should insist that the anthers in Smilax are unilocular but bilocellate. The diagnosis of Roxburghiacea in the conspectus distinguishes the order from Australian Liliacea only, and by an oversight the second genus of the order is said to be restricted to Japan, whereas it was founded on a North American plant. A. G. 3. Flora of Mauritius and the Seychelles: a Description of the Flowering Plants and Ferns of those Islands. By J. G. BAKER, F.L.S., etc. London: Reeve & Co. 1877. 557 pp.-Another of the British Colonial Floras, complete in one volume. Contains 112 orders, not a few of which are represented mainly by naturalized plants, 440 genera, and 1058 indigenous species. Thanks to sugar-culture and bad management, the forests of Mauritius, "which at the time when it was named by the Dutch, in 1598, covered it to the water's edge, have been by degrees cut down, till they are now almost entirely destroyed. From 467 tons .. in 1812, the amount of sugar exported increased till it reached a maximum in 1860, so that it was calculated at that time that this island, with an area of 700 square miles, produced about a tenth of the exported sugar of the whole world. The consequence is that the indigenous flora of the island, as we have it now, is a mere wreck of what it was 100 years ago, and the interesting endemic trees and shrubs. . . have either been entirely exterminated or become very rare, and that a crowd of introduced trees, shrubs, and weeds have replaced the original vegetation to a greater extent than in any other part of the world, except St. Helena." The number of introduced plants which have become established on the island is estimated at 269; that of indigenous flowering plants and ferns is 869. Rodriguez has probably suffered in the same proportion. It has now only 202 known wild species, 36 of which are peculiar. The Secheyelles, of 30 little islands, are less rich in peculiar plants than was expected: 338 wild species are known, of which 60 are peculiar. Six of them are Palms, of as many genera, Lodoicea Sechellarum, the coco de mer being the famous one. The Palms are elaborated by Dr. I. B. Balfour, the recent explorer of Rodriguez, the Orchids by S. L. Moore. We are pleased to learn that, since the publication of this volume, Mr. Baker has been elected a Fellow of the Royal Society. A. G. 4. Forest Flora of British Burma. By S. KURZ, Curator of the Herbarium, Royal Botanic Gardens, Calcutta. Published by order of the Government of India. Calcutta, 1877. 2 vols. 8vo. 1877.-Contains plain English descriptions of all the known woody plants of the district, about 2000 species, with an introductory sketch of the various kinds of forest, climatology, etc. When it is said that, "an evergreen tropical forest consisting of 200 to 300 species of trees to the square mile is almost the rule," it must be understood that shrubs are included. This work appears to be carefully done. A. G. 5. The Apocynaceae of South America; with some preliminary Remarks on the whole Family. With thirty-five plutes, to illus trate the structure of the Genera. By JOHN MIERS, F.L.S., etc. London, Williams & Norgate, 1878. 277 pp., 4to.-This venerable and indefatigable botanist has here newly elaborated a great part of an order which has in our day received attention from Alphonse DeCandolle, from J. Mueller, and lately from Bentham, in the Genera Plantarum. Many new genera are proposed, several suppressed or overlooked genera restored, their characters illustrated by the author's neat figures, and a new arrangement into classes and tribes proposed. Two of the classes are characterized by the stamens, but not sharply contrasted, the third rests upon the seed alone. In many respects the system differs widely from that of the Genera Plantarum. A. G. 6. The Student's Flora of the British Islands. By Sir J. D. HOOKER, K.C.S.L, C.B., etc. Second Edition. London, Macmillan & Co. 1878.-This new edition exceeds the old one by over thirty pages. We have not sought by comparison to ascertain the changes made; but there are indications of careful revision. The accentuation of names appears to be perfect, one or two omissions excepted. By why are not accents cast upon the types, instead of being interposed between them, making an ungainly break in the word? A really compact and portable flora like this is a great convenience. A. G. 7. Botany of Kerguelen Island.