BOOK-NOTES, NEWS, ETC. 108 
Trans. Linnean Society, 2nd Series, v. part 11 (‘« July, 1899,” 
received Tesh ber). — A. J. Maslen, ‘Structure of Lepidostrobus’ 
3 pl.). — - (December, 1899). A. B. Rendle, ‘ Systematic Revision 
of Najas’ (4 pl.). aes 
BOOK-NOTES, NEWS, éde. 
Two new parts of Dr. Urban’s important Symbole pee 
have lately reached us, each bearing the date Jan. 15 as that of 
Pena we cannot too highly commend this indication; which 
is too often neglected in publications of the kin art 3, con- 
uae the first volume, contains a number of Porto Rico novelties 
described by the editor, who mS undertakes the Sabiacee ; the other 
contents are Juncacee by Prof. Buchenau, and Eriocaulacee by Dr. 
Ruhland, whose name is new 7 us. The first part of the second 
volume begins with a short list of additions to the excellent biblio- 
graphy already published, but is mainly occupied by an instalment 
of Mr. C. B. Clarke’s elaborate description of the Cyperacea, 
two hundred eat forty-one species of which are here given. 
gi 
r 
mber of manuscript names are cited therein; this seems an 
unnecessary beadaning of nomenclature with useless additions. 
Mr. G. 8. Bounezr is publishing in the Essex Naturalist =— 
promises to be an interesting ‘‘ History of Essex Botany,” be eginn g 
with ‘‘ The Botanists of the Sixteenth and pagers agipragiees i 
eac 
er to whic 
is dated ‘‘April-Sept. 1899,” but did not appear until considerably 
later than the latter of these months. 
In Bulletin a 17 of the U.S. Department of Agriculture — 
Noy. 22, 1899), Mr. Erwin Smith gave us the results of his study 
of the wilting of Cotton, Melon, and Cow-pea plants. The flincaal 
n each case is due to a fungus of the ascomycetous grep. which he 
fia described as a new genus, Neocosmospora. e mature fungus 
resembles a bright red Nectria with globose brown ascospores, and 
three conidial stages, forms of Cephalosporium, Fusarium, and 
i I n 
Atlantic. Neocosmospora is peculiarly a soil ae ; it passe 
winter in the soil, and enters the plant through its pe sectonat 
parts. It first fills the vessels of the host, causing a sudden wilt of 
ay foliage; then as the plant dies the fungus invades the other 
tissues and fruits on the surface, first the conidial stage, and finally 
the perithecia, It is of great interest that Mr. Smith h has been able 
to follow the whole life-cycle of the fungus in his cultures. It is 
comparatively easy to germinate ascus spores and so determine the 
conidial form, but in only a very few cases has it been possible to 
complete the circle and produce perithecia from conidia. The 
