CHEROCAMPA CELERIO. - A fine specimen was captured here on Wednesday (August 28) by Mr. Horrocks, a collector in this town. It is a very fine insect, and, judging from its condition, I should think it was fresh from the pupa state. Having no net with him at the time, he was obliged to take it in an old matchbox. This is the second specimen taken in Ipswich, one having been caught some time since by Mr. Eaton, and now in the possession of Mr. Ransome.-W. M. Cole, Ipswich.

CHAMELEON.-Several weeks ago a friend from Cadiz presented me with a fine chameleon, about a foot long. I have known persons fail to remark, until their attention was called to it, the very curious motion of the eyes, which can be worked quite independently of each other, or in conjunction; for instance, one eye may be stationary, whilst the other revolves freely, or both may be moved in different or even contrary directions; but when about to strike at a fly, both eyes are brought to bear on the object. I have seen it protrude its tongue and catch a fly at about seven inches distance, but its favourite range seems to be three or four inches, and if the prey be nearer than one inch, it generally retreats when practicable to increase the distance. The chameleon sleeps soundly, lying longitudinally on a perch, or clinging to any object on which night overtakes him, and will bear a little gentle handling without awaking. Asleep and in the dark, the general colour is straw below, and light pea-green above, delicately shaded off. The passions appear to influence the colour, as it often changes when the animal is approached. Still I can observe no fixed rule by which the colours are governed, though generally the brightest light produces the darkest colour, and vice versa. Sometimes the side exposed to the sun becomes dark brown, approaching to black, more or less spotted; sometimes dark chocolate; and I have seen it in direct sunlight deep yellow and light green, in spots, bars, &c., with some darker markings, and in some parts the green approached very much to blue. When light coloured, two rows of dark marks generally appear along each side. The intensity of colour on one side may often be, and generally is, different from that on the other side. The tongue is slightly protruded from the mouth preparatory to striking a fly, which is effected with great celerity and much precision, although it is often obliged so to contort its body as to seem very unfavourably placed for attacking its prey. On retracting, the tongue is considerably deflected, depending much on the distance; and the free end, which is considerably the thicker, may be seen to be concave, and in this cavity is the fly; but it is by no means easy at all times to observe the concavity, owing to the rapidity of the act. The motion of the limbs, though slow, is very free, and the grasp of the feet very firm. These are shaped much like those

of a parrot. The tail is prehensile. I have never succeeded in keeping a chameleon alive for more than two months, and should feel obliged if any of the readers of SCIENCE-GOSSIP could give me any hints about such treatment as may conduce to their longevity.-G. S., Oporto.

BOTANY.

TEA-TREE (Lycium barbarum).—I have at this time one of these plants covered with the beautiful bright red berries, so that it is a perfect spectacle. Although the plant is common enough in gardens, I think that it is not so common to observe it so full of fruit.-W. C. C.

SONCHUS

PALUSTRIS.-Would you be kind enough to state for the information of "B." that it was in the county of Essex that I became acquainted with Sonchus palustris, L., as described in SCIENCEGOSSIP for September. Having considerable acquaintance with the flora of Dorsetshire, I am able to supplement the remarks of "R. W." respecting the occurrence of Enanthe pimpinelloides, L., in that county. I have found it growing luxuriantly in several places in the vicinity of Weymouth; a bank to the south-west of Lodmoor adjoining the Preston road, and the east shore of the Backwater near Radipole, are two of the habitats, but not the only ones in that neighbourhood.J. W. White.

JUMPING SEEDS.-I have read occasionally in Natural History journals of what are termed "jumping seeds;" but it was only this summer that something similar came under my own observation, the particulars of which may possibly interest some of your readers. A friend sent me a small excrescence taken off a hawthorn; it was about a sixth of an inch in length, pear-shaped, and in size and form much resembled one of the small stones of a grape or raisin; it appeared to have been attached by the apex. Its curious jumping movements having attracted attention, it was brought to me to ascertain the cause of its activity, which was naturally attributed to some living creature concealed within. When it came into my hands it was perfectly quiet, and as it remained so in spite of all attempts to rouse it, I imagined the inmate was defunct. However, in the course of the evening it was heard going through its performances in the pill-box, and on removing the lid it was seen oscillating and leaping with a smart jerk, which carried it a quarter of an inch or more from its starting-point. I was told that it had jumped nearly an inch in length and a fourth of an inch high, but I did not see it do so much after it came into my possession, by which time possibly it might have lost some of its vigour. The movements were sharp and sudden, but usually

