50 



NATURE 



[July 14, 1923 



reference to the work, at Rothamsted, of Hutchinson 

 and Clayton (1919) on tlie remarkable Spiroch^ta 

 cytophaga, which led to a study by Hutchinson and 

 Richards of aerobic cellulose decomposition as a whole, 

 resulting in a process, now in practical use, for making 

 artificial farmyard manure from straw. 



It is admittedly impossible, in a book of this type, 

 to cover all the work on bacteria in relation to agricul- 

 ture, but, as this is the case, it would seem a pity that 

 valuable space should have been given to such un- 

 important matter as, for example, the fanciful history 

 of an individual phosphorus atom (p. 185). 



The author has decided not to give references to 

 literature quoted, but instead gives three or four papers 

 with each chapter, which are selected as containing 

 fuller references to the subject. In many cases, how- 

 ever, a student would find it difficult and sometimes 

 impossible to trace the literature of work mentioned in 

 the text. This, in the reviewer's opinion, is a serious 

 defect. A text-book of this type, even though it be 

 intended merely " to stimulate curiosity and inquiry," 

 should, if it fulfils this purpose, lead the inquirer to a 

 more intimate study of the subject, and, as stepping- 

 stones to this more complete knowledge, good references 

 to literature are essential. 



There are some statements in the book which, through 

 inadvertence, are incorrect or misleading. Thus it is 

 stated (p. 35) that nitrogen-fixing bacteria must have 

 atmospheric nitrogen and oxygen, but, in fact, some are 

 anaerobic and probably all can utilise combined nitrogen 

 where this is available. Again, the author says (p. 34) 

 that." most plants cannot use nitrogen in the form of 

 ammonia ; it must be in the form of nitrates." But 

 Hutchinson and Miller (1909) and also Prianischnikov 

 (19 1 6) found a considerable variety of plants that could 

 utilise ammonia, and Hesselmann (191 7) found forest 

 soils that were devoid of bacteria capable of producing 

 nitrate. These examples could be multiplied. Prof. 

 Greaves has planned an interesting book, which, how- 

 ever, could be much more useful if some of the less 

 important matter were omitted so that the present 

 extent of our knowledge could be more completely 

 covered. H. G. Thornton. 



The Latin Works of Geber. 



Die Alchemie des Geber. Ubersetzt und erklart von 

 Dr. Ernst Darmstadter. Pp. x + 202. (Berlin: 

 Julius Springer, 1922.) 105-. 



IN this book Dr. Darmstadter has' given a German 

 translation of the " Summa perfectionis," " Liber 

 de investigatione perfectionis," " Liber de inventione 

 veritatis sive perfectionis," " Liber fornacum," and 

 " Testamentum Geberi," mainly, as regards the first 



NO. 2802, VOL. 112] 



four, from the edition published at Nuremberg in 1541 . 

 The texts of the Testamentum employed are those of 1 

 the editions of Venice, 1542, and Danzig, 1682. The « 

 translator has included also an introduction on Geber an' 

 his writings, a list of manuscripts and printed edition 

 of the Latin works, and many notes, together with ; 

 short glossary of alchemical terms. The book i 

 illustrated with excellent reproductions of six platt.^ 

 from the 1541 edition, two from Libavius's Alchymia, 

 1606, and one other, of distillation, from a book 

 published in 1512. 



While Dr. Darmstadter's book is a noteworthy 

 contribution to the voluminous literature on Geber, it 

 cannot be said to have treated the matter comprehen- 

 sively or altogether accurately. The questions of the 

 identity of Geber and of the origin of his works " sind 

 noch zu beantworten und sollen den Inhalt einer 

 besonderen Arbeit bilden," but the author adopts 

 uncritically the position of Berthelot and von Lippmann 

 and dismisses, on entirely inadequate grounds, the 

 possibility that " Geber " may be Jabir ibn Hayj^an. 

 The evidence on this point has recently been discussed in 

 Nature (February 10, p. 191 and February 17, p. 219), 

 but it may be well here again to emphasise that practi- 

 cally the only facts mentioned in the Latin works which 

 have not so far been found in the Arabic works of Jabir 

 ibn Hayyan are the preparation of aqua regia, aquafortis, 

 and silver nitrate. It is significant that even such an 

 unimportant fact as the blue copper flame, noted bv 

 Geber (p. 66), is also described by Jabir ibn Hayj^an 

 (" Book of Properties," chap. 3), and, I believe, in no 

 other work earlier than the thirteenth century. 



The list of manuscripts is incomplete. Thus there 

 is a fourteenth-century MS. of the " Summa " in the 

 Bodleian, and another in Trinity College, Cambridge, 

 while in the Hunterian Library at Glasgow there is one 

 of the thirteenth century. Dr. Darmstadter knew 

 of no MSS. of the " Liber fornacum " ; there is, how- 

 ever, one which professes to be a translation by Roger 

 Bacon, in the British Museum (Sloane, 11 18, ff. 60-71). 

 It is probably of the fifteenth century. At Gonville and 

 Caius College there is a fifteenth-century MS. of the 

 " Secreta Secretorum in opere Solaris et lunaris," 

 attributed to Geber ; the title corresponds with that 

 of a work by Jabir ibn Hayyan, the " Kitab sirr al- 

 Asrar." The Bodleian MS., " Ad laudem Socratis dixit 

 Geber " (fifteenth century), calls to mind the work of 

 Jabir entitled " Musahhihat Socrat," mentioned in the 

 " Kitab al-Fihrist," but now lost. 



The translation is good and in general accurate, but 

 it seems a pity that it was made from printed editions 

 and not from early manuscripts, when it would have 

 been much more authoritative. The notes are clear 

 and scholarly ; the information they contain is largely 



