SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



'■5' j 



Mr. J. W. Tutt, F.E.S., the editor of "The 

 Entomologist's Record," succeeds at the end of this 

 year to the proprietorship of that magazine. He will 

 probably, for a time, at least, issue it fortnightly. 



Messrs. Dulau and Co., of Soho Square, London, 

 have issued two important sale catalogues of books, 

 one appertaining to botany and the other to 

 geology, mineralogy, etc. 



The' old public favourite, " Duke," one of the 

 best of the Zoological Society's lions, died just 

 before Christmas. He had been nineteen years* in 

 the society's menagerie at Regent's Park, London. 

 He will be much missed by many young zoologists. 



" The Report, for 1893, of the Botanical Exchange 

 Club of the British Isles " recently issued, states 

 that the number of specimens contributed is in 

 excess of the average for the past few years. The 

 report included thirty-two pages of notes upon rare 

 or exceptional forms or localities of plants, which 

 have circulated among members of the club. 



Mr. A. Ramsay has issued No. 6 of "The 

 Scientific Roll," an arduous compilation for the 

 benefit of those who study the baric condition of 

 the atmosphere. By reference to this publication 

 much time and useless labour will be saved in 

 looking up what has been written by former 

 students of this subject. 



We understand that ' ' The Journal of Malacology" 

 has changed hands. It will in future be edited by 

 Mr. W. M. Webb, F.L.S., of the Essex County 

 Council Laboratories, and Brentwood, Essex. The 

 late editor, Mr. W. E. Collinge, remains as co-editor 

 with Mr. Webb. This month's number of the 

 journal contains a short notice of Mr. Collinge's 

 work, illustrated by a portrait. 



In the Essex County "Biology Notes" for 

 November, under Laboratory Notes, instances are 

 given of horses having died through eating dried 

 bracken which had been given as food after being 

 passed through a chaff-cutter. Injury is also 

 mentioned to some calves which had been sucking 

 dried bracken which was used as bedding. 



The December number of the " Entomologist " 

 contains a summary of the lepidoptera added to 

 the British list during the past ten years. There 

 are enumerated over ninety species, including three 

 butterflies. An average of nine new species per 

 annum speaks well for the energy of the British 

 lepidopterists, considering how closely our fauna 

 has been worked up. 



An enquiry into the distribution of ergot 

 (Claviceps purpurea), in the County of Essex, 

 England, has been instituted by Mr. David 

 Houston, of the County Technical Laboratories. 

 He supplies an interesting and concisely written 

 report, which is printed in No. 2 of " Biology 

 Notes." The first result of the enquiry shows that 

 although the fungus is common throughout the 

 county on cereals and cultivated grasses, it is 

 comparatively unknown among the agriculturists. 

 This clearly shows the advantage of the action of 



the < ounty< ouncil h bing laboratories and 



teai hers of scientific facts afifa ting every day 1 i f* - 

 and food supplies. Many cases of cows slipping 

 their young after feedinj on grass affected by 

 ergot are mentioned, jet the farmers have never 

 troubled to learn the cau e. 



Mr. Bertram Geo. Rye, i I u of the late 



eminent coleopterist, has entered upon a great 

 undertaking, we trust after fully c< its 



magnitude. He is about to issue by subscription 

 "A Handbook of the British Macro- Lepidoptera" 

 with hand-coloured illustrations by Miss Maud 

 Horman-Fisher. The parts are to be issued 

 quarterly at 2s. 6d. each, and contain two plates 

 and eight pages of letterpress. 



" The Journal of the Marine Biological Associa- 

 tion " recently issued, contains much of great interest 

 to the students of the denizens of the sea. Besides 

 a description of a new fish, referred to elsewhere 

 in these pages, there are several articles of im- 

 portance, such as that by Walter Garstang, on 

 " Faunistic Notes at Plymouth," with observation.-, 

 on the breeding seasons of marine animals. The 

 able naturalist at the Plymouth Laboratory, 

 summarises the Fishery Publications of the United 

 States of America. 



Considering the amount of work done, and in 

 progress, under the direction of the Council of 

 Marine Biological Association, it is positively 

 deplorable that the Association is so badly sup- 

 ported by the general public. The annual 

 subscriptions only reach about £180, though from 

 other sources the revenue nearly touches £2,500. 

 There must be numbers of wealthy persons who 

 would become members, if they knew of the 

 valuable results attained by the Association and 

 the facilities for study at the Plymouth Laboratory. 



An editorial notice appears in the November 

 " Transactions of the Cage-Bird Club," requesting 

 exhibitors who lose any prize-winning canaries, t< > 

 send the dead birds to Mr. W. H. Betts, of 36, Gt. 

 James Street, Bedford Row, London, the Editor of 

 the " Transactions," " who will forward them to the 

 British Museum, where the authorities are arrang- 

 ing a complete collection of the different breeds of 

 canary. As this collection will be a valuable record 

 hereafter, it is suggested that only prize winners be 

 sent." 



We have received Nos. r and 2 of " Biology 

 Notes," a sixteen-page monthly journal, issued 

 from the County Technical Laboratories at 

 Chelmsford. These parts are nicely illustrated 

 by figures explanatory of Practical Botany Lessons. 

 There are nine of these lessons in the two parts. 

 We presume the County Council propose to 

 circulate this magazine, for we do not find any 

 particulars as to price or other indication that they 

 are for sale. If a large enough circulation can be 

 arranged, these useful pamphlets cannot fail to do 

 much good. 



The Trustees of the Missouri Botanical Garden, 

 St. Louis, Mo., have issued their sixth announce- 

 ment concerning Garden Pupils and the Scholarships 

 granted by the trustees, with a tabulated course of 

 study. These scholarships are practically appren- 

 ticeships to the scientific growing of plants ; the 

 scholars receiving from £40 to £60 per annum and 

 free lodgings during the four years apprenticeship. 

 The ages of candidates must be within 14 years 

 and 20 years. An examination of Candidates 

 takes place on March 5th next, at the Botanical 

 Gardens, St. Louis. 



