new stratum of wood being formed by the cambium outside the old wood, and a new stratum of bark on the inside of the full-grown bark. From this ordinary mode there are occasional deviations. In a former paper I directed the attention of botanists to one exception in the case of Menispermacea, where at the end of every three or four years the cambium becomes inactive, and a new one is formed outside of the bast. Having been for some time engaged in the systematic study of the difficult tribe of Sapindaceae (the "crux Botanicorum"), I have had abundant opportunities of examining the structural peculiarities of this most interesting tribe of plants, the small branches of herbarium specimens exhibiting the same peculiarities which strike observers with so much surprise in large trunks. I do not propose at present to explain in detail the development of these irregularities in Sapindaceae, nor to trace their relations to other families, such as Bignoniacea, Malpighiaceae, &c. My object is to state as briefly as possible the most remarkable modifications of wood structure which I have observed. To enter into details, it would be necessary to have the specimens themselves at hand, but it would not have been possible to bring with me the numerous materials which I have had from the Berlin, Vienna, Copenhagen, St. Petersburgh, and other Herbaria. The two genera in which I have observed anomalous stem-structure are Serjania and Paullinia, and in both normal stems also occur. In Paullinia I have noticed only one type of irregularity with some slight modifications, and as the same type with nearly the same modifications is found in Serjania, I shall confine my remarks to the latter genus. If we examine transverse sections of young branches (one to three years old) of Serjania, we seldom find a circular wood. In most species it is angular, trigonal or pentagonal. In some species the angles are very prominent, so that the wood is deeply furrowed, or, what is yet more striking, the angles become detached from the centre, so that the wood is compound. Different kinds of compound wood occur in different species. There may be as many peripheral detached parts as there are angles, or there may be fewer, sometimes only one; or again, there may be more, often as many as eight or ten nearly touching one another, so as to form a ring round the central wood. The peripheral parts may be either cylindrical with the stem indented, or the parts may be flattened in different degrees, and in the latter case the stem is smooth, without any indication of the internal irregularity. Besides all these modes of irregularity, there is yet another which cannot be brought into connexion with them, and which I have not seen anywhere described. It consists in the wood being split by radial divisions into five nearly equal portions. This I call divided wood. We can thus distinguish in different species of Serjania, round wood, polygonal wood, furrowed wood, compound wood, with as many or more parts than there are angles, and finally divided wood. Now I have found that in each species of Serjania and Paullinia the form of stem is constant, provided the observation be made in the right place, namely about the middle of the branch, and not at the lower part near its origin, where the different parts of the compound and divided wood are commonly united into one single wood. The section must also not be made immediately below a leaf; for there the number of peripheral parts is frequently diminished by their union with the central wood. The neglect of these precautions has led to the belief by former observers that there is no constancy in each species. There is, however, certainly such constancy, and as it is now for the first time pointed out, I desire particularly to direct attention to it, as well as to the further fact, that the structure of the wood corresponds closely with the specific characters derived from the flower and fruit, so that groups of species formed from the wood-structure will be nearly identical with those based on flower and fruitstructure, and may therefore be considered as quite natural. It would lead me too far were I to attempt to lay before you an abstract of these natural groups thus formed. They will appear in a general work which I am publishing on Sapindaceae, where they will be accompanied by the necessary plates. I may mention here, that the grouping of the species of Paullinia and Serjania by the form of the leaves, the only method hitherto tried, is in no way natural, and is therefore of no value. By the careful study of the stem-structure I hope that it will in future not be more difficult to determine the species of these two now so very confused genera, than those of Saxifraga or any other very large genus. It is to be regretted that the earlier botanists have never in their descriptions or figures given any particulars of the structure of the stem. Had they done so, many mistakes would have been avoided. For example, it would never have been