222 THE JOURNAL OF BOTANY 



Mr. Magnus Spence's Flora Orcadensis contains much of 

 interest. Dr. Irvine Fortescue tells us in his "Foreword" that 

 it "is the result of many years of careful observation and research, 

 and the author has spared neither time nor trouble in making his 

 work as full as possible." The introductory portion includes 

 among other interesting matter accounts of the author's excursions 

 and the notes in the section entitled, not very happily, " Natural 

 Selection " ; there is also useful biographical matter concerning 

 previous contributors to our knowledge of the flora ; the sketch 

 of the geology is very comprehensive. 



The list of species, in which introductions are prominent, 

 suggests that Mr. Spence has not, j^C'Ce Dr. Fortescue as quoted, 

 done quite all that he might have done to elucidate his subject, 

 and there is an air of uncertainty about some of his entries which 

 detracts a good deal from their value. Thus of a " var. montana " 

 — a name with which we are not familiar — of Vicia sejnum he 

 writes: "This is said to be found in Lyradale, Redland. I 

 have not seen it, and do not know on whose authority it is 

 given"; while, having definitely recorded Alchemilla vulgaris 

 var. montana on his own authority, as well as on that of a 

 contributor, he says in a later paragraph, " Rev. E. F. Linton, in 

 a paper on the segregates of A. vulgaris [sic] , states that A. mon- 

 tana is not British : in that case the variety in Orkney will be 

 A. fiUcaulis," which has already had a separate entry. Of 

 Eiyilobium tetragonum he says: — " Some doubt has been expressed 

 as to whether this plant grows in Orkney ; but I believe it is to 

 be found in several places in St. Andrews": surely this might 

 have been decided ? 



The most interesting note in the book is that contributed by 

 Mr. Moss (p. 138), in which he refers to a plant sent by Mr. 

 Spence (who however had pointed out its differences) to Mr. 

 Hunnybun as Primula scotica : of this Dr. Moss had at first 

 regarded it as a variety, but he now considers it possibly identical 

 with P. striata Fries, although further material is necessary 

 before this can be decided. Those who use the book must not 

 overlook the numerous additions to the text on pp. 127-137 : 

 another appendix of " plants used medicinally " w^ould have been 

 better incorporated in the text. So-called " English " names are 

 given throughout : there are also a few local names of interest — 

 Achillea Millefolium, " meal-an-folly " — a corruption of the 

 specific name ; Artemisia vulgaris, " bulwands " and " grobbie " ; 

 Spircea Ulmaria, " yule-girse " ; Menyanthes, " craw-shoe " ; 

 seeds of Spergula, "reuth " ; Tormentilla, "hill-barks." There is 

 a list of Mosses by Lieut.-Col. James Grant, of whom, as of Mr. 

 Spence, a portrait is given ; with the exception of these and 

 of the ferns and allies and Charas, only phanerogams are 

 included. 



The book, interesting as it is, is one which might easily have 

 been better had it been submitted to a competent " reader," who 

 would at least have corrected the typographical blunders, which 

 are sadly numerous — we note on one page (141) " Lepidopitra," 



