fiBiWBBatgt 1 ryBUfl !HII Wm/w, \TM Iff Will Sic KM Hi m ■ ■ HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP: 1885. HARDWICKE'S AN ILLUSTRATED MEDIUM OF INTERCHANGE AND GOSSIP FOR STUDENTS AND LOVERS OF NATURE. EDITED BY J. E. TAYLOR, Ph.D., F.L.S., F.G.S., F.R.G.S.I., HON. MEMBER OF THE MANCHESTER LITERARY' CLUB, OF THE NORWICH GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY', OF THE MAKYPOBT SCIENTIFIC SOCIETY, OF THE ROTHERHAM LITERARV AND SCIENTIFIC SOCIETY, OF THE NORWICH SCIENCE-GOSSIP CLUB, OF THE GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF AUSTRALASIA, OF THE VICTORIAN FIELD NATURALISTS* CLUB, ETC. ETC. ASSISTED BY J. W. BUCK, B.Sc, &C. VOLUME XXI. UonUon : CHATTO AND WINDUS, PICCADILLY. 1885. (All rights reserved.) LONDON : PRINTED BY WILLIAM CLOWES AND SONS, LIMITED, STAMFORD STREET AND CHAR'NG CRCHS. / 0 L 6 / PREFACE. SOME years ago Professor Huxley delivered a lecture at the Royal Institution, entitled "The Coming of Age of the Darwinian Theory," celebrating thereby the momentous natural history discoveries and events, of which the brilliant discovery of our Biological NEWTON was the parent, nurse, and suggestor. We desire only to compare great things with small. The present volume also witnesses the "Coming of Age" of Science-Gossip. For twenty-one years we have endeavoured to meet the tastes of students of natural science — to treat of the discoveries, theories, opinions, and guesses in every department of the same — Ornithological Entomological, Conchological (besides many other ologicals) ; Botany, in its multitudinous departments ; Geology (including Paleontology, Petrology, Lithology, &c.) ; Microscopy, with its enormous and ever- increasing " Cast-net " over every science imaginable ; as well as a host of subjects bordering on Astronomy, Meteorology, Chemistry, Folk-lore, and " Notes and Queries " (which latter will be found tolerably encyclopaedic). It has been a loving and loveable work on the part of the Editors. For the first seven years this Magazine had the advantage of the Editorship of Dr. M. C. Cooke — for the last fourteen years, the present Editor has had the enjoyment of personal communication with all, or nearly all, the writers whose papers have appeared in these pages. A brief interregnum, however, has occurred. Owing to failing- health, the Editor was obliged to take as long a holiday as he could. Fortunately, the same able agent who piloted Mr. R. A. Proctor through Australia as a Lecturer on Astronomy, came to England, and made a similar arrangement with the Editor of SCIENCE-GOSSIP. PREFACE. He went, he lectured, he was generously, and even enthusiastically received by the warm-hearted Australian Colonists in South Australia, Victoria, and New South Wales. He has returned with refreshed mental and bodily vigour. But, meantime, a well-known correspondent of this magazine, Mr. J. W. Buck, B.Sc, &c, was kind enough to act as Editorial locum- tenenSy and he performed his work so well that the Editor feels he could not honestly write this Preface to the Annual Volume without recognising it. The mere fact that we are now chronicling our " Coming of Age," reminds us of the almost numberless competitors for public favour which " twenty-one " years of active Scientific and Literary life in England must necessarily develop. Consequently, it is a proud thing to say, on the part of the Editor, that our Magazine was never so popular, never so much appreciated, never so widely circulated all over the world — in all the eventful years of its history — as it is at the time of publication of its Twenty-first Volume. Nothing shall be wanting on the part of the Editor to enlarge the sphere, and intensify the operations of this Magazine for the future. His office is smoothed by the generous patience and kindness of his multitudinous Correspondents, who are aware that all their communications cannot appear in the next number — as well as by those patient students who understand the difficulty of answering hard questions in a moment. We commence a New Era with our next volume. We are taking out a new Lease of Life. The last twenty-one years has seen a good deal of the effect of natural selection. Hosts of magazines with a similar scope to ours have appeared — and ^-appeared. We recognise the vital fact that for a magazine to live, it must prove itself worthy of life ! Our intentions for the next volume arc that our literary manhood shall be fully maintained. Will our numerous readers, all over the world, help us to carry out our intentions, by also aiding in the cir- culation of Science-Gossip ? LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. Acrodus Anuingiie, Jaw of, 109 Acrodus minimus. Tooth of, 108 Acrodus nobilis. Tooth of, &c, 108 Acrodus, section of spine, 108 Adiantum caudatum, 133 Adiantum fiabellulatuin, 133 .Etobatis, Straight teelh of, 270 .Etobatis, Arched teeth of, 270 Ammonites lautus, 29 Ammonites varicosus, 13 Anemone Halleri, 85 Anemone Pulsatilla, 84 Anemone mont ma, 84 Anthomyia meteorica, teeth of, 4 Anthracosia ovata, 32 Apor-rhais Parkinsonii, 28 Arion, sp., 225 Arum maculatum, pjpilla; and spadi.v, 80 Arum maculatum, p ant, conns, starch, &c, 60, 61 Aspleuium fapouicitm, 149 Botys hyalinalis, Embryology OK, 33 Brainea insignis, 220 Broom-rape, 157 Cardium Hillanum, 12 Carica Papaya, Fruit and Leaf, 249 Caricea tigriua, Teeth of, 206 Ccstracion Philippi, Jaw of, 108 Cinnamomum Camphora, 248 Confervas from the Red Sea, 52 Ctenoptychius pectinatus, 228 Cuscuta Epithymum, 173 Davallia polypodioides, 221 Davallia tenuifolia, 220 Devonshire, Generalised Section of South Eastern, 12 Diatoms, Diagram of movements, 188 Dicksonia Barometz, 220 Diplodus gibbosus, tooth, 156 Dodder, 173 Drepanephorus canaliculatus, Teeth and dorsal spines of, 156 Epithemia cistitla, 37 Exogyra conic a, 12 Flea, Common ; Development ok, Fucella fucorum, Teeth of, 266 Gervillea anceps, 13 Gleichenia dichotoma, 105 Grape hyacinths, 244-5 Gyrocantlius, Spine of, 271 //aplographium bicolor, chloroceph ■ilinil, ttnuissimum, 197 Helianthus annuus, 204 Helix Icevipes var. alba, 77 Hyalina glabra, cellaria, Drapamaldi, nitidula vax.fasciata, 225 Hybodus, section of spine, 108, hi iceramus conce itricus, 28 Jauassa, Dental Series and Succession ok Teeth, 228 Lathrwa squamaria, 173 Leucochroa candidissima, 225 Limn&a glutinosa, monst. intortum; pa- lustris, monst. turritnm peregra var. labiosa; peregra small var.; stagnalis var. expansa and var. elegant ula ; var. , 180 Limntea stagnalis, monst. scalariforme, 77 Lindscea jlabellitlata, 133 Lindsa-a heterophylla, 133 Live cell, Diagrams of, 8 Lygodium Japonicum, 105 Lygodium scandens, 105 Malvern Hills, Diagrammatic Sec- tion of, 125 Meniscium simplex, 177 Merganser, The Red-breasted, 181 Mergus Merganser, 181 Microscope, Direct Illumination, 201 Microtome, Freezing, 38 Microtome, Inexpensive, 8 Mistletoe, 173 Muscari comosum, 245 Muscari botryoides, 245 Muscari raamosum, 244 Myliobates, Teeth of, 270 Nephrolepis tuber osa, 177 Observatory Trough, 135 Onchus, Spine of, 271 Oracanthus Milleri, 271 Orchis mascula, anthers and pollinium, 101 Orchis mascula tubers, 124-5 Orobanche rapum, 157 Orthacauthus, section of spine, 156 Pal&ospiuax priscus, Teeth and Do _)'//.sr#.r margiualis, beneath the elytra. It is possible the Hydrachnea might be developed and reared in a tank in which the larger water beetles were kept and liberally fed ; it has been observed that an excess of the larger life in a tank will develop organisms not otherwise attainable. Mexican axolotls, the size of young rats, fed once a week on raw beef, have lived in captivity for several years in a receptacle of very limited dimensions ; the water never changed, but merely replenished, has always been in all seasons a world of microscopic life. In their perfect condition, the Hydrachnea are predatory, capturing with ease, and living upon Entomostraca ; they may be preserved for months in a vase with fragments of growing weeds ; but living food must occasionally be supplied. They should be examined "alive" under such conditions as will subdue and restrict their activity. Mr. George states that, if a specimen be isolated in a saucer in a drop just sufficient to keep it endeavouring to swim, and then deluged with hot water, it will exhibit all its features, necessarily, in a passive condition. It may then be transferred to, and closed in a cell, in the same water, and kept sufficiently long to afford pro- longed examination ; but, as permanent objects for the cabinet they appear to be failures, the vascularity rotundity, "tightness," and delicacy of their integu- ments seem to defy any known preservative medium ; " without pressure," they collapse, and become wrinkled; flattened, " underpressure," their