﻿314 
  JOURNAL 
  OF 
  THE 
  WASHINGTON 
  ACADEMY 
  OF 
  SCIENCES 
  VOL. 
  12, 
  NO. 
  13 
  

  

  Extermination 
  Association. 
  The 
  organization 
  is 
  thriving 
  and 
  enthusiastic, 
  

   and 
  has 
  accomplished 
  a 
  great 
  deal 
  in 
  removing 
  from 
  New 
  Jersey 
  the 
  stigma 
  

   of 
  being 
  the 
  home 
  of 
  the 
  mosquito. 
  

  

  Mr. 
  Aldrich 
  spoke 
  of 
  recent 
  additions 
  to 
  the 
  knowledge 
  of 
  the 
  pecuHar 
  

   Austrahan 
  parasitic 
  flies 
  of 
  the 
  genus 
  Palpostoma, 
  several 
  specimens 
  of 
  which 
  

   have 
  lately 
  been 
  received 
  at 
  the 
  National 
  Museum. 
  They 
  attack 
  beetles 
  

   which 
  are 
  injurious 
  to 
  sugarcane, 
  and 
  have 
  considerable 
  economic 
  importance. 
  

  

  Dr. 
  Oberholser 
  reported 
  that 
  during 
  the 
  recent 
  deep 
  snow 
  many 
  species 
  

   of 
  birds 
  came 
  about 
  his 
  home 
  near 
  Zoological 
  Park, 
  evidently 
  forced 
  by 
  the 
  

   snow 
  to 
  search 
  for 
  food 
  in 
  unaccustomed 
  places 
  ; 
  they 
  disappeared 
  in 
  two 
  days 
  

   as 
  the 
  snow 
  went 
  away. 
  

  

  Pres. 
  Bailey 
  said 
  that 
  while 
  in 
  Southern 
  Arizona 
  last 
  winter 
  he 
  had 
  ob- 
  

   served 
  that 
  a 
  certain 
  kind 
  of 
  tuber 
  was 
  eaten 
  by 
  rodents 
  to 
  a 
  notable 
  extent. 
  

   He 
  brought 
  home 
  samples 
  for 
  identification; 
  they 
  grew 
  while 
  lying 
  on 
  his 
  

   table 
  in 
  a 
  box, 
  perfectly 
  dry. 
  The 
  plant 
  is 
  Talinwn 
  angustissimum. 
  

  

  Vice 
  President 
  Oberholser 
  taking 
  the 
  chair, 
  President 
  BailEy 
  presented 
  a 
  

   paper 
  on 
  Raising 
  baby 
  beavers. 
  

  

  The 
  speaker 
  told 
  of 
  experiments 
  in 
  raising 
  young 
  beavers 
  while 
  studying 
  for 
  

   the 
  Biological 
  Survey 
  the 
  problems 
  relating 
  to 
  beaver 
  farming. 
  He 
  showed 
  

   lantern 
  slides 
  of 
  the 
  young 
  taken 
  in 
  Northern 
  Minnesota 
  and 
  Wisconsin 
  and 
  

   raised 
  from 
  the 
  time 
  when 
  their 
  e5^es 
  had 
  just 
  opened 
  until 
  well 
  grown, 
  about 
  

   three 
  months 
  old, 
  — 
  or 
  until 
  he 
  left 
  there 
  in 
  September. 
  The 
  home 
  habits 
  of 
  

   the 
  young 
  were 
  described, 
  and 
  the 
  manner 
  in 
  which 
  they 
  took 
  to 
  human 
  ways 
  

   of 
  life, 
  even 
  to 
  the 
  regulation 
  baby 
  bottle 
  of 
  milk, 
  which 
  they 
  were 
  shown 
  ab- 
  

   sorbing 
  with 
  great 
  relish. 
  They 
  were 
  most 
  affectionate 
  and 
  lovable 
  pets, 
  

   adopting 
  their 
  foster 
  parents 
  as 
  fully 
  as 
  they 
  were 
  themselves 
  adopted; 
  

