CURRENT LITERATURE. 
BOOK REVIEWS. 
A text-book of botany for students of pharmacy. 
TuIs book, by Drs. Rusby and Jeliffe, is really a second edition, the first 
being issued under the title of Essentials of Pharmacognosy. The pres- 
ent work* is greatly enlarged and greatly improved. Part I by Dr. Rusby 
treats of vegetable organography. The drawings are original and for the 
most part very good. The subject-matter is treated with great care and with 
a special view to its didactic purposes. A criticism that may be offered is that _ 
too many definitions and explanations of unusual and trivial botanical terms 
are given. This criticism seems especially applicable in consideration of the 
fact that botany in colleges of pharmacy must be presented in an elementaty 
way. It does not seem advisable to load the mind of the student with defi- 
nitions of terms which are self-explanatory, or which may never be used. 
Some of the definitions are confusing because of a lack of proper coordination 
and subordination of terms. This defect is apparently not due to careless- — 
2 
treated in a very elementary and somewhat antiquated manner, defects 
which we hope may be remedied in subsequent editions. 
Taken.as a whole, Dr. Rusby’s part possesses many commendable fea 
tures and we believe it tobe the best book of its kind by an American author. 
Part II, Vegetable Histology, by Dr. Jeliffe, isa great improvement upon 
the former edition, but there is much room for further improvenient. The : 
subject-matter is presented in rather an erratic manner. The author should — 
also observe greater care and accuracy in making statements. For example, 
the cell is said to be “the unit of structure as well as the unit of physiological ‘ 
activity,” which is an antiquated idea. Again, the author states that “amr 
mal tissues are in general characterized by the slight development or absence — 
of cell walls,” which is not exactly in accordance with facts. Under the dif a 
cussion of protoplasm “ four prominent theories’’ of protoplasmic structure ‘i 
are mentioned : (1) “ The granule theory ; (2) the reticulum theory ; (3) . 
, H. H. and Jeuirre, $. E.: Morphology and histology of plants 
pect) ca as a guide to plant-analysis and classification, and as an in ntroduc- 
tion to ete ca and vegetable physiology. Part 1. The morphology ie 
plants, by H. Rusby. Part lL. Piant histology, by Smith ed Jeliffe. 8v0, PP : 
xii + 378. figs. re New York: The Authors. 1899. $3.00 : 
68 [JANuaRy 