possible to confound the Serjania triternata of Willdenow with the Paullinia curassavica of Jacquin, or the Serjania lupulina of Schumacher, as has so often been done. The only instance in which I have met with a recognizable figure of stem-structure in the copious literature of Sapindaceae is in Pavon's figure of his Semarillaria alata, the Paullinia alata of Don. There is yet another structural peculiarity which will probably afford a good character for distinguishing the species of Serjania, which I find nowhere noticed. It is the epidermis of the leaves, which in some species is formed of what is called Collenchyma," ," like the epidermis of the seeds of Linum. My observations on this point being still in progress, I content myself here with the mere notice of the fact. 66 On the Extinction of the Great Bustard in Norfolk and Suffolk. By H. STEVENSON, F.L.S. After referring to some very early allusions to the existence of the bustard in this country, and to the gradual diminution and extinction of the species in the different English counties, the author said that Norfolk was the last county to reckon the bustard amongst its resident species. The two latest" droves" had their headquarters in the open country round Swaffham and in that near Thetford. The Swaffham drove formerly consisted of twenty-seven birds, but the number subsequently decreased to seventeen, sixteen, and eleven, and finally dwindled down to five and two. All accounts agreed in stating that the last remaining birds were hens. One great cause of the extinction of the bird was the introduction of improved agricultural implements, which destroyed the eggs. The precise time of extinction could not be determined with accuracy. The last known specimens were seen about the year 1838; but it had been stated that some of the birds had lingered on till 1843 or 1845. The other drove, near Thetford, consisted of thirty or forty birds; but the number gradually declined to twenty-four, eighteen, fifteen, nine, seven, six, five, and two, the last survivors being hens only. Some persons suppose that the bird could be taken by dogs, but this was not confirmed by the testimony of trustworthy eye-witnesses. The author referred to the local distribution of the bustard in the county, and to the appearance of occasional immigrants from the Continent. On the Tusks of the Walrus. By Dr. OTTO TORRELL. Notes on the Flora and Fauna of the Seychelle group of Islands. ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY. On certain Effects of Alcohol on the Pulse. The author described certain effects of alcohol upon the pulse which he had observed with the aid of Marey's sphygmograph. This instrument, which writes the form of the pulse-waves upon paper or smoked glass, has recently been rendered more exact in its indications by the application of a principle originated by Dr. Burdon-Sanderson, by which the precise weight with which the tactile spring presses upon the pulsating artery may be calculated in grammes. The subject of the author's researches was the febrile pulse of typhus and other fevers, and of pneumonia and some other acute inflammations. In all these diseases the arterial tension is lowered throughout the period of fevers and elevated temperature. The pulse-curve always becomes dicrotous: instead of the wave being slightly three-pointed, it presents only two elevations with a gap or notch between them, which is more or less deep in direct ratio with the violence of the febrile symptoms and the lowering of arterial tension. When alcohol acts favourably (as indicated by the decline of temperature, slowing of the pulse, and cessation of delirium or stupor), it is universally found that the pulse-curve becomes less dicrotous [elevated tension]; on the contrary, when alcohol confuses the intellect and aggravates the feverishness, the pulse-trace is invariably rendered more markedly dicrotous, the notch being deepened [lowered tension]. It is therefore of first-rate importance, when we are in doubt as to the propriety of administering alcohol in fevers or inflammation, to give an experimental dose, taking comparative sphygmographic traces before, and 15 minutes after the administration. If arterial tension has been increased, the alcohol may be confidently continued; if it has been diminished, the alcohol must be at once diminished or altogether discontinued, for the experimental dose has acted as a depressant. We The above rules are chiefly applicable to the cases in which the pulse is of a certain volume, and its sphygmographic curves are large. But there are many cases in which the pulse is small, although it presents all the true dicrotism of the febrile pulse. It is then of great consequence to ascertain whether the smallness of the pulse is due to impairment of the heart-power; and the new arrangement for the graduation of spring-pressure enables us to do this with great ease. discover, namely, the exact amount of spring-pressure under which the pulsecurves are produced of the