liEYIEWS. 499 
oxygen.” Writing of the lower animals, “ Such organisms are termed acrita, 
or protozoa, and include .... the diatomacece desmidke,^^ &c. 
We should like to see the stomach and digestive cavity of the amoeba or 
tcenia, and it certainly upsets our ideas a little to learn that diatoms and 
desmids have as much claim to animality as infusoria and rhizopoda. Again, 
the writer, ignoring the researches of Huxley, Quatrefages, and others, asserts 
that aphides are remarkable for a peculiarity of their generative economy, 
particularly described by Bonnet, and which consists in the £rst fecundation 
of the female influencing not merely the ova immediately developed there- 
after, but those of the females resulting from that development, even to the 
ninth generation.” Many other instances might be pointed to ; but we shall 
content ourselves with the following : — 
Cercariae. A family of infusoria,, having an enlarged body with a slender 
tail-like appendage. The body of the true cercarice of vegetable infusores is 
rounded ; that of the zoosperms, or animalcules of the seminal secretion, is 
flattened. 
We trust that the future numbers of Dr. Brand’s dictionary may undergo such 
revision as shall lead to the prevention of blunders like those we have pointed 
out. So far as we have seen of the present issue, it is lamentably defective, 
and though some reviewers may be content to judge of the merits of the work 
from the formidable array of contributors which adorns its covers, we fancy 
that those who give themselves the trouble to dip into its pages will not 
award much praise to this ne^v edition. As we have already observed, it 
contains articles of very unequal value ; bm had there been sufficient atten- 
tion paid to the supervision of each department, the result would have been 
more satisfactory. 
A YEAB-BOOK OF FACTS.* 
A W OBK like the Oerman “ Jahr-Buch,” or the French “ Annuaire,” which 
JTjL would give in abstract a record of the various scientific discoveries 
made during the twelve months previous to its j)ublication, Avould prove a 
certain success. It would be of immense service for the purposes of reference, 
and would be read with interest by those who are desirous of watching 
scientific progress, but have not the time to peruse a number of technical 
scientific periodicals. Such a book should not be carelessly compiled, nor 
could its maferials be arranged by one individual, no matter hoAV widely com- 
prehensive his knowledge might be. The difficulties in arranging the 
materials Avould be to know what facts to reject, and how much space to 
devote to each of those selected from the great mass. We almost despair of 
ever seeing our ideal realised, and Ave must confess that Mr. Timbs’s efforts 
do not give us much hope. His book is an interesting jumble of scientific 
The Year-Book of Facts in Science and Art,” &c. 
London : Lockwood & Co. 1865. 
By John Times, F.SA. 
2 L 
VOL. IV. KO. XVI. 
