234 



Mycologia 



vegetative stage, of a naked mass of liquid protoplasm which, un- 

 like all other liquids, defies the laws of gravity and persistently 

 flows uphill instead of down, these organisms never cease to arouse 

 the interest of the nature student, provided their eyes are keen 

 enough to detect them at all or some one has directed their atten- 

 tion to them. 



Add to this the varied and fantastic shapes which are assumed 

 by the fruiting stage of the slime-moulds and which adorn the ugly 

 surface of rotting logs with minute feathers and cushions of the 

 most delicate structures and beautiful colors, and it is difficult to 

 select any group of either animals or plants which can furnish a 

 more fascinating subject for observation and study. Only one 

 other thing is necessary to make this work a great success, and 

 that is the personality of the man behind the book, which, while it 

 may shine out through the printed page, can never be fully appreci- 

 ated unless one, like the writer, has come into personal contact with 

 its author in the classroom. 



In matters of nomenclature the author has not followed hard 

 and fast rules, but has apparently attempted to use the oldest rec- 

 ognizable specific names without regard to rule or date. He has 

 attempted to correlate the work of America and Europe so that 

 the species common to the two continents will appear under the 

 same names in the standard American and European works, where 

 the identity can be agreed upon. One other very commendable 

 feature of the book is the extensive notes and observations which 

 supplement the technical descriptions. 



The illustrations consist of twenty-three plates as compared with 

 eighteen in the old edition. The plates are made in half-tone from 

 photographs and drawings showing habitat sketches and micro- 

 scopic details. The drawings are very well done, the sculpturing 

 of the spores and capillitium being so well shown that they can not 

 fail to arouse in the reader a desire to see actually and know more 

 of these wonderful organisms. No colored illustrations are used. 

 A copy of this book should be in the hands of not only every 

 botanist, but also of every nature student who loves to ramble in 

 the woods and fields in search of natural objects of interest. 



F. J. Seaver 



