The Express.
London, England, 1866-08-29 00:00:00

Szenom C.—GEOLOGY.

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In this section the most noticeable matter was a state-
ment by Dr. Le Neve Foster of his discovery of a. curious
lode or mineral vein, containing pebbles, in New Rose-
'came Mine, Owmear, Cornwall ; and the production, by
Dr. Bete, of geological specimens and fossils from the
desert island of St. John, in the Red Sea.
Szenon D.—BIOLOGY.

In this department Mr. F. ROCKLAND delivered some
interesting remarks " On the scientific culture of a salmon
river." He described how salmon would travel from the sea
to rivers in •it mountains for the purpose of depositing
their spawn, o that, for instance, they go up the
Rhine from the German ocean to Schaffhausen, a distance
of 400 miles, and perhaps they would go much
further if they were not stopped at that point. He severely
condemned the obstructions to the passing of salmon up
our rivers by weirs, mills, and locks, and showed how
easily this evil might be remedied by the adoption of fish
bidders. The poor salmon was cruelly treated. Some-
times he was stopped by a stake net, and on being disco-
vered was tapped on the head by some one and killed, and
at other times he was attacked by the seal—{Mr. Buokland
observed that if he had an enemy in the world it was a
wal}—or, when young, killed by the heron and cormorant,
• not always from hunger but merely for sport. Then the
miller, who was often a great rascal, stopped the fish by
his water-wheels ; it remained watching for days and
days for an opportunity to leap up, but the miller put
down a grating and shipped up Mr. Salmon. This con-
duct ought to be punished by imprisonment. If the
salmon escaped the dangers of the stream he met steam-
boats, but he was not a nervous fish, and did
not care much about them. He then had to
take out his pocket handkerchief,and put it to his nose, for
a dreadful smell was met with in the water. Even the
beautiful Trent in Nottinghamshire, which, if properly
treated, might bringdown the price of salmon in this town
to 6d. or 7d. a pound, had abominable sewage discharged
into it. If you threw a glass of dirty water in a friend's
faoewhen he came to your door, he was not likely to enter,
and consequently the salmon retired when he met with
imilar treatment. (Laughter.) Supposing a flood comes
and enables him to encounter this nuisance there was the
horrible refuse of soap, gas, bone-boiling, and dye-works.
He verily believed that the salmon had no friend in the
world but himself. The salmon was a very clever and
satire fish. People used to collect on Sunday to see the
salmon jump up a height in the river at Knaresborough,
and they thought the fish did it for the public amusement.
This performance was only to be seen on Sunday, and the
MOOR was that the millowners were compelled bylaw to let
thewater run through their mills on that day. Again, there
were the poachers who killed the fish when in their nests in
the shallow streams in the mountains, and in destroying
a single fish they might destroy spawn which would pro-
duce thousands. Mr. Buckland gave an account of the
extraordinary success which had attended the scientific
and practical cultivation of salmon by Mr. Ashworth, the
owner of the Galway fisheries, which he said promised to
become among the most valuable in the world. What
had been done there might be accomplished in the Trent
and other of our English rivers, which were now almost
unproductive.
Mr. LORD observed that in British Columbia whole races
almost depended for their subsistence for six months of
winter on salmon which they caught in summer and dried
in the sun.
Mr. Pert said that in Gloucester salmon was once so
common that in indentures of apprenticeship there, a
clause was inserted providing that the apprentice should
not have salmon more than once a week.
Dr. WiUGHT made some remarks on the cultivation of
salmon in Ireland.
Mr. ROCKLAND said he had often heard the story about
the apprentice, but although be had offered 5 guineas
for one of the deeds of apprenticeship containing the
clause in question, he had not seen such a document.
At the end of the diecussion,
Mr. Becetaen gave some information "On the exhi-
bition of fish culture at Boulogne."
Mr. T. K. LORD, F.Z.S., late naturalist to the British
North American Boundary Commission, read a paper on
the North Western Indians inhabiting British Colombia
and Vancouver Island, their customs, weapons, and
domestic animals. The number of these Indians was
steadily decreasing. Ho described their personal appear.
ance, especially intimating the curious fact that the teeth
of many of them were z;round down level with the guise,
by the sand which is drifted on to the salmon exposed for
drying in the sun, upon which food these cuticula people
exist during the winter months. He then mentioned the
singular fashion of causing the heads of their infants to
become flat or conical, by means of pressure, a deformity
which is considered an ornament in riper years.
Mr. F. Levet, tNii made some remarks, principally on
the history of the living spat of the oyster, the chemical
analysis of the meat and the mother liquor, the adhesion
to the various substances to which they loved to adhere,
and the marketable value of the oysters, as tested by the
weight. He described the exceedingly interesting actions
and movements displayed by the youo; oyster when first
emitted from the mother's shell, giving the reasons why
they sometimes floated on the surface of the water, and at
other times sank to the bottom. He was carrying on ex-
periments at Herne hay, and the French system of oyster
culture had been successfully caned out at Havant, near
Portsmouth, not, however, by himself. To prevent our
oyster fisheries from being ignored in France, he had sent
one set of specimens to the Exhibition at Archacon. and
another to that at Boulogne. Mr. Buckland concluded by
exhibiting.
Samos P.—ANTHROPOLOGY.

