, 
Sune 15, 1871 | 
other savas, he proceeded to describe seriatim the principal 
localities where excavations had been already undertaken, and to 
identify them with many of the cities mentioned in the older 
Books of the Pentateuch. A chronological list of kings anda 
brief account of the military and political changes, including 
several new facts from contemporary inscriptions, concluded the 
first part of the paper. In its second division, the theology, the 
arts, the social and moral characteristics of the ancient Chaldeans 
were examined, and the examination was further illustrated by 
the exhibition of sundry casts of ancient bricks and cylinders, 
translations of which were also given.—Mr. J. W. Bosanquet, 
F.R.A.S., treasurer, read a paper “ On the Date of the Nativity.” 

Linnean Society, June 1.—On the nomination of the Pre- 
sident the following members of the Council were elected vice- 
presidents for the ensuing year :—Mr. J. J. Bennett, F.R.S., 
Mr. George Busk, F.R.S., Dr. J. D. Hooker, F.R.S., and Mr. 
W. Wilson Saunders, F.R.S.—The following papers were read: 
—‘*On some plants from North China,” by Dr. Hance; ‘On 
South American //ippocrateacee,” Mr. J. Miers, ¥.R.S. The 
history of this family shows the widely divergent opinions of 
numerous botanists in regard to its affinities, the absolute want of 
knowledge to guide these opinions at last culminating in the ex- 
tinction of the Wifppocrateacee by the authors of the new ‘‘Ge- 
nera Plantarum,” who have reduced it to a mere tribe of the Ce- 
lastracee ; and not only so, but have amalgamated the several 
genera previously established into 2, viz. : Hippocratea and Sa/a- 
cia, The large amount of evidence here presented will, how- 
ever, show its right to stand as a distinct natural order, having 
in fact little connection with Ce/astracec. The chief characters in 
its floral structure consist in having five sepals, five alternate 
petals imbricated in zstivation, and only three stamens (very 
rarely five); the most important feature is the hypogynous disc, 
variable in shape, but constantly placed between the stamens 
and petals ; the ovary is always superior, usually 3-locular, with 
definite anatropous ovules fixed in the axis. The mode of growth 
of the ovary varies greatly, dividing the family into three sepa- 
rate tribes. 1. //ippocratec, where, in the progress of growth, 
the axis of the ovary never lengthens, remaining completely atro- 
phied, the cells growing upwards vastly, sometimes to 100 times 
the length of the axis at the maturity of the flower, thus produc- 
ing three distinct capsules from a single ovary, which sometimes 
open 2-valvately, and have winged seeds, or are indehiscent with 
nuciform seeds borne upon a carinated ovular support ; upon 
such differences five several genera areestablished. 2. Zoz/elzee, 
distinguished by a drupaceous fruit, often a large size, the growth 
of an ovary wherein the axis lengthens commensurately with the 
cells, the fruit being thus 3-locular, with several seeds, which in 
most cases are covered by an avi/ine, a fleshy complete coating, 
resolving itself into a mucilaginous pulp,thatsenvelopes the seeds ; 
this tribe consists of eight genera. 3. Azfpzstiee, remarkable 
for a floral development hitherto unknown among Dicotyledones, 
but long ago described by Robert Brown in Monocotyledones ; 
here the stigmata, instead of alternating as usual with the stamens 
and standing opposite to the cells of the ovary, are opposite to 
the stamens and alternate with the cells of the ovary; the fruit 
is drupaceous, variable in the position of the seeds, but with 
characters resembling those of Zomteliee ; this tribe consists of 
three genera. There are thus seventeen genera in all, with well- 
marked characters, which are separately illustrated by as many 
drawings, each amply explained by analytical figures. The 
numerous facts here shown in regard to structure are, for the most 
part, hitherto undescribed, many being derived from analyses 
made of plants in the living state. In summarising these details, 
the author points out the many salient points of distinction in the 
structure of Hippocrateacee and Celastracee. 1. In the former 
the stamens are generally anisomerous in regard to the petals 
(three to five) ; in the latter they are constantly isomerous with 
stamens equal to, or double the number of, the petals. 2, In 
the former the stamens are distinctly inserted zzszde the disc ; in 
the latter they are invariably inserted ow¢szde of the disc. 3. 
In the former the anthers, generally of a peculiar form, are con- 
stantly extrorse ; in the latter they are of the usually normal 
structure, and always zztrorvse. 4. In the former the disc is 
generally elevated, and presents a free wall of separation between 
the stamens and more external parts; in the latter it is a mere 
expansion of the torus, intervening between the ovary and all 
other floral parts. 5. In the former the sepals, petals, 
stamens, and disc are persistent at the base of the fruit, 
and are never seen in such position in the latter family. 
6, In the former, the superior ovary is always elevated above the 

