in the sense of to prate., but also once or twice in the sense of to speak. In the Septuagint, which belongs to the third century before Christ, it is used exclusively in the latter sense, and in the New Testament the usage is the same. " In our passage XaXew evidently is employed in its original sense of prating. This would seem to point to a period as ancient as Me- nander, or about his time. The verb and the corresponding adjective occur in several of his acknowledged Fragments in this sense ; as rrag. I. AvukoKos, " TvepX xpi]P'0-Ta>v XaXeis." " These particulars show that, in the general structure of the passage and the minute details of expression, it bears a closer resemblance to OP ARTS AND SCIENCES. 377 the style of Menander than to that of the other comic poets, so far as we can judge by the Fragments that have been preserved. " I may add, that the works of Menander were favorites among the Greeks of Egypt and at the court of the Ptolemies, and that he was invited by the king himself to take up his abode in Alexandria. " Menander was born B. C. 342, the same year with Epicurus, and died B. C. 291. His father, Diopeithes, was an Athenian admiral, whose fame chiefly depends on his having been defended by Demos- thenes when brought to trial in an Athenian court upon the complaints of King Philip. Menander wrote from a hundred to a hundred and ten plays, and fragments fi'om about ninety have been preserved, with some five hundred unplaced fragments. They vary in length from one word to twenty or thirty lines, giving a sufficiently accurate notion of his general style, and of the tone of that department of Greek poetry to which his works belong. " His plays were universally esteemed as models of grace, urbanity, and elegance, and they continued to be played at least down to the time of Plutarch, — perhaps much later. " He declined King Ptolemy's invitation. This circumstance was seized upon by Alciphron, a writer of the second century, and author of an agreeable series of fictitious letters, among which is one from Menander to|^Glycera,\his Athenian mistress, in which he tells her of the king's invitation, and his refusal of it, with a great many expressions of ardent affection. ' I have received,' he writes, ' from Ptolemy, the king of Egypt, a letter, in which he makes all sorts of requests, and, like a king, promises, as the saying is, every blessing on earth to me and to Philemon Philemon will do as he pleases. But I cannot endure the project ; for, by Athena, you Glycera have always been, and shall still be, to me. Intellect, Council of Areopagus, Heliastic Court, — all in all I have not the least idea of making a voy- age to Egypt, — so distant a kingdom, — by the Twelve Gods, not I. If Egypt were in the neighboring island of jEgina, I should never think of quitting my kingdom, which is thy love, to behold, alone in such a multitude of Egyptians, without my Glycera, nothing but a peopled solitude {eprnxiau TroXvavdpanou opav). I would not exchange the dramatic festivals, the exercises of the Lyceum and the sacred Academy, for all the gilded splendors of courts. I would rather be crowned with the ivy of Bacchus than the diadem of Ptolemy, my Glycera sitting in the theatre and looking on. Where, in Egypt, shall I VOL. III. 48 378 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY see the assembly and the ballot ? and where the democratic multitude sporting their liberty ? where the popular elections, the Agora, the courts, the beautiful Acropolis, yonder neighboring Salamis, and the Strait, Psyttaleia, the field of Marathon, — all Hellas, all Ionia, all the Cyclades in Athens ? Shall I quit all these and my Glycera, stray away to Egypt, to get gold and silver and wealth ? And Glycera beyond the sea from me ? Will not all this be poverty without her ? ' " These may well be supposed to be the arguments that kept Me- nander at home. Athens even now is in many respects the most en- chanting city in the world. Its wonderful ruins, its translucent air, its blue skies, — the Cephissus, the Ilissus, — the weird old olives of the Academy, — the play of golden beams peering over Hymettus at dawn, the purple veil of the mountains at evening, — the silver moon- light poured over the columns of the Parthenon on the Acropolis, — the remnants of the theatre, — the Bema, — ^gina, S»^- iis, — the memories of ^schylus, Sophocles, Aristophanes, Menander, Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Demosthenes, — the urbanity of its present inhabi- tants, — the University and its learned professors, — make it even now the darling of the East, the beloved object of every scholar's affections, the hope and pride of regenerated Hellas. So I think Menander was right in rejecting the princely offers of the Ptolemies. His works were none the less popular there ; copies were to be found in all the libraries ; they were the favorite subjects of the criticism of the professors in the Museum and the Serapeum. They were known and read at Constantinople probably down to the time of the Crusaders. It was natural that sentences from works so esteemed should become common property, — should be quoted by writers, selected by school- masters, copied by schoolboys. But it is singular that one of them should make its first appearance in modern times at New York. " Mr. G. C. Ayling exhibited to the Academy a new quad- rant, known as Hedgcock's Quadrant, by which he claimed to be able to determine the position of any point on the earth's surface without the aid of sun, moon, or stars. On motion, the instrument was referred to a committee consisting of Pro- fessor Levering, J. I. Bowditch, G. P. Bond, and Dr. B. A. Gould. Professor Agassiz said that similarity of form is an essential element in his definition of Families in the animal kingdom. Although this is true in general, he had found great difficulty OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 379 in making the family of Naiades conform to this view. The different species of these shells are stamped with most of the principal features of a natural family, and yet they have very different forms ; some being nearly square, others oblong, oth- ers cylindrical, others oblique, (fcc. They should agree in form, or else the definition of Family which he had adopted is not true. The mantle of these mollusks has not a uniform margin ; being provided in different species with various fringes, and approaching by its edges in places, and at two points being united. The shell, by the waving outline of its lines of growth, conforms to the shape of the mantle within. It presents an oblong or ovate figure, on the edge of which are two projections, with a depression between ; and all the wide differences in the apparent shape of these shells may be resolved into a greater or less degree of development of these parts ; so that the Naiades do not in reality form an exception to the law. Dr. A. A. Hayes exhibited specimens of the carbonaceous deposit, which has long been known to form in retorts used for decomposing coal. " These specimens present the order of deposition from the first thin film, the lamellar coating, to the thick, compact, metallic-like mass, of a shining gray color, and very sonorous when struck. Those pieces which are very thin are also porous, and this character is preserved when the lamina becomes considerably thickened, while the final result of deposition is a compact solid of a general columnar form ; the lamina being obliterated by infiltration of fine carbon and final cementation. * " The suite of specimens is intended to illustrate the following remarks. " It is well known that the form of carbon here presented has been supposed to result from the decomposition of olefiant gas, by heat; olefiant gas being one of the products of coal decomposition, under certain conditions. Olefiant gas is represented by C4H4, the equiva- lent being four volumes, and when it is exposed to a temperature above redness, it deposits carbon in considerable quantity. If the ex- posure and heat be continued, the final result is carbon, as a precipi- tate, and hydrogen as a gas, free from carbon. 