142 The Scott is Ji Naturalist. 



notes. From the preface we learn that it was his intention to have in some 

 respects remodelled the book, but the material left by him was insufficient to 

 permit of his intention being acted upon in this edition ; hence its form re- 

 mains unaltered. 



A comparison of the two editions shows that not a little has been done in 

 extending our knowledge of the comital distribution of British plants since the 

 first appearance of the work ; but it shows no less that a good deal still 

 remains to be done as regards some of the counties of Scotland, more especially 

 in the South and in the North-west districts of the country. May we not 

 hope that there are botanists in or near these counties that will remove this 

 reproach. In the introduction it is stated that " for Wigtown and for Peebles- 

 we have still no records for the commonest species. For some other counties 

 the lists of ascertained ' common ' plants are very incomplete, although not 

 wholly blanks ; for example, Stirling, &c." Many of our Scottish botanists are,, 

 perhaps not unnaturally, tempted to make their excursions to Breadalbane, 

 Clova, Braemar, or other places well known for their rare plants, rather than 

 to unknown regions in which the chance of discovering rarities is problematical ; 

 but, even in the absence of resident botanists, most of the gaps could be filled 

 to a considerable extent, at least for the common species, were a few days 

 devoted to the less explored counties, and complete lists kept of the plants, 

 observed in them. We understand that efforts in this line have already been 

 made for one or two of the neglected areas, though too late to be incorporated 

 in this edition. It is unfortunate that the artificial division into counties was 

 adopted by Mr. Watson, instead of the natural divisions that are now employed 

 in noting the distribution of the Scottish Fauna and Flora. For a good many 

 of the divisions there would not be much difficulty in bringing them into correla- 

 tion in the two systems ; but for others it would be almost impossible now to 

 make full use of the information collected by him. 



Apart from the unexplored districts, we may reasonably anticipate a con- 

 siderable addition of records, even from the better known counties ; indeed, we 

 may say that a careful examination of the lists contained in this volume has re- 

 sulted in our observing a number of alterations to be made even in the well- 

 wrought district of the East Highlands, using the term in the sense given to it 

 by Mr. Watson. We cannot suppose that the same does not hold good for 

 almost every county on the list ; and we invite records in completion of the 

 valuable work so ably carried on by the author. To him we owe it that the 

 knowledge of the geographical distribution of British plants is placed on a 

 solid basis, so that subsequent additions can be intercalated without difficulty. 

 To him also do we owe it that we are able to see at once where our efforts are 

 specially required to complete the structure so largely built up by himself. 

 The Fertilisation of Flowers, by Prof. Hermann Miiller (Lippstadt), trans- 

 lated and edited by D'Arcy W. Thomson, B.A. Macmillan & Co., 18S3. 

 Perhaps no subject in the wide range of botanical studies has undergone so 

 rapid a development within past years among us, or has aroused more general 

 and deep interest than the fascinating researches into the relations existing 

 between flowers and insects ; and yet up to the present time, except the small 

 though excellent work on " British Wild-flowers in relation to Insects," by 

 Sir John Lubbock (originally published in " Nature," and afterwards as a 

 separate volume), we have had no special work relating to the modifications of 

 insects and of flowers mutually serviceable. Numerous papers have indeed 



