many a one may be seen adorned with a little necklace, and pair of tiny earrings of gold and coral. The marmoset is naturally affectionate, and it soon becomes attached to its owner.

In the marmoset the emotions of rage, pleasure, and fear are strongly developed. It exhibits three distinct states of rage, the changes from one to the other being abrupt. They are as follows: (1) when slightly agitated (when shown to a stranger, or if any attempt be made to forcibly handle her), expressed by a slight chattering; (2) a more pronounced stage (when taken up suddenly by the hand), when she chatters vigorously, and attempts to bite; (3) an extreme stage, when the chattering becomes most vigorous, alternated frequently with shrill barks, and determined attempts at biting, the whole body trembles and is convulsed with fury. I can tell immediately—if I am not in the same room-the state she is in from her cries; but lately she has entirely given up the third stage, for which I am thankful, as it could end fatally through the intense excitement.

Pleasure is expressed by whistling, and a peculiar little gentle chatter; when placed in the sun she will assume all sorts of positions, and extend the limbs, in order to literally bathe in the sunlight, and will every now and then give vent to a loud and prolonged whistle from a widely distended mouth. I have been able to produce this state latterly, by imitating her whistle, when she will answer back. She will whistle when she is gently caressed and played with, and she will then be very playful, jumping over your hand in the most eccentric manner, and pretending to bite, every now and then dashing off with tail erect, to return again immediately. At such times she will play hide and seek round a book or some other object with the greatest zest, and when caught face to face will stop short and draw the skin back from the face in a curious manner, as if to make herself smaller, and so invisible.

Fear is expressed by a sharp high whistle, which resembles the screeching made by a pencil on a slate. The sight of a dog will at once cause it to be uttered. She appears much more timid of a dog than of a cat; but when brought face to face with either will at once assume an attitude of defence, by raising the body on the hind quarters, and preparing to use her fore limbs and teeth. The sight of "Sallie" (the chimpanzee in the Zoo) produced in her the most abject fear, while she seemed anxious to attack all the other monkeys.

A looking-glass always amuses her. When looking at her own reflection she will turn her head round in a most curious manner, as if to examine the reflection from all directions; this movement of the head will also take place when examining any very strange object. She is very fond of having the scalp raised by the fingers, and of having the long black ear coverts twisted up, and will sit for hours on my

shoulder, whatever I may be doing. If left alone for long, she wears a most dejected air, and will, if possible, go to bed. At night time she sleeps in a little flannel bag lined with cotton wool, and it is amusing, as evening approaches, to see how restless she becomes. When released from her perch she will make for the sofa on which is placed the bag, and coil herself into it, only coming out at dinner time for some sweets, and then sleeping until it is daylight again. Should a bell be rung, a faint whistle may be heard from the bed, although she is asleep.

In her habits she is extremely clean and regular. Her staple food is bread and milk, but she is very fond of insects and fruit, and the sight of apricot jam causes great excitement, as she likes it better than anything else. Her weight is nine ounces.

I have never attempted to teach her many tricks, but my aim has been to try to understand her ways; a better way I think of studying animal nature than by devoting time to teaching tricks-which, after all, are only learnt in a mechanical and vague manner. If we try to understand them, we undoubtedly gain their trust and affection. This timid little marmoset will follow me about like a dog, though I never encourage it.

DAVID WILSON-BARKER.

A VISIT TO THE BRIGHTON AQUARIUM. By EDWARD A. Martin.

IN spite of the care and attention which, in the

interest of the shareholders, is devoted towards providing dramatic and musical entertainment for the mental digestion of frequenters of the Brighton Aquarium, the establishment still retains a high position as a scientific collection of one of the most useful divisions of the great vertebrate sub-kingdom. One can scarcely lay blame on the shoulders of the directors that the force of circumstances has compelled them to neglect to a partial extent the true objects for which the collection was founded. All shareholders cannot afford to imitate the example of one of their body, who returned dividends to the amount of a good many pounds in order that the sum might be devoted to the needs of pisciculture. The result of the present policy has been that perhaps not one-eighth of those who visit the Aquarium are in the slightest degree interested in the scientific aspect of the institution, whilst those who are so interested, are content to remain thankful that through the tolls paid by the remaining seven-eighths, they are allowed to retain the place at all as a scientific collection of fish.

