LITERARY NOTICES. 



4>3 



THE TWENTIETH BIRTHDAY OF "NA- 

 TURE." 



" Nature," now accepted as the 

 foremost scientific journal in Europe, 

 signalizes the beginning of its forty-first 

 volume by reviewing its own career 

 and the advancement of science during 

 the twenty years that have elapsed 

 since its first number was issued, in No- 

 vember, 1869. It came forward with- 

 out obtrusive advertising, and without 

 making any promises other than what 

 was implied in the statement in Prof. 

 Huxley's introductory article that its 

 aim would be " to mirror the progress 

 of that fashioning of herself in the mind 

 of man which we call the progress of 

 science." It now claims, with a justice 

 that all its readers will recognize, that 

 it "has not disappointed the hopes of 

 its founders, nor failed in the task it 

 undertook." Its pages fairly reflect the 

 aspects which scientific discussion has 

 assumed from year to year ; and every 

 established conclusion has been suitably 

 noticed in them as it gained the right to 

 claim attention. The reader can turn 

 to its columns for facts bearing on all 

 matters of interest of this kind, in the 

 assurance that he will find them there. 

 " Nature " has been able to accomplish 

 this purpose, it says, by enlisting the 

 co-operation in contributions, and by 

 advice and suggestion of the leaders in 

 all branches of research, and by show- 

 ing its desire to be for the good of sci- 

 ence and the promotion of knowledge 

 regarding these as of more impor- 

 tance than journalistic success. While 

 its most prominent function has been 

 to present at first hand the results of 

 the work of these men, it has not 

 disregarded the laity of science. Be- 

 sides taking pains to present its profes- 

 sional articles in a form acceptable to 

 the great body of unlearned inquirers, 

 it has in its correspondence department 

 given them a free parliament for discus- 

 sion. Making itself a faithful mirror of 

 scientific thought, it speedily gained 

 favor among English readers; extended 



its reputation abroad ; and became the 

 one journal indispensable to students in 

 every branch and every land. 



Its record of the achievements of 

 science during its lifetime, though con- 

 sisting only of the briefest mentions, is a 

 large one, and includes such facts as the 

 establishment of the Darwinian theory, 

 the periodic law in chemistry, the deter- 

 mination of a relation between electrici- 

 ty and light, the progress of bacteriolog- 

 ical investigation, the advance of spec- 

 troscopical discovery, the vast expansion 

 of physiological research, and many 

 other matters of hardly inferior moment. 

 In all these achievements English inves- 

 tigators are exhibited as among the most 

 active, solid in work, and thorough in 

 inquiry; and none have been more sa- 

 gacious than they in generalization and 

 in applying principles to practice. Not 

 the least important of the results is the 

 education of a generation who have suf- 

 ficient knowledge of science to recog- 

 nize its importance and give it its true 

 position ; so that, when now it points 

 out a new field of inquiry or asserts a 

 new principle, it has no longer apolo- 

 getically to face suspicion and hostility, 

 but meets a friendly and helping public. 



LITERARY NOTICES. 



Recent Economic Changes and their Ef- 

 fect upon the Production and the Dis- 

 tribution of Wealth, and the Well- 

 Being of Society. By David A. Wells, 

 LL. D., D. C. L. New York : D. Apple- 

 ton & Co. Pp. 493. Price, $2. 



Two years ago Mr. Wells contributed to 

 " The Popular Science Monthly " a series of 

 articles entitled " Recent Economic Disturb- 

 ances." They elicited so much comment and 

 discussion that the author now presents them 

 as a book. In so doing he has brought his 

 record of fact down to date, and extended 

 his review so as not merely to treat the 

 economic derangements which date from 

 1873-'74, but to include the economic his- 

 tory of the past three decades. 



In comparing the present earnings of la- 

 bor and assets of capital with the figures for 

 1860, Mr. Wells shows that the economic 



