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views, which, with his own description and particulars from 

 personal observation, conveyed a most realistic impression of 

 the whole. In closing his address Mr. Speers referred to the 

 anthropological value of caves, which in pre-historic times were 

 the resort of early mankind, and referred in detail to some 

 special examples, 



Mr. Welch and Mr. Hogg exhibited some very excellent lan- 

 tern views of caverns in many parts of central Ireland, and Mr. 

 Gray exhibited and described views of caverns that occur in the 

 several geological formations of the County Antrim, mainly, 

 however such as were formed by marine denudation. Referring 

 to some along the north coast, where the earliest settlements 

 of ancient man occur, Mr. Gray suggested that probably a sys- 

 tematic exploration of certain examples would lead to the dis- 

 covery of the remains of ancient man with the animals with 

 which he was associated in very remote prehistoric times. 



SCIENCE GOSSIP HALF HOUR. 



For half an hour before the lecture there was an exhibition 

 and discussion on land and fresh water shells, of which a large 

 number were exhibited by Messrs. H. L. Orr, R. Welch, W. 

 Swanston, W. Gray, and Mr. R. Standen, of Manchester. Mr. 

 R. Welch read a short paper on the rare form of Helix nemo- 

 ralis, found at Bundoran, where the normal form is made into 

 necklaces and sold to visitors. Necklaces of this form are sur- 

 vivals of the prehistoric forms found in ancient Irish graves. 

 Scalariform and reversed specimens occur at Bundoran, as 

 well as a curious heavy variety, all being of great interest to 

 naturalists, and furnished a topic for an animated discussion. 

 Mr. R. Standen, of Manchester Field Club, sent for exhibition 

 a series of English and Irish Amber shells, and Mr. Orr exhibi- 

 ted a very curious malformation of Clausilla bidcntata, which 

 had two mouths, and the members present exhibited over 100 

 specimens of reversed shells of Helix nemoralis. 