380 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY " To render probable tbe supposition of olefiant gas being the source of the gas-carbon, it has been generally stated that this bi- carburet loses two of its four proportions of carbon by heat, and be- comes converted into marsh gas, or light carburet of hydrogen, the formula of which is C0H4 ; and thus the definiteness of an exact re- sult is presented. " In the manufacture of gas for lighting, an increased temperature in the retort diminishes the illuminating power of the gas, and hence it has been assumed that the illuminating effect of the gas is dimin- ished by a loss of the carbon contained in the olefiant gas, to which a large part of the light-giving quality has been attributed. " It becomes an interesting point in general chemical science, to learn how far the facts gained by observation and experiment will sus- tain these assumptions which have been held in relation to the source of gas-carbon as above alluded to, and to inquire into its connections more particularly. " Gas-carbon, in its difficult combustibility under a current of heated air, its relation to nitrates of the alkalies and sulphuric acid, must be classed with the carbon found in crude iron, and called graphitic car- bon, or carbon in an allotropic state. It differs as much from lamp- black and charcoal as these do from diamond, and in the artificial production of it, in all the cases hitherto observed, it has a certain rela- tion to vapors. The fine specimens obtained when molten iron passes over moist earth, the metallic-like glazing of coke, and the lustrous residues of animal decomposition by heat, in presence of vapors, are all instances of the existing connection between vapors and this allo- tropic carbon. " Taking the suite of specimens before us, the microscope enables us to see, in the early stages of deposition, that every part is vesicu- lar ; that mammillary forms result from the aggregation of the vesicles ; and, pursuing these observations, we often find the broken vesicles fill- ing vacant spaces between those more perfect, and a consolidation re- sulting from this arrangement. Where pendent parts exist, their sec- tions show a perfectly regular building up from layers of sublimate, each layer being composed of vesicles, more or less broken ; the thin shell of each exhibiting the superposition of layers which belongs to bubbles. The examination of hundreds of specimens will not show any departure from this character of a sublimate, produced either from its own vapor, or when transported by another kind of vapor. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 381 We find also that those coal carbo-hydrogens which afford most va- pors are those which leave in their decomposition most allotropic car- bon ; the natural bitumens affording the most remarkable and. con- vincing results in this way. " As the mechanical state of the gas-carbon, clearly shown under the microscope, as well as to the unassisted eye, is that of a solid left from a transporting vapor, observation indicates that it has been thus formed in the very compound atmosphere resulting from coal decom- position. " It is a fact of chemical science, that defiant gas, when heated, deposits carbon, and the fact can be easily demonstrated. But it is a remarkable feature in this decomposition, that the gas deposits its car- bon in the form of lampblack^ and the utmost reach of the means of control will not produce an aggregation of particles resembling char- coal. In high, or comparatively low temperatures, the deposition never has the state of allotrojnc carbon, and, chemically speaking, there is no evidence that this form of carbon can result from olefant gas changes. " If, however, vapors of bitumen are mixed with the defiant gas, these vapors suffer decomposition by heat, and we easily obtain in the mixture vesicular, brilliant carbon in the allotropic state of gas-car- bon : while the vapors solely much more readily afford this substance, in form and composition closely resembling gas-carbon. " The subject, as I have studied it, appeared to possess interest in connection with the new facts which M. H. St. Claire Deville has lately published, respecting the graphitic form of Silicon, Boron, &c., in which a similarity of conditions of production is essential to the effect being obtained. " In geological theory, the formation of anthracitic carbon in one case, and of graphite, with the gradations back to anthracite, in an- other, has hardly been explained ; but if we are allowed to take the allotropic state of carbon as a distinctive character of that carbon, which has been sublimed, through the agency of its own, or more likely a foreign vapor, then the occurrence of these forms of car- bon ceases to be anomalous, and accords with the circumstances un- der which many rocks have been produced. Graphite, graphitic car- bon, graphitic oxide of iron, and, in general, sublimates composed of vesicular forms presenting lamina?, under this view become a class of bodies which owe their forms to the transporting power of va- pors in motion. 382 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY " Another point observed in the decomposition of olefiant gas de- serves notice. It is stated in most treatises on chemistry, and adopted as a. matter of belief in the gas manufacture, that olefiant gas, when heated, deposits two of its four proportions of carbon, and, without change of volume, becomes marsh gas. It is barely possible, as an accidental circumstance, this proportion of carbon might be deposited, but it would take place, not as an experimental, but as a chance re- sult. When olefiant gas is passed through ignited quartz, glass, or iron-turnings, it deposits carbon, which has no definite relation to the composition of the gas., a mixed gas being left, containing olefiant marsh gas and hydrogen. If the gas is repassed, the carbon may be nearly all abstracted. +^~ marsh gas suffering decomposition. " The conditions of olefiant gas heated in the products of coal de- composition are not such as to lead to a breaking up of its carbon arrangement, for there are many reasons for the statement, that this bicarburet is itself the result of change in the vapor of paraffine and other hydrocarbons of the oily characters. " It seems, therefore, a correct deduction from observation and ex- periment, that gas-carbon is not produced from olefiant gas by depo- sition, but is a product of changes caused by heat in vapors of hydro- carbons, and that this allotropic carbon, in other cases, forms in