THE CHARACE^i OF AMERICA. 125 



The Characece of Atnerica. Part I. By Dr. T. F. Allen. 



New York. 1888. 8vo. Price 4 dollars. 



Dr. Allen has commenced another monograph of the American 



Characece, and the present work promises to be a much more 



practicable undertaking than the large quarto book commenced 



some years ago. The first part, now issued, is devoted to an 



account of the structure and classification of the order, it being 



proposed in a second part to give a description of the American 



species. As stated by the author in the introduction, the part 



relating to structure contains but little original matter, but a very 



fair resume is given of most of the points of interest. Several 



woodcuts from Sachs, De Bary, and Nordstedt are reproduced, and 



there are a number of others from original drawings. The latter 



are rather diagrammatic than artistic, and some of them, notably 



those of the young nucules, are unnecessarily large and clumsily 



executed. A key to all the known species is added by Dr. Nordstedt, 



closely following thafc by the same author in Braun's ■ Fragmented 



but including the plants since described and several previously 



undescribed species. Dr. Allen has adopted an excellent plan in 



giving a drawing of the peculiar characteristics of each group in 

 the key. 



The author's views on the subject of nomenclature appear to 

 be extremely vague and unsatisfactory. His opinion that all 

 pre-Braunian names " must be discarded " as representing a 

 number of different species will scarcely be adopted by any 

 botanist of the present day. In the key itself fortunately this 

 view is not supported. To get rid of all the old and uncertain 

 names in this way would of course much simplify the work of a 

 monographer, but such a course would be neither just nor conducive 

 to finality. 



The book altogether is a very useful addition to the literature 

 of the order. H. & J. Groves. 



The last (March) number of Hooker's ■ Icones Plantarum ' 

 contains a large number of interesting novelties, chiefly from 

 Tibet, China, and South Africa, and among them a new genus, 

 ^tlnothtus Oliv. (Caprifoliacese). 



Articles in Journals. 



Annah of Botany (" Feb/').— W. M. Wood worth, ■ The Apical 

 Cell of Fucus 7 (1 plate).— T. Johnson, 4 The Procarpiuni and Fruit 

 ^Gracilaria conferv<ride$ (1 plate).— J. E. Green, ' The germination 

 ot the tuber of Helianthus tuberosum: — F. W. Oliver, ■ On the sen- 

 sitive labellum of Masdk dlht mmcosa ' (1 plate).— Miss A. Bateson, 

 'The Effect of Cross-fertilisation on inconspicuous flowers.' — E. 



,a -nford, ' Microscopical Anatomy of GymnQsporatiffum macropus ' 

 |1 plate).— F. O. Bower, ' Normal and abnormal developments of 

 the oophyte in Trichogynes ' (3 plates).— D. H. Scott & H. Wager, 



boating-roots of Sesbania acideata.' — W. C, Williamson, ■ Ano- 

 malous Cells within tissues of fossil plants of coal-measures 1 



