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THE AMERICAN BOTANIST 



such as peach, pear and cjuince, good jelly can be made. One 

 of the astonishing things discovered in reference tO' this subject 

 is that the inner white pulpy part of orange and lemon peel is 

 rich in pectin. This material may be saved, dried, and the pec- 

 tin soaked out when wanted for use with fruit juices in which 

 pectin is lacking. Potatoes are also reported as containing 

 much pectin. Though pectin is related to the carbohydrates its 

 exact chemical composition is unknown. It results from the 

 action on pectose by a ferment known as pectase. Pectose seems 

 present in most half-ripe fruits and is ultimately changed to 

 pectin. 



A Much Named Orchid. — There may be such a thing 

 as being too captious regarding the application of specific and 

 generic names, but at the risk of being so considered, we must 

 insist that the constant changing of names in the interests of 

 priority, or -anybody else, seems to us an occupation unworthy 

 of anyone more than seven years old. Take the case of a 

 harmless little orchid which, for want of a stable scientific 

 name, we must refer to by using the common one — the ladies' 

 tresses. Rafinesque, an eccentric physician of St. Louis, seems 

 to have been the first to describe the plant and he called it 

 Ncottia plantaginca. Twenty-four years later, Torrey thought 

 it should have another name and accordingly called it Spir- 

 antlies plantaginca. He wrote Rafinesque after it, to be sure, 

 but added his own name, possibly as a guarantee of good 

 faith, but certainly with the effect of making it a personal 

 advertisement, as C. G. Lloyd calls it. Fifty-three years went 

 by before the plant was disturbed again. Then Britton figured 

 that it was time for another change of name and he called it 

 Gyrostachys Plantagincnin. With Britton's name after it? 

 Oh, of course ! Nine years later, House, a young man then 

 just out of coUeo-e, decided to show the old fellows a thing or 

 two and soon dug up a new name for the plant. This time it 

 became Ihidmm plantagincuin with Britton's name moved off 



