PROCEEDINGS 
OF 
THE NATURAL SCIENCE ASSOCIATION 
get OF STATEN 
ISLAND. 
VOL. IX, No. 10. 
The regular meeting of the Associ- 
ation was held at the residence of Mr. 
Alanson Skinner, with the president in 
the chair. 
The executive committee made a 
further report of progress along the 
lines suggested in its last report, re- 
lating to the possibility of obtaining 
new quarters through co-operation with 
the Municipal government. 
On motion the report was approved 
and the committee was authorized to 
prepare an enabling act for submission 
to the Mayor, and if approved, to have 
it introduced in the State Legislature. 
The following were elected to active 
membership: 
Willard A. Boyd, New Brighton; 
Rupert H. Hopkins, Port Richmond. 
Dr. Arthur Hollick exhibited a large 
mass of fine fibrous roots and read the 
following note: 
A REMARKABLE SEWER OBSTRUCTION. 
This remarkable mass of closely in- 
terwoven, fine rootlets, was transmitted 
by our fellow member, Commissioner 
of Public Works, Louis L. Tribus. It 
represents a portion of a growth which 
was removed from a sewer pipe, as ex- 
plained in this letter accompanying it: 
“Louis L. Tribus, Esq., 
Commissioner of Public Works, 
New Brighton, N.Y. 
Sir: 
On Sunday, September 25th, 1904, a 
DECEMBER 17th, 1904. 
stoppage ‘in the eight inch sewer on 
Wood Avenue, near Amboy Road, Tot- 
tenville, was reported to me. Men 
were immediately sent to relieve same, 
which they accomplished after working 
late into the night 
The cause of this stoppage I found 
to be elm tree root fibre, which had en- 
tered into sections of the vitrified pipe, 
thereby closing it entirely. 
Believing that a specimen of this re- 
markable growth would be of interest 
to the Natural Science Association I 
had a portion of it thoroughly cleaned 
and beg to turn the same over to you 
for presentation. 
Very respectfully, 
E. H. Seehusen, 
Supt. of Sewers.’’ 
A similar mass of fine willow roots 
was removed from the sewer in Wall 
Street, New Brighton, some years ago. 
Mr. Wm. T. Davis exhibited speci- 
mens of the fruit and seed of the Black 
Haw or Nannyberry and read the fol. 
lowing note: 
VARIATION IN THE FRUIT OF THE 
BLACK HAW. 
An examination of the fruit of our 
common Black Haw, or Nannyberry, 
(Viburnum prunifolium L.), shows that 
there is considerable _yariation_in its 
shape. The flat stone\lfft Some /instan- 
ces is 10 mm. lorig by 7 mm i 
J 
ur 228 
ANetional ue” 
