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CONTENTS 
Sphagnum as a Surgical Dressing: PROFESSOR 
SAMY GE ELUURONG a c)o soc us ss 0is/aie(atetetaeiter seisie 203 
A New Seasonal Precipitation Factor: Dr. 
REEAND M. HARPRE *) 5). 2). oo5. Sea seme eieln « 208 
Plans for the Physical Reconstruction of Dis- 
IGLOS OUIRCTE a olelstes5, «\<,< sia pith dele aint wie 211 
George Archibald Clark: Dr. BARTON WARREN 
ROWER ADANID ioc lavers dive aston: Bb sia ete seam 213 
Scientific Events :— 
Proposed Federal Health Program; Work 
of the Bureau of Fisheries; Publications on 
Experimental Biology and General Physiol- 
fe SARE CRED DE Oe DOD OC Cor bee 215 
Scientific Notes and News ..............-05+ 217 
University and Educational News ........... 221 
Discussion and Correspondence :— 
Hand-made Lantern Slides: ProFEessor 
Smion H. Gace. The House Fly: Pro- 
FESSOR HarRy BEAL TorREY AND ROWAN 
PUR MADINEY (8 olai-'sidoa cass diel elt cla Saloon, ead 221 
Quotations :— 
The Proposed British Ministry of Health... 223 
Scientific Books :— 
Rock’s Ornamental Trees of Hawaii: A. 8. 
Se MI RRC MSEC ate ote Unie cia, in. cove td Siotnigi4 9 que sip.e' 6 224 
Special Articles :— 
The Responses of Animals in Gradients of 
Environmental Factors: Dr. V. E. SHELFORD. 225 
MSS. intended for publication and books, etc., intended for 
review should be sent to The Editor of Science, Garrison-on- 
Hudson, N. Y. 
SPHAGNUM AS A SURGICAL DRESSING! 
Tue world war has produced a “ world emer- 
gency” which has stimulated to an extra- 
ordinary extent the inventive genius of this 
and practically all nations. This is observed 
not only in the great development of destructive 
agents as seen in certain lines of chemistry, 
aeronautics, submarines and gunnery, but also 
in the marvelous skill that has developed and 
the appliances used in surgery. War had been 
declared only a few months when it was seen 
. that there was likely to be a shortage of ab- — 
sorbent cotton, and in an effort to avert such 
a calamity experiments were begun with 
sphagnum, or peat moss, as a substitute. At 
the present time surgical and non-surgical 
dressings made from sphagnum are being used 
in the war hospitals, not only in Great Britain, 
but in France, Malta, Alexandria, Salonika, 
Italy and Palestine—practically on all the 
allied fronts. Doubtless it is also used ex- 
tensively in Germany, as certain returned 
prisoners state that part of their work was to 
gather sphagnum from bogs. How it was 
‘used, however, we do not know. 
DISTRIBUTION OF SPHAGNUM 
Sphagnum is widely distributed throughout 
the world, especially in the damp humid cli- 
mate of the colder parts of the temperate zone 
of Europe, Asia and America. The British 
supply comes from the moors of Scotland and 
Treland, and from Canada. The Germans ob- 
tain it from extensive bogs around the Baltic. 
In North America it occurs most commonly 
along the northeastern coast from New Eng- 
land to Labrador, and along the northwestern 
coast from Oregon to Alaska. In the in- 
terior large bogs occur, especially in the region 
1A fuller account of ‘‘Sphagnum as a Surgical 
Dressing’’ is given by the writer in a pamphlet 
published by the Northwest Division of the Amer- 
ican Red Cross, Seattle, Washington. 
«4 
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