HARD WICKE ' S S CIENCE - G O SSIF. 



23 



to the severe weather. It revived on being warmed 

 before the fire ; it was preserved by Mr. Allen, of 

 York, and is now in the possession of Mr. Hornby, of 

 Heslington. — J. A. IVhddon. 



Sand Pictures. — If J. M. C. will apply to Mr. 

 Cotton, Alum Bay, Isle of Wight, I have no doubt 

 he will be able to obtain the bottles of coloured sand 

 arranged as pictures, at a moderate price. — W. E, 

 IVindus. 



Strensall Common. — This notable Yorkshire 

 locality has undergone a great change during the last 

 two years, having been transformed into a military 

 camp by the Government. Owing to draining opera- 

 tions the ajjpearance of the surface has become entirely 

 changed. The first bird to take alarm was the black- 

 headed gull, which formerly bred here in immense 

 numbers. All the extensive splashes or patches of 

 marsh are now almost quite dry in summer, and the 

 gulls have migrated to other commons in the district. 

 The teal and wild duck appear to have also left their 

 old summer haunts, though the latter appear regularly 

 in the winter months. The little grebe and snipe are 

 much scarcer, as also the redshank, although a few of 

 the latter still breed on the common. Many of the 

 rarer plants are found in greatly diminished numbers, 

 and the extermination of some of them is probably 

 only a matter of time. I searched in vain this summer 

 for Andromeda polifolia, and we shall probably soon 

 see the last of Drosera ititeriiudia, Hypericum elodes, 

 Mentha pukgiiim, Radiola millegrana, Filularia 

 glohilifera and others. Gcntiana ptictimonanthe 

 appears to hold its ground so far. Some of the 

 freshwater shells are already scarce. The very large 

 examples of Litnnca stag)ialis and Planorbis corneics 

 are not to be found now, but Limnea glabra and 

 iruncahda are still very fine and abundant. I hear 

 also that a portion of Askham Bog is about to be im- 

 proved off the face of the earth ; several pools are to 

 be filled up, and converted into grazing ground. This 

 portion of the bog was a rich conchological resort, 

 producing several rare shells, and I believe also some 

 very good aquatic beetles. Fortunately the improve- 

 ment will not extend as far as the haunts of Carex 

 paradoxa, Myrica gals, Osvuttida regalis, Lastrea 

 ihelyptcris, &c. It would be a severe blow to local 

 naturalists to entirely lose this tract of aboriginal 

 ground, immediately after the destruction of Strensall 

 Common. — y. A. IVheldon. 



NOTICES TO CORRESPONDENTS. 



To Correspondents and Exchangers. — As we now 

 publish Science-Gossip earlier than formerly, we cannot un- 

 <iertake to insert in the following number any communications 

 ■which reach us later than the 8th of the previous month. 



To Anonymous Querists. — We must adhere to our rule of 

 not noticing queries which do not bear the writers' names. 



To Dealers and Others. — We are always glad to treat 

 dealers in natural history objects on the same fair and general 

 , ground as amateurs, in so far as the " exchanges " offered are fair 

 exchanges. But it is evident that, when their offers are simply 

 Disguised Advertisements, for the purpose of evading the cost 

 of advertising, an advantage is taken oi omx gratuitous insertion 

 of " exchanges " which cannot be tolerated. 



Wk request that all exchanges may be signed with name (or 

 ■ initials) and full address at the end. 



Special Note. — There is a tendency on the part of some 

 exchangers to send more than one per month. We only allow 

 this in the case of writers of papers. 



E. T. H.— In all probability the pebble containing Rhynco- 

 nella, found at Southbourne, was a bit of rolled greensand 

 from the Isle of Wight. 



"Alum Bay Sand." — Bottles (bluebell shaped) and paper 

 weights of this variegated sand are sold all over the Isle of 

 Wight. The maker lives at Totland Bay, but a letter addressed 



to "The Naturalist, The Pottery, &c.. Hut, The Pier, Totland 

 Bay, Isle of Wight," would doubtless find him. He also sells 

 Isle of Wight fossils and pottery. A fair sized bottle of sand 

 may be got f^r is., and the one representing "The Needles" 

 is about the most interesting.— Gciir^f P. Best, Chelsea, IV. 



W. Hodges.— The coloured illustrations on Graphic Micro- 

 scopy were given up on account of their great expense. 

 Remember that Science-Gossip is published at ^d. 



E. E. Lowe.— Get Dr. Ahn's " First Course in Spanish," 

 price IS. or is. (ni. 



