BOOK NOTICES. 



THE CARIBOU. 



The 7th Annual Report of the New York 

 Zoological Society contains an interesting 

 and important paper by Mr. Madison Grant, 

 Secretary of the Society, on the caribou 

 species of North America. 



In view of the recent discoveries in North- 

 western North America, and elsewhere, of 

 a new species of caribou, Mr. Grant's paper 

 is timely and valuable. Without entering 

 on technical descriptions of the characters 

 of the various species that have been de- 

 scribed up to date, the author sets forth 

 clearly and distinctly the 2 great groups of 

 caribou, the barren ground and the wood- 

 land ; and by means of an admirable map 

 illustrates the areas occupied by each and 

 the type locality of each species thus far 

 described. Eastward of the dividing line be- 

 tween Alberta and Assiniboia, the woodland 

 caribou does not range North of the 59th 

 parallel. Westward of that region, how- 

 ever, the mountain caribou, Osborn's cari- 

 bou, and possibly others, range from North- 

 ern Idaho Northwestward, nearly to the 

 Copper river, Alaska. On the Kenai pen- 

 insula occurs Stone's caribou, and on the 

 Alaska peninsula, Grant's caribou, both of 

 which belong to the barren ground group. 

 The latest accession to the ranks of caribou 

 species is Peary's caribou, from Ellsmere 

 Land. 



The number of species accredited to the 

 barren ground group are 5, and to the 

 woodland 4; but the author does not vouch 

 for the permanency of all these forms. 



The illustrations contained in this paper 

 constitute a feature of great interest. The 

 10 plates of full length figures show some 

 exceptionally choice subjects; while the 20 

 plates which illustrate the antlers of 8 spe- 

 cies constitute a collection which every nat- 

 uralist and sportsman will value. 



In dealing with the caribou of North 

 America, as a whole, Mr. Grant handles his 

 subject with commendable judgment and 

 breadth of view. He is careful to avoid 

 conclusions that are not based on grounds 

 absolutely unassailable, but wisely leaves 

 to the future the determination of certain 

 vexed questions which can not be settled 

 until much mOre material has been secured 

 and made available. 



It is difficult to say too much in praise 

 of such papers as this, popular in form, but 

 scientifically exact, and replete with just 

 such information as every lover of wild ani- 

 mal life will appreciate and value. 



Copies of "The Caribou," bound as a 

 separate pamphlet, can be obtained of the 

 New York Zoological Society, No. 11 Wall 



street, New York city, at 40 cents each. 

 None are available for gratuitous distribu- 

 tion. 



LKARN THE PLANTS. 



"Our Northern Shrubs" is the title of a 

 book written by Harriet L. Keeler, and pub- 

 lished by Charles Scribner's Sons, New 

 York. It is planned on the same lines as 

 "Native Trees," which is also the work of 

 Miss Keeler. The purpose of the present 

 volume is to supply a complete guide to the 

 shrubs of the Northern States, by the aid 

 of which any one of them may be identified, 

 and its habits learned. Nearly all the 

 shrubs which grow in this region are il- 

 lustrated in this book, either from photo- 

 graphs or from careful and accurate pen- 

 drawings. The photographic reproductions 

 are especially clear, and the reader may 

 identify many a shrub by a simple glance 

 at one of these pictures without looking 

 at the caption. Most of the subjects are 

 shown in bloom, and some of them in the 

 seed or fruit stage as well. The descrip- 

 tions are of popular nature, so they may be 

 readily understood by the amateur nature 

 lover as well as by the trained botanist. 



Every man, woman and child who fre- 

 quents the woods or the fields should have 

 a copy of this book. It sells at $2 net and 

 may be had through any book dealer. 



Among the most delightful of the sum- 

 mer novelettes is "The Fighting Chance," 

 by Gertrude Lynch. This story first ap- 

 peared in The Smart Set, a year ago, and 

 the publishers have thought it worthy of 

 reproduction in book form. It is the story 

 of a beautiful and unscrupulous girl who 

 is intent on marriage and has 3 days 

 in which to attain it. Miss Lynch's style 

 is witty and epigrammatic, and the story 

 flows lightly and gracefully to its conclu- 

 sion, leaving the reader indisposed to quar- 

 rel with the outcome. Miss Lynch's in- 

 terest is chiefly psychological and her 

 point of view satirical. Her men and wo- 

 men flit easily through the realms of young 

 love, holy matrimony and divorce, without 

 unseemly evidence of emotion, and make 

 charmingly attractive summer companions 

 in a far too vigorous world. "The Fighting 

 Chance" is published by the Smart Set 

 Publishing Co., New York and London. 



$s 



"Florida Fancies," by F. R. Swift, is a 

 most attractive and charmingly illustrated 

 account of a 6 months' cruise through 

 Florida waters in a naphtha launch. Mr. 

 Swift is a thorough sportsman and has a 



