Some New Books. 
29 
which is equally valuable historically and scientifically; and in this we 
are not disappointed. The present book claims to be the first history of 
the whale fisheries ever published in the English language, and it deals 
with the subject from the Basque fisheries of the tenth century, to the 
hunting of the finner whale at the present date. By the aid of in- 
numerable reproductions of old prints, quotations, and many extracts 
from out-of-the-way sources (even the penny Quarterly Records of a 
certain Yorkshire Museum being quoted), the auther has brought together 
a narrative as fascinating as any book of adventures which we have 
read in recent years. It is gratifying to find the extent to which York- 
shire has played its part in this industry. In addition to the narrative 
itself, the author gives an excellent Bibliography, though in this we fail 
to find all the items referred to in the text. Hull’s contribution to the 
volume is exceedingly gratifying, notwithstanding the statement that in 
some respects the Hull people, together with those in London, once were 
‘ interlopers.’ 
Lichens. By Annie L. Smith. London : Cambridge University 
Press, xxviiL+464 pp., 55s. net. As has been shown recently in these 
pages, there is evidence of an increased interest being taken in Botany 
other than the flowering plants, and the usually neglected Lichens have 
of late received considerable attention. Among publications which have 
been issued the present volume at once takes a premier position, and has 
the advantage of being written by one of our most brilliant students of 
Lichenology. Apparently the book has been delayed owing to war 
conditions, but this delay has enabled the author to bring the history of 
the literature on the subject, referred to in the valuable and extensive 
Bibliography, more up to date. Naturally publications of this character 
are not likely to have a tremendous demand , and bearing this in mind 
and the large amount of information in nearly 500 pages with over 100 
illustrations, the price cannot be looked upon as unreasonable. We 
must congratulate the author, editor and publishers on this excellent 
production, which will unquestionably remain the standard work on the 
subject for a considerable time. 
The Rift Valleys and Geology of East Africa. By J. W. Gregory. 
London : Seeley, Service & Co., 479 pp., 32s. net. Professor Gregory’s 
work on the great Rift Valley some years ago brought forward an entirely 
new theory to account for certain features on the African Continent, and 
since then the author has continued his researches in Australia and other 
parts of the world, subsequently returning to Africa, with the result 
that the present work has been produced. The nature of its contents 
can best be described by its sub -title, ‘ An Account of the Origin and His- 
tory of the Rift Valleys of East Africa and their Relation to the Con- 
temporary Earth-movements which Transformed the Geography of the 
World ; with Some Account of the Prehistoric Stone Implements, Soils, 
Water Supply, and Mineral Resources of the Kenya Colony.’ Dr. 
Gregory’s style is probably well known to our Geological readers, and 
requires no recommendation, though we must say in the present instance 
the extraordinary number of references and notes which occur throughout 
the text rather detracts from the straightforward narrative which we 
have been in the habit of expecting from Professor Gregory, the result 
being that a reader feels like perusing a volume of Proceedings of an 
important Geological Society rather than a book dealing with changes in 
-the earth's crust. There is a Bibliography, startling in its extent; a 
subject index, an index of authors, and an index of localities, from 
which list many minor localities have been excluded. We must admit, 
however, that from the point of view of the practical student, one index 
embracing the whole of the items would have been more acceptable. 
1922 Jan. I 
