August 9, 1900] 



NA TURE 



339 



November, while in Brazil it commences in May and 

 ends in September. 



Though the broad principles of the preparation of 

 <ofree for market are well known, the description here 

 given, especially aided as it is by the practical illustra- 

 tions, will be of especial value. No book on coffee could 

 possibly be complete without a reference to the diseases 

 to which the plant is subject, whether the disease belongs 

 to the vegetable or animal kingdom. Consequently 

 we find thirty-one pages devoted to this part of the sub- 

 ject. Substitutes for coffee also come under consideration, 

 occupying, however, a comparatively small space, and 

 though no doubt sufficient is said about them, their 

 number might be considerably increased. Perhaps one 

 of the most interesting parts of the book is that treating 

 on production, m which each country is considered 

 separately, the first chapter being devoted to the American 

 Continent, and naturally leading off with Brazil. British, 

 Dutch and French Guiana are also considered, and com- 

 parisons made with product and e.xport, as are also those 

 of Paraguay, Venezuela, Columbia, Costa Rica, Mexico 

 and other places. The West Indies, including Jamaica, 

 Porto Rico, Trinidad and other important coffee growing 

 countries, as well as the Eastern countries and Africa, 

 are also referred to. This part of the subject is practically 

 illustrated by a map of the world, showing at a glance 

 the geographical distribution of the coffee plant, together 

 with the production of each country in kilogrammes, and 

 the date to which the figures refer. A comparison of the 

 produce of each country is readily gained by a series of 

 disks of different sizes, with the names of the country be- 

 neath each, and the total in figures ; from this it will be 

 seen that Brazil is far ahead of any other individual 

 country. An interesting table is also given showing the 

 consumption of coffee in the principal countries of the 

 world, from which it seems that of the European countries 

 Germany consumes by far the largest quantity. The 

 figures in tons for 1897 standing thus— Germany 136,390, 

 France ll.lio, England 12,420, while the consumption in 

 the U.S. of America in the same year amounted to 

 318,170 tons. The book concludes with a table of subjects 

 of the several chapters, but lacks that most necessary 

 adjunct of all books — a good index. 



THE BIRDS OF SURREY. 

 The Birds of Surrey. By J. A. Bucknill. Pp. Ivi -f 374, 



illustrated. (London : R. H. Porter, 1900.) 

 "pROM its great extent of open moorland and the 

 -•- presence of several large sheets of water, Surrey 

 occupies an unusually favourable position among the 

 metropolitan counties for the development of a large 

 bird-fauna ; and since a very considerable portion of the 

 county is now undergoing a metamorphosis under the 

 hands of the builder as the area of the metropolis and 

 its suburbs increase, it is most important that a full 

 record should be secured of the species of birds which 

 are fast disappearing from its limits. The compiling of 

 such records, and the careful working out of the past 

 history of locally distributed species within the limits 

 treated of, seem, indeed, to be the chief justification for 

 the publication of county ornithologies. And in this 

 respect, as well as in the careful collection of local bird- 

 NO. 1606, VOL. 62] 



names, the author of the work before us appears to have 

 discharged his task in a thoroughly satisfactory manner. 

 An instance of this is afforded by his account of the 

 occurrence of the black-grouse in Surrey. To many of 

 our readers it will probably come as a surprise to learn 

 that black-cock shooting was a recognised sport on the 

 Surrey moors during the forties, and even to a consider- 

 ably later date. At the present day there is, however, 

 scarcely a single genuine wild bird of this species to be 

 met with in the county ; and the excellent history of its 

 gradual extermination given by Mr. Bucknill should, 

 therefore, be read with the greatest interest alike by 

 sportsmen and by ornithologists. The raven, the buzzard, 

 the marsh-harrier, and the dotterel are other species 

 which have disappeared from the county, either totally 

 or as nesting birds ; the last record of the occurrence of 

 the dotterel being 1845, when a couple of specimens were 

 purchased from the landlord of an inn at Hindhead. 



Of the numerous rare birds that have been noticed from 

 time to time in the county, the great majority have been 

 visitors to the well-known Frensham ponds, the larger of 

 which extends into Hampshire. Here we are practically 

 in Gilbert White's country ; and in these favoured 

 haunts have been seen the osprey, the spoonbill, several 

 of the rarer kinds of duck, the goosander, and the purple 

 heron. Sad to say, the arrival of these wanderers has 

 for the most part been speedily followed by their slaughter ; 

 and, as the author remarks, hundreds of other avian 

 rarities have doubtless been killed and eaten without 

 record. Unhappily, the great increase in game preserva- 

 tion which has taken place of late years in the county 

 appears to have been the cause of ,the diminution in the 

 numbers of many of the rarer species of birds. But 

 there are many country gentlemen, on the other hand, 

 who are lovers of natural history, and who veto as much 

 as possible the bird-slaying propensities of their game- 

 keepers. It is to such, and to the laws now in force for 

 the protection of wild birds, that we have to look for the 

 commencement of a better state of things in the wilder 

 parts of the county. And the fact that the golden oriole 

 and • the hoopoe have been observed of late years on 

 several occasions indicates the probability that these 

 beautiful birds would once more nest in the Surrey 

 groves if only they received adequate protection. 



A feature of the book is the beautiful series of illustra- 

 tions of Surrey scenery ; the views of Frensham Great 

 Pond and of the Surrey Weald being some of the best 

 examples of landscape photogravure that have come 

 under our notice. Although primarily intended for resi- 

 dents in the county (among whom we are glad to see 

 that a long list of subscribers has been enrolled), the 

 book is full of interest to all bird-lovers living in the 

 south of England. R. L. 



OUR BOOK SHELF. 



Untersuchungen ueber d. Verviehrung d. Laubmoose 

 durck Brutorgane und Stecklinge. Von Dr. Carl 

 Correns, a.d. Prof. d. Botanik in Tiibingen. Pp. 

 xxiv-f-472 ; mit 187 abbild. (Jena : Verlag v. Gustav 

 Fischer, 1899.) 

 Few people perhaps fully realise how abundantly the 

 mosses are provided with modes of vegetative reproduc- 

 tion, even although they may be fully cognisant of the 

 fact that the protonema— the precursor of the moss- 



