S>UWe. fAiUOitto LM THE JOURNAL OF THE (tafcjjtt Microscopical Club. EDITED BY HENRY F. HAILES. C< SERIES. VOLUME II. H s woods hole, MASS. Uontion: [Published for the Club.] WILLIAMS and NORGATB 14, Henrietta Street, Covent Garden, London, and 20, South Frederick Street, Edinburgh. THE JOUKNAL or THE Qntkttt Ulurosnrpual €lnh. On an undescribed Acarus of the genus Myobia. By A. D. Michael, F.L.S., F.R.M.S., &c. Read April 25th, 1884. ^ PLATE I. Some short time since the Revd. C. R. N. Burrows, of Brent- wood, Essex, sent me, for examination, a specimen of an Acarus which he had found parasitic upon a bat of the common small species, Scotophilus pipistrellus, which he had obtained from a cavern in Gloucestershire. Mr. Burrows recognised the mite as belonging to the genus Myobia, and suspected that it was unusual ; I at once saw that it was, as far as I know, undescribed, and that it was sufficiently dis- tinct and interesting to merit a notice. I have a great objection to describing any species relying solely upon a single specimen; it unfortunately is not possible to avoid doing so sometimes ; but this necessity has, in my opinion, been the source of numerous and per- plexing errors in zoological works. Moreover, in most creatures as high up the scale of organization as the Acari, a single specimen can only belong to one sex ; and the sexes differ in several respects in Myobia. I therefore begged Mr. Burrows to try and obtain further examples, and he was good enough to take great trouble in the matter. An organized bat-hunt was commenced in the caves, and the results were sent to Mr. Burrows. He forwarded to me a living specimen of Scotophilia pipistrellus, but, although it was very interesting, both for itself and its parasites, it was not the host of any Myobia?. Mr. Burrows examined about six specimens of the Journ. Q. M. C, Series II., No. 9. b A. D. MICnAEL ON AN UNDESCRIBED same Bpecies, and one of the long-eared bat, Plecotus auritus, all from the same locality, but with the like negative result. The Chiroptera above-named were, however, accompanied by six speci- mens of that much rarer member of the order, Ehinolophus hippo- sideros (the lesser horse-shoe bat), and upon three of these the same Myobia was found, although not abundantly. I have thus had the Opportunity of examining seven or eight specimens, some of each B< w but unfortunately not any immature stages. The first notice we possess of the singular creature which, up to the present time, constitutes the only known species of Myobia is due to Schrank,* who called it Pediculus minis musculi, and classed it a long way from the position which it has now assumed. The name Myobia (from the Greek yuus, a mouse, and /3iow, Hive) was given by Heyden,f and it is from this name, which has been generally accepted, that that author's most puzzling work on the Acarina will be chiefly remembered. C. L. Koch, of RegensburghjJ found the creature, as indeed, he found most others which have any title to be called Acarina ; but that most industrious collector was not equally painstaking in searching prior authorities, and, not recognising that he was dealing with Schrank's species, he gave his supposed discovery a new name, and introduced it to the world as Dermaleichus lemnivs ; thereby putting it in a genus which it certainly did not belong to, although he was a good deal nearer than Schrank had been. From Koch's error arose another by an even better-known zoologist, Gervais,|| who gives Schrank's Pediculus muris musculi us a synonym of Koch's Sarcoptes musculinus, which is really a My copies, instead of a svnonvm of that author's Dermaleichus lemnius, which it actually is. This error was repeated by van der Hoven § and others, until Claparede^ turned his attention to Myobia, and pointed out what the real synonyms were. It is to this beautiful work that we owe the chief part of what we know concerning * *' Enumeratio insectorum Austria indigenorum." Augastre Vindeli- corum, 1781, p. 501, t. i., Figs. 5-7. t " Versuch einer systemstischen Eintheilung der Acariden." " Oken's Isip,'' 1828, p. 613. J " Dentechlanda Crustaceen, Miriapoden und Arachniden." Regensburg, L834-9 (forming Hefts 1 to 40 of Heinrich Schafer's " German Insects "), Sef1 ;;:;, PI. v. | " llistoiic natiirclle des insects, Apteres." Walckcnaer, t. iii., p. 265. $ " Bandbnch der Zoologie" i., p. 550. • " Studien an Acariden." Zeir. Wigs. Zooh, Band IS (1868), p. 519. ACARUS OF THE GENUS MYOB1A. 6 Myobia, which evidently struck Claparede as being one of the strangest creatures that he had met with. There certainly are two or three points about Myobia which are very curious, and justify the Swiss naturalist's astonishment. The first of these is that the genital openings in both sexes are on the dorsal surface, both on slight elevations, that of the female not being very far from the posterior margin, while in the male the intromittant organ emerges in the median line of the back between the second and third pairs of legs, an arrangement extremely un- usual in nature, although it occurs in some few other Acarina. The next point that strikes the observer is the exceptional form of the tarsi and claws of the first pair of legs. Myobia lives upon hairy mammals, and the front tarsi and claws are developed into broad scoop-like organs, each with a curved hook projecting from it, the whole forming a most efficient apparatus for holding on to the hairs of the host. The third matter which is rather exceptional is that the claws of the second, third, and fourth pairs of legs, although didactyle, are unequal (on each leg). Of course, a tridactyle claw with the central unguis different from the lateral ones is common enough, but a didactyle claw with the two ungues unequal is somewhat rare. As before stated, the Myobia hitherto known was supposed by its discoverer, and most subsequent naturalists, to be a parasite of the mouse only, although it did not appear to be confined to any par- ticular species of mouse, being found both on field-mice and house- mice, perhaps most abundantly on old specimens of the latter. During the last two or three years, however, a Myobia has been found upon the mole, which does not appear to differ from that of the mouse in any respect except its somewhat greater size ; and no acarologist has as yet ventured to make two species of them, so that Myobia musculi still remains the sole representative of the genus. The finding of a species of Myobia on the bat is not wholly devoid of a certain quaint interest, when we remember that the early zoologists looked on the bats as a link between birds and quadru- peds, and that Linnams classed them amongst the Primates ; while, on the other hand, the popular instinct in most languages has usually associated them with mice, whence came such names as " Rere-mouse " (from the Anglo-Saxon " rau-an," to raise or rear 4 A. I>. MICHAEL ON AN UNDESCRlBED np), and " Flittcr-mouse " in English," Fleder-maue " in German, " Chauve-souris " in French, &c. ; and that modern classification places the bats between the mice and the moles, certainly with the squirrels and a few other things between the mice and the bats, but very close together. This phase of the subject does not quite end here, for upon the squirrel is found another parasite, which, although clearly different from Myobia, is yet nearly allied, namely, Listrophorus, which is also a mouse-parasite, and which, in spite of the marked resem- blance which it bears to Myobia, is, at present, placed in a different main division of the Acarina by the exigencies of modern classifica- tion, the order being now usually divided into two primary groups, the Tracheata and the Atracheata. The two genera unfortunately are separated by this classification of Dr. Kramer's, which is probably the best, because Myobia possesses well-marked and even conspicuous trachea?, chiefly consisting of a main tracheal trunk on each side of the body, considerably branched, and ending anteriorly in two stigmata near the base of the rostrum ; while in Listrophorus trachea? have not been discovered as yet. ^fyobia is evidently a true parasite, living permanently upon, and at the expense of its host ; the whole life-history of the creature is known, and its embryology and subsequent changes have been ably investigated by Claparede, who did not usually leave much for other people to do after him ; and the whole round of existence was found to be passed upon the unfortunate mouse, or other vertebrate, which the acarid has selected for its board and lodging. The mouth- organs of Myobia are essentially those of a creature feeding upon its host, being composed of two lancet-like maxilla? lying together in a soft tube or lip, and forming a piercing and sucking organ, but without capturing organs, such as are found in the Trombidiino?, Cheyleti, Gamasida?, and other rapacious, predatory Acarina, whose palpi or mandibles are converted into seizing organs. It remains to consider the name which should be given to the present species. The much greater numbers which have been taken on tlir Rhinolopkus would seem to point to adopting that genus as ii basis for the specific name ; but, on the other hand, one specimen was found on tin- Scotophilus, and the experience is hardly yet suffi- cient to justify a conclusion as to what bats are infested by it ; nor inusl it l>e forgotten that, where bats are abundant, they usually lijliernate in caverns, or other suitable places, in closely-packed Journ. Q.M.C. Ser.E.Vol.2.Pl. 1 4. ■ i St My obi eliiropt-er-ali ACARUS OF THE GENUN MYOBIA. masses, hanging from the walls or roof of the place, or even from each other, and that these masses have been found to consist of several species, if found in the neighbourhood; so that, if the para- sites can live on various bats, they would be likely to become pretty widely distributed. For these reasons I have not thought it desir- able to select a genus of bats for the foundation of the specific name, and provided it be, as I imagine, unrecorded, I propose to call it Myobia chiropteralis. Myobia chiropteralis. Sp. nov., PI. I. I do not think it necessary in this description to detail the numerous points in which the species is similar to the well-known M. musculi, and which are, in effect, generic characters ; but only to point out the particulars in which the new species differ from that previously known, so as to facilitate identification. There is far less variation between the sexes in this creature than in the Myobia of the mouse, the form of the males and females being nearly similar. The principal differences from M. musculi are that M. chiropteralis is the longer and narrower in form, and that the hairs on its dorsal surface are far more spatulate than those of the mouse-parasite, and mostly terminate in very long points, so that they really cover up the greater part of the notogaster. The great holding claw of the first leg also differs, and there are other minor distinctions. Myobia chiropteralis. Female (Fig. 1). Average length about ... „ greatest breadth about „ leugth of legs, 1st pair about... ,, ,, ,| _1HI ,, ,, ... ... ,, ,, j, orcl ,, ,, ... ... n >> >> ^0. >> >> „ ,, anal hairs „ ... ... '35 ,, The form is longer and comparatively narrower than in M. musculi, less wide over the third pair of legs, less rounded at the posterior margin ; and there is a narrower, slightly-trifid projection for the anus, which is absent, or but slightly indicated, in M. musculi. The most striking characteristic of the species consists in the hairs on the back, which, instead of being straight and spike-like, as in the mouse-parasite, are broadly spatulate, and are drawn out to '53 mm. '20 M 06 It 09 If 10 )> 12 >> b A. D. MICHAEL ON AN UNDESCRIBED points, which, in some of the hairs, are of extreme length, and are curved, or doubly-curved. These hairs, or scales, vary greatly, hardly any two (except the corresponding hairs on the opposite sides of the body) being alike. The arrangement (which is not quite the same as in M. musculi) is as follows : — There are five pairs down the centre of the back, of which the first and fifth pairs are less spatulate than the others. On each side of each of the first three of these pairs is a hair or scale, thus forming three transverse rows of four, of which the lateral are not quite in a line with the central pair; the lateral are the largest, the anterior of them (Fig. 10) being far the broadest and the posterior (Fig. 11) the longest on the dorsum. These hairs have longitudinal ridges running along them ; there are seven or eight of these ridges on the broadest hairs, and two or three on the narrowest. In addition to these there is an irregular circle of spike-like or rod-like spines, some more or less curved, set round the vulva, which is placed on a consider- able elevation near the posterior end of the creature. The spatulate hairs cover up the greater part of the dorsal surface, and they do not appear to be attached in the ordinary mode of that class of hair or scale, i.e., by a peduncle springing from the proximal edge, and con- tinued in the plane of the scale, but are almost sessile, the peduncle being very short and thick, and placed underneath, and at right- angles to, the scale, the point of attachment being the centre of the curve formed by the proximal end of the scale; thus the peduncle shows, in optical transverse section, through the semi-transparent scale. The claw of the first leg (Fig. 6) varies considerably from the same part in M . musculi, being much broader and more truncated and scoop-like, and the hook-like or curled portion, which curves under the hair of the host which the parasite is clinging to, being smaller and narrower in proportion to the whole claw, if indeed this vice-like apparatus can be called a claw at all. The expanded lamina of the claw is semi-transparent, but has a curious branched thickening running along its upper surface, a spine being inserted in most of the places where a branch strikes the periphery of the claw. There is a short truncated spine behind the claw, and a strange chitinous piece behind that, like somewhat more than half a hollow sphere, both like those in M. musculi, but not quite so large in pro- portion, and not quite identical in form. The claw of the second leg (Fig. 7) is didactyle, and is the 40 mm. •14 ii •7 »> •9 it 12 >> •15 tt •42 ii ACARUS OF THE GENUS MYOBIA. 7 smallest of all ; the claws are unequal, but there is a clear, chitinous, curved, blunt-ended rod attached, larger than the ungues themselves. The claws of the third leg (Figs. 8, 9), and of the fourth leg, are slightly curved, unequal, didactyle, and considerably larger than those of the second pair. The hairs on the ventral surface are spike-like, as in M. musculi. The Male (Fig. 2, under-side). Average length about „ greatest breadth about... „ length of legs, 1st pair about... ii ii ii ^na ,, ,, ... ... ii ii >i o^d pi ti "• ii ii n ^tn „ ,, ... ... „ ,, „ anal hairs ,, ... The male, it will be seen, is smaller than the female, but is of much the same form, except that its legs and anal hairs are longer in proportion ; it is therefore considerably narrower in shape than the male of M. musculi, which is broader in proportion to its length than the female, The whole of the above observations relative to the hairs of the female, except those round the vulva, and as to the tarsi and claws, will apply equally well to the male. The genital opening (Fig. 3) is placed on the anterior side of an elevation far forward on the dorsal surface, being between the second and third pairs of legs. It consists of a small aperture with slight labia?, and is protected by a horse-shoe-shaped chitinous piece, not unlike the sternite near the vulva of most Dermaldchi, but less developed ; it is surrounded by several short spines. The penis (Fig. 4) is an organ of remarkable size ; it is usually retracted almost wholly into the abdomen, and then nearly touches the hind margin, its point being directed forward ; it is a strong, hollowed rod, of dark chitin, slightly curved, with the concavity upward, and the rod is strongly bent upward near the tip, the actual tip being again turned forward. At its posterior end it has attached to it a somewhat elaborate framework of curved levers, the form of which will be best understood by the drawing. It will be evident that muscles pulling the posterior ends of these levers forward and down- ward would produce the motion required for extrusion. As far as could be judged from the present experience, the numbers of males and females appeared about equal. 8 On the HexactinellidjE. By B. W. Priest. Read May 23rd, 1884. PLATES II., III. The order of Sponges to which I wish to draw your attention this evening, and to which I briefly alluded in a former paper on the Histology of Sponges generally, is one which comprises some of the most interesting, as well as the most beautiful in structure of that class of the Animal Kingdom. As early as 1833 two or three forms were already known and described, first by MM. Quoy and Gaimard, and subsequently by Stutchbury and others. But it was not until the results of the deep-sea explorations which were instituted between the years 1860 and 1870, and followed up to the present time, became known, that any idea of the number of species of that order were arrived at. Some of the species are now pretty well known, being repre- sented in several of our museums by the so-called Venus' Flower Basket, the Glass rope Sponge, the Birds' nest Sponge, and others, all of which were well displayed at the late Fisheries Ex- hibition, and most of the typical species are now to be seen at the Natural History Museum at South Kensington. In 1867 the late Dr. Gray proposed the term Coralliospongia for the order. This answered at the time, as most of the sponges then known and comprised under that arrangement were hard and coral-like, the skeleton entirely formed of siliceous spicules anchy- losed together by siliceous matter, forming a netted mass covered with Barcode. When, however, other forms were found, it became necessary to alter this classification. Dr. Oscar Schmidt proposed to distinguish the whole series under the title of Hexactinellidce, from the fact that all the species shared in common the possession of hexradiate spicules. In 1870 Mr. Saville Kent took the same view, placing Dr. Gray's name, Coralliospongice, as a sub-order to Dr. Schmidt's pri- B. W. PRIEST ON THE HEXACTINELLIDCE. J mary one, and forming a new sub-order, the Callicispongice, the former, Coralliospongice, comprising those sponges with a siliceo- fibrous skeleton, the latter those whose skeleton is composed of an interlacing spicular formation, never reticulate and continuous. Later on, in 1875, Mr. Carter, whose classification will, I think, still hold good, retained the order Hexactinellidce of Schmidt, dividing it into three families : — First, the Vitreo-hexactinelhdce, or those sponges whose spicules are held together by silicified fibre ; secondly, the Sarco-hexactinellidce, or those whose skeleton spicules are held together by amorphous sarcode ; and thirdly, the Sarco- vitreo-hexactinellidce, or those whose spicules are held together in one part by vitrified fibre, and in the other by amorphous sarcode, and which at present contains only one species. These, again, are divided into six groups, namely, Patulina, Tubulina, Scopirfifera, Rosettifera, Birotulifera, and the single species, Euplectella cucumer of Owen, in the third Family. In all the Hexactinellidce known we find a minute flesh spicule in the form of a rosette, which may be defined as an equi-armed, sexradiate spicule, from the ends of whose arms proceed a certain number of rays, which, although the same on each arm of the speci- men, vary in form, number, and arrangement with the species, but always project from the ends of the arms. These spicules often afford, in conjunction with others, a means of specific distinction. When I say that the spicules are formed on the hexradiate plan, I mean that there is a primary axis, which may be long or short, and at one point four secondary rays cross this central shaft at right angles. Often one halt of the central shaft is absent or shortened, or is represented by a rounded boss, and we have then a spicule with a cross-shaped head, an often occurring form in the defence and ornament of the surface layer of these sponges. Sometimes the secondary rays may be partially or wholly undeveloped, which occurs in young spicules and others which are slightly abnormal, but in their place may be seen four little elevations near the middle of the spicule, maintaining the per- manence of the type. In some cases a fifth ray is developed, as in the surface layer of Holtenia Carpenteri. At the distal end of the central shaft a rosette similar to the flesh spicule may be found, as in Euplectella and Dendrospongia. Those sponges which are found in the deep water ooze, as most 10 B. W. PRIEST ON THB BBXAOTIFELLIIXJE. in this order are, anchor themselves by means of delicate glassy Ali- ments, like fine white hair or spun glass, which in case of the Hyalonema, or Glass rope Sponge, sends down through the soft mud a coiled wisp of strong spicules, each spicule about as thick as a moderate sized needle, which opens out into a brush, and fixes the sponge in its place. The ends of these spicules are supplied with an anchorate or grapnel form of termination. In the case of Euplectella aspergiilum, the late Sir Wyville Thompson tells us that this sponge is imbedded up to its fretted lid in the grey mud of the seas of the Phillippines. In a short paper, as the present one must be, I can only just touch on one or two of the sponges contained in the first two families of this order, hoping at some future time to bring others before your notice. First, then, taking an example of a sponge held together by silicified fibre, we have Euplectella aspergiilum, Euplectella being derived from two Greek words signifying " well- woven." Most of you are familiar with the cornucopia-shaped sponge, that at first sight can hardly be imagined to have been formed by any member or aggregation of members so low in the Animal Kingdom, but so it is, and the structure being so intricate, I shall take my de» scription from Mr. Carter. " It has its spicular basket-work, both of the body and lid, throughout, cemented together by an envelope of vitreous, ladder- like fibre, which ladder-like fibre in a horny state is also a pecu- liarity of some of the Keratose sponges. The main lines of spicules are longitudinal and transverse, so that cutting each other at right angles and at nearly equal distances, they leave a number of squarish areas in the intervals, occupied alternately by round holes and matted basket-work. Through this arrangement the squares with holes and basket-work respectively form diagonal lines, again crossing each other, but now obliquely and somewhat spirally round the body ; while a number of compressed ridges or frills, about a quarter of an inch high, formed of the same kind of vitreous spicular structure as the rest of the sponge, run along in more or less continuous spiral lines, obliquely through the squares of matted basket-work, leaving those with holes free between them, finally ter- minating above in a line which encircles the lid-like end, where the latter is joined to the body. The lower end, on the other hand, which is also closed, but of a conical form, similar to the end of a B. W. PRIEST ON THE HEXACTINELLIDJ 5 :. 11 conical sac, is enveloped in a bunch of white horse-hair-like, long, anchoring spicules, respectively smooth and spiniferous, with hooks at the free extremity of the latter. " The flesh spicule, a rosette many-rayed ; rays of equal length, sigmoid, clavate, and dentate outwards, claw-shaped, flexed and grouped en fleur-de-lis, or with rays of equal length, straight and pointed ; occasionally with straight rays, few, and terminated by three or more spines at the free ends laterally." Those with the claw-shaped rays, or, as the late Dr. Bowerbank called them, the florocomo-sexradiate spicules, are found on the outer surface of the sponge, immediately beneath the dermal membrane, cemented to the apex of the distal portion of the central shaft of the spicules forming the beautiful quadrangular network surrounding the sponge. Specimens are difficult to obtain with these spicules in situ, as the majority of the sponges have been well washed before they come into our hands. When the first specimens of Euplectella were brought to England there was some little contention regarding its place in Natural History, some supposing, along with the fishermen who dredged them, that they were formed by some species of Crustacean as many were found with crabs in their interior ; but how came the creatures there? Once in, they could not escape, and then again it was not always the same species that was found in them. Some naturalists thought that the sponge belonged to the Alcynoid family, forgetting the presence of the polyps which characterize an Alcyonia. At last it was decided that the Euplectella was a sponge, and that the crabs must have obtained eutrance when both were in a young stage, and had grown up together. The base of Euplectella has often much sand and extraneous matter attached to the glassy filaments which yield very rare Foraminifera and other minute organisms. I will now just draw your attention to the skeleton framework of Farrea and Aphrocallistes, both being comprised under the same family as Euplectella. The Farreas are sponges more or less tubular and branched ; branches open, and slightly expanded at the free extremities ; walls thin, of only one layer. Aphrocallistes is also tubular and branched ; branches closed at their free extremities ; wall thick and formed of polyhedrally reticu- lated fibre. In some of the members of both may be found a scopuline spi- cule distinguishing the species. 12 B. W. PRIEST ON THE HEXACTINELLIDiE. The framework of both species shows how the hexradiate type is maintained throughout, although at first appearance it seems lost in the process of growth. You will see that the fibre of both is formed by an extension of silicified sarcode, over a regular arrangement of sexradiate spicules, indicating that, whilst in a young stage, what is now siliceous was then horny, but that during the progress of growth of the sponge, silica was deposited, which gradually extending over the fibre, enclosed the original spicules. This conclusion was arrived at from the fact that in some specimens of Farrea occa and Aphrocallistes Bocagei, the anastomosing fibre was charged with minute sex-radiate and scopuline spicules of the sarcode imbedded in a confused way, show- ins:' that the silicitication of the fibre was more or less of a secon- dary formation. Fig. 10, PI. Ill, shows the lattice-work of Farrea occa, Fig. 12, the same of Aphrocallistes beatrix, and Fig. 11, PI. Ill, a frag- ment of Farrea occa, after Carter, enclosing a scopuline spicule with pointed rays. All the sponges of this family will stand boiling in nitric acid, losing only the organic matter, the skeleton coming out a beautiful structure as if made of the purest glass. Of course the rosettes and minute spicules of the sarcode falling through the meshes and col- lecting at the bottom of the vessel, can be washed with water care- fully, and mounted so as to be examined with higher powers than can always be used when they are in situ. We must now pass on to the second Family of this Order, or those sponges whose skeleton spicules are held together by amor- phous sarcode. Perhaps foremost will stand tlaeHyalonema, the now well-known Glass rope Sponge, first brought over from Japan, and described by the late Dr. Gray in 1835, subsequently dredged off the coast of Portugal, and since then at various places by the "Porcu- pine," " Challenger," and other expeditions. This sponge having been now so often and well described, along with the deceptions practised by the Japanese regarding its position, &c, I shall take one of a comparatively new genus, named Rossella, after Sir John Ross, who brought over a few spicules only. This genus contains three species, viz., R. Antarctica (Carter), R. Fhillippensis (Gray), and R. velata (Thompson). Taking Rossella Phillippensis, that being the specimen I have on the table, it is, in form, generally glo- B. W. PRIEST ON THE IIEXACTINELLID.E. 13 bular, or ovate, and occasionally cup-shaped, varying according to age, presenting a somewhat flattened summit in which there is an aperture, and a conical base which is closed, but rendered irre- gular by mammiform prolongations of the body, out of each of which issues a hair-like lock of long anchoring spicules, sessile, or fixed by the anchoring spicules ; colour grey ; external surface uniformly even, except where interrupted by the mammiform prolongations ; cribbellate immediately below the lattice-work layer, surmounted by one form of spicule only, which issues, as before stated, in hair-like locks from the summits of the prolongations ; internal surface of the cavity uniformly smooth, interrupted by depressions so increas- ing in size downwards as to occupy the whole of the lower part. Structural spicules of the body or wall of three forms ; — first, a nail- like or conically headed spicule, the shaft vertically placed in the wall, and the arms spreading out horizontally over the external sur- face, so as to support the lattice-like layer of minute sex-radiate spicules imbedded in the dermal sarcode ; secondly, a long linear spicule, often presenting in the middle two or four tubercles corres- ponding to the ends of the crucial branches of the sex-radiate central canal, terminating in spines, and more or less inflated extremities, but otherwise smooth ; and thirdly, sex-radiates of different sizes, with arms of ecpial length, spined and pointed, chiefly composing the lattice-like structure and including the right rosette-like forms of spicule of the sarcode. This species has also longer anchoring spicules than the other two, with the four stout spines or hooks recurved and opposite, which characterises the genus generally of Rossella. Another difference in the structure of the species consists in its being without the veil of singular and beautiful form which is found in the other species, extending about a centimetre from the surface of the sponge, and formed by the interlacing of the four secondary rays of the large five-rayed spicules, which send their long shafts from that point vertically into the sponge body. Figs. 6, 7 and 8, PI. Ill, show forms of rosette occurring in Rossella, and Figs. 5 and 7, the free end of the anchoring spicules characterising the genus. The third family, or that comprising the characters of the two forms combined, and of which only one species is, as yet, known, viz., Evplectella cucumer, I shall pass over, as the sponge has been well described bv Professor Owen in the " Linnean Transactions " for 14 B. W. TRIE8T ON THE HEXACTINELLID^E. 1857, and the original sponge may now be seen and examined at South Kensington. Very little is known, as far as I can find, of the life-history of this order of sponges, the most, perhaps, being where Sir Wyville Thompson, after describing Iloltenia Carpentei-i, says, " When the sponge is living, the interstices of the silicious network are filled up, both outside and in, with a delicate fenestrated membrane formed of a glairy substance like white of egg, which is constantly moving, extending or contracting the fenestra?, and gliding over the surface of the spicules. This " sarcode," which is the living flesh of the sponge, contains distributed through it an infinite number of minute spicules, presenting the most singular and elegant forms characteristic of the species. A constant current of water carried along by the action of cilia passes in by apertures in the outer wall, courses through the passages in the loose texture of the intermediate sponge-substance, carrying organic matter in solution and rjarticles of nourishment into all its interstices, and finally passing out by the large osculum at the top." There is another sponge about which there has been much con- troversy as to whether it should be placed among the Hexactinellidce or the Tethyidce, viz., Dorvillia agariciformis of Kent, and Tethyea muricata of Bowerbank. This sponge has some of the characters of a Tethyea, but is certainly more closely allied to the order we have been considering. It seems to be a link between the two, showing how one species of sponge runs into another, as we may see over and over again. A large number of the Fossil Sponges found in the chalk and greensand, and known under the name of Ventriculites, belong to the Hexactinellidce, and most of them show an octohedral knot structure in the outer skeleton ; but Mr. Carter tells me that he only knows of two existing species that show the same structure, viz., Myliusia Grayi, a specimen of which is in the Museum, and Myliusia Zittilii, from the Phillippine Islands, of which he kindly sent me a fragment." DESCRIPTION OF PLATES. Plate II. Fig. 1, 2, 3, 4. — Typical spicules of the Hexradiate order of Sponges. o & 7. — Anchoring spicules of llosse'la. 6. — Anchoring spicule of Pherunema. Journ. Q.K.C. \ V I i&*r \ ^ A.HSev: •• B. W. PRIEST ON THE HEXACTINELLlD^. 15 8. — Ditto of Labaria. 9. — Ditto of Euplectella. 10, 11 & 12. — Flesh spicules of Evplectella. 12a. — Floricomo spicule of Euplectella. 1 2b. — Claw-shaped end of Kay of ditto. 13 & 14. — Scopuliue spicules occurring in Aphrocallistes. Plate III. Fig. l.—Eossella Phillippinensis. 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9. — Some of the spicules of the same. 10. — Lattice-like framework of Farrea occa. 11. — Fragment of Farrea occa, enclosing a scopuline spicule (after Carter). 12. — Portion of skeleton framework of Aphrocallistes Beatris. 13. — Portion of the outer wall of a Yentriculite showing the octohedral structure of the silicious network. Note. — In all the flesh spicules figured, the third axis, comprising the fifth and sixth rays, is omitted, in order to avoid complicating the drawing. 16 Description of some New Diatomace^e found in the Stomachs of Japanese Oysters, by Fred. Kitton, Hon. F.R.M.S., Hon. Memb. Q.M.C. ; with a List of the Species observed by E. Grove, F.R.M.S. Also a Description of some New or Undescribed Forms from other Localities, by F. Kitton. Read June 27th, 1884. PLATE IV. The stomachs of Oysters and other molluscs have frequently been examined by Diatomists in the expectation of finding the siliceous skeletons of the Diatomaceae mixed with the partially digested food ingested by the mollusc, among others by Gaillon, "who, in 1820 described his Vibrio ostrearius (== Naricida ostrearia, Turpin = N. fusiformis, Grim., var. ostrearia, Turpin). M. De Brebisson found a new species of Amphora (A. ostrearia) in Cal- vados Oysters (Kiitzing, " Sp. Alg.," p. 94), and M. Bornet says that the Oysters in the beds at the mouth of the Loire become green by feeding on N. fusiformis, var. ostrearia (Grunow and Kitton in '-'Month. Mic. Jour.," 1877, p. 179) ; see also the de- tails of M. Puysegur's investigations " On the Green Colour of Oysters," in " Revue Maritime et Coloniale," Feb., 1880, and "Trans. Roy. Mic. Soc," Vol. iii, 1880, p. 931. M. P. Petit obtained from some Chinese Oysters two new species Cocconeis Ningpoensis and Triceratium rostratum and two new varieties Aclinanthes subsessilis, var. enervis, and Coscinodiscus lineatus, var. oculatus, which he figures and describes in his paper, entitled, " Diatomees sur les Huitres de Ningpo et de Nimroud Sound (Chine)." (" Mem. de la Soc. des Sci. Nat. et Math, de Cherbourg," t. xxiii., pp. 201,209, PI. I, 1881.) In addition to the above he detected 72 previously described species. Last year one of our members, Mr. G. Sturt, availed himself of the opportunity of purchasing some " tinned " Oysters from > F. KITTON ON SOME NEW DIATOMACE^. 17 Japan (of which some cases had been sent to the Fisheries Exhi- bition at South Kensington) for the purpose of making a micro- scopic analysis of the contents of their stomachs, and as his modus operandi may be of service to others who are desirous of examining the stomachs of Oysters and other mollusca, I give his directions for their preparation : " After opening the tin and pouring off the liquid contents, I empty out the Oysters and pick out the stomachs (which look like dark little sacs, and as a rule are free, or only partially surrounded by a little fatty matter, which is easily taken off). I then heat in a flask to boiling point five or six ounces of nitric acid, in which I drop one by one the stomachs, waiting until each is dissolved before adding another. After all have been dissolved I add an ounce of hydrochloric acid, and continue the boiling for five minutes, dropping in at intervals a little bichromate of potash. I now fill up the flask with hot water and empty the whole into a large beaker, filling up with the hot water (the fat rises to the surface, and on cooling congeals on the top, and is easily skimmed off). I wash away the acid, using hot water, and boil in soap and water according to Prof. H. L. Smith's direc- tion.* If this docs not get rid of the organic matter, I boil in sulphuric acid and chlorate of potash." In addition to the numerous more or less well-known species found in these stomachs, Mr. Sturt detected several valves of an Aulacodiscus, which he exhibited at a meeting of the Club, held Dec. 14, 1883, as A. angulatus, Grev. Having some doubt as to the identity of the two forms, he forwarded to me for examination several specimens of the form he had found, and, on placing them under the microscope, I saw that they differed from any published species with which I was acquainted, and a 1 so from any of the numerous specimens in my cabinet. Under a low power they somewhat resembled A, angulatus and A. am o? mis, Grev., but a greater amplification (-|) showed the resemblance to be very slight, the difference being, in my opinion, of sufficient importance to con- stitute a new species. I, therefore, have much pleasure in naming it after the discoverer. Aulacodiscus Sturtii, n. sp. F.K. Frustule cylindrical, valve with a large central elevation (usually flat on the toj>), not bullate below the processes, processes placed on the angles of * The water used for washing must be filtered rain or distilled water, and free from all trace of acid. — F. K. Joukn. Q. M. C, Series II., No. 9. c 18 F. KITTON ON SOME NEW DIATOMACE^. the central elevation, furrows distinct, pnncta moniliform,* radiant between the margin and elevations, upon which they are more dis- tant and less regularly radiant. Diameter, '0029" to 62". PI. IV. Fig. 1. The number of processes varies from 3 to 5. The most conspicuous feature of this species is the flat, elevated centre, aptly compared by a correspondent to a miniature fort, the projecting processes resembling the guns. Podosira maxima, Kiitz., var. ? Valve hyaline, and the punc- tate strias more distant than in the type species. P. maxima, abnormal. This remarkable monstrosity cannot be clearly understood excepting by reference to the drawing. The ir- regular configuration, apparently upon the valve, is really below it, and is probably a malformed internal valve. The specimen is a frus- tule, of which the upper valve appears to be normal, and shows con- spicuously the irregular " black spots " which Herr Grunow, in his paper on the " Caspian Sea Diatoms" (" J. R. M. S.," Vol. ii. p. 689), says mostly mark the beginning of new rays of puncta, but from some observations I have recently made on styrax mounted specimens this does not appear to be the case, an examination under a binocular and a power of 400 diameters, illuminating with a paraboloid, showed the black spots to be trumpet-shaped tubuli extending in a direction more or less perpendicular to the upper and under surfaces of the valve, but apparently imperforate, as the styrax has not penetrated them, sometimes they appeared to be composed of elongated vacuoles like air-bubbles rising through a viscous medium, and which had become suddenly arrested. The trumpet- shaped tubuli are not unlike those seen in a section of Waldheimia australis, or the pseudopodal apertures in Globi- gerina, &c. PI. IV., Fig. 2, frustule. Fig. 3, diagrammatic section of valve. Amphipleura pellucida, var. rectus, F. K. Valve linear, margins parallel up to the commencement of the furcate ends of the raphe, when the valve becomes lanceolate. Length, -009 ; breadth, •00075 ; strire punctate, 65 in -00K PI. IV., Fig. 4. Rare. * Mr. E. M. Nelson has called my attention to the markings between the headings, which give a granular or shagreen-like appearance to the surface of the valve, similar to that on A., formosus, in the immature valves of the latter species they appear as distinct punctae, hut as the valve increases in thickness they become less apparent. He also informs me that the Aula- codiscus Havtianvs shewn by him at the meeting held Feb. 8, LS84- (vide Journ., Vol. i, S. 2, p. 371), was the above, Hartianua being a misprint. F. KITTON ON SOME NEW DIATOMACE.E. 19 In this variety the " porte-crayon " terminations of the raphe, so conspicuous in Navicula Lewisiana, and more or less so in all the species and varieties of the Vanheurckian group, is more distinct than in the other varieties of Amphipleura. ^ Navicula scopulorum, Breb. Forma major. Valve punctato striate, about 65 in -001." Length, -008" to -009" ; breadth at centre, •0006 to -00065. Raphe and nodules somewhat resembling Van- heurckia rhomboides. Rare. My friend, Mr. E. Grove, F.R.M.S., of Saltburn-by-the-Sea, has very carefully, examined the Diatomaceous forms obtained from these Oysters, and has kindly permitted me to append his list to my description of the new species. M. P. Petit's list, as previously stated, contains the names of 72 species. Ours contains more than 100, exclusive of the new forms. Probably several of those named in the list may prove, on further examination, to be new species or new varieties. LIST OF MARINE SPECIES OF DIATOMACE^E OBSERVED BY MR. GROVE IN PREPARATIONS FROM JAPAN OYSTERS. ■£• Achnanthes Inngipes, A« ,, subsessilis, E. Actinocyclus Ehrenbergii, Rlfs. Rare. Actinoptychus undulatus, E. Amphora marina, W. S. (proteus, Greg.). Scarce. Arachnoidiscus ornatus, E. „ Ehrenbergii, Bail. Amphiprora ahita, E. var. ?. „ elegans, W. S. Scarce. (Qj., A. vitrea.) Asteromphalus Brookei, Bail. Rare. Auliscus ccelatus, Bail. Scarce. „ pruinosus, Bail. Rare. ,, Stockhardtii ? Fragments only. Biddulphia aurita, Breb. „ reticulata, Rop. Bribissonia Weissflogii, Gran. var. ? (Qj., Schizonema Grevilleii,W. S. large form.) Camjjylo discus dcemelianus, Grim. „ echene'is, Ebr. Scarce. „ undulatus, Grev. Rare. „ grceffii, Gren. var., " Atl." xvi., 2. Rare. „ biangulatus, Grev. Rare. 20 F. KITTON ON SOME NEW DIATOMACE^. Cocconeis scittellum, E. ,, „ var. ornata, Grnn. (Qy., C. Morrissii, W, S.) „ diijjliana, W. S. ? „ intermedia, Gran. ? ,, distant, Greg. Scarce. Cosci/todiscus o cuius -iridis, E. „ centralis, E. var. „ omphalanthus, E. ? „ radi'du 9 , E. „ heteroporus, E. ,, eccentricus, E. „ svbtilis, E. „ subconcavus, E. ? „ subglobosus, Grnn. ,, armatus, Grev. ? Scarce, small form. Cyclotella Dallasiana, W. S. Rare. Denticula lauta, E. ? Scarce. Epithemia rniiseulus, E. Gomphonema (Rhoikospliema) mavinum, W. S. Grammatophora marina, K. „ hamuli f era, K. Mastogloia exigua, Lew. Rare. JSlelosira sulcata, E. Navicula i?ite?'rupta, K. Rare. ,, didyma, E. Rare (small form). ,, Smithii, Breb. ,, prcetexta, E. Rare. ,, spectabilis, Greg. Rare. ,, carinifera, Grun., " Atl." i., Fig. 2. ,, Bailey ana t Grun. ,, (Scoliopleura) convexa, W. S. ,, directa, W. S. ,, liber, W. S. Also a var. with central stigmata. ,, yarrensis, Grun. Rare. „ aspera, E. (Stauroneis pulchella, W. S.). „ bleischii. Rare. ,, formosa, Greg. Rare. ,, peregrina, E. Small form. ,, scopulorum, Breb. Nitzschia (Tryblionella) punctata. var. (jranulata, Grnn. ,, gracilis, Hantzscb. vars. A small hyaline form. (Qy., Tryb. debilis, W. A.). „ constrict a, Greg. Scarce. panduriformis, Greg. Rare. jelineckii, Grun. Rare. >» >> F. KITTON ON SOME NEW DIATOMACE JS, 21 Nitzschia socialis, Greg. ,, annularis, W. S. ,, sigma, W. S. vara. HantzscMa marina, Donk. Scaice. Pleurosigma balticum, W. T. „ formosum. W. T. var. Broad, with blunt ends. ,, elongatum, W. T. Small form. Podosira maxima, K. ,, ,, minima, Grun. Pyxidicula cruciata, E. ? Scarce. Phabdonema crozierii, E. Phaplwneis surirella, E. Rhizosolenia hebetata, Bail. Scarce. Stictodiscus calijornicus, Grev. Rare. Surirella fastuosa, E. „ striatula, Turp. var. Narrow, resembling S. gemma in outline. ,, gemma, E. Sxjnedra affinis, K. var>. Triceratium arctieum, E. ,, scxdptum, Shad. var. ? A central spine. (Qy., T. macidatum, Kitt., V.H., 112, 9, 10, 11.* A considerable number of Freshwater species were observed, which were more numerous in some preparations than in others. Caitipylodiscus noricus, E. Bare. Cymbella, two or three species, Epi- themia turgida, Navicula rhomboides, E. JS\ amphigomphus (firma), E. N. commutata, Grun. Surirella splendida and vars. S. spiralis, S. W., not uncommon ; S. nobilis, scarce ; Nitzsclda (Hantzschia) amphioxys, Tabellaria, &c, &c. UNDESCRIBED SPECIES FROM OTHER LOCALITIES. Surirella carinata, n. sp., F. K. Valve panduriform, apices broadly rounded, aire slightly produced, costre reaching to pseudo, raphe margin striate. Length, '0055" ; breadth, "0036 ; width at construction, -0026. Dredging — Lat., 20*1 S. ; long., 57*25 E. ; depth, -1350 fms. — PI. IV., Fig. 5., a-b, longitudinal and trans- verse sections (ideal). The small quantity of material at my disposal yielded several valves, and fragments of valves, these showed very little variation in outline or markings. The centre of the valve has a longitudinal * I have seen a form like the species figured in Schmidt's "Atlas," PI. LXXYL, Fig. 11, which is a var. of T. sculptum. — F. K. 22 P. KITTON ON SOME NEW DIATOMACEiG. elevation like a reversed V (\), the top of which constitutes the pseudo raphe. Sceptroneis ? claws, n. sp., F. K. Valve cuneate, superior apex broad, rapidly diminishing to half its breadth, afterwards tapering gradually to the rounded inferior apex. Proceeding from the margins of the superior apex are nine longitudinal folds, gradually diminishing in length as they approach the sides; the raphe becomes forked a little below the three longest folds which it embraces. Strise moniliform, about 28 in '001" ; length, *01 ; breadth of superior apex, '0016, do. inferior, "0006. " Challenger" dredging. — PI. IV., Fig. 6, b-a, superior apex. I, at one time, thought this form might be an abnormal state of some species of Synedra or Sceptroneis, but having found several fragments all resembling the perfect specimen from which the illustration was made, I have come to the conclusion that it is a new species if not a new genus. In outline it very much resembles a horse-shoe nail. Navicula Lyra, abnormal. Valve with one end broadly rounded, the other produced and mammiform ; raphe imperfect, obsolete on the upper half of the valve, the smooth, lyrate spaces on each side of the raphe in the normal form are here represented by a horse-shoe shaped hyaline band, commencing a little above the central nodules, and terminating near the mammiform apex. Strias moniliform, radiant on the upper half and sometimes confluent, having the appearance of radiating costee, not reaching the margin of the rounded end. Length, -0042 ; breadth at centre, '0020 ; broad apex, -0009 ; narrow apex, -0003. In a gathering from Pensacola, Gulf of Mexico, sent to me by A. W. Griffin, Esq., of Bath. This form very much resembles in outline two abormal forms of Navicula ( Stauroneis) maculata, of which Herr Weissflog has kindly sent me photographs. In both specimens the striaa on the upper portion do not reach the margin of the broad end. In one specimen an irregular smooth space surrounded the central nodule, and a slight trace of raphe exists near the small apex ; length, -0048" ; breadth at centre, "0023". In the second specimen a circular sub-central smooth area is visible, the terminal nodules lying just within its circumference. The lower half of the raphe is normal, but that of the upper part is nearly at right angles with it. Length, -0043 ; breadth, '0023. I / F. KITTON ON SOME NEW DIATOMACE^E. 23 These forms occurred in a gathering from Marble Head, Mass., U.S. DESCRIPTION OF PLATE IV. Fig. 1. — Aulacodiscus Sturtii. X 600 dia. 2. — Podosira maxima, X 400 dia. 3. — ,, diagrammatic section of valve. 4. — A mp Ja pleura pettucida, X 400 dia. 4a. — „ apex, x 800 dia. 5. — Surirella crinata, X 400 dia. a-h, ideal sections of do. 6. — Sceptroneis clavv.s, X 360 dia.* a, superior apex of do., X GOO dia. 7. — Naticula Lyra, abnormal, X 600 dia. This valve is apparently slightly abuormal, the pseudo raphe is not central, and one angle of the broad apex is lower than the other. Fig. a represents a fragment of another valve. * Shows the moniliform character of the striae. 24 Note on Mermis Nigrescens. By R. T. Lewis, F.R.M.S. Bead June 27th, 1884. Those members of the Quekett Club who are old enough in that relationship to remember its earlier proceedings, will perhaps recol- lect that at the Ordinary Meeting in August, 1867, a paper was read " On Mermis Nigrescens," a hair worm which at that time was attracting considerable attention. At that remote period of our history the Quekett did not possess a Journal of its own, but the paper in question was preserved from oblivion by the then Editor of " Science Gossip " — our now respected President. Referring to the paper as it appeared in that periodical for October, 1867, it seems that on the 2nd of June in that year a thunderstorm occurred, accompanied by heavy rainfall, and that on the following morning immense numbers of these worms were found upon trees and shrubs, as well as on the grass and on the soil, throughout the counties of Sussex, Kent, Surrey, and Middle- sex. The facts were mentioned at the time at the Entomological and Linnean Societies, as well as the Quekett Microscopical Club ; and specimens were exhibited here which had been forwarded by a friend at Bognor. It was also stated that similar sudden appear- ances of these worms in large numbers occurred in the years 1781, 1832, and 1845 — on each occasion in the month of June, and after thunderstorms with heavy rainfall. During the 17 years which have intervened my enquiries for further specimens of these creatures have proved fruitless, but on the 5th of June, 1884, Ave were visited with a severe thunderstorm, followed by heavy rainfall, which continued without interruption for about 24 hours ; and on the following day, whilst stooping to remove a weed from a flower- bed, my attention was arrested by Mermis Nigrescens, suspended by the tail from a carnation plant, and waving its slender body to and fro in the air. Further search speedily resulted in the discovery of R. T. LEWIS ON MERMIS NIGRESCENS. 25 numerous other specimens, some on rose bushes and plants, others upon the ground, but all alive and active, and in a mature con- dition ; I could, however, only find them on the western side of the garden, the wind during the clay having blown from the east, and the eastern side being much sheltered by trees. On the following- morning not one could anywhere be found, and where they came from, or went to, remain as much unanswered queries as in 1867, though at that time, as on former occasions, a belief prevailed amongst the rural population that they had fallen from the clouds during the storm. The finding of these specimens during the present month enabled me to repeat and to verify the observations made in 1867, and this under the more favourable conditions that these recentlv obtained were living, whereas those formerly received from Bognor were dead and dry when they came to hand. In general appearance the two lots are precisely similar — from 3^ to 5 inches long by about Jq inch in diameter, their colour varying with the quantity of ova which they contained, the darkest specimens probably en- closing not far short of 10,000. The spirally striated character of the translucent integument is very marked in the living specimens, and seems to furnish a clue to their extraordinary muscular power and movements, for whilst readily able to coil up into a helix of about T \ inch in diameter, it was noted that when seized by one end the body became almost rigid, and many specimens were taken which were erect and w T aving to and fro in the air for at least | of their total length. One specimen, whilst under the microscope, was observed to expel a quantity of ova which, when placed under a ^ ineh objective, were at once seen to possess the curious appendages formerly noticed, each ovum being enclosed in a delicate hyaline capsule, having one or more extremely fine brush-like processes at each end. Specimens of the worms, both alive and mounted, are exhibited in the room, and under another microscope the ova, with their appendages, are also shown ; these are simply placed under a cover glass upon a hollowed glass slide, in a little water, as any attempt to mount them has hitherto only resulted in the rapture of the capsule and escape of the worm. It is mainly with the hope of eliciting some suggestions as to the probable use of these appendages that I have ventured this short note upon an old subject. Note. — Since the above was written and on the afternoon of 26 R. T. LEWIS ON MKRMIS NIGRESCENS. July 6th a severe thunderstorm again occurred, rain falling heavily for about two hours ; immediately on the cessation of the storm I searched the garden for Mermis, and succeeded in finding six more specimens. My attention has also since been directed to the observations of Dujardin on this subject, as quoted by our late President, Dr. T. S. Cobbold, in his work on "Entozoa," p. 59, in which these pro- cesses are regarded as funiculi. — R. T. L. 27 Q.M.C. EXCURSIONS. List of Objects Found on the Excursion to the Gardens of the Royal Botanic Society of London by Messrs. Badcock, Bartlett, Cocks, Dr. M. C. Cooke, Messrs. Dunning. Funston, Glasspoole, Hardy, Mainland, Parsons, and Rousselet. 19th April, 1884. ALGjE. Cladophora fracta. Oscillaria Frolichii. „ tenervima. Scytonema Hoffmanni. „ Julianum. W. and N. DESMIDIACEJS. Closteriwn lunula. „ monilijerum. Pediastrum Boryanum. ,, granulatum. Scenedesmus quadricauda. DIATOM ACE uE. Amphipleura sigmoidea. Cocconema lanceolatum. Encyonema c&spitosum. Navicular. Pinnularia nobilis. Pleurosigma littorale. Synedra capitata. INFUSORIA. Acineta tuberosa and various forms of Podophrya. Actinophrys. Amblyopias viridis. Amceba princeps. Astasia limpida. Cothurnia imberbis. 28 INFUSORIA. Dileptus folium. E[ i is tylis anasta ilea . „ grand is. Euglena longicauda. Paramecium aurelia. Phacus longicaudus. Spongilla jluviatilis. Stentor, sp. „ cairuleus. Mullen, polymoiphus. Stylonichia. Vaginicola crystallina. Vorticella microstoma. „ nebulifera. Zooth a m n iu m s imp lex, ROTIFER A. Brachionus amphtceros. Dinocharis tetractis. Distemma forficula. Floscularia cornuta. Limnias ceratophylli. Mastigocerca carinata. Metopidia. Monocerca raltus. (Ecistes crystallinus. CEcistes umbella. Phylodin a erythi op hthalma. Pterodina patina. Rattulus lunar is, Stephanocerus Eichhornii. POLYZOA. Fredericella sultana. Plumatella repens. ENIOMOSTRACA. Cyclops tenuicornis. Canthocamptus. Chydorvs. And other common species. 29 PLANAUIA. Sp. ANNELIDA. Nais digit at a. Thirty-five members of the Club, with three friends and nine members of other Societies, making a total of forty-seven, joined the excursion, and were very delighted with the opportunity of visiting these Gardens, afforded by the kindness of Mr. Sowerby, who conducted the party through the conservatory and other houses and the grounds. Mr. Sowerby's great attention was highly appreciated by all present. List of Objects Found on the Excursion to Chingford by Mr. Cocks, Dr. M. C. Cooke, Messrs. Gi.asspoole, Main- land, J. T. Powell, Dadswell, and Funston. 