OCTOBER 20, 1899. ] 
it was arranged that Section D should ad- 
journ after Mr. Sedgwick’s address until the 
following morning. The scheme of work for 
the remaining days was this: Friday morn- 
ing, morphological papers; Friday afternoon, 
entomology and some reports ; Saturday, 
marine biology and reports ; Monday, mor- 
phology, embryology, etc.; Tuesday, sea- 
fishery papers and discussions. 
Amongst the morphological papers on 
Friday were: 
1. Mr. J. Lister (Cambridge), ‘ On Astro- 
sclera willeyana,’ the type of a new family of 
Caleareous sponges. This remarkable new 
form was collected by Dr. A. Willey in the 
Loyalty Islands. Its abundant calcareous 
polyhedral spicules fuse to form a contin- 
uous branched skeleton. The ciliated 
chambers in the canal system are very mi- 
nute, and the ciliated cells have no collars 
round the flagella. 
2. Professor S. Symington (Belfast), ‘On 
the Morphology of the Cartilage of the 
Monotreme Larynx.’ The author considers 
that both the ontogeny and phylogeny of 
the mammalian epiglottis support the view 
that it is a single median structure, and 
not as Gegenbaur supposed the result of 
fusion of two lateral elements. 
3. N. Bishop Harman (Cambridge), ‘ The 
Palpebral and Oculomotor Apparatus in 
Fishes.’ Seventy species were examined. 
The degree of complexity was not found to 
agree with the probable phylogeny, or with 
the scheme of classification. The source of 
the complex musculature of the eyelids of 
Selachii was traced to the branchial muscu- 
lature of the spiracle, and this was also ex- 
emplified by the inverse ratio existing be- 
tween the condition of the spiracle and the 
nictitating membrane. In those fish in 
which the latter shows its highest develop- 
ment the spiracle is absent and vice versa. 
The condition of the orbital sac of a sup- 
porting rod of cartilage in the eyes of many 
cartilaginous fishes, of the ligament in rela- 
SCIENCE. 
569 
tion to the optic nerve in many bony fishes, 
and of the eye muscles and other neighbor- 
ing structures, was discussed in the various 
groups and some species of fishes. The 
special condition of the obliquus superior in 
pleuronectids and in some mammals indi- 
cates the possibility of independent evolu- 
tion of organs in widely severed types along 
similar lines when the conditions of use are 
similar. This paper will be published in 
extenso in the Journal of Anatomy and Physi- 
ology. 
4, Several minor papers and reports were 
also taken. 
On Saturday, when some of the zoolo- 
gists from the French Association, then 
meeting at Boulogne, visited the Sec- 
tion, a few papers on Marine Biology likely 
to prove interesting for joint discussion 
wereread. Mr. W. Garstang gave a report 
upon his periodic investigation of the plank- 
ton and physical conditions of the English 
Channel during 1899. They were carried 
out at quarterly intervals from a steamer 
along certain fixed lines from Plymouth to 
Ushant, then out to the 100 fathom line, 
and back to Plymouth across the mouth of 
English Channel. Serial observations were 
taken of the water temperatures of the 
salinity and of the contained fauna and 
flora. At first the plankton was collected 
by means of a pump and hose, but this 
proved unsatisfactory, and so Mr. Garstang 
devised a closing townet which is a modifi- 
cation and signification of Giesbrecht’s. 
This new net and also that of Dr. C. G. 
Joh. Petersen, of Copenhagen, were on ex- 
hibition in the Section, and were also shown 
working in the sea to a party of zoologists 
on board Mr. Woodall’s yacht one after- 
noon during the meeting. In the discus- 
sion that followed, Baron Jules de Guerne 
discussed the somewhat similar net he had 
been using on board the Prince of Monaco’s 
yacht, Princesse Alice. 
Reports upon the work done by holders 
a 