-A quarto of 86 pages and 5 plates, without title page, is received, being a part of the publication of the scientific results of the British expedition to observe the transit of Venus. It contains: 1, Observations on the Botany of Kerguelen Island, by J. D. Hooker, an interesting supplement to his former discussion of this isolated florula, strengthening the supposition of the derivation of the land plants from South America by means of former intermediate tracts of land; 2, Enumeration of the Plants hitherto collected, &c.; by the same author, except as to the Lower Cryptogamia. Of these, the Musci and Hepatica are by Mitten, Lichenes by Rev. J. M. Crombie, Marine Alga by Professor Dickie, Fresh Water Algo by Professor Reinsch, an elaborate contribution, and the few Fungi by Berkeley. A. G. 8. Ferns of North America. By Professor DANIEL C. EATON. -Parts VI and VII, issued as a double number, maintain the high character of the work for beauty and scientific exactness. Polypodium aureum is particularly well represented; so are the Grape Ferns (Botrychium), which here are in full force. The figure of Phegopteris Dryopteris is very characteristic, but flat, without the least foreshortening; Blechnum serrulatum is so reduced as to convey no idea of its port; and Adiantum pedatum is somewhat thinnish. The paper and typography are sumptuous. A. G. 9. A Manual of the Anatomy of Invertebrated Animals. By THOMAS H. HUXLEY. 8vo, 596 pp. New York: D. Appleton & Co.-The American edition of this important work was issued some months ago, but was not noticed at that time. It is a val uable compendium, both of general and special anatomy of the invertebrata, which should be in the hands of every working naturalist. It is also well adapted for the use of special students pursuing biological studies in the laboratory, but is hardly suitable for a text-book for the class room, owing to the large amount of detail introduced in many cases, and the, perhaps, unnecessarily numerous technical terms made use of. It is freely and well illustrated. A. E. V. 10. Manual of the Vertebrates of the Northern United States. Second Edition. By DAVID S. JORDAN. 12mo, 407 pp. 1878.The second edition of this work has been considerably enlarged, and many improvements have been made. The portion relating to the fishes has been largely rewritten, and the artificial keys in that group have been replaced by "natural" ones, for the genera. Most of the additions and corrections in other groups are to be found in the addenda. A. E. V. 11. The Structure and Habits of Spiders. By J. H. EMERTON. 12mo, 118 pp., with 67 cuts. Salem, Mass.: S. E. Cassino.-This excellent little book fills a place in our zoological literature hitherto entirely unoccupied. It contains very clear and interesting descriptions of the anatomy of spiders, their classification, their manners and customs and domestic economy. It is admirably illustrated by figures drawn from nature, by the skillful pencil of the author himself. Many of the figures illustrate the webs and nests of spiders with remarkable accuracy. A. E. V. 12. First Annual Report of the United States Entomological Commission, for the year 1877, relating to the Rocky Mountain Locust. With maps and illustrations. 8vo, 771 pp., 5 plates. Washington, D. C., 1878.-This extended report contains a history of the ravages of locusts in this country, with statistics, their geographical distribution, migrations, etc.; detailed descriptions of the species and others closely allied, their metamorphoses, habits, parasites, anatomy, histology, etc.; a detailed account of the various means of destroying them or diminishing their numbers, and accounts of the effects that follow their ravages; accounts of ravages of locusts in other countries; also numerous appendices, containing various collateral information. Three of the plates, drawn by Mr. J. H. Emerton, well illustrate the growth and metamorphoses of the Rocky Mountain locust, and two other closely related species of Caloptenus; the fourth plate, by Mr. C. V. Riley, illustrates their parasites; and the fifth, by Mr. C. S. Minot, illustrates the histology. A large part of the volume is devoted to the practical bearings of the subject upon the agricultural interests of the country. A. E. V. 13. On the young stages of Osseous Fishes. By ALEXANDER AGASSIZ. (From the Proceedings of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, vol. xiv.) 8vo, with 8 plates. June, 1878.This paper contains the results of the extended and careful studies of the author upon the growth and metamorphoses of this peculiar group of fishes, including the results of various experiments made to test the effects of environment upon their colors, etc. The phenomena connected with the changes in the position of the eyes, and the asymmetry of the body are fully described and illustrated. The sensitiveness of the young flounders to the character of the light or color of surrounding objects, and their remarkable powers of imitating such colors are well discussed. A. E. V. 14. Results of the Recent Eclipse; by Professor C. A. YOUNG. (From the New York Times, of August 16.)