CORRESPONDENCE. 137 



Preserving Fish. — I would iu answer to T.'s enqiiiiy (page 80) as to 

 the best methods of preser\'ing fish refer him for full dii'ections to Mr. 

 Montagu Brown's useful manual entitled "Practical Taxideiiny," 

 (Bazaar Office, London.) — F. 



Cocks axd Chickens. — "We have had two instances at Highfield 

 House of cocks taking to chickens. In 1837 a Dorking hen died leaving 

 some young chickens, which a Dorking cock took chai'ge of, brooding 

 them Like a hen, and rearing the whole number. Last year, (1877,) a 

 Duck-wing Bantam cock sat on a single egg, hatched a chicken, brooded 

 it as a hen, and altered his voice to the peculiar tone of a hen with 

 chickens, exhibiting as much care of the chicken as would have been the 

 case with a hen, and attacking in a savage manner anything that came 

 too near the httle one. — E. J. Lowe. 



Preservation of Fungi for the Herbarium. — ^In reply to C. T. M.'s 

 request (p. 79, ante) that some of your readers would describe the best 

 method of preserving Fungi, I woiild refer him to the follo'^dng sources 

 of information, in either of which he will find all he can possibly 

 require. The authors are practical Mj'cologists of the highest standing, 

 and nothing can be added to the admirable instructions they give on this 

 subject : — " The OutHnes of British Fungology," by the Eev. M. J. 

 Berkeley, a work indispensable to the student of fungi on account of the 

 admu-able plates, contains a chapter on the subject ; as does also that excel- 

 lent little work, " Cooke and Berkeley's Fungi : Their Nature, Lifluences, 

 and Use." Mr. Worthington G. Smith contributed several chapters to 

 " Hardwick's Science Gossip " for 1872, which are evidently the result 

 of his own large experience. If C. T. M. will allow me I would strongly 

 recommend to him what I have found of gi-eat value in my own case, 

 namely, to make cai-eful di-awings of each species he collects to accompany 

 the dried specimen. So many of the characteristic features of the larger 

 Hymenomycetes pass away in drying that it requii'es considerable experience 

 to make out a species from herbarium specimens, unaided by di'awings, 

 and hence the very general adoption of the practice I recommend among 

 Fungologists. — "William Phillips, Shi-ewsburj". 



Deformed Primroses and Double Flowers. — The banks of the roads 

 and lanes in South Devon are in many places for long distances covered 

 with primroses. They often vary in coloui", fi-om the ordinaiy yellow to 

 pure white, both on the sunny and shaded banks. Several of the 

 white varieties were collected last spring, and planted in a garden in good 

 lich soil. This year they have all bloomed fi'eely and the blossoms 

 were of the same pure white coloiu*. In an orchai'd of the same district, 

 where there were a great number of piimroses in blossom beneath the 

 trees, the blossoms of two plants looked hke double flowers and one 

 plant had the appearance of a polyanthus with primrose blossoms. The 

 plants were removed and planted in the garden last spring. They all 

 present the same pecuhar aspect. Some perfect flowers have appeared, 

 and upon the same plant flowers with the calyces containing five petals, 

 two united by the stalk of the petal, and the three others are separate, 

 (on one stem.) The same polyanthus-looking blossoms are coming out, 

 and on one of the plants are pure double blossoms. Eed-coloured pi-im- 

 roses are common on the banks of the Teign. It has not fallen to my 

 lot to notice such variety in the colour of primroses, in either Bx-econ- 

 shire, Monmouthshire, Herefordshii'e, or Gloucestershire ; and in no 

 instance has a double primrose or one so defoiined as above described 

 been seen by me in a wild state before, and far removed from garden 

 gi'ounds. It is veiy conamon to meet with double-flowered cuckoo 

 plants in Devonsliire, and double-blossomed dwarfed brambles are 

 common, especially in the Forest of Dean, GlcRcesterehire. — Henry Bird, 

 Stroud. 