the presence of vapors, which can transport carbon in the vesicular state." Dr. Pickering referred to his having stated in print, that Manetho has given two distinct dates for the Fall of Troy : one of them (counting downwards in the Africano-Manetho Table) = B. C. 1127; and the other (in the Fragments pre- served by Josephus, completed from the first-named source) = B. C. 1072. The earlier, being a Greek date, had always appeared doubtful, from the fact that Manetho was writing for a Greek Emperor. Since the publication of the above statement, Dr. Pickering has found that the Africano-Manetho Table contains both dates; the lower one in the Dynastic numbers, which (counted upwards from " B. C. 339," the ad- justment supplied by Syncellus) give, " 9 4- 38 + 20^ + 6 +124^ -f 150^. -f 40+6 +89 +120 +130 " = B. C. 1072^. OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 383 In the Armenian version of the Eusebio-Manetho Table, the earlier date has not been found ; but the lower date is regu- larly given in the Regnal numbers, for, counting downwards, B. C. 1413 _ 11 _" 8 — 15 — 5 — 68 — 40 — 194 " = B. C. 1072. This lower date is confirmed by Ctesias, in his statement that the Assyrian Empire commenced 1000 years before the Fall of Troy, and lasted 1360 years : the dissolution of the Assyrian Empire being regarded by chronologists as fixed to the year B. C. 711, we have for Ctesias's date of the Fall of Troy, B. C. 711 + " 1360 — 1000 " = B. C. 1071. Further, the Greek discrepance of Fourteen Olympiads, or fifty-six years, occurring equally in Manetho's Tables, may be fairly applied to his Greek date of B. C. 1127: when, B. C. 1127 — 56 = B. C. 1071, Manetho's reckoning proves to be the same with that of Cte- sias, and perhaps of the Greeks generally. Dr. Pickering thinks, therefore, that JS. C. 1071 is within a year of the Fall of Troy ; but has not ascertained whether the separate years will now close the chronological gap mentioned by Clinton. If so, and the date proves correct, it will carry the invasion of Greece by the Heraclidse to the reign of Solomon. Four hundred and tliirty-eiglitli meeting. April 14th, 1857. — Adjourned Stated Meeting, The Academy met at the house of Dr. Hayward. The President in the chair. The Corresponding Secretary read a letter from the Secre- tary of the Academy of Science of St. Louis, dated April 4th, requesting an exchange of publications on the part of the Academy. Professor Levering read the following report on the Hedg- cock Quadrant, which was accepted and ordered to be placed on file. 384 PROCEEDINGS Or THE AMERICAN ACADEMY " The committee appointed at the last meeting of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences to examine Hedgcock's Patent Quad- rant, which was submitted to the Academy, have attended to the duty assigned to them and ask leave to report as follows. " A full meeting of the committee was held on the 14th of March, at which Mr. Ayling was present. He then exhibited the new instru- ment, and attempted to explain the peculiarities and pretensions of it. The committee have handled the instrument, and have made them- selves familiar with its construction ; which, as compared with that of the ordinary quadrant, is defective in some points, and in others boasts a superfluous complev'+-;^ which is the only thing original in the inven- tion, or entitled to a patent. " The claim made for the instrument, namely, that by it differences of latitude and longitude can be ascertained, rests upon no specified discovery of a new law in nature, and can be shown, when analyzed, to contradict the best determined laws. The reflecting quadrant is es- sentially an optical instrument. In optics there are only two ways known by which the direction of a ray of light can be altered, viz. reflection and refraction ; and these changes of direction are the same for polarized as for unpolarized light. To maintain, therefore, that, when the images of an object have been brought into juxtaposition with the object itself, and the glasses clamped, this juxtaposition will not continue if the instrument is transferred to another place, and that the motion which must be given to the glasses to restore the juxtapo- sition will give the change of latitude and longitude, is to maintain neither more nor less than this, — that the laws of the reflection and refraction of light, which have been verified wherever there has been an observer for the last two hundred years, are not constant any longer, but have recently changed with the geographical position, and in such a marvellous way as exactly to suit the special claim of this Patent Quadrant. " In opposition to any testimony that may be adduced to prove that this instrument has ever done what your committee say that it is inca- pable of doing, the committee would simply urge the unanimous and overwhelming testimony of mankind, not only of scientific men, but also of all engineers, surveyors, travellers, and sailors who have suc- cessfully determined their position by means of any quadrant or sex- tant, not one of whom has ever discovered that every observation he took with a reflecting a:lass was erroneous to the full extent of the dif- OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 385 ference between his latitude and longitude and some one standard place ; as it must have been if the laws of light then changed with a change of parallels and meridians, and this Patent Quadrant is not a patent absurdity. Lastly, any change of latitude and longitude which could be detected with the new instrument by means of the assumed discovery in the laws of light, might also be found, and with equal fa- cility, by means of any other reflecting quadrant or sextant ; and cer- tainly with greater accuracy, unless the construction of the Patent Qu&,drant is much improved. Hence Mr. Hedgcock's modification is, on his own principles, quite unnecessary. " One absurdity naturally leads to other absurdities : the boldest of which here is another claim for the new instrument ; viz. that by it the navigator can obtain his geographical position, whether he ob- serves the sun in the heavens or a lamp in his cabin. This is a necessary consequence of any admission made in favor of the new in- strument. For the laws of reflection, as far as direction is concerned, are the same for all light, artificial or natural. " The committee would say, in conclusion, that they feel justified in rejecting the pretensions of this Patent Quadrant, as contrary not only to -the universal teachings of science, but also to the constant ex- perience of practical navigators ; and that they regard the whole claim as simply ridiculous, and the language, printed and spoken, in which the claim has been asserted, as unintelligible nonsense ; and the whole subject, therefore, as unworthy of the further attention of the Acad- emy. (Signed.) Joseph Lovering, B. A. Gould, Jr., G. P. Bond, , J. Ingersoll Bowditch." Dr. A. A. Gould presented, in the name of the family of the late Dr. Amos Binney, a former Fellow of the Academy, the third voliuxie of his work on American Helices, containing the plates, now just completed. Dr. H. I. Bowditch presented, in the name of Major Alvord of the United States Army, a copy of his paper on the " Tan- gents of Circles and Spheres." Dr. Hohnes exhibited and explained a new model of a stand