THE AMERICAN BOTANIST. 91 
gen and nitrogen. The myriad and bewildering variety of or- 
ganic products, the substances of our bodies, the odors of the rose^ 
the leaves of the forest, the appeasing delicacy of fruits, seem no 
more than these four substances put together in differing ways. 
Nay, analysis shows that the most astonishing variety of things 
can be made up of identically the same number of atoms of each 
element. Starch and cotton, to take a striking example are made 
up of the same proportions of the four organic elements. — Har- 
per's Magasine. 
Common Names of Erythronium. — When all the facts are 
summed up, it will probably be found that the spring flowers have 
the greatest number of common names for the reason that the great 
mass of the people are more often attracted by these early flowers. 
The yellow adderstongue has its share of these common appella- 
tions from ''Trout lily" proposed by Burroughs to that of dog 
tooth violet known to everybody. A writer in Success unth Flow- 
ers speaks of the flowers as ''fish-hooks" and in Pennsylvania they 
are occasionally called "yelloAv hookers." It would be interesting 
to know how the idea of a hook has been connected with this 
plant. 
Host Plants of the Dodder. — Here at home I have a "wild 
garden, "partly for amusement and partly for experimenting in 
so far as to find out if some of our wildlings may successfully be 
transplanted. Among these latter are several species of golden- 
rod and the dodder (Ctiscufa gronovii) runs riot among all the 
plants, but never a single golden-rod is chosen as host. Its pre- 
deliction seems to be the Jewel weed (Impatiens) and any or all 
the Enpatorhims. Some seasons I find the nettle also embraced, 
but not always; why not, I have not been able, so far, to deter- 
mine. Cuscufa arvensis and C. polygonoriim seem to love the 
clovers and other low growing field crops, such as our common 
flax, and makes trouble in harvest time. — Max E. Munte. 
Use of Ether in Forcing Flowers. — The forcing process, by 
which the florists are able to give us flowers of various kinds much 
earlier than they would naturally bloom, has recently been revolu- 