3rd May, 1884. ALGsE. Oscillaria tenuis. Protococcus. Spirogyra decemina. Spirogyra quinina. Volvox globator. DESMIDIACE^E. Closterium acerosum. ,, Ehrenbergii. ,, moniliferum. Cosmarium botrytis. Penium margaritaceum. Strauraslrum polymorphum. ,, punctulatum. MUSCI. The protonema of a moss, easily mistaken for a species of Stygeoclonium, very numerous in the ditch at the Cuckoo pits. Aulacomnion palustre. Dicranum. Pogonatum piliferum. Sphagnum. FUNGI. Byssosphceria aquila, Fr. 30 FUNGI. Peziza aphala, B. & Br. ,, Curreyana, B. CHARACE^E. JSitella opaca, male plant with antheridia in beautiful condition. D1ATOMACEJE. Xitzschia. Pinnularia nobilis. „ viridis. • INFUSORIA. Actinophrys Eichhornii. ,, sol. ,, viridis. AntJwphysa Mulleri (vegetans). Arcella dentata. ,, vulgaris. Bursaria vernalis. Euglena longicauda. Lacrymaria proteus. Peridinium cinctum. Stentor Mulleri (white in gelatinous tubes). ,, polymorphic. ROTIFER A. Anurcea curvicornis. Brachionus. Conochilus volvox. Dinocharis tetractis. Euchlanis sp. Floscularia, sp. Hydatina senta. Melicerta ringens. Metopidia sp. Monocerca rattus. (Ecistes umbella. Philodina. Tardigrada. ENTOMOSTRACA. Chydorus sphericus. Cyclops. Daphnia. n 1 PLANARIA. Planaria lactea. MYRIAPODA. Polyxenes lagurus. ARACHNIDA. Chelifer cancroides. PHANEROGAMS. Drosera rotundifolia. Ruscus aculeatus. And many other common species. Twelve members of the Club, and three members of other Societies attended. The weather was very unpromising, and doubtless deterred many from joining the Excursion. List of Objects Found on the Excursion to Totteridge by Dr. M. C. Cooke, Messrs. Dadswell, Funston, Hardy, Mainland, and J. T. Powell. 17th May, 1884. ALG^E. Aphanothece stagnina. Apiocystis. Bulbochcete setigera. Chcetophora pisiformis. Gonium pectorale. Mesocarpvs, sp. Without fruit, and therefore cannot be named. Nostoc piscinale. (Edogonium ciliatum. „ Vaucherii. Olpidium endogenum, in Mesocarpus. Oscillaria limosa. « ,, . tenuis. Spirogyra flavescens. ,, nitida. ,, quinina. Stauraspermum, sp. Without fruit, and therefore cannot be named. Stigeoclonium protensum. Ulothrix tenerrima. Zygnema stellinum. 32 A filamentous alga — cells about length of four diameters, with two stellate bodies in each cell. Volvox globator, with yellow resting-spores, but some, although revolving, were without spores and full of a filamentous sub- stance. DESMIDIACEjE. Closterium Ehrenbergii. „ lunula. Euastrum oblongum. Pediastrum Boryanum. „ Ehrenbergii. „ granulatum. Scenedesmus acutus. ,, quadricauda. Straurastrwn giacile. DIATOMACEJS. Cocconema lanceolatum. Pleurosigma angulation. Surirella. A stipitate diatom. M icr aster ias. CHARACEsE. Nitella fiexilis — in fruit. INFUSORIA. Actinophrys sol. An thophysa M i'dleri. Arcella vulgaris. Bursaria truncatella. Chcetonotus larus. Chaetotyphla armata. Coleps hirtus. Euglena viridis, and the red form of ditto. Epistylis. Stentor niger. ,, viridis. Vaginicola crystallina. Vorticella, many varieties. Stylonichia. 33 ROTIFER A. Euchlanis triguetra. Floscularia cornuta. „ . ornata. Limnias ceratophjlli. Melicerta ringens. (Ecistes crystallinus. Rattulus lunaris. Stephanoceros Eiclihornii, Triarthra longiseta. ENTOMOSTRACA. Camptocercus macrourus. A Cyclops, not figured in Baird. Diaptomus castor. HYDRACHNIDA. Arrenurus globator. NEMATOIDEA. Anguillula jluviatilis. MISCELLANEA. A globular gelatinous cyst, the size of a pea, containing numerous ova and nearly hatched larvas, probably dipterous. PHANEROGAMS. Ranunculus lingua (Greater Spearwort). Acorus calamus (Sweet Flag). Sherardia arvensis (Field Madder). The day was fine, but the excursion was not so well attended as might have been expected. Possibly Totteridge may be thought by some to be exhausted, but the foregoing list shows that there are still many objects to be obtained in that neighbourhood ; in addition to those enumerated some curious forms of Volvox and some very beautiful Rotifers were found by the Secretary, who re- grets that he had not time to identify them. Other interesting objects were also found by him. The number of members of the Q.M.C. who attended the Excur- sion was twelve. Four members of the Hackney Society were also present, as also one member from the S. London ; these with one or two friends, made up a total of nineteen. Journ. Q. M. C.j Series II., No. 9. n List of Objects Found on the Excursion to Woking Bt Messrs. Dadswell and Parsons. Saturday, 7tli June, 1884. ALG^E. Volvox globator. INFUSORIA. Vaginicola. Stentor Mulleri. ROTIFERA. Conocliilus volvox. Floscularia. Jllelicerta ringens. Stepha?ioceros Eiclilwrnii. Limnias ceratophylli. ENTOMOSTRACA. Daphnia pulex. A Daphnia — probably reticulata, Laving the eye at the end of a blunt rostrum. Diaptomus castor, male and female. Eurycercus latuellatus. Polyphemus pecliculus. CHARACEsE. Nitella opaca, female plant with arcnegonia. PHANEROGAMS. Drosera rotundifolia. „ intermedia. Owing to the weather during the week having been very wet, the Excursion, as regards numbers, was a failure, only four members, three of whom are on the Excursions Sub-Committee, attending, but they had a very enjoyable afternoon. Mr. Fredk. Enock kindly met them at the station and pointed out the likely spots for finding objects of interest. Fredk. A. Parsons. Hon. Sec, Excns. Sub- Com. 35 » PROCEEDINGS. April 25th, 1884. — Ordinary Meeting. Dr. M. C. Cooke, M.A., A.L.S., President, in the Chair. The minutes of the preceding meeting were read and confirmed. The following gentlemen were balloted for and duly elected members of the Club : — Mr. Jno. Higgins and Mr. J. W. P. Laurence. The following donations to the Club were announced : — " Journal of the Royal Microscopical Society " From the Society. "Proceedings of the Geologists' Association" ,, „ " Journal of the Postal Microscopical Society" ,, „ " Proceedings of Belgian Microscopical^) Society" ) " Science Gossip " ... ... ... ... ,, Publisher. " The Analyst " „ Editor. " Science Monthly " ... ... ... ... ,, „ "The American Naturalist " ... ... ... In exchange. " The American Monthly Microscopical^) Journal" ) " Dr. Cooke's " Fresh Water Algae," Part 8 ... Purchased. " Annals of Natural History " ... ... „ Coles' " Studies in Microscopical Science" ... „ "Challenger Reports," Vol. 8 ... ... ... „ " Album of Woods," by Wilmusdafer .. ... „ "The Flora of Middlesex" From Mr. Crisp. The thanks of the meeting were voted to the donors. The President, on behalf of the Excursion Committee, wished to remind the members that the excursion season had commenced, and that two ex- cursions had already taken place. It was intended this season to introduce a new feature by giving out papers to the members to be filled up and re- turned to the Secretary, indicating the various objects found, and giving figures of such as it had not been possible to identify. The papers filled up at the first excursion were so satisfactory that it had been thought desirable to lay them upon the table that evening, so that others who pur- posed attending future excursions might see how it was done, and that others might be able to judge of the practical utility of the plan. He thought that the collection thus formed would be a most interesting record of the out-door work of the Club. And he would just call attention to the sketches which accompanied many of the papers as evidencing that there was drawing power as well as singing power in the Club. 3(5 Mr. Badcock thought he might say that these two excursions illustrated the necessity for looking in unlikely places, for they were very apt to be- come accustomed to look only in what they considered to be likely places, forgetting that others were very often those where something very rare might be found. At Keston many were disappointed at not finding any Batrachospermum at the well as usual, but others who went to another pond found large masses of it in fine condition. In the bog he found Surirella bifrons, and on looking at it under the microscope he dis- covered that which had been a subject of some dispute, namely, the filmy pseudopodia, very clearly defined. The same remark would equally apply to their last excursion to the Botanic Gardens, where in the Victoria Regia house, on the rootlets of one of the water plants, Epitstylus and Philodina were found in greater abundance than he had ever seen them before. Mr. Ingpen described a new form of Camera Lucida, by Dr. Schroeder. At first sight it might not appear to be neAv, but there was a very special and interesting difference between this and any other. Dr. Schroeder admitted that he made out the principle of it whilst working out Mr. Wenham's prism for high powers. By means of a drawing upon the board he (Mr. Ingpen) showed that the usual displacement was got rid of, owing to the image having two reflections, and that the whole of the field was taken in, the light being moderately bright from the object, and the image of the pencil being beautifully clear. Until he had tested the results Mr. Wenham had been equally sceptical with others as to the value of any Camera Lucida with superimposed images. Mr. Michael called attention to an unrecorded species of the genus 3/yobia, which he found some time since amongst some specimens which were sent to him by the Rev. C. R. M. Burrows, of Brentwood. It was amongst a number of others taken parasitic upon the ordinary small Bat, found in a cavern in Gloucestershire. A diagram of the specimen was drawn upon the board, and its distinctive features, particularly the pecu- liarity of the foot, were pointed out. It was proposed to call it Chiropteralis. Mr. E. T. Newton (occupying the chair in the absence of the President) proposed a vote of thanks to Mr. Michael, which was unanimously carried. Mr. E. M. Nelson read a letter from Professor Hamilton Smith, with regard to diatoms mounted in his new high refractive media. Professor Smith had sent over three more slides — those formerly sent having gone bad — and one of these, a specimen of Amphipleura pellucida, was ex- hibited under a ^in. with student's microscope. Mr. Nelson also drew attention to a prize of £100, recently offered by the Linnean Society of Sydney, for the best paper on the Bacilli of typhoid fever. The thanks of the meeting were voted to Mr. Nelson for his communica- tion. Announcements of meetings, &c, for the ensuing month were then made, and the proceedings terminated with the usual conversazione^ and the following objects were exhibited : — 37 Spirorlis nautiloides Mr. F. W. Andrew. Philodina erythropthalma ... ... ... Mr. J. Badcock. Epistylis anastatica ... ... ... ... ,, Cristatella mucedo ... ... ... ... Mr. W. G. Cocks. Section of stem of Carex paludosa ('Sedge) ... Mr. C. G. Dunning. Marine mite. Halacarus, sp. ... ... ... Mr. H. E. Freeman. Larva of Labanus (Gadfly) Mr. J. D. Hardy. Stentor Mulleri ... ... ... ... ... Mr. T. J. McManis. Myohia chiropteralis, Q and g n.s. ... ... Mr. A. D. Michael. Larva of an eutozoon ... ... ... ... Mr. E. M. Nelson. Gonium pectorale ... ... ... ... Mr. C. Le Pelley. Fredericella sultana ... ... ... ... „ Section of scale from Sciadopitys verti- cillata ... Scale leaves of ditto Fredericella sultana Mr. C. Konsselet. Trans, sec. Tongue of Cat Mr. F. Steele. Diatom, Triceratium A 'ormannianum ... ... Mr. G. Start. Clava squamata ... Mr. A. Wildy. Attendance — Members, 66 ; Visitors, 4. Mr. J. W. Eeed. » May 9th. — Conversational Meeting. A demonstration on polarized light was given by Mr. Charles Stewart, F.L.S., F.R.M.S., &c, who observed that, as it was some 20 years since he had worked at the subject, he had hoped to have had an opportunity of revising his knowledge, but a pressure of business had borne especially hard upon him, and he really had not had an opportunity of doing what he would have liked to do. He purposed, as this was a demonstration, to first explain shortly the various arrangements he had brought to illustrate the theory and use of polarised light. Having briefly explained the generally accepted theory of light, as con- sisting of certain vibrations of the ether caused by the active molecules in the source of light, as, for example, the flame of a lamp, and illustrated his remarks by diagrams on the blackboard, he passed on to consider what changes were found in light when modified by polarization. The vibrations being restricted to some one particular direction, causing lineal or plane polarization, the beam w r ould display distinct sides, one in the plane of its vibrations, and the other in a plane at right angles to the first. The simplest form of table polariscope for examining light was a series of thin glass plates, the lowest one blackened at the back, a piece of ground glass being placed between the lamp and the bundle of plates to diffuse the light, and a piece of clear glass being placed between the bundle of plates and the observer, and forming an inclined support on which the films of selenite and mica could be conveniently placed and manipulated. 38 It would be found that, when light was received by the bundle of glass plates at the proper angle, which angle varied with different bodies, but was about 56° 35' for glass, a portion of the beam of light was re- fracted and passed through the glass, being absorbed by the blackened surface at the back. If the light that is reflected is examined by another bundle of glass plates or a rhomb of Iceland Spar, known as a Nicol's Prism, the beam no longer behaved as white light, but appeared to possess sides, the light vibrating in a plane corresponding to the parallel surface of the glass. By means of a diagram, he showed how the waves of light would foroe their way into the bundle of glass. It would be seen that by using a bundle of thin plates or a Nicol's Prism it was possible to analyse the beam of reflected light. In one position the prism allowed the light to pass through, and a bright field was seen, but if the prism was rotated until it was at right angles, no light could pass, and a dark field was the result. This was illustrated by first placing the fingers of one hand parallel with those of the other, and then placing the fingers of one hand at right angles to those, of the other, in whioh latter position they could not, of course, pass in the same plane. He next directed attention to a disc of mica, mica being preferable for these experiments because it was far more easily split into large and uni- form films. This disc of mica had a direction in which there was a special strain or tension. An ordinary ray of light, in passing through such a crvstal, was divided into certain vibrations in the direction of this strain and others at right angles to it. "When this piece of mica was placed on the table polariscope, with the line of tension at an angle of 45° to the plane of vibration of the polarized raj', the mica would present various colours according to its thickness, because the vibrations in the direction of the particular strain were passing through the crystal with different velocities : the one the ordinary ray, and the other the extraordinary ray, and these differed in their rate of transmission. These rays entered the rhomb of Iceland Spar, and were again split up into two by the same law as the original beam, so there were now four sets of vibrations to deal with, two of which were vibrating at right angles to the other two, the extraordinary ray of one set corresponding with the ordinary ray of the other. [This was illustrated and explained by a diagram on the blackboard.] Now these four sets of rays, of which two sets were parallel but passing with different velocities, reached the film of Canada balsam which cemented the two halves of the rhomb together ; the vibrations in the plane of the balsam film were reflected to the side and absorbed by the tube in which the rhomb was placed, and the others were transmitted to the eye. The result was that two sets of vibrations were wiped out, and two sets remained to be dealt with, which were coincident with each other ; one of these had got out a little in advance of the other. Meeting in opposite phases, the vibrations of a certain length— say red — would clash with the red of the other ; the ether particle would not move at all, but would come 39 to rest. In other words, there would be a polarized object presenting a green colour. To ascertain whether any object would polarize or not, it was necessary to turn it round in all positions ; so the polariscope must be capable of rotation, or the objpct must be capable of rotation on it. Sometimes it was more con* venient to rotate the polarizer, sometimes the object. The analyser should also have a rotating motion. He then explained by means of a diagram in which the bands of colours given by different thicknesses of films were shown in their proper position, that the effect was precisely the same whether there was a minimum of tension or a minimum of thickness in a given film, and traced the changes of oolour given by the different thickness of films of mica. In practice, it was often found more convenient, instead of trying to split a film to a particular thickness, to use two or more films of mica or selenite of a uniform thickness. Taking a glass disc on which were fixed two small semicircles of miGa of different colours, he placed over them another larger circular film with a hole in the centre, and, placing the two plates on the table polariscope, the effeot of the added film was seen at a glance. Through the central aperture, the single films could be seen ; further out, the result of the added film j and, beyond the smaller films, the colour of the added film. The changes effected by rotating the films were shown with the greatest clearness and simplicity. Then as to the various thicknesses of films which were best to use in the microscope, If it was desired to produce the more beautiful effects, it was simply a matter of taste ; some preferred the most brilliant colour, with dashes of black, giving more vivid features such as so many people admired. A Spanish lady would prefer scarlet or orange with a black shawl, and she would show her good taste. There were others who would prefer softer, gentler tints of pink, and so on, and it could not be said they were wrong. Those who wanted vivid colours of the first type should view the object without selenite; with selenite the black of the first case is replaced by the colour of the selenite used. What was actually learned by using the selenite film, with the least possible trouble, was not only whether a body was in a state of tension or not, but what was the direction of the teusion, whether pulled, strained, or squeezed. This was done in a second, because if it were known what colour an object presented with any given film of selenite whose direction of tension was known, say blue, and the object previously blue appeared black when examined without the selenite, it was perfectly clear that the tension was at right angles to that of the film of selenite. But how can the direction of the tension in the film of mica or selenite be determined ? Many years ago he adopted the following plan: — He took small squares of glass, placed them in an ordinary clay pipe, put them into a clear fire until of a nearly red heat, and then cooled them at an open window. A good many of them cracked, but he obtained a number in a state of 40 unequal tension, caused by the contraction of the surface, and the interior trying to shrink into a smaller compass, but being prevented by the hard jacket outside. Taking one of these as a standard, he was enabled to determine easily the condition of the piece of mica. With the crossed Nicol's Prisms, there would perhaps be found a black cross bisecting the white square, in consequence of the glass being in a state of tension — now suppose a piece of mica, blue of the second series, placed over the glass gave the colours green and red, the direction of tension of the mica would be the same as that of the green parts of the glass. Having determined one film and marked it, it was very easy to determine others. There was another fact that was useful, not so much for instruction as for the beauty of some of its effects. Under ordinary circumstances the colours simply passed from the red into green through the neutral zone. If a piece of mica were used which had only the thickness which corresponded with the quarter of the space between the first purple and the commence, ment of pure white [as shown on a diagram], then it would be found that by this so-called 5 film, when placed over any of the doubly refracting objects with its principal section corresponding with, or at right angles to, the plane of polarization, the light is so retarded that, instead of plane polarized light, there would be produced circularly polarized light. The advantage was this, that where with a simple selenite no colour was obtained, with the i film the colours would change on turning from indigo blue, through yellow, orange, red, and purple, to green, which of course greatly enhanced the beauty of many objects when viewed with a £ film. The question then arose, What thickness of film was most useful ? He had not the slightest doubt it was what was known as the blue of the third series. This was the most sensitive of all, simply because this blue was a very narrow belt ; on one side close against it was a very bright red, and on the other side a brilliant emerald green. A very thin film will at once change this blue to brilliant green or brilliant red, either contrasting vividly w T ith the pale blue ground. If the deep blue of the second series were used, it would not give half the effect, because it was so broad. In one of the table polariscopes he would place a couple of films touch- ing each other; over that he would put a blue film of the same thickness as that combined with the orange. In one position this makes the blue black; in the other the blue becomes red, and the orange becomes green, according to the position of the film. Take off the blue film and rotate the analyser, the orange becomes blue and the blue orange. If, however, the ? film be used, instead of each passing through a neutral point to its compli- mentary colour, it would pass through all the series of colours. Norremberg's Doubler was a simple arrangement for passing the rays twice through the film, which was the same as if we had the power of practically doubling the thickness of the film. This arrangement was par. ticularly useful for testing the thickness of films. The eye was very treacherous as regards colours, and could not always be trusted, but by the above plan the accuracy of one's judgment can be tested. 41 In concluding his remarks, Mr. Stewart said that he had placed under several microscopes some objects to illustrate the various points he had ex. plaiued, and he shortly pointed out some of the most interesting features, showing how useful polarised light was in searching out details of struc- ture which could not be detected by ordinary light. At the close of his remarks the members were invited to examine the following objects with various arrangements of mica and selenite hlms exhibited by Mr. Stewart and Mr. C. J. Fox, when further explanations were given by those gentlemen : — Sulphate of nickel and potash ... ... Mr. Chas. Stewart. Striped Human Muscle ... ... ... „ ,, Ovarian tube of Cidaris ... ... ... „ ,, Epidermis from Human Foot, showing » »> sweat ducts, &c. } Various Mica and Selenite films and designs } for table polariscope A series of Norremberg Mica Plates by") \r • P T F convergent light ... ... ... J A pair of Mica Wedges of 24 films, giving^) the three orders of Newton's colours ; I when crossed producing checks, and when I " placed diagonally, a series of points J A micro slide of two strips of Selenite "1 ground thin along their centres and ! crossed, showing a central square figure i " " with four radial arms ... ... J The following objects were exhibited in the Library : — A new species of Rotifer ... ... ... Mr. F. W. Andrew. Section of Grape Vine... ... ... ... Mr. A. L. Corbett. Horned Aphis, Cerataphis latonie ... ... Mr. F. Enock. Trophi of Wild Bee — Halicthus Mr. H. E. Freeman. Nitella opaca Mr. H. G. Glasspoole. Section of Dolerite ... ... ... ... Mr. A. V. Jennings. Sulphate of Cadmium ... ... ... ... Mr. G. E. Mainland. Diatoms, Triceratium arcticum ... ... Mr. W. H. Morland. ,, Amphi pleura pellucida in Prof . Smith's new medium ••• ) Mr. E. M. Nelson. Attendance — Members, 74 ; Visitors, 9. 42 May 23rd, 1884. — Ordinary Meeting. Dr. M. C. Cooke, M.A., A.L.S., President, in the Chair. The minutes of the preceding meeting were read and confirmed. The following gentlemen were balloted for and duly elected members of the Club : — Mr. John C. Havers, Mr. Ernest L. Lancaster, Mr. Alfred C. Tipple, and Mr. Charles West. The following donations, &c, to the Library were announced ; — " Proceedings of the Royal Society" ... ... From the Society, "American Monthly Microscopical Journal"... In Exchange. " Quarterly Journal of Microscopical Science " Purchased. " Annals of Natural History " ... ... ... „ Ray Society's last volume (Michael's " British^) Oribatidse") ) " Prantl's " Text Book of Botany " „ Rutley's " Studies of Rocks" ... ... ... „ Cole's " Studies in Microscopical Science" ... „ Klein's " Elements of Histology" ... ... „ Pascoe's " Notes on the Origin of Species "... ,, Re-statement of the Cell Theory, by Pat. Geddes ,, The thanks of the Club were voted to the donors. The following extracts from a letter from Mr. Kruitchnuit, of New Orleans, was read by the Secretary : — " The perusal of an article ' On Sand,' by J. G. Waller, published in the ' Quekett Journal' for July, 1882, gave me the idea that I had discovered a new source (at leapt to me) of sand. Two years ago when I sojourned a few days at Hot Springs, Arkansas, I discovered in one of the hot-water tanks some conferva. The water was almost boiling hot. The formation in which the springs are found is chiefly clay slate. A bushel of the quartz crystals adhering to the filaments of the conferva would certainly be taken for sand, and fur sand of the purest kind." Mr. J. G. Waller said — Having given the slide sent with this letter a com- plete examination, I fail to detect the usual character of quartz crystalline formation. Viewed by ordinary light, the particles are dull and dirty, looking, not clear and transparent, neither when examined by polarized light is there the response indicated by quartz. One very minute particle gives colour, but it does not seem to belong to the rest. The outlines of the particles are rounded, but not by attrition ; it is the character of their for- mation, which is generally ovate. Much consists of a conglomerate of minute parts. Where some crystalline forms are seen, they resemble more that of calcareous matter, such as spar, talc, &c. Some test is required before we can affirm these particles to be silex at all ; and I am inclined to think otherwise. At any rate, they are not of quartz, which is always more or less translucent, and never has the dull appearance which is here indicated. Mr. Ingpen said that the question with regard to it was — Whether it was 43 qnartz ? Because if so, it became interesting to know how the quartz became collected. A piece of nitella growing in perfectly pure water had the power somehow of secreting mineral matters, so that they might find within its structure not only the usual calcareous secretion, but also nodules of what he supposed was carbonate of lime, which had been secreted by the plant, and it seemed an interesting question whether quartz had been secreted in some similar way. Mr. Waller said the fracture gave the granules the appearance of small particles of qnartz sand. Dr. Matthews said it was a well-known fact that JEquisetum and the grasses secreted silex, and that in the bamboo small nodules of secreted silex were found. These were collected by the natives of the districts in which it grows, under the belief that they possessed great medicinal pro- perties. Mr. T. C. White said he had a lot of conferva? some time ago which were corked up in a bottle j after a while, the colour all went out of the confervae, and they became surrounded by crystals similar to those of the slide. These were not silicious, and as they dissolved in acid he assumed them to be calcareons. Mr. Ingpen, referring to the new mounting medium introduced by Professor Smith, said that he did not think he had ever seen a slide of Ampliipleura so well shown as the one which Mr, Nelson exhibited, which was mounted by Professor Smith. No doubt the objective and the manner of showing it had something to do with the matter, but there was also no doubt that something was due to the medium. He could only say that probably the exhibition had never been surpassed or equalled, and the fact was to be recorded as an era in the history of resolution. Mr B. W. Priest read a paper " On the Hexactinellidse," which he illus- trated by numerous diagrams. Mr J. G. "Waller thought that Mr. Priest was to be thanked for having brought this subject before them, and for having compiled it in a very easy and familiar manner. A hearty vote of thanks to Mr. Priest for his j:>aper was proposed by the President, and carried unanimously. The President said he had two or three small matters with regard to the excursions, to bring before the notice of the Club, some of which related to the past, and others to the future. He wished to say, First, that the plan which had been adopted of placing in the hands of members blank forms to be filled up with the particulars of specimens found, and to be posted to the Secretary of the Excursions Committee during the week, had been eminently successful, not only in identifying and preserving a record of the objects, but also in stimulating those concerned to exert themselves to know something of the objects which have been found. Secondly, at each of the gossip nights the Secretary proposes to bring down the papers relating to the previous excursions for the members to look over. The President then read lists of the objects found at the excursions to the Botanic Gardens and to Chingford, and expressed a hope that a larger 44 proportion of members than one-fourth would take the papers on the next occasion, and would do their best to fill them up. Announcements of excursions and meetings for the ensuing month were made, and it was mentioned that owing to continued illness Mr. Gilburt would be unable to fulfil his engagement to give a demonstration on June 13th, but that the Secretaries were doing their best to provide some substitute. Members were reminded that at the next ordinary meeting they would be called upon to nominate gentlemen to fill four vacancies upon the Com- mittee, to be filled up by election at the annual meeting in July. The proceedings terminated with the usual conversazione, and the follow- ing objects w r ere exhibited: — Silk cotton (qy., Bombax) ... ... ... Mr. F. W. Andrew. Section of Pampas grass, Gynerium Sp. ... Mr. H. E. Freeman. Ova and larva of Tabanus ... ... ... Mr. G. E. Mainland. Euplectella ... ... ... ... ... Mr. B. W. Priest. Bursaria truncatella ... ... ... ... Mr. C. Rousselet; Trans. Sec. stem of Bignonia clanbrasiliana ... Mr. W. D. Smith, Attendance — Members, 61 ; Visitors, 2. May 30th, 1884. — Special Exhibition Meeting. By the kind permission of the College a special meeting was held for the exhibition of objects of microscopical interest, which meeting was at- tended by about 130 members, and 160 visitors. The following is a list of the principal objects exhibited in the library, the museum of the College being also thrown open for the occasion: — Leptodora Jiyalina ... ... ... ... Mr. F. W. Andrew. Serpentine from the Lizard ... ... ... Mr. J. W. Bailey. Gabbro from Silesia Carcinns mcenas (Shore crab). Zoe stage .. Asterina gibbosa (Gibbous starlet). Young .. Larva of Carcinns mcenas Epiera diadema, just hatched ... CEcistes (itmbella ?) Crystals of silver „ ,, santonine ... Antenna of Emperor Moth Tingis hystricellus Tongue of Mason Wasp... Crystals of Platino.cyanide of magnesia Foraminifera (Miliolina oblonga) ... ... „ ,, Diatoms, Coscinodiscus, sp. ... ... ... „ „ Fredericella sultana ... ... ... ... Mr. E. Dadswell. Circulation in the gills of a Newt Cyclosis in JSitella fragilis j> >> Mr. W. R. Browne. jj >> Mr. E. Bucknall. j> >> Mr. W. G. Cocks. Mr. A. L. Corbett. M >i Mr. H , Crouch. >> >> t) » >» >t 45 ] Figure, tinted by coloured light, and seen') through the eye of Dytiscus ... ) Cyclosis in L'hara Young locust, (Edipoda cruciata Hemileia vastatrix. Fungus of coffee plant Section of Cacao Bean, showing crystals of Theobromine and starch grains in situ Lojihopiis crystallinus ... Diatoms, Arachnoid! scvs, in situ Eyes of Spider ... Leg of Blowfly, showing muscles, nerves, &c. Rectal valve and papillae Reproductive organs of male bird's beak fly... Micro harmonic curves and micro rulings, 4,000 lines to the inch ; larger figures on glass for lantern, and various pendulo- graphs... Cyclosis in Nitella Statoblasts of Cristatella mucedo Tubifex rivulorum Limnodrilus Udckemianus ,, Hoffmeisteri Spongilla JluviatiUs Carchesium, sp. ... Photo-micrographs of Rock sections, crystals, &c, taken by polarized light Section of Butcher's Broom ,, ,, Mistletoe Circulation and respiration in the tadpole Young fry of the Stone Loach... Scale of Turbot... Tortoise-shell Beetle Marine annelids Schizonema Grevillei Dermaleichus from Woodpecker Leptodorahyalina Archerina Boltoni Acineta tuber osa Podojjhrya, sp. ... Melicerta tyro Ova of Galathea squamifera Aphides on Primrose Fern spores Lophopus crystallinus ... Plumatella repens ... ... Sections of coal Cyclosis in Nitella } Mr. A. Dean. Mr. C. A. Drake. Mr. F. Enock. Mr. H. Epps. >> >> Rev . B !. Fase. >> j) >} >? Mr. F. Fitch. »j >> >> n Mr. H. E. Freeman. Mr. W. Hainworth. Mr. A. Hammond. >) Mr. J. D. Hardy. James How and Co. Mr. C. Le Pelley. Mr. T. J. McManis. Mr. G. E. Mainland. Dr. Matthews. >> j> Mr. A. D. Michael. Mr. H. Morland. Mr. T. S. Morten. Mr. J. H. Oliver. >t » Mr. F. A. Parsons. Mr. T. Plowman, junr. j> >> Mr. F. Reeve. Mr. C. Rousselet. >> it Mr. James Russell. i> »> 46 Helozoa ... ... ... ... ... ... Mr. James Russell. Pediculus vestimenti ... ... ... ... Mr. W. Smart. yy SCd'OBl/ ••• •»• ••• hi n Volcanic ash from Charn wood Forest... Phonolite from Cornwall Leucite and Dolor ite from Eifel Trachyte ,, ,, „ Rhine Trans, sec. spinal cord of Calf „ „ Human Kidney Planorbis corneus Cholestrin from alveolar abscess ... ... „ „ Foraminifera. Lagena... ... ... ... Mr. A. C. Tipple. Ichneumon fly, Diapria ... ... ... Mr. J. J. Vezey. Saprolegnia Gahbardensis ... ... ... Mr. J. G. Waller. ,, Varniensis ... ... ... ... „ ,, Crystals, Platino-cyanide of Strontium ... Mr. J. Willson. 5> >» Mr. G. Smith. >» >> j> »» >' >> Mr. F. Steele. >> >» Mr. J. G. Tasker. June 13th, 1884. — Conversational Meeting. The sixth and last of the second series of demonstrations " On Staining Vegetable Tissues," which was to have been given by Mr. Gilburt, was taken up by Mr. W. Dalton Smith. After remarking that he had been somewhat hastily called upon to supply the place of Mr. Gilburt, whose absence by reason of illness all must regret, Mr. Smith proceeded substantially as follows : — "Staining, as applied to Vegetable Tissues, is used for three chief pur- poses — 1st. For rendering objects, which would otherwise be too transparent, more distinct, e.g., cell-walls. 2nd. For differentiating one tissue from another, e.g., cells from vessels. 3rd. For differentiating the protoplasm from the formed material. The various kinds of stains employed for. these different purposes may be conveniently grouped in accordance with the end in view, thns : — 1st. For rendering cell-walls, &C, more distinct, the single stains, log- wood, carmine, or one of the aniline dyes. 2nd. For differentiating various tissues, double stains, of which tho more usually employed are carmine and aniline green, picro-carmine, and magenta and aniline blue. 3rd. For staining the protoplasm only, Dr. Beale's carmine solution is usually employed. It is not my purpose to describe all these processes to-night, since many of them have been fully treated of already; notably, single staining in aniline dyes, and double staining in magenta and aniline blue, by Mr. Gilburt, in a paper read before this Club May 25th, 1877; and double staining in picro-carmine by Mr. Stiles, in the " Northern Microscopist " for July, 1881. Dr. "Bealo, too, in " How to Work with the Microscope," 47 gives directions for the preparation of the carmine stain that bears his name. I propose, therefore, to bring before your notice to-night two processes only, viz., single staining in logwood, and double staining in carmine and aniline green, and shall refer only to the staining of sections, the methods being equally applicable to sections of stems, petioles, peduncles, leaves, ovaries, &c. In every case I shall confine myself to facts, and only describe methods that I have tried and proved to be successful. Before I begin the practical part of this demonstration, let us assume that we have a piece of the stem of a plant, from which we wish to mount some sections. The various processes which will have to be employed before the section is ready to be put away in the cabinet may be con- veniently grouped as follows : — 1st. Cutting, which may be subdivided into three processes — (a) The preliminary preparation of the stem, hardening or softening, as the case may be. (b) The process of imbedding in a suitable material, and (c) The cutting process. 2nd. Staining, which may in like manner be sub-divided into two pro- cesses — (a) Bleaching, and (b) Staining proper. 3rd. Mounting, which may include also labelling. Whether we use logwood, carmine, or other stain, we must first pre- pare the sections for receiving the stains by bleaching, except in the few instances where they are already colourless. If, as in the present instance, we wish to stain the formed material only, without having regard to the cell-contents, either in order to render the outlines of the cells, fibres, and vessels more distinct, or to differentiate them one from the other, the only preparation I have found of any use is a solution of chlorinated soda, which may be prepared as follows : — Dissolve 2oz. of powdered washing soda (hydrated sodium carbonate) in half-a-pint of distilled water. Then shake up thoroughly loz. of chloride of lime in a like quantity of distilled water ; add to this the solution of soda, and again shake thoroughly. A precipitate of carbonate of lime will be formed, the chlorinated soda remaining in solution. Allow the precipitate to settle, pour off the clear solution, filter it, and preserve it in a well-stoppered bottle in the dark. It is essential that the soda should be slightly in excess, as, if the chloride of lime is not completely neutralized, the lime that is left will combine with the carbonic acid of the air during the process of bleaching, forming a film of chalk, which will settle on the sections and completely ruin them. It will be best, after the preparation is completed, to test a small quantity of the fluid by adding to it some more solution of soda, when, if no precipitate is formed, we may conclude that the chloride of lime is completely neu- tralized. Should a precipitate, however, be formed, we must add more solution of soda to the bleaching fluid, re-filter, again test, and, if necessary, 48 repeat the process until we get a satisfactory result. The chloride of lime should be as freshly prepared as possible, and therefore it will be best to purchase it as we require it. It should be a perfectly dry powder — if at all moist it will be useless for our purpose. If the sections have been preserved in dilute spirit, they must be floated on distilled water, and, when they have all sunk to the bottom, as much of the water as possible must be drained off, and a considerable quantity of the bleaching fluid poured over them. Examine the sections from time to time, holding the vessel containing them against a white background ; a white china tile, such as can be bought at any artists' colourman for a few pence, answers admirably. Do not allow them to remain in the bleaching fluid longer than is necessary, but, directly they are quite bleached, pour off the fluid and fill the vessel up with clean water. Repeat the washing at least five or six times, allowing the sections to remain in the water for at least 12 hours, and using distilled water for the last washing; then preserve them in a mixture of equal parts of methylated spirit and water until they are required for staining. In order to stain the sections with logwood, the first thing, of course, is to procure a suitable staining fluid, and for this purpose a preparation in- vented by Dr. Mitchell, of Philadelphia, and described in " The Science Monthly " for March last, gives by far the finest results of any stain I have yet seen. The principles involved in its preparation are as follows : Log- wood contains, besides the colouring matter, considerable quantities of tannin, and vegetable infusions containing tannin are quickly influenced by the action of light and air. This is the cause of the muddy sediment deposited by most logwood stains, the colouring matter being also seriously affected by the decomposition. Now, tannin is readily soluble in cold water, whilst the colouring matter is but very slightly soluble in that fluid ; hence, by washing the logwood, finely divided, with cold water, the injurious tannin will be removed without the staining properties of the logwood being materially affected. Dr. Mitchell's directions, slightly modified, are as follows : First grind up some logwood chips in a coffee-mill. Then place the ground chips in a linen bag in a percolator, and pour cold distilled water over them until the liquid coming through is very slightly coloured and has no astringent taste. Then squeeze out as much of the water as possible, and spread the log- wood on a plate to dry. Take of the dried prepared chips, 1 oz. Ground potash alum, 4^ drs. Distilled water, 6 fl. oz. Glycerine, 2 fl. oz. Dissolve the alum in the water, then add the glycerine and mix thoroughly. Macerate the logwood in this mixture for 48 hours, stirring at intervals, filter the resulting stain, and preserve it in a stoppered bottle. Not only does the stain, thus prepared, give a very beautiful colour to the sections, cool to the eyes, and wonderfully sharp in outline ; but it is also so selective that the various kinds of tissue are really differentiated, so 49 that for many sections a double stain is scarcely required. The process of staining with it is as follows : — First, place the sections in distilled water, then add 20 drops of the log- wood stain to 1 fl. oz. of distilled water, filter, and then place the sections in this for about half an hour. Some sections, of course, will require a longer time than others. They must be examined from time to time, and when sufficiently stained should be washed thoroughly in distilled water. They are now to be placed in methy- lated spirit for at least half an hour, when they will be ready for mounting. If it is not desired to mount them at once, they can be preserved for any length of time in the spirit. Let us now consider the method of double staining in carmine and aniline green. You have all probably seen the directions given in various books on this subject, the whole process occupying something over 24 hours. Doubt- less this plan has answered in some hands, but, although I have spoilt some hundreds of sections in endeavouring to stain them according to the direc tions given, I have never succeeded in getting even fairly good results. When I was almost in despair, my friend, Mr. Martin Cole, kindly showed me a very superior method of staining in borax carmine, and this method, somewhat modified, I have adopted ever since, with the most satisfactory results. One difficulty was ta get the aniline green stain to take a firm hold of the wood and bast tissues, so as not to wash out duinng the soaking in alcohol ; and, after various experiments, I found that the only way to ensure this was to stain the sections with an aqueous solution of the colour, and then to wash them in alcohol and so fix the stain, which, however, clung to them so tenaciously that they would bear soaking in water for a con- siderable time without any fear of its being washed out. I found also that it was necessary to stain with the green before staining with the carmine, since the latter was very speedily removed by water, and required washing in alcohol to fix it. Acting on the knowledge thus acquired, I have now entirely discarded the use of alcohol in all the staining fluids I employ, and invariably make use of glycerine as a preservative in its stead. I should also mention that I have given up the use of iodine green, aud always use a solution of an aniline dye known as " acid green," since I find this gives far better and more reliable results. It can be bought at Messrs. Skilbeck Brothers, 205, Upper Thames Street, E.C., ?lb. of the best quality costing 3s. 3d. The green stain is prepared as follows : — Take of acid green, 2 grs. Distilled water, 3 fl. oz. Glycerine, 1 fl. oz. Thoroughly mix the glycerine and water, dissolve the acid green in the mixture, filter, and preserve in a stoppered bottle. The borax carmine stain is prepared thus : — (a.) Powdered borax, 10 grs. Distilled water 1£ fl. oz. Glycerine, | fl. oz Journ. Q. M. C, Series II., No. 9. e 50 Dissolve the borax in the water, then add the glycerine and mix thoroughly. (6.) Carmine, 5 grs. Liquor ammoniae fortiss, 20 m. Distilled water. 30 m. Dissolve the carmine in the ammonia and water in a test tube, with the aid of heat, and set aide to cool. Then add a to b, mix thoroughly, filter, and preserve in a stoppered bottle. I have found that the glycerine being mixed with the borax solution effectually prevents the solution of carmine from changing to the dull lilac colour it assumes when the glycerine is not so employed. The stain, when completed, should be of a pure and brilliant ruby red. The method of double staining in these two colours is as follows : — 1. Soak the sections in distilled water for a few minutes. 2. Place them in the acid green stain for from 8-5 minutes. They will then be uniformly stained green. 3. Wash them thoroughly in two changes of distilled water. 4. Place them in the carmine stain for fire times as long as they were in the green, i.e., for from 15-25 minutes, stirring them about in the stain with a camel's-hair brush from time to time. 5. Wash them very thoroughly in two changes of methylated spirit, allowing them to remain in it for at least 15 minutes. 6. Float them in oil of cloves, and as soon as they sink to the bottom of their own accord they are ready for mounting in balsam, the whole process, at the outside, taking no more than an hour for its completion. The sections can be preserved for some time in the oil of cloves if they are kept carefully in the dark, but it is best to mount them as soon after stain- ing as possible. It will be observed that by this method, although the bast and wood are very perfectly differentiated from the cellular tissue, they are not differen- tiated at all from each other. I would suggest that the differentiation of the fibres from the vessels may prove a profitable direction in which to experiment. In order to cut really good sections, three things are absolutely necessary : — 1st. The object must be properly prepared. 2nd. It must be properly imbedded ; and 3rd. It must be properly cut. I am afraid people generally look upon the first as a rather superfluous proceeding. Animal tissues, of course, require very careful preparation, but vegetable stems or leaves are looked upon as quite ready to be cut just as they are taken from the plant. Never was there a greater mistake ; woody stems are generally much too hard to be cut without previous softening, whilst leaves, petioles, peduncles, and tubers are generally far too soft. The plan I would suggest is this : — 1st. If the object is too large to be cut whole, divide it into pieces of a 51 suitable size for the well of the microtome, removing, at the same time, all extraneous matter, and all parts of which it is not desired to make sections. Stems, petioles, and peduncles should be cut into pieces about an inch long. Leaves of Dicotyledons should include the mid-rib if possible. Boots and tubers should be first cut with a cork-borer into cylinders of about | to f inch in diameter, taking care that the axis of the cylinder is at right angles to the direction in which the sections are to be cut. 2nd, Hard objects, such as woody stems, are placed in distilled water for two or three days, changing the water every day, to dissolve out gummy matters. 3rd, They are placed in pure methylated spirit for three or four days, changing the spirit every day, to dissolve out resinous substances. They may then be placed in a mixture of equal parts methylated spirit and dis- tilled water, until it is desired to cut them up. If any of the objects are still too hard, they must be soaked in distilled water for a day or two, immediately before cutting. If this does not suffice, they must be placed in hot, or even boiling, water, for as long as may be necessary, the vessel containing them being kept in a warm place. 4th. Soft tissues must be hardened in alcohol — dilute, strong, or even absolute, as may be required. It must be remembered that these are only general rules. The experi- ence gained by practice will enable special cases to be treated in an appro- priate manner. By far the best substance in which to embed the object is carrot. It is important that this should be quite fresh and crisp, so as to break short off, without bending. If it is flabby it will not hold the object sufficiently firm ; it may be preserved in good condition for a few day3 by being placed in cold water, and kept in a cool place. A piece should be cut with a suitable punch to accurately fit the well of the microtome, and the ends cut off square. It is then to be divided longi- tudinally down the centre, and the object imbedded in it, so that, when the two halves are placed together, the object may be rigidly supported on all sides, without being unduly squeezed. The whole secret of successful im- bedding lies in this. If the object be not sufficiently firmly held, or if it be pressed too hard, in either case good sections cannot be cut. They will either be of unequal thickness, owing to the material giving under the pres- sure of the knife, or will be broken by the squeezing it has received. The plug of carrot containing the object is placed in the well of the micro- tome, when it will be ready for cutting ; the microtome should be clamped to the table, so that both hands are at liberty, and the object should be kept flooded with a mixture of spirit and water. The stroke should be made from, never towards, the operator ; the razor should be hollow ground, and must have been rubbed down on a hone until, when placed on a level surface, every point of both back and edge touch at the same time ; this is absolutely essential if we wish to cut good sections. As regards the thickness of the sections, they should generallv be of about 52 that of a row and a half of cells ; but this must, of course, vary with the special point it is required to elucidate. After the sections have been cut they may be preserved for any length of time jin a mixture of spirit and water, until required for bleaching and staining. In mounting the preparations when stained, two things must be con- sidered, viz., the medium to be used, and the method of using it. The only medium I have found suitable for mounting sections, stained by either of the methods I have described, is Canada balsam, hardened and dis- solved in benzole. I have never yet been able to purchase any ready pre- pared that I considered suitable, and have been compelled to make my own ; the method which I employed, and found successful, is as follows: — About half a pound of ordinary Canada balsam is placed in a soup-plate, and warmed gently for some weeks, being stirred two or three times daily. I prepared mine on the top of the hot-water cistern of a bath-room, and found this answer very well. As soon as when cool — not cold, — it can be drawn out into tough threads, and does not stick to the fingers, it is to be placed in a bottle, and covered with bsnzole. In a few days it will be dis- solved, and is then to be filtered through filtering paper moistened with benzole, when it will be ready for use. I find I get a far better preparation by dissolving the balsam whilst tough than by continuing the drying until it becomes hard and brittle, as recommended by some. If properly pre- pared, it should be of a pale colour, and of about the consistency of oil of cloves. The method of using it is as follows : — A glass slip is breathed on, and a clean cover placed instantly on the slip, to which it adheres. A drop of two of the balsam, prepared as I have de- scribed, is then placed on the cover. The object, which must be mounted direct from the oil of cloves, has as much as possible of the oil drained off, and is then placed in the balsam and covered with a few drops more of the same medium, and the whole is pat away out of the dust for 12 hours or longer. A fresh drop of balsam is now placed on the object, and the cover, with the object and balsam on it, is turned over on to a clean slip. The latter is then gently warmed, and the cover pressed down. In a few hours the superfluous balsam can be scraped off, and the slide cleaned with a rag dipped in methylated spirit. If the balsam has been pre- pared as I have described, there need be no fear of the cover being displaced during this prooess. The slide can then be finished off with white zinc cement, or any other that is preferred, and, when this is hard, can be labelled and put away in the cabinet. The following objects were exhibited in the Library : — Ahyonclla fnngosa ... ... ... ... Mr. F. W. Andrew. Trans, sec. Sciatic Nerve ... ... ... Mr. M. J. Cole. Vert. sec. Mncous Membrane from Stomach) of Dog ) » » 53 Diatomacese from Ormsby Broad Tubi f ex rivulonnn Capitella capitata Coccus of the vine Diatoms, Aulacodiscus Sturtii ... Diatoms, Amphipleura 2 3 &Uucida in Smith's new medium ... Floscularia omata Sections of leaves of Pinus pinea „ cotyledon of Pinus pinea Fredericella sultana Trans, sec. stem of Mistletoe ... ,, ,, leaf stalk of Camelia Prof. | J Mr. H. G. Glasspoole. Mr. A. Hammond. >) )} Mr. G. E. Mainland. Mr. H. Morland. Mr. E. M. Nelson. Mr. R. Nevins. Mr. J. W. Reed. Mr. C. Rousselet. Mr. W. D. Smith. Mr. J. Woollett. Attendances — Members, 51 ; Visitors, 3. »> June 27th, 188-4. — Ordinary Meeting. Dr. M. C. Cooke, M.A., A.L.S., President, in the Chair. The minutes of the preceding meeting were read and confirmed. The following gentlemen were balloted for and duly elected members of the Club:— Mr. Edward Bates, Mr. Walter L. Burrows, and Mr. Sydney Cooper Tress. The following donations to the Club were announced : — " Proceedings of the Geologists' Association "... From the Society. "Proceedings of the Hertfordshire Natural) History Society " ... ... ... J " The American Naturalist " ... "The American Monthly Microscopical") Journal " ... ... ... ... ) "Science Monthly" "Science Gossip " Cole's " Studies in Microscopical Science" ... " Annals of Natural History"... Two photographs of Excursionists at Chingford The thanks of the Club were voted to the donors. Mr. T. C. White said that in presenting the photographs he should like to say that they must be considered as the work of only just a beginner. He regretted that they did not include the whole of the 63 members who went to the excursion, but they were most of them wandering, and he jnst caught the few only who sat down together by the pool at Fairmead. The photograph of the hotel was not so clear as it ought, and was desired, to be, but it was taken about six o'clock in the evening, when the light was by no means good, and although there was five seconds' exposure with open aper- ture the result was a rather dark picture. The President reminded the members that the time had come round again for them to nominate gentlemen for election as officers and Council for the In Exchange. From the Editor. „ Publisher. Purchased. From Mr. T. C. White. 