moreover, no community on this side of the Atlantic which is under a larger indebtedness to Science than this one. By virtue of our position we enjoy, far more than any other city, the fruits of the immensely extended commerce of the country, and of the enormous development of its manufacturing and productive interests, all of which have been carried to their present high state of efficiency by the applications of Science. Our close relations and rapid intercourse with foreign nations, the constant interchange of objects of use, art, and thought, involving incessant improvement in all departments of human activity, have been fostered and perfected, either directly or indirectly, through the investigations and discoveries of the workingmen of this and kindred associations; and all the results thus achieved, whatever their form, pay tribute, in one way or another, to the prosperity of the metropolis. Then we have a right to count upon the social and educational advantages of the presence of the Association among us. By its very character it must elevate the aspirations and tastes of the people among whom it meets, in a way that, though the effect is diminished as the circle extends, is nevertheless very widely felt. Those charged with the care of our educational interests can not fail to be helped by its coming. Above all things, they need the spirit of free and independent inquiry encouraged by its meetings, and a little of which, applied to existing educational methods, could not fail to result in marked improvement. That we have something to learn in this respect, and that these visiting Associations may be able to give us material aid, was shown by the incident of the School Industrial Fair, held under the auspices of the "Industrial Educational Association of New York" in this city last year. Many schools out-side of New York were represented by exhibits showing the skill of pupils in the useful and ornamental arts, and reflecting great credit on the management I of those schools. Our city, with its boasted "system," was wholly unrepresented. But a direct result of the exhibition was to wake up the school authorities, and next time they are not likely to be found so far behind their country confrères.
It is to be regretted that the appointment of the meeting was so long delayed. Even a full year's notice is not always enough; indeed, in this respect, the example of the British Association, which fixes its place of meeting two years in advance, is to be commended. But while the time is short for the preparations necessary to make the reception one that shall be wholly worthy this great city, enthusiasm issuing in prompt and energetic action may do much to compensate for this; and it is clearly due to our self-respect, and the reputation we have for liberality abroad, that we set to work with a determination to make the meeting a notably successful one in the history of the Association.
Outlines of Classification and Special Morphology of Plants. By Dr. K. Goebel, Professor in the University of Rostock. A new edition of Sachs's Text-Book of Botany. Book II. Authorized English translation. By Henry E. F. Garnsey, M.A. Revised by Isaac Bayley Balfour, M.A., M.D., F.R.S., Sherardon Professor of Botany in the University of Oxford. With 407 Woodcuts. New York: Macmillan & Co. 1887. Pp. 500. Price, $5.25.
As stated above, this work is a new edition of Part II of Professor Sachs's "Morphological and Physiological Botany." It was prepared at the desire of Professor Sachs because of the rapid growth of discovery in this field since the publication of his work in 1873. Although the researches of Professor Sachs were largely confined to the lower groups of the vegetable kingdom, especially to the vascular cryptogams, and were here first given to the world, in Part II of his text-book. Of its 850 pages 250 sufficed for the treatment of morphology and classification. Such, however, has been the