maximum size. If the pressure required to develope the maximum curve be as much as 200 or 250 grammes, this indicates a good amount of heart-power; if, on the contrary, the maximum curve be obtained with a pressure of only 100 to 120 grammes, we may be sure the heart is decidedly feeble; and it is preeminently a case for the administration of alcohol. Such are the empirical facts which the author has established by an experience of many hundred cases of fever and inflammation. The physiological explanation of them is by no means so certain. Is the elevation of arterial tension which is certainly produced by a dose of alcohol which (under the circumstances) acts as a reviving stimulant, while it simultaneously reduces the feverishness, brought about by a stimulation of the vaso-motor nerves, causing contraction of the arterioles? Or is it produced by a stimulation of the vagus, whose central power over the heart it increases? Or does it act by a general stimulation of the spinal cardiac centres, which also might antagonize the excessive action of the heart? The author is of opinion that stimulation of the sympathetic is at any rate the earliest, and probably throughout the chief, part of the effect of alcohol on the circulation. On the other hand, Professor Behier of Paris (who has also observed with the sphygmograph the remarkable effects of alcohol upon the pulse in acute disease), while admitting the extreme complexity of the problem, is more inclined to believe that stimulation of the central power of the vagus has the principal share in the tonic and slowing effects of alcohol upon the circulation. On the Generation of White Blood-corpuscles. By Dr. BEHIER. On Electrolysis in the Mouth. By W. KENCELY BRIDGMAN, L.D.S., R.C.S. Lond. About six years ago the author obtained the Tomes Gold Medal of the Odontological Society of Great Britain for a prize essay on the Pathology of Dental Caries. The theory on which the essay was founded was Electrolysis, and was accompanied by various preparations demonstrating the effects of electric action upon organic matter, together with the electro-decalcification of enamel and dentine, and the transference of the lime-salts to the negative electrode or cathode. The illustrations were accepted as highly satisfactory; but the theory itself, being somewhat novel in relation to physiology, has remained altogether unappreciated by the profession. The object of the present paper, therefore, was to bring forward a case of similar action occurring in situ, in connexion with the teeth, which should afford a more decisive illustration of the fact of electrolysis having taken place in the mouth under corresponding circumstances, and the elements of the tooth substance having become so disposed of. The proof tendered was as follows:-On removing a ligature of silk twist which had been placed upon some upper front teeth, a deep groove was found to have been formed in the enamel along its entire course; at the same time the fibres of the silk had become matted together with an incrustation of crystals of lime, showing an unmistakeable case of electrolytic transfer, in which the lime-salts of enamel had been dissolved and recrystallized upon the silk. In the theory of dental decay by electrolysis, particles of charcoal arising from eremacausis or slow combustion, which like the silk are electro-negative, are represented as playing the same part with the enamel and dentine as the silk had done in the present instance; but it was also stated that pressure, rendering the part non-homogeneous, was equally capable of producing a negative centre from which local galvanic action would arise. The characters peculiar to decayed dentine are its entire decalcification and absence of lime solution, but having in its stead an abundance of free acid-two features which all other theories are incapable of accounting for. If a piece of ivory be placed for a few days in water under the electrodes of a small sustaining battery, the spot beneath and around the anode, or positive electrode, will be found to have become decalcified, softened, and strongly acid, just as these conditions occur in natural decay. In addition to this, the lime will be transferred to the cathode in the same manner as it was to the silk, a fact which affords the only intelligible explanation of the formation of tartar yet offered. Tartar may be thrown down from the saliva as an electro-deposit; it is repelled by the electro-positive crown of the tooth, but adheres to the electro-negative root at its neck. This polar condition of the tooth, illustrated in the different modes of growth between the crown and the root, is referred to as a very important character, and one to be well considered; for all remedial and reparatory measures, to be successful, must be in harmony with such an arrangement. On the Connexion between Chemical Constitution and Physiological Activity. Is the Eustachian Tube Open or Shut in Swallowing? * Professor Cleland pointed out that in ordinary