Briefer Articles. 141 



bores a way through the ice, until its violet buds reach the upper 

 surface and unfold into blossoms. But all the soldanels do not 

 reach the surface; many of them remain prisoned in the ice, ye; 

 they do not perish. Cutting with ax and spade through the firn, 

 single soldanels will be found, which have opened their blossoms 

 before reaching the top. Such soldanels actually blossom in a 

 little cavity in the ice, and resemble those plants or insects that 

 are found embedded in amber or blown into glass balls. But 

 the ice-flowers are alive, although they are somewhat crowded 

 for room, and only push out their anthers while their petals re- 

 main folded. But if the soldanel blossoms are carefully taken 

 out of their little ice-houses and their closed petals blown apart, 

 the pollen may be seen to fly out. 



Snipe Surgery. — An interesting account of how birds treat 

 wounds by surgical methods was recently presented to the Physi- 

 cal Society of Geneva by M. Fatio. In this it was stated that 

 the snipe had been observed to apply a dressing of feathers to 

 wounds, and even to bandage a broken leg. Any creature with 

 legs as long and brittle as a snipe's ought really to know how to 

 take care of them. A case recorded of a snipe, both of whose 

 legs had been broken by a misdirected shot, is the most interest- 

 ing example of snipe surgery. The poor creature contrived to 

 apply dressings of feathers and a sort of splint to both limbs, 

 but unfortunately, in doing so, its beak got wound fast with 

 feathers, and, as it could not use its claws to get rid of them and 

 open its mouth, it was nearly dead from hunger when it was 

 found. In another case, a snipe that flew away with a broken 

 leg was afterwards found to have forced the fragments into a 

 parallel position and secured them by a ligature of a kind of flat- 

 leaved grass wound around the limb spirally and fixed by a glue- 

 like substance. 



PROCEEDINGS OF SCIENTIFIC SOCIETIES. 



Sax Fraxxisco Microscopical Society. — August 28, 

 1889. President Payzant occupied the chair. A large and inter- 

 esting budget of current microscopical literature was added to the 

 files. 



The library was augmented by a number of valuable works 

 on optics and microscopy, while the cabinet was enlarged by a 

 series of mounted slides, mounting material and miscellaneous ac- 

 cessories, a gift from the society's late associate, F. L. Howard. 

 The donation was accompanied by a letter from Mrs. Howard, 

 setting forth the wishes of the departed member. A sincere vote 

 of thanks and appreciation for the testimonial was tendered the 

 lady by the members, and the collection will be known as The 

 Howard Memorial. 



Mr. Wickson presented a large collection of diatoms in situ, 

 a donation from Professor George Davidson of the United States 

 Coast and Geodetic Survey. They come from the northern end 



