THE society's NOTE-BOOKS. 121 



Trichina spiralis. — In Science foj- All (October, 1878), Prof. F. 

 R. Eaton Lowe, writing on the Chemistry of the Dinner-Table, 

 says : — " The Trichina is a Uttle creature, only the twenty-fifth 

 part of an inch in length, but armed with terrible boring instru- 

 ments, which enable it to pierce the firmest muscles, not excepting 

 the heart itself It propagates by millions, and passing through 

 the walls of the intestines sets out on its migrations. It stops at 

 nothing except bone, and insinuating itself into the substance of 

 the muscles, spreads throughout the entire body. Some idea of 

 their number may be gathered from the fact, that the body of an 

 unfortunate German, who died a few years ago, was estimated to 

 contain fifty millions. The Germans and Danes, from their habit 

 of eating raw sausages and hams, are particularly liable to be 

 trichinised, and notwithstanding the vigilance of the sanitary 

 authorities in examining microscopically the hams sold, many 

 persons still die or suffer from trichinosis^ 



T. Lisle. 



Trichodectes scalaris is very common on Milch cows, and 

 is therefore easily obtained ; a good specimen makes a very beau- 

 tiful slide. The difference between a Trichodectes and a Hceniato- 

 pifiics may be readily seen by comparison. 



C. F. George. 



Hsematopinus equi.— This species is not noticed in Denny's 

 Monograph. I have specimens of Hcmiatopinus both of the pig 

 and ox, and although there is a general resemblance, there are 

 certain small differences, so that it is undoubtedly a different 

 species which infests the horse. 



G. D. Brown. 



I have compared this parasite with Hcematopinus of the 

 ox, swine, and ass, and although it does not exactly agree with 

 either, it comes nearest to that of the ass, differing from it, how- 

 ever, in having much stouter legs ; the abdomen and head, also, 

 are rather different in shape. Speaking of the Ass-Louse {H. 

 asini), Denny says : — "This species is common upon the ass, fre- 

 quenting the mane and back. I have also received specimens 

 from the horse, from which circumstance I suspect it is the species 

 described by Dr. Burmeister under the name of Macrocephalus ; 

 it is most certainly the insect figured by Redi. In a list of the 

 species in the British Museum, communicated by J. G. Children, 



