— 128— 



he has produced a volume that will become the object of much 

 criticism he has also produced an excellent illustration of what 

 the recently proposed rules of nomenclature, and new concep- 

 tions of species are capable of when allowed full swing. Al- 

 though not agreeing with his conclusions, even conservative bot- 

 anists will appreciate the author's consistency and he is to be 

 congratulated upon the completion of his work. To those who 

 prefer the less elaborate manual, Dr. Small's book will always 

 be indispensable for reference. 



Mr. Charles T. Druery, well known on this side of the At- 

 lantic as an enthusiastic cultivator of ferns, has issued a book 

 devoted principally to British fern varieties, which he has 

 named "The Book of British Ferns."* In this work he has 

 been assisted by various members of the British Pteridological 

 Society, an association similar to our Fern Chapter, and of 

 which Mr. Druery is president. As is well known the British 

 fern hunter and fern cultivator is most interested in the abnor- 

 mal forms of ferns, and as a result so many of these have been 

 described that a complete list numbers more than a thousand, 

 though there were less than seventy-five native species to begin 

 with. Mr. Druery's task has been to select from this list the 

 really meritorious varieties from the cultural standpoint. To 

 this revised list he has added papers on the culture and propo- 

 gation of ferns, fern hunting, fern crossing, apospory and kin- 

 dred subjects, making a volume which should be of interest to 

 American readers for the light thrown upon fern life. The book 

 is well printed and well illustrated, the forms shown being 

 mostly the more striking varieties. 



*The Book of British Ferns. By Charles T. Druery, F. L. S., V. M. 

 H. London. George Newnes, Ltd. 1903. 12 mo. 135 pp. $1.25. 



