86 



SCIENCE 



[Vol. LVI, Xo. 143S 



stage in the chemical evolution of plant life. Con- 

 siderable remains yet to be done on this group 

 from the analytical and synthetical standpoints. 



Some seed-home diseases of agricultural crops: 

 W. D. Vai.leau, University of Kentucky. Further 

 studies on the extent of seed infection of corn 

 with Fusarium moniliforme confirm previous re- 

 ports that it is practically universal. The organ- 

 ism is carried between the various seed-coat layers 

 and may extend in as far as the aleurone laj-er. 

 In very flinty corn the organism remains dormant 

 a longer period after the seed is planted than in 

 the poorly filled starchy kernels. A preliminary 

 study of 8 lots of barley from 3 states, 12 lots of 

 oats from 4 states, and 38 varieties of wheat from 

 5 states indicates that small grains are infected 

 to a higher degree with pathogenic organisms than 

 has generally been suspected. Morphological 

 studies of lettuce seeds have demonstrated the 

 presence of an organism in a high percentage of 

 seeds which is believed to be the causal organism 

 of lettuce root rot. The universal presence of 

 root rot on clovers and the results of preliminary 

 tests of seed infection suggest that the causal 

 organism is constantly present in clover seed. 

 Observations on crops affected by seed-borne root 

 disease organisms, grown under different seasonal 

 conditions, suggests that these organisms may 

 play an important part in geographical and sea- 

 sonal distribution of certain wild and crop plants. 



A preliminary report on a study of various 

 clovers as found on three soil experiment fields of 

 Kentucky with special reference to root systems: 

 E. N. Fergus and W. D. V.\lleau, University of 

 Kentucky. An ecological and pathological study 

 is being made of various clovers, particularly red 

 clover, growing on three soil types of Kentucky, 

 in order to determine the causes of clover failure. 

 Actual counts showed that red and alsike clover 

 stands were practically equal throughout the first 

 year whether on productive or ' ' clover sick ' ' soils. 

 Much diminution of stand occurs on most soils 

 during the second summer, reaching 100 per cent, 

 on the least productive soil. Soot rot was present 

 to some extent on all root sj'stems examined. 

 Those developed in least productive soils were 

 badly diseased or dead at the end of the first 

 season. All tap root systems examined were badly 

 diseased or dead at the end of the second season. 

 The persistence of a clover plant after death of 

 the tap root system depends on its ability to pro- 

 duce new roots from the crown. 



Extraction of crude oil dy means of shafts and 

 tunnels: Henry Meier, Centre College. This 

 method of recovery of oil from beds has been 



successfully carried on in Alsace since 1917. Ex- 

 perience has shown that by means of wells and 

 pumps not more than 20 per cent, as a maximum 

 of the oil contained in a bed can be brought to 

 the surface. The recover}' by sinking a shaft and 

 digging tunnels through oil-bearing sand enables 

 the recovery by seepage and by treating the sand 

 mth hot water, of two and a half times as much 

 oil as by means of wells. This metliod of recovery 

 increases the value of a concession. It opens to 

 countries whose oil-bearing regions seem to have 

 reached the end of production, new and encour- 

 aging prospects. 



Depletion of Kentucky crude oils: W. E. Jill- 

 SON, State Geologist, Director of the Kentucky 

 Geological Survey. Although petroleum was first 

 produced on the South Fork of the Cumberland 

 Eiver in 1819, the industry in Kentucky may be 

 said to have gained its feet in 1900, when 62,259 

 barrels were produced. Production increased 

 steadily until it exceeded 1,200,000 barrels in 1905 

 and 1906, after which it steadily fell off to 407,081 

 barrels iu 1915. From that time it increased rap- 

 idly to 9,226,473 barrels in 1919 and has continued 

 near 9,000,000 barrels. The author thinks that a 

 production of 150,000,000 barrels in the next 60 

 years is a conservative estimate. 



Oil shales of Kentucky: C. S. Grouse, Univer- 

 sity of Kentucky. The oil consumption in the 

 United States is outstripping the domestic pro- 

 duction, creating an alarming situation. New 

 sources of oil must be found. Oil shale ■Bill solve 

 the problem so soon as the extraction of oil from 

 this source is made commercially feasible. A re- 

 search has been in progress at the University of 

 Kentucky for three years with the development 

 of a commercial retort as its object. The results 

 are more than encouraging. Kentucky has 

 90,000,000,000 tons of shale immediately available 

 for steam shovel methods of mining. This shale, 

 conservatively figured, represents 40,000,000,000 

 barrels of crude oil. Kentucky shales show 

 marked superiority over shales in other parts of 

 the United States. Such being true Kentucky is 

 the logical place for the genesis of the oil shale 

 industry in this country. 



Model showing structure of Gainesville oil pool, 

 Allen County, Ky.: E. S. Perry, University of 

 Kentucky. The author exhibited the model show- 

 ing the stratification and explained its construc- 

 tion. 



Table moling by so-called spirits: Glanville 

 Terrell, Univereity of Kentucky. An example 

 of table-moving produced in daylight by a girl of 

 fifteen .and a boy of ten with no possibility of 



