21G 



SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



[Sett. 1, 1SG3. 



NOTICES TO C0RRE3P0NDEITTS. 



Alt- communications for the Editor sliould be addressed to 

 No. 192, Piccadilly, W. To avoid disappointment, contribu- 

 tions sliould be received on or before the 15th of each 

 month. No notice can be tal<en of anonymous communi- 

 cations. All notes, queries, or articles for insertion, mitst 

 be guaranteed by the name and address of the writer, which 

 may bo withheld from publication if so desired. 



QuKaiKS.— Having' been inundated with questions, we are 

 compelled to announce that we cannot undertake to answer 

 those of which the querist might satisfy himself by an appeal 

 to any elementary book on the subject. We are always pre- 

 pared to accept queries of a critical nature, and to publish 

 the replies, provided some of our readers, beside the querist, 

 are likely to take an interest in them. 



We cannot undertake to return "rejected addresses." 



EcFTiNus Spines. — A correspondent offers these in ex- 

 change for other objects.— T. H. Martin, 78, Week Street, 



Maidstone. 



QuKKETT MiCROsconcAL Cr.uB.— We are requested to 

 announce that the ordinary meetings of this club will be held 

 on the fourth Friday of every month, at No. 32, Sackville 

 S'reet, Piccadilly, W. For further particulars apply to the 

 Secretary. 



J. D. M.— The insects on bark of v/eeping ash are a species 

 of Coccus (iirder Homuptera). This genus is complicated and 

 the noinoncintnre uncertain, so that a name cannot be assigned 

 for your insect with certainty. It may be Coccus Fruxini, but 

 we have not been able to compare the specimens with the 

 description. — F. W. 



E. C. — The insects which accompanied your woody gall are 

 CaUlmome nubUis (tribe Clialcidites). Tliey are parasites of 

 Ci/nips aptera, the fly which forms woody galls on the roots 

 of oak-trees. — F. W. 



Bunt. — Any one desii'ing specimens of corn affected with 

 Bunt {T'dletia caries), should send a stamped envelope to 

 R. Holland, Mobberley, Knutsford. 



V. Wn.EiNSov. — There is no such book at a moderate 

 price. Curtis's " Entomology," Stephens's " Entomology," 

 and Westwood's " Butterflies and Moths and tlieir Ti'ans- 

 formations," are expensive. If you have Wood's " Index," 

 add theicto Stainton's " Manual." 



A. B. F.— Vve cannot tell positively from your description. 

 Try to induce the caterpillar to feed and undergo its trans- 

 formations, th?n if you forward the moth we will name it. 



Death's-head Moth. — A living specimen of larva or pupa 

 is solicited, in exchange, address E. G. W., 3, Bertie Terrace, 

 Leamington. 



F. C. — Would he inform E. S. if his Vermicelli is first boiled 

 for feeding his li^.h ? 



Wood RonEaT. — Your caterpillar from Turnips belongs to 

 a Nortuii probably Agrotis scgetum. For further particulars 

 see Curtis's " Farm Insects." We can recommend no radical 

 cure. 



F. F. inquires for a work on " Fossil Botany," with figures, 

 at a reasonable price. Wo are sorry that we know of no 

 such work. Lindley and Ilufton's is expensive and seaixe. 

 We thank him for the suggestion but doubt whether it is 

 practicable to give a number, similar to the " Hepaticas " 

 number, on this subject, and supply a "Fossil Botany" for 

 fourpcnce. 



W. TuoRp. — The article originally appeared in the Leisure 

 H«i(i', and then in "Holiday Papers,'' w'nence we reprinted 

 it, as an example of what we consider to be good jjopular 

 writing. 



A. D. D. — 'I'ho mosses were Tortula mur/iUs and, wc believe, 

 Anacalyptu iiniceohitu, Tiie capsules of the latter were but 

 few, and with these we were unfortunate.— J. E. W. 



J. B. HuAinKR ridicules the idea of H. G. K. having a score 

 of wasp-stings extracted from his body (page 170), because 

 " the stings of wasps are not harlied like ttiose of bees, and 

 consequently do not remain in the wound." We strongly 

 recommend our co: respondent to catch a wasp and look at 

 its sting again. 



W. C. — Your leaf contains the stalked eggs of the I.ac3- 

 wing Fly {Chrysopa) . 



W. B. D.— The flowers are those of Solenosternma Argtl, 

 H., almost constantly found among Alexandrian senna. — 

 D.H. 



