18 THE AMERICAN MONTHLY [January, 



ing hooks or bristles, which catch upon animals and when released 

 spring back so suddenly as to expel seeds. 



II. Hygroscopic fruits (sensitive to moisture), such as the equisetum. 



III. Succulent fruits in which expulsion is caused by a sudden access 

 of water, such as oxalis, in which the mechanism lies not in the peri- 

 carp, but is a fibrous layer enveloping the seed. — Sam. Naturw. Vor- 

 trciffe. 



Strength of Vegetable Growth. — Some years ago the elm and 

 other trees on 4^ street in Washington were surrounded by cast-iron 

 frames securely riveted together at the four square corners. The 

 growth of the trees has burst the castings apart in many places. In 

 some of the places the iron was a half inch or more thick where it 

 broke. These protect6rs are still standing and the breaks open to in- 

 spection. 



Fermentation of Bread. — Not only does the yeast set free the 

 gases which cause the dough to rise, but it prevents the bacteria which 

 are parasitic in the starch from developing, in which case the dough 

 would sour and the gluten dissolve. Boutroux finds three distinct mi- 

 crobes in yeast, but thinks they play no part in fermentation. Chican- 

 dai'd says that when the dough is placed in the oven it contains im- 

 mense numbers of bacilla, but no yeast cells. He consequently regards 

 fermentation to be the action of Bacillus ghitinis on the gluten. — ■ 

 Coviptes Rendtis. 



Growth of Sea Weeds. — Oltmanns has tried increased and de- 

 creased salininitv upon the growth of algce and reports that i to i S-iq% 

 of sudden variation is prejudicial to their growth, while a gradual 

 change produces but slight effect. The plant cells cannot adapt them- 

 selves suddenly to change of turgor. Different species show different 

 degrees of inability. — Preuss. Akad. Wiss. 



Sugar Cane Diseases. — Kriiger describes "dust brand," "red 

 spots," " rust," and " sclerote " as due to fungus parasites, which are 

 very destructive in Java. — Ber. Vers. Zuck. in West Java. 



An Elm Parasite. — Dr. Zabriskie has described and figured a fun- 

 gus as Pestalozzia iiisideiis^ which he found in New^ York. {^^^ Jour- 

 nal of tiic Neiv 7'ork Microscopical Society. 1891, p. roi.) 



Life in Great Salt Lake.— Dr. J. E. Talmage, of Salt Lake City, 

 Utah, recently elected F. R. M. S., exhibited to the society some spec- 

 imens of Arteinia fertilis from Great Salt Lake, and explained the 

 occurrence of life in the lake. We should like to hear from him on 

 the subject. 



A Pink Micro-Organism of great beauty but of undetermined 

 name was found in September by Prof. W. A. Herdman, of Univer- 

 sity College, Liverpool, while dredging in Loch Fyne. His attention 

 was attracted to a number of pink patches on the sand, which under a 

 low power proved to consist of clear quartz sand grains incrusted with 

 bright pink jelly masses averaging o.i mm. in length. Each jelh' 

 mass was crowded with short rods of 0.0015 mm. in length and half 

 that breadth. He suggests, in Nature., that it may possibly be a form 

 oi Beggiatoa rosea-persicina and offers specimens to biologists who 

 are familiar with the zooglo^a condition of micro-organisms. The 

 occurrence of such a form on clean sand in pure sea-water is unusual. 

 The patches were a foot in diameter just below water at lowest tide, 

 and presented much the appearance of pink blotting-paper. 