stopped awhile after it had been disturbed. These actions continued all that evening, but the next day not observing any movement, I concluded it was dead (though I afterwards learnt that it had been seen to move on that day), and the evening of the day following, still finding no signs of life, I opened it, and, as anticipated, found it was tenanted by a larva, which, contrary to expectation, was alive. It was a whitish maggot, with a small yellowish scaly head, the body bent into a semicircle, and the tail end slightly flattened. It had no legs, but the shining skin was deeply corrugated, or thrown into folds, which appeared to serve in some degree as limbs; a very few hairs could be detected on the body. The movements when extracted from the case, though pretty vigorous, had nothing of a leaping character, and consisted in twisting about in a helpless manner. As the walls of the case were thin and shewed little material left for food, it would appear that the larva was near its change. That any living thing entirely enclosed in a rigid box or envelope as this appeared to be, should be able to "jump" the said box from one spot to another as easily as a boy jumps in a sack, is not a little marvellous. The oscillating or rolling motion is more easily explained, as the mere shifting of the centre of gravity in a body with a round or cylindrical (in this case rather conical) exterior would be likely to cause the whole to change place. Possibly the envelope being thin, might be somewhat elastic, and capable of transmitting the force of the blows given from within, otherwise it would remind one of the accounts sometimes related of coffins being found upright, supposed to be so placed by the struggles of the wretched inmate buried alive-a feat of strength that would defy the efforts of the greatest athlete the world ever saw.-G. Guyon, Ventnor, Isle of Wight.

BOLETUS CYANESCENS.-On the 17th September this extremely rare and beautiful species of Boletus was growing in comparative abundance on the grassy banks near the north gate of Richmond Park. It grew in batches of all sizes, under oaks. In the immediate neighbourhood, also under oaks, I came upon a considerable colony of B. piperatus, a lovely fungus, but possessing fearful pungency. B. felleus also occurred under the same trees.-W. G. Smith.

BOLETUS IMPOLITUS, FR.- Surely your correspondent "H. B." is in error regarding this excellent Boletus. I know it well; it is pleasant and mild when raw, and nutty, crisp, and most delicious when cooked; in fact I consider it preferable to Boletus edulis. Its comparative rarity was the only cause of its omission in the sheets published by Mr. Hardwicke. Has "H. B." mistaken the bitter and disagreeable Boletus felleus, for Boletus impolitus? They resemble each other to a certain

degree, the former (as far as my experience goes) is much the commoner of the two. Boletus impolitus is one of the best of all our fungi.-W. G. S.

PRIMARY COLOURS.-Having noticed in this month's number of SCIENCE-GOSSIP a record of the blue pimpernel having been found near Ilfracombe, I would remark that (in this spot at least) it seems to be more than usually common this season, occurring almost as plentifully as the red variety. I was led to notice this from a conversation I had with a friend a short time since, on the limited number of plants which produce flowers of the three primary colours. The pimpernel is certainly one of the few that does so. The anemone is another; the red and blue being well known, and the yellow I have found growing in the Pyrenees. If any of the readers of SCIENCE-GOSSIP would kindly mention any other class of plants possessing the same properties, I think the subject might prove of interest.-J. W. M., Cawston Rectory, Norwich.

YELLOW VIOLETS.-Pliny mentions yellow violets, so they were known in the time of the author of the "Historia Naturalis ;" and there are several members of the order Violacea bearing yellow flowers found in America. I imagine the particular plant mentioned by Mr. "Edward H. Robertson" in SCIENCE-GOSSIP must be the Viola biflora of the Swiss Alps. I am a great admirer of the American violets; but they must be grown in peat mould, and some of them would, I should say, require greenhouse culture in this country. Muhlenberg's violet, with its large, pale-blue violets on long peduncles, is very lovely.-Helen G. Watney.

