5340 Notices of New Boohs. 



Every British naturalist should supply himself with this work, 

 for, notwithstanding the omission I have noticed above, it is an in- 

 dispensable companion to the inquirer when fixing his residence, 

 even for a week, on the coasts of our sea-girt island. 



' A Manual of the Sea- Anemones commonly found on the English 

 Coast.'' By the Rev. George Tugwell. Royal 12mo, 123 pp. 

 letterpress ; seven plates, printed in colours ; price 7s. 6d. 

 London : Van Voorst. 1856. 



" Let me premise, by way of introduction, that the ensuing pages 

 lay no claim to the character of a scientific treatise on the subject of 

 Marine Zoology, nor are they a monograph of the genus indicated by 

 the title-page." So says the author, but he only partially carries out 

 this assertion ; he does claim for the book a scientific character, as 

 many of the descriptions will show; take this, for instance, from 

 p. 18:— 



" Hydrafoems. — Polyps single and associated ; stomach without a 

 distinct wall; reproduction external; tentacles variable in number. 

 Asteroids. — Polyps associated, supported in a fleshy mass or poly- 

 pidom ; stomach with distinct walls; tentacles in definite number 

 6 — 8 ; reproduction internal. Helianthoids. — Polyps single or con- 

 nected only by a creeping stem, free or attached ; soft or encrusted 

 with lime ; stomach free ; number of tentacles indefinite ; repro- 

 duction internal." 



Now, allowing our faith to be implicit in the author's knowledge, 

 shall not we, the uninitiated, stumble at the threshold ? What does 

 the paradox u single and associated" mean ? Immediately afterwards 

 we find that Asteroids have more than one wall to their stomachs, 

 although Hydraforms have none ; and in Helianthoids it appears of 

 no consequence whether the stomachs are walled or not, but we are 

 told they are "free." The reader will recollect the author distinctly 

 disclaims having attempted " a scientific treatise." H But," inquires 

 our reader, "is it all in this style? — surely Mr. Tugwell has some- 

 thing more intelligible than this. I really don't know whether my 



