364 THE JOURNAL OP BOT7VNY 



author. The preface is followecl by 16 numbered pages in bold type, 

 the first containing a list of the contents of the twelve books of 

 which the six volumes of the Hortus are composed, with the seventh, 

 or " Auctuarium." The remaining pages contain an index of the 

 Malayan names, arranged in the order of the books, with their Latin 

 equivalents and with references to the text, thus : 



" I. Deel. I : Boek-Eethaare Vrugten 



" MALEIDS LATYN 



Calapa Palma Indica. i. d. i. b. i. H. p. 1." 



This is followed, as indicated in the preface, by a reissvie of the 

 " Index Universalis," which corresponds in every partieulai', even to 

 the absence of pagination and certain misspellings, with that issued 

 with the Auctuarium — except that, in order to allow of the addition 

 of the Malayan names, some of the Linaean synonyms are abridged; 

 the first name with references may be quoted from each as illustrating 

 the alteration : 



" Abedaria ... 1. 11. c. 35. t. 6. Verhesina. Acmella L." 

 "Abedaria . . 1. 11. c. 35. t. 6. Verhesina. Acmella L. Daun 



lada." 



The printing of the two parts of the work is so different that at 

 first sight they might be regarded as separate publications ; but the 

 catchword at the end of the first part and " finis " at the end of the 

 second sufliciently indicate their connection. It may be noted that 

 the reissued " Index Universalis " has been in the hands of someone 

 who used it, as certain references are corrected in ink. 



We have devoted so much space to this bibliographical detail that 

 our comment on the remainder of Mr. Merrill's admirable volume 

 must be brief. From the section on " the present state of Ilumphian 

 species " we learn that the " approximately 1700 plants " which are 

 named and described as distinct can be reduced to about 1200 species. 

 " Of these about 930 can be definitely or fairly definitely referred to 

 binomials, and about 140 additional ones can be safely placed in their 

 respective genera, leaving about 130 that from data and material at 

 present available cannot be definitely located under the binomial 

 sj'^stem : some cannot even be placed in their proper families .... 

 about 45 species, proposed by various authors, are known to-day 

 only from the data originally given by Rumphius," and have not 

 been satisfactorily placed. Striking examples are given of the errors 

 which have "crept into s^^stematic botany by interpretation of species 

 by a lium^^hian synonym, Avrongly placed, rather than by consulta- 

 tion of the actual type specimen " : other points connected with 

 the interpretation of llumphian species are also carefully considered. 



We note with much satisfaction that " in nomenclature the rules 

 of the Vienna Botanical Congress, including the list of nomina con- 

 seriHinda as well as the supplementary list adopted by the Brussels 

 Congress have been closel}^ followed." Under this head Mr. Meri'ill 

 has much that is sensible, especially with regard to the necessity of 

 determining " so far as possible the exact status of the species 



