LTNNEAN SOCIETY OF LONDON. 3 



JS'ovember 18th, 1886. 



William Carruthebs, F.E.S., President, iii the Chair. 



The Minutes of the last Meeting were read and confirmed. 



Henry Bury, Esq., was elected a Fellow. 



Mr. W. H. Beeby showed specimens of CaJlitriche fruncata, 

 Gruss., from near Westerham, Kent. The species had long been 

 supposed to be extinct in this country. It was only known as 

 British from dried specimens from Sussex in Borrer's Herbarium. 

 Mr. Beeby's attention was directed to the WesttTham station by 

 dried specimens (also in Borrer's Herbarium) labelled C. pedun- 

 culata, and collected by the E-ev. G. E. Smith. Dr. Trimen re- 

 marked that he had some years ago sought for the plant in 

 its old Sussex station, but without success, as it seemed to have 

 been driven out of the field by Anacharis. 



Mr. D. Morris exhibited two enlarged photographs of the Cas- 

 tilloa Eubber-Tree of Central xVmerica (see Trans. Linn. Soc. 

 ser. 2, Bot. vol. ii. pt. 9). The larger photograph illustrated the 

 manner in which trees were treated to extract rubber by a 

 spiral cut from above downwards. Trees of ten years old and 

 upwards are said to } ield about eight gallons of milk at the 

 fii'st bleeding. This milk is coagulated by the use of the juice of 

 Calonyctijon speciosum, and the rubber prepared by washing and 

 pressing. Mr. Morris described the habit and growth of the 

 trees in their native forests, and expressed the opinion that for 

 cultural purposes this rubber-tree may be better suited to the 

 circumstances of planters than any othor. It could be utilized 

 as a shade-tree in Cacao- and Coffee-plantations, and yield at the 

 end of ten years at the rate of twenty shillings per tree in 

 marketable rubber. In British Honduras trees are tapped for 

 rubber every three or four years. 



Mr. A. D. Michael exhibited living specimens and prepara- 

 tions of an Argas, received from Mrs. Crawford, the State Ento- 

 mologist of Adelaide, Australia. These appear to be identical 

 with the much dreaded Argas persiczis, Fiscb., the bite of which 

 was supposed to cause maduLSS and death. 



Mr. H. N. Eidley made remarks on specimens in spirit, and 

 drawings by Mr. J. Nugent Fitch, of species of Coryanthes, viz. 

 C. macrantha, Huok., and C. maculafa, var. punctata. He men- 

 tioned tliat Mr. Eodway, of Demerara, had lately published some 

 observations showing that the statement hitherto prevalent 

 as to the fertilization of certain species of the genus by 

 Bees, as averred by Criiger, was not true in every case, as in 



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