NOTES AND COMMENT 247 



of papei-8, and there were two joint sessions with the Western Societj- 

 of Naturahsts. An afternoon was devoted to an examination of the 

 Scripps Institution for Biological Research, and to demonstrations 

 of the work which is being carried on there. Two days were given to 

 an automobile trip of 200 miles from San Diego across the Cuyamaca 

 Mountains to the edge of the Imperial Valley, returning by a different 

 route. Over thirty local and visiting biologists participated in this 

 trip as guests of the San Diego Society of Natural History, under the 

 leadership of Mr. Frank Stephens. 



Efforts are being made to increase the utilization of forest by- 

 products by extracting the oils from pine leaves, as has long been done 

 in the case of spruce and hemlock leaves. These oils are used in pro- 

 prietary medicines, in perfumes, and in shoe polish. A firm in Oregon 

 has pushed the utilization of yellow pine leave's still further by extract- 

 ing a useful fiber from the leaf residue after distillation. 



In the August is.sue of The Geographical Review Dr. Stephen S. 

 Visher has contributed a paper on The Biogeography of the Northern 

 Great Plains. The plant and animal life of western South Dakota 

 and the adjacent region has been briefly described, with frequent 

 reference to the controlling physical conditions. 