54 ensuing year. The election would take place at their next meeting, being the annual meeting of the Club. He asked the Secretary to read the list of officers nominated by the Committee. The Secretary then read the list of nominations as follows, viz. : — As President, Dr. W. B. Carpenter, F.R.S.; as Vice-Presidents, Dr. M. C. Cooke, Dr. Matthews, Mr. Chas. Stewart, and Mr. Michael. Other officers the same as last time, and as auditor on behalf of the Committee, Mr, Hainworth. The President then requested the members to nominate gentlemen to fill the four vacancies caused by the retirement of Dr. Matthews, Mr. Priest, Mr. Waller, and Mr. Hembry. Though only four would be elected, they liked to have at least six nominated, so that the election by ballot was not a mere matter of form. The following nominations were then made : — Mr. J. W. Reed, proposed by Mr. Parsons, and seconded by Mr. Newton. Mr. J. Parsons „ ,, Mr. Waddington ,, „ Dr. Matthews. Mr. T. C. White „ „ Mr. Dadswell „ „ Mr. Dobson. Mr. B. W. Priest „ „ Mr. Hardy „ „ Mr. Emery. Mr. E. T. Newton „ „ Mr. Lewis „ „Mr. A. Smith. Mr. H. E. Freeman ,, „ Mr. Andrew „ ,, Mr. Buffham. Mr. Waller ,, ,, Mr. Newton ,, „ Mr Michael. The President having requested the members to appoint an auditor to act on behalf of the Club, and Mr. Dobson having been duly nominated, Messrs. Hainworth and Dobson were unanimously elected as auditors. Mr. R. T. Lewis read " A further Note on Mermis nigj'esce/is," the subject being illustrated by coloured diagrams, and by specimens of both the worm and its ova exhibited under microscopes in the room. Living specimens were also shown. The President said that Mr. Lewis had commenced with an apology for having brought up an old subject before them, but he thought that subjects of this kind, upon which additional information was desired, were just the kind they ought to have brought there. Mr. Gr. C. Karop said that the whole subject Avas so involved in obscurity that it was not easy to say what was the entire life-history of these creatures. It would appear that the ova entered the larvae of insects and there underwent development ; when fully grown the first thunder shower seemed to induce them to quit their first hosts, probably for the purpose of seeking some other habitat in which to fully mature. Mr. Lewis thought that the fact that all these worms were found containing large quantities of ova, which whilst under observation they continually ex- pelled, indicated that they were in a mature condition. Those which he had kept since June 6th had remained alive and active, until they had extruded the whole of their ova ; a few days after this was accomplished they died their purpose in nature being then, as he supposed, accomplished. On a former occasion it had been suggested that the electrical conditions of the atmosphere might have had something to do with their remarkable appear- ances in such large numbers after thunderstorms. 55 Mr. Michael doubted whether the electrical conditions had much to do with the matter, except that during the summer months large quantities of rain rarely fell unless in connection with thunderstorms. He thought that if the ground could be equally flooded without any thunder the worms would no doubt come out in the same manner, their object, probably, being that they might get washed out and carried down into the streams or watercourses ; it was, in all probability, a process by which they were transferred from a terrestrial to an aquatic host. Their occnrrence was so rare that their life, history was not very perfectly understood. As regarded their being found upon trees and shrubs, it should be remembered that they were able to move in a very thin film of water, such as existed upon plants after a heavy shower of rain. Mr. Hardy asked in what manner they were found attached to plants or shrubs ? Mr. Stokes enquired if there was any evidence to show that they were really aquatic worms ? Mr. Karop said the contention was that being sexually immature they were in course of transference from one host to another, in which their final development might take place. Mr. T. C. White said he had once, when dissecting an insect, been surprised at seeing a worm of considerable length issue from its body. Mr. Michael thought that this was probably one of the fi'arian worms. Mr. Karop, referring to Huxley's " Anatomy of the Invertebrata," p. 644, read the following note: — "The insect parasites, Gorriius and Jlermis, are sexless so long as they are parasitic, but when they have attained their full growth they leave the bodies of their hosts, acquire sexual orgar.s, copulate, and lay eggs; from these the embryos proceed which bore their way into the bodies of insects." Mr. Lewis, in reply, said that they attached themselves to plants by coiling the tail round the stem of a leaf ; the body then hung down and waved to and fro, much the same as a tree snake attached itself to a branch. He had no evidence of their being aquatic, but as they dried up and became hard and shrivelled when deprived of moisture he had put them into water as a likely means of keeping them alive for observation. Those exhibited in the room had lived under these conditions for more than three weeks, but having meanwhile laid nearly all their eggs he expected that they would now soon die. The thanks of the meeting were voted to Mr. Lewis for his communica- tion. Mr. F. Kitton's paper" On some New Diatoms found in Japanese Oysters " was taken as read, it being of a somewhat technical character. It will ba found printed in extenso on a previous page. Mr. J. D. Hardy exhibited and described a useful contrivance for collect- ing and examining aquatic specimens whilst out on excursions — it consisted of two plates of glass with a narrow strip of thick indiarubber cemented between them on three sides, the fourth side being left open, and thus forming a very convenient flat bottle for the side coat pocket. The space 56 between the glasses being sufficient to allow of Anacharis 5 in. long to be inserted without pressure, at the same time enabling the collector to bring all parts of the weed into good focus. By the insertion of an indiarubber flat cork the bottle is rendered water tight, and can be used as a slide on the stage of the microscope so as to obviate the necessity of disturbing the weed should any object of interest be observed when collecting. He also showed a simple and effective method of straining the water poured into or out of an ordinary wide-mouthed collecting bottle, by means of a small cylinder of copper wire gauze which extended np above the neck of the bottle. Mr. Waddington said he could speak very favourably of the first de- scribed form of collecting bottle, having nsed the same thing for the last two yeax-s when collecting Zoophytes at the seaside. The only difficulty he had found was in getting a cement which would stand the action of sea water. He had, however, used with entire success a sea water varnish made of marine glue dissolved in chloroform, which he found was entirely im- pervious to sea water. It formed a thick paste, and was used cold. It was an excellent varnish for the joints of square aquaria. Mr. Hardy said he had used liquid marine glue, and a great many other cements, but he found simple lard would do almost as well as anything else. Some chemical action seemed to take place which hardened the lard. Mr. Karop exhibited and described a very simple and ingenious gauge made by H. Hensoldt for measuxang the thickness of cover glasses. It was graduated to measure from up to -J mm. The thanks of the meeting were voted to Mr. Kitton, Mr. Hardy, and Mr. Karop for their communications. The President directed the attention of the members to the book contain*, ing the x-esults of the work done at the excursions, and referred to the list of objects obtained on the last two occasions. Announcements of excursions and meetings for the ensuing month were then made, special attention being called to the whole day's excux-sion toWhitstable on July 5th, ixx connectioxx with which a letter was read, aixd members intending to join were l'equested to give in their names at once to Mi\ Parsons. Members were also reminded that the next ordinary meeting, on July 25tb, would be the annual meeting. The proceedings then terminated with the usual conversazione, and the following objects were exhibited: — Fredericella sultana ... ... ... ... Mr. F. W. Andrew. Mervnis nigrescens ... ... ... ... Mr. R. T. Lewis. Ova of Mermis nigrescens ... ... ... ,, Trichodeies scalaris ... ... ... ... Mr. T. S. Morten. Trans, sect, of leaf of Cryptomence japoniea... Mr. J. W. Reed. ,, ,, „ Cryptomence elegans ... ,, Asplanc/ma Brightwellii ... ... ... Mr. C. Rousselet. Trans, sec. central canal of spinal cord of Calf Mr. F. Steele. Attendance — .Members 48 j Visitors 2. 57 On a Hydrostatic Fine Adjustment. By E. M. Nelson. {Read August 28th, 1884.) Ji 1 m L— %flj£jL ^^^^^^^ K ^^y^ K ^^^>^ K ^M Wff^ |^j^|pSE r i c i. ' wm.^'" ' /"/ C r , c 5 The growing increase in the use of wide-angled object-glasses calls for some improvement in the fine adjustment of the micro- scope. It must be remembered that depth of focus is inversely propor- tional to the numerical aperture, that the microscope is now used in a far more scientific manner than the rough-and-ready way of former days, and that critical pictures are now the only ones accepted by the best workers. A vast improvement has taken place in the con- struction of object-glasses, but the arrangements for fine adjust- ment remain pretty much the same as they were five-and-twenty years ago. The above diagrams illustrate a method of fine adjust- ment which has occurred to me, which I think would, if adopted, effect an improvement in this direction. Fig. 1 shows in section the arrangement as adapted for a micro* Journ. Q. M. C, Series II., No. 10. f 58 E. M. NELSON ON A HYDROSTATIC FINE ADJUSTMENT. scope with a bar movement, Fig. 2 as adapted for the " Jackson Lister " form, and Fig. 3 as adapted for the continental model, or 11 student's ' microscope. In Fig. 1 there are shown two iron chambers (a, a) connected together by a transverse pipe and filled with mercury ; one of these chambers is provided with a plunger (b), the other chamber being similarly provided with a ram (c). The fine adjustment screw is intended to act on the plunger, and the ram on a stud carried by the nose-piece of the microscope, the stud being pressed against the ram by means of a spring. In Fig. 2, the plunger (b) and ram (c) are both fitted to one chamber (a), so as to permit of its being used on the Jackson Lister model, and the fine adjustment screw may, in this case, be placed so as to act on the plunger on either side, or at the back of the instrument. In Fig. 3, the plunger and ram are fitted to opposite ends of the chamber (a), in order to adapt the apparatus to the continental model. The application of the apparatus to this form of micro- scope would, in my opinion, be especially useful, and would mate- rially increase its efficiency, for, as the fine adjustment is at present constructed, it precludes the possibility of fine and accurate patho- logical work being done with the instrument. As shown in the Figs., the ram has a sectional area four times greater than that of the plunger ; therefore the movements of the fine adjustment screw would be reduced in the proportion of one to four ; but it is obvious that, by varying the relative diameters of the plunger and the ram, the ratio may be varied almost indefi- nitely, as, for example, a plunger of 1^ inch and a ram of ^ inch would give a ratio of one to thirty-six, so that one turn of a screw having fifty threads to the inch would only impart a move- ment of xgVg- of an inch to the object-glass. 59 Q.M.O. EXCURSIONS. June 21st, 1884. List of Objects Found ox the Excursion to Epping Forest. CONFERVOID ALGjE. ColeochcBte ... ... ... Mr. J. D. Hardy. Rivularia pisum ... ... Mr. G. E. Mainland. Spirogyra quinina ... ... ,, „ Spirulina oscillavioides ... „ ,, Volvox globator, in various stages Messrs. Hardy and Mainland. DESMIDIACEJE. Closterium Acer o sum . ,, lunula DIATOMACEsE. Pinnularia nobilis „ viridis INFUSORIA. Amblyopias viridis Amphileptus fasciola , Anthophysa Miilleri Arcella dentata „ vulgaris Astasia hamiatodes Cho?tonotus larus Chilodoti cucullus Dileptus folium Euglena longicauda „ viridis Euplotes vannus Peridinium cinctum Stylonichia lanceolata ROTIFERA. Anurcea, sp. Brachionis amphiceros Conochilus volvox Mr. G. E. Mainland. Messrs. Hard v and Mainland. y Mr. G. E. Mainland. 60 ROTIFER A (continued). Dinocharis tetractis Monocerca rattus Pleurotrocha gibbet Rotifer vulgaris Scaridium longicaudum.. . Mr. J. D. Hardy. Mr. G. E. Mainland. Mr. J. D. Hardy. Mr. G. E. Mainland. The following list was also received from Mr. Wortliington G. Smith, who was a guest of the President : — FUNGI. Agaricus rubescens. Boletus aestivalis. Reticularia umbrina. Enormous specimen on hornbeam. Uredo orchidis. On Orchis metadata. „ suaveolens. On thistles. Sixteen members of the Club, with six members of other Societies, started in the morning in accordance with the arrange- ments previously announced, and were conducted by Messrs. Hardy and Powell through Epping Forest along the route shown on the map issued with the circular. Ten members and eight visitors joined the Excursion in the afternoon. The day was very fine, but, owing to the long period of dry weather which had pre- vailed, the ponds were not very productive. After the Excursion 45 of the members and 18 visitors dined at the Hoyal Forest Hotel. June 28th, 1884. The Excursion to Hampton Court was barren in results. In some years many interesting objects have been found, but this year there appeared to be nothing of importance. No papers were sent in, and the attendance was small, consisting of six members only of the Q.M.C. and two members of the Hackney Society. 61 July 5th, 1884. List of Objects Found on the Excursion to Whitstable. ALG^E. En teromo rp h a in test in a lis Hypnea purpurascens. . . INFUSORIA. Noctiluca miliaris SPONGIDsE. Grantia ciliata „ compressa Halichondria, sp. HYDROZOA. ACTINOZOA. Beroe, sp. ... j HYDROID ZOOPHYTES (Sertularidjs). y Mr. J. Woollett. Campanularia, sp. Laomedea dichotoma Plwnularia setacea Sertularia, sp. Tubularia indivisa ... POLYZOA. Flustra folia cea Serialaria lendigera ... ECHINODERMA TA . Ophiocoma rosula CRUSTACEA. Ammothea pycnogonidce ... Mr. J. Woollett. ... Mr. C. G. Dunning. Messrs. Woollett and Dunning. ... Mr. J. Woollett. (Corynid^e.) ... Mr. C. G. Dunning. ... Mr. J. Woollett. ... Mr. C. G. Dunning. ... Mr. J. Woollett. >> a Ten members of the Club, and one member of the South London M. and N. H. Society, attended the Excursion. The weather was all that could be desired. The success of the day's proceedings was chiefly due to the admirable arrangements so kindly made by Mr. Saunders, of Whitstable, to enable the mem- bers to collect, by dredging and otherwise, the many beautiful and highly interesting marine objects to be found in the locality. 62 v Mr. G. E. Mainland. July 19th, 1884. List of Objects Found on the Excursion from Caterham to Godstone. CONFER VJE. N Gonium tranquillum Oscillatoria DESMIDIACEsE. Closterium acerosam Pediastrum Boryanum ... DIATOMACE^. NavicuJa Nitzschia sigmoidea Pleurosigma Surirella bifrons INFUSORIA. Amblyophis viridis Astasia limpida Euglena viridis Urocentrum turbo ROTIFER A. Pterodina patina Rotifer vulgaris NAIDINA. Nais proboscidea MICRO-FUNGI. Puccinea malvacearum ... PHANEROGAMS. Atropa belladonna ... Messrs. Mainland and W. W. Reeves. Carex paniculata Chlora perfoliata Hieraceum murorum Lathyrus sylvestris Ranunculus arvensis Silaus pratensis MISCELLANEO US. Gall of Fhytoptus aceris on maple Mr. G. E. Mainland. Six members of the Club and five members of the Croydon Club attended the Excursion. / Mr. W. W. Reeves. J 63 August 23rd, 1884. List of Objects Found on the Excursion to Walton. DESMIDIA CEJE. Various species ... Mr. J. Badcock. DIATOMACEM. Various species ... „ ,, INFUSORIA. Anthophysa Mulleri ... „ „ Cothurnia imberbis ... Mr. R. T. G. Nevins. Epistylis grandis ... Mr. J. Badcock. Stentors, various species Messrs. Parsons and Badcock. Spongilla fluviatilis ... Messrs. Nevins, Parsons, and Badcock. Vaginicola crystallina Mr. F. A. Parsons. Zoothamniam, sp. ... „ ,, ROTIFERA. Lacinularia socialis ... Messrs. Nevins, Parsons, and Badcock. Limnias ceratophylli . . . Melicerta ringens Stephanoceros Eichhornii Messrs. Nevins and Badcock. POLYZOA. Messrs. Parsons and Badcock. Mr. R. T. G. Nevins. Messrs. Nevins, Parsons, and Badcock. }> )) >> )> yj Messrs. Parsons and Badcock. Alcyojiella, sp. ,, stagnorvm >> >) >> j> yy Messrs. Parsons and Badcock. Mr. R. T. G. Nevins. Mr. J. Badcock. Mr. F. A. Parsons. Cristatella macedo .. Fredericella sultana .. Plumatella sp. „ repens .. HYDROZOA. Hydra vulgaris MOLLUSC A. Physa fontina lis PHANEROGAMS. Ceratophyllumdemersum Mr. R. T. G. Nevins. Villarsia nymphaoides „ „ This excursion was attended by only four members of the Club. Mr. Badcock made a trip to Walton on the following Saturday in company with Mr. Parsons, and the list of objects found by him is given above. Fredk. A. Parsons, Hon. Sec. Excursions Sub-Committee. 64 THE PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS. Delivered at the Annual General Meeting, 25th July, 1884. By M. C. Cooke, M.A., LL.D., A.L.S., &c. Gentlemen, — On a similar occasion to the present, I took the opportunity last year of suggesting a subject for reflection and consideration, which seemed to me calculated to impart an interest to your holiday hours. On the present anniversary, I purpose, for a very short time, offering a few words of warning, which originate in a sense of duty, as I vacate your chair. A week or two since, whilst pondering a subject, I was skimming over one of those small volumes provided for railway travellers, which are presumed to furnish amusement rather than instruction, and encountered the following short paragraph : — " The besetting sin of popular authors is the intense. I mean intensity of epithet — the strongest expression is generally the briefest and barest. Take the old ballads of any people, and you will find few adjectives. The singer says, 'He laughed; she wept.' Perhaps the poet of a more civilized age might say, ' He laughed in scorn ; she turned away, and shed tears of disappoint- ment.' But nowadays the ambitious young writer must produce something like this, ' A hard, fiendish laugh, scornful and pitiless, forced its passage from his throat through the lips that curled in mockery of her appeal ; she covered her despairing face, and a gust and whirlwind of sorrowing agony burst forth in her irresis- tible tears.' " * Naturally enough, as I thought, this little quotation sent me into a dream of intensities, and exaggerations, and sensationalism which seems to pervade everything in these latter days, politics, religion, science, art, business, and even common conversation. Manifest exaggeration, such as led Mark Twain to write his essay on " Decay in the Art of Lying," and to say, " Of course there are people who think they never lie ; but it is not so — and this igno- * " Echo Club Diversions," p. 61. THE PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS. 65 ranee is one of the very things that shame our so-called civilization. Everybody lies — every day, every hour, awake, asleep, in his dreams, in his joy, in his mourning ; if he keeps his tongue still, his hands, his feet, his eyes, his attitude, will convey deception — and purposely. Even in sermons — but that is a platitude." Half an hour's reflection will convince anyone that, in the main, this is a correct estimate of what results from the " intensity of epithet," the " exaggeration with a purpose," that appears to be a marked proclivity of the age. There are times and occasions when even this general tendency to exaggeration in some men, or bodies of men, goes beyond the ordinary standard, and then we recognise phenomena but little removed from insanity, psychological diver- gences from the standard of a sound mind. Many of these obli- quities originate from a small basis of fact, but the fact is soon lost in the distortion, like the true proportions of a human face gazed at in a concave mirror. We are not concerned with revi- valism, spirit-rapping, table-turning, millenianism, quaking, shak- ing, or jumping, or any form of religious fanaticism, as it is termed, but which is really nothing more than exaggeration culminating in sensationalism. Yet, after all, the process is the same, and the results the same, whatever the subject of the hallucination may be. Those who, like ourselves, have been able from experience to compare these periodical outbursts during half a century must be well satisfied that the mental phenomena are identical. It matters not what the special subject, there is a decided and marked identity in the restlessness, fanaticism, dogmatism, energy, excitement, recklessness, and consequent suspension, or rather distortion, of healthy mental action. The oldest of these waves, or currents, of popular idiosyncrasy were religious ; the most modern are scientific or artistic. People have sometimes called them a " craze," and they have not been far wrong. It was the " aesthetic craze " but a short time since, and not long ago it was the " Darwinian craze." Although this did not apply, in any sense, to Darwin, who kept himself wholly clear of exaggeration and sensationalism, yet hosts of those who called themselves his disciples rushed without sense or reason into extremes which he repudiated, and made use of his name as an apology for their fanaticism. Who does not remember the activity and intolerance of the followers of Pouchet, before their last hopes were shattered, 66 the president's address. together with the monstrous extravagances into which some of them were seduced, perhaps at first insensibly, for the sake of argument, or in hopes of victory ? The animal nature of the Myxogasters was a short-lived halluci- nation which never attained any considerable strength, but the same cannot be said of the dual-Lichen hypothesis, which is so tenacious of life that it still retains a semblance of vitality. In all these instances, and many more which may be cited, the same elements are to be found — there is the same history, and will be the same final collapse. It is noteworthy that most of these 11 hallucinations " — for it is difficult to give them any other equally suitable name — start with an old prejudice, or a superstition, or a u popular belief," something which gives plausibility to the assumption. Then follows a search after analogies, and proba- bilities, and the construction of an hypothesis. Subsequently comes the era of experiments, often slovenly performed, but studiously without any exposure of the methods. When these latter become known, as in the case of Pouchet, their inefficiency is readily demonstrated. These experiments, being conducted with the view of proving a preconceived hypothesis, naturally enough furnish the required proof. It would be very strange if it were otherwise. We all know, with the microscope, how very easy it is to believe that you see just what you wish to see. And, finally, comes the agitation, the appeal to the " enlightened public," magazine articles, public lectures, newspaper paragraphs, and all the orthodox paraphernalia of a political campaign. Partisans are speedily made — for no theory was ever conceived that was too absurd to secure converts — and one by one new advocates appear, here and there a journal takes up the cause, provided its director has a notion that it will succeed, or pay, and the bubble glitters and sparkles awhile in the bright sunshine, until at length it shares the fate of all its kindred, leaving nothing behind but a dirty spot, and a bill for soap. There would not be so much to regret in these manifestations, in most cases dictated by personal vanity, if they did not impose un- welcome labour on those who, whilst able to estimate such ebul- litions at their true value, are nevertheless compelled to protest against them as exaggerations and distortions of the truth, lest by silence they are supposed to assent. Undoubtedly, in very many cases, if not in most, the agents are sincere enough, but having THE PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS. 67 deceived themselves, adopted a prejudice, suffered their judgment to become absolutely a slave to their hypothesis, they are rather to be pitied, in that they have become mentally blind, than blamed for leading others astray to fall into the same ditch. How much of this unhealthy development is to be traced to the restlessness of the age, the craving after excitement, and a grow- ing habit of exaggeration, I am content to leave to individual opinion. For my own part, I think such causes at least contribu- tory to the class of phenomena alluded to. Plain, straightforward investigation is safe enough and sure enough, there is no temptation to exaggerate. Facts are observed and recorded just as they occur; it matters little, if any- thing, to the observer, so long as they are true, what they may be supposed to prove or support, or overthrow, so long as he has no preconceived theory to work out, or controvert. But on the other hand, when a person sits down to his microscope, or his dissecting- table, absorbed with the one idea that some dream has to be realized, that all his facts are to be ranged in support of some hypothesis, or failing to do this, that they are to be buried in oblivion, then, unconsciously, he is no longer the patient observer, no longer the searcher after truth, but the partisan, restlessly, incessantly, fanatically, hunting up support for his own hypothesis with one eye blinded. Whether he starts with this idea or not, he soon falls into it, and, as I believe most strongly, damages himself more than he does good to any cause, however excellent that cause may be. It is undoubtedly true that theories have been beneficial, and will be again, in the search after truth. An hypothesis is not to be condemned because it is an hypothesis, so long as it is rated as an hypothesis. The danger lies in being led away and made captive by an hypothesis, to be so absorbed by it, and work at it day by day, until it becomes a kind of incipient insanity, or, if you please, the mind is strained and distorted in a particular direction until it can no longer be called a sound and well-balanced mind. Any psychologist would find a ready phrase to characterise such a condition, Some of the reasons why I would beg of you — especially young men in search of mental occupation — not to be seduced into becoming theorists, in its modern application, shall be placed before you : — 68 the president's address. I. Because it lias a very strong tendency to warp your judg- ment; your inclinations leaning ever in the direction of the theory all that supports it receive exaggeration, and all that militates against it is apologised for, or sophistically explained away. II. Because it depreciates all your work within the circle of the theory. Record never so many investigations, vouch for ever so many facts, and your reward will be to see them received with doubt, or suspicion, not because you are naturally untrustworthy, but because you are a prejudiced witness. Need anyone be reminded of the broad difference of result that is produced in men's minds by the evidence of an independent witness, and the evidence of a friend of the culprit ? III. Because it converts one who should be sound in judgment, unfettered by antecedents, unbiassed by what may follow, into a mere partisan, deaf to all that may be urged on the contrary, not because it is true or false, but simply because it affects his side of the question. In season, and out of season, advocating the party side, ever and anon seeking to make converts to his own views, not being content to permit truth to work its own way, but, above all, anxious that his interpretation of the truth, and that alone, shall prevail, and all who dissent shall be branded as heretics. IV. Because it leads to dishonesty. This is an almost inevit- able associate of partisanship. A little gloss is put upon all that favours one's own side, a little exaggeration, even when least intended, gives a tone to the views we hold. Opposite opinions are never quoted at all, or with corresponding exaggeration. The partisan may attempt to be honest, may flatter himself that he really is honest, and yet never does justice to his opponent, because he lacks the feeling and sympathy of the opposition. Hence the best of partisans are unconsciously, and the worst of them habitually, dishonest. V. Because it favours intolerance, bigotry, and all uncharit- ableness. Being satisfied themselves that they are the only depositaries of the truth, they utterly contemn those who fail to appreciate their conclusions. Such unfortunates are looked upon as inferior animals, only partially gifted with the faculty of reason, and no opportunity is allowed to slip of bestowing upon them a fraternal sneer. VI. Because it is prejudicial to friendship. No one would con- tend that personal friendships can survive an aggressive conflict of the President's address. 69 opinion such as that fostered by the average theorist. One who has taken up an hypothesis as an article of faith, and prosecutes it with all the zeal of a political creed, would either make a proselyte, or sacrifice a friend. As community of feeling, taste, and pursuits all serve to cement friendship, so will their opposites speedily dis- solve the bond. VII., and lastly — to come back to the topic which has been before us — because it leads to exaggeration, and especially lends itself to it at a period when exaggeration is the fashion of the age. It is no answer to say that a sound hypothesis does not need to support itself by exaggeration ; it is sufficient to show, that, apart from all inducements towards wilful exaggeration, there is a natural tendency to suppression on the one hand, and undue extenuation on the other. Where the fundamental facts are not universally known, and, indeed, can only be known by experience to a few, there is a continual temptation in the direction of exaggeration, on the principle that the end will justify the means, and that a polemic victory, will cover a multitude of sins. One has only to turn to any of the records of recent controverted hypotheses, and exercise the judgment of an " outsider'' to obtain abundant evidence that exaggeration is resorted to, as a matter of course, and unblushingly, as if it were a virtue. Something of this may be due to the " fashion," and therefore impresses more forcibly those who can compare it with the past, than it does those younger men who have grown with the fashion. At any rate, it is worthy of note that those who are not drawn into the whirlpool of these extravagant hypotheses are chiefly men of ripe years, who contemplate with surprise the large amount of noise that proceeds from very shallow streams. Perhaps I shall be met with the remark that all these seven reasons are exaggerations, insomuch as they exaggerate the dangers of adopting an hypothesis, pure and simple, whereas I have in view only hypothetical propagandism, the dangers of which it would be difficult to exaggerate. These reasons are given as the result, not of mere speculation, but as forced upon me by experience. Several times it has been my ill-fortune to oppose hypotheses, and this I have always done with regret. It is not in human nature to suffer in patience when vanity is rebuked. Your " candid friend " is not the most agree- able companion. He who would oppose those who have espoused 70 THE PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS. an hypothesis must expect to be regarded as a " candid friend," often too candid for continued friendship. Controversies vary with the character of the controversialists, but the end of all, for both sides, is nothing but " vanity and vexation of spirit." Nothing exposes some of the weak points in humanity more effectually than controversy. The old adage " in vino Veritas ,: finds its analogue here. The man who " speaks his mind "by the inspiration of the bottle is at one with him who " speaks his mind " in the warmth of a polemical contest. There- fore beware of controversy, if you would not be betrayed into exaggeration, or misrepresentation. It is easy to furnish examples of the process of " intensifica- tion '' through which simple facts are made to pass in their pas- sage to sensationalism. Recently a correspondent to a weekly paper, with some ambition to be considered a scientific journal, thus expresses himself when writing on the potato disease : "lam in a position to speak confidently upon this point, for the very good reason that for many years past I have been in the habit of every day cutting sections of one or more tubers, and I have never once found a potato diseased by Peronospora in the centre, when its exterior did not show traces of infection. Many years is an indefinite period, but these observations have been continuously carried on by me for the past thirty years — rarely have I missed a day. As a rule more than one potato has been sliced by me, so that 10,950 tubers were examined, not one of which has shown the centre diseased by Peronospora, while the exterior remained sound. I admit these tubers had been subjected to a temperature of 212° F. before I sliced them, yet it requires a higher temperature than 212° F. to obliterate all traces of the disease. Before I sliced these 10,950 tubers each one had been washed, and in most of them the epidermis had been removed," &c* Now, what are the plain facts thus set forth so grandilo- quently ? Simply these — that the writer was thirty years old, and had potatoes cooked for dinner every day, and therefore had experimented on 10,950 potatoes to ascertain whether they were diseased or not. As to experimenting with scientific purpose, of course he had done nothing of the kind. Now, this is a fair example of exaggeration in scientific matters, and, it must be said, of wilful misrepresentation for sensational purposes. What * " Gardeners' Chronicle," March 15, 1884, p. 349. THE PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS 71 reliance can possibly be placed on the evidence adduced by such an authority, and yet he has claimed to have demonstrated scientific facts by experiment — solely on the faith of his own word — on which evidence he seeks to establish a controverted hypothesis. In this example there is the basis of fact — or assumed fact — seeing potatoes on the table after being peeled, and cooked, for 30 years. Then this fact is distorted and exaggerated by being made to appear that which it was not, viz., a deliberate scientific experi- ment, made daily for a set purpose. Finally, this " intensified' 1 narrative, which we have characterized as exaggeration, is deliberately published in a controversy, in a sensational manner, as scientific evidence. I think, when such things are done, it is not a moment too early to warn you against sensationalism in science, to put you on your guard against that "paltering in a double sense ' : to which some are tempted to backslide, in order to achieve a paltry polemical victory, instead of being: content to establish the truth, for the sake of truth, and that alone. May I not suggest, without offence, that the tendencies towards exaggeration are very manifest in many directions, whereas yet they only exhibit promonitory symptoms? Can we really say that there is no danger with the Bacilli? Is it not possible to take too much for granted, and exaggerate the relations of these minutest of organisms with zymotic disease ? Is it not well to be particularly guarded in such cases lest zeal should outrun discretion ? The danger is all the greater since the subject would accommodate itself so readily to sensationalism. Foreign as the subject may be to our own pursuits, it may, nevertheless, be alluded to in illustration. Are we not in great danger of exaggeration in the direction of popular education ? Not the less so because it has a sentimental side, and may be made to conform to sensationalism. I think I am justified in saying that we should be cautious lest we exaggerate too much our instrument and its powers. If we fancy that the microscope is to do everything for us, without the exercise of application and judgment, and sound discretion, we shall exaggerate to our own final discomfort. If we rely too confidently on what we suppose that we see, under high powers, without concerning ourselves with verifying it in all 72 the President's address. possible ways, then we may be clinging to fallacies by which we deceive ourselves, and, in the end, blame the instrument for our own exaggerations. If we do not take into account the many ways in which we are liable to err, through a disregard of recent discoveries, especially in the direction of defective vision, we shall be in constant danger of repeating and perpetuating exploded errors, and originating new ones, which are in themselves neither more nor less than practical exaggerations of our own ignorance. In fine, in proportion as we magnify objects are we in danger of magnifying false impressions, unless we give some little attention to those very " brass and glass " questions which some of us affect to despise. Having satisfied yourself, from its manifestations, such as I have indicated, that any given subject has passed from the calm region of judicial enquiry, into the excited arena of public disquisition, is being exalted into an article of orthodox faith, in which " whoever believeth shall be saved, and whoever doubteth is damned," rely upon it, that no other course is left to you but to exercise to the fullest extent your privilege of independent judgment, and to insist that it shall be stripped bare of all exaggerations, of all external sophistry, that is gathered about it in order to conceal its barrenness, and confound its true issues. Coolly, without prejudice, to examine all the alleged facts thoroughly and exhaustively, com- paring these with your own experiences, and the acknowledged data which the experience of others has determined. All the cobwebs of supposition, and probability, and assumption without authority, must be swept away ; and upon authenticated legitimate fact, and upon the hard facts alone, must your judgment be based. The very circumstance of exaggeration entering into the advocacy of any hypothesis is sufficient to invest it with suspicion. Dogmatic assumption and persistent self-assertion is no less suggestive of an unsound basis. More than all, the incessant appeal "to the stump," to popular prejudice, and the " intelligent public " to determine a question which depends upon the exercise of well-dis- ciplined observation, and the calm judgment of experienced investi- gators, is akin to an appeal on points of law, from the assembled Judges in the High Court of Justice, to the old fishwomen of Billingsgate. It is simply impossible to place reliance upon such an appeal. The translation of scientific terminology into the vulgar THE PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS. 73 dialect loses in accuracy, in proportion as it is diluted, everything opposing the hypothesis is studiously suppressed, or misrepresented, it may not be intentionally, but inevitably ; exaggeration supplies the deficiency, and the climax is "sensationalism versus science." It is no longer the simple truth which is sought, or such an audience would not be appealed to, but simply the paltry gratification of a polemic victory. Once carry a disputed subject out of the circle in which it could be intelligibly discussed, and investigated, into a new circle, in which prejudice takes the place of knowledge, and it is condemned at once, by all sensible men, as a failure in search of compensation for disappointed vanity. Fragmentary and imperfect as these observations may be, written hurriedly under the pressure of numerous engagements, they will, perhaps, serve as a caution to some of our younger mem- bers, and at least convince them that an old microscopist of forty years' experience believes it to be his duty to warn them of one of the vices of the age, and to put them on their guard against exag- geration. Journ. Q. M. C, Series II., No. 10. a 74 REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE. July 25th, 1884. Your Committee, in presenting the Nineteenth Annual Report, are able to record the continued prosperity and activity of the Club during the past year. Our losses by death have been five, viz. — Mr. Chantrell, Mr. Davey, Mr. Dixon, Mr. Hugh Powell, and Mr. Watson. Mr. Powell was not often seen at the Club, but was one of its earlier members, and was universally known as one of the pioneers of the modern microscope in this country. There have been fourteen resigna- tions, seventy-four struck off the list for non-payment of subscrip- tions, and thirty-three new members have been elected ; although the total number of members is, therefore, somewhat reduced, the practical working strength of the Club remains about the same. Appended is a list of the more important communications made at our meetings and printed in the Journal : — 1883. Aug. 24. " On Circumnutation in Fungi," by the President. Oct. 26. " On an Apparatus for Aerating Fish under observation with the Microscope," by Mr. A. W. Stokes. Dec. 28. " On the so-called * Lungs ' of the Spider," by Mr. A. D. Michael. Jan. 25. " On the Structure and Modes of Growth of Nostoc Commune," by the President. 1884. Feb. 22. " On the Floridese and some newly-found Antheridise," by Mr. BurYham. Mar. 28. " On Parasitic Vegetable Organisms in Calcareous Particles of the Gabbard and other Sands," by Mr. J. G. Waller. May 23. " On the Hexactinellida?," by Mr. B. W. Priest. June 27. " On Mermis Nigrescens," by Mr. R. T. Lewis. REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE. 75 Besides the above there have been numerous interesting descrip- tions of objects, apparatus, and methods useful to the members generally, as well as to those pursuing special studies. But, not- withstanding all this shows that there is a large amount of activity in the Club, it is to be hoped that more members will endeavour to place the results of their investigations before the meetings in the shape of papers. Six demonstrations on Microscopical Technology were given during the year on the Conversational Evenings, and, as before, were eminently successful. Being the outcome of individual ex- perience practically illustrated, and therefore useful to all classes of microscopical students, they will in future be considered as fix- tures, and as affording further evidence of the utility of the Club to working microscopists. The last of the series, " On Staining Vegetable Tissues," was to have been given by Mr W. H. Gilburt, but he was unfortunately unable to carry out his intentions on account of continued ill- health. His place, however, was very kindly and ably taken, at rather short notice, by Mr. W. D. Smith, and his demonstration on the same subject was certainly not the least practical and suc- cessful of the series. Reports of these Demonstrations, of which the following is a list, will be found in the Journal : — 1883. Dec. 14. " On Cutting Sections of Hard Tissues," by Mr. T. C. White, M.R.C.S., L.D.S. 1884. Jan. 11. " On Microscopical Drawing," by Mr. J. D. Hardy, F.R.M.S. Feb. 8. " On The Sponge -skeleton as a means of Recognising Genera and Species," by Mr. J. G. Waller. Mar. 14. " How to Work with the Microscope," by Mr. E. M. Nelson. May 9. " On Polarised Light," by Mr. C. Stewart, M.R.C.S., F.L.S. June 13. "On Staining Vegetable Tissues," by Mr.W. D. Smith. The remainder (£40) of the munificent donation to the Club by Mr. Frank Crisp, has been, with his approval, laid out in the pur* chase of indispensable works of reference for the Library. 76 REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE. The following is a list of the books acquired by the Club either by donation, purchase, or exchange : — Presented by " Quatrefage's Metamorphoses of Man," &c... Dr. M. C. Cooke. " Steenstrup's Alternation of Generations" ... " Bibliotheca Zoologica" " Bibliotheca Entomologica, " Vol. 1 ... " Strasburger's Zellbildung und Zelltheilung " " J. Badcock's Vignettes from Invisible Life " » >» >> " McNab's Outlines of Botany" " Notcutt's Handbook of the Microscope and ~i Microscopic Objects " ... ... J "Trimen and Dyer's Flora of Middlesex '•Transactions of the Linnean Society" „ „ „ 2 vols. " Journal of the Linnean Society," 12 vols. ... " Prof. Lindberg on Mosses " ... " Dr. Braithwaite's British Moss-Flora," Part 7 (i Proceedings of the Koyal Society"... " Journal of the Royal Microscopical Society " " Smithsonian Institution Report for 1881 "... " Hardwicke's Science Gossip" " Science Monthly " "G. B. Buckton's British Aphides," Vol. 4 j " A. D. Michael's British Oribatida3," Vol. 1 J " American Naturalist ".. . "American Monthly Microscopical Journal"... 11 Challenger Reports," Vols. 7-8 " Gosse's Devonshire Coast " ... " Gosse's Tenby "... " Gosse's Aquarium " " Gosse's Year at the Shore" ... " Siebold's Comparative Anatomy " " Johnston's British Sponges "... " Johnston's Catalogue of Worms'' " Hassall's Fresh Water Alga3 " " Testacea Microscopica " " Pennetier's L'Origine de la Vie " " Vestiges of the Natural History of Crea. tion," 6th Edition ... ' Stein's Infusoria," Part 3 " Transactions of the Tyneside Naturalists' Field Club," 6 vols. ... "Transactions of the Northumberland and Durham Natural Histoi'y Society," 6 vols " Klein's Elements of Histology" } } )> »» M »» >> >t Mr. W, , H. Gilburt. The Author. The Publishers. Mr. T. C. White. Mr. F. Crisp. »> >> '> » Mr W. J. Scofield. >j >> The Author. The Society. U.S. Government. The Publishers. )> Subscription to Ray Society. In Exchange. Purchased. >> >» REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE. 77 " Rutley's Study of Rocks " Purchased. " Prantl's Elementary Text Eook of Botany " " Quarterly Journal of Microscopical Science" " Annals of Natural History " "Dr. Cooke's British Fresh Water Algas," 1 Parts 6-8 "Grevillea'' " Cole's Studies in Microscopical Science," &c. " The Microscopical News " Proceedings and Reports of various Societies and Sundry Pamphlets. The following slides have been presented to the Cabinet: — Dr. M. C. Cooke 3 Mr. H. E. Freeman ... ... ... ... ... 3 -LOlELl ••■ ••• ••• »•■ ••• ••• O In accordance with a resolution passed last year, that the Annual Dinners be officially recognised and placed under the direction of a duly appointed Sub-Committee, the following gentlemen were elected to carry out the arrangements for the Annual Winter Dinner, held Dec. 8th :— Mr T. C. White, Mr. T. Curties, Mr. James Willson, and Mr. J. W. Goodinge, Secretary. The Dinner was given at the Holborn Restaurant, the President occupying the chair, supported by leading members of the Club and by Fellows of other learned and kindred Societies. Ninety- three members and their friends attended. The musical arrange- ments were under the direction of Messrs. A. C. Cole and James Willson, and Messrs. Collard kindly lent one of their grand pianos for the occasion. The usual toasts were proposed and responded to, and altogether the dinner and arrangements gave general satis- faction. With the desire of making the ordinary excursions more useful to the Club at large, forms have been drawn up, and are distributed by the Secretary of the Excursion Committee to the members taking part in them to be filled up with the names, descriptions and localities of the various specimens taken. These forms are then placed in a portfolio, and are open to the inspection of mem- bers on the Conversational evenings. In this way it is hoped that members unable to participate in the excursions themselves may share in the results, and that the forms will be valuable for refers ence in the future. 78 REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE. The Excursionists' Annual Dinner was held on June 21st at the Forest Hotel at Chingford, under the direction of the Excursion Sub- Committee. The attraction of the locality, and the favourable state of the weather, brought together a large gathering, and the dinner itself was greatly enhanced by some very excellent vocal and instrumental music, contributed by members of the Club, under the able direction of Mr. James Willson. A special exhibition meeting was held, by the kind permission of the College authorities, on May 30th, and was attended by about 130 members and 161 visitors. Although no very great novelties were produced, the exhibits were of a generally excellent and instructive character, and evidently afforded satisfaction to the members and their friends. The Journals for the past year have been issued with regu- larity under the able editorship of Mr. Hailes, four numbers having appeared since the last report, and it now only rests with the members themselves to maintain the matter in them at at least as high a standard as heretofore. The permission to hold our meetings in the College has again been renewed for the ensuing year with the same courtesy and kindness that the Club has always met with from the Council of University College. Your Committee desire to express their thanks to the officers of the Club for their services during the year, and also to those gen- tlemen who kindly came forward to give the excellent series of demonstrations which have proved so useful to the members of the Club. It is with feelings of the sincerest regret that your Committee have to announce the resignation of the senior Honorary Secretary. For eleven years Mr. J. E. Ingpen has fulfilled the arduous and re- sponsible duties of that office with the utmost ability and unre- mitting attention ; his great experience has always been at the service of any and every member of the Club, and he has during the whole time been most assiduous in promoting and sustaining its efficiency in every respect. Your Committee trust that the endeavour to render the Club a means of instruction and utility to all its members, which has been so successfully maintained hitherto, will still continue, and that no effort will be spared to keep pace with all relating to its special pursuit. S O CO O tH i-h ?i o o 03 00 h •* CO T)f Jl O QO EH EH m m GQ EH W t- N M 00 CO M ^ O CO CO © • • 00 . • • • • a : © m a o * ; : : • 1-4 c3 ■ > © to © - -4-) CD • p-H a Ul EH • • i— < o O : a ; o a © " • p" 1 - © O 03 to £> : HP a • • • • O O O • a .2 o3 -t-i Ul a to p* O .2 "S .p* 2 ©~ *o - CO a o • — 4-1 • ^^ .0 CO © . co a © fe CO CO eS c3 o u a © 04 M 1-1 bo © <3 2 ^_i tyE ance o CO p- d © p e3 [3 '© • * • e -u h 3 © -^ T3 Eh 123 t-3 PL* O 43 d O •~3 02 © e3 Ph M W a ^ W5CO N O c5 «* o o oo f— I f-< S o 3 * N co a o o CO rO. d 02 1> Ol CO CO 00 00 CO d 1-5 a c3 2 CO 00 o . co M © o § 1-5 a o a © •" a S H CO pq <« o EH CO a a a o a. a o O a o CO 13 a © 5 £ c3 a - d o 1-5 — o © p*» JO s © pp o -t-3 © © ,a to a •ri -s © .a I © to -j a 15 > 2 .3 S 1* to o *S -** ph © £ a i s d co H>9 b © © £ co o -4-» a W © pH EH co u © ,a © a © r^ CQ 3 ° ja uj H -u S . I— 1 T3 § ^ W «* © cc? © H d •PH -4J -4J •PH • pH a © a Ph <1 M H -p3 a np © d Q o3 © © a o © o © a PH i— i -a H O ^ © fz5 Hp3 a © a a • rf © "« H-3 c3 © HV3 CO DO © 1 © > O rO -U eS a a © O pP a -rS <1 13 00 00 pd -p3 !>• 80 PROCEEDINGS. July 11th, 1884. — Conversational Meeting. The following objects were exhibited : — Pandorina in ovum, and various rotifers ... Mr. F. W. Andrew. Fresh-water annelid,' Limnodrilus ... ... Mr. A. Hammond. Circulation in young Stickleback ... ... ,, „ Newts ... ... ... Mr. J. D. Hardy. Mr. G. E. Mainland. >» >» H » Parasites of Wood-pigeon, &c ... Mr. T. S. Morten. Bacterium, sp., from eye disease ... ... Mr. E. M. Nelson. Various double- stained vegetable sections ... Mr. F. Oxley. Attendance — Members, 37 ; Visitor, 1. July 25th, 1884. — Annual Meeting. Dr. M. C. Cooke, M.A., A.L.S., President, in the Chair. The minutes of the preceding meeting were read and confirmed. The following gentlemen were balloted for and duly elected members of the Club :— Mr. Conrad Beck, Mr. Richard H. Wellington, Mr. J. H. Ellis, Mr. W. Marten Holmes, and Mr. John J. Kern. The following additions to the Library were announced : — " Proceedings of the Royal Society" From the Society. "Paper on Diatom acese" ... ... ... „ Mr. Kitton. " Report and Proceedings of the Croydon") , , o • . Microscopical Club " ... ... ... ) " Science Gossip " „ the Publisher. " The American Monthly Microscopical^) t F h Journal" ... ... ... ... ) " The American Naturalist " ... ... ... „ „ " Cole's Studies in Microscopical Science" ... Purchased. The thanks of the Club were voted to the respective donors. Announcements of meetings, &c, for the ensuing month were then made and the business of the Anniversary Meeting was proceeded with. Mr. W. Hainworth and Mr. W. W. Reeves having been duly appointed Scrutineers, the ballot for the election of officers and four members of Committee took place, at the conclusion of which the following were declared to be duly elected : — i Dr. W. B. Carpenter, C.B., F.R.S., PRESIDENT -j &c., &C. Dr. M. C. Cooke, M.A., A.L.S., &c. C Dr. J. Matthews, F.R.M.S. Vice-Presidents < Mr# A . D . Michael, F.L.S., F.R.M.S. v. Mr. C. Stewart, M.R.C.S.,F.L.S.,&c. 81 Hox. Treasurer Mr. F. W. Gay, F.E.M.S. Hon. Secretary Mr. G. C. Karop, M.R.C.S., &c. Hon. Secretary for Foreign") Correspondence and Editors Mr. Henry F. Hailes. of Journal... ) Hon. Reporter Mr. R. T. Lewis, F.R.M.S. Hon. Librarian Mr. Alpheus Smith. Hon. Curator Mr. C. Emery. Mr E. T. Newton, F.G.S. Four Members to Supply Va- \ Mr. B. W. Priest. cancies on Committee ... 1 Mr. J. G. Waller. (- Mr. T. C. White, M.R.C.S., &c. The Secretary read the Annual Report of the Committee, also the Treasurer's Annual Statement of Account and Balance Sheet, duly audited and certified as correct. Mr. Buffham moved the adoption of the Report, which he thought was one upon which the unofficial members of the Club might well congratulate themselves as being one which could hardly be more satisfactory. One portion of the report particularly commended itself to their notice, and that was the reference made to the purchase of so many valuable books for the library. It had no doubt been the experience of many besides himself that if they had any special subject which they wished to study they found considerable difficulty in getting along without the right books for reference, and he could only say that he hoped the Committee would in future avail themselves of all the means within their power for purchasing the very best works on various subjects which could be procured. Mr. Goodwin had much pleasure in seconding the report. He had heard it said that a Society never prospered until it found itself in debt, probably because when it found itself in difficulties it exerted its greatest energies, but, however that might be, he must admit that there was a feel- ing of comfort in finding that the balance was on the right side. He had noticed a new feature, x'ecently introduced into another Society, which he thought they might do well to take into consideration, and that was as to the admission of ladies as members. It might be that in that Society the resolution was adopted as a tentative measure, in which case he hoped its future would be watched with a view to profiting by the experience gained. For his own part he should like te see a similar feature introduced into their own Society. The President said he was very glad, personally, to have received the testimony of the mover of this resolution, as a non-official member of the Club, as to the action of the Committee during the past year in their endeavours to increase the efficiency of the library. They would see by the report that a large sum — scarcely less than £100 — had been ex- pended in the purchase of books of reference, many of which were of a very valuable character to the student of microscopy, and the expendi- ture of so large an amount had naturally caused them to feel some degree of responsibility in the matter. He was, therefore, very glad to find that their action had been so much approved by the members, and that they felt 82 with the Committee that what had been done had conferred a permanent benefit upon the Club.'