A government study of the fungi that attack crops, from Victoria, Australia
Daniel McAlpine’s study covers the structure, life history, treatment and classification of the smuts. The record dates it 1910; its title page reads 1858, and nothing explains why.
The story
Daniel McAlpine’s illustrated study describes the structure, life cycles, classification and treatment of the smut fungi that affect crops. It was prepared for the Department of Agriculture in Victoria and printed in Melbourne by J. Kemp, Government Printer. The title page states 312 illustrations; that count has not been verified. The record gives 1910 as the date and notes that the date on the title page reads 1858. It does not explain the difference.
By May 1971 the book was in Lawrence, on the shelf of a reader who put the name Jerry Stannard on the flyleaf; older initials sit at the upper corner. The research reads him as probably the historian of botany Jerry W. Stannard (see below). The cloth is brown and gilt-lettered, with rubbed corners and scattered foxing; the plates and text are apparently intact, but the 312 illustrations and 56 plates have not been collated.
Details
- Date
- 1910 [title-page date reads 1858]
- Publisher
- J. Kemp, Government Printer, Melbourne
- Binding
- cloth
- Condition
- Original-looking brown gilt-lettered cloth, rubbed corners, scattered foxing and earlier ownership inscriptions. Plate illustrations visible and text apparently intact, but 312 illustrations and 56 plates not collated.
- Inscription
- Jerry Stannard / 10 May 1971 / Lawrence; earlier initials A. J. [?] at upper corner
- Interpretation
- The research reads the inscription as probably that of Jerry W. Stannard, a historian of botany then in Lawrence, Kansas: an identification by name, place, date and subject. His handwriting has not been compared. It is evidence of probable later ownership, not the author’s autograph or a presentation copy.
