The neutral potassium salt is very easily soluble in hot, as well as in cold water, and crystallizes from its concentrated solution in needles. Owing to a want of material it was not analyzed.

The potassium salt, obtained from the monoclinic barium salt, on being fused with hydrate of potassium, yielded only oxybenzoic acid, as anticipated.

The principal product of the action of sulphuric acid on benzoic acid is then meta-sulphobenzoïc* acid, while at the same time there is produced in all cases a certain amount of the para acid. As may be seen from the experiments described, there are conditions which are just as favorable for the production of the paraacid as for that of the meta-acid. I have as yet however but once succeeded in meeting these conditions, notwithstanding the fact that a large number of experiments were made with this object. I first repeated the preparation of sulphobenzoic acid, retaining as closely as possible the conditions under which the first preparation took place; the chief product was not the para- but the metaacid. Owing to this want of success I have not been able to study the properties of para-sulphobenzoic acid better. Although its formation was proven under all and the most varied circumstances, the quantity was too small and its separation too difficult to admit of isolation. When present in larger quantity than the metaacid, as was the case in the experiment mentioned above, the separation by means of the acid barium salts is very simple. If, however, the meta-salt predominates, on evaporating the mother liquor from the first crystallization both salts crystallize out together, forming crystals entirely different from either of the pure salts, and these may be recrystallized repeatedly without effecting their separation into their components.

I am continuing my experiments with the object of discovering the conditions of the formation of the para-acid. At the same time I shall attempt to prepare the same acid by the oxidation of parasulphotoluolic acid, and will probably soon be able to report on its properties more exhaustively.

Tübingen, May 16.

II. GEOLOGY AND NATURAL HISTORY.

1. Mineral silicates in Fossils; by T. STERRY HUNT. (Communicated). Since the discovery of a mineral silicate injecting fossils in a paleozoic limestone from New Brunswick, Dr. Dawson has examined a great many limestones from different localities, to obtain further facts which might serve to throw light on the history of Eozoon. A remarkable example of a similar phenomenon has been found by him in a limestone from the collection of the late Dr. Holmer, marked Llangedoe (Wales), and preserved in the Museum of McGill College. The rock is granular crystalline, and made up of organic remains, chiefly fragmentary, for the most part infiltrated by a silicate similar to that from Pole Hill, New Brunswick. The only perfect fossil detected by Dr. Dawson

* Meta 13.

is a small coral-like body referable to the genus Verticillopora, an Upper Silurian form. The limestone includes besides, however, joints and plates of crinoids, small spiral gasteropod shells, with fragments of brachiopods and of a sponge-like organism with square meshes. All of these fossils are more or less penetrated with a greenish silicate, which fills the cavities of the gasteropods, the central canal of the crinoids and the pores of the Verticillopora. It has also replaced or filled the spongy fibers and injected the minute cells of some of the crinoidal fragments, though many of these are solid and calcareous throughout, in which respect the specimen differs from that from New Brunswick, described in this Journal for May, 1871 (p. 379), where the infiltration of the crinoidal remains is much more complete and perfect. Dr. Dawson, to whom we owe these observations, supposes that in both cases the infiltration took place while the remains were still recent.

Decalcified surfaces of the limestone show similar appearances to those presented by the New Brunswick specimens; the casts of small shells like Murschisonia, two millimeters in length, are in some cases perfect. The limestone is nearly pure, with the exception of a little fine yellow ochreous mud, which is insoluble in dilute hydrochloric acid, and remains suspended in the solution, but is easily separated by washing from the pale greenish-gray silicate. This equals about three per cent of the weight of the limestone. When ignited in the air it assumes a bright fawn color, and under the microscope then contrasts strongly with the colorless grains of quartz or other hard siliceous minerals with which it is mixed. Its analysis by Mr. Sterry Hunt in the manner described for the New Brunswick mineral shows that it scarcely differs from this except in being more hydrated and almost identical with jollyte. It gave, after deducting 210 per cent of insoluble sand, the following composition for one hundred parts: Silica 35-32, alumina 22.66, protoxide of iron 2142, magnesia 6.98, potash 1:49, soda 067, water 11:46 100.00.

