﻿JAN. 
  19, 
  1922 
  SCIENTIFIC 
  NOTES 
  AND 
  NEWS 
  47 
  

  

  A. 
  mexicana 
  is 
  found 
  in 
  Nevada 
  and 
  California 
  extending 
  south 
  into 
  Mexico. 
  

   Same 
  symptoms 
  — 
  not 
  as 
  toxic 
  about 
  like 
  pumila 
  — 
  dosage 
  4 
  times 
  galioides. 
  

  

  All 
  produce 
  same 
  effect 
  on 
  animals. 
  Galioides 
  — 
  a 
  dry 
  land 
  plant 
  — 
  spreads 
  

   by 
  seed 
  and 
  by 
  roots 
  — 
  cultivation 
  spreads 
  plant. 
  

  

  Dr. 
  Arno 
  ViEhoever: 
  Edible 
  and 
  Poisonous 
  Beans 
  of 
  the 
  Lima 
  Type. 
  — 
  

   Phaseolus 
  hinatus 
  L. 
  (illustrated). 
  

  

  Beans 
  of 
  the 
  lima 
  type 
  {Phaseolus 
  lunatus) 
  are 
  rich 
  in 
  food 
  essentials, 
  

   carbohydrates, 
  protein 
  and 
  fat. 
  All 
  varieties 
  contain, 
  in 
  addition, 
  the 
  

   glucoside 
  linamarin, 
  yielding, 
  like 
  the 
  amygdalin 
  of 
  bitter 
  almonds, 
  hydro- 
  

   cyanic 
  acid 
  when 
  macerated 
  with 
  water. 
  In 
  domestic 
  cultivated 
  forms 
  the 
  

   amount 
  of 
  hydrocyanic 
  acid 
  is 
  so 
  small 
  that 
  the 
  beans 
  can 
  be 
  considered 
  safe 
  

   for 
  consumption. 
  The 
  majority 
  of 
  samples 
  obtained 
  from 
  tropical 
  countries, 
  

   however, 
  were 
  found 
  to 
  yield 
  excessi\^e 
  amounts 
  of 
  the 
  poisonous 
  acid 
  in 
  dif- 
  

   ferent 
  samples 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  in 
  individual 
  beans 
  of 
  the 
  same 
  sample. 
  The 
  amount 
  

   of 
  hydrocyanic 
  acid 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  domestic 
  lima 
  beans 
  ranged 
  from 
  a 
  trace 
  

   to 
  the 
  maximum 
  of 
  10 
  mg. 
  per 
  100 
  g. 
  of 
  beans. 
  We 
  obtained 
  from 
  the 
  tropical 
  

   beans 
  quantities 
  of 
  hydrocyanic 
  acid 
  amounting 
  to 
  as 
  much 
  as 
  300 
  mg. 
  and 
  

   more 
  in 
  100 
  g. 
  of 
  the 
  material. 
  

  

  The 
  large, 
  uniformly 
  white 
  lima 
  bean, 
  grown 
  on 
  an 
  extensive 
  scale 
  in 
  

   California, 
  and 
  also 
  imported 
  from 
  Madagascar, 
  has 
  been 
  found 
  harmless. 
  

   Small 
  lima 
  beans 
  cannot 
  be 
  considered 
  as 
  coming 
  from 
  a 
  different 
  species 
  

   than 
  the 
  large 
  lima 
  beans. 
  The 
  most 
  poisonous 
  forms 
  found 
  were, 
  however, 
  

   beans 
  of 
  the 
  small 
  type. 
  

  

  The 
  color 
  does 
  not 
  diflFerentiate 
  the 
  harmless 
  from 
  the 
  poisonous 
  forms, 
  

   neither 
  do 
  the 
  morphology 
  or 
  structure 
  of 
  the 
  beans 
  give 
  safe 
  means 
  of 
  separa- 
  

   tion 
  and 
  differentiation. 
  There 
  are, 
  however, 
  morphological 
  and 
  anatomical 
  

   characteristics 
  which 
  permit 
  the 
  ready 
  differentiation 
  of 
  beans 
  of 
  the 
  lima 
  

   type 
  from 
  beans 
  of 
  other 
  types, 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  most 
  striking 
  means 
  being 
  the 
  

   general 
  absence 
  of 
  calcium 
  oxalate 
  in 
  the 
  seedcoat 
  of 
  Phaseolus 
  lunattis. 
  

  

  Cooking 
  of 
  the 
  poisonous 
  beans 
  does 
  not 
  render 
  them 
  harmless, 
  although 
  the 
  

   boiling 
  water 
  will 
  extract 
  a 
  portion 
  of 
  the 
  compound 
  yielding 
  hydrocyanic 
  acid. 
  

  

  The 
  name 
  "Lima 
  Bean" 
  should 
  be 
  limited 
  to 
  the 
  edible 
  forms. 
  

  

  Roy 
  G. 
  Pierce, 
  Recording 
  Secretary. 
  

  

  SCIENTIFIC 
  NOTES 
  AND 
  NEWS 
  

  

  Forty-one 
  Federal 
  Government 
  periodicals 
  suspended 
  publication 
  on 
  

   December 
  1, 
  for 
  lack 
  of 
  specific 
  authorization 
  from 
  Congress 
  for 
  their 
  con- 
  

   tinuance. 
  Among 
  the 
  scientific 
  and 
  technical 
  periodicals 
  suspended 
  are: 
  

   Experiment 
  Station 
  Record; 
  Journal 
  of 
  Agricultural 
  Research; 
  Monthly 
  Weather 
  

   Review; 
  and 
  Public 
  Roads. 
  

  

  The 
  Petrologists' 
  Club 
  met 
  at 
  the 
  home 
  of 
  H. 
  G. 
  Ferguson 
  on 
  December 
  

   20, 
  and 
  discussed 
  the 
  following 
  topics: 
  E- 
  B. 
  Sampson: 
  Origin 
  of 
  serpentine 
  

   in 
  the 
  lime 
  type 
  of 
  asbestos 
  deposits; 
  S. 
  H. 
  Cathcart: 
  Review 
  of 
  W. 
  N. 
  Benson's 
  

   ''Origin 
  of 
  serpentine;" 
  C. 
  S. 
  Ross 
  and 
  E. 
  V. 
  Shannon: 
  Iddingsite 
  as 
  a 
  deuteric 
  

   mineral. 
  

  

  The 
  National 
  Museum 
  reports 
  the 
  receipt 
  of 
  a 
  fragment 
  of 
  a 
  heretofore 
  

   unknown 
  meteorite 
  (a 
  pallasite) 
  from 
  Cold 
  Bay, 
  western 
  Alaska. 
  The 
  

   entire 
  mass 
  as 
  found 
  was 
  in 
  the 
  form 
  of 
  a 
  badly 
  oxidized 
  mass 
  of 
  but 
  a 
  few 
  

   pounds 
  weight, 
  which 
  was 
  at 
  once 
  broken 
  up 
  by 
  the 
  finders 
  and 
  in 
  large 
  part 
  

   lost. 
  The 
  find 
  is 
  the 
  second 
  from 
  Alaska 
  proper, 
  the 
  first 
  having 
  been 
  that 
  

   of 
  Chilkat 
  (an 
  iron). 
  

  

  