^ort) of 3]tttroDuctiott 



The seven papers herein presented 

 were first given before the members 

 of the Minnesota Seaside Station dur- 

 ing their season on the coast in 1901. 

 While they are of the nature rather 

 of fireside talks than of formal scien- 

 tific lectures, yet it has seemed worth 

 while to preserve them. To the mem- 

 bers of the Station this little book 

 will be a valued souvenir, recalling to 

 their minds delightful days and nights 

 beside the sea. To others, as a col- 

 lection of botanical essays, or as a 

 document from the youngest of the 

 American marine biological stations, it 

 may not be altogether without interest. 