NATURE 


35 
torus and quite free from it ; in the latter it is always more or 
less partially imbedded in the disc and half agglutinated with it. 
7. The atrophied condition of the axis of the ovary, though not 
a constant feature, is one quite peculiar to the 7ippocrateacee, and 
on the other hand, in Ct/astracee, we find no growth at all 
approaching the several kinds of large drupaceous fruits ‘seen in 
the Hiffpocrateacee. 8. In the development of the seeds there is 
a constant distinction. In /ifpfocrateacee they are invariably 
without albumen, in the Cé/astracee, without exception, the 
embryo is enveloped in albumen, usually copious. In the former 
the cotyledons are often closely conferruminated in a solid mass, 
a circumstance quite unknown in the latter. 9. In the /iffo- 
crateacee no trace of anarillus can be seen, in Celastracee, though 
not universal, a distinct arillus, in most cases, partially surrounds 
one extremity of the seeds. In the former, in one tribe, the 
seeds exhibit a greater or smaller expansion of the testa, in the 
shape of a large membranaceous wing, or a narrower alar keel, 
while in the two others they are invested by an ari//ine, an entire 
fleshy coating, the nature of which was explained many years ago, 
a feature seen in some other families, though too often unnoticed 
by botanists. 10. In the Wippocrateacee, the leaves, but more 
particularly the branches of the inflorescence, the pedicels, sepals, 
and petals, contain numerous white elastic threads, which hold the 
parts together when broken, and these spiral threads often extend 
to the pericarps, to the integuments of the seeds, and even occa- 
sionally to the fleshy cotyledons, Nothing of this kind has yet 
been observed in Celastracee. Any one of these peculiarities, by 
itself, would tend little to support any separation of these two 
families, but the sum of the whole tells powerfully to mark a 
great distinction in their organisation. The only arguments that 
have yet been urged for their near affinity are that both generally 
consist of arborescent plants with evergreen leaves, an axillary 
inflorescence, petals and sepals with imbricated zstivation, a 
three-celled ovary, a simple style and stigma ; but these are all 
characters common to many other families distantly related, and 
wholly insufficient by themselves to establish any near affinity. 
The more probable inference is that these two families should be 
separated by a long interval. 
DUBLIN 
Natural History Society.—Prof. E. Perceval Wright, M.D., 
in the chair. Dr. A. W. Foot read a paper on a small collec- 
tion of Hymenoptera, named for him by Mr. F. Smith. None 
of the species referred to were rare, and they had, for the most 
part, been collected in the counties of Wicklow and Kildare.— 
Mr. W. Andrews read ‘‘ Notes on some Irish Saxifrages.” Fine 
living specimens were exhibited of Saxifraga geum, and of its 
varieties wmbrosa, jarsuta, and elegans. A coloured drawing by 
the late Mr. Du Noyer was also shown of a remarkable variety 
found at the Great Blasquet, in which the flowers presented a 
glandular disc surrounding the base of the pistil. Specimens of 
S. Andrewsii were also laid on the table. Mr. Andrews 
stated that he had lately given Mr. A. G. More the exact locality 
of this rare form, supposed by some to be a hybrid, and he fully 
expected that in the course of this summer Mr. A. G. More 
would be able to verify this as well as he had done other of his 
discoveries. He believed, judging from the structure of its 
ovaries, that this species had strong affinities with S. ziva/is. 
Lastly Mr. Andrews exhibited some very remarkable specimens 
of S. stellaris, which very much resembled in shape S. Zeucan- 
themifolia, and indeed Mr. John Ball appears to regard this latter 
form as but a variety of the former.—A resolution was passed 
that Mr. R. J. Montgomery, Mr. R. P. Williams, Mr. A. 
Andrews, and Dr. A. Wynne Foot be a committee to have the 
museum of the society catalogued and arranged for sale, and that 
the committee be requested to report to the society in November 
as to any offers they may receive for it. The museum is very 
rich in Irish birds, containing some unique specimens; but the 
society not having a house of its own, and holding its meetings 
in the Royal Irish Academy House, has considered it advisable 
to dispose of its collections. 
Royal Geological Society, May 12.,—The Rev. Max- 
well Close in the chair, Prof. Traquair exhibited a collec- 
tion of Carboniferous Ganoid fishes, found in nodules of 
clay irenstone from Wardie near Edinburgh.—Mr. G. H. 
Kinahan read a paper on the Geological Drift of Ireland.—Rev. 
Prof. Haughton read some analyses made by the late M. H. 
Ormsby of the Geological Survey of India of Granitic Rocks 
and their Constituent Minerals, found in Lower Bengal and 
Ceylon, These analyses were made by Mr, Ormsby in 1868, 
