346 Proceedings of the British Association. 



another crop equally accelerated, than that from a crop which has 

 been longer in ripening. He also asserted, that the acceleration of 

 a crop was farther promoted by thick sowing, which likewise might 

 be considered advantageous in checking and stopping the mildew. — 

 Dr. Richardson referred to the remark of Humboldt, that in South 

 America the wheat crop was ripened in ninety days from the period 

 of sowing, and stated, that about Hudson's Bay this period was only 

 seventy days. He suggested the probable advantage that might 

 arise from importing seed from the latter country for the purpose of 

 furthering Mr. Hall's views ; but this gentleman stated, that he had 

 found that seed imported from a distance (and he had tried some 

 from Italy) was liable to become diseased. As connected with the 

 subject of the acceleration of the growth of seeds, Prof. Henslow 

 mentioned the results of experiments which he had tried upon seeds 

 of a species of Acacia, sent by Sir John Herschel from the Cape of 

 Good Hope, with directions that they should be steeped in boiling 

 water before they were sown. Some of these were kept at the boil- 

 ing temperature for three, six, and fifteen minutes respectively, and 

 had yet germinated very readily in the open border ; whilst those 

 which had not been steeped did not vegetate. It was suggested 

 that these facts might lead to beneficial results, by shewing agricul- 

 turists that they may possibly be able to steep various seeds in wa- 

 ter sufficiently heated to destroy certain fungi or insects known to be 

 destructive to them without injuring the vital principle in the seed 

 itself. — Mr. Hope mentioned a practice common in some parts of 

 Spain, of baking corn to a certain extent, by exposing it to a tem- 

 perature of 150° or upwards, for the purpose of destroying an insect 

 by which it was liable to be attacked. — Dr. Richardson mentioned, 

 that the seeds sold in China for the European market were previ- 

 ously boiled, for the purpose of destroying their vitality, as the jeal- 

 ousy of that people made them anxious to prevent their exportation 

 in a state fitted for germination. Upon sowing these seeds he had 

 nevertheless observed some few of them were still capable of vege- 

 tating. 



Mr. Curtis exhibited some specimens of the terminal shoots of a 

 Pinus, which had been attacked by the Hylurgus j)iniperda, and 

 made a few remarks on the habits of the insect. 



Dr. Daubeny communicated to the Section the partial results 

 which he had obtained from a series of experiments he was carrying 

 on at Oxford, respecting the effects which arsenic produces on vege- 