. With reference to the remarks of the seconder of the motion, no doubt his reference to what had been done elsewhere was made in all good faith — but it was not everyone who had been a Queketter long enough to remember the very strong battle which they had upon this very question years ago — about the second year of the Club's existence,* when a similar proposal was made. On that occasion all the energies of the members was called out against it in a way that few who took part in the matter were likely to forget, with the result that when the proposition was put to the special meeting, convened to consider it, only one vote — that of the mover — was recorded in favour of it. He thought it was well to remind the gentleman who had just sat down that the same feeling was still in existence, and that he and others might lay the nattering unction to their hearts that if they re-introduced the subject they would have the selfsame tigers to meet who attacked and overthrew the proposition on the last occasion. They, at least, had an idea that though the establishment of their Club might have embodied some failings and some faults, it had proved to be as good as could have been desired, and, inasmuch as this was felt to be the case by those who had seen it grow and thrive from its earliest commencement, their motto was emphatically " Let well alone." They were perfectly satisfied with it as it was, and, therefore, had no desire to try any experiments, let any other chartered Society do what it might. The motion was then put to the meeting, and carried unanimously. The President then read his annual Address. Mr. Chas. Stewart said he rose with very great pleasure to move a cordial vote of thanks to the President for his Address. In past times they had had Presidents who had filled the chair with great honour to themselves and to the Club ; but of all those illustrious Presidents of the past, they had none who had more efficiently carried out the duties of the office than the one they were about to lose, for he had not only conducted their meetings with an amount of ability and learning which could not fail to have been remarked, but by courtesy and tact had endeared himself to all the mem- bers of the Society. Mr. W. J. Brown having seconded the motion, it was put to the meeting by Mr. Stewart, and carried unanimously. The President, in rising to thank the members for the very cordial way in which this vote had been received and carried, said that it was to him a noteworthy circumstance that the most important work of a pond-hunter, and, indeed, the only work on " Fresh Water Algae," which had appeared for 40 years, had been contemporaneous with his two years of office. The first sheets were put in hand two years ago, and the last were finished only during the past week, so that the work could be said to be that of the President of the Qnekett Microscopical Club. Another thing which had originated during his presidency was the establishment of a series of demonstrations, which had not only been so useful and successful that they hoped to be able to continue them, but they had redeemed the * March 27th, 1862. 85 Club from the charge of becoming too theoretical and namby-pamby. Then, again, when he was congratulated upon the work of the past year, it led him to look round and see what was being done also by others, and attention was at once directed to the Journal, which, from being nearly a year behind (from causes which were both unavoidable and regrettable), was now brought nearly up to date. True, it might be said, no less than £232 had been expended upon it during the two years, but, nevertheless, it was an expense well incurred, and afforded an answer to people who taid they were hoarding up their money instead of using it for the benefit of the Club. Then, as regarded their annual dinners, these had been brought under the direct control of the Committee, and recognised as one of their established institutions, whilst for their summer excursionists' dinner the change had been made, he thought with good results, from visiting a southern suburb to a district nearer home ; whilst, in connection with the excursions themselves, the adoption of a plan for permanently pre- serving records of what had been found was a new departure, from which the best results only could be anticipated. He could only say that he desired sincerely to thank all the members for the courtesy which had always been extended to him, and the Vice-Presidents and officers for the cordial sup- port and assistance which they had always rendered, and, not by any means least, were his thanks due to their old friend, Mr. Ingpen, for his help rendered under the most trying personal and family circumstances. Dr. Matthews then moved " That the President be requested to allow his Address to be printed and published, and to be circulated with the report in the usual way." Mr. Parsons having seconded the motion, it was put to the meeeting, carried unanimously, and acquiesced in by the President. Mr. G. E. Mainland moved " A vote of thanks to the Committee and Officers of the Club for their services rendered during the past year,'' a resolution which he felt needed no words from him to commend it to their consideration. Mr. A. Dean seconded the motion, which was put to the meeting, and carried unanimously. Mr. T. C. White said he held in his hand a resolution which he had great pleasure in laying before the meeting, and that was Mr. J. D. Hardy. Mr. H. Morland. Mr. E. T. G. Nevins. >> Mr. F. Oxley. Mr. F. A. Parsons. Mr. B. W. Priest. Mr. A. W. Stokes. From Dr. Cooke. In Exchange. n Attendance— Members, 41 ; Visitors, 4. September 26th, 1884. — Ordinary Meeting. Dr. M. C. Cooke, M.A., A.L.S., Vice-President, in the Chair. The minutes of the preceding meeting were read and confirmed. The following gentlemen were balloted for and duly elected members of the Club : — Mr. H. A. Crowhurst, and Mr. William Watson. The following donations were announced : — "Diseases of Field and Garden Crops," by W.") G. Smith j " The American Monthly Microscopical Journal " " The American Naturalist " " Proceedings of the Belgian Microscopal ) Society" j " Science Monthly " " Desmids of the United States " " Cole's Studies in Natural History " "Annals of Natural History " A Series of 24 Stained Botanical Slides A Series of 12 Slides of Diatoms, in Illustra-) tion of Mr. Kitton's Paper of June 27th j The thanks of the meeting were voted to the donors. The Chairman said he had very great pleasure in announcing that they were favoured that evening by the presence of one of their transatlantic brethren — Dr. J. H. Wythe, Professor at the Cooper Medical College of San Francisco and author of " The Microscopist " — to whom, in the name of the Club, he offered a most hearty welcome. Dr. Wythe had been giving much attention lately to a new subject, which he called " Microscopic Graphiology,'' and upon which he had kindly consented to make some remarks. Dr. Wythe, after briefly acknowledging the welcome accorded to him by the President and members present, said that although he had been until then personally a stranger to them, he was well acquainted with the Purchased. From Mr. Oxley. „ Mr. Sturt. 87 Society through the medium of its Journal, in which he regularly read their proceedings with great interest, and he was very pleased to have the opportanity of being with them on that occasion. He was, however, hardly ready to give them any very carefully prepared communication, as he was present almost unexpectedly, for having called upon his friend, Mr. Baker during the day, he had been asked by him to come and bring before them what he thought was a new topic in connection with Microscopy, one upon which he had read several papers at the San Francisco Microscopical Society. He had called it " Microscopic Graphiology," and he believed it would be found to supply one answer to the question " What good was there in Microscopy?" The subject, as its name implied, was that of the examination of handwriting under the microscope, with a view of ascer- taining its minute peculiarities as a means of identification. It was, of course, well known that the Microscope had long been used as a means of examining the texture of paper, erasures, differences in inks, lines crossing each other, and other features, by legal men in cases where questions arose as to the genuine character of documents ; but he had gone much beyond this in endeavouring to formulate some other methods of examination in a way that could be understood by any intelligent observer. He believed that he had succeeded in so formulating the ideas that in the course of a few months they would be in print, so that anyone interested in the subject would be able to read it for themselves. When, at any time, a question arose in a court of law as to the genuineness or otherwise of hand- writing, it was usual to call in ordinary experts to examine and pronounce upon it, and these people appeared to do so by mere intuition. If questioned as to their means of discrimination, they could not say why or how they came to their conclusions, only that they felt sure — they were certain — that the two specimens of writing were the same. His own attention was particularly called to the subject by an article which appeared in the "Bankers' Magazine," for July, 1878, the writer of which maintained that there was in every handwriting, as seen under the microscope, a certain rhythm or set of waves peculiar to, and distinctive of, each. These waves were, as might be expected, very small, there being several hundreds of them in a single inch, so that they were not to be seen by unassisted vision. On carefully examining the subject, he found that there were three rhythms in the handwriting of every man, each of which must be taken into con- sideration in connection with the others. The first of these he called the rhythm of form, by which it was meant that everyone had a certain method of forming his letters peculiar to himself, and it was upon this that ordinary experts chiefly relied. They used a hand lens or a doublet, but there was no doubt that even for this purpose a microscope would be of great use. In addition to the shape of the letters, another feature came under this head ; for instance, a person in writing a letter would often make several strokes in succession exactly at the same angle, and then there would be a kind of break or change, and this would be repeated at regular intervals, so that very often it was possible to identify handwriting by this rhythm of form alone. The best description of this system which had yet come unto his hands was one published by the Hon. Mr. Thistleton, in which he gave an account of the methods of Mons. Chabot, the well known 88 London expert. The next kind of rhythm was the one specially referred to, and to which he had given the title of the rhythm of progress. In the examination of this he had found it best to use a binocular microscope, ■with Ziess's objective 3in. to 5in. and a very intense illumination by the concentration of the light of a lamp upon the paper by means of a powerful bull's-eye. The idea was that in the act of writing the co- ordination of the muscles, being the result of a nervous wave, was rhythmical, and produced an effect upon the paper of a wavy or moniliform appearance, and it was claimed by the writer of the article referred to that this varied characteristically in the handwriting of different persons. That it did so he could affirm positively. The third kind he had called the rhythm of pressure, some persons making a thick downstroke and a thin upstroke, and others not making much variety. He proposed, therefore, to formulate these three rythms— of form, progress, and pressure — and he thought it would be readily seen that when they all combined in the same manner in the specimens of handwriting under examination it amounted to a moral certainty that they were written by the same hand. He thought from this slight outline of the principles of his system the members of the Club would be able to follow it up, and he hoped they would be induced to study it. For his own part he wanted as much in- vestigation as was possible, being much more concerned for truth than for victory, and he was also desirous that people should know that science was of some more use than merely for amusement. The Chairman said that having heard this subject introduced by Dr. Wythe, no doubt there would be a desire to ask him some further questions upon it. To most of them it would probably be new, and would, therefore, possess some additional interest on that account. He would, therefore, invite observations upon it, for although they were promised the oppor- tunity of some day reading the description in full, yet as they had that evening the author amongst them in propria persona they could question him, whereas the paper itself would be dumb. Mr. J. J. Kern asked if it made any difference in the character of the curves when the pen was held in different ways. Dr. Wythe said that if the pen was held very slopingly there would be a difference in the appearance of the stroke, and the lines would show a ragged edge. They could easily tell how the pen was held by the marks it made, but the rhythm would be the same notwithstanding. Mr. Waller inquired if the texture of the paper would not make a con- siderable difference. Dr. Wythe said it had been suggested that the second rhythm was pro- duced by irregular absorption due to the nature of the material written upon. No doubt this did have some effect, but though the texture of the paper would make some difference, it did so only to a comparatively slight extent. Mr. Karop said that from a physiological point of view one would naturally suppose that such an effect as that described by Dr. Wythe would take place. Writing was a muscular act, and, like all muscular actions, was made up of a series of impulses, or waves. Dr. Wythe said that the first crucial test, to which he was put by the 89 Court of Justice in America, was one which he believed they would think certainly was so in an extreme sense. He had been examining a specimen of handwriting as compared with another, and had stated that he was satisfied as to its identity. The judge then inquired if he was willing to have a crucial test made of the value of his method. Of course, under the circumstances, he said that he was willing. The test was this : Three long foolscap sheets of paper were ruled, and the gentleman whose handwriting was the subject of inquiry filled in ten or twelve of the lines at irregular intervals, and then a skilful lithographer, accustomed to closely imitate writing, carefully filled in the other lines with what seemed to be exact copies of the gentleman's signature. The paper having then been marked at the edge as a key, this was cut off and retained by the judge, and he was handed the rest and asked to pick out the gentleman's signatures from the whole number. It was a cnicial test, and one which he thought a man ought not very often to have put to him ; but after a careful study of the paper he was able to pick out accurately eleven of the twelve. Physiology, as remarked by Mr. Karop, verified the principle of the method in a moment, for writing was a muscular act, and one of the most com- plicated kind. There would naturally, therefore, be a difference at different times, but although the rhythm would be exaggerated under the influence of stimulation, or of disease, it would be found that its charac- teristics remained the same. Mr. Hind asked if the same method was found to apply to pencil marks. Dr. Wythe said that the rhythms of form and pressure would remain, but slightly altered ; that of progress it was almost impossible to trace in pencil writing. It often happened that a small, sharp particle of graphite would cut out the fibres of the paper entirely. Dr. Matthews inquired if Dr. Wythe was cognisant of the great difference which existed between a man's writing in the morning and in the evening under certain physical conditions. He remembered a case where writer's- palsy was coming on, and the man's signature was rejected by his bankers when written in the morning, but when he wrote it in the evening they accepted it. Would it be possible to identify two such specimens as being the same handwriting ? Dr. Wythe said he had examined a number of specimens of the writing of persons afflicted with writer's-palsy, and he found that when the disease had progressed to a certain extent the writing had almost no coherence at all. In slighter cases he thought that the usual characteristics remained, although they were exaggerated, just, in fact, as they would be under the influence of a stimulant. Dr. Matthews asked if Dr. Wythe had applied the micrometer with a view to ascertain the value of the rhythm. Dr. Wythe said he found that it varied in different persons from 200 to 400 in an inch. The subject as yet was only in its infancy, and he was just telling them what he knew. Mr. JBuffham asked if there would be much difference between the hand- writing of a person when he wrote very rapidly and when he wrote care- fully and deliberately. Journ. Q. M. C., Series II., No. 10. h 90 Dr. "Wythe said that of course a rapid handwriting might vary apparently in form of letters, bnt there would still be, to an ordinary observer, a general similarity, but when the writing came to be examined microscopically, and the other two rhythms taken into consideration, it was not possible to entertain a doubt about it. Persons who tried, in these and other ways to disguise their handwriting would have it detected easily by this plan. The Chairman questioned whether in rapid writing there would not neces- sarily be many less pulsations in a given space, seeing that they would be spread over a much greater surface of paper. Dr. Wythe said that it had been suggested that under the stimulus of rapid action the impulses would themselves be more rapid, though he was unable to say whether this would take place in equal ratio. The best con- ditions were, when making an examination, to have the brain cool and clear, and to be quite quiet and undisturbed. Get a number of specimens of the known handwriting of the suspected person, and very soon it was possible to become so familiar with its peculiar rhythm as to be able to recognise it at once. A Member asked if the same characters would be apparent in the case of italics printed with a pen ? Dr. Wythe said that of course in such a case the form would be entirely changed. He could also quite understand that a person with full know- ledge might be able to disguise his writing to a very large extent. The Chairman felt sure that all present would agree that Dr. Wythe had brought forward this subject in a very interesting way, that he had even in this age of novelties introduced yet another, and one likely to be of real use, which would rebut the charge that they played with the microscope instead of working with it* A vote of thanks to Dr. Wythe for his communication was then put to the meeting, and carried by acclamation. The Chairman read a communication from the Highbury Microscopical Society asking the assistance of members of the Club on the occasion of their Annual Soiree, fixed for October 9th. Members were also invited to join in a mycological excursion to Epping Forest on the 27th. Announcements of meetings, &c, for the ensuing month were then made, and the proceedings terminated with the usual conversazione. The follow- ing objects were exhibited : — Rotifer, Co lurus uncinatus Mr. F. W. Andrew. Palate of Testacella Maugii Mr. G. Bailey. Amoeba, sp Mr. W. G. Cocks. Rotifer, sp. ... ... ••• ... ... >> Flumularia, mounted in glycerine jelly, ) Mr> E ftadswell. with extended tentacles ... ) Section of pitchstone from Arran Mr. A. V. Jennings. Limnias ceratophylli ... ... ... ... Mr. C. Rousselet. Phtirius pubis, fern, eggs and young ... Mr. A. W. Stokes. Plumatella rejpens Mr. A. Wildy. Attendance — Members, 60; Visitors, 3. 91 On the Structure of Orbitolites. Inaugural Address op the President, Dr. W. B. Carpenter, C.B., F.R.S. &c. (Delivered October 24th, 1884J It having been intimated to me that a new President was rather expected to give an Address on first appearing amongst you, I have thought I could perhaps best fulfil the object of giving what encouragement I can to Microscopical workers, by a little history of my own study of the Orbitolites. * I began the subject nearly 40 years ago, and finished it only last year ; and I propose to bring before you some of the points of general interest which have pre- sented themselves to me during this prolonged inquiry. Fig. 4. Shelly Disk of Orbitolites complanata, showing concentric rings of chamber- lets, arranged round a central nucleus. * A general description of this type, with illustrations, is given in " The Microscope and its Revelations." The Author's complete Monograph of the genus will be found in Vol. VII. of the Challenger Reports. Journ. Q. M. C, Series II., No. 11. I 92 W. B. CARPENTER ON THE STRUCTURE OF ORBITOLTTES. In the first place, the group of organisms, which includes the genus Orbitolites, had been long known as fossils, some species occur- ring in great numbers. Indeed, nearly all the building stone in Paris is an early Tertiary limestone composed almost entirely of Miliolines; and in the same limestone were elsewhere found a number of discs about the size of a fourpenny piece, which had attracted some notice. They were mentioned by Lamarck, who considered them as Polypi, and placed them between Lunulites and Millepores. This is not very surprising, because their surfaces are for the most part abraded and laid open ; but no suspicion seems to have arisen that they were anything else than Polypi. In the later edition of Lamarck, it was said that forms similar to these had been dis- covered in a living state on the west coast of Australia; a small species was also found living in the Mediterranean, but this was of almost microscopic size. It was my good fortune to come into possession of some specimens of these recent discs about 40 years ago ; they were given to me by my friend Prof. Ed. Forbes, who obtained them from Mr. Jukes, who had dredged them up off the coast of Australia. I had at that time been examining Nwnmu- lites, which were the first Foraminifera to which I gave continuous attention, and of which I had received clay- embedded specimens from Dr. Bowerbank. (I found that these gave generally much better microscopic structure than Nummulites from any other bed would afford ; for when massed together in Nummulitic limestone, the percolation of water through the calcareous matrix fills up the tubes and alters the texture to such a degree that it is a matter of difficulty at times to recognise them ; whilst those from the clay give the structure with a perfection scarcely ex- ceeded by recent specimens. This I have since found to hold good in many other cases.) I was especially on the outlook for anything which would elucidate the structure of some small discs obtained from a moun- tain near Biarritz, which was described to me as almost entirely made up of them. For a long time I could not find anything like them ; but happening to ask Prof. Forbes if he could throw any light on the matter, he at once put Mr. Jukes' specimens into my hands.* This was the beginning of my study of the Foraminifera ; * The Biarritz discs subsequently proved to possess a very different internal structure, which I have described as characterizing D'Orbigny's genus Orbitoides. W. B. CARPENTER ON THE STRUCTURE OF ORBITOLITES. 93 and from this incident the whole of my subsequent researches upon that group might be dated. I found Mr. Jukes' discs to correspond very closely with the fossil discs ; but the best-preserved amongst them had the chamber- lets covered over, the only openings being at the margin. I was then able to obtain from various friends some of the small species — the recent 0. marginalis ; and found that these also had a thin film covering the chambers, with a single row of marginal pores. After this, Mr. Cuming put his collection from the Phillipines at my disposal ; and I also obtained some sand from the Red Sea, which abounded in specimens of 0. marginalis, together with others having two rows of marginal pores, of which Prof. Ehrenberg had made a separate genus, placing both amongst his Bryozoa. He not only figured them (from abraded specimens) as covered with open cells like those of a Flustra, bat put polypes with ciliated arms into these cells. Here, then, we may learn an important lesson — never to figure anything which we have not seen. Prof. Ehrenberg saw with his mind's eye only, and hence his blunder. Unless a person says explicitly, " This is only my conception of what this organism has been," he has no right to make such a drawing. Fig. 5. Composite sarcodic body of Simple type of Orbitolite : — a, primordial seg- ment ; b, circumambient segment, giving off peduncle, from which arise the successive circles of sub-segments, connected by annular and radial stolons. 94 W. B. CARPENTER ON THE STRUCTURE OF ORBITOLITES. After this I came into possession of some specimens which had been preserved in spirit, and which showed what the animal body occupying these discs really is. Here (Fig. 5) we have its com- posite sarcodic body, belonging to that class to which Dujardin gave the name of Rhizopoda. In the first place there is a primordial segment, a, surrounded by one turn of a large segment, b, forming an imperfect spiral ; this giving off a sort of root-stock, or stolon, from which are budded off rows of sub-segments, that enclose the primordial chambers. Each circle of sub-segments, connected by its annular stolon, corresponds with the segment of an ordinary Fora- minifer ; it is connected by radial stolons with the next annulus ; and the radial stolons of the last-formed annulus issued as pseudopodia from the marginal pores of the shelly disk. The simple disposition of sub-segments in one plane, occupying the single layer of chamber- lets in the minute 0. marginalis, undergoes a very curious modifi- cation in the complex structure of the large 0. complanata, recent and fossil. In this there are two rows of surface-planes, separated by an intermediate plane, the chamberlets of which have a columnar structure (Fig. 6). The successive rows communicate Fig. 6. Portion of Sarcodic body of Complex Orbitolite : — a a', b b', upper and lower annular cords of two concentric zones ; c c, upper layer of superficial sub-segments ; d d, the lower layer ; e e and e' e\ intermediate columnar sub-segments of the two zones, giving off oblique stolon-processes. by a number of oblique threads ; and it is through the threads which issue from the marginal pores of the outermost ring, that the body receives its nourishment. In the living condition W. B. CARPENTER ON THE STRUCTURE OF ORB1TOLITES. 95 the sarcodic substance is almost liquid, and there is a continual circulation or interchange taking place ; but there is no dif- ferentiation of function that I can find. The Red Sea specimens having two rows of marginal pores, furnish a curious intermediate condition (Fig. 9) ; having a single annular stolon in each ring, but Fig. 7. Diagram illustrating the Pedigree of the Complex type of Orbitolite. 1. Simple undivided spire of Cornuspira. 2. Partially interrupted spire of Spiroloculina. 3. Spire of Peneroplis, divided by partitions into chambers. 4. Spire of Orbiculina, its chambers divided into rows of chamberlets. 5. Disk of " simple " Orbitolite, showing first-formed spire, surrounded by concentric rings. 6. Disk of " duplex " Orbitolite, showing earlier passage from spiral to cyclical plan of growth. 7. Central portion of disk of " complex " Orbitolite, in which the cham- bered nucleus alone shows an abbreviated spire, the very first row of chamberlets forming a complete ring. 96 W. B. CARPENTER ON THE STRUCTURE OF ORBITOLITE8. each ring being connected with the next by two rows of radial stolons, instead of one. Now, seeing that the most highly developed form often begins life in the simplest form, then passes through the intermediate form, and then undergoes this separa- tion of the superficial plane by an intermediate plane — the next stage being that the annular canal is split (as it were) into two — I came to the conclusion that there was no actual specific distinc- tion between the simple and the complex types, but that they were merely stages of development of the same organism, which in tropical seas undergoes a higher development than in colder regions. Having investigated this subject very carefully, I made it, in 1856, the basis of a disquisition on the Range of Variation of Fig. 8. Disk of Simple Type of Orbitolite (0. marginalis). 1. Surface of disk, showing later growth of concentric rings of chamber- lets around a first-formed spire. 2. Central portion enlarged. 3. Edge of disk, showing single row of marginal pores. 4. Vertical section, showing succession of chamberlets communicating with each other radially by single passages in the annular partitions, and laterally by the annular canals, whose sections are seen as dark spots. W. B. CARPENTER ON THE STRUCTURE OF ORBITOLITE8. 97 Species. Mr. Darwin had not at that time given his views to the world ; but when he read the conclusions I had arrived at, he said that he not only agreed with them, but was disposed to go a good deal further. It was by this previous enquiry that I found myself prepared, when the " Origin of Species " was published, to accept all its main positions as scientifically tenable. The next stage was made in the course of the Porcupine expedi- tion in 1869, when, from 1,200 fathoms' depth off the west coast Fig. 9. 1. Disk of Duplex Type of Orbitolite (0. duplex). 2. Edge of disk, showing double row of marginal pores. 3. Central portion of sarcode body : — a, primordial segment ; b, circum- ambient segment, budding off a half-ring of sub-segments, from which complete rings are afterwards formed. 4. Portion of the sarcodic body of one ring ; a a J and b b 1 , the two halves of the columnar sub-segments in connection with c c', the annular cord ; from this are given off the pairs of stolon-processes d d', d d', which con- nect it with the sub-segments of the next annulus. 98 W. B. CARPENTER ON THE STRUCTURE OF ORBITOLITE8. of Ireland, some extremely thin Orbitoline disks were obtained, about the size of a fourpenny piece. Although they were nearly all broken, it was very interesting to find them presenting unmistakable evidence of a Milioline origin. I have thus been able to trace the development of the Orbitoline type along a series of forms, beginning with the simple undivided Cornuspira, a flat shell very like a Peneroplis, but without any division into chambers; the %6 Fig. 10. Structure of Shelly Disk of Orbitolites complanata, 1. Edge of disk, showing multiple series of marginal pores. 2. Vertical section, showing two superficial planes of chamberlets, sepa- rated by intermediate columnar structure. 3. Internal Structure : — a, superficial chamberlets ; b b, columnar chamberlets of intermediate layer ; c, floors of superficial chamberlets, showing the opening at each end into the annular gallery beneath; d, annular galleries cut transversely; d' d", annular galleries laid open longi- tudinally; e e,ff, oblique stolon passages intermediate layer. W. B. CARPENTER ON THE STRUCTURE OF ORBITOLITES. 99 next stage corresponds with the Milioline Spiroloculina, the spire being constricted at intervals by imperfect partitions ; and this passes into the Peneropline stage, in which the partitions are numerous and complete (Fig. 7). The next stage is that of the Orbiculina, found in tropical seas so abundantly that nearly every handful of sand contains them ; in which the principal chambers are divided into chamberlets, and the spiral plan of growth gives place to the cyclical. This brings us to the Orbitolite itself ; and of my previous strong impression that it was developed from the simpler Milio- lines, I had a complete confirmation in the beautiful deep sea form 0. tenuissima. When the Challenger expedition brought home its results, Sir Wyville Thomson placed in my hands a jar of Orbitolites from the reefs of Fiji ; and I undertook to work out this collection, thinking that so large a gathering from one locality might enable me to throw some more light on a good many questions of development. . . . (The specimens exhibited upon the table form a complete series in illustration of Orbitolite structure ; the largest of them showing a remarkable exuberance, in the shape of a number of curious out- growths.) I found that this collection, when sorted out, fell naturally into very distinct groups. First there was a remarkable series of specimens as simple in their plan of structure as the Mediterranean 0. marginalis, but very much larger (Fig. 8) ; then of the duplex Hed Sea form (Fig. 9) ; and then of the large 0. complanata (Figs. 4, 10). The question of species then came up again ; and with this large collection I saw at once that each of these types had its own size, plan of growth, and general aspect, so that it was very easy to distinguish between them ; and yet a most complex form might show that it had passed through the grades of the simple and the duplex (Fig. 11). Both these show a survival, in their early growth, of the original spiral plan (Fig. 7, 5,6 ) ; but in the most typical specimens of the large 0. compla- nata, the plan is circular from the very commencement (Fig. 7, 7 ). Another point of interest was that the fossil forms stopped in an incomplete stage ; for it was easy to see in vertical sections of fossil forms, that the continuity of the superficial and the intermediate chamberlets was maintained throughout (Fig. 11, e, e) ; while in the large recent type they are disconnected by a shifting to half the breadth of a ring (f,f\ f 2 f 3 ). In recent specimens from other localities I have found the earlier condition shown in the fossil 100 W. B, CARPENTER ON THE STRUCTURE OF ORBITOLITES, # B w "> TO s &11 In 1 igp! in. „-? mp ^ Fig. 11. Diagrammatic representation of the transition from the " simple " to the " com- plex " plan of growth, as shown in vertical section, from the primordial and circum- ambient chambers (c p cf) of the centre, to the margin, whose pores are shown at mp. The chambers m, m 1 , m 2 , m 3 , rrfi, are all formed upon the simple type (as in Fig. 8, 4 ) ; and show at ac, ac, the cross sections of the annular canals, which con- nect all the chamberlets of one ring, and at r, r, r, the radial passages connecting the successive annuli. The chambers d, d l , d 2 , are formed upon the duplex type ; the annular cannls ac, ac, being single, but the radial passages r being double. The chambers e, e 1 , show two annular canals ac, ac', between which is interposed a columnar chamberlet, con- tinuous with the two superficial chamber- lets s s. In the chambers f,/ 1 ,/ 2 ,/*, to the margin, which are all formed on the fully-developed complex type, the upper and under superficial chamberlets s s, s' S', are completely cut off from the intermediate columnar portion, and, by a shifting of their position, each is made to communicate with two annular canals. W. R. CARPENTER ON THE STRUCTURE OF ORBITOLITEB. 101 forms to be still preserved. And thus we have in this group an illustration of the principle, that if all genetic series were pre- served, we should find no fixed boundary lines between species, but that every form would be connected with other forms by grada- tional transitions. Another lesson now comes in. I have always been one of those who could not accept the doctrine of " natural selection" as a vera causa. It is based on the idea of aimless or casual variations, of which some prove more suited than others to become established permanently. I never could feel that this gave any scientific ac- count of the " origin of species," because it offered no explanation of the causes of the variations by which the " fittest " came into existence. Now here is a case in which we have at the present time the entire series surviving, and this under the same conditions and in the same dredging ; and since, to the eye of anyone but a skilled Foraminiferalist, a specimen of the smaller type would not be dis- tinguishable from a young specimen of the larger, I cannot think that the creatures that prey upon them would know them apart. Fig. 12. New disk of Orbitolite formed round fragment of previous disk. There is here, therefore, no room for " natural selection." To my mind everything is indicative of development upon a deter- minate plan, from the spiral to the excentric, then to the less ex- centric, and then to the concentric form ; with a uniformly in- creasing complication of the internal structure. 102 W. B. CARPENTER ON THE STRUCTURE OF ORBITOLITES. One more point is the very remarkable reparation which takes place when these disks are injured. Sometimes they may be nibbled by Fishes, Crustaceans, or Echinoderms ; or they get broken by the dashing of the waves : and when this occurs, there is always a curious tendency towards the restoration of the circular form by an exuda- tion of protoplasm, which forms a complete ring round the broken edge, and subsequently becomes surrounded by more regular annuli. A mere marginal fragment is quite sufficient to be the centre of such a new growth, reproducing a perfect disc (Fig. 12) ; this reparation always taking place on the perfected type, just as Sir James Paget has observed that repair always takes place in accordance with the existing state of the animal. I cannot think it is possible to resist the conviction that this reparation takes place on a plan, and is not the result of mere casualty. These Orbitolites seem to be the culmination of the Porcellaneous series of Foraminifera, not leading up to anything else. It is my belief that they form the top story of these simple sarcodic forms. The results of this inquiry, I think, will show you the value of taking up a subject, and working it out thoroughly ; and I hope this lesson will not be lost on many now present. Before entering upon such a special inquiry, however, everyone should go through a general course of instruction. It is now admitted that in every profession requiring the exercise of mental power, general training is of great importance to begin with ; and in the case of anyone desiring to follow up some special object of microscopic study, I would recommend such a general preliminary course. Having made himself acquainted with the microscopic characters of any group as a whole (using for the purpose, when suitable, the bino- cular as well as the monocular), I would then recommend the student to take up some special subject, the detailed pursuit of which will be found to open out lines of thought and inquiry of far more value to himself and to science than the sort of dilettante work which is still so often indulged in. Thirty years ago, when Schleiden brought out his great work on Botany, he supposed that there were no good microscopes in England, because so little had been done in this country for the elucidation of vegetable structure and life-history ; but the fact was, we had here the best micro- scopes of the day, the fault lying with the workers. I rejoice, W. B. CARPENTER ON THE STRUCTURE OE ORBITOLITES. 103 however, to know that there is now rising up among us a great body of earnest workers ; and that especially at Cambridge, under Professor Michael Foster, and at Oxford, under Professor Moseley, many young men are proving most successful searchers in these fields of inquiry. One of the most beautiful results attained hitherto, has been the demonstration of the continuity of protoplasm through the walls of Vegetable cells. Several observers are now taking up the study of Alga?, ; and I would sug- gest to them the special study of a stage in the life-history of Vol- vox, in which I have no doubt that this continuity will be dis- tinctly traceable. I specially bring this before you, to show that there are subjects within the reach of each one, which are of the very greatest importance in Biological science. It used to be held that there is a separate life in each vegetable cell distinct from that of every other ; but Prof. Burdon Sanderson, in the course of his experimental study of the Sensitive plant, was led to the conclusion that there is some kind of physiological continuity ; and you may now look upon these connecting protoplasmic threads as the equi- valent of nerve-fibres, each of which contains an intensified proto- plasmic thread passing through it from one end to the other. Sir William Thomson, in his Presidential Address to the British Association, speaking of Comets in their relations to Meteorites, re- marked that such inquiries were the life-blood of Physical science ; and in the same spirit I may also say that these microscopic discoveries are the life-blood of Biology. I venture, therefore, to hope that there are many members of this Club who will devote their time and ability to inquiries of similar interest. 104 On Sexuality in the Zygnemace2E. By F. Bates. (Read, November 28th, 1884.) Mr. A. W. Bennett, in an article recently contributed to the Linnasan Society,* seeks to maintain that there are well-marked and certain characters whereby the sexual nature of the filaments in the Zygnemacece may be determined. The chief points on which he relies to prove his case are — 1. The difference in size of the cell; in the Zygnemece, the so-considered germ cells being the largest ; whilst in the Mesocarpece the contrary is the case. 2. That the portion of the conjugating canal contributed by the germ cell is shorter and wider than that contributed by the sperm cell. 3. That the protoplasmic contents of the cells always travel in one direction : — that is, that in scalariform conjugation the contents of the cells of one thread invariably pass over into the cells of the other thread with which it is conjugating ; and 4. That in Mesocarpus the spore, which is formed in the conjugating canal, never occupies its centre, except in such cases where the spore is large enough to occupy the whole of that space. He also regards this production of the spore in the conjugating canal as exhibiting a more rudimentary differentiation of the sexual elements. Many distinguished cryptogamists have, before Mr. Bennett, de- voted much attention to this question of the sexuality of the threads in these Algas (when such obvious facts as difference in the size of the cells, position of the spores, &c, must have come under their notice, but were doubtless set aside as being inconstant and there- fore unreliable), and although none have positively asserted that sexuality may not exist, with scarcely an exception it has been concluded that no safe, constant, and reliable, sexual characters, which will enable one to say which is a male and which is a female thread, or cell, are discernible. Mr. Bennett states that his observations have extended over * On " Keproduction of the Zygnemacese : a contribution towards the solution of the question, 'Is it of a sexual character ?'" "Journal of the Linnjean Society," April, 1884, Vol. xx, No. 130, pp. 430-9. F. BATES ON SEXUALITY IN THE ZYGNEMACE.E. 105 several years. To prove this he concludes his article by saying, u If the mode of 'lateral' conjugation described by De Bary, Wood, and others as taking place between adjacent cells of the same filament in Zygnema and Spirogyra be founded on correct observa- tion, all idea of sexuality of the filaments must be abandoned in these cases." Now, to my mind, and according to my experience, this concluding remark effectually disposes both of Mr. Bennett's conclusions, and his experiences extending over several years, for I will venture to affirm that if anyone will seriously commence the collecting of these plants on the 2nd day of April, he will be the most unfortunate of Spirogyra hunters if he does not meet with at least two species, in which lateial conjugation is going on abun- dantly, before the ensuing May-day. By the light of my own experience I will now examine Mr. Bennett's points seriatim. Firstly, as to differences in the sizes of the cells. If anyone will take up a descriptive work on the Zygnemaceo?, he will find such entries as : — Sp. cells "05 to "065 mm. by 2^ to 10 times longer ; sp. *032 to *05 mm. by 2 to 4 times longer ; sp. -024 to "03 mm. by 3 to 8 times longer ; '012 to '015 mm. by 8 to 16 times longer. And in Mesocarpus sp. "012 to *018 mm. by 5 to 10 times longer ; sp. -007 to -015 mm. by 7 to 12 times longer; and so on. Here is variation enough in all conscience 1 Moreover, it has to be admitted that conjugation must have commenced before even a guess can be made as to which is a male and which a female thread or cell. Now, when we consider the many curious changes which take place in the form, &c, of cells at the time of conjugation, we must needs be careful how we draw conclusions from them on which to base a theory of sexuality. Again, one may find mixed in the same gathering, of one and the same species, threads having the spore cells cylindrical and longer than the spores, or swollen and more or less wider than the spores ; or so abbreviated that the spores are crowded together and placed sideways, being longer than their cells ; these are of very common occurrence in Spirogyra longata, porticalis, and condensata. Considering all these things, then, how can we place any value or reliance on conclusions based on an infinitesimal increase in the diameter of one cell over another ? I may further state that I have carefully examined the conjugated cells of Spirogyra porticalis (the species chiefly operated upon by Mr. Bennett) and, where the cells have preserved their cylindrical form, I have not found any appreciable difference of 106 F. BATES ON SEXUALITY IN THE ZYGNEMACE.E. diameter ; as a rule the two conjugated threads are equal, or may vary to a slight extent on either side. As to the second point, that the portion of the conjugating canal contributed by the so-considered germ cell is shorter and wider than that contributed by the sperm cell ; the suture marking their point of union will consequently show nearest the spore-containing cell. This con- clusion has evidently been arrived at from observations made at the early stage of conjugation, and before the commencement of the passage of the contents of the one cell into the other. At this stage it is true that the tubular protuberance put forth by the so-considered sperm cell does, when it comes into contact with the opposing protuberance, force slightly inward the opposing face ; but this I take to be but transitory, for afterwards there is doubt- less resorption of the opposing membranes with fusion of the tubular walls, so that a perfectly open channel of communication is formed. When this is effected, and not till then, in my ex- perience, does any passage of the contents of the one cell to the other begin to take place. Then also it will be seen that the shortening and widening of the so-considered germ-tube was only due to the temporary pressure exercised upon it by the sperm-tube ; for, when all is completed, the suture resulting from the fusion of the two portions will be found, as a rule, in the middle ; although, as might reasonably be expected, it is sometimes met with nearer the one cell, and at others nearer to the other.* On point 3. That the protoplasmic contents of the cells in con- jugating always travel in one direction. It is doubtless the rule that in scalariform conjugation, the one thread parts with, and the other receives the contents of the cells ; but this fact is so over- borne by others as to be deprived of all its significance as a test for sexuality. Spirogyra orbicularis, longata, insignis, Weberi, and tenuissima, I have found in both scalariform and lateral conjuga- tion ; whilst it is also a fact that both forms of conjugation may be going on together in different parts of the same threads. To my mind this settles the question ; for it must not be forgotten that Mr. Bennett abandons all idea of sexuality in threads con- jugating laterally ; and yet, really, this form of conjugating is nearly as common as the scalariform. It is strange that Mr. *The appearance produced -when looking down through the conjugating tube (when fractured at the suture) is due, iu my opinion, to its unequal diameter ; it is rarely perfectly cylindrical : similar to what is seen in the " bordered >> >» >» >> >> 119 fr From the Society a a » a Purchased. a " Transactions of the Brighton and Sussex Natural History Society " " Transactions of the Hampstead Natural ) History Society " ... ... ... J "American Monthly Microscopical Journal"... In Exchange. " Proceedings of the Koyal Society of New -i South Wales" j " Proceedings of the Canadian Institute " " Science Gossip" " Science Monthly " " The American Naturalist " ... "Annals of Natural History*'... " Quarterly Journal of Microscopical Science" " Challenger Reports " (new volume) ... ... ,, The thanks of the meeting were voted to the donors. The Secretary read a letter from Mr. T. B. Rossiter, of Canterbury, with reference to a number of specimens of Steplianoceros which he had that day forwarded for distribution amongst the members. The President said that there were four tubes sent containing a large number of specimens, which would no doubt be appreciated by the members. The Secretary said there was one other donation to which special atten- tion should be called, and that was a collection of 300 slides contained in twelve boxes, and presented by Mr. E. M. Nelson. They consisted of a set of Van Heurck's type slides of diatomaceae, which for purposes of com- parison would be of great value. The President proposed that a special vote of thanks should be given to both these gentlemen for their donations ; and he thought that a very special vote of thanks should be given to the gentleman who had presented this very valuable series of slides. These were type specimens, and would assist the members in naming and identifying slides. Special votes of thanks were then put to the meeting and carried unani- mously. Mr. A. D. Michael described and figured on the black board a specimen of an Ascidian found at the Land's End. The President said he had never chanced to come across it in the tadpole state, but he was perfectly familiar with the form mentioned. He took a very early interest in this class, because he had the opportunity of study- ing them just after the publication of Milne Edwards' book had directed attention to them, and that book seemed to be the starting point. He was about that time staying at Tenby, and found there nearly every species described by Milne Edwards. He was sorry to say, however, that on visit- ing Tenby about two years ago he found the whole of this fauna was gone, the place having been so entirely altered during the interval. The new interest which the ascidians had at the present time arose from the fact that there was just now a very strong leaning towards the belief that they were the root stock of the vertebrate animals, especially as modern embryology was found to entirely confirm this view. Those who had studied* Mr. 120 Balfour's work would no doubt have noticed that there was nothing what- ever about the ascidians in the first volume, but in the second volume they were placed at the beginning of the embryology of the vertebrates. He fully saDctioned the idea that they led up to the vertebrates, and not the mollusca as was formerly supposed. Mr. Bates' paper " On the supposed sexual nature of the threads of the Zygnemaceee," being a criticism upon a paper by Mr. A. W. Bennett, M.A., B.Sc, F.R.M.S., &c. Dr. M. C. Cooke said it was a source of great satisfaction to him to find that they had acquired a member who would write papers, and who was at the same time an indefatigable worker in fresh water algae. He thoroughly endorsed the opinions expressed. The President said that this was no doubt a very remarkable group, and having early paid some attention to it at the instance of Mr. Thwaites, of Bristol, they were the first to make out that this conjugation was a sort of anticipation of the sexual process in plants. In the Diatomaceaa they found a perfect equality ; and in the Zygnemacese, taking the simplest forms, there was no distinction of form, but as they went higher they came to cases in which there was a difference, but it seemed to be a gradual differentiation. This, at least, was his own old opinion. He would venture, however, to suggest that there should be some modification of the language employed by the author of this paper with reference to Mr. Bennett, who had been per- sonally known to him for many years, and who was a very excellent man. He was glad to find that the feeling of the meeting was with him in ex- pressing himself on this matter ; there could be no reason why one scientific man should in this manner impute motives to another. No good ever came of it, and he was quite sure that their Journal would be better without it. Mr. Pennington's note " On a slide presented to the Club, being a series of sections (10 on one slide) of the oral Disc of Cerianthus solitarius" was read by the Secretary. The President said that these were very beautiful illustrations of the superiority of the new method of section cutting over the old. The specimens were beautifully mounted. A vote of thanks to Mr. Pennington was unanimously passed. Mr. E. M. Nelson announced that he had recently been successful in detecting a flagellum on the cholera bacillus. He also suggested that it would obviate much inconvenience where immersion condensers were used if a standard thickness of glass slips was adopted. At present there were so many thicknesses in use that it was sometimes very troublesome to adjust the focus properly with high powers, as if too thin the drop would not adhere, and if too thick it got squeezed out. He should propose that a thickness of ^jyin. be adopted as the best for a standard, and if every person would buy slides of that gauge only, the thing might easily be done. He also exhibited a new microscope, which he regarded as a marvel of cheapness, the instrument, with two eye-pieces and two objectives, being offered at £3 12s. Mr. Michael said he thought he should find a standard gauge for glass slips a great nuisance, especially for such objects as required the use of 121 high powers. Certainly for his particular class of work he should naturally object to abolish thin slips. The President said they were much obliged to Mr. Nelson for bringing these subjects forward. As regarded the microscopic glass, he quite agreed that it might be well to have a standard thin glass, but for ordinary work he always used glass of about twice the thickness mentioned. He never measured the slips, as he found his own fingers to be very good guides in that respect ; but now that the oil immersion lenses were coming more into use, he thought it might be well to try to get some uniform slip for use with them. The President announced that Mr. Charlesworth had brought to the meet- ing (through a mistake as to the night of meeting of the Geologists' Associa- tion) a very interesting series of bones of the gorilla, which were displayed on the table at the end of the room. Also that as the date of their next ordinary meeting fell on Bank Holiday, December 26th, it had been deter- mined to omit the meeting. Notice of this alteration would be given on the Demonstration Cards about to be issued. The proceedings then terminated with the usual conversazione, and the following objects were exhibited : — Lophojjus crystallinus Mr. F. W. Andrew. First leg of the Honey Bee showing comb j *^ F e uoc i- f or cleaning antennas ... ... ... / Minute Hymenopteron from Ceylon to illus-^ trate Mr. Green's paper read April 27th> C Mr. T. Curties. 18o3 .. ... ... ... ••• J Section of Oolite with Foraminifera Mr. W. M. Holmes. Lecythea Rosa, and Aregma mucronatum ... Mr. G. E. Mainland. Larval compound ascidian, Leptoclinum -> -^ ^ ^ Michael showing condition in the egg ... 5 „ „ in the three anterior j suckers, &c. ... 3 „ in structure of caudal , Dr> Matthews> appendage ... 