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POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



sistent with the given proposition or state of 

 facts. The uneliminated propositions which 

 automatieally remain in the ReaFoning Frame 

 will then give us every iota of truth which 

 our data will yield." Aside from the signs 

 and the device of the Reasoning Frame, the 

 treatise does not appear to differ materially 

 from other good treatises on the subject. 

 The author's explanations are fairly clear. 

 A complete index is an excellent feature. 



An unusual and fascinating biography is 

 that of Sir Richard Burton,* the explorer 

 and linguist, written by his niece. One does 

 not know whether to wonder more at the ex- 

 tent of his travels or at his indefatigable in- 

 dustry in language study. The titles of sixty 

 odd books are included in the list of his 

 works, among them being an entire volume 

 of the Royal (reogi-aphical Society, transla- 

 tions of Portuguese and Arabic, and several 

 grammars of Hindu dialect. His joumey- 

 ings were equally varied. We find him 

 dwelling in the far East, in India and Ara- 

 bia ; later, crossing the Andes and pampas, 

 in Brazil and Paraguay ; now discovering the 

 lakes in Central Africa, then investigating 

 Utah, or exploting the mines of Iceland. 

 Patient, persistent, undaunted by difficulties, 

 he was admirably fitted by nature for the 

 task of exploration. Had he been equally 

 keen to read humankind, his local success 

 among men might have been greater. Yet 

 he may not have lacked discernment, but the 

 will to be politic. Society is the rather to be 

 arraigned, if, as we are told, " the habit of 

 veracity sadly hindered him at times in his 

 struggle with the world." 



There is reason to believe that intellectual 

 American women have somewhat surfeited 

 themselves on the long-forbidden fruit of 

 an education "just like the men's." They 

 seem now to realize that the idea of a 

 " woman's sphere " can have its dignity as 

 well as its limitations, and that the posses- 

 sion of acute perception, clear reasoning 

 ability, and high power of application can 

 be shown in the wholesome and economical 

 provisioning of a family and the efficient 

 management of children and servants no less 

 than in struggles with Greek roots and mathe- 



* The True Life of Captnin Sir Richard F. Bur- 

 ton. Bj Georgiana M. Stisted. New York : D. 

 Appleton & Co. Pp. 419. Price, $2. 



matical operations. The household arts are 

 getting an increased share of attention both 

 in women's clubs and in women's and coedu- 

 cational colleges. A book now before us 

 embodies a course of lectures on home man- 

 agement delivered in the University of Wis- 

 consin.* These lectures give a general view 

 of the field, presenting what might be called 

 the theory of their subject, and using practi- 

 cal details merely by way of illustration or 

 to give definiteness to the views set forth. 

 After a preliminary chapter on the Statics and 

 Dynamics of Household Economy, Mrs. Camp- 

 bell considers first the house. These are 

 some of the principles that she lays down as 

 regards building : 



The plan of the house includes beforehand not 

 only all that has been sai i as to location and its 

 bearingp, but alt^o the settling of the cost and au 

 intelligent idea of the special family needs. Here 

 a woman's judgment is absolutely essential. It 

 is the woman who lives chiefly in the house, and 

 who, if common sense were brought to bear, 

 would soon put an end to the type of thing the 

 average builder offers her. Why should we per- 

 petually go up and down when going sideways is 

 so much easier ? Why should we accept stupidly 

 planned and inadequate closets or no closets at 

 all, and kitchens in which everything is calculated 

 to bring the greatest unhappiness to the greatest 

 number ? The utmost convenience in every inch 

 of working space should be the law. The differ- 

 ence between a pantry opening close to the sink 

 and one at the opposite end of the room may seem 

 a small matter ; but when it comes to walking 

 across the room with every dish that is washed, 

 the steps soon count as miles. 



With regard to decoration, she urges the 

 claims of the simple and elegant as against 

 the flashy and trashy, and insists that the 

 adornment of a useful article should never 

 interfere with its use. Thus she says : " The 

 pitcher that does not pour well can not be 

 beautiful, though of gold. . . . The spider- 

 legged table and its insect family of chairs 

 the things that creak when we sit down and 

 tip over when we get up these are not 

 beautiful." Her treatment of domestic in- 

 dustries in general, the nutrition of the house- 

 hold, cleaning, and household service is in 

 the same line. An excellent list of books 

 for further study is added to each chapter. 

 Lists of subjects for the use of women's clubs 

 in studying household economy and iufonna- 



* Household Economics. By Helen Campbell. 

 New York : G. P. Putnam's Sous. Pp. 2S6, 12mo. 

 Price, $1.50. 



