IS 
Mr. W. W. Stoddart spoke of the great difficulty of imitating in the 
laboratory natural processes of this kind, owing to the length of time re- 
quired for the operation to continue, in order to produce any satisfactory 
result. Had he understood that mineral pseudomorphs were to be the 
subject of the paper, he would have brought down some illustrative, speci- 
mens. Arragonite and quartz crystallised in two states, as regarded their 
action upon polarised light, being both right and left handed ; it was diffi- 
cult to account for this, as the difference could only be detected optically, 
not by the external configuration. The speaker concluded by expressing 
his opinion that, since when a solution crystallised freely, it was always in 
one system, pseudomorphs were a collection of small crystals of the proper 
system forced into a mould, as it were, belonging to another system. 
Mr. W. L. Carpenter corroborated Mr. Stoddart's remarks about the 
length of time, and said that as the elucidation of the subject had only 
attracted attention comparatively few years ago, when chemical and micro- 
scopic analysis had attained more perfection than previously, the experi- 
ments which, it was hoped, would throw light upon the matter, were still in 
progress. Dr. Percy, in a recent course of lectures on metallurgy, had re- 
ferred to this, and closely connected with it was the deposition of minerals 
in veins, a subject hitherto little understood. 
MEETINGS OF SECTIONS. 
ENTOMOLOGICAL SECTION. 
Tuesday, February 12th, 1867.— Mr. S. Barton, President of the 
Section, in the Chair. 
Two volumes of the Magazine, and one volume of the Entomologist 
having being bound, the Hon. Sec. was desired to pass them to Mr. 
Leipner, for presentation to the library of the Society. 
Mr. Barber exhibited a box containing several new and rare species of 
Coleoptera, and read the following note upon one of the new species 
exhibited, Apthonia nigriceps. " This species somewhat resembles Apthonia 
lutiscens and Thyamis atricapilla, but is much smaller, it is most like the 
latter species in form and color, but may be distinguished by the shorter 
and broader basal joint of its hind tarsi and its shorter hind legs. It may 
be distinguished from Apthonia lutiscens by its shorter oval form and its 
not being so flat as that species, also by its black head and scutellum, and 
having no black patch on the hinder femora, and by the antennae not being 
so stout or deep black." 
