172 



SCIEXCE-GOSSIP. 



stem ; the ternate leaves turn to scarlet and purple 

 •with the first touch of frost. Dyyas octofetala, 

 in seed, an occasional flower ; Silene acaulis, also 

 in seed, with occasional flowers ; Alchemilla alpina ; 

 Comarum palustre ; LinncBa lorealis, in flower, 

 fairly common in thickets of willow and Betula 

 nana on the moors ; * Cerastium trigyanum ; Par- 

 nassia palustris ; • Polygonum viviparum; * Pyrola 

 rotundifolia : * MenziesiapolifoUa; * Solidago virgaurea; 



* Ranunculus acris : * A niennaria dioicum ; * Tofieldia 

 palustris ; * Saxifraga stellaris ; S. nivalis, rare, S. 

 stellaris is the commonest of the two; S. aizoides, 



* Andromeda polifolia; *Gedum palustre; *Barisia 

 alpina ; *Drosera rotundifolia ; *Dianthus superbus, on 

 rocks, at Jar Fjord, well called superb by Linnaeus ; 

 *Holosias scoticum ; *Arabis petraa ; Trientalis europcea ; 

 Saussurea alpina; Narthecium ossifragum; Calf ha 

 palustris ; Habenaria viridis. 



To botanise on an Arctic tundra is no easy task, 

 it is a hop, skip and jump from one peaty lichen- 

 covered (and the lichens are lovely with tints of 

 scarlet, sea-green and rich bronze) stool to another ; 

 a sUp, and you plunge knee deep into the boggy soil 

 between. Then there are great, smooth, level spaces 

 thinly covered with aquatic vegetation, where the 

 water shines in places and the depth of the 

 trembling bog is unknown ; these have to be skirted 

 and long detours made, for one false step might 

 be disastrous, and, if alone, a veritable death-trap. 

 The stony moors are excellent walking, but beware 

 of the bogs in the shallow valleys betvreen the 

 low hills. 



In HoR>rviK B.\y ox Slopes of North Cafe. — 

 Saussurea alpina : Rhoiiola rosea ; Vicia cra-cca, extra- 

 ordinary fine clusters of bloom ; TroUius europceus, 

 in seed ; Ranunculus nivalis ; Solidago virgaurea ; 

 Epilohium augustifolium ; Campanula rotundifolia ; 

 CochUaria officinalis: Archangelica officinalis; Astra- 

 galus alpinus. Here, at the most northerly point of 

 Europe, these plants were growing in the greatest 

 luxuriance on the green, swampy slopes on the 

 north-east side of the Cape. 



At the Birdrock (Hjelmso), both Cochlearia 

 officinalis and SUem maritima in detached patches 

 on the rocky ledges. 



SvARTisEX Glacier, Hol.ands Fjord. — On the 

 terminal moraines of the glacier many of the 

 Vadso plants, Dry as and SiUm, specially abundant ; 

 besides these, 'Gentiana campestris, a v.hite variety, 

 qviite as common as the purple; "Accnitum szptin- 

 trionale ; Galeopsis versicolor, Campanula rcvundifolia, 

 the finest and largest flowers of this plant I have ever 

 seen; Spiraa ulmatia; Polysiichum lon-chiiis, Alpine 

 holly fern ; * Mertensia maritima, spreading in great 

 patches on the gravel shore of the ^ord; the 

 small flowers are a most beautiful deep marine 

 blue, rivalling the colour on the blue-striped wrasse 

 of these waters. This plant grows also on the 

 shores of Spitsbergen. 



Trondhtem, Lerfos. — • Saxifraga cotyledon, 

 " Berg-kongen "' — King of the Rocks ; on boulders 

 and rocks wet with the spray of the falls this 

 lovely saxifraige waves its spikes of snowy blossoms ; 

 Campanula latijoUa. 



At Voss. — Ly:cpodium annotinum ; in the pine 

 woods the ground is carpeted with this handsome 

 club moss, mixed everj'where wnth the trailing 

 stems of Linn<Ea ; here, like little haycocks, 

 scattered throngh the woods, are the huge ant- 

 hills oi Formica co?tgereus, only formd in one place in 

 Great Britain — the Black Wood of Raimock, in 

 Perthshire. Smilacina bifolia, like a dwarf lily o 

 the valley, and peculiar to Norway ; *Knautia 

 arvensis, in meadows ; Linnaaborealis, but no flowers, 

 as at Vadso ; Vaccinium vitis idtea; Cornus suecica. 



Great-CoUs House, RS.O., Lincoln ; 



October 2gih; 1896. 



HOUSEHOLD INSECTS IX THE 



UNITED STATES. 



HTHE U.S. Department of Ag-rlculture have 

 issued a well-illustrateQ pamphlet on "The 

 Principal Household Insects of the United States." 

 The numerous household pests are dealt with under 

 dififerent chapters by various authors, the first 

 being on mosquitoes and fleas, by Mr. L. O. 

 Howard. He thinks the only effectual remed)' for 

 mosquitoes is the destruction of the lar\-ae or breed- 

 ing places by means of kerosene. Dust appears to 

 be particularly favourable for the breeding and de- 

 velopment of Pulex serratkeps, Gervius, the cat and 

 dog flea, which is the common one in most parts 

 of the world. As a remedj^ against the trouble- 

 some clothes moth, the authors, Mr. L. Howard and 

 Mr. C. L. Marlett recommend camphor, napthaline, 

 or cedar chips. These are only effectual if the eggs 

 of the moth have not already been laid, as their odour 

 is repellent to the moths, but does not retard or in 

 any way affect the development of the larvs, which 

 are the actual destructive agents, the moths being 

 quite harmless to clothes. The authors suggest as 

 an excellent, though not always possible, preven- 

 tive against moths, keeping furs and clothes in a 

 temperature of from forty to twenty degrees Fahren- 

 heit. The best remedy for the Enghsh cockroach, 

 the trouble of so many households, is, according to 

 Mr. Marlett, to place small cones of moistened gun- 

 powder in an empty fireplace and light them. The 

 smoke from the burning powder will make the 

 roaches come out of the crences in great numbers 

 and rapidly paralyzes or kiUs them. A common 

 tree frog placed in a room will do much towards 

 clearing it of cockroaches by the morning. The 

 book-louse, white ant, house ant, cheese, ham and 

 flour mites, the larder beetle, fruit and \inegar 

 flies, etc., are described, and remedies proposed. 



