BOOK REVIEWS. 



363 



The cherry ' Belle de Magnifique, ' whose origin has provided a 

 problem to many pomologists, is described as " brought to notice by 

 Chatenay." Andre Leroy, however, considered it identical with the 

 ' Griotte commune/ a variety of great antiquity. The latter Prof. 

 Hedrick describes separately, but makes no mention of the similarity. 

 The bibliography which is given is fairly complete, but we are surprised 

 to find Thompson's excellent monograph of the cherry published in 

 the R.H.S. Transactions, Series II., vol. i., is omitted. 



The work of Aehrenthal, " Deutschlands Kernobstsorten," with 

 its excellent illustrations of cherries, was not apparently available, 

 and the modern "Deutschlands Obstsorten," with its valuable photo- 

 graphs of trees in winter state, might profitably have been referred to. 



These omissions, however, do not detract from the value of a very 

 useful work, which will doubtless remain the standard book upon the 

 subject. Happy are the people whose Government provides them with 

 such valuable information, and happier those in this country who 

 benefit by such generosity. 



" Field Book of American Trees and Shrubs : a concise description 

 of the character and colour of species common throughout the United 

 States, together with maps showing their general distribution." By 

 F. Schuyler Mathews. With numerous reproductions of water-colour, 

 crayon, and pen-and-ink studies from nature by the author. 8vo. 

 xvii + 465 pp. (Putnams, New York and London, 1915.) $2 net. 



One of the most striking facts in the geographical distribution of 

 plants is the great specific variety of arborescent forms in eastern 

 North America. Mr. Mathews, for instance, describes 22 species 

 of Finns, 4 of Larch, 8 of Spruce, 8 of Abies, 4 of Tsuga, 10 forms of 

 Juniperus, more than 30 Willows, 12 Poplars, 9 Hickories, 10 Birches, 

 6 Alders, 22 Oaks, 7 Elms, 11 species of Pyrtis, 9 of Amelanchier, 

 61 of Crataegus, 16 of Prunus, 9 each of Ilex, Acer, and Cornus, 8 of 

 Ash, and 16 of Viburnum. 



To have done justice to so extensive a tree-flora in the compass 

 of a really pocket able volume is no mean achievement. Two or 

 three species are generally described on a page ; but height, habit, 

 bark, diameter of stem, leaves, flowers, fruit, wood, habitat, distribu- 

 tion, enemies, and uses are all succinctly treated. A key to the species 

 by leaf -characters is given at the beginning of the book with a page of 

 excellent diagrams of leaf-form, and a key by bark characters, of 

 which 18 types are illustrated at the end. The copious illustrations 

 are a marked feature of the book. We do not think the 16 coloured 

 and 50 crayon drawings of the trees do much to convey any useful 

 notion of their habits ; but the 124 pages of pen-and-ink sketches 

 of details of cones, needles, leaves, flowers, and fruits, illustrating five 

 or six species on a page, are admirable. In addition to sketch maps of 

 the altitudes, geology, soil, and isotherms of the United States, there 

 are no less than 70 distributional maps, showing the areas occupied 

 by about 270 species. A good index completes what is altogether a 

 remarkably good book. 



