14 EXPERIMENT STATION EECOED. 



sasaiiqiia, Torrcpa nucifera. aud Cephalotawus drupacea, and from the fruit of 

 Ciiinainoiniim rampliora and Macliilus thiinhcrgii. 



The analysis of chestnut wood, W. K. Alsop (Jour. Amer. Leather Chem. 

 As.soe., ^.{IHOD). Xu. .}, pp. 95-90). — Extractions of leached wood were made 

 by different methods. 



" It is apparent that the amount of extractive matter obtained from chestnut 

 wood depends upon the time of extraction and the rate of boiling, or amount of 

 water passing on the wood. Some substances soluble in the water are yielded 

 up almost indefinitely." The author thinks it will be difficult to devise a general 

 method of analysis of new and spent wood, because it is practically impossible 

 to duplicate in the laboratory the conditions that prevail at the factory. " The 

 discrepancies between the amount of extractive matters, of total solids, found in 

 the factory and at the laboratory, are probably much greater than is the case 

 with the tanning content." 



Destructive distillation of pine, fir, birch, and beech woods, P. Klason, 

 (J. voN Heidknstam, and E. Noelin {Ark. Kemi, Min. och Geol., S (1908), No. 

 2, Arb. JO, pp. 17, j)ls. 8; abs. in Jour. Soc. Chem. Indus., 28 {1909), No. 3, p. 

 132). — The charcoals from these four woods have about the same chemical 

 composition and yield about the same quantity of acetone. The pine and fir 

 yield about one-half as much acetic acid and methyl alcohol as the birch and 

 beech. 



" Taking 275° C. as the reaction temperature, the thermal effect of the 

 carbonization was calculated from the heat of combustion of the wood and of 

 the distillation products (both at 20°), and the specific heats and heats of 

 evaporation of the constituents. The following were the results : Cotton, 152 

 calories ; fir wood, 317 ; pine, 223 ; birch, 289 ; and beech wood, 316 calories. 

 In the case of the four woods the thermal effect amounted to about 6 per cent 

 of the heat of combustion of the wood." 



Production of alcohol from cellulose, T. Koerner {Ztschr. Angew. Chem., 

 21 {1908), No. J,6, pp. 2353-2359; Set. Amer. Sup., 61 {1909), No. 1736, pp. 238, 

 239). — This article describes a method of obtaining alcohol from wood and 

 wood products. The yield of sugar and alcohol obtained from sawdust by 

 different investigators differs greatly. The author obtained a yield of absolute 

 alcohol equal to 6 per cent of the weight of dry wood. Sulphite cellulose 

 yielded twice as much alcohol as wood. The yield of alcohol was increased 

 by hydrogen dioxid but diminished by stronger oxidizing agents. The sugar 

 which was converted into alcohol was derived from cellulose and not at all from 

 lignin. 



Beport of the Hildesheim Agricultural Experiment Station, Aumann 

 (Ber. Landw. Vers. Stat. Hildesheiin, 1908, pp. l.'i). — This is the annual report 

 of the director of the station, and consists chiefly of analytical data on ferti- 

 lizers aud feeding stuffs. 



METEOROLOGY— WATER. 



The Mt. Bose Weather Observatory, 1906-1908, J. E. Church. Jr. {Ne- 

 vada Sta. Bui. 67, pp. 7-36, pis. 28, map 1). — This report gives an account of the 

 origin, construction aud equipment, observations, and plans of work of this 

 observatory. In the establishment of the observatory the University of Nevada, 

 the experiment station, the Weather Bureau of this Department, and various 

 individuals cooperated. Its equipment consists of a small observatory house, 

 rain gage, evapoi'imeter, anemometer, shelter with meteorograph of 40 days 

 range, and a barograph of 35 days range at the summit of Mt. Rose (10,800 ft. 

 above sea level), and a refuge camp part way up the mountain. 



