March 3, 1870| 
NATORE 
469 
genus 4é/azta and the sub-genus exyeyrus. In palzeozoic times 
the genus Jelleropho commenced its existence, so far as is 
known, in the lower Silurian, and became extinct in the carboni- 
ferous period. 
NEWCASTLE-UPON-TYNE 
Chemical Society, November 25, 1869.—I. Lowthian Bell, 
president, in the chair. “On the estimation of Peroxide of 
Manganese in Manganese Ores,” by E. Sherer and G. Rumpf. 
The authors showed that the method of Fresenius and Will is 
open to the objection of giving results which do not always 
agree with those obtained in the practical use of manganese for 
producing chlorine. They recommended Bunsen’s method of 
testing as better adapted for the valuation of manganese ore. 
BRIGHTON 
Brighton and Sussex Natural History Society, Feb- 
ruary 10. The president, Mr. T. H. Hennah, in the chair, The 
hon. sec., Mr. T. W. Wonfor, exhibited a collection of gaé/s, 
found on British plants, made by Mr. W. H. Kidd, and read a 
description of each one of the insects producing them, drawn up 
by the same gentleman. The collection is intended for the 
Brighton Museum. Mr. Wonfor then read a paper on Seeds. 
Commencing with the first appearance of the ovule in the unex- 
panded flower-bud, as a pimple consisting of an aggregation of 
cells, its gradual development and the impregnation by the pollen, 
together with its coeval parts, were traced until the perfect seed, 
ready for dissemination and containing within it the embryo of 
the future plant, was fully formed. The various modes by which 
the seed is ttered, the numbers produced by some plants, the 
power possessed by some of resisting heat and cold, and the 
wonderful property possessed by others of preserving their 
vitality, under appavently very adverse circumstances, for long 
periods of years, were each discussed. On the subject of artificial 
selection, it was shown what has been done, notably by Mr. F. 
Hallett, of Brighton, with cereals in increasing both the size and 
number of grains in an ear; something similar might be done 
with other plants. Seeds, as objects for the microscope, were 
next discussed. From a long series of examinations of wild and 
cultivated seeds, spread over several years, while unwilling to 
lay down any law of classification by their microscopic appear- 
ance, yet often in the case of unknown seeds he had been able to 
determine the family to which they belonged from certain pecu- 
liarities common to many plants of the same family. Seeing 
how varied and beautiful they were, and how little preparation 
they required, he considered they were not attended to by 
microscopists so much as they deserved. The paper was illus- 
trated by a large collection of seeds and microscopic préparations. 
VIENNA 
Imperial Academy of Sciences, January 7. — Memoirs 
were communicated *‘On some constituents of the fruit of Cera- 
sus acida, Borkh.,” by Professor H. Rochleder, and on a spiral 
yalve in the portal vein of the Rodentia, by Professor J. Hyrtl. 
—Herr von Haidinger presented a note by Dr. S. Meunier on 
the victorite or enstatite of the meteoric iron of Deesa, in Chili, 
which was said to be perfectly colourless and transparent and to 
contain no trace of iron. He also made some remarks on the 
study of meteorites, regarding them as the last step in the de- 
velopment of our planetary system.—Professor F. Unger com- 
municated a memoir on the occurrence of Typhaceous plants 
(Zypha and Sparganiunz) in tertiary deposits.—Prof. ©. Mach 
presented a preliminary communication on an apparatus con- 
structed by him for the observation of sound-movements.—Dr. 
Samuel Kénya communicated an account of his investigation of 
the mineral water of Wielutza, near Jassy, in Roumania. He 
obtained about o°9 per cent. of solid constituents, of which 0°574 
was sulphate of soda, and nearly 0°18 sulphate of magnesia. 
The water also contained chloride and carbonate of magnesia.— 
A memoir by MM. J. Rumpf and F. Ullik, on the Ullmannite 
of Waldenstein in Carinthia, was presented by Professor Peters. 
—Professor Graber communicated an account of the Orthoptera 
of level districts among the Austrian Alps. 
January 13.—A report was communicated from Dr. von Scherzer 
upon the proceedings of the scientific members of the East Asiatic 
Expedition. The following specimens were specially noticed:— 
Three Chinese and three Japanese skulls, a collection of fresh- 
water fishes from Osaka in Japan, and a number of Chinese 
drugs. —A memoir ‘On nexus of curves,” by Dr. Emil Weyr, 
was presented.—M. Haidinger communicated the contents of 
aseries of letters from Professor W. H. Miller, relating to 
meteorites.—M. A. Waszmuth forwarded a memoir on a new 
method of determining the reduction-factor of a tangent compass. 
