September 20, 1901.] 



SCIENCE. 



461 



panied by Mr. Wilson P. Harris, as voluntary 

 assistant, and secured a large number of plants 

 for the outdoor plantations, many kinds of seed 

 for growing additional species and over 900 

 numbers of herbarium and museum specimens, 

 collectively including more than 3,000 speci- 

 mens. In addition to these, all the duplicates 

 of the collections of the University of Montana 

 were obtained. Attention was also given to 

 climatological observations. Mr. Harris de- 

 voted his attention chiefly to lichens. The 

 exploration extended along the Mission range 

 of mountains and into the southern Kootenais, 

 and regions were reached which had never 

 been touched by such an expedition. The 

 expenses of this work were paid from funds 

 contributed by Mr. W. E. Dodge, of the Board 

 of Managers. 



Dr. MacDougal is acting director-in-chief 

 during the absence of Dr. Britton. 



Professor L. M. Underwood, of the scien- 

 tific directors, recently returned from a tour 

 of Porto Rico, bringing with him a nice collec- 

 tion of cacti from the arid southern part of the 

 island, some 75 species of seeds, many of which 

 have already germinated in the propagating 

 houses, a number of museum specimens and 

 about 1,000 specimens for the herbarium. He 

 will spend a month now in the Rocky Moun- 

 tains of Colorado, continuing the exploration 

 begun by Dr. P. A. Rydberg. A recent gift 

 from Mr. Adrian Iselin has made the extension 

 of the important work possible. 



Professor N. L. Britton, director-in-chief, 

 left for St. Kitts, and other of the Windward 

 Islands, on August 30, accompanied by Mr. 

 John H. Cowell, director of the Buffalo Bo- 

 tanic Gardens, The object of their expedition 

 is to obtain living tropical plants and seeds for 

 the conservatory collections, specimens for the 

 public museums, and as complete a collection 

 of herbarium specimens of these islands as can 

 be obtained during a month or six weeks' resi- 

 dence there. This work is in continuation of 

 the botanical exploration of the West Indies 

 and Central America instituted in 1899, when 

 Mr. A. A. Heller and Mr. Samuel Henshaw 

 were sent to Porto Rico by means of funds con- 

 tributed by Mr. Cornelius Vanderbilt, and of 

 Professor Underwood's recent work in Porto 



Rico made possible by funds contributed by 

 Mr. W. E. Dodge. 



Mr. Percy Wilson, museum aid, who was 

 sent to the East Indies in March, accompanying 

 Professor Todd, of Amherst College, on the 

 total eclipse of the sun expedition, has returned, 

 bringing Avith him ten large cases of museum 

 specimens illusti'ating economic products, a 

 number of living orchids, a collection of seeds 

 for growing in the pi'opagating houses, and a 

 valuable set of books and pamphlets treating of 

 the botany and agriculture of that region. He 

 visited the botanical gardens at Singapore and 

 at Buitenzorg, Java, where he was most kindly 

 received, and arranged with these institutions 

 for important exchanges of plants, books and 

 specimens. 



SCIENTIFIC NOTES AND NEWS. 



The French Institute will make the first 

 award of the Osiris prize in 1903. It is of the 

 value of 100,000 francs, and is awarded to 

 the one who in the preceding three years ac- 

 complishes the most important work for science, 

 industry or literature. 



The city of Berlin will contribute $25,000 

 toward the Virchow foundation for research, 

 now being enlarged in honor of Professor Vir- 

 chow's eightieth birthday. 



The Austrian Emperor has addressed an ap- 

 preciative autograph letter to Professor Ed. 

 Suess, the eminent geologist, on the occasion of 

 his retirement from the University at Vienna. 



As the newspapers fully report, the steam- 

 ship Erik reached North Sydney, Cape Breton, 

 on August 14, with news from Lieutenant 

 Peary. During the eighteen months in which 

 no news had been received from him, he had 

 succeeded in rounding the northern limit of the 

 Greenland Archipelago, and in reaching the 

 highest latitude gained by an American, 83° 50^^ 

 north. Lieutenant Peary remains at Payer 

 Harbor, and will attempt to reach the most 

 northerly point possible in the spring of next 

 year. Messrs. Stein and Warmbath are return- 

 ing on the Windward, but no news is brought 

 of Captain Sverdrup on the Fram. 



Members of the British Geological Associa- 

 tion visited France last month. They were 



