2l8 TRANSACTIONS OF THE ILLINOIS 



accompanies the gift — the letter is then laid, face downward, upon the 

 pad, and gently pressed so that every portion is in contact with the pad 

 for a few moments, and removed. The ink remaining upon the pad is 

 thus transferred to other sheets, which are successively laid upon it. 

 (Handing it to the Secretary) The Secretary will please accept this 

 from Prof. Weber. 



The Secretary, with thanks, acknowledged the receipt of the 

 present, promising not to attempt using it at the dinner table. 

 (Laughter.) 



He added that he had received a paper from Prof. French, of the 

 Southern Illinois Normal University, upon the dry rot in apples, and 

 asked if it should be read. 



Several voices said "read," whereupon the President announced that 

 the paper would be read. 



The Secretary then read as follows: 



DRY ROT IN APPLES. 



BY G. H. FRENCH, A. M., CARBONDALE, ILL. 



Some time during the latter part of August my attention was called 

 to the fact that this disease was destroying large quantities of apples in 

 all our orchards, and the questions were asked, "What is the cause of it?" 

 and, "Is there any remedy?" An examination of the affected fruit 

 showed that the rotten portions consisted of flat, brown patches, varying 

 in size, and with very little moisture in them. The larger patches had 

 in their center numerous black spots, raised a little above the general 

 surface, and burst open in their middle or highest part. The smallest 

 patches lacked these black tubercles, but they were present in those inter- 

 mediate in size, though not yet opened. I suspected this to be fungus. 

 An examination of these places with the microscope showed that without 

 doubt there was fungus in the rotten places, and that these raised spots 

 were the perithecia or spore-cases of the fungus, bursting open at the 

 summit to liberate the spores, which is their means of propagation. 



But I was aware that a fungus might grow in the decayed portion of 

 the apple, its spores finding a lodgment there and growing after decay 

 had commenced; or it might first begin its growth in the sound apple 

 and be the cause of the decay. For this reason I could not, without 

 knowing the species to which this fungus belonged, decide whether I had 

 here the cause, or, as it were, the result of the decay. To settle this I 

 wrote to Prof. Charles Peck, of Albany, N. Y., who may perhaps be 

 regarded as the best mycologist in the United States, and he replied he 

 could not tell without seeing the fruit. Accordingly I sent him some 

 apples in which the rotten places had just begun to form. Upon receipt 

 of the apples he wrote me again, stating that "The rot is caused by a 

 fungus — the Sphceropsis malaruni. The spots, as the apples reach me, 



