2S0 



HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



tlie too rapid increase. Of the fourteen species 

 known there were tiger-cats, dogs, hyanodous, and 

 the tomarctos, a new genus founded by Professor 

 Cope. It resembled the dog, and was as large as 

 the black bear, but it was much more carnivorous 

 in its propensities. The reptiles embrace turtles, 

 lizards, and snakes. The last two orders were dis- 

 covered for the first time in this formation in 

 America. Within the last few years Professor 

 Cope has obtained from the ancient sea and lake 

 deposits of Kansas, Colorado, Wyoming, Idaho, 

 &c., about 300 species of vertebrate animals, of 

 which he has made known to science for the first 

 time more than 200. The history of the succession 

 of life on this continent will be still further eluci- 

 dated by proper investigations of the specimens 

 preserved. 



now TO Mount Fossil Foraminifera.— 

 Take a lump of chalk weighing about a quarter of a 

 pound, and break into small fragments about the 

 size of a filbert. Next take a fine piece of linen, 

 put into it the small pieces of chalk, and tie it 

 tightly, as you would do a sack of flour. Immerse 

 this into a vessel containing a gallon of clean water, 

 and let it stand during a period varying from five to 

 six hours; at the expiration of which time the small 

 pieces of chalk will be found to have lost their 

 solidity. Should there, however, remain any por- 

 tions undissolved, work them between the finger 

 and thumb gently, when they will easily be reduced. 

 Agitate the mass in water, always taking care to 

 change the water and keep it clear, until the milk- 

 white colour disappears, when the residue in the rag 

 will be found to consist of the various species of 

 foraminifera, and those other forms commonly dis- 

 covered in chalk. Another way, and perhaps not so 

 tedious as the foregoing, is to take a piece of clean 

 chalk, and, with a stiff brush, such as a tooth-brush, 

 rub off some of the powder over a glass of clear 

 ■water. Carefully gather the residue collected at 

 the bottom of the glass, which invariably contains 

 the finer kinds of foraminifera. If necessary, again 

 wash well in a two-ounce phial half filled with water; 

 let it stand until the organisms have fallen to the 

 bottom, when draw off" the liquid by means of a 

 siphon or wet thread. It is by far the better plan 

 for those living in the district of the chalk cliffs to 

 collect a small quantity of the dust which, worn 

 from the cliffs by the rain and action of the air, ac- 

 cumulates at the base. The most' valuable collec- 

 tions of organisms are generally selected from such 

 gatherings. Foraminifera can be mounted in two 

 ways, viz., dry and in balsam. When they are large 

 and opaque, it is by far the better plan to mount 

 them dry in a cement-cell sufiiciently deep to con- 

 tain the organisms. To view the structure, &c., it 

 will be necessary to make sections, when the mark- 

 ing and general structure will be easily distinguished 



with the low powers ; thus supplying a selection of 

 slides at once both interesting and instructing. The 

 second method— the Canada balsam media— is use- 

 ful in preserving the transparent and finer kinds of 

 foraminifera. When the subsidence is in water, take 

 up a small drop by the aid of one of the pipettes, 

 M'ithout which no microscopist should be, and place 

 a small portion of the water containing the forms in 

 the centre of the slide. Evaporate the water by 

 heat, add a little turpentine and submit to the action 

 of the air-pump to get rid of the air-bubbles. The 

 spirit will soon evaporate ; when add balsam in the 

 usual way and place on the glass cover.—/. P. S. 



A New Foeaminifer. — Mr. H. B. Brady, 

 F.L.S., F.G.S., of Newcastle, in a paper read in sec- 

 tion D of the British Association, described a new 

 type of carboniferous foraminifera which he had 

 detected in some carboniferous limestone. These 

 organisms do not occur in any great quantity, but 

 specimens may be generally found in the dedris of 

 fossiliferous limestone beds. The author describes 

 these forms as lenticular discs about the ^^th of an 

 inch in diameter and ^'o th of an inch in thickness, and 

 never quite symmetrical. Thoy often present an ap- 

 pearance of laminated structure ; and in this, as in 

 some other features, present a superficial resem- 

 blance to small nummulites. It was only by means 

 of sections and microscopical examination that their 

 true nature and affinities could be detected. The 

 interior will be best understood by comparing it to a 

 tube coiled upon itself in constantly varying direc- 

 tions, the periphery being determined by the last 

 circlet of the coil. The tube which represents the 

 cavity occupied during life by the main body of the 

 animal is never, so far as I have been able to discover, 

 subdivided into chambers. The shell-wall through- 

 out is traversed by a multitude of very minute 

 tubuli. The author considers that this form shows 

 many nummulitic affinities, although less complex in 

 general structure. He proposes the name Archie- 

 discus for the genus, and for a specific name Karreri, 

 after Dr. Felix Karrer, of Vienna. A more minute 

 description, with figures, will be found in the Annals 

 of Natural History for October. — K. 



How TO Mount Foraminifera from Chalk. 

 — In answer to "B. M.'s " query of how to obtain 

 and mount foraminifera from chalk, I will endeavour 

 to explain one process always employed by a friend 

 of mine, as well as myself ; and we can testify to 

 its merits. First, scrape a small portion from the 

 original mass, and shake it up well in pure water ; 

 leave tliis a few minutes, pour away the water and 

 add afresh quantity ; shake up as before, and repeat 

 two or three times. To examinine this washing, 

 take a little of the residue, and spread it on a slide, 

 and when quite dry add a few drops of turpentine. 

 This, when viewed by a power of 250 diameters, 



