5i6  Structure  of  Geranium  Maculatum.  {^^Sm^^mi' 
A  drop  of  a  similar  solution  of  hyoscyamine  fields,  with  the  rea- 
gent, results  not  to  be  distinguished  from  those  from  atropine. 
A  like  solution  of  hyoscine  gives,  with  the  reagent,  a  yellow  pre- 
cipitate, which  remains  amorphous ;  but  on  stirring  the  mixture  it 
slowly  becomes,  on  standing,  a  dense  mass  of  fine,  feathery  or 
plumose  crystals,  markedly  different  in  form  from  the  crystals  of 
the  preceding  alkaloids.  These  crystals  are  less  readily  formed  than 
those  from  either  atropine  or  hyoscyamine. 
(5)  Platinic  Chloride. — Under  the  action  of  this  reagent,  when 
applied  to  somewhat  strong  solutions,  no  marked  difference  was 
observed  between  the  three  alkaloids. 
University  of  Pennsylvania. 
STRUCTURE  OF  GERANIUM  MACULATUM.  ^. 
By  Bdson  S.  Bastin. 
This  plant  is  popularly  known  as  Cranesbill,  and  is  common  in 
open  woods  and  fields,  especially  in  clayey  soil,  throughout  the 
northern  United  States  as  far  west  as  the  States  bordering  on  the 
Mississippi  River,  and  as  far  south  as  Tennessee,  but  it  is  rare  in  the 
Gulf  States,  and  does  not  occur  in  the  Rocky  Mountain  and  Pacific 
Coast  floras. 
The  plant  is  an  erect  perennial  herb,  with  slender,  forking,  hairy 
stems  which  attain  a  height  of  from  ten  to  eighteen  inches.  The 
leaves  are  of  two  kinds,  radical  and  cauline,  the  former,  long  petio- 
late,  often  rising  to  the  height  of  eight  or  ten  inches  from  the  ground ; 
the  latter  are  much  shorter  petioled,  the  upper  even  almost  sessile, 
and  inserted  opposite  each  other  on  the  stem  ;  both  kinds  are  stipu- 
late, and  in  both  the  orbicular,  deeply  cordate  lamina  is  parted  into 
five  cuneate  divisions,  each  of  which  is  lobed  and  cut  at  the  apex. 
The  leaves  are  also  hairy,  and  when  old  become  blotched  with  light 
green,  which  fact  has  given  origin  to  the  specific  name  of  the  plant. 
The  stipules  are  lanceolate  and  pointed.  The  flowers  are  arranged 
in  umbel-like,  few-flowered  cymes,  and  each  peduncle  bears  from  one 
to  three  flowers.  The  flowers  are  pentamerous,  regular,  symmetri- 
cal and  hypogynous.  The  calyx  is  persistent  and  chorisepalous ; 
the  sepals  imbricate  in  the  bud,  lanceolate,  cuspidate  and  villous. 
The  rather  fugitive  choripetalous  corolla  is  light  purple  and  the 
petals  are  broad,  about  one-half  inch  long,  clawed,  and  the  claw  is 
