5 oo SCIENCE PROGRESS 



in the United States ; and, again, four and a half pages at the end of the book 

 have to do duty for the whole of the theory and practice of electrolysis as applied 

 to organic compounds. Certainly an examination of this last chapter would 

 scarcely lead the average reader to suppose that anything was known on the 

 subject : what remains to be discovered is indeed far greater than what is known 

 in this respect, but Mr. Hale's book does scant justice to the pioneer work which 

 has already been done in the applications of electrolysis to organic chemistry. 

 The book hardly appears to the unprejudiced observer to be quite up to the high 

 standard already set by certain other monographs in the same series. 



F. A. M. 



Organic Chemistry for Advanced Students. In 3 volumes. By Julius 

 B. Cohen, Ph.D., B.Sc, F.R.S. Second edition. [Pp. viii + 366 ; vii + 

 435, with illustrations; vii + 378.] (London: Edward Arnold, 1918.) 

 Price 54-y. net. 



The first edition of this well-known work appeared in 1907, and at once became 

 the standard book on advanced organic chemistry in the English language ; since 

 then it has been freely consulted alike by teachers and students who wished to 

 acquire a comprehensive view of the advanced work done in any particular branch 

 of organic chemistry without the expenditure of time and labour involved in 

 consulting a large mass of original literature. With the lapse of time much 

 additional knowledge has been added to some of the subjects dealt with, and 

 upon the exhaustion of the first edition a thorough revision of the text has 

 accordingly been undertaken. With a view to linking together kindred subjects 

 in a consecutive form the book is now issued in three volumes, entitled Reactions, 

 Structure, and Synthesis respectively Much new matter has been added through- 

 out the book; thus, for example, we find in Volume I. an entirely new chapter, 

 entitled " Abnormal Reactions," in which are grouped together a number of very 

 different and peculiar reactions, while an article on the Walden Inversion forms a 

 valuable addition to the chapter on isomerism and stereoisomerism in Volume II. 

 In Volume III. the chapters on carbohydrates and fermentation have been 

 considerably enlarged, while the chapter on alkaloids has been brought up to date 

 by the inclusion of Perkin's recent work on cryptopin and protopin, as well as 

 Robinson's synthesis of tropinone. A section on chlorophyll has been added 

 to the chapter on proteins, and in this connection it is perhaps permissible to 

 express a regret that the author has not seen his way to include an account of 

 Willstatter's work on the anthocyan pigments. In the preface readers are 

 reminded that the book "is not intended to serve as a reference book, but to 

 furnish a general survey of those fundamental principles which underlie the 

 modern developments of this branch of chemistry," and we may add that 

 the author has succeeded most admirably in his purpose. There is no doubt 

 that in its revised form the book will attain even greater popularity than hereto- 

 fore. 



P. H. 



Plant Products and Chemical Fertilisers. By S. Hoare Collins, M.Sc, 

 F.I.C. [Pp. xvi + 236.] (London : Balliere, Tindall & Cox, 1918. Price 

 7s. bd. net.) 



NOT the least important sign of the chemical revival resulting from the war is the 

 number of new books published which deal with the various aspects of applied or 



