PROCEEDINGS OP THE SOCIETY. 
251 
without the possibility of doubt that it really was chlorophyll, he thought 
it would be almost a waste of time to discuss it. 
Mr. Bennett said that whilst he remained sceptical — as stated on a 
former occasion — as to the correctness of some of the conclusions at 
which Mr. Green seemed to have arrived, he still thought that the 
comparative study of root-hairs was a good one, and that it might lead 
to important results. He hoped, therefore, that Mr. Green would con- 
tinue to pursue his observations and study of the subject. The existence 
of chlorophyll in the subterranean organs of plants was not absolutely 
unknown, but its presence in the root-hairs would be a very extraordinary 
circumstance, and they should want some very good explanation given 
before they were able to accept it. He quite agreed with what Prof. Bell 
had said, and when they remembered the tricks which were played by 
colour in viewing this class of objects with high powers, he thought 
they would do well not to come to any hasty conclusions. 
Mr. Green said he had never found this colour in the root-hairs 
themselves, but only in the parasitic growths on the hairs. He did not 
know that what he found was chlorophyll, but he had thought it must 
be so on account of its colour. 
The President said Mr. Green had undoubtedly taken an immense 
amount of trouble in the preparation of these very interesting drawings, 
and they were greatly indebted to him for bring them down to the 
meeting, but, as Prof. Bell had remarked, it was essential to determine 
if what had been spoken of as chlorophyll really was so, and this could, 
of course, be done by chemical analysis or by means of the spectroscope. 
It would also be interesting to know what evidence there was that these 
growths were parasites at all, for he had not heard anything conclusive 
yet as to this — they might be or they might not be, so far as they were 
at present informed. The subject was certainly an interesting one, and 
if Mr. Green pursued it with some closer examination of some of the 
points mentioned it might turn out to be of considerable value. 
Mr. Bennett said he entirely concurred in the views expressed — that 
they should have some absolute proof presented to them before they 
accepted the interpretation given. 
Prof. Bell said they had received a letter from Dr. Stolterforth 
calling attention to a misprint in the December number of the 
Journal at p. 762 in his communication “On the genus Corethron,” the 
word Atlantic having been substituted for Antarctic. 
Prof. Bell gave an interesting description of some very remarkable 
Corals lately received at the British Museum of Natural History from 
Mr. W. Saville Kent, of which a series of excellent photographs were 
shown upon the screen. He said that the specimens were in themselves 
scarcely to be regarded as proper subjects to bring before a Microscopical 
Society, but they were of great interest to students of natural history 
because they demonstrated in an absolutely irrefragable manner that 
variations of a most remarkable character were to be found in one and 
the same mass. Some of the specimens at the Museum were of enormous 
size as compared with anything of the kind hitherto received, the largest 
