Dear Sir,

In answer to your last letter I hasten to tell you that earth-worms behave here precisely in the same manner as in Europe.¹ I have noticed their castings every where in gardens and fields, but not in the forest. I had an excellent opportunity of observing these animals in the back-yard of my own house, a space measuring 20 yards by ten. This morning I counted on these 200 square yards one hundred and fifty six (156) holes and castings. These were of rather unequal size from half a cubic centimetre to 5 cubic centimeters. I collected as carefully as possible the whole quantity of upcast earth, and found it to be close to half a litre, so that 3 cubic centimetres is the mean quantity of a cast.²

The whole depth I was however unable to ascertain satisfactorily; I can only say that at 75 centimetres the hole was still visible, but I lost there its trace further on.

I will send you as soon as possible some of the earth worms, in order that you may get from some one the systematic name.³

The depth of the burrows must be pretty different, as I saw from the different nature of the up cast earth; sometimes it is a yellow loam (which is generally our subsoil, the result of desintegration of gneissic rocks), sometimes a fine black mould, the occurrence of which has nothing strange in the soil of a city:

I had overlooked in the American Naturalist the strange misstatement to which you are good enough to call my attention.⁴ It is singular, though I may be partly guilty by not having worded my phrases more clearly. I shall send a note to the Editors, claiming a true statement of my observations.—⁵

I shall be most happy to write to you now and then, and remain respectfully your obedient servant | A Ernst.