integrity is too impaired, either for accurate observation, or drawing. Crouch End. WINTER BOTANY. CHILLON WOODS, MONTREUX. (December 5, 1884.) WE had arrived at our Montreux quarters for the winter, November 26th. After one or two days of brilliant sunshine, a heavy snowstorm had set in, fully six inches lying on the ground for the next thirty-six hours. This was followed by a rapid thaw with several very bright sunny mornings. On the morning of December 5th, we determined to re- visit some of our old haunts, choosing a well-known path leading from Territet through the upper village of Vey taux, and climbing the wooded mountain slopes to descend on the opposite side by the] woods and Chillon Castle. In previous years we had found an endless wealth of mosses, lichen and fungi, with some few interesting flowers still lingering as late as December. Nor were we disappointed in our search. Even in the snow-covered patches the hardy little Gentiana verna had opened its wonderfully blue corolla under the influence of the genial sun, and we counted twenty-four separate plants, at an elevation of 1500 feet above the sea in full vigorous bloom ; they were smaller plants, it is true, than the ordinary spring growth, but equally brilliant in colour. Hard BARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. by, nestling in the thickest bed of moss, and sheltered by the stump of an old chestnut, the ever-green and tough-stemmed mountain Polygala chamabuxus was in full flower ; the pairs of leaves closely resemble those of the box-tree, which the varied tints of the petals shade from white to yellow, red or brown ; a honey-scented plant that grows in splendid masses in spring, and very frequently in company with Gentiana verna. A strong spike of Salvia vcrbenaca, larger in all its parts, and far brighter in colour than an English species, was growing out of a wall. It had escaped the heavy snows, and we left the plant in the hope that sunny days might preserve the handsome coloured stem for the last few weeks of the year. In the dry bed of a mountain torrent a tall mullein stood upright, crowded with golden yellow blossom to the very tip. The leaves were smooth, slightly clasping the stem ; each flower had a patch of brown in the centre, while purple hairs covered the stamens'; the species apparently being Verbascum Blattaria ; again we had not the heart to cut it down. On every wall the delicate little creeper, Linaria Cymbalaria, with ivy-shaped leaves and lilac flowers, was out in pro- fusion. Two very striking plants next claimed our attention. Helltborus fcetidus, type of the Christmas roses, filled almost every crevice : the dark leaves deeply cut and serrated with the lighter green of the calices, afford a most pleasing variety, especially when the sepals have a tinge of reddish purple. Daphne laureola, the second of these evergreen plants, is also plentifully distributed through the Chillon Woods. The leaves are entire, of a dark, shiny green ; the axillary clusters of greenish flowers were in full bud, but hardly open. A little later, or rather early in the next year, the sweet-scented Mezereon {Daphne Mezereori) will be abundant higher up in these very woods, flowering before the young leaves appear. Trailing in a thicket, though not in the woods, we found a large quantity of the orange scarlet capsules of the Phy salts Alkekengi, or winter cherry. Though not indigenous in England, many will be familiar with the orange calyx, which fades away, leaving a network surrounding the orange fruit, which is extensively used as an article of food in North Italy, at the Cape of Good Hope, and other parts of the world. A handsome decora- tion may be made of this plant, which preserves the orange scarlet in a dry state for many weeks after it is gathered. It is a notable fact that, while the fruit of so many genera of this order are deadly poison, the physalis is harmless. Even the fruit of the potatoe is said to be injurious, and the tubers are unwholesome in a raw state. By the side of a trickling mountain stream a few solitary flowers of Saponaria officinalis still lingered, though the beauty of the delicate flesh-tinted petals was somewhat lost. Here and there a crimson cluster of berries still hung on the boughs of Guelder- rose {Viburnum Opultis), a shrub or tree not to be confused with V. Lantana, the mealy guelder-rose, s< i common to English hedgerows. In rocky rirags, above the slopes of brush-wood, a splendid array of Asphnium fontanum was in full beauty ; it is an evergreen fern, having lacy fronds which would enrich any collection, and is extremely easy to cultivate. It is said to have been exterminated in North. Wales, where it once flourished. We would earnestly beg of botanists, not only in England, but also in Switzerland, to gather plants and ferns only with care and judgment. It is generally so easy both to obtain specimens, and at the same time to leave plenty of a plant, for propagation. Un- fortunately this care is not always exercised, and unscrupulous collectors are doing great harm eacli year in the Alps. So many thousand plants of "edelweiss," for example, have been taken recently for trade purposes, that the Swiss authorities have been compelled to publish notices to tourists and would-be collectors, strongly urging care in the matter of gathering plants. Having been diligent in botanical collecting for over fifteen years we must emphatically repeat an opinion that it is never necessary to exterminate rare plants, even while obtain- ing the desired specimens. Aspleniutn trichomanes and A. viride, we found plentiful in several parts, the former, indeed, everywhere. A. Adianttim-nigrum is more sparingly scattered through these woods ; splendid fronds of Polypodium vulgaris we noted, so large as to make us wonder if it was not a different species of polypody. While naming the winter ferns, we may remark that Polystichum lonchitis, the holly-fern, grows in woods, the opposite side of the lake, and Ceterach officinale covers one wall not two miles away from Montreux. The leaves of Chelidonium ma/us, the greater celandine, were still fresh on many of the stone walls. Out of curiosity we cut through the main 'stem of a strong-looking plant to see if the yellow sap was still flowing ; there was little trace of the ' colouring matter ; the stem appeared dried up and shrinking away. In February the fresh life will well up into leaves and stems ; the mysterious power in nature which causes the renewal of vital energy will once more be in activity, and the suspended process of growth be continued. In a corner of a vineyard at Chillon, several deep crimson flowers of Fitmaria officinalis attracted the eye. On the grassy slopes two pink-blossomed specimens of Erythraa centaureutn remained, all the leaves faded, and, with a few terminal flowers only ; a solitary plant of Solatium nigrum, with a cluster of white flowers, we found on a heap of [loose stones, having several of the rather large black berries on a second stem. Of the numerous fungi we cannot say more now than to note the size and beauty of the scarlet Peziza cochinea, which is plentiful in parts of Chillon woods. It was a strange appearance to be gathering B 2 HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. gentians and other flowers in December, but no ■doubt hard frosts will shortly kill the few remaining species. We must then wait till February when the early " snow flakes " will show their heads, hepaticas, Scilla bifolia, corydalis, the crocus, sweet daphne, and an endless succession of spring flowers put forth blossoms. To the above list of flowers on December 5, we should add Corydalis lutea, out in profusion on an old stone wall at the upper end of the village of Territet. ('. Parkinson, F.G.S. The fly is about the same size as the house-fly ; is of a dark sage green colour, rather thickly covered with black hair. The wings have a tendency to assume a rusty brown hue towards the base ; the legs are decidedly a dead black. I have selected this creature as the subject of the present sketch, for the reason it may be looked upon as a typical example of form — all the teeth being similarly shaped, as in the blow-fly, but differing therefrom in the following respect : they terminate in three distinct points, having perfectly straight edges, and therefore differing from Musca domcstica Fjg. 1. — Teeth of ' Anthomyia meteorica, mag. 200 diams. a, position of secondary teeth. TEETH OF FLIES. ANTHOMYIA METEORICA. By W. D. Harris, Cardiff. No. III. HOW troublesome and teasing is that cloud of flies {Anthomyia meteorica) which readers must often have noticed in summer rides hovering round the heads and necks of our horses, accompanying them as they go, and causing a perpetual tossing of