280 Scientific Intelligence, 



careless drawings have been noted, but these cases are sufficient 

 to show the caution which must be exercised in referring to the 

 illustrations. 



Another unfortunate feature of the drawings, not so much 

 due to carelessness, is the omission of important details which 

 must be relied upon, in many eases, for determination ; or often 

 the drawing of details in one case and their omission in contrast- 

 ing cases. In Aster, for instance, very important characters are 

 found in the involucre, yet hardly an involucre in the whole genus 

 is drawn with sufficient accuracy of detail to be of much help. 

 On the other hand, enlarged drawings are made in many cases of 

 both ray and disk flowers, quite useless details without any 

 readily accessible characters ; and sometimes there is a drawing 

 of a single involucral bract with no intimation whether it came 

 from the outer, inner, or intermediate series. 



In one group of Aster in particular, the section Biotia includ- 

 ing the well-known A. macrophyllus and A. corymbosus, it was 

 important that the illustrations, if any, should be perfectly accu- 

 rate; for in treating this group alone Professor E. S. Burgess has 

 described no fewer than ten new species and fourteen new varieties, 

 besides reviving three old species. In view of the extended and 

 most painstaking study which he has given this group, it was 

 hoped that the presentation of his conclusions would make quite 

 clear the diverse forms which constitute it. In this matter, how- 

 ever, we must confess great disappointment : from the descrip- 

 tions alone, it is difficult to feel certain which of the new forms 

 one has in hand. There are doubtless quite recognizable differ- 

 ences in the plants; but when the successful use of the key de- 

 pends upon one's interpretation of the exact shade of difference 

 between "predominant glands large, capitate" and "predomi- 

 nant glands minute, scarcely capitate," the student cannot help 

 wishing for good enlarged figures of the glands. In two cases 

 there are drawings presumably intended to show the glands, but, 

 as no scale of measurement is given, it is impossible to compare 

 even those with satisfaction. In attempting to make out these 

 forms the student might make fair progress, after all, were he not 

 hampered by the discrepancies between the descriptions and fig- 

 ures and even between the figures themselves. The second 

 species of the group, Aster tenebrosus, is described as having 

 "leaves very thin and smooth"; yet in the figure the leaves are 

 represented as hairy as those of A. Schreberi, with "leaves . . . 

 rough above, with scattered slender appressed bristles." The 

 basal leaves of A. curvescens are said to have " a broad shallow 

 sinus," and those of A. nob ills have "the sinus deep, broad, or 

 the lobes overlapping" ; yet in the figures it is difficult to detect 

 a shade of difference in the sinuses. The basal leaves of A. 

 roscidus are described with " the sinus deep," and the stem leaves 

 are "chiefly orbicular and not cordate, with short broadly 

 winged petioles, rarely slender-petioled " ; but in spite of the 

 description the accompanying figure shows an elliptic-ovate basal 