HAMPSHIRE LYCOPOD (see p. 209). The Gardeners' Chronicle of September 28 again alludes to this plant, and states, on the authority of Mr. Lloyd, that it is certainly Lycopodium alpinum. Mr. Lloyd maintains that Lycopodium alpinum has not been correctly described as to its habit of growth, a repent above-ground stem being attributed to it; and this opinion he supports by specimens of the Welsh plant still growing in the sod of earth, in which a subterranean rhizome is distinctly evident. It is therefore clear that, in addition to a stem threading its way on the surface, amongst the surrounding herbage this Alpine Lycopod does also produce a true underground stem, in which it agrees with the Hampshire plant.

LINNEA BOREALIS IN YORKSHIRE.-The Scarborough Mercury of August 24 states that Linnea borealis " has been discovered in a wood on the moors in the neighbourhood of Scarborough," where it was found by Mr. John Tissiman of that town. -B.

MICROSCOPY.

ORIGIN OF ROCKS REVEALED BY THE MICROSCOPE. When sedimentary rocks are of subaqueous origin, as is by far the most common case, subaërial or subaqueous outbursts may force into the sea eruptive rocks, which, being at once broken up into state of division, more or less fine, in proportion to the greater or lesser cooling power of the water, mass in immediate contact, may be spread out into beds by the action of the waves: the texture of these rocks may vary from that of the coarsest breccia down to the finest mud, and, as is usually the case, such deposits may present themselves as alternating beds of coarse and fine character. Upon the consolidation of such formations, rocks are formed, identical in chemical and mineralogical composition with the original eruptive rock from which they were derived, and which, particularly when close-grained, often present an external appearance so like the original rocks as to be frequently undistinguishable from them by the naked eye; in such deposits it is often easy to pick out specimens having all gradations in appearance from the above described down to such as would be attributed to the consolidation of mere detrital mud. No wonder, therefore, if the field geologist finds himself bewildered under such circumstances, and inclined to settle down in the comfortable belief of the transmutation or transition of sedimentary rocks into eruptive, &c., and even the chemist feels puzzled, when he finds that a rock taken out of apparently normal stratified deposits has the same chemical composition) with one of undoubtedly intrusive nature. The microscopic examination, however, soon shows that, however similar the external appearance of two such rocks might be, their internal structure is totally different; showing in the primary rock the crystallised structure and arrangement previously described, whilst the secondary rock is resolved into a mere agglomeration of more or less broken fragments of the same minerals constituting the former. In beds formed from the consolidation of volcanic ashes, the microscopic examination occasionally affords evidence as to whether such ashes had been deposited on land, or had fallen into water.Dr. Forbes, F.R.S., in "Popular Science Review."

NOCTILUCA MILIARIS.-I have for some years endeavoured to obtain a supply of Noctiluca miliaris from acquaintances and friends who travel by sea to various parts of the globe, but up to the present time all my efforts to obtain them have been unsuccessful. Will you permit me to recommend any of the readers of SCIENCE-GOSSIP who reside near the sea-coast to make a gathering of Noctilucæ on any night when they present themselves in abundance? Their presence is indicated

by extensive phosphoresence on the surface of the ocean, each splash of an oar or ripple of a wave exhibits a phosphorescent luminous appearance-the cause being the presence of myriads of Noctilucæ. If a cambric net be run over the surface of the occan when the phosphoric light referred to is visible, it will be found on examination to contain a mass of jelly-like matter, which will consist of innumerable specimens of Noctilucæ. The reason why I desire specially to possess a gathering is, because they generally contain splendid specimens of diatomaceæ in a beautiful condition of purity. I shall esteem it a great favour if any of your sea-side readers would take an opportunity of making a gathering and send me a portion of the jelly-like mass. It is of course of no importance whether the Noctilucæ be living or dead, the object of chief importance is that they be clearly gathered and be placed in a clean bottle.-T. P. Barkas, Newcastle-on-Tyne.

ELASTIC GLUE.-As there exists some little difficulty in manipulating, not to say obtaining, marine glue, allow me to bring under notice a cement used by bootmakers, which answers admirably for aquaria, troughs, and also cells. I send you a stick herewith, the cost of which is only 2d. It is obtainable at any of the leather-grindery warehouses, and will, I think, be found a desideratum to microscopists, and is known as "elastic glue.”—John Bockett.

