168 
MISCELLANY. 
bone. I have coated them with varnish, with wax, and with tallow previous to 
softening, in order to prevent the water acting upon the gelatin, and thereby pre¬ 
serve perfect those organs upon which the genuine characters of many of the 
feathered tribes depend, but hitherto without success. Nor am I singularly 
unfortunate in this, as 1 observe specimens in the British Museum, the Zoological 
Society’s collection, and indeed in every other museum I have yet seen, in this 
mutilated condition. This is much to be regretted, as whatever excellence the 
bird may possess as a preserved specimen, its beauty and utility are much 
deteriorated by the dusty and scaly appearance of its half-decomposed claws and 
beak. 
If any of your readers are in possession of a remedy for this evil, the publica¬ 
tion thereof would confer an obligation not only on myself, but also on others who 
I doubt not have equal cause for complaint.— Joseph R. Wallace, Douglas , 
Isle-of-Man , Aug. 19, 1839. 
BOTANY. 
u Botanical Lichens” !—The twenty-seventh number of “ The Analyst , a 
Quarterly Journal of Science,” &c., in a notice of The Naturalist , alludes to Mr. 
Edwin Lees’ query in this Journal (Yol. IV., p. 206) respecting Bohler’s 
61 Lichenes Botanici” ! ( Britannici , we presume.) In the same article there are 
two other curious mistakes, viz., “ TicJcleback” for Stickleback, and “ mind ” for 
mud !—Ed. 
Production of Cotton in England. —In July of the present year three 
Cotton-trees, in the garden at Northallerton Vicarage, shed their produce in 
abundance. They have been planted three years, but this is the first year that 
they have had produce. ( 
GEOLOGY. 
Geology and Scripture. —The Rev. Wm. Cockburn, Dean of York, and Mr. 
H.J. Francis have recently been engaged in a newspaper discussion on these 
subjects, but nothing novel or important has hitherto been elicited.— Ed. 
Sam. Slick on Secondary Formations. —The clockmaker sa 3 rs,—“ I never 
heard of 6 secondary formations’ without pleasure—that’s a fact. The ladies, you 
know, are the secondary formations, for they were formed arter man.” 
A new Eastern County. —It is intended to improve the outfalls below the 
harbours of Lynn, Wisbeach, and Boston, and reclaim from the sea 170,000 acres 
of fertile land, as well as greatly to improve the drainage and navigation by the 
rivers Ouse, Nene, Welland, and Witham, in the counties of Lincoln and Nor¬ 
folk. It is said this great work will add another county, and it is intended to 
obtain permission to have the reclaimed land called “ Victoria County.” 
the end. 
