CURRENT LITERATURE 



MINOR NOTICES 



Engler's Syllabus. — The seventh edition of Engler's Syllabus 1 had marked 

 a great progress beyond the sixth; 135 pages of text had been added and the 

 usefulness of the book was greatly increased by the introduction of illustrations. 

 No such radical changes were made in favor of the eighth edition, which 

 appeared in the summer of 19 19. The number of illustrations remained the 

 same, although some were replaced by new ones, and the text was only in- 

 creased by 11 pages. A few groups, for instance the gymnosperms, show 

 considerable changes. Here the fossil families have received more attention. 

 The Cycadofilicales, which were not mentioned in the seventh edition, are 

 now discussed. Also the Filicales are rearranged and are now headed by the 

 Marattiales. Comparatively few changes are made in the angiosperms. The 

 chapters on plant classification and the outline of floral regions are rewritten 

 by Engler himself, and the new literature finds consideration throughout the 

 book. Probably Engler and Gilg did the best they could while handicapped 

 by lack of literature from English speaking countries. 



The rapid growth of the Syllabus from edition to edition has undoubtedly 

 suffered a setback through the war. Nevertheless, the book is still the most 

 convenient outline of the generally accepted system which bears Engler's 

 name, and as a very handy index to his Natilrliche Pflanzenfamilien it remains 

 indispensable to the student of botany. It might be added that its price for 

 American purchasers is about 150 marks. — A. C. Noe. / 



A dictionary of botany. — Schneider and Linsbauer's 2 dictionary of 

 botany lists about 7000 technical terms which are accompanied by short 

 definitions and cross-references, or by articles of sometimes considerable 

 length. Schneider had published the first edition with the help of a large 

 staff of collaborators, and the second edition was left to the care of Lins- 

 bauer, who is Haberlandt's successor in Graz (Austria). The text is 

 preceded by a short bibliography of botanical treatises and periodicals. Only 

 German books are listed, and the Annals of Botany and the Botanical 

 Gazette are the only English and American periodicals which are mentioned. 

 Most illustrations are rather old and well known to all students of botany. 

 Modern plant morphology is largely neglected, except that the embryology 



Adolf 



8vo. pp. xxxv+395-»- 457* Berlin. 1919. 



2 Schneider, C. K., and Linsbauer, Karl, h 

 2. Auflage. 8vo. pp. xxi+824. figs. 306. Leipzig. 1917. 



443 



8. Auflage. 



