88 
BOTANICAL INDEX. 
Art Gallery, given by Mr. D. W. Powers, a gentleman whose public spirit and hos- 
pitality is in keeping with his wealth and aesthetic tastes. After passing through the 
various apartments, lost in admiration of works of art, the company was summoned 
to an upper room, and we were even more delighted, if that were possible, with the 
scene which met the view. It was nature’s perfect work of fruits and flowers. The 
arrangement was so artistic that it was hard to tell which was the more perfect, art 
or nature. The Coptic of the hall was occupied by a table which extended nearly 
the entire length. It was ladened with fruits and flowers, and illuminated like an 
enchanted scene. The honored guests were escorted to seats at small tables by the 
gentlemen in attendance, after which came the invocation, and then the menu. And 
this was the “ Feast of the Goddess Pomana, at Powers’s Art Gallery,” as the pro- 
gramme stated, and it was “ a feast lit for the Gods.” After this feast, came “ the 
feast of reason and the flow of soul,” in form of toasts and responses, which I only 
refrain from giving because this article has already grown too long, even in this 
meagre sketch, which is only an outline of the proceedings of the society, which i> 
composed of many of the most prominent pomologists in the L'nited .States and 
British Provinces, and is the most noted pomological society in the world. 
II. V. A. 
RECENT PUBLICATIONS. 
Yes, we love good, instructive books, and always greet them with a hearty wel- 
come; for we are never so tired or busy that we cannot devote some time to their pe- 
rusal, and then, it is such a relief and pleasure to drop all thoughts of business, 
even for a short time, and learn from the experience, observation or investigation 
of others. 
First and most important of all the books issued of late, is Prof. Asa Gray’s New 
Botanical Text Book. Part I: Structural Botany; 442 pp. New York. Ivison, 
Blakeman, Taylor & Co., $3.00. This is its sixth edition, and has been entirely re- 
written, and many new illustaations are added to the already ample supply. This 
volume is devoted to the structure of the plants, the various shapes their parts as- 
sume, and the relations of their various organs to one another. Probably no man 
living can convey the same ideas in so few words as Prof. Gray, and while his writ- 
ings are strictly scientific, they are so plain that no one with any knowledge of the 
subject can fail to comprehend its meaning. And added to his clear and comprehensi- 
ble style of writing, is the fascinating manner with which lie leads you along in some 
of his smaller books, particularly in How Plants Behave. The first edition of this work 
was published in 1842, and the fifth in 1S57, both editions being complete in a single 
volume, but now it requires four volumes to complete the subject, as the additions to 
the knowledge of botany have made such enormous strides since 1842. It has been 
Prof. Gray’s good fortune to gather around him some of the best scholars in America, 
and in this great work he has assigned to Prof. Goodale, the distinguished experi- 
mentalist and teacher, the task of preparing the second volume, (now in course of 
preparation, Part 2, Physiological Botany, Vegetable History and Physiology.) The 
third volume (Part 3, Cryptogamic Botany, structural and systematic,) is assigned to 
Prof. Farlow, and will be devoted to flowerless plants, viz : Ferns, mosses, sea 
weeds, fungi, etc. While the fourth, and concluding volume, (Part 4, Morphology 
and economic use of the natural orders of Phaenogamous Plants,) will be the special 
work of Prof. Gray, who, we all earnestly hope may live to enjoy it as the master- 
piece of a studious life. It would be unnecessary for us to say that this work should 
be in the hands of every botanist, but earnestly request all our readers to procure a 
copy, if they have not already done so, of this as well as all of Prof. Gray’- valuable 
books. 
Kicport of the U. S. Geographical Surveys, under Lieut. G. M. Wheeler, U. S. 
Engineer, Vol. 6; Botany, by Dr. J. T. Rothroek, is an indispensable work to the 
student of our Western Flora. It is a companion to Sereno Watson’s hitherto un- 
equaled report on the Botany of Clarence King’s Surveys. It is a large quarto vol- 
ume of over 400 pages and 30 lithographic plates, of plants peculiar to the region 
west of the Mississippi River. In addition to the work done by Prof. Rothroek, lie 
was assisted by ten specialists, all eminent in their studies. 
Ferns and Flowers of the United States. — Thos. Meehan has now finished Vol. 
2, which for lack of patronage is suspended, but we hope only temporarily, for of all 
the choice and entertaining popular works this was the first. 
A Popular California Flora. — By Volney Rattan, San Francisco, published by 
A. L. Bancroft & Co. The flowers of California have been described in so many dif- 
