202 The Flora of Ireland. 



reappeared brightest E : Cassini. — 1792, l£l had occasionally noticed very small 

 variations in the breadth of Ball's div. and tLie ring itself. — 1840. De-Vico saw and 

 measured excentricity. — 1841. Schwabe saw Encke's div. 5 times ; .July 26, 

 Sept. 11, on both ansse. Ball's div. almost always plainer, or broader if less 

 sharp and dark W. Sept. 21, indistinct, with a beautiful sharp image. His 

 observations seem in some instances to connect its greater breadth W. with larger 

 excentricity of ring E, as though A remaining unmoved with respect to the ball, 

 B were somewhat displaced at those times: e. g. Aug. 19, div. only distinct 

 W. ; very large dark ansa E. : 20, div. plainer E. than W. ; less difference of 

 ansse than 19. — 1842. Sept. 2, De-Vico, Ball's more distinct W. 5, do. E. 30, 

 Oct. 1, best W. 17, very distinct, no subdivision whatever. 25, best W. — 

 1843. July 14, Encke's plainest E. Aug. 6, do. W. July 19, Aug. 6, 8, Ball's 

 broadest E. July 19, 29, two subdivisions broadest E. Aug. 6, 9h. 43m. 

 three do. plainest W. ; lOh. 18m. best E. 8, three do. best E. [Is it im- 

 possible that a careful collation of the positions of the satellites, especially 

 Titan, at any given epoch, with these features of the ring, should lead to the 

 discovery of some connection ? A friend has suggested that the closest satellite, 

 especially, must raise a wave in A, which, however, would hardly be visible to us.] 

 — 1848. "July 11, both poles brighter than equator: Bond II. Sept. 11, 12, S. 

 belt like clouds : Schmidt. — 1850. Nov. 22, Lassell suspected Encke's on both 

 ansge ; 23, 25, Dawes do. and 29, especially f. Nov. 23, Secchi and others saw 

 C brightest W., without divining its real nature; and 1851, Jan. 19, slightly 

 broader VV. — 1850. Dec, when Hind first saw C, it was very narrow, and much 

 plainer E. — 1851. Oct. 26, Dec. 6, B and C not divided; 30, broadest and 

 most distinct W. : Secchi. — 1852, Aug. 31, C fades away, so that its half next B 

 is invisible : Tutlle. Nov., De la Rue's fig. shows shadow of A rery faint on N. 

 ball. 29, ball nearer outer edge of G, p thany, to eye ; by microm. 4"'26, 5"25, 

 B. I. Dec. 15, div. on p side of B : Breen and another. — 1855. Some nights in 

 spring, Ball's broader before than behind globe ; Secchi. — 1856. Mar. 27, Apr. 5, 

 1857, Eeb. 14, faint penumbra on sf limb : S. 6— 1857. Jan. 30, do. either on 

 S. limb or on ring in close contact : B. II. — 1861. Nov. 15, blackish irregular 

 patch on ball : Secchi. 



THE FLORA OF IRELAND.* 



The British. Association for the Advancement of Science, at 

 the meeting 1 held in Bath, appointed seven gentlemen as a 

 committee, for the purpose of investigating the distribution of 

 the Ii'ish Flora, with £25 at their disposal. This sum has 

 been judiciously applied towards the publication of a work, 

 entitled Contributions towards a Cybele Hibemica, under the 

 editorship of Dr. D. Moore and Mr. A. G. More. 



This royal octavo volume of 460 pages, which has just 

 appeared, will excite some amount of interest in botanical 

 circles, for our knowledge of Irish plants has greatly increased 

 since the publication of Mackay's Flora Hibemica in 1836, and 

 not only have many species been added, but others have 

 become better understood, whilst the range of many has been 

 greatly extended. 



In the introduction to this work we are favoured with 



* Contributions towards a Cybele Hibemica, being Outlines of the Geogra- 

 phical Distribution of Plants in Ireland. By David Moore, Ph.D., E.L.S., and 

 Akx. Goodman More, F.L.S. Dublin, 18GG. Boyal 8vo.,460 pp. 



