thickly and completely covers the land. The stems are said to reach a height of 1 to 12 metres (3 to 5 ft.) and to be about 2-4 cm. in thickness; on the margins of streams, however, the stems grow as high as 2 metres (6ft. 6 in.). After cutting down the stems, some 4 to 5 months must elapse before they grow again. Paper has been made both from the dried material received from Brazil, and from fresh stems supplied from Kew. The paper in both cases was found to be identical, and the plant seems likely to be a valuable source of material for the paper-maker. The fibre has great tensile strength, the "breaking length" being from 9 000 to 10 000 metres. The elasticity and folding qualities of the paper are exceptional. It can be made to bear ink and possesses parchment qualities without any special treatment. These properties are due to the presence of cells of a semi-gelatinous nature, which are associated with the fibre; the amount of these cells in the unbleached paper is 17.3 per cent. Cellulose in stems when air-dried 41 per cent.; length of fibre in unbleached Hedychium 2.61 mm. The writer gives a description of paper-making and of the physicochemical properties of the fibre. He concludes by saying that owing to the remarkable qualities of Hedychium it seems likely to be in considerable demand in the near future. The stems of Amomum hemisphericum and Alpinia nutans (Zingiberacea) were also examined as to their paper-making qualities. The former is a native of Java; the latter is recorded from Hong Kong, Formosa, Cochin China, the Eastern Himalaya and the Malay Peninsula ; it is also known from the West Indies, Guatemala, Venezuela, Surinam and Brazil. The stems of Amomum reach a height of 5 metres (over 16 ft.); those of Alpinia are stated to be 2.5 to 3 m. (8 to 10 ft.) high. The latter plant would probably form dense thickets in swampy country. Yield of unbleached paper: from green stem, Ammomum 7.44 per cent., Alpinia 5.93 per cent., and from the dry stem respectively 58.2 and 50 per cent. Both plants are suitable for making white and brown paper, but they are considerably inferior to Hedychium, being devoid of the self-sizing property of the latter. 2. Marram grass (Ammophila arenaria Link.). This plant grows on the sandhills on the coast of Great Britain and acts as a very valuable sand-binder. Experiments in paper-making have been made with marram grass, which possesses quite useful qualities in this direction. The yield of unbleached paper from the green stem was 17.7 per cent. and that from the dry stem 31.4 per cent. The average length of unbeaten fibres contained in the pulp was 0.65 mm. 3. The following table gives a summary of the results of the examination of new materials for the manufacture of paper undertaken at the Imperial Institute (London). All the fibrous materials enumerated are capable of conversion into pulp suitable for the manufacture of paper, though in some cases it is not known whether they could be utilised to advantage on a commercial scale. The raw materials would probably not realize more than about £3 per ton in the United Kingdom, and it is therefore very unlikely that they could be profitably exported, especially in view of their bulky nature. For this reason, in conjunction with the fact that they furnish somewhat small yields of pulp, the best way to deal with these fibrous products would be either to convert the raw material into "half stuff " and export the latter, or to employ it locally for the manufacture of paper. PLANT DISEASES GENERAL INFORMATION. 311 - Report for Presentation to the Ghent Congress of 1913, Respecting the Plant Pathology Service, by the International Union of Professional Horticulturists. SMET, A. DE (Président de la Chambre syndicale des Horticulteurs Belges, Gand). Rapport sur le service phytopathologique de l'U. H. P. I. — Union Horticole Professionnelle Internationale, U. H. P. I., Rapports pour le Congrès de Gand en 1913, présentés par le Président, H. Muller, Langsur, pp. 17-19 (n. d.). By means of circulars and its annual report for 1911, the Chambre Syndicale des Horticulteurs Belges " has published in detail the proceedings of the Horticultural Congress at Luxemburg. The above-mentioned Chamber has drawn the special attention of the Belgian Government to the changes in the transport service suggested by the Berne International Congress and to the institution of a Service of Plant Pathology. The information thus furnished has been given due consideration by the Belgian Government; the law for the establishment of a Service of Plant Pathology has been passed (1) and, on the occasion of the next Railway Convention, the Government will as far as possible try to meet the wishes of the horticulturists. Propaganda work in the same direction is in progress in France under the auspices of the "Fédération des Syndicats Horticoles de France." The writer insists upon the necessity of similar work being done in every country; for only in this manner will the International Union of Professional Horticulturists be able to carry on efficiently its international work. The "Chambre Syndicale des Horticulteurs Belges " has interested itself much in the creation of a Plant Sanitary Service, and has always endeavoured to keep the plants and horticultural products of Belgium free from cryptogamic diseases and from injurious insects; providing its members with instructions and means of combating these pests. By profiting from the attempts made in other countries, the Chamber has elaborated a scheme, which seems to embrace the prophylactic measures necessary for all lands. The Luxemburg Congress unanimously adopted the inspection project put forward by the Belgian Syndical Chamber, and 1) See No. 66, B. Jan. 1913. (Ed.). LEGISLATIVE AND ADMINI- FOR THE OF PLANTS. passed a vote expressing their wish that the Service of Plant Pathology should become general throughout Europe. The same Congress voted that all crops should be placed under the care of inspectors whose duty should also include imparting practical