for a microscope, contrived by himself, in which the various VOL. III. 49 386 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY qualities of cheapness, portability, great stability, and most ac- curate and delicate adjustment were combined. Pour Iiundred and thirty-nintli meetiug^. May 12th, 1857. — Monthly Meeting. The Academy met at their rooms. Professor Tread well, Vice-President, in the chair. The Correspo''"^ing Secretary read letters from the Ethno- logical Society, London ; the Royal Saxon Society of Scien- ces, Leipsic ; the Royal Bavarian Academy of Sciences, Mu- nich ; and the Boston Society of Natural History, acknowl- edging the receipt of the Academy's publications ; and from the Royal Bohemian Society of Science, Prague, presenting its Transactions. Mr. G. P. Bond communicated the results of an examina- tion of the photographs of the star Mizar (^ Ursa Majoris), with its companion, and the neighboring star Alcor ; speci- mens of which were exhibited. " Daguerreotype images of the star Vega (« Lyrse) were obtained at the Observatory of Harvard College by the well-known artist, Mr. J. A. Whipple of Boston, on the 17th of July, 1850, and subse- quently impressions were taken from the double star, Castor, exhibit- ing an elongated disc, but no distinct separation of its two compo- nents. These were the first, and, till very recently, the only known instances, of the application of photography to the delineation of the fixed stars. " A serious difficulty was interposed to further progress by the want of suitable apparatus for communicating uniform sidereal motion to the telescope. This has now been supplied by replacing the origi- nal Munich clock of the great equatorial of the Observatory by a new one, on the principle of the spring governor, invented by the Messrs. Bond. This clock, which was made by Messrs. George and Alvan Clark of East Cambridge, carries the telescope with admirable even- ness and regularity of motion. " Immediately upon its completion, at the invitation of the Director of the Observatory, Messrs. Whipple and Black commenced a new series of experiments, and have succeeded in transferring to the plate, OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 387 by the collodion process, images of the fixed stars to the fifth magni- tude, inclusive, with singular and unexpected precision. " The most remarkable instances of their success are the simulta- neous impressions of the group of stars composed of Mizar of the sec- ond magnitude, its companion of the fourth, and Alcor of the fifth magnitude. " The following measurements of the angular distance of the com- panion from Mizar were taken from the plates with the aid of the micrometer microscopes of the transit-circle. The distances repre- sent the angles subtended by the images formed at the chemical focus, and measured from the optical centre of the object-glass. Plate I. April 27th, 1857 Distance = 14.7 = 14.7 = 14.6 = 14.5 — 14.5 " = 14.1 = 14.3 " In consequence of a difficulty in the way of properly applying the microscope of the transit-circle, without incurring a sensible error of measurement independent of that attributable to the photographic pro- cess, the same plates (with the exception of II.) and six others were subjected to another form of micrometer, hastily arranged for the pur- pose, and less open to similar objection, though still sensibly imperfect. With this the following results have been obtained. Ang. of Pos. = I. April 27th, 1857 VI. " 27th, " II. " 28th, " IV. " 30th, " VII. May 6th, " (( 6th, " li 6th, "• Plate. I. April 27, 1857 Dist. = 14.44 IV. (' 30, = 14.34 V. a 30, =. 14.77 VI. (( 27, z= 14.52 ^11. A. May 6, = 14.34 '' B. li. 6. = 14.19 " C. n. 6, = 14.44 1 A. ii 8, = 14.59 " B. ii 8, = 14.55 2 A. (I 8, = 14.41 " B. u 8, = 14.35 3 A. (I 8, = 14.70 " B. 11 8, Mean = 14.77 = 14.49 " = 146° 40' " = 148 53 = 147 55 Mean = 147 49 388 PROCEEDINGS OP THE AMERICAN ACADEMY " For the sake of comparison, we will quote from the Posiliones Medice of Professor Struve the following measurements of the same stars. 1755 Dist. II = 13.9 Ancr. of P03. = 143.1 Obs. by Bradley. 1780 (( r= 14.1 — 146.8 " Herschel. 1820.9 (( = 14.63 = 146.2 " Struve. 1830.6 (( — 14.37 = 147.6 C( (( 1840.8 — 14.35 = 147.7 (( (( 1847.6 (( = 14.25 = 148.2 (( (( The mean of Struve's Distances is = 14".40 " " " Positions is := 147°.4 " " Photographic Distances is = 14''.49 " " " Positions is = 147°.8 "The probable error of a single photographic distance is ± 0".12, or quite as small as that attributed by Struve to a single direct meas- urement. The former method has thus in its first efforts attained the limit of accuracy beyond which it is not to be expected that the latter can ever be sensibly advanced. But the photographic process holds out a much better promise. " The two principal sources of error by which it is affected are spots on the glass plate, or impurities in the coating in the neighbor- hood of the images, and slight departures from symmetry in their form, as yet noticed only when the plate has been exposed too long to the action of the light. The latter has been the case with most of the plates from which the above measurements have been taken, and they may in consequence be slightly affected. It is certainly to be anticipated, that, by the exercise of more care in regulating the time of exposure, the symmetry of the images can be secured. A microscopic exami- nation will in most cases serve to distinguish accidental spots in the coating, or on the glass, from the molecules, which, by their aggrega- tion, show the action of light. " The real difficulty, perhaps insurmountable, which now prevents a most extensive application of photography to astronomy, is the defi- cient sensitiveness of the pi'ocesses in use. Unless photographs of stars as low, at least, as the eighth magnitude can be obtained, its use must be restricted to comparatively few double stars. Should, how- ever, this impediment be overcome, and photographic impressions be obtained from stars between the sixth and eleventh magnitudes, as has OF ARTS AND SCIENCES. 389 already been done for those between the first and the fifth, the exten- sion given to our present means of observation would be an advance in the science of stellar astronomy of which it would scarcely be pos- sible to exaggerate the importance." Professor Boweii read an extract from a lecture of Professor Faraday, on " Conservation of Force," and remarked upon it as expressing views remarkably coincident with those of- fered by him in the paper read at a late meeting. Professor William B. Rogers criticised the views in question at some length, and the subject of the nature of force was fur- ther discussed by Dr. Holmes, Dr. W. F. Channing, and Pro- fessors Bowen and Treadwell. Dr. B. A. Gould, Jr. gave a history and description of the Calculating Engine of Babbage, and also of that of Mr. Scheutz of Stockholm, which was exhibited at the Paris In- dustrial Exhibition, and has since been purchased for the Albany Observatory. INDEX TO VOL. III. N. B. — New genera and species are in Italics. A. Academy, manuscript pamphlets referring to early meetings of the, 349. Acicahjptus., 127. Acids, Fatty, on the oleic acid series of, 349. Agassiz, Louis. Diversity of origin of human race, 7. On the Allantois, 15. On organic tissues, 21. Cyprinodonts, 42. On cell-segmentation, 46. On cartilaginous fishes, 63. Cestracion, 65. New red sandstone, 69. Phenomena accompanying the first ap- pearance of a circulating system, 166. Classification of Polyps, 187. Classification in Zoology, 221. Orthagoriscus Mola, 319. The glanis of Aristotle, 325. On the general characters of orders in the classification of the Animal Kingdom, 346. On the death of Francis C. Gray, 347. On the correspondence of different stages of embryonic development with the different stages of geological succession, 353. On De Beaumont's theory, 355. The order to which Ammonites belong, 356. The family of Naiades, 378. Ages of trees, as known from their rings, 335. Allantois, on the formation and function of the, 12. Alsia, 184. Calif ornica, 185. Aluminum, 127, 221, 255. Amaroria, 51. Ammonites, to which order of the Cephalopoda do they belong ? 