i6S 



NATURE 



[May 2, 1918 



marble " ; and on the south the black slaty sedi- 

 mentary rocks contained some veins of iron 

 pyrites with quartz and other igneous rocks. 



As in their previous joint books, the text is 

 enriched by a profusion of excellent photographs, 

 all taken by the writers themselves, and quite up 

 to the high standard set in their earlier journals. 

 Altogether, it is an attractive record of solid geo- 

 graphical achievement. 



(2) This is one of the travel-books which owe 

 their existence to the enterprise of horticulturists 

 ransacking the world for new species of flowering 

 plants for decorative garden purposes. The re- 

 cesses of south-western China have already proved 

 a happy hunting-ground for such botanical expedi- 

 tions, especially in the more southern borders, but 

 our author traversed the unfrequented northern 



on the Tibetan border called the ^^'hite Wolves^ 

 He prefers his own system of phonetics for 

 Chinese names: thus Archueh becomes "Arjeri," 

 and the familiar Yamen appears as "Yamun." 



With Mr. Purdom, formerly of Kew, and three 

 Chinese lads, Mr. Farrer started from Peking in 

 the spring of 1914 and spent that year on the hill 

 ranges of South Kansu on the border of Tibet, 

 and thereafter wintered in the north, moving 

 farther north in 191 5 into the alpine tracts above 

 Sining. Those tracts had previously been in part 

 traversed rapidly by the scientific expeditions of 

 Prezewalsky and Potanin, but these brought back 

 only dried specimens, and did not gather seeds 

 or living plants, which defect our author has now 

 remedied for cultural purposes in regard to several 

 rare sperie';, A list of the new species is given 



I. — Isofiyi 



Fa>-reri, sp.n. From "On the Eaves of the WorKI." 



portion in the hope of securing new specimens 

 which would be more hardy and thus more suit- 

 able for the British climate than the softer pro- 

 ductions of Yunnan and Szechuan, which have 

 now been freely explored by Forrest and other 

 collectors. The narrative, in detailing the author's 

 experiences, reflects his abounding enthusiasm ; 

 and though he has his eyes mainly on 

 the business of collecting, he also gives incidentally 

 a good deal of description of the people and of the 

 country through which he passes. As it makes 

 no pretence of being a scientific book, and is 

 thoroughly colloquial in style, relatively free from 

 technicalities except the names of plants, and 

 somewhat facetious, it is easy reading for the 

 general reader. The author had some excitement 

 at times in evading the roving bands of brigands 

 NO. 2531, VOL. lOl] 



in the appendix, and includes amongst others 

 several new poppies, primulas, and asters, a new 

 gentian, and two new rhododendrons, besides the 

 Isopyrum named after the author, which is here 

 illustrated. Several others of the new species are 

 also decidedly decorative, as seen in good photo- 

 graphic reproductions, whilst other photographs 

 illustrate some of the country traversed and its 

 semi-Tibetan people. L. A. Waddell. 



THE SUN AND THE WEATHER. 



PROF. C. G. ABBOT has contributed to the 

 Scientific Monthly (November, 1917) a 

 reasoned discussion, in the light of recent investi- 

 gations, of the extent and probable sequence of 

 the effect of solar variation on world weather. 



