Harvard Botany Libraries

101 1893 — Mar. 19 — — Cambridge, Mass. — 14 1/2 m. Glorious day. Visited mly wheel the fist thing this A.M. Alas, the front wheel was limp. Leak at the conection of the tire with the tube for inflating. Mended it with tire-tape, and rode 14 1/2 miles this A.M. with Harry Warren & Mr. E. Hubbard over Harvard Bridge, Fens, Longwood Ave, Beacon St to Reservoir back to Coolidge Corner Harvard St., Barrys Corner, River St, Central Sq. Holme. Generally fine riding. I like the wheel immensely. We were gone a little over 2 hrs. Mounted 16 sheets this evening. ————— Mar. 20 — Cambridge Mass — 9 m. Glorious day. Wheeled into town. Left machine at Pope Mfg Co. It was all ready for me after school. Called on Ella Lord and home over Harvard Bridge. Stopped and showed machine to Dr. [Winn?]. Distance 9 m.

— Mar. 22 — Cambridge Mass — 9 m. After school to-day, came home and wheeled in to Pope Mfg. Co. where I bought a rack — I got home in 1 hr. 15 m., including a 10 min wait. Distance 9 m.

Mar. 25 — Cambridge Mass — 13 m. Received some plants from W.W. Eggleston. Sent him a package of 17 sp.s. The sun & light wind of today have dried up the roads a good deal. This P.M. Sat. I took a run into town, and went all over the Back Bay Fens. Distance in all 13 miles. Sent off last night my last letter to Mr. Bebb in Demorest. He goes home next Tues. (28th).

100 1893 — Mar. 18 — — Cambridge, Mass. — 7 m. I have bought my bicycle and am the owner of a Century Columbia, Model 320, 40 lbs. all on. It is a superb machine and how I shall enjoy it. I went up to the Pope Mfg. Co. yes to-day (Sat.) at 12 o'clock, having previously arranged to be there. My machine was all ready for me. I paid the bill $150, mounted the steel horse, and rode straight to Aunt Anna's on fine roads. My overcoat I left at the building. Aunt Anna's first question was "Have you come on your bicycle?" She was delighted and was much pleased to be the first one to see her gift to me. From there I went to the Fens and finally home over the Harvard Bridge. All admire the machine. The Cambridge roads are not much yet. It freezes & thaws. I rode some with Harry Spelman up & down Highland St. Total ride 7 miles.

Miss Heading sent me a box of wild flowers the first of Mar. The Pinguiculas. {Pinguicula} lutea & pumila have been blooming for 2 wks in a dish on my table. They have been a great pleasure to me. Mr. Bebb still writes from Demorest. He walked 7 m. lately. He goes home the last of this month. Dr. Vasey died Mar. 4th after a 3 days illness. Rose has written me about it. Although he has not been strong for some time, yet his death was unexpected. Coville has been appointed to his place — I mounted 41 sheets to-day.

99 — 1893 — — Mar. 14 — — Cambridge, Mass. — Nearly 2 months have passed since my last entry. We have had an unusual amount of snow, and the ground is still mostly covered with snow and ice. I have done a good deal of botanical work. Mr. Churchill has turned over to me all his last year's duplicates and I have put them all into shape, mounting & distributing some 100 sheets, and putting the rest in my Duplicate Herbarium. Mr. Churchill made out labels for me and it adds much to the value of the specimens. His plants are very largely from New Jersey. H.N. Patterson, Dr. J.H. Sandbery & Prof. T.C. Porter all have sent me packages of excellent plants which add greatly to my Herbarium. Mrs. N.L. Britton & J.R. Small called here some weeks ago (see Dec. 29). Small spent some time with me in my Herbarium. He has since laid out for me a set of his last years collection in So. Va. I shall get them later.

I long for bicycling. This P.M. I rode the new Century in the Columbia rink. I enjoy it. I call at the Gray Herbrium occasionally and have a chat with the botanists. Dr. Robinson is most courteous. Mr. Bebb is still in Demorest, Ga. He writes most entertaining letters to me. All my botanical friends and correspondents seem well and busy.

