1 PBOCEEDINaS or THE 



tinents, sucli as South-west Europe, the Cape district, South-west 

 Australia, Chile, and Mexico ; to the investigation of the close con- 

 nexion, in many respects, between the high northern and extreme 

 southern floras, rendered still more striking by the number of 

 species found of late years in the newly explored mountains of 

 Victoria and Tasmania, either absolutely identical with or 

 scarcely to be distinguished from European forms ; to the com- 

 parative distribution of plants and of insects, whose existences are 

 so closely dependent on each other — to the discussion, for in- 

 stance, of how far the speculations of Wallace, founded on the 

 distribution of Polynesian insects, are or are not confirmed by that 

 of the vegetation of those islands. 



Vegetable Physiology, in all its branches, has much occupied 

 the attention of continental observers, both in Erance and G-er- 

 many, and more especially in the latter country ; and many are 

 the observations, throwing new lights on the history of vegetable 

 life and structures, recorded in the Transactions and Journals 

 of both countries. It is, however, unnecessary, for the present at 

 least, to devote our time to the searching them out from the 

 enormous mass of writing in which they are buried ; for a general 

 digest, of excellent promise, has been commenced by several 

 eminent Grerman physiologists under the guidance of Hofmeister. 

 Of this work, entitled " Handbuch der physiologischen Botanik," 

 and intended to be complete in four octavo volumes, the fourth (by 

 Julius Sachs) and the first half of the second (by De Bary) have 

 reached us within the last few days ; both are, however, dated 

 some months back. As far as can be judged from a rapid glance, 

 this work appears to give a remarkably clear and methodical 

 exposition of subjects which are now become most complicated. 

 In De Bary's half volume, Eungi are treated of, in four parts : 

 — 1. Morphology, or structure ; 2. Reproduction, asexual or 

 sexual ; 3. Development, including Pleomorphism and Metamor- 

 phism; and 4, Physiological Peculiarities, including their require- 

 ments for production and nutriment, the influence upon them of 

 external physical causes, and the eflects of their own action upon 

 the substrata on which they live. A similar arrangement of 

 the subject is then followed for Lichens ; and a shorter chapter at 

 the end is devoted to Myxomycetse. 



Julius Sachs's volume is entitled " Handbook of the Experi- 

 mental Physiology of Plants ; or, Eesearches into the most general 

 Life-requirements of Plants, and the Eunctions of their Organs." 

 Eertilization of plants is, however, excluded from this volume, as 

 it is to form the subject of one of the previous ones not yet pub- 



