Appendix B in the Nicollet report contains a list of plants 

 collected by Charles Geyer of the expedition, and identified by 

 Dr. John Torrey. The following species are specifically re- 

 ported from Spirit Lake: Evonymus atropurpiireus, Dalea alo- 

 pecuroides, Desmanthus illinoensis (as Darlingtonia tracliyloha 

 var. glandidosa T. & G.), Aster novihelgii L. and var. minor T. 

 & G. (not now recognized in the region), Xanthium echinatwm, 

 Artemisia hiennis, Solanum nigrum, Physalis viscosa (probably 

 pruinosa), Euphorhia Jieterophylla (as cyatophora Willd.), Pani- 

 cum virgatiim, and Sporoholus cryptandrus (as Agrostis cryp- 

 tandra) . Other plants which are common in the vicinity of the 

 lakes are reported from the region "between the Missouri and 

 Mississippi rivers," and some of them may have come from our 

 territory. 



In that report Spirit lake is called "Mini-wakan" (Sioux for 

 "spirit-water"), the Little Sioux river is called the "Inyan- 

 yanke," and Ocheydan, lying west of our territory, but of in- 

 terest to students of the Laboratory, appears as ' ' Otchej^edan, ' ' 

 or "the spot w^here they cry," the mound of that name being an 

 ancient burial ground. 



Subsequently, but previously to the establishment of the Lab- 

 oratory, Professor J. C. Arthur, Mr. R. 1. Cratty, Professor 

 Thomas H. Macbride, Mr. P. C. Myers, and, as noted, the pres- 

 ent writer, worked in this region and their published reports are 

 included in the bibliography. The region has also been visited 

 by Professor L. H. Pammel, and perhaps others whose work is 

 not definitely known to the writer. Since the Laboratory has 

 been in operation other students of plants have been attracted 

 to it, among them Professor R. B. Wylie, and several graduate 

 students, among whom Messrs. Knupp, Giddings, Farr and Boot 

 have published reports, as noted in the bibliography, and others 

 will appear in the near future. 



The surface features of the region have been described by sev- 

 eral observers, among whom Nicollet, White and Macbride have 

 been consulted. (See bibliography.) 



PHYSIOGRAPHY AND DRAINAGE 



This is in fact the finest lake region in Iowa, and indeed in a 

 large part of the Northwest. The greater part, of the territory 



