FIFE SOCIETIES. 53 



morpha nutans. Their joint papers, read before 

 the Fife societies, embraced the ciliograde animals 

 found in the Orkneys, St. Andrews Bay, the Isle 

 of Man, and Ballycastle Bay in Ireland. They also 

 gave a systematic account of these Ciliograda to 

 the British Association meeting the same year (1839), 

 and described a new species of Alcinoe, which they 

 had found in Kirkwall Bay, Orkney, by the name of 

 Alcinoe rotunda, with the following characters : — 

 Ovate, rounded, crystalline ; tentacula rounded at 

 their extremities ; natatory lobes forming half the 

 animal. 



Goodsir's own and joint contributions with Forbes 

 were the most frequent made to the Literary and 

 Philosophical Society, so that St. Andrews had a fair 

 chance of being au courant with the progress of 

 science, and of knowing the men whose aspirations 

 might be directed to the approaching vacancies in 

 their ancient University. These Fife societies were 

 favoured in a high degree. With Sir D. Brewster as 

 president of the one, the Goodsirs and Forbes as 

 anatomists and naturalists, David Page as geologist, 

 Playfair, Adamson, Buisr, and others as members, 

 the Cupar and St. Andrews meetings almost rivalled 

 the scientific societies of Edinburgh in the variety 

 and originality of the papers introduced for con- 

 sideration. Goodsir entered into the historical phases 

 of his work, and showed familiarity with the labours 

 of Cuvier, Audouin, Milne Edwards, Muller, and 

 Agassiz abroad ; and of Owen, Fleming, and Sharpey, 