the former (Kirby & Spence). To this might be safely added, if they cannot find the horse they have no very decided objection to accompany the pedestrian, and he must be very thick skinned, or come from a very well behaved stock, if he is not tempted to speak of his persecutors in language more forcible than polite. minor. They are very long and narrow, but, neverthe- less, very strong instruments, the chitine being quite dark as compared with some creatures. Three of the central teeth appear to be backed up with indications of a second row (a) ; but the chitine is very delicate, and if present in the remaining teeth is difficult to make out ; each lobe of the proboscis contains eight teeth, and here again is a distinction which often creeps in when the same form is preserved, as will be seen later on. On the 5th December, Mr. R. Meldola, F.C.S., read a paper at the Geologists' Association, on a "Preliminary Notice of the East Anglian Earth- quake " of April 22nd, 1SS4. Dr. Hicks also gave a paper on " Some Recent Views concerning the Geology of the North-West Highlands." HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. EARLY SUN-GLOWS. THE remarkable sun-glows of last and the present year having attracted a considerable amount of attention among scientists, and being believed by many to be wholly unprecedented in the history of the earth, it may be of interest and value to give an account of the occasions on which similar phenomena have been observed in North Europe, according to the most reliable Scandinavian his- torians. Such purple glows as we have recently admired have been observed in the earliest times, when people believed that they were warnings from heaven of great coming disasters, as, for instance, war, plague, or famine. There appears, however, to be no reliable record of such a phenomenon until the middle of the sixteenth century. Thus, in the summer of 1553, such a glow, or, as it was then called, fire-sign, was observed all over Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, and, strangely enough, a terrible plague visited these countries in the same year. In Copenhagen its ravages were so great that the academical lectures at the University had to be adjourned for several months, and the students left the capital. The next glow was seen in the year 1636, when sailors, returning to Copenhagen from voyages in the Baltic and the North Sea, reported that for weeks the sky seemed on fire after sunset, and also in that year a plague visited the shores of Sweden and Denmark. By these coincidences popular superstition was fur- ther strengthened, although it was subsequently proved that the purple glow seen in 1636 was caused by a terrible eruption of Hekla, the great Iceland volcano. On the night of January 4, 1661, a frightful storm broke over North Europe. One whirlwind after the other unroofed houses and uprooted trees in hundreds, while the tide rose so high on the coast of Jutland that large districts were flooded. For several days the sky seemed a bath of lurid fire, and a great terror was caused amongst the population, most of whom believed that the Day of Judgment had come. The celebrated Danish historian, Bishop Jens Birkerod, writes in his diary " that the sky was terrible to behold ; it looked as if on fire ; " while his father, Professor Jakob Birkerod, asserts that he felt shocks of earthquake in the island of Funen. The same authority records that evil prophets predicted the last day, and, as the phenomenon passed without disaster, they stated that it had only been postponed for a period of three years to give sinners time for repentance. When August 6, 1664, arrived, great terror prevailed in Denmark, and all churches were thronged to suffocation. The next phenomenon of this nature was seen throughout Denmark, according to the first-named authority, on May 22, 1680, at sunrise. Long before the sun rose the entire heavens were filled with a blood-red light, and when the sunbeams shot forth "liquid fire seemed to rain from the sky." Again people became terribly alarmed, which was further increased by the report of a great comet approaching the earth'; when it finally became visible in the following December, the popular mind was in a state of perfect madness. Another aerial phenomenon occurred in Denmark on Shrove Tuesday, 1707. At about seven o'clock two enormous beams of light were seen running from W.N.W. to N.N.E., which made night for several hours as light as day. Some, however, refer this phe- nomenon to the aurora borealis, but it is strange that it should not have been more widely recognised^ as such in that country. But the_most recent true sun-glow was observed in 1783 — exactly a hundred years ago — throughout Scandinavia. It first became visible in Copen- hagen, on May 29th, and lasted until the end of September. This glow is stated also to have been seen in the whole of Europe, as well as Asia and Africa, in that year. The sky was red as blood at sunset and sunrise, but there was one great difference between this phenomenon and the last one, viz., that the sun's disk was semi-obscured during the day and almost completely so when rising and setting. In other respects, as, for instance, temperature, heat and cold, moisture and drought, the phenomena of 1783 was identical with the last one witnessed. This glow too caused great consternation in North Europe the last day being believed to be at hand. It should be mentioned as a point of weighty importance that, in the spring of the same year (the exact date is unknown), a frightful eruption of the Skapta Jokul, in Iceland, took place. This glow seemed in many respects to have resembled that of 1636, when Hekla was in terrific activity. It will thus be seen that, although English records of sun-glows such as the recent ones are limited to one or two instances, the phenomenon has been observed in North Europe, more or less prominently, on several occasions during the last three centuries. C. S. A GOSSIP ON CURRENT TOPICS. By W. Mattieu Williams, F.R.A.S. CURIOUS statement is made in " The Journal of Science," of last October, by a correspon- dent who states that, " If a workman is allowed to bring his dog into any manufactory where he is employed, it is astonishing how quickly the animal finds out ' who is who ' in the concern. His profound respect for the head of the establishment, and for the managers, foremen, and office-bearers in general, forms an amusing contrast to his sauciness to private workmen." This is an observation well HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. worthy of experimental verification or refutation, and the required experiments may be easily made. I cannot help suspecting that the officer most likely to command the highest degree of canine respect would be the watchman or door-keeper, or whoever else had the power of turning the dog out, or allowing him to come in. If otherwise, a very interesting lield of further observation is opened in the determina- tion of the dog's mode of arriving at his conclusions concerning official status : whether the tone of command impresses him, whether he imitates the bipeds, or how otherwise he is impressed. Further observations are also demanded in reference to a curious statement made by M. G. Rafin, in a communication to the French Academy of Sciences. Restates that a large wood fire having been kindled near an ant hill in the Island of St. Thomas, the ants precipitated themselves into it by thousands, until it was completely extinguished, and he proposes to name this species of ant the Formica ignivara. The first impulse on reading this account of the fire-eating ants is one of incredulity, but further reflection on well-known facts modifies this impression. The fascination of a bright light on insects effects a wonderful amount of suicide. When I lived in the neighbourhood of Twickenham (towards Fulwell), I observed during three successive summers that the bottom glass of the road lamps was darkened by a deposit of very small flies that had ilung themselves into the flame and perished ; and that the ground around the lamps was strewn with thousands of their bodies. A multitude of similar instances may be named. Possibly the fire exerted a similar fascination upon the ants. A correspondent to this journal (page 262) inquires concerning the food of tortoises. I found the same difficulty as he describes in feeding some that I had, but afterwards was very successful by simply placing them on a garden lawn under an inverted packing- case, in the bottom of which was an opening covered with wire gauze, or left open to supply light. They fed heartily on the clover leaves, and also ate some grass. The patches where they had been were distinctly displayed by their industrious mowing. By