Februap-y 17, 1916]' 



/VA'TU^E 



675 



[914 he ascribetl these 



dberg^ series lines. In 



^ciies to proto-helium. 



.An Engflish writer would have referred to the 

 Franklin-Adams star charts, and instead of the 

 atlases of Heis, Schurig:, or Upton, British 

 readers will no doubt prefer, according to am- 

 bition and purses, Cottam's charts, or the atlases 

 of Peck, Proctor, or Norton. 



It is a decided merit of the book that it con- 

 tains a large number of references to original 

 publications. Moreoverj it is well printed and 

 free from typographical faults (a gross example 

 was noticed on p. 165). It may be pointed out 

 that the " Rutherford " severar times mentioned 

 -hould be " Rutherfurd," and that a revised edition 

 nf the late Miss Gierke's "System of the Stars" 

 appeared about ten years ago. These two books, 

 it may be stated, are in a degree complementary. 

 H. E. GooDSON. 



■ OUR BOOKSHELF. 



ohol and the Human Body. By Sir Victor 



Horsley and Dr. M. D. Sturge. Fifth edition. 



Pp. xxviii4-339. (London : Macmillan and Go., 



Ltd., 191 5.) Price is. net. 

 I\ this book, which has now reached a fifth edition, 



striking array of statements and facts is 



.rshalled on the deleterious effects of alcohol on 

 the human body. The first chapter deals with the 

 action of alcohol as a drug, the second with the 

 chemistry of alcohol and of alcoholic beverages. 

 The remainder of the book deals with the action 

 and effects of alcohol— on the cell, on the various 

 tissues and organs, on the metabolism of the body, 

 aiid on the emotions. Concluding chapters dis- 

 cuss the relation of alcohol to disease and tropical 

 conditions, and its use in the Services, and finally 

 Dr. Arthur Newsholme sums up the influence of 

 the drinking of alcoholic beverages on the 

 national health. 



The authors are well known for their pro- 

 nounced views on the alcohol question, and the 

 bpok must therefore be regarded as being some- 

 what of a partisan nature, but a good case is made 

 " 1 for the deleterious effects of alcohol even in 



ill quantities, and as a general summary of the 

 .. :iule alcohol question there is probably no better, 

 with the limitation expressed. The text is plenti- 

 fully illustrated with a number of plates and draw- 



s of the effects of alcohol on the tissues, etc., 



1 with diagrams of statistical and other data. 



ceedings of the Yorkshire Geological Society. 



\ ol. xviii. Bibliographv of Yorkshire Geology 



(C. Fox-Strangways Memorial Volume). By 



T. Sheppard. Pp. xxxvi-f-629. (London, Hull, 



and York: A. Brown and Sons, Ltd., 1915.) 



Price 155. net. 



\oRKSHiRE long ago made its appeal to geologists 



on account of its magnificent coast-sections, carved 



out of strata abounding in marine remains. In 



NO. 2416, VOL. 96] 



memory of the work of the late Mr. C. Fox- 

 Strangways, who was so long connected with the 

 Geological Survey, the Yorkshire Geological 

 Society has issued a bibliography which will be 

 of value wherever Carboniferous, Jurassic, and 

 Qlacial deposits arouse interest. The work has 

 been based on an incomplete manuscript prepared 

 by Mr. Fox-Strangways, and has been undertaken 

 in a most thorough spirit by Mr. T. Sheppard, of 

 the Hull Museums, who is well known by his 

 "Geological Rambles in East Yorkshire." 



The material is arranged chronologically, begin- 

 ning with Leland's "Itinerary " of 1534. We are 

 glad to see Holinshed's "Chronicle " (1577) quoted 

 as adding something to geology, though here, 

 probably, a page-reference should have been given. 

 The mineral waters attracted scientific attention 

 before the fossil molluscs ; but we find M. Lister 

 in 1671 acknowledging in Yorkshire the influence 

 of "M." Steno "concerning Petrify 'd shells." 

 An index of 126 pages renders reference easy, 

 and even delightful, to the bibliography. The 

 search for some particular piece of information at 

 once reveals how much more has been published 

 than any reader could have suspected from his 

 own general knowledge. 



G. A. J. C. 



Chemical Constitution and Physiological Action. 

 By Prof. L. Spiegel. Translated, with addi- 

 tions, from the German by Dr. C. Luede- 

 king and .\. C. Boylston. Pp. iv + 155. 

 (London: Constable and Co., Ltd.,, 191 5.) 

 • Price 55. net. 



This modern branch of treatment is based upon 

 organic chemistry, and in the synthetic prepara- 

 tion of remedies a knowledge of the relationship 

 between chemical constitution and physiological 

 action is obviously necessary. This knowledge, 

 however, is not so advanced that it is possible 

 to foretell what change in a drug's action will 

 be produced by the introduction into it, or the 

 removal from it, of certain organic radicals 

 (alkyls, carboxyl, etc.). Certain chemists take 

 a different view, and hold that data have suffici- 

 ently accumulated to warrant such predictions, 

 and the little book under review is written from 

 that point of view. 



Pharmacologists and therapeutists, however, 

 who alone have the right to pronounce an opinion 

 because they have practical experience of the 

 action of drugs, are opposed to this enthusiastic 

 opinion. They know that the so-called law§ of 

 the chemists have so many exceptions (in. fact, 

 as a rule, the exceptions are more numerous than 

 the cases which fit into the chemists' views) that 

 they maintain that the only proof of a drug is 

 the administration thereof. Accurate, careful, 

 and critical discussion of these questions will be 

 found in any standard English text-book of 

 pharmacology, and it is not easy to understand 

 why anyone should have considered it worth while 

 to present to English readers a translation of 

 Prof. Spiegel's German ideas. W. D. }{. 



