166 PROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY 



scientific eminence and moral worth of the deceased. The 

 resoUitions were unanimously adopted. 



Professor Agassiz gave the result of some of his recent 

 observations on the phenomena accompanying the first ap- 

 pearance of a circulating system in the higher animals. He 

 remarked, that physiologists had hitherto believed that in Ver- 

 tebrata the circulation commences by the formation of true 

 blood, flowing from a cavity formed by a group of struc- 

 tural cells which unite to form the heart ; its currents, which 

 become gradually inclosed by similar structural cells, forming 

 the bloodvessels. The circulating fluid from the commence- 

 ment had been regarded as true blood. Recent investigations 

 had convinced him that this is not the case. The primitive 

 fluid in the bloodvessels is not blood, but liquid albumen. 

 This fact he had formerly demonstrated in the embryo chick 

 and turtle, and he had recently noticed it in the embryo of 

 the Lophhis piscatorius^ or Devil-fish. Owing to the transpar- 

 ency of the fluid, the currents were first made out with great 

 difficulty, but, when closely watched, became evident by the 

 separation of particles from the walls of the channels and 

 their circulation in the current, which were distinctly seen. 

 The albumen is that in which the yolk cells of the ovum 

 swim, and the first blood corpuscles are transformed yolk cells. 

 The blood at first contains, besides its proper corpuscles, yolk 

 cells, structural cells, pigment cells, &c. In observing the em- 

 bryo of Lophius piscatorius, while attentively watching one 

 of the primitive isolated currents during four hours. Professor 

 Agassiz saw blood corpuscles starting, and finally a true blood 

 circulation established, where before there had been merely a 

 transparent fluid albumen moving without granules. 



Professor Gray presented a short memoir entitled " Note on 

 the Characters and Affinities of Vavcaa, Benth. ; also of 

 RJiytidandra, Gray." This paper was referred to the Pub- 

 lishing Committee. 



