March 1, I860.] 



SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



CO 



NOTES AND CtUERIES. 



Grooving Ferns from Spores.— The Scaly 

 Spleenwort (CeteracA officinarum) ought to grow 

 well at Hastings. It likes a mild climate. I found 

 several fine specimens of this fern at Hidevelly, in 

 South Wales, a few years ago, growing on the walls 

 of the old castle. Fern-seeds retain their ger- 

 minating power for a long period. I have heard of 

 some which produced strong, healthy plants after 

 having been kept ten years on fronds preserved in 

 an herbarium ; therefore, I am inclined to think 

 your correspondent, Mr. Daydon Jackson, will 

 succeed in raising the ceterach from spores if he is 

 careful in drying the fronds sufficiently to ripen the 

 seeds. April will be the best time for sowing. 

 Get a shallow pan, with a bell-glass to fit it ; see 

 that the drainage is good, fill the pan with sandy 

 lieath mould (a little lime rubbish thoroughly mixed 

 with the mould will improve it), and then put some 

 well-burnt cinders and very small pieces of broken 

 bricks on the surface, sprinkle the seeds over the 

 whole, and cover with the glass. Some persons 

 place moss round the rim of the glass, to keep in 

 the moisture ; I believe it is a good plan, and water, 

 when given, should always be poured on this moss. 

 The little ferns will make their appearance in a 

 short time, the stones and soil will become covered 

 with green scales, and little tiny ferns will spring up. 

 Great care must be taken in potting off these small 

 specimens : every stone that has a fern on it should 

 be lifted out, fern and all, and placed in a rose-pot 

 in proper soil. These pots must be put in a cool 

 frame for a few weeks, in order to harden the ferns 

 before they are placed in the opeu air. I have, in a 

 previous note on ferns, alluded to the good effect 

 produced by baking all the soil used in the cultiva- 

 tion of ferns from spores. It destroys the germ of 

 any weeds or fungi that may be in it.— Helen E. 

 Watney. 



Tealia Crassicornis.— I cannot succeed in keep- 

 ing this anemone, nor can I find any one who has 

 succeeded in doing so. I should be glad of any 

 hints which might assist me. — K. D. 



Ailanticulture.— Fertile eggs of Bombyx Cyn- 

 thia, the new silkworm, may be obtained at one 

 shilling per score, of Dr. Wallace, Colchester, 

 Essex, during and after May. The plants on which 

 they feed {Ailanthus glandulosa) may be had of 

 Mr. Cant, Nurseryman, St. John Street, Colchester. 

 English-bred moths are supplied at 513, New Oxford 

 Street, from sixpence each. 



Aquaria Animals.— Mr. W. A. Lloyd would be 

 glad to place himself in communication with any 

 one willing to supply living aquarium animals, for 

 which liberal terms can be offered. Payment and 

 delivery to be made near London. Address, in the 

 first instance, Zoological Gardens, Hamburg, North 

 Germany. 



Naturalists' Club eor North London.— It 

 is proposed to form a club for the pursuit of Natural 

 History Studies among gentlemen resident in the 

 north of London. Any such who feci interested in 

 the movement may communicate with W. H. Groser, 

 19, Claremont Square, N. 



Ancient Toads and Frogs.— The evidence of 

 such occurrences generally dwindles away, on search- 

 ing inquiry, into some " cock and a bull " story, 

 and this is why the reports receive little attention. 

 But M. Gosse, in his "llomance of Natural History," 

 enumerates certain extraordinary facts, supported 

 by trustworthy evidence (Dean Buckland's experi- 

 ments), which show that any one who will unravel 

 the mystery and settle the question — " Is it a 

 fact ? " will do service. — S. J. M. 



Skipjack. — What is the scientific name of the 

 fish known to sailors as the " skipjack ? " — //. 67. 



Cutting Glass Cells.— How shall I best suc- 

 ceed in cutting glass tubes into cells ? — W. W. S. 



Purple-avinged Sultana. — What bird is alluded 

 to as a " purple-winged Sultana," in Moore's "Lalla 

 Rookh,"— " Paradise and the Peri " ?— H. G. 



Triceratium Favus. — Your correspondent is 

 quite correct iu supposing that Triceratium favus is 

 found in the Thames ; but, since it is a marine form, 

 he ought scarcely to expect to find it where he seems 

 to have been looking for it. If he will get a quan- 

 tity of sand from the neighbourhood of Sheerness, 

 about the middle of the estuary, dry it well, and 

 then float as if for Foraminifera, he will obtain a 

 mixture of shells, forams, &c, in which there will 

 be Triceratium favus, Ettpodiscus Argus, and other 

 diatoms. In order to obtain these comparatively 

 clean, he will have to boil in acids and wash as his 

 ingenuity may suggest. A few pounds of sand will 

 yield enough for many slides. I have this year found 

 Triceratium in sand as far north as Yarmouth, but 

 not in great quantities ; southward I have not 

 examined. I have seen this diatom in sand from 

 the Kibble, quite ou the opposite coast to the 

 Thames, and I doubt not it is to be found in many 

 of our larger estuaries. — D. 



Trichina spiralis.— Will the salting or smoking 

 of pork for the purpose of curing it, as in the case 

 of hams, bacon, &c, kill the trichina, or not ? If it 

 lives through this process, would its presence be 

 shown in such dried meat after some months' keep- 

 ing, by any signs easily visible, such as vacancies or 

 discolourations ?— P. V. 



Quick smoking (two or three weeks) does not kill 

 them ; slow smoking (three or four months) does kill 

 them. Salting for five or seven days does not kill 

 them ; salting for twenty-one days does. In order 

 to be sure about the presence of trichina, you must 

 always use the microscope. — Tilbury Fox, M.D. 



" Bois immortel." — Which species of Erythriua 

 is known to the inhabitants of Demerara as the "bois 

 immortel"?— H.G. 



