488 
NATURE 
[ Oct. 13, 1870 
4. S. guinguefida, 5. S. iypnoides. A table of their geogra- 
phical distribution is subjoined. ‘Two or three other short ori- 
ginal articles and notes are also included, and the official report 
for 1869 of the botanical department of the British Museum, 
THE Geological Magazine for October (No. 76) commences with 
a long puper, illustrated with two plates, by Mr. D. Mackintosh, 
on the surface-geology of the Lake district, relating chiefly to the 
effects of glacial conditiors observable among the mountains of 
Cumberland and Westmoreland.—Mr, T. Davidson contributes 
a third series of descriptions of Italian tertiary brachiopoda, 
including numerous species of the genera Aynchonella and 
Crania, which are figured on the accompanying plate.—In a 
paper on the chalk of Kent, Mr. G. Dowker, following Mr. 
Whitaker, distinguishes the Margate chalk as constituting the 
highest section of the chalk observable in that district, and gives 
alist of the fossils which it contains. The author proposes a 
division of the Kentish chalk into six sections.—A fourth and last 
paper is by Mr. H. bB. Medlicott, on the mode of cccurrence of 
faults in strata. The remainder of the number is, as usual, 
occupied by reports, reviews, &c. 
SOCIETIES AND ACADEMIES 
NorwIcH 
Norfolk and Norwich Naturalists’ Society, Aug. 30.— 
Mr. Stevenson read a valuable paper communicated by Prof. 
Newton, of Cambridge, on the method adopted by his brother 
and himself for registering Natural History phenomena. The 
Register, a volume or which was on the table, was kept at Elve- 
den, near Thetford, during a period of ten years, and its great 
value consists in the variety and completeness of the information 
with regard to each species of bird found in that neighbourhood, 
and the slight amount of labour required to keep up the daily 
record. This is effected by the use of signs extremely simple in 
their construction, but conveying an amount of information never 
before dreamed of in registers of this description : a life history 
from day to day of each species is given; all the rare and occa- 
sional visitors recorded, and the most striking botanical pheno- 
mena are all noted fully and explicitly, but in such a way as 
to occupy barely five minutes in doing. What a boon this de- 
crease in labour alone is to the conscientious recorder, he who has 
had to pest up his register after a hard day’s work in the field 
will be in a position fully to appreciate. Some of the results 
obtained from the study of the register are highly valuable, as, for 
instance, the migratory habits of the song thrush, and we strongly 
recommend the paper, which will be published in the Transactions 
of the Society, to the consideration of naturalists, feeling certain 
that important results would be obtained by the comparison of 
registers kept on Prof. Newton’s plan in different districts of the 
county. Mr. Stevenson also read a note with regard to a habit 
of the rook, which appears to have attracted very little attention, 
viz., that of throwing up the indigestible portions of its food in 
the form of large pellets, after the manner of hawks and owls. 
Several of these pellets, or ‘‘ quids,” picked up on the cliffs at 
Cromer and Sherringham, consisting mainly of the indigestible 
husks of barley, with a few pebbles and fragments of small beetles, 
were exhibited, all having been found near the edge of the cliffs, 
together with rooks’ feathers, showing that the birds had been 
preening themselves during the process of digestion. A number 
of interesting plants found in the neighbourhood were exhibited 
by Mr. Bircham. At the suggestion of Mr. Southwell, a sub- 
committee was formed to take into consideration the formation of 
a list of the natural productions of the county ; and it is hoped that 
help for this purpose will be rendered by kindred societies and 
naturalists resident in the county. The President announced that 
Mr. J. H. Gurney, jun., who has been travelling in Algeria, would 
read a paper on the birds of that country at the next meeting of 
the Society, on September 27th. 
Paris 
Academy of Sciences, Sept. 5.—M. Cave presented a 
second note on the generative zone of the appendages in 
monocotyledonous plants. —M. de Saint-Venant communicated 
a note by M. Boussinesq, supplementary to his memoir on 
periodical liquid waves, and showing the general relations between 
the internal energy of a fluid or solid body and its pressures or 
elastic forces.—A note was presented by M. W. de Fonvielle on 
a theory of Mariotte’s on barometric oscillations, relating to the 
rising of the mercury when the wind is from the north and north- 
east, and its fall when the wind is from the south and south-west. 
—M. Delaunay communicated a notice of the discovery of a 
new comet by M. Coggia, at Marseilles, on the 28th August. 
—A note on the composition of nadorite by M. Flajolot, was 
presented by M. Combes. The mineral may be regarded as a 
combination of oxide of lead and oxychloride of antimony, in 
accordance with the formula Sb? O? Cl 2Pb O.—M. Claude 
Bernard communicated a memoir on the venom of the scorpion, 
by M. Jousset. The author has experimented with the poison of 
Scorpio occitanus, by inoculating it upon tree frogs. He found 
that it acts directly upon the red globules of the blood, depriving 
them of the power of passing each other freely, and thus causing 
them to become agglutinated to each other, and obstruct the cir- 
culation. The extent of the action of the poison is dependent 
on its quantity.—M. Zaliwski noticed a battery of zinc and car- 
bon giving a maximum of intensity for twelve hours. The zine 
is immersed in a solution of hydrochlorate of ammonia, the 
carbon in a mixture of nitric and sulphuric acid. 
