HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



141 



cases where such is the case ; as, for example, tall, 

 oat-like grass {Arrhenatherum avenaceum, var. bul- 

 bosum), forms a disagreeable weed on cultivated fields 

 and might live to any age under these conditions ; 

 while the fibrous-rooted plant, which I believe to be 

 the only species of the genus, would only exist for a 

 few years. 



Of those having creepers I will give the example 

 Gf reed canary-grass {Phalaris arundinacea), which 

 I have growing alongside several others upon 

 dry soil, the natural habitat of this one being wet soil. 

 I found that it required some years before it produced 

 flowers. During that time its energies were devoted 

 to forming these creepers, which are quite a network 

 in the soil ; but the result is that the plants of this 

 plot practically remain alive and vigorous. While 

 on the other plots alongside where I have, — or had, I 

 should say, — a general representation of grasses, those 

 _with fibrous roots are mostly dead. 



William Wilson. 



Alford, Aberdeen, N.B. 



SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



Arion Celticus. — In the recently-issued Abstract 

 of the Proceedings of the South London Entom. and 

 N. Hist. Society for 1S90-1891, p. 106, I am stated 

 to have exhibited Arion celtiais from Rivarrosa, 

 Piedmont. It was A. alpinus that came from Rivar- 

 rosa, and the A. celticus were from Brest. It is a 

 small matter, but I ask you to allow me to correct it 

 in your columns ; as an erroneous record, if not at 

 once corrected, may give rise to trouble afterwards. 

 — T. D. A. Cockerell, Kingston, Jamaica, 



The " Proceedings of the Royal Society of New 

 South Wales" is to hand. This is a particularly 

 good volume, containing over four hundred pages 

 with scarce an uninteresting one among them. The 

 contents are as follows : President's Address, H. C. 

 Russell ; " On the Importance and Nature of the 

 Oceanic Languages," S. H. Ray ; " On Certain 

 Geometrical Operations," part i., illustrated, G. 

 Fleuri ; " A Determination of the Magnetic 

 Elements at the Physical Laboratory, University of 

 Sydney," illustrated, C. Coleridge Farr ; "Analyses 

 of some of the Well, Spring, Mineral, and Artesian 

 Waters of New South Wales, and their Probable 

 Value for Irrigation and other Purposes," illustrated, 

 J. C. H. Mingaye ; "Sewage of Country Towns: 

 The Separate System," J. A. Thompson ; "Ventila- 

 tion of Sewers and Drains," illustrated, J. M. Smail ; 

 "Flying-machine Work, and the one-sixth I.H.P. 

 Steam Motor, weighing 3! lbs.," illustrated, L. 

 Hargrave ; "On a New Blowpipe Arrangement," 

 W. H. Hamlet ; " On the Effect which Settlement 

 in Australia has produced upon Indigenous Vegeta- 



tion," A. G. Hamilton; "The Venom of the 

 Australian Black Snake," C. J. Martin; "Some 

 Folk-songs and Myths from Samoa," Rev. J. Pratt 

 and J. Fraser ; " Preliminary Notes on Limestone 

 occurring near Sydney," H. S. Smith; " Observa- 

 tions on Shell Heaps and Shell Beds," illustrated, E. 

 J. Stratham ; "Hail Storms," illustrated, H. C. 

 Russell; "Notes on the Recent Cholera Epidemic 

 in Germany," B. Schwartzbach ; " On Native 

 Copper Iodide and other Minerals from Broken 

 Hill, N. S. Wales," C. W. Marsh ; "On the Comet 

 in the Constellation Andromeda," J. Tebbutt ; 

 " Results of Wolf's Comet, etc.," J. Tebbutt ; " On 

 the Languages of Oceania," J. Fraser; "Notes on 

 the Occurrence of Platinum, Gold, and Tin in the 

 Beach Sands in the Richmond River District, N. S. 

 Wales," J. C. H. Mingaye ; " Platinum and its 

 Associated Metals in Lode Material at Broken Hill, 

 N. S. Wales," J. C. H. Mingaye. 



A capital pennyworth of science is the " Amateur 

 Naturalist," the organ of the Amateur Natural 

 History Society. It may be had from W. Longley, 

 12 White Hart Street, Catherine Street, Strand. 



The May number of the "Naturalist's Journal" 

 is, as usual, full of valuable and interesting notes for 

 collectors of natural history specimens. 



Mr. R. D. Pedley, in his paper on " The Teeth 

 of Pauper Children," reprinted from the "British 

 Journal of Dental Science," calls attention to the 

 neglect of the teeth almost universal in such charity 

 institutions. If the governing bodies could only be 

 brought to see the necessity of appointing a com- 

 petent dentist to examine the children's teeth at 

 certain intervals, say once a month, much ill-health 

 and misery for the children might be prevented. 



The May number of "Natural Science" among 

 others contains the following papers: "Natural 

 Selection and Lamarckism," W. P. Ball; "Bio- 

 logical Theories : Supposed Auditory Organs," C. H. 

 Hurst; "The Fruit-Spike of Calamites," T. Hick; 

 " The Succession of Teeth in Mammals," Miss E. C. 

 Pollard; "The Recapitulation Theory," C. H. 

 Hurst: "Climate and Floral Regions in Africa," 



G. F. Scott Elliott ; " The Moas of New Zealand," 



H. O. Forbes. 



GEOLOGY. 



On the eastern slope of the Black Mountain, on 

 the border of Monmouthshire and Hereford, in a 

 purely old red sandstone district, I was much sur- 

 prised a few days ago, to find Polypodium calcareum 

 in profusion, many thousands of roots growing 

 luxuriantly amongst loose blocks of old red sand- 



