222 



say the least, as for example the association of the Violaceae, 

 Polygalaceae, and Caryophyllaceae, in the order given, these groups 

 following the Resedaceae and leading to the Hypericaceae. No 

 attempt has been made to comply with the terminology now 

 commonly employed and we find the so called orders ending in 

 a great array of final syllables, partially illustrated above in the 

 references to the rose and myrtle alliances. 



The illustrations are deficient in number and lacking in qual- 

 ity. A criticism of this nature need rarely be passed on the 

 superb book v/ork of the Clarendon Press ; indeed, it seems a 

 pity to mar so excellent a book as this with inferior drawings 

 which at times might almost be termed grotesque. Little care 

 has been bestowed upon the size of the figures. A diagram of 

 Lytliriun, dealing with only gross morphological characters, is 

 given a half page, while many illustrations of Cruciferae, Rosaceae, 

 etc. are so reduced as to obscure the relationship of the organs. 

 The figures are often overshaded with the result that they lack 

 clearness or are even smudgy. 



The only means of referring to the numerous species in the 

 text is to be found in the index of the fifty-six orders that fol- 

 lows the title page. We understand that a full index will be 

 included in the final volume but the publishers should have re- 

 called that this volume will be extensively used by students as 

 a reference book and that the lack of an index is a serious dis- 

 advantage. A similar deficiency is the lack of a glossary, es- 

 pecially since terms are employed that are not universally current. 



The above criticisms, however, are of minor consideration and 

 are not intended to reflect upon the excellence and worth of the 

 discussion. The treatment accorded the orders, genera, and 

 species will be universally appreciated by those interested in this 

 phase of botany. The citation of the literature, and the discus- 

 sions of the morphological and biological features of the flower, 

 make the book indispensable as a work of reference. Much ad- 

 verse comment has been passed upon ecological studies of this 

 nature that have been so well developed upon the continent. 

 We feel, however, that they are of great importance and know 

 of no better way of introducing the study of flowering plants to 



