11> Natural History of Molluscous Animals : — 



rupted torpidity of at least fifteen years * ; and I agree with 

 Mr. Bingley in thinking that this is a well-authenticated fact. 

 Whether what follows is so, I leave to your own decision ; but 

 I will not say you are unreasonably sceptical if you deem it 

 too tramontane. " Professor Eaton of New York stated," 

 says my authority, " that the diluvial deposits through which 

 the Erie Canal was made contained ridges of hard compact 

 gravel. On cutting through one of these, near Rome village, 



* " Mr. Stuckey Simon, a merchant of Dublin, whose father, a fellow 

 of the Royal Society, and a lover of natural history, left to him a small 

 collection of fossils and other curiosities, had among them the shells of 

 some snails. About fifteen years after his father's death (in whose pos- 

 session they continued many years), he by chance gave to his son, a child 

 about ten years old, some of these snail shells to play with. The boy put 

 them into a flower-pot, which he filled with water, and the next day into 

 a basin. Having occasion to use this, Mr. Simon observed that the 

 animals had come out of their shells. He examined the child, who assured 

 him that they were the same he had given him, and said he had also a few 

 more, which he brought. Mr. Simon put one of these into water, and in 

 an hour and a half after observed that it had put out its horns and body, 

 which it moved but slowly, probably from weakness. Major Vallancey and 

 Dr. Span were afterwards present, and saw one of the snails crawl out, 

 the others being dead, most probably from their having remained some days 

 in the water. Dr. Quin and Dr. Rutty also examined the living snail several 

 different times, and were greatly pleased to see him come out of his solitary 

 habitation after so many years' confinement. Dr. Macbride, and a party 

 of gentlemen at his house, were also witnesses of this surprising phe- 

 nomenon. Dr. Macbride has thus mentioned the circumstance : — ' After 

 the shell had lain about ten minutes in a glass of water that had the cold 

 barely taken off, the snail began to appear, and in five minutes more we 

 perceived half the body pushed out from the cavity of the shell. We then 

 removed it into a basin, that the snail might have more scope than it had 

 in the glass ; and here, in a very short time, we saw it get above the sur- 

 face of the water, and crawl up towards the edge of the basin. While it was 

 thus moving about, with its horns erect, a fly chanced to be hovering near, 

 and, perceiving the snail, darted down upon it. The little animal instantly 

 withdrew itself into the shell, but as quickly came forth again when it 

 found the enemy was gone off'. We allowed it to wander about the basin 

 for upwards of an hour, when we returned it into a wide-mouthed phial, 

 wherein Mr. Simon had lately been used to keep it. He was so obliging 

 as to present me with this remarkable shell ; and I observed, at twelve 

 o'clock, as I was going to bed, that the snail was still in motion j but next 

 morning I found it in a torpid state, sticking to the side of the glass.' 



" A few weeks afterwards the shell was sent to Sir John Pringle, who 

 showed it at a meeting of the Royal Society ; but some of the members 

 imagining that Mr. Simon must have been imposed upon by his son having 

 substituted fresh shells for those that had been given to him, the boy was 

 reexamined by Dr. Macbride on the subject, who declared that he could 

 find no reason to believe that the child either did or could impose upon 

 his father. Mr. Simon's living in the heart of the city rendered it almost 

 impossible for the boy (if he had been so disposed) to collect fresh shells, 

 being at that time confined to the house with a cold. Mr. Simon has also 

 declared that he is positive those were the shells he gave to him, having in 

 his cabinet many more of the same sort, and nearly of the same size." 

 (Bingley's Animal Biogra'phy^ vol. iii. p. 574.) 



