June 5, 1903.] 



SCIENCE. 



909 



M. College, and by Dr. B. W. Kilgore, state 

 chemist. ' 



Mr. White read a paper embodying a re- 

 port of studies made of the sulphur class of 

 dyes, which are to-day the most interesting 

 class of colors with which the cotton dyer 

 has to work. Samples were obtained from 

 Mi. White from all the leading dye-stufE 

 dealers. These samples were submitted to all 

 the different tests corresponding to the tests 

 through which the cotton must pass in actual 

 use, and in all these tests the new class of 

 sulphur colors showed themselves very much 

 superior to the direct cotton colors now in 

 use, and they promise to ultimately replace 

 the dye-stuffs now on the market, and entirely 

 change the method for dying cotton goods 

 with direct dye-stuffs. The paper was illus- 

 trated with dyed samples which had been 

 tested to all the different conditions. 



Dr. Kilgore filled the program for a short 

 time with a discussion of the recent work of 

 the soil survey in this state. Though the work 

 has not progressed far enough to draw very 

 many conclusions, several very interesting 

 things were noted. In analysis made of soil 

 waters, for plant food, as was to be supposed, 

 it was found that the more leachy sandy soils 

 contained the largest amount of plant food 

 in solution in the third and second foot in 

 depth. It is interesting, however, to note 

 that the same holds with the red clay soils 

 in the Piedmont section of the state. 



In the study of the composition of type 

 soils of the state, which work is being carried 

 on by the department, it has been found that 

 lime is present in seemingly unusually small 

 amounts. In the red-clay soils in the Pied- 

 mont section of the state, where there were 

 considerable amounts of phosphoric acid, ni- 

 trates and potash, analysis revealed scarcely 

 a trace of lime. This would indicate that the 

 soils are in actual need of an application of 

 lime, but of course for definite conclusion this 

 would have to be tested experimentally. 

 J. S. Gates, 

 Secretary. 



Kaleigh, N. C, 

 May 5, 1903. 



DISCUSSION AND CORRESPONDENCE. 

 MOUNT PELEE. 



To THE Editor of Science: Should not the 

 Martinique volcano be called either Mont 

 Pele or La Montague Pelee or in plain Eng- 

 lish Mount Pelee (no accent) ? My impression 

 from a visit to St. Pierre and Morne Rouge 

 in 1895 is that the common name was La 

 Montagne Pelee and I understood that pelee 

 was an adjective meaning hare like the 

 Spanish pelado, also applied to bare or wood- 

 less hills. I remember that the mountain did 

 not then seem to have any bare surface at 

 all. Of course, if an adjective, the form to 

 go with the masculine mont is pele and with 

 the feminine montagne is pelee, and the combi- 

 nation Mont Pelee is neither French nor Eng- 

 lish. I am reminded of this now by what 

 seems a complete confirmation in Professor 

 Heilprin's book at page 166, although he calls 

 his work ' Mont Pelee and the Tragedy of 

 Martinique.' Geo. Kennan's ' Tragedy of 

 Pelee ' is non-committal and his use of the 

 name always accurate. 



In Stark's ' Guide to Barbados and the 

 Caribbee Islands,' Boston, 1893, the form Mt. 

 Pelee (no accent) occurs at p. 42. This I 

 suppose should be read Mount Pelee on usual 

 English analogies. The writing of a French 

 accent, however, seems to involve the correct 

 French form of the word. 



Makk S. W. Jefferson. 



the proposed biological laboratory at the 

 tortugas. 



To THE Editor of Science : Professor Mayer, 

 of the Brooklyn Museum, has asked me to 

 give my opinion on the advisability of estab- 

 lishing a tropical biological station in Ameri- 

 can waters. 



I think that such a station would be an in- 

 valuable aid to biological research in all de- 

 partments, and no one who is acquainted with 

 the rich fauna of the Mediterranean and even 

 of British seas can help regretting the way 

 in which work is hampered by the comparative 

 paucity of life on our northeastern coasts. 



West Indian waters would, however, sur- 

 pass in interest and variety of species the 

 Mediterranean. 



