480 



SCIENCE 



I.V. S. \()r.. XXXI. No. 795 



mate. The winters are very cold, while the tem- 

 perature in summer may be uncomfortably warm, 

 not infrequently above 90° F. in the shade. The 

 rainfall is small (10 to 14 inches) and the 

 weather is normally clear and pleasant. The 

 Yukon Basin is separated from the Arctic Slope 

 by a low range of mountains, the continuation of 

 the Great Continental Divide. The greater portion 

 of Alaska is timbered, the southeastern portion 

 quite densely so, the timbered area including all 

 except the Alaska Peninsula and the Aleutian 

 Islands, the deltas of the Yukon and Kuskokwim 

 rivers, most of Seward Peninsula, and the Arctic 

 Slope. The timber line is usually between 2,000 

 and 3,000 feet altitude. Except along the rivers, 

 the forests of interior Alaska are sparse and 

 scattered, the trees being rarely over one foot in 

 diameter. In this region the prevailing species 

 are white and black spruce (Picea canadensis and 

 P. mariana) , aspen {Popiilus tremuloides) and 

 white birch {Betula alaskana) . 



The conditions at Hot Springs are of special 

 interest. The hot water is used for a variety of 

 purposes, including the heating of greennouses and 

 a large hotel. The soil conditions over an area 

 of several acres are so modified that the flora is 

 quite distinct. Many plants were observed here 

 and in no other locality in Alaska, plants which 

 are native much further south. The timber on 

 this area is distinctly larger. Mr. Kellogg noted 

 an aspen eighteen inches in diameter, and the 

 large birch trees were conspicuous. 



Especial attention was given to the grasses, of 

 which 900 numbers were collected.' The grasses 

 of the coast region are well known, this region 

 having been visited by several botanists. Few 

 collectors have penetrated to the interior and our 

 knowledge of the grass flora of this large and 

 interesting region is very meager. The number 

 of species of grasses is small, surprisingly so if 

 we exclude the recent immigrants. Nevertheless, 

 the grasses form a very important part of the 

 flora. The dominant genus is Calamagrostis, of 

 which there are several species. Arctagrostis 

 arundinacea and species of Calamagrostis, espe- 

 cially C. canadensis, form the bulk of the grass 

 flora, and may cover vast areas in the more or 

 less open spruce forest. 



In spite of the low rainfall and the compara- 

 tively dry summers, the soil is usually cold and 

 moist in the valleys and often on the lower 

 mountain slopes. This is due to the poor drain- 

 age. The soil is permanently frozen for several 



yards below the surface, a thin surface layer 

 thawing out each summer. 



The tundra region of Nome is distinctly difTerent 

 from the interior and from the southern coast. 

 Tlie lack of trees and the more severe climate 

 modify the flora. The tundra itself, marshy land 

 with ponds and lakes interspersed, contains few 

 grasses, the grass-like plants being mostly sedges. 

 Tlie hills and sandy or gravelly knolls show, how- 

 ever, a greater variety of grasses than the interior 

 valleys. The flora of Nome is scarcely arctic, 

 tnough many arctic species are found here. The 

 true arctic flora is found on the Arctic Slope and 

 extends down along the coast to the north shore 

 of Seward Peninsula. D. E. Lantz, 



Recording Secretary 



THE CHEMICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON 



The 196th meeting was held in the lecture hall 

 of the public library on February 10, 1910. 

 President Failyer presided, the attendance being 

 79. The following committee was appointed to 

 solicit subscriptions for the George Washington 

 Memorial building: F. P. Dewey, W. F. Hille- 

 brand, E. T. Allen, W. N. Berg, F. K. Cameron, 

 \. K. Chesnut, E. A. Hill, C. S. Hudson, W. B. 

 D. Penniman, C. A. Eouiller, A. Seidell. S. S. 

 Voorhees. 



F. P. Dewey read a paper on the " Solubility of 

 Gold in Nitric Acid," in which he showed that 

 eontrarj' to the usually accepted opinion, gold, 

 especially when finely divided, is easily soluble in 

 boiling nitric acid of 1.42 sp. gr. Various yellow 

 solutions containing 100 to 200 mg. of gold per 

 liter were prepared, while one solution carried 

 over 660 mg. of gold per liter. 



C. L. Alsberg and O. F. Black presented a paper 

 on the " Detection of the Deterioration of Corn 

 with special Reference to Pellagra." Dr. Alsberg 

 presented the paper and showed that the etiolog- 

 ical connection between pellagra and spoiled corn 

 was regarded by several European governments 

 as so probable that stringent grain inspection 

 laws have been passed. Inspection is effective 

 only when done with chemical methods. These 

 methods were discussed on the basis of analytical 

 studies. The conclusion reached was that, while 

 no single method is applicable in all cases, the 

 acidity, determined according to a fixed procedure, 

 is tlie best single criterion for estimating the 

 degree of deterioration. 



J. A. Le Clebc, 



Secretary 