5 Lima hians and nest made up of melabesia } 7 . -, n , r , ni J Mr. S. H. Needham. calcaria and fragments or shell ... J Portion of nest of same, showing the lining | of byssus spun by the mollusc .. * " " " Attendance — Members, 68 ; Visitors, 3. December 12th, 188-4. — Conversational Meeting. The first demonstration of the third series, " On Bacteria and the methods of staining them," was given this evening by Mr. E. Thurston, L.R.C.P., Curator of the Anatomical Museum, King's College. The following is a resume of his lecture : — In the microscopical investigation of micro-organisms it is necessary for most purposes, that they should be stained with anilin dyes, in order that they may be rendered distinctly apparent. Nevertheless I strongly advo- 122 cate the examination of the organisms, whenever it is possible, in their natural state, so that their appearances and characteristics may be observed when they have not been subjected to the action of heat or chemical reagents. It will be found, in many instances, that species, which are undistinguishable one from the other microscopically, can be easily recog- nised by their appearance (colour, consistence, &c.) and mode of growth in cnltivating media, and, for this reason, microscopical examination should always be combined with artificial cultivation. The cultivation medium which is generally employed is clear sterilised meat jelly, which is made by adding to a meat infusion neutralised with sodium carbonate, and sodium phosphate, 5 per cent, of gelatine, or 1-2 per cent, of agar, (Japanese isinglass). The advantage of employing the latter is that the jelly remains solid when heated to 40°, whereas jelly made with ordinary gelatine liquifies at 20-25°. A very good cultivation soil is afforded by the outer surface of a cooked potato. If a potato is cleansed by washing it with a solution of corrosive sublimate (1-2,000), boiled, and cut in two with a heated knife, and exposed on a plate beneath a bell jar, the air in which is kept moist by blotting- paper steeped in water, within 1-2 days minute colonies of various coloured organisms, together with moulds penicillium, aspergillus, &c, will appear on the surface of the potato, and increase in size day by day. Each of these coloured colonies consists of a pure cultivation of a chromogenous bacte?'ium or torula, of which many varieties — white, yellow, orange, buff, red, &c. — exist. Many of these are microscopically undistinguishable from each other as regards their shape and size, but they are easily recognised microscopically by their colour and mode of growth. The investigation of bacteria is required under various conditions, accord- ing as they occur: — 1. In fluids, e.g., milk, water, blood, &c. ; or on solid media, e.g., bread, meat, potatoes, meat jelly, &c. 2. In the organs and tissues of the animal body. In the former case a minute portion of the fluid, or of a colony of the bacteria, is placed on the centre of each of two cover glasses, which are superimposed one over the other, and rubbed together between the fingers, so as to distribute the organisms evenly over their surfaces, and then separated and left to dry. They are then passed several times through the flame of a spirit lamp, so as to fix the bacteria to the surface of the glass. Cover glasses so prepared can be kept for an indefinite time for future investigation, and if an interesting organism is met with it is a good plan to preserve some in this manner. It is very easy to obtain a thin, evenly-diffused specimen of bacteria on the cover glass when they are present in fluids, but more difficult when they occur in the form of solid colonies. To obviate this difficulty a minute portion of mucilage or glycerine may be placed on the cover glasses, which will help the diffusion of the bacteria when the glasses are rubbed together between the fingers. It will often be found that the bacteria form very fantastic patterns on the cover glass, which are artificially produced, and must not be considered as typical modes of growth. To stain bacteria mounted on cover glasses they should be floated, with the bacterial surface downwards, or a saturated watery solution of methyl 123 bine, methyl violet, gentian violet, fuchsin, vesuvin or bismarck brown* The time which is required for the completion of the staining process will vary according to the nature of the dyes. Koughly speaking, 10-15 minutes suffices in every case except that of vesuvin or bismarck brown, on which the cover glasses should be left for at least an hour. When the stain- ing process is completed the glasses should be washed with distilled water, and, if the stain is too deep, in a 5-I per cent, solution of acetic acid, then allowed to dry, and mounted in Canada balsam. The best form of balsam is balsam in Xylol, in which the dye does not fade. If time is an object, the drying of the cover glasses may be effected by pressing them between folds of blotting paper and then brushing then' sur- faces with a camel's hair brush. It will be found that, in solutions of anilin dyes which have been made up some time, various fungi, torula and bacteria, are prone to develop, and their presence, especially on the surface of stained sections, might give rise to an erroneous observation. Their development may be prevented by the addition to the solutions of some antiseptic, e.g., crystals of camphor. In every case the solution should be filtered before it is used. For photo-micrographic purposes bacteria are best stained w r ith vesuvin or bismarck brown. In the investigation of bacteria in the tissues and organs of the animal body, sections must be made after the specimen has been hardened by one of the numerous hardening processes. A great number of staining reagents have been recommended, of which I shall describe only three, which I find most useful for general purposes. 1. Bismarck brown. — The sections are allowed to remain in a saturated watery solution of the dye for about one hour, washed in distilled water, and then in a g-1 per cent, solution of acetic acid, dehydrated in absolute alcohol, clarified in oil of cloves or pure anilin, and mounted in Canada balsam. 2. Alkaline blue. — The formula for the making of this solution is as follows : — To 100 parts of a solution of caustic potash (1-10,000) in distilled water, add 30 parts of a saturated alcoholic solution of methylen blue. The sections should remain in this fluid for about an hour, are then washed in distilled water, and afterwards in a ^-1 per cent, solution of acetic acid, dehydrated in alcohol, clarified in oil of cedar, and mounted in Canada balsam. If they are clarified in oil of cloves it will frequently happen that much of the dye rans out of them, whereas the colour is retained when they are left in the oil of cedar, even for a long time. 3. Gravis Method. — In this staining process three solutions are used and are as follows : — Solution A. — Saturated alcoholic solution of gentian violet, 11 parts. Saturated watery solution of anilin, 100 parts. [The anilin solution is made by shaking up pure anilin with distilled water, until no more is dissolved, and filtering.] * The best dyes, as far as I know, are those which are supplied by Griibler, of Leipzig, for whom Mr. Baker, 244, fcligh Holborn, is the London agent. 124 Solution B. — Iodine, 1 part. Potassium Iodide, 3 parts. Distilled water, 300 parts. Solution C. — Saturated watery solution of vesuvin or bismarck brown. The sections are immersed in absolute alcohol for a few minutes, and then placed in Solution A for 1-3 minutes ; washed for a few moments in absolute alcohol, and transferred to Solution B, in which they remain for 1-3 minutes. They are then again washed in alcohol, and placed in Solution C for several minutes ; washed in distilled water, dehydrated in alcohol, clarified in several changes of oil of cloves, and mounted in Canada balsam. This method is by far the best for staining bacteria with which I am acquainted, and if the various steps are properly carried out the bacteria should be stained of a dark violet colour, and stand out in striking contrast with the tissue elements, which are stained light brown. If tubercle bacilli are to be stained by this method, the sections should be left in Solution A for 24 hours instead of a few minutes, and the other steps cai-ried out in the manner which I have just described. The result is far superior to that which was obtained by the method of staining the sec- tions in a fuchsin-anilin solution, treating them with nitric acid, and con- trast staining them with methyl blue. Let me in conclusion remind you that bacteria are not of interest solely to the pathologist, but that, entirely apart from pathology, much remains yet to be learned of their life history, and development, and the precise nature of the fermentative processes to which they give rise. Why do micrococci generally grow in a solid mass in meat jelly, while many bacilli liquify the same medium ? What is the nature of the pigment in the chromo- genous bacteria ? What changes occur in the blood under the influence of the bacillus anthracis? Such are a few of the many questions which still remain to be solved by patient and untiring chemical investigation. The various processes illustrative of the lecture were carried out by Mr. Thurston, assisted by Mr. J. W. Groves, and, on the conclusion of the demon, stration, a hearty vote of thanks was aocorded to these gentlemen, on the motion of Mr. A. D. Michael. The following objects were exhibited in the Library : — Fairy shrimp Chirocephalus diajjhanus ... Mr. F. W. Andrew. Web of house spider Aviaurobius similis ... Mr. F. Enock. LojjIlojms crystalinus ... ... ... ... Mr. J. D. Hardy. Gamasus coleojptratorum ... ... ... Mr. G. E. Mainland. Disparipes Bombi ... ... ... ... „ „ „ Asteromphalus Humboldtii ... ... ... Mr. H. Morland. Condijlostoma stagnate ... ... ... ... Mr. R. T. G. Nevins. Cuticle of Fuschia ... ... ... ... Mr. C. Le Pelley. Bacillus of splenic fever ... ... ... Mr. E. Thurston. Type slide of 100 species of diatoms... ... Mr W. Watson. Attendance — Members, 68; Visitors, 11. 125 Notes on a New Hydroid Polyp. By F. A. Parsons, F.R.M.S. (Bead January 2Zrd, 1885.) PLATE VI. Before describing the curious little polyp to which I wish to draw your attention this evening, I will give a short account of 'its discovery. At the excursion to the gardens of the Royal Botanic Society of London, on the 19th of April last, I took a gathering from a tank in the house for Medicinal and Economic plants. On an iron pipe in this tank there was growing some fresh-water sponge, I obtained a piece of this which I placed in the bottle containing my collection. I am in the habit of keeping the gatherings made during ex- cursions as long as circumstances will permit, and this practice I venture to recommend members generally to follow, as it frequently happens that' many interesting objects make their appearance, after a time, that would be lost if the gatherings were thrown away soon after they were made. The discovery of this polyp is a case in point. The sponge I have alluded to went the way of all sponges, and nothing but its skeleton remained. This cohered, partly from the way in which the spicules were matted together, and partly by reason of a film of rust which had adhered to the side of the sponge and by which it had been cemented to the pipe. Some weeks after the excursion I happened to look at the con- tents of the bottle, and 'on the rusty side of the sponge skeleton I saw what at first appeared to me to be a polyzoon, but so different from anything I had ever seen that I was at once induced to ex- amine it more closely with a pocket-lens, when the seemino- resemblance vanished. I should perhaps explain that the fancied similitude arose from the fact that there were a number of these polyps in close proximity to each other. I took an early oppor- Journ. Q. M. C, Series II., No. 12. l 126 F. A. PARSONS ON A NEW HYDROID POLYF. tunity of making a microscopical examination, but was unable to get beyond the fact that it was a hydroid polyp which I had never before seen. I described it to several persons whom I thought might be able to give me some clue to its identification, but I was unable to obtain any information about it. Owing to the flimsy structure of the sponge skeleton, which had began to disintegrate, I hesitated about bringing it here, but finally determined to make an attempt to exhibit it in this room, and I brought it down to the meeting in July last. Being anxious to show it under a quarter-inch objective I endeavoured to transfer it to a very shallow trough, but the sponge skeleton had become so fragile that the whole thing collapsed in the attempt, completely obscuring all the specimens, which I thought were annihilated, but, however, they subsequently reappeared stronger than ever. It was my intention to exhibit a rather fine specimen, at the November meeting, in the hope that our President might be able to throw some light upon the matter, but, when I looked for this particular specimen, which I had carefully isolated in a small tube, I was unable to find it ; neither could I find any of the others. They had all, I suppose, died from want of food. I paid another visit to the tank at the end of November, and was much gratified on reaching home to find that I had obtained a fresh supply of these singular little creatures. In the following week a letter from Professor E. Ray Lankester appeared in the Times stating that Mr. Bourne had discovered, in the Victoria regia tank, at the Royal Botanic Gardens, a hydroid polyp, which was supposed to be the polyp stage of the Medusa Limnocodium Soiverbii. Without having the slightest idea that this polyp was the same that I had found in the Economic house, I determined to make another pilgrimage to the Gardens and endeavour to find the polyp referred to by Professor Lankester. I went to the Victoria regia house, and searched there in vain for anything like a polyp, but took away with me some rootlets of the Pontederia. The first piece I examined of this under the microscope revealed my old acquaintance of the Economic house, and it immediately flashed across my mind that this was probably the same polyp which had rewarded the search of Mr. Bourne. It was suggested to me by a friend, that I should exhibit it at the December meeting of the Royal Microscopical Society, and F. A. PARSONS ON A NEW HYDROID POLYP. 127 as there was no meeting of this Club last month, except the Gossip night which I was unable to attend, I acted upon the suggestion, and I am very glad that I did so, as it brought me a letter from Mr. Bourne, in which he says : — " I am told by Mr. Charles Stewart that you exhibited to the Microscopical Society a Hydroid polyp, which Mr. Stewart informs me is the same as the one I have lately described from the tank at Regent's Park. Mr. Stewart further informed me that you had been for some time acquainted with this form, and had found it in other localities than in the Lily tank at the Botanic Gardens — if this is the case it cannot be Limnocodium. I should feel greatly obliged if you would let me have a line from you about it. I naturally considered it in the highest degree probable that the thing was connected with Limnocodium, but if it is not, and if it never developes further than the condition in which we now see it, I regard it as an even more interesting form, and should, of course, consider it as your discovery." In reply to this letter I gave Mr. Bourne some information about the polyp, and ventured to suggest that before coming to the conclusion that it had no relationship to Limnocodium, it would be well that the latter should be looked for in the tank in the house for Medicinal and Economic plants, where it might have easily escaped observation. I remarked just now that the polyps made their appearance on the side of the sponge which had been in contact with the pipe. This fact leads me to the inference that the polyps were developed from germs contained in the water which I brought away with me, for I do not see how they could have got there while the sponge was alive ; moreover they were in different stages of development, the earliest stage seen by me being a little mound of fuscous coloured sarcode. Other specimens more advanced were similar, but longer, the length varying, no doubt, in proportion to the age of the individuals. When the polyp has attained its full length, or perhaps a little earlier, its free end presents a warty appearance due to a number of receptacles containing the urticating thread cells. These thread-cells are very minute, the shape of them being that of a very short cylinder with hemispherical ends. The spines on the filament are not sufficiently distinct to be counted under a quarter-inch objective — at least I was unable to count them when I had them under examination with that power — but I was 128 F. A. PARSONS ON A NEW HYDROID POLYP. just able to detect the threads coiled up in the little papilla-like receptacles on the head of the polyp. Besides the simple form I found three other forms ; these were evidently further developments, but how brought about I have not been able to determine, for I have not discovered any interme- diate stages, though 1 hope I may yet be able to find them. If I may be allowed to speculate — though it is unsafe to do so — I should think it probable that the second polyp is developed from the base of the first, thus causing the erect position to be changed to a recumbent one. The tripartite and quadripartite forms are prob- ably developed in the same manner as the bipartite form.* The method of attachment of the polyps I have not been able to make out; they do not appear to have anything like the ad- herent disc or foot of the hydra, though there is probably some approach to that organ ; neither have I been able to discover that it has any powers of locomotion, though after the collapse of the sponge skeleton I found a polyp attached to some rootlets. The only motion I have observed is a sluggish one, the animal occasionally bending its body sideways as if searching for food, remaining motionless for a considerable period, and pre- senting altogether a harmless appearance. This appearance is, how- ever, utterly deceptive, for its powers of paralysing its prey equal, if they do not surpass, those of the hydra, though it has not its activity, otherwise it would be impossible, in the absence of tentacles, for it to obtain food ; any small animalcule coming in contact with the head must be instantly paralysed, else, on finding itself hurt it would dart away out of reach. As regards its method of feeding I was for some time in doubt ; I could not detect any mouth, and as I found little worms lying dead about the heads of the polyps, 1 was at first inclined to think that they lived by some process of absorption. I have, however, since had ocular demonstration of their powers of deglutition. I saw a polyp swallow a rotifer which was quite as large in diameter as itself. How the rotifer was caught I did not see, as it was done at a moment when my eye was away from the microscope. From * Since writing these remarks I have found an intermediate stage, where one member of a trifid form was developing a fourth polyp, in the form of a bud, near the base of that particular member. This bud consisted simply of what I would term a perfect head, projecting beyond and clear of the body of the parent. The body of the new polyp would doubtless be developed in due course. F. A. PARSONS ON A NEW HYDIIOID POLYP. 129 the position of the rotifer I should think that it had probably collided head first with the polyp and had been instantly paralysed. The head of the polyp was bent over nearly at a right angle to its body, but was jDresently moved round to its normal position, the rotifer being taken with it ; by this time the head of the latter had disappeared, and the rotifer was motionless, the gizzard only working slowly. The polyp continued to swallow its unfortunate prey, but the operation was so slow that I could not detect the motion, and it was only by mentally comparing the relative positions from time to time that I could tell what was going on. Eventually the rotifer disappeared from view, but its position in its downward course within the polyp could readily be discerned by the corpulence of the latter at the spot to which the rotifer had arrived. I afterwards witnessed a still more extraordinary display of the polyp's capacity fur swallowing comparatively large objects. In this instance one member of a twin arrangement was discovered in the act of swallowing a little chydorus sphcericus, which was quite double the diameter of the glutton to which it was the victim. When I first observed it the chydorus was already about two- thirds of its diameter within the body of the polyp, whose mouth was fearfully distended, and I doubted whether it would succeed in the task it had undertaken ; however, presently it accomplished the feat, but by converting itself into a bloated deformity. Although I have had this creature under observation for a \o\\o- time, I have seen no indications of any reproductive process other than that already described ; but I think it is probable that if search were to be made shortly before the jieriod at which the limnocodiam usually appears, evidence might be obtained which would show whether or no this polyp has the relation to limnocodium which it has been supposed to have. I would mention here, as having some possible bearing on this point, that a change does appear to take place in the structure of the animal ; in the earlier stages the body seems to consist of granular sarcode, in general appearance similar to that of the common hydra, but in later stages there is a decided cellular appearance, the cells being comparatively large and the polyp more nearly transparent. The polyps seem extremely hardy, for though taken from a tank kept at a temperature of 90° or more, they lived and flourished with me in a room at the ordinary indoor temperature; all they seemed to require being plenty of food. Whether keeping them at so 130 F. A. PARSONS ON A NEW HYDROID POLYP. low a temperature would interfere with the development of medusas I cannot say, but should think it probable. There is one point which I omitted when speaking of its powers of offence. I am inclined to believe that it has defensive powers also. This idea occurred to me from seeing a rotifer blunder head first against the trunk of one of these polyps. The rotifer backed off instantly with its rotary organs retracted, and had every appearance of being seriously hurt ; in fact, I thought it had re- ceived a death blow. I watched it for some time, but it ultimately recovered and swam off as though nothing had happened. In concluding these remarks I must apologise for the very rough form in which they are presented, and for the absence of more solid information than I have been able to give. I have kept no notes, and my remarks are given entirely from memory ; some of the sketches are also made from recollection of the objects. I may therefore not have been quite so precise on some points as could be desired ; my excuse is that I have not had the leisure necessary for working out the matter in a more satisfactory manner ; but I thought the members might like to know something concerning the polyp, the first discovery of which is due to the Club Excursions. I shall continue my observations, and if I dis- cover anything fresh of sufficient interest I may on a future occa- sion trespass on your patience. DESCRIPTION OF PLATE VI. Figures 1 to 9 may be considered as diagrams only, having been drawn entirely from memory. With the exception of Fig. 5 they approximately represent the appearauce under the inch objective and B eye-piece. Figs. 1, 2, 3, 4, represent the early stages in the development of the polyp. Fig. 5 is an enlarged sketch of a nematocyst or thread-cell, as seen under the quarter-inch objective and B eye-piece. Figs. 6, 7, and 8 show various other forms referred to in the paper. Fig. 9 is a trifid form with a fourth polyp budding out at a. Fig. 10 shows a form similar to that shown at Fig. 3, and Figs. 12, 13, and 14 three different stages, bipartite, tripartite, and quadripartite in close proximity ; also variation in form from Figs. 5, 7, 8, and 11. Jo-Li-m. Q.M.C. Ser.II.VoL 2.P1.VI y. A..&a,r*$on,S dj&*. 10 it !% 13. : 12 • 14r. \ ^H J.JBoccLcock Jr. cteL » * #; y ■ . \ THE CONJUGATION OF THE DIATOM RHABDONEMA ARCUATUM. 137 5. The sporangial or zygospore-frustule consists of two valves, without annuli, which have a length ahout thrice that of the valves of the female. With regard to the inducing causes of conjugation it would appear that in the present species self-division, which gradually reduces the size of the bounding valves, has gone on so long that a new generation becomes necessary to maintain the size. It can scarcely be induced by any extraneous influence, for the examples of conjugation occur amidst a profusion of vigorously-growing filaments. I have failed to discover any visible cause of the selec- tive adhesion of the conjugating individuals. If there were any viscous coating on the female frustules the accidental appulse of a male frustule might fix it sufficiently to destroy its slight cohesion to its fellows by its one isthmus. I have generally seen the male filaments in the close neighbourhood of a conjugated specimen, and it may be that fortuitously touching the female the attachment is thus induced. In conclusion, permit me to remind you that the Diatomacece have been classed as the highest division of the Conjugates in which no sexual difference has been perceptible. In Rhabdonema, with its composite frustule, we have seen that the conjugating process is also (so to speak) composite as well as distinctly sexual. We seem to have here a step towards — hardly a connecting link with — the sexual process in those Algce which produce antherozoids. DESCRIPTION OF THE PLATES. Plate VII. Fig. 1. — Free valve of Rhabdonema arcuatum, x 600. 2. — Side view of an annul us with its projecting plates, x 600. 3. — Free end of a male filament, the last 6 frustules being semi-de- tached, x 200. , 4.— Male frustule, X 600. 5. — Female frustule with 6 male frustules attached : the earliest stage of conjugation, X 200. 6. — Young single sporangium, X 250. 7. — Mature ditto ditto with new frustule, x 300. Plate VIII. Fig. 1. — Double sporangium shewing different degrees of development, X 200. 2. — Mature ditto ditto with 2 new frustules, X 300. 138 Some Remarkable Moulds. By Dr. M. C. Cooke, M.A., A.L.S., &c. (Read March 27th, 1885.) PLATES IX. & X. It may be of some interest to the botanical members if I take this opportunity of placing before them figures and descriptions of some remarkable moulds which have come within my recent ex- perience. It need not be premised that one great difficulty in the determination of these minute and fragile fungi lies in ascertaining the mode of attachment of the spores, whether singly or in chains, whether solitary or in clusters. This applies with strongest force to specimens sent from a distance, or when examined some months after death and dessication. Whenever the spores can be induced to germinate on rice paste, or other suitable matrix, and a cultiva- tion of the mould artificially is successful, this great difficulty vanishes, but it is by no means an easy task to conduct such an artificial cultivation to a successful termination. Basidiella sph^erocarpa, Cooke, in " Grevillea" vi. ; 118. This is the first mould to which I would refer you. It was found growing in black woolly patches on dead and decayed roots of Glori- osa svperba, from Madras. The roots were packed in a closely- stoppered bottle, in a damp state, and putrefied in that condition. When opened the mould was found on some of the still wet and rotten portions. The structure of this mould was so peculiar, that I felt obliged to.constitute anew, if only a temporary, genus for its re- ception. The larger patches were composed of numerous small tufts or fascicles, of club-shaped brown hyphae, not more than one-tenth of a millemetre in length, the clubs themselves being about -03 m. (or 30 micromillemetres) in thickness above, attenuated to about 5 micromill. at the base, where they were attached to the creeping brown mycelium. Each tuft consisted of five or six, sometimes M. C. COOKE ON SOME REMARKABLE MOULDS. 139 more and sometimes less, of these club-shaped stems, which showed no septa, but were covered at their apices with slender short spi- cules, each of which was surmounted by a solitary globose, dark- brown spore, some 4 micromill. in diameter, with a minutely roughened external coat, or epispore. The structure and habit of this mould differs wholly from any of the genera noted by Saccardo in his " Conspectus." From Zy~ godesmns in the clavate hypha?, and the capitate manner in which the spores are produced, and, indeed, from all other genera in the capitate spores, except only Stachybotrys, Periconia, FucJcelina, Camptoum, and Acrotheca. Of these five genera only three have globose spores, namely, the first three just mentioned. Stachybo- trys has branched slender hypba?. In Periconia the hypha? are slender, and solitary. FucJcelina is to me a genus unknown, be- yond the description, but does not appear to be the same. There was therefore no other alternative but to give it a new station and name. Sterigmatocystis Ferruginea, Cooke, u Grevillea" viii., 95. About the year 1878 I received from my friend, Mr. F. Moore, the pupa of an Erie silk moth, from Cachar, which, had covering the greater part of its exterior, a bright rust-coloured mould, to which I have applied the above name. The woolly effused patches of the mould had just such an appearance as the common Asper- gillus glaucus might be expected to have if it were dyed of a bright rust-colour. The long, slender, septate threads, or stems, were about one-hundredth of a millemetre in thickness, terminated by a globose head of rusty-brown spores, the stem itself being trans- parent and almost colourless. The base of the threads was effused in a matted intricate mycelium, penetrating through the joints into the pupa. The most interesting part of the structure, however, was the capitulum, or head of spores. By a little careful manipulation it soon became evident that the supporting hypha was expanded at its apex into a globose knob, nearly three times the diameter of the thread. This was surrounded on all sides by a compact stratum of wedge-shaped bodies, four times as long as broad, and each of these bearing on its summit three or four elliptical cells, which cells were individually crowned by three or four short papilla?. To each one of these papilla? belonged a globose, rough spore, nearly one-hun- dredth of a millemetre in diameter, or about the thickness of the 140 M. C. COOKE ON SOME REMARKABLE MOULDS. primary thread or stem. Evidently it was impossible to demon- strate with certainty whether the spores were produced solitary at the tips of the papillae, or whether in chains. No evidence could be found that the spores were ever concatenate. The mould would not be cultivated, and hence uncertainty must attach to it until found again, and examined under more favourable conditions. The first doubt which naturally presents itself is — whether this species belongs to either Aspergillus or Sterigmatocystis, since it is uncertain whether the spores were ever concatenate, and that is an essential feature in these two genera. It can only be permitted to remain with a note of interrogation. The rough spores would only be a secondary consideration. This mould is of interest as being probably one confined to animal substances for its matrix, but even that cannot be affirmed with confidence. Hitherto it has only been seen on the dead pupae of Lepidoptera. Aspergillus nigricans (Auct.), Cooke, " Grevillea" vi., 127. The third mould to which I would refer has also a special in- terest of its own, from having been found on the human subject. It was given to me by one of our ex-presidents, Mr. Arthur Dur- ham, now some years ago, and was found inhabiting the meatus auditorius of the human ear. I am uncertain whether it is the same as one mentioned in the " Chicago Medical Journal," xxxiii., p. 913, but it does not seem to be the same as the A. nigrescens of Kobin. The hyaline, uncoloured supporting hyphae were from one to two millemetres in length, and about one-hundredth of a mille- metre in thickness, seemingly continuous throughout their length, for no septum could be detected. The apex was swollen, in a glo- bose manner, to about three times the diameter of the support, surrounded on all sides with closely-packed, radiating, cylindrical cells, about six times as long as broad, and with a diameter equal to that of the spores. To each of these radiating cells was attached at its outward extremity, a chain of globose, smooth, sootj'-coloured spores, which seemed black when massed, and 5 micromillemetres in diameter. The entire globose heads, including spores, measured about one-tenth of a millemetre. It is only the specific identity of this mould which is in question, but I did not feel disposed, with the doubts in my own mind, to describe it as a new species. Nevertheless it cannot fail to be in- teresting as a human parasite. M. C. COOKE ON SOME REMARKABLE MOULDS. 141 POLYACTIS DEPR.EDANS, Cooke, MSS* Some six or seven years ago I noticed, Allien in Norfolk, that several young trees of Acer jjseado-platanus, growing in a damp plantation, presented an unusual appearance, from the flabbiness and decoloration of the leaves, which induced me to collect some for examination, the results of which I will now endeavour to de- scribe. The green leaves had become flaccid and rotten whilst still attached to the tree ; the whole surface blotched with greyish spots, which were in many cases confluent over a great portion of the leaf. The under surface, under a pocket lens, was spotted with minute white points, like the head of a small pin. These points were most numerous on, and almost confined to, the veins of the leaf. Under the microscope, these minute points were found to be the globose capituli, or heads, of a small parasitic mould, scattered over the under-surface of the leaf, with its delicate mycelium pene- trating into the substance. The heads were loosely scattered, and not collected in tufts, almost wholly confined to the venation. The hyphae, or threads, short, slender, flexuous, and septate, swollen at the apex, where one, or three to four larger cells formed the basis, of the globular head; around these large cells were clustered a number of smaller, elliptical cells, which again were surmounted by somewhat triangular, obtuse-cornered cells, and these divided at the apex in a furcate manner, each fork divided off as a globose hyaline spore. Each capitulum was, in its entirety, about one- tenth of a millemetre in diameter, and the spores 12 micromille- inetres. Some of these leaves were placed under glass and kept moist for weeks, when a very peculiar phenomenon was presented, the for- mation of small black round sclerotia on the spots occupied pre- viously by the mould. This took place several times, and was re- ported as a curious circumstance to my friend the Rev. M. J. Berkeley. It would not be surprising for a Polyactis to be de- veloped from a Sclerotium, because this already was known to have taken place, but for a Sclerotium to be developed from a Polyactis seemed to be a reversal of the order of nature. Pressure of other * Maculis griseis, determinatis vel confluent ibns. Hyphis assurgentibus septatis, flexuosis, simplicibus, ad apicem cellnlis ellipticis, basidiiforruibus coronatis, capitnlo globoso sub-compacto, conidiis globosis hyalinis, '012 mm. Toto albo. On under surface of leaves of Acer pseudo-x>latanus, which it destroys* Journ. Q. M. C, Series II., No. 12. m 142 M. C COOKE ON SOME REMARKABLE MOULDS. matters prevented my pursuing the cultivation any further, and I never attempted to learn what was the ultimate destination of the sclerotia. There are some points in which the capituli of this mould differ in their composition from those usual in Polyactis, but this is merely a systematic question which the systematizers must settle for themselves. The parasite is undoubtedly an injurious one, extending speedily to every leaf on young trees, and as such is worthy of its name. Polyactis truncata, Cooke, in Bommers " Champignons de Bruxelles^ p. 137. Advantage may be taken of this opportunity to give details of a white mould on the fronds of ferns, which was communicated to me from Belgium by Madame Bommer. Although placed in the same genus, it differs in many particulars from the one to which I have just alluded. The tufts were small, and consisted of but a few fertile threads. The hyphae slender, flexuous and septate, sur- mounted by a rather irregular subglobose head. When the spores were removed the upper portion of the thread which formed the capitulum was found to be repeatedly branched, in a somewhat furcate manner, each branch being very short ; the ultimate ramuli being fastigiate, or digitate. Each minute branchlet bore at its extremity an elongated elliptical, but abruptly truncate spore ('02 mm. long x *007 mm. broad). When the spores became free each end was truncate. When the specimens were examined I was under the impression that the truncate, sometimes concave, ends of the spores might be caused by the falling in, or collapse, of the thinner extremities of the epispore, but of this 1 could not be assured. Although there is a determination in some quarters to suppress the genus Polyactis altogether, for the sake of a change, I have still retained these names. It is one of my many failings, which some friends seldom fail in reminding me of, that I am persistently heterodox, inasmuch as I will not shift and veer in all directions, as the weathercock has done with us every day during this bluster- ing month of March. Such mycological veering of the mycolo- gical weathercock being determined by the explosion of some wind- bag in some corner of Continental Europe. These incidental words lead me still further to protest that alterations in genera, whether Journ. Q.M.C ' */ M.C.C.dtl.'W.Rkit*. sc. West ..Newma-Ti & REMARKABLE MOULDS. I. Journ. Q.M.C. Ser.II.Vol. 2.PL X. 'MRh€v*. s: "West ITcvrtrictn, & C? imp. REMARKABLE MOULDS. II. M. C. COOKE ON SOME REMARKABLE MOULDS. 143 in the orthography, or in its constituent elements, are not an ad- vancement of science, but a hindrance ; and all needless multipli- cation of synonyms instead of a blessing is nothing less than a curse. DESCRIPTION OF THE PLATES. PLATE IX. Fig. 1. — Basidiella splicer ocarpa. — a, Compound heads, slightly magnified. b, One cluster, magnified about 300 diam. c, d, Clavate threads denuded of spores x 400 diam. e, Spores X 800 diam. FlG. 2. — Sterigmatocystis ferruginea. — a, Fertile heads slightly magnified. b, Head and upper portion of stem X 200 diam. c, Portion of section of head X 600 diam. d, e, Supporting cells X 800 diam. /, Spores X 600 diam. Fig. 3. — Aspergillus nigricans. — a, Fertile heads slightly magnified. b, Three heads x about 200 diam. c, Section of head X 500. d, Portion of section showing supporting cells X 800. c, A sup- porting cell with chain of spores, isolated. PLATE X. Fig. 4. — Polyactis deprcedans. — a, Scattered heads on nerve of leaf, slightly magnified, b, Fertile head, magnified 400 diam. c, d, Supporting cells and spores X 500 diam. Fig. 5. — Polyactis truncata. — a, Fertile heads slightly magnified, b, Head with spores in situ magnified about 250 diam. c, Rami- fications of the head, with most of the spores removed, d, Portion with spores attached X 500. e, Free spores X 400. /, Free spores X 500. g, Two spores further magnified. 144 PROCEEDINGS. January 9th, 1885. — Conversational Meeting. The second of the third series of demonstrations was given this evening by Mr. B. T. Lowne, P.R.C.S., F.L.S., &c, " On the Structure of the Eyes of Arthropoda." After explaining the manner in which optical images are formed, Mr. Lowne described the structure of the compound eye in insects, and gave a resume of the mosaic theory of compound vision, as expounded in the classical work of Johannes Midler. The lecturer pointed out the optical difficulties resulting from this theory, as it is received by Grenacher and others, and then proceeded to explain his own views. He regarded the whole of the great rods and the structures between them and the cornea as dioptric in function. This view was founded on microscopical observations and physical con- siderations. The chief new points he insisted upon were the existence of a true bacillary layer, rods comparable with those of the vertebrate eye beneath the great rods. These, with the optic nerve were, according to his obser- vations, frequently separated from the optical portion of the eye by a con- tinuous non-perforated membrane. The great rods consisted of tubes, which the lecturer considered as very thick lenses of short focal length. He stated that during life these tubes were filled with an oil-like fluid, which escaped, leaving the empty, shrivelled tubes when the eye was injured ; hence the very various appearances described by different authors. Accord- ing to Mr. Lowne's view, the great rod magnifies and erects the sub-corneal image, and has its posterior focus on a true retina comparable with that of a vertebrate. In the course of the discussion which followed, the lecturer stated that the nervous structures of the insect's eye are apparently de- veloped, like the retina of a vertebrate, from the nervous ganglia as an out- growth, whilst the optical structures, including the great rods, arise as a modification of the sub-corneal epithelium ; and he explained the manner in which the focal length of the lenses formed by the great rods could be cal- culated, and the close correspondence of the actual and calculated distance of the retina from the sub-corneal image. For further details Mr. Lowne referred his hearers to the " Trans. Linn. Soc," Vol. ii., pt. 11., New Series The following objects were exhibited in the library : — Circulation in the egg of trout Mr. F. W. Andrew. Crenulated antenna of a moth, Pyq&ra bucephala, ),___. , ' JJ l hMivF. Enock. retaining natural form and colour ... ... * Parasite of seal, //. strongly formes Mr. H. E. Freeman. Acants, sp Mr. W. Goodwin. Zoophytes, from Cape Good Hope Mr. J. D. Hardy. V 145 Sections of a leech Mr. W. M. Holmes. Diatoms, Navicula mormonorum ... ... ... Mr, H. Morland. Head of tape-worm, Tcenia medio-canaliculata ... Mr. W. Watson. Attendance — Members, 63 ; Visitors, 5. January 23rd, 1885. — Ordinary Meeting. Dr. W. B. Carpenter, C.B., F.R.S., &c, President, in the Chair. The minutes of the preceding meeting were read and confirmed. The following gentlemen were balloted for and duly elected members of the Club, Mr. John H. Garner and Mr. Edward C. Bousfield. The following donations to the Club were announced : — " Proceedings of the Royal Society " From the Society. " Science Gossip "... .., ... ... ... ,, „ Publisher. "Science Monthly" „ „ Editor. " Proceedings of the Royal Microscopical i Society" f » » Societ ^ 'American Monthly Microscopical Journal"... In Exchange. " American Naturalist " ... ... ... ... ,, „ " Pamphlet on Law and Species," by E. Poulson From the Author. " Transactions of the Northumberland and ~i Durham Natural History Society "... J " " Societ y- Nine numbers " Linnean Society's Journal " ... Mr. Scholefield. Forty-three Type Slides of Oribatides ... Mr. A. D. Michael. The thanks of the Club were voted to the donors, and a special vote of thanks to Mr. Michael for his valuable contribution to the cabinet was unanimously passed. Dr. G. C. Wallich exhibited and described his condenser, remarking, how- ever, that everything depended upon getting a proper light, and that the gas lamps in the room were not the best for the purpose. The President thought it would be better to reserve a critical examina- tion of the apparatus until the end of the meeting, when the large lamp on the table before him would be available for the purpose. He was sure that every worker with the microscope must feel the value of anything which would give an increase in focal depth, as hitherto they had only been able to get it by reducing the aperture of their objectives ; but there was one very curious thing about the Binocular Microscope, that it did increase very greatly the focal depth. He had tried this under every condition, and had always found it to be so. It was to be explained to a certain extent by the binocular prism halving the aperature of the objective. That, however, did not explain it altogether ; because having asked a friend to look through the binocular with one eye only, the prism being in its place, and to focus the objective for what he considered to be a medial distance, on then asking him to open the other eye, the difference in the depth of focus had been at once observed ; indeed, it was considered that the increase amounted to at least five times. He had talked the matter over with his friend, Sir Charles 146 Wheatstone, but they could never come to any satisfactory conclusion. Dr. Wallich had made a condenser to produce a certain arrangement of the illuminating raysj and if it proved that by the use of this they could employ lenses of larger aperture and still get the same depth of focus, it would be of very great value. Mr. F. Parsons read a paper " On a Hydroid Polyp found in the tank at the Royal Botanic Society's Gardens, at the Excursion of the Club in April, 1884," the subject being illustrated by drawings and by enlargements from the same on the black board. The President said the drawings would give a better idea of the or" ganism than what was on the board ; there did not seem to be any appear- ance of tentacles. Mr. Hardy enquired if Mr. Bourne had seen the drawings ? If not, how did he know the polyps were the same ? Mr. Michael asked for what length of time any individual polyp had been watched ? because it was quite a usual thing to find that the first form had only the rudiments of tentacles, which came afterwards by a process of growth, and unless the specimens were kept under observation it was not possible to know that they might not have tentacles at some later period of their lives. Mr. Parsons said he had only looked at one polyp during one evening and had not isolated it for continued observation, but although he had looked at a great many he had never seen such a thing as a tentacle. Still it was quite possible that they might subsequently develop. Mr. Michael said it was of course quite possible that they might not do so, but it would, he thought, be a little premature to say they never would. It was often very easy to get these organisms to grow to a certain extent, and then from want of favourable conditions nothing further could be got. He should be inclined to say that as far as their information went at present they did not know what might be the ultimate form, and therefore it would be premature to say it never would have tentacles. Mr. Parsons said he should be very glad to be able to ascertain the facts and would keep a look out with that idea. It was, however, a very difficult matter to carry out. A Member enquired if Mr. Parsons had found that each arm of the bifid or trifid form was distinct from the others, or was there any connection be- tween them ? Mr. Parsons could not say, but he rather imagined that there would be a constriction formed, and after that they would separate. He conld not say if there was a canal between them. The President proposed a vote of thanks to Mr. Parsons for his com- munication. It was known to all that this matter was one of very great interest to naturalists, because the discovery of a fresh water medusa caused at the time a very great sensation, and it was always felt that a hydroid polyp ought to be found. It was no more than a surmise on the parts of Mr. Bourne and Professor Lancaster at present, and therefore Mr. Parsons had the credit of having seen it first. It was a curious thing that it should be found in another tank beside that at the Victoria Regia house, 147 and he thought it might be a question worth asking whether the germs might have come from a common water supply. Mr. Parsons said the plants in this tank were sometimes changed. Mr. Michael said that no new plant had been put Into the Victoria Regia tank for some years, but whether plants had been transferred from it was of course another matter. The President said he had a short communication to make, which he thought would be of interest, relating to the discovery by his friend Pro- fessor Moseley of eyes embedded in the actual shell of a Mollusk. He had himself during some investigations made 40 years ago found some peculiar canals in the shells of Chitons ; he had only the dry shells to work upon, and thought at the time that some organs might pass into them, but had no idea as to their remarkable character. Mr. Moseley having had the opportunity of examining a specimen of Chiton preserved in spirit, had made this remarkable discovery. The animal was very like the common Limpet in its anatomy ; but instead of having a simple conical or oblong univalve shell, it had a multivalve shell. The small Chitons found on our coasts had much the same kind of shell as the common woodlouse, its overlapping valves being jointed so that the animal could roll itself up. It was found that in certain Chitons the shells had two sets of perforations, one large and the other small. The large orifices contained very perfect simple eves, of a rather prolonged form; each having a calcareous cornea, behind which there was a crystalline lens with an iris, and then a vitreous humor and a retina. The mouths of the small passages were filled with small plugs of tissue, probably constituting organs of touch ; and it was found that the nerves of these eyes and the nerves of the small tactile organs came off from the same plexus. These organs did not occur in all Chitons, but only in those of tropical seas ; no English species had them. Their number was most extraordinary, 3,000 having been counted on a single anterior valve, while there were at least 8,500 eyes on the remainder. This multiplication of eyes was certainly a most remarkable phenomenon, and was not a little puzzling to understand. The Limpet, which, as we commonly see it, remained firmly fixed to the rock on which it lived, was known to move about when the tide was up, and to go in search of food, and then to come back again to its place. This had been frequently observed j but how it was that these creatures found their way back to the same holes again, had never been satisfactorily explained. Perhaps Dr. Buckland's observations on certain Snails which make hollows in limestone rocks, might apply also to Limpets. He thought they secreted an acid ; and to detect this he made one walk over a blue ribbon stained with litmus, and he found that in doing so it left a red stain. His idea about it was that the track of acid mucus which was left behind them formed the means by which they guided themselves back again. But if Limpets and eyeless Chitons are thus guided, it is difficult to find a use for the multiple eyes of the species that possess them. The President thought it was a matter of some little historical interest that 40 years ago he had detected these passages in the shell, of which the use was only now found. He would illustrate the matter by placing under the microscope in the room some of the shell-sections which 148 he made 40 years ago, and also some of Frofessor Moseley's preparations showing the nerve trunks passing along to the eyes, which looked almost like pears upon their foot-stalks. It had long been an idea amongst naturalists that the Chiton, on account of its peculiarities, had some relation to the Articulata ; and in this discovery there occurred another curious point of analogy. The plates in illustration of Professor Moseley's paper would be printed in the next number of the " Quarterly Journal of Micro- scopical Science." Mr. E. M. Nelson said he wished to bring a small " brass and glass " matter before the notice of the meeting, and that was a stop for an Abbe Achromatic Condenser. It gave 1*25 numerical aperture, or 1*3 with a Powell Condenser. He was exhibiting it that evening, and the results were most satisfactory. The highest resolving power, he found, was ob- tained just before the field began to get dark. Another matter he wished to notice, was the fact that the cholera bacillus was found to be a beaded structure, the same as observed in the case of the tubercle bacillus. Mr. Watson Cheyne had found this to be so, and he (Mr. Nelson) had also carefully examined it with the dark ground illumina- tion and found it to be most remarkably distinct. The President said that finding that Nachet's small Portable Microscope had not been exhibited at the Club, he had brought it down to the meeting, and would exhibit his specimens under it. He then exhibited and described the instrument, showing the method of setting it up and of changing the compound body for the simple arm for dissecting purposes, and also the method adopted for quickly changing the objectives. Announcements of meetings, &c.,for the ensuing month were then made, and the proceedings terminated with the usual conversazione, and the follow- ing objects were exhibited, in addition to those shown by the President : — Condylostoma patens Mr. F. W. Andrew. Spine of Skate Mr. W. M. Holmes. Pollen, Lilium longifolium ... Mr. G. E. Mainland. Section of Shell of Haliotis Mr. C. Le Pelley. Diatoms from Campeachy Bay ... Mr. W. Watson. A new Condenser Dr. Wallich. Attendance — Members, 60 ; Visitors, 5. February 13th, 1885. — Conversational Meeting. The third demonstration of the series was given by Dr. M. C. Cooke, M.A., A.L.S., &c, the subject being, " Collecting, Examining, and Preserv- ing Fresh Water Algse." Dr. Cooke premised that he should group his observations and illustra- tions under seven heads, in order to facilitate their impression upon the memory. I. Definition. — " Fresh Water Algae " was a purely artificial arrangement made solely for the convenience of those who desired to study the inland to the exclusion of Marine Alga?. This group was held to include such as were found in fresh and brackish water, as well as those inhabiting the face of 149 moist rocks, damp soil, or the bark of trees. He then proceeded to give the best general description available of what were the principal attributes of Algae, as distinguished from Fungi and other of the cellular Cryptogams, at the same time intimating that no brief definition would be absolutely per- fect and without exception. II. Distribution. — The places in which to find Fresh Water Algae were stated to be those in which a constant state of moisture was pi*esent, such as the dripping face of rocks, damp walls ; flower-pots, benches, and walls in conservatories and hot-houses ; water-tanks and cisterns ; small streams of waste warm water from factories and steam engines ; ground often inun- dated, or subject to the overflow of tides; little pools and ponds ; stagnant or slowly-flowing ditches and streamlets ; dead submerged plants, branches, timber and stones ; and amongst moss and sphagnum in bogs. It was little better than waste of time to seek for Algae in swift streams or torrents, save on the rocks in their vicinity which were subject to the spray, or steady dripping. III. Collection. — But little preparation and but few implements were required for their collection. Those on the face of rocks or walls could be best removed by a flexible palette-knife, such as used by artists. An iron spoon was very useful in skimming floating Algae from small pools amongst sphagnum, particularly such as Desmids. The ordinary collecting bottle and stick would be often useful for dipping amongst the vegetation in ponds, and a small net of muslin, stretched over a metal ring of some six inches diameter, and mounted on a collecting-rod, would assist in collecting the floating scum and filamentous Algae on the surface of ponds. Hooks and drags were of little use, as the majority of the filamentous Algae are only attached in the early part of their history, becoming detached and floating previous to fructification, when only they could be satisfactorily determined. In addition to collecting tubes, in which each gathering should be kept by itself, he recommended small squares of thin gutta percha tissue, to be obtained at any indiarubber or gutta percha shop, and cut to about six inches square, as exceedingly useful both for collection and transmission by post. When folded the contents would remain moist and fresh for several days, Failing this, even squares of firm writing paper would answer admirably, but the specimens should be taken out and transferred to water on reaching home. IV. Examination. — Small white artists' saucers were recommended to receive each " gathering " at the close of the day. Algae collected from soil or rocks should be cleared as much as possible from fragments of sand. Filamentous Algae could be transferred successively to clean waters to re- move all extraneous matter. A bunch of Sphagnum shaken in a bottle of water, and then removed, would often leave behind a good collection of minute floating species. Large species may be picked out from a saucer, with a clean camel-hair pencil, by using a pocket lens. Only clear water requisite to examine provisionally the gatherings under a microscope. Re- commended to use first a 2-inch or 1-inch objective, and then A-inch. The demonstrator always had two small working microscopes beside him, with these powers, and had only to pass from the one instrument to the other, 150 without the inconvenience of nose-pieces and readjustment. A fixed camera was a great advantage, so that a drawing or rough sketch could be made at once. Sketches strongly recommeuded, and taking measurements accu- rately either by means of an eyepiece micrometer, or a camera lucida sketch of known proportions. V. Determination. — In order to determine the names of collected Algae no royal l'oad could be indicated. The only method, safe and sure, was by a scientific process, and not empirically. The fructification by all means essential. The genus must be determined, through the fructification, com- bined with the vegetative characters, and after that there would be com- paratively little difficulty, with the aid of a manual. The great difficulty usually was occasioned by the imperfect condition of the specimens. Re- agents often useful in very hyaline objects before the outline can be dis- tinctly made out. The aniline dyes readily available for this purpose. VI. Preservation. — Two kinds of preparation in vogue, the preservation of portions for the microscope, and the preservation of entire plants for the herbarium. Thin filaments of mica, most to be commended for preserving the more minute species for the herbarium. Large filamentous algee to be washed clean and floated out on squares of paper and dried, in the manner adopted for marine algse. The majority of species are gelatinous enough to adhere of themselves to the paper when dry. For microscopic prepara- tions the chief difficulty is the fluid medium. Too dense a medium will at once cause the endochrome to collapse, and the cell-walls to be distorted. Most persons are content with the water in which the specimens were grow- ing, with just a tinge of creosote. He had seen specimens mounted in this manner, after twelve years in the cabinet, as fresh-looking as though col- lected the day previously. Calcium chloride has also been recommended, and in many cases, where no green colour has to be kept, may be used with advantage. Glycerine, by its density, distorts most forms of Alga3. In all cases mounted Algse must not be exposed to the light of day, or the colour will vanish. VII. Cultivation. — These organisms are most interesting for cultivation. Small aquaria may be extemporized of glass tumblers, placed at different elevations. Connected to each other by thinly twisted cotton threads as syphons, a constant change of water can be kept up from the highest to the lowest tumbler, and the whole life-history of species watched at home. Growing slides of various forms have been devised, each with some special advantage. Terrestrial species will for a long time retain their freshness on damp sand or wet flannel, under small bell glasses or inverted tumblers. No objects in the whole round of animated nature are so capable of being placed in natural conditions, and submitting to artificial cultivation. The implements and instruments necessary were exhibited, and alluded to in conjunction with their application in the above sections. The following objects were exhibited in the Library : — Difflugia pyriformis Mr. F. W. Andrew. T. S. Whisker of Cat Mr. E. C. Bousfield. Isinglass, polarized... ^ r « A. L. Corbett. Podophyra, sp Mr. C. J. Dunning. 