2. Mastodon remains in Central New York; by B. G. WILDER, (Communicated.)-Five teeth and many bones and fragments of the Mastodon have been discovered in a deposit of modified drift near Ithaca, New York, and placed in the Museum of Cornell University. Many more remains will doubtless be obtained, as the teeth already indicate the existence of two or more individuals; little hope is entertained, however, of finding a perfect skeleton.

66

3. Fucoids in the Coal measures of Iowa.-Prof. WHITE, in his Geology of Iowa" (vol. i, p. 241), notices the occurrence of forms identical with or allied to Caulerpites marginatus, in the Lower Coal-measures of Wapello county, Iowa, and of other forms, more or less indistinct, in the higher portions of the series (see p. 281, 1. 4).

F. H. B.

4. Phosphatic Sand in South Carolina.-Prof. C. U. SHEPARD has described a deposit of sand over the phosphatic nodular bed of Stone River, which has resulted from the wear of the latter by the waters, and in some places is at least six feet thick. A portion

of it, after drying in the air, was found to contain 27 p. c. of the phosphate of lime, with 63.5 of fine (nearly impalpable) and coarse sand, 30 of carbonate and sulphate of lime, 6.5 moisture and organic matter. By agitation in water the lighter flocculent siliceous part may be floated off, and the phosphatic portion thus concentrated to 37 per cent of the remainder. Prof. Shepard observes that this sand deposit appears to be very extensive. He suggests that it may require, after washing, to be treated with sulphuric acid, at the rate perhaps of 100 pounds to the ton; the phosphoric acid would thus be rendered partially soluble. He observes that the phosphate is in too impure a state for railroad exportation, but "for use on lands contiguous to water its future value cannot be doubted."-Rural Carolinian, May, 1871.

5. COUES on Antero-posterior Symmetry.*-That the anterior and posterior limbs of vertebrates are homologous is now admitted by all; but the majority of anatomists hold that they are to be compared as parallel parts, while a few t believe that they should be compared as symmetrical or antagonistic parts, as are the right and left sides; the former relation may be called "Syntropy," the latter, "Antitropy;" and the advocates of these ideas, Syntropists" and "Antitropists" respectively.

The latter have lately been joined by a vigorous ally, to whose work attention has already been called; and the accession is the more opportune because some recent English writers || upon intermembral homologies have regarded the question as already decided in favor of Syntropy, and in the determination of muscular homologies they take for granted that pollex (thumb) is the homologue of primus (great toe), whereas the antitropists above mentioned regard the relation between them as one of analogy only, the pollex being the true homologue of quintus (little toe) and the primus of minimus (little finger). The propriety of this view is admirably presented by Wyman,§ together with the obvious objections thereto and the grounds upon which these objections may be removed. T

Antero-posterior Symmetry with special reference to the Muscles of the Limbs; by ELLIOTT COUES, M.D., Assist. Surg. U. S. A.; New York Medical Record, July, 1870, et seq., pp. 149-152, 193-195, 222-224, 272-274, 297-299, 370-372, 390391, 438-440.

Agassiz, Dana, Foltz, Wyman and the writer.

American Naturalist, May, 1871.

Flower, Humphrey, Mivart, Rolleston.

Symmetry and Homology in Limbs, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., June 5th, 1867. The general and special questions here involved have been discussed by me at several times since they were first suggested to me by a verbal communication of Prof. Wyman to the Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., June 6th, 1860: and I shall shortly publish a somewhat extended paper upon the subject, (Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., Apr. 19th. 1871) containing the following:

1. An historical sketch of the question. 2. A revision of the nomenclature of parts. 3. A revision of the nomenclature of ideas. 4. Evidence as to the morphical inconsequence of numerical composition. 5. Indication of general problems. 6. Indication of special problems. 7. Chronological list of 76 special works upon intermembral homologies. 8. Alphabetical list of 227 collateral works.

Dr. Coues follows closely in the footsteps of his distinguished predecessor, “not blindly, but unable not to see the validity of his arguments," (195) and therefore, with a few minor differences or doubts respecting details, adopts the osseous homologies of Wyman as the basis for the determination of "muscular correspondences." In respect to these latter, although Dr. Coues is led to differ materially upon some points from my own previous conclusions, yet he has generally shown such good reason therefor, that my praise of this part of his work is unqualified, and I am anxious to go over the whole ground anew in the light of his able discussion. To consider his arguments and conclusions in detail would require a paper equal in length to his own, and I reserve this task for some future occasion when his later and most

instructive paper upon the myology of Ornithorhynchus can be included; the general and special problems involved are discussed at some length in the paper already referred to.

