﻿316 
  JOURNAL 
  OF 
  THE 
  WASHINGTON 
  ACADEMY 
  OF 
  SCIENCES 
  VOL. 
  12, 
  NO. 
  13 
  

  

  any 
  American 
  harbor 
  was 
  at 
  San 
  Francisco 
  Bay, 
  or 
  San 
  Pablo 
  and 
  Suisun 
  Bay, 
  

   its 
  branches, 
  where 
  damage 
  of 
  no 
  less 
  than 
  twenty 
  million 
  dollars 
  was 
  done 
  by 
  

   Beach's 
  Teredo 
  in 
  1919-1920. 
  An 
  equal 
  loss 
  is 
  probably 
  sustained 
  annually 
  

   along 
  our 
  various 
  coasts. 
  At 
  Smith 
  island 
  in 
  Chesapeake 
  Bay 
  a 
  wharf 
  col- 
  

   lapsed 
  within 
  a 
  period 
  of 
  three 
  months 
  after 
  it 
  was 
  constructed. 
  Recently 
  

   attention 
  has 
  been 
  called 
  to 
  the 
  ravages 
  of 
  shipworms 
  in 
  the 
  Panama 
  Canal 
  

   region, 
  where 
  on 
  the 
  Atlantic 
  is 
  the 
  huge 
  borer 
  known 
  as 
  Reyne's 
  Shipworm 
  

   which 
  freely 
  attacks 
  greenheart 
  timber, 
  a 
  supposedly 
  immune 
  wood; 
  while 
  

   a 
  closely 
  related 
  species 
  affects 
  the 
  fresh 
  waters 
  of 
  Mirafiores 
  Lake 
  on 
  the 
  

   opposite 
  side. 
  This 
  is 
  the 
  first 
  fresh-water 
  shipworm 
  known 
  from 
  American 
  

   waters. 
  Zetek's 
  Shipworm 
  is 
  another 
  destructive 
  Panama 
  kind. 
  

  

  Twenty-eight 
  species 
  were 
  listed 
  by 
  Dr. 
  Bartsch 
  from 
  American 
  waters, 
  

   with 
  data 
  on 
  distribution 
  and 
  other 
  notes; 
  there 
  are 
  also 
  at 
  least 
  five 
  other 
  

   species 
  known 
  only 
  from 
  fragmentary 
  specimens. 
  

  

  The 
  speaker 
  showed 
  specimens 
  of 
  various 
  kinds, 
  and 
  wood 
  bored 
  by 
  them. 
  

   He 
  stated 
  that 
  there 
  are 
  four 
  distinct 
  problems 
  presented 
  : 
  

  

  A. 
  A 
  systematic 
  study 
  which 
  must 
  form 
  the 
  foundation 
  for 
  all 
  other 
  

   inquiries. 
  This 
  has 
  been 
  attempted 
  in 
  a 
  monograph 
  which 
  Dr. 
  Bartsch 
  now 
  

   has 
  in 
  press. 
  

  

  B. 
  A 
  study 
  of 
  the 
  range 
  of 
  distribution 
  of 
  the 
  various 
  species 
  and 
  their 
  

   relative 
  abundance. 
  

  

  C. 
  An 
  examination 
  of 
  the 
  physical 
  oceanographic 
  conditions 
  that 
  deter- 
  

   mine 
  their 
  distribution. 
  

  

  D. 
  A 
  study 
  of 
  the 
  life 
  histories 
  of 
  the 
  various 
  forms. 
  

  

  The 
  second 
  paper 
  of 
  the 
  evening 
  was 
  The 
  floral 
  alphabet 
  of 
  the 
  Celts, 
  by 
  

  

  IVAR 
  TiDESTROM. 
  

  

  The 
  speaker 
  sketched 
  the 
  distribution 
  of 
  the 
  Celts 
  from 
  Spain 
  to 
  Ireland, 
  

   Wales 
  and 
  Western 
  Scotland. 
  He 
  proceeded 
  to 
  show 
  how 
  the 
  names 
  of 
  the 
  

   letters 
  of 
  their 
  alphabet 
  were 
  taken 
  from 
  the 
  names 
  of 
  trees 
  and 
  shrubs 
  be- 
  

   ginning 
  with 
  the 
  same 
  sound, 
  the 
  species 
  selected 
  being 
  those 
  of 
  wide 
  occur- 
  

   rence 
  in 
  the 
  Celtic 
  territory. 
  The 
  letter 
  corresponding 
  to 
  our 
  b, 
  for 
  instance, 
  

   was 
  called 
  beith, 
  the 
  Celtic 
  word 
  for 
  birch 
  ; 
  g 
  was 
  called 
  gort, 
  the 
  name 
  of 
  

   ivy; 
  and 
  so 
  on. 
  The 
  speaker 
  referred 
  to 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  folklore 
  of 
  the 
  Celts. 
  

   At 
  the 
  conclusion 
  Miss 
  E- 
  A. 
  Celander 
  sang 
  a 
  Swedish 
  folk-song 
  based 
  upon 
  

   an 
  old 
  Celtic 
  tradition. 
  

  

  638th 
  meeting 
  

  

  The 
  638th 
  meeting 
  was 
  held 
  at 
  the 
  Cosmos 
  Club 
  on 
  April 
  1, 
  1922 
  with 
  

   President 
  Vernon 
  Bailey 
  in 
  the 
  chair 
  and 
  69 
  persons 
  present. 
  Henry 
  

   HoYT 
  Barrow, 
  Lynn 
  C. 
  Drake, 
  Frank 
  G. 
  Grimes, 
  Smith 
  Rieey, 
  and 
  

   J. 
  R. 
  Schramm 
  were 
  elected 
  to 
  membership. 
  

  

  The 
  first 
  paper 
  of 
  the 
  evening 
  was 
  Wild 
  flowers 
  that 
  need 
  protection, 
  by 
  

  

  P. 
  L. 
  RiCKER. 
  

  

  The 
  speaker 
  first 
  told 
  of 
  the 
  organization, 
  history 
  and 
  aims 
  of 
  the 
  Wild 
  

   Flower 
  Preservation 
  Society 
  of 
  America. 
  He 
  then 
  discussed 
  the 
  need 
  of 
  pro- 
  

   tection 
  for 
  many 
  kinds 
  of 
  wild 
  flowers 
  that 
  are 
  approaching 
  extinction 
  in 
  areas 
  

   near 
  towns, 
  and 
  showed 
  a 
  large 
  number 
  of 
  colored 
  lantern 
  slides 
  of 
  wild 
  flowers 
  

   of 
  the 
  region 
  about 
  Washington, 
  with 
  some 
  comments 
  on 
  rarity, 
  danger 
  of 
  

   pulling 
  up 
  the 
  roots 
  in 
  picking, 
  etc. 
  At 
  the 
  conclusion 
  he 
  distributed 
  some 
  

   leaflets 
  of 
  the 
  Society. 
  

  

  The 
  second 
  paper 
  of 
  the 
  evening. 
  Hunting 
  fossil 
  vertebrates 
  in 
  southeastern 
  

   Arizona 
  was 
  called 
  for 
  but 
  the 
  speaker, 
  J. 
  W. 
  Gidley, 
  was 
  not 
  present. 
  

  

  