Botanical Society of Edinburgh, 355 



most important contributions that had of late years been made to 

 Natural History, both in a scientific and commercial point of view. 



BOTANICAL SOCIETY OF EDINBURGH. 



This Society met on the evening of the 14th November, in the 

 Royal Institution. — Dr. R. K. Greville in the Chair. 



A letter from the Marquis of Normanby was read, stating that 

 the Diploma of the Society had been laid before the Queen, and that 

 the same had been very graciously received by Her Majesty. A 

 letter was also read from Baron Werther, inclosing a communica- 

 tion from the King of Prussia, in which His Majesty was graciously 

 pleased to acknowledge the receipt of the Society's Diploma, trans- 

 mitted on the occasion of His Majesty's election as an honorary 

 member. 



An account of botanical excursions made from Edinburgh in the 

 autumn of 1839, was read by Professor Graham. 



Mr. Forbes read a notice of excursions in the neighbourhood of 

 Trieste*, in which he gave a sketch of the Triestine territory, a 

 country exceedingly rich in rare and curious plants. The excur- 

 sions described were four : — 1st, the immediate neighbourhood of 

 the town ; 2nd, the salt marshes of Zaule, and the neighbouring hills 

 of Istria ; 3rd, the Monte Spaccato and the wood of Lipizza, on the 

 singular calcareous plain of the Karst ; and 4th, Contobello on the 

 sea coast. 



Dr. Greville laid on the table a series of specimens of Quercus 

 rohur, exhibiting an extraordinary range of form. From the singu- 

 lar variation exhibited by these specimens in the shape and texture 

 of the leaves, and in the length of the peduncles, Dr. Greville was 

 of opinion that there is but one species of oak indigenous in Britain. 



ROYAL PHYSICAL SOCIETY OF EDINBURGH. 



Of the communications read this Session to the Physical Society, 

 we notice the following : — Edward Forbes, Esq. exhibited drawings 

 and diagrams of the various genera of Ciliograde Medusae inhabiting 

 the seas of Britain, with comments on their structure and habits. He 

 gave an account of two new species oi Alcina — a genus observed this 

 summer, for the first time, in the northern hemisphere ; also, of a 

 new Be7'oe, discovered near the Isle of May ; and concluded with 

 some interesting observations on the structure and use of cilia, 

 which naturalists have generally supposed are for motion, but which 

 Mr. Forbes showed could not be so. 



* See p. 307 of our present Number. 

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