It is remarkable that amongst the creatures exhibited there are found representatives of each of the five classes of vertebrates, although the collection is nominally one of the "pisces" only. Yet an Aquarium should be available for the reception of all

those creatures which exist in water; and indeed, taken in this its widest sense, it is scarcely to be seen why the authorities have made no effort to introduce other classes among the invertebrates, one of which is notably absent, namely, the molluscs. There would scarcely be anything more interesting than a series of tanks in which were to be seen crawling about on the rocky bed, or over the sandy floor, the inhabited shells of those creatures which we are accustomed to see lying in cabinets and on mantel-shelves, artificially polished, and in many cases in sharp contrast to their dull natural appearance.

Perhaps one of the most interesting tanks is that devoted to the beautiful Guillemots, or swimming birds, although few visitors have the opportunity of seeing them at their best. This is at their feeding time, when they exhibit their wonderful powers of diving.

When the surface of the water, as seen from below, is perturbed by the almost phosphorescent wavelets, caused by the birds splashing about and cleaving the water at full speed in pursuit of their prey, the sudden transformation of a bird into a fish-for such it almost appears in the water-is a most striking sight, and as it cuts through the surface with its beak, and folds its powerful wings by its side when gliding through the water with the impetus it has gained, it shines with a silver-like glow, as it reflects the rays which illumine it from above. It seems principally to use its legs in its under-water propulsion, its tail doubtless acting the same part as that it plays in true fishes. The bird has been said to remain beneath the surface for several minutes.

The strange lazy mud-fish in its table aquarium scarcely perhaps attracts the attention it deserves, and yet its life-history is a most important one to the evolutionist, since it is one of those animals which supply a found-and not a missing-link between the Reptilia and the Pisces. In reptiles, the process of breathing is carried on by means of well-developed lungs, whilst in the fishes proper, the process of oxygenisation of the blood is brought about by gills, situated on both sides of the head behind the mouth. It is scarcely necessary to repeat the fact that fishes require air just at much as human beings, and that if placed in water which has been boiled (and of course cooled), they cannot live, or that if placed in insufficiently aërated water they can often be seen breathing the air at the surface of the aquarium. In our friend the mud-fish, Lepidosiren or Protopterus, however, there is not only the usual complement of gills as in fishes, but also lungs, as in reptiles, the ordinary swimming-bladder of fishes being in this instance organised as a lung. The happy possession, therefore, of both of these forms of breathing apparatus, enables it to inhale air both directly from the atmosphere, and by abstracting it from the water. In its native haunts it is found inhabiting the rivers on the west coast of Africa. These at certain seasons run quite dry. At such times, when

it feels the stream gradually subsiding in which it has dwelt, and the danger threatens of being stranded and exposed to the attacks of its enemies, it has the habit of burrowing into the soft clay forming the bed of the stream, and of there hiding itself in the nest it has formed. As soon as the water has ceased to flow over its place of refuge it commences to breathe by means of its lungs, and remains ensconced in its clayey home, until, with the return of the wet season, the stream again fills up its deserted bed. By taking advantage of this nidifying propensity, the fish was brought to England in the clay in which it had buried itself, and the nest is now to be seen by the side of the aquarium in which the creature lives. It would seem, too, as if it has resumed its fish-like habits permanently, as no provision appears to have been made for it in its confined home, by which it can at all make use of that important organ, its lungs. This is rather to be regretted, as to the general public the novel sight of a comparatively unknown fish living out of water, on a dry soil, would have proved no doubt interesting and entertaining.

Fishes, fossil and recent, are sometimes roughly classified into two divisions according to the shape of their tails. Agassiz, the great naturalist, whose authority on the subject is everywhere recognised, found that some tails were equal-lobed, as in the case of the herring, whilst others, as those of the shark, the skate, and the sturgeon, were unequallobed, and consisted of an elongated upper lobe, into which the backbone was continued, the lower lobe being considerably shortened. It is an interesting fact that, although now but very few living fishes have tails of the unequal-lobed form, almost all of the forms of primitive fish-life bore them. During a period preceding that when the chalk was formed, fish with equal-lobed tails commenced to live, whilst the ancient form began to die out. The proportion of one form to the other now, therefore, is reversed, whereas homocercal (equal) tails were formerly the exception, and heterocercal (unequal) tails the rule, now, with the exception of the sturgeon, shark, skate, bony-pike, and perhaps a few others, the far larger proportion are equal-lobed.

