﻿268 
  BOTANICAL 
  GAZETTE. 
  [ 
  Octobei', 
  

  

  be 
  remanded 
  to 
  the 
  limbo 
  of 
  unscientific 
  methods. 
  The 
  problem 
  that 
  is 
  

   now 
  presenting 
  itself 
  to 
  North 
  American 
  workers 
  in 
  systematic 
  botany 
  

   lies 
  behind 
  all 
  systematic 
  botany, 
  and 
  considers 
  geographical 
  distribu- 
  

   tion. 
  But 
  no 
  study 
  of 
  this 
  subject 
  can 
  be 
  made 
  at 
  long 
  range 
  or 
  by 
  the 
  

   most 
  persistent 
  study 
  of 
  the 
  disjointed 
  facts 
  at 
  our 
  command. 
  

  

  It 
  is 
  time 
  that 
  botanists 
  bestir 
  themselves 
  in 
  the 
  matter 
  and 
  consider 
  

   the 
  organization 
  of 
  a 
  regular 
  biological 
  survey, 
  that 
  will 
  deal 
  with 
  plants 
  

   as 
  biological 
  problems 
  and 
  not 
  merely 
  as 
  specimens 
  to 
  be 
  catalogued- 
  

   The 
  money 
  which 
  is 
  now 
  expended 
  for 
  botanical 
  exploration 
  could 
  be 
  

   made 
  to 
  serve 
  handsomely 
  in 
  starting 
  such 
  a 
  systematic 
  survey. 
  It 
  is 
  no 
  

   special 
  credit 
  to 
  American 
  botany 
  that 
  a 
  zoologist 
  who 
  is 
  working 
  in 
  

   this 
  systematic 
  fashion 
  can 
  find 
  no 
  help 
  from 
  botanists, 
  but 
  is 
  compelled 
  

   tocombineabotanic'ilsurvey 
  with 
  his 
  own. 
  Not 
  that 
  the 
  two 
  depart- 
  

   ments 
  should 
  be 
  worked 
  separately, 
  for 
  a 
  biological 
  survey 
  must 
  include 
  

   both, 
  but 
  the 
  point 
  is 
  made 
  that 
  botanists 
  should 
  do 
  their 
  share. 
  Dr- 
  

   Merriam 
  is 
  to 
  be 
  thanked 
  for 
  his 
  example, 
  and 
  he 
  would 
  only 
  feel 
  that 
  it 
  

   was 
  facilitating 
  his 
  work 
  if 
  botanical 
  explorations 
  could 
  be 
  converted 
  

   into 
  biological 
  surveys. 
  ' 
  . 
  

  

  BRIEFER 
  ARTICLES. 
  

  

  The 
  translation 
  of 
  Hackel's 
  « 
  True 
  Grasses."— 
  This 
  work 
  received 
  

   a 
  notice 
  in 
  your 
  journal 
  for 
  August, 
  by 
  Mr. 
  Theo. 
  Holm. 
  As 
  to 
  the 
  

   translation 
  I 
  have 
  no 
  doubt 
  that 
  it 
  is 
  faithfully 
  executed, 
  and 
  that 
  it 
  w 
  

   accurate, 
  clear 
  and 
  scientifically 
  correct. 
  For 
  students 
  of 
  grasses 
  this 
  

   work 
  mu8t 
  possess 
  great 
  interest 
  and 
  value. 
  The 
  illustrations 
  are 
  excellent 
  

   ana 
  will 
  be 
  a 
  great 
  aid 
  to 
  the 
  understanding 
  of 
  the 
  technical 
  descriptions- 
  

   While 
  this 
  work 
  can 
  not, 
  perhaps, 
  be 
  excelled 
  as 
  a 
  synopsis 
  of 
  all 
  known 
  

   genera 
  of 
  grasses, 
  it 
  may 
  be 
  a 
  question 
  whether 
  a 
  reduction 
  and 
  modifica- 
  

   won 
  of 
  It 
  adapted 
  to 
  the 
  United 
  States 
  or 
  to 
  North 
  America 
  would 
  not 
  be 
  

   more 
  generally 
  useful 
  in 
  this 
  country. 
  Of 
  313 
  genera 
  described, 
  there 
  

   are 
  m 
  this 
  country, 
  of 
  native 
  and 
  introduced 
  ones, 
  only 
  about 
  120 
  gener*' 
  

   ine 
  work 
  of 
  local 
  students 
  in 
  identifying 
  a 
  grass 
  would 
  be 
  much 
  reduced 
  

   oo,n?r^!j 
  ^^ 
  '^"^^'^^ 
  *° 
  ^^^ 
  i^to 
  view 
  the 
  genera 
  proper 
  to 
  this 
  

   can 
  ;?■ 
  ' 
  *^^ 
  ^^"""'^^ 
  ^*"g« 
  of 
  each 
  genus 
  is 
  stated, 
  and 
  the 
  student 
  

  

  bevoL 
  !;; 
  ^^."^^'^g^««g 
  a 
  species, 
  leave 
  out 
  of 
  view 
  those 
  whose 
  range.^ 
  

   elrd^n 
  "^ 
  °^ 
  ''''' 
  ^«^^try. 
  But 
  there 
  are 
  some 
  omissions 
  in 
  r^" 
  

  

  what 
  he 
  "^!' 
  T-' 
  ^^ 
  ^^'^^^^l^ence 
  of 
  which 
  the 
  student 
  might 
  fail 
  to 
  fij 
  

   gentLrr,t- 
  ^ 
  '^^^l 
  ^«f«^ 
  to 
  a 
  few 
  instances 
  : 
  on 
  page 
  53, 
  under 
  th 
  

   Zh^TX 
  '''''' 
  ^^^"^ 
  1' 
  i* 
  '« 
  «-id, 
  "species 
  twenty 
  in 
  thetrop.csof 
  

   ment 
  onT. 
  • 
  "^"^ 
  ^P^«'^« 
  ^'^ht 
  be 
  overlooked 
  from 
  thisB^^ 
  

  

  ArkansL 
  T?u^ 
  "' 
  ^^' 
  ^^^^^ 
  ^' 
  Delaware, 
  and 
  another 
  as 
  far 
  as 
  ea.e 
  

   itSoLV'^'^^^^P^Se 
  under 
  the 
  subgenus 
  Hemarthria 
  not^ 
  

   saidof 
  Its 
  extension 
  to 
  Texas, 
  where 
  the 
  ..nlie. 
  fa^culata 
  is 
  abundant 
  

  

  in 
  some 
  localities. 
  

  

  