31 



BOOK-NOTES, NEWS, &c. 



At the meeting of the Linnean Society on December 7th Mr. 

 H. N. Dixon gave an abstract of his paper on New Zealand 

 Mosses. He stated that several collectors had contributed to this 

 account, and specially referred to the mosses sent by Mr. W. Gray 

 from Mauriceville, Wairapa, North Island, which included a new 

 genus — Tetrai:)Mdopsis Broth. & Dixon. Dr. George Henderson 

 showed three variations in the foliage of Alnus glutinosa from the 

 banks of the Eiver Darenth, corresponding with varying dates of 

 leafing, leaf-fall, and fruiting. Dr. Scott, the President, spoke on 

 the changes induced by trees and shrubs being cut back, the 

 luxuriance of the new growth making them almost unrecognisable, 

 as in a case observed at Oakley, when it was found that Bhamnus 

 cathartica had assumed a new form owing to severe coppicing. 



A Bulletin (No. 328) containing notes on plant diseases has 

 been issued recently by F. C. Stewart, under the auspices of the 

 New York Agricultural Station. The author makes a general 

 survey of the diseases and malformations of the higher plants 

 which have come under observation in the New York State during 

 the last ten years. Most of these diseases are due to fungi ; but 

 troubles caused by insects and by unfavourable weather con- 

 ditions are also dealt with. A fine series of photographs illus- 

 trates the more important cases. 



Me. Hieen has published in the Transactions of the Devon- 

 shire Association for the Advancement of Science what is evi- 

 dently a careful and exhaustive account of the distribution of 

 Bubus in Devon. " For the classifiation of the species, other than 

 fossil," he tells us he has " mainly followed the leading German 

 authority. Dr. Wilhelm Olberg Focke, who has in course of publi- 

 cation or preparation his Species Buhorum ; the first part of this 

 monograph appeared in 1910." The " ample assistance " of the 

 Eev. W. Moyle Rogers is acknowledged. The only fossil species 

 mentioned is B. micro sjoermus, C. & E. M. Reid, from Bovey 

 Tracey. 



The fourth number of the Journal of Genetics, completing the 

 first volume, is mainly occupied by Miss Edith R. Saunders's 

 paper on the inheritance of " doubleness " and other characters in 

 Stocks — a continuation of the observations published in the 

 Reports to the Evolution Committee of the Royal Society. The 

 paper summarizes the results of very numerous observations, 

 many of which are conveniently displayed in tabular form. 

 Messrs. Bateson & Punnett supplement their paper lately pub- 

 lished in the Proceedings of the Royal Society so far as this 

 related to their observations on the Sweet Pea. 



A NEW quarterly magazine devoted to Scottish botany is 

 announced to appear in January, as a result of the decision on the 

 part of the Annals of Scottish Natural History to abandon its 

 botanical section — it is not stated whether a change of name will, 



