LITERARY NOTICES. 



681 



a natural accompaniment of vacation-trips, 



the author says : 



When we meet them in their full beauty they 

 are in the most unfavorable state for transplant- 

 ing, as, in the vigor of its growing condition in 

 its natural home, a fern will endure little rough 

 handling, and requires tender care to persuade 

 it to grow in any other place. It would be bet- 

 ter to wait till the season's activity is passed, 

 which it is probable we can not do ; or collect 

 our ferns in the early spring, before the croziers 

 unroll ; but when the plants are in this condi- 

 tion, only an experienced botanizer knows what 

 to look for and where to find it. Suppose, then, 

 that in July or August we wish to obtain a small 

 collection of our native ferns in their living state. 

 The best way of transporting them is, of course, 

 with their fronds uncrushed, in a box or basket 

 of suflScient size. But this is not always prac- 

 ticable. It may be necessary to condense them 

 into the smallest possible space. As we collect 

 them the ferns can be kept in a bowl or basket 

 till we are preparing for our journey home. 

 When we gather them the roots should be 

 carefully dug up, not wrenched from their sur- 

 roundings ; and, when we begin to get them 

 ready for their travels, should not be very wet. 

 Sufl'er the plants to remain without water a day 

 or two before packing, only do not allow them 

 to become exactly dry. Then we may shake off 

 as much of the earth as will readily fall away, 

 and, wrapping each fern with a bit of damp (not 

 wet) moss, roll it up in a bit of paper large 

 enough to hold all together, tying the parcel 

 with a thread. The fronds should all project 

 beyond the moss and paper, and only enough of 

 them be left to insure a healthy start the next 

 season — three or four on an ordinary and six on 

 a very large plant. To remember bow the ferns 

 looked (for we are not yet supposed to know 

 their names), it is a good plan to press a frond 

 of each, and number it, tying a tag with the 

 corresponding number to the specimen itself. 

 When this is done, all the packages should be 

 arranged with the fronds lying in the same di- 

 rection, and a number of fresh fronds should be 

 collected and tied around the fronds of the ferns 

 to be carried home. Then the whole may be 

 rolled up firmly into a bundle, covered with sev- 

 eral thicknesses of stout manila paper and tied 

 securely. The package is now ready to place in 

 a trunk to deliver to the expressman or carry 

 under the arm. Unless it is exposed to the sun, 

 or in a very dry place, this bundle will not suf- 

 fer in vitality or health for two or three weeks. 

 At the journey's end the ferns must be carefully 

 unwrapped and firmly planted in a good light 

 soil, whether out of doors or in the fernery. At 

 first nearly all the fronds will lie quite prostrate 

 on the ground, but if they are frequently sprin- 

 kled on both sides and their roots kept only 

 damp, the plants will establish themselves and 

 reward the pains bestowed upon them by a fine 

 healthy growth the next season. 



The volume contains six colored illus- 

 trations of interesting specie?, and numer- 

 VOL. XIV. — 44 



ous plates illustrative of the growth and 

 culture of ferns. A very tempting front, 

 ispiece shows the fern-corner of the writ- 

 er's greenhouse. There is an important 

 chapter concerning soils and pots for ferns, 

 with pictures of pots of several different 

 forms : one upon fern-cases, another with 

 lists of ferns suitable for cultivation in trop- 

 ical and temperate houses and in fem-cases. 

 Fern-pests are also discussed, and pictures 

 of nine of these creatures are given in plate 

 22. But further details are needless ; the 

 book teems with useful instruction from 

 beginning to end. 



Sanitary Examinations of Water, Air, 

 AND Food. A Handbook for the Med- 

 ical Officer of Health. With Illustra- 

 tions. Bv Cornelius B. Fox, M. D., 

 M. R. C. P., London, Medical Officer of 

 Health of East, Central, and South Es- 

 sex ; Fellow of the Chemical Society, etc., 

 etc. Philadelphia : Lindsay & Blakiston, 

 1878. Price, $4. 



This volume appears in response to a 

 demand, by the scientific world, and espe- 

 cially of those engaged in the public-health 

 service, for a third edition of the brochure 

 on " Water Analysis." The author has re- 

 written nearly all he had before published 

 upon the subject, and now offers the results 

 of an increased and extended experience. 

 He has also incorporated with his essay 

 on " Water Analysis," sections on " Exami- 

 nations of Air and Food." His aim is to 

 furnish hints and suggestions, helpful to 

 those who have not, like himself, " plodded 

 for years through tortuous paths, at the sac- 

 rifice of much time and labor." In prepar- 

 ing the book, two objects were kept steadily 

 in view : " 1. To avoid a consideration of 

 these three subjects, solely after the manner 

 of an analyst, who mechanically deals with 

 chemical operations and arithmetical cal- 

 culations, but to treat them as a physician 

 who studies them in connection with health 

 and disease ; 2. To render such details re- 

 specting examinations of water, air, and 

 food, as fall within the province of the med- 

 ical officer of health, so free from techni- 

 calities, and all cloudy and chaotic sur- 

 roundings, as to enable any one, who pos- 

 sesses the average chemical knowledge of a 

 physician, to teach himself, by the aid of 

 this vade mecum of the health officer." 



