286 



SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



[Bec. 1, 1865. 



NOTES AND aUEEIES. 



Bees.— I beg to say, in reply to " H. E. A.'s " 

 question, that it is by uo means an unusual thing f or 

 bees to plunder their neighbours. I have known 

 several instances where a strong hive of bees have 

 attacked a weak one, killed all the defenders (for 

 the poor injured insects generally make a good 

 resistance, and light to the death for their kingdom), 

 and rifled the combs. This marauding system is 

 most common in unpropitious seasons ; and some 

 of my bee-keeping friends have complained this year 

 that their hives have suffered in the way described 

 by H. E. A., from the attacks of robber-bees. — 

 Helen E. Watney. 



Bees and thbib Food. — An intelligent gardener 

 stated to me, that about six years ago, when in 

 the employment of Lady Maitland, at Lindores, 

 we had a very warm summer in Scotland, and from 

 the rapid ripening, so to speak, of flowers, the 

 bees vvere deprived of their usual food. They, in 

 consequence, attacked plums and apricots in such 

 numbers, that it was no uncommon thing to find 

 eighteen or twenty bees within one plum. They 

 effected their entrance by a small hole, only large 

 enough to admit one at a time, and gradually eat 

 away the pulp till nothing vv'as left but the rind. 

 So artistically did they carry on their operations, 

 that, till examined, the plum or apricot with the 

 bees within, had all the appearance of sound and 

 juicy fruit. My informant further stated, that, on being 

 shaken out., the bees were helpless and feeble, and 

 could not rise from the ground, and most of them, 

 he thought, died from the effects of their rich and 

 unaccustomed food. — A. L. 



The Small Toktoise-shell Butteufly.— 

 Perhaps the following account may afford some ex- 

 planation of the circumstance referred to by Mr. H. 

 Waddiugton. Some time ago, I kept in a room a 

 number a caterpillars, of the small Tortoise-shell 

 Butterfly, which I had taken from a stinging-nettle. 

 Before long I observed that they lessened in number, 

 and, searching for the cause, I found that the absent 

 ones had crawled on to the walls and ceiling of the 

 apartment, and had assumed the chrysalis state. 

 Here they remained till they were fully developed 

 into butterflies, when my room presented a similar 

 appearance to that described by your correspondent. 



—T. J. Jr. 



Skeleton Leaves.—" The leaves are boiled for 

 two minutes, then transferred to a strong solution 

 of permanganate of potash, and gently heated. In 

 an hour or two the laxer tissues may be easily re- 

 moved by means of a brush. Sulphurous acid or a 

 solution of chloride of lime may be used for bleach- 

 ing them. The stains of permanganate of potash 

 upon the fingers arc easily washed off by dilute 

 sulphuric acid."— -i/. J. Clmrch, in Chemical News. 



Colias in Excuange.— In the early part of this 

 month, A. B. succeeded in capturing five specimens 

 of Colias Ediisa. Throe of these (apparently all 

 males) she would be 5'Jad to exchange for "some 

 otlier specimes of value. Apatiira Iris, Acherontia 

 afropos, or Hypereompa liera would be preferred. If 

 this exchange could be eft'ccted through tlie medium 

 of Science Gossip, A. B. would be gratified. 

 Plgase to address any communications to A. B., the 

 Parsonage, BoUonshord' , Qlastonlniry . 



Sea- Anemones Dividing. — In the month of Sep- 

 tember last I was on a visit, in the Isles of Scilly, to 

 my son-in-law, the Rev. D. P. Alford, M.A., the 

 chaplain of the isles, and the discoverer of the new 

 xinemone, JEgeon Alfordi, Avhen a curious circum- 

 stance occurred, that I ought to have communicated 

 to you before this, as I fear the lapse of time may 

 have rendered it comparatively uninteresting ; but 

 various professional engagements prevented me. 

 Being one afternoon among the tide-washed rocks of 

 the south side of the island of St. Mary, I_ saw a 

 rather fine Althea {cerea, I think), and having de- 

 tached it from the rock, there is no doubt that it 

 was a single one. I took it in a large limpet-shell to 

 the Parsonage, and there placed it in Mr. Alford's 

 aquarium. On the following morning two singular 

 things occurred, ixnd occurred contemporaneously; 

 and it is this circumstance which has induced me to 

 write to you. I happened to be reading in the 

 August number of your interesting publication. 

 Science Gossip, the first paragraph of page 190, — 

 "Notes and Queries" — headed, "Sea-Anemones 

 dividing," wherein E.T. Scott appears incredulous on 

 the subject, when casting my eye on the aquarium, I 

 saw my Althea actually divided into two Althea, but 

 comiected by a band some one or two inches long, 

 analogous to the icmbilical cord. You may imagine 

 that this singular evidence of the truth of L. S.'s 

 statement very much engaged my notice. I there- 

 fore very narrowly watched the Althece, until by 

 continued tension, I found that the band snapped, 

 and there were two distinct and detached Althea. — 

 I am very truly yours, Osborne J. TancocJc. 



Kaicra-singhee.— Curious horn-sbaped gal!^ pro- 

 duced en a species of Sumach {Rhus integerrima. 



Wall.), are employed in India as_ an astringent in 

 medicine, and, to a limited extent, in dyeing. 



The Milk-tree of Paha.— S. G., in the article 

 on " Wooden Cows," p. 172, speaks of the Milk- 

 tree called " Massenodeudron," from the forests of 

 Para. I believe tiiis tree is the same as the Massa- 

 randuha, of which the Catalogue of the Brazilian 

 Department at the Exhibition of 1863, says : " 330. 

 Milk oi Massaranduba, white colour, extracted from 

 the colossal txQQ Achras paraensis ; when liquid very 

 savorons, and used with tea or coifce. In medicine 

 it is employed internally as pectoral and analeptic ; 

 and externally in plasters as a solvent. This milk 

 coagulates after twenty-four or thirty hours, and is 

 then like gutta-perclia, or gettania ; a small difference 

 existing is, that gutta-percha is brownish, and con- 

 crete massaranduba wdiitish; both have the same 

 degree of elasticity .~i?(?/7,'«'/Y//;.'. 



DucKWEKDS.— In reply to the Query at p. 258, I 

 send two notes from Loudon's Magazine. Mr. D. 

 Stock writes under date June 11, 1828 :—" I never 

 saw any of the species in flower till the other day, 

 when 1 found almost every plant of Lemna minor in 

 blossom. Mr. Sowerby (J. D. C. S.) says, "'In the 

 vicinity of Loudon, Lerana minor may alwas be found 

 in flower in the beginning of June, and Lemna trisulca 

 rather later." Shirley Hibberd gives May as the 

 month for flowering. — /. A. K. 



