158 



SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. LIV. No. 1390 



cases the closes were enormous. Nine of the 

 shoats reeeivedj in addition to the arsenic, hog. 

 cholera virus. One animal died from acute ar- 

 senical poisoning, one from acute cholera, and one 

 from an undetermined cause. It would appear 

 from these results that young hogs possess a marked 

 tolerance for arsenic trioxid. 



Growing seedlings in test tubes with only filter 

 paper pulp and distilled water: Mart Didlake, 

 Experiment Station, Lexington. The lower third 

 of a test-tube is filled loosely with crumpled strips 

 of filter paper, enough water to cover the paper 

 is added and the tube plugged with cotton and 

 sterilized in the autoelav. Sterilized seeds may be 

 dropped in and allowed to germinate and grow. 

 Soybean, cowpea, garden bean, garden pea, Can- 

 ada field pea, vetch, alfalfa, red clover, Japan 

 clover, velvet bean, peanut, locust, acacia, corn, 

 wheat, hemp, and morning glory have been grown 

 successfully in this way. Plants will grow 

 thriftily for a month or six weeks. 



Effect of frost and ' ' soil stain ' ' on the keeping 

 quality of sweet potatoes: A. J. Olney, Univer- 

 sity of Kentucky. When the vines were cut away 

 before frost, only 4 per cent, of the potatoes spoiled 

 after storage at about 60 to 65° P. When the 

 vines were cut immediately after a freeze, no loss 

 occurred. When the vines were cut 5 days after 

 the freeze the loss was 88 per cent. Potatoes badly 

 afi:ected with soil stain (Monilochaetes infu^cans) 

 but otherwise sound, sustained a loss of 55 per 

 cent., while healthy checks suffered a loss of 12 

 per cent. Potatoes wrapped with paper sustained 

 a loss of 20 per cent., as against 12 per cent, in 

 those unwrapped. 



Attempted inter-species crosses of the genus 

 Nicotiana: G. C. EouTT. Crosses were attempted 

 among 7 species of Ni-cotiana. Of 911 flowers ex- 

 perimented with, 201 set seed. Only 4 of the 19 

 combinations proved fertile in both crosses and 

 reciprocals, 4 proved fertile in one way only, and 

 11 proved infertile. Plants have not yet been 

 grown from the seed obtained. 



The production of antitoxin: Morris Scherago, 

 University of Kentucky. The method of producing 

 diphtheria and tetanus antitoxin is described from 

 the time the flasks of media are inoculated for the 

 production of the homologous toxin until the anti- 

 toxin is ready for distribution. The factors in- 

 fluencing the potency of a toxin are discussed and 

 the method of estimating the M. F. D. is outlined. 

 The immunization of horses is discussed including 

 the types of animals desired, preliminary treat- 



ment, dosage and time of injection. The time for 

 taking trial bleedings and regular bleedings is 

 indicated and the standardization of antitoxin is 

 briefly discussed. The method of concentrating 

 antitoxin is also described and discussed. 



The inefficiency of the efficiency expert: P. K. 

 Holmes, University of Kentucky. Efiiciency is 

 the keynote in modern industry. Our modern 

 "captains of industry" are giant efficiency ex- 

 perts. They often fail at the vital point because 

 they do not apply their principles of efficiency to 

 their own living, although they demand it of their 

 employees who handle delicate machinery or as- 

 sume big responsibilities for them. Big business 

 can not long be efiiciently done on artificial stimu- 

 lants and by flabby muscles and shortness of 

 wind. In the struggle for business supremacy 

 only the strong survive. We must no longer be 

 satisfied to live on a low health plane. We must 

 have as our standard positive, and not negative, 

 health. Such only is the basis of general effi- 

 ciency. 



On the trail of the Alasha salmon: Dr. Henry 

 B. Ward, University of Illinois. The marvelous 

 life history of the Alaska salmon has been worked 

 out by the combined efforts of many investigators. 

 In the early summer the adult fish appear off the 

 coast, move forward into the inlets, start up 

 stream, ultimately reach their spawning grounds, 

 and having spawned, die. No adult salmon ever 

 returns to salt water. The eggs rest in their gravel 

 nests over winter and hatch out in the spring; the 

 young fry play about in fresh water, descending 

 slowly the streams until they disappear into the 

 ocean. The markings on the scales carry a pre- 

 cise record of the age and wanderings of the fish 

 in fresh water and in the ocean. Reasons for their 

 movements in fresh water are not yet so well de- 

 termined. The course they follow is very precise 

 but the influences that direct it are still unknown. 

 Partial explanations of the movements are to be 

 found in the influences of the current of the 

 stream and the temperature of the water. The 

 application of these principles to special instances 

 indicates the extent to which they serve to ex- 

 plain the complex problems involved in migration. 

 The author described many of his observations 

 while studying the salmon in Alaskan waters. He 

 also brought out forcibly the importance of 

 Alaska's natural resources, of which the salmon 

 is one of the greatest. 



Alfred M. Peter, 



Secretary 



