72 Whirlwinds produced by the Burning of Cane-Brakes. 



Odostomia we liave a genus which is not fairly represented, on ac- 

 count of the excessively critical character of its species. Five genera 

 of Gasteropoda, three of Laniellibranchiate acephala, three of 

 Palliobranchiate acephala, and three of hard Echinodermata, all 

 having members in the Scottish portion of the regions explored, are 

 without representatives in the English western and southern pro- 

 vinces. On the other hand, seven genera of Gasteropoda and eight 

 of Laniellibranchiate acephala having English representatives, are 

 altogether wanting on the western and northern coasts of Scotland. 

 All our brachiopods found within the area explored are Scottish 

 species ; the number of monomyarious Lamellibranchiata is slightly 

 in favour of Scotland over England, which, however, shews a consi- 

 derable majority of dimyaria. The proportion of Gasteropoda in 

 the Scottish seas is, however, so great, that the total number of tes- 

 tacea is in favour of the north. This is to be attributed partly to 

 the greater variety of depths and ground, and partly to the pre- 

 sence in the north of isolated colonies of arctic forms which swell 

 the ranks of the inhabitants of those regions to beyond their natural 

 proportions. 



Whirlwinds produced by the Burning of Cane- Brakes. 



Mr Olmsted read to the American Association, at New 

 Haven, a paper on whirlwinds produced by the burning of 

 cane-brakes in the south. The canes in Alabama often grow 

 to the height of 35 or 40 feet. They are cut down, and, 

 after drying for about six weeks, fire is applied to them in 

 several places. As soon as the canes begin to burn, the air 

 that is confined in their cells, and the watery vapour, burst 

 them asunder. They generally explode through several cells 

 at once, and thus are split in one continued line. Those ex- 

 plosions, in burning a large cane-brake, produce a continued 

 roar, like the discharge of musketry from an immense army. 

 On account of the dry, combustible nature of the cane, when 

 kindled, the fire advances with great rapidity, giving out 

 flames of the deepest red, the intensity and richness of which 

 colour are incomparably finer than the flames which arise 

 from the combustion of any other kind of wood. Together 

 with the flame, there ascends a very dense, black smoke, 

 resembling that which arises from burning camphor, or from 

 the chimneys of gas-works or factories where bituminous 



