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Mr. Charles Baron Clarke, F.R.S.,isthe new 

 president of the Linnean Society. 



The gold medal of the Linnean Society has this 

 year been awarded to Prof. Ernst Haeckel, of Jena, 

 for his researches in invertebrate zoology. 



Herr H. Silbermann has been investigating the 

 constitution of crude silk fibre, which he finds to 

 consist of two parts, viz., fibroin, the true thread 

 substance, and sericin a gelatinous bod}- which 

 surrounds it. 



An idea of the abundance of codfish off the 

 Norwegian coasts may be gathered from the 

 statement that during the past winter twenty- 

 nine millions of codfish were alone brought into 

 Lofoten. 



The two loftiest mountains on the North 

 American Continent are said to be Mount St. Elias, 

 18,000 feet and Mount Logan, 19,500 feet, both of 

 which are in Alaska ; Mount Orizaba in Mexico 

 does not exceed 18,300 feet. 



The third part of the monograph on the 

 "Annelides Polychetes des Cotes de Dinard,'' bv 

 Baron de Saint-Joseph, appears in the last issue of 

 " Annales Sciences Naturelles (Zoologie)." It is 

 beautifully illustrated by four plates of engravings 

 of some of the worms and their anatomy. 



The treatment of the momentous question of 

 " Legislation and Jurisprudence in relation to Forest 

 Trees " is concluded in the " Revue des Eaux et 

 Forets " for May last. It would be as well if some 

 of our own legislators were to cull a few hints from 

 the proposed code. 



We regret to announce that, on account of failing 

 health, Professor C. V. Riley has resigned his post 

 of Entomologist to the United States Department 

 of Agriculture. The high standard of reputation 

 of the Entomological Section of that Department 

 is largely due to Dr. Riley's energy and acumen. 



The new Fellows of the Royal Society are : 

 William Bateson, G. A. Boulenger, Dr. J. R. 

 Bradford, Professor W. W. Chevne, R. E. Froude, 

 Professor M. J. M. Hill, Professor J. V. Jones, 

 E. H. Love, Richard Lvdekker, F. Penrose, 

 D. H. Scott, Rev. F. J. Smith. J. W. Swan and 

 V. H. Veley. 



What is claimed to be the earliest known photo- 

 graphic portrait was taken early in 1840, 03- 

 Professor John W. Draper, of New York. It is of 

 his sister, and is by no means a bad picture. It is 

 now stated, however, that a sun portrait was taken 

 at Philadelphia and exhibited before the American 

 Philosophical Society on December 6th, 1839. 



Professor C. V. Riley has commenced in the 

 " Scientific American" an important article upon 

 the so-called seventeen-year locust. He refers to 

 races, the one being septendecim or seventeen years' 

 generation, and the other tredecim or thirteen vears' 

 race. Apparently there is no difference between 

 the insects of either race, and both may occur in 

 one localitv. 



The " Journal de la SocieteCentraled Agriculture 

 de Belgique" for April, prints two most interesting 

 memoirs by E. Baun and A. De Pitteurs-Hiegaerts. 

 One relates to insectivorous birds in their relation 

 to the continuance of vegetation, giving a very full 

 list of the various species useful to the agriculturist 

 from the economical point of view of reducing the 

 large number of insect pests attacking forest trees. 

 The other memoir concerns the formation of 

 wooded districts from uncultivated lands. 



The June number of the " Comptes Rendus de 

 TAcademie des Sciences" contains a note by 

 M. L. Ravaz, upon a disease of the vine, caused by 

 the growth of a minute fungus, Botvylis vitrea. He 

 remarks that the growth of this parasite is extremely 

 rapid, especially under the favourable conditions 

 afforded by viniculture. The spores reach their full 

 development in less than six hours, and appro- 

 priate to themselves the nourishment necessary 

 to the successful growth of the vine. 



Nobody has yet carried off the prize of ^1,200, 

 sterling, offered' by the French Government for the 

 discovery of a means of effectually destroying the 

 phylloxera and ridding the vineyards of this per- 

 sistent scourge. The chief and most efficacious 

 method of combating the phylloxera which has 

 hitherto been applied, wherever the locality permits, 

 is, in the opinion of Mr. Ward, one of our Consuls, 

 the temporarv flooding of the vineyards wdth water. 

 Where this is not practicable, the roots are treated 

 with sulphuretted carbon. 



A Committee of English sportsmen and 

 naturalists has urged upon the British South 

 African Chartered Company, the necessity for 

 protecting many species of the larger animals which 

 are in danger of total extinction through reckless 

 slaughter. Among these may be especially 

 mentioned the giraffe, zebra, eland, gnu, koodoo, 

 ostrich, and various smaller antelopes. This is a 

 most important subject, when we remember the 

 several animals which have become extinct in 

 modern times through the agency, if not the greed, 

 of man. 



Professor R. A. Littel's (of Munich) great 

 work on Paleontology, in six volumes, has just been 

 translated from the original into French, under the 

 direction of M. Charles Barrois. The second 

 volume deals with the subject entirely in its 

 botanical aspect. The illustrious Alsatian paleo- 

 botanist, Schimper, inaugurated the volume, but it 

 has been drawn to a conclusion by Professor Schenk, 

 of Leipzic. The knotty questions relating to the 

 classification of fossil plant remains have been very 

 fully treated, as have also those depending upon a 

 knowledge of the distribution of plants in the 

 geologic series. 



Our contemporary, the " Scientific American," 

 for June, prints a photogravure illustrating a most 

 singular abnormality in tree-growth in De Ruyter, 

 New York. Two beech trees standing about twenty 

 feet apart, each somewhat over a foot in diameter, 

 have become joined at about half their height by 

 an almost straight and horizontal bough. The 

 appearance of the whole being thus like a huge 

 letter H. It is impossible to tell from which tree 

 the originating bough sprang, there being no point 

 of junction apparent along its length. Our readers 

 will probably call to mind the close intertwining of 

 two trees formerly in the grounds of Charles 

 Water ton of Walton Hall, and humorously named 

 by him the Church and State, but the present 

 instance of abnormal growth in trees is realty unique. 