CAMPANULARIA GENICULATA.-From the egg of this Campanularia there springs a ciliated larva, which attaches itself to a solid body, becomes flattened, and then resembles a little cake, which has a cavity hollowed in its substance. In the centre of this, granulations make their appearance, and gradually increase in size, elongate, and are converted into a straight hollow stem, which is soon covered by a transparent horny sheath. The current which traverses the internal canal of the stem accumulates the granules at the extremity of this latter, and develops a true bud, which becomes organized, and assumes the form of an inverted bell, closed at its orifice by a horny membrane. The organized material is soon detached from the inner surface of this structure, and converted into a sort of conical button, from which tentacles are pushed out. Finally, in the centre of this mass there appears an orifice, which eventually constitutes a mouth like that of Hydra. The first polyp is then complete, and, bursting through the membrane, it grows out like a flower which has unfolded its floral envelopes. -Quatrefages' Metamorphoses.

QUEKETT MICROSCOPICAL CLUB.-In answer to those who complain that we did not insert any address in our late article, letters may be sent to "The Secretary," at No. 192, Piccadilly, London, W.

NOTES AND QUERIES.

ENEMY TO BUGS.-The Reduvius personatus is a valued friend to man, as in Europe it destroys the bed-bug. Its specific name is derived from its habit, while immature, of concealing itself in a case of dust, the better to approach its prey. Besides the Reduvius, the cockroach is the natural enemy of the bed-bug, and destroys large numbers. Houses have been cleared of them after being thoroughly fumigated with brimstone.-American Naturalist.

FISH INCREASE.-A rough calculation shows that were one per cent. of the eggs of the salmon to result in full-grown fish, and were they and their progeny to continue to increase in the same ratio, they would, in about sixty years amount in bulk to many times the size of the earth. Nor is the salmon among the most prolific species. I have counted in a perch (Percu flavescens), weighing three ounces and a half, 9,943 eggs; and in a smelt (Osmerus viridescens), ten inches in length, 25,141. Some of the larger fishes produce millions at each spawning. An interesting experiment was made in Sweden, in 1761, by Charles Frederick Lund. He obtained from fifty female breams 3,100,000 young; from one hundred female perch 3,215,000 young; and from one hundred female mullets 4,000,000 young. These are certainly wonderful results.C. G. Atkins, in American Naturalist.

THE BLIND WORM.-I have kept many of these at different times, and fed them on the small grey slug, as mentioned in the August number. I should think they would prove a valuable assistance to gardeners whose premises were infested with these little pests. I once told a gardener this, but he evidently had the usual horror of the blind worm, for he said he would sooner have the slugs. Sometimes when I fed them the slugs had mould attached to their bodies, and then the blind worm, seizing its prey by the middle, would take it to a stone, and by gently moving its head from side to side, gradually detach all unnecessary particles. This showed no inconsiderable amount of reasoning power, for it did not treat all its food so. "F. T.," in his article, did not refer to the faculty it possesses of parting with its tail, and reproducing it, perhaps because the fact is now pretty well known to naturalists. One that I picked up by the caudal member left about two inches of it in my hand, and this commenced a series of twistings and jumpings such as those Mr. Wood has somewhere described; meanwhile the animal glided away. I took the tail home with me, and it would twitch about when I touched it a couple of hours after. The part where the separation takes place is red, but no blood flows. I have found several specimens of Anguis fragilis without a tail, but it has grown again in a short time. I have never seen the creature climb, but there is no doubt it can, for a friend of mine kept some in his garden, whence one escaped to the premises of his neighbour. The garden was surrounded by a high wall, and there was no way of escape except through the house into the street.Henry Ullyett, Folkestone.

FISH HOOKS CUT OUT OF SHELLS.-These curious fishhooks are employed in New Zealand, especially for taking a fish called Kawaï; they are cut so that the pearly part has the shape of a small fish, and simulates a bait. Would any one have the kindness to tell me the scientific name of the Kawaï?-B. M.

