94 



BOOK-NOTES, NEWS, ETC. 



We 



name 



to be entitled Natural Science, the first number of which is to 

 appear on March 1st. Judging from the prospectus, it would 

 seem to be intended as a kind of monthly Nature, and it is issued 

 by the same publishers. The British Museum staff is largely 

 represented among the contributors. The botanical articles 

 promised in the first number are, "Some recent researches on 

 the Classification of Flowering Plants," by Mr. A. B. Eendle, and 

 " Paheobotanical Notes," by Mr. Thomas Hick, 

 editor does not appear. 



What promises to be a very useful addition to our Floras is 

 announced as Conspectus Flora Africa — a new undertaking of 

 which M. Durand, of Brussels, already well known as an accurate 

 and industrious compiler, and Dr. H. Schinz, of Zurich, are to be 

 the compilers. The African Flora so far has been unfortunate. The 

 Flora of Tropical Africa, for which the Kew staff was responsible, 

 extends only as far as Ehenacece, and its last volume appeared 

 fifteen years ago : this is now in course of continuation at Kew. 

 The Flora Capensis, in spite of many promises, stands where it did 

 in 1865— at the end of Campanulacea . The Compendium Flora 

 Atlantic^ is a third example of " arrested development": this was 

 terminated in 1887 by the death of Dr. Cosson. The Conspectus 

 will consist of six volumes of about 500 pages each; the fifth, 

 containing the Monocotyledons, will be the first to be issued. 

 Judging from the prospectus, and the specimen page accompanying 

 it, as well as from the position of the authors, we have every 

 reason to anticipate a valuable accession to our works of reference. 

 The Mascarene islands will be included in the enumeration. 



The Transactions and Journal of Proceedings of the Dumfriesshire 

 and Galloway Natural History Society for 1890-91 contains papers 



of botanical interest by Mr. G. F. Scott Elliot on the Dumfries- 



u tw- a ' a US ^ °^ Dumfriesshire Lichens and botanical notes 

 by Mr. James M' Andrew ; notes on the Moffat flora by Mr. J. T. 

 Johnstone. There is also a paper on - Eeferences to the Dumfries- 

 S i ™u a "* Shak espeare [!] and Burns," by Mr. James Shaw, 

 which, even as "abridged," does not merit publication. The 

 Catalogue of the Library requires much revision : it contains such 

 funny entries as, » Botanica, Philosophia. By Caroli Linnse " ; 

 ;' (Botany) General Plantarum. By Caroli Linme." The volume 

 is commendably cheap— 156 pages for Is. 6d. 



Mr. James O'Brien has heaped coals of fire on the head of Mr. 

 Joseph Chamberlain by dedicating to him a new Cypripediam, 



~~„- r ., vuauiuawiu oy aeuicating to mm a new Uijprtpedium, " a 

 charming plant, and well worthy to bear [his] ' name." Mr. 

 Chamberlain's name will thus go down to posterity inseparably 

 linked with that of one of his political opponents : « Cypripldium 

 Lhamberlainianum O'Brien " is a delightful combination. 



We are glad to see that Prof. E. L. Greene is making progress 

 with his Flora Franciscana, of which part ii. is before us. The 

 sequence of orders adopted by the author is extremely puzzling to 



