139 
In a college course the sub-divisions of botany have various 
undisputed utilitarian values from the informational view point. 
The contribution of botany to medicine lies not only in its rela- 
tion to bacteriology, but in the suggestive field of plant physiol- 
ogy. Recognizing that a certain amount of botanical fact must 
of course be presented in one way or another to the student, 
the author insists that the “relation of the science to other fields 
of knowledge should be accentuated, whether it be to the obviously 
allied one of zoólogy or to the more remote one of economics, 
for the ramifications of a subject like botany are so many and 
so far-reaching that it touches upon many lines.” 
After indicating appropriate types of work for the several 
college years, the author closes with the opinion that “їп both 
a purely pedagogical and informational sense, botany and zoólogy 
rank equally with physics and chemistry in suitability for a 
required science option in the college course."—]. B 
-. The American Breeder's Magazine, vol. П, no. 3, contains a 
syllabus of ''Suggestive Laboratory Exercises for a Course in 
Plant Breeding," prepared by Prof. Arthur Gilbert of the Labor- 
atory of Experimental Plant Breeding at Cornell University. 
Twenty-five exercises are submitted covering such studies as: 
variations in common plants; morphology of flowers; technique 
and practice in cross pollination; behavior of hybrids of oats, 
wheat and citrus; critical examination of cytological preparations 
showing nuclear division, chromosomes, pollen mother cells, etc., 
and special consideration of corn as to behavior of hybrids, xenia, 
correlation of characters, judging and ear to row tests. 
The appearance of this outline is timely. Plant Breeding is 
destined to take an important place in botanical instruction. 
The arrangement of an adequate course of laboratory instruction 
in this subject presents more complications than do most bio- 
logical branches. 
The exercises as presented are of spceial interest as they come 
from a laboratory which has been a pioneer in teaching the 
subject of Plant Breeding.—A. B. S. 
