AUSTRALIAN JOURNAL OF DR. W. STIMPSON, ZOOLOGIST. 147 
six inches in diameter, with apertures nearly an inch square. 
Large Chitons and a large Chitonellus were very common, as were 
also Trochi, Parmophori and Tritons of considerable size, a pretty 
pink Pleurobranchus, and a green Aplysia. Two species of Echini 
lived just below low water mark. Crustaceans were not very 
abundant. 
In the evening I went with our Commodore and a few of the 
officers, to visit and dine with Sir Charles Nicholson, who is prob- 
ably the chief literary man in the country. He had a splendid 
library, a botanic garden, etc., and his agreeable manners enabled 
us, together with the other gentlemen present, to pass a very 
pleasant evening. 
31st. This morning I visited the Sydney Museum (of Science) 
where | found a very scientific man, Mr. Wall, Curator of the 
Natural History Department. He showed me many interesting 
shells, and many unique cetacean skeletons, among which latter 
were a perfect example of that of Catodon australis, which was of 
great size and mounted outside of the building, and also one of 
his new genus Euphysates. He gave me copies of the work in 
which this latter genus was described, for distribution among our 
naturalists at home, and for myself. He gave me an account of 
his reasons for suggesting the application of a propeller to steam 
vessels on the same principle as that forming the motive organ of 
the whale, namely, the tail. He complained of the contempt with 
which his own countrymen had treated this attempt to make 
principles taken from nature serve in art, and extolled the 
Americans for the encouragement always given by them to efforts 
to make improvements in the mechanic arts, however problematical 
they might appear to a superficial observer. He also showed me 
a copy of one of the first numbers of a scientific journal now 
published in this part of the world (Hobart Town, V.D.L. (?) ) 
which contained an account of the Australian fresh-water Ento- 
mostraca, with a few coarse figures, by Rev. Mr. King of Sydney. 
The genera showed a great similarity to the Entomostraca of this 
country to those of Europe. Mr. Wall treated us (Messrs. Wright, 
