926 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. V. No. 128. 



shown to be distinct. He maintained that the 

 theory of migration, as ordinarily accepted, was 

 insufficient to account for such similiarity be- 

 tween the floras of the two regions as actually 

 exists. Mr. T. H. Kearney, Jr., remarked 

 that in comparing the grass-flora of the two 

 regions he had found that, exclusive of cir- 

 cumboreal species, only two species are in 

 common. 



The second paper was by P. A. Rydberg, en- 

 titled ' Floral Features of Western Nebraska. ' 



It is a popular misconception that the country 

 from Illinois to the Rocky Mountains consti- 

 tutes one undiflFerentiated region. In fact, 

 there are two entirely different regions, viz : 

 1. The prairie region, with rich loam and a com- 

 paratively good supply of rain and extending 

 into the eastern Dakotas, Nebraska and Kan- 

 sas. 2. The region of the Great Plains, with 

 dry, hard soil and scanty rainfall and com- 

 prising the western portion of said States, 

 eastern Colorado and Montana and the larger 

 portion of "Wyoming. 



The plains are mostly covered by short 

 grasses, the so-called Buffalo grasses. In the 

 hot, dry autumn these become self-cured and 

 form an excellent winter pasture for the stack. 

 A little hay is cut on the lowlands and fed to 

 the animals during snow storms. Otherwise 

 the cattle and horses feed out during the whole 

 winter. The Buffalo grasses are : the original 

 Buffalo grass, Bulbilis dactyloides ; Blue and 

 Black Grama, Bouteloiia oligostaeha and hirsuta, 

 and 'Nigger Heads,' Carex filifolia. 



In a region where the rainfall is compara- 

 tively scant and distributed only during certain 

 seasons of the year the plants must be so con- 

 stituted as to be able to withstand a good deal 

 of drought. In other words, the evaporation 

 must either be reduced to a minimum or the 

 plant must have special stores of water. The 

 plants peculiar to this region may be divided 

 into the following groups : 



1. Very hairy plants generally covered with 

 thick pannose pubescence, which retain the 

 moisture, as species of Eriogonum, Astragalus, 

 Eurotia, Senecio, Evolvulus and Artemisia. 



2. Plants with glaucous foliage having a hard 

 epidermis, as Yiicca glaiiea, Bumex venosus, 

 Argemone alba and several grasses. 



3. Plants with white, often shreddy bark, as,, 

 species of Mentzelia and Anogna. 



4. Plants with very narrow and often invo- 

 lute leaves, as Lygodesmia juncea and rostrata,. 

 and several grasses and sedges. 



5. Plants with fleshy stems in which the sur- 

 face is reduced to a minimum and no leaves, as 

 the Cacti. 



6. Plants with a deep-seated, enlarged root 

 as the Bush Morning Glory, Ipomsea leptophylla, 

 and the wild pumpkin, Cucurbita fcetidissima. 

 Mr. Rydberg had seen a root of the former 

 three feet long and almost two feet in diameter. 



7. Plants covered with glands, containing 

 essential oils, as Dysodia papposa and Pedis 

 angustifolia. The oil is supposed by some to- 

 have a cooling effect, partly by taking up heat 

 when evaporated and partly by surrounding- 

 the plant by a cooler atmosphere, their specific 

 heat being much less than the air. 



Two papers followed by Dr. J. K. Small ;: 

 (a) ' The Sessile-flowered Trillia of the South- 

 ern States,' (b) 'Notes on Epilobiacese. ' Both 

 papers are published in the April number of 

 the Bulletin. 



N. L. Beitton, 

 Secretary pro tern, 



ALABAMA INDUSTRIAL AND SCIENTIFIC SOCIETY. 



The annual meeting of this society was held 

 in the city of Birmingham on the 18th instant. 



Mr. W. M. Brewer read a paper on Copper 

 Mining in Alabama, in which he stated that the- 

 old Woods Coppermine in Cleburne county had 

 recently been taken in hand by a company which 

 was doing a large amount of work in raising the 

 ore, which is a copper-bearing pyrrhotite. 



Mr. T. H. Aldrich gave an account of the 

 work in which he has lately been engaged in 

 preparing to mine and mill the gold-bearing^ 

 quartz veins of Hog Mountain, in Tallapoosa, 

 county. This is a low-grade ore, but it can b& 

 mined and milled at a very small cost, and as- 

 the quantity is very great the proposed opera- 

 tions are to be on a large scale. In connection 

 with this paper, the discussion brought out the 

 fact that the working of similar low-grade ores- 

 has been very profitably carried on for about a- 

 year in the Idaho district, in Clay county, and 

 Mr. Aldrich predicts that a number of gold- 



