70 THE PI.ANT WORLD 



Anaesthetized Trees. — The stunted trees and shrubs of the Japanese 

 have been the envy and wonder of the gardeners the world over. 

 But a German chemist now comes along and does something which even 

 the Japanese could hardly be expected to do. He has prepared a fluid 

 that has the power when injected into the tissues of a plant near its roots 

 of anaesthetizing the plant. As a result of this injection the plant does 

 not die but stops growing, maintaining its fresh green appearance though 

 its vitality is apparently suspended. Changes in temperature seem in no 

 wise to affect the foliage, for the plant blooms in the open as well as in 

 the most carefully constructed greenhouse. As might be expected, the 

 composition of this fluid is shrouded in the greatest mystery. — Scientific 

 American. 



Book Reviews. 



Message from the President of the United States Transmitting 

 Report of the Secretary of Agriculture in relation to the 

 Forests, Rivers and Mountains of the Southern Appalachian 

 Region. Washington : Government Printing Office. 1902. 



It is well known that the forests of the Southern Appalachian region 

 are being rapidly removed, thereby destroying the most beautiful moun- 

 tain region to be found east of the Mississippi, and Congress has been 

 asked to set aside this area as a national park. With the view of obtain- 

 ing full information on the subject the Secretary of Agriculture was 

 authorized by Congress to expend a sum not exceeding $5,000 in making 

 a full investigation of the matter, and the book before us is his report of 

 this study. It is prefaced by a message from the President urging the 

 action of Congress. In this report, which fills 210 quarto pages and is 

 illustrated by 78 full-page plates besides many maps, profiles, etc., we 

 have a very full account of this region, including descriptions of the 

 Appalachians, the forest covering, climate, injury by fire and water, geo- 

 logical structure, hydrography, etc. In the form of appendices are re- 

 ports by special investigators, as " Lumbering in the Southern Appala- 

 chians," by W. W. Ashe and H. B. Ay res, and " List of Shrubs in the 

 Southern Appalachians," by W. W. Ashe. The illustrations are superb, 

 especially that in color showing the Rhododendrons in bloom, and should 

 go a long way in convincing Congress of the necessity of acting at once. 

 The effect of stream action where the forest covering has been removed 

 is portrayed in a manner that should awaken apprehension before the 

 whole region is reduced to a rocky waste. It is to be hoped that action 

 will not be delayed. f. h. k. 



