178 BOTANICAL GAZETTE. [July, 
31. (268, 601, 602.) Menica spEcTABILE Scribn. Proc. 
Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila. 1885, p. 45, plate I. f. 11, 12, 13.—Com- 
mon in rich meadows and on slopes near the upper limits of the 
bunch grass areas especially at elevations of from 7000-8000 ft. 
e difference in habit of growth between Melica bulbosa 
Geyer, and M. spectabile Scribner are thus stated by Mr. Cusick : 
“ M. bulbosa grows in small tufts while M. spectabile is stoloni- 
ferous, the underground runners terminated by a small bulb which 
produces the culm. The runner, I think, soon dies and so the 
stems become independent, and are never cespitose in the least.” 
Outline for study of Chemical Botany. 
LILLIE J. MARTIN. 
Botanical text-books do not furnish sufficient aid to those de- 
siring to learn to make investigations in vegetable physiology. 
Students with but a general knowledge of chemistry do not un- 
derstand the bearing of the microchemical tests given. The re- 
sult is, that most of the work is mechanical. In fact, any really 
satisfactory course in chemical botany must be introduced by a 
short course in organic chemistry. The student who has found 
out the nature and quantity of the more important constituents 
of a plant is prepared to trace these substances in its various 
tissues and even to observe the chemical changes that take place 
in the process of growth. The outliue below, mainly drawn from 
that proposed by Dragendorff, is an attempt to put this idea 
into form for class work. No particular plant is suggested, be- 
cause no one greatly superior to all others yet suggests itself. 
Corn smut is so rich in products and so easily prepared that at 
first thought it seemed particularly adapted to.such work, but a 
superficial examination showed that it required too high a power 
of the microscope to be of value for the microscopical work. Pos- 
sibly the histological work previously done upon the asparagus 
32 pumpkin vine might make it desirable to use one of these 
ants 
I. Weigh out five grams of the pulverized plant, burn off or- 
ganic matter and determine per cent. ash. Make a qualitative 
examination of half the ash by the method of inorganic chemistry. 
In the other half determine the amount of some one of the con- 
stituents found. Examine ash with microscope to learn if there 
is age of a structural nature about it. 
I. Weigh out five grams more. Dry at 100° C. until it ceases 