151 Head of Andrena, showing parts of the mouth in their natural form and colour Algje. Drapernaldia plumosa Chironomtis prasin us Argidus foliaceus Diatoms. Surirella dementis Parasite of Crane ... Foraminifera... ■} Mr. F. Enock. Mr. H. E. Freeman. Mr. H. Hammond. Mr. T. J. McManis. Mr. H. Morland. Mr. A. C. Tipple. Mr. W. Watson. Attendance — Members, 27 ; Visitors, 16. >» >> >> »> In exchange. > February 27th, 1885. — Ordinary Meeting. Dr. W. B. Carpenter, C.B., F.R.S., &c, President, in the Chair. The minutes of the preceding meeting were read and confirmed. The following gentlemen were balloted for and duly elected members of the Club:— Revel. W. W. Fowler, Mr. J. W. Stevenson, Mr. A.H. Ward, Mr. J. C. Warwick, Mr. B. H. Woodward, Mr. P. W. Wall, Mr. E. K. Jaques,and Mr. C. Upton. The following donations to the Club were announced : — "Journal of the Royal Microscopical Society" From the Society. "Proceedings of the Geologists' Association" " Proceedings of the Hertfordshire Natural ) History Society" ... ... ... ■> " The American Monthly Microscopical •> Journal " ... ... ... ... j " Proceedings of the Belgian Microscopical \ Society'' " The American Naturalist " Vol. XI. " Challenger Reports " One Slide of Surirella dementis Six Slides of Foraminifera 60 Slides of Diatomaceas The thanks of the meeting were unanimously voted to the donors. The Secretary having called special attention to the very beautiful series of slides of Foraminifera presented by Mr. Tipple, and also to those of Diatomacese — prepared from the material of Professor Smith, and therefore illustrative of his work on the subject — presented by Mr. Sturt, special votes of thanks were passed, on the motion of the President. Mr. Buffhamreada paper " On the Conjugation of Rhabdonema arcuatum," the subject being illustrated by numerous coloured diagrams, and also by pasteboard models of the compound frustules. Mr. W. H. Gilburt said he had been extremely pleased to be allowed to go through this subject with his friend Mr. Buff ham, and he quite agreed with him as to his earlier remarks, especially as to the distinctive filaments — which he had called the male filaments or frustules — he had seen not only single ones attached, but also a chain of them. He could, however, scarcely agree that the fertilizing matter was Purchased. From Mr H. Morland. „ Mr. Tipple. „ Mr. G. Sturt. 152 conveyed to the female filaments in the manner suggested ; he thought that the case was more likely to be a parallel one to that of plants, where the pollen of the male flowers was produced in great quantity because it was most likely that some of it would get lost, and therefore a large supply was provided. He thought it was quite likely that a similar arrangement held good in the case before them, only that as the fertilizing element was thrown out into the water many frustules were provided in order that some of them at least might get some of it. In all the male frustules it would be found that after fertilization a division into two parts took place, the upper half falling away — and it would also appear that after contact there was an opening through which the fertilizing medium might escape. He had little doubt that the fertilizing medium being quite free came into con- tact with the non-silicious band and passed through it. The President said he had never made diatoms a special study himself, but Mr. Thwaites was an early friend and pupil of his, and it was very much in consequence of his earnest recommendation that he should take up the study of the unicellular plants, that the observations were commenced which led to the discovery of conjugation — and during the interval of 45 years very little beyond this seemed to have been done. He had always said that if one-tenth part of the time had been given to the life history of these forms which had been spent in trying to make out the strige on their valves, very much better results would no doubt have followed. He did not recollect anything at all approaching to the description which Mr. Buffham had given of these males attaching themselves to the female forms. The nearest thing seemed to be what was seen in the case of the conjugatas, where in one group the endochromes of both discharge themselves into the intermediate space ; or, on the other hand, in those cases where the endochrome of one filament passed over into the cells of the other filament. He thought, however, that there had been something lately recorded in the " Journal of the Eoyal Microscopical Society " which tended to show that this was not quite correct, and this had rather sent them adrift again upon the question. If the observations which had been described that evening should prove to be the first indication of sexuality it would be of the greatest importance. What was now wanted was some information as to the existence of a distinct opening being formed, so that it could be affirmed that there was an actual passage. Mr. Buffham inferred that there was, because of the effects which took place ; but he should very much like to know that it had been proved by observation. He hoped that Mr. Buffham would devote further attention to this point, which he regarded as one of the very highest interest ; if proved it would form one of the pregnant facts of biology ; and such being the case, it was worth any amount of attention which it was possible to bestow upon it. He could only express the very highest sense of the value of such an observation. Mr. Buffham said with regard to the point on which Dr. Carpenter had some doubt, he could only ask, how was it possible to account for the facts except by taking his view of the attached frustules ? And why should they lose their vitality in the way he had described ? Absolutely without exception they had never observed the formation of sporangia unless they 153 conld find either the male frustules, or the scars left by them. With regard, also, to Mr. Gilburt's remark, he did not wish to deny that if the male frustules had not been present they would not have gone on dividing. Mr. Gilburt said it would of course be of great interest to see the passage if possible, though he did not think that the mode of fertilization would be disproved even if the passage was non-existent, because it should be re- membered that in its earlier growth the band did not contain silex. Mr. Buffham said this was so, and the idea therefore was that the process might be carried on through the sutures. Mr. Michael enquired how the exact form of the partition, as shown in the model, was ascertained. The shape was very remarkable, and he shonld like to know whether it could be seen, or if not, how it was found to be so shaped ? Mr. Buffham said he had a slide under a microscope in the room which contained a number of the frustules, some of which were attached, others lying loose ; by careful focussing on the loose ones, it was quite possible to see this shape. He might add that Professor Smith was quite in accord- ance with him as to the observation. Mr. E. M. Nelson exhibited and described a rotating nose-piece, and also a condenser. With regard to the former, he said he had frequently thought that an object glass performed differently as an object was presented to it in different azimuths. It had, however, occurred to him that this might be due to the objective itself rather than to the altered position of the object as regarded the light. Wishing, therefore, to test this, he had devised a rotating nose-piece, by means of which, without shifting the object, the objective could be turned upon its axis and used in different sectors. On trying the effect of this with a glass which was believed to be of first- rate quality, he found that whilst in one position it would resolve amphi- pleura perfectly, it altogether failed to do so at another angle, showing clearly that there was a difference in different azimuths. He thought this might account for the fact that there seemed to be so much difference of opinion as to the performance of certain objectives when used upon different microscopes, and he suggested the desirability of being provided with a simple contrivance such as he exhibited, in order to test objectives in all azimuths, especially when about to purchase an expensive one — say at =£40. He also exhibited a simple form of stage condenser, designed for small cheap microscopes. It consisted of a meniscus lens, and a bi-convex lens, put into a tube which was made to slide in another tube by means of a spiral slit, so that it worked up and down quite smoothly in the same way as a common pencil-case. The great increase in the amount of light was remarkable. The President said there could be no question about the great improve- ment in the light. The form of lenses was that of Herschell's doublet, which he might say he had used himself for that purpose nearly 50 years ago, long before achromatic condensers were thought of. He had had it applied to his Chevallier microscope as a condenser, having felt the want of more light — its efficiency for the purpose was so great that he should re- commend it to everyone. 154 Mr. C. Beck, in reply to the President, said that their objectives were always tested by focussing upon a podura scale, and altering the position of the scale so as to examine it in all directions. It was very easy to get an objective which would show the scale very well in one position, but not in others also. Mr. Nelson said that perfect accuracy could not be obtained in that way, because as the light did not proceed from a point, the cone of light was not really a cone, as they would find if they tried the image of the flame of a lamp end-ways or flat-way ; if in the former case the definition was good they would find that there would be in the latter case a loss of intensity which would spoil the definition. Mr. Beck said that they endeavoured to get it true for central light by having a cone of light accurately centred. Mr. Michael said it was clear to him that Mr. Nelson was right in saying that turning the podure scala was not by any means the same thing as turning the objective ; to make it so it would be necessary to turn the light also, otherwise the test-object would be viewed under different conditions in different positions. Though they might have central light to the objec- tive all the time, it might not be also central light to the object. The thanks of the meeting were voted to Mr. Nelson for his communica- tion. Mr. C. Beck exhibited and described a new serial section cutting machine, designed to meet the want of some reliable instrument which would cut any number of consecutive sections of a specimen and preserve them in exactly the same order in which they were cut. The importance of being able to do this was very great in many kinds of investigation, and the in- strument exhibited was designed to do all the work of the Cambridge machine, but at considerably less cost, It was not yet perfect, but still it did its work so well as to merit attention. Sections could be cut of various thicknesses, and accessories for freezing were supplied with it. Announcements of meetings, &c, for the ensuing month were then made, and the proceedings terminated in the usual manner by a Con- versazione, at which the following objects were exhibited : — Ichneumon fly ... Mr. F. W. Andrew. V. S. cochlea of a kitten Mr. E. C. Bousfield. Diatoms, Mhabdonema arcuatum (in conjugation) Mr. T. H. Buffham. Scale of Lady-fish from Bombay ... ... ... Mr. H. Epps. Section of Coniferous Wood (fossil) ... ... Mr. W. M. Holmes. Epidermis of mistletoe ... ... ... ... Mr. G. E. Mainland. Diaptomus Westwoodii ... ... ... ... Mr. R. T. G. Nevina. CIvelifer museorum ... ... ... ... ... Mr. A. C. Tipple. Attendance — Members, 64 ; Visitors, 6. 155 March 13th, 1885. — Conversational Meeting. The fourth of the series of demonstrations was given by Dr. T. Spencer Cobbold, F.K.S., F.L.S.. &c, late President of the Quekett Microscopical Club, " On Lung Parasites." The following is the substance of his re- marks : — I have chosen the subject of lung parasites for our demonstration this evening because it possesses both practical and scientific bearings. Beyond the generally recognised fact that the so-called bronchial filarias are destructive to our flocks and herds, and that strongyloid worms belong- ing to the genus Syngamus prove fatal to our fowls and game-birds, there are few persons who possess any adequate conception of the variety and multitude of entozoa that give rise to lung disease. I do not speak of microbes, bacteria, and other microphytic organisms, though, like other observers, I constantly encounter them in a casual way. Neither with these, nor with the more highly organised gregarines and psorosperms, have 1 anything to do at present. All the great groups of the higher forms of entozoa, including the Helminths proper, have, with one exception, their lung-infesting repre- sentatives, so to speak. If time permitted, I could show you flukes that produce blood-spitting (haemoptysis) in man, and there are other fluke-species that are constantly present and productive of mischief amongst animals. These lung-parasites represent the order Trematoda. Similarly, I could also present various bladder-worms (Hydatids, Coenuri, Cysticerci, &c.) that have been removed from the lungs of man and animals. These, as tapeworm larvae, represent the order Cestoda. Again, another singular group of parasites, the Pentastomes, are in certain of the lower vertebrata constant occupants of the lungs and air passages, not unfrequently proving fatal to their bearers. These repre- sent the order Acanthotheca. In the production of lung disease, however, it is the filaria-like round- worms, the Strongyles especially, that are far and away the most numerous and important. It is to these, therefore, as representing the order Nematoda, that I now more particularly invite your attention. It would take a long time to enumerate all the species of pulmonary nematodes. Suffice it to say, that they abound in cattle and sheep, in antelopes, camels, and deer, in horses and other solipeds, and notably in the cetacea. They are frequent in the smaller carnivora, especially in cats ; rarely producing lung affections in the dog, except in cases where the left side of the heart and pulmonary vessels are involved. From amongst all the species I select one parasite only for special con- sideration, namely, Olulanus tricuspis. Every now and then we hear of epidemics affecting our house-cats. Some of these outbreaks are due to parasites, some to other causes. At least four distinct kinds of parasitic epizobty are known to me as affecting cats. One of these outbreaks which occurred in Sweden some years back was described in the public journals as due to Trichinosis. A large number of cats perished, L56 Here I may remark, that when young micro scopists stumble upon little worms coiled up in cysts and occupying the tissues of any animal, they are very apt to jump to the conclusion that they have discovered instances of the trichina disease. At least a score of such fancied discoveries, affecting widely differing classes of animals, have been published as genuine examples of Trichinosis. Perhaps the most stupid and foolish announcement that was ever made on this subject is that which concerned the alleged " Out- break of Trichinosis on board the training-ship ' Cornwall.' " This ridiculous "out-put" by the Local Government Board — this genuine mare's-nest, as we may call it — occupied the attention of the wise-acres of both Houses of Parliament ; nevertheless, about three months before the Board published their " Report," I stated in the Times newspaper, and also publicly in St. George's Hall, that the so-called Trichinae (detected in the exhumed body of the lad who died) were neither more nor less than rhabditiform nematoids, probably accidentally introduced. This conclusion proved to be substan- tially correct. My first acquaintance with the larvse of Olulanus tricuspis dates some 35 years back; that is to say, long before the publication of Leuckart's descrip- tion of the adult worm. Whilst at work in the Anatomical Museum of the University of Edin- burgh, as curator, a young cat in my room suddenly rushed about and finally fell dead, asphyxiated. Whilst it was yet warm I dissected its body, and never from that day to this have I seen so remarkable a display of lung-parasites. Tens of thousands of embryonic nematoids lay coiled in cysts occupying every part of both lungs. The parasites were moving freely within the cysts, and the tissues were so fully infested that those air-cells which were not actually invaded were so compressed as to pro- duce general obstruction (hepatisation). Drawings were made at the time, but I retain no specimens from that particular case. However, from another instance of the same disease I am enabled, through the kindness of Mr. J. W. Groves, F.R.M.S., to show you some beautiful stained sections of a lung infested by these little entozoa. If you compare Mr. Grove's sections with the illustration suspended on the wall, you will perceive that the appearances presented by the worms and their cysts are effectively demonstrated. In 187G, Dr. Stirling, of Edinburgh, submitted to me, for identification, a portion of cat's lung containing worms. Speaking of the entozoon, he wrote : " In the alveolar tissue I found a small nematoid worm coiled up within a cyst. It is much smaller in size than a Trichina, and there are usually two and a half turns of it within the cyst." Now, the slides on the table have been prepared by Mr. Groves from the identical specimen sent to me by Dr. Stirling. What is known respecting the life-history of the worm is chiefly due to the investigations of Leuckart, the published observations of Dr. Stirling being limited to the appearances presented by the encysted embryos. Briefly stated the facts are as follows : — In the adult state, Olulanus tricuspis dwells in and upon the mucous membrane of the stomach of the cat. It is a very small worm, the adult female only attaining the l-25th of 157 an inch in its long diameter — say a millimetre. Its presence in the feline stomach is by no means harmless, inasmuch as it gives rise to increased vascularity, and even also to ecchymosi3 of the mncous membrane. Unlike Trichina, the Ohdanvs carries only a few young in its interior; three being the average number of embryos pi'esent. However, in relation to the size of the parent worm, these embryos, as Leuckart phrases it, are truly colossal. They are nearly one-third of the length of the parent, being ^ of an inch long by 1 ^ 6 € " in breadth. The small number of embryos does not, however, imply a feeble amount of germ-distribution. The swarming of the young within the tissues of the cat-host is sometimes prodigious in extent. Of the embryos that are hatched and discharged, a large proportion, perhaps the greater number, proceed at once to migrate on their own account, and in a direct manner within the tissues of the cat without waiting to be expelled along with the fasces in the ordinary way. I regard this phenomenon as an instance of illegitimate wandering from the right path, a spurious phase of migration, or, as Von. Siebold so aptly expressed himself concerning similar wander- ings long ago, instances of " straying." In this way the young Olulani stray into the liver, into the diaphragm, into the pleura?, and into the sub- stance of the lungs. Within one or other of these organs they come to a state of rest and proceed at once to encyst themselves. If the swarming is extensive and complete their habit of thus straying from the right path necessarily involves both themselves and their victim in one common ruin. As regards those offspring that are carried passively along the legitimate path, their passage per vias naturales ensures for at least a certain number of them a more prolonged existence. Doubtless, as obtains with many Anguillules, the embryos, though dried up within the hardened cat-faaces, revive when, with the excrement nibbled by mice, they are transferred to the stomachs of these rodents. An experiment by Leuckart proved that ingested embryos of Olulanns are not destroyed by their entry into the stomach and intestines of the mouse. In short, not a shadow of doubt exists that the embryos thus passively transferred in the ordinary course of nature, undertake a final and legitimate wandering into the voluntary muscles of the little rodent. After the manner of trichinae they bore their way through the tissues, and having selected the muscles as their final resting place, they proceed to encyst themselves in the same way that some of their fellow-embryos had done before them within the lungs of the feline host. Lastly, in order to arrive at sexual maturity as their parents did before them, they must, as encysted muscle-worms, be passively transferx-ed to the stomach of another cat, where, probably after a few days, or, it may be, only a few hours, they are able to acquire the adult condition. Such is the life-record of Olulanus tricuspis. The trichinosis of swine and other warm-blooded animals is the precise pathological homologue of the flesh-worm disease of mice. To this disorder I initiated and long ago applied the term Olulanosis. Pathologically speaking, our little nematode is thus capable of producing three distinct morbid states. In adult life it is productive of verminous Journ. Q. M. C, Series II., No. 12. n 158 catarrh of the stomach of the cat. In the straying embryonic stage it pro- duces local traumatic irritation, leading eventually to the formation of a miliary nematode tuberculosis of the lungs and liver of the cat. In the true migratory stage, after a change of host, it leads to the production of olulanosis or olulaniasis. Surely these phenomena are worthy of attention. Apart from their obvious practical bearing they are sufficiently instructive to the intelligent observer. We have seen how readily these parasites may be mistaken for Trichinae under circumstances where no legitimate suspicion of trichinosis ought to have been entertained. Witness the Swedish epizooty affecting cats. In this connection I may mention that a very curious coincidence came under my notice some ten years back. I will endeavour to recall the facts. An eminent surgeon, acting as professional adviser to one of our Railway Companies, requested me to accompany him on a visit to a family of seven or more persons in humble life, all of whom either were at the time, or who had been shortly before, suffering from an obscure disease. The symptoms unquestionably resembled those observed in cases of Trichinosis. If I remember rightly two domestic animals were taken ill about the same period, a donkey and a cat. These had died, and were buried ; the cat compara- tively recently. We hoped to settle the Trichina question then and there ; and having explained to one of the lads the necessity of removing a tiny portion of flesh in order to complete the diagnosis, he willingly submitted to the operation. This act of vivisection occurred without the aid of chloroform, and as it was not performed on a dog, but on a heroic specimen of our own race, I suppose the question of cruelty would not even present itself to the mind of the most ardent opponent of all species of cruelty to animals. Be that as it may, a very tiny fragment of the gastrocnemius muscle was detached and handed to me for microscopic investigation. I found no trichina?, yet still neither of us were convinced that the family disorder was not due to Trichina. Resolved, if possible, to get further light cast upon this mysterious outbreak, Mr. Gay, F.R.C.S., the surgeon in question, ordered the cat to be exhumed. It was examined by others than myself for Trichinosis without success, but the lungs were found to be swarming with nematoids. Thus, in view of identification my efforts were again honoured, and I pronounced the animal to have died from olulanosis — a disease which none of the medical gentlemen who made the feline post- mortem had hitherto heard of. Whatever interpi'etation be put upon the human outbreak, the coincidence of the occurrence in man of an affection symptomatic of trichinosis, found in association with a trichinoid affection in an animal which proved to be olulaniasis, was both curious and instruc- tive. It should, at least, serve as a warning to young observers, and induce them to be very cautious in pronouncing upon the nature of any disease in which they happen to detect the presence of immature nematoid worms coiled up in cysts. I may add that a portion of the olulanised lung of the cat in question is preserved in the Museum of the Royal College of Surgeons. The prepara- tion is marked in the catalogue, No. 1814a, and described as " Lung of Cat pneumonic from the presence of parasites." Presented by J. Gay, Esq. V 159 Time will not permit me to give yon an account of the history of the •development of the strongyles of cattle and sheep, but I may remind you that already, in 1880, I had the pleasure to explain to the Clab what was then known in this respect, and gave a detailed notice of some original experiments. On the occasion in question the value of the discussion was greatly enhanced by the observations which fell from Mr. Beulah. The differential diagnosis of the various species of Strong ylus is, taken by itself, a matter of great interest, zoologically speaking.* As a refine- ment in this department of observation, I may mention that it is perfectly possible for an expert in this branch of helminthology to detect the differ- ences subsisting between the various embryos alike of strongyles and other allied nematoids. In conclusion, let me add that it must be obvious to the meanest capacity that if we would stamp out divers parasitic plagues that affect both man and beast we must endeavour to ascertain whence each species comes and whither it goes. Alas ! the labour of such researches is practically endless. What a task the problem presents for generations of microscopists yet unborn ! Of the hundreds of known species of helminths only a few have been exhaustively studied, so to say. The number of the species thoroughly studied may be counted on the ends of our fingers. We have Trichina spiralis, Fasoiola hepatica, so beautifully worked out by Thomas, and a few Tamia, Echinorlujnchi, and one Pentastuma, concerning whose several life histories tolerably complete records exist. In this regard, the collection of species and their zoological determination is one thing. Anatomical observation, aided by sections, staining, and mounting, is another step gained. But then there remains the question of experiments on living animals, involving both expense and much personal sacrifice of time. Both of these difficulties might eventually be bridged over, were we not met with obstacles arising from the determined hostility of certain well meaning people who disapprove of this, the most essential part of the biological method of research. We can make no solid advances in helminthology unaided by experimental research, which method, after all, however freely employed, would serve to allay far more suffering than it could produce. Unfortunately, the influence of some of these obstructors of science is very considerable; so great, indeed, that one might almost speak of it as being equalled only by the profundity of ignorance which characterises its foremost abettors. A few simple lessons gathered from a contemplation of the behaviour of parasites would do some of these obstructors and senti- mentalists a great deal of good ; and I venture to think that our dear and grand old Shakespeare would, as regards the vexed question, have ranged * At this point Dr. Cobbold gave a brief account of the diagnostic marks presented by the tails of strongyles. Drawings representing on a large scale the hoods of the male worms were referred to; especial attention being called to those of Strongylus micrulus and Str. filaria of the ca!f and sheep respectively, The ray-patterrs of the hoods of S. paradoxus and S. dentatus of the pig, of S.filicollis and S. contortus of lambs, of Str. clathratus of the elephant and S. commutatus of the hare were also described and contrasted.— Ed. 160 himself on the scientific side. Speaking figuratively, the role of the human parasite was well understood by him, and I sometimes think he must have been acquainted with the genuine article. At all events he classified those beings as evil "that do fastest propagate," but then did he not also say : " There is some soul of good in things evil, would men observingly distil it out." It is this very process of intellectual distillation recommended by Shakespeare that we have together sought to utilise this evening, and I trust that our humble efforts in this direction may not be entirely unprodnctive of good results. The following objects were exhibited in the library : — Pond life... Freshwater Polyzoon (? n.s.) ... Section of Brain of Calf Anchors and plates of Synapta, in situ Sections of stem of Vine Aphis, Trama troglodytes T.S. Stem of Limnanthemum ... Diatoms, Sceptroneis gemmata Living serpula ... Diatoms, Pergodiscus armatus Sting and poison bag of Wasp Mr. F. W. Andrew. Mr. E. C. Bonsfield. Mr F. Coles. Mr. A. L. Corbett. Mr. H. G. Glasspoole. Mr. G. E. Mainland. Mr. H. Mori and. Mr. A. W. Stokes. Mr. G. Sturt. Mr. J. Wilson. Attendance — Members, 71 ; Visitors, 12. March 27th, 1885. — Ordinary Meeting. Dr. M. C. Cooke, M.A., A.L.S., Vice-President, in the Chair. The minutes of the preceding meeting were read and confirmed. The following gentlemen were balloted for and duly elected members of the Club :— Dr. W. Hodges, Mr. Henry W. Parritt, Mr. Peter W. Squire, Mr. J. T. N. Thomas, and Mr. Chas. J. Wainwright. The following; donations to the Club were announced : — "Proceedings of the Manitoba Historic and) Scientific Society " ... ... ... ... ' From the Society. »> " Historic Names of Places in the Canadian North- 1 W cSu • • • ••• ••• *•• ••• " Mound Builders," by Bryce M. Wright From the Author " Proceedings of the Belgian Microscopical Society " In Exchange. " Journal of the New York Microscopical Society'' „ ,, "Transactions of the Eastbourne Natural History { OUl^lCtJ' ... ... ... ... ... " The American Monthly Microscopical Society" „ " The American Naturalist " " Proceedings of the Royal Society " " Monograph of the British Phytophagous Hymen- 7 optera," Pay Society's Publication ... * " Annals of Natural History '' J! i> From the Society.. By Subscription. Purchased. 1G1 The thanks of the Club were voted to the donors. The Secretary exhibited a new Iris Diaphragm, by Mr. Hunter, made to go close up under the object. The Secretary read a letter from Colonel O'Hara, enclosing a series of photographs of diatoms from Galway Bay, and asking for assistance in identification. A large number of dipping tubes of a superior kind were placed upon the table for distribution amongst the members by Mr. Le Pelley, to whom the thanks of the meeting were unanimously given. Dr. M. C. Cooke read a paper " On some remarkable Moulds," illustrating the subject by drawings, which were handed round for inspection. Mr. Karop enquired if the fungus mentioned as having been found by Mr. Durham in the human ear was associated with any disease, or whether it was one of those aggregations which were sometimes found on the ears of out-patients attending hospitals ? Dr. Cooke said he thought Mr. Durham stated that there was a disease of the ear for which he was consulted, and that he removed the mould in the course of his treatment. Dr. Matthews, in proposing a vote of thanks to Dr. Cooke for his paper, said that there were certain subjects which seemed to be above criticism, be- cause in the mouths of experts they were statements of facts which were simply beyond dispute. In the instance before them it was well known that Dr. Cooke had made the subject so much his own, and his observations were so correct, that they were beyond the limits of ordinary criticism. A vote of thanks to Dr. Cooke was then put to the meeting and carried unanimously. Mr. Karop said, that whilst this question was before the meeting, he would mention a rather remarkable place in which he had once found some of these fungi. He was examining some bottles of sections of human spinal cord preserved in strong methylated spirit, and in one bottle of the series he found the upper part of the spirit was covered by a mycelium of some kind, which was quite black. He had mentioned it to Dr. Cooke, but he did not at the moment remember anything which grew in spirit. Dr. Cooke acknowledged the vote of thanks, and said that the very short time at his disposal for the preparation of a subject did not leave him much choice as to what it should be, and in looking over what was ready to hand he thought that the notes which he had read contained something which was novel or new, and if not controversial they had at least some points of interest. If there had been time in which to think over a subject, the one he had brought forward would, perhaps, be amongst the last which would have occurred to him as being suitable ; but under the circumstances it seemed to him the best thing to be done. Amongst the five species named there were some curious facts which showed the polymorphous character of these moulds — the first being found in a stoppered bottle, the second in a dead insect, the third in the ear of a living human being, the fourth on a living tree, and the fifth found growing on the leaves of ferns, without apparently doing any injury to them. He did not remember ever to have found them 162 growing iu spirits, but in their low forms they would grow in a solution con- taining a large quantity of spirit. Mr. J. D. Hardy described, by the aid of a diagram drawn on the board, the peculiar method of feeding observed in the case of Daphnia Pulex. The food was carried in the current caused by the legs, to the hinder part of the interior of the shell, and the particles contained therein carried into a funnel, to which is attached a very distinctly-formed organ which stops all inorganic matter or particles too large for mastication ; such particles as they accumulate in the funnel being cleared away by the hook of the hind leg. Such as were passed were masticated by the jaws and passed on to the end of the tongue, which was a long flexible tubular organ, which could be opened at will along its length. It had (when closed) a very small opening. Whatever particles accumulated at the end of the tongue were cleared away by the hook on the first pair of legs. Whatever was sucked in by the tongue was carried along it at once to the alimentary canal. Mr. Goodwin said he was very pleased to find that Mr. Hardy had taken up this subject. He had himself noticed that there was an in-taking of food at the posterior portion of the animal, but he found a great difficulty in tracing its progress so as to see it entering the alimentary canal. In the endeavour to do this he stained some starch granules with iodine, and attempted to feed the Daphnia with them, but it would have nothing to do with them ; one day, however, he chanced to see a Daphnia draw in the egg of a rotifer, and he was able to trace the progress of this entirely. The thanks of the meeting were voted to Mr. Hardy for his communica- tion. Notices of meetings and excursions for the ensuing month were then given, aud the proceedings terminated with the usual Conversazione, and the following objects were exhibited : — Sea slug, Limapontia nigra ' ... ... ... Mr. F.W.Andrew. Parasites from a Bat ... ... Mr. F. Coles. Diatoms frum Burrin, Ireland, in situ ... Mr. A. L. Corbett. Alcyonium digitatum ... ... ... ... Mr. W. M. Holmes. Section of lower jaw of Shrew Mouse Mr. J. J. Hunter. New form of graduating Iris diaphragm ... ,, ,, Larva of Corethra culicifo? r mis ... ... Mr. G. E. Mainland. Diatoms, Scejrtroneis caduceus ... ... ... Mr. H. Morland. Bracliionus i?aXa-synch(Bte ... ... ... Mr. R. T. C. Nevins. Lophojjus crystalinus ... ... ... ... Mr. C. Le Pel ley. Entozoa Oxyurisvermicularis . . ... ... Mr. W. Watson. Ovary of Poppy, fertilised, and unfertilised ... Mr. J. Willson. Attendance — Members, 51 ; Visitors, 5. 163 On a Supposed New Infusorian of the Flaoellata ElJSTOMATA. By George J. Burch. {Read April 24th, 1885.) Plate XI. In March, 1884, I found in a ditch, by Port Meadow, Oxford, an animalcule, -which I have been unable to identify with any described in Saville Kent's book. It was growing on duckweed, and also on the cases of gnat larvas, of which there were many at- tached to the weed. Each colony consisted of a compound stem, no portion of which was contractile, bearing from 10 to 50 heads upon branchlets somewhat thinner than the main stem. These heads appeared, in most positions, of an irregular pear shape, the broad end projecting on one side into a blunt proboscis, from which arose a single stout flagellum. About the centre of the creature was a very strongly refracting oval spot, with a somewhat corrugated surface, which I imagined to be the gizzard. Between this and the mouth, which lies in a cup-shaped depression close under the proboscis, was a passage, the walls of which I could distinctly see, even when there was no food in it. The creature was remarkably active, the movement of the flagella being so vigorous as to keep the whole group in constant agitation. The flagellum of each individual waved with a steady circular vibration, most often with one node, but sometimes with two, until some particle of food, generally a micrococcus, came within reach. Then, before the flagellum touched it, a sudden vigorous stroke was made, which appeared to bring the curve of the flagellum be- hind it, and so throw the food into the mouth. At the same moment, with a rapidity very difficult to follow, the head made a dart forward exactly as a dog snaps at a fly (this movement may result simply from the increased activity of the flagellum, though I incline to believe that the creature has the power of bending the head in various directions on the stem, like Vorticella). Imme- Journ. Q. M. C, Series II., No. 13. o 164- G. J. BURCH ON A SUPPOSED NEW INFUSORIAN. diately afterwards, before I could see how it was managed, the food was safely lodged in the creature's throat. This was repeated again and again, the particles being gradu- ally forced down towards the central vesicle, at a little distance apart. The conclusion was irresistible, that in some way the creature is conscious of the proximity of something eatable, and catches it by a voluntary effort. The mere action of feeding, enabled me at a glance, to distinguish it from the other Flagellates which I found in the same water. On several occasions particles too large to swallow were caught ; when this happened the flagellum was instantly stretched straight across the head and pressed firmly down ; and if in this way the food could not be forced into the mouth, after three or four seconds it was allowed to escape. Not imagining that it might be something new, I made no measurements, but only took a rough sketch with the camera lucida, from which I find that the heads were about half the length of those of Carchesium polypinum. Specimens were very plentiful for some weeks. The heads do not apparently break loose from the stems on slight provocation like other Flagellates, for I had one group out of the tank on two successive days, and it was unaltered. With the double spot lens the creatures appear of the usual whitish hue, but with direct sun- light, under a low angled quarter, the heads are of a pale green at the edges and purplish in the centre. I made some careful observations with the itli, and came to the conclusion that the cup-shaped depression in the head is bordered with three equidistant prominences, at the base of the largest of which, or from the apex of it— I could not determine which — is the flagellum, and close under the flagellum the opening of the gullet. Unfortunately, when I had time to go to the Bodleian Library to try to identify the creature, and found it was not in Saville Kent's book, I could no longer get any specimens. I have searched for them this spring, but a bridge is being built near the ditch, and I fear they have been destroyed. If it should be decided that this is a new species, I would suggest the name " raptor,"" but if there is no genus in which it can be placed, I would call it li Ilarpakter socialist from " ap^a^ou," / snatch, which would at once identify it among the Flagellata eustomata, from its method of seizing its prey. Jo urn. Q.M. C Ser.H.Vol. 2.P1.XL A. _ Gidlet B _ G-izzourd, or stomach* G.J.BurcK del. "W."Kh.ein. sc. 165 On some Fossil Marine Diatoms Found in the Moravian "Tegel," from Augarten, near Brunn. By Prof. P. T. Cleve, Hon. F.R.M.S. (Read June 26th, 1885.) PLATES XII and XIII. In the marine deposits of Moravia, known as Tegel (marl or clay), belonging to the miocene and pliocene divisions of the tertiary formation, fossil diatoms have been recently found by Herr E. Thum, of Leipzig, who has kindly sent to me a collection of mounted specimens for description. He informs me that they were detected in the " Tegel," from Augarten, near Brunn. Whether it belongs to the miocene or pliocene formation I am unable to determine. The following is a list of the species sent by Herr Thum : — Cocconeide^e. Cocconeis pellucida, Hantzsch in Rab. Beitrlige, p. 21, PI. 6, Fig. 11 (1863). Grunow, Novara Alga?, p. 12. (Not C. pellucida of Verb., 1863.) I have seen three upper valves. Length, •084--143 mm. ; breadth, '063--084 ; striae, 12 in the -01 mm. This species is found in the warmer seas, as the Mediterranean, Bed Sea, Indian Ocean, &c, and also in the Nankoori deposit. MASTOGLOIACE.E. Orthoneis splendida (Greg.), Gran. Cocconeis splendida, Greg. D. of CI., p. 21, PI. 1, f. 29 (1857). C. punctatissimaj Grev. Mic. Journ., v., p. 8, PI. iii, f. 1 (1857). Mastogloia cribrosa, Grun. Verb., p. 577 (1860). Orthoneis splendida, Grun. Novara Algae, p. 15 (1867). Van Heurck Syn., PI. 28, f. 1-2 (1880). I have seen four examples from this deposit. Length, -088- '168 mm. ; breadth, '07-'13 ; puncta, 5 in "01 mm. Living specimens are smaller, and measure in length *05 to "11 mm., breadth -03- # 09 mm. Striae in living specimens vary from 5 \ (Greg.) to 8 (Grev.) in -01 mm. 166 t. t. cleve on some fossil marine diatoms. Naviculace^:. Navicula aspera, var. intermedia, Grim, in A. Schm. Atl., PI. 48, f. 14, 15 (1876). Franz. Josef's Land Diatomeen, p. 56, PI. A., f. 20 (1884). One of the Tegel specimens measures *2 mm. in length and -034 mm. in breadth, and has 7 striae in -01 mm. ; the stria? are nearer to the median line on one side than the other. This form is found living in the Arctic seas. N. nitescens (Greg.), Diat. of CI., pp. 15 and 69, PI. 1, f. 16 (1857). A. Schm. Atl., PI. 7, f. 38 (1875). (JV. Smithii var.) One specimen, closely agreeing with, the figure in the Atlas, measures -12 mm. in length, and -002 mm. in breadth, and has 6 striae in -01 mm. This species is also found recent in most seas. JV. prcetexta, Ehr. Pinnularia prcetexta, Elir. I\Ib. 1840. Several specimens, all agreeing very closely with the figures in A. Schm. Atl., PI. 3, f. 31-33. Length, -1--24 mm. ; breadth, •06--12 mm. ; stria?, 7-7*5 in -01 mm. Found recent in most marine gatherings. JV. Lyra, var. elliptica. A. Schm. Atl., PI. 2, f. 29, and PI. 3, f. 11 (1875). Van Heurck. Syn., PI. 10, f. 2. One specimen (len. '115, br. -075 mm.; stria?, 6 in -01 mm.) closely resembles the figure in the latter work. Common in recent marine gatherings. JV. inhalata. A. Schm. Atl., PI. 2, f. 30 (1875). One specimen (length -14, breadth -08 mm.) has 9 stria? in -01 mm. The speci- men from Samoa, as figured in the Atlas, has 13 stria? in -01 mm. ; in other respects the Tegel specimen agrees well with it. N. gemmata, Grev., Edin. N. Phil. Jour., x., p. 30, PI. 4, f. 7 (1859). JV. spectabiUs, Grun., Verb., p. 533, PI. 3, f. 11 (1860). N. Giunowii, Kab. Flor. Eur. Alg.,p. 203 (1864). JV. gemmata, var. biseriata, Grun., Novara Alga?, p. 100, PI. 1 A., f. 16 (1867). JV. gemmata, var. spectabiUs, A. Schm. Atl., PI. 8, f. 38 (1875). N. grunowii, A. Schm. Atl., PI. 70, f. 73 (1881). Three specimens •14--20 in length and ■05- , 052 mm. in breadth ; stria? 3 in -01 mm. One of the specimens is slightly constricted in the middle, and very much resembles JV. pristioplwra, Janisch in A. Schm. Atl., PI. 70, F. 72. N. gemmata is found living in warm seas, as the Mediterranean, Ived Sea, the West Indies, California, &c, and in a fossil state in Californian guano and the Nankoori deposit. JV. bomboides, A. Schm. Atl. See Diat. PI. 1, f. 2 (1874). A. P. T. CLEVE ON SOME FOSSIL MARINE DIATOMS. 167 Schm. Atl., PI. 13, f. 36-38 (1875). I have seen only one speci- men ; it is *13 mm. in length and '42 in breadth. It has only a slight central constriction, as in figure 38 of the Atlas. The stria? are 4*5 in -01 mm. JV. gemmatula, Grnn. A. Schm. Atl., PI. 13, f. 20-21 (1875). A somewhat corroded valve (PL 12, f. 1); measures *18 mm. in length and *048 in breadth, and has 4*5 stria? in -01 mm. It resembles the last-named form, but is larger, It also re- sembles JV.mcesta, A. Schm. Atl., PL 69, f. 18-19, which, however, has closer stria? (7 in # 01 mm.). Nearly related to our specimen is JV. Lesinensis, Grun., m.s., measuring *144 mm. in length and •05 in breadth, with 5 stria? in *01 mm., but the depressions parallel to the median line are narrower. JV. Beyrichiana. A. Schm. Atl., PL 69, f. 16-17 (1881). One specimen, which measures '18 mm. in length and '05 in breadth, and has 33 rows of distant puncta in *01 mm. This species has been found in zEgena (? fossil). JV. Crabo (Ehr.), Kiitz. Diploneis Crabo, Ehr. Mb. (1844). JV. Crabo, Kiitz., Sp. AL, p. 83 (1819). JV. Pandura, Bieb. Diat, Cherb., PL 18, f. 4 (1854). I have seen four valves from the " Tegel," all of which have lost their finely-sculptured layer. All of them agree very well with Figures 4 and 8 (pi. 69) in the Atlas ; Figure 8 seems to be more nearly related to JV. multicostata, if this is reallv distinct from JV. Crabo. SuiURELLE^E. Surirella opulenta. Grun. Verb., p. 461, PL 11, f. 10 (1862). S. fastuosa, var. opulenta. A. Schm. Atl., PL 20, f. 1. One large specimen. S. Baldjikii. Norman, T.M.S., ix., p. 6, PL 2, f. 2. A. Schm. Atl., PL 20, f. 7. One specimen. This species is still living in the Mediterranean and Black Seas. Campylodiscus hibernicus, Ehr. A. Schm. Atl., PL 55, F. 10- 11. I have seen one perfect specimen from the "Tegel." Mr. Thum informs me that this well-known freshwater species really occurs in this deposit. This seems highly improbable, as all the other species found in it are purely marine. C. Clypeus, Ehr. Ehr. Mb., p. 205 (1840). Cocconeis Clypeus, Ehr. (1838). I have seen one small specimen closely agreeing with figure 3, PL 55, in Schm., Atl. 168 T. T. CLEVE ON SOME FOSSIL MARINE DIATOMS. C. obsoletus, Ch., n.sp. Valve orbicular or oval, diameter *17 mm., central area large, surrounded by a circle of short puncta. Limbus, with a few irregular and obliterated canaliculi. Margin with short cellules. Of all the described forms of Campylodisci with which I am acquainted, this shows the nearest affinity to G. tabulates, A. Schm. Atl., PI. 52, f. 4, but the canaliculi in that species extend from the margin to the circle of puncta sur- rounding the central margin. PL 12, f. 2, ^ , b. c, margin in different foci ^. Synedre^e. Synedra fulgens (Kiitz). W. Sm. Gomplienema, Kiitz (1833). S.fu1gens,W. Sm., 1853. Van. Heurck Syn., PI. 43, f. 1-4. I have only seen a fragment of a valve "02 mm. broad, with un- usually coarse strise, 6 in *01 mm. ENTOPYLE2E. Gephyrea media, Arnott, M.J.S. viii.,p. 20 (1860). Achianthes angvstata, Johnst. (nee. Grev.), M.J.S. viii., p. 14, PI. 1, f. 13 (1860.) Costa3 6*5 in -01 mm. The species found in the " Tegel " are identical with those from the Moron deposit. It occurs living in California, Japan, &c. Striatellejs. Rhabdonema adriaticum, Kiitz. One specimen. Grammatophora maxima, Grim. Verb., p. 416, PI. 5, f. 5 (1862). A large and robust form, -18-*3 mm. in length and *018 in breadth. No striation could be detected. Isthmie.e. Isthmia nervosa, Kiitz. No difference between this specimen and the recent form could be detected. BlDDULPHIE^E. Biddulplua pulclxella , Gray. (1821). The Tegel specimens are identical with the recent forms. B. Tuomeyi (Bail.), Roper. Zygoceros Tuomcyi, Bailey (1843). B. Tuomeyi, Roper (1859). Van Heurck Syn., PI. 98, f. 2-3. This is a very variable species ; some specimens so nearly resemble B. elegantula, Grev., T.M.S. xiii., PI. 6, f. 13, that they might be taken for that species, whilst others can scarcely be distinguished from B. regina, W. Sm. Syn., Vol. ii., p. 50, PI. 76, f. 323. Van Heurck Syn., PI. 98 f. 1. P. T. CLEVE ON SOME FOSSIL MARINE DIATOMS. 169 Syringidium, sp. I have seen one imperfectly developed frustule which seems to belong to S. Americanum, Bail. (Van Heurck Syn., PI. 106, f. 2.) PI. 12, f. 3, if*. Triceratium Favus, Ehr. Type form. T. Favus, var. maxima, Grun. Van Heurck Syn., PI. 107, f. 5. Distance between the angles '15-'25 mm. Cellules (1-P4 in •01 mm.) very regularly arranged in lines parallel with the margins ; surface of valve covered with coarse granules (10 in '10 mm.), radiating from the centre to the margins. Although the form of the valve and the arrangement of the cellules are the same as in the typical T. Favus, the presence of the radiating granules seems to be sufficient to constitute it a distinct species. T. arcticum, Brightwell, 1853. A. Schm. Atl. PI. 79, f. 12-13. Large triangular ("15 mm. between the angles) cellules in lines radiating from the centre angles ; obtuse, with rows of smaller cellules, 8 in '01 mm. In addition to the coarser eellula- tion the surface is covered with very small cellules, as shown in figures 5, 6, 7, PL 79, of the Atlas. T.Moronense, Grev. (T.M.S. xiii., p. 9, PI. 4, f. 18, 1865). Of this species I have seen two specimens. Distance between the angles '08--15 mm. So far as 1 know this species has only been found in the fossil deposits of Moron and Nankoori. T. latum, Grev. (T.M.S., xiii, p. 103, PI. 9, f. 20, 1865). A. Schm. Atl., PI. 77, f. 38-39. One specimen. Distance be- tween the angles *075 mm. In all respects identical with A. Schmidt's figures ; this species has been found living at Singapore and Celebes. T. turgidum, Ch. n.sp. Valve in s.v. triangular, with very broad angles ; outline orbicular, very convex ; centre with scattered puncta, which become closer as they approach the margin. In s.v. the centre is very turgid, and the angles produced. Distance between the angles *07 mm. PI. 12, f. 4, a b, 12 f. T. Stokesianum, Grev. (T.M.S., xiv., p. 8, PI. 2, f. 23, 1866). The form found in the Tegel, and which I refer to the above named species, differs from Greville's figure, the veins not form- ing transverse bars ; they are also shorter and more irregular. In a small specimen they are very short, but I do not think these differences are of any specific value. I have examined four speci- mens. Distance between the angles '1-'16. The centre of the valve has a few puncta (?) differing from the ordinary cellulation ; 170 P. T. CLEVE ON SOME FOSSIL MARINE DIATOMS. they are probably short spines or apiculi. A small specimen shows considerable affinity to T. Jensenianum Gran. (A. Schm. Atl., Pi. 77, f. 15-16), but differs from that form by the short veins being more numerous. P1.12, f. 5, a b, 2 ®- T. parallelum, Ehr , Grev. Triangular form=T. obtusion, Ehr. ? Cleve, West Ind. Diat., p. 1G (1878). T. parallelum var. trigone, A. Schm., PI. 76, f. 14-17, (1882). Quadrangular form= Amphitetras parallela, Ehr., Mb. (1840). Triceratium parallelum, Grev. T.M.S., xiii., p. 104, PI. 9, f. 22 (1865). Hexagonal form, Grev. I.e., f. 23. Both the triangular and quadrangular forms occur in the " Tegel." The species is found living in the warmer seas, as the Mediterranean, Red Sea, West Indies, Gallopagos Islands, and as fossil in iEgina Moron and San Jeremie, F.K). T. tesselatum, Grev. (T.M.S. ix, p. 71, PI. 8, f. 14). This species belongs to a group of Triceratia ; extremely difficult to exactly determine, so many slightly differing forms having been described as distinct species and also imperfectly figured. As my determina- tion may not be perfectly correct, I give a figure of the only specimen I have seen from the Tegel deposit. Distance between the angles, -08 mm. PI. 12, f. 7. T. irregulare var. hebetata, Grun. Van Heurck Syn., PI. Ill, f. 10. One specimen closely agreeing with the above figure. The angles and margin show a structural difference when the focus of the objective is altered. This is probably caused by the existence of two differently sculptured layers. In one focus the angles have large cellules, in the other very small ones. I have some doubts as to this form being the true T. irregulare. T. trisulcum, Bail, (in Pritch. Inf., p. 854, PI. 8, f. 24, 1861). A. Schm. Atl., PI. 78, f. 5-8. Of this form I have seen several specimens. Distance between the angles 'lO-'lS mm. Var. minor, Cleve. Small. Distance beJMeen the angles, # 1 mm. The apices of the angles are more acute than in the larger form. PI. 12, f. 6, *** T. nobile (Grev.), CI. Amphitetras nobilis, Grev. T.M.S. xiii, p. 105, PI. 9, f. 27 (1865). One large specimen. Distance be- tween the angles "115 mm., rows of cellules, 4 in *01 mm. A 6mall quadrangular specimen agrees well with Amphitetras pro- ducta, Grev., T.M.S. ii., p. 94, Pi. 9, f. 11 (1862) ; not T. production, Grev. (1861), nor T. balearicum, CI. Grun. and green Sv. Vet. Ak. Handl., T. xviii, p. 25, PI. 6, f. 73, I\ T. CLEVE ON SOME FOSSIL MARINE DIATOMS. 