HARD WICKE'S SCIENCE- G OSSIP. 



209 



the library, 185 slides had been presented to the 

 cabinet, the meetings had been well attended, and 

 many valuable and interesting papers had been read. 

 49 new members had been added to the list during 

 the year, making the present number 562. The 

 treasurer's statement of account was also presented to 

 the meeting, and showed the satisfactory balance in 

 hand of £106.1 3s. 5th The president then delivered 

 the customary annual address, taking for his subject 

 "The commercial application of the microscope," 

 in the course of which many interesting instances 

 were cited to show how the skilful application of the 

 microscope had proved of great value in the settle- 

 ment of important questions of social and commercial 

 interest. Much good counsel was also given to the 

 members as to the future usefulness of the club, and a 

 well-merited tribute was paid to the honorary secre- 

 tary, members of the committee, and officers, to whose 

 efficient discharge of their various duties so much 

 of their success was due. Votes of thanks were 

 unanimously passed to the president and officers of 

 the society for their services during the past year, also 

 to the council of University College for continued per- 

 mission to meet in that building ; and an announcement 

 that a donation from the funds of the club of twenty 

 pounds had been voted towards the building fund now 

 being raised for enlarging the college, was received 

 with cheers. Some further interest was also excited by 

 the presentation of a valuable gold watch to Mr. R. 

 T. Lewis, as a mark of appreciation of his services as 

 honorary reporter since 1866. Dr. Harkness, of San 

 Francisco, having been introduced to the meeting as 

 a distinguished foreign visitor, was requested to con- 

 vey the greeting of the club to the microscopical 

 society of San Francisco, and briefly acknowledged 

 the compliment on behalf of himself and his colleagues. 

 The result of the ballot for officers and council for 

 the ensuing year was as follows :— President, Professor 

 Huxley ; Vice-Presidents, Dr. Matthews, Messrs. 

 Henry Lee, C. Stewart, and T. C. White ; Trea- 

 surer, Mr. Gay ; Secretary, Mr. Ingpen ; Foreign 

 Secretary, Dr. M. C. Cooke ; and to fill four vacancies 

 on the committee, Messrs. F. Crisp, A. D. Michael, 

 E. T. Newton, and F. Oxley. 



A Theoretical Limit to the Apertures of 

 Microscopical Objectives.— At a recent meeting 

 of the Royal Microscopical Society, Professor Stokes 

 read a paper on the above subject, in which he 

 showed that theoretically a pencil of rays from a 

 radiant in glass (or under equivalent conditions) of 

 180 could be refracted by a single refraction at a 

 spherical surface so as to present to the second lens 

 a pencil of about 8l° free from spherical aberration ; 

 and, while not asserting the possibility of utilising the 

 whole of the pencil of 180 in glass, he thought a 

 very large part of it might be available in a practical 

 construction,— a far larger part than can be used in 

 dry lenses. 



ZOOLOGY. 



Birds' Eggs in Wrong Nests.— The circum- 

 stance mentioned by Mr. Sharpe in the number for 

 July must be veiy unusual. Last year, on May 9th, 

 I found a blackbird's nest with three blackbird's eggs 

 and a thrush's ; the blackbird was sitting, but I do 

 not know if they were hatched off. In April, 1873, 

 I found a coot's nest near St. Albans with seven 

 coot's eggs and one moorhen's. On going again a 

 few days afterwards I found an eighth coot's egg and a 

 second moorhen's, with the coot sitting on them. 

 These are the only instances I can recollect to have 

 met with of one species of bird laying in another 

 nest, besides the ordinary custom of the cuckoo, during 

 several years' experience of birds'-nesting. Single 

 eggs of various birds, partridges, thrushes, and black- 

 birds, more especially, are frequently found dropped 

 on the ground, probably either because the bird has 

 not finished its nest in time, or else because its nest 

 has been torn out. In pulling out an old partridge's 

 nest some years ago, from which all the young birds 

 had run (by the way it was, as I should say they 

 usually are, rather elaborately concocted of dead 

 leaves, grass, &c.) ; in the materials I found an egg 

 which had evidently been laid while the nest was in 

 making, and had been covered up so effectually by 

 the lining that it was addled. I have also a red- 

 start's egg which my brother found in a corner of an 

 old tree, between the trunk and a branch, where it had 

 evidently been dropped for lack of a nest. Very 

 probably the starlings not having a nest of their own 

 ready, made use of their neighbour's from the same 

 cause.— A. F. Griffith, Cambridge. 



Appearance of Papilio Machaon.— On the 

 25th of June, 1876, the weather was warm and fine. 

 At noon on that day P. Machaon made its appearance 

 out of the pupa ; the wings were developing at the 

 time. Another machaon emerged from the pupa just 

 before 8 a.m. on the 25th June 1878; its wings 

 were fully developed ; the weather was warm and fine. 

 Both imagos emerged on the same day of the same- 

 month in different years. This may be of interest to 

 those who notice the influence of insects. The usual 

 month for its appearance is May.— R. A. Dent. 



Testacella Haliotoidea I have lately found 

 in considerable abundance in my garden ; they are 

 generally found whilst turning up the ground. The 

 nearest recorded locality I believe to be Taunton, in 

 Somerset. I have some in confinement, and have 

 been watching their habits, which are very interesting. 

 — H. T. Johnston-Lavis, Stalbridge, Dorset. 



BOTANY. 



The Pronunciation of Scientific Names.— 

 Cordially agreeing with the principles laid down by 

 Mr. Charles Browne, I only write once more on this 

 subject with reference to three names mentioned by him. 



