104 Proceedings of the Asiatic Society. [June, 



had sown their spring crops, though there had heen no rain, because 

 the time for sowing was nearly past, and they were afraid of losing 

 their crop if they did not sow. On hearing this, which seemed to 

 me a rational explanation, I did not make any further enquiry. Mr. 

 Thorburn mentioned that the report had been prevalent, but did not 

 say how it arose. There was an earthquake certainly, and the spring 

 crops in Murwut were largely sown though no rain fell. It was 

 not difficult to invent the fact of unusual moisture having been 

 developed by the earthquake. 



Had there been any very general or perceptible moisture of the 

 ground really developed by the earthquake, I am sure, I should have 

 heard of it in my journey through the Bunnoo district. 



It is just possible that there may have been another earthquake 

 attended by such a phenomenon recently, but as I have heard quite 

 lately from Colonel Graham, Mr. Thorburn, and Mr. Priestly, who 

 none of them mention it, and as the report on the weather and the 

 crops up to 21st February have not noticed it, I think that the earth- 

 quake of November must be that alluded to. 



The following communications were read — 



I. A contribution to our knowledge of Pelagic Mollusca ; by Capt. 



G. E. Fryer, Madras Staff Corps, — communicated by Dr. Stoliczka 



(Abstract). 



The paper contains a summary of observations made during two 

 voyages from England to India via the Cape of Good Hope. Capt. 

 Fryer first gives a general account of the organisation of Pteropods, 

 then comments on their habits and mode of life, and on the geo- 

 graphical distribution. A table shewing this distribution is added, and 

 also a map on which the localities are marked, with the number of 

 species captured at each of them. In the present communica- 

 tion Capt. Fryer treats only of the Tliecosomata which are fur- 

 nished with an external though very thin shell. The author found 

 23 species in the Atlantic Ocean, 23 in the Indian, 11 in the Southern, 

 and 11 in the Bay of Bengal. A few species appear to be peculiar to 

 each of these oceans. The map shews that comparatively the largest . 

 number of specimens was obtained south and south-east of Ceylon. 

 The. species Hyalea tridentata (var. Forskalii), H. teniobranchia and 