circumstances the tube is really open, and not shut as was taught by Mr. Toynbee. In support of this statement he mentioned that he had had the opportunity of seeing the orifice of this tube in a patient with a limited ulcer of the palate, and that he had made this patient swallow with his mouth open, and had the satisfaction of demonstrating to several pupils that the Eustachian orifice was then momentarily closed. He proceeded to take up the anatomical part of the subject, and showed that the disposi tion of the palatal muscles was in harmony with this observation, and such as to render Mr. Toynbee's theory untenable. On Flukes from the Indian Elephant. By Dr. COBBOLD, F.R.S. The object of this communication was to prove (from specimens forwarded by Vet.-Surgeon J. Thacker, through Dr. Cleghorn) that the trematode worms in question were referable to the genus Fasciola, constituting a new species, which, as such, had never hitherto been properly described. He proposed to name it after Dr. Jackson of Boston, U.S.; thus Fasciola Jacksonii, Cobbold=Distomum elephantis of Jackson and Diesing. *This paper is published in the Journal of Anatomy and Physiology, November 1868. 1868. 8 On the Relative Weight and Form of the Eye and Colour of the Iris in Vertebrate Animals. By EDWARDS CRISP, M.D. This paper on the relative weight, form, and colour of the eye in the vertebrata was illustrated by drawings and casts of the eye of more than 1000 animals. The eyes of 600 animals, quadrupeds, birds, reptiles, and fishes, filled with plaster of Paris, and coloured by the author after nature, were also exhibited with wax casts of the eye and muscles of the Lion, Elephant, Giraffe, Walrus, and Whale. According to the author, brown was the prevailing colour of the eye in all mammals, birds, and reptiles; whilst in fishes yellow, yellow-brown and whitish-yellow were the most frequent hues. Fishes have proportionately the largest eyes among the rertebrata, and among the land-quadrupeds the Giraffe, Horse, Eland, Elk, and Bison have the visual organ of the greatest size. The preparations of the eye were intended to show the great advantage of the use of plaster of Paris in certain anatomical preparations, a method first made known by the author at the Meeting of the Association at Bath in 1864, and at the Zoological Society of London in 1853. On some Points relating to the Visceral Anatomy of the Thylacinus. The author in this paper on the intestinal canal of the Thylacinus (Tasmanian wolf), said he was the first to notice it in 1854. A male and female sent over in spirits had been recently dissected, and in the stomach of the male a marsupial, weighing about two pounds, was found, with the skin nearly entire and many of the bones. The animal has the most remarkable alimentary canal, according to the author, of any animal in existence. It barely exceeds twice the length of the body, and is covered with villi so as to extend the absorbing surface-a beautiful and wise provision in an animal that travels long distances for its food. The duodenum close to the pylorus is thickly studded with slender villi; these become larger, and are more closely packed in the central part of the tube, and extend to about 18 inches from the anal opening. They resemble somewhat the villi in the small intestines of the Rhinoceros and those in the third stomach of the Hippopotamus, as was shown in various drawings to the Section. On the Intestinal Canal and other Viscera of the Gorilla. The author in this paper compared the visceral anatomy of the Gorilla, Chimpanzee, and Orang with that of Man. The paper was illustrated by numerous drawings, and a model of the viscera of the Gorilla. Two of these apes (Gorillas), a young one and an adult, the author had examined, the last named by permission of the Council of the Royal College of Surgeons. The subjoined were some of his conclusions:-That the thoracic and abdominal viscera of the Gorilla generally differ considerably more from those of Man than the same parts in the Chimpanzee and Orang; and looking to many other brutal characters in this animal the line of demarcation between it and Man is so wide and definite that we may disclaim all relationship with him and his four-handed colleagues. Among the differences pointed out in the visceral anatomy of the Gorilla, were the enormous capacity of the cæcum and large intestines, the peculiar glandular structure of the former, and especially the tripartite division of the liver. Comparisons were made between the length of the intestinal canal of this ape and that of Man, the Orang, Chimpanzee, and many of the lower quadrumana. The intestinal tube of the adult Gorilla measured 34 feet 7 inches in length, that of the young animals (aged about 12 months) 13 feet 9 inches. On Vitality as a Mode of Motion. By Dr. THOMPSON DICKSON. On the Power of Utterance in respect to its Cerebral Bearings and Causes. By R. DUNN. Viewing the faculty of speech as an instrument of thought and language, as the |