260 The Botanical Gazette. [September. 



Transpiration, or the loss of water from plants : CHARLES 

 E. BESSEY and ALBERT F. Wood. — The historical summary 

 of the investigations upon transpiration was followed by a dis- 

 cussion of the methods of observation and the nature of trans- 

 piration. The paper closed with a summary of the views of 

 the principal investigators. 



Absorption of fluids by plants: L. H. PAMMKL. — The pa- 

 per opened with a resume of the work upon the absorption of 

 fluids by plants, considered historically, anatomically and 

 physiologically. The subject of soils was then considered as 

 bearing upon the absorption of water. The distribution and 

 occurrence of root hairs on plants with an exposition of the way 

 in which absorption was brought about was then discussed, 

 the paper closing with an account of the absorption of fluids 

 by Cryptogams. 



■ 



Movement of fluids in plants: W. J. BEAL. — The author 

 gave a resume of the subject, speaking chiefly of the move- 

 ment of fluids in trees. His remarks were confirmed by a 

 number of experiments that he had performed for verification. 



Gases in plants : J. C. Arthur. — The writer gave a brief 

 historical statement of the discovery of the principal facts per- 

 taining to the subject ; the kinds and origin of gases in plants ; 

 and an account of the present state of knowledge regarding 

 the movement and distribution of gases in plants. 



Two papers of botanical interest were read before section 

 C (Chemistry). 



The biological funetion of the lecithins: WALTER MAX- 

 WELL. — In a paper presented before the association in 1890, 

 it was shown that during the initial stages of plant growth, 

 the phosphorus contained in the mature seed as a mineral 

 phosphate, under the action of the process of germination, 

 becomes separated from the inorganic compound and reap- 

 pears in the organisms of the young plantlet in an organic 

 form as lecithin, and that the lecithins form a medium through 

 which the element phosphorus passes from the mineral to the 

 vegetable kingdom. A continuance of the study of the func- 

 tions of the lecithins, which has been conducted with the nor- 

 mal hens egg and the incubation products of the egg, have 

 indicated that the phosphorus contained in the egg in the 

 organic form as a lecithin, under the action of the process of 

 incubation, becomes eliminated from the lecithin compound 



