Early  Journal  Content  on  JSTOR,  Free  to  Anyone  in  the  World  
This  article  is  one  of  nearly  500,000  scholarly  works  digitized  and  made  freely  available  to  everyone  in  
the  world  by  JSTOR.    

Known  as  the  Early  Journal  Content,  this  set  of  works  include  research  articles,  news,  letters,  and  other  
writings  published  in  more  than  200  of  the  oldest  leading  academic  journals.  The  works  date  from  the  
mid-­‐seventeenth  to  the  early  twentieth  centuries.    

 We  encourage  people  to  read  and  share  the  Early  Journal  Content  openly  and  to  tell  others  that  this  
resource  exists.    People  may  post  this  content  online  or  redistribute  in  any  way  for  non-­‐commercial  
purposes.  

Read  more  about  Early  Journal  Content  at  http://about.jstor.org/participate-­‐jstor/individuals/early-­‐

journal-­‐content.    

JSTOR  is  a  digital  library  of  academic  journals,  books,  and  primary  source  objects.  JSTOR  helps  people  
discover,  use,  and  build  upon  a  wide  range  of  content  through  a  powerful  research  and  teaching  
platform,  and  preserves  this  content  for  future  generations.  JSTOR  is  part  of  ITHAKA,  a  not-­‐for-­‐profit  
organization  that  also  includes  Ithaka  S+R  and  Portico.  For  more  information  about  JSTOR,  please  
contact  support@jstor.org.  
 CURRENT LITERATURE.
BOOK REVIEWS.

Experimental physiology.
THE study of plant physiology is becoming more common, and is destined
to occupy an important place in instruction both in colleges and secondary
schools. One of the factors in the increasing attention given to this subject,
was the publication a little more than ten years ago of the first edition of
Detmer's Pflanzenfihysiologisches Prakfikumn. Many teachers have relied
upon this as the basis of a course of experiments. Darwin and Acton's book
followed and gave many useful suggestions. When, a few years ago,
MacDougal translated Oels's little book and later published a similar one as
an independent guide for the simpler laboratory 'experiments, the secondary
schools began to feel the impetus to this sort of instruction.
In i895 a second edition of Detmer's Praklikurn appeared, almost com-
pletely rewritten and much improved. This second edition has now been
translated into English by Principal S. A. Moor, of Girasia College, India,
formerly lecturer on botany in the University College of Wales.' The book
in its German form is so well known to teachers that there is nothing to say
of it in its new form, except that the translation is unusually faithful and
smooth, and that the publishers have given it a worthy dress but for the
flimsy binding. To announce the appearance of the English edition will be
enough to put it into the hands of every teacher of plant physiology who is
conducting laboratory courses. The chief regret is that the translation has
been so slow in making its appearance that it is somewhat out of date. Never-
theless, it will be very useful for students in those classes which make a
serious study of the subject as a preparation for research. Of course it must
be used with judicious omissions, and it will need to be supplemented by such
new light as has been obtained since the middle of i894. The book is con-
spicuously weak in the section on the molecular forces in plants, which was
by no means up to date at the time of the revision. But this and other
weaknesses belong to the original, which has been before the public long
enough to be thoroughly judged. It would have been, therefore, an accepta-
ble service had the translator improved it, instead of giving us an exact
reproduction.- C. R. B.
1DETMER, W.- Practical plant physiology: an introduction to original research
for students and teachers of natural science, medicine, agriculture, and forestry.
Translated from the second German edition by S. A. Moor. 8vo. pp. xx + 555. figs.
I84. London: Swan Sonnenschein & Co. New York: The Macmillan Co. $3.
1898] 215