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BOOK-NOTBJS, NEWS, <h. 



The handsome volume dealing with the Fauna, Flora, and 

 Geology of the Clyde Area, edited by Messrs. G. F. Scott Elliot, 

 Malcolm Laurie, and C. Barclay Murdoch, and prepared in connection 

 with the recent visit of the British Association to Glasgow, has 

 lately reached us. It is an extremely full catalogue, extending to 

 nearly 600 pages, of the natural history of the district, and reflects 

 great credit on all who have been concerned in its production. The 

 botanical portion, which alone concerns us, begins with a brief 

 " History of Botany in Glasgow," by Prof. Bower ; this is followed 

 by a note on the Phyto-plankton of the Clyde sea- area, and by lists 

 of the Freshwater Alg£e, by various hands, including Messrs W. & 

 G. S. West ; Marine Algc^, by Dr. Batters ; Diatoms, by Mr. W. T. 

 Comber; Lichens, by Mr. Scott Elliot ; Fungi (microscopic), by 

 Mr. D. A. Boyd ; Hymenomycetes and Gasteromycetes, by Mr. 

 William Stewart; Ferns and allies, by Mr. P. Ewing, who also 

 undertakes the Hepatic^ and Phanerogams ; Mosses, by Mr. J. 

 Murray. The assistance of numerous works is acknowledged in 

 the preface to each list, and the enumeration is one of the most 

 complete ever given for a limited area. The volume, which costs 

 only 5s. net, may be obtained from Messrs. James Maclehose Bros., 

 61, St. Vincent Street, Glasgow. 



During October two instalments of the Kew Bulletin were 

 issued — one dated "April-June," the other "July-September"; 

 according to the Stationery Office date, both were printed in the 

 last-named month. The latter contains descriptions of numerous 

 new African and other plants, by members of the Kew staff, and a 

 paper on exotic Fungi, by Mr. Massee, in which he estabhshes two 

 new genera — Glaorah/x and Cerion (Ascomycetes) — and describes 

 numerous new species. A note on Mr. Nicholson's retirement 

 states that the Kew Handlist of Trees and Shrub,'i, issued anony- 

 mously, was prepared by him. The statement that it is " universally 

 accepted as a standard authority for their nomenclature " is, we 

 think, somewhat too absolute; the list is undoubtedly useful, but a 

 very slight examination suffices to show that the synonymy requires 

 revision. 



The Index to Vols. I.—X. of the Annals of Botany (1887-1896), 

 "prepared by T. G. Hill, A.R.C.S., under the direction of the 

 Editors," has just been issued ; it is bound in cloth, contains 

 sixty-four pages, and costs six shillings. No recent publication 

 needs indexing more than the AnnaU, for in none are the contents 

 of the separate volumes more inadequately indicated. The entries 

 in the new index are in almost all cases too long — e. g. it seems un- 

 necessary to add the word "description" after the name of each new 

 species when the preface distinctly states that only described species 

 are included. The new use of the "^^ and f — the former "indicates 

 an illustration," the latter "a palaeobotanical article " — has nothing 

 to recommend it; and the former sign is so often employed in 

 indexes to indicate a new species that its present use is confusing. 

 We are glad to note that all the entries are included in one 



