154 PROCEEDINGS OF THE ACADEMY OF 



sliown an accidental union of two culms, one from each plant, and 

 wliicli, in some way, bad formed an apparent union one with 

 another. This api^eared not to be the case in the present speci- 

 men. In the wheat ear the small clusters of flowers inclosing the 

 ultimate grain, came out at each bend of the zigzag rachis. The 

 spike of chess ai)i)eared to come out at one of these bends, the 

 lowermost, taking, in faet, the place of one of these small clusters. 

 It was not an accidental union of two distinct parts, but appa- 

 rently a substitution of one part for another. Again the Bromaa 

 secaliuus rarel}- gets as tall as wlieat, especially so tall as this 

 strong looking wheat head had evidently grown. There was, he 

 said, another remarkable fact connected with the popular reports. 

 Man}' other grasses grow with wheat as well as B7-omus i<ecoli}n(s, 

 the common chess or cheat. It was apparently as easy for any 

 of these to become accidentally conjoined with wheat as this, but 

 no case is brought forward. There was enough in appearance, he 

 thought, that deserved further investigation. 



On Mr. Meehan's motion, the specimen was referred to the 

 Biological and Microscopical Section for examination. 



Neio Growth of Plants. Mr. John H. Redfield called the 

 attention of the Academy to some curious facts recently observed 

 b}'^ Mr. C. F. Parker. On some low marshy ground near the Dela- 

 ware River below this city, was deposited in the spring a large 

 amount of mud dredged from the channel of the river. The mud 

 was spread to the depth of several feet over a space of more than 

 an acre in extent, for the purpose of raising the level. Later in 

 the season over this whole area sprung up a growth composed 

 almost exclusively of two plants, viz., Foli/gonum 07'ientale^ an 

 East Indian species (which occasionally occurs on waste ground), 

 and Clcome pungeiis^ii West India species of less ft'equent occur- 

 rence. The former plant constituted the mass of the growth, 

 though there ma}' have been more than one hundred plants of the 

 Cleome scattered among the growtli. One or two specimens of 

 Quamoclit cocdnea, also a naturalized species, were likewise 

 noticed. Mr, Parker had also previously observed a similar case 

 upon Smith's Island, and also in two localities in Camden, where 

 channel mud had been thus deposited. Mr. Redfield thought it 

 an interesting inquiry as to whence the seeds of these plants origi- 

 nated, and how they had survived their long burial in the river 

 mud. 



Dr. Leidy thought that as the vicinity had long been used as a 

 place for the deposit of ballast from shijts, the seeds might have 

 laid upon the ground previously, and have been quickened b}' the 

 deposit of the mud. 



Mr. Meehan referred to some recent discoveries as to the effect 

 of oxygen in the germination of seeds, and thought that perhaps 

 the seeds of these plants, protected from air while buried under 