356. Anhalonium, 270. Anorthoscope, 162. Aphides, researches on the development of, 55. Arago, Francois, decease of, 62. 392 INDEX. Ariocarpus, 270. Arrowroot, 116. Arsenic, octohedral crystals of, 204. AstronidiiDn, 53. Astronomical Journal, 5. Atomic weights of the elements, 83. Atomic weights, the numerical relation between the, with some thoughts on the classification of the chemical elements, 90. B. Babbage's Calculating Engine, 389. Bacon, J. Observations on the oil contained in the Crustaceans found in the Cochituate water, 178. Beck, Charles. Petronius Arbiter, 254. BiGELOW, Jacob. On epidemics, 35. The cause of the death of Pliny the Elder, 336. Binocular combination, 213. Bioscope, on the, 106. Bleeders, 61. Bond, G. P. Observations for curves of terrestrial magnetism, 186. Planet Saturn, 186. Disturbance of the horizontality of the axis of the Great Equatorial at Cambridge, 194. Effect of the Moon's attraction, 194. On the use of equivalent factors in the method of least squares, 251. The results of the photography of the stars Mizar and Alcor, 386. Brackenridgea Ilookeri, 51. nitida, 51. Burnett, W. J. Formation and function of the Allantois, 12. On cartilaginous and osseous tissues, 17. On the signification of cell- segmentation, and the relations of this process to the phenomena of reproduction, 43. Researches on the development of the Aphides, 55. On the intimate structure of muscle, 61. On the development of organs, 64. Decease of, 163. C. Cactacese, synopsis of the, of the Territory of the United States, 259. Additions, 345. Cactus, spec, 259, 264, 299, 301, 306. INDEX. 393 Cactus Region, geography of the, of the United States, 311. Calculating Engine of Babbage, 389. Caldwell, George C. On the oleic acid series of fatty acids, 349. Carbonaceous deposit, 379. Cell-segmentation, on the signification of, 43. Cereus, 278. Subgen. Echinocereus, 278. acifer, 284. adustus, 280. Berlandieri, 286, 314. csespitosus, 280. chloranthus, 278. conoideus, 284. ctenoides, 279. dasyacanthus, 279. dubius, 282. Engelmanni, 283. enneacanthus, 282. Fendleri, 281. gonacanthus, 283. hexaedrus, 285. longisetus, 280. Mojavensis, 281. paucispinus, 285. pectinatus, 279. pentalophus, 314. phceniceus, 284. polyacanthus, 284. procumbens, 286. Roemeri, 285. rufispinus, 280. stramineus, 282. triglochidiatus, 283. tuberosus, 286. viridiflorus, 278. Subgen. Eucereus, 286. Emoryi, 286. Greggii, 287. variabilis, 287. VOL. III. 50 394 INDEX. Subgen. Lepidocereus, 287. giganteus, 287. Thurberi, 288. Subgen. Pilocereus, 288. Sr-bottii, 288. Cestracion, 65. Channikg, W. F. On photographic pictures, 2. On the velocity of • sound, 26. On the Ericsson engine, 32. On Magneto-electric machines, 90. Chemical analysis, apparatus for, 70. Chemical interest, on some points of, connected with the manufacture of ductile iron, 341. Circulating system, on the phenomena accompanying the first appear- ance of, 166. Cochituate water, change which has taken place in, 173. Cochituate water, oil contained in the Crustaceans found in the, 178, 2u^, tCDO. Coins of Athens, 215. Coke of Richmond, 106. Cole, Thomas, decease of, 10. CoMBiUNicATiONS from Agassiz, L., 6, 7, 23, 42, 46, 63, 65, 69, 85, 166, 185, 187, 192, 194, 204, 221, 319, 325, 347, 353, 356, 379. Bacon, J., 178. Beck, Charles, 254. Bigelow, Jacob, 336. Bond, G. P., 186, 194, 251, 386. Bowen, Francis, 357. Burnett, W. J., 12, 17, 43, 55, 61, 64. Caldwell, George C, 349. Channing, W. F., 2, 26, 32, 90. Cooke, J. P., 70, 83, 86, 90, ;59, 204. Durkee, Silas, 168, 320. Engelmann, George, 259, 311. Eustis, H. L., 10, 22, 251. Felton, C. C, 173, 210, 215, 333, 371. Gould, A. A., 61, 109, 253. Gould, B. A., Jr., 47, 131, 167. Gray, Asa, 34, 41, 48, 73, 90, 94, 127, 159, 166, 181, 258, 335. INDEX. 395 Hall, James, 204. Hayes, A. A., 85, 92, 108, 162, 173, 190, 198, 199, 221, 322, 336, 341, 355, 379. Hay ward, George, 60. Henry, Joseph, 198. Hitchcock, President, 3, 325. Holmes, O. W., 5, 334, 355. Horsford, E. N., 34, 88, 89, 109, 127, 185, 321, 364. Hunt, T. S., 192. Jackson, Charles, Jr., 31. Jackson, C. T., 68, 162, 193, 196, 252, 255, 322. Jenks, Dr., 320. Kneeland, Dr., 108. Leidy, Dr., 10. Lovering, Joseph, 22, 38, 106, 107, 160, 169, 187, 206, 225, 229, 320, 383. Peirce, Benjamin, 8, 9, 10, 25, 28, 31, 37, 64, 67, 83, 85. Pickering, Dr. C.,, 382. Rogers, William B., 81, 106, 186, 213, 220, 315, 319. Sequard, Brown, 24. Treadwell, D., 33, 91. Winlock, Joseph, 25. Wyman, Jeffries, 9, 25, 35, 60, 61, 68, 89, 162, 167, 255. Wyman, Morrill, 11. Conservation of force, 389. Contractility, cause of, in vegetahle tissues, 167. Cooke, J. P. Apparatus for conducting filtration i7i vacuo, 71. On atomic weights of the elements, 83. On a crystal of rhombic arsenic, 86. The numerical relation between the atomic weights, with some thoughts on the classification of the chemical elements, 90. On stibiobizincyle and stibiotrizincyle, 159. Octohedral crys- tals of arsenic, 204. Corn-starch, 112. Crystal of rhombic arsenic, 86. Culex pipiens, 168. Curves, on relation of, 83. Cyprinodonts, fam., 42. 396 INDEX. D. De Beaumont's theory of the elevation of mountain chains, 355. Decease of Fellows, Associate Fellows, and Foreign Honorary Mem- bers, 39, 40, 61, 131, 163, 164, 195, 224, 256, 347. Diclido carpus, 48. Dighton rock, the removing of, 322. Donation, 26, 168. Drayfonia, 49. DuRKEE, Silas. On Culex pipiens, 168. E. I Ear, on the voluntary motion of, in man, 355. Echinocactus, 271. bicolor, 277. brevi-hamatus, 271. cylindraceus, 275. Emoryi, 275. flexispinus, 273. hamatocanthus, 273. hamatus, 272. horizonthalonius, 276. ingens, 275. intertextus, 277. Lecontei, 274. Lindheimeri, 276. longehamatus, 273. Muhlenpfordtii, 272. Parryi, 276. pectinatus, 279. polyancistrus, 272. polycephalus, 276. Scheerii, 271. setispinus, 272. sinuatus, 273. Texensis, 276. Treculianus, 273. uncinatus, 272. INDEX. 397 unguispinus, 278. viridescens, 275. Whipple!, 271. Wislizeni, 274. Echinocereus radians, 280. Effluvia, ashes, &c., emitted by volcanoes, nature of, 337. Elastic sacs, the forms assumed by, 8, 10. Electrical currents, the induction of, 198. Ellipse, the property of, 10. Engelmann, George. Synopsis of the Cactacse of the United States, 259. Geography of the Cactus region of the United States, 311. Epidemics, cause of, 35. Equation, personal, on the means of diminishing the, 47. Ericsson engine, on the, 28, 31, 33. EusTis, H. L. On the property of the ellipse, 10. Formula for the measure of the solidity of a prismoid, 22. On a case of warped surfaces, 251. Everett, Edward. Changes in the locality of the solfa-taras, 337. F. Fall of Troy, two distinct dates of, 382. Families, similarity of form essential, 379. Farrar, John, decease of, 38. Fellows elected. Adams, Charles Francis, 356. Arnold, Albert N., 205. Boutwell, George S., 356. Brewer, Thomas M., 167. Gary, Thomas G., 257. Child, Francis J., 205. Choate, Rufus, 167. Clark, Henry James, 326. Cooke, Josiah Parsons, 32. Cotting, Benjamin E., 59. Curtis, B. R., 167. Dexter, William P., 24. Durkee, Silas, 167. Ellis, George E., 257. 