699 
know most times not where their supplies really come from, 
they buy them up from here and there and everywhere and as 
China is the land of small doings and of everybody for 
himself and as almost no cooperation exists, it truly is 
hard to get exact information. On chestnuts I have to say 
but little, as the districts I went through possessed but 
very few chestnuts. I noticed however small outbreaks of 
bark-disease, even on isolated trees and suspect that this 
disease really is as old as the hills here in North China. 
Of walnuts we didn't see any groves like one encounters 
nowadays in Southern California, only scatterd trees here 
and there and such variation as regards quality and size 
of nuts. The Chinese haven't managed yet to graft the 
walnut, hence all trees are seedlings and therefore they 
all vary so much. In the Hwai lal district and right up 
to the Hsiao Wu tai shan, I found lots of Medicago ruthenica 
and for grazing purposes and for grazing purposes only, at least 
for the present, I consider this wild alfalfa much more valu- 
able than M. falcata. It is specially suited for the in- 
termountain sections of the United States and I wonder 
whether much attention has been paid already to this valu- 
able forage plant. I collected only a small quantity of 
the seeds, but enough to grow a little plot of it some- 
where. In Kalgan I obtained seeds of the largest variety 
of Kohlrabi in China, good sized specimens weighing as much 
as 25 pounds. Some vegetable dealer ought to make some 
noise about this, don't you think so?" 
Mr. Meyer also writes under date of September 24 and 
27. "I leave Peking early October 1913, by train to 
Honanfu, by cars from Honanfu to Sianfu, Shensi, passing 
through the great persimmon region of North China. From 
Sianfu to Lanchowfu, Kansu, passing through more persimmon 
districts and through jujube orchards. Returning from 
Lanchowfu either along the same road or by other ways, 
collecting cuttings and scions en- route. Back in Peking 
in early January. Shipping off all colle tions. End of 
January 1914, or early February, to Shantung, especially 
around Tsinanfu, collecting peaches, jujubes, persimmons 
and large fruited haws. Back in Peking toward the end of 
March or early April, 1914. Then making ready for a big 
exploration trip of the mountains and valleys of the Kansu 
province, starting out from Lanchow in all directions, t 
collecting herbarium material during the summer, seeds in 
the fall, and scions and cuttings during the winter 1914- 
1915. Towards spring back to the coast and leaving per- 
haps by way of Japan and the Panama Canal for New York, 
arriving in Washington before the close of the fiscal year 
1914-1915. This present winter's trip into Kansu is one 