cutting away about three-quarters of an inch of the edges of opposite sides of the packing case, where it rested on the grass, the tortoises were enabled to shift their prison, and did so in their endeavours to burrow under the raised edges. They thus supplied them- selves with fresh pasture during the summer, but died in the winter. Their mode of eating shows that it is scarcely possible for them to feed upon loose ready- gathered leaves. They do not bite the leaf through, but simply pinch it between their horny jaws, then break it by a jerk of the head, but, for this to be done successfully, the leaf must firmly be fixed by roots or otherwise. The practice of swallowing their own cast-off skins observed by another correspondent seems to be a part of the established domestic economy of the newt during their breeding time, when they live in water. Those I kept some years ago never failed to perform this duty, though well supplied with earthworms, their staple food. The International Conference which decided upon the adoption of an universal prime meridian, and selected that of Greenwich for the purpose, also discussed some questions of clock reform, one being the desirability of counting and naming the 24 hours all round, starting from midnight as 24 o'clock. The advantages of this, especially in railway time-tables, would be very great, and the chief objections I have heard is that which is founded on the mere indolence that shrinks from all innovation. But this is really no innovation, excepting as to the time of fixing the 24 o'clock. I spent a few months in Rome in 1842-3 when the time was reckoned in 24 hours as a matter of course ; all public announcements of time were made accordingly, but for the benefit of foreigners the time of opening certain theatres, &c , was further explained by adding the " tempo francese" or " French time" as they called the 12-hour enumeration. The "tempo italiano" was counted from the chiaroscuro, or twilight, a very clumsy device, seeing that the 24 o'clock had to be shifted every month. Some of the public clocks had (and possibly still have) a double set of figures. Referring to an old play-bill of the Teatro Alibert, I find that the performance on the 25th January, 1843, was announced to commence " alle ore due di uotte,'" at two o'clock at night, i.e., two hours after the chiaroscuro. In this play-bill no tempo francese is given. When will science be decently represented in the organization of the British Government in such a manner that its scientific expenditure shall be wisely controlled and distributed ? The pitiful anti-climax of the "Challenger" Expedition brings forth this question most glaringly. Here was lavish expenditure in the sumptuous equipment of a magnificent yacht ; every conceivable luxury was generously provided for the selected few who were paid for taking a charming holiday cruise, the avowed object of which was the obtaining of certain scientific information for the enlightenment of mankind at large, and the British nation in particular. By the aid of some genuine workers at home, the crude materials of the yachtsmen have been arranged and edited to form volumes of reference. These volumes contain all the fruits of the expedition (except the pay and personal recreation supplied to the aforesaid holiday-makers) ; all that can come to the nation that "paid the piper" is in these volumes. All the cost of finding and arranging materials, of engraving and setting-up the volumes has been incurred, and a few copies actually printed at a total prime cost of many thousands of pounds for getting up each volume. This having been done, the multiplication of copies would cost about ninepence per pound for paper and press-work on the sheets, HARDWICKE'S SCJENCE-GOSSIP. and a shilling per volume more for binding decently in cloth. Such being the case, the anti-climax to which I have alluded is simply inconceivable. On application being made for copies to be sent to our public libraries, the Government has declared that it cannot afford these few ninepences per pound and shillings per copy. Compare this with the proceedings of the Go- vernment Printing, Office at Washington, whence are issued the noble records of " The United States Naval Observatory," &c. These are not only dis- tributed freely to the American public libraries, but are sent across to the scientific libraries of Great Britain, and not only to them but to individual members of the scientific societies. I have a very valuable series of these reports, and of the Reports of the "Department of the Interior," and other works issued by the United States Government from their Printing Office at Washington. These are sent over to me through their agent, and carriage-paid to London, upon no other asking than that of replying to an official letter enclosing a list of works from which I am asked to select those I desire to have. Generally speaking they are invaluable as original records of most important and laborious scientific investigation. All Englishmen desiring to be patriotic must be bitterly ashamed of this melancholy contrast. The present favourable position of the most won- derful and beautiful of all the heavenly bodies, the planet Saturn, with its mysterious ringed appendages, reawakens an old project that I have often longed to carry out, viz., the establishment in a suitable part of London of a popular observatory. I don't mean an establishment with amateur observers pretending to do original astronomical work, and thereby supple- menting or superseding the Greenwich business ; but simply a good astronomical peep-show, where millions of people who have never looked through a powerful telescope, and otherwise never would do so, might have an opportunity of seeing for themselves some of the magnified glories of the heavens. I believe that it might be made commercially self-supporting if well done, and all pedantry severely excluded. No mathematical work could be done nor need be at- tempted. Both reflecting and refracting telescopes equatorially mounted with the simplest of efficient clockwork would be required ; and one telescope should be provided with spectroscopic appliances. The physical phenomena are all that the popular visitor would desire to see, and the fact of having once seen the most striking of these would leave a life-long impression on all intelligent men, women, and children. A small charge, with proper regula- tions as to time allowed at each instrument, would cover all expenses, including a modest salary to the showman — I beg his pardon — the director. The sun and moon should be shown first with a low power to display all the disc, then with a high power for particular details. Apropos to telescopes, Mr. Cowper Ranyard lately read to the Astronomical Soeiety a note on the blurred patches that appear in the splendid photo- graphs of the sun taken by M. Janssen at Meudon. Janssen is himself inclined to attribute them to solar clouds or gaseous matter above the photosphere, but Mr. Ranyard has made some experiments indicating that they have their origin within the telescope itself, and are due to heated currents of air in the tube. He produced exaggerated representations of these in the form of ripples by placing a heated body inside his telescope. The difficulty of maintaining a perfect calm wdthin the tube of a large telescope must be great, and the sensitive film used for these instan- taneous photographs cannot fail to display any dis- turbance affecting either the transparency or re- fractive power of the air in the telescope. I think the question as between these two explanations might easily be settled by taking several pictures of the sun at short intervals apart. If the light patches or blurs are due to cloud-matter in the sun they should appear at the same place in all the pictures, seeing that the space represented by every square milli- metre of such pictures is so enormous that no cloud could travel to a sensible distance on the picture in any short period of time ; while, on the other hand, the atmospheric irregularities within the telescope must be visibly shifted during small fractions of a second. DESCRIPTION OF A CONVENIENT FORM OF LIVE-CELL FOR OBSERVATION WITH THE MICROSCOPE, AND OF AN INEXPENSIVE MICROTOME. THE main drawbacks of most cells for the obser- vation of living objects are that they either leak, or are very difficult to clean. The under- described tform, which I have lately contrived and used, obviates these defects, and may therefore be of interest to the readers of Science-Gossip. It is of very simple construction, and can be made up at a trifling cost by the help of any ordinary metal worker. Take a stout ground-edged glass slip, and have fitted to it two sheaths of thin brass, about i|-irich