88 Scientific Intelligence. 



tion contains so many types which no doubt are of great interest 

 anatomically, and might even serve to solve various difficult 

 problems in systematic botany. It is sad to see, however, that 

 anatomical work is so little appreciated in this country, while 

 physiological research seems to be ''fashionable." And it is 

 very astonishing that American investigators seem constantly to 

 overlook the importance of morphological and anatomical re- 

 search as the principal foundation of physiological work. 



Systematic Botany in this country had prominent leaders in 

 Nuttall, Elliott, Torrey and Gray, but we see no reason why this 

 branch of Botany should not be extended still further, in the 

 same scope as abroad. Europe has the advantage, however, of 

 having had a systematic epoch, a morphological and an anatomi- 

 cal, followed by a physiological, while in this country physiolo- 

 gical research was taken up before the systematic had been more 

 than justly commenced. While recommending Dr. Solereder's 

 book to students in this country, we hope that American investi- 

 gators will take so much interest in the work that the second 

 edition may, also, contain results gained by anatomical studies of 

 North American genera. t. h. 



3. Elements de Paleobotaniqite,^a.r R. Zeillee, Ingenieur en 

 Chef des Mines, Professeur a l'Ecole Nationale Superieure des 

 Mines. Pp. 421, 8vo. Paris, 1900. (Georges Carre et C. Naud 

 Editeurs, 3, Rue Racine.) — The present handsome volume has 

 been prepared from the botanical standpoint, and forms an 

 important addition to the small but growing group of text-books 

 on the subject which Lesquereux twenty-five years since consid- 

 ered yet in its "infancy." The work of an accomplished sys- 

 tematise the various groups of fossil plants and their principal 

 forms and relationships are treated with charming clearness and 

 precision. This text is not only a most timely one to the special 

 student, but will be indispensable to the general reader since it 

 displays so clearly the progress which has been made in Paleo- 

 botany, and the light which fossil plants shed upon problems of 

 development and descent. The mor'e important structural details 

 are succinctly treated, and a chapter on Floral succession is added. 

 The 210 figures inserted in the text add much to convenience of 

 use, and the volume is a highly satisfactory one in every respect. 



G. E. W. 



4. Lehrbuch der Pflanzenpalaeontologie mit besondererRilcksicht 

 auf die JBediirfnisse der G-eologen ; von Dr. H. Potonie. Pp. 402, 

 8vo ; with 3 plates and 355 text figures. Berlin, 1899. (Ferd. 

 Dtimmlers.) — Differing essentially from Zeiller's text-book, that 

 of Potonie approaches the subject of fossil plants with reference 

 first to the needs of the stratigrapher ; thus these two works are 

 in a large measure supplementary to each other. The treatment 

 is in fact more distinctly geological than in the case of any of the 

 text-books on Paleobotany which have yet appeared. 



The opening chapter on Vermeintliche und Zweifelhafte Fos- 

 silien is very interesting, and the closing one — Charakterisirung 



