214 REVIEWS — A MANUAL OF BOTANIC TERMS. 



A Manual of Botanic Terms. By M, C. Cooke, author of " A 



Manual of Structural Botany," &c. London : Robert Hardwicke, 



192, Piccadilly. 



We can see tlie utility of a complete dictionary of botanical terms, 

 ■which should explain as to its meaning and derivation every term 

 employed by every writer deserving of notice, and should at the same 

 time attempt to pronounce judgment as to the necessity of each, its 

 fitness for its purpose, and the proper selection to be made amongst 

 equivalent terms ; but we can hardly admit the usefulness of such a 

 •work as that before us, all terms — the understanding of which is 

 required for ordinary purposes — being explained in nearly every in- 

 troductory botanical book ; and the most natural effect of such an 

 attempt as our author's being to bring before beginners in the study, 

 to their no small discouragement, a mass of needless (often repulsive) 

 terms which would, with great benefit to science, be consigned to 

 oblivion. 



Mr. Cooke considers his manual as fitted for the use of such of 

 the operative classes as are cultivating the study of botany. Cer- 

 tainly he has avoided frightening those who have not had a classical 

 education by the sight of Greek letters, having printed his Greek 

 words in English characters, which may be a small assistance to some ; 

 but he has made no attempt to simplify the terminology, and we take 

 the mere bringing together in an elementary work of so many harsh 

 and useless terms, to be no small evil. We observe instances in 

 which the explanations given are erroneous or unsatisfactory, as where 

 actinenchyma (a needless term) is said to mean " the cellular tissue 

 of medullary rays," to which it would be improperly applied, — the 

 true meaning, "stellate cellular tissue" being added as if equiva- 

 lent ; and pistil, of which the explanation given, " the female organ 

 of flowering plants," is utterly vague ; and again, Gynoecium, which 

 is said to mean " the pistil and its appendages." We refer to carpel, 

 and find it explained, " one of the modified leaves composing a pistil." 

 Differing from some recent authorities, we hold it to be very certain 

 that Linnseus did not employ pistil as a general term for all the parts 

 (modified leaves) which form the inner circle of the flower, and are 

 called female organs ; but either not recognizing, or not thinking it 

 necessary to notice, the composite character of a syncarpous fruit, he 

 equally called the whole of such fruit, and the separate carpels of the 