wide. These should be made to fit closely, but not so tightly as to prevent the glass slip from sliding easily through them. To the middle of one end of each sheath is soldered a small brass arm (shaped as in Fig. 2), carrying a fine screw on one arm, which, when secured in position, projects about 5-inch beyond the end of the sheath. A piece about ij inch long, cut off a thin glass slide, and a thick india-rubber ring (those used for Cod's patent soda-water bottles serve excellently) completes our requirements. To put the parts together, slip the sheaths, one on to each end of the glass slide, with their two little screw arms projecting towards each other. Now cut 8 HARDIVICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. a small piece out of the circumference of the india- rubber ring, and place it on the slide between the sheaths, with the opening towards one of the long sides of the slide. Place on top of the ring the short piece of glass, and slide the sheaths towards each other, till the small screws project over its ends. Then, by turning down the screws, the ring is com- pressed between the two pieces of glass, and a perfectly water-tight cell results. By using rings of different thickness, cells of eveiy convenient depth may be obtained. When one has finished working with it, the whole It consists of a block of well-seasoned wood, 5X3x3 inches. At \\ inch from one end of the block a hole is bored of such diameter as may be necessary to admit the cylinder of a pewter syringe of about \ inch internal diameter. This hole runs vertically from the upper to the lower surface of the block. Across the opposite end of the block is cut a horizontal notch, \\ inch deep and wide. Cut off the nozzle end of the syringe, so as to leave a piece of tube three inches long, and cut the handle off the plunger so as to leave only the piston part. This should be packed as neatly as possible, and have W/Wa Fig. 2. — Live Cell. " ^j i&. Fig. 3. — Elevation of Live Cell. 1 Lrl _ _" '","" z % §1 tabl; 3 l§3 Fig. 4. — Inexpensive Microtome. Vert, section. thing can be taken to pieces in an instant and cleaned. If a well-polished piece of glass, free from flaws, be chosen for the upper plate, its thickness will not be found to interfere very materially with the performance of any power below J-inch. While on the subject of cheap apparatus, I will describe a form of microtome which can be made by any one, with a slight mechanical turn, for about eighteen-pence. In many essential points it is almost identical with that of Mr. A. B. Chapman, described in your June number, as, however, I constructed and used it more than ten years ago, I must claim to be guiltless of plagiarism. CLASS 3X| 0 CLASS 3X1 ■ Fig. 5. — Upper Surface of Microtome. soldered to its upper surface a small Z-shaped piece of tin, so as to give the parapin a firm hold on the piston. Cement the tube into the hole in the block with shellac or 'elastic glue, so that one end projects about the thickness of a glass slide above the upper surface, and cement on to the upper surface of the block, along each side of the projecting portion 7 of the syringe, an ordinary ground-edged ^> glass slide, taking care to choose a pair of equal thickness, and with well-rounded edges. Now procure a fine screw running on an oblong-nut : the nut to have a hole to take the head of a wood-screw at each end, and secure it by means of a couple of screws to the under surface of the block, so that the fine screw works up and down in the centre of the pewter tube. Get also one of the coarse iron screws with brass fittings, such as are used to fasten old- fashioned window sashes, procurable from any ironmonger, and fasten this to the under surface of block, so that the coarse screw may work into the notch already described. To use the machine, place it with the edge of a lath projecting into the horizontal notch. Then by screwing up the coarse screw, it will be firmly clamped to the table, and projecting beyond it, a position extremity convenient for working. Now turn down the fine screw, and push the piston, with the finger, down through the tube on to it. The well is then filled with a melted mixture of five parts solid paraffin to one part tallow, and the object to be cut embedded in this. The sections are then taken in the usual way, the two HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. ground edged slides acting as the guides to the razor With one constructed in this way, I have procured sections finer than I have got with any other non- freezing machine. I have one further limit to add. In cementing on the two glass slides, take care that, if not quite horizontal, they may tend to form a V, rather than an A with each other, as should the inner edges be the least higher than the outer, the razor will be very quickly blunted, whereas, on account of the razor edge being, as a rule, somewhat curved, the circumstance of the outer edges being a little high is of no moment. Also do not be tempted to make your well of large diameter ; \ inch is quite as large a section as one is likely to want, and the smaller the diameter of the well, the more even will the sections be. Of course a brass tube and plunger may be made form sori, seated on scarcely perceptible spots, on the underside of the leaves (only rarely on the upper side) ; the sori were scattered, or irregularly grouped, occasionally in orbicular clusters, round or oval, averaging 300 /j. in diameter, convex and elevated. The epidermis persisted round the sori, forming a somewhat dome-shaped investment, ruptured at the summit, where it was pale in colour, but below dark- brown, owing to the paraphyses showing through. These paraphyses, which formed the most striking feature, were arranged in a single ring, surrounding the sorus, just within the persistent epidermis ; they were dark-brown, shining, oblong-cylindrical, en- larged at the apex (club-shaped), inclining inwards towards the centre, from 80-100 fi long or more, and about 12-15 <"■ thick. (Figs. 6 & 7.) Within these were the uredo-spores, oval, obovate, oblong, or roundish in shape, surrounded by a very .Fig. 6. — Sorus, emptied of spores, showing the paraphyses. X 80. 'I ' W\ \ U f Ji Fig. 7. — Paraphyses. X 250. Fig. S. — Puccinia So'ichi. a, Uredospores ; b, transition to mesospores ; c, mesospores ; d, teleutospore (,:). X 250. ■use of, if desired ; but, somehow, I never got one to act as well as my old " sixpenny squirt." Though I •made many of them, one time and another, either for friends, or in the hope of improving the machine. G. M. Giles, M.B., F.R.C.S. Peshaivar. Surgeon Ind. Medical Service. A NEW BRITISH PUCCINIA. IN October la it, Mr. II. Ffawkes sent me, from near Birmingham, a fungus upon the leaves of Sonchus, which had the appearance of a Puccinia, but in which he could find none of the characteristic two-celled spores. A careful examination convinced me that I had, in all probability, the uredo-stage of a Puccinia hitherto, I believe, unrecorded in Britain, viz : Puccinia sonc/ii, Desmaz. First, to describe the fungus in question :— It occurred in small puncti- thick, colourless, warted membrane (Fig. S, a) ; contents very pale yellow, with a few oily drops ; 30-50 n long, and 20-24 M broad. No other spores than these could be seen in situ ; but, on scraping off a few sori, asmall number of meso-spores were observed, which differed in being of a darker brownish colour, and less or not at all warted surface ; the transition from the uredo-spores to the meso-spores could be clearly traced. (Fig. 8, b and c.) A persistent search revealed a few teleuto-spores, which were oval, not constricted, smooth, and dark-brown ; but so small was the number that I incline to the opinion that these were accidental intruders, and did not belong to the same species. They might have been blown on to the leaf from some neighbouring plant infested with a Puccinia. (Fig. S, d.) The plants on which this fungus was found were two small seedlings, not in flower, growing on rubbish which had been thrown out of the canal in cleaning it ; IO HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. every leaf was infested. If the description just given is compared with that of P. soncki, which I will pro- ceed to translate from Winter's "Pilze," p. 189, it will be seen that ours was probably the early stage of the latter, but had not yet reached the time for the production of teleutospores. The chief difference lies in the fact that I found the circle of paraphyses round the pustules of uredo spores. Puccinia sonchi, Desm. — II. Sori at first covered by the epidermis, which is swollen like a bladder, afterwards surrounded by it like a bowl ; roundish- pulvinate, scattered or grouped without order, brown. Spoies