1898] NOTES AND COMMENTS 295 



phyceae, took place on a reservoir at Springfield, Mass. The growth im- 

 parted to the water an odour of mouldy grass, and by extracting a large 

 quantity with gasolene, the authors of the paper succeeded in obtaining 

 an essential oil having the characteristic smell of ' mouldy grass.' 



It is evident that any vegetation taking place in water may die 

 and undergo a process of rotting and putrefaction, and it must be 

 clearly understood that Ancibacna and other organisms iinpai't tlieir 

 odour during growth and not after death. When the Anahacna dies 

 and decays it imparts to the water the odour of a pig-stye, or, as the 

 authors of the paper put it, " the odor of a pig-pen." 



The mutual relation between aquatic plants and the medium in 

 which they grow is a question well worthy careful study, and is 

 calculated to throw some light on the seasonal variations in the 

 quality of water from the same source, which are often a puzzle to 

 the analyst and not without interest to the epidemiologist. 



The North Sea Fisheries 



The Northumberland Sea Fisheries Committee have continued their 

 trawling experiments, and the results obtained during the summer 

 of 1897 are embodied in a small Eeport. So far as the observa- 

 tions extend, they appear to point to the conclusion " that the flat 

 fishes during the last two years have increased to the extent of thirty 

 per cent, compared with the four previous years." This result must 

 be regarded as encouraging, though the experience of similar experi- 

 ments elsewhere demands extreme caution in drawing conclusions. 



In the account of pelagic eggs, those of the weever, dab, and 

 gurnard are said to occur in the inshore waters in abundance, in addi- 

 tion to unknown eggs, ' perhaps Mtlller's topknot,' some of which may 

 be Motdlac. So long as trawling operations are commenced as late 

 as the third week in June, the Committee must not expect to obtain 

 the eggs of gadoids or of the commoner pleuronectids in either the 

 inshore waters or beyond the three-mile limit. If a serious attempt 

 at investigating the pelagic eggs of the district is to be made, syste- 

 matic trawling should commence at the latest in early March. 



The founding of a laboratory at Cullercoats is due, as is so 

 often the case in our country, to the generosity of a private indi- 

 vidual, and in this instance the donor is Mr Dent, the owner of the 

 steamer Livingstone, with which the trawling experiments have been 

 accomplished. With the College of Science in easy distance, and 

 with many well-known local naturalists, this laboratory should have 

 a bright career before it. 



Plankton Crustacea of Lake Mendota 



For two years and a half, namely, from the middle of 1894 to the 

 end of 1896, Prof. E, A. Birge, of the University of Wisconsin. 



