128 
especially considering the close proximity of the coming annual 
meeting of the Botanical Society of America during Christmas 
week, is a very encouraging indication of the amount of botanical 
investigation now in progress in America. 
The director of the Garden visited the botanic garden and the 
new botanical building at Smith College, in company with the 
curator of public instruction, on June 18, and again on June 28, 
in company with Mr. H. W. Martin, representing McKim, Mead 
& White, the architects of our building, and Prof. R. A. Harper, 
Torrey professor of botany in Columbia University. Accom- 
panied by Mr. Alfred T. White, Professor Harper and the direc- 
tor went by auto car from Northampton to inspect the botanic 
garden at Mt. Holyoke College, So. Hadley, Mass., and the Mas- 
sachusetts Agricultural College at Amherst. At the latter insti- 
tution cuttings were obtained of the silver leaf vine (Actinidia 
polygama), from the specimen growing at Amherst, and intro- 
duced by the director of the Station, Dr. William P. Brooks. 
The original plant was collected by Dr. Brooks in Japan, several 
years ago. 
The difficulty of collecting seeds for our exchange list has been 
materially increased this season by the excessive rains, which 
have caused many species to decay or die before setting seed. 
On the other hand, the moisture has been very favorable for the 
fruiting of many native wild flowers. Abundant seeds have been 
collected in the woods with comparative ease from such well- 
known favorites as Clintonia, Trillium, Cornus canadensis, Tia- 
rella, Maianthemum, Polygonatum, Actaea alba, and others. 
During the past summer a new iron fence was erected around 
the south addition, acquired by the Garden in the spring; and 
during July-September four entrances were provided with turn- 
stiles, combined with a provision for baby carriages, the whole 
being along entirely new lines designed to obviate the necessity 
of an attendant at each entrance. Funds for the fence and 
turnstiles, amounting to about $2,600, were provided by private 
contribution from the chairman of the Committee on Botanic 
Garden. 