roundish, ovate, elliptic or oblong, with a very thick, colourless, warted membrane, and yellow oil, 23-35 /* l°nS> J6-2i jx thick. III. — Sori more com- pact than in II., roundish-pulvinate, on the stem ob- long, often confluent, scattered, or arranged in circles, or even grouped without order ; black, surrounded by brown paraphyses, which are clavately thickened above. Spores on a pretty long, persistent peduncle, elliptic or oblong, somewhat constricted, rounded below, or tapering into the peduncle, only slightly thickened and rounded or cap-shaped, at the apex ; smooth, clear-brown, 30-60 /u. long, 19-30 fj. thick. Mesospores numerous, similar, but only one-celled ; generally more thickened at the apex, reaching 50 jjl in length. W. B. Grove, B.A. HOW-TO KEEP SMALL MARINE AQUARIA. IN Science-Gossip for April of this year, I described two small glass -jar aquaria, which I had started in the middle of October, 18S3, as an experiment, and which, up to that time, had proved most successful for so small a quantity of water. Now, on October 20th, 1884, one jar still remains, with four of its original occupants after a most trying time of it. For the benefit of those who felt interested in my former paper, I will briefly sketch the history of my miniature aquarium during one of the hottest summers we have had for many a year. My first death was the small A. dianthus, which seemed to grow gradually less for want of. fresh sea-water, and ultimately died. About the end of May I left home, but before going, I changed the water of the two jars (from my reserve quart), and stood the jars in a pan of water, covering them with a piece of woollen material capable of keeping moist by capillary attraction ; finally placing the whole in a cool dark place. Upon my return, I was sorry to find the mussels dead, and the water so offensive that the winkles had crawled out, and the two old A. mesembryatitheuiurii, were much contracted ; the young had disappeared. I thought this was a final collapse, especially as the weather had set in very warm. However, I found that my reserve sea-water was beautifully clear, so I poured off the tainted water, rinsed out jar numbei one, which was now to become the receptacle for what was still living, and poured the clear water upon the survivors. In half-an-hour matters were "in statu quo ante." A. mcsembryanthemum unfolded their tentacles, and Littorina littorea recommenced their travels, although their shells began to show signs of want of lime. The bad sea-water, the smell of which was simply unbearable, I strained carefully, and corked up in a bottle, keeping it in the dark, and shaking it up vigorously every day. In about ten days it was as clear and sweet as the other ; but as the heat of the weather increased I found the greatest difficulty in keeping my little stock from decomposition. I have, however, so far succeeded, that for more than one year I kept alive four out of nine animals in a pint jar of sea-water, without introducing any fresh sea-water or any alga;. Now that the year is up, I have put into the jar a good clump of ulva, fresh from the coast, and a piece of chalk. The effect is evidently gratifying to the prisoners, for there is a sudden addition of seven young anemones, which I saw ejected myself. Considering the great heat, and the fact that I confined my experiment strictly to the materials I commenced with, I think that there is as little trouble in keeping a small marine aquarium as in keeping a fresh-water one, provided, of course, that one or two simple laws are followed, and that the animals selected be hardy species. Edward Lovett. Addiscombe, Croydon. GLASTONBURY AND ITS THORN. By William Roberts. THE Somersetshire town of Glastonbury is one of great antiquity. It was called by the ancient Britons Avalon, from the abundance of apple-trees in the district ; and by the Saxons Glasln-a-byrig, from which its present name is immediately derived. Within a short distance of, and in a south-west direction from, the site of the present town, is situated a place known from time immemorial as "Weary Hill," and here, it is conjectured, the first society of Christian worshippers established themselves in Britain. St. Patrick, who came over from Ireland in 439, is said to have spent thirty years of his life in the convent then existing at the spot. Previous to this saint's visit, the brethren had lived in miserably furnished huts scattered round about the vicinity of the place of worship ; and the primitive form of religion, which, after the death of Lucius, the first Christian king of Britain, had fallen into disuse, was again resuscitated with all its former vigour. In 530 David, Archbishop of Menevia, with seven HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. ii of his followers, retired to Glastonbury, where they greatly improved the church and form of religion, and moreover enriched the altar with a sapphire of inestimable value. King Arthur, after the fatal battle with his nephew Mordred, was interred in Glastonbury ; his remains are said to have been discovered in the reign of Henry II., who instigated a search, which resulted in a large cross being exhumed from the tomb, bearing an inscription in rude characters something to the effect of " Here lies the famous King Arthur, buried in the isle of Avalon." Beneath was discovered a coffin- like excavation in the solid rock containing the bones of a human body, which was supposed to be that of King Arthur. These bones were deposited in the church and covered with a sumptuous monument. In 708 Ina, king of the Saxons, in a sudden and spasmodic fit of zeal, greatly improved_the convent, but it was left to Dunstan to execute alterations a*hd improvements of any magnitude. He caused the abbey to be enlarged, and had it furnished in a state of unrivalled magnificence and splendour, to such an extent, indeed, that in a short time it became " the pride of England, and the glory of Christendom," as an old chronicler states. This was soon after the year 942. Edgar, who had a palace within two miles of the town, and in a romantic situation still called v'Edgarley," — now a hamlet in the parish of St. John — endowed the abbey with several estates, and invested the monks with extensive privileges. The abbots ^lived en prince ; the revenue having been, so far as we can ascertain, quite ,£40,000. This large sum of money, in common with the revenues of other abbeys, was appropriated by William I. From various causes, partly through internal ruptions and external civil wars and strife, these magnificent buildings vapidly degenerated into ruins, and nothing was present in 1797 to demonstrate a former glory, except the abbot's kitchen — which was pretty entire. Having briefly sketched the history of the ancient town of Glastonbury, it now remains for us to mention a shrub narrowly associated with the legendary lore of this place ; it is the Glastonbury thorn, a variety of Cratagus oxyacantha. Its origin is obscure, and even that highly-respected individual, "the oldest inhabitant," is not, as is usually the case, very dog- matic on the point. There are, however, three theories in connection with the history of this shrub. According to some, it originated with Joseph of Arimathea, who is reputed to have visited England, and, having struck his staff into the ground, the celebrated thorn of Glastonbury grew from it. It is also alleged that this same shrub was planted by St. Peter from a staff formed from the Jerusalem plant, whence the " crown of thorns " was made. The third version is that it was planted originally by St. Patrick ; and if we are compelled to accept at least one of these theories let t be the last, by all means. On Christmas Eve, 1753, a vast concourse of people attended the noted thorn at Glastonbury, expecting it to flower then ; but they were disappointed. It is recorded, however, that they watched it again on the 5th of January — the old Christmas Day — when it burst forth flotver as usual. The cause of its blooming at Christmas is accounted for by the fact that the owner of the original tree— whoever he may have been — fixed the staff into the ground on a Christmas Day, when it immediately rooted, put forth leaves, and the next day was covered with milk-white blossoms. It continued, so we are told, to bloom every Christmas Day for a series of years with great regularity. 