396 
Proceedings of the Royal Physical Society. 
" Fat dae ye say to a bunner pun'?" He meant pounds 
Scots. A hundred pounds, sir!" exclaimed the jeweller. 
'* It is a beautiful pearl, a very beautiful pearl, but a hundred 
pounds is a very large sum ; and" "Aweel," said the Aber- 
donian, who saw from the manner in which the jeweller 
spoke that if he stuck to his demand it would be granted, 
" that's the price, tak it or want it." After a little hesita- 
tion the bargain was made, and the farmer got an hundred 
pounds sterling, instead of the " bunner pun" Scots, equal 
to eight pounds six shillings and eightpence, which he asked 
when he went into the shop. The jeweller afterwards sold 
the pearl to the king. 
Dr J. A. Smith reminded the Society that Mr Alexander 
Bryson read a paper at their meeting in February 1860 " On 
the Structure and Formation of Pearls," an abstract of 
which was published in their Proceedings. Mr Bryson's 
views were quite in accordance with those of Mr Brodie. He 
might also mention that specimens of shells with pearls arti- 
ficially produced by the Chinese might be seen in the 
Museum of the Society of Antiquaries. 
Mr 0. W. Peach said it was a common statement in the 
Highlands, that pearls were not to be got there since the old 
system of keeping black cattle had been abolished, and he 
believed there was a good deal of truth in this, although he 
would not explain it as the Highlanders might be inclined 
to do. He believed the herds of cattle wading in the streams 
would crush and injure many of the mussels, and, as Mr 
Brodie remarked, cause them in this way to form pearls 
within their shells. 
II. Farther Observations on the Boulder Clay of Caithness, with an 
additional List of Fossils. (Specimens were exhibited.) Bj Charles 
W. Peach, Esq. 
At your meeting of tlie 25th February 1863, a paper of 
mine was read on the above subject. At the close, regret 
was expressed that the author had not been a little more 
explicit in his details of the clay-beds, and the exact locali- 
