786 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. XXI. Xo. 542. 



different chapters are copiously illustrated, 

 largely by means of half-tone reproductions 

 or photographs of stages of actual autopsies. 

 Indeed, the book is much more fully illustrated 

 on the side of macroscopic technique than are 

 most manuals; there are only a few pictures, 

 however, representing anatomical lesions. 

 The index is full and well-arranged. 



The fact that a second edition has been 

 called for within two years of initial publica- 

 tion indicates that the book has met a dis- 

 tinct need in the country. Several improve- 

 ments over the first edition have been intro- 

 duced, including the chapter on the bones and 

 joints, and nearly thirty new illustrations. 

 Important changes have also been made in 

 various chapters during the revision. The 

 parts of the book dealing with the more 

 modern and refined methods for microscopic 

 examination of the tissues might with advan- 

 tage be expanded in another edition; room for 

 this could be obtained, perhaps, by omission 

 of some of the chapters on pathology proper, 

 as the latter will be thought by some to be too 

 long for a book on autopsy-making and yet 

 they are not full enough to serve as a text- 

 book of pathology. There are but few things 

 connected with autopsies that will not be 

 found mentioned in the volume. Some pro- 

 fessors of pathology may be inclined to use 

 smaller manuals in connection with their 

 practical teaching, urging that more than Dr. 

 Cattell thinks desirable should be left to the 

 intelligence of the student; instructors who 

 desire a full account of all the technical proc- 

 esses, helped out by a large number of good 

 illustrations, will find what they want in this 

 book. 



The publishers, too, have done their work 

 well. The volume is satisfactorily made and 

 is attractive in appearance. It deserves, and 

 will undoubtedly acquire, a wide distribution 

 among American medical students. 



Lewellys F. Barker. 



Orchidncern : Illustrations and Studies of the 

 Family Orchidaceaj, issuing from the Ames 

 Botanical Laboratory, North Easton, Massa- 

 chusetts. Fascicle I., by Oakes Ames, A.M. 

 Boston and New York, Houghton, MifBin 



& Co., The Riverside Press, Cambridge. 



1905. Pp. viii + 156. Eoyal octavo. 



From the preface we learn that the purpose 

 of this work ' is to illustrate from type ma- 

 terial, when possible, new or recently described 

 orchid species, and species heretofore inade- 

 quately figured; to publish the original de- 

 scriptions of all species so figured, with addi- 

 tional characterizations, full synonymy and 

 geographical distribution; to furnish descrip- 

 tions and descriptive lists of orchidaceous 

 plants, which may prove useful in the study 

 of regional floras ; and to communicate the re- 

 sults of critical investigations among special 

 genera.' This is certainly an ambitious un- 

 dertaking, reminding us of a number of 

 similar botanical projects undertaken during 

 the last half -century, such as Gray's ' Genera ' 

 (1848-9); Gray's 'Forest Trees of North 

 America ' (begun in 1849, but never com- 

 pleted; published as a mere fragment in 1891, 

 after the author's death) ; Goodale's ' Wild 

 Flowers of America ' (1879) ; Eaton's ' Ferns 

 of North America' (1879-80); Sargent's 

 ' Silva ' (1891-1902) and Sargent's ' Trees and 

 Shrubs' (1902-5). It is reassuring to know 

 that the present undertaking is not dependent 

 upon popular support, and that it is certain 

 to have a reasonable permanence. 



This fascicle includes descriptions and 

 plates of five new and fourteen old species, a 

 descriptive list of orchids collected in the 

 Philippine Islands by United States Govern- 

 ment botanists, a description and figure of a 

 hitherto unrecorded orchid in the United 

 States, and a paper entitled ' Contributions 

 toward a Monograph of the American Species 

 of Spiranthes.' We note with pleasure that 

 all new descriptions are in Latin, as recom- 

 mended several years ago by Professor Robin- 

 son as a corrective for the shocking illiteracy 

 of some systematists. Following the Latin 

 descriptions are somewhat more voluminous 

 descriptions in English, followed by general 

 notes, also in English. The plates are beauti- 

 fully drawn, and illustrate the anatomical de- 

 tails with great clearness and fidelity. 



The author shows a commendable conserva- 

 tism in regard to specific distinctions, as is 

 shown by the fact that he describes only five 



