BOOKS RECEIVED. 



Mandal of Conchology Second Series Polmonata, part 41, by 

 Henry A. Pilsbry, Philadelphia, pp. 1-64, pis. 1-13. 



Mr. Pilsbry continues his work on the genus Bitlimulus Leach, taking it 

 up again at the second group of the three defined on p. 127 of Volume X., and 

 distinguishing four subgenera, " although only the first of them stands con- 

 spicuously apart " ; these are Plectostylus, Beck ; Saitahis, Albers ; Bulimulus, 

 Leach ; and Rhinus, x\lbers. The present part is chiefly occupied with the 

 two first of these subgenera, and breaks off in the account of the South 

 American species of Bulimulus proper. 



Through a Pocket Lens by Henry Scherren, F.Z.S., London, 1897, 

 published by the Religious Tract Society, price as. 6d., 192 crown 8 vo. 

 pages, and 90 illustrations. 



Following a reasonable and customary method one might be tempted to 

 quarrel with the title of this interesting little book and to suggest that a slight 

 addition to it might have been an improvement. Had the work been called 

 " Arthropods through a pocket lens " the " popular" sound would doubtless 

 have been lost, as might also some readers who otherwise would have become 

 interested in the animals so pleasingly described ; but at the same time such a 

 name would have given an idea of the contents of the book to others who 

 already have an acquaintance with insects, centipedes, and crustaceans, and 

 who desire to learn further details about them. 



Figure 15." Dytiscus marginalis (male). 



Leaving the title-page behind, however, it may with certainty be said 

 that books of this kind do much to foster and lead towards the study of the 

 visible outcomes of life, that unborn spirit of curiosity upon which all scientific 

 investigation depends. But just as a thirst for knowledge is a higher develop- 

 ment of inquisitiveness, so may there be evolved from a magpie instinct of 

 hoarding and pure love of possession, the desire of forming a collection of 

 specimens for illustration and comparison in the systematic study of a special 

 series of forms which is recognized as an important part of a naturalist's 

 training. It is, therefore, with regret that one reads on page 25 — " to make a 

 collection of specimens in tubes would be waste of material." This looks 

 rather like the throwing of collecting into the shade, though it must be said 



