8 - 
I8HINA, Chengtu. Mr, E. W. Wilson writes December 16, 1910, that 
; he is leaving for home soon, and hopes to reach Boston early 
in April. He has had a fairly successful time, though he met 
•with the misfortune of a "badly "broken right leg. 
CHINESE TURKESTAN. Mr. Erank N. Meyer, Agricultural Explorer for 
this Office, writes January 7 that he has returned to Kashgar. 
y t Both his Chinese and Russian interpreters wish to return to 
; their homes, his permit for work in Russian Turkestan, to 
which he wishes to return "because of the poorness in plants of 
Chinese Turkestan, has run out, and he is ill from exposure and 
bad quarters. He hopes, however, to return to Russian Turkestan 
for some of the interesting things seen on his way to Kashgar. 
IHDIA, Saharanpur. Mr. A, C, Hartless, Superintendent of the 
Government Botanical Gardens, Saharanpur, in reply to our re- 
ly." quest for alfalfas, writes that he has requested the Super- 
intendent of Earms, Kashmir, to send us what alfalfas he can, 
: and sends the following reply received from him*. "Our staple 
leguminous fodder crop in this province (Kashmir) is known as 
; Trifolium suaveolens (Shaftal) a kind of vigorous lucerne. It 
. is wonderfully vigorous and oan be cut many times between 
~ early January and late May. I have six acres sown on the 
Peshawar Agricultural Station, I am afraid there is no one 
across the border who knows botany sufficiently to enable 
him to collect species of Medicago* The photograph you have 
sent should enable me to spot anything unusual." 
PALESTINE, Jerusalem. Mr. E. E. Beaumont of the American Colony 
writes January 20 that they are interested in the variety of 
cactus called Indian fig, "We have observed here apparently 
two varieties; one with a long offensive spine over the leaf, 
and another which seems to be more abundant with scarcely any 
spine and those existing are only from one-eighth to one-fourth 
of an inch long and so inoffensive as to be eaten readily by 
the cattle, singeing not being at all necessary. " 
J?HRU, Perene Colony, Mr. James A, Furlong writes January 9 that 
he will try to get us anything we wish that grows in his 
region* Re will try to get us Rollinia, Golden tree, and 
Cucurbita maxima, as soon as he can get in touch with ways of 
getting them. The Sapium rubber does not grow in his region 
but he hopes to obtain seed for us from the missionary 
priests who travel throughout the interior. 
