224 
THE JOURNAL OF BOTANY 
excluding the aliens, and the genus Indigofera which is not yet fully 
worked out, we have fifty genera and 325 species. Since the first 
Check-list of Transvaal Flowering Plants was published in 1911, the 
number of recorded species of Papilionacese has been nearly doubled. 
A large number of the genera have very few species, and there are 
few genera with many species, i. e., forty-live species are distributed 
among thirty genera, while 188 occur in four genera. As a general 
rule, the genera with few species have no endemics; the greatest 
number of endemics occur in genera with the greatest number of 
species; but some of the large genera have a small proportion of 
endemics, e. g., Crotalaria with thirty-three species and Tephrosia 
with thirty-one have only eight and nine endemics respectively. 
The species show great variation in range, even in the same genus ; 
some range almost the length of the Continent; others are restricted 
to very limited areas ; every possible variation of range between these 
two extremes is covered by the majority of the species. 
At the meeting of the Linnean Society on June 21, Mr. T. A. 
Dvmes spoke on “ Seeds of the Marsh Orchids,” his remarks being 
illustrated with lantern-slides, coloured drawings by Mrs. Godfery, and 
living specimens. He considered that these fell into two groups— 
Maculatce and Latifolice. To the first belong maculata L . = Fuchsii 
Druce, ericetorum lAnion—prcecox W ebster, and O’ Kelly i Druce ; to 
the second prestermissa Druce, incarnata L., and pur pur ell a Stephen¬ 
sons. The seeds of these groups are separable by their testal cells: in 
Maculates these are sculptured ; in Latifolies not. Further distinc¬ 
tions are: in maculata the apex and testa are curved and pointed, 
with loose coils ; the kernel in ericetorum is about one-thircl larger 
than in the other two; O' Kelly i has a long narrow seed, with close 
coils ; prestermissa has a long straight seed, not much dilated above 
the kernel; in incarnata the seed is much shorter and broader, and 
the mesh and testa are smaller ; purpurella has the smallest seed, 
with testa indented above the kernel, tapering, with small mesh. 
Seeds even from the same plant may vary greatly; there is a form 
(Orchis majalis Reich.) with uniform seeds. Questions connected 
with the forms can only be solved by systematic cultivation. Colonel 
Godfery gave an account of the occurrence of certain of the forms 
abroad, especially in the case of those which did not grow associated 
with allied forms. 
Pr.Walther Rytz’s pamphlet, Leitsdtzefur ein richtigesZitieren 
in wissenscha^tlichen Arbeiten (Ber. Schweiz. Bot. Ges. Heft xxxii. 
Beilage; Zurich, 1923, 20 pp., 60 centimes), contains an elaborate 
set of rules, with special reference to botanical literature and with 
copious examples, for the citation of scientific publications. The 
general adoption of his suggestions would lead to the saving of time 
too often unprofitably spent in running down incomplete references, or 
in tracking an “ 1. c.” to its source. It is gratifying to learn that, 
so far as England is concerned, established custom renders special 
rules of citation almost superfluous. Dr. Rytz’s recommendation, that 
references should either be grouped at the end of each work or be 
inserted as footnotes, is a counsel of perfection so long as the cost of 
printing remains at the present level.—T. A. S. 
