1918] BRIEFER ARTICLES 105 
Dr. PrEcK states? that Etttor C. Howe, while at Fort Edwards, 
directed his attention to the study of the fungi and induced him to take 
up this field of investigation. He told the writer that he was advised 
to correspond with M. C. Cooke? of London concerning the fungi. 
This relation with Cooke is shown by the large number of new species 
of fungi published by Peck, in his early work, ascribed to CooKE and 
Peck. It appears that he received assistance in the determination of 
fungi from M. A. Curtis before he became associated with Cooke. The 
first new species published by him was “Septoria viridetingens Curtis in 
litt.,” in the 23d Rept. 55, 1873,4 Peck being completely responsible for 
the diagnosis. He was, therefore, in correspondence with Curtis at least 
as early as 1869, and probably earlier. During this period he was in 
correspondence also with other early students of the fungi, RAVE, PETERs, 
MICHENER, GERARD, Frost, and the Rev. J. BLake in this country. 
He had an extensive correspondence and exchange of specimens, not only 
with Cooke, but with other European mycologists, as pe THUMEN, 
RoumecuErRE, and others. Dr. Se told the writer that he was 
advised to correspond with M. C. Coo 
In the 18th Report (for 1864) of ee ‘Becenis of the State of New 
York there is a catalogue of the mosses which were presented to the 
State Museum by Dr. Peck (pp. 193-196, 1864). In the 19th Report 
(for 1865, pp. 42-70, 1866) there is a list of the mosses of the state of 
New York by him. In the 2oth Report (for 1866) there is an article by 
? Bull Torr. Bot. Club 26:253. 1899 
3I have since forgotten the name of the person who made the recommendation, 
but it was one of three persons: E. C. Howe, who had relations with the Rev. M. C. 
Curtis of North Carolina, Curtis himself, or the Rev. E. C. Boies, a Universalist 
clergyman of Salem, Massachusetts. Dr. FARLOw informs me that Bottes, in the 
early seventies, was a well known popular lecturer on botany and zoology, and a 
great admirer of Cooke, who sent him many colored drawings and pamphlets on 
fungi. As aie traveled about the country a great deal, he may have met 
the one who bats CooxE to him. In this connection I wish to express my obli- 
State Botanist, and Mr. Harry S. Peck, whom I recently met in Albany, for assist- 
ance in obtaining some of this information. 
4 This was the report for 1869, transmitted to the legislature March 10, 1870. In 
a letter to the writer, December 14, 1912, Dr. Peck stated that “the 23rd Report was 
published in 1873 as stated therein. A fire in the publishing house of Weed Parsons 
and Co. delayed the publication of the 23rd, so that the 24th got ahead of it.” It is 
stated by some, however, that a separate of the botanical 23d Report was published in 
1872. 
