24 



SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



[Jan. 1, 1865. 



NOTES AND aUEHIES. 



A Young- Microscopist desires to know if lie 

 can procure any of the diatomaceous earths, sucli as 

 Tripoli and other foreign deposits, and where? 



Does the Spider Eat its own Web ? — Blom- 

 field affirms that it does. Is this merelj^ a fiction 

 of the poet, or a fact vouched for by naturalists ? 

 Satisfactory information based on personal observa- 

 tion is desirable. 



Do Elowers that arc norn',ally blue become white 

 or pink when propagated from buds or cuttings, in 

 all cases ? And do blue ilowers, such as those of 

 Cawpaimla rotuiidifoUa become white in seedlings. 

 If so, under what conditions do these changes occur ? 



In poisoning plants for the herbarium some nse a 

 solution of corrosive sublimtite, and with it wash 

 over the entire specimen with a camel-hair pencil. 

 On the other hand, some only mount their specimens 

 with thin glue in vvfhich some corrosive sublimate 

 has been mixed. The latter is by far the simplest 

 plan — has experience proved it suilicicnt ? 



Veins of Leaves. —Professor De Candolle has 

 recently observed that in some genera of plants (as 

 Fagus) the lateral veins terminate in some species in 

 the marginal teeth, in other species they terminate 

 in the sinuses between the teeth, and in others they 

 terminate partly in the teeth and partly in ihe 

 sinuses. Have any of our correspondents noticed 

 similar instances, or if they should observe such will 

 they communicate the result of their observations ? 



Modern Military Botany.— A military gentle- 

 man recommended to the Cotton Supply Reporter, in 

 a letter recently puljlishcd, "in order to produce 

 new and beautiful species of the cotton plant, as 

 well as to insure good annual crops, to cross the 

 several hinds of seeds by hnryiiig them together in a 

 large hole about nine inches deep!'' He adds, " I beg 

 to olDservethat I firmly believe that the Gnaphaliiim, 

 cud-weed, or dwarf cotton, is the parent stock of all 

 cotton." — Does not such a Solomon as this deserve 

 a Marshal's baton ? 



PoLYXENiA Alderi. — Dming a marine excursion 

 in search of animals for the aquarium, Mr. Hughes 

 gives a humorous account of a colloquy which took 

 place between himself and the boatman who was 

 Vi-ith him when the above-named was captured: — 

 "Looking, as I dare say he did, with considerable 

 disgust at my sport, and wondering why I did not 

 follow his example in the more utilitarian object of 

 mackerel-fishing, he asked, with some degree of 

 superciliousness, ' And what might be the name of 

 that jelly-fish, sir, that you've just took?' 'It 

 would not interest you very much, my friend,' said 

 I ; ' but, as you seem to take an interest in the 

 specimen, I will tell you : it is Polyxenia Alderi.' 

 'VVell, to be sure,' replied he, 'it do look summat 

 like a X.' He alluded to the cruciform appearance 

 of the peduncle seen from below \—The Zoologist. 



Death op Professor Silliman.— -It is with 

 much regret that we have learnt of the death of this 

 veteran in science. The joui'nal he edited, and 

 wliieh was known by his name all over Europe, as 

 well as in America, expired just before him. Eor 

 nearly half a century lie held a high position amongst 

 scientific men on the other side the Atlantic. 



Prickly Pears Pour a Penny !— This cry has 

 been heard from street-vendois of fruit in the metro- 

 polis during the last two or three weeks. The fruit 

 itself is not commonly imported. It is about the 

 size and shape of a goose's (is:§, with a large concave 

 depression at the apex, in which one may thrust the 

 end of a thumb. Externally it is yellow, with a red- 

 dish tint on one side ; small brown waits are scat- 

 tered over the surface at regular distances of about 

 three-fourths of an inch ; from each of these in its 

 early stage sharp spines arc developed, but they fall 

 away as the fruit ripens. Internally the fruit con- 

 sists of a granular pulp of a deep rose colour, in 

 which numerous seects, al)out the size of hemp-seed, 

 are imbedded. The taste is rather insipid, and the 

 profusion of hard seeds scattered everywhere through 

 the pulp is a great disadvantage. It does not suit 

 the English taste, we imagine, and will scarce be- 

 come a regular article of commerce. The Prickly 

 Pear is the produce of a species of Cactus {Opiintia 

 vulgaris), a native of North America, and closely 

 allied to the plant on which the cochineal insect 

 feeds. Tliis Cactus has been introduced into the 

 South of Europe, whence, probably, our recent 

 importations have been derived. 



EoRTY Years Ago! — In the first volume of 

 " Loudon's Magazine of Natural History " it is 

 stated, " The common rosewood of cabinet-makers 

 is the root of Convolvulus scoparius, conmion in tl\e 

 Canary Islands, in Rhodes, and Cyprus." No com- 

 ment is necessary. 



NOTICES TO COEEESPOHBENTS. 



All communications for the Editor shouklbe addressed 

 to No. 192, Piccadilly, W. 



E. M. — Being a collector of galls, of every kind, for 

 the purpose of ascertaining what arc the insects 

 which produce them, would be glad to receive 

 fresh specimens of any except the commonest 

 kinds, from correspondents who would forward 

 them to our publisher for that purpose. 



Mosses. — Correspondents wishing for specimens of 

 British mosses, especially those found in the 

 Scottish Highlands, are advised to communicate 

 a list of their desiderata to the editor. 



H. C. — We regret that your MS. arrived too late 

 for insertion in the current number, but it shall 

 have a i^lace in the next. To avoid any disap- 

 pointment, contributions should be received on or 

 before the 15th of each month. 



E. H. — We have returned our correspondent's MS,, 

 but, for the information of all our contributors, 

 take this opportunity of intimating that it is 

 amongst our firmest resolves not to admit either 

 lists or tables, whether of plants or insects, into 

 our pages ; because, however useful or interesting 

 they may be to a favoured few, their interest 

 would be very small with the majority of 

 readers. We therefore prefer exclusion m all 

 cases to making invidious exceptions. 



Secretaries of Eield Clubs and Natural History 

 Societies are solicited to forward accounts of 

 their ordinary meetings, excursions, and pro- 

 ceedings, throughout the year. A portion of 

 t!ie Science Gossip being devoted to the service 

 of such associations, it is the wish of the pro- 

 moters that it should be rendered as truly ser- 

 viceable as possible. 