398 INDEX. Frothingham, N. L., 335, Gould, Benjamin A., 335. Gray, John C, 205. Grp--.ough, Richard, 205. Henck, John B., 257. Hill, Thomas, 48. Lee, William Raymond, 42. Livermore, George, 185. Lowell, James Russell, 205. Motley, J. Lothrop, 356. Parker, Joel, 32. Parkman, Francis, 195. Parkman, Samuel, 59. Peabody, Ephraim, 167. Peters, C. H. F., 326. Sophocles, E. A., 335. Sprague, Charles James, 257. Stearns, William A., 205. Torrey, Henry W., 335. Ware, Charles E., 167. Winlock, Joseph, 48. Fellows, Associate, elected. Bryant, William C, 212. Crawford, Thomas, 212. Curtis, Moses A., 212. Dalton, J. C, Jr., 212. Hayes, Isaac, 346. Hickok, Laurens P., 346, Irving, Washington, 212. Kirtland, J. P., 212. Mahan, Dennis H., 212. Powers, Hiram, 212. Short, Charles W., 212. Wood, George B., 346. Felton, C. C. The present aspect of Greece, 173. On the Pnyx and Bema at Athens, 210. On silver coins of Athens, 215. Me- nander in New York, 371. Fishes, cartilaginous, living and fossil, 63. FcEtal child, transformation of, into phosphorus, 321. INDEX. 399 Food, on the value of different kinds of prepared vegetable, 109. arrowroot, 116. corn-starch, 112, 113. farina, 123. maccaroni, 121. prepared potato, 122. rice flour, 120. sago, 117. tapioca, 114. wheat-starch, 119. Footprints of birds, 193. Force, on the measure of, 91. Fossil bones, 109. Fossil bones of birds, 9. Fossil fruits and seeds, 3. Fossils, new species of, 204. Fusel-oil compound, 11. G. Gauss, C. F., decease of, 195. Gentianacese, on the placentation of, 258. Giants,, 325. Gold, at Bridgewater, Vt., 162. Gould, A. A. On fossil bones, 109. Ejection of living animals from the human stomach, 253. Gould, B. A., Jr. On personal equation, 47. On error in transit observations, 48. Misapplication of remarks on record at a previ- ous meeting, 131. Elements of the fourth comet of 1854, 167. Gray, Asa. On Trichomanes, 34. Characters of some new genera of plants collected in the exploring expedition under Captain Wilkes, 48, 127. Spongilla, 90. California Coniferous tree, 94. Charac- ters of some new genera and species of plants in a collection, made chiefly in New Mexico, Southwest California, and Sonora, by George Thurber, 159. Note on the characters and affinities of Vavsea, 166. Placentation of certain Gentianaceae, 258. Gutta percha, on rendering it elastic, 88, 400 INDEX. H. Hall, James. Fossils, new species of, 204. Haplovelalon, 53. Harris, Dr. Thaddeus William, decease of, 224. Hayes, A. A. On the disappearance of marsh gas, 85. On pho- tometer, 92. On a patent process for the preservation of the juice of the India-rubber-tree from decomposition, 108. New process of coating iron with copper, 162. Change in Cochituate water, 173. A new species of wax, 190. On liydro-electric currents, 198. On a specimen of native iron from Liberia, 199. On aluminium, 221. Change of position among the particles of metal induced b)^ the percussion of the masses they form, 322. Nature of effluvia and ashes emitted by volcanoes, 336. On some points of chemical interest, connected with the manufacture of ductile iron, 341. Telegraph cable, 355. Carbonaceous deposit, 379. Hayward, George. Hydrophobia, 60. Hedgcock's quadrant, 378. Report on, 384. Henry, Joseph. On the induction of electrical currents, 198. Heterandria, 43. Hitchcock, President. Fossil fruits and seeds, 3. Holmes, O. W. On the microscope, 5. On the voluntary motion of the ear in man, 355. Stand for a microscope, 385. HoRSFORD, E. N. Leprosy, 34. On rendering gutta percha elastic, 88. On the nutritive value of amylaceous articles of food, 89. Incrustation of Cochituate water-pipes, 89. On the value of differ- ent kinds of prepared vegetable food, 109. Aluminum, 127. Transformation of a foetal child into phosphorus, 321. The value of saltpetre for the manufacture of nitric acid, 354. Hydrophobia, 60. I. Incrustation, ferruginous, of the Cochituate water-pipes, 89. Indian arrow-heads, 322. India-rubber, on the preservation of, 108. Inscription, Runic, 319. Invitation from the Committee on the Inauguration of the Statue of Franklin, 320. Iron from Liberia, 199. INDEX. 401 Iron, on some points of chemical interest connected with the manu- facture of, 341. J. Jackson, Charles, Jr. On the Ericsson engine, 31. Jackson, C. T. On copper and gold mines, 68. Analysis of water, 196. Crustacea in the Cochituate water, 251. K. Kneeland, Dr. S. On the original diversity of the human races, 108. Least Squares, on the use of equivalent factors in the method of, 251. Lectures, to be given by Fellows of the Academy, 6, 17, 27, 87. Leprosy, 34. Library, donations to, by Abbot, S. L., 251. Abert, J. J., 150. Academia Naturse Curiosorum, Breslau, 140, 246, 368, 371. Academic d'Archeologie de Belgique, 60, 152. Academic des Sciences de I'Institut Imp. de France, 139, 236, 358. Academic Imperiale des Sciences de Saint Petersbourg, 135, 240. Academic Nationale des Sciences, &c. de Lyon, 347. Academy, Imperial, of Sciences, Vienna, 139, 237, 361. Academy, Imperial, of Sciences, Arts, aild Belles-Lettres, Caen, 234, 364. Academy, Imperial, of Sciences, Belles-Lettres, and Arts, Lyons, 368. Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, 135, 156, 233, 362. Academy of Science of St. Louis, Missouri, 370. Academy of Sciences, Arts, and Belles-Lettres, Dijon, 156, 234, 364. Academy of Sciences of Rouen, 245. Academy, Royal Bavarian, 157, 237, 363. Academy, Royal Danish, 140, 370. Academy, Royal Irish, 144, 245, 366. Academy, Royal, of Sciences, Belgium, 147, 246. Academy, Royal, of Sciences, Madrid, 364. VOL. III. 51 402 INDEX. Academy, Royal, of Sciences, Naples, 369. Academy, Royal, of Sciences, Stockholm, 144, 251, 368, 371. Academy, Royal Prussian, 139, 367. Acland, Dr. Henry Wentworlh, 369. Adams, C. B., 138. Administration of Mines of Russia, 136, 240, 359. Andrews, J. D., 152. Appleton, Nathan, 358. Association, American, for the Advancement of Science, 138, 248. Association, British, for the Advancement of Science, 139,240, 366. Association, Mercantile Library, New York, 363. Bache, A. D., 152, 235. Bancroft, George, 241. . Barnard, Charles F., 244, 250. Barnard, Henry, 152. Bartlett, John, 145. Bigelow, Jacob, 139, 236. Binney, Amos, Estate of, 369, 385. Biot, J. B., 366. Boston, the Mayor of, 142. Bowerbank, J. S., 141. Braumiiller, Wilhelm, 144. Bright, John D., 241. Brooks, Charles, 133, 250. Burlingame, Anson, 362. Cambridge, City of, 154. Channing, Walter, 142. Channing, William F., 358. Clibborn, E., 250, 359. Cole, Thomas, 67, 153. Comite Central d'Agriculture de la Cote d'Or, 364. Commissioner of Patents, 157. Craig, H., 359. Cramer, Charles, 143. Delessert, Francois, 155. Dennis, J. C, 147. Dufrenoy, M. M., et Elie de Beaumont, 151. Dumeril, A. August, 142, 240. Dumeril, A. A., Demarquay, et Lccomte, 143. INDEX. 