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specimen of the same variety in America, and at once it was called a new 

 species, and a name was given to it, or, at least, Mr. Thomas suggested a 

 name by which it should be called, Calumetica, derived from the name of the 

 river it came from. Then Mr. Carter wrote to say, that the sponge he had 

 was the same as this one from America. He (Mr. Waller) thought if they 

 must give a name to it at all — as he himself had declined to do — it should 

 certainly be from Ditchleys. He thought these things ought to be stated, for 

 in his opinion they did no good to science, but had quite an opposite effect. In 

 the sponge, however, which Mr. Priest had described that evening they had 

 a distinct variet) r , and he believed it to be an English species, and one which 

 had also been found in the Ouse. It was quite his opinion, that if they had 

 more persons studying this group of organisms they should soon have many 

 more additions to the list. 



Mr. E. T. Newton thought they were very much indebted to Mr. Priest 

 for the paper which he had read, and he was very glad to hear that Mr. 

 Waller could justify the specimen as a new species. He was particularly 

 struck by Mr. Waller's remarks on the remarkable variations which had 

 been found to occur in the case of this sponge, and it seemed to be more 

 and more borne upon them that many of those things they had been calling 

 new species were not strictly so, and that the divisions between them were 

 being broken down as they discovered that the differences arose from gradual 

 changes in the outward conditions. With regard to the remarkable fact 

 that whenever this sponge was found in smooth water it had smooth spicules, 

 which in running water were spined, he would venture to ask was this due 

 to the fact that in running water they had a more vigorous growth because 

 of the greater need for protection against the force of the surrounding 

 stream, or was it that in this case there was in the flowing river a greater 

 quantity of material to be gathered out of which spicules could be made ? 

 He thought it would be well for all of them to bear these things in mind, 

 and certainly they ought to be very careful as to burdening science and one 

 another with new names for old species. 



Mr. Waller said that the first variety of the entirely spined kind was 

 found under rather peculiar circumstances. It was in very bad weather at 

 Surbiton, and from some cause he was detained for a long time on the 

 barge at which the boats landed their passengers. To employ his time he 

 fished between the barge and the mooring-board, a position where the water 

 was in a great state of agitation, and from this place he obtained his 

 specimens. Mr. Carter had suggested that the spiny condition might have 

 something to do with the rapid motion of the water. 



The President was sure the members of the Club would return a hearty 

 vote of thanks to Mr. Priest for his paper, and also to those gentlemen who had 

 spoken upon the subject. Mr. Priest's paper also raised the question as to 

 whether species found here under certain conditions could be properly 

 regarded as native or introduced ? This was a very difficult question to 

 decide, more especially when, as in the present case, they were found in a 

 tidal river, such as the Thames, which was also somewhat slow as well as 



