104 PHYSIOLOGISCHE PFLANZENANATOMIE. 



the binding, that, owing to the rough and ready fashion in which the 

 sheets are wired together, it is difficult to keep the book open. We 

 have read Prof. Loew's chapters with considerable interest. Many 

 of the ideas are not new, and there are copious references to peri- 

 odicals, chiefly German, embodying previous work of the author 

 and other scientists. It is evident, however, that Prof. Loew has 

 interested several Japanese men of science in the same train of re- 

 search, for repeated reference is made to results obtained by them. 

 This Journal is not the place for an exhaustive account of tbe 

 contents of this little book. To what does protoplasm owe its 

 vital properties ? Wherein lies the difference between proteids and 

 protoplasm? These questions the author seeks to answer. "From 

 a series of well-established facts, and guided by simple chemical 

 laws, I have framed," he says, " a hypothesis as to the formation 

 of albumin, and as to the existence of a labile and stable modifi- 

 cation of it. The labile form, which would lead to living matter, 

 was designated by myself as active albumin, in contradistinction to 

 the stable, ordinary, passive albumin stored up in seeds and eggs." 

 This " active albumin " is of widespread occurrence in plants, and 

 plays the part of a reserve material. It is stored generally in the 

 vacuole, and is separable in the form of droplets, " proteosomes," 

 by certain organic bases, such as caffeine or antipyrine in -5 per 

 cent, solution. Prof. Lofew also says a good deal in support of 

 formic-aldehyde as the first step in constructive metabolism. But 

 those who would follow him in his argument must buy the book 

 and read for themselves. A "R R 



Physiolor/ische Pflanzenanatomie. Von Dr. G. Haberlandt. Zweite, 

 neubearbeitete und vermehrte Auflage. 8vo, pp. xvi, 550; 

 tt. 235. Leipzig : Engelmann. 1896. Price 16 marks. 



Coming generations of botanists will look back to our time 

 as one characterized by the want, among many other needs, of a 

 coherent system of plant-anatomy. We have a great many facts, 

 but we do not know how to arrange and correlate them. We have 

 our De Bary, but are not satisfied with it, thinking to see in stelar 

 theories and the like the dawning of more logical days. Whatever 

 the future may have in store for us ; whether or no the systematist 

 of twenty years hence may have to include anatomical details in 

 his diagnoses ; one thing is certain — plant-physiology and plant- 

 anatomy must always be to some extent studied together. Hence 

 books like the one which calls for this note will always be extremely 

 useful to teachers and students. The correlation of structure and 

 function supplies an intelligent method of study, and makes the 

 subject of interest to the beginner. It is more than twelve years 

 since the earlier edition of the book appeared ; it is not therefore 

 surprising to find that a new edition has involved a considerable 

 increase in the size, that of 1884 containing only 398 pages and 

 140 figures. Besides the incorporation of the results of recent 

 investigations, an introduction to the whole has been added, and a 

 new section (number eleven), entitled " Appa rate und Gewebe fiir 



