Mat U, 1915] 



SCIENCE 



725 



DISCUSSION AND COSSESPONDENCE 

 ISOLATION OP B. RADICICOLA FROM SOIL 



To THE Editor of Science : I am indebted to 

 Dr. F. Lohnis, of the United States Depart- 

 ment of Agriculture, for two corrections wliicli 

 I deem it important to make with reference 

 to the paper by Mr. Fowler and myself in 

 Science of February 12, 1915, on " The Isola- 

 tion of Bacillus radicicola from the Soil." 



The first error is one merely of oversight, 

 and concerns the date in which Beijerinck 

 gave the name Bacillus radicicola to the 

 legume-root nodule organism. That date 

 should of course be 1888 and was put down as 

 1901 merely through carelessness on my part, 

 and I gladly plead guilty to that. 



The second error is that which is partially 

 due to our tentative claim to priority in the 

 direct isolation of Bacillus radicicola from the 

 soil. Dr. Lohnis informs me that claims were 

 made to the isolation directly from the soil 

 of the organism in question by both Beijerinck 

 and by Nobbe, et al. I do not regard the evi- 

 dence put forward by Beijerinck as conclusive 

 on that point, but there is no question at all 

 that the second investigator named, with his 

 coworkers, has conclusively demonstrated the 

 presence of Bacillus radicicola in the soil and 

 has also, by its isolation in pure culture, been 

 able further to reinoculate plants grown under 

 otherwise sterile conditions. Our neglect to 

 take note of this last-named investigation was 

 due to the manner of indexing pursued in the 

 important abstract journals as well as other 

 scientific journals which gave no useful refer- 

 ence to the work just referred to. 



Chas. B. Lipman 



a research laboratory for the physical 

 sciences 



Conversation with a number of men inter- 

 ested in the biological sciences and who have 

 availed themselves of the opportunity for re- 

 search work at Woods Hole, Mass., brings out 

 the idea that one great benefit to be derived 

 from the work there is the association with 

 men from all parts of the country. I 

 think all men of science will agree that the 

 great stimulus which eomes from the various 



meetings of scientific bodies is in the private 

 discussion, which the men have, one with the 

 other, on subjects in which they are particu- 

 larly interested. Think what it would mean 

 to men in the physical sciences if they could 

 have a laboratory where for two or three 

 months each year, at least, they could meet 

 and carry on some research work and at the 

 same time enjoy the fellowship of men who 

 come from widely separated points but who 

 are interested in their particular field. 



I realize that the equipment of a laboratory 

 for physics involves a large outlay of money 

 and transportation of apparatus is not easy, 

 but would the first be impossible? In other 

 words, the object of this note is to raise the 

 question as to whether a laboratory for the 

 physical sciences, similar to that for the bio- 

 logical sciences at Woods Hole, would be a 

 feasible and a desirable project. I believe 

 that many chemists and physicists would be 

 very glad to spend their summer vacation at 

 such a laboratory if it were located, as the one 

 at Woods Hole, where there would be a chance 

 for an outing as well. As at Woods Hole, 

 there would be a resident director and 

 the laboratory would be kept open throughout 

 the year for those who might have a year's 

 leave of absence from their work in teaching. 



That men of wealth, who would be inter- 

 ested in building and equipping such a lab- 

 oratory, might be found does not seem such a 

 vagary in view of what has been accom- 

 plished for special laboratories. 



S. E. Williams 



Physical Laboeatoet, 

 Obbelin College 



SCIENTIFIC BOOKS 



The Salton Sea. A study of the geography, 

 the geology, the floristies and the ecology of 

 a desert basin. By D. T. MacDougal and 

 Collaborators. Carnegie Institution of 

 Washington, Publication 193, 1914. 4to. 

 Pp. 182, with plates, maps and figures in the 

 test. 

 The making of a lake in a desert basin, 



whose floor lies below the level of the sea-sur- 



