OBSERVATIONS. 



109 



chair. The essayist, after speaking 

 of woods in general, particularised 

 the oak, and gave a numher of in- 

 teresting historical reminisences 

 concerning that monarch of the 

 forest. The question of the cellular 

 formation of wood was next taken 

 up, when it was explained that, to 

 the naked eye, the causes of the 

 toughness and strength of various 

 kinds were difficult to discover, but 

 the microscope revealed the fact at 

 once. The substance of the cells 

 being more or less fibrous, it was 

 shown that this, together with 

 their compactness, determined the 

 strength and durability of the wood. 

 It was because these conditions ex- 

 isted in the oak that this tree was 

 enabled to brave the frosts and 

 blasts of hundreds of winters, that 

 encircled it with a garland of glorious 

 associations — that had crowned it 

 monarch of the forest. With the 

 aid of two powerful microscopes 

 numerous mounted sections were 

 then viewed by an interested com- 

 pany of ladies and gentlemen, for 

 an hour and a quarter, during which 

 time much information was elicited 

 on the growth and structure of 

 plants in general. It may be stated 

 that the sections were transverse, 

 and had been mounted with their 

 bark on — hence the microscope re- 

 vealed almost invariably two differ- 

 ent kinds of cells, those in the bark 

 for the ascending sap, and those in 



the substance of the wood for the 

 descending. During the latter part 

 of the evening, a lively discussion 

 was engaged in as to whether vege- 

 tation received its nutriment from 

 the earth or the atmosphere. — 

 W. S. S. 



Belfast Field Naturalists Society. — 

 The fifth excursion of this club took 

 place on Saturday last, the 17th in- 

 stant, Shane's Castle Park being the 

 locality fixed on. Permission to 

 visit the grounds on that day having 

 been kindly accorded, the excursion- 

 ists left town by railway at 9. 30 a.m. 

 for Eandalstown. Here the party 

 entered the park, and, following the 

 course of the Kiver Main, reached 

 the shore of Lough Neagh, the 

 members occupying themselves dur- 

 ing the ramble, which was continued 

 as far as the ruins of the_old castle, 

 by a search after the rare plants said 

 to be found here. The highly in- 

 teresting lignite bed, so strangely 

 inter-stratified with trap rock, was 

 visited, and fine specimens of the 

 coal embedded in basalt were se- 

 cured. This point is also rendered 

 exceedingly attractive by a well-ar- 

 ranged rockery, which has been 

 formed during the present year, 

 and in which are grouped the 

 most interesting plants native to 

 the park, thus exhibiting at one 

 view the chief characters of its flora. 

 The success of the botanists present 

 was not equal to what might be 



