228 THE CANADIAN NATURALIST. [Vol. vil. 



the contents, and the sieves were brought in to be examined in 

 •comfort. The soft parts of the mollusks were gobbled by the 

 poultry, which formed an integral portion of the establishment. 

 In those days governments paid nothiug for marine scientiSc 

 explorations, and even the doles of £5 or £10 granted by the 

 British Association had not begun. Naturalists are generally too 

 poor to hire the necessary outfit ; and an invitation to join a 

 dredging party in Mr. M' Andrew's yacht was a rare treat. How 

 seldom do wealthy commercial gentlemen confer such favors on 

 working naturalists. All honor to the foremost in this noble 

 aristocracy ! With the results chiefl}' of Mr. M' Andrew's explora- 

 tions, Prof. Forbes developed his theory of geographical distribu- 

 tion, founded, however, on what we now know to have been but 

 partial data. The importance of the investigations was quickly per- 

 ceived and the knowledge gained was systematized in the "History 

 of British Mollusca " by Forbe^j nyd Hauley ; a work which has 

 formed a model for all subsequent accounts of local faunas, and 

 the value of which has bt3en by no means lessened by the recent 

 volumes on the same subject by Mr. J. G. Jeffreys. 



After fully exploring the different sub-faun;^ of the British 

 seas, a work which the late Mr. Barlee continued for Mr. Jeffreys' 

 benefit, Mr. M'i\ndrew pursued his researches on the coasts of 

 Spain and Portugal, the Levant, north const of Africa, and the 

 Western Islands, especially the Madeira group. Here he dredged 

 in deeper water than had ever been before attempted. Among 

 the many new species which he discovered, none were more in- 

 teresting than the recent Bi/rontia, till then only known as a 

 fossil. During this period, Prof. Forbes made his researches in 

 the Egean sea. 



The temperate and subtropical portions of the Atlantic fauna 

 having been thus carefully worked-out, Mr. M'Andrew directed 

 his yacht to the Notheru Ocean, dredging among the fiords of 

 Norway as far as the North Cape. The shells of this region 

 have proved very valuable to us, as illustrating those of our own 

 Oulf. In these expeditions, the late S. P. Woodward, Barrett, 

 and other celebrated naturalists were invited to take their share. 



For the first time then in the history of science, a merchant 

 was found who, without training in college, and without any 

 assistance, explored the whole fauna of the North Atlantic from 

 the icy to the sub-tropical seas. This having been accomplished, 

 Mr. M'Andrew sold his yacht, gave up his active share in busi 



