E E 



[311 ] 



NEE 



the class Scolecidee; the thread- 

 worm. 



NEE'DLE STONE. A variety of zeolite, 

 of a yellowish- white colour, found 

 in Iceland. 



NEMATU'RA. A genus of shells be- 

 longing to the family Turbinacea. 

 Recent, and fossil. 



NEMERTI'NA. The name assigned by 

 Dr. Mac Leay to an order of anne- 

 lida of the group apoda. He thus 

 describes them ; " animals aquatic, 

 without eyes or antennae. Body 

 not externally setigerous. Articu- 

 lation indistinct. The nemertinse 

 are white-blooded animals, like 

 some of the leeches." 



NEMERTI'TES. A genus of nemertina, 

 thus named by Mr. Mac Leay. 



NEOCO'MIAN. (from Neocomiensis, the 

 Roman name for Neufchatel.) The 

 name given by the French geolo- 

 gists to a formation synchronic 

 with the Wealden. Dr. Fitton 

 considers that the Neocomian strata 

 are but the equivalents of the 

 English greensand system. 



N'EOLOGY. The introduction of a new 

 word or words, or of new names 

 into a language. Dr. Me. Culloch 

 has, notwithstanding his great dis- 

 like to neology, enriched our no- 

 menclature more than any other 

 British geologist, with new names. 

 Dr. JBoase. 



NEOZO'IC. A term proposed by Prof. 

 Forbes to include the Mesozoic and 

 Kainozoic epochs ; or to group the 

 whole of the great series of strati- 

 fied rocks, and divide the whole 

 lapse of past geologic time into 

 two great epochs only, namely 

 Palaeozoic and Neozoic. 



NE'PHELINE. (from i/e^e'Xiy, a cloud, 

 Gr.) The Sommite of Jameson; 

 Nephelin of "Werner. A mineral 

 found only in the cavities of lava at 

 Mount Somma, from which circum- 

 stance it has been called Sommite. 

 Occurs generally in small, regular, 

 six-sided prisms, associated with 

 mica, hornblende, and idiocrase. 



Specific gravity 3 '27. Colour grey- 

 ish- white, or greenish-grey. It is 

 translucent, and sometimes trans- 

 parent. Before the blow-pipe it 

 fuses, with difficulty, into a trans- 

 parent glass. Its constituents are 

 silex 46, alumine 49, lime 2, ox- 

 ide of iron 1. 



NE'PHBITE. (from i/e0/a/T^?, ab i>e0/jo?, 

 a kidney, Gr.) A mineral, formerly 

 worn from an absurd notion that 

 diseases of the kidney were relieved 

 by so doing. It is a sub-species of 

 jade, possessing the hardness of 

 quartz, combined with a peculiar 

 tenacity which renders it difficult 

 either to break, cut, or polish. It 

 is unctuous to the touch ; fracture 

 splintery and dull ; translucent. 

 Colours green, grey, and white. 

 Sp. gr. from 2'9 to 3-1. Constitu- 

 ents, silex 53-80, lime 12-75, soda 

 10-80, potash 8-50, alumine 1'55, 

 oxide of iron 50, oxide of manga- 

 nese 2-0, water 2'30. Nephrite is 

 brought from India, China, and 

 Persia ; it is found also, in primary 

 rocks, in Germany and Egypt. It 

 is worked into handles for sabres, 

 knives, daggers, &c. 



NEPTUNIAN THE'ORY. That theory 

 which attempted to prove that all the 

 formations have been precipitated 

 from water, or from a chaotic fluid. 



NE'PTTJNISTS. The supporters of the 

 Neptunian theory ; they were op- 

 posed by the Yulcanists. Werner 

 taught that all the various for- 

 mations had been, each in succes- 

 sion, precipitated over the whole 

 earth from a common menstruum, 

 or elastic fluid. His disciples 

 supported his opinions to their full 

 extent, maintaining that even ob- 

 sidian was an aqueous precipitate. 



NEREIDI'NA. Red-blooded, many- 

 legged worms, resembling elon- 

 gated centipedes. According to 

 Mr. Mac Leay, animals belonging 

 to the class Annelida, having a 

 distinct head, provided with either 

 eyes or antennee, or both. Mr. Mae 



