166 
POPULAR SCIENCE NEWS. 
[November, 1891. 
dance of lime and sandstone, and the conditions 
of cultivation were materially changed. There is 
one way in particular by which our society might 
be of practical use in small country towns — by 
forming a sort of road protective league. In driv- 
ing through the average farming section one is 
forcibly impressed by the bad condition of the 
roads, which is not the result of negligence or 
lack of labor on the part of taxpayers, but simply 
ignorance of the best road treatment and a total 
disregard of the mineral resources of the country, 
using what is most accessible. The system of 
working out road taxes is not of benefit to the 
town, and the extra expense incurred in the mak- 
ing of a good road would be more than counter- 
balanced in the saving in horses and carriages. 
Many of our country members have and will have 
a voice in this matter, which has been left too 
long to mere theorizing by scientists. At the 
meeting of our countj' farmers the question of 
better roads was discussed, and several admirable 
plans were suggested ; so we may hope for grad- 
ual improvement. Among the pleasantest feat- 
ures of our Chapter work is the correspondence 
with other Chapters. We are always glad to hear 
of theii methods and plans, and it brings us into 
touch with one another as nothing else could do. 
Our work at present is rather desultory, owing to 
separation, and is mainly confined to individual 
reading. Mrs. Ballard's charming book, "Moths 
and Butterflies," has just been finished. We are 
all looking forward to the time when we shall 
again be back in our club-room, a reunited Chap- 
ter. With hearty good wishes for the future suc- 
cess of the A. A. — S. Evelyn Breed, Pres. ; M. J. 
Pope, Cor. Sec. 