The little gar-pike, or bony-pike of the American rivers, which are now in the Aquarium, are the first of their species which have been introduced alive into England. To the energy of Mr. Crane, F.G.S., and his American friends, the authorities are greatly indebted in this matter. The gar-pike exhibit well the ancient form of unequal lobed tail. They attain a length of several feet, and their vertebral column is more completely ossified than any living fish. Their jaws form a long narrow snout, which is armed by a double series of teeth.

Every schoolboy who has lived in a district where the chalk-hills form an important feature in the landscape, has found at some period or other numerous

"sharks'-teeth" imbedded in the chalk-pits. They form such a well-known fossil that we can judge, to a certain extent, of the numbers in which sharks lived in those parts when the chalk was being formed beneath the sea. These relics of the monsters of the deep, which then roamed through the sea in our latitudes, remind us forcibly of the great change which has come over the inhabitants of these shores. We have no voracious shark now skirting our British coasts, lying in wait for a meal of man or beast, as he would have done in ages gone by. Our waters are not warm enough for him, and the man-eating sharks, whose ancestors left their bones and teeth on the chalky floor of the northern ocean, have now bid good-bye to these regions, and betaken themselves to a climate more suited to their taste. The only allied fish which now remain with us are the various species of dog-fish. These represent well in structure the most important points in the dreaded white shark, although of course very much in miniature.

The order which embraces the sharks and dogfishes, also includes the rays and the skates. As I was watching the tank which contained the latter, a large individual came floundering from the recesses of the cavern, and settled itself down on the base of the tank immediately in front of the glass. As it settled it seemed to press its two side fins downwards, and arch its body from side to side, as though to prevent the under surface of its body coming into contact with the ground. I noticed that this occurred each time it settled, so to speak; and I therefore determined to watch its under-surface, as it rose, for an explanation of the position it assumed. An opportunity soon presented itself, and as the creature rose, it showed on the under-surface of its body two series of five branchial openings radiating away from each other and from its mouth. These openings communicated with a corresponding number of branchial pouches, and really constituted its means of breathing. This was the more apparent, since the openings were regularly opened and closed by a covering membrane at intervals of about a couple of seconds' duration. This at once explained the reason of its peculiar attitude when on the floor of the tank.

As we pass along the corridors, the interesting little stickleback claims our attention, and recalls to mind the ingenious manner in which the male builds its nest for the reception of his chosen brides. The gorgeous plumage of the dahlia (Crassicornis) and carnation (Dianthus) anemones appeal to our æsthetic and artistic tastes, and we notice how the latter species have taken to themselves the most prominent projections of the rocks, to the exclusion of all others of its fellows. We notice the tank of silvery little whitebait, shining in the artificial light overhead, and take note of the fact that they have been kept in captivity until they have grown into true herrings. The ugly octopi, with their internal skeleton, familiar to us as the cuttle-bone; the turtles, the affectionate

looking seals, are amongst the many creatures which arrest our attention. We hope fervently that the aquarium will be able to steer clear of pecuniary shoals, as it has done in the past, and that there will be sufficient local spirit to prevent such a national institution from falling a prey to insolvency. If unable to pay its way, perhaps Government might be induced to engraft it on to the Natural History Department of the British Museum, which should carry it on as a seaside branch of itself. Perhaps the Council of the Imperial Institute might be prevailed upon to become interested in it, and save it from any possibility of having to close its doors. Were practical experiments in pisciculture to become the recognised reason of its existence, even Englishmen would not begrudge an occasional Government grant towards its support.

THE

ROSSENDALE RHIZOPODS.

No. I.

