EDITORIAL. 



At the present writing the January number of this journal 

 has not been issued, though we are glad to say that it is printed. 

 It was first delayed intentionally in order to include a report of 

 the St. Louis fern meeting, and subsequent delays have been due 

 entirely to the procrastination of the printers with whom we 

 have a contract for printing the Bulletin. As our readers are 

 aware, the editor is away from home and this seems to be taken 

 by the printers as an excuse for putting off until the day after 

 to-morrow what should have been done yesterday. Now that the 

 magazine is printed, a further delay has been occasioned by the 

 loss in the mails, not only of the cut for the frontispiece, but of 

 the photograph from which it was made. We are endeavoring 

 to secure another cut and the number will be issued as soon as 

 possible. Whether it appears before or after the April number 

 depends entirely upon how soon we can get a new frontispiece. 

 Fortunately the Fern Bulletin has existed so long that any 

 delay in an issue is not taken by the subscribers as an indication 

 that the magazine is on the verge of failure. Nevertheless, we 

 realize how exasperating such delays are to readers, and the 

 pile of letters we have received complaining of the non-appear- 

 ance of the magazine are potent reminders of the fact. 



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The present number is intended to be issued on time — that 

 is the copy for it was in the hands of the printer before the 

 middle of March with instructions to push it as fast as possible. 

 If it does not appear by the first week in April there will be 

 some better excuse for the delay than the dilatory methods of 

 compositors and pressmen. 



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The eleventh annual report of the Fern Chapter just received 

 shows as usual an increase of members over last year, and in 

 addition a very respectable balance in the treasury. The Chapter 

 has been for some years one of the largest of American botanical 

 societies, and a membership in it has come to mean much more 

 than it did when the society was in its infancy. In its early 

 days the printing of additional fern literature for free distribu- 



