372 Northern News. 



Rev. M. J. Berkley on Salix in 1878; from Corby Castle 

 (Lincolnshire), collected by Dr. Carlisle in the years 1883-4-5-6 ; 

 and Mr. Massee has specimens from the New Forest. These 

 are all the British specimens that have come within my know- 

 ledge up to present. The Herbarium also contains continental 

 specimens (Swedish, Danish, and French) of recent .date. 



Not having had the pleasure of seeing the fungus before, 

 the opportunity of making an independent diagonosis and 

 figure from the freshly-gathered plants was not allowed to 

 slip by. The characters are as follow : — 



Stroma growing in circles, 8-10 cm. across, branched, 

 branches radiating from a common centre, and closely adhering 

 to the decaying bark or wood by the whole of their under 

 surface, bi- or trifid, ends irregularly lobed, pale fulvous brown, 

 or inclined to orange in colour, darkening towards the centre, 

 surface minutely tubercled with the projecting ostiola of the 

 perthecia, substance fleshy, firm but not coriaceous, whitish, 

 4-6 m.m. thick ; perithecia immersed subglobose ; asci cylin- 

 drical 170-180x10 /X, walls thin and chnging close to the 

 spores ; spores 8, hyaline, slightly oblique, i seriate with ends 

 only overlapping, smooth, oblong fusiform, 24-30 X 8-9 one 

 septate, sHghtly constricted at the septum, contents minutely 

 indistinctly granular ; paraphyses cylindrical, ends truncate, 

 aseptate, hyaline, contents striate granular, about length 

 of asci. 



The stroma cracks a little on drying, and becomes dark 

 red brown. Spores (no asci) are extruded from the dry 

 perithecia, and he in little white heaps jnst outside the ostiola. 



Bolton refers to a greenish powder on the plants, especially 

 when they become old. There was also a greenish powdery 

 deposit on the present specimens, which proved to be 

 Pleurococcus vulgaris. Most likely the same alga would form 

 the deposit noticed by Bolton. 







Some interesting information in reference to the subsidence of fen 

 soil as a result of drainage, etc., is given in ' Fenland Notes and Queries ' 

 for July. 



The Spalding Gentlemen's Society propose to build a museum for the 

 reception of its treasures, in celebration of their bi-centenary. Nearly 

 ;^500 has been subscribed for the purpose. 



In ' A note on some Chalk Crinoids ' in the August ' Geological Maga- 

 zine,' Mr. J. A. Douglas figures and describes Roveacrinns alata, R. com- 

 munis, and R. communis var. rugosa. The specimens were collected in 

 Sussex by Dr. Rowe, after whom the new genus takes its name. 



Naturalist, 



