82 Society of Antiquaries. 



maps, by Mr. Robertson. These maps form a complete 

 and superb atlas of Jamaica, and delineate with great ele- 

 gance its features as they relate to the civil, military, and 

 natural history of that island. 



June 19. The President in the chair. — E. Home, esq. fur- 

 nished an interesting paper on the comparative anatomy and 

 physiology of the camel, particularly on its stomachs and 

 water-bags, or reservoirs, in which it can retain a quantity 

 of water sufficient to support it for several weeks. The 

 camel, like all other ruminating animals, has several sto- 

 machs : the Jirst receives its food, in which it remains un- 

 changed ; the second, its water, which also remains pure ; 

 the third communicates to the water a yellow colour-; and 

 the fourth unites the contents of the others, and is the ge- 

 neral digesting organ of this animal's food. The author con- 

 firms the account of this animal given by Buffbn, whose vivid 

 eloquence is no where more happily applied, nor more 

 agreeably, than in the history of the camel. Mr. Brande 

 analysed the water contained in the stomach, and also the 

 animal's urine ; in the latter he found, besides carbonate of 

 ammonia, uric acid, which is considered rather singular in 

 this class of animals, and might perhaps be the product of 

 disease, as the creature was old and decaying before it was 

 put to death for the purpose of dissection. 



SOCIETY OF ANTiaUARIES. 



June 5. Sir H. C. Englefield, bart. vice-president, in the 

 chair. — Au account was read of the splendid equipage and 

 sumptuary retinue of the earl of Northumberland at his em- 

 barkation for France in the reign of Henry VIII. The 

 Rev. Mr. Milner exhibited a small M.S. volume, bound in 

 red leather, (supposed to be of the time of queen Elizabeth) 

 written on parchment, in Roman characters mixed with 

 Saxon, of the gospel of St. John in Latin. The learned au- 

 thor traced th* existence and history of this volume to the 

 time of St. Cuthbert, of Durham, who died early in the 

 sixth century, and contended that it must be more than 

 1200 years old ! To prove this high antiquity, a tradition 

 respecting the funeral of St. Cuthbert was circumstantially 



detailed, 



