Published online by Cambridge University Press: 20 January 2009
In this paper, we prove that if is an increasing sequence of strictly positive and continuous functions on a locally compact Hausdorff space X such that then the Fréchet space C(X) is distinguished if and only if it satisfies Heinrich's density condition, or equivalently, if and only if the sequence satisfies condition (H) (cf. e.g.‵[1] for the introduction of (H)). As a consequence, the bidual λ∞(A) of the distinguished Köthe echelon space λ0(A) is distinguished if and only if the space λ1(A) is distinguished. This gives counterexamples to a problem of Grothendieck in the context of Köthe echelon spaces.