Octobek 10, 1884.] 



SCIENCE 



359 



Mr. Thomas Meehan discussed the relationship of 

 Helianthus animus and H. lenticularis ; showing that 

 there was a constant difference in the form of the 

 corollas, the former being campanulate, and the lat- 

 ter tubular. The two are treated as one species in 

 Gray's 'Synoptic flora of North America;' the one 

 being considered a cultivated form of the other, — a 

 view from which the speaker dissented. Mr. Meehan 

 then spoke upon the fertilization of composites ; con- 

 cluding that the arrangements were such as to favor 

 self-fertilization, which is opposed to the generally 

 accepted view. 



Prof. L. M. Underwood of Syracuse, N.Y., gave 

 some statistics concerning the North- American He- 

 paticae. Of the two hundred and thirty-one species 

 found north of Mexico, a hundred and twenty are 

 peculiar to America : fully one-half the latter are not 

 represented in any public or private herbarium in this 

 country. 



In a paper on the nature of gumming, or gummosis, 

 in fruit-trees, Prof. J. C. Arthur detailed experi- 

 ments from which the conclusion had been reached, 

 that it was due to a de-organization of the cell-walls 

 of the tree through the influence of some fungus, 

 but not necessarily of a specific one. It had been 

 produced experimentally by the bacteria of pear- 

 blight and by Monilia fructigenum, the fruit-rot 

 fungus ; although the most common cause is doubt- 

 less the Coryneum, first described by Oudemans in 

 Hedwigia. 



At the final meeting the committee on postal mat- 

 ters then gave its report. This committee was ap- 

 pointed at Minneapolis to inquire into the various 

 obstructions which the postal authorities throw in 

 the way of exchanging specimens of dried plants. 

 The efforts of the committee had been directed 

 toward securing the passage of specimens bearing 

 the customary written label at fourth-class rates of 

 postage. The decision of the postmaster-general was 

 read, stating that the present law could not be con- 

 strued to permit the passage of specimens with writ- 

 ten labels except at letter-rates, but expressing a 

 willingness to bring the matter, at the proper time, 

 to the attention of congress, the Canadian authori- 

 ties, and the congress of the Universal postal union. 

 Some discussion followed; and a motion was carried 

 to continue the committee, and also instructing the 

 president and secretary of the club to draft resolu- 

 tions to be presented to the section of biology in 

 order to still further promote the objects in view. 

 These resolutions were acted upon by the biological 

 section on the following day. Dr. Bessey was chosen 

 president, and Professor Arthur secretary, for the 

 next year. 



Besides the reading of papers, the club took several 

 excursions. On Saturday they went to the pine-bar- 

 rens of New Jersey, about fifty participating. On 

 Monday a party visited the ballast-grounds during 

 the morning, and upon their return inspected the 

 library and herbarium of Mr. I. C. Martindale of 

 Camden, N.J. In the evening of the same day the 

 Botanical section of the Philadelphia academy of 

 sciences entertained the club, the Torrey botanical 



club of New-York City, and other invited guests at 

 the rooms of the academy. About three hundred 

 were present, and a thoroughly enjoyable time expe- 

 rienced. On the afternoon of Tuesday the club and 

 its friends, in all about eighty, made an excursion to 

 the Bartram gardens, one of the most interesting his- 

 torical spots to botanists in this country; and the 

 club then adjourned. 



In reviewing the attendance of botanists at Phila- 

 delphia, and the work of the Botanical club, there is 

 much reason for congratulation. About a hundred 

 entered their names on the register of the club as 

 botanists, or about eight per cent of the total attend- 

 ance, one-half of whom are widely known for their 

 attainments in the science. There was no lack of 

 interesting papers and free discussion. Besides the 

 important measures already referred to, the club was 

 instrumental in securing the appointment of a per- 

 manent committee of the Association to encourage 

 researches on the health and diseases of plants. But, 

 above all, the augmented facilities for intercourse 

 and acquaintanceship, and the impulse imparted to 

 individual workers, through the influence of the club, 

 are a sufficient raison d'etre, and a promise of useful- 

 ness for the future. 



PSYCHICAL RESEARCH IN AMERICA. 



A meeting was held in Boston, on Sept. 23, to 

 consider the advisability of forming an American 

 society for psychical research. Prof. W. F. Barrett, 

 vice-president of the English society, was present, 

 and gave an account of the work they are doing in 

 England in the investigation of ' mind-reading ' and 

 the so-called spiritualistic phenomena, which last 

 they always find to fail when the medium is securely 

 bound. As one good result of the English society's 

 work, it was stated that there had been a decrease in 

 the activity of the society of spiritualists in London. 

 It was the sense of the meeting, that if any thing 

 could be done in this country to check the growth 

 of the belief in the supernatural powers of ' mediums,' 

 and to show what is the true explanation of such 

 phenomena as 'mind-reading' and mesmerism, it 

 would be a work which should enlist the assistance of 

 American scientific men. Professor Barrett showed, 

 that, in the case of ' mind-reading,' most of the results 

 pointed to an unconscious guidance on the part of 

 the person whose mind was being read, but there 

 were residual cases he would not so explain. It was 

 the opinion of those present, that the collecting of 

 the stories of fulfilled dreams and anxieties would be 

 fruitless, but that there were many questions of a 

 physiological nature which should be investigated, 

 and no longer be allowed to go unanswered or ig- 

 nored. A committee was appointed to consider the 

 whole matter of the formation of a society, or in 

 what way it may seem best to undertake the work; 

 and, at a meeting held last week, steps were taken 

 for the formation of a society in America, of which 

 we hope soon to report the complete organization. 



