264 
REPORTS OF SOCIETIES. 
St. Olive’s. Mr. W. H. France read a paper on “ Cremation,” which will 
appear in these pages. Geological Section, October 2ard.—Mr. T. H. Waller ex¬ 
hibited microscopic preparations of volcanic dust ejected during the late eruption 
of Krakatoa in Java, and of a lava from Montserrat, the trituration of which 
would produce such dust. Mr. W. B. Grove, B.A., exhibited the following fungi 
from the neighbourhood: Epicoccmti purpurascens, Fusidium cylindricum, 
Agraicus pseudopurus, Ag. fimhriatus, Ag. hrevip>es, Ag. viscipellis, Ag. virgatvs, 
Ag. mappa, Ag. metaclirous, Ag. ditopiis, Clavaria rugosa, C. stricta, Pistillaria 
quisqidlviris, Mucor fasiger, etc. Mr. J. E. Bagnall exhibited Agaricus 
squamosus (named by Mr. Phillips) and other fungi from Middleton; also on 
behalf of Mr. C. B. Plowright, of King’s Lynn, Agaricus humilis, Ag. conissans, 
Ag. flaccidm, Ag. pyxidatus, Ag. nehularis, Ag. clavipes, Hygropliorxis Icetus, 
H. hypothejxLS, Cortinarius pTiolideus, C. rigens, and C. castaneus, all from 
Sandringham; Panus torulosus, etc., from Lynn. Mr. W. H. France then read 
a paper sent by the Eev. P. B. Brodie, M.A., F.G.S., of Rowington, on ” Fossil 
Spiders and Scorpions.” 
NOTTINGHAM NATURALISTS’ SOCIETY.—September 18th.—Mr. T. W. 
Cave, M.R.C.V.S., read an important paper on “ The Life-history of a few 
Parasites of Domestic Animals,” being the second part of a subject brought 
before the Society during the previous session. Th‘> author dealt with the 
pi’incipal species of the Nematoda or round-worm family, and gave some 
instructive facts about the much-dreaded Trichina spiralis. He said it only 
lived three or four weeks. Each female produced at least 1,000 embryos, and 
often ten or fifteen thousand. It had been found that one ounce of flesh from 
an infected pig contained 80,000 irichince. The best means of iirevention con¬ 
sisted in care being taken that all pork was in a well-cooked condition throughout 
before being eaten. The remainder of the paper was devoted to other repre¬ 
sentatives of the class, such as the Strongylidce, which caused the disease called 
“husk” in calves and lambs. October 2nd.—Dr. E. Seaton (Pr sident) occupied 
the chair, and the evening was devoted to the reading of short communications. 
The first was a paper on the “ Hedgehog,” by Mrs. W. A. Brown, in which the 
subject was treated in a highly practical way, and gave the results of long- 
continued personal observation of the habits of these animals. Mr. W. Wright 
followed with an account of “Local Entomological Captures made during the Sum¬ 
mer,” and the 131 specimens he had collected, all neatly mounted, were insiiected 
by those present with much interest and admiration. Mr. J. Shipman then read 
a paper on a “ Boulder from the Bunter Pebble Beds,” a slice of which (showing 
the shape and surface dimensions) he exhibited. The boulder was found in the 
Bunter Pebble Beds in a small sand quarry at the south-west corner of Wollaton 
Park wall. It attracted his attention first on account of its size, being the largest 
boulder he had ever seen in the Bunter, and very much larger than the pebbles 
that usually occur in that formation. It measured 7in. by Gin. by 3Jin., and 
weighed over 91bs. It was quite angular, being only very slightly worn along 
the edges, and therefore not much rolled about by the action of currents. It 
resembled Caradoc sandstone more than anything else, and was quite unlike the 
coal measure sandstone of the adjacent coalfield in texture. It consisted of 
hard fine-grained white sandstone, finely but unevenly laminated, and very fissile. 
The author then dwelt briefly on the wonderful interest that was connected with 
these iiebbles, for it was by their means that geologists were trying to solve the 
problem of where the source was whence the Bunter sandstone was derived. He 
referred to the rival theories of Professor Bonney,F.R.S., and Mr.W. J. Harrison, 
F.G.S., the former believing they came from the north-west of Scotland, and the 
latter assigning their source as a ridge of high laud that stretches in Bunter 
lines across the South Midlands of England, and concluded by remarking that 
wherever the boulder came from it must have come direct from its parent rock. 
The boulder was examined with much interest. Mr. J. J. Ogle then read a paper 
on “Some Plant Defences,” which was much appreciated. 
