292 



NATURE 



[January 27, 1898 



would, we believe, find that it rests upon daring and 

 gratuitous assumptions. The present writer distinctly 

 affirms that this is true of the table of articulates on 

 p. 575, and of the table of insects on p. 595. Unfor- 

 tunately, the criticism by which this opinion might be 

 justified would be too technical, and especially too 

 lengthy, for the columns of Nature. L. C. M. 



Analytic Geometry for Technical Schools and Colleges. 

 By P. A. Lambert, M.A. Crown 8vo. Pp. xii + 216. 

 (New York ; The Macmillan Company. London : 

 Macmillan and Co., Ltd.). 



The great prominence given in the earlier chapters to 

 curve-tracing, and the fact that the plotting of both 

 algebraic and transcendental curves takes precedence of 

 more purely mathematical treatments of the line, circle, 

 and conic, renders this text-book peculiarly adapted in 

 many respects to the requirements of engineering and 

 other students whose main object is to obtain a thorough 

 drilling in graphic methods. Such a student would do 

 well to be guided by a teacher, as some early sections 

 and examples are rather hard for first reading. In the 

 later chapters the author has attempted to give an ac- 

 count of the properties usually treated in books on 

 "Analytical Conies," together with the graphic repre- 

 sentation of imaginaries, and an introduction to analytical 

 geometry of three dimensions. With this portion, he 

 can hardly be said to have been so successful. His 

 treatment of such matters as tangents, diameters, asym- 

 ptotes, and poles and polars, is very incomplete, and not 

 calculated to bring into prominence those general pro- 

 perties which render such lines of importance in the 

 geometry of conies ; indeed, we might go further and 

 say that even where no actual inaccuracies exist in the 

 text, it would require a previous knowledge of the sub- 

 ject in order to enable a student to read between the 

 lines sufficiently to avoid falling into error. Moreover, 

 too little attempt is made at "graduating" the course, 

 easy and difficult sections alternating with each other, and 

 there being rather a lack of that sequence and arrange- 

 ment which is so helpful to the beginner. Those who 

 find life too short to learn conies up to examination 

 standard will, however, be able, by the aid of the ex- 

 amples and a little outside help, to obtain a very fair 

 superficial knowledge of the subject. 



The Valley of Zermatt and the Matterhorn. A Guide. 

 By Edward Whymper. With illustrations and maps. 

 Pp. xvi -f 212. (London : John Murray, 1897.) 



This compact little volume in paper covers is designed 

 on the same plan as the author's Guide to Chamonix, 

 which was recently published. From so prominent a 

 mountaineer much may legitimately be expected in a guide 

 to one of the greatest climbing-centres in the Alps, but it 

 is almost a surprise to find so very much which is avail- 

 able for the tourist whose bent does not incline towards 

 feats of physical endurance. The first chapter is devoted 

 to the early history and rise of Zermatt, then comes a 

 history of the Matterhorn in four chapters, in which Mr. 

 Whymper nerves himself to tell once more the terrible 

 tragedy of his first ascent. The practical part of the 

 Guide follows ; hints as to the best way of reaching 

 Zermatt, particulars regarding the valley and the village, 

 and a carefully arranged series of excursions from that 

 favourite centre. Excursions from the Rififelalp and 

 other places are also described, and the opportunity is 

 taken of sketching the mountaineering history of Monte 

 Rosa. This blending of historical associations and 

 anecdotes with practical hints and instructions is perhaps 

 the most interesting feature of the Guide. 



With the exception of some lists of altitudes of peaks 

 and passes, and a geological section of the Matterhorn 

 with an explanatory note in French by Signor F. 



NO 1474- VOL. 57] 



Giordano, there is no special attention bestowed on the 

 scientific aspects of nature-study. 



The illustrations are examples of Mr. Whymper's own 

 art, and no more requires to be said concerning them. 



Practical Forestry. By C. E. Curtis. Second edition 

 revised. Pp. viii + 124. (London : Crosby Lock- 

 wood and Son, 1898.) 



No doubt a forester might gain some advantage from 

 a perusal of this book, provided he read it with caution. 

 But he would encounter several statements with which 

 he would have a difficulty in agreeing. For instance, 

 the author deliberately says, " To purchase trees, or to 

 plant by contract, are also means to ensure failure." If 

 that were true, it would be small wonder that the results 

 of forestry are not in all cases satisfactory in England, 

 where quite 90 per cent, of the plantations have been 

 formed in the ways that the book condemns. A most 

 serious slip occurs in the statement of the rule for as- 

 certaining the cubical contents of a tree, where " square 

 of the girth " appears instead of " square of the quarter 

 girth." This would not mislead a practical man, but it 

 might lead to most unpleasant consequences in the case 

 of a student who made use of the book in preparing for 

 an examination. 



Agriculture in some of its Relations with Chemistry . 

 By F. H. Storer, Professor of Agricultural Chemistry 

 in Harvard University. 3 vols. Pp. iv 4- 620, iv -f 

 602, and vi + 679. (London : Sampson Low and Co., 

 Ltd., 1897.) 



When a book has passed through seven editions in ten 

 years, and has grown from two to three volumes, there 

 can be no doubt that it has been appreciated. This 

 bulky work deals in a discursive way with the subjects 

 of soil, manures, and crops, and with many things con- 

 nected with the management of land ; the feeding of 

 animals is not discussed. A great deal of information is 

 brought together : one admires the extent of the author's 

 reading ; but after a lengthy perusal of his diffuse state- 

 ments we rise with the feeling that we have not gained 

 any really scientific grasp of the subject. The matter 

 placed before the reader has, in fact, not been digested^ 

 or the experimental results correlated ; the book is a 

 miscellany by a very well-informed man. One good 

 feature of the book is its practical character ; the 

 intelligent farmer will probably enjoy it better than the 

 man of science. R. W. 



Glimpses into Plant- Life. An Easy Guide to the Study 

 of Botany. By Mrs. Brightwen, F.E.S. Pp. 351. 

 (London : T. Fisher Unwin, 1897.) 



Thls is a pleasant little book, and will be read with interest 

 by many who enjoy a country ramble or rural life from the 

 naturalist's point of view. The authoress displays a first- 

 hand acquaintance with the plants concerning which she 

 discourses ; and if there are occasional slips' when she 

 deals with matters physiological, they will be readily 

 pardoned for the sake of the generally excellent character 

 of the book. There are some errors, however, which 

 might easily have been avoided, e.g. aeroid for aroid, on 

 p. 62. Some of the photographs of trees and bark are 

 decidedly good. 



Premature Burial : Fact or Fiction ? By Dr. David 

 Walsh. Pp.49. (London : Bailli^re, Tindall, and Cox, 

 1897.) 

 So much news is published with the idea of creating a 

 sensation, that Dr. Walsh's critical examination of some 

 of the stories of premature burials is very welcome. The 

 general conclusion arrived at is that " the theory of fre- 

 quent premature burial is unsupported by exact evidence ; 

 in other words, it occupies the position of a mere popular 

 belief or fable." 



