144 



SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



he had to argue that fossils were reallj- shells 

 thrown away and left by the pilgrims to the Holy 

 Land. 



As a bright star shines out in a temporary break 

 in the thick-set clouds, and beams down none the 

 less brightly because of its temporary eclipse, so 

 Nicholas Steno appears in the darkness of his 

 times. Born at Copenhagen, he became Professor 

 of Anatomy at Florence, and in 1669, published a 

 little treatise with the title of " De Solido intra 

 Solidum Xaturaliter contento," in which he treats 

 of the general principles of the interpretation of 

 fossils. He gave us really definitely, for the first 

 time, the scientific grounds on which this interpre- 

 tation must be based, accepting as he did the 

 axiom that " like effects imply like causes." Is not 

 this axiom — so simple yet so important — the guiding 

 principle in all science, and is it not this which alone 

 renders the reading of "Nature's infinite book of 

 secrecy" possible? What were Steno's methods ? 

 Long before his time collectors were puzzled and 

 speculation was rife as to what were certain bodies 

 which they called "glossopetrse." Attempts had 

 been made to convince people that these were 

 really sharks' teeth, but all to no avail until Steno 

 re-opened the question and proved to demonstra- 

 tion their true nature. And how did he do this ? 

 By the simple method of dissecting a shark's head 

 and showing the similaritj' between the teeth and 

 their glossopetrae. He did what so many philoso- 

 phers of his time disdained to do : he went to 

 Nature herself. Steno's settlement of this question 

 at once led to the discussion of the uses of fossils 

 in tracing out the past history of the earth, which 

 was as ably followed out afterwards by William 

 Smith. Steno discusses the subject in a masterly 

 manner, taking as his example a portion of Tuscany, 

 and his methods are followed closely by Buffon in 

 his two remarkable works, the " Theorie de la 

 Terre " and the "Epoques de la Nature," in which 

 he points out clearly the teaching of fossils as to 

 different climatic conditions at past periods, plant 

 and animal extinction and other topics. This 

 brings us to Linnaeus, with whom we close our 



second period. 



(To be continued.) 



Fasciated Atriplex. — Enclosed is part of a 

 fasciated stem oi Atviplex patula found on a piece of 

 waste ground near here. The whole stem was 

 about two and a-half feet long. The top presented 

 a very curious appearance, owing to the small 

 racemes of flowers growing out of the flat main 

 stem. — •/. E. Cooper, 93, Southwood Lane, Highgate, 

 N.; September 1st, 1S96. 



Lepidium ruderale in Berks. — I recently 

 found a good quantity of Lepidium ruderale, L., 

 growing on a piece of waste ground near the New- 

 bury Corn Wharf. Although the plant is evidently 

 of casual occurrence here, I think it is worth a note 

 as there are but few records of it for the county. — 

 A. B. Jackson, Mapledene, Enborne Road, Neu-biiry. 



ESSEX COUNXIL BIOLOGICAL 

 STATION. 



TOURING the past summer session of the 

 Marine Biological Station at Brightlingsea 

 in Essex, the laboratory records show that the 

 students made 3S5 attendances over and above the 

 ordinary class attendance. The preservation of 

 the animals of the Estuary of the Colne is 

 proceeding, and a typical collection is being formed 

 for reference. We further find from the annual 

 report of Mr. David Houston that the work at the 

 laboratory is divided into three sections, viz. : (i) 

 Systematic Laboratory Teaching ; (2) Short Demon- 

 strations to Occasional Visitors ; (3) Experimental 

 and Consultative Work. 



Brightlingsea being adjacent to the great oyster- 

 beds of the Essex coast, the life historj' of those 

 esculent molluscs formed a never-failing attraction 

 for the casual visitors to the laboratory. Mr. William 

 Bagley, the resident assistant, gave daily demon- 

 strations on this subject, and on other marine 

 animals, to the visitors, whose attendance exceeded 

 750. These persons included all classes, fisher- 

 men, dredgermen, oyster merchants, townspeople, 

 yachtsmen, ordinary visitors to the sea-side, 

 journalists and students from London and else- 

 where. The success of the experiment of founding 

 a biological station on the Essex coast has been so 

 great that efforts are to be made to secure larger 

 and better premises before next season. This is 

 not a source of surprise when we consider that 

 Brightlingsea is only about a couple of hours' 

 railway journey from London, so that students may 

 avail themselves of one of the dailj' excursions at 

 cheap fares, have a good day's work, and return 

 the same evening. Although the Essex coast has 

 not the magnificent rock-pools which are found near 

 Plymouth, there is abundant material at hand for 

 serious workers at Brightlingsea. We feel sure 

 that if continued effort is made by the local 

 committee of management, sufficient attraction can 

 be created to make this, at present, little station 

 one of importance in the future. The Essex 

 County Council is to be congratulated on its 

 admirable foresight in establishing this and other 

 branches of biological educational work, so ably 

 carried on in the count}' under the supervision of 

 Mr. Houston, the staff-biologist. A winter course 

 on Gardening, for youths who intend to become 

 gardeners, commences in the first week in Novem- 

 ber. Selected candidates are to be allowed railway 

 fare and a grant towards maintenance while 

 attending the course at Chelmsford. The organ of 

 the department, which is published at the County 

 Technical Laboratories, Chelmsford, shows how 

 earnestly the work is carried on. It is the 

 "Journal of the Essex Technical Laboratories," 

 and is issued monthly at threepence per copy. 



