428 



•epidemic, especially as it would be too late in any case to 

 send representatives from such Conference to the General 

 Conference at Brussels. If, however, an early meeting is 

 considered advisable, it would be well to fix a date when all 

 or most of the Universities would be in recess. So soon as 

 the exact date is fixed, the Council would appoint delegates." 



Exhibits. — Dr. Pulleine exhibited a new species of 

 trap-door spider, genus Aganippe, and nests of same, from 

 the banks of the American River, Kangaroo Island, just 

 above high water; also portions of the bird-catching plant 

 Pisonia Brunoneana. Mr. A. M. Lea showed a drawer of 

 British beetles, including many which occur in nests of ants. 



Paper. — "Geological Memoranda" (first contribution), 

 by Prof. Walter Howchin, F.G.S. 



Ordinary Meeting, July 11, 1919. 



Prof. E. H. Rennie, M.A., D.Sc, F.C.S. (Vice- 

 President), in the chair. 



Election. — Helen M. Mayo, M.B., B.Sc, was elected a 

 Fellow. 



International Research Council. — The conference at 

 Sydney having been fixed for August 20, the appointment of 

 two delegates was left to the Council. 



Exhibits. — Prof. Chapman showed results of experiments 

 upon the pressure exerted by wood blocks by expansion when 

 soaked in water. Mr. A. M. Lea exhibited some olives 

 thickly covered with black scale insects ( Aspidiotns rossi) 

 which cause a serious diminution in the yield of oil, besides 

 injuring the tree by attacking the leaves and twigs; also a 

 rust fungus, received from Mr. Henry Greenfield, of Bugle 

 Ranges, from Purple Downs Station, near Port Augusta, 

 This was afterwards identified by Mr. J. M. Black as Sal sola 

 kali (Family Chenopodiaceae). Mr. Edgar R. Waite ex- 

 hibited photograph of a native of Lihir Island which he had 

 taken during the Museum Expedition last year ; also the skull 

 of a native from the island, presented to the Museum by 

 Captain G. W. Mostyn. Both the photograph and the skull 

 were shown to illustrate a practice of the natives of this island 

 which lies off New Ireland in about 3° S. latitude. Shortly 

 after a baby is born the bone of the forehead is either broken 

 with a sharp stone or cut with an obsidian knife, the result 

 being the production of permanent deep vertical grooves; the 

 photograph of the living girl shows two, and the skull four 

 such grooves. He likewise exhibited the skull of a native 

 of New Britain obtained by the late Dr. A. C. Magarey. In 

 this specimen the third molar, or wisdom tooth, instead of 

 appearing in normal position, had erupted towards the angle 