171 T. antediluvianum (Ehr.), Van Heurck. Amphitetras ante- diluviana, Ehr. (1839). 1 have seen only one specimen from the Tegel deposit, and this is not the type form ; the lobes are less obtuse. It more nearly resembles the last described form, from which it differs principally by its coarser cellulation (3 cellules in the *01 mm.) and less produced lobes. Distance between the angles *07 mm. Eupodiscus Argus, Ehr. Tripodiscus Argus, Ehb. (1810). E. Argus, W. Sm., Syn. vol. I, 1859. Van Heurck Syn., PI. 117, f. 3-6. Several specimens examined, but no difference could be de- tected between them and recent forms. Aulacodiscus Oregonensis, Bail. 18G2. A. Oreganus, Ralfs. 1861. A. Schm. Atl., PI. 31, f. 4-5. A. amoenus, Grev., T.M.S. xii., p. 10, PL 1, f. 3 (1S64). A. Schm. Atl., PI. 41, f. 13. One specimen agreeing very well with A. Schmidt's figure. A. Grunowii, 01., n.sp. Valve largo, -1--3 mm. in diameter, with distant rows of granules radiating from the centre, where they arc scattered. Between these are very small puueta ; below the granu- lated surface is a reticulated layer; number of rays 6-10. PI. 12, f. 8, ^f. This beautiful species approaches very closely in general ap- pearance to A. Grevilleanus, Norman (T.M.S. xii., p. 10, PI. 1, f. 1, 1864), but the markings on that species show many important differences ; nevertheless, our species has a close affinity with it. A. Grevilleanus was found in the Moron deposit. Cerataulus turgidus, Ehr. (1843). Van Heurck Syn., PI. 104, f. 1-2. Two small specimens, -05--06 mm. in diameter. C. Johnsonianus (Grev.), CI. Biddulphia Johnsoniana, Grew T.M.S. xiv., p. 6, PI. 2, f. 14-15 (1866). A very robust species, •18 mm. in diameter. The puncta of the valve form irregular wavy lines, about *11 in 0.1 mm. (Moron deposit, Greville.) Auliscus conjluens, Grun. A. Schm., Probetafel, f. 1 (1874). Atlas, PI. 32, f. 6-8. Several specimens, diameter *1 mm. A. ccelatus, Bail. (1853). The specimens from the Tegel agree with Figure 12, PI. 32, in A. Schm. Atl. (from Moron). A. Normanianus, Grev. T.M.S. xii., PI. 11, f. 11 (1864). A. Schm. Atl., PI. 32, f. 3, and PI. 67, f. 5. One valve agreeing in every respect with the Moron specimen. A. pulvinatus, 01., n.sp. Valve nearly oibicular ; processes 172 r. T. CLEVE ON SOME FOSSIL MARINE DIATOMS. two, large, centre punctate depressed, surrounded by two elevated rings, separated by a furrow. Structure : minute puncta, ar- ranged in irregular radiating lines. Margin with a few short apiculi. Diameter *08 mm. PI. 13, f. 9, ^~ AcTINOPTYCIIEuE . Actinoptychus undulatut, Ebr. Large specimens '08-. 18 mm. in diameter. Between the three marginal nodules and the central area are distinct raphes. A. splendens (Shadb.), Ralfs. Van Heurck Syn., PI. 119. Be- sides the typical form I have observed the following varieties : — var. Californica, Grim. Van Heurck Syn., PI. 120, f. 1. var. Nicobarica, Grun., I.e., f. 4. A. glabratus, Grun, I.e., PI. 120, f. 6. var. incisa, Grun., I.e., f. 8. A, vulgaris, var. Virginica, Grun., I.e., PI. 121, f. 7. PI. 13, f. 11. Another variety occurs in the Tegel, having a coarser reticular and more distant rows of puncta. PI. 13, f. 10. A. SimbirsJcianus, A. Schm. Atl., PI. 29, f. 11 (1875). One specimen, resembling the figure in the Atlas. A. Boliviensis, Janiscb. A. Schm., Atl. PI. 1, f. 23 (1875). One large specimen. I regard as varieties of this species — A. GriXndleri. A. Schm. Atl., PI. 1, f. 22 (1875). A. Pfitzeri, I.e., PI. 29, f. 1 (1875). The differences between the three forms consist in the number of the marginal nodules, the form of the blank spaces, and the depression of the surface, but all these characters are variable. In PI. 13, f. 12, I give a figure of A. Pfitzeri, from the Tegel. A. Grundleri has two nodules, and is larger, but does not other- wise differ. A: Moronensis (Grev.), CI. Omphalopelta Moronensis, Grev. T.M.S. xiv., p. 122, PI. 2, f. 14 (1866). This species does not seem to be rare in the Tegel, and varies in size from -08-*26 mm. in diameter. Small specimens agree with Greville's figure, but the large valves are more flattened and are slightly hexagonal. Asterolampra Marylandica, Ehr. (1844). Diameter of valve •11 mm., rows of puncta 8 in *01 mm. Thaumatodisci Cleve. In this family I propose to include some very remarkable forms of Diatomacea3, the valves of which have prominent central pro- cesses. I place in this family the genera Tkaumatonema, Greville, T. T. OLEVB ON SOME FOSSIL MARINE DIATOMS. 1 7 ^ J T.M.S., 1871. Strangulomena, Greville, T.M.S. (1873), and a new and undescribed genus from the Tegel, Pyrgodiscus, Kitton, MS. The genus Thaumatonema bears a long process, proceeding from the centre of the circular valve, which afterwards becomes widely forked. The apices of the forks articulate with those of the ad- joining frustule. Valve (discoid) turgid, with a flattened centre. Pyrgodiscus (from Tlvpyos, a tower), has a conspicuous square, tower-like elevation, bearing large spines on its sides and angles. Valve orbicular, with a large square central elevation, armed with long and stout spines ; margin with small processes placed on elevations. Surface with irregular line of radiating puncta. The processes are connected with the central elevation by smooth radiating lines. Pyrgodiscus armatus, n.g. Kitton. End of the central elevation flattened, with rows of small puncta, which do not reach the centre, margins with four stout spines, below which and alter- nating with them are four similar spines. Diameter of disc 'OS-'l mm. (height of "tower" 2-r4 F.K.) The structure of the valve seems to bear some resemblance to that of Polymyxus (?) pulchellus, Grun. (in Van Heurck Sy., PI. 123, f. 5) and Tliauma- tonema costatum, Grew (T.M.S. 13, PI. 8, f. 3). PI. 13, f. 13 a.b.c. Herr Thum has not yet succeeded in rinding an entire frustule ; it is therefore uncertain whether the two valves are alike. I am much inclined to believe that they are not. My reason for this is that he has sent me a specimen, which seems to me to be either the opposite valve of a frustule or an abnormity. It is certainly nearly allied to P. armatus. The following is a description of it : Valve more irregular in structure ; it has 5 spines and a slight indication of a sixth, but which do not project from a central eleva- tion. PI. 13, f. 13, d. 4 «°. Arachxoidisca Cl., N. Fam. Arachnoidiscus omatus, Ehb. (1849). A. Schm. Atl., PI. 73, f. 4-6. Several corroded specimens. Stictodiscus Californicus, Grey., var. areolata, Grun. A. Schm. Atl , PI. 74, f. 1. (1882). I have seen five specimens agreeing well with the figure in the Atlas, taken from a somewhat corroded valve from the Moron deposit. Diameter - 08-*l5 mm. On uninjured specimens, the lines of marginal puncta split up into 2-3 rows of small puncta. 174 T. T. CLEVE ON SOME FOSSIL MARINE DIATOMS. ACTINOCYCL^E. Actinocyclus Ehrenbergii, Ralfs. (1861). Van Heurck Syn., PI. 123, f. 7. A. (alienus, var. ? Grun.) undatus, Cleve., Disc. •07-*l mm. in diameter ; pseudo nodule indistinct ; valve with radiating and branching lines of puncta (or small cellular) 5-6 in *01 mm. ; surface concentric, elevations and depressions. It is with some hesitation I refer this form to A. alienus ; the radiating lines of puncta do not form such distinctly oblique and decussating trans- verse rows as shown in Grunow's figures in Van Heurck's Syn., PI. 125, f. 10 and 12 ; near the margin they have this arrangement, but on the other part of the valve they resemble A. stibtilis., fig. 7 (PI. 124), PI. 13, f. 14 ±§*. MELOSIREiE. Paralia sulcata (Elib.), Cleve (1864), GallioncUa sulcata. Ehb., (1838). Orthosira marina Sm. S.B.D. n., p. 59 (1856), Paralia marina, Heib. (1863). Melosirat clavigera, Grun. Van Heurck Syn., PI. 91, f. 1-2, (1881). M. Sol. (Ehr.) Kiitz. Gallionella Sol, Ehb. (1844). M. Sol., Kiitz. (1849). Van Heurck Syn., PI. 91, f. 9. M. Omnia CI. n.sp. Valve orbicular with a circle of puncta (6-7 in *01 mm.) between the margin and the centre (but nearer the former), the margin finely striate (21 in •01 mm.), the re- mainder of the valve smooth. Diameter, '085 mm. PI. 13, 1. 15. 480 1 ' M. Borreri, Grev. Brit. Flora. Podosira antediluviana, CI. Valve very convex and robust, with minute puncta scattered at the centre, but forming minute irregularly radiating lines on the other parts of the valve. PI. 13, f. 16, —-. Pyxidicula cruciata, Ehr. (1841), Mg., PI. 33, f. 7. One speci- men. Dia. '056. Cellules 3-4 in *01 mm. Endictya oceanica, Ehr. (1845). A. Schm. Atl., PI. 65, f. 10. Diameter '09-* 15 mm. Cellules 2 in *01 mm. E. minor. A. Schm. Atl., PI. 65. f. 4 (1881), E. oceanica in CI. and Moll, Diat. No. 110. Diameter -09 mm. Cellules 3 in •01 mm. Craspcdodiscus Coscinodiscus, Ehr. (1844.) A. Schm # Atl., PI. 66, f. 3-4. One specimen '11 mm. in diameter. Cellules in the limbus 2 in '01 mm. ; in the concave part 4 in *01 mm, Coscinodiscus griseus, Grev. T.M.S., in., p. 230, PI. 9, f. 7 P. T. CLEVE ON SOME FOSSIL MARINE DIATOMS. 175 (1863.) I Lave seen one valve ; it lias a small central space with- out granules. Row of granules 9 in "01 mm., margin with short granulated striae 'lG-'Ol mm. Diameter -055 mm. The arrange- ment of the lines of puncta agrees very [well with Greville's figure, but differs from that in Van Heurck (Syn., PI. 132, f. 1), which has also very much coarser marginal stride. The " Tegel " specimen also differs very much from figures 13 and 14 (PI. 58 in Schmidt's Atlas), which have coarser granules, and the margins are not striate. C. elegans, Grey. T.M.S. xiv, p. 3, PL 1, f. G (1860). A. Schm. AtL, PL 58, f. 7. Several specimens from -05 to -08 mm. in diameter. Rows of puncta 3 to 4 in -01 mm., marginal striae 12 in '01 mm. I regard as a variety C. biradiatus, Grev. (T.M.S. ix, p. 42, PL 4,f. 7 (1861)., and A. Schm. AtL, PL 58, f. 2). This form also occurs in the Tegel. C. Thumii, Cle., n.sp. Valve *075 mm. in diameter; lines of granules radiant, unequal in length, not reaching the centre ; crowded near the margin, where they are 6 in '01 mm. PL 13, f. 17, 4 -f-°. C. nitidus, Greg. (1857). A. Schm. AtL PL 58, f. 18. Valve •088 mm. in diameter. The puncta exhibit a tendency to form radiating lines. C. radiatus, Ebb. (1839), Gran. Diat. Fr. Jos. Land, p. 19. Cellules about 2*5 in -01 mm., in the margin about 4 in -01 mm. Diameter *12 mm. Some varieties approach near to C. crassus, C. heteroporus. C. Argus, C. marginatus, and C. Oculus Iridis, but they are not typical specimens of these species. C. robustus, Grev. (T.M.S. xiv., p. 3, PL 1, f. 8, 1866). Specimens from the Tegel are -09-'01 mm. in diameter, and have 2 cellules in '01 mm. Some of the Tegel specimens very much resemble A. Schm., figure 3, PL 62, in AtL Others having smaller cellules (3--01 mm.) approach closely to C. marginatus, C. bi- marginatus, and C. radiatus. C. Asteromphalus Ebb. (1844 ). Some splendid specimens occur in the Tegel of the varieties eximia, Grun. (A. Schm. AtL, PL 63, f. 12), and var. liybrida, Grun., Fra. Jos. Land Diat. 79, PL c, f. 9. C. centralis (AtL, PL 63, f. 1.) Xanthiopyxis oblonga, Ehb. (Mg. ; PL 33, 17, f. 17). This curious form is probably an auxospore of some Diatom, perhaps a 176 P. T. CLEVE ON SOME FOSSIL MARINE DIATOMS. ffemiauliiSj and is nearly related to Stephanofiyxis limbata, Ehr. (Van Heurck Syn., PI. 83, ter. f. 13-14.) PI. 13, f. 18. Some 80 species of Diatoms have been found in the Tegel of Briinn, and with the two exceptions Campylodiscus hibernicus and C. Clypeus (the former occurring in fresh and the latter in brackish water) ; all are decidedly marine. Only a comparatively few appear to be extinct, and of those a remarkable number have been detected in the " Moron deposit," which is said to be found near Seville, in Spain. Of the recent species many forms are now living in the far-dis- tant seas of Japan, California, West Indies, &c, proving that the Tegel was a deposit in a sea of a tropical or sub-tropical character. It is of great interest to compare these fossil forms with recent specimens, and to note how little their characteristics have been altered by the conditions to which they have been exposed during the long period that has elapsed since the later tertiary and the present time. Specimens of the Tegel Diatoms, mounted as " Typen Platten " can be obtained of Herr Thum, 2, Teichstrasse, Leipzig. Additional Forms Found by F. Kitton in a Sample of the Tegel, Cleaned by Herb, Thum. Campylodiscus Echeneis, not unfrequent. Nitzschia circumsuta, several valves. Surirella elegans? several valves, only differs from the fresh- water form in the canaliculi being more robust. Stauroneis jihamicenteron, fragment of a valve. Nitzschia scalaris, fragment of a valve. Navicula major, two valves. Trinacria excavata, one valve. Aidacodiscus angidatus, one valve agreeing exactly with a speci- men in my collection, identified by Dr. Greville. Aidacodiscus, n.sp. When the lower surface is in focus it is some- what like a coarse A . margaritaceus, but when the objective is focussed on the upper surface the markings very much resemble those in Aida- codiscus (Eupodiscus) Argus. The furrows are much more dis- tinct than those on A. margaritaceus ; number of processes, 6 ; diameter of valve '0040. A. Grunowii docs not appear to be very rare in the Tegel, as :.i.c. Ser.H.Vol. 2. PL XII ^o oc c-c _ ^lo o o <=» c . X°oocc - Do oc^>cc - ^o oocc L ■40° - QQQyuaoj 2 "b. >JC >& V 280 5 V 8 .Xfr P. T. Cleve del. W. Rkein sc. DIATOMS FROM THE BRUNN "TEGEL. Jo-urn. Q. M. C. Ser.ILVoL2.Pl.XIII. P. T. Cle-ve A&L W. Kheri DIATOMS PROM THE BRUNN ' TEGEL." P. T. CLEVE ON SOME FOSSIL MARINE DIATOMS. 177 fragments frequently occur ; my specimen is imperfect (about two- thirds of a valve.) This form has also some resemblance to A. superb us, Kitton. Cosmiodiscus, Barbadensis, Grev., (?) var. I have seen two or three valves of what I take to be Greville's species. This form is very common in a Tegel from Struhar, Hungary. Arachnoidiscus Ehrenbergii. One specimen. AsteroJampra Marylandica. One specimen. Navicula aspera, var. intermedia. If the fact of the lines of striae on one side of the median line being shorter than on the other is of any generic value, the above-named diatom belongs to the genus Alloioneis ; but I have found forms with the pseudo stauros and the lines of striae equal (A r . aspera type); without the stauros and the lines of stria? also equal; with the stria? unequal (Alloioneis) ; with stria* nearly touching the median line, and an inconspicuous blank space round the central nodule. All these forms have the characteristic stria? of the type form, and gradually merge into each other. DESCRIPTION OF PLATES. Plate XII. Fig. 1. Navicula gemmatula, var ? 4 £°. " 2, Campylodiscus obsoletus, CI., n.sp., a, 2 f°, b. c. 10 T °. 3. Syringidium, sp., 4 ^°. 4. Triceratium turgidum, CI., n.sp., 2 ^°. 5. ,, Stokesianum, a. b., 2 ^°. 6. ,, trisulcum, var. minor, CI., 4 y°. 7. „ tesselatum, 4 ^°. 8. Aulacodiscus Gruuowii, CI., n.sp., 2 f°. a (( Plate XIII. Fig. 9. Anliscus pnlvinatus, CI., n.sp., 4 -p 8 . " 10. Actinoptychus vulgaris, var. 1 °f° . "11. „ „ var. Virginica, 10 f °. "12. „ Boliviensis, var. Pfitzeri, 4 «°. " 13. Pyrgodiscus armatus N.G. et. sp. Kitton, a. S.V. 4 ^°, b. part of do. 10 f°, c. F.V. 4 f°, d. opposite valve of do.? or abnormal form ? " 14. Aotinocyclus (alienus ?) undatus, CI., 4 f°. " 15. Melosira Omma CI., n.sp., 4 f°. " 16. Podosira antediluviana CI., n.sp., 4 -2-°. " 17. Coscinodiscus Thumii CI., n.sp. " 18. Xanthiopyxis oblonga, 4 f °, a. F.Y. b. S.V. 178 On the Mysterious Appearance op a Diatom. By F. Kitton, Hon. F.R.M.S. {Read July 2ith, 1885.) In my list of Norfolk Diatoms I note two species occurring in the water supply of the city of Norwich. These were Asterionella gra- cillima, Heib, and Diatoma elongata. Previous to the covering in of the reservoirs these forms were nearly always present in the deposit left in a precipitating glass, or on a piece of filtering paper after allowing the water to ran slowly through it for several hours. Since the reservoirs have been covered I have not been able to find these or any other forms in the water, but I have noticed that occasionally during the spring and summer months rust-coloured stains appeared on the carafes if the water was allowed to remain unchanged for a few days. This I thought might be attributed to the presence of lime and iron, particularly as they apparently dis- appeared with effervescence when acid was introduced. A few weeks ago I scraped off a little of the film and examined it with a ^-inch objective, when I found it was composed entirely of frustules of Achnanthes (Achnanthidium, Breb.) linearis ; this somewhat sur- prised me, as I have never found it on the filter papers. I there- fore (on June 25) filtered 8 ozs. of the water into a glass-stoppered bottle, using a filter paper 1 inch in diameter and a very small •^lass funnel. When the bottle was filled I removed the paper and boiled it in sulphuric acid, which I afterwards decarbonized with chlo- rate of potash ; the residuum, after the usual washing and concentra- tion, I examined, but could find no indication of diatomaceous re- mains. I now turned my attention to the bottle of filtered water. In the course of a few days the stains began to appear, and on July 7th were much increased in size and depth of colour. I poured off the water and removed the film with a camel's-hair pencil ; after clean- ing with nitric acid I found that this also consisted of the above- named Diatom unmixed with any other form. As this is a very minute species ('000 1" in length and less than '0002" in breadth), I thought it just possible that some of the frustules might have F. KITT0N ON THE MYSTERIOUS APPEARANCE OP A DIATOM. 179 passed through the paper and have continued to increase in the filtered water. In order to test this I filtered some emery powder, which had remained in suspension six or seven hours, the particles of which were less than the -00005 in size ; these I found did not pass through the filter. I do not conclude from this that it is a case of spontaneous generation, but rather as indicating the existence of microspores sufficiently minute to pass through the paper. I have some bottles of distilled water, prepared two months ago, none of which exhibit any indications of the existence of Diatoms or other organisms.* * The development of ruycelia takes place very rapidly in the distilled water containing cleaned preparations unless it is mixed with at least an equal quantity of spirit. This, I believe, is due to the cork, the bottom of which moulds, and the spores fall into the water and produce mycelia. Journ. Q. M. C, Series II , No. 13. 180 THE PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS. Delivered at the Annual General Meeting, 24th July, 1885. By Dr. W. B. Carpenter, C.B., F.R.S., &c, &c. You will excuse me, gentlemen, I am sure, if I limit my re- marks to a very few points. One of the manifestations of the nervous prostration or depression under which I have suffered is a great failure of voice. The genial weather and dry air of the last two days have rather invigorated me, I am happy to say, or I should not have been down here this evening. In the first place let me congratulate you on having secured the services, as President, of Mr. Michael. Mr. Michael is pre- eminently one of that class which I think it is the especial function of this Club to foster, the class of those who take up the microscope and microscojucal research, as a means of pleasurable occupation, but who pursue it not as mere dilettanti, but in the spirit in which I recommended it to you in my opening address. The value to one's self, and the interest, I think, of microscopic study, are greatly raised by a systematic pursuit of some limited depart- ment, after having qualified the mind by a general logical study to appreciate the importance of a larger acquirement of biological in- formation, obtained, it may be, by books, but as much as possible by actual observation. But the taking up of a particular group of natural history — which, as I then explained to you, one is some- times directed to by mere accident — the taking up a special group and working that group as thoroughly as the individual's means of research permit, that is the way in which science is benefited, and I can assure you that it is the way in which the pleasure and advantage of microscopical research to the individual are most felt — much more than by the mere dilettante pursuit of this, and that, and the other study, which lead to nothing. Mr. Michael is, I believe, engaged during a large part of his time in business — professional work — which has nothing whatever to do with any department of biology, but he has devoted himself THE PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS. 181 for many years to the study of one particular group, the Oribatidce^ and yet from observations I have heard from him, here and else- where, it is quite clear that he has obtained a very large amount of general biological information, which gives him an interest in knowing what is going on in other departments ; but it is the special study of the Oribatidce which has gained for Mr. Michael great credit amongst naturalists, and which has added very con- siderably to our knowledge of an extremely curious and interesting group. Now with regard to the communications which have been made during the present year, I would just mention two in especial ; one the communication made to us by Mr. Buff ham, on the con- jugation of Rhabdonema. Those who were present on the night on which that communication was made will remember that I then made some remarks upon it, which I need not now repeat. I would only say at the present time that the peculiar phenomenon which Mr. Buffham believes to have taken place — he has not actually observed it, remember — is the most singular thing that we know, if it does occur as he believes, and I do hope that he, or some one else, will follow up those observations, and will be able to produce further evidence that the interpretation he has put upon them is the correct one. Everyone who is familiar with any department of natural history study will know that you may see a thing with the ordinary eyes, but, as it were, you have to see it with the mental eye also, and that you may be perfectly correct in describ- ing what you see if you merely describe it or draw it, and yet you may be quite wrong in the interpretation you put upon it. Now I may refer to myself as a " dreadful example." When I brought out my Memoir on the " Structure of Shells," now about 40 years ago, nobody doubted at all that I was correct in the interpretation which I put upon what I saw. The plates of that memoir, pub- lished in the British Association's Proceedings for 1841 — of which, if there is not a copy in the library, I shall be happy to give a copy — for lately these old Proceedings have been given away, as it were, by the Council of the British Association, and I secured a few copies of the two volumes containing those memoirs. There are 20 plates in the first, and 20, I think, in the second, published in 1817. There is not a single thing in those plates which I can- not show ; they were drawn by the best microscopical draughts- man of the time — Mr. Leonard ; but the interpretation I put upon 182 the president's address. them now is very different. What I and everybody else believed were cells in those days, we do not believe are cells at all now ; and what I believed were vessels, prove in many instances to be parasitic growths in the substance of the shell. That shows the difference of interpretation in the things you actually see, and it shows you how important it is to distinguish between the two — the things you see with the bodily eye, so to speak, and the things you see with the mind's eye. In those days everybody was finding cells everywhere. It was just the beginning of the cell doctrine, and when the cellular structure of the epidermis of the higher animals was discovered, of course the verv natural inference was that the things corresponding with the epidermis — the epidermic skeleton — would be proved to be cellular also ; and the evidence seemed quite satisfactory, and yet now that evidence is found to bear a very different interpretation. You know the old saying, that a wise man changes his mind as often as he sees occasion for it. I have never stuck to an error when I really felt there was sufficient ground for changing my opinion, and, therefore, in the later editions of my book on the microscope, I have given what I believe to be the true interpretation of these appearances. So it is quite possible that the appearances described by Mr. BufThaui may be susceptible of some other interpretation. I very cordially hope that these observations may be followed up through successive seasons until it shall be shown that there is only one interpreta- tion, whatever that may be, put upon them. Now, I have a few remarks to make upon another communica- tion, which we had from Mr. Lowne on the structure of the eyes of insects. It was not my good fortune to be present at more than just the conclusion of that communication, but I knew Mr. Lowne's views on the subject ; and I have since read the last paper which he communicated to the Linnasan Society. It was with very great regret that, just about Easter, I read in the columns of " Nature " a strong condemnation of this paper, and of the want of proper knowledge on the part of the Council of the Linnasan Society, which had induced them to publish it ; and this, from one of the ablest of the younger school of naturalists, Professor Eay Lankester, of whom I wish to speak with every respect as to his great ability, his large contributions — most important contributions — to various departments of biological research ; whose father was an old fellow-student of mine in this very building, and was to the THE PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS. 183 time of his death a valued friend. But I should take that letter of Professor Ray Lankester as just an example of what scientific criticism ought not to be ; and I do not hesitate to say this to you, because I have said exactly the same thing in private to Professor Ray Lankester himself. I happened to be staying, at the time when I read it in " Nature," with my friend, Professor Allman, formerly of Edinburgh, who now resides at Parkstone, and with whose extremely valuable contributions to various departments of study — of the lower animals especially — many of you are doubtless familiar. Professor Allman is a man of very wide attainments, both in botany and zoology ; who commands the respect of every- one who knows him ; who has been a most able teacher in Edin- burgh, where he held a Professorship of Zoology for many years, and who still is cultivating this science. He is working out the hydroid polypes of the chalk formation, and everything that Pro- fessor Allman has done has been done extremely well, and done in the very best spirit as a man. He entirely agreed with me in my great regret at the tone and the manner of Professor Ray Lan- kester's criticism. Now, I believe Mr. Lowne is right scientifically. I have gone into the subject a little since. I have not seen Mr. Lowne's preparations, but I have conversed with those who have, and I have seen the most important recent German memoir upon this subject. The point under discussion is, what is really the retina of the eye ? what is really the position of it ? Mr. Lowne says there is a distinct membranous layer that cuts off the nerve filaments from passing to what others consider the true retina. Now, I put aside altogether the question whether Mr. Lowne is right or wrong, but Mr. Lowne has been a very good worker, we all know. He was the first who introduced or applied the more modern methods of microscopical research to the investigation of the eyes of arthropods. I very well remember the valuable paper which he contributed to the Royal Society a good many years ago. We all felt that it was a very great advance upon previous know- ledge, and a great advance in the method of investigation ; and, therefore, I think that anything that Mr. Lowne brings forward as the result of his later investigation upon this subject is to be received and treated with respect. We may differ from him, we may think that he has made a mistake, that he has misinterpreted what he sees, or that his preparations do not accurately show what can be shown ; but I do think that it is not for anyone to say dicta- 184 the president's address. torially that Mr. Lowne is absolutely and clearly wrong ; and I wish to put it upon record that I have a very strong objection — derived from the habit of a life and a considerable experience in criticism — I have a very strong objection to the assumption by anyone of the tone, " I am Sir Oracle, and when I ope my mouth let no dog bark." As I have said before, I do not wish in any way — in the least degree — to detract from the valuable work which Professor Ray Lankester has done, or from the very great respect in which I hold any opinion of his in this matter, or any other matter of the kind ; but I do not think that any worker who is really honestly endeavouring to add to our knowledge of a very difficult subject should be, if I may so speak, " snubbed" in the way Mr. Lowne has been snubbed. I do not think, gentlemen, that I have anything special to add with regard to the proceedings of this year. I believe they have been quite up to the average of good work, and I have every reason to believe that, under my successor, that average is likely to be increased, and raised rather than lowered. I may just mention one or two directions in which scientific inquiry, I think, may very well be prosecuted by those who have the opportunity for it. One is a subject in which I take myself a very great interest — the question whether the bacteria (a proper knowledge of which is becoming of increased importance in every- day life) whether the bacteria have permanent specific forms, and not only specific forms, but distinctive potencies, which some naturalists, very careful observers, are disposed to attribute to them, or whether they are capable of being modified by culture or by natural influences so as to change their potency — to diminish or increase it, or altogether alter their characters. Now, I have always been one, as many of you may be aware, who has taken the view of the very wide range of species, especially among the lower types of animal and vegetable life. I was led to this very early, and I expressed it five-and-forty years ago ; and everything I have seen and known since has increased my conviction that we must always make great allowances for external influences, and the greater allowance in proportion, so to speak, as the vital force is less — that is to say, as there is less power in the germ itself to withstand the influences of external conditions. Since we have come to connect this kind of bacteria growth with the production of diseases, a great number of things have come to be explained, THE PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS. 185 or at least to be made probable, which were previously considered mere curiosities, as it were. I allude to those very curious bastard forms of disease which are observable from time to time, the forms connecting different diseases with each other — diphtheria and scar- latina for instance, or scarlatina and measles. The manifestation of particular disease germs may be extraordinarily affected by the condition of the body in which they fructify. The small-pox of 200 years ago was a very different disease from the miti- gated small-pox propagated by inoculation, before vaccination came into use — the old malignant type of small-pox, in which patients died within a few clays after taking the disease, frequently before any eruption appeared at all, but with large patches of sub-cutaneous effusion — purpuric effusion — under the skin, that was known as the black-pox, which was described 250 years ago as having ravaged continental Europe with a severity even greater than the plague. That black-pox was prevalent in this country, as we learn from medical writings, and not only medical but historical, or the writings of the ordinary chroniclers of the times — that black-pox was prevalent, carrying off whole families some- times, and the accounts given show that it was one of the most horribly loathsome of all diseases. Now, in the treatises on small- pox written by the best observers during the present century, that malignant small-pox is mentioned merely as a form which may show itself once now and then, but of which nobody has ever seen an epidemic in this present century, and my belief is that the effect of inoculation with small-pox was to eliminate this, because inocu- lation was only practised when a favourable epidemic of small- pox — that is an epidemic in which these malignant cases did not occur — was prevalent, and the cases selected for taking the virus from were mild cases, and that in that way everybody being inoculated with the small-pox, except in out-of-the-way country places, the malignant form, as it were, died out. It was, in fact, as in a somewhat similar way, getting rid of that malignant form, as Pasteur's inoculation of sheep gets rid of the malignant chabon. It is on record that the mortality of small-pox towards the end of the last century, when protected by inoculation, was often not more than one in 100. I have lately seen a paper, which was com- municated to the Society of Arts a few weeks ago, on inoculation as practised among some of the hill-tribes of India not more than 20 years ago, and there the result seems to have been the same. 186 the president's address. It had been traditionally practised there a great many years, cen- turies perhaps, and it had brought down the mortality from small- pox to a very small figure indeed ; that had been superseded by vaccination, and under the very able administration of the medical officer of this district, the native prejudice against vaccination had been removed, and the mortality from small-pox brought down to next to nothing. But see what occurred during the siege of Paris in 1870. There had been a very severe outbreak of small- pox in Paris in the early part of the year, before the war broke out. In the civil population of Paris — not the military — vaccination had been very much neglected — re-vaccination especially ; there was no authoritative performance of it excepting in the military ; and in the French Army — the regulars — it had been on the whole very satisfactorily performed or kept up ; and positively in June of that year, when there were more than 1,000 cases — deaths — from small- pox in that one month, in the civil population of Paris, there was an entire absence — such a complete absence of small-pox in the large garrison of Paris that the small-pox ward of the military hospital was closed. Then came the war; then came the replacement of the old soldiers of the garrison of Paris, who were wanted else- where, by levies hastily got together. There was a great deficiency of vaccine matter — many of these had never been vaccinated, and many more not been re-vaccinated ; then came the shutting up of Paris as the German Army drew near, the crowding of the military hospitals, a very insufficient supply of food, and that not of a good quality — a kind of feeding that was liable to induce land scurvy, and what was the consequence? In November, 1870, there were, I think, about 120 cases of the malignant form of small-pox in the large small-pox hospital, which it had been necessary to institute — the old hospital of the Bicetre. The reporter of this, Dr. Couran, who is now, I believe, at the head of the medical service of the Army, says that there has been no such epidemic of this malignant type of small-pox during the last century in Europe. Now observe, if you did not know that these patients had been subjected to small-pox infection, and if sometimes the case did not go on to develop the eruption — if they had all died before the eruption appeared, as they very commonly did die after the 5th or 6th day after the infection, we should not have known these two diseases to have been the same, so completely and entirely different were they in their types, and yet it was clearly small-pox infection THE PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS. 187 modified in its mode of manifestation by the constitutional con- dition of the patients. Now, my own belief is that there is a very large amount of this modification, and that there is a very large range of forms of disease that may be produced by the same infec- tion ; that the bacteria, when cultivated, as it were, in the human body, may undergo a very considerable amount of modification in their potentialities, and that they may under some circumstances give rise to one form, and under other circumstances to another form of disease. I Worked out this view about a year and a half ago in a paper which I published in the " Nineteenth Century," which I daresay is accessible in some library to any of you who care to learn my views upon it. I may say that since I have published that paper I have had a very large amount of evidence sent to me kindly by various practitioners in the country, as to the variety of manifestations of what was clearly the same contagion, and these facts all fall in with my general natural history notions, you observe, formed from the experience of a life ; for I may say that whenever I have come across a man who has attended to one particular groove — plants or animals — I have inquired about range, and have always learned it was a great deal wider than books would lead you to suppose — that you may have specific descrip- tions, but that these specific descriptions are liable to very con- siderable modification — I should say the types are liable to very considerable modification. Now this is a very important considera- tion, and 1 may say that there Professor Ray Lankester has per- formed good service in the careful study that he made some years ago of the form of these bacilli. That study is contained in the i( Microscopical Journal " — not the " Journal of the Microscopical Society," but the u Quarterly Microscopical Journal " — and I believe that the varieties that he described in that — the variation of form — have been quite confirmed by many who have made a special study of bacilli. To my mind the variation of form and the variation of potentiality constitute one of the most interesting subjects of bio- logical inquiry at the present time; and there is just one other very curious point in which microscopical evidence is wanting to complete a most interesting scientific research. Many of you know, I have no doubt, that the process of what is called nitrification, or the pro- duction of nitric acid, has long been one of the problems of che- mistry. Of course w r e all know that nitric acid can be produced by passing a succession of electric sparks through a mixture of nitro- 188 the president's address. gen and oxygen — common air, even — but still more, nitrogen and oxygen mixed in the proportion which produces nitric acid. Every thunderstorm probably produces a certain small amount of nitric acid in the air, but it is in the soil, you know, that nitric acid seems to be produced, and Mr. Waddington, the son of my old friend Mr. Waddington, of the old Microscopical Society, has published, a few months ago, a most interesting paper, which has made a great im- pression upon some of our most able chemists, leading to the con^ elusion that this nitrification is a result of the action of some pn> tophyte. He has not been able to discover it microscopically, but the experimental evidence is so strong that I think there is very little doubt entertained by some of those to whom I have spoken on the subject as chemists — extremely good judges — that some minute organism is the real agent in producing this most important conver- sion. Now, gentlemen, I feel that I have exhausted the little strength that I had, and I therefore must wish you farewell. I do so with great regret at my own shortcomings, but with every hope for the future welfare and prosperity of the Club. 189 Q.M.C. EXCURSIONS. List of Objects Found on the Excursion to Esher, By Messrs. J. Funston and R. T. G. Nevins. DESMIDIACEJE. Closterium. Micrasteria rotata. DIATOM ACEsE. Nitzschia. Pinnularia. Pleurosigma SpenceriL CRYPTOGAMIA. Mar chantia polymorph*, PHANEROGAMIA. Drosera rotundifolia. Sept. 6th, 1884. Hypericum elodes. Peplis portula. Scutellaria minor. INFUSORIA. Actinophrys Eichhornii. Peridinium^ sp. Stent or Miilleri. Trachelius ovum. Vaginicola crystallina. COCCIDM. A white Coccus on an Agaric. The Jay was very wet, and only three members went on this excursion. List of Objects Found on the Excursion to Hale End, By Messrs. W, G. Cocks, J. D. Hardy, R. T. G. Nevins, C. Rous- selet, J. Spencer, and A. Wildy. ALGjE. Protococcus viridis. Uroglena vol vox. Volvox globator. ,, ,, in an abnormal mucoid condition. DESMIBIACEM. Closterium lunula^ monilife- rum, and others. Desmidium Swartzii. Micrasteria rotata. Sept. 20th, 1884. DIATOMACEM. Navicula. Pinnularia oblonga. INFUSORIA. Ama?ba, a very large species. Anthophysa Miilleri. Arcella dentata. ,, vulgaris. Bursaria vernalis. „ truncatella. Carchesium polypinum. 190 INFUSORIA. Coleps hirtus. Diffiugia proteiformis. Dinobryon petiolatum. Enchelys nodulosa. ,, „ in process of subdivision. JSuglena (viridis ?) with bi- furcate tail.* Epistylis anastatica, attached in tufts to Dytiscus margi- n alis. Hem idin ium n a su turn. Loxophyllum mileagris (or Chilodon cucullus). Peridininm tabulatum. Phacus longicanda. Rhipidodendron Huxleyi. Spirostomum ambiguum. Stentor niger. Stylonichia mytilus. HYDROZOA. Hydra viridis. ROTIFERA. Anuraa culeata. Brachionus Bakeri, & others. Ceplialo siphon limnias. Floscularia cornuta. ,, ornata. Lymnias ceratophylli. Noteus quadricomis. Notommata clavidata. Polyarthra trigla. Rotifer vulgaris. Sal pin a. Scaridium longicaudum. Squamella bractea ? Stephanoceros Eichliomii. Triarthra longiseta. COLEOPTERA. Dytiscus marginalis. Gyrinus natator. DIPT ERA. Corethra plumicornis. Larva. HEMIPTERA. Nepa cinerea. Twelve members of the Club, and four members of the Hackney Society, attended this excursion, which was a very successful one. Two remarkable objects were found, one an enormous amoeboid, and the other a rare rotifer, Notommata clavulata. List of Objects Found ox the Excursion to Richmond Park, By Messrs. J. D. Hardy, 0. Rousselet, and A. Wildy. October 4th, 1884. CONFERVOID ALG^. Lyngbya muralis. Rivularia angulosa. Spirogyra quin in a . DESMIDIACEsE. Closterium, sp. very minute. Closterium lunula. Cosmarium margaritiferum. Didymocladon furcigerus . Pediastriim, sp. g rami Latum. ptertusum. Scenedesmus quadricauda. >) >> * The Eur/lena with " bifurcate tail " which was found by Mr. Hardy, is probably Chlorogonium euchlorum, Ehr., the distinctive characters of which are — " a red eye-spot, a tail, and two anterior filaments " 191 INFUSORIA. Anthophysa vegetans. Arcella vulgaris. Carchesium polypinum. Cothurnia. DiJJiugia proteiformis. Dileptus folium. JEpistylis grandis. Euglypha alveolata. Monads, collared. Ophrydium versatile. Vaginicola crystallina Vorticella, with short thick stem, much branched. HYDROZOA. Hydra fusca. ROTIFER A. Cephalosiphon limn ias. Dinocharis tetractis. Floscularia regcdis. Limnias ceratophylli. Melicerta ringens. Scaridium longicaudum. Stephanoceros Eichhornii. ENTOMOSTRACA. Alona ovuta. Cypris reptans. Daphnia male, very large body, 2 mm. long. Sida crystcdlina. Mr. Rousselet reports finding the new and beautiful Floscularia ngalis, which was described and figured in the Journal of the Royal Microscopical Society. Eight members of the Club, and one member of the South London Society, attended the Excursion. List of Objects Found on the Excursion to Hackney Marshes By Messrs. J. Funston, J. D. Hardy, G. E. Mainland, and C. ROUSSELET. October 18th, 1884. CONFERVOID ALGsE. Oscillator ia. Spirulina oscdlatorioides. DESMIDIA CE^E. Closterium acerosum. „ lunula. Cosmarium tetraophthalmum. Scenedesmus quadricauda. DIATOMACE.E. Navicula, several species. Stauroneis, sp. INFUSORIA. Arcella vulgaris. Carchesium poly pin um. Chilodon cucullus. Dileptus folium. Euglena acus. Euplotes vannus. Paramecium aurelia. Stentor Miilleri. polymorp)hus. viridis. Stylonichia. v >> 192 The foul state of the River Lea, and the Lea and Stort Naviga- gation from sewage deposit, prevented many objects usually found therein from being obtained. List of Objects Found on the Excursion to the Gardens op the Royal Botanic Society of London. By Dr. M. C. Cooke, Messrs. E. Dadswell, C. G. Dunning, H. E. Freeman, H. G. Glasspoole, G. E. Mainland, R. T. G. Nevins, F. Oxley, H. W. Parritt, C. Rousselet, and G. E. Western. 18th April, 1885. FUNGI. Ceuthospora lauri, Fr. Diaporthe resecans, N. Phoma leucostigma, D. C. ,, ligustrina* S. „ stiticum, B. „ vulgaris, S. Rabenhorstia rudis, Fr. DESMIDI^CE^. Closterium acerosum. ,, lunula. sp. Docidium, sp. Pediastrum Boryanum . ,, granulatum. sp. Raphidium falcatum (Ankis- trodesmus falcatus) Scenedesmus obliquus. ,, quadricaudata. ,, sp. DIATOMACEsE. Cocconema lanceolatum. Cocconema sp. Encyonema cwspitosum. „ sp. Epithemia, sp. Fragillaria, sp. Gomphonema geminatum. „ sp. Melosira nummuloides. sp. Navicula, sp. Pinnularia, sp. Pleurosigma Spenceri. „ sp. Synedra radians. „ sp. ALGM. Botryococcus Braunii. Cladophora glomerata. Nostoc commune. Oscillaria, sp. Protococcus riridis. Spirogyra, two sp. Teiraspora lubrica. * Determined for the first time as British. 193 PROTOZOA, Acineta mystacina. >) sp. Acineta stage of Opercularia articulata ? Actino splice ri urn Eichhornii. Actinophrys sol. „ three sp. Another rhizopod much smaller than A. sol, hav- ing numerous moniliform rays. Actinophrys stage of Vorti- cella microstoma ? Amcebaprinceps. „ sp. Arcella vulgaris. Coleps liirtus. Cothurnia unberbis. Dileptus folium. Epistylis anastatica. „ Jlav leans. „ grand is. „ nutans. Euplotes charon. ,, patella. Opercularia (epistylis) nu- tans. PROTOZOA. Phacus (Eaglena) longi- cauda. Phacus sp. Spliaropkyra sol. Stentor co?ruleus. M idler i. polymorphus. sp. >> 5) >) 55 Trachelitis ovum. Tracheolerca olor. Trichodiscus sol. Vaginicola crystallina. „ sp. Vorticella campanula, nebulifera. spectabilis. „ sp. Zooth a. m n iu m arbuscula. sp. PORIFERA. Spongilla, sp. CCELENTERATA. Hydra viridia. Limnocodium (craspedacus- tes) Sowerbii. ROTIFERA. Anura?a curvicornis. L'rachionus amphiceros. arceolaris. j? >> sp. Callidina elegans. Chaitonotus larus. Enteroplea hydatina. Eosphora digitata. Euchlanis triquetra. „ sp. Floscularia cornnta. ,, ornata. Lepadella, sp ? Limnias ceratophylli. Afastigocerca carinata. Monocerca rattus. Notommata hyptopus. CEcistes crystallinus. umbella. )) * A curious species having the tentacles in bundles of five or six, pro- ceeding from a common point and extending to different lengths in close opposition, having the appearance of single knotted tentacles. 194 ROTIFER A. ENTOMOSTRACA. Fldlodina erythropthalma. Canthocamptus minutus . „ sp. „ sp. Pterodina patina. Chydorus sph&ricus. Rotifer vulgaris. Cyclops quadricomis. Synchaite, sp. „ tenuicornis. Triarthra longiseta. „ sp. TARDIGRADA. Cypris fusca. Ma crob io tu s Hufela ndii. „ sp. ANNELIDA. Daphnia pulex. Angitillula, sp. MOLLUSCOIDA. Nais, sp. Fredericella sidtana. The day was very fine. About sixty-two persons attended the Excursion, of whom 14 were members of other Societies, or friends. Fredk. A. Parsons, Hon. Sec. Excursions Sub.-Com. 195 PROCEEDINGS. April 10th, 1885. — Conversational Meeting. The fifth and last of the series of demonstrations was given by Dr. W. B. Carpenter, C.B., F.R.S., &c, &c, the subject being the structure of the skeleton of the Echinodermata. He was assisted by Mr. Lewis Wright, who exhibited on a screen, by the aid of the new patent gas microscope, some beautiful photographs and microscopic preparations of echinoderms, spine sections, spicules, &c, illustrating the lecture. The following objects were exhibited in the library : — Section of Cocoanut shell... ... ... Mr. F. Coles. Bacillus anthracis, with spores... ... Mr. W. J. Curties. Eggs of Vapourer moth ... ... ... Mr. F. Enock. Diatoms, Biddulphia granulata ... ... Mr. H. Morlaud. Cholera Bacillus ... ... ... ... Mr. E. M. Nelson. Polyxenus lagurus... ... ... ... Mr. C. Rousselet. Type slide of 50 Diatoms ... ... ... Mr. W. Watson. Attendance — Members, 55 j Visitors, 7. April 24th, 1885. — Ordinary Meeting. A. D. Michael, Esq., F.L.S., F.R.M.S., Vice-President, in the Chair. The minutes of the preceding meeting were read and confirmed. Mr. A. E. Russell was balloted for and duly elected a member of the Club. The Secretary read a letter which had been received by Mr. Hailes, the Hon. Sec. for Foreign Correspondence, intimating that in recognition of the courtesies extended to their Secretary during his recent visit to England he (Mr. Hailes) had been elected an Honorary Member of the Denver Microscopical Society. The following donations were announced : — " Proceedings of the New York Microscopical ) Society" i From the Society. "Proceedings of the Canadian Institute of 1 Toronto" J " " " The American Naturalist " ... ... ... In exchange. "Proceedings of the Royal Microscopical Society" ., Journ. Q. M. C, Series II., No. 13. *o v 196 "Quarterly Joiirnal of Microscopical Science'' ... Purchased. H Annals of Natural History " ... ... ... if " Seven Slides in illustration of Mr. Cheshire's 1 -n tm- -n 1 } From Mr. Enock. paper on the Anatomy of the Bee ... J The thanks of the meeting were unanimously voted to the donors, and on the motion of the Chairman a special vote of thanks was passed to Mr. Enock for his valuable addition to the Cabinet. A paper by the Eev. G. J. Burch, " On a New Flagellate Infusorian," Was read by the Secretary. The thanks of the meeting were voted to Mr. Burch for his communi- cation. Mr. F. E. Cheshire gave a resume of his paper " On the Economy of the Hive Bee." Commencing with a description of the formation and varieties of the cell, the life history of the bee was traced from the egg to the mature condition, in the cases of workers, drones, and queens, details being given as to the different periods and other circumstances peculiar to each. The subject was treated in a very interesting and popular manner, and was illustrated by a number of beautifully-executed diagrams, showing the anatomy of these insects. The Chairman, in inviting remarks upon the subject, said it was certainly a matter of extreme interest to hear a subject discussed in so popular a manner, by a gentleman so well qualified to undertake it from his thorough acquaintance with the economy and the anatomy of the bee, down to its very minutest details. With regard to the casting of the skin of the alimentary canal, this was a matter not in any special way confined to the bee, but belonged also to other larval forms, in which the casts were some- times effected with such perfection that details could often be made out through them which could not be seen in other ways. He did not know that it was necessary to press the lining of the alimentary canal into service in order to explain how the cast skin filled the cell, because as it was cast during the growing period it would be extremely elastic, as com- pared with the skin of the adult insect, and would therefore always cover a much larger space than it occupied before separation. He was sure that the members would feel greatly indebted to Mr. Cheshire, especially as they could so thoroughly rely upon the information received. Mr. Hammond called attention to the fact that the eyes of the drone were larger and more prominent than those of the bee, occupying so large a space, indeed, as to meet at the top of the head. This was also observed to be the case with the male blow-fly, and he inquired if it was common to the males of other insects, and if so, for what probable reason ? Mr. Cheshire said that theory would account for it by the fact that the queen seldom mated with a drone from her own hive, and as the drones had to follow the queen by sight on the wing they would need acute eyes — for similar reasons, no doubt, the queen had small wings as compared with the drone. The Chairman said it was not only in the case of flies, but also in the bymenoptera that this kind of variation was to be observed, both as regarded 197 the eyes and the antennae — for if the antennae were set wider apart tha eyes must of course be wider also ; or, on the other hand, if the approxima- tion of the eyes was altered the position of the antennae must be varied accordingly. Mr. Nelson inquired what was represented by a red spot shown on the top of the head of the bee in the diagram ? Mr. Cheshire said it was one of three simple eyes, or ocelli. Dr. Matthews asked if Mr. Cheshire could give them any reason for the high temperature which had been observed to exist in bee hives ? Mr. Cheshire said this was rather a question for the chemist than the naturalist, but it appeared to be due to the constant oxydation of sugar ; the honey collected consisted mainly of cane sugar, which was gradually converted into grape sugar, in the process of which a large amount of oxydation went on. The behaviour of the bees was peculiar under different conditions of temperature — at 40° they were quiet, but if it fell below that they kept moving, and at 0° their movements were much more active, and they kept moving their wings as if in this way to keep up the temperature. Mr. E. M. Nelson read a paper " On the Pygidium of the Flea/' in the course of which he stated that he had taken up this object from a " brass and glass " point of view, because he found it was referred to in the " Micrographic Dictionary " eight or nine times as a test object, whereas he found that the so-called hairs were spines, which formed nothing that could be called any sort of test for a high power objective. If, however, they would take some of the hairs which were found on the proboscis of a blow-fly, tbey would find that one of the finest things they could see was the ultimate end of one of these hairs. In answer to the question, what was the Pygidium ? ho was inclined to regard it as an auditory apparatus. There were some round holes which he thought were probably the ends of eustachian tubes, and the filaments or hairs would no doubt be of use in catching and communicating sonorous vibrations. Mr. Michael said he had seen Mr. Nelson's method of exhibiting these objects, and could therefore vouch for the accuracy of his descriptions. With regard to the suggestion that the Pygidium might be an auditory apparatus, though it might seem to be a somewhat unusual position for such an organ, yet the position of the flea's head ^hen feeding was such that any organ situated there for the purpose of hearing would be dis- advantageous^ placed for the purpose. The thanks of the meeting were unanimously voted to Mr. Cheshire and Mr. Nelson for their communications. Announcements of meetings for the ensuing month were then made, and the proceedings terminated with the usual conversazione, when the follow- ing objects were exhibited : — Water mite, Atax apsilophora ... ... Mr. F. W. Andrew. Lophojjus crystallinaj ... ... ... Mr. C. Gr. Dunning. Aquatic worm ... ... ... ... Mr. H. E. Freeman. Larva of Chironomus jprasinus ... ... Mr. A. Hammond. Fly, with parasite attached ... ... Col. O'llara. 