11 



us an account of each species, surely with less attention to its 

 nomenclature and history than the formative state of our science 

 now makes desirable, but rather telling of its life — of its " prefer- 

 ence" with respect to food, to texture of soil, to moisture, to 

 light, of its manner of pollination, of its range — both portraying 

 and explaining this — and adding yet much more to that wealth 

 of information which an observational field-botany should 

 make ours. 



Soil-chemistry is too fundamental for plant-distribution for 

 me to feel that this misstatement really deserves the pardon for 

 which I am asking. 



New York Botaxical Garden 



BOOK REVIEWS 



Murrill's Nature Books* 



These three books complete the set of nature and character 

 books published by Dr. Murrill during the past year, making a 

 total of about i,ooo pages of text, 129 halftones, and 5 colored 

 plates. The first of the series was reviewed in Torreya for 

 November, 191 8. 



In all these volumes, which are largely autobiographic, the 

 author seeks to educate and inspire both young and old in a 

 pleasing, indirect way that is quite original. 



"The Naturalist in a Boarding School" contains the author's 

 experiences while teaching at Bowling Green and Staunton, 

 Virginia; short essays on various subjects; a condensed guide to 

 bodily and mental health, character training, original epigrams 

 and maxims on a great variety of subjects, and classified quota- 

 tions, from the best literature relating to man; the latter feature 

 consisting of quotations reaching from Epictetus to Emerson and 

 beyond — over 100 pages! 



"The Natural History of Staunton" contains many original 

 observations on all phases of natural history — beasts, birds, 

 trees, flowers, rocks, etc. — with colored figures of the more com- 

 mon butterflies and a list of nature quotations. 



* " The Three Young Crusoes." The Naturalist in a Boarding School." " The 

 NaturalHistoryof Staunton, Virginia." Written and for sale by William Alphonso 

 Murrill, Bronjcwood Park, New York, $1.50 per volume, postpaid. 