But while ready to express the most hearty admiration of Dr. Coues' labors, and confidence in his ability to even surpass them in future, I am forced to criticise some of his methods. In the first place he has "no acknowledgments to make" excepting to three* (149), and therefore, whatever satisfaction may be derived from having so taken up the subject fresh, he has also lost the benefit of the checks which an acquaintance with many and different views exerts upon the tendency to the exclusive adoption of any one; and he has thus, as it seems to me, been led to adopt a faulty method from each of his predecessors.

He has unconsciously imitated Owen in the use of many dif ferent and often ponderous expressions for the same idea "in order to avoid monotony," whereas, in homologies, as in mathematics, each object and idea should be known by a single term, and by that alone; since, of all the natural sciences, this demands the closest attention, and the absence of all secondary considerations.

Dr. Coues has accepted unquestioned the view of the normal position of the membra for comparison which was first proposed by Wyman, and adopted by Foltz, Folsom and myself; this view is based upon the proposition of Wyman, (op. cit. 265) that “the knees and elbows in all animals are bent so as to form angles pointing in opposite directions;" if we except the fishes, this generalization is correct, provided the membra are placed in the position they have with most quadrupeds; but Goodsir, Humphrey, Huxley and Wyman himself have shown that this is not their primary position, and it is quite possible that Wyman and Coues might have followed Huxley in denying that it is their normal position, had they read his paper; the desire to admit this radical change in my own views upon this point was one of the chief motives for the preparation of the paper already referred to, since do*Owen, Wyman and the writer.

As for instance, "two-jointed thumb" is coupled with "biarticulated great toe." p. 193; and in a few cases there is tautology, as in "morphologically homologous" and "teleologically analogous," p. 194.

ing so involves a concession, though not essential one to the idea of syntropy.

Finally, Dr. Coues has accepted from the writer a nomenclature of ideas, (Antitypy, &c.,) which was itself based upon Owenian phraseology, which was in no way expressive of the ideas designated thereby, and which I now propose to discard for a more significant nomenclature derived from a term (Antitropy) already in use. I have commented upon some of Dr. Coues' methods the more freely, in part because of my unqualified admiration of his real individual work, but chiefly because as regards the use of many and long words, and the acceptance of the peculiar views of single authors, my own sins have been more and greater than his can ever be.

B. G. W.

6. Supplement to "Annelides chétopodes du Golfe de Naples." -Claparède has published a Supplement to the Annelids of the Gulf of Naples especially interesting for its complete observations on the singular phenomena of reproduction of the Nereids, which were barely suspected at the time the principal part of his monograph appeared.

Malmgren in 1864 was first led to suspect a genetic relation between Nereis and Heteronereis, from a comparison of Nereis pelasgica and Heteronereis grandifolia, showing nearly an absolute identity, with the exception of the peculiar foliaceous appendages and bristles of the posterior part and other minor characters only developed at the period of sexual maturity. This led him to look upon certain species of Nereis as the agamous stock of sexual individuals appearing as Heteronereis. Subsequently having found eggs in this presumed agamous Heteronereis stock, he came to the conclusion that, although all the species of Iphinereis and Heteronereis were only sexual forms in series of generations still unknown, yet that at some time, during sexual maturity a stage of one of the polymorphous species of Nereis assumes the characters of Heteronereis, to lose them subsequently and return to its agamous stage. Malmgren accounted for the genetic relations by an alternate generation at first, and afterwards by a metamorphosis; both of which hypotheses Claparède shows conclusively are justifiable. Ehlers has shown that a large number of species of Heteronereis were only sexual forms of previously known species of Nereis, and interprets these facts in favor of a metamorphosis of Nereis into Heteronereis.

This was the condition of the problem when Claparède resumed the subject and showed conclusively (from the study of living Annelids) that there is a genetic relation between Nereis and Heteronereis, but he shows as conclusively that all Nereids do not have their Heteronereis form, as had been taken for granted by Ehlers, and that there is in the Annelids of this family a polymorphism almost without parallel in the animal kingdom. Taking the species which he has most carefully studied (Nereis (Leontis) Dumerillii) we have first a sexual form as Nereis, two sexual forms as Heteronereis, and a fourth hemaphrodite form discovered