REVIEWS 933 



research should study the monographs on the following Indian species : 

 v^al, teak, chir pine, blue pine (very similar to the white pine of North 

 America), deodar and spruce. Such a study will give a short course 

 in British Indian Silviculture, which has made great progress during 

 the last twenty years. T. S. W., Jr. 



Anatomical Characters and Identification of Formosan Woods With 

 Critical Remarks from the Climatic Point of View With ^oo Micro- 

 graphs. By Ryozo Kanehira. Bureau of Productive Industries, Gov- 

 ernment of Formosa, Taihoku. 1921. Pp. 317, Plates L. 



This is one of the most complete works on the structure of any large 

 group of woods that has ever been published. The wood of 38G species 

 is described in great detail, and keys to facilitate their identification as 

 well as reproductions of 300 photomicrographs are included. 



Formosa is the southernmost island of the Japanese Empire. It is 

 traversed by the Tropic of Cancer, which means that it is nearer to 

 Manila than Tokyo. It has an area of 13,890 square miles, which is 

 equal to the combined area of Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode 

 Island. Eighty per cent of the island is forested. The interior of the 

 country is mountainous, with peaks rising over 12,000 feet above the 

 sea. Between the mountains and the ocean there are extensive plains 

 which are largely cultivated. The forests are confined principally to 

 the interior. On account- of the steep slopes and savage peoples in the 

 mountains very little utilization has so far taken place. 



Because of the wide variation in altitude the flora of Formosa is 

 very rich and may be divided into four zones: (1) tropic, (2) warm, 

 (3) temperate, and (4) frigid, according to elevation. The tropic and 

 warm zones are characterized mostly by broad-leaved evergreen species, 

 and the temperate and frigid zones by coniferous species. In all, 169 

 families, 1.185 genera, 3. 60S species, and 78 varieties of trees have so 

 far been found on the island. Slightly over one-third of the tree 

 species are endemic. Among the epidemic species, those of China, 

 Japan proper, India, and Malaya are strongly represented, while out of 

 998 species studied only 5 per cent are also found in the Philippines. 

 The Dipterocarpacese, which is the principal family of the Philippines, 

 has no representative in Formosa. 



In the chapter on the anatomical characters the general characteristics 

 of each family are given, and these are followed by a similar description 



