REVIEWS 585 



construction of the Canal. The book is a great one because it recalls a great 

 work. M. Bunau-Varilla went to Panama at the age of twenty-five in the year 

 1884, and, owing to the death of senior officials, soon found himself Acting 

 Director of the works. Owing to his great ability and energy the labour pro- 

 gressed rapidly under the French management, in spite of the terrible mortality 

 from yellow fever. The book records in the admirable French style all the difficulties 

 which were contended with, and the part played by him, not only in the early 

 developments, but in the later negotiations resulting in the retention of the Panama 

 Canal Zone as the site of this magnificent enterprise. I may venture to say here 

 that when I was in Panama in 1904, the Americans were loud in their praises of 

 the previous works of the French — with which the author was so gloriously 

 connected. The book contains many points which will interest all scientific men, 

 especially engineers, and those medical men who have been connected with the 

 prevention of disease in the tropics — though, of course, the author, being an 

 engineer, does not deal very specifically with this part of the subject, beyond 

 giving us an idea of how yellow fever impeded the work in the early days. Such 

 books, being records of great work done, should be read by every one. 



R. Ross. 



Experimental Domestic Science. By R. Henry Jones, M.Sc, F.C.S., 

 Chemical Department, Harris Institute, Preston. [Pp. ix + 235.] (London : 

 W. Heinemann, 1912. Price 2S. 6d.) 



THE promotion of domestic science is one of the most promising of recent 

 developments in modern education. It is all-important to have science, and 

 especially that of hygiene, applied to the home ; but the chief centre of science 

 in every home is undoubtedly the kitchen, and this well deserves to be elevated 

 to a higher position, and to receive more attention and study than it has done in 

 the past. It is there that energy is developed and health maintained, and without 

 due regard to proper foods and their careful preparation it is almost impossible 

 to have either a healthy or a happy and contented household. 



Any work, therefore, which contributes tangibly to attain this end is worthy 

 of consideration, and that which has just been issued by Mr. R. H. Jones is a very 

 practical and useful addition to the limited facilities now at the disposal of the 

 student. It is chiefly devoted to explaining the character, and giving the con- 

 stituents, of the different foods in every-day consumption and use, while also 

 showing the chemical changes that take place in the various processes of cooking. 

 This is very valuable and much-required information, and Mr. Jones gives it in 

 a simple, concise, and explicit form. A series of experiments are offered through- 

 out the book, which can be tried without any expert knowledge of chemistry, and 

 these should add considerable interest to the study of the subject while impressing 

 facts and results upon the memory. A number of the experiments have been 

 tested in the laboratory of the Institute of Hygiene, and they have been found 

 to be invariably accurate and quite reliable. There is, further, a series of 

 questions at the end of each chapter which should prove very useful when the 

 work is adopted as a class-book in schools. 



It is not claimed that " Experimental Domestic Science " deals with such a 

 wide subject comprehensively — that would be impossible within the limitations 

 of a comparatively small volume ; but, as far as it goes, it is well done, and it is 

 a praiseworthy effort to bring science and the home into closer touch. It repre- 

 sents a branch of study yet in its infancy, and, while it is written for and fully 