RAT-TAIL VENOM.-In the Notes and Queries in the June number I find a statement by one "R. J. J.” that Norfolk people possess a notion that rats' tails are venomous. Now it is possible that this absurd notion may be entertained by some poor ignorant rustics in a particular locality; but although I have lived in Norfolk sinee my infancy, I have never heard of such a thing before. It can hardly be expected that visitors are able to arrive at correct conclusions respecting the popular notions of a whole county after a short stay in it, further than with regard to a few of the ideas of the rural population in some very small place. Even in the latter case, their observations must of necessity be extremely desultory in their nature, and cannot consequently be relied upon.-J. H. F.

ODD FISHES.-The Sudas gigas.-The scales and the bony palate of the Sudas gigas, or Pirarucú, of the Amazonas, are employed in Brazil for grating the Guaraná, a paste made of the seeds of Paullinia sorbilis; a few grains of the powder are added to water, and drunk as a substitute for tea. Scales of Pirarucú, and palates or tongues, as they were called, were exhibited in the Brazilian Court at the Great Exhibition.-B.M.

LARVE IN MUSHROOMS. These must be remarkably quick growing creatures, and I should say are evidently bred in the mushroom, as you may trace them from the largest size down to such small ones, that they almost require a magnifying glass to see them. I should suppose the eggs must be laid in the stem of the mushroom ere it rises much above the surface of the ground, to give them a little longer time to grow. I should be glad to know what the perfect insect is. Butterfly ?-E. T. Scott.

PLANARIA. The paper by Mr. Ray Lankester in the Popular Science Review, leads me to send to SCIENCE-GOSSIP a few observations I have at one time or other made, on what I suppose to be some species of planaria. I have particularly noticed two species. One has apparently two eyes placed thus

the other four The body of the two-eyed one is not above half an inch long. It is opaque, and of a black colour. The other is, when young, quite transparent, and almost colourless, though as it grows older it has a greenish hue. The largest I have seen of these was rather more than an inch long when stretched out. When touched they contract themselves into a hard lump, as a healthy leech does; and they fix themselves and move something in the same way. They produce their young alive. They are contained in the lower part of their bodies, and are quite lively in the body of their parent; and may often be seen stretching out their heads on each side, which gives the animal a very curious look. I have not particularly noticed how many they produce at a time, but I have counted between two and three dozen in one animal. They feed on other animalcules, but seem barely to suck them. I have seen them feeding on the round Lynceus.-E. T. Scott.

THE RATTLESNAKE.-It is rather surprising that any person should, after the comments which have been published upon the late sensational adventure with the rattlesnake, be still inclined to bring forward the subject as worthy of scientific discussion. It is only necessary, I am sure, to refer your correspondent "C. M." to the article "A Rattlesnake at large," published in Land and Water for August 10, 1867, to convince him that the whole is a wretched canard. In case, however, the periodical in question should not be procurable, I beg leave to add the following extracts, which more especially bear reference to his query about the habits of the reptile. The article commences, "To the Editor,Sir-A rare bit of penny-a-lining, copied from the Liverpool Daily Mercury, has been going the round of some of the newspapers under the above heading, which must, indeed, excite the consternation of our American cousins who dwell in the land of the rattlesnake. Such nonsense is not worth repeating in our columns, but people are in general so very ignorant about snakes that they will believe anything said of them, no matter how absurd the exaggeration. Be it understood that the rattlesnake is a sluggish reptile, by no means rapid in its gait, and most easily disabled by a blow on the spine. It does not spring its rattle when in the act of progression, and one that had really got loose would immediately make for the nearest retreat, and be somewhat difficult to dislodge therefrom.

On arriving opposite the caravan containing the bonassus—an immense animal, weighing upwards of two tons [the weight of a fine bull of its kind, i.e., the American bison, being about 14 cwt. !], the rattlesnake made a spring, fastened (!) on the bonassus, and hit it in the left nostril. The reptile then let go its grip [grip!] and shaking its rattles(!) glided through an opening between two of the caravans, where some of Mr. Mander's grooms were filling a cart with straw. To this cart was attached a fine horse. The rattlesnake fastened (!) on the off-fetlock of the horse, which immediately plunged and reared to such an extent as to shake the reptile off (!), and before it could move away it was crushed to pieces beneath the hoofs of the horse.' Of course the two large quadrupeds died in the course of a few minutes, in frightful agonies, and were buried in a field just outside Tunbridge Wells in the latter part of the same day.'

