66 



library committee, together with the curator of geology, 

 were instructed to prepare for their reception. 



November 19, 1856. 



The President in the Chair. 



Mr. Whittemore read a letter from Mr. E. S. Morse, 

 of Portland, Maine, giving a description of the smallest 

 Helix ever found. Specimens and magnified drawings 

 of the shell were exhibited. The specimens were referred 

 to Dr. Gould. 



Dr. Brewer reported upon the collection of Birds' Eggs 

 made by Mr. E. Samuels in California. 



Mr. Sprague reported upon a plant presented to the 

 Society by Dr. Pickering at the previous meeting. 



It is the Amarantlms pumilus, Raf., which is now placed in a 

 new genus of Rafinesque and called Enxolus pnmilns. It is 

 poorly figured in Dr. Torrey's Flora of New York, under the 

 old name. The figure represents a young plant with sessile 

 leaves ; but the lower leaves are in reality on petioles as long as, 

 or longer than, the blades. They are also retuse and even eraar- 

 ginate and obovate, instead of being, as in the figure, obtusely 

 pointed. Elliott's description is excellent, except that he does 

 not refer to the length of the petioles. Dr. Gray described it 

 under its present name in his recent edition of the Manual of 

 Botany ; but, having only a small, imperfect specimen, he says 

 " slightly petioled," and makes no mention of the emarginate 

 blade. The plant is found on sandy shores along the coast from 

 Rhode Island southward. 



The genus Euxolus is separated from Amaranthus on account 

 of the indehiscent or irregularly bursting utricle ; that of the 

 latter senus having a circumscissile dehiscence. 



