12 



place of meetings, to be appointed by the Chair, wait over for 

 future report. 



In the discussion on the time of meeting as authorized by the 

 Constitution, Drs. Britton and Barnhart referred to the present 

 condition of the Constitution, which consists of an original docu- 

 ment plus all amendments and by-laws passed during the last 

 37 years, and existent only in the minutes of the Club. It will 

 be necessary either to go through all these minutes for all these 

 years, find the new legislation and incorporate it all in one body 

 with the original Constitiuton, or else to draft an entirely new 

 Constitution. 



As a result of this discussion the Secretary was authorized to 

 ascertain whether the minutes for the period stated are complete 

 so that the necessary data for revising the Constitution may be 

 obtained from them. If they should be found complete, the sum 

 of $50 was voted by the Club as a remuneration for the work of 

 revising the Constitution in accordance with them. 



For the scientific part of the program. Dr. J. S. Karling of 

 Columbia University, addressed the Club on "Variations in the 

 Antheridium of the Characeae. " 



In method of development and growth the Characeae are 

 perhaps the most diagrammatic of any organism, plant or animal. 

 It is not merely that their diagrammatic and metameric organ- 

 ization leads to the development of the beautiful chandelier-like 

 habit of growth, but their cellular make-up is so simple as to at 

 once suggest the possibility of mathematical analysis. This 

 regularity of growth, according to Braun and Sachs, extends to 

 the antheridia and oogonia as well. In the development of the 

 antheridium, the globular antheridium mother-cell divides until 

 24 cells are formed. The eight outer cells become the shield 

 cells, the eight middle cells the manubria, and the eight inner 

 cells the primary capitula. Each primary capitulum bears four 

 secondary capitula, which in turn bear four antheridial filaments. 

 This method of development as described by Braun and Sachs 

 has been regarded as the type development. However, a con- 

 siderable number of variations from this type have been observed, 

 which may be classified into eight groups: 



I. In addition to primary and secondary capitula, tertiary and 

 quaternary capitula are frequently formed which bear antheridial 

 filaments. 



