As a matter of interest I did a check on the availabiliy of the instance that Dylan brought up, Salter's thesis on Oxalis (1944). According to Google it was unavailable, so far as I could see, from any bookseller, anywhere. So, I checked its avilability at libraries. This time Google obliged and provided a list of 26, ranging from the Huntington Library about 100 miles from here to the Piertermaritzburg University some 10500 miles away. The Huntington is a private library and does not lend to others (certainly not those in San Diego). The next closest avaliable was at Berkeley at 440 miles. There, I could have it sent to the local University of Calfornia campus but only if I became inscribed in the UC system, a matter of $100 for a year (not available to non-California residents). The book is loaned to the local UC campus for two weeks. There are quite a lot of forms required to become inscibed. No, it's not impossible to view the tract but it is a time consuming and expensive process. I guess I'll just have to wait until Google or somebody else makes it available in digital form. Andrew San Diego