Magazine  of  the  School  of  Agriculture. 
sexually  perfect.  To  such  a single  segment  the 
term  “ proglottis  ’’  is  applied  from  its  resem- 
blance in  shape  to  the  tip  of  the  tongue.  Pro- 
glottides are  only  produced  within  the  alimen- 
tary caual  of  some  warm-blooded  vertebrate,  but 
the  development  of  the  ova  contained  in  the 
proglottides  cannot  be  carried  on  in  this  situa- 
tion. For  the  production  of  an  embryo  it 
is  necessary  that  the  ovum  should  be  swallowed 
by  some  animal  other  thau  the  one  inhabited 
by  the  mature  tapeworm.  To  this  end  the 
ripe  proglottides  are  expelled  from  the  bowels 
after  all  the  ova  have  been  fertilised.  After 
their  discharge  from  the  body  the  proglottides 
which  for  some  time  retain  their  vitality  and 
power  of  movement,  decompose,  and  the  ova  are 
liberated,  when  they  are  found  to  be  covered 
by  a protecting  capsule.  For  development  the 
ovum  must  be  swallowed  by  some  warm-blooded 
vertebrate  and  thus  gain  access  to  its  alimen- 
tary canal.  When  this  takes  place,  and  after  the 
capsule  is  ruptured,  the  embryo  (now  called 
proscolex)  is  liberated,  and  consists  of  a minute 
vesicle  with  3 pairs  of  siliceous  spines  for 
boring  through  the  tissues  of  the  host  till  it 
reaches  some  suitable  resting  place.  Here  it 
proceeds  to  surround  itself  with  a cyst  and 
develope  a vesicle  containing  fluid  from  its  pos- 
terior extremity,  when  it  is  called  a “ scolex.” 
When  thus  encysted  the  scolex  consists  simply 
of  a head  with  a circlet  of  hooklets  and  four 
suckers,  united  by  a contracted  neck  to  a 
vesicular  body.  It  contains  no  organs  of  any 
kind  and  cannot  develope  any  further  unless  it 
be  swallowed  for  a second  time  by  a warm- 
blooded vertebrate.  It  may  however  produce  fresh 
scolices  by  budding.  Provided  the  scolex  again 
reaches  the  elementary  canal  of  a warm-blooded 
vertebrate,  it  attaches  itself  to  the  .mucous 
membrane - of  the  intestinal  tube  by  means  of  its 
hooklets  or  suckers,  and  having  dropped  its 
vesicle  becomes  the  head  of  the  tapeworm 
and  proceeds  to  put  forth  segments.  To  the 
entire  organism  with  its  head  and  mature  and 
immature  joints  (proglottides)  the  term  “strobila  " 
is  applied. 
In  the  development,  therefore,  of  the  tapeworm 
we  have  to  remember  the  following  stages: — 
1.  The  Ovum  set  free  from  the  generative 
joints  or  proglotis. 
2.  The  proscolex  or  minute  embryo  which  is 
liberated  from  the  ovum  when  the  latter  has 
been  swallowed  by  a worm-blooded  vertebrate. 
8.  The  scolex  into  which  the  proscolex 
developes,  when  it  has  encysted  itself  within 
the  tissues  of  its  host. 
4.  The  strobila  or  a duel  tapeworm  into 
which  the  scolex  developes  when  received  into 
the  alimentary  canal  of  a warm-blooded  vertebrate, 
and  consisting  of  head  and  mature  and  immature 
proglottides. 
SUBSTITUTE  FOR  CATTLE  MANURE. 
The  last  issue  of  the  Magazine  contained  an 
interesting  communication  in  which  the  possi- 
bility of  forming  a compost  that  might  be 
substituted  for  cattle  manure  was  discussed. 
For  the  supply  of  nitrogen,  gas  liquor  suggested 
itself  to  our  correspondent  who  however  states 
that  the  chief  objection  against  the  use  of  this 
substance  is  the  large  amount  of  water  it  con- 
tains. A more  valuable  substance,  however,  that 
might  be  used  with  the  same  object  in  view 
is  blood;  hut  then  neither  of  these  two  substances 
are  available  to  any  extent,  and  can  be  con- 
veniently brought  on  to  the  land  except  where 
cultivation  is  carried  on  in  the  suburbs  of  the 
metropolis,  or  near  a centre  of  population. 
