HA RD WICKE 'S S CIENCE- G OS SIP. 



191 



the clock), the day will be longer in the morning. If 

 it souths after mean noon (that is, if it is after the 

 clock), the day will be longer in the afternoon. 



December 21st, the sun is I min. 45 seconds before 

 the clock ; it rises at 8 hours 6 min., souths^ 1 min. 

 45 seconds before 12 ; consequently the day is about 

 3 min. 30 seconds longer in the morning. 



Rises Sh. 6 m. or 3I1. 54 m. to 12. 

 Sets . . . 3h. 50 m. past 12. 



January 2 1st, the sun is 1 1 m. 32 sec. after the clock, 

 therefore the day is longer in the afternoon by about 

 23 m. 4 sec. 



Rises 7 h. 56 m. or 4 h. 4 m. to 12. 

 Sets . . . . 4h. 27 m. past 12. 



June 21st, the sun is I m. 12 sec. after the clock, 

 therefore the day is about 2 m. 24 sec. longer in the 

 afternoon. 



Rises 3h. 44 m. or 8h. 16 m. to 12. 



Sets . . . . Sh. iSm. past 12. 



July 21st, the sun is 6 m. 7 sec. after the clock, there- 

 fore the day is 12 m. 14 sec. longer in the afternoon. 



Rises 4I1. 9 m. or 7 h. 51 m. to 12. 

 Sets . . . . Sh. 3m. past 12. 



The times of sunrise, sunset, and before and after 

 the clock, are taken from Whittaker's Almanac. — 

 W. H. Beverley, F.R.C.S.E., 6°c, Scarborough. 



Polishing Pebbles. — I shall be obliged if any of 

 your correspondents can tell me the best and easiest 

 method of polishing pebbles.- — Rose Ingleby. 



Extinction of the Primrose, &c— On reading 

 your note on page 148 of the present volume of your 

 valuable paper, in which you mention the rapid 

 decrease of " our own delightful primrose," I at once 

 recollected having read a very interesting leader in the 

 "Standard " on the same subject, and thinking it might 

 be interesting to some of your botanical readers, I 

 now venture to send a few extracts therefrom. The 

 said leader was called forth by the complaint of a 

 correspondent against the " wantonness" of botanists, 

 and after pointing out that they are not botanists who 

 go about the country digging up every rare specimen 

 they can lay their hands on, but are "merely dealers 

 in wild plants, the jackals of nurserymen who not 

 only take what they want for an herbarium of their 

 own, but multiply valuable specimens for barter and 

 exchange with other collectors," goes on to give 

 several instances of plants that are rapidly becoming 

 extinct, among which it mentions the primrose, in the 

 following words: — "But as our correspondent re- 

 minds us it is not only the plants dear to the Scien- 

 tific botanist which are on the eve of being uprooted 

 for good and all, but others which, owing to a 

 passing whim, have become popular. For example, 

 every spring half London is smothered in primroses, 

 under the ridiculous and childish idea that it is thus 

 paying honour to the memory of Lord Beaconsfield. 

 In point of fact, the primrose was not his favourite 

 flower. If it had been, to tear up the innocent roots 

 by the thousand, is a sufficiently odd way of commemo- 

 rating his fondness for it, and the result is, that 

 one of the sweetest of English wildings is rapidly 

 disappearing before the ravages of the rustics who 

 cater to this method of doing honour to an illustrious 

 statesman." In this I quite agree with the "Stan- 

 dard," and think that it is high time an effort was 

 made to put a stop to such unwarrantable proceedings. 

 I do not know anything about the correct way to 



commence such an effort, but it is sorrow at seeing 

 the inevitable destruction of a sweet companion of 

 our spring leisure, that makes it seem sinful to sit 

 still and not raise a finger in its defence. Would not 

 some of your experienced readers exert themselves ? 

 Could not, for instance, all the Botanical Clubs get 

 up and present a petition (with some well-known 

 signatures to back it) to a member of Parliament who 

 would take an interest in the thing, and get him to 

 put forward a Bill prohibiting the reckless uprooting 

 of our friend ? We have " game laws," and societies 

 for the "prevention of cruelty to animals," why 

 should we not have " plant or flower laws," and 

 societies for the " prevention of cruelties to plants " ? 

 In Switzerland it is illegal to uproot wholesale the 

 Edelweiss, and in France there is an " Association 

 pour la protection des plantes." How is it that Eng- 

 land is behind her continental neighbours? But al- 

 though this is an interesting and important theme, 

 I am afraid, Mr. Editor, that your geological or en- 

 tomological readers would not care to see too much 

 of your valuable space devoted to its discussion. I 

 trust, therefore, that you will use every effort in your 

 power to incite others to do the same. Perhaps, 

 before next Primrose Day, we may see our friend 

 free from danger. — Amator Natwa. 



NOTICES TO CORRESPONDENTS. 



To Correspondents and Exchangers. — As we now 

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

 dertake 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 of our gratuitous insertion of 

 " exchanges " which cannot be tolerated. 



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

 initials) and full address at the end. 



George Forbes (Dundee). — It would give us the greatest 

 pleasure to help you. But querists have little idea of the 

 Editor's difficulty ; or the number of letters which some queries 

 involve, not only on his part, but on the part of heroic and poor 

 scientists whom he has too often to communicate with. A 

 lawyer would charge 3.?. 6d. for such letters, whether he gave 

 any information or not. We have solemnly thought of editing 

 Science-Gossip gratuitously, and charging Messrs. Chatto & 

 Windus y. 6d. each for the letters we have to write ! But those 

 generous yet sagacious gentlemen would prefer we went on as 

 before. Some day we may start a " Fund " for one development 

 of Science-Gossip, for the use not of the million, but of many 

 millions, to which we should be pleased to open an advertise- 

 ment column free. People with too much money generally use 

 it to make fools of themselves, and why should Science be left 

 out ? Your package of mosses sent to be named — or, in other 

 words, for an opinion — included ten. A lawyer's single opinion on 

 anything is 6.?. 8rf. (perhaps his opinion on mosses might amount 

 to more), so that you owe the Editor the sum of £2 8s. 8d. 

 before he could possibly answer so many legal enquiries. Do 

 get a cheap ibook on mosses (there are plenty), and save this 

 trouble ! You know and love so much more about things when 

 you find them out yourself. 



M. Johnston. — From your sketch and description, we sur- 

 mise that the "animals" are merely clusters of Unicellular 

 algae. See Hassell's " Freshwater Algae," plates and descrip 

 tions, whether you can identify your "finds." 



