708 



THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



order to interpret the latent powers of a 

 molecule, or the transmission of organic 

 tendencies, he must assume the intangible, 

 and endow matter with a sort of soul. He 

 also derives from his study of Nature motives 

 that are moral and a confidence akin to faith. 

 This is close upon religious territory, and the 

 preacher may utilize it. 



The substance of this volume was first 

 presented in lecture form at Andover. It is 

 suggestive, and teaches a form of monism, 

 though scarcely such as Prof. Haeckel would 

 indorse. 



Horticulture. Ten Lectures delivered for 

 the Surrey County Council. By J. 

 Wright, F. R. H. S. With Thirty-seven 

 Illustrations. Pp. 154. New York : 

 Macmillan & Co. Price, 35 cents. 



This "Primer of Horticulture" is de- 

 signed as an introduction to a scientific and 

 practical study of gardening and fruit-grow- 

 ing, either for the small householder, who 

 enjoys the care of his seven-by-nine piece of 

 ground, or for the farmer to whom the best 

 and most economical methods are matters of 

 " dollars and cents." 



The first lecture is devoted to the ques- 

 tion of land allotments, with which we in the 

 United States are not concerned. The sec- 

 ond lecture is headed The Soil, its Nature, 

 Preparation, and Improvement. This chap- 

 ter contains in clear and concise language 

 matter of the first importance to every 

 farmer — matter, in fact, without which the 

 tiller of the soil is as much handicapped as 

 was the compassless mariner — matter usually, 

 however, locked up in large, expensive, and 

 technical works, and therefore not at the 

 command of the working farmer. Lecture III 

 is devoted to the raising of " crops, plants, 

 and trees," and includes, among many other 

 important matters, a history of the seed from 

 its formation to the development into a new 

 plant ; a description of the various methods 

 of grafting, and the why and wherefore of 

 fertilization. Lecture IV treats of the 

 Food of Crops — Manuring the Soil, and, 

 like Lecture II, is full of practical instruc- 

 tion. The Enemies of Crops and Trees, in 

 the shape of weeds, birds, insects, fungi, 

 etc., are nest considered. Lecture VI deals 

 with the very important part of the farmer's 

 work — planting. In Lectures VII and Vin 



what are the most profitable crops is the 

 question answered. Lecture IX considers 

 the Preservation and Disposal of Garden 

 Produce, including Flowers and Fruit; and 

 Lecture X closes the book with a talk on 

 the desirability of exhibitions and fairs and 

 the necessity for high ideals in garden- 

 ing. The construction of the work is admi- 

 rable, and it might be read with profit by 

 many scientific men as a model for popular 

 scientific exposition. Great care has been 

 taken to select the most important aspects 

 of the topic discussed, the essential facts 

 being presented in clear and untechnical 

 language, while the subject is not overbur- 

 dened with detail. 



HOW TO KNOW THE WlLD FLOWERS. By 



Mrs. William St^rr Dana. New York : 

 Charles Scribner's Sons. Pp. 298. Price, 

 $1.50. 



This title will attract the attention of 

 lovers of Nature, especially if they are able 

 to spend the summer months in the country. 

 An acquaintance with natural history, even 

 if it be slight, unquestionably adds very much 

 to the pleasure of out-of-door life, rendering 

 interesting, localities which but for their ani- 

 mal and vegetable forms would be quite the 

 reverse, and making doubly pleasurable a 

 sojourn in a region where scenic beauties are 

 also present. The author's purpose has been 

 to give the reader a "bowing acquaintance 

 with the common wild flowers of our woods 

 and fields " ; but, while the attempt is well 

 meant, we can not say that it is a success. 

 There are descriptions of most of the com- 

 mon wild flowers of the Middle States, with 

 the exception of " flowers so common as to 

 be generally recognized," " flowers so incon- 

 spicuous as generally to escape notice," and 

 "rare flowers and escapes from gardens." 

 But the descriptions, particularly of essential 

 parts, resemble those in Gray's Manual, and 

 are too short and technical for the unin- 

 structed observer. What remains is more of 

 a literary than a scientific character, there 

 being considerable poetry and more or less 

 sentimental comment. The illustrations, of 

 which there are one hundred and four, are 

 not at all satisfactory as an aid in identifica- 

 tion, the purpose for which they are intended. 

 A classification based on colors is introduced 

 which is necessarily of little value, as the 



