PROCEEDINGS OF SOCIETIES. 73 



Extracts were read from letters of Dr. "Wallich, in whicli lie re- 

 gretted he could not lend to the Section for exhibition any of the 

 specimens of soundings obtained from the Nortli Atlantic by the 

 expedition of the " Bull Dog." Dr. Wallich looks iipon the 

 whole collection as Government property ; he has been informed 

 that specimens have been sent out to the public by dealers as his 

 North Atlantic soundings ; but with the exception of a few drops 

 of Globigerina ooze, sent to be mounted for exhibition at his 

 lecture to the Eoyal Institution in London, in February last, 

 some slides of which were said to have been sold by the mounter. 

 Dr. Wallich has made it a rule not to distribute, nor even to ex- 

 hibit specimens at all, until after the publication of his work on 

 the subject, which is now going into the publisher's hands, and 

 will be ready in the spring ; with that exception, in no single in- 

 stance, has a particle of the material been given out. 



Dr. Wallich kindly presented to the Section for mounting 

 several specimens of material from his private collection, contain- 

 ing Biddulphia of variovis kinds, and other Diatomacese from 

 Guernsey, St. Helena, &c. 



A letter to the Secretary was read from Jabez Hogg, Esq., the 

 Secretary to the London Microscopical Society's Quekett Memo- 

 rial Fund. Professor Williamson read a letter from Dr. Lionel 

 S.Beale on the same subject. A subscription list was immediately 

 opened, and Avill be sent in turn to members who were not present. 



Mr. Thomas H. jSTevill presented to the Section eight slides 

 mounted from the specimen of soundings No. 131, taken in Lat. 

 51-48 JN", Long. 7'8 W, off the S. coast of Ireland in 40 fathoms, pre- 

 sented by Captain Moodie of the K.M.S.S. Canada. Mr. Nevill 

 reported that the specimen contained Entosolenia marginata, 

 JEnfosolenia squamosa, Lagena vulgaris, Textularia, JRofalina, 

 JJIilioUna, numerous spines and plates of Echini ; calcareous 

 prisms from shells, &c., &c., all water worn. The sand is com- 

 posed of about half calcareous and half silicious material. 



Mr. Latham proposed that the subject for discussion at the 

 next meeting should be " On the Cause of the Metallic Lustre on 

 the Wings of the Lepidoptera, both diurnal and uoctui-nal," 

 which was agreed to. 



Mr. Latham also reported upon the ovum presented at 

 the last meeting by Mr. Leigh. 



Mr. Latham presented to the section a slide mounted with a 

 portion of the elytra of the Platyomus subcostatus, from Yene- 

 zuela ; also an oak spangle, with stellate hairs. 



Mr. Binney exhibited moimted specimens of fossil wood from 

 Standish, near Wigan ; Trigonocarj}ore oliviforme, from the lower 

 Lancashire coal-bed ; and the palate of the Psammodiis jporosus, 

 from the moimtain limestone, county Armagh. 



!Mr. Joy presented mounted sections of coal from Bohemia, 

 showing woody fibre. 



Mr. WhaUey exhibited living ova of the trout, one month old. 



Mr. Brothers exhibited a section of agate from Siberia ; Stenfor 

 MUlleri, &c. 



