244 Scientific Intelligence. 



3. Notes on the Palceozoic Species mentioned in Lindley and 

 Huttoti's " Fossil Flora y" by R. Kidston. (Proc. Roy. Phys, 

 Soc. Edinb., vol. x," 1889-90 (1891), pp. 345-391).— The search 

 for and the consultation of type specimens, which have been 

 brought about during the last fifteen years by the renaissance of 

 Paleozoic paleobotany in Europe and the establishment of pri- 

 ority in nomenclature, have keenly emphasized the need of re- 

 vision of the older works and the frequent redescription of the 

 species. Especially the results of the examination by Zeiller of a 

 large part of Brongniart's material, and by Kidston of so much of 

 the collections of the English authors as can be found, have shown 

 from time to time that a considerable portion of the current iden- 

 tifications after the too brief descriptions and often false figures in 

 the "Histoire" or the "Fossil Flora" not only disagree among 

 themselves, but are totally different from the originals, while the 

 latter, in the case of the English work, are frequently, in the 

 present state of our knowledge, unidentifiable. Mr. Kidston's 

 "Notes" extend his observations, previously recorded in the 

 case of a part of the species, to the entire work, thus placing the 

 existing types of the " Fossil Flora " in their true positions, so 

 far as determinable, according to the judgment of the foremost 

 English authority in this field. Among the more important cor- 

 relations not so generally anticipated, are the identifications of 

 Neuropteris Sorettii and Cyclopteris dilatata with N. hetero- 

 phylla, to which also belong the Pecopteris adiantoides, and Neu- 

 ropteris heterophylla., made N Lindley an a by Sternberg on ac- 

 count of the incorrect and partially hypothetical figures. Neurop- 

 teris attenuata is a Pecopteris not specifically identifiable, while 

 Pecopteris Bucklandii is clearly a Neuropteris, probably the N 

 rarinervis Bunb. Thirty-six species founded on, or identifications 

 made from, imperfect specimens are found not to afford the neces- 

 sary characters for subsequent identification. Mr. Kidston's 

 "Notes" are valuable particularly in pointing out the inaccuracies 

 of the plates, in which the great English work appears much 

 weaker than its contemporaries. d. w. 



4. Correlation Papers : Cambrian ; by C. D. Walcott, 447 

 pp. 8vo. Bull. No. 81, U. S. Geol. Survey. Washington, 1891.— 

 Mr. Walcott has here given, in his very thorough way, a review 

 of the history of Cambrian discoveries, its synonymy, local 

 stratigraphy in each region of its occurrence, general paleon- 

 tology, subdivisions, and distribution, for North America, with 

 citations from all descriptions or accounts and discussions of the 

 various questions involved, and also with notes on the Cambrian 

 of Great Britain, Europe, China, India, Australia and South Amer- 

 ica. Following the five chapters dealing with these various sub- 

 jects, a sixth treats of the general principles of Correlation in 

 geology, as it has been presented by others and as deduced by 

 the author from his own observations. 



5. Index to the known Fossil Insects of the World, including 

 Myriapods and Arachnids ; by S. H. Scudder. Bulletin No. 7L 



