Sept. 12, 1878] 



NATURE 



517 



been besto^ved upon the eruptive rocks which form so 

 important and interesting a feature of Colorado geology. 

 The more characteristic varieties are represented by 

 distinct shades of crimson or orange, and they have been 

 mapped in such a way as to convey at a glance, and even 

 without the aid of sections, a tolerably clear notion of 

 the volcanic phenomena of the region. On the one 

 hand we see the great lava-sheets capping the mesas 

 and spreading far over the plateaux, on the other Ave 

 notice the great centres of volcanic activity, with their 

 abundant flows, dykes, and breccias. 



Two sheets of sections, drawn across all the more 

 interesting and important portions of the geology, com- 

 plete the vast fund of information given by the maps ; 

 while, that nothing may be wanting to enable readers to 

 realise what has been done by the Survey, and the con- 

 ditions under which it has been accomplished, two large 

 sheets of sketches are given, which most vividly repre- 

 sent the forms of the mountains, plateaux, mesas, and 

 river- channels, as seen from various commanding heights. 

 Dr. Hayden, with whose personal supervision this 

 great work has been accomplished, has increased tenfold 

 the obligations under which he has laid geologists all 

 over the world for the number and value of his contribu- 

 tions to geology. He now furnishes us with new light 

 whereby to read his former researches and those of his 

 able colleagues. May we venture to hope that he may 

 find leisure to confer yet one further benefit before the 

 progress of his Survey plunges him into a new whirl of 

 work ? If he could be prevailed upon to sketch out a 

 plan for digesting the materials of his published Annual 

 Reports, he could doubtless find among his staff some 

 competent writer who, under his guidance, could produce 

 a well-arranged systematic guide-book or text-book to 

 complete the value of the work of his Survey. Such a 

 book of reference as would give a reader who has never 

 had access to the Annual Reports a clear and compre- 

 hensive view of Colorado geology, would be of very great 

 service. 



These remarks may be fitly closed with an expression 

 of the warmest admiration of the liberal spirit in which 

 the United States Government has conducted these Sur- 

 veys of the Territories and has published their results. 

 This costly atlas has been distributed gratuitously all 

 over Europe. That this is a wise policy cannot be 

 doubted. Whether actuated or not by a desire to diffuse 

 scientific information, the au'.'.i^i-ilies at Washington do 

 well to make as widely known is possible the geological 

 structure and economic resources of their country. They 

 cast their bread upon the waters, and the harvest comes 

 to them in the form of eager, active emigrants from all 

 parts of Europe. Arch. Geikie 



OUR BOOK SHELF 



Forest Flora of British Burfiia. By S. Kurz, Curator of 

 the Herbarium, Royal Botanical Gardens, Calcutta. 

 (Calcutta : Office of the Superintendent of Govern- 

 ment Printing, 1877.) 



By the completion of the work whose title is given above, 

 we have the third valuable contribution to a knowledge 

 of the rich vegetation of our Indian forests. In all 

 three works, namely. Col. Beddome's "Flora Sylvatica 

 of Southern India," Brandis's and Stewart's "Forest 



Flora of North- West and Central India," and the book 

 now before us, there is much in common, and the 

 plans of the two latter are very similar. There is, how- 

 ever, one great difference between Beddome's and Bran- 

 dis's Floras and the present issue ; while the first two 

 are most profusely illustrated, the work under con- 

 sideration is entirely without plates. This, perhaps, is 

 not to be regretted considering that the work in its pre- 

 sent form constitutes two good-sized volumes ; and 

 further than this, Indian plants have of late been very 

 well represented, notably in the two forest floras just re- 

 ferred to. Another distinction, and perhaps one more 

 affecting foresters generally, for whose benefit these floras 

 are ostensibly prepared, is the meagre information 

 regarding the uses of the plants mentioned. Mr. Kurz 

 excuses himself for reducing this portion of his work to 

 a minimum, and refers to Brandis's " Forest Flora" 

 for information on this head. We regret that Mr. Kurz 

 did not see his way to greater condensation in his descrip- 

 tions, and, if need be, the use of smaller type, so as to 

 reduce the bulk of the book. At the same time its 

 efficiency would have been much increased had he fol- 

 lowed Dr. Brandis in giving extended notes as to the 

 uses, for to no similar work can we point with so much 

 satisfaction in this respect as to that of Dr. Brandis. 



Regarding the nomenclature of genera and species, it 

 is a pity that some kind of uniformity should not prevail 

 amongst the different authors. Many forest officers would, 

 to say the least, be somewhat confused as to the use of 

 a proper name when he finds in two books published by 

 authority and appearing within a year or two of each 

 other a different generic distinction for the same plant ; 

 thus Brandis keeps up the rubiaceous genus Adina, and 

 figures A. cordifolia of Hook. fil. and Benth., placing 

 Nauclea cordifolia, Roxb., as a synonym. Kurz, on the 

 contrary, retains Aauclea as a genus, sinking under it 

 Adina cordifolia, which is spelt Andina, and attributed 

 to Roxb. On this subject of nomenclature, however, Mr. 

 Kurz says : "I confess myself an admirer of, and adherent 

 to, the botanical laws as laid down by the International 

 Botanical Congress at Paris in the year 1867, and pub- 

 lished by Prof. Alph. de Candolle. These are translated 

 into nearly all modern languages, and are now generally 

 adopted in Europe, except at Kew. However, I have 

 deviated in several cases in favour of Hooker's * Indian 

 Flora,' or kept up old-established names, not because I 

 assent to such irregularities, but simply because I thought 

 it not fair that I, a German, should introduce my indi- 

 vidual convictions into a practical work written solely for 

 the use of English people." 



Notwithstanding the remarks which we have been 

 obliged to make, Mr. Kurz's Flora is one of very great 

 value, and, taken in conjunction with those we have 

 before referred to, forms a pretty complete forest flora of 

 British India. We are reminded by the passing of this 

 work through our hands of the loss Indian botany has 

 sustained by the lamented death of its author. 



LETTERS TO THE EDITOR 



[Tke Editor does not hold himself responsible for opinions expressed 

 by his correspondents. Neither can he undertake to return, 

 or to correspond with the writers of, rejected manuscripts. 

 No notice is taken of anonymous communications. 



[The Editor urgently requests correspondents to keep their letters as 

 short as possible. The pressure on his space is so great that it 

 is impossible otherwise to ensure the appearance even of com' 

 munications containing interesting and navel facts.'\ 



American Storm Warnings 



The author of the papers on the American Storm Warnings 

 (Nature, vol. xviii. pp. 4, 31, 61) seems well acquainted with the 

 storms and storm-warnings of America, and at least with some 

 of the results arrived at in Europe, and if he had confined him- 

 self to what he really knew, and to the description of the means 



