Volume Xviii. of the =transactions of the Botanical Society of Edinburgh=

contains a complete list of Orkney plants by Prof. J. W. H. Traill. Another list is in preparation by Mr. Magnus Spence.

=The Marine Algæ of the Orkney Islands=, by G. W. Traill (Edinburgh, 1890), contains a list of the seaweeds of Orkney.

The following are some general works on botany which may be of service to the beginner:—=Open-air Studies in Botany=, by R. L. Praeger (London, 1897), a study of wild flowers in their homes, with illustrations; =Flowering Plants, their Structure and Habitat=, by C. L. Laurie, illustrated (London, 1903); =Nature Studies=, by G. F. Scott-Elliot (London, 1903); =A Plant Book for Schools=, by O. V. Darbyshire, illustrated (London, 1908); =Flowers of the Field=, by C. A. Johns (London, 1894).

=Common Objects of the Seashore=, by the Rev. J. G. Wood (London, 1866), contains good descriptions and illustrations of the seaweeds.

For identification of plants perhaps the best books are the =British Flora=, by Bentham and Hooker (London, 1904), and =Illustrations to Bentham and Hooker’s British Flora=, by Fitch and Smith (London, 1905).

For mosses, the best book is Dixon and Jameson’s =Student’s Handbook of British Mosses=.

Zoology.

For a general introduction to natural history the best books are—=Life and her Children= (London, 1880), and =Winners in Life’s Race= (London, 1882), by Miss A. B. Buckley (Mrs. Fisher), and Professor Arthur J. Thomson’s fascinating =Study of Animal Life=, which gives a list of other books on zoology.

The animals of the seashore are dealt with in Rev. J. G. Wood’s =Common Objects of the Seashore= and =Fresh and Salt Water Aquarium=; =Seaside Studies=, by G. H. Lewes; =The Aquarium=, by P. H. Gosse; and =The Aquarium, its Inhabitants, Structure, and Management=, by J. E. Taylor.

Gosse’s =Manual of Marine Zoology for the British Isles= (2 vols., London, 1856) still remains the best book for the identification of marine animals.

For the study of birds the best works are the following:—=The Birds of Shetland=, by H. L. Saxby (Edinburgh, 1884); =The Birds of the West of Scotland=, by Robert Gray; =Bird-Watching= and =The Bird-Watcher in the Shetlands=, by Edmund Selous.

Saunders’s =Manual of British Birds= (London, 1889) is the best single book for the identification of birds, each species being illustrated.

=The Vertebrate Fauna of the Orkney Islands=, by J. A. Harvie Brown and T. E. Buckley (Edinburgh, 1891), is in greater part a list of the birds of Orkney, with a short account of each.

=Orcadian Papers: being Selections from the Proceedings of the Orkney Natural History Society from 1887 to 1904.= Edited by M. M. Oharleson, F.S.A. Scot. (Stromness, 1905.) The selections are not confined to natural history, but include historical and other contributions.

Fiction, Poetry, etc.

=The Pirate.= By Sir Walter Scott.

=Poems, etc.= By David Vedder. Edited by the Rev. G. Gilfillan. (Kirkwall, N.D.)

=Poems, Tales, and Sketches.= By Lieutenant John Malcolm, with introduction by the Rev. G. Gilfillan. (Kirkwall, N.D.)

*=The Orcadian Sketch-Book.= By Walter Traill Dennison. (Kirkwall, 1880.) A unique collection of stories and poems written in the “North Isles” dialect of the Orkney vernacular.

=Orcadian Sketches.= By W. T. Dennison. With introduction by J. Storer Clouston. (Kirkwall, 1904.) A selection from the preceding.

=The Pilots of Pomona.= By Robert Leighton. (London, 1892.)

=Sons of the Vikings.= By Dr. J. Gunn, M.A. (Edinburgh, 1893. Cheaper edition, 1909.)

=The Boys of Hamnavoe.= By Dr. J. Gunn, M.A. (Edinburgh, 1894.)

=Vandrad the Viking.= By J. Storer Clouston. (Edinburgh, 1897.)

=Garmiscath.= By J. Storer Clouston. (Cheaper edition, London, 1904.)

* * * * *

In addition to the material available in book form, much excellent literature in prose and in verse, with more or less direct relation to Orkney, has appeared in various magazines above the names of Duncan J. Robertson, J. Storer Clouston, and others, specimens of which are included in the pages of this volume.

THE END.

PRINTED IN GREAT BRITAIN.