So many

parts of the story are palpably false, that we incline to disbelieve the whole of it. It is not true that any snake holds on with a 'grip' like a bull-dog. The stroke and the withdrawal of the fangs are instantaneous; and that a rattlesnake with its fangs extracted would kill a mature bull bison and a fine horse in succession, may do very well for people who have not the necessary knowledge to criticise, but it is quite incredible to the naturalist." A few parts have been omitted in the above extract, but the pith is there, and emanating as it does from the pen of one of the first zoologists of the day, I offer no apology for so long an extract, as it may serve to dispel doubts in the minds of other inquirers besides "C.M.," who are credulous enough to believe all they read, and do not, as in your correspondent's case, notice facts when at variance with their own experience or what they have read.-R. B. Sharpe, Zoological Society of London, Hanover Square, W. N.B.-The bison is still alive, at Mr. Rice's, being in perfect health last week (September 3).

WORMS-TO QUIT.-Can you inform me how to get rid of worms which are ruining the grassplots of my garden?-J. W. W.

THE CHAMELEON.-" H. S." inquires whether the chameleon is oviparous or viviparous. The following quotation from "Clermont's Reptiles of Europe will furnish the reply. "The female lays about thirty eggs in a hollow in the ground, and covers them over with loose earth." Apropos of the geographical range of this reptile, the same author remarks, "Its geographical range extends along the entire of the African shores of the Mediterranean, but is confined to the northern portion of that continent." Hence it is not a native of the Cape of Good Hope, as H. S." believes.

66

ROTATION OF EMBRYO IN GASTROPODS.--Will you kindly inform me whether or not any researches have been published concerning the development and rotation of the ova of the Limnæa stagnalis (fresh-water snail), or of the Planorbis? If the interesting changes which occur during the egg state of these animals have been described, perhaps you will kindly inform me in your Notices to Correspondents where I may find such a description, and by whom this subject has been treated.-M. A. P.

ANSWER TO "M. A. P."-Few points in the development of molluscs have received more attention than those relating to the rotation of the embryo of the lung-bearing Gastropods, and the genera Lymnæus and Planorbis have been especially studied in this particular. Carpenter in his

Microscopy" refers to the rotation, and most English writers on Comparative Anatomy have described the phenomenon. I cannot call to mind which of our English zoologists has gone minutely into the question, but if my memory serves me, there have been papers on it in the earlier numbers of the Microscopical Journal. Abroad, it has formed the subject of several valuable memoirs, of which the following may be referred to by "M. A. P." with advantage:

On Lymnæus, by Prevost, in the Annales des Sciences Naturelles, xxx., 1833, p. 40.

On Lynnæus and Planorbis, by Dr. Quatrefages, in the Annales des Sciences Naturelles, ii., 1834, p. 107.

On Planorbis, by Jacquemin, in the Annales des Sciences Naturelles, v., 1836, p. 117.

On Lymnæus, by Pouchet, Annales des Sciences Naturelles, x., 1838, p. 63.

On Lymnæus, Planorbis, and Helix, by Rathke, in Frorieps Neue Notizen, xxiv., 1842, p. 161.-H. L.

INCARCERATED FROGS.-Does not the paragraph thus headed (p. 207) refute itself by its own inconsistencies? Bones are solid, muscles not transparent, but man exaggerates much, and believes much. Such correspondents act wisely in withholding their names. As a satire, the paragraph might pass. Can it be aught else?-C. M.

DISGUISES OF INSECTS. The perusal of the article thus entitled in SCIENCE-GOSSIP led me to institute a very simple experiment. I enclosed some caterpillars of the small white butterfly Pontia Rapæ in two boxes, one black and the other white in the inside; the consequence was that the colour of the chrysalis was modified to suit the colour of the box. I am aware that the chrysalis in question does not invariably assume the hue of the surface to which it is attached as, for instance, I have seen nearly a white chrysalis on a black wall, yet generally the darker the surface, the darker the chrysalis. It would be interesting to learn how far this is true of other butterflies.-Harry C. Leslie.