LITERARY NOTICES. 



627 



is a thoroughly practical guide for progres- 

 sive laboratory-practice, approaching the 

 study through morphology and botany, 

 which the professor considers the only safe 

 road to a sound knowledge. " The study 

 of living bodies," the author tells us, "is 

 really our discipline, which is divided into 

 zoology and botany simply as a matter of 

 convenience, and the scientific zoologist 

 should no more be ignorant of the funda- 

 mental phenomena of vegetable life than 

 the scientific botanist of those of animal 

 existence." 



The object of the book being to make it 

 a laboratory-guide, a number of common 

 and readily-obtainable plants and animals 

 have been selected in such a manner as to 

 exemplify the leading modifications of struct- 

 ure which are met with in the vegetable and 

 animal worlds. A brief description of each 

 is given ; and the description is followed by 

 such detailed instructions as will enable the 

 student to know, of his own knowledge, the 

 chief facts mentioned in the account of the 

 animal or plant. " The terms used in biol- 

 ogy will thus be represented by clear and 

 definite images of the things to which they 

 apply ; a comprehensive and yet not vague 

 conception of the phenomena of life will be 

 obtained ; and a firm foundation upon which 

 to build up special knowledge will be laid." 

 Beginning with yeast, gradual advance is 

 made to successive studies of protococcus, 

 proteus animalcule, colorless blood-corpus- 

 cles, bacteria, moulds, stoneworts, ferns, the 

 bean-plant, the bell animalcule, fresh-water 

 polyps (hi/dra, etc.), the fresh-water mussel, 

 the crawfish and lobster, and lastly the frog. 

 A sketch of the habitat and general charac- 

 ters, the development, mode of growth and 

 microscopic structure, anatomy, modes of 

 movement, etc., etc., of each is given, fol- 

 lowed by a schedule of laboratory-work, 

 directing the student, with the aid of excel- 

 lent figures, to the recognition of all the 

 parts of the animal or plant studied, not 

 only in their shape and position, but in their 

 relation to other parts, their functions and 

 their development. The chief labor in 

 drawing up these instructions has fallen 

 upon Dr. Martin ; but for the general plan 

 used, and the descriptions of the several 

 plants and animals, Prof. Huxley holds him- 

 self responsible. The result is a book of 

 the greatest value for beginners in the study 



of biology; supplement it by Rolleston's 

 "Forms of Animal Life," and we have a 

 whole library. Students who wish to " know 

 of their own knowledge " can certainly find 



no better guide than this. 



Lectures on Some Recent Advances in 

 Physical Science. With a Special 

 Lecture on "Force." By G. P. Tait, 

 M. A. Second edition, revised. Mac- 

 millan & Co. Pp. 363. Price, $2.50. 



Of this new edition we can only repeat 

 what we said at the appearance of the first, 

 that it will be found an instructive discus- 

 sion of modern dynamical problems, well 

 worth the perusal of all who are interested 

 in this class of questions. The pugnacious 

 temper of the author, or rather perhaps 

 the facility with which he gets into hot 

 water with other scientific men, is illus- 

 trated by the preface to the new edition, 

 which is chiefly devoted to his quarrel with 

 the German physicist, Prof. Clausius. In 

 his additional lecture on "Force" he dis- 

 cusses the different meanings that are given 

 to the term, and the confusion that results. 

 His conclusion is, that " there is probably 

 no such thing as force at all ! that it is in 

 fact merely a convenient expression for a 

 certain ' rate.' " We suspect that more 

 work will have to be done here before the 

 matter will be finally cleared up. 



Essays in Literary Criticism. By Rich- 

 ard Holt Hutton. Philadelphia : Coates 

 & Co. Pp. 355. Price, $1.50. 



It is one of the great defects in literary 

 criticism that a person who admires certain 

 books or authors cannot detect their faults, 

 and that he who is prejudiced against them 

 is unable to see their excellences. Mr. Hut- 

 ton is, in a remarkable degree, free from 

 this deficiency, and points out failings in 

 his favorite authors which even a hostile 

 critic might not have observed. His great 

 power is in being able to get at the funda- 

 mental thoughts of the men whom he criti- 

 cises. He is apparently more concerned in 

 expressing with careful minuteness all his 

 ideas on a given subject than in elaborating 

 them into an elegant style. The essays 

 which make up this volume are on " Goe- 

 the," " Nathaniel Hawthorne," " Arthur 

 Hugh Clough," " Wordsworth," " George 

 Eliot," and " Matthew Arnold." 



