October 6, 1923] 



NA TURE 



501 



botanical expeditions to Bolivia^ one of the most 

 important being that of Weddell, which led to the pub- 

 lication of his classical " Chloris Andina." Dr. Herzog 

 has made two expeditions himself^ and the book before 

 us is largely based on his own extensive travels and 

 observations. 



The second part is divided into chapters dealing with 

 the several groups and families of plants which com- 



.prise the flora. The characteristics of the formations 

 ire described and a brief account of the different eco- 

 logical regions found on the west and east sides of the 



[Cordillera and in the high Andes is also given. 



In the third and largest part, the types of vegetation 

 and the history of the flora are more fully dealt with, 

 and throughout the book there are numerous good text 

 figures showing the different types of vegetation from 

 the low lands of the Gran Chaco, the eastern edge of 

 the Cordillera, the Savanna region of Santa Cruz de la 

 Sierra, and the vast high Andean region which has so 

 remarkable a flora. There is also a useful short chapter 

 on the cultivated plants of Bolivia, and three vegetation 

 maps and plans conclude the volume. Throughout the 

 book the author indicates the affinities of the flora to 

 the floras of adjacent and distant countries. 



(i) ^ Text-Book of Dental Anatomy and Physiology. By 

 John Humphreys and A. W. Wellings. Pp. viii + 

 323. (London : E. Arnold and Co., 1923.) 165. net. 

 (2) A Manual of Human Anatomy for Dental Students. 

 By R. Bramble Green. Pp. xi + 263. (London: 

 Benn Bros., Ltd., 1923.) 18^. net. 

 Within its necessary limitations, each of these books 

 is admirable. Half of (i) is devoted to comparative 

 dental anatomy, being a well-written and straight- 

 forward account of an intricate subject which may be 

 expected to contribute considerably to the education 

 as well as the instruction of dental students. If it 

 fails at all it is when too great a desire for the brief 

 and definite leads to such statements as that " the 

 adoption of the erect attitude led to the perfecting of 

 the hand, that marvellous piece of mechanism by which 

 man's progress became assured, and in consequence of 

 this came the increase in cranial capacity and intel- 

 lectual development." Such a statement, moreover, 

 does not represent current views. The less general 

 matter is excellent. 



(2) Mr. Green has filled a gap in the series of text- 

 books. His account of the salient features of human 

 anatomy is well arranged and well illustrated, and he 

 has shown great discretion in necessary omissions. 

 The ligaments called " alar or check " in the text are 

 marked " accessory " in the corresponding figure ; 

 but mistakes are few. 



Die Pfeilgifte : nach eigenen toxikologischen und ethno- 

 logischen Untersuchimgen. Von L. Lewin. Pp. xi + 

 517. (Leipzig: J. A. Earth, 1923.) Grundzahl : 

 13 marks. 

 Dr. Lewin's monograph on arrow poisons is one which 

 neither students of toxicology nor those who are inter- 

 ested in primitive science and methods of warfare and 

 the chase can afford to neglect. Its comprehensiveness 

 and careful attention to minute detail are such that it 

 is not surprising to learn that it is the product of some 

 thirty years' study and research. In an introductory 

 chapter he surveys briefly the early use of poisoned 



NO. 2814, VOL. 112] 



weapoils, which were well known to the ancients and 

 may, the author thinks, go back so far as late palaeo- 

 lithic times, if, that is, his explanation of certain 

 grooves in Magdalenian bone implements is correct. 

 He then goes on to describe in detail the various forms 

 of poison, both animal and vegetable, in use in all parts 

 of the world, including Europe in early historic times. 

 Not only does he deal with their preparation, but he 

 also considers their chemical composition and gives the 

 result of experimental observations of their effects and 

 the length of time in which these effects are produced. 

 Special attention has been given to the well-known 

 Upas or Ipoh poison of the Indonesian area and the 

 curare of South America, and in both cases interesting 

 accounts of these poisons are quoted from early 

 travellers. 



A Naturalist in Hindustan. By R. W. G. Hingston. 



Pp. 292 + 10 plates. (London: H. F. and G. 



Witherby^ 1923.) i6.y. net. 

 Imbued with the spirit of Fabre, and possessing much 

 of his ingenuity and accuracy, Major Hingston gives a 

 fascinating account of some of the ants, spiders, and 

 dung-burying beetles that he has watched and sub- 

 jected to various experiments in a small patch of jungle 

 in the Fyzabad district. Of the many good things 

 that he sets before us perhaps the most interesting are 

 his observations on the power of communication with 

 one another that is possessed by ants, and on their 

 sense of direction. That an individual Phidole ant 

 having found treasure afield is able on returning to the 

 nest to send forth direct to the treasure and unescorted 

 an army of its fellows, compels our wonder. The 

 author, however, shows convincingly by reference to 

 other species how in all probability this amazing faculty 

 has been evolved from very simple and perfectly 

 intelligible beginnings : — guidance of one follower by 

 actual touch along the whole route is the starting point ; 

 progress towards the complex phenomenon exhibited 

 by Phidole depended on successive refinements of the 

 olfactory sense. That sense of direction is possessed 

 seems proven by the experiments cited ; but "it is 

 quite inexplicable to us." 



La Chimie et Vindustrie. Numero special, mai 1923. 

 (Congr^s Exposition des combustibles liquides.) 

 Pp. 852 + xcii. (Paris : 49 rue des Mathurins, 1923.) 

 n.p. 

 La Societe de Chimie Industrielle organised in the 

 month of October 1922 an International Congress on 

 Liquid Fuels, which appears to have fulfilled the objects 

 of the Society. A very large number of scientific and 

 practical problems, due for solution, were discussed 

 by the members of the Congress. The results of their 

 labours are seen in the 800 pages of this volume, 

 which in effect becomes a text-book illustrative of 

 current procedure in the winning and in the utilisa- 

 tion of liquid fuels. Much is said of the prospect of 

 future supplies, but little can be known with certainty 

 in view of the doubtful duration of the yield of known 

 wells and the unknown possibility of the discovery of 

 further oil fields. So small an area of the world has 

 yet been surveyed, and so little is known of the origin 

 of the various oils, that the time is not yet ripe for the 

 formation of broad policies. A watchful, waiting 

 attitude is the only scientific one. 