0 tempora ! At Quainton, in Bucks, we have it authentically recorded that above ten thousand persons on one occasion went with lanterns and candles to view a thorn in that neighbourhood, which was remembered to have been a slip from that at Glastonbury. Another presumably miraculous wonder inflicted on the credulity of the Glastonbury folks in former days was a walnut-tree, which was said never to expand its leaves before the 1 ith of June — the feast of St. Barna- bas— but this long ago ceased to exist. Equally absurd is a variety of legendary tales which have become interwoven with the history of this place ; particularly that in connection with some Chalybeate springs. These were numerouslyattended formerly by invalids from all parts, ostensibly for the purpose of participating in their reputed curative qualities. Again, adverting to the thorn, its season of flower- ing, and the regularity of same, is passing strange. We have had it in flower in the sunny clime of Corn- wall repeatedly at, or near, but rarely before, Christ- mas. We have come to the conclusion, after a patient research, and sifting the exceedingly few facts known, that its pedigree is not nearly so extensive as is popularly supposed. THE GEOLOGICAL RECORD" HALDON,! DEVONSHIRE. AT By the Rev. W. Downes, B.A., F.G.S. WHEN summer visitors to Teignmouth or Dawlish have spent a day or two in boating, bathing, and strolling along the beach, and a variety in the programme of the day is becoming desirable, the first thing probably which will suggest itself to them, or be suggested by others, will be a walk upon Haldon. Nor could any better suggestion be made. That elevated plateau is equally accessible from either of the two watering places, and is about equi-distant from either. Two miles of stiff and steady up-hill work will take the pedestrian from sea-level to 760 feet above it, where he will be fully rewarded for his climb by the splendid view over land and sea which 12 HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. awaits him. The conspicuous headland, known as the " Ness," and the estuary of the Teign will be im- mediately beneath him, and his eye will range east- ward, and south-eastward along the red cliffs of S. Devon ; or, if he faces the other way, along the Tors of Dartmoor. A less conspicuous object, but one which, if he be a geologist, will have a special interest for him, will be the Blackdown range, about 25*miles distant, on the far side of the Exe valley upon the Somersetshire and Dorsetshire border. Of this Blackdown rans;e, the Haldons are two supply is nearly exhausted) are still being cut out of the hard concretionary nodules of sandstone. At Haldon, however, the fossil fauna (corals excepted) is comparatively poor, for out of some 200 species found at Blackdown 50 only occur at Haldon. 'Whetstones moreover are not quarried at the latter place at all. The reason of the above facts will presently appear. If we examine the general structure of the country, we find that horizontal beds of greensand rest uncon- formably upon the edges of triassic and liassic beds alike (see fig. 9). Both of the latter differ slightly to the Fig. 9. — Generalised Section of South Eastern Devonshire. TRIAS ^ LIAS GREENSAND FLINT GRAVEl .Vertical scale about 800 feet to the inch. Distance horizontally, about 30 miles. Fig. 10. — Ca?dium Hillamim. Fig. \\.—Exogyra conica. Fig.in.—T/triiellagrauulala. Fig. i^.—Pectenquadricostatus- Fig. 14. — Fossil sponge {Si/>ho- nia pyriformis). outliers of irregular outline. Great Haldon on the north, is about five miles long, and averages about one mile in breadth, while Little Haldon, separated from the larger outlier by a slight depression in the Trias is two miles long, and rather more than half a mile wide. In ascending the hill the trias is found to extend to within 80 feet or 90 feet of the summit, when it is covered by about 50 feet of greensand, capped in turn by about 40 feet of flint gravel. The greensand of Blackdown is famous for two things, its abundant and splendidly preserved fossil fauna, and its whetstones. The latter (though the eastward. With regard to the greensand it will be sufficient for the present purpose to subdivide it into three general portions, and to call them respectively lower, middle, and upper Blackdown beds. It will then be found that the lower and middle beds, which contain the whetstones and the chief fossiliferous zones, have thinned out to the westward, so that only the upper beds are found at Haldon. The upper beds themselves have however rather increased in thickness westward, and include a coral zone in their upper portion not found at Blackdown. This fact, together with the greatly increased thickness of the flint gravel,, HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 13 render the cretaceous matter on Haldon approxi- mately (but not quite) as thick as at Blackdown. The corals have been described by Professor Duncan. (Q. J. G. S., Feb. 1879.) The angular flints, which are doubtless the result mainly of sub-aerial denudation, presuppose a con- siderable thickness of chalk, which at one time capped l he greensand, but which has now vanished altogether, with the exception of this coarser and insoluble resi- that in this way it obtained both its rounded pebbles and its plateau features. It became in fact a plain of marine denudation. Since that time however it has been re-elevated several hundred feet, so that rain and rivers have "writ their wrinkles" upon it, and have produced a vast hiatus between the outliers and the parent mass. In conclusion, let us sum up the record. I. We have at the base, Trias, which was deposited probably ^CCjOQGoc Fi?. 20. Fig. Fig. 16. Fig. 17. Fig. 21. Fig. 22 Figs. 15-22.— Fossil Sponge Spicules, nil drawn on the scale of J5th to r^j„th of an inch. (H. J. Carter on " Fossil Sponge: Spicules . . . from Blackdown and Haldon," " Annals a.id" Magazine of Natural History," for Feb. 1871, p. 1 59.) Fig. 23. — Gcrvillea auceps. duum. But sub-aerial denudation is not the only physical change indicated by the flint gravel, for upon the surface and for about a foot beneath it rounded pebbles occur, not only of flint, but also of rocks foreign to the bed itself, such as quartz and grit derived from the Palseozoic rocks adjoining. Here then again come traces of aqueous action. And the natural inference seems to be that the bed had sunk again beneath the surface of the sea, and Fig. 24. — Ammonites varicosus. in an inland sea. 2. Subsidence, and more truly marine- conditions, when the Lias was deposited. 3. Eleva- tion, tilting, and denudation, prior to the depo- sition of the greensand. 4. Subsidence, and the com- mencement of the deposition of the greensand beds. 5. Elevation, or silting up, or both, until shallower- water and littoral conditions favoured the growth of encrusting corals and polyzoa. 6. Subsidence again till oceanic conditions prevailed, and chalk beds of 14 HARD WICKE 'S SCIENCE- G OSSIP. •considerable thickness were formed. 7. Re-elevation, at least above sea level, to account for the sub-aerial denudation of the chalk. 8. A slight re-subsidence, to form the marine plateau and introduce the rounded and foreign pebbles. 9. Re-elevation to the present altitude, combined with extensive recent denudation and excavation of the present valleys. Denudation has swept away enormous masses of both Trias and Greensand, but happily it is a broom which seldom sweeps quite clean, and hence Haldon is left to tell its tale. BRITISH PLANTS IN NYMAN'S " CON- SPECTUS FLOR.E EUROPyE^E." By A. R. Waller. THE following notes are intended to give the readers of Science-Gossip some idea of the differences in the nomenclature and classification of British plants in Dr. Nyman's " Conspectus Florce Europseae." Dr. Nyman's work is most invaluable to all systematic and geographical botanists ; as it gives the full distribution of all known European species and sub-species, and in many cases that of varieties. English botanists will have to adopt the earlier names he uses, as the only safe rule for botanical nomenclature is that of absolute priority. The classification of the Thalictrums (meadow rues) is rather different to what we have generally been ac- customed to use. T. Jacquinianum, K. (=T. minus, Jacq. non L.), is the plant we have so long called T.majtis, Smith, "Jacq." : T. majus, Murr. "Jacq." is not a British plant. England might be added to the list of countries for T. alpinum, L. (Alpine meadow rue) ; it grows in Yorkshire, Westmoreland, •&c. It is mentioned as growing in Scotland and Wales. The Jersey buttercup is not thought to be Ranunculus charophy litis, L., but R. flabellatus, Dsf. var. Europaa. R. sardous, Cr., 1763, rightly replaces R. Philonolis, Ehrh. 1788, as the] name of the hairy buttercup, and Glaucium flavum, Cr., 1769, instead of G. lutcum, Sep. 1772, for the yellow-horned poppy, is another change in the right direction. Fumaria JBorai, Jord., is elevated to specific rank with F. Bastardi, Bor., 1847 ( = /'. confusa, Jord. 1848), as a sub-species. Scotland might be added to the list of •countries for F. parviflora, Lam. We are not credited with