118 On Fossil Infusoria, discovered in Peat-earth, 
Arr. TX.—On Fossil Infusoria, discovered in Peat-earth, at 
West Point, N.Y., with some notices of American species of 
Diatome ; by J. Ww. Baiwey, Prof.-Chem., Mineral. and Geol. 
“at es U.S. Mul. Acad., West Point. 
Dee the kindness of my 1y distinguished friend Dr. Torrey, 
I received some months since a portion of the fossil Infusoria, of 
the tribe Bacillarie, recently discovered by Ehrenberg, constitu-. 
ting whole: strata in Germany, &c. The specimen I received, 
came originally from Ehrenberg himself, and was a to this 
country by Prof. Daubeny of Oxford. 
Having by means of this specimen become acquainted 7 with 
the form of these singular creatures, I was led to search for the 
living species of this family in various situations in this vicinity. 
I soon found that they. were exceedingly abundant, occurring not 
only in small streams and stagnant poolk, but also netting in 
the wet moss on moist rocks. 
The situation, however, in which I found them to be most 
abundant was in the bunches of Conferva, Zygnema, and Ba- 
trachospermum which constitute the-green slimy matter known 
vulgarly by the name of F'rog-spittle, so abundant in bogs and 
slow eerie. brooks. They were accompanied by great num- 
bers of the’ Diatomea, particularly Diatoma fl m and 
Fragillaria pectinalis. By burning off. the vegetable matter 
from a bunch of the Conferva and examining the ashes with a 
good microscope, I found them chiefly composed of the siliceous 
‘shells of various loricated Infusoria, and what was to me before 
unknown, I found that the Diatome were also unchanged by. 
fire or acids, and consequently like the Bacillarie composed of 
silica.* 
_ The imperishable nature of the Bacillarie and Diatome, led 
me to suppose that large numbers must be buried in the mud at 
the bottoms of the bogs, streams, é&c., where the living specimens 
oceur, but I was not prepared for the discovery which I shortly 
made of a deposit eight or ten inches thick ~ oie: several 
* Since making this observation I find that the same > dhnouwine had been pre- 
aaa De oo: 3; see extract from Meyen’s Report given at the end of 
