1893- SOME NEW BOOKS. 73 



great want of the colony is settlers, energetic and industrious, with 

 some capital, and prepared to rough it a little at first. 



For further information on the colony, its beauties and resources, 

 we must refer the reader to Mr. Rodway's very readable little hand- 

 book. 



Modern Meteorology. By Frank Waldo, Ph.D. [Contemporary Science 

 Series.] London ; Walter Scott, 1893. 



On taking up this book, which is one of the Contemporary Science 

 Series, the attention is at once fixed upon the title. Why should the 

 author have chosen the exact title of a well-known existing work ? 

 This feeling of surprise is intensified by further acquaintance with 

 the contents of the book. It is not an account of the present state 

 of the Science of ]\Ieteorology. It neither completely supplements 

 nor replaces Scott's and Abercromby's work, neither is it a pictu- 

 resque and popular version. What is it then ? It is a series of 

 fragmentary essays dealing with certain branches of Meteorology. 

 There is much detail given concerning the internal arrangements and 

 routine of observatories, and there is a long account of the theories 

 of Von Bezold, Hann, and Ferrel upon the circulation of the 

 atmosphere. Indeed, the value of the book lies chiefly in this 

 latter portion, which will be very useful to those English and 

 American meteorologists who cannot read the works of the German 

 authors themselves. Whole sections of the science are either 

 omitted or referred to in a most sketchy manner. From the preface 

 it is clear that Dr. Waldo is fully aware of the true character of his 

 work, inasmuch as he remarks : " As I have been mainly a student 

 of what may be termed the German School of Meteorology, I pro- 

 bably have not brought into sufficient notice the names and work of 

 French, English, and Italian meteorologists." In other words, such 

 advances as have been made by English, Scottish, French, and 

 Italian meteorologists are scarcely referred to in a work called 

 " Modern Meteorology " ! Let the author change the title to " Some 

 Chapters in Meteorology," or " Meteorological Essays," or some 

 similar description of his work, and there will be less reason to 

 quarrel with him ; though, even then, it will be a matter of astonish- 

 ment that anyone can reprint the absurd picture on page 193. In 

 many ways the work is good and useful, but the general result is 

 disappointing. 