BOOKS RECEIVED 
Enoisu.—Advanced Text-book of Zoology : H. A. Nicholson (Blackwood 
and Sons).—Thayer Expedition: Scientific Results of a Journey in Brazil : 
L. Agassiz (Triibner and Co.).—Physical Geography: J. K. Laughton 
(Potter).—The Food, Use, and Beauty of British Birds : C. O. Groom-Napier 
(Groombridge and Sons).—Treatment and Uulisation of Sewage: Prof. Cor- 
field (Macmillan and Co.).—Arithmetic, Parts 2 and 3, Sonnenschein and 
Nesbit (Murby). 
Foreicn.—(Through Williams and Norgate)—Helgoland: Nord-see- 
studien ;«Ernst Hallier.—Fauna ofver Sveriges och Norges Ryggradsdjur : 
Wilh. Lilljeborg.—Der Laacher See und seine yulkanischen Umgebungen : 
Dr. Jacob Noggerath.—Die Sculptur und die feineren Structur-verhaltnisse 
der Diatomaceen, Heft 1.: Fritsch und Miiller—Iconographia familarum _ 
naturalium regni vegetabilis, Heft xx. : Dr. Schnitzlein. —Notesur un Foyer 
de l’Age de la Pierre polie: E. Perrault.—Mollusques tertiaires, Fasc. i.: F. 
Bayan,— Erster Nachtrag zum Lehrbuche der Aufbereitungskunde, mit Atlas: 
von Rittinger.—Natur und Gott: H. Baumgartner.—Ueber Eis und Schnee: 
G. Studer.—Texture, Structure, und Zell-leben in den Adnexen des mensch- 
lichen Eies: Dr. Winklner.—Grundziige einer Spongien-fauna des atlan- 
tischen Meeres: Dr. O. Schmidt.—Les Houilléres en 1869: A. Burat — 
Geographisches Jahrbuch ILI. Band, 1870; E. Behm,—Wissenschaftlich- 
technisches Handbuch des gesammten Lissengiessereibetriebes: E. F. 
Diirre.—Ueber die wachsende Kenntniss des unsichtbaren Lebens: Dr. 
Ehrenberg.— Botanische Untersuchungen itiber die Alkoholgaihrungspilze ; 
Dr. M. Reess.—Verhandlungen der schweizerischen naturforschenden Gese!l- 
schaft in Solthurn, 1869.—Mittheilungen der naturforschenden Gesellschaft 
in Berne, 1869. 
CONTENTS Pace 
Narerat History Societies. I. . . 2. s <5 at ie ae 
AVWORD) ABOUT WALEO coe) S005) lar eve ter mnceha Bieta nme! 470 
WaALtaAce ON NATURAL SELECTION . 2. ss 471 
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR :— 
Dr. Bastian and Spontaneous Generation.—Prof, T. H. Hux.ey, 
1 SETS AOR TE Git CMC ION Gea 0 Nn 
Ozone, developed by Humidity and Electricity. (With /@ustration) 
Aurora Borealis —Lorp Linpsay, and Rev. S. J. PERRY. . . . 
Botanists and the Halfpenny Postage.—H. Reeks, F.L.S. . . . 
Working Men's Colleges.—W- RossITER . . . « . + + = « 
Lunar Rainbow.—)..G.DurHTE” <0 yea) re ec <n 
NOTES: 5. fotis usc cies ‘clip woe ges Moligiet Me gfe eket bela) 2am kmenamn 
ERUPTION OF THE VOLCANO TONGARIRO, NEW ZEALAND. (With Illus- 
EVAEGIS=) ee sig ie ae Se SAL eee aye cn es nc 
Tue BritisH ASsociaTION :— 
Section A.—Paper by Rey. R. Main (Radcliffe Observer) . . . 
Section B.—Papers by W. Gossage; J. Dewar, F.R.S.E.; J. 
Spiller: sBi.GiS Ges, C15 5 eee apa si ee 
Section C.—Papers by Prof. Stokes, Prof. Harkness and Dr. 
Nicholson, C. Lapworth, E W. Judd, Prof. Ansted, &c., &e. . 
Section D.—Papers by Prof. Allman and A. W. Bennett, F.L.S. 
Section E.—Paper by Capt. Carmichael . . . . .-.. ; 
Section G.—Papers by J. N. Shoolbred, Reade and Goodison, 
Ald. Rumney, A. W. Bickerston, F.C.S. . . . . +. - 483 
Rerort OF UNDERGROUND TEMPERATURE COMMITTEE . .. « - 484 
SCIENTIFIC SERIALS? surei lou talc sill cay ottoman ano es ae 
SoclETIES AND ACADEMIES « «6 so © ee © ew ee ww 
BOOKS RECEIVED" s) 2 We = 5) rete ec) te fae) ein oh ol etme 