The most interesting incident in this department was
the exhibition, and dissertation upon by Professor Huxley,
of two extreme forms of the human crania, viz., one of
a Tartar, roucd, short, and broad, and one of a New Zea-
lander, long and narrow.
SEcrtox E.—GEOGRAPHY AND ETHNOLOGY.
In this section, Sir R. Muneitison presided to-day, and
introduced, as the reader of the first paper, " On the Phy-
sical Geography and Tribes of Western Equatorial Africa,"
M. du Chaillu. In doing so, Sir Roderick adverted
to the fact that M. do Chaillu had under-
taken the expedition at his own expense ; and
had verified himself by sending gorillas and other animals
to the British Museum, and had brought home a native
harp, strung with fibre, which had been presented to the
Duchess of Wellington. He also mentioned the causes of
M. du Chaillu haviugl penetrated only 480 miles into
the interior, anal other anecdotes, with which those who
listened to M. du Chines lecture at the Geographical
Society Lest spring were familiar.
11. DU CHAILLU then proceeded to read his paper, which
was not quite identical with that which he delivered on
the occasion shove alluded to, and stated his object to be
to give seine notion of Equatorial Africa, into a portion of
which several dryzreesbeyond the Equatorhe bad pen eti &tea,
making his way through almost impassable jungle ; in the
midst of which sra of everlasting foliage were now and
then to be seen pmiri!s standing out like islands. He re-
marked on the absence of the usual African animals—
lions, rhinoceroscz, anal giraffes ; and in the thinly popu-
lated country, /43 far as man was concerned. beasts were
scanty also, there being no beasts of burden except the
women. He described the manner in which he made his
way towards the interior, sometimes quite alone, and
sometimes accompanied by native adherents, who, though
belonging to the native races of a low type, stood by him
afterwards manfully, when he had to fight his way back,
owing to the hostility of the inhabitants of a village
where by accident his gun went off and shot a woman.
With much detail he described his adventures, and inti-
mated a desire at least to return to the scene of his ex-
plorations.

SEcrtos F.—ECONOMIC SCIENCE AND STATISTICS.
Colonel SYKet read a paper "On the statistics of the
charitable, educational, industrial. ar.d public institutions
founded by the native gentry of India during the last
five years, which showed an interesting advance in the
better classes of India in sympathy and co-operation with
European habits in regard to public institutions of the
abovo description, and gave instances of spontaneous
liberality towards objects not connected with their own
race, but for the foundation of schools and hospitals for
those who needed them amongst their British nuleis;
and there were instances of contril-utions of large amount
for the building and repairing of protestant churches, and
endowments of fellowshine in the University of Bombay.
A paper was read by Mr. FELICIN, "On the Statistics of
the Hosiery and Lace Trades in Nottingham," which
stated that with a population of 150,000, as compared with
• 35,000 in 1811, in Nottingham there were 1,700 circular
machines, making bobbin net, while the number of hands
employed in lace machinery was 902 men in IS.O shops, at
average wages of 3.35. a week ; 10,300 men and youths in
130 factories, 1,800 of whom earn lois., 5,000 255., and
3,500 35e. a week. There were 4,200 boys clearing, winding,
tr.c., and 500 women filling bobbins at 12s. • week,
and 1,500 brown net menders. Then there
were in each finishing lace warehouse about 800
females. Although ventilation was provided for, the
hands often did not apply it, and sometimes the heat in
the factories was great. By far too many young females

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