246 NATURE-STUDY REVIEW [12:5— May, 1916 



New Soil," "Weeds in a Town," "Plants and the Effects of 

 Grazing," etc., it becomes clear that the intention is to develop 

 dynamic and not static collections of plants. We may select 

 "Meadows and Pasture Plants" as a topic to illustrate the point 

 of view. There is first a brief discussion of different kinds of 

 meadows — dry, wet, lowland, and upland meadows. Then 

 follows a list of the leading plants which are likely to be found in 

 most meadows, then brief lists of the plants which characterize 

 each particular kind of meadow. 



Fifty-five pages of the book consist of lists and brief discussions 

 of common plant formations. Other parts of the book discuss 

 the purpose, scope, and methods of botanical instruction, the 

 whole constituting a valuable reference work for one who is try- 

 ing to teach pupils to study plants. 



Otis W. Caldwell. 



Insects Injurious to the Household. Glenn W. Herrick. 

 P. XV + 470. Price, 81.75. The Macmillan Co. 



This is the latest edition to the series of the excellent volumes 

 of The Rural Science Series. The insects considered are the 

 house fly and other flies that frequent houses, mosquitoes, the 

 bedbug, cockroach and flea, ants, insects that injure clothes, 

 cereals, preserved fruits, meats and cheese, some human parasites 

 and pests, woodboring and poisonous insects. 



The book in an excellent addition to the nature library of school 

 or teacher for it contains a wealth of humanly interesting facts 

 about those insects that affect us most. The reader will find 

 on opening to almost any page, unless he is already a well in- 

 formed tomolenogist, that as he reads, many questions that ha\ T e 

 been vaguely in his mind for many years will receive their answers, 

 for the author is particularly happy in supplying the information 

 the average person wants about the common insects and that most 

 scientific writers omit as too commonplace. The chapters are 

 very practical too, supplying the information needed to rid the 

 premises of undesirable insect pests. 



