22 
in its place are barren-ground grasses and 
an abundance of Aster ericoides I,. Early 
in the season Danthonia spicata Beauv. 
was quite prominent, together with 
Agrostis scabra Willd. and the erect simple 
form of Panicum dichotomum \. At the 
present time this species has assumed its 
densely tufted autumnal form and P. 
capillare L,, has become the most abund- 
antly represented species. The most con- 
spicuous grasses are Aristida dichotoma 
Michx and A. gracilis Ell., which cover 
large areas on the dryest parts of the 
hills, where the purplish color of the 
latter species gives a peculiar and char- 
acteristic appearance to the surface. 
On the lower slopes and levels, where 
the ground is richer, Agrostis vulgaris 
With. is the prevailing species,’ but it be- 
comes less and less abundant and finally 
disappears almost entirely as the higher 
and more barren parts of the hiils are 
reached. With the exception of this lat- 
ter species the prevailing grasses are 
either coarse and laterally spreading, 
like Panicum proliferum, P. sanguinale, 
&c., or else they grow in isolated tufts 
which do not coalesce into an even mat 
or turf,such as Danthonia and the Aristidas. 
What the ultimate effect of constant mow- 
ing and rolling may be has yet to be 
learned, but the problem of making and 
maintaining a close erect turfisone which 
it is necessary to solve and while it would be 
a hazardous experiment to destroy the 
species which are best fitted to thrive 
under the existing conditions, the experi- 
ment might be tried of harrowing top 
dressing and fertilizing and introducing 
species of Agrostis and Poa to gradually 
replace them. 
RECENT LITERATURE RELATING TO 
STATEN ISLAND. 
Old Billop Mansion to be a Public 
Museum. N. Y. Herald, Sept. 3rd, 1899. 
An article to the effect that Dr. John 
C. Holmes is authority for the statement 
that the Billop house at Tottenville is to 
be made a public museum of Revolution- 
ary relics. A good picture of the house, 
viewed from the water front, accompanies 
the article. 
Some Features of the Drift on Staten Isi- 
and, N. Y. Arthur Hollick, Ann. N. Y. 
Acad. Sci. Vol. xii. (1899) pp. 91-102; pl. i. 
This paper was first read before the 
Geological Society of America and pub- 
lished in abstract in Science, Oct. 7th, 
1898. It now appears. in full with a map 
showing the known and inferred morainal 
limits. The most important feature of 
the paper is the lists of fossils which have 
been found in the Drift. These contain 
112 Paleozoic and 42 Mesozoic species, 
all identified from the material in our 
collections and noted from time to time 
in our Proceedings, but brought together 
in sequence in this paper for the first 
time, with the nomenclature revised to 
date. 
