24 The Irish Naturalist. [January, 



It was gratifying to find how little of the conscientious work of the first 

 edition had been discarded in the second, and how stimulating its 

 influence had been on Irish field botany, as indicated by the increased 

 records. He was convinced that could the authors of the first edition 

 give an opinion they would say the work was a worthy successor to the 

 first. 



Mr. R. M Barrington, F.D.S., seconded the resolution, heartily 

 endorsing all that Mr. Moore had said. He thought the editors 

 attributed too much to the Gulf Stream. It w T as, he thought, the 

 prevalence of S.W. winds, due to the permanent Atlantic depression 

 and the island character of Ireland, which accounted for its mild 

 humidity. After spending some forty years in the study of field botany. 

 Mr. Barrington could recommend it to all as a source of constant and 

 permanent pleasure in every journey. He urged members, however, if 

 they were to get full pleasure from the study, to work out themselves 

 the identifications of the plants found. 



Mr. T. Chandi.EE, in strongly supporting the resolution, said he had 

 only seen one slight typographical error. Dr. Johnson thought they 

 would not have long to wait for a third edition if the teaching of botany 

 in the primary and secondary schools received due encouragement. 

 The following were duly elected members '. — J. Bowker, S. H. Douglas, 

 Mrs. Espinasse, Miss Ladd, Miss E. M'Intosh, F. O'Brien, Miss Patten 

 Rev. C. K. Pooler, Miss E. M. Rhodes, Miss K. Scott, W. A. Varian, 

 Four nominations were received. Mr. T. Chaudlee showed a living 

 specimen of a pretty white variety of the Herb-Robert. 



NOTES. 



BOTANY. 



FUNGI. 



Cordyceps militaris, Fr., on a beetle. 



Early in September Miss A. E. Alexander brought me some specimens 

 of Necropho) us ruspator, Er., which she had found on a dead hen. I put 

 them into a cyanide bottle to kill them, and a day or two afterwards 

 proceeded to set them. While doing so I noticed a growth from the 

 right front leg of one of the beetles. At first I thought I had got a 

 monstrosity, but a closer examination showed me that whatever the 

 growth was it was something external. Suspecting that it was of the 

 nature of a fungus, I submitted it to my friend, the Rev. H. W. Lett, 

 M A., of Loughbrickland. He pronounced it to be a fungus of some 

 kind, but was not sure of the species. He therefore forwarded it to the 

 Royal Gardens, Kew. The Director replied that the fungus was the 

 corridial condition of Cordyceps militaris, Fr., which used to be called /sarin 

 farinosa, Fr. I understand that the occurrence of this fungus on a living 

 insect is remarkable. Dr. Cooke says that " it is found on the dead 

 pupae of various L,epidoptera. " 



Poyntzpass. W. F. Johnson. 



