having received Asplenium lanceum, a Japanese species from 

 Florida, where it is apparently well established. The question 

 was raised whether this is a naturalized escape, or whether it is 

 a hitherto undiscovered native. Mr. George E. McClure, of the 

 Missouri Botanical Gardens, then spoke on "The Occurrence of 

 Poly podium angusti folium ensifolium^ in Florida." The type of 

 this species is common in the tropics, but previous to the dis- 

 covery of Mr. McClure's specimens neither type nor variety was 

 known from the United States. Prof. B. Shimek, of the Uni- 

 versity of Iowa, gave a short paper on the occurrence of 

 "Woodsia Ilvcnsis in Iowa," an interesting extension of range. 

 In another paper on "Ferns from Natchez, Miss.," he recorded 

 the occurrence of Woodsia obtusa and Nephr odium patens there. 

 This is the farthest known Southern station in the Mississippi 

 valley for the Woodsia, and the farthest Northern range for the 

 Nephrodium. In "The Species Conception Among the Ferns." 

 Willard N. Clute pointed out the discrepancy between the values 

 of different species of ferns, discussed the characters of diag- 

 nostic importance and suggested ways in which a proposed new 

 species could be judged. 



The presiding officer then read extracts from the letters of 

 various collectors in Florida in which were detailed the recent 

 discovery there of nearly a dozen species and at least one genus 

 of ferns new to the fern flora of the United States. 



The meeting adjourned for lunch at one o'clock. A trip to 

 the Missouri Botanical Garden had been planned for the after- 

 noon, but true to the reputation of fern students for good-fellow- 

 ship those present elected to return to the high school, where the 

 rest of the day was spent in examining the ferns exhibited by 

 several members and in exchanging opinions about ferns in gen- 

 eral. Owing to the lack of fern students in the middle West, the 

 meeting was not as largely attended as were those at Boston and 

 New York, although nearly every fern student within a day's 

 ride of St. Louis was present. The meeting was therefore a suc- 

 cess, and fern students will doubtless be encouraged to hold 

 others in the West as favorable opportunities occur. 



