Sept. 1, 1S6G.J 



HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIT. 



213 



NOTES AND QUERIES. 



Drying Plants.— I have read with interest^the 



remarks " On drying plants by means of heat " I 

 have this summer seen some alpine, plants beau- 

 tifully preserved, both as to form and colour, by the 

 ironing process. But as, in summer travelling, it is 

 often very awkward and troublesome when passing 

 quickly from one foreign hotel to another, to get an 

 iron heated in the usual way, I should be very glad 

 if you, or any of your correspondents, could inform 

 me ofany simple apparatus, or method, by which 

 an iron may be quickly heated, so as to render one 

 independent of the kitchen stove— 31. 



Little Spiders— I have seen many such "golden 

 balls " as Mr. Macdonald describes (p. 1S9) ;> and 

 they have invariably proved to be the young of r the 

 common Garden Spider (Epeira diadema). The 

 nest, when disturbed, always reminds me of a dried 

 fig turned inside out, the young spiders being the 

 size and colour of the seeds.— Dayaon Jackson. 



The Horse- Ant.— Some weeks ago, my attention 

 was directed to a regiment of the Horse- Ant {For- 

 mica rufa) running in a little furrow, but divided 

 into two companies, one going one way, and the 

 other the opposite. The furrow was worn down for 

 about an inch by the numbers which so often pass 

 backwards and forwards. I followed the road for 

 about twenty yards, when I came upon the nest. 

 It was in a "hollow, and was composed of straws, 

 small sticks, and all sorts of rubbish. I then walked 

 round it, and observed seven regular paths leading 

 from the nest. I followed them all, and found that 

 they invariably led to the roots of blackberry bushes. 

 I examined one of the ants, and saw that it had 

 either an egg or a pupa in its mouth. What could 

 it mean? Could any of your subscribers oblige me 

 by answering it ? — A. Blomfield, Fatterdale, West- 

 moreland. 



Eoreign Periodicals. — Can any correspondent 

 inform me where I can obtain a cheap monthly or 

 quarterly periodical on Natural Science, in both the 

 Spanish and French languages ; with the price of 

 publication ? — II. A. A. 



London Rooks.— What becomes of the Loudon 

 rooks during the winter ? I am told that they 

 always make their first appearance at the nests by 

 the fountains in Kensington Gardens on the 10th 

 of March. I was told this by a gentleman who has 

 been in the habit of passing there every day for the 

 last thirty years ; and I can answer for this year 

 myself.—/. G. Odell. 



Newts.— As J. H. F. suggests, the cause of his 

 newts casting their skins on the particular occasion 

 be mentions was the change of the water. Of eight or 

 ten newts I have, there is always one, at least, casts 

 its skin when I remove them temporarily into a 

 basin of water whilst cleaning out their tank. I 

 have observed my newts {punctatus and palmipes) 

 cast their skins in two ways. In the one way, 

 the skin comes in small fragments ; and a newt 

 in this condition is easily recognized by its ragged 

 appearance. I think if J. H. F. had watched 

 his newts with a little patience, he could not have 

 failed to observe this. In the other method of 

 casting the skin, it comes off in one entire piece. 

 I have never observed this done completely; but I 

 once observed one of my newts with its skin turned 

 down, from its head halfway between its fore and 

 hind legs ; and on watching it for a few minutes, I 



saw it several times bend back its head and seize 

 the skin with its mouth, and apparently attempt to 

 pull it off. In this instance, the skin when cast 

 was a good deal lorn, but still retained the form of 

 the animal. It was exceedingly interesting, when 

 the newt got the skin down to its hind legs, to sec 

 it gradually pull, first one foot and then the other, 

 out of its envelope. I once found a complete skin 

 lying in my tank. I could see no rupture in it ; 

 although there might possibly have been an opening 

 up either the back or abdomen, winch is still another 

 way, as I have seen mentioned in a work on this 

 subject, newts have of getting rid of their old 

 clothes. — /. B. G. 



Toads in Winter.— Can you inform me where 

 an account of the hybernation of the toad can be 

 found ? I have frequently seen them in a torpid 

 state in winter, with the mouth closed by a dia- 

 phragm ; but have not found this fact noticed in any 

 Natural History that I have consulted.— 1). P., 

 Margate. 



List of British Insects.— A list of species of 

 all known British insects is in preparation, by the 

 Rev. F. O. Morris, assisted by F. Walker, W. F. 

 Kirby, and F. Smith, which will soon be published 

 by Messrs. Longman & Co., for about five shillings. 



Prussian Vandalism?— A continental corre- 

 spondent has called attention to the paragraph 

 quoted from Land and Water at page 190, and 

 denies the facts. He says, " Neither the gardens at 

 Dresden nor anything in them have been in the 

 least disturbed ; "and as to Cologne, the matter is 

 simply that the gardens there have some small part 

 of their area laid out, by sufferance, on a portion of 

 land within the bounds of the fortifications of the 

 city ; and, should the exigencies of war demand it, 

 the portions of the gardens referred to may be re- 

 quired to be given up ; for this reason, no other 

 than light sheds have ever been erected on this 

 particular spot. Another paragraph appeared in 

 the English papers to the effect that the Zoological 

 Gardens arc being broken up in the town of Frank- 

 fort-on-the-Main, and the contents purchased by a 

 Hamburg company, whereas the reason of a tempo- 

 rary disorganization is owing to the gardens standing 

 on ground which has lately become private pro- 

 perty ; hence the Zoological Society there has had 

 to obtain a new site. As it was found more con- 

 venient to sell the larger carnivorous animals than 

 to keep them in temporary accommodation, this has 

 been done ; but the purchase was not made by the 

 Hamburg Company, but by a private dealer." We 

 are glad" to be able to contradict the statement, 

 therefore, which we copied, in good faith, from our 

 contemporary. 



Grand Lory.— What is the scientific designation 

 of the Parrot called " Grand Lory " ? There was a 

 specimen in the British Museum with this name 

 attached to it. — H. G. 



Pagoda Thrush.— What bird is the "Pagoda 

 Thrush " referred to by Moore inhis " Lalla Bookh" ? 



" And the thrush 

 Of Hindostan, whose holy warblings gush, 

 At evening from the tall pagoda's top." 



Pennant says, "The Pagoda Thrush is esteemed 

 among the first choristers of India. It sits perched 

 on the sacred pagodas, and from thence delivers its 

 melodious song." — H. G. 



[Is it the " Pagoda Starling," Temenuchus Pago- 

 durum ? — Ed.1 



