REVIEW.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIX, Issue 6697, 4 October 1882, Page 3

REVIEW.

POdtPN the Open” ; A Budget of Scraps p Natural History gathered in New Zealand. ! By T. H. Potts, F.L.S. . The author has'collected iq a volume of SOO pages a number of papers “.written , by him, some of which have previously been published in the - “Field,” the , “New | Zealand Country Journal,” ‘ and other papers, others having been read,', before the Philosophical Societies of Wellington and Canterbury. The authpr states in the preface that during a residence of twenty-eight years in the colony be has betfa ia the habit of jotting-down observations on animals and: plants', that•' are day by day,,'.becoming scarcer. He has .suc : needed in placing; these before the publicin a form , . which is most - attractive. A number of birds are described in such a manner that; the reader, can find no difficulty in comprehending, although the ash tl scientific terms have not been emitted. Amusement has thus hejeh combined with instruction. A perusal of the chapter on ferns is in itself a "treat7'and “anyone" wKo"ls 'acquainted with the forest eesnery of New Zealand can easily follow the author in bis rambles as if he had actually been with him. The classified list of ferns is invaluable to amateur collectors, for it gives scientific; English, and Maori names; and des-. criptions which are easily comprehended. Who, for instance, would fail to recognise the umbrella fern (Gleichenia Cunninghaini) in the following Roots ' stont, creeping,' often interlacing,. from which proceed fronds, stout, erect, stiff, from Ift to Ht high, often several times branched ; stalks stout, smooth, bare; or

invested with scales ; branches 6m to 18in long, fan-shaped, forked, woolly at the base, divided below, only partly divided above ; tips pointed ; leaflets 4in to 6in long, half t° an inch broad ; long, narrow lance-shaped, tough. Color depends much on situation, £k3 in the case of tangle fern ; in exposed, cold situations the frenda are yellowish green, whilst in favored spots they are of a brilliant verdancy, sometimes found on mountains on the l outskirts of woods.” One of the chapters is devoted to the kea or sheepkiller, and another to a visit to the King Country.' To touch upon all the subjects which are dealt with would occupy more, space than we can afford, but we think sufficient has been said to show that the volume is both interesting and instructive, and that it deserves a place in every library. There is only one fault which we have to point out, and that is apparently entirely due to the gross carelessness of the printer. The author could hardly have written “ warn ” for wbare, nor “ tohi” for toi-toi ; nor would he have been likely to call the Maori King Tawhaio, or his former place of abode Ngaruawhaia. Misprints of this description are scattered throughout the work, and as. they have crept into the scientific terms they materially detract from its value.