- self to man. 
JULY 9, 1897. ] 
Moss Flora of the Adirondack Mountains,’ 
illustrated by lantern-slides prepared by Mr. 
C. H. Van Brunt, and also by numerous mounted 
specimens. These specimens, comprising about 
150 sheets, handsomely displayed about the 
walls of the lecture-room, represented collec- 
tions made by Mrs. Britton in the vicinity of 
Adirondack Lodge and Lake Placid in the 
years 1892, 1894 and 1896. The various loca- 
tions where these mosses grew were described, 
including the story of a climb up Mount White- 
face. Graphic bits of description of these mosses 
brought out salient points as the slides indica- 
ting their structure were exhibited, and these 
were accompanied by numerous slides illustra- 
ting the scenery of their habitat. Among about 
30 rare species enumerated were Raphidostegium 
vamesti, not previously reported for New York 
State, and Bryuwm concinnatum, found only once 
before in the United States. Duplicates of Mrs. 
Britton’s collection have been deposited at the 
State Herbarium at Albany, the main collection 
having been presented to the Herbarium of 
Columbia University. Partial sets were sent to 
the Brooklyn Institute, to Cornell University 
and to various other collections. 
The subject of the lecture was further dis- 
cussed by Mr. A. P. Grout and by Mrs. Britton, 
after whieh the Club adjourned to the second 
Tuesday in October, field meetings continuing 
meantime on Saturdays. 
EDWARD S. BURGESS, 
Secretary. 
SCIENCE CLUB OF THE UNIVERSITY OF WIS- 
CONSIN. 
Mr. EDWARD KREMER discussed ‘The Peri- 
odic System.’ The speaker introduced his sub- 
ject by giving a brief account of the earlier at- 
tempts to refer back to a prime matter the mani- 
fold forms in which material nature reveals her- 
This line ofthought was briefly 
traced from the early Greek philosophers to 
Prout. The reaction that followed Prout’s hy- 
pothesis was duly emphasized. The lack of in- 
terest in Doehereiner’s trials, and the modifica- 
tions of these trials by others, in Newland’s oc- 
taves, in Lothar Meyer’s first chart it was thus 
explained in large part. Attention was also 
called to the fact that the principal interests 
SCIENCE. 71 
seemed to center about the numerical relation 
existing between the atomic weights of the ele- 
ments and that the time value of the system was 
not duly appreciated until this was made second- 
ary to the natural classification of the elements 
according to their physical and chemical proper- 
ties. Incidentally the prediction by Mardelejiff 
of the existence of certain elements and their dis- 
covery by others were alluded to, because with 
the discovery of their elements the natural law 
gained more general favor. What the periodic 
law really is was strongly emphasized, also the 
fact that the present arrangement of the ele- 
ments according to this law is imperfect, but 
more recent systems were not discussed, partly 
for want of time. Finally the great advantage 
to be gained by using the periodic law as the 
basis for teaching advanced chemistry was 
demonstrated 
C. S. SLICHTER reviewed Larmor’s ‘Theory 
of the Ether.’ He first gave an explanation of 
the vortex theory of matter, including the prop- 
erties of vortex rings and their mode of linking, 
and kinds of vibration. Hill’s spherical vortex 
was explained by a diagram, and the possibility 
of building up a rotationally elastic ether from 
such cells was explained. Photographs of sand- 
stone showing turbulent motion were presented 
for the purpose of showing the character of their 
structure. The intrinsic energy of the ether, 
radiation, action at a distance, density and in- 
ertia of common matter were then discussed, 
closing with a new theory of gravitation. Mr. 
Quantz gave the results of work on the psy- 
chology of rapid reading. They were the re- 
sults of a statistical study of the mental habits 
and characteristics of fifty university students, 
showing that rapidity of reading depends chiefly 
upon the following factors, given in the order of 
their importance: (a) quickness of visual per- 
ception ; (6) practice, as measured by extent of 
reading from childhood up; (c) power of mental 
concentration ; (d) absence of motor-minded- 
ness (lip movement in silent reading); (e) ra- 
pidity of mental operations in general; (f) 
strongly developed eye-mindedness; (9) schol- 
arly ability, as determined by class study. 
Wm. S. MARSHALL, 
Secretary. 
