GLASGOW SOCIETY OP FIELD NATURALISTS. 39 



dark, and others in different degrees of light. Life began to 

 appear in the open tubes exposed to the light in thirty-six to 

 forty hours. The de'velopment of life was slower and not so 

 abundant in those tubes kept in the dark ; and in those hermeti- 

 cally sealed no signs of life were seen till after six or seven days. 

 The first forms of life that began to appear were Bacteria and 

 Yibriones, then a little later Paramecia were seen. In making 

 some of his experiments in a room wliere some water containing 

 Rotifers was standing, he found Rotifers in great abundance in 

 all his open tubes, but none in those that were closed, so that it 

 seemed that the germs of the Rotifers had access to the open tubes 

 through the air. He also found that in open tu.bes connected by 

 a thread with the vessel containing the Rotifers, the diffusion took 

 place more rapidly than thi'ough the air. Tubes with the same 

 infusions, and placed in the same circumstances, were found to 

 contain quite different forms of life. Mi'. Benson also described 

 the Sun Animalcule [Actinophrys sol), and its manner of feeding. 



24th October, 1873. 

 Mr. J. Allan, Vice-President, in the chair. 



SPECIMENS EXHIBITED. 



Mr. Cameron exhibited two saw-flies new to Britain — Tenthredo 

 moniliata, KL, taken at Rannoch in June; and Nematus quercus, 

 Htg., of which several specimens have been taken at Cadder Wil- 

 derness during the summer ; also Lopkyrus p)allipes, a very rare 

 saw-fly, the male of which is remarkable for its beautiful pectinated 

 antennae. 



PAPER READ. 



The Chairman read a paper on the study of Natural History, in 

 which he insisted on the benefits to be derived from it in training 

 the mind to observe carefully, and classify accurately, and in fos- 

 tering a love of Nature which at once purifies and enlarges the 

 mind. The rest of the paper was taken tip in discussing how 

 Natural History should be studied. Referring to Cuvier's letters 

 to Pfaff on this subject, in one of which he says, " I think we 

 ought carefully to seek out the relation of all existences with the 

 rest of Nature, and to show their part in the economy of the great 



