832 
MYCOLOGICAL NOTES 
THREE papers of much more than usual 
value in such a publication are found in the 
Transactions of the Wisconsin Academy of 
Sciences, Arts and Letters (Vol. XVI., Part 
IL, No. 4). The first, by E. M. Gilbert, is en- 
titled “Studies on the Tremellineae of Wis- 
consin ” and includes notes upon twenty-one 
species belonging to nine genera. Appar- 
ently this systematic paper is preliminary to 
“a further physiological and cytological 
study of the group.” The second paper, 
“Spore Formation in Geoglossum glabrum 
Pers.,” by Hallie D. M. Jolivette, is a careful 
study of the formation of ascospores, with 
especial reference to the behavior and signifi- 
cance of the rays of the polar aster. Three 
fine plates accompany the paper. The longest 
paper is that by B. F. Lutman, entitled 
“ Some Contributions to the Life History and 
Cytology of the Smuts.” In it the author 
has reinvestigated the spore-formation and 
germination of species of smuts belonging to 
the genera Ustilago, Doassansia, Urocystis 
and Hntyloma and compared them with Tvl- 
letia and other well-known genera. He finds 
that two groups of smuts may be distin- 
guished—“ the Ustilago group,” and “the 
Tilletia, Entyloma, Urocystis division,” 
which, he says, “may be more distantly re- 
lated than has been commonly supposed.” 
These he characterizes as follows: (1) Usti- 
lago group, “simple spores produced by the 
breaking up of the mycelium; intercellular 
mycelium without haustoria; typically four- 
celled promycelium”; (2) Tulletia, 
loma, Urocystis group, spores borne on lateral 
branches; haustoria; binucleated cells and 
non-septate promycelium. Eight good plates 
accompany the paper. 
PALEOBOTANICAL NOTES 
A CONCISE statement of one portion of paleo- 
botany is given by Dr. J. M. Coulter in the 
February number (1912) of the Popular Sci- 
ence Monthly, accompanied by a helpful chart 
showing the relationships of the Cycadofili- 
SCIENCE 
Enty-— 
[N.S. Vou. XXXV. No. 908 
eales, Cordaitales, Benettitales, Cycadales, 
Ginkgoales, Coniferales and QGnetales. 
The same author and Dr. W. J. S. Land 
published in the Botanical Gazette (June, 
1911) a short paper (with two plates) on “ An 
American Lepidostrobus” in which the strue- 
ture of a fragment of a well-preserved cone is 
described from the central Iowa coal meas- 
ures. This appears to be the first description 
of an American Lepidostrobus cone. 
In a pungent note “On the True Nature 
of the Cretaceous Plant Ophioglossum granu- 
latum Heer.” in the Annals of Botany (Oc- 
tober, 1911) Dr. M. C. Stopes shows that in- 
stead of being an Ophioglossum, the speci- 
men from the Amboy clays is that of a stami- 
nate pine cone, and in proof of this conclusion 
she figures four pollen grains showing the 
characteristic wings! 
An enumeration of the titles of some of the 
many papers published in recent years by the 
well-known paleobotanist G. R. Wieland may 
be helpful to botanical readers who are inter- 
ested in this portion of botany, and especially 
in the method of discovery. Thus in the 
March, April and May numbers of the Amer- 
ican Journal of Science for 1889 there ap- 
peared, under the general title, “Study of 
Some American Fossil Cycads,” papers on 
“The Male Flower of Cycadeoidea,” “ Leat 
Structure of Cycadeoidea,” and “ The Female 
Fructification of Cycadeoidea,” showing that 
at that time he had made much progress in 
unraveling the puzzle of the old Cyeads. 
Again later (March, 1900) in his paper on the 
“Yale Collection of Fossil Cycads” (Yale 
Scientific Monthly) he comes so near to the 
solution that he finds macrosporangia and 
microsporangia on the same trunk. Then in 
a fourth paper under the general title of 
“Study of Some American Fossil Cycads” he 
returns again (Am. Jour. Sci., June, 1901) to 
the microsporangiate fructification of Cycad- 
eoidea, and now makes out the structure of the 
old Cycad flower with its ovulate central cone 
surrounded by a whorl of pinnate stamens! 
Later came “The Proembryo of the Bennet- 
titeae” (Am. Jour. Sci., December, 1904); 
“Historie Fossil Cycads” (Am. Jour. Scz., 
