November 2, 191 1] 



NATURE 



be proved to be anything further. But this does not 

 destroy anything of importance, or reduce cosmos to 

 chaos, as '"common-sense " might suppose. The world 

 of each one's experience is real enough in each one's 

 own mind, and there is no gain in attributing to it 

 any material kind of reality. The concordance, in a 

 general way, of my experience with your experience, is 

 explained by supposing a universal-thinking or domin- 

 ant Self who is thinking the world. Or, as Berkeley 

 would say, the universe exists as the thought of God. 



Our human selves are greater than their present 

 manifestations. For educative purposes, each of us 

 has been given a puppet to work and manage (our 

 bodies, namely), and we can only express ourselves very 

 inadequately through this dull mechanism. Indeed, 

 some of the faculties we are proud of are the results 

 of our limitations — for instance, reasoning. "There is 

 simply no limit to what the mind can think of were it 

 not spoilt by reasoning." Witness the marvellously 

 accurate movements of the fingers in piano-playing, 

 movements which must be supposed to be controlled 

 by intelligence, but which certainly could not be per- 

 formed at that speed if the slow consciousness had to 

 superintend every muscle-twitch. Similarly with calcu- 

 lating prodigies, who multiply six figures by six 

 figures, not in the way we multiply, but by a sort of 

 instinct. 



This philosophy, of course, includes some kind of 

 immortality, for, though the body-puppet dies, the self 

 which worked it is not thereby rendered any less alive ; 

 and it goes on experiencing, in other forms, probably 

 not spatial and temporal. 



The psychology of the book is quite admirable, and 

 even its farthest-reaching speculations (which are put 

 forward as such, and not as dogmas) are logical and 

 justifiable, from the idealist's point of view. And the 

 philosophic pill is nicely sugared with two love stories 

 which end as happily as the most benevolent reader 

 could desire. J. A. H. 



The Relative Volmnes of the Atoms of Carbon, Hydro- 

 gen, and Oxygen, when in Combination. By 

 Hawksworth Collins. Pp. 107. (London : Morton 

 and Burt, Ltd., 191 1.) Price ys. 6d. 

 The author's views on the volume relations of the 

 atoms in chemical combination differ fundamentally 

 from those of previous observers. The present book 

 deals exclusively with liquids containing carbon, 

 hydrogen, and oxygen. At 15° and atmospheric pres- 

 sure an atom of hydrogen, when in combination with 

 an atom of carbon, occupies one of four relative 

 volumes, viz., i5'25, i2'22, 9*95, and 576. The volume 

 of any one atom of hydrogen is determined by the por- 

 tion of the carbon atom to which it is attached. There 

 are four portions of the carbon atom, corresponding with 

 the valencies, and the theory implies that the valencies 

 are unequal. The relative volume of the carbon atom 

 is generally o'yi, but in certain circumstances expands 

 to 8'o. From this it follows that the volume of a 

 hydrogen atom may be twenty times that of a carbon 

 atom. Oxygen has three volumes, 2"5i, 4'45, and 

 7'53, depending on the nature of the compound and 

 the position of attachment to the carbon atom. 



This remarkable theory of atomic volumes is ex- 

 plained within the limits of four pages, and the 

 remainder of the book is occupied with the graphic 

 formulae of 100 organic compounds (alcohols, ethers, 

 &'C.). In these formulae the carbon atoms are repre- 

 sented as oblongs divided into four portions, and the 

 positions of attachment and the relative volumes of 

 all the atoms are shown. 



The author states that "the theoretical and experi- 

 mental specific gravities never differ by more than 

 o'ooi, althoue^h different experimentalists seldom agree 

 to more than two places of decimals." It is difficult 

 NO. 2192, VOL. 88] 



to see how these statements can be reconciled. More- 

 over, the author has the choice of nine volumes for 

 the three elements, whereas Kopp obtained a fair 

 agreement between observed and calculated values for 

 molecular volumes at the boiling point with one volume 

 each for carbon and hydrogen and two volumes for 

 oxygen ; it is evident, therefore, that an agreement 

 between observed and calculated values on the former 

 basis can scarcely be regarded as conclusive evidence 

 in favour of the author's theory. The theoretical dis- 

 cussion of the subject is quite inadequate, and it is to 

 be hoped that some of the more obvious omissions will 

 be repaired in the later volumes on the subject which 

 are promised. 



Forest Flora of the Siwalik and ]aunsar Forest Divi- 

 sions of the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh, 

 being a revised and enlarged edition of the Forest 

 Flora of the School Circle, N. W.P., with Analyses, 

 compiled for the use of the Students of the Imperial 

 Forest College, Dehra Dun. By U. Kanjilal. Pp. 

 xxix + 457. (Calcutta: Government Printing Office, 

 1911.) Price 1. 14 rupees for public; 1.4 rupees for 

 students. 

 Ten years have elapsed since the first edition of the 

 "Forest Flora of the School Circle, N.W.P.," was 

 published; meantime the division of the School Circle 

 has received other names for both forest and adminis- 

 trative purposes, which are given in the revised title, 

 and the author has noted certain alterations and 

 emendations that are desirable. The glossary has been 

 revised, family names have been changed in accord- 

 ance with the Vienna rules, an important addition 

 has been made in the shape of an analytical synopsis 

 of the orders and families which provides ampler 

 details for their determination, and a general revision 

 of the flora has been effected. The teaching experi- 

 ence of the author has suggested but few changes in 

 the list of species described. Only two of the addi- 

 tional species incorporated are trees, i.e. Diospyros 

 Kanjilali and Linociera intermedia; the former was 

 described in 1905 by Duthie from material supplied 

 by the author. These alterations will serve to increase 

 the usefulness of this pocket flora. 



Wilson's Folding Globe. Circumference 40 inches. 

 (London : George Philip and Son, Ltd.) Price 

 75. 6d. net, in cardboard box. 

 This ingenious device will prove of excellent service 

 to teachers of geography in assisting them to correct 

 the misleading ideas which are apt to arise in the 

 minds of young pupils by the exclusive study of flat 

 map projections. The mere fitting up of the globe, 

 with the aid of the simple accessories provided, will 

 impress upon the beginner the distortion entailed by 

 the representation of a spherical surface on a plane. 

 When placed flat, the "gores," which when arranged 

 form the globe, make up an equal scale map of the 

 world. There is sold with the folding globe a map 

 of the world on Mercator's projection, so that a proper 

 understanding of its advantages and disadvantages 

 may be secured by comparing it with the equal scale 

 map. 



A Text-book of Geography. By G. Cecil Fry. 



Second edition. Pp. xxi + 468. (London: W. B. 



Clive, University Tutorial Press, Ltd., 191 1.) Price 



4s. 6d. 

 The first edition of this book was reviewed in Nature 

 for March 11, 1909 (vol. Ixxx., p. 31). In the present 

 edition more than thirty new maps and diagrams have 

 been added, as well as a number of climatic data for 

 the principal divisions of the world. A new appendix 

 of some 350 examination questions has been intro- 

 duced. 



