350 



NATURE 



[November 21, 19 12 



volume alteration is Ihc first to be overcome. — Sir 

 W. de \V. Abney : Trichromatic theory of colour vision. 

 The measurement of fatigue of the retina. 



November 14. — .Sir Archibald Geikie, K.C.B., presi- 

 dent, in the chair. — J. W. Cropper; 'Ihe development 

 of a parasite of earthworms. A description of 

 "bodies" found within some of tiie epithelial cells of 

 the vesiculse seminales of the earthworm. They closely 

 resemble "Kurloff's bodies" found within the lympho- 

 cytes of guinea-pigs. By means of the jelly method 

 of examination, the development of these bodies into 

 free spirochaetes is demonstrated in the same way that 

 it has recently been shown that " Kurloff's bodies " also 

 become spirochetes. The author suggests that these 

 new parasites be called Spirocliaeta lumbrici. — Edith 

 R. Saunders : Further contribution to the study of the 

 inheritance of hoariness in stocks (Matthiola). — Prof. 

 .A. J. Brown and F. P. Worley ; The influence of tem- 

 perature on the absorption of water by seeds of 

 Hordeum vulgarc in relation to the temperature co- 

 efficient of chemical change. — R. Kirkpatrick ; Note 

 on Merlia normaiii and the " Monticuliporas." — James 

 Thompson : The chemical action of BaciUus cloacae 

 (Jordan) on citric and malic acids in the presence and 

 absence of oxygen.— G. VV. Ellis and J. A. Gardner : 

 The origin and destiny of cholesterol in the animal 

 organism. Part x., Tlte excretion of cholesterol by 

 man, when fed on various diets. — Prof. R. Boyd 

 Thomson : The comparative anatomy and affinities 

 of the -Araucarineas. — Muriel Robertson : Notes on the 

 polymorphism of Trypanosoma gainbiense in the blood 

 and its relation to the exogenous cycle in Glossina 

 palpalis. — H. L. Duke : Further observations on the 

 recovery of Trypanosoma gambiense from Tragelaphus 

 spchci on the islands of Lake Victoria Nyanza. — 

 Colonel Sir David Bruce, Majors Harvey and Hamerton, 

 Dr. J. B. Davey, and Lady" Bruce : The morphology 

 of Trypanosoma simiac, sp. nov. — H. L. Duke : (i) 

 -Some observations on T. pccorum (Bruce) and T. 

 uniforme (Bruce). (2) A camel Trvpanosome ; with 

 some remarks on the biometric method of diagnosing 

 Trvpanosomes. (3) Some experiments with arsen- 

 phenylglvcin and Trypanosoma gambiense in Glossina 

 palpalis.— T)r. H. Bayon : The cultivation of Trypano- 

 soma rhodesiensc (Stephens and Fantham). 



Zoological Society, October 29. — Prof. E. A. Minchin, 

 F.R.S., vice-president, in the chair. — Mrs. Rose Haig 

 Thomas : Eggs of Phasianus versicolor, P. formosus, 

 and of the Fj and F, offspring of an experimental 

 cross between a male P. versicolor and a female P. 

 formosus. Attention was directed to the resemblance 

 in size of the eggs of the offspring and of the male 

 parent species, whereas the expectation was a likeness 

 to those of P. formosus, thus showing the descent 

 through the male to his female offspring of the small 

 egg of his species. — E. G. Boulenger : The breeding- 

 habits of the "Millions" fish (Girardinus poeciloides). 

 Cases were recorded of the male of this species breed- 

 ing before assuming the livery of its sex. The author 

 directed attention to parallel cases among fishes, in 

 which, however, except in one case, the question was 

 one of degree only. — Rev. T. R. R. Stebbing read a 

 paper on the rnistacea Isopoda of the Porcupine 

 expedition. — Dr. F. E. Beddard : The an.-^'omv and 

 sytematic arrangement of the Cestoidea. — E. Dukin- 

 field Jones : Thirteen new species of butterflies of the 

 genus Thecla, collected at various localities in south- 

 east Bra^iil. 



