Vol. 5 No. 5 



TORREYA 



LIBRARY 



May, 1905 NEW YOJUC 



BOTANlCAi. 



OARDGN 



TllK CLASSIFICATION OF LICHENS 



By Alhert Schneider 



Systcmatists have for a long time awaited the coming of the 

 man witli convictions sufficiently strong and insight sufficiently 

 keen to [Moducc order out of the long existing lichen chaos. In- 

 dividual workers have not been wanting who were ready and 

 willing to propose temporary makeshift systems of classification, 

 which in the light of further scientific research proved inadequate 

 and untenable. ( )nl)' within very recent years has our knowledge 

 of this group of plants become sufficiently advanced and com- 

 plete to make possible an attempt at a natural system of classifi- 

 cation, or at least a system sufficiently concise to give it equal 

 rank with the systems of other comprehensive plant groups. 

 This was made possible by the epoch-making observations and 

 researches of Schwendener, Bornct, Zukal, Reinke and others. 

 In the Lieferungen of Engler and Prantl's Pflanzenfamilien, de- 

 voted to lichens, we have perhaps the first more complete sum- 

 mary of modern lichenology and the first effort at formulating a 

 natural system in accord with recent research. Funfstiick's ex- 

 position and discussion of general lichenology in Lieferung 180 

 is complete, concise and quite impartial. This masterpiece of 

 lichenological literature appeared in 1898 and will remain the 

 .standard authority for some years to come. An English transla- 

 tion with annotations and additions issued as a separate volume 

 would prove of great value to English students of lichenology 

 and it is to be hoped that some one will undertake this task at 

 an early date. 



The only number (Lieferung) thus far issued on the classifi- 

 cation of lichens, by A. Zahlbruckner, did not appear until 1903. 

 While the lichens are treated separately, both by Funfstiick and 



[Vol. 5, No. 4, of T<)RREY.\, comprising pages 55-7S, was issued April 27, 1905.] 



7!) 



