SOJA SOMMITE. 



699 



they do not make their appearance on the low 

 grounds till the end of September, and they are not 

 numerous till November, the time at which the Ame- 

 rican ones quit the middle states, and proceed to the 

 south. The following description of the manners of 

 these birds, by Wilson, is worth quoting as illustra- 

 tive, not of them only, but, with slight variations, of 

 the whole genus. " The woodcock is properly a 

 nocturnal bird, feeding chiefly at night, and seldom 

 stirring about till after dark. At such times, as well 

 as in the early part of the morning, particularly in 

 spring, he rises, by a kind of spiral course, to a con- 

 siderable height in the air, uttering at times a sudden 

 quad- ; till having gained his utmost height, he hovers 

 around in a wild irregular manner, making a sort of 

 murmuring sound, and then descends with rapidity as he 

 rose. When uttering his common note on the ground 

 he appears to do it uith difficulty, throwing his head 

 toward the earth, and frequently jotting up his tail. 

 These notes and manoeuvres are most usual in spring, 

 and are the call of the male to his favourite female. 

 Their food consists of various larvce and other aquatic 

 worms, for which, during the evening, they are almost 

 continually turning over the leaves with their bill, or 

 searching the bogs. Their flesh is reckoned delicious, 

 and prized highly." The summer, which is much 

 hotter, and more rainless in many parts of America, 

 than it is in Europe, and especially in Britain, dries 

 up the waters and hardens the earth much more early 

 in the season. This is obviously the reason why the 

 woodcocks, adapting themselves to the climate, breed 

 so much earlier than those with us. In consequence 

 of the drought, they are compelled to descend to the 

 margins of the larger streams in July ; and thus, if 

 they bred as late as the same birds do in Europe, the 

 young would perish for want of food, as they, like all 

 the other ground birds, have their feet perfect, and 

 are able to find their food long before they can fly. 



SOJA (Moench). A Japanese plant, belonging 

 to the LeguminoscE, the seeds of which are made into 

 a sauce, which is preferred to the kitjap of China; 

 " both, however, are imported into England in large 

 quantities, and are here known as soy. In bond it is 

 worth six. shillings a gallon, but, after it has been 

 adulterated, it is sold at three shillings a pint." 

 (Burnett). This plant was the Dolichos Soja of Lin- 

 nasus. 



SOLANDRA (Linnams). A genus of evergreen 

 and climbing shrubs, having pentandrous flowers, 

 and belonging to Solanece. These are favourite 

 stove plants, and if potted in loam, encouraged 

 to grow into bulk, and afterwards kept dry till their 

 leaves fall off, they will soon produce flowers. They 

 are easily increased by cuttings. 



SOLANE^E (Linnaeus). A natural order, con- 

 taining thirty-three genera, and above four hundred 

 and sixty-one species. Although there is great diver- 

 sity of properties in this order, it is still a truly 

 natural one. For notwithstanding the deadly night- 

 shade and the esculent potato, the acrid capsicum 

 and the bland tomato, the wholesome egg-plant and the 

 poisonous tobacco, with the stramonium, the henbane 

 the mandragora, and various other equally deleterious 

 or equally innocuous plants, are found here associated 

 they afford evidence of relationship. The deleterious 

 principles prevalent in the solanacece are narcotics ol 

 a peculiar kind. Several of these have been separated, 

 and named from the plants in which they are found, 

 as atroplne, solanine, &c. The narcotic principle 



which is so deadly a poison in the mandragora and 

 belladonna, is present in the potato and the egg-plant, 

 but in the latter in such small quantities as to be alto- 

 ether innocuous when prepared for food. 



Many plants belonging to this order are very hand- 

 some. The verbascums, daturas, and solandras, are 

 all plants of great beauty, and mostly bearing pen- 

 tandrous flowers ; they are also almost all easy of 

 cultivation and propagation. 



SOLARIUM (Lamarck; TROCHUS PEHSPECTI- 

 vus, Linnaeus). Linnaeus and his disciples considered 

 this genus to be a species of Trochus, with which it 

 certainly appears nearly allied, particularly when 

 compared with such of them as have the base termi- 

 nating in a sharp edge at the outer circumference. 

 In form this genus also resembles the Planorbis, and 

 from the examination of some fossil species, it is 

 very difficult to draw a distinct line between them. 

 Lamarck's division, however, cannot be mistaken for 

 either of the above-mentioned genera, the umbilicus 

 of the shell being always dentated or crenated at 

 the edge of the internal whorls. These shells are of 

 an orbicular depressed conical form ; the umbilicus 

 very wide, with dentated spiral whorls running inte- 

 riorly from the summit to the margin; the aperture is 

 nearly quadrangular, and there is no columella. The 

 writer has seen a calcarious operculum said to belong 

 to this genus. In appearance it closely resembles 

 the thick stony operculum of many of the Turbines, 

 but its shape was more quadrangular, which seemed 

 to characterise it as belonging to this genus. These 

 molluscs sometimes attain a considerable size. We 

 have seen them three inches in diameter ; they are 

 elegantly sculptured, and delicately marked with 

 black and straw colour, and the beauty of their 

 symmetry is not surpassed by any other shell. The 

 perspective Solarium is from the Chinese and Indian 

 seas, but one small species of Solarium is found in 

 the Mediterranean. Several fossil species are known 

 and described. The animal constructing this shell 

 appears unknown, or at least it is so to us, no author 

 we have met with giving any account of it. This 

 occurrence will now become less frequent, as the 

 present impetus given to this branch of natural his- 

 tory will enable the scientific writer to examine the 

 animals as well as their habitation ; and from such 

 an examination the only true classification can be 

 accomplished. 



SOLDANELLA (Linnaeus). A genus of humble 

 alpine herbs, but bearing beautiful pentandrous 

 flowers, and belonging to Primuhicete. They should 

 be in every flower-garden, thrive in peat-earth and 

 loam, and are suitable for rock-work or placed in 

 small pots ; division or seeds. 



SOLIDAGO (Linnaeus). A numerous genus of 

 perennial herbs, mostly natives of North America. 

 They have invariably yellow and rather showy 

 heads of flowers, and belong to Composites. In Eng- 

 lish lists they are called Golden Rod, and are usually 

 planted in shrubberies, as they are tall-growing 

 plants. 



SOLOMON'S SEAL, is the English name of the 

 Polygonatum vulgare of Desfontaines. The flowers 

 are hexandrous, and the genus belongs to Smilacece. 

 Common in every collection, and increased by di- 

 vision. 



SOMMITE. This highly interesting mineral is 

 the rhomboidal felspar of Mohs and the r.epheline of 

 Haufy and- Werner. It is generally of a white 