Again,  bones  were  mentioned  for  supplying  the 
compost  with  phosphoric  acid  and  lime,  and 
here  again  a cheaper  substitute  that  has  come 
into  much  favour  of  late  might  be  used  instead, 
viz.,  Basic  cinder  or  Thomas  phosphate  powder. 
The  basis  of  the  substitution,  it  is  stated, 
should  be  coir  fibre  which  our  correspondent 
suggests  ought  first  to  be  deprived  of  the 
large  amount  of  water  with  which  it  is  satu- 
rated as  it  leaves  the  coir  mills.  There  is  no 
doubt  that  fibre  dust  is  an  excellent  medium 
for  holding  and  distributing  substances  contain- 
ing the  more  valuable  ingredients  of  plant  food. 
May  not  the  water  he  even  more  conveniently 
and  economically  driven  away  by  dessication !- 
Coconut  fibre  besides  supplying,  though  tardily, 
a fair  percentage  of  ash  constituents  is 
capable  of  yielding  from  2 to  5 of  nitrogen. 
But  with  a view  to  having  a more  concentrated 
substance  for  supplying  the  nitrogen,  lime, 
phosphoric  acid  of  the  compost,  our  correspondent 
suggests  that  guano  should  be  used.  The  higher 
qualities  of  this  valuable  manure  still  obtain- 
able yield  from  8 to  10  or  12  per  cent  of  ammo- 
nia, and  the  poorer  grades  about  4 per  cent  and 
even  less,  with  however  from  30  to  oO  per  cent 
of  phosphates  ; potash  may  be  present  in  from  1 
to  3 per  cent.  During  heavy  rains,  such  as  we 
experience  in  Ceylon,  especially  on  light  soils, 
there  is  some  danger  of  a part  of  the  soluble 
constituents  of  guano  being  washed  out  ; on  fairly 
retentive  soils,  however,  this  danger  would 
be  reduced  to  a minimum  It  would  be  most 
interesting  if  our  correspondent  would  with  a 
view  .to  replacing  cattle  manure  with  a compost 
.consisting  of  coir-dust,  guano  (of  course  of  a 
/fixed  analysis,  for  there  are  guanos  and  guanos’) 
calculate  out  the  cost  of  manuring  an  acre  of 
coconuts  with  the  compost  as  compared  with  that 
.of  manuring  with  cattle  manure.  Given  the  per- 
centage analysis,  the  ordinary  units  in  determin- 
ing the  value  of  manures  can  be  used  for  esti- 
mating the  value  of  just  so  much  guano  as 
would  be  required  to  supply  the  same  quantity  of 
the  ingredients  supplied  ;by  cattle  manure. 
In  connection  with  the  discussion  of  the  subject 
of  a substitute  for  cattle  manure,  mention  was 
made  in  the  “ Ceylon  Independent  ” of  a compost 
suggested  by  Mr.  Eerindorge  many  years  ago  in 
Ceylon.  We  have  been  kindly  supplied  with  the 
following  facts  relative  to  this  mixture It 
consisted  of  jungle  stuff  indiscriminately,  and 
the  process  of  composting  consisted  unbuilding  up 
a stack  thus  : -(f)-  A thick  layer  of  green  jungle 
stuff — leaves,  twigs,  grass,  &c.  (2)  A sprinkling 
over  this  of  liquid  salts — -Muriate  of  ammonia,  sul- 
phate of  ammonia,  chloride  of  sodium,  sulphate 
sodium  &c.  in  certain  proportions.  (3)  No.  1 
repeated.  (4)  No.  2 repeated,  and  so  on  to  a 
convenient  height,  and  then  covering  over  the 
stack  with  a layer  of  earth.  After  thorough 
decomposition  the  compost  was  very  like  cattle 
