organisms has not come under consideration. Morphology and distribution might be studied almost as well, if animals and plants were a peculiar kind of crystals, and possessed none of those functions which distinguish living beings so remarkably. But the facts of morphology and distribution have to be accounted for, and the science, whose aim it is to account for them, is physiology.

Let us return to our lobster once more. If we watched the creature in its native element, we should see it climbing actively the submerged rocks, among which it delights to live, by means of its strong legs; or swimming by powerful strokes of its great tail, the appendages of whose sixth joint are spread out into a broad fan-like propeller; seize it and it will show you that its great claws are no mean weapons of offence; suspend a piece of carrion among its haunts, and it will greedily devour it, tearing and crushing the flesh by means of its multitudinous jaws.

Suppose that we had known nothing of the lobster but as an inert mass, an organic crystal, if I may use the phrase, and that we could suddenly see it exerting all these powers, what wonderful new ideas and new questions would arise in our minds! The great new question would be, "How does all this take place?" the chief new idea would be the idea of adaptation to purpose,-the notion that the constituents of animal bodies are not mere unconnected parts, but organs working together to an end. Let us consider the tail of the lobster again from this point of view. Morphology has taught us that it is a series of segments composed of homologous parts, which undergo various modifications-beneath and through which a common plan of formation is discernible. But if I look at the same part physiologically, I see that it is a most beautifully constructed organ of locomotion, by means of which the animal can swiftly propel itself either backwards or forwards.

But how is this remarkable propulsive machine made to perform its functions? If I were suddenly to kill one of these animals and to take out all the soft parts, I should find the shell to be perfectly inert, to have no more power of moving itself than is possessed by the machinery of a mill, when disconnected from its steam-engine or water-wheel. But if I were to open it, and take out the viscera only, leaving the white flesh, I should perceive that the lobster could bend and extend its tail as well as before. If I were to cut off the tail I should cease to find any spontaneous motion in it--but on pinching any portion of the flesh, I should observe that it underwent a very curious change-each fibre becoming shorter and thicker. By this act of contraction, as it is termed, the parts which the ends of the fibre are attached are, of course, approximated; and according to the relations of their points of attachment to the centres of motion of the different

rings, the bending or the extension of the tail results. Close observation of the newly-opened lobster would soon show that all its movements are due to the same cause the shortening and thickening of these fleshy fibres, which are technically called muscles.

Here, then, is a capital fact. The movements of the lobster are due to muscular contractility. But why does a muscle contract at one time and not at another? Why does one whole group of muscles contract when the lobster wishes to extend its tail, and another group, when he desired to bend it? What is it originates, directs, and controls the motive power?

Experiment, the great instrument for the ascertainment of truth in physical science, answers this question for us. In the head of the lobster there lies a small mass of that peculiar tissue which is known as nervous substance. Cords of similar matter connects this brain of the lobster, directly or indirectly, with the muscles. Now, if these communicating cords are cut, the brain remaining entire, the power of exerting what we call voluntary motion in the parts below the section is destroyed, and on the other hand, if, the cords remaining entire, the brain mass be destroyed, the same voluntary mobility is equally lost. Whence the inevitable conclusion is, that the power of originating these motions resides in the brain, and is propagated along the nervous cords.

In the higher animals the phenomena which attend this transmission have been investigated, and the exertion of the peculiar energy which resides in the nerves, has been found to be accompanied by a disturbance of the electrical state of their molecules.

If we could exactly estimate the signification of this disturbance; if we could obtain the value of a given exertion of nerve force by determining the quantity of electricity or of heat of which it is the equivalent; if we could ascertain upon what arrangement, or other condition of the molecules of matter, the manifestation of the nervous and muscular energies depends (and doubtless science will some day or other ascertain these points), physiologists would have attained their ultimate goal in this direction; they would have determined the relation of the motive force of animals to the other forms of force found in nature; and if the same process had been successfully performed for all the operations which are carried on, in and by, the animal frame, physiology would be perfect, and the facts of morphology and distribution would be deducible from the laws which physiologists had established, combined with those determining the condition of the surrounding universe.

There is not a fragment of the organism of this humble animal, whose study would not lead us into regions of thought as large as those which I have briefly opened up; but what I have done, I trust, has not only enabled my readers to form a conception

of the scope and purport of zoology, but has given an imperfect example of the manner in which, in my opinion, that science, or indeed any physical science, may be studied. The great matter is to make the study real and practical, by fixing the attention on particular facts; but at the same time it should be rendered broad and comprehensive by constant reference to the generalizations of which all particular facts are illustrations.

