190 SECTIONAL ADDRESSES. 



results. Immersion of glass slides or cover-glasses in the water will often 

 afford valuable comparative data on the early stages of development. 



Since a large number of botanists are professionally occupied in 

 towns, such direct observation of Algae is a matter of some difficulty and 

 in some cases of impossibility. Under these circumstances work with 

 algal cultures is easiest, and this has no doubt been a factor in its rather 

 widespread adoption. It is a matter of regret that practically no facilities 

 exist in this country for the direct study of freshwater Algae and of the 

 many limnological problems that are linked up with it. There are no 

 freshwater biological stations, so far as I am aware, apart from the 

 Experimental Station at Alresford, Hants, of the Ministry of Agri- 

 culture and Fisheries. Nor have there been many researches in this 

 country dealing with the biology and ecology of freshwater Algae, although 

 thanks to the Wests and to Dr. Pearsall some very valuable work has been 

 done on the waters of the Lake District ; Dr. Griffiths, too, despite the 

 difficulties, has made considerable progress with the study of the fresh- 

 water phytoplankton of the lowlands. 



It is specially to be deplored that there is no biological station with a 

 permanent staff on the Norfolk Broads, where many problems of general 

 interest could be attacked, and which would be within fairly easy reach 

 of many of our universities. The benefits likely to accrue from the 

 pursuit of investigations at such a station would by no means be confined 

 to the pure aspects of our science, since the study of freshwater Algae 

 is fundamental for the understanding of the general biological features 

 of a piece of water and is intimately related to its productivity in animal 

 life, including the diverse kinds of freshwater fish. Much profitable 

 and important research in this direction emanates from Sweden, Germany, 

 and other European countries, nearly all of which possess several well- 

 equipped and well-staffed freshwater stations, but to this we, as a 

 country with a large area of freshwaters, contribute practically nothing. 



