II — 
object achieved here is the distribution of seeds: the withered plants lie in 
sheltered nooks to which they have been blown until the rainy season, when, 
under the influence of moisture, the seed vessels open and the seeds are 
washed out. The plants themselves are dead, but in the case of the mosses 
vitality is maintained for a succession of years. 
Sheringham, Norfolk, England. 
NOTES ON SPORE DISPERAL IN SPHAGNUM. 
E. J. Winslow. 
On August 9th of the present year, while botanizing in a swamp near 
Lake Willoughby, Westmore, Vt. , my attention was attracted by the frequent 
recurrence of a snapping sound like the breaking of a wheat straw. Upon 
investigation I found that the Sphagnum, which grew abundantly all around, 
was heavily fruited, and the strongly inflated capsules as they dried out in 
the mid-forenoon sun, were expelling their spores with the little explosion 
that I had noticed. I was never able to catch a capsule in the act, but by 
following the sound quickly I could catch a glimpse of a tiny and very transi- 
ent cloud of reddish brown spores two or three inches from the top of a 
bunch of capsules. 
I tried unsuccessfully to procure the effect by squeezing the capsules 
between the thumb and finger, but from a bunch which I gathered and 
carried in my hand the popping continued until most of the ripe capsules were 
exploded. As far as I could see there was no breeze or other disturbance to 
aid in producing the explosion, but the plants were exposed to the direct rays 
of the sun, and it was the time of day (about 10 a. m.) when the last of the 
dew was disappearing from the ground. So it would seem that perfect dry- 
ness is the only condition necessary to produce the discharge in a ripe cap- 
sule. Elmira, New York. 
SULLIVANT MOSS CHAPTER NOTES. 
New Members: No. 188 — Clarence A. Cheever, M.D., 1531 Blue Hill 
Ave., Mattapan, Mass. No. 186 — Mr. George M. Pendleton, Sisson, Cali- 
fornia. No. 190 — Mrs. Clara Anderson Groves, Thorsby Institute, Thorsby, 
Alabama. 
NOTICE— ELECTION OF OFFICERS FOR 1908. 
Members of the Sullivant Moss Chapter are requested to forward ballots 
at once to the Judge of Election, Miss Lydia Pritchett Borden, Manoa, Dela- 
ware Co., Pa. Polls close November 30th. The following candidates have 
signified their willingness to serve, if elected. Members, however, are at 
liberty to vote for any other candidate, should they prefer to do so. 
