16 PROCEEDINGS OF THE CALIFORNIA 



This collection comprises over one thousand specimens of rocks, ores, fossils, 

 and miscellaneous objects of natural history. It is supposed that they are chiefly 

 of Japanese origin ; but, as there is among them a fragment of a Dutch tobacco- 

 pipe, carefully labeled, there may be other objects in the collection from foreign 

 countries. The articles are all labeled, in the Japanese language : they are 

 carefully fastened to the cases in which they are arranged, with exquisite Jap- 

 anese neatness. The small crystals are inclosed in glass receptacles, having 

 nearly the form of two large watch-crystals, attached to each other by the edges. 



In the general character of the specimens in this collection, a singular resem- 

 blance was noticed to the productions of California, especially in the fossils and 

 silicified woods, of which latter there are a number of beautiful specimens. 

 There are several bivalve shells of pliocene or miocene tertiary age, and some 

 casts of gasteropods, exquisitely formed in chalcedony. A number of sharks' 

 teeth, of the genus Lamna, were also noticed. Among the fossils is a single 

 shell of palaeozoic age, a Spirifer ; it is not impossible, however, that this may 

 have been carried from China to Japan ; at all events, a Spirifer from that 

 country resembling this, and of Devonian age, has been described in the Pro- 

 ceedings of the Geological Society of London. 



There are quite a number of specimens of copper ore in the collection ; they 

 are all of the common yellow sulphuret, (chalcopyrite) except one or two of 

 erubescite. This would indicate that the principal ore of this metal in Japan, 

 as in other countries, is the sulphuret of copper and iron. 



Native gold in quartz is also present in the collection ; but no ores of silver 

 were noticed, except one specimen of steel-grained galena, which is probably 

 argentiferous. There are several specimens of realgar. Among the other min- 

 erals noticed were : calcite, adularia. chalybite, in the form ot'JJos ferri, garnets, 

 small crystals of pyroxene, crystals of mica, pectolite, and another zeolitic min- 

 eral resembling Thomsonite, as also native sulphur, obsidian, and a variety of 

 volcanic rocks and lavas. 



The collection is quite interesting, and would be more so if the labels could 

 be read. The principal inference to be drawn from it, is the predominance of 

 volcanic formations, and of the later tertiary strata, in the region in which this 

 collection was made. 



Dr. Ayres called attention to a remarkable turtle, in the possession 

 of Mr. Van Reed, known as the " Sacred Turtle " of the Japanese. 

 It is a species of Enrys, closely allied to E. terrapin. Its marked 

 peculiarity is, that its back is covered by a growth of conferva, 

 which is often several inches long, and which gives the animal its 

 sacred character among the Japanese, who believe this growth to 

 be hair. The species is allied to C. rivularis ; but the cells are 

 more elongated. Dr. Ayres stated that he had observed a growth 

 of conferva on various aquatic and amphibious animals in New 

 England, and that, in these, it was always attended by disease, with 



