hly Mi ical 
Monty Seph  io, | PROCEEDINGS OF SOCIETIES. 175 
minute winglets ; lastly, those like the house-fly, with short, thick, and 
often very heavy bodies, furnished with proportionate wings, shorter 
legs, and conspicuous winglets. From these circumstances it might 
be inferred that the long legs of the light-bodied flies acted as rudders, 
while the winglets helped the wings in flying. The wings consisted 
of two laminz united by veins or nervures, and upon their arrangement 
and the form of the antennz, as seen in the great groups Nemocera and 
Brachycera, the distinguishing characters of the Diptera are founded. 
The several parts of the wings and their nerves, and their differences 
as seen in the two above-mentioned groups, was next pointed out, and 
the paper illustrated by very beautiful drawings and microscopic pre- 
parations of wings. 
June 23rd. Microscopical Section—Mr. Glaisyer, Vice-President, 
in the chair. 
Subject for the evening, Infusoria, which Mr. Wonfor introduced 
by a few remarks. A 
As all were aware, he said, if any vegetable or animal substance 
was placed in water, in a few days the water would be found full of 
minute organisms, to which the name of infusoria, or infusion animal- 
cules, was at first given. Many of these had by later observers been 
placed in the vegetable kingdom ; while others, at first named as dis- 
tinct species, had been proved to be the early stages of higher animals, 
and others were classed among another group of animals. The class 
Infusoria was therefore much more limited than at one time supposed 
to be, and increased knowledge might prove that many more were only 
the early stages of other types of life. Mr. Wonfor then proceeded to 
point out the nature of their substance, mode of development, increase, 
and propagation. So widely were they distributed that scarcely any- 
where could water be found which did not contain some type. Many 
would only live in fresh, others in salt or brackish water; while some 
were only found in water containing decomposing vegetable or animal 
substances. Hence, water contaminated by sewage matter always 
shows certain types. Many were found only in particular infusions, 
while some were common to several. Their appearance under certain 
conditions had led to theories respecting spontaneous generation, a 
much debated and debatable point; but as the atmosphere seemed, 
according to Tyndall and others, to be full of germs, their sudden 
appearance in favourable situations was not surprising. The water in 
which flowers were kept would yield some kinds; in fact, he had an 
abundant supply of one kind from water in which mignionette had 
been only three days. Water in bird fountains and water bottles, 
unless looked after, would be sure to contain infusoria. 
The rest of the evening was spent in the examination of the dif- 
ferent forms of infusoria brought for exhibition. 
It was announced that the subject for the next meeting, July 28th, 
would be the “ Eggs of Articulata.” 
July 14th. Ordinary meeting of the Society.—Mr. Hennah, 
M.R.M.S., President, in the chair. 
Mr. Wonfor reported the receipt of one of Miiller’s Diatom Type- 
