The Vegetable World: being a History of Plants, with their structure and peculiar properties

Abstract

NOTWITHSTANDING its ambitious title, this is, on the whole, a satisfactory book. If, however, in dependence on the title, it is ordered in the expectation of finding anything that will replace Lindle's “Vegetable Kingdom,”or Baillon's “Histoire des Plantes”—at least, what this latter will be when finished, if it ever is finished —the purchaser will be disappointed. We have here a repetition of the old plan of attempting to compress into one small octavo volume an account of the Morphology, Physiology, Classification, and Geographical Distribution of plants. As far as can be, as we have said, the execution is good; some parts are even exceptionally well done; the defects are those of the plan. The style of Figuier's original work, florid and Gallic to excess, is entirely unsuited to the English reader; the “adapter ”has used his pruning-knife with judicious severity, and has produced a book that may fill a useful place in popularising the study of botany, and leading the way to fuller and more special treatises.

The Vegetable World: being a History of Plants, with their structure and peculiar properties.

Adapted from the work of Louis Figuier. New and Revised Edition, with 473 Illustrations. (London: Cassell, Petter, and Galpin.)