Challenger Society, October 30. — Prof. E. W. Mac- 

 Bride in the chair. — D. J. Matthews : (i) .\ bacteriological 

 water-bottle. This bottle consists essentially of a 

 glass-lined brass cylinder, closed at each, end by rubber 

 washers. Tt is lowered closed and full of alcohol, 



KO. 2247, VOL. go] 



sterility being thus ensured and external pressure 

 counteracted ; it is then opened (when sea-water re- 

 places the alcohol) and closed by messengers. (2) 

 riie observations of Mr. G. H. Drew in the Tongue 

 of the Ocean. The Tongue is an inlet of deep water 

 (700 to 1000 fathoms) running southward into the 

 Great Bahama Bank. The saimity and temperature 

 in the depths agreed with those of nearest stations of 

 Challenger and Michael Sars ; surface temperatures 

 were higher. A layer of water of high salinity was 

 found near the surface near the coast, but not farther 

 out, and as it was not accompanied by irregularities 

 of the temperature curve, a strong current was prob- 

 able. — E. Heron-Allen and A. Earland : Saccammina 

 sphaerica (M. Sars) and Psammosphaera fiisca 

 (Schulze). The views of Dr. Ludwig Rhiimbler as to 

 the life-history of these forms were combated, and the 

 stages of the life-cycle he described referred to different 

 species, namely Crithionina mammilla (Goes) and the 

 above. The three species were found to differ widely 

 in distribution, though they sometimes occur together. 



Geological Society, November 6. — Dr. .\ubrey Strahan, 

 F.R.S., president, in the cliair. — Prof. A. C. Seward: 

 A contribution to our knowledge of Wealden floras, 

 with special reference to a collection of plants from 

 Sussex. In this paper an account is given of speci- 

 mens of Wealden plants from the Sussex coast, for the 

 most part from the neighbourhood of Fairlight, acquired 

 by the British Museum since 1895, the date of publica- 

 tion of the second part of the Wealden Flora (British 

 Museum catalogue). — E. Proctor : Notes on the dis- 

 covery of fossiliferous Old Red Sandstone in a boring 

 at Southall, near Ealing. With a note on the fish- 

 remains, by Dr. A. Smith Woodward. The boring 

 described in this paper is situated at Southall, and 

 was made for the purpose of obtaining water from 

 the Lower Greensand. For this purpose, however, 

 the boring' was a complete failure, as it passed directly 

 from the Gault into Palseozoic rocks. The older rocks 

 were met with at a depth of 1130 ft., and continued 

 with slight variation to a depth of 1261 ft., the lower 

 limit of the borehole. The fossils were yielded by 

 definite bands, which varied from i in. to an eighth of 

 an inch in thickness ; they consisted mainly of scales 

 and teeth of Holoptychius and plates of Bothriolepis, 

 both characteristic genera of the Old Red Sandstone. 



Linnean Society, November 7. — Prof. E. B. Poulton, 

 president, in the chair. — Dr. R. R. Gates : Mutating 

 Oenotheras. The following facts and views regarding 

 mutation as an evolutionary factor were referred to : — 

 (i) Oenothera Lamarckiana has probably undergone 

 crossing in the wild state to the same extent that other 

 open pollinated species intercross. (2) The mutation 

 phenomena are an evidence of germinal instability 

 resulting from crossing, change of climate, or cultiva- 

 tion. (3) Hybrid splitting is inadequate to account for 

 the forms which suddenly appear. (4) Some of the 

 mutants differ from the parent in their physiological 

 adjustments, and this may account for cases of ■ 

 "climatic adaptation," but mutations will not suffice 

 to explain the more complex adaptations which in- 

 volve inter-relationships between several organisms. 

 (5) O. rubricalyx has originated as a heterozygous 

 ■mutant, but there are obvious difificultics in applying 

 the same e.xplanation to the other mutants of 

 Oenothera. (6) The origin of certain of the mutations, 

 at least (e.g. O. lata, O. gigas), is intimately con- 

 cerned with chromosome mechanisms; that of certain 

 others mav be concerned with the action of releasing 

 stimuli. (7) Darwinian natural selectipn always 

 assumed an original environmental change for the 

 organism, cither (a) a change of climate in a given 

 area, or (b) \hc introduction of new organisms, lead- 



