80 REPORT— 1867. 



influences, good or bad, whicL. trees are found to possess over tlie soil and climate, 

 liad not been taken up by the Association. He wished now to claim for arbori- 

 cultm'e sucli a position in science as its importance deserved. He showed that trees 

 occupied in Britain one twenty-second part of the whole area, or only one-third less 

 than what is under gi'een crops. To everj- eleven acres of cultivated land there is one 

 of wood, and one to every sixteen of uncultivated. The gross yearly value of this 

 wood-crop was stated to be no less than £2,500,000. The eftects of trees on the 

 climate were then explained, injudicious clearings or overplanting respectively 

 causing aridity and himiidity. The want of a due proportion of a countrj' imder a 

 tree-crop is certain to cause irregularity of temperature, violent storms, and dry- 

 ness ; while it may be, on the other hand, over-clothed, so as to bring about just 

 the opposite effects. As illustrative of the effects of trees on the health of the 

 population, reference was made to the districts of Grantown and Ahernethy, in 

 btrathspay, which until of late were covered with close masses of plantation and 

 natural forests ; but a regular system of thinnings and clearings having been carried 

 out, the result has been a gi-eat and gradual decrease of deaths, in consequence, as 

 he fully substantiated by statistics, mainly to the wood-sm-face having been brought 

 down to a more healthy proportion. 



0)1 Bfitisli Fossil Cycadece. By W. Carrtjthers, F.L.S., F.O.S. 



After describing the structure and peculiarities of living Cycads, the author gave 

 a history of our knowledge of the known British fossil species. Two genera had 

 been described, Clathraria and C'l/cadnidea, Clathrai-ia had a simple or bifurcated 

 stem, with the internal structm-e of Cijcas. The scars on the stem are alternately 

 large and small as in the recent genus, and some fruits found in the same beds 

 with them agree generally with those of Ci/ca.'i. Four species have been found, 

 Clathraria Lycllii (Mant.), C. Mantelli (Carr.), C. Bucldandii (Can-.), and C. Milkri 

 (Carr.) A new genus, Yatesia, was established for a fossil Avith a simple stem with 

 uniform scars and liaving fruits in terminal cones. A single species was known of 

 this genus in Britain, I'. Morisii (Carr. ). Buckland's genus Ctjcadoidea had bulbiform 

 trunks with small branches permanently attached to the stem. Three species have 

 been described, C. mer/alophi/lla {Hiickl.), C. microphi/lla (Huckl.), and C. pyf/mcea 

 (Lindl. andHutt.). A fourth genus, named Benndtitcs, in aclniowledgment of the 

 great assistance given to the author by J. J. Bennett, Esq., of the British Museum, 

 was established for three remarkable forms, distinguished from all other Cycads in 

 having an oval stem and a single woody cylinder from which the vascular tissue 

 for each leaf separated in a single bundle. The fruit of the genus was described. 

 This consisted of seeds borne on the ends of branched pedicels, which were deve- 

 loped from the apex of short branches in the axils of the leaves. Three species 

 were described, Bennettites ScLibi/i (Carr.), B. Gihsoni (Carr.), and.B. Peachii (Carr.). 



Remarlcs on the Entozoa of the Common Foivl and of Game Birds, in their 

 siq}j>osed relation to the Grouse Disease. By Dr. Cobbold, F.B.S., F.L.S. 



The author presented a list of upwards of twentj" distinct forms of Entozoa 

 which had been recorded as infesting this group of birds. Taking each bird sepa- 

 rately, one entozoon only had been described as infesting the red-legged partridge ; 

 five had been found in the grey partridge, four in the quail, four in the common 

 grouse, three in the black grouse, four in the pheasant, and, lastly, foiu-teen in the 

 fowl. It would seejn tliat the prevalence or absence of Entozoa in the grouse had 

 no connexion with the so-called " grouse-disease;" that was an inflammatory dis- 

 order of the blood terminating in gangTene and pj-pemia. The tapeworm of the 

 grouse had been regarded as a distinct species ; but the author had no doubt that 

 it waa identical with the Tcenia linea, which also infested the partridge and quail. 



Observations on the Habits of Flyingfish (Exocoetus). 

 By Dr. Collingwood, M.A., F.L.S. 

 These observations were made with a view of discoveiing the object of tlie 

 flyingfish's aerial exctirsions, and also the mode by which tliey sustained them- 



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