icS 



SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



exhibits, chiefly local, and the College museum was 

 thrown open. A paper was read by Mr. Bellamy, 

 of Oxford, on "The Migrations of Birds." On 

 Saturday there were two excursions, one, for 

 archaeologists, to Chirk Castle and Valle Cruris, 

 Llangollen, conducted by A. T. Jebb, Esq., the 

 other, for biologists, round the meres and peat 

 mosses of the neighbourhood, led by Messrs. H. J. 

 E. Peake and J. A. S. Jennings. Both excursions 

 were well attended and very successful, notwith- 

 standing the heavy rain which came down in the 

 afternoon. The botanists succeeded in finding 

 most of the local rarities, including Nuphar pumila. 

 Lobelia dorimanna, Alisma nutans, Uiricularia minor, 

 etc. The meres were all found to be " breaking "- — 

 Ellesmere and Whitemere with GltBotrichia eclimata, 

 C:.e~ere ar_i Cr:se— ere v.-_:i Az'-.i k:.:":;>::k f.:z- 

 aqua. In spite of this Lepiodera hyalina, Daphnia 

 jardinii and Bosmina coregoni were taken ; the two 

 latter do not appear to have been recorded from 

 this district before. 



Wolverhampton Naturalists' Field Club. 

 — An excursion took place on Saturday, August 

 4th, to the village of Codsall, near which is 

 the far-f am ed Bosoobel and ChiUington Park. 

 Mr. Thomas Cox read a paper on " Local 

 Topograph v, 1 ' followed by a condensed monograph 

 upon "Ferns and Fern-Life." by Mr. W. W. 

 Cullwick, describing the cycle of fern-life with its 

 alternation of generations, the sporophore producing 

 asexual spores, and the prothallus or oophore with 

 its archegonia and antheridia producing the young 

 fern-plant. The nature and arrangement of sori 

 ani 5p;ran£-;a ani srzres -.vere explained. ::^e;ntr 

 with the basis and main groups of fern classifica- 

 z.zc. — ':'.: Z.u'r }i:\ S;:>;:.n\ A: ;:■.;: :_:'. ::;._ 



NOTICES TO CORRESPONDENTS. 



- ; Z : p.p.es? :>"ext; 





--s 



-Science-Gossip 



'.'. r.::e= :: :ie: 



-ve :::; 



5S v.t:::.^: 

 rar.ied with 



5ciENCE-Gossi?.at the 

 ng postage), may com- 



'.a~e 



:aea- 



. : : = .::;■ 2a:£ an a par;: invars :: :ar::ire. 



All ccmmnnicarions. remittances cf subscriptions, books 

 ct instruments for review, specimens for identification, etc., 

 are to be addressed to John T. Carrington, i, Northumber- 



CORRESP0NDENCE. 



Joseph Halliday (Wellington, Somerset). — The occur- 

 rence of two flowers on one peduncle, though abnormal, 

 is not uncommon. Your dahlia was not an example of 

 fasciation, but of fission of the peduncle, with consequent 

 production of two small flowers instead of one of normal size. 



J. Lewtojj-Brain" (Swanton Morley, East Dereham). — We 

 i " a '. be :a: :: have a :r:e: a;;;rr: ;: y:;r fnd ::r :ur 

 microscopical column. 



J. Ballantyne (Rothesay). — Your specimen is i.i put 

 laemtris, the true bulrush. 



Rev. A. Clarke-Smith (West Bright:- .—We :~cre,i that 

 we are unable to name your Persian alga. As you say. it is 

 a very beautiful form, and would make a good mount for 

 exchange. We will try to let you know something about it. 



C. Elliott (Gilesgate Moor, Durham). — Your identifica- 

 tion appears to be the correct one, though one could be more 

 certain were the plants in flower. 



F. Crosland (Huddersfield). — We communicated your 

 difficulties respecting the species and varieties of willows at 

 Kew to the authorities at the Gardens, who kindly refer you to 

 Forbes" " Salicemm Wobnmecse.'" Nearly all those named 

 by you are classed as varieties by Anderssen in his classical 

 monograph on " Salix" in De Candolle's " Prodromus." 



G. H. Elwick (Oundle, Northants). — We regret that there 

 should be such confusion in the nomenclature of writers at 

 different periods. Some of it is entirely unavoidable, owing 

 to the more exact state of our knowledge to-day, but s :mr : : 

 it must be ascribed to mere faddism. We know that this 

 puzzling state of things has had the effect of causing young 

 naturalists to despair of making any headway in scientific 

 knowledge. However, no one in the present day would 

 think of going to Gilbert White for anything like systematic 

 study. The system of bird-names most generally in use 

 to-day is that of Howard Saunders' check-list, which you 

 can obtain from Messrs. Gurney and Jackson for sixpence. 

