248 



SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XLVII. No. 1210 



At the meeting of the sectional committee Pro- 

 fessor WiUiam Patten, of Dartmouth College, was 

 nominated as vice-president of the section for the 

 ensuing year, and Professor Herbert V. Neal, of 

 Tufts College, was reelected secretary of the Sec- 

 tion for five years. 



The following resolution, presented by Pro- 

 fessor H. B. Ward, was unanimously adopted by 

 the Section: 



In the opinion of Section F it is important that 

 in any plans formulated or arranged by the Amer- 

 ican Association for the Advancement of Science 

 looking toward the organization and development 

 of national or international bibliographic projects, 

 the existing international bibliographic under- 

 taking for zoology, i. e., the Concilium Biblio- 

 graphioum in Zurich, long approved by this Asso- 

 ciation and in part supported by numerous grants 

 from its funds, be kept definitely in mind and in- 

 cluded in any plan for bibliographic work pre- 

 sented for consideration by the special committee 

 of the coimcil. 



The Section voted to recommend that the asso- 

 ciation make a grant of $1,000 to Professor C. H. 

 Eigenmann, of Indiana University, for the study 

 of South American fishes. 



Owing to the absence of Professor G. H. Parker, 

 of Harvard University, the address of the retiring 

 vice-president was not given. The address — ^upon 

 ' ' Some underlying principles in the structure of the 

 nervous system" has appeared in Science (Feb. 

 15). The following papers were read: 



1. Some pathological phenomena following in- 

 halation of chlorine gas: H. B. Hunt and 

 W. H. ScHuiiTZ, "West Virginia University. 

 The lungs of animals killed with chlorine gas 

 show the following characters differing from those 

 found in normal lungs: 



1. Depending upon time of exposure and upon 

 concentration of gas inhaled, chlorine gas causes 

 an abnormal distribution of blood and fluid in the 

 lungs. In more or less localized areas of lobules, 

 there are varying degrees of congestion of arteri- 

 oles. This may be associated with edema and 

 hemorrhage causing hepatization. 



2. Histological study of hepatioized areas 

 shows the following pathological conditions: 



(a) The arterioles of gassed lungs are filled with 

 blood, often under such tension as to render the 

 elastica interna nearly free from folding. There 

 seems to be a concentration of cellular elements and 

 a diminution of fluid content in the arterioles. 



(6) The media and adventitia of congested ar- 



teries are edematous causing considerable thick- 

 ening of these layers. 



(c) The capillaries frequently show small is- 

 lands of corpuscles which apparently have been 

 caught and retained in what appear to be con- 

 stricted vessels and the arterioles supplying these 

 vessels are greatly congested. 



{d) The nuclear membrane of "fetal cells" 

 seems slightly irregular. It stains more deeply 

 with hematoxylin, the nuclear material appears 

 clumped into larger granules and the cytoplasm is 

 less plump than normally. The latter takes on a 

 bluish tinge vrith hematoxylin. Further study of 

 the respiratory cells is necessary, but the indi- 

 cations are that chlorine and hypochlorous acid so 

 alter fetal and respiratory cells of alveoli and the 

 endothelium of capillaries that not only is circu- 

 lation of corpuscles interfered with, but respiratory 

 processes of alveolar tissue are retarded or pre- 

 vented. 



(e) The alveoli of hepaticized areas contain 

 fluid poor in cellular elements. Frequently much 

 fluid pours into alveolar passages, extending to 

 terminal bronchi and larger subdivisions of the 

 bronchial tree. Usually, however, in these larger 

 air passages the fluid is mixed with air and is 

 frothy. Hence a freshly cut surface of gassed 

 lung, though apparently dry, when gently 

 squeezed is made to froth from the end of air 

 passages. In the living animal the abundance of 

 fluid in these air passages is evidenced by a pro- 

 nounced rale during respiratory movements. 



2. A comparison of the responses of representa- 

 tives of different phyla from the protozoa to 

 the mammalia, in gradients of environmental 

 factors with particular reference to their 

 method of reaction: V. E. Shelford, Univer- 

 sity of Illinois. 

 The "general interest" session of Monday 

 afternoon took the form of a symposium on the 

 ' ' Contributions of zoology to human welfare. ' ' 

 Papers were read by Dr. L. O. Howard and Pro- 

 fessor H. B. Ward. The paper of Dr. Hugh M. 

 Smith, commissioner of fisheries, who was unable 

 to attend the meeting, was read by the secretary. 

 These papers together with one by Professor M. A. 

 Bigelow, who was unable to be present, will ap- 

 pear elsewhere in Science. 



The meetings of Tuesday, January 1, were in 

 charge of the ofiicers of The American Society of 

 Naturalists and have been reported in Science by 

 the secretary of that society. Professor Bradley M. 

 Davis. Herbert V. Neal, 



Secretary 



