1899] THE ANTLERS OF THE CERVIDAE 245 



mastered from a classificatory point of view ; and much has been done in 

 homologising the various constituents of these appendages in the different 

 genera and sub-genera. Much, however, still remains to be accomplished in 

 this aspect of the subject, especially as to what extent the antlers of the Old 

 World and New World deer (Mazama) are really homologous, and the degree 

 of evolution they had attained when the two groups diverged. 



In the present part, which treats solely of antlers, and their relationship to 

 horns, the author takes into consideration abnormal developments of the former 

 appendages, which are discussed with great elaboration and wealth of illustra- 

 tion. But the conclusions to be drawn from these abnormalities are reserved 

 for future consideration, so that it is impossible to formulate, let alone criticise, 

 the author's views until the work is further advanced. As Dr. Nitsche 

 attended the Cambridge Congress last August, he had an opportunity of seeing 

 the collections on which recent English work has been based, and was much 

 impressed by their extent and completeness. 



A FIFTEENTH EDITION. 



Determinative Mineralogy and Blowpipe Analysis. By George J. BRUSH. 

 Revised and Enlarged by Samuel L. Penfield. Fifteenth edition. 

 8vo, pp. 312, with 375 figures. New York: John Wiley and Sons. 

 London: Chapman and Hall, Ltd., 1898. Price 15s. 



Like other branches of science, mineralogy has for many years past been 

 making rapid advances, and the work of acquiring the most recent information 

 often entails the expenditure of much labour and time. On this account 

 students of mineralogy will gladly welcome the appearance of this new edition 

 of an already well-known book which it is unnecessary to praise. Suffice it 

 to say that its past reputation is amply sustained in the present work. In it 

 the most recent methods of blowpipe analysis are fully and clearly described. 

 In chapter iii. the reactions of the elements are given in alphabetical order, 

 and in the following chapter the various modes of procedure in blowpipe 

 analysis are systematically set forth, the descriptions being accompanied by 

 well-printed tables free from abbreviations. 



Chapter v. is devoted to the physical properties of minerals, beginning with 

 crystallography, which is dealt with in sixty-five pages. In this the now 

 generally accepted treatment of symmetry is adopted, and the employment of 

 crystal forms instead of spherical projections will probably enable the beginner 

 to grasp this part of the subject more readily than he would do from the 

 illustrations which have hitherto been used. The figures in this chapter are 

 well executed. It might, however, have been indicated on p. 222 that a 

 radiating fibrous or divergent crystalline structure is common to all the four 

 minerals selected for illustration. The chapter concludes with a few pages on 

 the different methods of determining specific gravity. 



Chapter vi. consists of a most valuable series of tables for the determination 

 of mineral species, thoroughly well brought up to date. These cannot fail to 

 be of infinite use both to teachers and students. For the benefit of the latter 

 the names of the most important species are printed in heavy type. A good 

 index to general matter, followed by an index to mineral species, concludes 

 this admirable and most useful book. F. R 



FERTILITY OF FARM AND GARDEN. 



Fertilizers. By Edward B. Voorhees, A.M. 8vo, pp. 335. London : 

 Macmillan and Co., 1898. Price 4s. 6d. 



The soils of America, like those of older countries, become exhausted in 

 time by crop cultivation. We have increasing evidence of this in the multipli- 

 cation of American works on fertilizers and the like. Of these the present 



