192 
NOTES, NEWS AND COMMENT. 
Mr. Wm. R. Maxon, Assistant Curator U. S. National Mu- 
seum, Washington, D.C., is in residence at the Garden during 
November, being engage: ean n some systematic investigations on the 
ferns in consultation with Professor L_ M. Underwood 
R Harper has undertaken to prepare a report on the 
economic plants of Alabama under the auspices of the Geological 
Survey of that state. 
Dr. C. F. Millspaugh, Curator in Botany of the Field Colum- 
bian Museum, Chicago, spent the latter part of October and the 
first week in November at the Garden carrying out some taxo- 
nomic researches on the flora of the Bahamas in codperation with 
r L. Britton. 
Mr. R. S. Williams, who has been exploring in the Philippine 
Islands on behalf of the Garden for about two years, returned 
late in October and his large and seen collections of her- 
barium and museum nea. and se ave been received in 
good order. His operations were car 2, out on the Islands of 
Luzon and Mie, at elevations ranging from sea level up to 
nearly 8,000 feet, several high and difficult mountains having 
been visited. The collections include over 3,000 field numbers, 
represented by 10,000 to 12,000 specimens, a complete set of 
which will be filed in our eet a and museums, and the 
remainder used as duplicates for exchange with other institutions. 
Through the seeds which Mr. Williams has collected, we shall 
add a considerable number of living plants to the conservatory 
collections. Mr. Williams will present an account of his work 
and oe in a publication later. 
r. J. N. Rose, of the U.S. National Museum, spent the 
summer in Mexico engaged in the observation and collecting of 
cactuses, of which he secured several hundred specimens, whic 
have been divided between the collections at Washington and 
those of the Garden; his work was aided by an appropriation 
from our exploration funds. Accompanied by his assistant, Mr. 
Painter, he travelled over a large portion of the arid regions of 
central and southern Mexico, visiting places hitherto botanically 
