HAHDWTCKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



143 



tions of the animals forming the fauna of the cave, 

 the author proceeded to describe the traces of man 

 found in it, which consist of fragments of charcoal, 

 and implements made of antler and mammoth 

 tooth, quartzite, ironstone, greenstone, and Hint. 

 The distribution of these implements in the cave 

 represents three distinct stages. In the cave-earth 

 the existence of man is indicated by the quartzite 

 implements, which are far ruder than those gene- 

 rally formed of the more easily-fashioned flint. Out 

 of 91 worked quartzite pebbles only 3 occurred in 

 the breccia, while of 267 worked flints only 8 were 

 met with in the cave-earth. The ruder implements 

 were thus evidently the older, corresponding in 

 general form with those assigned by De Mortillet 

 to "the age of Moustier and St. Acheul," repre- 

 sented in England by the ruder implements of the 

 lower breccia in Kent's Hole. The newer or flint 

 series includes some highly-finished implements, 

 such as are referred by De Mortillet to " the age of 

 Solutre," and are found in England in the cave- 

 earth of Kent's Hole and Wookey Hole. The 

 discovery of these implements considerably extends 

 the range of the Palaeolithic hunters to the north 

 and west, and at the same time establishes a direct 

 relation in point of time between the ruder types of 

 implements below and the more highly-finished ones 

 above. 



NOTES AND QUERIES. 



The British Museum. — Would you kindly 

 allow me a small space to call attention to a subject 

 of great importance to such of your readers as are 

 dwellers in London ? I refer to the hours of closing 

 the British Museum, and speak on behalf of work- 

 ing men who, wishing to take up the study of 

 Natural Science, and lacking the means wherewith 

 to purchase costly works upon the subject, in order 

 to become acquainted with the varied and beautiful 

 forms of the animal kingdom. They usually leave 

 their employment on the Saturday afternoon at 

 two o'clock. The class of workman that would 

 visit the Museum for purposes of study would desire 

 to go clean and well-dressed. If so, he cannot 

 arrive there before four o'clock. If this happen 

 between the beginning of November and the end of 

 February, he will have to return without entering 

 the Museum; if in March, April, September, or 

 October, he may stay till five o'clock, but this hour 

 is of very little use to him. " But," I shall be 

 answered, "from May to August it is open on 

 Saturday until eight o'clock." True, but during 

 that period naturalists wish to pursue their studies 

 in the Held, where they can gain more knowledge in 

 a day thau the Museum could afford in a month. 

 It is in the winter that we wish chiefly to visit the 

 Museum, in order to determine the species and place 

 of our summer's captures. I would suggest, to 

 remedy this evil, that the Field Clubs, Natural 

 History Societies, &c, in the metropolis should 

 send a memorial to the trustees of the British 

 Museum, praying that it may be open to the pubiic, 

 like South Kensington Museum, from ten a.m. to 

 teu p.m. Hoping that the importance of the sub- 



ject will be deemed excuse sufficient for thus intrud- 

 ing on your space. — Edward Step, St. Mary Lam- 

 beth Field Club. 



Housr Cricket.— In answer to Mr. J. P. 

 J5lackett's query regarding the manner in which the 

 chirruping sound is produced by the House Cricket, 

 he will find that it is made by the apparatus con- 

 sisting of the tympanum or drum, which is a space 

 on each of the upper wings, scarcely traversed by 

 veins, but bounded externally by a large dark vein, 

 with three or four longitudinal ridges ; and of the 

 file or bow which is a transverse horny ridge in 

 front cf the tympanum, having numerous teeth ; 

 the sound is produced by the rubbing of the two 

 bows across each other, the tympanum acting as a 

 sound-board. 1 shall be pleased to show Mr. 

 Blackest nature's violin, if he feels inclined to pay 

 me a visit. — B. W. Fried. 



Fritillaria heleagris, inquired for in last 

 Science-Gossip, was found by me five years 

 aso in large quantities in the woods surrounding 

 Warley Lodge, Brentwood, Essex. Nettle-thread, 

 viz., a stuff made of nettle-thread, was bought by 

 me two years ago in Offenbach, Landau, Germany. 

 — Blanche} 



Fritillary. — Your correspondent Joseph An- 

 derson, jun., Chichester, asks for the habitat of 

 Fritillaria meleagris. I know of one place where it 

 grows, viz. on the borders of three counties, Hamp- 

 shire, Surrey, and Sussex ; I mean at the point where 

 these three counties converge near Haslemere. I 

 will try and get a specimen if your correspondent 

 will send his full address. — T. W. 



[This plant is now growing so abundantly in some 

 of the Suffolk meadows as to be a complete pest. — 

 Eh. &'-£] 



Heronries.— I think that Mr. Arnold, whose 

 query respecting Sussex heronries appeared in 

 Science-Gossip for April, would be interested to 

 heai of two large and old-established colonies near 

 Hastings. The oue, said to be one of the largest in 

 England, is at Brede, north of Fairlight, situated in 

 a small lonely wood, near Broad Oak. The other is 

 at Windmill Hill, near Hurst-Monceaux, where the 

 heronry is accompanied by a large rookery. The 

 two, rook and heron, occasionally nesting in the 

 same tree.— St. T. H. 



Brown Toabs. — In answ r er to J. H. B. Brooke, 

 I have in my possession a fine toad of a light red- 

 brown colour. I obtained it about two years since 

 on Wimbledon Common. It is the only one I have 

 seen of so ruddy a hue, but I have got specimens of 

 various tints from dirty brown to dark grey. These 

 latter tints harmonize beautifully with the soils upon 

 which they are most commonly found, and it might 

 be worth the trouble to ascertain if the hue- of 

 these brown and red toads is not dependent in some 

 way on the hue of their native soil. I obtained my 

 red toad from a giavel-pit.— E. Step. 



Early Appearance of Swallows. — It is 

 rather an unusual circumstance to see swallows 

 in London, or in the London parks. On Good 

 Friday, April 16th, after the snow-storm, and 

 when there was an intensely cold north wind 

 blowing, L observed from fifteen to twenty swal- 

 lows flying backwards and forwards over the 

 Serpentine. They were evidently in search of 

 food, of which 1 fear they found but little. I 

 looked for them since, but none appeared for 

 some time aficrwards. — T. E. 