 The reference to Badham in " A Spring Mushroom " was r 1 

 a parallel case. Badham's figure and description of Ag. 

 pru?iulus. a distinct species, axe undoubtedly intended for 

 Ag. gambosus. You will find your difficulties greatly 

 lessened by selecting the most recent works for your study, 

 rather than those of last century, which are chiefly interest- 

 ing now from their literary charm. 



EXCHANGES. 



Wanted, by purchase or exchange, Liassic brachiopoda, 

 any species, from Leicestershire and neighbourhood, 

 especially from Old Dalby — T. W. D. Marshall, 16. Peter 

 Street, Bristol. 



For living plant of sundew send box and postage to W. 

 Gomm, Gaunts, Wimborne. 



Wanted, deep-sea dredgings, shore scrapings, or any 

 recent or fossil foraminiferous material : exchange offered 

 in Australian material, recent and fossil. — Edgar J. Bradley, 

 Happy Valley, South Australia. 



Pinna rudis. Isocardia cor, Fusns antiquus, F. gracilis 

 and other species in exchange for British and foreign shells 

 or postage stamps. — F. W. Wotton. Rothesay. 



Moths' drying-house, corks, sugaring pot. brush and 

 lantern, complete ; exchange for foreign stamps, books, or 

 offers. — Edw. Harben, 37, Lennard Road, Penge. 



Duplicates — 500 species of correctly named and neatly 

 carded British Coleopiera (about 10,000 specimens) ; desi- 

 derata, offers of rare and local Lepidoptera and Coleopiera. — 

 A. Ford, Glen Mount, Braybrooke Road. Hastings. 



Walton's Complete Angler" (''Chandos Classics"!, 

 exchange for shells- or Coleoptera. — C. S. Coles. 257, 

 Shakspeare Road, Heme Hill. S.E. 



For exchange. 250 species of shells, many Austral: a:, and 

 New Zealand ; also 400 species of Australian plants. 

 Wanted, Cooke's work on Desmifis. — C. T. Musson, 

 Hawkesbury College, Richmond, New South Wales. 



Polished geological specimens of Devonian and other 

 corals and spongy forms, rare and choice ; also thin sections 

 of the same ; offers. — T. E. Sclarer. 43, Northumberland 

 Place. Teignmouth, South Devon. 



Wakted, side-blown birds' eggs in exchange for British 

 land and freshwater shells.— John Ratcliffe," m, Oxford 

 Street Ashton-onder-Lyne. 



"■ T . ".-.:•" r ed, "The Fertilisation of Flowers." Hermann 

 Muller (Macmillan).— Offers to T. Alfred Dymes. 16. Lan- 

 caster Read. Kensington Park. London, W. 



Cornish rocks and minerals offered for microscopic 

 material, lantern and micro slide boxes. — W. H. Oher. 2, 

 Adelaide Terrace, Truro. 



A few d:zer. 7y;ir.a ±l:--er.iu'z 'jr.se: zzztrti -.-arts 

 numerous in butterflies and large moths. — F. G. Bing. 16, 

 Lower Coombe Street, Croydon. 



Offered. P. contecta. L. glabra, L. truncatula, L. palustris, 

 Planorbis glaber, dilatatus and albus, H. arbustorum. and 

 many others. Wanted, Z. excavatus, foreign shells, or micro 

 objects. — F. C. Long, 32, Woodbine Road, Burnley, Lanes. 



L. C. Ed. viii.. oflered — n, 157. 189,195,196(6),;:; :-: 

 272, 286, 288, 291. 325, 336. 342, 345. 346. hi 353 354 356,360, 

 805, 909, 939, 991, 1,007. 1,081, 1,089. 1,184, 1.192, 1,197, 

 }, 1,204, 1,241. 1,256, 1,270, 1.302(c). 1.447, : 44JB : 529, 1,537, 

 ■}, 1,559. 1.636, 1,652, I 669, 1,690, 1,720. 1,726, 1,735 (fc), -."::- 

 J, 74, 184, 250. 252, 254, 364, 934 (a), 956 (a), 952, 1.034. : 3 -\ 

 ), 1,405, 1,408, 1,438, 1.532. 1.617. 1,719. in exchange for 

 :r plants ; lists exchanged. — T. M. Lowry, Heather View, 

 Aldershot, 



Offered, Helix hortensis vars. arenicola, incarnata, lila- 

 cina, lutea, pallida, H. nemoralis var. castanea. H. cantiana, 

 H. pomatia. H. rufescens, H. arbustorum, and others ; 

 desiderata, marine specimens. — W. Domailie, 149. Temple 

 Street, Bristol. 



