79 



till I shall be able to complete an exhibition of the group, now 

 far advanced, which will not, indeed, be exhaustive, but will be 

 so thorough as to afford a solid foundation for future work. 

 Additional specimens will be welcome even if they lengthen the 

 task, but increase of material in some cases eases the work rather 



than adds to it. 



Edward S. Steele 



Washington, D. C. 



REVIEWS 



Three Publications on Heredity 



Genetics* 



This volume aims to introduce the average reader to the 

 various problems in the study of heredity. The chapter headings 

 are as follows: I. Introduction; II. The Carriers of the Heritage; 

 HI. Variation; IV. Mutation; V. The Inheritance of Acquired 

 Characters; VI. The Pure Line; VII. Segregation and Domi- 

 nance; VIII. Reversion to Old Types and the Making of New 

 Ones; IX. Blending Inheritance; X. The Determination of Sex; 

 XI. The Application to Man; and XII. Human Conservation. 



It is a difficult task to summarize for the ordinary reader the 

 various lines of thought and investigation covered by these 

 topics. Too often a popular treatise on a scientific subject falls 

 into the error of presenting as clear cut facts, results and con- 

 clusions not fully established. The general reader is not likely 

 to consider these with a critical mind and too often accepts 

 mere views and partly established facts as fundamental prin- 

 ciples. There is, in other words, an air of finality that does not 

 stimulate the best thought in the mind of the reader. This 

 volume on genetics is not entirely free from this defect. In 

 general, however, the author has made clear statements of the 

 problems under consideration, of the evidence at hand bearing 

 on them, and of the field for future investigation. In the chap- 

 ters on Variation, Mutation, Inheritance of Acquired Characters, 

 The Pure Line and Human Conservation, the author is at his 

 best, at least in this respect. 



* By Herbert Eugene Walter, assistant professor of biology at Brown University. 

 Pages i-xiv + 1-272. [Illust.] Published February, 1913, by The Macraillan 

 Company. Price I1.50 net. 



