PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS. E21 
terest to us to find that such a widely distributed species 
was described and named by a member of our Society a 
quarter of a century ago. Hall (loc. cit.) states that the 
parasite had been previously observed by Chaussot (1850), 
Colin (1862), Davaine (1877), and Leidy (1891). 
Larval Nematodes wn Subserous Nodules on the In- 
testines—On March 14th, 1912, two fresh rats (FE. norve- 
gicus) and a decomposing one, caught on the same premises 
off Oxford-street, Sydney, were found to have minute 
whitish nodules scattered over the serous coats of the in- 
testines. On dissecting these, they were found to be occu- 
pied by larval nematodes, each about .4mm. long and 38 
» broad. So far the species has not been determined. 
Maurice Hall (loc. cit., p. 223) refers to Spiroptera sp. Ger- 
staecker found encysted in the walls of the digestive tract 
of Epimys sp. These larve were 1.4 mm. long and 100 to 
110 » thick. Our larve are smaller, and do not show the 
morphological details given for Gerstaecker’s forms. We 
sent specimens from these rats to Dr. Hall last year, and 
he thinks they may possibly be an earlier stage of the species 
found by Gerstaecker. 
Rats as Possible Dispersers of the Eggs of Human 
Ankylostomes.—Whilst visiting Broken Hill last year, I 
was much interested in finding that rats were present in the 
mines, even at deep levels. Sanitary pans, placed in re- 
cesses, were entered by them and the feces eaten. If at any 
time a carrier of ankylostomes from elsewhere, employed in 
the mine, should use one of these pans and rats ingest the 
ova, it is possible that infection might be spread to the 
workings, as the eggs may pass through the rat’s alimentary 
tract unharmed. A lid to each pan is, of course, the solu- 
tion of the matter. 
. ACANTHOCEPHALA.—The large Gigantorhynchus monili- 
forms has been recorded by Johnston (loc. cit.) in the in- 
