PROGRESS OF VEGETABLE PHYSIOLOGY. 413 



plants are quite similarly circumstanced. In the expressed juice of a 

 Borsdorfer apple, a fungus of this kind, of great beauty, was formed toge- 

 ther with the Saccharomyces ; several large, almost globular flocks, fre- 

 quently of the size of a pea, were present in the fluid, which were sepa- 

 rated from one another, and always consisted of a very large, or rather in- 

 numerable coils, of such single confervoid fungi, at the basis probably 

 adherent. I observed this very interesting form for many weeks, and 

 placed a single flock in a watch-glass with pure water, and so that the 

 branches came to lie close at the surface ; to prevent the evaporation of 

 the water the whole was covered with a plate of glass. In the lapse of 

 from eight to ten days new radiate bundles were evident, and among these 

 might be observed several which proceeded from the globular separated 

 articulations of the original confervoid fungus, while others had developed 

 fruit and represented nothing else than Mucor Mucedo when growing in 

 water." 



The report closes with an account of the Lectures of Von 

 Martins on Morphology, the fairy-like, although most im- 

 portant, division of phytology, in which that philosopher 

 luxuriates ; and it is treated with a master's hand. 



We must here close our review of Meyen's Report. To 

 have occupied a smaller space in the consideration of a work 

 of such value, would have been less than justice, whilst our 

 limits prevent its occupying more. We cannot, however, 

 take leave of this production without strongly recommend- 

 ing it to our readers, trusting that it will meet with sufficient 

 patronage to ensure the continued appearance of subsequent 

 Annual Reports in an English dress ^ E. B. 



A History of the Fossil Fruits and Seeds of the London Clay. By 

 James Scott Bowerbank, F.G.S. Van Voorst, London ; 1840. 



Seldom has a book made its appearance in the scientiiSc 

 world so completely combining the attractions of beautiful 

 ilhistrations with carefully accurate technical descriptions, 

 as Mr. Bowerbank's Essay on the Fossil Fruits of Bri- 

 tain. The author has characterized one hundred and six 

 species, comprising twelve genera, being a greater number 

 than have been noticed by the whole of the previous writers 

 on the subjects. An attentive examination of the different 

 forms will well repay the geologist or botanist for the trouble 5 

 he will find some of them — for instance, Mimosites, AHpa^ 

 dites, and Leguminosites, closely allied to existing genera ; 

 while others are anomalous in their structure, and belong to 

 types totally extinct. Fahoidea, although possessing the 

 form common to many true leguminous seeds, presents us 

 with characters wholly dissimilar to those of any existing 



^ As it is intended to continue these Reports in the new volume of our 

 Magazine, we may suggest to such of our subscribers as may approve it, 

 to bind up the Report for 1837" along with the present volume. 