HE wonders of structure and organisation revealed by the Microscope in every department of the vegetable and animal world, form a chapter of intensest interest to the thoughtful mind. On the one hand we see the whole organised creation built up of practically identical elements; on the other, the most varied and wonderful adaptations, in every minute particular, to fit them for their surroundings and mode of life. Wonderful and interesting as these revelations have undoubtedly been, yet the discovery of the Rhizopoda, the Infusoria, and Rotifera-bringing within our ken, as it were, the denizens of a new world-far surpasses, to some orders of mind, all other discoveries. During the past few years, I have devoted special attention to these classes of animals, (particularly the Rotifera), have systematically "fished" a limited number of ponds, taking notes in the field, of my captures, and of the conditions under which they were made, and I propose in this and subsequent papers to embody some, at least, of these notes, in the hope that they may prove of service to those entering upon the study of what is colloquially termed, "Pond Life." As I have now pretty well worked up the Rotifera of Rossendale, so that I rarely come across any form I have not previously drawn and studied, I resolved to do something in the way of compiling a local list, and studying the habits and peculiarities of the humble Rhizopods of our district. From its known richness in microscopic life generally, I fully expected being able to reap a rich harvest of species, and was not altogether without hope of adding some new form, not Ipreviously known to science. consideration which will naturally recommend this class to microscopists of curtailed leisure, is the fact. that it consists only of about seventy species; a. number not requiring a great amount of labour in.

Another

order to get a fair idea of the class. Although I only commenced the special study of the Rhizopoda about three months ago, I have already collected over onethird of the known fresh-water species, so far at least as these are recorded in Professor Leidy's great work; and in addition three or four species apparently unknown to that authority; all in four or five places, within a mile of my own house. In future papers I propose to describe these forms, and to give drawings of the principal varieties, in order to revive an interest in a somewhat neglected class of animals.

The Rhizopoda are microscopic beings, the majority of which are invisible to the naked eye; they are essentially aquatic, being found in ponds, ditches, lakes, marshes, bogs, and in the sea. They appear to have been the first representatives of animal life on earth; and if the theory of evolution be correct, they represent our own remotest ancestors. They constitute a class of micro-organisms of the most simple character; there is no distinction of tissues or organs, but their animal substance is homogeneous, contractile and translucent, resembling a tenaceous mucus or soft tremulous jelly. This jelly substance, in the living state, is constantly changing its form by expanding at one or several points into processes of ever-varying dimensions, arrangement, and number. These are used as organs of locomotion and prehension, and frequently branch. From the appearance of these temporary organs resembling roots, this class of animal has received its name of Rhizopoda, literally, root-footed. Generally speaking, especially in the naked forms, this colourless jelly includes coloured food-particles, principally microscopic algae in various stages of digestion, and numerous globules, granules, and various foreign particles, such as sand-grains, all of which tend to diminish the transparency of the animal, and often impart considerable colour. The internal portion of the animal appears somewhat more fluid than the exterior, although in no case is there a true membranous covering. The terms endosarc and ectosarc are used to express this difference, which is more marked in the Order Lobosa than in any other. Many of the animals are capable of enclosing themselves in a shell or test of various figure, consistence, and complexity, and such variations serve to separate the Rhizopods into families and genera. The testaceous forms include the charming Foraminifera and Polycystina, the exquisitely beautiful shells of which are formed in the one case of carbonate of lime, and in the other of silica of most glassy transparency; but as these are (with one exception) exclusively marine in their habitats, we omit all further reference to them in these papers. The fresh-water Rhizopods form their tests or shells of a variety of materials; some of a horn-like substance called Chitine, similar to that which gives strength to the integument of insects; others form neat, box

like cases, made up of minute sand-grains or of diatoms, separately or mixed; while another section, having made a further advance in architecture, build up their tests of rounded, oval, or rectangular plates, of chitinous or silicious material, which, overlapping in various ways, form definite patterns. Our district is fairly rich in these charming forms; although the greater number of them are inhabitants of sphagnous swamps. In most of the genera there is a more or less granular spot called the nucleus, which is considered as the centre of vital activity. Many authorities attach great importance to the presence or absence of this organ, but it is, I believe, a fact, that in the lowly organisms we are now considering, it cannot always be demonstrated, and in some cases is undoubtedly absent. There is, however, another organ which is rarely absentsometimes indeed there are considerably more than one (in Arcella, for instance) viz., a contracting vesicle; this presents itself as a "clear, colourless, or pale roseate sphere, which is observed very slowly to enlarge, then rapidly to collapse, and for a moment to disappear, again to reappear, commonly in the same position." This occurs with a certain degree of regularity. The phenomenon is remarkable, and probably serves a respiratory, and possibly an excretory function.

