SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



183 



Referee: THE REV. E ADRIAN' WOODRfFFE-FEACOCK, l.th., 

 F.L.S., F.G.S., CADNEY, BRIGG. 



Albasism. — In reply to Mr. A. H. Swinton, 

 Clovernooke, Redbridge, Southampton, who has 

 written to Science-Gossip questioning the fact of 

 albanism being a diseased condition, I may say 

 that the state of the chlorophyll which produces 

 albanism in plants is considered an abnormal or 

 diseased state, because species so affected have 

 no chance in the struggle for existence with 

 typically coloured species. After collecting notes 

 on albanism in leaf and petal for years for the 

 whole of the county of Lincoln, to say nothing of 

 a huge collection of dry specimens, I can find out 

 no natural law that rules in the matter. It seems 

 to be produced by an hereditary weakness in 

 certain forms of species. That it is hereditary 

 can easily be proved from typical cases ; for 

 example, Dr. P. Blair, F.R.S., in 1723, recorded 

 the fact that Epilobium hirsutum, L.,/?ore alio, grew 

 within ten miles of Boston, Lincolnshire, towards 

 Bolingbroke. He added, " I shall not doubt of its 

 continance with a white flower. They are always 

 thereafter to be esteemed real species, since by 

 proper experience, I find they never degenerate 

 nor vary, as the finest flowers in gardens do, for 

 which I think these field white flowers ought to 

 be more esteemed than the other." (Pharmaco 

 BotdHologia, p. 25.) As I have given my copy of 

 this rare work to the botanical library, Natural 

 History Museum, South Kensington, I quote from 

 my notes, which I believe are correct. This 

 species, to my knowledge, was never recorded with 

 white flowers before or since, so search was made, 

 and Mr. J. T. Burgess, of Spilsby, " found a large 

 patch of the flori albo form on the left hand on the 

 roadside just as you leave the village of West 

 Heal for Hognaby." Here is a white-flowered 

 variety constant for 174 years, but what does it 

 prove ? With thousands of notes, I can only say 

 hereditary weakness, abnormality, or commonly, 

 in one word, disease. If Mr. A H. Swinton 

 collects as many notes as I have done on abnor- 

 malities, colour forms and hybrids, he will be 

 satisfied that in the present state of our knowledge 

 the reason for these things is inscrutable. When 

 we have quite mastered the laws of normal forms 

 the day of the abnormal will dawn. Autumnal 

 ration and albanism arc quite distinct matters 

 and can only be confounded by careless thinkers ; 

 and that albanism is popularly disease can be 

 easily proved from our forest trc <;r saw 



an albino ash much larger than a bush ? Try to 

 find a wood-merchant who wants variegated 

 e timber at the ordinary price per foot No 

 good argument can be drawn from garden forms 

 showing vigour and health, dome tl< animals, 

 or man him>elf; they :in- the retail of artificial 



dingi They 

 bnl thai i 1 

 all— 1; nothing Dr Blair, writing in 



evidently knew that much /. .1 I! 



South London Entomological and Natural 

 History Society. — September 23rd, 1897. Mr. 

 R. Adkin, F.E.S., President, in the chair. Dr. 

 Chapman, F.E.S., Elmscroft, Redhill (late of 

 Hereford), was elected a member. Mr. Malcolm 

 Burr presented to the Society's museum an almost 

 complete collection of British Orthoptera. It is a 

 most useful gift, and should encourage their study 

 by the 3'ounger members. Mr. Auld exhibited 

 series of Tapinostoia bondii from Folkestone ; of 

 Caradrina ambigua from Devon, where it has been 

 somewhat common this year ; of Dianthaecia nana 

 from Shetland ; and of Taeniocampa gothica also 

 from Shetland. Mr. Adkin, a bred series of 

 D. nana from Shetland larvae, showing much 

 variation. On behalf of Mr. de V. Kane, a 

 specimen of Laicntia flavicinctata taken in Antrim, 

 which appears to be a new locality. Mr. Tutt, on 

 behalf of Mr. Dutton, a very fine and variable 

 series of Abraxas sylvata (ulmata). A proportion of 

 the specimens were smoky or partially smoky. 

 These seemed somewhat thinly scaled, and as they 

 were slightly crumpled and difficult to set, Mr. 

 Dutton had suggested that the aberrations were 

 due to malnutrition. Mr. Tutt also showed three 

 species of Ascalaphus which he had captured in 

 the Southern Alps, together with two species of 

 ant lion. Mr. Burr, a specimen of Phyllocrania 

 illndcns, a mantis from Madagascar, with the leaves 

 with which it is found. It is an extraordinary 

 example of adaptation to surroundings, being very 

 difficult to find even when attention is called to 

 it in a small box. Mr. Turner, specimens of 

 the hawk-fly, Aiilus crabronifornris, from Seaton, 

 Devon, and a series of the hemipteron Enoplops 

 scapha taken over a very restricted area in the 

 same locality on the leaves of coltsfoot. Mr, 

 Perks a nest of the longtailed tit. A long discus- 

 sion took place on the recently ascertained facts 

 on the migrations of birds, especially as to a 

 double migration of certain species which takes 

 place in these islands. A paper was read, entitled 

 "The British Day Butterflies and the Changes 

 in the Wings of Butterflies," communicated by 

 Professor A. Radcliffe Grote, A.M., in which he 

 at some length explained his views as to the 

 evolution of the venation, illustrated his remarks 

 by and applied his theory to the British butter- 

 flies. He severely criticised the work of Mr. 

 Meyrick, and more fully explained himself to his 

 own critics. — October 14th, 1897, Mr. R. Adkin, 

 K.E.S., President, in the chair. Mr. Mansbridge 

 exhibited varieties of Abraxas grossulariata, bred 

 this season from Horsforth larvae. The aberrant 

 forms were not so numerous this year, but the line 

 of variation was similar to that observed in former 

 years, viz., a gradual \nflir.ion . , f the fore-wings 

 with ili' blacl colour. Mr. South, small specimens 

 of PUrlt tapat taken al Folkestone bj Mr, Sabine, 

 having an additional spol on the hind wings He 



! the ■,anie |" ' uliai n . in vmie . | ►> - • inien < -I 



/' 11,1//. and said that the same variation occurred 

 in the allii 1 Chinesi Plei Ids. Two :.|«', 1 

 mens of Callimorpha Aominula var. votiina from 