H. S. — Your sketch of geological specimen does not exhbit 

 sufficient details to determine the specie^, or even genvi = . Iho 

 object is clearly a-coral, and probably of the genus Isastrcea. — 

 R. T. 



T. O. B. — Your leaves, supposed to be injured by insects, 

 are attacked by a parasitic fungus (Rhr/tisma accrinum') , 

 always common, but more than usually so this year. 



F. W. C, — The insect is the larva of a Cuccinelht ; most 

 likely C. "-punctata. An introduction to the study of British 

 Beetles is announced to be published shortly, uniform with 

 Lankester's " Ferns," by Mr. R. Ilardwicke, 192, Piccadilly. 

 —R. G. K. 



E. M. — Continue to use plenty of camphor; or try a little 

 benzine on a piece of sponge. 



G. S. — The grass was in too bad a condition to determine 

 satisfactorily. The other plant is a form of Pimpinella 

 saxifraga. 



H. L.— Yours is a proliferous variety; a form not un- 

 common. 



E. G. — You may purchase British lichens of Mr. AV. Mudd, 

 Botanic Gardens, Cambridge. For exchange of mosses, &c., 

 you had better send your list of desiderata to the Society of 

 Amateur Botanists, 192, Piccadilly, London. 



T. B. — The price of " Half-hours with the Microscope" is 

 five shillings. 



W. S. — We object to recommend any maker of micro- 

 scopes. All instruments have their own peculiar advantages. 

 Those you name have a good reputation at the price. 



A Hint for Contributors. — If our contributors will oblige 

 us by always using the common names of plants, animals, 

 insects, &c., wherever there is a common name in use, to 

 be followed by the scientific name in brackets, this will save 

 us a large amount of trouble in sending their manuscript 

 to press. As we do not pretend to address scientific readers 

 alone, vernacular names are indispensable. 



Communications Received.— W. S.— J. E. AV. — F. F, 

 II. H. K.— A. P. H.— B. F. M.— J. S. T.— W. A. L.-C. W 

 R. G.— L. B.— H. S.— P. J.— T. P. B.— W. T.— A. J. R 

 J.D. M.— W. Robe.rt.— J. W. W.— J. B. Humbeu.— J. C 

 C. A.— L. S.-F. P. P.— J. K.— E. C— J. P.— J. F.— C. A. G 

 H. L.— W. J. S.-D. R. R.— R. K.— W. S.— G. R. J.— W. R. 

 —J. H. B.— A. J. Noll.— H. G. S.— T. A.— H. (cannot 

 printed until name and address are sent). — W. E. W. — T. P. 

 — H. G. E.— W. II. G.— II. M.— T. H. M.— A. G.— A. II 

 H. G.— J. H.-F. T.— G. S.— E. G.— L. G. M.— A. G 

 W. R. T.— C. W. W.— R. H.— F. P. D.— E. D.— H. W.— H. 

 — W. B. D.— F. M.— W. B. D.— A. B. F.-A. B. W. (Poon,^) 

 F. W.— R. A.— G. C. D.— J. Q.— E. II.— E. G. (Matlock) 

 n. P. A.— A. C— W. E. S. W.— E. W.— Ellen Douglas 

 E. M.— H.— C. J. F.— T. O. B.— A. H.— W.P.— T. H.— T. B 

 W. A. L.-W. S.— J. G.-E. W. 



Bramble-Brand forwarded to :— F. W. C— J. H. W.— 

 G. G.— C. A.— W. J. B.— T. B.— E. W.— D. M.— AV. R. M.— 

 E. R.— J. M. P. M.— F. W. C— H. J. W.— H. W.— R. H. M.— 

 T. A.— J. H.— J. J. S.— E. G. W.— T. H. M.— H. R.— H. P. A. 

 — W. H. G.— C. R.— II. N.— W. A. S.— J. R.— R. A. S.— 

 W. W. N.— V. A. P.— R. C— C. W. W.— J. J.-M. A. N.— 

 W. J.— B. A. C— L. R. G.— S. W.— L. II. M.— G. H. G.-R. S. 

 — W. O. B. 



BOOKS RECEIVED. 



" Notice sur les Collections Scientiflq^ies et sur le Mu ('a 

 Commercial-Inrlustriel ; Maison do Mcde, Lez-Gand, Btlgiquc. 

 (Gand : C. A. Eraeckman.) 



" Catalogue of the Indian Department, Dublin International 

 Exhibition." By J. Forbes Watson, A.M., M.D. (Dublin: 

 J. Falconer.) 



