46 THE AMERICAN MONTHLY _ [Feb 
by the necessity of the young embryo to have a sufficient 
supply of food material. After a discussion on the fu- 
sion of all parts of the germinal cells in fertilization, the 
President proceeded to describe the recent experiments 
on artificial parthenogenesis, and pointed out the bear- 
ing of these facts on the theories of fertilization. The 
address was illustrated by means of the oxy-hydrogen 
lantern, many interesting photo-micrographs of the actual 
fertilization of the ovum by the spermatozoa being shown. 
SUNDERLAND MicroscoPIcCAL SocrETY.—The annual meet- » 
ing of this society was held on November 19th. The 
annual report was read and officers elected, after which 
Professor G. S. Brady, LL. D., F. R. S., President, gave 
an address on ‘‘Problems of Pond Life,” in which he al- 
luded to the popular delusion that the microscopist who 
studied pond life was only truly happy when he found 
a foul, festering pool, covered with green slime,and giv- 
ing off poisonous gases. What the microscopist really 
sought for was a pond with clear water and abundant 
vegetation. One of the most interesting problems was 
as to where all the animals in ponds get their sustenance. 
After considering this question from various points of 
view Professor Brady said he had arrived at the conelu- 
sion that the lower forms of minute animal life had the 
faculty of extracting sustenance from the air and water, 
in a similar way to plants. Professor Brady also gave 
his experiences in connection with a dredging expedition 
which he joined really to settle this problem, and for 
which a special grant had been made by the Royal So- 
ciety. They found that microscopic vegetable life did 
not exist beyond about fifteen fathoms from the shore, 
but they found myriads of minute animal organisms, 
millions of them in a thimbleful of water. Though really 
animals, they probably lived in vegetable fashion, absorb- 
ing their nutriment from the water in which they lived. 