98 — 1893 — — Jan. 27 — — Cambridge, Mass. — To-night I attended Ddr. Goodales lecture on Java, delivered at the Lowell Institute. It was extremely interesting, and was copiously illustrated by views. The chief feature of the views was the magnificent growth. I attend our Shakespeare Club every 2 wks. Last Tuesday 24th I read the part of Henry V. Dr. Sandbey has been appointed manager of the Botanical Exchange Bureau. He wanted the position, and I am glad the has it. He is superb collector and knows what a good specimen is. He has been writing me lately, and I am expecting a package of plants from him. I hear constantly from L.H. Bailey jr, who is well & busy : from Dr. Kennedy who is still at Readville, from Dr. Morong who is busy on his paper on Naiadaceae which will be published before long. He is going to distribute his Potamogetons and I am to have the second set. Mr. E. Faxon has been writing me of late in regard to a new Potamogeton, {Potamogeton} faxonii, which will appear in Dr. Morong's monograph. No fruit was taken. Dr. Morong has sent me some very rare Potamogetons, {Potamogeton} mysticus, rutilus, curtissii, vaseyi &c. I had an interesting talk with Dr. Robinson lately on his work on the Synop. Flora. He is on Silene just now. How many perplexing questions, such a work calls up.

97 1893 teach him to attach the bud at the weakest point. From the base of the bud thus extracted, the bird would quickly pick out the small nucleus of green parenchyma, the germ of the next years growth of stem or inflorescence. This nucleus I found by measurement to be just the size of the head of an ordinary pin, so that it is no wonder that the poor hungry gros beak was not to be satisfied in a short time. The bird, having picked out this nucleus would throw the remnant to the ground, and the snowy carpet beneath the trees was thickly covered with bud scales which were lying either separately or in the shape of the little bud as it was picked from the tree. A little hole under the bud showed where the nucleus had once been — I carefully examined portions of one large spruce attacked and I was unable to find a single bud intact. I have heard that a judiciuos pruning of the buds of a tree by the feathered tribe gives new vigor to the tree, but what will be the effect of this whole sale slaughter? I shall watch the trees with interest next spring, when the buds begin to unfold. The grosbeaks were but a few days here. As soon as they had exhuasted the food supply they departed for new fields. It is to be hoped that they have already satisfied their boundless appetite and given the remaining spruces, at least, a chance to awake, in the spring from their winter naps. —————

96 — 1893 — divided the key into two parts, but I think the action was not at all intentional on this part (of the birds) his object naturally being merely to get the seed. They almost completely stripped the spruces of their buds and I am much interested to know what effect this treatment will have on the growth of the trees. The Norway Spruce is our common species and though as in the case of the species ashes, I saw and made a careful examination of the havoc which they committed. Here again I have Mr. Brewster's testimony to the wonderful sight afforded by these voracious birds. The spruces were laden with snow which had recently fallen and as the birds plied, on every branch, their unwearied task, a thin viel on ground, and through it the bright colored beams of the newly risen sun cast a rosy light. The buds, terminal and axillalary, of the Norway spruce are small, and the birds left on the tree the scales of the lower half, extracting the rest to the very base of the bud. The reason for this a natural point of division, half way between the base and the end of the bud, the scales on the lower half being apparently tougher and more firmly attached to the stem. The natural instincts and experience of the bird would

95 — 1893 — — Jan. 22 — — Cambridge, Mass. — For several days preceding Jan. 15th, Cambridge received a visit from an unprecidented number of pine grosbeaks from the north. Flocks of hundreds filled the trees and grounds here and ther throughout the city. Mr. William Brewster, the ornithologist says that it is not at all strange to see a few of these birds during the winter, and that about every third year they are apt to visit this native region in considerable numbers owing probably to a scarcity of food in their habitat; What they fed on here during their last visit was chiefly the seeds of the ash and the buds of the spruces. They would attack a large ash tree, laden with fruit, and in a few hours strip off every key. Their method was to take the key in the beak, deftly split open. The outer covering of the base of the fruit, and extract the seed. This Mr Brewster saw them doing by hundreds as he stood close by under the trees. The birds were so tame, in fact, that one could stand close up to among them, with in reaching distance, but they wouold hop away quickly if an attempt was out of reach of the hand made to catch them. was unfortunate myself in not seeing the birds shelling the ash seeds, but I did see the snow under the trees literally colored by the fallen keys and my herbarium now contains a pocket full of the remains left by the birds. As a rule the key was entire, with the exception of the slit in the ovary, the slit running quite through both sides. Generally the wing was untouched, but sometimes it was split clean through. This

