294 



SCIENCE, 



[N. S. Vol. IX. No. 217. 



acetone and alcohol, and chloroform and ace- 

 tone ; it is found that a mixture of benzene and 

 alcohol with 33.5% alcohol distils unchanged at 

 66.7° under 737 mm. pressure ; chloroform and 

 alcohol with 7% alcohol distils without change 

 at 58.5° under 732.5 mm. ; and chloroform and 

 acetone with 19% acetone distils unchanged at 

 63.4° under 737.1 mm. ; the boiling points of 

 all mixtures of alcohol and acetone lie between 

 the boiling points of pure alcohol and pure ace- 

 tone. 'Reversible Reactions,' by John Wad- 

 dell : a mathematical paper on the conversion of 

 ammonium cyanate into urea, criticising a re- 

 cent paper by Walker and Hambly in the Jour- 

 nal of the Chemical Society. 



' Scientific vs. Poetic Study of Education ' 

 is the title of the opening article, by Charles 

 DeGarmo, in the March Educational Revieiv 

 (Holt & Co.). Other articles in the number 

 will be : ' The High School Principal,' by John 

 Tetlow ; 'A School-Garden in Thuringia ' (Illus- 

 trated), by Herman T. Lukens ; ' Educational 

 Value of Bird-Study,' by Frank M. Chapman; 

 'Vacation Schools,' by Charles Mulford Robin- 

 son ; ' Report of the Chicago Educational Com- 

 mission ' ; ' Fraudulent Diplomas and State 

 Supervision,' by Henry Wade Rogers ; ' School 

 Supervision in New York State, ' by Walter S. 

 Allerton. 



The Geographical Association of Great Brit- 

 ain, at its annual meeting, on January 11th, 

 adopted the Journal of School Geograyhy, edited 

 by Professor R. E. Dodge, New York, as its 

 medium for the publication of information of 

 service to teachers of geography. 



SOCIETIES AND ACADEMIES. 

 WASHINGTON BOTANICAL CLUB. 



The third regular meeting was held February 

 1, 1899, at the residence of Mr. J. G. Smith. 



Mr. C. L. Shear exhibited and discussed a 

 parasitic fungus found on Abiescon color and 

 Picea Engelmannii in the subalpine regions of 

 the Rocky Mountains. This fungus attacks the 

 lower branches of the younger trees, fii'st form- 

 ing a brown, felt-like layer over the branch 

 and gradually spreading until frequently a foot 

 or more of the branch is enveloped and killed. 

 The fungus is closely related to Herpotricha 



nigra Hartig, wliich is frequent on conifers in 

 similar regions in Europe. Though not agree- 

 ing exactly with the description, it seems to be 

 what was first described by Professor C. H. 

 Peck in Hayden's Report as Sphteria Coulteri. 



Under the title ' Plant Formations of Western 

 Lake Erie' a brief account was given, by Mr. 

 A. J. Pieters, of the swamp formation and of 

 the aquatic plant formation of the Put-in-Bay 

 region. The extensive swamps on the main 

 land at East Harbor are made up of various 

 plant associations in each of which there is a 

 dominant species, while in the other, dominant 

 species of the formation are nearly or quite ex- 

 cluded, though many smaller forms are present 

 everywhere if the depth of water does not pre- 

 vent. The Scirpus Americanus Association is 

 characteristic of the beach either when this is 

 subject to heavy wave action or on dry sand 

 bars ; it also occurs in lagoons behind the bars. 

 Throughout the swamp the different associa- 

 tions succeed each other, their arrangement be- 

 ing sometimes dependent upon depth of water, 

 while at other times no relation could be de- 

 tected between depth of water or character of 

 bottom and the presence of the dominant 

 species. 



The aquatic plant formation was classified 

 provisionally into associations which were 

 grouped under two headings : a, free swimming- 

 forms ; 6, attached species. Three associations 

 were recognized under the first : 



1. The Plankton. This includes the free 

 swimming, microscopic forms in deep water. 



2. The Utricularia Association. Rootless, 

 fine-leaved phauerograms and masses of algse 

 floating free beneath the surface in quiet water. 



3. The Lemna Association. Small phauero- 

 grams floating free on the surface of the water. 



Five associations of attached forms were 

 recognized : 



4. The Cladophora Association. Algse at- 

 tached to stones on the bottom or to the sub- 

 merged stems of plants. 



5. The Desmid Association. Mostly unicel- 

 lular alg£B lightly attached to flne-leaved phan- 

 erogams in quiet water. 



6. The Chara Association. Low-growing 

 plants covering the bottoms of shallow bays or 

 pools. 



