NA TURE 



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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 24, k 



THE .4.V.170.'\/r OF DICOTYLEDONS. 



.Sy^lCDialir Anatomy 0/ Dicotyledons: a Handbook 

 for Laboratories of Pure a>ni Applied Botany. 

 By Dr. H. Solereder. Translated by L. A. Boodle 

 and Dr. F. E. Fritsch. Revised by Dr. D. H. Scott. 

 \'o\. 1., Introduction, Polypetate, Gamopetal^. 

 I'p. xii + (i.i4. Price 2.\s. net. Xol. 11., Mono- 

 chlanivdeae, .Addenda, Concluding Remarks. 

 Pp. vi + 645 to 1182. (Oxford: The Clarendon 

 Press, 1908.) Price 24X. net. 



THE long-expected translation of Dr. Hans Sole- 

 reder's " Systematische Anatomic der Dicotyle- 

 don," which has recently been issued by the Clarendon 

 Press, is the latest addition to the splendid series of 

 English translations of classical German works for 

 which all English-speaking people owe a deep debt of 

 gratitude to the Oxford Press. 



Except for the introduction and for the " concluding 

 remarks," which appear at the end of the second 

 volume, Dr. Solereder's work cannot be recommended 

 for a course of continuous reading. As a work of 

 reference, however, and as an exhaustive guide to the 

 literature of the anatomy of Dicotyledons, the bool-c 

 will be found to be invaluable. Under each natural 

 order the vast aiiiount of material to be dealt with is 

 arranged according to a common plan ; a review of 

 the anatomical features is first given, this is then 

 followed by an account of the structure of the leaf, the 

 subject being subdivided under the epidermis, stomata, 

 internal structure, crystals, hairs, glands, and the 

 structure of the petiole. The structure of the axis 

 forms the third division, which is subdivided accord- 

 ing to the peculiar needs of each natural order. Some 

 account is also given of any anomalous or remarkable 

 structures, and finally a complete list of the literature, 

 brought, so far as possible, up to date, is placed at 

 the end of each order. 



One hundred and fifty-three figures in the first 

 volume and thirty-si.x in the second are scattered 

 through the text to illustrate typical or peculiar 

 anatomical features in the various orders or genera. 

 It would clearly be impossible to attempt to review 

 or to criticise in detail the vast mass of material which 

 has been compressed into the pages of these volumes, 

 for tlie value of the book can onh' become apparent 

 to anyone actualh' working in the laboratorv at the 

 comparative anatomy of a n:itural order or a group 

 of genera. 



Dr. .Solereder's work will occupy much the same- 

 position as a work of reference for the morphological 

 botanist as the " Index Kewensis " does for the pure 

 systematist. One looks through its pages in the hope 

 of finding that some light may be shed on complicated 

 taxonomic problems, only to be disappointed. Dr. 

 Solereder's book, however, serves as the key by which 

 the door may be opened by both the plant anatomist 

 and taxonomist to a common field of fruitful inves- 

 tigation. It is somewhat remarkable to notice the 

 extent to which anatomical research tends to confirm 

 the conclusions of the systematist, as, for instance, in 

 NO. 2043, VOL. 79] 



the Loganiacese; all the genera of the Loganioidece are 

 found to have bicollateral vascular bundles, whilst all 

 the Buddleioidea? have simple collateral bundles. 

 Further, in the allied order GentianaceEe, bicollateral 

 bundles are characteristic of practically all the repre- 

 sentatives with the exception of the Menyantheae. As 

 to the affinities of some of the orders, the position of 

 which is uncertain, as, for instance, the Coriariaceae, 

 little further light, unfortunately, is shed by the 

 anatomical method. On the other hand, the method 

 may be of great service in the case of assigning a 

 peculiar genus to its proper position in the natural 

 system. The genus Chalepoa, for example, which had 

 been placed with the Pittospores, has been transferred 

 to the Saxifragaceae, owing to the absence of the resin 

 canals characteristic of Pittosporeae. 



A yet more interesting case of the service which 

 can be rendered to systematic work by the anatomical 

 method was afforded some years ago by Radlkofer 

 (British Association Report, Aberdeen, 1885), when 

 he was attempting to determine some of the 

 fragmentary material in old herbaria. From an 

 examination of Sideroxylon mite, L., in the Linnsean 

 herbarium, it was found that this plant did not belong 

 to the Myrsineaceae, as suggested by Sprengel, who 

 named it Myrsine mitis, Spreng., but was in reality a 

 specimen of Ile.x eapensis, Sond. Another supposed 

 species of Myrsine, M. marginata. Hook, et .\rn., was 

 found, from the examination of a fragment of the 

 plant, to belong to the Sapotacese, and to be a speci- 

 men of Chrysophylluni inarginatum. Unfortunately, 

 Solereder has misquoted these facts in his book (p. 508, 

 footnote i), and refers M. mitis to the Sapotacese and 

 .U. Diarginata to the Ilicineae. 



In the second volume the Monochlamydeee occupy 

 the first 158 pages ; these are followed by 264 pages 

 of addenda to the various natural orders, and the 

 remainder of the volume is occupied by the concluding 

 remarks (98 pages), a literature supplement embody- 

 ing the latest papers, a brief index, and a glossary. 

 It is of interest to notice, among other points, that on 

 anatomical evidence the natural order Basellaceae 

 established by Moquin-Tandon is maintained as a dis- 

 tinct order from the ChenopodiaceEe. 



In the concluding remarks the various characters 

 which may be used in the anatomical method are 

 passed in review under seven headings or chapters, and 

 this summary is intended to serve as an aid in the 

 determination of a plant by means of its anatomical 

 characters. The seven subdivisions are : — (i) Structure 

 of the lamina of the leaf; (2) structure of the petiole; 

 (3) secretory and excretory receptacles; (4) hairy 

 covering; (5) normal structure of the axis; (6) 

 anomalous structure of the axis ; (7) structure of the 

 root. The treatment of the subject in these chapters is 

 of a very exhaustive nature, and, so far as can be 

 seen, every structure of importance in any part of the 

 plant is carefully and systematically dealt with. 



Dr. Solereder makes an earnest appeal to system- 

 atists to make use of the anatomical method so far 

 as possible when publishing new genera and new 

 species. In time, no doubt, this will be done, but at 

 present the amount of material requiring careful and 

 critical examination in our herbaria is so great, and 



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