360 



SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XLIV. No. 1132 



On Saturday morning at 9 the annual business 

 meeting of the academy was held. The secretary- 

 treasurer made his report, which showed the fi- 

 nances of the academy to be in good condition with 

 a comfortable balance in savings bank. The vari- 

 ous stated committees made their reports. An in- 

 vitation to hold the 1917 meeting at the Univer- 

 sity of North Carolina, at Chapel Hill, was ac- 

 cepted. Twenty-three new members were elected 

 and two former members reinstated, bringing the 

 total membership up to 88. 



The following officers were elected for 1916-17. 



President — F. P. Venable, University of North 

 Carolina, Chapel Hill. 



Vice-president — H. C. Beardslee, Asheville 

 School for Boys, Asheville. 



Secretary-treasurer — E. W. Gudger, State Nor- 

 mal College, Greensboro. 



Additional members executive committee — J. E. 

 Smith, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill; 

 E. O. Eandolph, Elon College; Bert Cunningham, 

 City High School, Durham. 



At the close of the business session a joint 

 meeting was held of the academy and of the North 

 Carolina Section of the American Chemical So- 

 ciety, at which papers of interest to both bodies 

 were read. Following these the chemists and the 

 academy held separate meetings to complete the 

 reading of papers on their respective programs. 

 The academy adjourned at 1:30 p.m. The total 

 attendance was 43 out of a membership of 86. 

 There were 23 papers on the program, of which 

 only 3 were read by title. Including the presi- 

 dential address, which will be published in the 

 current number of the Journal of the Elisha 

 Mitchell Scientific Society, the following papers 

 were presented: 

 Observed Changes in the Land Vertebrate Fauna 



of North Carolina: C. S. Bkimlet. 



Notes the known changes in the abundance and 

 distribution of certain birds, mammals and rep- 

 tiles in North Carolina. The full paper is pub- 

 lished in the current number of the Mitchell Jour- 

 nal. 



Two Maleigh Amblystomas : C. S. Beimlet. 



Compares briefly the species of Amblystoma oc- 

 curring at Ealeigh, A. opacum and A. punctatum. 



The data for these is given in full in the pro- 

 ceedings published in the Mitchell Journal? 



Aristotle's Echeneis not a Sucking-Fish : E. W. 



GtJDGEK. 



The identity of this fish was discussed and data 

 presented to show that it was a goby, while evi- 

 dence was adduced that the "dolphin's louse," 



elsewhere referred to by Aristotle in his History 

 of Animals, was a sucking-fish. 



The Echeneis or Bemora; a Living Fish-hoolc: E. 



W. Gudger. 



The tendency of this fish to adhere to turtles, 

 sharks or any large fish by means of its cephalic 

 sucking disk, is made use of in many parts of the 

 world to render easy the catching of fish. A thin 

 cord is tied around the "small" of the tail of the 

 fish and it is set free in the water. Finding a 

 turtle or fish, the fisherman-fish clamps itself fast 

 to it, and both are hauled in by the fisherman. 

 This use of the living fish-hook was traced back to 

 1494, when Columbus (the first European to see it 

 so used) witnessed its exploits on the south side of 

 Cuba on his second voyage. The paper was illus- 

 trated by numerous photographs of illustrations 

 in old books, showing this use of the fish. The 

 completed paper will be published later. 



Some Interesting Mushrooms: W. C. Coker. 



Several species new or rare in North Carolina 

 were shown, with photographs and paintings. 



Naucoria sp. A species of this genus, not re- 

 corded from this state, has appeared in manured 

 soil in the arboretum of the university for several 

 years. It is of good size and very resistant to 

 decay, and was tested and found harmless, and if 

 the bitter gills are removed makes a very pleasant 

 dish. As it appears very early in the season, dur- 

 ing April, and before other species of any size are 

 out, it is a valuable addition to our list of edibles. 

 The species seems nearest N. hamadryas, but 

 differs from it in some respects. 



Clavaria spiculispora Atkinson. A painting of 

 this species was shown. It was described from our 

 collections of Chapel Hill plants. It is remarkable 

 for the very deep brown color (deepest of any other 

 American Clavaria), and the very long spicules on 

 the spores. We have since found it in the moun- 

 tains near Black Mountain. It is not known ex- 

 cept from this state. 



Amanita chlorinosma Pk. Photographs and 

 paintings were shown to illustrate the great range 

 in size and color of this species. White, greenish, 

 salmon, reddish and ashy-brown forms occur. All 

 the forms have a distinct odor of chlorine. 



Nyctalis asterophora Fr. A photo was shown of 

 this plant growing on Mussula nigricans. It is 

 very peculiar in having another mushroom for its 

 host, and in the degenerated gills. The functional 

 spores are not borne on the gills as usual, but on 

 the cap as a fine powder, and are very large and 

 irregular. 



