274 Miscellaneous. this also was only a liver in appearance, that the liquid secreted was also the principal digestive liquid emulsionizing the fatty bodies, transforming the albuminoids into peptones and producing glucose at the expense of amylaceous matters. The epithelium, consisting of voluminous cells, of the caeca of the Phalangida has the most analogy with the cellular elements of the supposed liver of the Araneida ; but, what is more positive, the liquid secreted in abundance also transforms the feculents into glucose slowly, dissolves the albuminoids actively, and energetically emulsionizes the fats. The caeca of the Phalangida are therefore not the analogues of the cephalothoracic suctorial sacs of the Araneida, but the evident analogues of their abdominal digestive gland. It results from this, (and direct observation also proves it), that the large median sac is the principal place for digestion, and consequently the middle intestine. The Gourami and its Nest. By M. Carbonniek. I have of late years had the honour of making known to the Aca-demy the curious and interesting habits of certain fishes of the group Labyrinthici. In these species, at the time of reproduction, the males become adorned with the most vivid colours, construct a nest to shelter the products of the spawning, and during the embry-onic development, as also after hatching, give a careful and efiieacious protection to their progeny — facts which indicate a highly developed instinct in these creatures, and reveal the existence of faculties of which they have heretofore been regarded as destitute. Among these are the Macropodi of China and the Colisce of India. The study of another fish of the same family, the Gourami {OspJiromeniis olfaoc) has furnished me with subjects of no less astonishment and admi-ration. The Gourami, an inhabitant of the fresh waters of China and India, is remarkable for the large size to which it may grow and for the goodness of its flesh, which renders it a valuable article of food. My trials in former years not having given any result, I deter-mined last spring to keep my fishes in a medium maintained artifi-cially at a constant temperature of 25° C. (=77° F.), which it ap-peared to me must be suitable for their reproduction. With this view, my fishes were placed in an aquarium containing about 48 gallons of water. In a few days I saw the bodies of the males become adorned with vivid colours ; they pursued each other, and seemed to struggle furiously for the possession of the females. I then selected the finest male, whose lips were tumefied in an abnormal fashion, and left him alone in the aquarium with a female which he seemed to pursue perseveringly. He soon commenced in one of the angles of the aquarium the formation of a nest of froth, which in a few hours attained a considerable size — 6 to 75 inches in diameter, and 4 to 4f inches in height. In the Chinese Macropodus the male draws directly from the outer
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