   crying 
  in 
  real 
  baby 
  fashion 
  when 
  hungry 
  or 
  cold, 
  and 
  sure 
  of 
  having 
  all 
  their 
  

   wants 
  supplied, 
  night 
  or 
  day. 
  They 
  soon 
  learned 
  to 
  come 
  when 
  called, 
  

   and 
  though 
  reluctantly 
  would 
  return 
  to 
  their 
  little 
  beaver 
  house 
  on 
  the 
  hill 
  

   near 
  the 
  cabin. 
  Their 
  great 
  delight 
  was 
  to 
  be 
  rocked 
  to 
  sleep 
  in 
  a 
  soft 
  warm 
  

   lap, 
  or 
  on 
  a 
  cold 
  night 
  to 
  be 
  wrapped 
  in 
  a 
  blanket 
  and 
  taken 
  into 
  a 
  warm 
  bed, 
  

   where 
  they 
  would 
  cuddle 
  up 
  close 
  and 
  go 
  to 
  sleep 
  as 
  soon 
  as 
  they 
  had 
  finished 
  

   their 
  bottle 
  of 
  milk. 
  

  

  Although 
  well 
  covered 
  with 
  deep 
  soft 
  fur, 
  they 
  were 
  sensitive 
  to 
  cold, 
  es- 
  

   pecially 
  if 
  exposed 
  to 
  cold 
  wind. 
  Slides 
  were 
  shown 
  of 
  some 
  beaver 
  houses 
  

   with 
  thick 
  walls 
  and 
  warm 
  inner 
  chambers, 
  also 
  of 
  beaver 
  dams 
  and 
  ponds, 
  

   and 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  mature 
  beavers 
  taken 
  alive 
  for 
  study 
  of 
  habits. 
  

  

  In 
  conclusion 
  Mr. 
  Bailey 
  considered 
  beavers 
  easily 
  raised 
  in 
  captivity, 
  

   gentle 
  and 
  intelligent, 
  promising 
  well 
  as 
  domestic 
  animals. 
  

  

  Mr. 
  Bailey 
  resumed 
  the 
  chair 
  and 
  Mr. 
  A. 
  S. 
  Hitchcock 
  gave 
  the 
  second 
  

   paper 
  of 
  the 
  evening. 
  Botanical 
  notes 
  from 
  the 
  Orient. 
  

  

  The 
  speaker 
  had 
  made 
  a 
  trip 
  to 
  the 
  Philippines, 
  China 
  and 
  Japan, 
  leaving 
  

   Washington 
  on 
  April 
  25, 
  1921, 
  and 
  returned 
  to 
  the 
  city 
  on 
  Dec. 
  24. 
  About 
  

   one-third 
  of 
  the 
  intervening 
  time 
  had 
  been 
  consumed 
  in 
  travel. 
  A 
  month 
  was 
  

   spent 
  in 
  the 
  vicinity 
  of 
  Manila. 
  In 
  this 
  region 
  Mt. 
  Makiling 
  near 
  lyos 
  Bancs 
  

   is 
  the 
  best 
  accessible 
  collecting 
  ground 
  for 
  a 
  botanist. 
  The 
  worst 
  drawback 
  

   here 
  was 
  the 
  abundance 
  of 
  leeches. 
  Baguio 
  was 
  a 
  good 
  place 
  for 
  grass 
  col- 
  

   lecting. 
  Omitting 
  China 
  to 
  save 
  time, 
  the 
  speaker 
  described 
  his 
  experiences 
  

   in 
  Japan, 
  where 
  he 
  traveled 
  on 
  foot 
  with 
  a 
  native 
  botanist 
  as 
  guide 
  and 
  in- 
  

   terpreter, 
  thus 
  having 
  an 
  opportunity 
  to 
  live 
  among 
  the 
  Japanese 
  as 
  foreign- 
  

   ers 
  rarely 
  do. 
  lyantern 
  slides 
  were 
  shown 
  to 
  illustrate 
  various 
  places 
  visited 
  

  

  