Mineralogy. — Botany. 1 83 



is very inconsiderable. They allow, however, of being measured by the 

 reflective goniometer, and as they are perfectly transparent, their refraction 

 appears to be the same as that of apatite, nearly 1.64. Besides these, the 

 rock contains also octahedral crystals of magnetic iron-ore, and the com- 

 bination of the hexahedron and octahedron of hexahedrul iron-pyrites. 



25. Withamite. — This new and interesting mineral, which we described 

 in our last number, is found in Glenco, on the property of Robert Downie, 

 Esq. of Appin, M. P. Mr Sommerville, lapidary in Edinburgh, has recent- 

 ly discovered some specimens of it of an olive-green colour, and others in 

 which it occurs in botryoidal groupes. Mr Sommerville has now obtained 

 several fine specimens of the mineral, which, we believe, he means to dis- 

 pose of. 



26. School of Mines in Cornwall. — A very excellent plan of a school of 

 mines in Cornwall has been drawn up and printed by Mr John Taylor. The 

 object of that plan is to have the mines properly wrought by intelligent and 

 well-instructed miners, and with this view it is proposed to establish at 

 Redruth three professors to teach the arts and sciences connected with 

 mining. It is proposed also to collect the necessary funds by a small as- 

 sessment of a penny per ton on the metals raised from the different mines, 

 and from other sources. We anxiously hope that this admirable plan will 

 meet with the support which it so well merits. 



BOTANY. 



27. Codium tomentosum, and Targionia hypophylla. — Two interesting 

 additions have been recently made to the Cryptogamic Flora of Scotland ; 

 one in the discovery of the curious Codium tomentosum, on the shores of 

 the island of Iona, by M. J. Berkeley, Esq. of Christ College, Cambridge : 

 the other in the finding a new station for the rare Targionia hypophylla, 

 which had never been met with since the days of Lighttbot, who detected 

 it near Tarbet in Cantyre. It is now found upon the turf-coping of walls in 

 the island of Lismore, Argyleshire, by Captain Carmichael. 



28. Trichomanes elegans. — We find by an article in " Taylor's Philo- 

 sophical Magazine," that M. Bory de St. Vincent, has declared the figure 

 published by Mr Rudge, in his " Icones et Descriptiones Flantarum Bari- 

 orum Guiana;," of the Trichomanes elegans t to be incorrect, and composed 

 of two different species ; or, according to M. Bory's ideas, of two distinct 

 genera. This has given rise to considerable discussion among the bota- 

 nists in London ; and, in justification of the fidelity of the figure, our tes- 

 timony is brought forward; we having given, in the fifty-second plate of 

 Exotic Flora, a figure of the Trichomanes elegans, and having spoken of 

 the figure of Mr Rudge as excellent. This term of approbation, however, 

 was only meant to apply to such of the figure as represented that state of 

 the plant which we had ourselves represented, that is, the barren fronds 

 and those fertile spikes which have separated involucres. The other spikes 

 with united involucres, ,we had never seen ; but having, then," only a 



• We say, then, because we have since had the opportunity, through the liberality 

 of the same gentleman as sent us the first individual, the Rev. Lansdown Guilding, 



