BOOK REVIEWS 43 



to the general reader who has a fair amount of imagination. 

 One possible objection is in the numerous references to the 

 historical side of biolog>'. Such references make the book 

 intensely interesting to a trained biologist, but one questions 

 whether the general reader is as much interested in the dis- 

 coverers as in the facts which bear upon the theory of evolution. 

 However, this is a minor criticism, and taking it all in all this 

 book of "Evolution" by Geddes and Thomson is well worth 

 reading by those who are interested in biological theory. 



The great interest in animal evolution as it bears on human 

 life has tended to cause neglect of the popular aspects of plant 

 evolution. The volumes by Scott and by Campbell attempt to 

 fill this gap and those who are interested in the botanical side 

 of evolution will find these two books invaluable. Each covers 

 the whole wide range of plant life, as will be seen in the following 

 titles of chapters : 



1. Scott — I, Introduction; II, Evolution of the Flowering 

 Plants — The Problem; III, Evolution of the Flowering Plants — 

 The Evidence; IV, Evolution of the Seed-Plants; V, Evolution 

 of the Ferns ; VI, Evolution of the Club-Mosses ; VII, Evolution 

 of the Horsetails and Sphenophylls ; VIII, Conclusion. 



2. Campbell — I. Introduction; II, Factors in Evolution; 

 HI, Lower Plants ; IV, Origin of Land Plants ; V, Seed-Plants ; 

 VI, Angiosperms ; VII, Environment and Adaptation ; VIII, 

 Problems of Plant Distribution; IX, Human Factor in Plant 

 Evolution; X, The Origin of Species. 



Crampton's Doctrine of Evolution is a series of popular 

 lectures which aim to present the main facts of evolution, some 

 glimpse of the possible causes, and the philosophic bearings of 

 the theory. The style is very satisfactory and as an introduction 

 the book would be more satisfactory thaM Volume I of Romanes, 

 in that Crampton avoids the controversial tone ; but there is a 

 loss in that Crampton's book lacks the illustrations which in 

 lantern-slide form accompanied the original lectures. The main 

 chapters of the book, which present the biological facts, might 

 be made more useful to the general reader, and especially to 

 students, if supplemented by a list of references to the illus- 

 trations in other books on evolution, especially those by Romanes 

 and Metcalf. It deserves a place in the first rank of the books 

 which introduce the general reader to the great principles and 

 facts of evolution. 



M. A. BiGELOW. 



