30 



SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XLII. No. 1070 



By Charles Atwood Kofoid. — This presents 

 the invertebrate life, gives some account of 

 the aquaria and research stations along the 

 coast, notes the collecting grounds, takes spe- 

 cial note of that characteristic Californian, 

 the Abalone, and of the seals, sea lions and 

 whales of these vraters. 



SIV. Oceanic Circulation and Tempera- 

 ture of the Pacific Coast. By George F. 

 McEwen. — An empirical and theoretical con- 

 sideration of the causes of present oceanic 

 circulation on the west coast. 



XV. Insects of the Pacific Coast. By Ver- 

 non Kellogg. — A very inviting chapter, as 

 far as it goes, closing with the equivocal re- 

 mark : " The Pacific coast will match its in- 

 sects against the equivalent fauna of any other 

 region." 



SVI. Flora of the Pacific Coast. By Ear- 

 vey Monroe Hall. 



XVII. Forests of the Pacific Coast. By 

 Willis Linn Jepson. 



XVni. The Deserts and Desert Flora of 

 the West. By LeRoy Ahrams. 



XIX. The Marine Flora of the Pacific 

 Coast. By William Albert Setchell. — -A great 

 variety of climatic and soil conditions has 

 given birth to diverse and variable flora, and 

 whether one considers it from the " esthetic, 

 the systematic, the genetic or the ecologic " 

 standpoint, his impressions will be compell- 

 ing. These chapters present the flora by its 

 geographical provinces and give lists of lo- 

 calities of special botanical interest. 



The stories of the Big Tree, "the most re- 

 markable member of the earth's silva," and 

 of its groves ; of the coast redwood, " the tall- 

 est tree on earth," and of other members of 

 this profuse coniferous flora, are of delightful, 

 if brief, interest. 



Into the floral assemblages have been in- 

 truded the plants of the desert. As far back 

 as the close of the Cretaceous the Mexican 

 plateau began to grow arid, and here and 

 thereafter " drought resisting plants were 

 taking form." " Here originated the cacti, 

 yuccas, dasylirions " and most of the Ameri- 

 can desert fauna, and thence they spread 

 north after the glacial period and the increase 



of arid conditions. The Grand Canyon, the 

 Petrified Forests, the Mohave and Painted 

 Deserts and their floras are considered in 

 Professor Abrams's absorbing chapter, which 

 closes with the assurance that " to come upon 

 any understanding of the strange fascination 

 of this land of little rain . . . one must move 

 out into their open spaces; become a part of 

 their boundless silence; face their trackless 

 sands and bare mountain reaches in the won- 

 derful opalescent light of sunsets and sun- 

 rises; gain an insight into the significance 

 of the curious adaptations of plant and ani- 

 mal life, and of the page of earth's physical 

 history laid bare in their reft gorges." 



In the account of the marine flora special 

 note is taken of its " chief glory," the kelps ; 

 numerous in species, often of enormous size, 

 vastly surpassing those of the Atlantic; their 

 forests, the nests of peculiar fishes, and their 

 commercial possibilities still largely unex- 

 ploited. 



XX. Burhanh's Gardens. By Vernon L. 

 Kellogg. — Essentially a personal tribute 

 happily without advertising matter. 



XXI. Ethnology of the Pacific Coast. By 

 T. T. Waterman. — With maps of the south- 

 west and north showing the present location 

 of Indian tribes, the distribution, history and 

 tribal customs of the aborigines are passed in 

 condensed but effective review. 



XXII. Astronomical Observatories. By 

 R. G. AitMn. — This is a history of the prog- 

 ress of astronomical observation and of the 

 development of observatories. 



XXIII. Museums of the Pacific Coast. 

 By Barton W. Evermann. — A brief directory 

 of museums of science, art and history. 



XXIV. Agricultural Development of the 

 Pacific Coast. By E. J. WicJcson. — Begin- 

 ning with the agriculture of the prehistoric 

 peoples, these activities through the Spanish 

 occupation and into the " American period,'' 

 the author devotes his chapter largely to 

 enumerating factors fundamental to the fu- 

 ture development of agriculture; among them 

 he argues with strong reason the essential 

 superiority of the soils of the arid regions 

 when brought under irrigation. 



