The Romance of Wild Flowers. By Edward Step, F.L.S. (Frederick
Warne and Co. 6s.)—This is a volume of the "Library of Natural History Romance." Mr. Step is already known as the author of "Wayside and Woodland Blossoms,"—a guide to identifying the British wild flowers. He calls his new book a companion to the British flora, and says it is not intended for botanists, but for unscientific flower-lovers. He makes no pretension to original research, and acknowledges his indebted- ness to Darwin, Henslow, Lubbock, and others. Although not intended for scientific readers, the author follows some system in his book, so that the beginner whose first interest in plants is roused by this book, and who later becomes a scientific botanist, will have nothing to unlearn. The book is divided into some twenty chapters, each dealing with some important British natural order of plants, the arrangement following Sir Joseph Hooker's excellent "Student's Flora of the British Islands." Nearly all the British flowers are mentioned and many described, particular attention being given to the wonderful forms of stamens and pistils, and their adaptation for the purpose of cross fertilisation. as well as to the various colours and scents which
attract the necessary insects. Mr. Step's style is clear, and the illustrations by his daughter, mostly of the nature of diagrams, are good. We are not enthusiastic about the full-page pictures, though some, like the stitchwort, are very clear, and the com- frey is characteristic. But we feel sure that they are full of pleasant associations to the author, being all reproductions of photographs taken by him of the plants in their actual habitats.
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