8 54 



THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



The Students' Guide in Quantitative 

 Analysis. Intended as an Aid to the 

 Study of Fresenius's System. By H. 

 Carrington Bolton, Ph. D., Professor 

 of Chemistry in Trinity College, Hart- 

 ford, Connecticut. Illustrated. New 

 York: John Wiley & Sons. Pp. 127. 

 Price, 1.50. 



The little book before us is intended as 

 a guide for the student at his desk rather 

 than as a text-book for study ; it may be 

 called a key to the comprehensive work of 

 the distinguished Fresenius. In the latter 

 the science of quantitative analysis is ex- 

 haustively taught, but the young chemist is 

 too often bewildered by the wealth of ma- 

 terial therein presented. He can not see the 

 forest for the trees. Professor Bolton has 

 cut a path for him through the wilderness ; 

 he has selected those points which it is im- 

 portant for the student to see, and placed 

 them prominently before him. This book 

 seeks to teach the art of quantitative analy- 

 sis, without, however, entirely neglecting the 

 science that lies at its base. The author pre- 

 sents a course of thirty -six typical analyses, 

 arranged progressively from the simplest to 

 the most complex, in the order that they 

 are taken up in chemical laboratories gen- 

 erally, in the Columbia School of Mines par- 

 ticularly. The first analysis is that of 

 barium chloride ; each step in the operation 

 is given in detail, and when the student has 

 faithfully repeated these operations he has 

 learned how to estimate barium, chlorine, 

 and water cf crystallization, in almost any 

 salt. Next follows magnesium sulphate, 

 in winch he determines magnesium, sul- 

 phuric acid, and water. A few other salts 

 follow, and, when the student has become 

 familiar with chemical operations, natural 

 and technical products are given, such as 

 coal, ores, alloys, and slag, closing with 

 water, sugar, milk, and petroleum. The 

 whole course of quantitative analysis, both 

 volumetric and gravim2tric, is herein de- 

 scribed, and the student who has made the 

 analyse swith care will certainly have at- 

 tained a considerable skill in manipulation, 

 and can scarcely fail of obtaining an insight 

 into the underlying principles which would 

 enable him to devise methods adapted to 

 other cases not given in the book. To aid 

 in this, every step in each analysis contains 

 a reference to the chapter and section in 



"Fresenius," where the operation is de- 

 scribed, or to other authorities, when, as in 

 a few cases, others were made use of. For 

 this reason we have called it a " key," or 

 guide, to the study of Fresenius. The book 

 is intended as an aid to the teachers of 

 quantitative analysis, to spare them the ne- 

 cessity of explaining to each student all the 

 details of each analysis, which, in our over- 

 crowded laboratories, the teacher has no 

 time to do. It is equally suitable for "self- 

 instruction," and by its aid any young per- 

 son, with a fair knowledge of general chem- 

 istry, can, by himself, go through a course 

 of analysis, lasting say two years, that 

 would fit him for a position in a commercial 

 or technical laboratory. The work is sim- 

 ilar to Woehler's " Mineral Analysis," but 

 fuller in detail, newer in methods, and in 

 every way better suited to the wants of the 

 American student. To compare things in 

 totally different spheres, we would say that 

 it resembles the " South Kensington Cook- 

 Book," and this is no small praise. 



Astronomy for Schools and General 

 Headers. By Isaac Sharpless, Pro- 

 fessor of Mathematics and Astronomy, 

 Haverford College, and Professor G. 

 M. Phillips, Principal of State Normal 

 School, Westchester, Pennsylvania. J. 

 B. Lippincott & Co. Pp. 303. Price, 

 $1.25. 



This is a very judiciously prepared 

 school-book, neatly printed and elegantly 

 illustrated. The explanations are clear, 

 and the subject-matter of exposition well 

 chosen for popular purposes. It opens 

 with a sketch cf the history of astronomy 

 as part cf an introduction, which is followed 

 by a general view of the heavens and some 

 considerations of the usefulness of as- 

 tronomy. The solar system is then taken 

 up in Tart I, and the sidereal system in Part 

 II, while Part III is devoted to the proper- 

 ties of light and astronomical instruments. 

 There are no questions to the volume, but 

 pains are taken to give the proper pronun- 

 ciation of terms, and there are brief notices 

 of the eminent men who have contributed 

 to the progress of astronomy. No one 

 book can combine all excellences, but this 

 may be commended as well adapted for 

 general school use. 



