Notes on Recent Literature. 
333 
Excursions, &c. 
The only special botanical excursion arranged was held on 
Saturday, September 3rd, when a large number of botanists spent 
the day in Derbyshire; visiting Grindleford, Stoney Middleton, 
Eyam, &c., under the guidance of Mr. Snelgrove. The day was a 
fine one, and everyone seemed to enjoy the relaxation from the 
more serious business of sectional meetings. The special botanical 
objective was the examination of the millstone grit and mountain 
limestone floras. 
Mr. Doncaster kindly invited the Zoological and Botanical 
members of the Association to a garden party on Tuesday afternoon. 
Unfortunately a number of members had left by this time, but 
those who were able to accept the invitation were delighted with 
Mr. Doncaster’s charmingly laid out grounds. 
Section K was fortunate in securing the services of Mr. B. H. 
Bentley as local secretary. Both he and his Assistant, Mr. A. W. 
Bartlett contributed greatly to the general success of the meeting. 
R.H.Y. 
NOTES ON RECENT LITERATURE. 
The Cactace/E, and the Study of Seedlings. 
A N interesting contribution to our knowledge of seedling 
anatomy—namely a study of the “transition phenomena” in 
seedlings of the Cactaceae—has recently been made by Miss de 
Fraine. 1 The anatomy of the seedlings of this order has hitherto 
remained unknown, but this gap in our knowledge has now been 
very thoroughly filled, since Miss de Fraine has investigated no less 
than forty-seven species, belonging to eleven genera. The most 
striking results of her enquiry into the mode of transition from 
stem- to root-structure may be briefly stated as follows 2 :— 
In the group of genera whose seedlings most closely resemble 
those of ordinary Dicotyledons ( Pereskia , Opuntia, and No pa-lea ) a 
type of transition is found corresponding to that known as the 
“ Anemarrhena type.” 3 In those genera, on the other hand, whose 
seedlings are more profoundly modified, in accordance with the 
1 Ethel dc Fraine. “The Seedling Structure of Certain Cactaceae.” 
Annals of Bot., Vol. XXIV, p. 125, 1910. 
* Summarised l.c., p. 164. 
3 Ethel Sargant. “TheOrigin of the Seed-leaf in Monocotyledons.” 
New Phytologist, Vol. I, p. 107, 1802. 
