LINNEAK SOCIETY OF LONDON. XXXlll 



during which he has occupied the President's Chair, to express to 

 him the regret with which the Fellows contemplate the loss of his 

 services, and to assure him that the zealous interest which he has 

 taken in the welfare of the Society and the great efforts which he 

 has made, with so much liberality and success, to increase its 

 prosperity and usefulness, will always be held in grateful remem- 

 brance. 



It was also unanimously resolved : — " That the thanks of the 

 Society be given to Mr. Stainton on his retirement from the 

 office of Secretary, with an expression of the Society's deep 

 regret on losing his valuable services in that capacity." 



The Senior Secretary laid before the Society the Obituary 

 Notices, printed at p. xliii. 



June 4th, 1874. 



G. J. Allman, M.D., President, in the Chair. 



The President nominated Gr. Bentham, Esq., Gr. Busk, Esq., 

 J. Miers, Esq., and D. Hanbury, Esq., Vice-Presidents of the 

 Society for the year ensuing. 



The President exhibited a number of living specimens of fire- 

 fly {Luciola ifalica) recently taken by himself in the neighbour- 

 hood of Turin, calling attention to the remarkable synchronous 

 emission of flashes of light by numerous individuals, and pointing 

 out that the phosphorescence is a phenomenon not of darkness 

 merely, but of twilight or night. 



Dr. "W. Gr. Earlow exhibited and described microscopical pre- 

 parations made in the botanical laboratory of the University of 

 Strasburg, illustrating a remarkable asexual development from 

 the prothallus of PteHs cretica. In the centre of the cushion 

 or thickest part of the prothallus were a number of scalariform 

 ducts, the prothallus bearing a number of antheridia, but no 

 archegonia. From these ducts a leaf is developed directly, after 

 which a root is also developed, and last of all a stem-bud. A 

 comparison was drawn between this growth, which was observed 

 in this species only, and the b\ids ordinarily produced from the 



LTNN. PEOC. — Session 1873-74. d 