198 Limnocodium Sowerbii ... Diatoms, Mastogloia angulata Limnocodium Sowerbii ... Fredericella JUedusa Diatoms, Epit hernia sp. ... Coscinodiscus sol. Mr. G. E. Mainland. Mr. H. Morland. Mr. C. Le Pelley. ji Mr. C. Upton. Mr. G. C. Wallich. Attendance — Members, 58 ; Visitors, 5. May 8th, 1885. — Conversational Meeting. The following objects were exhibited in the library : — Zoophyte, Phalansterium digitatum ... ... Mr. Legs of various Bees Mr. Sprouting Apple Pip Mr. Month of Balanus ... ... ... ... ... Mr. Palate of Trochus ... ... ... Mr. iEcidium and Ui'omyces on Ranunculus ficaria ... Mr, Diatoms, Navicula Trevelyana ... ... ... Mr. Diatoms, Navicula Lyra ... Mr. Corethra plumicornis... ... ... ... ... Mr. Diatoms, Porpeia ornata ... ... ... ... Mr. Spicules of Gorgonia, and Holothuria ... ... Mr. Spinnerets of Garden Spider ... ... ... Mr. Attendance — Members, 48 ; Visitors, 8. F. W. Andrew. F. Enock. H. Epps. F. Fitch. W. M. Holmes. G. E. Mainland. H. Morland. E. M. Nelson. E. T. G. Nevins. G. Sturt. W. Watson. J. Willson. May 22nd, 1885. — Ordinary Meeting. Dr. John Matthews, F.R.M.S., Vice-President, in the Chair. The minutes of the preceding meeting were read and confirmed. The following gentlemen were balloted for and duly elected members of the Club :— Mr. Henry Buckland, Mr. John W. Clinch, Mr. P. W. Pocock, Mr. W. Rhein, and Mr. Thomas Williams. The following donations to the Club were announced : — " Proceedings of the Royal Dublin Society " ... From the Society. " Proceedings of the New York Microscopical Society " ,, " Proceedings of the Botanical Society of Edinburgh" ,, " Transactions of the Royal Dublin Society " ... „ „ Six Slides of Parasites „ Mr. Freeman. The thanks of the Club were unanimously voted to the donors, especially to Mr. Freeman for his valuable addition to the Cabinet. Mr. E. M. Nelson described some experiments which he had been making with the binocular microscope. He had long thought that the binocular did not give images so good as the monocular, and he had endeavoured to find out how this came about, and to remedy it if possible. He obtained a >» » 199 Wenham prism of good quality, and had it properly fitted ; then, finding that the left tube was rather longer than the right, he had the eyepieces differently focussed to suit, having them so marked as to be able to tell the one from the other. Having done this, he found that matters were im- proved, but that there was still something more which required a remedy. To test it he took one of the fine bristles from the maxillary palpi of a blow- fly, but he found that no kind of illumination would make it appear sharp if it were placed on the stage in a vertical position, but if it were placed horizontally across the prism it was perfectly shown. Another experiment was in respect of the stereoscopic effects obtained when the object was in different positions, and the object selected for this purpose was the central pseudo-trachea of the proboscis of the blow-fly. On examining this he found that when it was placed in a vertical position, there was no difference between the stereoscopic effect with and without the prism, except as re- garded the marginal portions of the field, where the eyes were to a certain extent deceived, but when the object was placed horizontally a strongly stereoscopic effect was produced. On the central membrane of the trachea there were a number of small spines, which formed excellent test objects, and if these were placed vertically they appeared foggy, and nothing could be clearly made out about them ; but when seen in the horizontal position their appearance was so changed that it was hardly possible to recognise them as the same objects. In his specimen there was a slight dip or depression in one part of the membrane, which could not be perceived under any illumination with the monocular, but under the binocular, in a horizontal position, it was perfectly well seen, though the same instru- ment failed entirely to show it when the major axis of the lips was in a ver- tical position. He wished to draw the attention of the members of the Club to these matters, in the hope that someone might be able to find out the cause of the difference and to suggest a remedy. Professor Charles Stewart said that Mr. Nelson's attention appeared to have been chiefly directed to the effects produced upon lines. He should, therefore, like to ask if he had tested the effects also by points or discs, so as to ascertain if a circle had any tendency to become elliptical in a horizontal direction ? because, though such an effect might be due to some quality of the instrument, it might also be explained by supposing it to be due to astigmatic vision. Mr. Nelson said he had not examined points in the same way, but he had experimented with diatoms and found the difference in the stereoscopic effects to be surprisingly marked, especially in the case of Heliope.lta. Mr. Karop thought the effect was probably astigmatic, though it possibly might be due to some optical cause, and enquired if Mr. Nelson had made his experiments with more than one prism, as perhaps there might be some defect in this particular prism. The Chairman said that, as regarded the difference in the length of focus of the left hand tube, he might mention that Messrs. Powell and Lealand always marked their eyepieces R and L, each being compensated for the length of the tube they were intended for. However perfect. a prism might 200 be, it would have some variations in density, the effects of which would be greatly aggravated by striae 5 he believed it was absolutely impossible to get one uniformly dense throughout. As to the appearance of the hair, he thought this was very likely a question of the angle of the lens. Dr. Carpenter had recommended for the purpose a low-angled ^in. Mr. Hardy understood Mr. Nelson to say that some of these appearances were equally seen with the monocular • if so, had he tried rotating the object glass so as to ascertain if the fault was in any way due to that ? Mr. Nelson said he did not mean to imply that there was anything like this distortion with the monocular, but only that with the binocular the blur was seen in the vertical position of the object. He had tried various objectives, as a |in. of 80°, a £in. of 40°, a lin. of 30°, and a fin. of 35°. He had also tried those of various makers, so that he did not think there was anything in them to cause the error; he had also tried a different prism and several different instruments on the pseudo-trachea. He had noticed an imperfect diffusion of the light as it passed through the prism, and he did not suppose it was possible to put any piece of glass in the course of the rays without affecting them in a greater or less degree. The Chairman said that in practice a number of prisms were worked to- gether, so as to obtain a better and flatter surface, but he maintained that it was not possible by any process of grinding to produce surfaces which were absolutely flat. Mr. Hailes said there was one source of error which had not been noticed, and that was that in using the Wenham binocular they looked through the prism with one eye, but not with the other ; he should like to hear if Mr, Nelson had tried these experiments with the Stephenson binocular, where there were two prisms, and each eye saw the object under the same conditions. Mr. Nelson said he had tried the Stephenson binocular and found that there was no image at all worth comparing with that shown by the Wenham instrument, whilst the loss of light was very considerable. For convenience of working it might be a useful form ; but he had never seen an object shown by it in a manner he considered worth looking at. Mr. Parsons gave some account of an organism which he had found at the Royal Botanic Society's Gardens in Regent's Park — he thought it was some kind of Acincta, and made a rough drawing of it upon the board in order that the members might be able to assist him in identifying it. The President having requested the members present to help Mr. Parsons to a diagnosis of the creature, a vote of thanks was passed to him for his communication. Members were reminded that at the next ordinary meeting they would be asked to nominate and elect an auditor of the accounts, and also to nominate some of their number for election as members of Committee at the forth- coming annual meeting. Announcements of meetings, excursions, and of the excursionists' annual dinner were then made, and the proceedings terminated with the usual con- versazione, and the following objects were exhibited : — 201 X Argulus foliaceua ... Rhyncholophus phalangoides ... Stellate hairs, Deutzia ... Aquatic larva Arachnoi discus ornata in situ. ... Cholera bacillns ... Diatoms, Cocconeis sp. ... T.S. stem of Lime tree ... Attendance — Members, 44 j ... Mr. C. Dunning. ... Mr. H. E. Freeman. ... Mr. W. M. Holmes. ... Mr. G. E. Mainland. ... Mr. H. Morland. ... Mr. E. M. Nelson. ... Mr. C. Upton. ... Mr. J. Willson. Visitors, 3. June 12th, 1885. — Conversational Meeting. The following objects were exhibited : — Asplancha Ebbesbornii ... Nitella tenuissima Cjclosis in Anacharis ... Utricularia minor, with captured prey Diatoms, Tricerathim orbicidatum Sponge, Farrea Occa, from Japan, showing the veil of spicules Chelifer ... Mr. F. W. Andrew. Mr. E. Dadswell. Mr. G. Hind. Mr. G. E. Mainland. Mr. H. Morland. Mr. B. W. Priest. Mr. C. Rousselet. Attendance — Members, 38 ; Visitors, 4. June 26th, 1885. — Ordinary Meeting. Dr. Jno. Matthews, F.R.M.S., Vice-President, in the Chair. From the Society. » The minutes of the preceding meeting were read and confirmed. The following donations to the Club were announced : — "Proceedings of the Royal Microscopical Society" ... ) " Proceedings of the Natural History Society') of Glasgow "... ... ... ... ...) "Proceedings of the East of Scotland Natural-") ists' Union " ... ... ... ... ...j " Journal of the New York Microscopical ) Society" ... ... ... ... ...) " Proceedings of the Chester Society of Natural") Science" ... ... ... ) " Report of Hackney Microscopical and Natural") History Society " ... ... ... ...J " The American Naturalist '* ... " The American Monthly Microscopical Journal " " Annals of Natural History " ... " Quarterly Journal of Microscopical Science " The thanks of the Society were voted to the donors >> » »» >» In exchange. Purchased. 202 The Secretary reminded the members present that, in accordance with the rales of the Society, nominations for Officers and Members of Committee for the ensuing year must be made that evening, and that a list of persons so nominated would be printed on the balloting lists and submitted for election at the Annual Meeting on July 24th. It would also be necessary to propose and to elect tw r o Auditors of accounts, in order that they might present their cash statement at the annual meeting. The President and Officers, together with one Auditor, were nominated by the Council, but it was competent for any member to substitute other names at the time of election, if it was desired to do so. The following nominations on behalf of the Council were then made : — As President— Mr. A. D. Michael, F.L.S., F.E.M.S. As Vice-Presidents— Dr. W. B. Carpenter, Dr. M. C. Cooke, Dr. Jno. Matthews, Professor Chas. Stewart. As Hon. Treasurer — Mr. F. W. Gay. As Hon. Secretary — Mr. G. C. Karop. As Hon. Foreign Secretary — Mr. H. F. Hailes. As Hon. Reporter — Mr. R. T. Lewis. As Hon. Librarian — Mr. Alpheus Smith. As Hon. Curator — Mr. C. Emery. And as Auditor on behalf of the Council — Mr. W. Hainworth, jun. The Chairman said it was now the duty of the members to propose the name of some gentleman to act on their behalf as Auditor in conjunction with Mr. Hainworth. Mr. Dobson was thereupon proposed by Mr. Parsons and seconded by Mr. Buffham. These nominations having been submitted to the meeting, Messrs. Hain- worth and Dobson were duly elected the Auditors of the Society's accounts. The Chairman said their next business was to nominate four or more gentlemen to fill vacancies on the Committee, caused by the retirement by rotation of Messrs. Groves, Hardy, Jacques, and Nelson, who were, however, eligible for re-election if the members thought fit. The following nominations were then made : — Mr. E. M. Nelson, proposed by Mr. Waller, seconded by Mr. Hardy. Mr. Hembrey, „ Mr. Priest, „ Mr. Dadswell. Mr. Freeman, „ Mr. Buffham, ,, Mr. Hailes. Mr. George Western, „ Mr. Parsons, „ Mr. Priest. Mr. Groves, ,, Mr. Lewis, ,, Mr.Alpheus Smith. Mr. W. W. Reeves, „ Mr. Hembrey, ,, Mr. Gregory. The Secretary said that they had received, through Mr. Kitton, a paper " On the History of some New Diatoms," by Professor Cleve, of Upsala. It was a most valuable contribution, but was, he thought, both too long and too technical to be read at the meeting on that occasion. It would there- fore be taken as read, and would be printed in extenso in the Journal, so that all would have the opportunity of reading it at their leisure. The thanks of the Society were unanimously voted to Professor Cleve for his communication. 203 Mr. E.T. Lewis exhibited and described a new Gange which had recently been invented for the purpose of readily ascertaining the thickness of wires or plates, and which was capable of indicating the results with accuracy to the yo^o of an inch. He thought perhaps some apology might be needed for troubling them with a matter which was not strictly of microscopical interest, and had not the excuse of being made of either brass or glass ; but although, so far as he was aware, its inventor had not intended to apply it to any microscopical purpose, it had been found of use in the measurement of glass slides, cells, and covers, and as such he had been asked to bring it to the meeting. It was really made for the use of electricians and engineers, to replace, with considerable advantage, the old form of wire gauge, which merely consisted of a steel plate having a series of slots cut in the edges, each of which was numbered according to an agreed scale. The article to be gauged was tried in these, and the number of the one into which it most nearly fitted was said to be its " gauge." Eecently, the question of gauges had been considered by Chambers of Commerce, and as it appeared that those in common use were often at variance, a new " Standard Wire Gauge " had been agreed upon, and with the sanction and authority of the Board of Trade now superseded the old Birmingham Wire Gauge. The differences between the two were not sufficient to alter the number of the gauge, though when subjected to accurate measurement it would be found that these differences ranged from 1 to 5 thousandths of an inch. For purposes of scientific or international measurement it was frequently desirable to express thickness in fractions or decimals of the inch or millimetre, and the ordinary form of gauge was quite useless for this purpose ; there was too much difference between the sizes, and any attempt to measure by means of a ruled standard micrometer would render only imperfect results, even where hundredths of an inch were attempted. The new gauge before them (known as Trotter's Patent) was, however, capable of showing at a glance, and by one operation, not only the Standard Gauge, but the proportional part of an inch to 3 places of decimals, and that of the millimetre to two places of decimals. The instrument was of polished steel, in size 2|in. long and ^in. wide, and made in two pieces which were accurately fitted to slide one in the other by means of a dove- tailed groove, the edges of the outer section being milled for convenience of holding whilst the inner slide was being moved. On the lower edge of each section was a scale divided and marked by figures from 6 to 40. The upper edge of the outer section was divided for the space of 1 inch into lOths and 50ths, and the adjoining space for the length of 1 centimetre was divided into millimetres and halves. The modus operandi was explained by means of a diagram, it being simply necessary to open the slide, and having pressed the substance between its jaws, to read off the required measurement from the scales. The Standard Gauge was ascertained by finding which of the two identical numbers on the lower scales were coin- cident ; in the diagram these were the 16's, so that the thickness was deter- mined to be number 16 s.w.g. Turning to the upper 1 inch scale, it was seen that the arrow head of the zero mark was slightly beyond the third division 204 of the -Jy inch graduations, and that the fourth mark of the vernier was coin- cident with a mark on the scale above, the reading being, therefore, '0Q4; inch; and proceeding in the same way with the adjoining scale, the reading was found to be 1'62 mm. It was pointed out in further illustration of the ingenuity of the invention that on the reverse side of the instrument there was another scale by means of which the sectional area of a round wire was shown in thousandths of a square inch, and this value would enable the electrician to readily determine the weight per 100ft., the resistance, and the quantity of current which the wire would safely carry. The communication was illustrated by a diagram, and by the exhibition of the patent gauge, together with a standard micrometer rule, divided to 64ths and lOOths in. ; and also one of the ordinary wire gauges by way of comparison. The Chairman said the contrast between the two gauges was certainly very great, and he could not sufficiently admire the mechanism of the little apparatus before them. Mr. Hardy had often thought that the fine adjustment of the microscope might generally be used for measuring the thickness of cover glasses. If the screws were always made 50 threads to the inch, then, by focussing at the top and bottom of a cover glass, it would be easy to ascertain by a certain movement exactly the thickness. He had done this roughly himself, but he believed his fine adjustment was at the rate of 60 turns to the inch. Mr. Hailes said that Smith and Beck always graduated the milled head of their fine adjustment for the very purpose of measuring depth, and had supplied directions in their book to instruct the purchasers how to use it. The Chairman said that Powell and Lealand also always graduated the heads of their fine adjustments for the purpose of measuring depth. Mr. Karop said there were many other things made for the purpose of measuring thickness, and although no doubt this gauge might be very useful for some things, he thought thin glass would be very apt to get broken. Zeiss made an instrument especially for the purpose of measuring thin cover glasses. Then there was the old lever of contact; and some time ago a little thing was shown there by Mr. Hensoldt for a similar purpose. The gauge exhibited was no doubt more useful to the engineer. Mr. Hailes said that the gauge shown by Mr. Hensoldt was the ordinary gauge used for measuring pianoforte wire. The Chairman said that some years ago he showed what he called a caliper eyepiece, which was a modification of the indicator by Qnekett, but each finger-point was curved and was moved by a tangent screw. All that was needed, therefore, was to take up the cover glass with the stage forceps, and to fit its edge into this optical gauge under the microscope. He also wished to draw attention to a matter which had been under consideration by the Committee, and which they wished to bring before tho members of the Club. Members were no doubt aware that it had often happened lately, when the date of a meeting came round they were without a paper, and to meet the inconvenience of this state of things the Committee proposed, if possible, either by notice or agreement, to arrange for some 205 given sabjeot to be brought forward for discussion, so that members might be able to come prepared to discuss it. He thought there was great value in discnssions of this kind, and could say for himself that he never went home from one without feeling that he had learnt something. And if notice were given beforehand, gentlemen wonld be able to turn their thoughts to the subject, and would come better prepared to join in the proceedings. He asked the members present to take the matter into their consideration, and if it met with approval the Committee would take some steps to put it into shape. It was not right, in his opinion, that any member of the Club who had special knowledge which might be of use to his fellow-members, should keep that knowledge to himself. The Secretary said that whenever he received notice of any communica- tion in time, he always advertised it in a number of papers. It was some- times complained that no notices were to be seen, but he wished to point out that unless the notice of the subjects reached him sufficiently early it was of course impossible to get them inserted in time for those papers which only appeared at weekly intervals. Announcements of meetings and excursions for the month wei'e then made, particular attention being called to the Annual Meeting of July 24th, and the proceedings terminated with the usual conversazione, the following objects being exhibited : — Hydrobia ulva, with embryos ... ... ... Mr. F. W. Andrew. Skin of Star-fish, Uraster rubens, showing ) t vc i , I Mr. Chas. G. Dunninsr. madreponform tubercle ... ... •> »*— uig. Operculum of egg of plant bug from Chili ... Mr. H. E. Freeman. Crystals of Santonin ... ... Mr. W. M. Holmes. Planaria ... ... ... ... ... ... Mr. C. Rousselet. Diatoms, Coscinodiscus excavatus ... ... Mr. C. Upton. T. S. Aerial root of Dendrobium ... ... Mr. J. Willson. Attendance — Members, 52 ; Visitors, 7. July 10th, 1885. — Conversational Meeting. The following objects were exhibited : — Section of Thistle, triple stained Mr. F. TV. Andrew. Chironomus varieganus ... ... ... ... Mr. F. Enock. Stratiomyd larva ... ... ... ... ... Mr. A. Hammond. Pterothecu aculeifera ... ... ... ... Mr. H. Morland. Attendance — Members, 29 ; Visitors, 3. 206 July 24th, 1885. — Annual Meeting. Dr. W. B. Carpenter, C.B., F.R.S., &c, &c, President, in the Chair. The minutes of the preceding meeting were read and confirmed. The following gentlemen were balloted for and duly elected members of the Club :— Mr. A. G. Sadgrove, Mr. J. A. D. Parker, and Mr. J. L. M. Porter. The following additions to the Library were announced : — " The Proceedings of the Geological Association " ... In Exchange. 1 The Proceedings of the Koyal Society" ,, „ »> " The Journal of Microscopy and Natural Science " » (Postal Microscopical Journal) ) " The American Monthly Microscopical Journal" ... ,, ,, ' American Naturalist " ... ... ... ... ... „ ,, " Bulletin de la Societe Beige de Microscopie"... ... „ „ " Geological and Natural History of Canada (Report ) p ± a of Progress 1882-3-4" 1 " Van Heurck's Diatomacie de Belgique" ... ... Purchased. A short communication from Mr. Kitton " On the Mysterious Appear- ance of a Diatom," was read by Mr. Hailes. The President said as there were no remarks made on the paper he would propose a vote of thanks to Mr. Kitton, with the expression of a hope that he would follow up these observations, because the point that he had raised was a very interesting one : whether there are microbes so minute as to pass through a filtering paper that stops particles of emery so small as the 50,000th of an inch. He might mention that, when he was engaged in sound- ing, bringing up specimens of water from the bottom of the Mediterranean, on which a very fine mud is constantly being deposited, the particles were so fine as to be quite unrecognisable in the ordinary water of the Mediterranean. When this settled down after being diffused by winds and currents, the water brought up from the bottom wps quite white, and he found that the best ordinary filtering paper was quite incapable of stopping these particles — they passed through it. He had a particular reason for wishing to clear the water, and it was necessary to pass it through the same filter several times, so that the pores of the paper becoming clogged by that very fine sediment, the water came out pretty clear. The very best filtering paper did allow very fine particles to pass through, as every chemist knows, and it was to be hoped that Mr. Kitton would endeavour to ascertain by repeated experiments whether the appearance of these diatoms was due to the passage of micro- spores, which we did not know as a general product of diatoms, through the fine substance of the filter. Announcements of meetings, &c. for the ensuing month were then made and the ordinary meeting terminated. The meeting was then made special in order to proceed with the business 207 of the Annual General Meeting, Mr. Mainland and Mr Buffham being nominated by the President as scrutineers of the ballot. The Secretary read the 20th Annual Eeport, and the Treasurer his statement of accounts. Mr. Charters White proposed that the reports just read be adopted. This was seconded by Mr. Waller, and carried unanimously. The President said while the scrutiny of the ballot was going on, he would wish to express his very great regret at his unavoidable failure to perform the duties of a President on several occasions. When it was first proposed to him to undertake this duty, he rather demurred, on the ground of the uncertainty of his health for the last two or three years. He was, however, assured that the Club would be very glad to have him among them when he was able to come, and at the same time would not grumble if he felt that his own health was a primary consideration with him, and he abstained from coming when he thought it might be a risk to do so. They might remember that on the very first evening he appeared among them he was suffering from a very severe cold, but that was nothing more than a cold and hoarseness, and he took upon himself the risk, but for some three months past nearly, he had unfortunately been the subject of a very depressing complaint, beginning with neuralgia of the head, which left behind it a very considerable depression of nervous power, so that he was obliged to pass a good deal of every day on the sofa, and to take to a course of novel reading instead of anything more instructive. He found that any continuous sus- tained attention, either in writing or reading, was a very severe trial to him, and that any little over-exertion was sure to be followed by a severe depression. Mr. Karop was kind enough to come and talk over the business of the Society with him a few evenings before. He had seen one or two other friends during the day, and went to bed after Mr. Karop's kind visit very tired, and it was against the wishes of the home-rulers that he had come down that night, but he did feel that it was due to the Club to make a little effort, even though he might be a little more depressed the following day in consequence. He thanked them for their kind reception of him when he had been present, and their indulgence when he had been necessarily absent. He hoped, in fact he felt sure, that the business of the Club had not suffered by his absence, for every member of the Committee, especially the Vice-Presidents and officers, knew the business a great deal better than he did, and he had been in their hands when he had been present. The Club had such an efficient staff that he felt sure the absence of the President could not be in any way seriously felt, and that he had been rather ornamental than useful when he had been present. He would just say, with regard to the contributions of objects for the cabinets, he had hoped to have been able to prepare a set of the typical forms of Orbitolites, with sections and preparations of the animal, but had felt utterly unable to take up the microscope for use during the last three months, and therefore must defer the final arrangements of them until after the vacation, when he hoped to be more set up and prepared for that little effort. He would have a few words to say presently in the way of a short address. This much 208 was merely personal, to explain the reasons for his shortcoming, and to thank the members most cordially for their kind indulgence. With regard to the Treasurer's report, it would be observed that the balance at the end of the year (£77 7s. lOd.) was a little less than the balance at the beginning (£100 18s. 10d.), but that was partly due to loss incurred by the failure of Mr. D. Bogue, and partly to the increased amount spent on printing the Journal; but as the Journal was so well filled with valuable information, he was quite sure that they would not regret that it had been so expended. On the other hand, there was an increase in the number of members. The losses had been very much more than sustained by the junction of new members, and therefore he thought they might say that the finances of the Society were in a very sound and satisfactory condition. The President then announced that the following gentlemen had been elected as officers and members of Committee for the ensuing year : — PRESIDENT— Mr. A. D. Michael, F.L.S., F.R.M.S. Vice-Presidents— Dr. \V. B. Carpenter, C.B., F.R.S., &c, &c. ; Dr. M. C. Cooke, M.A., A.L.S., &c. ; Dr. John Matthews, F.K.M.S. ; Prof. Chas. Stewart, M.R.C.S., F.L.S. Hon. Treasurer— Mr. F. W. Gay, F.R.M.S. Hon. Secretary— Mr. G. C. Karop, M.R.C.S., &c. Hon. Secretary for Foreign Correspondence and Editor of Journal— Mr. Henry F. Hailes. Hon. Reporter— Mr. R. T. Lewis, F.R.M.S. Hon. Librarian — Mr. Alpheus Smith. Hon. Curator — Mr. Chas. Emery. Four Members to Fill Vacancies on the Committee— Mr. F. W. Hembry, F.R.M.S. ; Mr. W. W. Reeves, F.R.M.S. ; Mr. E. M. Nelson ; Mr. J. W. Groves, F.R.M.S. The President then delivered his annual address. On the close of the address the President left the room, and the chair was occupied by Dr. M. C. Cooke, who said that when he was not expected, perhaps, to have been called upon to occupy the position he did, a resolution was put into his hand which he thought he could not do better than move from the chair. He was sure he should have the cordial support of the Club in this resolution ; it was in effect a vote of thanks to the President who had just left the room, both for his services during the past year and for his remarks that evening. He did not know that he could do better than propose it at once. There were two or three observations which he had intended to have made, — hoping that the President would have been with them a few minutes longer, — and to have noticed some of the views he (the President) particularised. One as to whether bacteria and bacilli were altered in culture as being an important subject for investigation. All those who had spent thirty or forty years in biological study would come to the conclusion that there was a far greater variation in biological objects than was allowed to take place by young beginners, who are too apt to imagine that every variation must constitute a new species. All artificial cultivation should, he thought, always be watched very carefully, as it 209 tended to develop variation, and results are likely to follow different to the results that are produced in a natural manner, and, therefore, we could not argue safely back again that such results were results actually produced in nature. A reference was made earlier still by Dr. Carpenter to the illustra- tions that he had produced for some of his own books, and those plates, for which he made drawings some forty years ago, he said were accurate still, and were now of value, but that the inferences that he drew from those plates were all displaced and altered. He (Dr. Cooke) had constantly urged upon young beginners, and old ones too, to draw, draw, draw ! To make plates, engravings, drawings. Never mind if they did not say a word about them. Words all change, but let us have faithful representations of objects. During his later years he had applied himself to the production of plates rather than to the writing of books about them. He urged his hearers not to mind whether they gave names to their objects, but to draw them faith- fully, accurately, and truly, and they would last all time, whilst their descriptions were old, antiquated, and effete in 10 or 20 years. With these observations, he begged to propose from the chair a vote of thanks for the President's services and for the address he had given that evening. This was carried unanimously. Mr. Mclntire said he had been requested to propose a vote of thanks to the Committee and Officers of the Club. He knew the services of the officers of the Club in past years — how efficiently they had been rendered ; and there was one point which had always distinguished them, but particularly this year, and that was their unselfishness. The ability goes without saying, but the unselfishness had been particularly marked. He begged to propose a vote of thanks to them for their services. This was seconded by Mr. F. W. Andrew, put from the chair, and unanimously carried. Mr. Buffham proposed a vote of thanks to the Council of University College. This was seconded by Mr. Charters White, and carried unani- mously. Mr. Nevins then proposed a vote of thanks to the auditors and scrutineers. This was seconded by Mr. Kousselet, and unanimously carried ; and the proceedings terminated with the usual conversazione. Attendance — Members, 44 ; Visitors, 7. 210 EEPORT OF THE COMMITTEE. July 24th, 1885. Your Committee have the satisfaction to present a favourable Report on this, the twentieth anniversary of the Club. The quality of its communications, the interest of the meetings, and the efficiency and utility of the Club generally, have been fully maintained during the past year. The total number of members is quite up to the average; 36 have been elected, 16 have resigned. Our losses by death are : Mr. W. Ladd, F.R.M.S., Rev. W. Read, M.A., Mr. 0. S. Bishop, Mr. T. Spencer, and Dr. G. D. Brown. The following is a list of the papers read at the meetings, and printed in the Journal : — " On a Hydrostatic Fine-adjustment," by Mr. E. M. Nelson. " On the Relations and Evolution of the various types of the Genus Orbitolites," by the President. lt On the suppposed Sexual Threads in the Zygnemacea3," by Mr. F. Bates. " On a Hydroid Polyp found in the tanks of the Royal Botanical Society's Gardens," by Mr. F. A. Parsons. " On the Conjugation of Rhabdonema Arcuatum," Kiitz ; by Mr. T. H. Buffham. " On some Remarkable Moulds," by Dr. M. C. Cooke. " On a New Flagellate Infusorian," by Rev. G. J. Burch. " On the Economy of the Hive-Bee," by Mr. F. Cheshire. " On a new Measuring Gauge," by Mr. R. T. Lewis. il On some Fossil Marine Diatoms," by Prof. Cleve (Upsala.) Short descriptions of new instruments, appliances, and methods of procedure, will be found in the Proceedings. Besides these, five demonstrations on microscopical subjects, or in which the microscope is a necessary means of research, were given in the class-room during the winter months. Although the 2L1 term u demonstration," in the strict sense of the word, cannot, perhaps, be applied to all the series, they were certainly appreciated by the large number of members attending them, and introduced matters of great interest which could not very well be brought before the ordinary meetings. They were as follows : — 1884. Dec. 12. u On Bacteria and the methods of staining them," E. Thurston, L.R.C.P. 1885. Jan. 9. " On the Structure of the Eyes in Arthropoda," B. T. Lowne, F.R.C.S. Feb. 13. " On Collecting and Mounting Fresh Water Algse," Dr. M. C. Cooke, M.A. Mar. 13. " On Lung Parasites," Dr. T. S. Cobbold, F.R.S. Apr. 10. "On the Skeleton of the Echinodermata," Dr. W. B. Carpenter, C.B., F.R.S. Summarised reports are given in the Journals, and the Com- mittee take this opportunity of expressing their thanks to those gentlemen who communicated the means or result of their investi- gations on these occasions. They feel that thanks are particularly due to Dr. Carpenter, who spared neither time nor trouble in render- ing his subject clear and interesting to his audience. The remainder of Mr. Crisp's donation has, in accordance with his desire, been expended in purchasing indispensable works of reference for the Library, a list of which appears below. The collection of works now in the possession of the Club already exceeds the space at the disposal of the Librarian, and as no more room can be accorded by the Council of University College, your Committee will shortly have to consider the propriety of making other arrangements. Annexed is a list of the books presented or purchased for ad- dition to the Library since the publication of the last report : — Presented by " Worthington Smith's Diseases of Field and ) p r _ j^ q. Cooke- Garden Crops'' ) " Dr. Braithwaite's British Moss Flora." Part 8. The Author. " Transactions of the Linnean Society " Mr. F. Crisp. " Journal of the Royal Microscopical Society "... The Society. " Proceedings of the Royal Society " „ „ " Hardwicke's Science Gossip " The Publishers. Joden. Q. M. C.j Series II., No. 13. n } By Subscription Ray Society. In Exchange. ji » Purchased. 1 212 *' Cameron's Phytophagous Hynienoptera " Vol.2 "American Naturalist" " American Monthly Microscopical Journal " " Journal of the Postal Microscopical Society " " Challenger Reports." Vols. 9-11. " Wolle's Desmids of the United States " " Dippel on th Microscope" '* Quarterly Journal of Microscopical Science" '' Annals and Magazine of Natural History " " Dr. Cooke's British Fresh Water Algae." Com- pletion ... "Grevillea" Transactions and Proceedings of various Socie-) ties and sundry Pamphlets ... ... ) " Dalzell's Powers of the Creator." 3 Vols. " Dalzell's Rare and Remarkable Animals of Scotland." 2 Vols " Ehrenberg's Infusoria " " Ehrenberg's Micro-Geology " "Berkeley's Cryptogamic Botany" " Pascoe's Zoological Classification " ... " Hine's Catalogue of Fossil Sponges"... " Hassell's Food and its Adulterations" " Sternberg's Photo-Micrographs " " Magnin and Sternberg's Bacteria" " Agassiz Bibliotheca Zoologica." 4 Vols. The following slides have been presented to the Cabinet :- M »! 5> >> »» ■N \. Mr. Crisp's donation. tfr . F. Oxley »> G. Sturt )» A. D. Michael »» A. C. Tipple >j E. M. Nelson it F. Enock » H. Morland »> A. Pennington »» H. E. Freeman • •• • * » 24 • ■ • • * • 70 • • • • » • 43 • • • • • t 6 * • • • • • 300 • • • • *■ 7 • • • • •• 1 t • * • • • 1 • • • • • • 6 The valuable series of Oribatidce presented by Mr. Michael, and 5 O N lO h o N b <-H (M CM CO i> O co o oo • © 00 ■ • • * • • fl . * © a . • • • © * t bo * t - ! • • " JX> m 'o O H to i ■ d * ^ • • r t3 © bo © 03 bo >» o .5 d o a • -1-3 . : . o o "5 o3 • rH c3 m o3 rd bo • »-« V o © a © © o EH Ph O : OS PI o •rH -r3 03 S_i • Ph © bo bo d d T3 X © as 73 -t-3 02 © o o o3 -+3 02 •rH -1-3 S3 • — d © -1-3 -4-3 rd o rH d O CI o3 1— < [ 4 o !h -+3 © d © c3 O Ph Ph > to PQ ns O O (M . 00 O CO 03 i-H i— I O H Tji CfJ o o r-H .S „ .5 rj-j i-H ^ d Tj &■ •"3 O 9 »2 -E3 ^ o I-H to o CO d e3 rd P 3 d § ° •2 'f ^ s w © 5 r* W * o T3 «* d I-H c3 crt © 02 © 13 • rH -1-3 .15 •r-l >T3 d d d © d ft > d o •rH rQ -u c3 d a © rd -+3 «i © d 1 © bo • -r3 d O • r-« © ► u o3 u rd o o ^d © © d rQ bo o -r3 02 S-, © © a d d o3 02 © rd Hfl © rd -t-3 •k >» © «H ^ r-l © 00 00 d 215 PRESIDENT'S INAUGURAL ADDRESS. Delivered September 25th, 1885. By A. D. Michael, F.L.S., F.R.M.S. It is, I believe, the time-honoured custom in this Club for the President to deliver some kind of introductory address on the occasion of his taking the chair for the first time ; and, even were it not a custom, his own inclinations would naturally prompt him to make some reference to the new circumstances in which he found himself placed. It is with feelings of a very pleasant kind that I enter on the duties of the office to which you have called me, because it is an assurance of the friendship and goodwill which my fellow-members of the Club have always shown towards me, and also, in a far higher degree, because I regard it as indicating that, in your judgment, I am more likely to be of service to the Club, as its President, than any other gentleman who is for the moment available ; had this not been your opinion you would not have allowed feelings of friendship to have led you to select me. It is naturally a source of great gratification to me that I should have your friendship and your favourable opinion, still I am well aware that there are many members in the Club of older standing and greater attainments than myself; nevertheless, I feel assured that you have done your duty, and it now remains for me to do mine. It is, I think, needless for me to say that I will, as President, do my best for the Society, because I trust you will believe, without any assurance from me, that I shall in the future, as I did in the past, endeavour to do the best I can for the interests of the Society, whatever position I may occupy in it. I confess to feeling some diffidence in taking the chair in succession to such a President as Dr. Carpenter, who, during his long and laborious life, had acquired a very wide range of experience, and had attained to an extent and variety of knowledge such as I cannot myself hope to emulate. It is only to few that opportunities are given of acquir- ing so wide a range of information, and fewer still that possess the ability to retain in their minds what has thus been gathered, and to speak promptly and efficiently upon almost any biological subject Journ. Q. M. C, Series II., No. 14. s 216 PRESIDENT S INAUGURAL ADDRESS. which may come before them. In choosing me to follow such a President yon must be aware that yon have selected one who is, to a great extent, a specialist, and whose general biological knowledge is far less than that of many in this room ; it may be, however, that this will not prove to be wholly a disadvantage, since it can scarcely be a healthy thing for a society to rely too much upon its President, and to allow his ready ability to take the place of personal efforts amongst the members. My duty will be rather to endeavour to encourage and to develop what others may be ready to do, than to occupy the Society's time myself, to see that every man who can be induced to do anything has an opportunity of doing it, and that he is not discouraged from the effort ; and to hold an even course if differences should ever appear. These con- siderations naturally lead me to think of the future of the Club, and what I should wish it to be. It mav, and no doubt will be said, that this is not a dry scientific Society, but a Club in which the social element largely exists. I am quite aware that such is the case, and that it is under the influence of this social element that an amount of success has been attained such as does not always fall to the lot of a purely scientific Society ; but I believe that its social success has depended upon its scientific element, and that it is a collection of men of similar tastes, views, and objects in the application of a magnificent tool to a great variety of subjects. I remember, not long ago, the starting in London of another Club, which went by the name of " The Dilettante Circle ; " its members were artists and musicians, and it commenced its existence under very favourable circumstances, its entertain- ments were most enjoyable, but its object was enjoyment only, its members assembled for the mere pleasure of the evening, and, from the first hour of its existence, it was overshadowed by the wings of the demon of ennui. Little by little men grew tired, and little by little they drew off, until the Society gradually died out. This element of ennui would be certain to pervade meetings where pleasure was the sole aim and object. The dilettante spirit, if too much developed, is the bane of a Club like ours ; it is perhaps rather too widely spread, although a little of it is no doubt not only permissible, but even desirable ; and, therefore, whilst I insist that the microscope should not be regarded merely as a means of enjoying the beauty which it reveals, I am very far from agreeing with those who talk with some little contempt of a mere beauty " as a thing not worthy of consideration. My earliest PRESIDENT'S INAUGURAL ADDRES8. 217 recollections are of how, as a child, I revelled in the beauty of the insects and the flowers, just as, later in life, I have gloried in the shifting beauties of the mists driving across the mountain-tops, or sat for hours watching the sunlight dancing on the great water- falls of the Alps or the Pyrenees ; but, beautiful as all these things may be, if the enjoyment of them be not joined to anything else there will come a time when it will pall, and when the mind will lose its appreciation of what the eye contemplates, just as we find that artists often cease to admire the beauties which they cannot paint. Thus also, great as may be the amusement obtained by the collector of merely beautiful objects, yet when he devotes himself more seriously to the subject, and goes a little more closely into it, taking a more special view, and trying to tread in the paths of original investigation, then he will find that his pleasure will be both greater and of a far higher quality than before. If it be possible, in the position which you have called upon me to occupy, for me to assist any member of the Club in mounting from the pursuit of amusement to the more important study of a subject, from that which gives pleasure in a small degree to that which affords it in a higher sense, it will at all times be my desire to do so to the fullest extent of my power. There are many ways in which those who take an interest in microscopical subjects go to work. It is recommended by some that they should go out collecting generally, bringing home a great variety of objects, and then setting themselves to the task of endeavouring to identify them. By so doing no doubt they impress upon the mind general ideas of the way in which such objects are divided into classes, and form some notions of their outward appearance; but it is after all laborious and rather ungrateful work, occupying a great deal of time and attention, and if it be repeated many times it leaves little opportunity for other things, and causes the collector often to pass by objects of greater interest and importance. I am personally more inclined towards the view that it is better for a man to take up something special which he can grasp more closely ; and if he wish to get a different class of objects identified, then to obtain assistance in so doing. I cannot help seeing that we have in this Club avast amount of manipulative power, a great number of first- class instruments, and of competent observers ; but I am not quite sure that we make the best of them. There are vast fields around us which, if not absolutely unworked, are only partly worked, and I believe that most of our members would find far more valuable 218 president's inaugural address. results to arise from turning their attention in these directions than from simply working in old lines. Amongst the many subjects which are not yet worked out as they might be, I may mention the almost new study of Petrology,which, although still in the hands of a very few observers, is rapidly becoming a subject of high interest and importance ; the spectroscope also offers a wide and promising field ; and the value of the microscope, as applied to commercial considerations, is hardly yet recognised. These are branches affording great promise, and there are very few persons who give attention to them. It may be said that ours is not a Club in which such researches are expected, and that its use is rather for the purpose of training and raising up microscopists, and then drafting them off to other bodies where work of this kind is more exhaustively carried out. There is some truth in this, and it is to the credit of the Club that it can be truly said, and that we can point to so many in other societies whose work in micro- scopy was commenced in the QuekettClub. It is true that there is a natural tendency among our older members to become engrossed in other and more learned societies, but it is also true that we have still amongst us a great many earnest workers, and that the best men still find it to be to their pleasure and their interest to remain amongst us, for it is by steady progress that men are able truly to advance, whether they occupy the place of simple students or that of teachers or investigators. It is, however, desirable to the greatest possible extent, that, in order to counterbalance the inevitable loss of older members, those of younger standing should be encouraged to come forward and to communicate to the meetings the results of their observations. I have noticed that there seems to be a great amount of hesitation on their part in this respect, and no doubt it is an awkward thing to come forward and to read one's first paper. It is said that Frenchmen are killed by ridicule ; but however true that may be, I believe that practically Englishmen are more afraid of it. Let me urge our younger members to put such feelings on one side, and to give their fellows the benefit of their experiences without fear of being laughed at. For my own part I can only say that, during my period of office, my most earnest desire will be that I may have the assistance of the younger members at the meetings, and if I can induce them to do some- thing more than collect slides, it will not be necessary for me again to announce, as I am forced to do to-night, that at this meeting of the Club there is not any paper. 219 Notes on Palmod^ctylon subramosum, and on a New British Species of Vaucheria. By M. C. Cooke, M.A., A.L.S. (Read October 25th, 1885.) Plate XIV. On page 25 of my recent work on British Fresh Water Algas I have stated that " one or other of the many forms of Hydrurus penicellatus has been called Palmodactylon subramosum, Nag." This form has recently been found in Britain, and a fragment sent to me for verification by Mr Thomas Hebden, of Hainworth, near Keighley. It was found during the month of July, but in small quantity, and mixed with other species. The collector says : " I have been repeatedly to the same place but so far have not been able to procure another specimen." This form was described by Niigeli in his " Unicellular Alga3 " (p. 70), under the name of Palmodactylon subramosum, and was repeated under the same name in Rabenhorst's " Flora Europtea Algarum " (p. 44), and Kirchner adopts it in his " Algen von Schlesien" (p. 107). Nevertheless, we see no reason to modify our original view, that it is only one of the many forms of Hydrurus. Unfortunately the specimens found were so meagre as to be insuffi- cient to furnish any conclusive evidence. On page 116 of the above work I have given a synopsis of the known species of Vaucheria found in Europe, according to the arrangement adopted by Professor Nordstedt. When that list was made eight species were known to occur in Great Britain out of a total of 19, all belonging to the first group of 11 species, leaving group B, with six, and two uncertain species, unrepresented. Since then Professor Nordstedt has spent some time in this country, rambling in many directions in search of Fresh Water AlgEe, and he has succeeded in finding on the mud of the Thames, at Kew, above the bridge, at low water, another Vaucheria, his own species of Vaucheria spho?rospora which belongs to the B group, section Piloboloidea?, numbered 15 in the above-named synopsis. This, therefore, is an interesting addition to our Flora, 220 M. C. COOKE ON PALMODACTYLON SUBRAMOSUM, ETC. the accuracy of the determination being vouched for by the learned Professor himself. The following is the description of this species, which is figured in outline in " Botaniska Notiser " for 1878 : — Vaucheria spluerospora, Nordst. Bot. Not., 1878, p. 177, t. 2. Loosely caBspitose, antheridea at the apex of longer, or rarely of the shorter branches, slightly tumid, very often a little incurved, acuminate, furnished about the apex with two (rarely 4) nearly opposite divergent conical processes, connected with the side or the base (at first with the apex) of the oogonium, by means of a short cell destitute of chlorophyll. Oogonium globose, or obovate- globose ; oospore globose, chlorophyllose, membrane not thick, not entirely filling the oogonium. Size. Threads •026- , 06 mm. diam. Oogonia *104- , 136 mm. diam. Oospore •088- , 120 mm. diam. On the mud at low water of the Thames at Kew. Commonly marine. PLATE XIV. A. — Figs. 1-6, antheridia of Vaucheria splicer ospor a ; Fig, 7 oogonia with antheridia (after Nordstedt). B. — Pahnodactylon subramosum (from photograph x 60). • . Vol. 2. PI. XIV M.C.C. del. W. Rhein sc 221 On an Unusual Form of Tube made by Melicerta ringens. By T. Spencer Smithson. {Read October 25th 1885.) While trying the well-known experiment of supplying Melicerta ringens with powdered carmine in order to show the formation of the pellets with which it constructs its tube, I had the good fortune to be able to watch the building of the whole of one tube by a young melicerta, which showed considerable deviation from the ordinary type of architecture ; and I venture to bring the case before the Quekett Microscopical Club as it appears to me to possess several points of interest. In the first place the young melicerta began by building half a course in the usual way with apparently solid pellets, but instead of continuing to do so, it suddenly commenced to heap up, in a most erratic manner, pellets of the ordinary shape, but composed of trans- parent, gelatinous matter with a few particles of carmine imbedded in it, giving the tube a somewhat mottled appearance. The walls of the tube, owing to the loose way in which they were made, were about double the thickness of those constructed in the usual manner. Since my first discovery I have found another young melicerta, in the same trough as the first, beginning to build in the same extraordinary manner, and this fact leads me to think that want of material is the primary cause of this curious mode of building. I merely offer this as a crude suggestion, and shall be very glad if any member of the Club can give me a better explanation of this, as it appears to me, interesting case of alteration of instinct by confine- ment. I regret that I have been unable to send one of the tubes for examination, but this would be impossible without great risk of injuring the animals, both being attached to the side of a small zoophyte-trough. 222 Historic Microscopy. By E. M. Nelson. (Read Nov. 27th } 1885.) During mv absence from town this summer I came across some 'O quaint old descriptions of microscopes, which interested me so much that 1 determined to make some notes of them, in the hope that they might interest you also. My object in bringing this paper before you is not to enter any debatable ground as to whether A or B introduced a new principle or improvement with regard to the microscope, but merely to trace the growth of human intellect as expressed in the optical and mechanical parts of the microscope, from the early simple type to the modern complex one. The earliest magnifying glass or simple microscope known is the rock-crvstal biconvex lens in the British Museum. This was found at Nineveh, and is probably not less than 2,500 years old. After a lapse of 22 centuries, we come to .the compound micro- scope of Zacharias Jansen, i