November i6, 1893] 



NA TURE 



Icca Galpini. There are strong grounds, however, for 

 suspecting that Satyrium Ctithriei is not a true species, 

 but a nati'ral hybrid. It was described from a single 

 hving specimen found growing with S. candidiim, Lindl., 

 in burnt-ott' places on the Cape Flats, Tokai, near Cape 

 Town, by Mr. F. Guthrie. Mr. Bolus remarks that the 

 column "resembles in some degree that of Satyrium 

 bicallosum, Thunb., while both are in this respect very 

 different from that of any other Satyrium known. In 

 every other character this differs greatly from S. bical- 

 losiim, and I very much doubt if it is a natural hybrid." 

 This remark shows that Mr. Bolus had suspicions about 

 the matter. It is a remarkable fact, however, that in 

 every character in which S. Giithriei differs from 5. 

 bicallosuin it approaches S. ca7ididw)i ; in fact, with the 

 exception of the column, it bears a much closer resem- 

 blance to the last-named species, and as the organs 

 generally are intermediate in character between those of 

 the two species, there seems little doubt that it is a natural 

 hvbrid between them. Many such organisms are now- 

 known, and as both the species grow in the district, there 

 is nothing improbable about the matter. 



There are several points of interest about the work, one 

 or two of which may be mentioned here. The discovery 

 of a new species of Pachites is very interesting, as the 

 original one has only been met with on four occasions. 

 Burchell found a single specimen in 1S15 ; Krausse met 

 with another twenty-four years later ; and now, after a 

 lapse of fifty years, Mr. Schlechter has discovered two 

 more specimens. Mr. Bolus hopes to publish a figure 

 in the next part of his work. It is a curious coincidence 

 that the new species is only'known from a single speci- 

 men. An interesting note is given as to the affinities of 

 Schizochilus. Sonder had indicated it as a member of 

 the Habenariea?, but Bentham transferred it to Disea;. 

 Mr. Bolus again places it near to Habenaria, and his 

 drawings unmistakably show that this is its real posi- 

 tion. Mr. Bolus calls attention to a very curious 

 character found in Satyrium pumiltan, Thunb., which 

 Lindley referred to a separate genus. The flowers are 

 transversely striped with brown, like a Stapelia, and to 

 make the resemblance more complete, they also have a 

 heavy odour of putrid flesh. As it differs so markedly 

 from its allies in these characters, it is evident that we 

 have here an adaptation to secure the visits of the 

 insects which fertilise the Stapelias of the same region. 

 And this reminds us that scarcely anything is known of 

 the fertilisation of South African orchids. ^Ir. Bolus 

 figures a beetle on the plate of Disa elegans (t. 35), which 

 he found upon one of its flowers, with a pollinium 

 attached to its thorax. It is said to be a species of Peri- 

 trichia, belonging to a group of well-known fertilisers. 

 " This being only the second instance," remarks the 

 author, "of an insect actually carrying orchid pollen 

 which I have seen during many years' study of Cape 

 orchids, I have thought it desirable to figure it with the 

 plant." Among the undoubtedly handsome species may be 

 noted Disaferrugi7iea, Swartz, and D. graminifolia, Ker. 

 The former is noted as " abundant on Table Mountain," 

 and its dark orange-vermilion flowers are " largely sold in 

 bouquets in the streets." The latter was c?L\\&&Hersciiclia 

 graininifoUa by Lindley, though Mr. Bolus considers 

 Herschelia as only a section of Disa. We are told that 

 NO. 1255, VOL. 49] 



'' it is one of the commonest species within our limits, has 

 a rather long flowering period, and attracts universal 

 observation by its beauty and brilliancy ; so much so, 

 that Lindley, in dedicating it to the great astronomer 

 Herschel (who also was a great orchid-lover and culti- 

 vator), felicitously speaks of it as " species hsc pulcher- 

 rima colore cosli attstralis intense caeruleo superbiens ! " 

 Future parts of this useful work will be awaited with 

 interest. R. A. Rolfe. 



OUR BOOK SHELF. 



An Astronomical Glossary. By J. E. Gore. (London : 

 Crosby Lockwood and Son, 1893.) 



Fifty years ago it was the fashion to insert a glossary 

 or dictionary of astronomical terms in every work on 

 astronomy, but few of the books published in late years 

 include these helpful explanations. Mr. Gore endeavours 

 to supply the need in the volume before us. And if the 

 science of astronomy had made no advances during the last 

 half-century, we should have been able to give the highest 

 commendation to his compilation. But since celestial 

 science has had its limits considerably extended, and the 

 old astronomy is giving place to the new, we naturally 

 expect to find the new terms defined in a glossary whicn 

 pretends to contain " an explanation of all the terms 

 and names generally used in books on astronomy." We 

 were greatly surprised therefore, upon looking through the 

 book, to notice the omission of many common and im- 

 portant words to be found in almost every work on 

 astronomy. Among other omissions are the words 

 corona, prominences, chromosphere, photospliere, 

 spectroscope, and prism. Zones are correctly described, 

 and are exemplified by " torrid zone," " frigid zone," and 

 " temperate zone," but the term "sun-spot zone" is un- 

 explamed. No mention is made of spectroscopic binaries, 

 or of motion in the line of sight, or of zodiacal constella- 

 tions. Stereograms are defined, but not spectrograms 

 — that useful word coined for spectroscopic negatives. 

 Neither meridian instrument, nor meridian circle are 

 indexed. In fact, so many words constantly employed 

 in astronomy at the present time are omitted, that we 

 have come to the conclusion that Mr. Gore has only 

 attempted to include in his glossary words used when he 

 was a schoolboy. The tables of data merely refer to 

 members of the solar system, and their value would be 

 increased if the solar parallax were given which formed 

 the basis of their computation. Lists of remarkable red 

 stars, variable stars, and stars for which orbits have been 

 computed, conclude the book — a book that might have 

 been very handy to latter-day astronomers, but which in 

 its present form is of no use whatever. 



With the Woodlanders attd By the Tide. By " A Son of 

 the Marshes." Edited by J. A. Owen. (Edinburgh and 

 London : William Blackwood and Sons, 1893.) 

 The author of this book is well known as a close ob- 

 server of nature ; and a more enthusiastic lover of natural 

 creatures and things for their own sake it would be 

 difficult to find. To look at flocks of bramble finches 

 feed in some particular old beech-woods at sunrise, he 

 trudged for five miles through snow-covered woodlands ; 

 and the book is filled with accounts of similar sights 

 observed at all times of the day and seasons of the year. 

 In fact, "A Son of the Marshes " is imbued with the 

 true spirit of a naturalist — the spirit that leads men to 

 sacrifice everything in order to obtain a clearer insight 

 intc nature. 



An interesting instance of protective colouration is 

 given on p. 163. Some broken egg-shells of the fern-owl 

 having caught the author's eye, he looked closer into thi 

 fragments, and saw what appeared to be a short, crooked 



