The Liverpool Standard, and General Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1854-09-26 00:00:00

SECTION C.-GEOLOGY,

Mr. G. B. GREENOUGH read a paper on the " Geology of
India," illustrated with a beautiful map, which had been
engraved and coloured under his own•snperintendence.

Mr. S. OLDIIAM read a communication, -and exhibited
what was said to be a fossil tooth from India, but he stated
his belief that it was not a tooth at a 11.4 but part of a bone
of'a fish.

The Rev. Professor SEDGWICS then read a very elabo-
rate paper on " The Classification ot the Lower Palaeozoic
Strata of this Country," being a continuation of papers
read at previous meetings of the association.

SECTION D.-ZOOLOGY AND BOTANY, INCLUDING

PHYSIOLOGY

Professor Balfour presided, and in the course of the
day ten papers were read, but few of them possessed
much public interest.—Dr. CARPENTER read a lengthy
paper "On the development of the Embryo of the Pur-
pura Lapillus."— Dr. LANKESTER drew attention to a.
magnificent work on the bisects of Madeira, just pub-
lished, and written by Mr. WooMston, who has lived for
some time on the island. He. also advised the members
of the association to inspect the magnificent collection of
insects at the house of Mr. Melly, of Riversley, near
Aigburth, which he said was unequalled by any similar
collection in the kingdom—Dr. INMAN then read a paper
"On a partial case of Albinoismus." He said that, some
short time since, he met in one of the Liverpool hospitals
a black man, whose hands were covered with whitespots,
and whose legs had become as white as those of a white
man. He was a native of Antigua, where his grandfather
was a white man. While in China, about eighteen
months ago, he was sadly afflicted with rheumatism, and
treated, it is supposed, with mercury. Soon after, the
white spots began to appear, first on his right hand and
then on his left, gradually extending over hl legs and
arms ; white spots also came upon his face- in the cold
weather, but in the summer season they became covered
with a darker skin, which disappeared as the heat of the
weather moderated. Strange to say, he disliked these
white spots, and had even asked him (Dr. Inman) if he
could not effectually blacken his skin again. Dr. Inman
recommended walnut juice, and on beingkinformed that it
would dye his skin at least a deep brown, he appeared
much pleased. All these spots were quite free from•
disease) but more easily injured than the dark skin..—Dr..
Carpenter said the case was by no means unprece-
dented. In America a genuine negro turned completely
whites preserving as the only peculiarities of his origin
the woolly hair and broad features of his race.

Profess-or W. C. WILLIAmsox gave a description of
"The British species of Foraminifera."
The Rev. H. H. HIGGINS then exhibited some speci-
mens of the family of insects, " Syrphick," found in the
neighbourhood of Liverpool uring the last summer.
The next paper was read by Mr. J. RICHARDSON, of
Hull. " On the Medicinal Leech, and its Method of Repro-
duction." •

Professor M'Cosll next read two papers "On the Mor-
phology of the Cones of Firs," and "The Correspondence
of the Variation of the Leaf with the Ramification of the
Plant." The sitting terminated with a paper by Mr. T.
Masters, " On the Arrangment of Air Canals in Nympluea-
cece, (water read by Dr. LANICESTRR and one " On
the Balance of Organic Beings in Sea Water," by Mr. R.
WARRINGTON.,
SECTION E.—GEOGRAPHY AND ETHNOLOGY.
Dr. Conolly presided.
••

The Rev. Dr. HuME read an interesting paper, entitled

" Ethnology of the Liverpool District, wifh-NotiCes of the
Hoylake Antiquities." Liverpool now contains a popula-
tion of a very miscellaneous character ; but it is not gene-
rally known that before the town had attained any
commercial greatness, or, indeed, before it had secured a
place upon the map, different tribes and peoples passed
over the lands in the immediate neighbourhood, or made
them their temporary residence. The greater part of the
hundred of Wirral, lying between the Mersey and the Dee,
was then a forest ; and similar forests, but less extensively
wooded, existed at Toxteth and Croxteth, on the Lancashire
side of the river. To the north of Liverpool a large tract
of low land was only nominally possessed by man ; it was
in reality a marsh, unproductive as pasture, and still more
so for purposes of cultivation. A similar marsh existed,
and still exists on the Cheshire side, extending from
Birkenhead to the tides of the channel. Some suppose
that the Mersey was originally an inland lake, com-
municating with the sea, through Wallasey Pool, along
Bidston Marsh, and out by Leasowe Lighthouse, a theory
supported by several facts. Thus, Ptolemy omitted all
notice of the Mersey, as if it had no existence, while, at
the same time, the sub-marine forest of Lancashire, near
Formby, was only a continuation of that near Leasowe,
in Cheshire. The " Brigantes" were among the earliest
inhabitants in Lancashire, a people whose character is in
part indicated by the word " brigand," derived from
them. At a subsequent period the Saxon element was
. strong on both sides of the Mersey. In their Saxon
character both Cheshire and Lancashire were alike, though
they belonged to different kingdoms of the heptarchy, the
former being part of Mercia. In 894 the Danish sea-king
Hastings landed on the adjoining coast, and took and
•fortiffed Chester, but he was eventually driven out by
Alfred, and forced to retreat through North Wales. Dr.
Conolly and Sir Roderick I. Murchison complimented Dr.
fume in very warm terms on tilo character 4f Ws paper,