914 



SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XXXVI. No. 939 



1. The true blight fungus fruits earlier and 

 more abundantly and discharges the spore 

 drops more conspicuously than Endothia 

 gyrosa. 



2. It has more numerous, but less evident, 

 smaller and more embedded fruiting bodies 

 than the latter, where they are often elevated, 

 distinct pustules, less covered by the exuding 

 spore drops. 



3. It develops a much less luxuriant aerial 

 mycelium than the latter, except possibly in 

 potato agar, where the growth in both at first 

 is largely embedded, and much more highly 

 colored with the former. 



4. Its aerial mycelium, at first white, in old 

 cultures is finally much less uniformly and 

 highly orange colored than that of the latter, 

 especially on oat agar, where the difference in 

 the luxuriance and color of the two is usually 

 striking. 



Inoculations proving the parasitic nature of 

 the chestnut blight fungus have been made 

 previously by Murrill and others. Our in- 

 oculations were nearly all with pure cultures 

 from various sources. We have produced 

 cankers on seedling trees and chestnut sprouts, 

 but more readily on the latter. We have pro- 

 duced cankers on chestnuts with cultures ob- 

 tained originally from oak as well as from 

 chestnut. We have also produced cankers, 

 but much less readily and less conspicuously, 

 on oak sprouts with cultures originally ob- 

 tained from both oali and chestnut. We have 

 had some differences in results of inoculations, 

 which may be due either to the age of the 

 cultures, season of inoculation, condition of 

 host, original virulence of material used, or to 

 these factors combined. Most of our inocula- 

 tions with chestnut blight were made with 

 proper checks and with similar inoculations 

 with Endothia gyrosa. Our checks have all 

 remained free, and the differences between the 

 true blight inoculations and those of E. gyrosa 

 have usually been marked. 



The true chestnut blight has been found 

 from New Hampshire to Virginia on several 

 species of chestnut and oak, though rarely on 

 the latter. This variety seems to be the most 

 northern of the forms as indicated by present 



known distribution. It has not been recog- 

 nized as yet outside of the United States. 



We have gone into this subject minutely 

 because a foreign origin of the chestnut blight 

 fungus is of vital importance to those who 

 advocate its control by cutting down infected 

 trees and destroying their bark. Eecently 

 Smith, in October Outing, has gone to the 

 extreme in advocacy of this quarantine method 

 of control by outlining a plan for the expen- 

 diture of over four and a half million dollars. 

 If, as advocated by the writer, the fungus is a 

 native species, which, because of weather con- 

 ditions unfavorable to its hosts, thereby weak- 

 ening their vitality, has suddenly assumed an 

 unusual and widespread prominence, it may 

 in time go back to its previous inconspicuous 

 parasitism. If, on the other hand, it can be 

 proved to be an imported enemy, there is at 

 least some basis for the fight for control, upon 

 the whole impracticable, originally advocated 

 by Metealf and now so strongly pushed by 

 those in charge of the work in Pennsylvania. 

 G. P. Clinton 



Connecticut Agricultueal 

 Experiment Station, 

 New Haven, Conn., 

 November 22, 1912 



THE CONVOCATION WEEK MEETING OF 

 SCIENTIFIC SOCIETIES 



The American Association for the Advance- 

 ment of Science and the national scientific 

 societies named below will meet at Cleveland, 

 Ohio, during convocation week, beginning on 

 December 30, 1912. 



American Association for the Advancement of 

 Science. — President, Professor Edward C. Picker- 

 ing, Harvard College Observatory; retiring presi- 

 dent, Professor Charles E. Beasey, "University of 

 Nebraska; permanent secretary, Dr. L. O. Howard, 

 Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D. C. ; gen- 

 eral secretary, Professor H. E. Summers, State 

 College, Ames, la.; secretary of the council, Pro- 

 fessor H. W. Springsteen, Western Eeserve Uni- 

 versity, Cleveland, Ohio. 



Section A — Mathematics and Astronomy. — ^Vice- 

 president, Professor E. B. Van Vleek, University 

 of Wisconsin; secretary. Professor George A. 

 Miller, University of Illinois, Urbana, 111. 



