X 



THE GUIDE TO NATURE 



Beekeeping. By Everett Franklin Phillips, 

 Ph.D. New York City: The Macmil- 

 lan Company. 

 The needs of the beekeeper with a few 

 colonies are considered in this book as well 

 as those of the specialist who devotes his 

 entire time to hony production. The treat- 

 ment of the subject is based wholly on fun- 

 damental principles. The author presents 

 the essential manipulations in their logical 

 order and shows the desirability of elimi- 

 nating all that is non-essential. Since tools 

 alone do not make a good beekeeper the 

 consideration of apparatuses is subordi- 

 nated, though all of the equipment is briefly 

 described and illustrated. 



it thought. The more you pay for your lens 

 and the greater its reputation the more time 

 and attention you must dcz'ofe to it in order 

 to obtain results. This statement is born of 

 actual fact." 



The Children's Book of Birds. By Olive 

 Thorne Aliller. Boston, r\las~achusetts : 

 Houghton Mifflin Company. 

 This interesting and attractive book will 

 fulfill its purpose to interest young people 

 in the ways and habits of birds, and to incite 

 them to further study. The author for 

 many years has had extensive experience in 

 talking on the subject to boys and girls in 

 the schools. She reports that the result of 

 some of these talks has been astonishing. 

 The book is well adapted to the continuing 

 of this good work in a wider range. The il- 

 lustrations too are many and effective. The 

 publishers have seconded the author's ef- 

 orts in every respect, as might be anticipat- 

 ed from their high standing and well-known 

 efficient work as publishers. 



The x\merican Annual of Photography 

 1916. Edited by Percy Y. Howe. New 

 York City: The American Annual of 

 Plhotography, Inc. Distributing Agents : 

 George Murphy, Inc., 57 East Ninth 

 Street, New York City. 

 As usual, this book contains a vast amount 

 of illustrative and textual material. To the 

 reviewer, the best article in the volume is 

 "The Anastigmat Lens and the Average 

 Amateur" by A. H. Beardsley. It is well 

 written and to the point. It covers the ques- 

 tion. Why is an anastigmat lens better than a 

 recitilinear, and why is a rectilinear not so 

 good as an anastigmat? The question has 

 caused much discussion and from this new 

 point of view both sides are right. The 

 photographer will get the most out of a lens 

 in which he firmly believes and to which he 

 is best adapted. Mr. Beardsley makes it clear 

 that that principle applies not only to a choice 

 between an anastigmat and a rectilinear, but 

 to a choice between the various kinds of anas- 

 tigmats. I have never before seen so clear 

 an explanation of the fact that a rectilinear is 

 better than an anastigmat and that the anas- 

 tigmat is also suoreme. The anastigmat is 

 better only when the photographer can use it 

 to better advantage. The following quota- 

 tion from the article is worth careful consid- 

 eration : 



"A motto handsomely framed and illumi- 

 nated by electric lights should be hung in 

 every store to read, 'Never buy an anastig- 

 mat lens without solemnly taking the oath 

 to master its proper use.' Just because you 

 paid fifty dollars for a lens in no way guaran- 

 tees you better pictures. Note this and give 



Ten Years' Work of a Mountain Observa- 

 tory. By George Ellery Hale. Washing- 

 ton, D. C. : The Carnegie Institution of 



Washington. 



This little book, published by The Car- 

 negie Institution of Washington, and beauti- 

 ful in a mechanical way, contains much of 

 value. The illustrations, particularly those 

 of the sun and the nebulae, are remarkable. 

 Every American, especially every one that 

 is interested in astronomy, must have a feel- 

 ing of pride at what is being accomplished 

 by Director Hale and his efficient assistants 

 at Mount Wilson. We cannot thank him 

 enough for placing before us these remark- 

 able results of astronomical investigations. 



The Mount Wilson Solar Observatory, 

 like other great observatories in the United 

 States, is doing the work of a big manufac- 

 tory or warehouse; it is producing and 

 storing an enormous amount of material 

 that would be interesting and useful to the 

 public. Here is shown the need of many 

 small observatories like the new one at 

 Sound Beach to disseminate this informa- 

 tion among those that crave a knowledge 

 of the wonders of the heavens. 



Wild Bird Guests : How to Entertain Them, 

 By Ernest Harold Baynes. New York 

 City: E. P. Dutton & Company. 

 Every friend of American wild birds — 

 everyone who wishes to be their friend, will 

 find this book a source of joy and inspira- 

 tion. As a result of his own wide experi- 

 ence, the author is able to show why the 

 birds are in sore need of our friendship; 

 why it is so well worth our while to give 

 it to them, and then, how we may give it to 

 them in such a way that it shall be profit- 

 able alike to the birds, to us, to our chil- 

 dren, and to the country at large. 



There is a delightfully intimate descrip- 

 tion of Meriden, N. H., "The Bird Village," 

 and of the interesting results already at- 

 tained by the residents there through fol- 

 lowing the author's methods of attracting 

 wild birds; and in later chaipters these 

 methods are described in detail, step by 

 step, so simply that even a little child may 

 follow them. Finally, for the benefit oi 

 those who may feel inspired to work with 

 him to still further advance the cause of 

 bird protection, Mr. Baynes tells exactly 

 how to organize and manage an active bird 

 club. With the assistance of his readers he 

 hopes to spread a network of such clubs 

 over the United States — the happiest pos- 

 sible solution of the problem of American 

 wild bird conservation. 



Uplifting are the mountains 

 And having them in sight. 



An inspiration to the soul. 

 E'er striving for the right. 



— Emma Peirce. 



