313 
. I have this season had an opportunity to examine specimens 
and find as I expected, that it was V. Woodii. It is a well- 
marked species, easily distinguishable from V. viride. 
_ Some of the specimens were 5 feet in height, the huge pani- 
cle over 2 feet in length. 
In Patterson’s catalogue but one locality is given for this 
plant, namely, Hancock County, collected by Mead. Will likely 
be found in other localities in the southern part of the State, 
where it should be expected. 
Ihave specimens collected near St. Louis, Mo., by Letter- 
man. FRANK E, MCDONALD. 
Reviews of Foreign Literature, 
The Lichen Genus Cladonia. The above is the subject of an 
extremely interesting paper, published in the spring of 1891, 
by G. Krabbe, of the Univ. of Berlin. 
The investigations for this work were begun in 1880, therefore 
Covering a period of ten years. The work is very complete and 
_ €xhaustive ; studies in the field and laboratory combine to make 
the whole a thorough history of the development story of this 
§enus. It was undertaken, the author says, in reference to three 
Special features. First, the significance of the upright portion of 
the thallus or podetium ; second the peculiar morphological sig- 
nificance of the polymorphism exhibited by this organ ; third the 
question of sexuality which he claims can be studied here with 
More certainty than in other genera, because the development of 
the apothecia can be more easily traced here. In regard to the 
morphology of the podetium, there is a difference of pan 
among lichenologists, some claiming it is the upright portion o 
the thallus, others that it is itself the thallus, and that the hor- 
zontal portion which precedes its formation in an organ ee 
Ponding to the protonema of the moss. Krabbe differs Pe : 
these views, and considers the podetium the Romologue of the 
fruit body of the ascomycetes. In this way is found another 
argument for the double nature of the lichen, though this is now 
80 generally recognized, that throughout the article so aad 
fungus forms are spoken of as the ascomycetes without alg 
and the lichens, as ascomycetes with alge. 
