432 BOTANICAL GAZETTE [DECEMBER, I900 
Now THAT the Pflanzenfamilien is about complete, the energetic editor, 
Dr. Adolph Engler, has entered upon an even more gigantic undertaking. 
The publisher, William Engelmann, announces the. beginning of a work, 
Das Pflanzenreich, which is to be a conspectus of the plant kingdom, 7. ¢.,a 
critical enumeration of all orders, families, genera, sub-genera, species, and 
varieties. It is proposed to issue the work in separately paged parts, each 
family being complete in itself, with its own index, though smaller families 
will be united in parts containing two to four signatures. The arrangement 
of the matter will be as follows. At the head of each family will be given its 
literature, including both systematic and general works. Purely systematic 
monographs of genera, however, will be listed under the appropriate genus. 
The general sections — vegetative organs, anatomical relations, etc.—will be 
written in German and briefer than in the Pfanzenfamilien; the diagnoses 
of families, genera, sections, and the enumeration of species will be in Latin. 
Only important synonyms (with the year), and only really good characteristic 
illustrations will be cited. Exsiccatae may also be cited in doubtful cases. 
e #yle of citation will be uniform. Thirty collaborators have agreed upon 
the nomenclature to be used. It must not be supposed that this is merely a 
revision of the Pflanzenfamilien. That work will be kept up to date by bien- 
nial supplements, and the new one, beginning with the families most in need 
of new elaboration will proceed on its own lines. Twenty years, it is antici- 
pated, will be required for its completion. The support, scientific and 
financial, of the Prussian Ku/tusministerium and the Prussian Academy of 
Sciences, together with the proved executive ability of editor and publisher, 
are strong guarantees that the work will progress to a satisfactory completion. 
