910 



lian peninsula would notice the various forms of oak, and, if possible, 

 procure acorns, and send them to the Horticultural Society or to Kew 

 Gardens. 



' On the Diatomaceous Vegetation of the Antarctic Ocean,' by Dr. 

 J, HooKEE. — The author found the Diatomaceae in countless num- 

 bers between the parallels 60° and 80° south, where they gave a co- 

 lour to the sea, and also to the icebergs floating on it. The death of 

 these bodies in the south Arctic Ocean is producing a submarine de- 

 posit, consisting entirely of the siliceous particles of which the skele- 

 tons of these vegetables are composed. This deposit exists on the 

 shores of the Victoria Land, and at the base of the volcanic mountain 

 Erebus. Dr. Hooker accounted for the fact that the skeletons of 

 Diatomaceae had been found in the lava of volcanic mountains, by 

 referring to the position of the Diatomaceous deposits in relation to 

 Mount Erebus, — which lie in such a position as to render it quite 

 possible that the skeletons of these vegetables should pass into the 

 lower fissures of the mountain, and then passing into the stream of 

 lava, be thrown out unacted upon by the heat to which they have 

 been exposed. 



Prof. Allman made some remarks on the remarkable character of 

 the Diatomaceae, — showing how, through their siliceous skeleton, 

 they approached the mineral kingdom, — their power of locomotion, 

 the animal kingdom, — and the possession of endochrome, the vegeta- 

 ble kingdom. 



Occurrence of Car ex montana near Ross. 

 By W. H. PuRCHAS, Esq. 



I AM happy to say that I was fortunate enough last month to dis- 

 cover Carex montana, Linn., growing somewhat plentifully in a lime- 

 stone wood between Tintern and St. Arvans, Monmouthshire. To 

 remove any doubts as to the genuineness of the plant I may state that 

 Mr. Babington is my authority for the name. I was too late in the 

 season (June 17) to obtain any number of specimens, indeed, I could 

 find scarcely any plants which had not shed their fruit. The plant 

 grows in tufts, which appear to me to spring in many, if not in all 

 cases, from a thick, creeping, branched rhizoma. 



W. H. PURCHAS. 

 Ross, July 16, 1847. 



