478 
Zoological Society, April 4.-—Mr. R. Hudson in the chair. 
Mr. W. Saville Kent read a paper on some new or little 
known Madrepores contained in the collection of the British 
Museum, amongst which were new species of the genera Acaz- 
thocyathus, Flabellum, Stylaster, and Allopora.—A communication 
was read from Surgeon Francis Day containing a series of notes 
on some of the rarer and less-known of the Siluroid fishes of 
India.—A communication was read from Mr. G. Stewardson 
Brady containing a review of the known Cyfridinide of the 
European seas, together with a description of a new species of 
the genus P:lomedes, proposed to be called Ph. folinit.—A 
communication was read from Dr. J. E. Gray containing addi- 
tional notes on AAinoclemmys mexicana, a Mexican Tortoise 
recently described by him in the Society’s ‘‘ Proceedings.”—A 
second communication from Dr. Gray contained some additional 
notes on the genera Zwfleres and Galidia, and a note on Lemur 
ruber, founded on specimens of these animals lately procured in 
Madagascar by Mr. Crossley. 

Linnean Society, April 6.—Mr. G. Bentham, president, in 
the chair. The president read a paper on the styles and stigmas 
of Proteaceze. In plants belonging to this order, the anthers 
mostly discharge their pollen before the expansion of the flower, 
as is also the case in Composite. In this latter order self-fertili- 
sation is prevented by the fact that the stigmas are on the 
under face of the style branches which remain hermetically closed 
until after the opening of the flower. In Proteaceze, on the other 
hand, the style is undivided, and the stigmatic surface is exposed 
even in the bud; and the contrivances to screen it from the 
action of the pollen of its own flower are very various. The 
observations have been made, with but few exceptions, on dried 
plants, and require confirming or rectifying by those who have 
the opportunity of examining the living plants. The anthers 
generally form, as in Composite, a closed tube surrounding the 
stigma, which is, however, usually if not always immature at 
the time of the extension of the pollen. That selffertilisation 
seldom if ever takes place is shown by the fact that in no genus 
is the style more completely smothered with pollen than in 
Banksia, while there is none in which fecundated fruit is rarer. 
In Petrophila the stigmatic surface consists of the minute 
tip of the style, which is, however, completely protected 
while in the bud from the action of the pollen by the 
perianth segments. In one section of /ersoonia the style is 
completely turned away from the anthers, and the stigmatic point 
is buried in a pouch prepared to receive it. The anther imme- 
diately over this pouch is sometimes destitute of pollen. In 
Banksia and Grevillea there appears to be no protection against 
self-fertilisation except the immaturity of the stigma. In Cono- 
spermum and Synaphea one anther in each flower has two perfect 
cells, separated by a connective ; in the two lateral stamens there 
is one perfect and one abortive cell; and in the fourth there are 
two abortive cells, the cells are open cups ; the perfect one of each 
lateral anther applied face to face with the adjoining cell of the 
double anther forms with it a closed globe in the bud, opening 
as the flower expands so as to let fall the pollen, the style pro- 
jects far beyond with the stigmatic surface bent towards the 
upper perianth segment in the bud. In Conospermum, where the 
upper anther has two perfect cells, and the lowest is abortive, the 
style recurves elastically as the flower opens, so as to direct the 
stigma towards the abortive anther ; in Syzaphea, where the 
upper anther is abortive and the lowest perfect, the stigma is 
retained in its primitive position over the abortive anther by a 
strapshaped appendage proceeding from therudiment of that anther 
and firmly attached to the lower margin of the stigmatic disc—‘‘On 
the Generic Nomenclature of Lepidoptera.” By J. D. Crotch. 
Chemical Society, March 30.—Prof. Williamson, F.R.S., 
president, in the chair. The president delivered the follow- 
ing address :—‘‘ Gentlemen, I feel much pleasure in congratu- 
lating you on the rapidly increasing prosperity of our society, 
and the enlargement which has taken place in its sphere of 
usefulness. For on the one hand the number of our fellows 
continues to show a most satisfactory increase, and on the 
other hand your Council has made arrangements for carrying 
out the system of monthly reports, which has been for some 
time in contemplation. It was hoped that the Chemical 
Society of Paris might, from the first, co-operate with us in the 
preparation of these monthly reports, but circumstances beyond 
their control have prevented the sister society from joining us in 
the beginning of this year. Deeming it undesirable to delay the 
commencement of the reports, your Council still look forward 
NATURE 

