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effort for similar legislation in this country. He spoke of 

 the evidence of glacial action to be seen all around here, 

 and also of the history of our race, involving the origin 

 of the human species. He had no doubt, that when the 

 Mosaic chronology was better understood, it would be found 

 that revelation and science agree, notwithstanding the 

 evidence of man's existence goes back to so remote a pe- 

 riod as to frighten the theologians, who fear damage to the 

 Mosaic record. 



Kev. A. B. HERVEY, of Troy, N. Y., spoke of the ma- 

 rine flora of this vicinity. We have three kinds of rock- 

 weed here, and Marblehead is set down as having the 

 distinction of possessing one kind not found anywhere else, 

 though he had never succeeded in finding it. Mr. Hervey 

 had brought with him some pressed specimens, exhibiting 

 the striking beauty of their formation and expressing sur- 

 prise that so few people make collections in this depart- 

 ment of our flora. Some of the most beautiful of these 

 are parasitic varieties. He also exhibited the tools with 

 which he made his collections, with the view of aiding the 

 efforts of others in the san^e direction. He described the 

 process of pressing, substantially as follows : Float out 

 each specimen by itself in salt water, in a wide dish, like 

 a washbowl. Put the paper under the plant in the water, 

 arrange the plant on the paper and carefully draw it out. 

 Lay the paper with the plant upon it on drying paper and 

 spread over k a piece of white muslin. Then spread over 

 this a layer of drying paper, then more plants, and then 

 more cloth, drying paper, etc. Put all under a board, and 

 weight it with forty or fifty pounds of stone or other heavy 

 substances. The next day, change the cloths and drying 

 paper, and in one day more the plants will be dry and 

 ready to go into the herbarium or the album for permanent 

 preservation. 



