July 26, 1906] 



NATURE 



293 



iiuilicular additions, are not readily borne in mind. 

 We liave not been more successful with a previous 

 \ulumo dealing- with development, which explains that 

 there is " one fundamental principle " controlling- the 

 detailed ontotcenetic phenomena, namely, " the prin- 

 ciple of monodic development." Though it is "of 

 extraordinary simplicity, like all the principles of 

 natural phenomena," we have failed to detect its 

 luminifcrous quality. 



But as the author emphasises the fact that if his 

 arg-ument is to be appreciated there n-iust not be " the 

 least omission of any part of the book, even if it 

 seems a superfluous repetition," and as he "has con- 

 secrated all his intellectual activity and all his scien- 

 tific passion " to working out an interpretation which 

 seeiiis to him " to exjilain the fundamental pheno- 

 mena of life on absolutely scientific principles," we 

 feel bound, in fairness, to recommend the author's 

 painstaking- work to all biologists who may have the 

 leisure and patience which a study of " Les Problemes 

 de la Vie " requires. Perhaps another requisite 

 which we cannot pretend to possess is a clear appre- 

 hension of the biomolecule. J. .\. T. 



KCOXOMIC ZOOLOGY. 

 /\'c/>nc/ en tlic Injurious Insects and Other Aniniah 



observed in the Midland Counties during 1905. By 



Walter E. Collinge, M.Sc. Pp. 58-t-xxxii figures. 



(Birmingham : Cornish Brothers, Ltd., 1906.) 



Price -'i. 

 TV /T R. COLLINGE, in his third report on the in- 

 '■ ^ jurious insects and other animals of the Mid- 

 land counties, again deals with many varied subjects. 

 The report is well illustrated, except for the figure of a 

 weird bird and its egg supposed to represent a barn 

 (iwl. Why a valuable page was wasted on such an 

 unnatural production is impossible to understand. 



One of the most interesting parts of the report is 

 that dealing with " big-bud " in black currants, and 

 the treatment of diseased bushes (pp. 6 and 7). In a 

 summary Mr. Collinge tells us that he " feels con- 

 vinced that the application of lime and sulphur will 

 k"ep this mite in check, and if the dusting or sprav- 

 ing is continued will entirely eradicate it." Later he 

 tells us that the results have been checked by many 

 large growers, and that they clearly point to the 

 fact that " the application of lime and sulphur offers 

 an effective remedy." He does not tell us how many 

 limes we have to dust or spray the bushes. That 

 " we know completely the life-history of the mite " 

 is certainly not the fact ; some dozens of points have 

 yet to be found out. 



An interesting account is also given of the plum 

 Aphides (Hyalnpterus pruni and Aphis pruni). Some- 

 thing is wrong, however, in the account of Aphis 

 pruni, for the young coming from the winter eggs, 

 which are very few in number, and hatch very 

 early in the year, are not green. In early spring we 

 find this Aphis as a large plum-coloured " mother- 

 queen," and she produces green living young. The 

 treatment recommended, namely, early spraying, is 

 nevertheless most imperative. 



NO I917, VOL. 74J 



Among other insects this useful report deals with 

 we find notes on the pea and bean thrips, woolly 

 aphis, currant-shoot moth, raspberry moth, cock- 

 chafers, furniture beetles, and book-lice. There are 

 also short accounts of the lilac Gracilaria and the 

 larch Coleophora. The abundance of eel-worms 

 during the past year is also dwelt upon, and a list of 

 woodlice found in the Midlands is given. 



.Amongst so much of value, such as the account of 

 the snow-fly {Aleyrodcs vaporarium, p. 22) and the 

 larch and spruce chermes (p. 14), that this report 

 contains, we are sorry to see some wrong statements 

 being carried forward. For instance, on p. 23, caustic 

 alkali wash is still recommended for mussel scale in 

 winter. Recent work has shown that it has no effect 

 .It all, even when used at treble the normal strength. 



A few pages are devoted to the subject of the pre- 

 servation of wild birds, illustrated b\' figures from the 

 Board of Agriculture and Fisheries leaflets. There is 

 also a short appendix dealing with the employment of 

 hydrocyanic acid gas and bisulphide of carbon. 



This report, like its predecessors, is one of much 

 interest, but some of the remedial measures for such 

 things as wire-worm and " big-bud " inust surely not 

 be taken too seriously by agriculturists. 



Fred. V. Theob-^ld. 



THE FEELING FOR NATURE. 

 The Development of the Feeling for Nature in the 



Middle Ages and Modern Times. By Alfred Biese. 



Authorised Translation. Pp. vi + 376. (London : 



Routledge and .Sons, Ltd., 1905.) Price 6s. 

 " ■\JATURE in her ever-constant, ever-changing 

 phases is indispensable to man, his whole ex- 

 istence depends upon her, and she influences him in 

 manifold ways in mind as well as body." Such being 

 the relation of nature to man, as set forth in the 

 introduction, it has been the author's endeavour to 

 trace in this volume the development of human 

 thought in regard to the phenomena of nature from 

 the introduction of Christianity downwards, in the 

 same way that was done in a previous volume for 

 the time of the Greeks and Romans. This has been 

 done mainly by the study of writings, both in prose 

 and poetry, in which natural phenomena, whether 

 connected with scenery, weather, birds, or flowers, are 

 spoken of with admiration. That the task of writing 

 the book was a difficult one is freely admitted bv 

 Prof. Biese, and it is scarcely to be wondered at if 

 at the end the book strikes the reader as somewhat 

 less attractive than he would naturally expect from 

 the title. 



The book is largely made up of quotations, and 

 many of these quotations do not, after all, prove 

 very much. Then, again, as we approach recent 

 times the quantity of literature at a writer's disposal 

 tends to become for practical purposes infinite, and 

 in such circumstances anything might be proved 

 by choosing suitable quotations. Again, in quoting 

 poetry as an indication of popular feeling at various 

 tirnes it must not be forgotten that poetry is, from 

 the very nature of things, essentially conservative, so 