The lobster has served as a type of the whole animal kingdom, and its anatomy and physiology have illustrated for us some of the greatest truths of biology. The student who has once seen for himself the facts which I have described, has had their relations explained to him, and has clearly comprehended them, has so far a knowledge of zoology, which is real and genuine, however limited it may be, and which is worth more than all the mere reading knowledge of the science he could ever acquire. His zoological information is, so far, knowledge and not mere hearsay.

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To obstinate, self-willed, persistently persevering persons, whose sole end and aim is to pester all with whom they are brought into collision, it is a common custom, "down South," to say, en avant, Monseigneur Maringouin!" Individuals such as these are for all the world like to Mosquitoes, and the admonitory warning just quoted is as good as it is truthful. Who ever knew a Mosquito give up? Determined obstinacy is the very substance and stamina of its existence. Fret and work yourself into a state of irritability bordering upon frenzy, stamp, scratch, slap, rub-it is not of the slightest use; after every rebuff, the inveterate persecutors only buzz the more loudly, and stab their blades the deeper into one's flesh.

As regards Monseigneur, we have not much to say he takes things very easily, does pretty much as he likes, dines and sups as best befits his inclinations-finding amidst the nectar-making flowers everything suited to his requirements. Having paid his addresses to the ladies, and flirted to his heart's desire, he grows rapidly old, and very soon dies.

With Madam it is altogether a different affair; she has important duties to perform: publicly, to annoy and persecute every man, woman, and beast within

| her reach; privately, to deposit her eggs safely in a fitting situation, to insure the perpetuation of her species. Madam and all her kindred have a disagreeable fondness for my blood, why or wherefore is not easy of explanation, and invariably make me their especial victim. So surely as I am enjoying myself, it matters not how many persons are present, I always observe these blood-loving amazons prefer to leave the rest, and, with self-satisfied hums, make straight for me, to crowd into my ears and up my nose, and, as though they were "ile seekers," each one there and then bores a hole, and greedily pumps up the much-coveted fluid. They have even a more detestable habit than this: they seem to delight in taking refuge in my whiskers, and to rout them from this ambush is as difficult a job as that of routing bears and peccaries from out a cane-brake, which can only be accomplished by setting the place on fire-a stratagem that would in all likelihood prove quite as disagreeable to me as the Mosquitoes; in this dilemma I patiently await their movements, and deftly press my finger on every offender as the prick of the lancets reveals its whereabouts. Now this suspense, metaphorically waiting for a bite, is tantalising in the extreme, if you are trying just at that critical moment to say something more than usually impressive to some favoured fair one, and distrust the stability of your nerves. Mentally I exclaim, "En avant, Madam Maringouin!" bite a person with a more delicate skin, or feast upon one of your own sex, or

Try some plump alderman, and suck his blood,
Enriched by generous wine and costly meat;
On well-filled skins, sleek as thy native mud,
Fix thy light pump and press thy freckled feet.
Go to the men for whom, in ocean's halls,
The oyster breeds and the green turtle sprawls.

Whether the female Mosquito has in all cases the same number of lancets, it is difficult to determine. Leuwenhoek says four, Réaumur five, Swammerdam and Latreille mention six, and there are others who stand out for seven; but of one thing I am positive, some Mosquitoes are able to inflict a puncture in less time, and of greater depth, than others. Will any one be bold enough to say, the stab of a summer gnat, or even that of the full-sized Mosquito we are ordinarily familiar with, is inflicted by an instrument identical with that which enabled the "Skeeters" to pierce through the military boots of the Father of the States, in the Jersey marshes, and, if history is truthful in its record of that event, caused that usually exemplary man to indulge in bad language, or, as we read it, "swear like a trooper;" or that attacked the army of Julian the Apostate, and drove him back; or that compelled Sapor, king of Persia, to raise the siege of Nisibis, stinging his elephants and camels into a state of fury; or that render the banks of the river Po at some places uninhabitable; or, as Humboldt tells us, oblige the

people residing at the mouth of the river Urare to sleep in pits dug for the purpose, buried up all but their heads, which they cover with a rug; and last, though not least, that drove the Boundary Commission, one and all, to quit the prairies and take up their quarters in the mountains-stopping the work

your dress was quite Mosquito-proof you did not stand a chance, the legions were upon you-thrusting, humming, and pumping out your blood, despite all your efforts at self-protection. We used to tie our sleeves tightly at the wrists, our trowsers round the ankles, wear thick leather gloves, and a gauze

bag over the head and face, tied in round the throat. The poor dogs suffered frightfully, and would soon have died from the irritation caused by the punctures, had we not removed the animals up into the mountains. During this reign of terror, I started with the Chief Commissioner to visit Fort Hope, about four days' canoe-voyage up the Fraser river; three Indians and the Commissioner's servant made up the crew. The first day we were terribly beset by Mosquitoes, having to keep close to the river bank to gain the advantage of the slack water. Each person armed with a wisp of leafy twigs kept up a continuous flogging, to beat down and drive off our foes. About sundown, we neared a sandy island, situate in the middle of a wide lake or expanse of the river; landing, and seeing no Mos

The above portraits greatly resemble a goodly number that perished betwixt the leaves of my note-book.

