LITERARY NOTICES. 



121 



well, J. A. Garfield, and Mr. Peter Cooper. 

 Their replies are not only interesting as fur- 

 nishing the information required for its 

 practical objects, but they are also interest- 

 ing as illustrating the way American scholar- 

 ship engages with this novel and curious 

 sociological problem. Mr. Mori has pre- 

 pared an introduction to the volume, giving 

 an historical sketch of Japan, and some ac- 

 count of the present condition of its govern- 

 ment, religion, language, and people. 



Diseases op the Urinary Organs, includ- 

 ing Stricture of the Urethra, Affections 

 of the Prostate, and Stone in the Blad- 

 der. By John W. S. Gopley, M. D. 

 With One Hundred and Three Wood 

 Engravings. New York : William Wood 

 & Co., 1873. 



Amid the flood of medical works an- 

 nually poured out for the doctor's guidance, 

 it is a pleasure to find occasionally one that 

 deals, in a clear and straightforward way, 

 with the subject in hand, and is not encum- 

 bered with the endless theories and specu- 

 lations of which medical writers are so pro- 

 lific. The book before us is one of these 

 exceptional productions in medical litera- 

 ture. It is in no sense a compilation, but 

 embodies the results of an extended expe- 

 rience, both in private practice and in the 

 hospitals of this city. Yet, while thus 

 mainly founded on personal observation, 

 the claims and teachings of the many emi- 

 nent men who have illustrated this depart- 

 ment of surgery have not been overlooked. 

 The author does not undertake to go over 

 the whole of this important department of 

 medicine, but modestly limits himself to a few 

 of the graver surgical affections of the male 

 urinary organs, giving the pathology, clin- 

 ical history, and treatment of each, with full 

 and explicit directions for the various op- 

 erations involved. Whenever the use of in- 

 struments is called for, he urges, with em- 

 phatic earnestness, the necessity for the ut- 

 most care in their employment ; and this, to 

 our minds, is not the least valuable feature 

 of the book, since it is well known that 

 these and other diseases are often seriously 

 aggravated, and not unfrequently put be- 

 yond the reach of cure, by the bungling 

 manipulations of over-confident and care- 

 less operators. Dr. Gouley's abilities as a 

 practitioner are unquestioned, his success 



as a teacher has also been amply proved, 

 and the present work gives evidence, both 

 in matter and style, that he is entitled to 

 rank equally high as a clear and instructive 

 writer. 



The Microscope and Microscopical Tech- 

 nology. A Text-Book for Physicians 

 and Students. By Dr. Heinrich Fret. 

 Translated from the German, and edited 

 by George R. Cutter, M. D. New York : 

 William Wood & Co., 1872. 



We welcome the appearance, in an Eng- 

 lish dress, of Frey's excellent work. It 

 covers a far wider field than Martin's book, 

 noticed in a recent number of The Popular 

 Science Monthly ; indeed, the entire sub- 

 ject of microscopy and microscopical instru- 

 ments is treated by Dr. Frey. The author 

 devotes one-third of his work to the descrip- 

 tion of microscopic instruments, the testing 

 of them, and their uses. To the section on 

 " Testing the Microscope," the translator 

 appends a few pages of original matter, giv 

 ing the history of microscope-manufacture 

 in the United States. He shows that micro- 

 scopes of American manufacture possess all 

 the excellences of foreign instruments, plus 

 certain mechanical simplifications the prod- 

 uct of American inventive genius. 



The "Preparation of Microscopic Ob- 

 jects " has nearly 250 pages devoted to its 

 treatment. This is a very important branch 

 of the technique of microscopy, and the stu- 

 dent will find here all the practical directions 

 he needs, derived from the experience of the 

 most eminent microscopists. The purpose 

 of this portion of the work, as also of the 

 section on " Mounting," is to save the student 

 countless mortifying failures. Every micro- 

 scopist may discover for his own use the 

 best processes for preparing and mounting ; 

 but the time so spent is better spared, and 

 devoted to practical investigation. The 

 work of the microscopist is at all times ex- 

 ceedingly laborious, requiring a degree of 

 patience and application that is almost in- 

 credible. The author aims in this part of 

 his book to smooth away some of the diffi- 

 culties attending the first approaches to 

 this fascinating study ; but, if any dilettante 

 expects to find here a royal road to micro- 

 scopy, he will be most assuredly disap- 

 pointed. Of this branch of knowledge, it is 

 preeminently true that only by hard work 



