Wanted. — Short notes of interest to the general botanist 

 are always in demand for this department. Our readers are 

 invited to make this the place of publication for their shorter 

 botanical items. The magazine is issued as soon as possible 

 after the 10th of February, May, August and November. 



Peat Bogs. — Possibly it has never occurred to those who 

 live in regions where peat bogs are common that this feature 

 of the earth's surface is not a general one. It is known, how- 

 ever, that such bogs are characteristic of glaciated regions and 

 tliat by far the greater number are found north of the line 

 which marks the southern limit of the old glaciers, and mostly 

 in the northern hemisphere. Any piece of wet ground is not 

 entitled to be called a bog. A real bog is wet and springy, to 

 be sure, but it is underlaid with peat and vegetable remains and 

 covered on the surface with sphagnum mosses. The saturated 

 soil prevents the entrance of air and thus decay goes on very 

 slowly and imperfectly forming the black deposit known as 

 peat. The presence of ulmic and other acids prevents the 

 growth of the bacteria of decay and this results in the preser- 

 vation of anything that falls into the bog. In the Old World 

 a great number of articles have been preserved in this way and 

 found after hundreds of years in good condition. Among them 

 may be mentioned, armor, weapons, clothing, various house- 

 hold utensils, and even the bodies of men. Examination of the 

 peat itself reveals the remains of more than ninety species of 

 plants that have been preserved in a recognizable condition. 

 The living vegetation of the peat bog is found to be made up 



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