-It is early, as yet, to estimate the full scientific meaning and value of the observations made during the recent solar eclipse, but it is already evident that, though in some respects disappointing, they are yet, on the whole, of an importance quite equal to those obtained on any similar occasion. One brilliant discovery will probably date from this occasion, and hold a conspicuous place in the annals of science. The planet Vulcan, after so long eluding the hunters, showing them from time to time only uncertain tracks and signs, appears at last to have been fairly run down and captured. At least it seems to us that the observations of Professor Watson at Rawlins, and Swift at Denver, must for the present be taken as conclusive, though perhaps not settling the question beyond the possibility of reopening or dispute. The gentlemen are both astronomers of repute, accustomed to sweep for faint objects, and provided with excellent instruments. The negative results of Professors Newcomb, Wheeler, Holden and others, who with similar instruments, went over the same ground and found nothing, are, indeed, unsatisfactory and puzzling; but they can hardly outweigh the positive evidence on the other side, though they certainly justify a certain reserve in accepting the conclusion. Assuming as correct Professor Watson's estimate of the planet's brightness (four and a half magnitude), it would be more than forty times fainter than Mercury, and considering its proximity to the sun (which would make it much brighter than if at the same distance as Mercury), it would seem that its diameter must be somewhere between 200 and 400 miles. If really thus minute, it is easy to see how it has so long escaped discovery; indeed, the question at once arises whether there must not be several such Vulcans, to account for that peculiar behavior of Mercury, which led Leverrier, on purely mathematical grounds, to assert the existence of a planet or planets between Mercury and the sun. Mr. Swift, in fact, claims to have seen two bodies-Watson's and another near it. It is unfortunate that the single observation of Professor Watson cannot give definite information as to the orbit and motions of the planet; but for this purpose at least three observations are needed, and unless (as Professor Watson hopes to do) he succeeds in identifying some of the many recorded transits of small black objects across the solar disk, as observations of his planet, it may be long before we shall know anything further about it. There is, however, a bare possibility that it may be recovered in full daylight by arming a large telescope with a very long tube, pro jecting beyond the object glass, and thus enabling the observer to examine the sky within a degree or two of the sun without letting the sunlight fall upon the lens. If the experiment could be tried at a considerable altitude, where the atmospheric glare is at a minimum, the chance of success would be greatly improved. As regards the physics of the sun and the corona, the principal and most important result of all the observations bearing upon this subject is to demonstrate a decided sympathy and connection between the condition of the sun's visible surface, as indicated by the number and character of the sun spots, and the constitution of the corona. The At the present time the sun's spots are at their minimum; whole months have passed without the appearance of a single one. chromosphere, or colored envelope of hydrogen and other gases which immediately surrounds the sun, has also been correspondently quiescent, and the so-called "prominences" have been few and small. Of course it was a question of interest whether the corona also would show a corresponding difference of condition from that indicated in 1869 and the later eclipses, when the Sun's surface was in full activity, and the question has received an emphatic and affirmative answer. As to the brightness of the corona at the recent eclipse, there is considerable difference of opinion. The writer, and he thinks a large majority of those who also saw the eclipse of 1869, is strongly of the impression that in 1869 the corona, though perhaps less extensive, was many times more brilliant, while the corona in 1870 seemed to him intermediate between those of 1869 and 1878. Some of the best observers, however, are of quite the contrary opinion, and it is frankly to be admitted that one's judgment as to the brightness of an object like the corona depends so much upon the condition of the eye at the moment of observation, and that condition so depends upon what the eye has been doing for the last few moments preceding, that no very great weight is to be assigned to such impressions. The writer feels, however, considerable confidence in his estimate of the relative brightness of the three eclipses, because in all three cases his observations were made under almost precisely similar circumstances-near the middle of the eclipse, and after about a minute of close spectroscopic work. While, however, there may be room to question the conclusion that the corona this year was uncommonly faint, there can be no question that its spectrum was profoundly modified. The bright lines which come from its gaseous constituents were conspicuous in 1869 and in all the subsequent eclipses until the present one, but this year they were so faint as to be seen by only a few of the observers, while the great majority missed them entirely, seeing only a continuous spectrum. This was especially remarkable in the case of the green corona line (known as "1474” from its position upon Kirchhoff's map of the solar spectrum). Many observers saw it plainly just at the beginning and end of totality, but during the middle of the eclipse nearly all entirely |