Miscellaneous. 213 
short time since also, among a number of pieces of amber (not copal), 
he found some containing insects, in which distinct spiders’ webs 
could be seen (thus fossil spiders’ webs!!) ; in some, the webs and 
also the insects hanging in them were evident.— Leonhard and 
Bronn’s Jahrbuch fiir Geologie. 
COUNTY OF DOWN FOSSIL INFUSORIA. 
To the Editors of the Annals of Natural History. 
Belfast, August 9, 1845. 
GentLEMEN,—As Dr, Mantell, in a communication published in 
the last Number of the ‘ Annals,’ p. 86, briefly notices some Fossil 
Infusoria from the county of Down, without any allusion to their 
having been previously described, it is perhaps desirable for the in- 
formation of persons interested in the subject to state, that a paper 
on the subject of these same Infusoria, accompanied by some figures, 
appeared in 1839 in Charlesworth’s ‘ Magazine of Natural History,’ 
vol. iii. Wo. Tuompson. 
CAPTURE OF ACIPENSER HUSO. 
Cork, July 31, 1845. 
A fine specimen of the Isinglass Sturgeon (Acipenser Huso), 8 feet 
4 inches long, and weighing 14 cwt., was taken within a mile of this 
city on Tuesday July Ist. 
I examined it carefully, and compared it with the plate of A. Huso 
in Shaw’s ‘ Zoology,’ with which it exactly agreed. 
As this is, I believe, the first instance of that fish having been cap- 
tured on the coast of this county, or, as far as I am aware, on any 
part of the coast of Ireland, I feel a pleasure in sending information 
on the subject to the ‘ Annals of Natural History.’ The common 
sturgeon (4. Sturio) has been taken more than once in the river 
Lee, near Cork. 
Joun Humupureys, Librarian R C. Institution. 
ON THE CYSTIDEZX. BY VON BUCH. 
In a letter to Prof. Bronn, M. Buch states that his monograph of 
the Cystidee is now printing. ‘Troschel’s drawings to it are very 
beautiful, and he hopes that the copper-plates will turn out well. 
A lucky incident has rendered this work more perfect than he had 
anticipated. The Hchino-encrinus (a barbarous term, and one 
founded upon an entirely erroneous analogy !), described by Meyer 
and Schlotheim,—this extinct form has been collected and brought 
here in several pieces, by the industry of M. Krantz. Hence he had 
an opportunity of studying all its peculiarities, its affinity, the points 
in which it differs from other Cystidee, and the laws of its develop- 
ment. He clearly saw that M. Vollborth in his first paper (Bullet. 
de Pétersb. 10. no. 19. pl. 1 and 2) had figured it well and accurately, 
with a commentary which did not seek for laws but curiosities! In 
Bullet. 1844, 3. 2b, he imagines that this form possesses two rows 
