858 
ductive bodies (by locomotion, water, air, for- 
cible discharge, larger animals and insects). 
In like summary and interesting fashion the re- 
lations of flowers and insects are pointed out, 
the treatment being much too brief for the 
average reader with the limited acquaintance 
with flowers and flower structure which he is 
supposed to possess. 
Half a dozen pages are given to a discussion 
of the struggle for existence among plants, the 
factors noted being decrease of water and light, 
changes in temperature and soil composition, 
devastating animals, plant rivalry, adaptation, 
migration and destruction. A dozen pages are 
taken up with the nutrition of plants, the prin- 
cipal topics being photosynthesis, the manufac- 
ture of proteids, digestion (14 lines), assimila- 
tion (5 lines), respiration and ‘carnivorous 
plants.’ 
The remaining chapters (XI. to XY.) are 
given to a discussion of plant societies, in which 
the factors (water, heat, soil, light and wind) 
are first pointed ,out, followed by citations of 
examples of hydrophyte xerophyte, mesophyte, 
and halophyte societies, with suggestions as to 
their significance. Throughout the book the 
illustrations are superb, and add much to its 
value and interest. 
Asa summary of the ecological view of plant 
life for those already well grounded in botany, 
the book leaves little to be desired. It will 
be profitable reading for the student who has 
had what may be called General Botany in col- 
leges and universities, but as a first book to be 
used by pupils in the secondary schools it will 
prove to be too difficult where thoroughness 
and accuracy are desired, otherwise it will be 
found too superficial. As a book for secondary 
schools it calls the attention of the pupil to 
many interesting phenomena, whose significance 
he can but’ vaguely comprehend because of his 
unfamiliarity with different types of plants. It 
is probable that the author recognized some of 
these difficulties after completing the book, as 
in the accompanying pamphlet of ‘suggestions 
to teachers,’ he says (p. 3) ‘‘if there has been 
no previous study of plants it will be necessary 
for the teacher at the outset, to train the pupils 
to recognize the great groups. This may be 
done in a series of laboratory exercises, which 
SCIENCE. 
[N. 8S. Vow. X. No. 258. 
include comparison and drawing.’’ Any teacher 
who has tried it, will say that the training of 
pupils ‘to recognize the great groups’ of plants 
(‘algee, mushrooms, lichens, mosses, ferns, 
gymnosperms, monocotyls and dicotyls, and if 
possible, liverworts, equisetums and _ club- 
mosses’) is a pretty large undertaking for a 
half year’s work, and if done well there will be 
little time left for the subject-matter of this 
book. Thus the author’s own suggestions re- 
quire a previous study of plants, and the book 
is therefore noé a ‘ first book of botany.’ 
CHARLES HE. BEssEy. 
THE UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA. 
SCIENTIFIC JOURNALS AND ARTICLES. 
American Chemical Journal, October. ‘On 
Potassium Cyanide as a Condensing Agent,’ by 
A. Smith ; ‘Camphoric Acid,’ by W. Noyes ; 
‘The Action of Bromine on Metachlor-, Meta- 
brom-, and Metaiodanilines,’ by H. lL. Wheeler 
and Wm. Valentine ; ‘A Simplification of Beck- 
mann’s Boiling- point Apparatus,’ by 8S. L. Bige- 
low. The liquid is heated by passing a current 
of electricity through a platinum wire immersed 
in the liquid. ‘A Contribution to our Knowl- 
edge of Dicarbonyl Cuprous Chloride,’ by W. 
A. Jones. 
November: ‘The Rate of Action of Water on 
Certain c-, B-, and y-Halogen Substituted Fatty 
Acids,’ by E. De Barr; ‘The Occlusion of Hy- 
drogen by Metallic Cobalt and other Metals,’ by 
G. P. Baxter; ‘On the Nature of the Oxyazo 
Compounds,’ by W. McPherson ; ‘A Contribu- 
tion to the Study of Liquid Mixtures of Constant 
Boiling point,’ by G. Ryland; ‘The Action of 
Benzoyl Chloride on the Phenylhydrazones of 
Benzoin,’ by P. C. Freer; ‘ Notes on the Space 
Isomerism of the Toluquinoneoxime Ethers,’ 
by W. C. Morgan; ‘A Dissolver,’ by A. J. 
Hopkins. The author has devised a simple de- 
vice for rapidly dissolving salts. ds Id Ct 
In The American Naturalist for November, 
J. H. Comstock and J. D. Needham continue 
the series on ‘The Wings of Insects,’ with an 
interesting account of the development of wings 
containing a discussion of the origin of the 
tracheation of the wing. ‘A Contribution to 
the Merphology of Pennaria tiarella’ McCrady, 
