234 



HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



The Royal Microscopical Society. — The last 

 Journal of this Society contains, in addition to the 

 useful summary of microscopic information relating 

 to botany, zoology, &c, a paper by George Massee 

 on " The Structure and Evolution of the Floridere," 

 illustrated with exquisitely drawn plates. 



New Slides. — We have received from Mr. II. P. 

 Aylward, 164 Oxford Street, Manchester, a beautifully 

 mounted slide of British Foraminifera, containing five 

 characteristic species, which we heartily commend. 



Cole's " Studies in Microscopical Science." 

 — Sections 1, 2, 3 and 4 of the second number of 

 the fourth volume of this ever-welcome work have 

 just appeared, dealing with "The Cell-wall, its 

 structure and properties ; " " Spermatozoa of Verte- 

 brata," "Normal Kidney," and "The Sea Fans." 

 Each part is beautifully illustrated, and, with their 

 accompanying slides, render the student's work both 

 easy and delightful. 



"The Rotifera." — The fifth part of the mono- 

 graph on these lovely and interesting creatures has 

 just been published. Dr. Hudson and Mr. Gosse"s 

 work is now approaching its close, only another part 

 being required to complete the whole. The present 

 continues the Notommatada , and commences with 

 Plo'ima in the Loricated group of rotifers, giving all 

 the various family groups. The plates are very 

 beautiful, and are crowded with well-drawn and easily 

 recognised objects. 



The Quekett Club. — The September number of 

 the Journal of this Society contains the following 

 papers : — " On Diatomic Structure," by Henry 

 Morland ; " The Microscopical Structure of the 

 Diatomic Valve," by Julien Deby ; "A Salt-Water 

 Monad," by E. M. Nelson ; " A Fossil Diatomaceous 

 Deposit from New Zealand," by E. Grove and G. 

 Sturt ; besides notes of the Proceedings, &c. 



ZOOLOGY. 



Gnats and Gnat-Bites. — At a recent meeting 

 of the Entomological Society of London, Professor 

 Westwood exhibited five specimens of a species of 

 Cttlcx, supposed to be either C. cantans or C. lateralis, 

 sent to him by Mr. Douglas, who had received them 

 from the Kent 'Waterworks. It was stated that they 

 had been very numerous in July last, and that persons 

 bitten by them had suffered from " terrible swellings." 

 Professor Westwood also exhibited some galls found 

 inside an acorn at Cannes in January last. 



The Mollusca of Clonmel, Ireland. — Per- 

 mit me to add the following to the list of mollusca 

 which Mr. Cockerell published in your August number 

 for Tipperary and North Waterford : — Limax cinereo- 



niger, v. nigra, co. Wat. ; ITdix memoralis, v. with, 

 pure white lip, co. Wat. ; II. aculeate, co. Wat. - r 

 Vertigo pygmesa, co. Wat. ; Hyallnafulva, co. Tip. ;. 

 Bullinus obscurus, co. Wat. ; Valvata cristata, co. 

 Wat. and co. Tip. ; Planorbis nitidus, co. Tip. ; /'. 

 alius, co. Tip. and co. Wat. ; P. parvus, co. Tip. ;. 

 Physa hypnontm, co. Tip. ; Limnceus auricularius, z\ 

 acuta, co. Tip. ; Ancylus lacustris, R. Suir, co. Tip. 

 These, with those already mentioned by Mr. Cockerell 

 (to whom I am very much indebted for information),, 

 have been taken within a radius of three miles of the 

 town of Clonmel. 



Man's Lost Incisors. — A paper on this subject 

 was read at the British Association meeting by 

 Professor Windle. It dealt with abnormalities of 

 the human incisor teeth, viewed in the light which 

 they throw upon man's past, present, and future 

 incisive dentition. A number of specimens were 

 exhibited, which were grouped under eight series, 

 (i.) Supplemental teeth (incisiform) ; (ii.) super- 

 numerary teeth (conical) ; (iii.) co-existence of sup- 

 plemental and supernumerary teeth ; (iv.) substitution 

 of a supernumerary tooth for a normal incisor ; (v. ) 

 substitution of two supernumerary teeth for normal 

 incisors; (vi.) absence of one incisor ; (vii.) absence 

 of one incisor, diminution or malformation of another ;_ 

 (viii.) absence of both lateral incisors. From these 

 specimens the following deductions were drawn : — 

 (1) That man's original dentition included six incisors ■ 

 in either jaw. (2) That two have been lost, which 

 are the lateral on each side in either jaw. (3) That 

 this loss is due to the contraction of the anterior part 

 of the palate. (4) That consequent upon the still 

 progressing contraction, man's dentition will be in 

 course of time still further reduced by two incisors in 

 either jaw. (5) That the conical type of many of 

 the supernumerary teeth indicates a reversion to the 

 primitive type of tooth. 



BOTANY. 



The "London Catalogue." — When I penned 

 the note that appeared in the July Science-Gossip,. 

 I was not aware that the eighth edition of the 

 "London Catalogue" had appeared. Having ob- 

 tained a copy, I was amazed to find that this edition 

 differed as widely from previous editions as Hooker's 

 "Students' Flora" differed from its two previous 

 editions. In fact, the editors of the two publications- 

 openly profess that they are in league. Like Mr. 

 Wheatcroft, I do not complain of changes in the 

 classification, because we must ever be improving, 

 and advancing in that direction, but I do complain 

 of the changes in nomenclature, because no good 

 end can be served by this everlasting shifting 

 of names. So long as the name is a fixture, it is of 



