Page 413

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  aut'address oan Friday had dispersed, it seemed as if the room would
  haEve been left to anatornists and pthysjol00j5ts but the arrival of
    blcsmiths, who began to erect a large b~lack canvas, attracted
    I goular interest, and the visitors who flocked in were rewardled
  byhesrin    and seeing Mr. Waterhouse Hawk ins discuss the true
earacster of the so-coiled clavicles of iguanodon.  h~is account
   oit the difficulty he experienced in buiklding his model with these
rid.  bones in the position aut first assigned them by Prof. Owen, of his
'C    finally hanging them up in front of it to be fitted in after each
°i   s eectator's taste, and of the shameful destrutction of the results
of
   a u s skill and labour at New Y ork;, was no less graphic than the
   dllusrtions with which he proceeded to cover the canvas, show-
X    ing the great reptile inl every p osture which would consist with
   tsHe disputed bones being clavicles, ossa pubis, or marsupial
   boes. Mir. H~awkoins advocated the last as the true character;
   [. but though in the discussion which followed, some anatomosts
   were disposed to admit this approximation of the highest of
   repile to the marsupial (or rather to the monotreme) mammals,
   others refused to admit any reason for rejecting the identification
   of the bones in dispute with the long bird-like ossa'pubis of allied
   ,reptilian forms, which was made several years ago by Prof.
      Huxley. So at least the professor himself must have thought,
      |fr he only appeared at the conclusion of the discussion in time
      to hear Mr. Balfour's remarkable paper On the D~evd~~etokoz of
      Sparks. This will doubtless appear elsewhere in full. It was
      crowded with facts, well observed, well stated, and well illus-i
      trated; and will prove of first-rate importance, not only for
   ioichthyology but for the general doctrines of vertebrate develop-
[st ment. Of many new facts ascertained, perhaps the most startlingl
   9!is the development of the notochord by direct cellular prolifera- ]
s   tion from the hypoblast.  Whether it will ultimately be found e
   tethat this is its normal mode of formation among Vertebrata, or  a
   bKthat it may be developed from different layers in different animals,
 s
 a  the effect of this observation will be almost equally important.  k
   Those anatomists who examined the beautiful series of sections
 C on which Mr. Balfour founded his conclusions were satisfied of j
   idthe accuracy of his histological facts. Prof. Huxley congratulated Cj
     the author of the paper in terms of high commendation, though st
   nhe inclined to believe that the apparent development from the  or
   nlower embryonic layer might really be a secondary process,  al
     Mr. Lankester and Dr. Foster spoke of the service rendered to th
   .biology by Dr. Dohrn's Institute at Naples, where M~r. Balfour's  o
   observations were made, an institute to the success of which the  w
   :British Association had the honour to contribute.             i
   :The following paper by Prof. Redfern, On c Food in t P/n }tfs andu
   Animnals, has been well reported in the British Ak fidzca/ 7ourna7/ pi
     for August 29, p. 285. It was illustrated by a striking series of efi
     specimens of plants growving on different soils, and the laws of Ra
     fluttition in organised beings generally were applied with great hip
     force to the practical question of the food of the labouring classes
me
     in thenorth ofIreland.  Well delivered, and clearly  expressed,  a
     it appeared to be understood as wvell as applauded by a full foi
   auience.m
      The first paper read in the department on Monday was by
      Prof. Macalister, On t the T wongzue  of thle GCart Anteatt'r, including
 me
    an account of its enormous retractile muscles and of the salivary crc
    glands. In a discussion which followzedl, reference wvas made to usi
    the original dissection of A!)rncop,1,yazza by Prof. Owven, and pa]
    also to the observations of Mr. Flowa' on the same parts, of ch2
    which a summary was published in the ./Jkdicai Tiincs alndlilt
    G azetteof last year.                                        a
      The next paper, by Dean Byrne, was an attempt to connect Ficl
   Ithe functional development of thought with the structural de- ger
   Velopment of the brain, in their gradual evolution throughout assi
   the Vertebrata, as well as in their growth from the infant to thetw1
   adult. Many interesting facts of animal Psychology were re-
   Waed, and many acute comments offered, b~ut unfortunately the con
   works from which the author drew his facts of anatomy, patho- ye
   log, and development were either antiquated or otherwise uon- n.ao
   Perfect representations of the lpresent state of knowledge on the ting
   P oints in question.                                          ge
   1Though the paper which followved wva. also lay an outsider,1ln(
     heProfessor of f Cl Iemistt y  in Ed linl~urgh l has had l the ad 1-
i ort
   V antage of a medical training, and l his anatomy and l histology  Itl)
   were as accurate as his physics. Nothlxing could bi e more interestig
 ainz l
   tha a, n hwayhich J)r. C   liuii  ron d~ov~esrbe  ie methods  prtlofl
 ro
   dualspofyth to ascertain the exact psosition of the semi.circuIl~it lieer
        cnlofteear, andi the eXj~erimncnts he macic on the (iS n er if  r
   rotation  The sub~stance of the commnnulication will b~e fouud in  il
f a
   theelastnumber of the 7oirn/ f naomyz and Jstz/tY i'Sl) i'g1Z(( tiono
   Notwithstanding some criticisms offered l~y Mr. Chai-les Brro(lie l -,..
do.1
a lx
ml i
I
on1 the acoustics Of the~ p~aper, 1)0th its a~natomical facts and it
conclusion as to the function of the canals appeared to findi
general acqluiescenlc0. and this re~searchl may b~e regartledl as
another proof of hlow r ichl a field lies on the lborder-groundj letween
the artificial territories3 into whiclh we have divided the world of
science.
