288 REPORTS. 
CARADOC FIELD CLUB.—September 25th.—A special meeting for the 
study of cryptogamic botany was held at the Wrekin. The morning was very 
inclement, cold, and wet, and heavy rain continued during the greater part of 
the day. Consequently only some six or seven members assembled at Wellington 
station, where they were met by Dr. Callaway, Rev. W. Houghton, and Mr. R. 
Anslow. The weather prevented much search for the special objects of the 
meeting, and the day was spent in examining the geology of the hill, on which 
Dr. Callaway’s recent labours have thrown so much new light. After the annual 
dinner at the George Hotel, Shrewsbury, papers were read by the Rev. W. 
Houghton “ On the Common Liverwort,” and by Mr. T. P. Blunt, “ On some 
relations of Light to Vegetation.” 
CHELTENHAM NATURAL SCIENCE SOCIETY. — At the annual 
meeting held on Thursday, the 2nd October, Dr. T. Wright, F.R.S., was 
re-elected president. The first ordinary general meeting was held on Thursday, 
October 16th, when, after the usual business routine, the President gave a short 
address, stating the use the Society had already been to the town of Cheltenham, 
noted the progress it was making, and urged on his hearers to take up some 
special subject of natural history. He ended by giving an outline of the 
proposed arrangements for the formation of a library in connection with the 
Society, and then introduced Col. Basevi, who read a paper on the “ Structure of 
Mosses,” which was well illustrated by diagrams and over 200 mounted specimens 
of mosses from various parts of the world. Col. Basevi exhibited under the 
microscope various slides showing parts of the structure of mosses. 
Some of the objects, showing the fructification, had been, he stated, kindly given 
to him by the Rev. J. E. Vize, of Forden. 
NOTTINGHAM NATURALISTS’ SOCIETY.—October 1st. Mr. B. S. Dodd 
read a paper on sponges. He pointed out the special arrangement of the sponge 
to bring about a current by inhalant and exhalant apertures, the inhalant being 
called pores, the exhalant oscula. The mode of reproduction was illustrated by 
diagrams showing the peculiar arrangement of a gemmule of the fresh-water 
sponge (Spongilla). pecimens of horny and siliceous sponges were exhibited, 
and likewise an oyster-shell perforated by the boring sponge (Cliona). Various 
orders of the second sub-kingdom, Coelenterata, were referred to, but especially 
the order Hydrida, of which Hydra viridis was taken asa type. Meduse were 
in some instances shown to be reproductive buds of one or other species of 
Hydrozoa. A discussion followed.—October 15th. Mr. A. H. Simpson gave a 
lecture on water, showing how, by electricity, it was resolved into its two gases, 
the oxygen appearing at the positive pole, hydrogen at the negative one, and 
concluded the experiment by showing how it was reproduced from the same 
elements by an electric current. The power of water, as water and as steam, 
was explained, and how its evaporation and collection in the clouds was the 
cause of rain. Its expansion on being converted into ice and the advantages 
resulting therefrom, both physically and economically, were next noticed. 
Various experiments with each of its twoconstituent gases were performed, to 
the surprise and amusement of the audience. The construction of the lime- 
light was fully explained, by which a number of views of the Falls of Niagara, 
representing winter and summer, were shown on a screen. 
OSWESTRY AND WELSHPOOL NATURALISTS’ FIELD CLUB AND 
ARCH OLOGICAL SOCIETY.—The last excursion for 1879 took place on 
Tuesday, September 30th. The meting place was Newtown, famous for its 
trade in Welsh flannel, a prettily situated town on the banks of the Severn. 
After a visit to the ruins of the old church, the route lay over some very hilly 
country to the village of Kerry. Here there is an interesting old church, in 
which is a monumental tablet to Giraldus Cambrensis, the antiquarian. Close 
to the Vicarage there is a fine camp, and two tumuli in a field just outside the 
village. The whole neighbourhood abounds in entrenchments, ditches, camps, 
tumuli, and other similar relics of antiquity. The scenery about Kerry is very 
picturesque. There is a branch line from Abermule Station on the Cambrian 
Railway to Kerry, by which the party returned to Oswestry. 