When we were marking the boundary line, our camp was on the Sumass prairie, but the Mosquitoes became so formidable at last that the camp had to be abandoned. It is no exaggeration to state, that the swarms were as dense as an ordinary fog; and, if possible, more bloodthirsty during the night than in the day. time. Sleeping was utterly impossible, unless one could manage to shut up the tent so that no Mosquitoes could gain admission, and then set to work and kill every one within the canvas prison. Coming out in the morning was anything but a joke; unless

* From native drawings in the India Museum.

quitoes, determined us at once to camp; there being plenty of driftwood, a fire was soon kindled, supper cooked, and preparations made for sleeping. All at once, I suppose attracted by the fire-light, clouds of Mosquitoes swooped down upon us. There was nothing to be done but to bear it. The Commissioner tried all he could to get a doze, and rolled himself so tightly in his rugs, as to defy the Mosquitoes to find an entrance; vain hope the pests soon found a hole, and poured in through it

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like a crowd to see a pantomime on Boxing-night. I could trace the outline of the Commissioner, as the pale moonlight slanted on the island, writhing about beneath his rugs, as if suffering from violent choleraic cramps. The Red Men crouched in the smoke, and at short intervals plunged into the river like seals, to return to the smoke dripping wet, and shining as though made of highly burnished metal. I did not try to sleep, but lighted my pipe and paced up and down the island until daylight came, and with it, release from our miseries. I could recount endless stories of Mosquito adventures, if space permitted me to do so.

The darkies down South relate the following story, to account for the origin of the name Mosquito :

"De white man he come, he settle down, he grow

de corn and cotton; den come de leetle fly-cry golly! how he bite! Whoop! whoop! white man, slap him face, and stamp like mad. He say 'mustquit-oh!' He shout louder den ebber, and whop de tother side, 'must-quit-oh!' Den behind, den before, dis side, dat side, all de time, 'mustquit-oh! must-quit-oh!""

This is by no means a bad derivation. I felt I must-quit-oh! if I did not say it during the memorable short night on the sandy island.

Scientifically the Mosquito family belong to the order Diptera, family Culicidae, genus Culex. The species brought from North-west America turned out to be new to science, and was named Culex pinguis, because it was fatter, rounder, and more obese than any other of its known kindred; the specific description is appended as a foot-note. We read the following description in Westwood's "Insects," page 509, vol. ii., explanatory of the system by which the fly extracts or sucks up the blood:"Taking its station upon an uncovered part of the skin, it lowers its rostrum and pierces the skin by means of its exceedingly slender needle-like lancets, which are barbed at the tips, and, as by degrees it pushes these deeper into the skin, the lower lip or sheath, in which they are enclosed when at rest, becomes more and more elbowed towards the breast, until the whole length of the lancets are introduced into the skin. It is supposed that, at the same time, it instils into the wound a venomous liquid, which, while it enables the blood to flow faster, is the chief cause of the subsequent irritation." Kirby and Spencer give many interesting and curious details relative to the attacks of these insects in various parts of the world. The larvæ of the Mosquito are entirely aquatic, very active, swimming with great rapidity, frequently diving to the bottom of the water, and again ascending to the surface.

During this stage of their existence, they undergo several moultings, to assume the pupa form. The pupa take no nourishment, although brisk and active in all their movements. Space does not allow of my describing the beautiful arrangement observable in the respiratory systems of the larvæ and pupa, but compels me to skip these interesting details, and to refer only and very briefly in conclusion to the system adopted by the female to insure the safety of her eggs, and the singular way the mature insect extricates itself from the pupæ case.

The female Mosquito, when the proper time arrives, selects some quiet eddy in a murmury brook, or the tranquil waters of a lake, buoyed up on a leaf or floating spray. She crosses her hind legs and begins building her boat, which, when finished, contains usually over four hundred eggs. The eggs nearest the ends are said to contain the males, those in the middle the females. So admirably is this boat con

structed that to upset or sink it, is an impossibility. One would almost be disposed to think the eggs were indestructible: though they remain frozen during the winter, they still retain their vitality unimpaired. Many species do not build boats of their eggs; one, I may instance as an example, is found in the swamps of the Southern States. The female sinks a hole in the soft mud with the end of her tail, and leaves her suspended eggs in the holes by long slender ropes or stalks. When the larvæ come from out the eggs, there is always a sufficiency of water for their sustenance collected at the bottom of the hole, and to support life until the time arrives for the grub to disappear into the mud therein, to undergo its final change. An American writer speaks of a Mosquito that deposits its eggs in the sandy plains of the Carolinas and Georgia: "She selects a spot exposed to the fury of the sun, and drops her eggs among the grains of sand. The larvæ, when hatched, must penetrate very deep to obtain moisture. Their proceedings and habits are yet to be tested. All you can see is the mother fly dropping her eggs. Twelve or fifteen days from this time the metamorphosis is complete. Place the hillock betwixt you and the sun as he is setting the flies ascend in such numbers that you would think it must be smoke from a boiling spring. These are the genuine 'stingers' and contain more venom than ten other tribes amalgamated."

