Azotes and Comments. 



On pulling the nest to pieces he found that it was generally 

 typical, leaves of the reed forming the outside, and the flower- 

 heads thereof its lining. An unusual feature, however, was 

 the number of feathers interwoven with the lining. Feathers 

 of the swan, mallard, water-hen and snipe were detected. 



PECULIAR MARKINGS. 



Of particular interest were some peculiar markings inside 

 the mouths of the nestlings. Briefly, these ' take the form 

 of four rows of pearly- white, conical, peg-like projections, 

 suggesting the palatal teeth of reptiles, two on either side of 

 the middle line. These tooth-like bodies . . . were not of 

 uniform size, and were set in a background of black, surrounded 

 by a rich carnelian red, the whole being framed in by the 

 lemon-yellow gape-wattles, which are not very strongly de- 

 veloped. The tongue is black with a white tip, and a pair of 

 white spurs at its base.' 



THE DARWIN CELEBRATIONS. 



On July ist there was a large and representative gathering 

 of the members of the Linnean Society of London and their 

 friends at the Institution of Civil Engineers, the occasion being 

 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the placing of the ' Dar- 

 winian theory ' before the society by the late Charles Darwin 

 and Dr. Alfred Russell Wallace. The president. Dr. Dukin- 

 field H. Scott, in a brief address, welcomed the delegates from 

 Universities, etc., and the guests. He said they had met to 

 celebrate the greatest event in the history of their Society 

 since its formation, and the presence that day of Dr. Wallace 

 and Sir Joseph Hooker was in itself enough to ensure the success 

 of the meeting. Medals representing Darwin and Wallace had 

 been struck for presentation to Dr. Wallace, Sir Joseph Hooker, 

 Professor E. Haeckel, Professor E. Strasburger, Professor A. 

 Weismann, Dr. Francis Galton, and Sir E. Ray Lankester. 



DR. A. RUSSELL WALLACE. 



Dr. Wallace thanked the Society for the very great honour 

 they had done him, and also for perpetuating his features 

 together with those of his illustrious fellow- worker, Darwin. 

 Since the death of Darwin, in 1882, it had been not infrequently 

 stated in the Press that they made the discovery simultaneously, 

 and some indeed went so far as to state that he (Dr. Wallace) 

 was the first discoverer, and then gave way to Darwin. The 

 real fact was that the idea occurred to them independently, 



Naturalist, 



