Geology and Natural History. 87 



to publish authentic information concerning them ; to enlist the 

 support and cooperation of the people and Government in pre- 

 serving the forests and other natural features of the Sierra 

 Nevada Mountains." The publication as a local flora is unusual 

 in character, for although it relates to a region little explored 

 botanically, rarely visited, and accessible only by pack-train, the 

 paper has been very carefully elaborated as a descriptive flora 

 with ordinal and generic keys and a pretty full characterization 

 of each species. No claim of completeness is made. As in most 

 local floras, the bryophytes and thallophytes are omitted. Further- 

 more, the grasses, sedges, and rashes, being groups of too great 

 technicality to be of special interest to the tourist, are passed 

 over with brief mention. The descriptions are clear and well 

 contrasted and the author shows excellent judgment in the limi- 

 tation of species, nomenclature, etc. While fully agreeing with 

 the sentiment expressed in a brief preface, that this flora is far 

 more valuable than the " more descriptive and popular article," 

 which might have been published in the same compass, we can- 

 not help expressing a regret that time and space did not permit 

 some phytogeographic supplement or statistical summary regard- 

 ing the elements of the interesting vegetation here treated. 



B. L. E. 



8. A Botanical Survey of San Jacinto Mountain ; by Harvey 

 Moxeoe Hall. Imper. 8vo, 140 pp., 14- pis. (University Press, 

 Berkeley, California.) — Mr. Hall's publication upon the phyto- 

 geography of San Jacinto Mountain is of interest from many 

 points of view. It is the first of a new series of scientific papers 

 emanating from the botanical department of the University of 

 California and is at once striking by the excellence of its typogra- 

 phy, its clear and attractive illustrations, methodical arrangement, 

 and full index. The region covered by Mr. Hall's studies is one 

 which is well adapted to phytogeographic records, since it exhibits 

 in a pretty restricted area exceedingly diverse climatic and floral 

 conditions, and illustrates with exceptional clearness several well 

 marked life zones. Four of these are delimited with much detail 

 upon a colored contour map of the region. The author has 

 wisely avoided the use of any complex system of phytogeographic 

 terminology and has employed his space to much better advan- 

 tage by carefully defining the expressions used. The paper closes 

 with a systematic catalogue of the spermatophytes observed on 

 San Jacinto Mountain in and above the yellow pine belt (transi- 

 tion zone). This catalogue, in which several new species and 

 varieties are characterized, not only possesses value as the local 

 flora of a very interesting mountain region, but gives confidence 

 in the thoroughness of the phytogeographic methods of the 

 author, and loses nothing from the fact that it is not lumbered up 

 with needless bibliographical references to common species and 

 well known synonymy. b. l. e. 