  Before the department rose, Dr. Caton exhibited a new
.adaptationl of a microscope on the I-artnack model, for the
purpose of exam~ining the tissues in living mamnmals. It was a
cheaper, and, as the author believed, a more readily appliealble
modlification of the apparatus exhibited by Professors Stricker
and Sanderson, at the Edinburgh meeting of the Association.
  Prof. Huxley opened the last day of session with an account of
his recent observations on the development of the Colfumezg~
azerzis in Amphibia. While fully confirming the position of the
quadratum (or malleus) in thle mandibular arch of vertebrates,
and of the incus in the hyoidean, these investigations appear to
show conclusively that in the amphibian, at least, the columella
(or stapes) begins as an outgrowth from the periotic capsule, and
is therefore unconnected with any visceral airch; although, as the
speaker was careful to state, it might yet be possible that the
hyoid arch had, at a very early period, left some of the
tissue of its topmost extremity adherent to the ear-capsule, and
that this might afterwards give rise to the stapes. In the absence
of M~r. Parker there was no one competent to criticise the paper
from personal knowvledge. but a word dropped as to the many
changes in the accepted homologies of the ossicula auditus,
elicited a masterly and characteristic exposition of the series of
new facts, and the modifications of theory they have led to, from
Rteichert's first observations down to the present time. The
embryonic structures grew andl shaped themselves on the board,
and shifted their relations in accordance with the views of
successive observers, until a graphic epitome of the progress of
knowledge on the subject was completed.
~r. Lankester's paper which followved was also embryological.
Ie described his observations on the development of the eye of
ephalopoda, made like those of Mr. Balfour in the Dobrn In-
titute at Naples. After correcting several of the statements
nade in text-books on the authority of Prof. l£/-iliker, the
author pointed out the relation of the eye in the Dibranchiata to
he less specialised organ of Nautilus, and showved howv the
notogeriesis of this structure in the highest mollusk corresponds
'ith its gradually increasing complexity from its first appearance
~the group, thus meeting one of M~r. Mivart's objections.
The session was appropriately concluded by a paper from the
'resident, describing experiments made several years ago on the
ffects of ozone. The animals used were r-abbits, and Prof.
edf~ern found them much less injuriously affected bay breathing
ighly oxygenated air than has been supposed, while ozone in
moderate amount ( A per cent, and upwards) pr-oved rapidly
:al, producing spasms, and death by apncea. The lungs wsere
udm~ extensively emphysema bus and congested,, with engorge.-
ent of the right side of the heart.
Thus ended a busy and not uneventful meeting of the depar:-
ent. Comparing it waith recent years, the room wvas never so
)Wded as it sometimes was at Bradford, nor so empty as it
ially was at Brighton and Edinburgh. The most Import tnt
tper last year, that of Prof. lBurdon-Sanderson on the electiic l
inges which accompany the contraction of Dioonxa, excited
tIe popular interest, anid the discussions at l'lili!huroh o:a
ioous points of Cetacean anatomy, though carried on hev Turncr.~-
)wer, Macalister, Struthers, andl Murie, wvere caviare to the
ceral. This year a correspronding importance ma) be f.airly
  igned to the embryolgu al, piape IFrs contribotllwltl lrot  l
  xlyeMrRy,   Lankestery I t- Balfour,  and. li4.ur  anllC~ .tlelan .1l
  thl a fair prop~ortion of more pendular- expusiiiiao<, the s''l I
  tributions whic ~h have been l made dluring the hast live t ora;
  ssold trachot a mttrc  oe constant attctoztlitice of 1 anttni ltllis
  1physiologist; to this (Ilaralen~tcn. Theehere wevrei di;-1l(ls
  'nse rtish emlIish~ mebrsf the .Xssociatiotowh prnesic olarsneva
  atly missed at Belfast  and considrznlsiternis nern .ll to . ss ~t~l.<
  Il, there was a retnarkalil e la k; of rellrcsentat ives Ifotti ttile
  hem  nivcrsi tics. 'r uat  fr 'i \the t frio-ic the e oft'i\i  .llthe f
i
  ors read  1z, there, is >o uc  lt le l o} x gaine(l tom  fCills '1.0
c nithlaltt ltl
  (l5CS isc in ith  ne1 wokithmn y tri at the a e  sal {I.t hie~l fe, lt
ts
  abally feel at hele conclutlsi'n uit a meeting tha~t t hyhoo Ielx 'i,'
  o rewarrdled liar the socri lice or time and . n en icti~tce, anal the
  itii  ilie l ofl' l Of lie ASLC.lti o ientirly deenti ety le ilt'  fietr
l s
  ' ttracting t  he se whdO atee set ' i sly engre  Al in the p~wecei -
  orCmortncatj(n 'f cthe Sulijth sll w e ic s Ir hit s t~yl tssee?
  clhes.
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