LITERARY NOTICES. 



565 



rays of a certain wave-length to be utilized 

 in the synthesis of the carbohydrates, etc. 

 The second paper is by G. N. Stewart, and 

 deals with "The Effect of Stimulation on 

 the Polarization of Nerve," and the third is 

 by W. Griffiths, " On the Rhythm of Mus- 

 cular Response to Volitional Impulses in 

 Man." The third paper presents compari- 

 sons of myograms taken from voluntarily 

 contracting muscles, and the conclusions ob- 

 tained with different muscles, different per- 

 sons, different weights, different times of 

 contraction, etc. 



The second number of the Journal of 

 Morpholorjy (Ginn) contains five papers, viz. : 

 "Ookinesis," by C. 0. Whitman; "The 

 Embryology of Petromyzon," by Dr. W. Ct 

 Scott ; " A Contribution to the Embryology 

 of the Lizard," by Dr. Henry Orr; "The 

 Foetal Membranes of the Marsupials," by 

 Dr. II. F. Osborn ; and " Some Observations 

 on the Mental Powers of Spiders," by George 

 W. and Elizabeth G. Peckham. The papers 

 are illustrated with ten plates and several 

 diagrams. 



The first part of Professor W. Preyer^s 

 observations upon the development of The 

 Mind of the Child, which relates to the 

 senses and the will, has been translated for 

 D. Appleton & Co.'s International Education 

 Series, by H. W. Brown, of the State Nor- 

 mal School, at Worcester, Mass., an institu- 

 tion in which the students are taught them- 

 selves systematically to make and record 

 observations upon the children whom they 

 meet or come in contact with. The impor- 

 tance of the subject to teachers hardly needs 

 enlarging upon ; for it is obviously one of 

 the most essential qualifications they should 

 possess for their work that they should be 

 acquainted with the nature of the object 

 which they are to operate upon, whose con- 

 tinued development they are to aid. Of all 

 the series of observations that have been 

 recorded on the mind of the child, those of 

 Professor Preyer have been probably the 

 most thorough and systematic, and are de- 

 scribed in the most lucid manner. He kept 

 a complete diary of all childish acts and 

 the acquisition of new powers from the 

 birth of his son to the end of his third 

 year; occupied himself with him at least 

 three times a day, guarding him, as far as 



possible, against such training as children 

 usually receive, and found nearly every day 

 some fact of mental genesis to record. The 

 substance of that diary has passed into this 

 book. The record is enriched by notes of 

 observations on other children and contribu- 

 tions from other persons. The whole forms 

 a valuable foundation on which teachers may 

 base their own individual studies, and a guide 

 for the right c6nducting of them. 



A paper on European Schools of History 

 and Politics, read by Mr. Andrew D. White 

 at the Johns Hopkins University in 18*79, 

 has been revised, and is published in the 

 " Studies," edited by Prof. H. B. Adams. Al- 

 though the editor puts only Mr. White's name 

 on the title-page of the pamphlet, and runs 

 the title of his paper as a heading over all 

 the pages, scarcely half of the pamphlet is 

 occupied by Mr. White's paper. The other 

 contributions are " Modern History at Ox- 

 ford," by W. J. Ashley ; " Recent Impres- 

 sions of the Ecole Libre," by T. K. Wor- 

 thington ; and " Preparation for the Civil 

 Service in German States," by L. Katzen- 

 stein, with a " List of Books upon the Ger- 

 man Civil Service." Mr. White gives" an 

 account of the recent growth of the depart- 

 ment of history and politics at some of the 

 centers of European instruction, and then 

 applies this European experience in discuss- 

 ing the need in our own country for men 

 trained in these subjects. 



In Mary F. Hyde's Practical Lessons in 

 the Use of English, book two (D. C. Heath & 

 Co.), the sound plan adopted in the former 

 volume, of bringing only correct forms to 

 the attention of the pupil, is adhered to. 

 The exercises are a step more advanced in 

 character than those of the former book, 

 and are illustrated by selections from the 

 works of Longfellow, Whitticr, and Lucy 

 Larcom. The aim observed throughout the 

 work has been to lead the pupil to see for 

 himself, to cultivate the powers of observa- 

 tion at every step ; and, instead of discuss- 

 ing why certain forms are right and others 

 wrong, to train him habitually to use the 

 right expression. 



D. C. Heath & Co. have added a second 

 part of Mrs. Julia McNair WrighVs Seaside 

 and Wayside to the series of Nature Readers. 

 It is substantially a continuation of the plan 

 developed in the first part, and describes a 