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When the period for the final transformation is at hand, the pupa float on the surface of the water, and should the day prove bright and sunny, each pupa case splits, and the little fly with extreme care and deliberation draws out her front legs from their casings. The insect mariner has to be wary now: to tilt on one side is certain death from drowning. Her two front legs are next placed on the water (for be it known, a Mosquito walks easily upon the water), and the other four bent underneath her body, in order to support the boat on an even keel, so to speak; let the insect but capsize it, and all chance of righting again is at an end. The wings at this stage of the proceedings are wet and lumpy, and would turn the insect over, boat and all, but for the support afforded by the bent body and the legs held firmly down beneath it; slowly the crumpled wings separate, the air blows freely through them, and as the gauzy structures dry, so they become additional aids in maintaining her balance. The long, taper body now elongates itself, the fragile wings assume their natural shape, and soon become thoroughly dry. The antennæ unfurl like miniature flags, the feathery plumes (if it be a male) float like pennants in the breeze. Lastly, the legs are drawn forth, the body nicely poised, then a few strokes of the wings are given to test their strength and fitness for service. Pausing for a few seconds, probably to admire its own image mirrored in the water, and to fall in love with itself, as did Narcissus of old,

the Mosquito plies its newly-acquired organs, rises like a fairy into the genial air, and bids adieu for ever to the tiny barque it owes so much to, left to drift away-an empty, useless wreck.

We may not follow Madam's or Monseigneur's proceedings any further, you know them both, I am sure, by the introduction I have given you; more especially Madam : her unwearying solicitations, her ill-manners, and ill-temper, her greed and thirst after blood, her peevish, crying requests-you are familiar with them all, and methinks I hear you say as you lay down SCIENCE GOSSIP, "En avant, Monseigneur Maringouin!"

JOHN KEAST LORD, F.Z.S.

Culex pinguis, N. S.

Fam.-Cervinus, robustus; rostro apicem versus nigro; abdominis pube subaurata, pedibus robustis pallidioribus; alis cinereis, venis fulvis subpilosis.

Sp. Ch.-Fawn colour, stout: proboscis, much longer than the head, and the throat black towards the tip; abdomen with slightly gilded down; legs stout, paler than the body: tarsi darker; wings cinereous; veins tawny, slightly pilose; radial and subapical veins with long forks. Length of the body 3 lines; of the wings, 7 lines. Habitat, British Columbia.

IF

COCCONEIS.

F the figures which we give in illustration of this group are consulted, it will be observed that the valves are elliptical, with a central longitudinal line, and to this character is generally added "and having a central nodule." It is not always that the central nodule can be clearly made out. This is a large genus, containing, at the least, twenty-five British examples. These are grouped for convenience in two sections: in the smaller of these, the disc is either smooth or striated longitudinally; and in the other, and larger section, the

VORTICELLA AND CYCLOPS.-This morning, wishing to mount a few specimens of Cyclops quadricornis, I captured some examples with the dipping tube, and transferred them to a small cell about half an inch diameter and a tenth of an inch deep. While they were swimming in about four or five drops of water, I introduced a single drop of pure alcohol, which caused wild commotion for a moment, and in a few seconds-certainly less than half a minute-the Entomostraca lay dead. After three or four minutes, the cell was filled up by the addition of one or two drops of water, a thin cover put on, and all made secure with asphalte. After two hours the slide was placed under the microscope, when I found that several of the dead Entomostraca bore colonies of Vorticella, or some allied genus, all alive. Every now and then an individual jerked back with the movement generally thought indicative of the seizure of prey, though no living prey were visible, nor would one imagine they existed in this dilute spirit. The Vorticella, however, not only existed in the alcoholic bath, but vibrated their cilia and seemed to pursue their ordinary avocations. After five hours some were still living, but many had detached themselves from their stalks and lay motionless at the bottom of the cell. When seven hours had elapsed, one or two showed feeble signs of life, but after eight hours, the last of the infusoria had departed their lives and foot-stalks. They not only survived the treatment that proved almost instantly fatal to the Cyclops, but maintained life for many hours in the more dilute solution.- George Guyon, Ventnor, I.W.