A few words on classification, which is simple, and easily mastered, will suitably conclude this introductory paper. The class is divided into five orders: Protoplasta; Heliozoa; Radiolaria; Foraminifera ; and Monera. The first order is divided into two suborders, Lobosa and Filosa; the former with thick, finger-like, or lobose processes or pseudopods; the latter with filamentous or thread-like pseudopods. The fresh-water Rhizopods are, with one or two exceptions, contained in the first two orders. Protoplasta lobosa has eleven genera and about forty-three species, and contains such well-known forms as Amœba, Difflugia and Arcella; P. filosa has six genera, and about seventeen species, many of them most charming animals, having most beautifully builtup tests; Heliozoa contains eleven genera and about fifteen species. While the order Foraminifera has but two fresh-water species, Gromia turricola and Biomyxa vagans. Monera, constituted by Haeckel to contain those Rhizopods destitute of nuclei, may be discarded, as many of the forms for which it was created (Foraminifera, &c.) have been proved to be nucleated. This gives us thirty genera, and about seventyseven species. I have little doubt, however, from my own limited experience, that this number might be materially increased if Microscopists would only pay some attention to this interesting but neglected class of animals. In my next contribution, I propose to describe the Rossendale forms of the naked, lobose Protoplasts.

Rowtenstall.

J. E. LORD.

THE CARBONIFEROUS LIMESTONE OF

THIS

SCOTLAND.

By CHAS. WARDINGLEY.

HIS group of rocks has been variously termed 'Encrinital," ," "Productus" and "Mountain " imestone, and in every case the synonyms have been characteristically applied. The broader term "Carboniferous" is, however, to be preferred, as it will more appropriately include all the varieties of limestone deposited between the close of the Old Red Sandstone period and the commencement of the Permian. The group is decidedly one of the most interesting of the fossiliferous deposits of Scotland, and besides, affords an excellent field of study to the practical geologist. Outcrops occur in the large area extending from the north-east of Fife to the south-west of Dumfries. In these counties, and in Roxburgh, Haddington,

desire to investigate the rocks for themselves, we may divide the field occupied by the Carboniferous Limestone into two sections, the Forth district, and the Dumfriesshire district. The former affords the greater number of accessible exposures, and besides its geological features presents many other attractions equally interesting to the tourist of scientific tastes who desires to indulge in a variety of out-door studies.

The above rough sketch introduces us to the limestone exposures adjacent to or within the Forth district, where the beds lie either immediately above the Lower Coal Measures, or alternatively above the Calciferous Sandstone Series. The total thickness of the beds does not exceed 90 feet, even including the freshwater deposit familiarly known as the Burdiehouse Limestone. This is a great contrast to the enormous thickness of the limestone of England,

Edinburgh, and Linlithgow, it appears chiefly-as in England, capping the various hills and ridges, having to a considerable extent escaped by its hardness the denuding and wasting influences which have worn down the more friable sandstones. Compact and durable, it has offered the sternest opposition to the destructive powers of air, frost, and rain, with this result, that while representatives of other formations have been levelled to its base-the Carboniferous Limestone still stands boldly and sharply out, its peaks and ridges appearing to bid defiance to the conquering power which has worked such havoc among less resisting strata.

To the student of geology the group is probably the most unmistakable of the stratified rocks, and yielding as it does a large variety of economic products, its industrial importance can scarcely be over-rated. For the convenience of those who may at any time

where in several places, notably Ashbourne, in Derbyshire, the total depth is over 1,500 feet. The main mass of the Scotch limestone usually occurs in thick beds, with but little shale ¡between, and with few exceptions' is of the grey colour so familiar to geologists who have worked the limestone deposits on the south-western slopes of the Pennine range at Chatburn, Clitheroe, and Whalley. Possibly the best and most typical exposures will be found in Fife, at Invertiel, 1 mile west of Kirkcaldy, and again at Charleston, 5 miles west of the northern terminus of the Forth bridge. At Invertiel it is seen lying upon the Calciferous Sandstone, cropping out some 70 or 75 feet above the level of the sea, with the strike running from N. W. to S. E. and with an E.N.E. dip angle of 15°. The thickness of the exposed limestone is about 30 feet, and for the greater part consists of massive compact layers interspersed with thin seams