Iberis arnara, L. (candy-tuft) ; it is certainly native in the centre of England. Lepidium Smithii, Hook., is considered a variety of L. heterophyllum, Bth. Coronopus Ruellii, All. 1785, gives way to C.procumbcns, Gil., 1782. Helianthemum vineale, P., appears as a full species with H. eanmn, Dun., as a variety, thus reversing the places of the two plants. Viola per mixta, Jord., is thought to be a hybrid between V. hirta, L., and V. odorata, L., and Drosera obovata, Mk., a hybrid between D. lougi- folia, L., and D. rotundifolia, L. Polygala serpyllacea, Whe., 1826, takes the place of P. depressa, Wend., 1831, and Silene Cucubalus, Wib., 1799, that of S. infiata, Sm., 1800 (bladder campion). S. quinque- vulnera, L., is thought to be a sub-species of S. lusitanica, L. Scotland might be added to the list of countries for Dianlhus Armeria, L. (Deptford Pink). Sisymbrium Sophia, Sinapis arvensis, Capsclla Bursa-pastoris, Batrachium heterophyllum, and Violas tricolor and arvensis are found in every country in Europe. Erucastrum Pollichii, Schp., is given as a native. At most, it is only a colonist. Arabiseiliata, Br., and Brassica mouensis, Huds., are among the very few plants which are confined in Europe to Britain. NOTES ON SOME VARIETIES OF BRITISH SHELLS. I HAVE in my collection several interesting varieties of British shells which do not corres- pond to any of the named varieties generally regarded as British, but are nevertheless fairly well marked. These I now describe. All those described below were taken by myself. 1. Hyatina nididula, var. Shell large, whorls 4, slightly whitish beneath, last whorl expanded, and having a dull waxy appearance, and possessing a rather broad band in thi position of No. 5 in H. nemoralis. Found at West Northdown, in Thanet. 2. Hy. glabra, var. Shell greenish-white, glossy, and semi-transparent. Bromley, with the type. 3. Valvata piscinalis, var. Shell shewing tracings of spiral banding. I am not sure of the exact locality, but it is from some part of Kent. 4. Planorbis vortex, var. Shell large, concave above, keel prominent, and placed almost in centre of periphery. From Fuiham. 5. Limnaa glutinosa, monst. Spire very short, sunken, slightly raised at apex, body whorl swollen above, top of shell nearly flat. St. Nicholas Marsh, with type. 6. L. peregra, var. Shell showing spiral banding. From a ditch near Walmer Castle, Kent. (v. pictat) 7. L. stagnalis, var. Shell having short spire, body whorl large and expanded, mouth wide. Pond at Bromley with Lemna minor. Type form not present. 8. L. stagnalis, var. Shell smaller than type and shaped like L. palustris. Suture shallow. Shell often eroded. Pond at Chislehurst, with Anacharis alsinastrum and Callitriche verua. 9. L. stagnalis, var. Shell much smaller than type, usually about % inch to I inch in length, suture rather deep. Shell eroded. Pond on Chislehurst Common, with Polamogeton crispus and Ranunculus aquatilis. HARD WICKE'S S CIENCE- G OS SI P. 15 10. L. stagnalis, var. Shell shewing traces of spiral banding. Pond at Chislehurst, with Ranunculus aquatilis. 1 1. L. palustris, monst. Shell turrited, about i inch in length, whorls 5, last whorl more than half length of shell. Pond at Bromley, with type. 12. L. truncatula, var. Shell having 3 whitish bands on body whorl, corresponding to 3, 4, and 5, in H. nemoralis. Ditch at Bickley, with type. 13. SpJncrium lacustre, monst. Shell distorted so as to resemble Pisidium amnicum in shape. Pond at Bromley, with type. 14. Cyclostoma elegans, var. Shell light yellowish, traces of spiral banding on upper whorls. Warling- ham, Surrey, with type. 15. Helix aspcrsa, var. Shell having four well- defined bands. Chislehurst Common, amongst Pferis aquilina. 16. Helix aspersa, var. Shell having upper portion of whorl chocolate colour, described in a former note (p. 91). I find that when the light is allowed to pass through the chocolate coloured portion very faint mottlings become visible, indicating those present in a normal shell. 17. H. Cantiana, var. Shell smaller than type, glossy, and semi-transparent, slightly tinged with rufous, especially near the mouth. Lip pinkish. Farnborough, Kent, two specimens. 18. H. virgata, var. Shell large, and having one or more interrupted bands. Margate. 19. H. nemoralis, monst. Shell much distorted from repair of fracture, umbilicus wide and deep. Chislehurst Common, on Pteris aquilina. 20. Clausilia biplicata, monst. Mouth of shell oval, and contorted, probably from repair of fracture, channeling of lower part not perceptible. Three well-marked denticles present. Near Hammersmith, with type. 21. C. laminata, var. Shell rather tumid, inside of mouth, including denticles, of a purplish-brown colour. Other varieties are described in former notes. T. D. A. COCKERELL. Bedford Park, Chiszoick, 1884. NATURAL HISTORY JOTTINGS. On Wasps, chiefly. AS stated in " Natural History Jottings for 1SS1," in the May issue of Science-Gossip, 1882, the summer of that year, in the neighbourhood of Harnham and Bradford, Northumberland, was remarkable, from a natural-history point of view, in the almost entire absence of the social wasps and humble bees. This I accounted for by the very severe weather prevalent during the second week in June killing off the large females, or queens, with the embryo brood which they would be undoubtedly at that time rearing ; as these foundresses of colonies,, of both tribes, had been plentiful enough during the latter part of May and commencement of June, and I had already observed the wasps gathering wood fibres for the manufacture of the paper of which they build their nests and combs.* Moreover, during the spell of wintry weather that prevailed from June 6th to 10th inclusive, I had discovered a nest of the moss or carder bee (Bonibus muscorum), containing a large amorphous cell, or wax-enclosed mass of bee- bread, enclosing six or seven larvae of varying size from very small to what I took for nearly full-grown, as well as a single elegantly urn-shaped thin wax cell containing a very little clear honey. The summer of 1883, however, was remark- able for a superabundance of the social wasps, and an abundance of the humble bees. To give an idea of the great plenty of the wasps I may state that I have known of twenty-five nests, or "bikes" (as they are here called), within an area of not more than forty acres of meadow and pasture land, this area being represented by the figure of a square ; as well as two more nests a very little outside that square. Within this same area were found three nests of the orange-tailed humble bee (Bornbus lapidaria), and one of the common humble bee (B. terrestris) ;. whilst outside of it, but at no great distance, another nest of each species was found. Of the above-mentioned twenty-seven nests of the wasps, fifteen belonged to the Vespa vulgaris, six to- the V. sylvestris, five to the V. ritfa, and one to the V. Germanica. In addition to these were two others, small secondary nests of the V. tufa, built on the sites of the first nests which had been destroyed. Premising that I was in the district indicated from the beginning of the fourth week in July until near the close of September ; — that the earthen dykes, with their hedgerows and numerous trees, bounding the several fields, were mostly stone-faced to strengthen them against the rutting and butting of the cattle, though with occasional interspaces free from stones ; that flies (Diptera) were exceedingly numerous, especially in the lee of the dykes and hedgerows, and fruit abundant ; and that the weather during the most of that period was warm, though variable and; moist ; — I shall give some of my observations, on the wasps chiefly, mostly as they were jotted down and commented on at the moment. July 25th, 1883. — Wasps are exceedingly numerous ; have already seen nearly a dozen nests, or ' ' bikes. " July 30th. — Observe more wasps' nests in the dykes. I have also observed three nests in the level ground in a small meadow, two being those of the Vespa vulgaris and one that of the V. rufa. August 2nd. — In the evening, after a very heavy and continuous rainfall, the temperature being then much lowered, three large nests of the Vespa sylvestris * Science-Gossip, May, 1882, pp. 102, 103. i6 HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. were taken out of an earthen dyke in great part faced with stones. Through the lowering of the temperature, few, if any, of the wasps were on the wing. The three nests were all within a distance of ■eighty paces, two of them being within only twenty paces of each other. All were built well up in the face of the dyke, and were near the surface ; indeed, one of the nests had a goodly segment of it exposed to view ; another was not more than an inch within