Miscellaneous. 71 



fessor Graham, marked * Durham, 1836,' seems to me to agree with 

 this form, but I have not seen any undoubted Enghsh specimens. 



R. angustifolius, Gmel. Calyces glabrous, with acute segments, 

 leaves very narrow, seeds nearly or quite wingless. Scotland (Fort 

 George, Professor Balfour ; corn-fields in Nairn, Mr. Stables) . 



This plant appears to me to be rare on the continent of Europe. 

 I have found it near Cracow ; but though Mr. Bentham says, " in 

 Europse mediae et prsesertim australioris pascuis," I have never seen 

 specimens from the south of Europe. It is true that if the character 

 derived from the seeds be not permanent, it is very difficult to distin- 

 guish this from R. major, /3. aljnna, Benth., as the latter plant has 

 frequently very narrow leaves ; but as I have already observed, I am 

 not able to confirm the asserted variableness of the form of the seeds, 

 which are constantly winged in all the specimens of R. major which 

 I have examined. 



It may be suspected that two other described species, R. buccalis, 

 Wallr., and R. Reichenbachii, Drejer, constitute between them a va- 

 riety of R. angustifolius, having the same relation to that plant that 

 the common European R. major has to the variety ft. alpina of 

 Bentham. J. Ball. 



ECHINORHINUS SPINOSUS. 



Falmouth, Dec. 7, 1849. 



Sir, — I send a short description of a splendid specimen of the 

 " Echino7'hinus spinosus,'' Blainv., caught yesterday a few miles from 

 the harbour by one of Mrs. Chard's trawl-boats — for your Journal, 

 should you consider it worth insertion. 



I am. Sir, your obedient servant, 

 R. Taylor, Esq. W. P. Cocks. 



Description. — Head depressed ; eyes bright, copperish ; nose ob- 

 tuse ; mouth large ; teeth in both jaws broad and low, the edge nearly 

 horizontal. Body thick, 2 feet in depth and 7 in length (from snout 

 to commencement of caudal fin) ; pectoral fins small, truncated ; dor- 

 sal two, placed very far back, opposite to abdominal fins. 



Surface of skin polished and covered with strong bony spines of 

 various sizes and heights, arising from circular bases from -|-th to f ths 

 of an inch in diameter. 



Colour. — Back and sides dark leaden gray ; abdomen, throat, &c., 

 dirty yellowish white, clouded all over with light gray and brown ; 

 base of fins brownish. 



A white line extended from the base of the pectoral fins to com- 

 mencement of the caudal. Five large branchial apertures. 



It weighed more than 200 lbs. 



On the Presence of Entophyta in healthy living Animals. 

 By Dr. Leidy. 



From the opinion so frequently expressed, that contagious diseases 

 and some others might have their origin and reproductive character 

 through the agency of cryptogamic spores, which, from their minute- 

 ness and lightness, are so easily conveyed from place to place through 



