218 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. XXIV. No. 607. 



and deposited in centers of botanical research 

 where they may be consulted by future in- 

 vestigators in both taxonomy and morphology. 



Some years since the writer made a mor- 

 phological study of certain members of the 

 family Nymphseacese and among them the 

 northern Nymphoea advena. More recently I 

 have made a study of certain tropical species 

 of the same family and among them a species 

 of the genus Nymphoea. This species showed 

 such striking resemblances to the well-known 

 species N. advena, that it was sent to special- 

 ists in taxonomy to verify the determination. 

 The reports from these workers showed a dif- 

 ference of opinion; some claiming that it was 

 a new species, while others claimed that it was 

 a variety. However, the embryology showed 

 certain very marked differences, which may 

 be of sufficient importance to make it a dis- 

 tinct species. Had these two lots of material 

 been studied by different workers, and con- 

 sidered as one species, or by one worker 

 without having the specimens examined by 

 taxonomists, the confusion might have been 

 easily increased rather than diminished. 



When we take into consideration the large 

 number of families and genera which are still 

 untouched by the morphologist we must nat- 

 urally expect that future work will bring to 

 light many new and important facts; and 

 these facts will in turn present certain ques- 

 tions which will make it imperative that cer- 

 tain other species already studied should be 

 restudied in the light of said new facts. It 

 will then be very important that the investi- 

 gator know positively whether the species in 

 question is the same or merely closely related 

 to the species studied by the first investigator. 

 Johnson,^ in his studies on Piperales, has re- 

 cently called attention to the fact that closely 

 related genera may show wide variations in 

 the development of the tapetum, megaspore, 

 embryo-sac and endosperm. From my studies 

 in Nymphoea I am inclined to believe that we 

 may also find wider variations between species 

 of the same genera than we have supposed. 



Under present conditions two workers in 



^ Johnson, Johns Hopkins University Circular 

 No. 178. May, 1905. 



different localities working upon supposedly 

 the same species may honestly present differ- 

 ent results or the second may unintentionally 

 and unjustly give expression to criticism on 

 the results of the first worker. 



Would it not be well for the plant mor- 

 phologists at the next meeting of the Amer- 

 ican Association for the Advancement of 

 Science to consider methods for cooperation 

 and preservation of types. 



Mel. T. Cook. 



EsTAcioN Central Ageonomica, 

 Santiago de las Vegas, Cuba. 



TEE INTERNATIONAL CATALOGUE OF SCI- 

 ENTIFIC LITERATURE. 



The first meeting of the International Con- 

 vention of the International Catalogue of 

 Scientific Literature was held in London, July 

 25-26, 1905. The supreme control of the cata- 

 logue is vested in this body and in beginning 

 the undertaking in 1900 it was agreed that its 

 meetings should be held in London in 1905, in 

 1910 and thereafter every ten years. The fol- 

 lowing named delegates were present at the 

 convention: 



Austria — Professor Dr. August von Bohm, K. 

 K. Hofbibliothek, Vienna. 



Belgium — M. Paul Otlet (Secretaire-General de 

 rOffice International de Bibliographie, Brussels ) . 

 M. H. La Fontaine (Directeur de I'Office Inter- 

 national de Bibliographie, Brussels). 



France — Professor G. Darboux (Secr^aire Per- 

 petuel de I'lnstitut de France ) . Dr. J. Deniker 

 ( Bibliothecaire du Museum d'Histoire Naturelle, 

 Paris) . 



Germany — Professor Dr. 0. Uhlworm (Director 

 des Deutschen Regionalbureau ) . 



Greece — His Excellency Mons D. Metaxas (Min- 

 istre Plenipotentaire de S. M. le Roi des Hellenes). 



Holland — Professor D. J. Korteweg (University 

 of Amsterdam ) . 



India — Lieutenant-Colonel Prain, I.M.S., F.R.S. 



Italy — Cav. Ernesto Mancini (Accademia dei 

 Lincei, Rome). Professor Raffaello Nasini (Uni- 

 versity of Padua ) . 



Japan — Professor K. Matsubara (University of 

 Tokyo). 



Mexico — His Excellency Don Francisco A. de 

 Icaza. 



Russia — Professor I. P. Borodin (Imperial 

 Academy of Sciences, St. Petersburg). 