94 — 1893 — The artist made the engraving from photographs of Dr. Gray which there are a great many. This P.M. Dr. Coolidge Margie & I went to the Tremont Theater to see "Urania." Very fine. Saw Dr. Kennedy & family there — School again to-morrow — ————— — Jan. 4 — Cambridge — Roads again frozen, but rather bad. This P.M. took a spin to Arlington & back by North Ave. Distance 8 1/4 m. 588 1/2 m. since Sept. 17. Temperature this P.M. about 20° {degrees} — Have mounted this P.M. & evening a small collection sent me by Prof. Wheeler and some of W.W. Eggelston's plants — ————— Jan. 15 Jan. — Cambridge. Ground covered with snow since the 5th inst. Have been sleighing twice with George. Weather very cold. Mr. Faxon has sent me some very interesting Asters & Lespedezas, the former named by Dr. Porter, the latter by Dr. Britton. Last Sunday I called on Mr. Rand, who has been suffering from rheumatism, I had not seen him for a long time, and we had a very pleasant chat. I have been two or three times to the Century Columbia, 32. If the band brake works well it is a grand thing. I enjoy studying the machines. Called at 71 Chester Sq. lately. Uncle R. gave me "Figures of the Past." Have read lately "Cause of the Ice Age" Ball & Garners "Speech of Monkeys."

93 — 1892 — 4 P.M. train. J.R. Churchill came out later. We had a very pleasant time with the family, besides looking over Dr. Kennedy's Canada plants. Returned home late, 10.23 train. Home a little before 12. — Dec. 31 — Cambridge, Mass. — Glorious day. Read this A.M. Ball's Cause of the Ice Age." Theater this P.M. with Lucy & mai D. "Babes in the Wood." ————— — 1893 — — Jan. 1 — — Cambridge, Mass. — Another New Year. Morning cloudy P.M. snow, turning to a fierce rain. It took but a short time to transform the elegant hard roads to mud. After a New Year's breakfast at Mrs. Coolidges, I went out to Dorchester and spent the day with Mr. Churchill looking over his summer collection, as far as he had mounted it. I had a very nice day, and returned home at 7.30 P.M. reaching the house by 9.10. Mr. C. has very nice things from N.J. I shall get his duplicates later —

Mis Heading has sent me some very nice Fla. plants.

92 — 1892 — Dec. 29. — Cambridge Mass. — Glorious day, clear temperature about at the freezing point. Wheeled to the Garden this A.M. and saw Mrs. Britton & Mr. Small. Pleasant time. This P.M. took a spin to Boston. Took my machine to the Overman Co. who said it was in good order — Then I wen tot the Pope Mfg Co. and left my machine and rode out a Century Columbia of 1892. How I enjoyed the "big fat pneumatics" as Tom Steere calls them. I called on Ella Lord on the way — Total On my return home — J.J. Greenough and I went to Harvard Sq. Total distance today 13 3/4 m. That makes 567 1/2 m. since Sept. 17.

This evening Mrs. Britton, Miss Leming of Brooklyn, & Mr. Small called. Mr. Small & I spent some time in my Herb. He was much pleased. He told me of his collecting trip last summer in So. Va. They got a very large collection of most interesting things. He is going to send me a set. ————— — Dec. 30 — Cambridge, Mass. — Glorious day, balmy, clear. Spent the A.M. bicycling. Went to Dana Hill called on Mr. Rolfe. Returned home. Then went to Boston and returned the Century. It is a fine machine. I interviewed the new Century again and am strongly in favor of it. The band brake and elliptical sprocket wheel seem good — Returned on the Victor. Went 12 3/4 m. this AM That makes 580 1/4 m. since Sept. 17. Went to Dr. Kennedy's this P.M. at Milton. Took the