112 NOTES, ORIGINAr> AND SELECTED. 



Land and Freshwater Shells of the Roding Valley. — I have found Helix 

 caperatii, which Mr. Crouch records from the chalk at Grays, on the ridge of 

 Chalky Boulder-clay which divides the Roding from the Cripsey Brook. Helix 

 rufescens and H. ericetorum, both common on chalk lands, I have also found on 

 the Chalky Boulder-clay near Fyfield, and in the neighbourhood of Ongar. I 

 have had most successful hunts after water shells in old pits dug in the Boulder- 

 clay for chalk, and now full of water. One afternoon I collected an abundance of 

 Valvata cristata, Planorhis nitiJuSy P. nautileus, P. carinatus and Ancylus lacustris 

 from these old pits, all of which shells I was very pleased to meet with. — HORACE 

 W. MoxCKTON, F.G.S., Pump Court, Temple, March i6th, 1891. 



Primula elatior, Jacq. — In the April number of the "Journal of Botany,' 

 our member. Prof. C. C. Babington, F.R.S., makes the following observations on 

 this peculiarly Essex species, which are interesting in connection with Mr. Christy's 

 and Mr. t'lench's papers : " I ha\e a plant of this {P. elatior), growing in a pot, 

 and also one of P. vulgaris ; this caused me to notice the development of the young 

 leaves. I found a most marked difference between them when very young. Those 

 of P. elatior are transversely plicate, so strongly as to show no connecting veins 

 between the ridges ; in P. vulgaris the leaves are conspicuously reticulate-rugose 

 from the very first. As the lea\'es increase in size this difference becomes much 

 less apparent, and does not attract attention. Unfortunately 1 have not a root of 

 P. veris to examine on this point." 



Exceptionally Small Rainfall of the Last Eight Months. — Our mem- 

 ber, Mr. F. Chancellor, J. P., writes advising economy with respect to the use of 

 water this summer, owing to the meagre rainfall during the past winter. He 

 says: "With every care it will, I am afraid, be difficult to avert a water famine 

 in some districts during the coming summer and autumn. The following is a 

 table of the rainfall for the corresponding eight months of the ten previous years. 

 This will show that I am not unnecessarily drawing attention to the matter : — 



From Sept., 1880, to April, 1881, inclusive 19-88 



15-64 



, 20-93 



14-69 



14-18 



... 15-94 

 12-43 



15-40 



13-43 



15-16 



10)157-68 



Average for ten years ... ... ... I5'76 



From Se,)t., 1890, to April, 1891, inclusive ... ... ... 8-28 



or \ery little more than half the average of the last ten years." 