[April 13, 1871 

to the future co-operation of the Paris Society in their prepara- 
tion. You are aware that the present available income of the 
society was not considered to be sufficient to defray the additional 
expense of writing and printing these reports, and I have the 
pleasure of informing you that contributions to the extent of 
1,175. have been promised by members of your body towards 
supplying the defect during the first five years of the appearance 
of the reports. The British Association has moreover granted 
us the sum of roo/. for this year in aid of the undertaking. We 
hope that in five years the funds of the society may have suffi- 
ciently increased to enable us to pay the whole expense of the 
reports, and that their publication will be valued by the members 
of our society, and promote the advancement of our science 
wherever the English language is read.” 
EDINBURGH 
Royal Physical Society, March 22,—Mr. W. C. Peach, 
President, in the chair. Note on Carbon, showing ligneous 
Structure in Coal (with illustrative diagrams). By Professor 
Duns.—Mr. A. Taylor exhibited some undescribed Fossils 
from the Gilmerton Coalfield.—Remarks on some Japanese 
Skulls. By Dr. John Kennedy.—On Successive Glacial 
Periods, caused by Changes in Physical Geography. By Mr. 
Andrew Taylor.—Mr, C. W. Peach exhibited and described a 
few Zoophytes and Algze, gathered on the shores by Port Phillip, 
near Melbourne.—Mr. Peach had to enter on a new field, and 
unfortunately had no works either on Australian Zoophytes or 
Algze, beyond Busk’s excellent catalogue of the Zoophytes con- 
tained in the British Museum, and part of a paper of Professor 
Wyville Thomson on some from Australia. He therefore re- 
gretted that his paper would come before them in an imperfect 
State. He first noticed several species of Catenicella—large 
masses of all were exhibited, as well as small portions on black 
paper prepared for the microscope—showing how luxuriantly 
these delicate animals built up their lovely homes. This genus 
is found plentifully on the shores of Africa, New Zealand, and 
Australia, but not in British seas, evidently being confined to 
warmer climates. He also introduced to the members several 
species of Salicornaria, Cellilaria, Menipea, Scrupocellaria, Aitua, 
Bicellaria, Retepora, Flustra, Lepralia, Cresia, Crisidia, Seria- 
/aria—altogether more than twenty species. 
GLASGOW 
Geological Society, February 2.— Mr. J.: Young, V.P., 
in the chair.—Mr. Robert Craig read a paper ‘On the 
Boulders found in Cuttings on the Beith Branch Rail- 
way.” The line of railway referred to runs nearly south- 
east from Beith. The striations upon the glaciated rock- 
surfaces of the district have a general bearing of nearly N.E, 
to S.W. ; the line accordingly at its western terminus crosses 
them almost at right angles. The cuttings run nearly parallel to 
the southern termination of the range of trap hills which extends 
from Gleniffer to Beith, and at the distance of little more than a 
mile from it. The Carboniferous strata crop out along the 
southern boundary of this trap range, and consequently about a 
mile to the north of the railway. Inthe trap range four well- 
marked varieties of porphyrite occur, which, with the easily- 
distinguished beds of the Carboniferous limestone, gave the 
geologist an opportunity of classifying the boulders and tracing 
them to their source with an exactitude not always attainable. 
Mr. Craig then read a table giving the percentage of the different 
kinds of boulders found in eight cuttings proceeding eastward 
from Beith, and showed that the changes which were observable 
in them always corresponded with the rocks to the north-east of 
the cuttings. This strictly local character of the boulder-clay 
he thought was strong proof that it was due to land-ice—that, in 
fact, it had been taken up and deposited as the glacial ‘‘foot- 
board moraine.” Droppings of sea-ice would have consisted 
much more largely of rocks from a distance. A small per- — 
centage of travelled rocks undoubtedly occurred in the boulder- 
clay of the district ; and this, it must be noted, in all parts of the 
deposit—at bottom, middle, and top. These erratics he supposed — 
to have been dropped from time to time through fissures and 
crevasses of the ice during its progress. From some sections in 
which he had followed the direction of the ice-stream, he found 
there was a change in the boulder-clay every three to five miles, 
less or more according to the roughness or evenness of the ground. 
He recommended a more minute examination and comparison of 
the boulder-clays of different localities than had yet been effected, 