403 Dumeril, A. A., et Demarquay, 143. Dumeril, C, 240. Engel, F., and K. Schellbach, 146. English, W. H., 241. Espy, James P., 133. Everett, Edward, 137, 146, 150, 151, 157. Flint, C. L., 244. Flourens, M., 247. Flugel, J. G., 140, 152. Foetterle, Franz, 243. Foster, J. W., and J. D. Whitney, 149. Frauenfeld, Georg, 361. Gerling, Professor, 155. Gesellschaft, Naturforschenden, in Emden, 362, 370. Gibbes, R. W., 150. GiUiss, J. M., 36, 249, 369. Girard, Carolo*, 147, 151, 234. Gleizes, J. A., 365. Gould, A. A., 138, 248. Gould and Lincoln, 145. Gould, B. A., Jr., 133, 235, 358. Government, British, 37, 133, 241. Government, Netherlands, 133, 234, 370. Graham, J. D., 144. Gray, Asa, 147. Gray, Francis C, 357. Gray, John C, 357. Grunert, J. A., 237, 245, 247, 365. Hall, James, 145. Hare, Robert, 365. Hausman, Professor, 141. Henck, John B., 154. Herman, Fr. P. W., 158. Heuschling, Xavier, 148. Heyfelder, J. F., 369. Hinkley, Edward, 149. HomoUe, E., and I. A. Quevenne, 156. Houghton, George F., 368. Hunt, T. S., 147, 366. 404 INDEX Institute, Albany, 245. Institute, Essex, 249, 364. T- .liute. Royal Netherlands, 143. Institution, Royal, of Great Britain, 144, 250, 368. Institution, Smithsonian, 136, 153, 241, 365. Jackson, Charles T., 140. Jarves, Deming, 158. Jelinck, C, 146. Jolis, Auguste le, 245. Journal, American, of Science and Arts, 135, 236. Journal of the Society of Arts and of the Institutions in Union, 147, 234. Konigsberg, Observatory of, 363. Krabinger, J. G., 158. Krantz, A., 241. * Kruseman, A. C, 156. Ladrey, Secretaire, 364. Lapham, J. A., 248. Latour, L. A. Huguet, 142, 358. Lea, Henry C, 243. Lea, Isaac, 243, 363. Lea, L., and G. W. Many penny, 140. Lecerf, M., 234. Lefroy, J. H., 147. Lehmann, C, 136. Leidy, Joseph, 136, 145, 247, 365. Leport, J., 155. Lepsius, R., 358. Liais, Emmanuel, 137, 245. Library, Boston Public, 155, 251, 367. Library, New York State, 245, 365. Little and Brown, 152, 154. Lobeck, Justus Florianus, 362. Lowe, E. J., 367. Lyceum of Natural History of New York, 136. Maclear, Thomas, 150. Manypenny, G. W., 250. Martius, C. F. P. de, 146, 158, 236. Mason, Charles, 369. INDEX. ' 405 Maury, M. F., 368. McCoy, Amasa, 147. Medford, Selectmen of, 250. Melloni, Macedoine, 155. Minister, French, of Public Instruction, 154. Morton, W. T. G., 143. Murchison, Sir Roderick Impey, 138. Museum d'Histoire Naturelle de Paris, 142, 367. Naturhistorischer Verein der Preussischen Rheinlande, 367. Newport, George, 152. Observatorio de Marina de San Fernando, 154, 245, 364. Observatory, Breslau, 156. Observatory, Brussels, 148. Observatory of Cambridge, Eng., 154. Observatory of Harvard College, 244, 365. Observatory of Prague, 151, 242, 360. Observatory, Washington, 155, 240. O'Callaghan, E. B., 135. Owen, Professor, 150. Paine, Martyn, 145. Parsons, Usher, 148. Patent Office, United States, 248. Peters, C. A. F., 363. Phipps, Abner J., 369. Prankl, Carl, 158. Prescott, William H., 249. Pulkova, Observatory of, 360. Quetelet, A., 148, 246. Quetelet, M. E., 148. Quevenne, T. A., 248. Ramsay, H. A., 147. Rand, George C, 143. Redfield, W. C, 157. Reichsanstalt, K. K. Geologischen zu Wien, 154, 237, 361. Rogers, Henry D., 250. Rogers, Wm. B., 247. Rokitansky, Carl, 359. Roth, J., 157. Runkle, John D., 367. 406 INDEX. Sabine, Edward, 148, 150, 249, 366. Saint-Hilaire, Geoffrey, 367. Sp':obury, E. E., 248. Saussure, H. F. de, 151. , Schlectendal, D. F. L. von, 364. Scoresby, William, 144. Sedgwick, Professor, 250. Shurtleff, N. B., 156, 249, 367. Societe de Phys. et d'Hist. Nat. de Geneve, 149, 367. Societe des Sciences des Indes Neerlandaises, 244. Societe des Sciences Naturelles de Cherbourg, 249. Societe des Sciences Naturelles de Neuchatel, 249. Societe du Museum d'Hist. Nat. de Strasbourg, 149. Societe Imperiale d' Agriculture de Lyon, 368. Societe Imperiale des Naturalistes de Moscou, 249, 360. Societe Nationale d'Agriculture, &c. de Lyon, 347. Societe pour Secourir les Noyes a Amsterdam, 363. Societe Zoologique d'Acclimatation, 367. Society, American Antiquarian, 153. Society, American Oriental, 133, 347, 368. Society, American Philosophical, 133, 244, 364. Society, Batavian, of Arts and Sciences, 152, 244. Society, Boston, for the Prevention of Pauperism, 248. Society, Boston, of Natural History, 134, 369. Society, Harvard Natural History, 150. Society, Imperial Mineralogical, St. Petersburg, 136. Society, Imperial, of Natural Sciences, Cherbourg, 364. Society, Linnsean, of London, 144, 243, 370. Society, Massachusetts Historical, 133, 364. Society of Geography, of Paris, 156, 242, 359. Society of Sciences, Harlem, 138, 240, 368. Society, Paleontographical, 141. Society, Royal Bohemian, of Science, Prague, 386. Society, Royal, of London, 137, 235, 361. Society, Royal, of Northern Antiquaries, 247. Society, Royal, of Sciences, Gottingen, 139, 368. Society, Royal, of Sciences, Leipzig, 153, 248, 370. Society, Royal, of Sciences, Upsal, 144, 367. Society, Zoological, of London, 250, 365. INDEX. 407 Sparks, Jared, 146. Stansbury, Arthur J., 150. Stansbury, Howard, 138. State of Massachusetts, 149. Statistical Committee of Belgium, 37. Struve, F. G. W., 141. Sumner, Charles, 362. Sumner, Thomas J., 143. Swift, W. H., 248. Tappan, Henry P., 370. Thiersch, Friedrick, 158. Tilesius, G., 146. Trask, John B., 364. Travers, Julien, 234. Treadwell, Daniel, 247. Universidad de Chile, 146. University, New York, 135, 244, 365. Vattemare, Alexander, 146, 148. Walker, Amasa, 133. Walley, Samuel H., 242. Warren, John C, 137, 155. Wayland, Francis, 151, 234. Weissbrod, Johann Baptist von, 152. Wetherill, Charles M., 143, 150, 236. White, D. A., 145. Willard, Joseph, 151. Winslow, Charles F., 146. Winthrop, Robert C, 142, 153. Wittman, Dr., 158. Wyman, Jeffries, 247. Younghusband, C. W., 150. Zantedeschi, E. Borlinetto, 366. Zantadeschi, Francesco, 146, 147, 366. Zoologisch-Botanischer Verein zu Wien, 360. Light and Sound, new modes of illustrating the laws of, 169. LovEEiNG, Joseph. Report on sections, 4. On the stereoscope, 22. Notice of death of John Farrar, 38. Report on request to publish from the Proceedings of the Academy, 67. The bioscope, 106. Instrument for producing great velocity in experimental physics, 408 INDEX. 107. Shape of luminous spots during solar eclipses, 160. New experiments illustrating the laws of light and sound, 169. On * -ago's opinion of " table-moving," 187. On motions of rotation, 206. L'Appareil Regulateur de la Lumiere Electrique, 225. " Does the Mississippi River run up hill or down hill ? " 229. Re- port on Hedgcock's quadrant, 384. Luma, 52. Cheke7i, 52. correcefolia, 53. Cruckshanksii, 52. ferruginea^ 53. ohtusa, 52. stenophylla, 52. Temui 52. Lumiere Electrique, I'Appareil Regulateur de la, 225. Luminous spots, shape of, during solar eclipses, 160. M. Maccaroni, 121. Magneto-electric machinery, 90. Mamillaria, 260. Subgen. Eumamillaria, 260. ancistroides, 262. applanata, 263. barbata, 261. bicolor, 263. declivis, 263. Goodrichii, 262. Grahami, 262. Greggii, 261. gummifera, 264. hemisphserica, 263. Heyderi, 263. lasiacantha, 261. meiacantha, 263. micromeris, 260. microthele, 261. phellosperma, 262. pusiUa, 261. INDEX. Schiedeana, 261. sphserica, 264. tetrancistra, 262. Wrightii, 262. Subgen. Coryphantha, 264. calcarata, 267. compacta, 266. conoidea, 268. cornifera, 267. dasyacantha, 268. Echinus, 267. macromeris, 