BABINGTON'S " MANUAL OF BRITISH BOTANY ' 47 



NOTES ON THE NEW EDITION OF BABINGTON'S 

 "MANUAL OF BRITISH BOTANY." 



By G. CLARIDGE DRUCE, M.A., F.L.S. 



THE publication of this long-expected edition of Babington's 

 well-known "Manual" must be of great interest to every British 

 botanist ; and we shall only be expressing the consensus of 

 opinion when we offer to the editors a hearty congratulation 

 upon the manner in which they have negotiated a delicate 

 and difficult task. Doubtless if the editors had been com- 

 pletely untrammelled an even more interesting work might 

 have been the result. But as it is we have had carefully 

 preserved the great merits which characterised the Manual, 

 and certain particulars which, despite the advances made in 

 the knowledge of systematic botany, one would have been 

 sorry to lose, especially the excellent description of so many 

 species and varieties. The editors have followed on the 

 same lines in their descriptions of the various additions which 

 have been made since the publication of the last edition in 

 1 88 1. These additions are printed in smaller type than the 

 text of the last edition, so that they are readily recognised. 

 About fifty new species are enumerated, but a considerable 

 proportion are introduced species. They include Ranunculus 

 scoticus, Arabis alpina, CocJilearia alpina (previously known 

 as a variety), C. grccnlandica, Sagina Boydii, Lupimis (now 

 identified as L, Nootkatensis, Sims), Trifolium agrarium^ 

 Juneus tennis, Scirpus ferrugineus, Carex cJwrdorrhiza, C. 

 salina, Calainagrostis strigosa (if indeed that be correctly 

 identified), Poa palustris, Triticuin alpinmn (now given 

 specific rank), and Nitella confervacea. In addition, a large 

 number of new varieties are given. 



Many changes have been made in the nomenclature. It 

 is pleasing to find that so many of those suggested by the 

 writer in these pages nearly ten years ago, and which met 

 with a somewhat violent opposition at the time, have now been 

 adopted. We find, for instance, Peramium replacing Goodyera, 

 KentrantJius for Centrantkus, Apinclla for Trinia, etc. The 

 latter genus, with a single species, is now given as Apinella 



