4 AMERICAN JOURNAL 



papers entire, together with abstracts of larger ones, couhl be 

 published so rapidly that giving the date of reading became 

 superfluous, and it has gradually fallen into disuse — as it 

 ought to do. 



Your Committee find, upon examination, that all the prin- 

 cipal Natural History Societies in the world gave " date of 

 reading" to the memoirs published by them until some years 

 after the period in dispute, (about 1845), and a few of these 

 societies still give this date in their quarto publications, though 

 not in their proceedings in octavo. The Academy of Natural 

 Sciences commenced publishing its Proceedings in 1841, and 

 discontinued its 8 vo. Journal in 1842. The last two volumes of 

 this Journal contain numerous papers by Mr. Conrad and others, 

 the date of reading being generally given even to his papers. 



Your Committee recommend, in view of these facts, that 

 priority be awarded to Dr. Lea's species in the proposed new 

 publication of the Conchological Section, inasmuch as the date 

 of reading at the period in question was the almost universal 

 rule for determining priority in publication, and we cannot en- 

 dorse an ex poste facto law; but we cannot refrain from express- 

 ing a hope that the time is not far distant when the date of 

 'printed publication only shall be universally acknowledged in 

 determining claims of priority. 



Geo. W. Tryon, Jr., ) 



W. M. Gabb, y Committee. 



E. R. Beadle, j 



Mr. S. R. Roberts reported the occurrence of Sphoerium sul- 

 catum near San Antonio, Cal. 



Mr. Tryon, referring to Helix cultellata, Thomson, remarked 

 that it was certainly of European type, and he believed it had 

 been introduced into California by European emigrants, as sur- 

 mised by Mr. Thompson in a recent letter to a member of this 

 Section. 