270. Nuttallii, 264. papyracantha, 264. pectinata, 266. Pottsii, 268. radiosa, 269. recurvispina, 266. robustispina, 265. Scheerii, 265. scolymoides, 267. similis, 265. strobiliformis, 267, 268. sulcata, 267. tuberculosa, 268. vivipara, 269. Subgen. Anhalonium, 270. fissurata, 270. Marsh gas, on the disappearance of, 85. Mastodon, internal structure of cranium, 25. Mastodon, the lower jaw of, 68. Medal, presented by the Jussieu family, 205. Meetings, Annual, 1, 37, 130, 194, 256. Melloni, Macedoine, decease of, 164. Members, Honorary. Argelander, F. W. A., 205. Boeckh, August, 42. Bopp, Franz, 205. Brodie, Benjamin, 205. VOL. III. 52 409 410 INDEX. Bunsen, Chevalier, 42. Cousin, Victor, 205. Gr^'., G.,42. Guizot, Francois, 205. Hamilton, Sir William, 131. Johnson, Manuel J., 346. Lepsius, E.., 42. Mill, John Stuart, 346. Mittermaier, C, 42. Owen, Richard, 205. Peters, C. A. F., 42. Rayer, P., 205. Regnault, Victor, 205. Siebold, C. Th. von, 131. Thiersch, Friedrich von, 205. Vicat, L. D., 205. Whately, Archbishop, 205. Memoirs, sixth volume, 357. Menander in New York, 371. Metals, on the change of position among the particles of solid, induced by the action of gentle but continued percussion of the masses they form, 322. Microscope, 5, 193. Microscope, stand for a, 385. Mines, copper and gold, 68. Mississippi River, does it run up hill or down hill ? 229. Moon, the effect of the attraction of, 194. Mosses, new species, by Sullivant, 181. Hypnum Caldereuse, 184. Hyimum limhatum, 183. Hypopterygium Brasiliense, 184. Hypopterygium glaucum^ 184. Meteorium Brasiliense, 182. Meteorium Mauiensis, 182. Meteorium nitidum, 183. Neckera phyllogonioides, 181. Pilotrichum Vitianum^ 182. Mosses, notices of new species, from the Pacific Islands, 73. Cryphcea cuspidata, 80. Hookeria dehilis, 79. / INDEX. Hookeria oblongifolia, 80. Hookeria Tahitensis, 79. Hypmun apertimi, 73. Hypnum arcuatum, 74. Hypnum aristatum, 76. Hypnum decurrens, 77. Hypmmi Draytoni, 76. Hypnum Eudorce, 77. Hypmwi molliculum, 78. Hypniwi moUuscoides, 73. Hypnum mundulum, 75. Hyjmum opceodon, 77. Hyjmum Pickeringii, 74. Hypnum sodale, 78. Hypmim 7 speciosissimicm, 75. Hypnum tejiuisetum, 78. Hypnum Tutuilum, 75. Hyjmum Wilkesianum, 73. Mniadelplius Vitimms, 79. Neckera tricostata, 81. Pilotrichum setigerum, 80. Rhizogonium pungens, 82. Muscle, on the intimate structure of^^l- N. Naiades, the form of the family of, 879. Nitric Acid, the value of saltpetre for the manufacture of, 354. Nutritive value of amylaceous articles of food, 89. 411 O. Officers, 2, 41, 132, 196, 257. Oncocarpus, 51. Opuntia, 289 - 310. Subgen. 1. Stenopuntia^ 289. grandis, 289. stenopetala, 289. Subgen. 2. Platopimtia, 290. angustata, 292. 412 INDEX. arenaria, 301. basilaris, 298. brachyarthra, 302. bulbosa, 297. csespitosa, 295. Camanchica, 293. chlorotica, 291. cymochila, 295. dulcis, 291. Engelmanni, 290. erinacea, 301. Ficus-Indica, 290. filipendula, 294. fragilis, 301. fusiform Is, 297. fusco-atra, 297. humifusa, 295. hystricina, 299. Lindheimeri, 291. macrocentra, 292. mesacantha, 295. macrorhiza, 296. microdasys, 298. Missouriensis, 299, 315.* Mojavensis, 293. occidentalis, 291. phseacantha, 292. procumbens, 292. puberula, 299. Rafinesquii, 295. rufida, 298. setispina, 294. sphcerocarpa, 300. Strigil, 290. stenochila, 296. tenuispina, 294. tortispina, 293. Tuna, 290. vulgaris, 297. INDEX. 41o Subgen. 3. Cylindropuntia, 302. acanthocarpa, 308. arborescens, 307. arbuscula, 309. Bigelovii, 307. bulbispina, 304. clavata, 302. Davisii, 305. echinocarpa, 305. Emoryi, 303. frutescens, 309. fulgida, 306. Grahami, 304. mamillata, 308. Parryi, 303. prolifera, 306. ramosissima, 309. Schottii, 304. serpentina, 306. stellata, 307. tessellata, 309. Thurberi, 308. vaginata, 309. Whipple!, 307. Wrightii, 308. Original diversity of the human races, 108. Origin of the human race, diversity of, 7. Orthagoriscus Mola, 319. P. Peirce, Benjamin. On the form assumed by elastic sacs containing fluid, 8. Observations on photographic images, 9. On the Erics- son engine, 28, 31. On collision of solid bodies, 67. On relations of curves, 83. Peirson, Dr. Decease of, 38. Pelea, 50. auriculcefoUa, 50. ' clusicefolia, 50. lucida^ 51. 414 INDEX. oblongifolia, 50. rotundifolia, 50. Sandwicetisis, 50. volcanica, 50. Petronius Arbiter, on, 254. Photographic images, observations on, 9. Photography as apphed to astronomy, 386. Photometer, on the, 92. Physics, instrument for producing great velocity in, 107. Pickering, Dr. C. On sulphur vapors, 338. Plants, characters of some new genera of, 48. Pleiochiton^ 53. Plerandra, 129. Pickeringii, 129. Pliny the Elder, on the nature and probable cause of the death of, 336. Pnyx and Bema, at Athens, 210. Polyps, classification of, 187. Prepared potato, 122. Protozoic Age of some of the altered rocks of Eastern Massachusetts, proofs of the, 315. Q. Quadrant, Hedgcock's, 378. Report on, 384. R. Report on a course of lectures, 27. Report on arrangement of sections, 4. Report on Hedgcock's Quadrant, 384. Resolution on the death of Francis C. Gray, 349. Reynoldsia, 128. pleiosper7na^ 129. Sandwicensis^ 129. Rhytidandra, 49. Rice flour, 120. Rings of trees, unequal growth of, 235. Rogers, W. B. On coal basins, 69. On vertical beams of light, 81. On coke, 106. On binocular combinations, 213. On the ozonom- INDEX. 415 eter, 220. Proofs of the protozoic age of some of the altered rocks in Massachusetts, 315. Rotation, on motions of, 206. S. Sago, 117. Secretary, Recording, 25. Setosse, 263. Sicyos, subgen. Sicyocarya, 54. cucumerinus, 54. macrophyllus, 54. pachycarpus, 54. Subgen. Sicyopsis, 54. montamis, 54. Snow, shape of the masses of, 325. Solfa-taras, the action and changes in locaUty of the, 337. Sound, on the velocity of, 26. Spider-lines for use in the micrometers of telescopes, 22. SpircBantlienmm, 128. Samoense, 128. Vitiense^ 128. " Spiritual Manifestations," Arago's opinion of, 187. Spongilla, 90. Springs, the flowing of, 167, Statutes, amendments of, 1. Stereoscope, 22. Streptodesinia, 52. SuLLivANT, W. S. Notices of new Mosses obtained by the exploring expedition under Captain Wilkes, 181. T. Tadpoles, 35, 60. Tangents of circles and spheres, 385. Tapioca, 114. Telegraph cable, 355. Terrestrial magnetism, discussion of observations for cui'ves of, 186. Teschemacher, J. E., decease of, 61. Tetraplasandra, 129. Tissues, cartilaginous and osseous, 17. 416 INDEX. Torpedo occidentalis, 89. Transfusion, 24. T ^ADWELL, Daniel. On the Ericsson engine, 32. On the measure of force, 91. Tree, on a large Californian Coniferous, 94. Trichomanes, 34. Troy, two dates for the fall of, 382. Turtles, considered as corresponding in their embryonic development with the different stages of geological succession, 353. Vertical beams of light, 81. Volcanic ashes, the nature of, 338. W. Walker, Sears C, decease of, 40. Wax, a new species of, 190. Webster, Daniel, decease of, 23. Wellingtonia gigantea, 130. Wheat-starch, 119. Wyman, Jeffries. On fossil bones of birds, 9. Mastodon, internal structure, 25. The effects of physical agents on the development of life, 35. On tadpoles, 60. On the jaw of the mastodon, 68, Torpedo occidentalis, 89. Cause of contractility in some vegetable tissues, 167. Wyman, Morrill. On fusel-oil compounds, 11. Zoology, classification in, 221. Zugonectes, 43. END OF VOLUME III. MBL WHOI LIBRARY lilH 1A7K 1 ^^>