iod, Baltimore, Md., [A]. — Our first annual re- 
port (March, 1890) was made immediately after 
our organization, and, as a matter of course, did 
not show much work done; but the past year has 
been a glorious one in our history, and we have 
done so much in the way of thorough preparation, 
as well as actual work, that we hope to make our 
Chapter one of the leading scientific societies of 
this city. In February last we secured a room in 
the college as a meeting-place and museum ; but 
since the last report the professor of political 
economy has taken the room, and we now have 
more comfortable quarters. We have one room 
for our meetings and another (18X12 feet) for a 
museum. In our museum we have an extremely 
large collection of minerals, a nearly complete 
collection of the eggs of birds resident near this 
city, an herbarium, a collection of butterflies, of 
bird-skins, and an octagonal aquarium with a di- 
ameter of three feet, in which the membeis inter- 
ested in this branch have a large number of fresh- 
wate]' specimens. Our mineral collection consists 
of 150 specimens — analyzed, with labels, on which 
Is written the name, number, analysis, and locality 
from which the specimen came, together with 
nicely varnished blocks for mounting purposes — 
donated by Dr. Clarke, one of our honorary mem- 
bers ; another is a set of fifty specimens presented 
by the Smithsonian Institution ; then, best of all, 
our local collection, which, we are happy to say, 
is complete, with the exception of three or four 
varieties. Our collection of birds' eggs, the result 
of six years' work, donated by Mr. Wholey, is 
also nearly complete. The collection of bird- 
s'lvins is also in the hands of Mr. Wholey, but as 
yet is in iis infancy. The herbarium is rapidly 
growing, and at the piesent time contains many 
rare and valuaLle specimens. The collection of 
buttei flies and moths is very young, but, as sev- 
eral gentlemen interested in the subject have 
lately entered the Chapter, we hope by next win- 
ter to have a much better collection in this de- 
partment. The fresh-water aquarium is well 
stocked, and some of our best work is being done 
there. Several gentlemen, among them Mr. Rob- 
inson, have been pursuing original investigations 
on the development of the larva: of water insects, 
and the comparative development of the tadpoles 
of.diflerent species of batrachians. While I am 
under this head, I must mention that we are doing 
original work in other directions. Mr. Beatty, 
Mr. Wholey, and Mr. Waters are preparing a 
check-list of plants to he found around Balti- 
more; Mr. Waters is especially investigating the 
ferns of the vicinity; Mr. Wholey is preparing a 
check-list of the birds of the vicinity, separating 
the resident species from the migratory; both 
check-lists will be forwarded on completion. Our 
collections being quite large, we naturally were 
very anxious concerning their disposal. At first 
we expected to receive cases from the school 
board of our city, but, having waited for some 
time without obtaining them, we concluded to 
put them up ourselves; so we now have a nice set 
of cases, into which our collections will soon be 
put. We have also an incipient library, and a 
fine laboratory, stocked with all the necessary 
chemical supplies. All of these things are our 
exclusive property. We have been hampered all 
this year by our need of a separate room for a 
museum, but, having secured it at last, we are 
now rejoicing. We should like to know whether 
there is a museum of the A. A. as a whole. If 
there is, we should be very glad to contribute of 
our abundance ; and if there is not, we surely 
might have one. Only imagine wh.at a grand in- 
stitution such a museum would become. With 
the A. A.'s Chapters scattered over all this land, 
in a few years we might have collections that 
would stand second to none. In conclusion of 
this part of my report, I would state that we have 
discovered a large colony of the orchid Poyonia 
verticillata, which, according to Gray, is quite 
rare. This colony is known only to myself and 
another member, and, as we do not wish to de- 
populate it, but still would like others to have 
some benefit from it, we will send a specimen 
(mounted) to any person or Chapter especially 
interested in orchids who will p.ay the postage. — 
W. N. Wholey, Sec, Baltimore City College. 
We greatly regret that lack of space requires 
the postponement of many most interesting re- 
ports. Better work is done today in our Chapters 
than ever before. We shall have something to 
say later about a general Agassiz Association Mu- 
seum. Meanwhile, reports from the Ninth Cen- 
tury (Chapters 801-900) should reach the Presi- 
dent by November 1. All are cordially invited to 
join the Ag.assiz Association. Address the Presi- 
dent, Mr. Harlan II. Ballard, Pittsfield, Mass. 
SPECIAL NOTICE. 
The following circular has been mailed to all 
Chapters of the Agassiz Association. If by acci- 
dent any Chapter has failed to receive it, we trust 
this notice will be received in its stead, and a 
prompt answer returned. 
AGASSIZ ASSOCIATION. 
OFFICIAL BULLETIN. 
Pkesident's Office, riTTSFiELD, Mass., Oct. 1, 1891. 
As the year closes it le important that full and accurate 
statistics of our A. A. be prepared. You will, therefore, 
kindly return this paper at your earliest conTenlence with 
the blanks carefully filled. 
1. Name and No. of your Chapter. 
2.' No. of Members, Active and Honorary. 
3. No. of Members gained or lost in 1891. 
4. Names and (uhU'eases of your present ofiicers. 
^. Permanent Chapter Address. 
6. No. of Meetings held in 18S1. 
7. Did you celebrate A gaseiz's Birthday? 
8. No. of Subscriptions sent to POP0LAK Science News 
in ISfll. 
9. If Popular Science News Is retained, how many 
new subscriptions could your Chapter secure? 
10. Please inclose a special report of the proceedings of 
your Chapter since January 1st, 1891. 
Faithfully yours, 
H. H. Ballakd. 
PERSONAL OBSERVATIONS BY MEMBERS 
OF THE AGASSIZ ASSOCIATION. 
271. Midnight Rainbovfs. — On August 18, 
1891, a very heavy fog lay over the meadows and 
ponds of West Bridgewater. The moon was full, 
and at midnight was very near the meridian. As 
a friend and myself were returning home about 
midnight, we noticed some arc-shaped halos over 
every pond and bog, but took no particular notice 
of them until we came to some large tracts of 
meadow-land where the fog was exceedingly 
thick. Here they were so bright that we stopped 
to look at them. The largest and brightest 
spanned a small valley through which ran a 
brook. Here the arc was about a thousand feet 
from end to end, and perhaps a hundred feet high. 
The ends of the arc were easily visible on account 
of the bright white places they made on the 
ground. These white spots at the ends of the 
arc appeared hemispherical, the flat sides being 
towards the moon. There was no trace of color, 
but the lower edges were darkest. A little way 
beyond was another brook, over which were sev- 
eral small arcs, placed at equal distances up the 
brook, which gave them the appearance of being 
concentric. The arcs were contained wholly in 
the fog and were lightest where the fog was 
thickest. —William L. Tower, West Bridge- 
water, Mass. 
272. Carmine Indian Pipe. — I have today 
found specimens of red Monotropa uniflora (or 
Indian pipe), and as Gray's manual does not men- 
tion such a variety, I write to ask whether others 
have ever found it. The stems are bright car- 
mine, the petals fainter, and the ovoid pod and 
stigma not so clear a color. There were two 
tufts of them peeping through brown fallen leaves 
under a hickory tree where I was searching for 
nuts. I will send you specimens, but fear they 
will have become black ere they reach you. Both 
uniflora and hypopitys are familiar to me, else I 
should think I had made a mistake. Another fact 
is the lateness in the season ; July and August 
produce them usually. You may wish to state in 
Popular Science News that the little fungi 
about which I inquired (see February number) 
is Cyathtis, vernicosus, order Gasteromycetes, — so 
given me by a Stockbridge member, 0. L. Shear. 
—Mary A. C. Avery, (Chapter 739), Ledyard, 
Conn., Sept. 29, 1891. 
Can any of our readers state from actual 
knowledge how the bittern makes its call from 
which its local name " stake-driver'' or "pumper" 
cornea? 
<♦> 
A Volatile Compound of Iron. — Ludwig 
^ond has succeeded in making a compound of 
iron and carbonous oxide. It has only been ob- 
tained in a highly dilute condition, but its proper- 
ties have been suflicieutly studied to indicate that 
it is Fe(CO)4. 
