258 The Naturalist of Cumbrac. 



unable at the time to quit the duties of his profession, 

 Robertson, being a man of leisure, was loth that any 

 important part of their joint work should be left im- 

 perfect if any exertion of his could prevent it. Seeing 

 that he could not have the pleasure and benefit of his 

 colleague's company, he volunteered to go by himself. 

 Also, with a view to the post-glacial work which he 

 had in hand in partnership with Brady and Crosskey, 

 he intended to operate upon the Cromer beds and 

 some others in the neighbourhood, which there had 

 been no time to examine on the previous visit to 

 Norfolk. 



Allusion has already been made to the small hand- 

 net in use for collecting fresh-water ostracoda from 

 lochs and pools. This was a small muslin bag about 

 six inches deep and five broad, fixed to a ring with a 

 tube for the reception of the end of a walking-stick. 

 With this every kind of rubbish could enter at the 

 wide open mouth, so that the gatherings had to be 

 drained again through a wide-meshed piece of cotton 

 stuff called bobinet. This took up much time, and 

 to professional men, in the few days of a limited 

 holiday, time is of considerable importance, the need- 

 less waste of it moreover being irksome to most men. 

 of sense. 



Robertson's turn of mind did not lead him U> 

 acquiesce in the use of a defective instrument without 

 first considering whether and how it might be 

 improved. 



He observed that the walking-stick handle of the 

 net was too short to be efficient, and that one thrice 

 the length would be far more serviceable. He there- 



