Book Reviews 



Health and Medical Inspection of School Children, Walter 

 S. Cornell, M. D. Pp. xiv+614. F. A. Davis Co., Philadelphia. 

 $3.00. 



This is a very timely book. School authorities are every- 

 where interested in the conservation of the child's health. The 

 great mass of data presented makes the need of inspection ap- 

 parent. The ways and means of accomplishment are clearly pre- 

 sented. The method adopted to eradicate the evils detected are 

 forcibly indicated and enough of the results already achieved is 

 given to make the book a valuable force in the crusade for health- 

 ful schools and healthy children. Dr. Cornell is Director of 

 Medical Inspection of Public Schools in Philadelphia and lectur- 

 er on child hygiene in the University of Pennsylvania. Pie there- 

 fore writes with a wealth of information at his disposal. At 

 points one needs a medical dictionary handy to get at his mean- 

 ing but usually he is quite clear to the lay reader. The book is 

 marred by the imperfections of some of the numerous half tones. 

 Several are too indistinct to make apparent the point they are 

 supposed to illustrate. 



Soil Conditions and Plant Growth, Edward J. Russell. Pp. 

 168. 59 Tables. Longmans, Green and Co. $1.50. 



It is always of interest to teachers to find in a single compact 

 volume a comprehensive survey of a single subject. In the 

 book in question the author has endeavored to "give a concise 

 account of our present knowledge of the soil as a medium of 

 plant life." The subject is a particularly complex one and many 

 important facts await satisfactory explanation, but Dr. Russell 

 has succeeded in giving a coherent and comprehensive account 

 of the matter. An immense amount of information is com- 

 pressed within the small volume, and much of it is tabulated in 

 very convenient form for reference. Discussions of theory are 

 clear and concise. Since the author is an Englishman it is natural 

 that British data are largely used particularly those from Roth- 

 ampstead, but this does not make the book less valuable to Ameri- 

 can readers. 



That the author's conclusions will pass unquestioned is not 

 to be expected. There are many unsettled questions in soil study 

 and the chapters which touch these questions are sure to be 

 criticized by one school or the other. In particular is the theory 

 of fertilizers here presented out of harmony w^ith the views of 

 a large number of modern investigators. — W. L. Eikenberry. 



93 



