56 
THE AUSTEALASIAN JOURNAL OF PHARMACY. 
THE FIELD NATURALISTS' CLUB OF VICTORIA. 
The monthly meeting of the Club was held at the Royal Society’s Hall, on 
Monday evening, 18th January, 1886. 
Mr. T. A. Forbes-Leith, vice-president, occupied the chair, and about fifty 
members and visitors were present. 
The hon. librarian acknowledged the receipt of the following donation to the 
library: — “Proceedings of the Linnseam Society of New South Wales,” Vol. X., 
Part 3, from the Society. 
The hon. secretary read a short account by Mr. C. French, F.L.S., of the 
Club excursion to Cheltenham on the 16th inst. The day was very oppressive, 
and only about ten members were present. The principal plants noted in 
flower were Calcile maritima , Lobelia anceps , Alyxia huxi folia, and the orchid, 
Dipodium punctatum. Insects were scarce, but the beautiful buprestid, Cyria 
imperialis , also Stigmodera sangimiipennis, S. variabUis , and S. sp. were taken. 
The following were elected members of the Club : — Mrs. J. Stirling, Messrs. 
Pickerling and St. John Topp, and Mast. Geo. French. 
Mr. F. Reader forwarded a note respecting the paper on Fungi by Mr. 
Tisdall, published in the January Naturalist . He made the following criticisms 
on Mr. Tisdall’s paper -(1) That the spores of Fungi are not always oval or 
round, but present considerable differences in form. (2) That it is undesirable to 
apply the same term “family” to such unequal groups as the Sporiferaa and 
Polyporei; and (3) That the term “pericarp” should be excluded from crypto- 
gamic descriptions. 
Papers read : — The hon. secretary read for Mr. I. Batey, of Sunbury, the 
second part of his paper, “Notes on the Habits of our Native Birds.” This 
part was devoted to cockatoos and magpies, and the writer’s account of these 
birds caused some discussion, with some interesting remarks from Rev. C. M. 
Yelland. The popular style in which the paper was written was apparently 
appreciated. 
Owing to the unavoidable absence of Dr. Dobson, Mr. Topp, and Mr. 
Reader, their papers were postponed for a future meeting. 
The following were the principal exhibits : — By Mr. F. G. A. Barnard, 
coleoptera collected recently at Pakenham, the Plenty River, and Beechworth, 
also photographs of the Lai Lai and Moorabool Falls, the scene of the recent 
excursion ; by Mr. D. Best, coleoptera collected during the season ; by Mr. G. 
Coghill, recent collections of coleoptera; by Mr. J. E. Dixon, forty species of 
coleoptera collected during December ; by Mr. T. A. Forbes-Leith, a pair of Xa- 
Kas or Hill parrots of New Zealand (Nestor Meridionalis) ; by Mr. C. French, 
F.L.S., two rare humming-birds, Topaza pella from Cayenne, and Cometes phaon , 
from Andes of Balivia; by Mr. E. H. Hennell, coleoptera from North Queens- 
land ; by Mr. F. Reader, Victorian lycopods and selaginellas ; by Mr. J. F. 
Roberts, the moth orchid of Java (Phalamopsis gramdiflora) ; by Mr. F. Spry, 
micro-lepidoptera from the Grampians, and part of the core from a diamond 
drill, consisting of slate with fossil impressions, from Stawell; by Mr. A. Thie, 
specimens of rubies, sapphires, and other precious stones ; by Rev. C. M. 
Yelland, a young saw-fish caught at Brighton. 
After the usual conversazione the meeting terminated. 
In the Zurich University one-tenth of the students are female. Twenty-nine 
young ladies study medicine, fourteen philosophy, and two political economy. 
Out of these 45 students 15 are Swiss and 10 Russians. 
