—— 
bata sh, 
NATURE 
267 
tions are fulfilled, Za Caravane Universelle may have some- 
thing worth listening to, to tell the world monthly. At all 
events, we heartily wish the project success, and hope 
that Captain Bazerque may soon havea list of subscrip- 
tions large enough to encourage him to commence the 
practical organisation of his scientific pleasure-party. We 
see from Les MJondes of January 23, that at Captain 
Bazerque’s request, M. de Quatrefages, president of the 
Academy, has nominated a committee to indicate the 
principal parts of the earth that ought to be specially ex- 
plored, and to find out a number of young energetic 
European men of science, willing to accompany the 
expedition. 
Hitherto such expeditions have been thought practi- 
cable only with Government assistance. If Captain 
Bazerque’s scheme is successful in all respects, he will 
have the merit of showing that Science need not look to 
Government for help, even in her weightiest undertakings, 
though we fear the world is not yet ripe for this new 
application of “the voluntary principle.” 
FOSSIL CRYPTOGAMS 
4% HE exogenous(circumferential) growth of fossil vascular 
cryptogams is a subject of so much interest and 
importance, that I may perhaps be permitted to say a 
few words regarding it. In a paper which was read at 
the December meeting of the Edinburgh Botanical 
Society, I combated the idea of the circumferential 
growth of calamites. The moist nature of the soil in 
which calamites must have grown would lead one to 
expect a poor development of the fibro-vascular bundles, 
and in comparing what I believe to be the fibro-vascular 
bundles of calamites with those of our recent equisetums, 
this idea is fully confirmed. Then in Equisetum there is 
a large development of the sclerenchyma of Mettenius, 
which forms the strong hypoderma. Ina Brazilian fern 
which has come under my notice, this sclerenchyma runs 
to the fibro-vascular bundles, and presents an appearance 
exactly like Williamson’s woody wedges, the large and 
small cells giving an appearance wonderfully like me- 
dullary rays. There is another point which, to my mind, 
is of much importance; namely, that in most of our 
recent vascular cryptograms, the embryonic parts do 
not enlarge; but as each successive leaf and portion of 
stem is produced, every such leaf and portion of stem is 
larger than the part preceding it, and this continues 
until a certain maximum is reached, when the stem be- 
comes cylindrical, It is impossible to overlook that this 
mode of growth is evident in calamites, and until con- 
vincing proof can be brought forward of the circum- 
ferential growth of calamites, I must decline to accept it. 
Turning from the calamites to Lepidodendron, it is 
evident that in it circumferential growth was much more 
likely to have occurred. In the calamites there is no 
evidence that they required year by year increasing 
quantities of water for purposes of transpiration, while in 
Lepidodendron the numerous small leaves which must 
have gone on increasing in number during the whole life 
of the plant (which however need not have been very 
long) demands that some addition to the conducting tissue 
should be made. As in botany we constantly find the 
same physiological purpose provided for in many mor- 
phologically distinct ways, I do not think it is at all 
necessary to believe in a form of growth identical with 
that in dicotyledons, because that would involve a 
complete change intype. Looking at sucha stemas Lyco- 
podium chamaecyparissus, in which the cortical tissues 
_ become so curiously modified, there is’no difficulty in ima- 
gining that an increase by means of a cortical meristem 
might take place, a condition which I believe still exists 
-in Isoetes. Hegelmaier in his paper, “ Zur Morphologie 
der Gattung Lycopodium” in the Aotanische Zeitung, 
1872, p, 796, points out the presence in lycopods of a 
peculiar layer which he calls the phloem sheath, outside 
the phloem of the bundle, but inside the cortical portion, 
and therefore a series of cells belonging to, the plerom 
and not to the periblem tissues. It seems to me probable 
that this phloem sheath may have represented a meristem 
layer from which new tissue was formed, as it would be 
the representative of the plerom meristem of the higher 
plants, while its position outside the vessels would further 
seem in some way related to the absence of vessels in the 
secondary wood of conifers. 
Passing from the fossil lycopods, of which Lepidoden- 
dron is the type, with its central axis of fibro-vascular 
bundles, we come to Dictyoxylon, which I believe we must 
take as the type of Strasburger’s new group the Lycop- 
teridze (Die Coniferen und die Gnetaceen, p. 259). Stras- 
burger, in pointing out the relation of the archisperms to 
the vascular cryptogams, shows that the transition from 
the lycopods to the conifers is abrupt, and states thata 
new group intermediate between the two must have 
existed, To this group he gives the name Lycopteridz, 
and I have no hesitation in referring Dictyoxylon 
stigmaria and sigillaria to it, and considering the former 
to be the type. The main root of stigmaria has more 
affinity with conifers than lycopods, while the branching 
of the root is distinctly lycopodiacous and not coniferous 
the root of conifers not branching in a dichotomous 
manner. Itis not difficult to understand how the phloem 
sheath would in Dictyoxylon be still further differentiated, 
as plerom meristem, and even true cambium formed, 
thus affording the passage from the lycopodiacious to the 
archispermous stem. It is also not improbable that trigono- 
carpon may be referable to the lycopteridz. While there- 
fore I cannot see my way to accept the theory of the 
exogenous growth of calamites, I do not see any reason to 
doubt that in lycopods the circumferential growth may 
have taken place by means either of a periblem meristem, 
or plerom meristem, or by both : while in Dictyoxylon the 
relation of the growth of the stem to that of a conifer 
must be very close indeed. 
W. R. McNap 
NOTES 
One of the principal events of the past week has been the 
funeral of Professor Sedgwick, whose death, though at a ripe 
old age and after a life devoted to work of the highest import- 
ance, yielding valuable results to Science, has called forth ex- 
pressions of sympathy and regret from all quarters, from Royalty 
downwards. In this week’s NATURE will be found a sketch of 
the life and work of the veteran geologist, from the pen of one 
who knew him long and well. 
Coats in London are upto 48s. a ton, and there seems every pro- 
bability that the rising process will continue. If they went at once 
up to 100s. a ton it might be the best thing that could happen to the 
nation, as thereby it might be ‘‘tunded ” into adopting one or more 
of the obvious and easily applied means whereby the scandalous 
waste of our precious fuel might be avoided. It is a low average 
when we say that at least three-fourths of our coal is absolutely 
thrown away, and that simply because people ‘‘ canna be fash’d ” 
to prevent it. Men of science have dinned the alarming state of 
“the coal-question” into the ears of the nation for years, but 
we fear most men’s heads, like their hearts, must be reached 
through their pockets. Sir W. Armstrong’s address at New- 
castle, which we reprint this week, is one of the most practical, 
forcible, and intelligent on the subject we have hitherto seen, 
It is deserving of attention from all who have to pay for coals. 
THE Council of the Anthropological Institute has appointed 
a Committee of Psychological Research, viz., Francis Galton, 
F.R.S., chairman; Dr. John Beddoe; Hyde Clarke; David 
Forbes, F.R,S. ; Sir John Lubbock, Bt. F.R.S. ; E. B. Tylor, 