J. Worlledge, Woodbridge. — From your .sketches and 

 description, we do not think the creature is a rotifer, but a 

 stalked infusorian, probably a species of Ophridiunu 



J. S. T. — One of the best places to find carboniferous lime- 

 stone fossils is the neighbourhood of Castleton, Derbyshire. 



T. Summers. — Get the .shilling edition referred to in our 

 present list of "Books Received," on "Land and Freshwater 

 Shells." 



R. W. HooLEY.— Huxley and Martin's "Biology" (pub- 

 lished by Macmillan) is the best elementary book. 



F. L. Tanner. — Get Swift's Second Series. Zeiss's are 

 good, and, perhaps, cheaper. 



A. Skipton. — See the notice in our Science-Gossip column 

 of Professor Seeley's lectures. We would strongly advise you 

 to join the class. Thereby you would get to know directly all 

 you ask about. 



R. Cou par. —Address the Hon. Sec. Bradford Naturalists' 

 Society, Bradford, Yorkshire. 



J. KiRBV. — From the capital sketch of the fish you sent, we 

 have no doubt it is Ostracion cornutns, one of the Berycidae 

 peculiar to tropical seas now. 



Mrs. B.— Write to Messrs. George Bell and Sons, 4 York 

 Street, Covent Garden, about the " London Catalogue," and 

 to Mr. John Eggleston, Naturalist, Sunderland, about the 

 botanical labels for British plants. A few years ago a book 

 was published of such labels, printed on one side. 



J. EvRE. — Your article will appear in due course. 



G. HoGGETT. — Write to Mr. John Browning, 63 Strand, 

 London, about the telescope. 



"Ben Nevis." — Will some Kentish botanist inform this 

 querist as to the best " Flora of Kent " 1 



Miss Hellmaun. — Your note appeared in the December 

 number of Scienck-Gossip. 



H. D. GowER. — A capital work is now being issued in 

 monthly parts, price ?(/., with coloured plates, by Dr. Carl 

 Russ, entitled "The Speaking Parrots," published by L. 

 Upcott Gill. There is also a cheap work, called " Parrots in 

 Captivity," published, we believe, at the " Bazaar" office. 



To OUR Friends. — Owing to our having to go to press this 

 month very early on account of the Christmas holidays, many 

 queries and exchanges have to stand over. We have received 

 various complaints from subscribers that Science-Gossip comes 

 out so late. The complaint is a gratifying one to the Editor ; 

 it shows that his subscribers are anxious to get Science. 

 Gossip as soon as possible. The Editor intends that with the 

 new year the magazine will be out nine days earlier than 

 heretofore. No exchanges inserted after the loth of each 

 month. 



EXCHANGES. 



Will exchange the following eggs, side-blown, one hole: — 

 Common crossbill, rosy bullfinch, dipper, Squacco heron. Dart- 

 ford warbler, and black -headed gull, for one-hole blown wood- 

 cock, turnstone, bittern, great bustard, and others. Please 

 send lists. Henry Booth, Upcerne Road, Chelsea. 



Offered.— "Course of Time" (Pollock), "Life of Kitto" 

 (Eadie), "Elements of Zoology" (Rhind), "Young Fur 

 Traders," "Tours to the British Mountains, 1824" (Wilkin- 

 son), " Iron and Heat " (Armour), " Life and Travels of Hum- 

 boldt," "French Grammar" (Wolskie), "Leisure Time 

 Studies," chiefly biological (Wilson), " Life of a Scotch Natu- 

 ralist" — Edward (Smiles), " Die Waldenser im Mittelalter (in 

 German). Wanted.— " Conchology" (Woodward), "Manual 

 of Mollusca," "Siluria" (Murchison), "Western Islands" 

 (McCulloch), "Principles of Geology" (Lyell), "Antiquity of 

 Man"(Lyell), "Monograph of Fossils" (King), "Geology of 

 Arran" (Bryce), " Prehistoric Times " (Lubbock), "History of 

 Rutherglen and East Kilbride" (Ure), "Volcanic Islands" 

 (Darwin), and "Catalogue of British Fossils" (Morris).— 

 J. Smith, Monkredding, Kilwinning. 



Cast of a hammer-headed shark {Zygoma inalleus) of the 

 Mediterranean. Desiderata, curios, other eggs than birds*, 

 foreign shells, especially snail's. Curios to exchange ; descrip- 

 tion will be sent with head, which is very rare.— Archibald Hy. 

 McBean, S. Denys, Southampton. 



Fossils from Barton and Hordle to exchange for others 

 from various formations. Send lists to— Miss Hinuber, Bel- 

 more, Lymington, Hants. . 



Wanted, books on Microscope, recent editions; wiU give 

 others in exchange.— W. T. Porter, 19 Otley Road, Heading- 

 ley, Leeds. 