instruction to growers regarding methods of controlling plant diseases. Such a service, but placed upon a broader basis, has been established by the law brought forward on March 26, 1912, and approved by royal decree. Phytopathological regulations were sanctioned in Holland by the law of March 29, 1909. A Service of Inspection of Horticultural Products was established in France by the decree of May 1, 1911. Plant pathological inspection in Great Britain is governed by a series of regulations (1). The United States have special laws for every State of the Union (2). The writer suggests that each of the syndicate Associations of the International Union of Professional Horticulturists should be requested to furnish an account of the Service of Plant Pathology in its particular country (3). Once the text of the different laws was obtained, it would be possible to coordinate them, arrange them under a general head, and prefer to the different Governments an official request for the establishment of a Plant Sanitary Service, which should be alike in all the affiliated countries, and make obligatory that all horticultural products when exported should be furnished with a certificate of immunity. This certificate should be drawn up according to one model, as in the case of that adopted by the International Phylloxera Convention of Berne (4). 312 Decree concerning the Reorganisation of the Service of Phytopathological Inspection of Horticultural Produce in France. (5). Décret portant réorganisation du Service d'inspection phytopathologique de la production horticole en France. Journal officiel de la République française, Year 25, p. 857. Paris, January 26, 1913. The President of the French Republic issued the following decree under date of January 16, 1913: Article 1. The work of the Service of Phytopathological Inspection of Horticultural Products instituted by the Ministry of Agriculture by the decree of May 1, 1911, has been modified and determined as follows: Art. 2. The Staff of the Service is nominated by order of the Ministry within the limits of the appropriation for this object in the Budget of the Ministry of Agriculture. It consists of: a) A chief inspector, the Head of the Service, to whom is entrusted the direction and scientific control of (1) See No. 1676, B. Dec. 1912. (2) See No. 182, B. Feb. 1913. (Ed.). (3) See in this connection: L'organisation actuelle du service de protection contre les maladies des plantes et les insectes nuisibles dans les divers pays. Rome, International Institute of Agriculture, 1911. (Ed.). (4) See: CUBONI, G. The Basis of an International Agreement for the Control of Plant Diseases. B. Nov. 1912, pp. 2349-2354. (5) See also No. 1604, B. May 1911; No. 3084, B. Aug.-Sept.-Oct. 1911. (Ed.). (Ed.). each of the branches of the Service, the superintendence of the work of the inspectors and assistant inspectors, the furnishing of necessay instructions to these officers to enable them to carry out all the investigations required by the present decree, and the supplying, when required, of the certificates of phytopathological inspection. b) An assistant to the chief inspector, whose duty it is to assist the principal inspector in his work. c) Temporary agents, with the title of inspector, entrusted with visiting the horticultural institutions committed to their care to see that the plantations are in good condition, that produce despatched thence harbours no insects known to be injurious, and no cryptogamic diseases capable of spreading, and if necessary, to provide certificates of phytopathological inspection. d) Temporary agents, bearing the title of sub-inspectors and capable of supplementing the inspectors of the Service in the branch which is especially entrusted to them. Art. 3. The officers of the Phytopathological Service are required to ensure, within the limits of the present decree and the Ministerial instructions, the supervision of those horticultural establishments and branch institutions entrusted to them. When on inspection tours, the inspectors must be provided with the card proving their identity; this they receive from the Minister of Agriculture. Art. 4. The inspectors and sub-inspectors are proposed by the chief inspectors and nominated annually. Their number varies according to the requirements of the Service. The conditions for recruiting inspectors and sub-inspectors are settled by ministerial decree. - Art. 5. The work of the chief unspector and his assistant is settled by Directors of State Scientific Institutions nominated by the Minister of Agriculture, who will also apportion to each individual his special task. Art 6. The chief inspectors, inspectors and sub-inspectors nominated under the present decree receive in remuneration of their services and for their travelling expenses a sum which is not subject to the deductions prescribed by the law of June 9, 1853, in the case of civil pensions and is calculated according to a basis fixed by the decree of the Minister of Agriculture. Art. 7. The expenses entailed in the phytopathological inspection of horticultural products are stated in a special clause in the budget of the Ministry of Agriculture. They are apportioned among the persons interested in the following manner: the first charge of the expenses is covered by a fixed annual tax of £1, levied upon each controlled horticultural establishment, and the surplus is divided in proportion to the market value of the products for which phytopathological certificates have been granted. The portion to be contributed by each horticulturist is recovered by means of taxes levied and collected by the Minister of Agriculture, even in the case of total or partial refusal of certificates of phytopathological inspection. These sums are entered under the head of "Various contributions to the budget ". - Art. 8. Every horticulturist who wishes to submit his premises to phytopathological inspection must apply to the Minister of Agriculture before April 1 of each year, writing his request upon stamped paper accord |