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THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY 



is devoted to selection, in which the theory 

 of natural selection is stated, and criticisms 

 upon it are answered, and the theory of sex- 

 ual selection is discussed. There is an ap- 

 pendix dealing with some technical points in 

 the arguments from paleontology, and several 

 supplementary notes. The text is illustrated 

 with 125 excellent engravings. 



Practical Ethics. By William De Witt 

 Hyde, D. D. New York: Henry Holt & 

 Co. Pp. 208. Price, 89 cents. 



This is one of a number of text-books 

 that have been called forth by the recent 

 sudden increase of interest in the teaching 

 of ethics. Its arrangement is based on a 

 list of objects, such as food and drink, dress, 

 exercise, property, time, fellow-men, the poor, 

 society, and God, and it is designed to show 

 the proper relation of the individual to each 

 of these objects. In each case the author 

 sets forth the duty with regard to the rela- 

 tion, the virtue which secures the perform- 

 ance of this duty, the reward which is the 

 natural consequence of the particular virtue, 

 the temptation most likely to lead one away 

 from this virtue, the vice of defective and 

 that of excessive activity in the relation in 

 question, and the penalty of the more com- 

 mon vice. The author makes religion the 

 consummation rather than the foundation of 

 ethics. The style of the book adapts it 

 more especially to college students. 



Ethnology in Folk Lore. By George Lau- 

 rence Goxime. New York : D. Appleton 

 & Company. Pp. 203. Price, $1. 



The study of folk lore is in the element- 

 ary stage which consists in the gathering 

 of facts belonging to any part of its field 

 and wherever they may be found. Mr. Gomme 

 in the book before us has taken a step to- 

 ward raising it above this stage into one 

 in which its facts shall be grouped so as to 

 show their hidden significance, and to point 

 out lines of still more fruitful research. He 

 has chosen ethnology for his special theme 

 and marshals the available facts of folk lore 

 so as to throw light upon the history of races. 

 Thus, he maintains that practices and beliefs 

 which are preserved among European peas- 

 antry, and are in marked contrast with the 

 prevailing civilization, " are to be identified 

 with the rude culture of ancient Europe, w hich 



has been swept over by waves of higher cult- 

 ure from foreign sources." The fact that 

 such practices are most conspicuous among 

 the descendants of a conquered race, where 

 such exist side by side with the descendants 

 of their conquerors, gives support to this 

 idea. An interesting example of this is 

 found in the village festival of southern 

 India, in which the Pariahs — the casteless 

 remnant of a conquered race — appear as the 

 chief functionaries, although the dominant 

 race takes part in it. 



In a chapter on The Ethnic Genealogy of 

 Folk Lore, evidence is presented which indi- 

 cates that many beliefs and practices relat- 

 ing to the dead are derived from a primitive 

 custom of eating dead kindred — a custom 

 that still persists among some tribes of sav- 

 ages. There is much that now seems hope- 

 lessly obscure concerning the origin, early 

 movements, and mingling of races, but the 

 thorough and systematic study of folk lore, 

 in such lines as those that Mr. Gomme has 

 traced, promises to throw light into many 

 dark places. 



The Wife and Mother. By Albert West- 

 land, M. D. Philadelphia : P. Blakiston, 

 Son & Co. Pp. 282. Price, $2. 



The author states in his preface that 

 " this work is addressed to women who are 

 desirous of fulfilling properly their duties as 

 wives and mothers, and is designed to assist 

 them in exercising an intelligent supervision 

 over their own and their children's health." 

 It is a notably full and thorough treatise, 

 dealing with all the incidents of pregnancy 

 and confinement, describing the proper care 

 of the infant, and telling how the common 

 diseases of children may be recognized. The 

 accidents of miscarriage and premature con- 

 finement are described, and the extra pre- 

 cautions which they necessitate are specified. 

 In the part devoted to the child, one chapter 

 tells the average size and weight of the child 

 at birth, the usual rate of growth, at what 

 age the teeth appear, the power of walking is 

 developed, and the ability to talk is gained. 

 The style of the book is simple and concise ; 

 it is not marred by useless words or mystify- 

 ing technicalities. The author takes especial 

 care to tell what may be expected to occur 

 during the period of gestation and after 

 the birth of the child, giving the range of 



