136
MORE EPPING FOREST.
squeeze it pretty dry, and fill the tin box lightly with it, putting in enough to
keep the worms from being shaken about on a journey through the post, &c.
" My sister the other day—never having collected worms before—went out
and got me ten species, within a mile or two of Bovey Tracey. What might not
your Field Club accomplish, if a dozen members from different parts of the county
would take up the work ? "
We hope to publish shortly an introductory paper on the study of the
Oligochaeta, by Mr. Friend. Meanwhile we trust that members will assist in the
attempt to work out the Essex species. Mr. Friend says : "I shall be glad to
receive as many boxes (packed as above) from your members as they like to send.
I cannot return them, however, unless postage is enclosed. In the end I could
let the Museum have a set duly labelled, if proper bottles were provided."
Address—Rev. Hilderic Friend, F.L.S., "The Grove," Idle, Bradford, Yorkshire.
—Ed.
Parasitic Vorticellae.—On Tuesday, March 31st, I went fishing for small
objects in the ponds on that part of the forest at the back of Forest House. The
chief takings were numbers of Daphnia and Cyclops, but almost all were covered
with a species of the Bell-Animalculae (Vorticella). So thick did these
congregate on the surface of their hosts that swimming was quite impeded,
and by no means could the parasites be shaken off.—Alfred P. Wire,
Leytonstone,
Uncommon Plants at Felstead.—In the interesting "Report of the
Felstead School Natural History Society for 1890," just issued, are the following
notes on the plants of the district:—During 1890, several notable additions have
been made to our local flora, chiefly by the exertions of Mr. W. Moore, of Milch
Hill, Felstead; to him and to Mr. J. French, who is responsible for two of the
plants below, our thanks are greatly due. The new plants added are :—
Viburnum lantana, Hesperis matronalis (casual in a field of Trifolium incarnaium),
Apium inundatum, Valerienella olitoria, Carex axillaris, C. panicea, Festuca maurus,
Dianthus (9) armeria. The following of our rarer plants have been found in
fresh places :—Onithogalum umbellatum, Carex pseudocyperus, Genista tinctoria,
Ophrys muscifera, O. apifera, Carlina vulgaris, Campanula glomerata, Melampyrum
arvense, Polygonum bistorta, Neottia nidus-avis, Paris quadrifolia, Potamogeton
lucens, Scirpus sylvaticus, Ranunculus parviflorus, Saxifraga tridactylites, Echium
vulgare."
Cooke's "Illustrations of British Fungi."—We called attention to the
completion of this fine work last year (E. N., iv. p. 224). It was emphatically a
labour of love with Dr. Cooke, and we are very sorry to hear that he has not only
received no reward for ten years' persistent work, but he is a very considerable
loser by the publication, owing to the small number of subscribers. Fifty sets, in
parts, still remain, and it is suggested, if subscribers can be obtained, that they
should be issued at the rate of two parts monthly, at the original subscription
price of 5s. per part, thus ensuring its complete issue in three years, and enabling
Dr. Cooke to recoup part of his actual pecuniary loss. The work consists of
1,200 plates (in eight volumes) drawn and coloured by Dr. Cooke, representing
1,400 species of the gill-bearing fungi, or Agaricini, the greater number never
having been figured before. At the subscription price it is the cheapest work of
the kind ever issued To complete the Hymenomycetes there yet remain the
species of Boletus, Polyporus, Hydnum, the Thelephorei, Tremella, and Clavaria,
and Dr. Cooke is willing to issue these plates in four volumes, if a sufficient