BOOK REVIEWS. 



60T 



aspects. The present volume was written in the PhiHppines, where 

 the author is Professor of Plant Physiology and Dean of the College 

 of Agriculture, and it is largely an account of the coconut industry 

 in those islands. The information is, however, not only of local 

 importance, but of value wherever the coconut is grown ; for, as the 

 author correctly states, a knowledge of the physiology of the palm is 

 essential to a correct understanding of its behaviour, and the physiology 

 of the tree is the same all the world over. Much of the information is 

 based on original obse vations made by the author or his students, and 

 the methods of cultivation recommended are those usually followed 

 on modern estates. The subject of diseases and pests is very fully 

 dealt with, and a rather formidable list of injurious insects is furnished, 

 but fortunately only a few of the pests mentioned do any serious 

 damage to healthy trees. The preparation of copra and the methods of 

 extracting oil are also explained so far as the practice on plantations is 

 concerned, but the author does not discuss at any length the numerous 

 and varied uses of coconut products. The book is clearly printed in 

 generous type, and contains some excellent illustrations ; the informa- 

 tion is concise and to the point, and should prove of value to those 

 intending to undertake this branch of tropical agriculture. 



"Maize : Its History, Cultivation, Handling, and Uses, with special 

 reference to South Africa." By Joseph Burt-Davy, F.L.S., F.R.C.S. 

 8vo., xl + 831 pp., with illustrations. (Longmans, London, 1914.) 

 25s. net. 



In this bulky volume the subject of maize is treated exhaustively 

 from many points of view, and the work may be considered a most 

 important contribution to agricultural literature. The importance 

 of maize as a food crop is, perhaps, scarcely realized in this country, 

 where climatic conditions are such that maize cannot be grown except 

 as green fodder ; and it is with some surprise that one learns that 

 maize heads the Hst of cereals and that the quantity annually produced 

 in the world reaches the extraordinary total of 3,875,927,000 bushels, 

 as against 3,428,998,000 bushels of wheat. Of this enormous output, 

 75 per cent, is grown in the United States, where the domestic 

 consumption per capita is 25-5 bushels, which, it is said, is the 

 heaviest rate of consumption of a ay cereal by any people in the 

 world. Although such enormous quantities are grown in the United 

 States, America is not a large exporting country, as nearly every 

 maize-grower finds it more profitable to turn the major part of his 

 crop into beef or pork before it is sold. A certain amount is also 

 eaten as a green vegetable, while some is ground into " corn meal " 

 for domestic use, so that there is little surplus available for export. 

 The largest and best single market for maize is the United Kingdom, 

 which annually absorbs something like 30,000,000 miiids, valued at 

 £15,000,000, or nearly as much as that taken by the whole of con- 

 tinental Europe. Most of the import comes from South America. 

 Besides being used for stock and poultry feeding, maize is an important 



VOL. XL. 2 s 



