1894.] MICROSCOnCAL JOURNAL. 215 



20. Mastogloia delicatula, n. sp. Bahama Islands. 

 All the above except numbers 3 and 7 are enlarged 

 800 diameters. 



EDITORIAL. 



Reviews of Microscopical Books. — A new book entitled 

 " Practical Histological Botany," pp. 66, by Frederick Davis, B. 

 Sc, of 26 Newington Causeway, London, S. E., and published 

 by John Gower, 4 Lancing Road, Ealing, London, has just been 

 announced in the Pharmaceutical Journal as follows : 



" The only valid reason for noticing this book is to utterly 

 condemn it and the system which encourages the multiplication 

 of such mischievous publications." 



Upon turning to the advertising columns of that Journal, we 

 find Mr. Davis is an advertising patron and that John Gower is 

 also; and yet the editor denounces their book in unsparing 

 terms. Such a thing could hardly occur in America, (the 

 more's the pity perhajis) but we cite it to illustrate the differ- 

 ent customs prevailing in the two countries. 



The American methods are shown by the following incident. 



A publisher recently sent to us a book for review. We in- 

 quired if he would like to begin an advertisement in the num- 

 ber in which the review would appear. He replied that he 

 wished to see the review before he decided about the advertise- 

 ment. We wrote the review and sent a copy to him. He did 

 not like it and declined to advertise. He forwarded our slip to 

 the author, who wrote to say that the review was quite unsatis- 

 factory, two sentences seeming to reflect a little on his book. 

 He also desired that much more of praise should have been 

 added and a proof sent to him, for his approval before i^ublica- 

 tion. In return for such favor he made to us certain offers. 



Meanwhile, other notices of the book have appeared. The 

 denunciations which it has received from a very prominent 

 magazine are unmerciful and terrible in comparison with our 

 faint criticisms. But a little country publication, which aspires 

 to rival ours, has given the book unstinted praise. Consequen- 

 ces : the prominent magazine gets no new subscribers for tell- 

 ing the truth, and the author stands ready to aid the country 

 ival in various wavs. 



