Oct., 1907.] THE VICTORIAN NATURALIST. 95 



Victorian Naturalist handed over to the Club for future reference, 

 and read a letter from Mr. F. M. Reader strongly approving of 

 the suggestion. He desired to move that the following recom- 

 mendation be added to the notice paper in the Club's journal, 

 viz. : — " It is earnestly desired that in all cases of new plant 

 records at least one specimen of the plant recorded be forwarded 

 for exhibition, and, if possible, presented to the Club." 

 This was seconded by Mr. T. S. Hall, M.A., and carried. 



PAPERS READ. 



1. By Mr. F. G. A, Barnard, entitled "Over the Dividing 

 Range." 



The author gave some interesting details of two short excursions 

 made from Lancefield across the Dividing Range, and exhibited 

 a quantity of chips and several unfinished stone axes from the 

 aboriginal quarries at Mt. William. He also recorded the 

 finding of the bipinnate form of the fern Lomaria discolor at 

 Musk Gully. 



Mr. F. Pitcher remarked that this variety of the common 

 Lomaria had been thought to be confined to a certain locality in 

 Gippsland, but he had recently heard of its having been found in 

 the Macedon district, not many miles from where Mr. Barnard 

 had noted it. He also stated that a specimen at the Botanical 

 Gardens had recently been robbed of its spore fronds just as it 

 had been determined to utilize them for propagating purposes. 



2. By Mr. A. D. Hardy, F.L.S., entitled " Early Spring in the 

 Plenty Ranges." 



The author referred to many of the plants and shrubs to be 

 found in bloom in the ranges in the early spring, and drew atten- 

 tion to the pronounced glaucous appearance of the phyllodes of 

 the Golden Wattle, Acacia pijcnantha, and at high altitudes to 

 the less conspicuous but still noticeable pointing of many of the 

 phyllodes of the same species. 



Professor Ewart said that the explanation of the points referred 

 to by the author with regard to Acacia pycnantha was that both 

 were devices to enable the trees to more quickly shed the 

 moisture prevailing at the higher altitudes. 



NATURAL HISTORY NOTES. 



Mr. R. W. Armytage mentioned that during July last English 

 Blackbirds had been seen freely eating the berries of the Pepper 

 Trees, Schinus molle, in the University grounds. 



Mr. Armytage also referred to the case of some English oak 

 trees at Essendon having their lower branches in full leaf on the 

 loth August, while all the upper branches were in their normal 

 winter condition, leafless. 



Prof. Ewart called attention to a piece of Wistaria stem 



