240 



September 25th, 1885. — Ordinary Meeting. 



A. D. Michael, Esq., F.L.S., F.R.M.S., President, in the 



Chair. 



The minutes of the preceding meeting were read and confirmed. 

 Mr. A. T. Spriggs was balloted for, and duly elected a member of the 

 Club. 

 The following additions to the Library were announced : — 



" Proceedings of the Royal Society" ... ... From the Society. 



"Journal of the Royal Microscopical Society " ,, ,, 



" Proceedings of the New York Microscopical ) 

 Society " ... ... ... ... •> 



" The American Monthly Microscopical") j exc v. an2 . e 

 Journal" ... ... j 



" The American Naturalist" 



» 



" Annual Report of the South London MicroO From tlie Society. 

 scopical Society" ... ... ... ) 



" Proceedings of the Belgian Microscropical) j exc T, anffe 

 Society" ... ... ) 



Supplement to Piaget's " Les Pediculines " ... Purchased. 



Poulson's "Botanical Micro-chemistry " ... „ 



The thanks of the meeting were voted to the donors. 



The President delivered his inaugural address to the Club, this being the 

 first occasion on which he had occupied the chair since his election. 



Professor Charles Stewart said that he was not aware when he came to the 

 meeting that he should be called upon to say anything, but as there appeared 

 to be no paper to come before them, he would just occupy a few minutes in 

 recounting some recent observations. At the present time most persons 

 were returning from their holiday trips, and he had himself just come back 

 from the North Coast of Cornwall, where the rocks were of a very rugged 

 character, and often exceedingly precipitous, and the sea in stormy weather 

 rolled its great waves in direct from the Atlantic. On arriving he went 

 down to the quay to take a look round, and, meeting some fishermen, in- 

 quired what they caught, and found that though there were not many crabs, 

 they took a great many crawfish. A basket of these was hauled up for his 

 inspection, and he found he could purchase them for 8d. or lOd. each instead 

 of two or three shillings as charged in London. As soon as they were 

 hauled up the great spiny fellows stood up and began making a noise 

 resembling the very loud croak of a laige frog. No doubt it would have 

 sounded much louder if it could have been heard under water. These 

 crawfish and a few others have the power of producing audible sounds, and 

 the way in which it was done was rather interesting. By means of a draw- 

 ing on the black-board Professor Stewart showed that in the mid line below 

 the eye segment is that w r hich bears the first pair of antennas, this segment 

 is provided with two smooth surfaces. On either side of the segment are 

 found the larger second antennas, the proximal pieces of which are fused 

 together and with the carapace ; these second pieces are provided on their 



