Botany and Zoology. 409 



III. Botany and Zoology. 



1. Annals of Botany ; edited by Isaac Bayley Balfour, 

 Sidney Howard Vines, and William Gilson Farlow. Ox- 

 ford, Clarendon Press, vol. I, no. 1, August, 1887. — The charac- 

 ter of this welcome journal will be understood when we say that 

 it is worthy of the press from which it comes. The typography 

 and the illustrations leave nothing to be desired ; they place the 

 journal on an equality with Annates des Sciences Naturelles (Bo- 

 tanique) and Pringsheim's Jahrbucher. The letterpress is in 

 some respects superior to that of either of the periodicals men- 

 tioned and the plates are in every way as good. 



The scope of the Annals is wide enough : " Original papers, 

 adequately illustrated, are to be published from time to time, on 

 subjects pertaining to all branches of botanical science, including 

 Morphology, Histology, Physiology, Paleobotany, Pathology, 

 Geographical Distribution, Economic Botany, and Systematic 

 Botany and Classification." 



The first number has a preponderance of histology, the four 

 leading articles being devoted to special studies in minute struc- 

 ture, with incidental reference to physiological points. The arti- 

 cles are substantial contributions to our knowledge of the struc- 

 tures, and are of the kind with which readers of Pringsheim, the 

 French Annales, and of Botanische Zeitung are familiar. 



Then follow five minor notes, all of interest and two of them of 

 importance. Here again, histology has rather the lion's share. 

 Next, eight pages are given to a laudatory and yet very discrimi- 

 nating criticism of the English edition of Sach's Lectures on the 

 Physiology of Plants. The reviewer has succeeded in accom- 

 plishing just what Dr. Gray has so often done in the pages of this 

 Journal, namely, has shown each reader whether the book under 

 review is the sort of a book which he needs. If the reviews in 

 future numbers can be as comprehensive without prolixity, and 

 as critical without faultfinding as this review of Sachs's work is, 

 we may say that no English-speaking student of botany can 

 afford to be without the Annals. 



Forty pages are given up to an enumeration of the books and 

 pamphlets, and of the periodical literature of the science. Al- 

 though the Centralblatt and some other periodicals place these 

 titles before us with more or less completeness, in no journal of our 

 acquaintance do they appear in so convenient a form. Such lists 

 are always useful, but in this instance are rather disappointing, 

 for besides the title there is no hint of the character or even of 

 the length of the paper. It is a pleasure to note the significant 

 fact that one of the editors is an American. During the last few 

 years there has been considerable increase in interest in this country 

 in many botanical subjects other than those which belong to the 

 determination of Phanerogams. It is fitting that an American 

 representative of this interest should participate in the conduct of 

 the new journal. Moreover, Professor Farlow possesses the 

 critical faculty in a high degree, and will see well to it that con- 