—Herr J. Effenberger announced that he had succeeded, upon 
scientific principles, in producing violins which in power of tone 
approached those of the old makers.—Professor Reuss presented 
a memoir on Upper Oligocene corals from Hungary, in which he 
described 16 species of corals from the beds in the neighbour- 
hood of Gran, which contain abundance of Mimmulites Lucasana 
and ferforata, and were formerly regarded as of Eocene age : 
half the species are new; of the other half, seven have occurred 
in the beds of Castel-Gomberto and Oberburg.—A memoir by 
Dr. Leo Levschin, containing a description of the structure and 
vessels of the intestine of Sa/amandra maculata, was presented 
by Professor Langer.—Herr. I’. Unferdinger communicated a 
memoir on the transformation and determination of a certain 
triple integral. —M. H. Obersteiner read a paper on some lymphatic 
spaces in the brain: and Dr. S. L. Schenk presented a memoir on 
the amount of nitrogen in the flesh of various mammals, in which 
he stated that this quantity is variable, ranging from 3°06 to 4°21 
per cent. 
PARIS 
Academy of Sciences, February 21.—At this meeting M. 
Becquerel communicated a memoir on the production of electro- 
capillary currents in the bones, nerves, and brain. —M. de Saint 
Venant presented a report on a memoir by M. Boussinesq, relat- 
ing to the theory of periodical liquid waves, and another on a 
supplement by M. Tresca to his memoir read on the 27th of 
Noyember, 1864, on the flowing of solid malleable bodies 
pressed out of a cylindrical vase through a circular orifice. — 
The astronomical and physical communications were :—A notice 
of a direct and easy method of effecting the development of the 
perturbative function and of its differential coefficients, by Mr. 
S. Newcomb; and a note by M. A. Martin on the method 
adopted by Léon Foucault, to ascertain whether the surface of 
a mirror is strictly parabolic.—The following papers were read 
on chemical subjects :—A note on synthesis of aromatic acids, by 
M. A. Wuitz, in whieh the author described a series of acids 
produced by the action of amalgam of sodium upon mixtures 
of brominated toluene and chloride of benzyle, with chloroxy- 
carbonic ether.—A paper containing facts relating to the stabi- 
lity as chemical species of normal propylic, butylic, and amylic 
alcohols, by MM. J. Pierre and E. Puchot. The authors de- 
scribed a series of observations made upon these substances 
under various conditions, from which they concluded that the 
three alcohols were specifically different. They remarked that 
amylic alcohol is the only one of the three which exerts any 
sensible action upon polarised light.—A memoir on the artificial 
digestion of feculent bodies by maltine, by M. L. Coutaret, in 
which he stated that the action of maltine or vegetable diastase 
upon cooked starchy matters is precisely analogous to that of the 
salivary diastase, and recommended the use of the former in 
cases of dyspepsia.—A note by M. A. Lamy on a new kind of 
thermometer, founded on the principle of ‘* dissociation,” that is 
to say, on the determination of the amount of gas given off 
by a solid body at different temperatures. The substance em- 
ployed by the author is a double chloride of calcium and am- 
monia. The author regarded his method as particularly ap- 
plicable to the determination of temperatures low down in the 
earth or in deep soundings. M. Becquerel remarked that for 
temperature-observations at various depths in the earth, he 
had several years ago proposed a method which gave good 
respilts.—A note by M. Reboul on combinations of the hydro- 
acids with brominated ethylene and propylene. —A note 
by M. A. Colley on the action of the free haloids and of 
some chlorides upon glucose, in which he described a new 
compound obtained by the action of chloride of acetyle 
upon glucose, which he proposes to name acetochlorhydrose 
(C8H7 (C2H80)4Cl).—A notice of a new phosphuretted compound 
by MM. Darmstadter and Henninger. This body, which the 
authors named cyarethylphosphide, was obtained by the action 
of an etherial solution of phosphuretted hydrogen upon 
chloride of cyanogen. And, lastly, a chemical and thera- 
peutical investigation of the thermal water of the solfatara 
of Puzzoli, by M. S. De Luca; the water contains free 
sulphuric acid. The only purely mathematical communication 
was a memoir by M. Halphen on algebraical left curves. —General 
Morin presented a memoir by M. Goldenberg describing improve- 
ments introduced by him in the ventilation of the grinding and 
polishing works at Zorrhoff, near Saverne.—M. H. Sainte-Claire 
Deyille communicated some further remarks by M, A, Schafarik, 
