March 24, 1916] 



SCIENCE 



437 



to membership. The following papers were pre- 

 sented : 

 Dr. W. Salph Jones: An Appreciation: Db. C. L. 



Sheae. 



Dr. Jones was quiet and retired in disposition 

 and of excellent habits. He had a great aversion 

 to taking animal life and would not take courses 

 in zoology involving the death of higher animals; 

 neither would he hunt nor fish. His chief recrea- 

 tion and amusement were novel reading and music. 

 He was very fond of reading good Trench novels 

 in the original, and of the opera. He showed an 

 interest in natural science early in life and as a 

 boy began a collection of minerals and also an 

 herbarium of flowering plants. His interests in 

 botany were broad and his training in languages, 

 chemistry, physiology, etc., were such as to give a 

 broad and substantial foundation for research. He 

 possessed three of the fundamental requirements 

 for success in scientific work, that is, love for 

 truth, combined with thoroughness and accuracy. 

 His notes, drawings and manuscripts were models 

 of neatness and accuracy. He had undertaken sev- 

 eral lines of investigation in connection with 

 blackberry, currant and gooseberry diseases, but 

 had practically completed only one of these. This 

 was a study of what appears to be a new species 

 of Thielavia isolated from diseased dewberry 

 plants. It is to be deeply regretted that a man so 

 well equipped by temperament and training for 

 research should be cut down in the prime of life 

 and usefulness. 

 Experimental Study of the Life Duration of Seeds 



(with lantern) : Dr. Wm. Crocker. 



To be published in full elsewhere. 

 Notes on Variations in Chinese Chestnuts (speci- 

 mens) : P. L. EiCKER. 



To be published in full elsewhere. 



The 109th regular meeting of the Botanical So- 

 ciety of Washington was held in the Assembly 

 Hall of the Cosmos Club at 8 p.m., Friday, .lauuary 

 14, 1916. Seventy members and five guests were 

 present. Messrs. Rodney B. Harvey, G. McMillan 

 Darrow and Boland McKee were elected to mem- 

 bership. 

 Economic-Botanical Exploration in China (with 



lantern) : Frank N. Meyer. 



Mr. Meyer, an agricultural explorer of the 

 United States Department of Agriculture, has 

 spent nine years in China and adjoining countries 

 studying the flora of this region and searching for 

 plants of economic value for introduction into the 

 United States. He found quite recently a hickory 



in China which has never been recorded in botan- 

 ical literature. As yet no sycamores nor any 

 papaw (Asiminia triloba) or leather-wood (Dirca 

 palustris) have been found in China. Field work 

 in botany in China is extremely difficult because 

 most of the wild vegetation near densely settled 

 parts has been exterminated. However, Buddhist 

 and Tavist priests have preserved many specimens 

 in their temple compounds. Mr. Meyer made ref- 

 erence to the discovery of the wild peach in the 

 provinces of Shansi, Shensi and Kansu, and to the 

 expertness of Chinese gardeners in grafting. He 

 expressed the opinion that in this country there is 

 great need of national arboreta and permanent bo- 

 tanical collections. 



The Recent Outirealcs of White Pine Blister Bust: 



De. Perley Spaulding. 



When this disease first reached this country, it 

 was thought repeated annual inspections of the 

 lots of diseased trees would soon result in the 

 complete eradication of the disease. Our experi- 

 ence since that time, together with increasing 

 knowledge of the characteristics of the disease, 

 shows us that this is not true. Apparently the only 

 method of completely eradicating this disease in 

 any lot of infected trees is that of total destruc- 

 tion of that lot. While large numbers of plant- 

 ings of diseased imported trees were made in 1909, 

 the careful inspection work done since that time 

 by the states has kept the disease in them almost 

 completely in control. It has become increasingly 

 evident that our great danger lies in lots of dis- 

 eased trees which were imported before 1909. 

 These in most cases we know nothing about and 

 of course have not been able to give them the nec- 

 essary inspection. In the years 1909 to 1914, in- 

 clusive, there were eleven outbreaks of this dis- 

 ease, that is, eases where it escaped from the dis- 

 eased pines on to neighboring currants or goose- 

 berries. In 1915 the weather conditions were so 

 favorable for the disease that it spread very read- 

 ily and for relatively long distances. Last year 

 twelve outbreaks occurred. These areas vary in 

 extent from only a few currant or gooseberry 

 bushes up to a single area of some 400 or 500 

 square miles. Experiments have shown that the 

 wild currants and gooseberries of the Pacific coast 

 and Rocky Mountain regions are susceptible to it. 

 In fact it may be stated that all species of cur- 

 rants and gooseberries, so far as they have now 

 been tested, are susceptible. The ordinary culti- 

 vated black currant, Bibes nigrum, however, is far 

 more susceptible than any other species. While it 



