SCIENTIFIC LITERATURE. 



8;i 



and the arguments are overlaid with much 

 verbiage, and this makes the book very 

 hard reading. 



The Dictionary of Chemical Solubilities 

 of Prof. Arthur M. Comey (Macmillan, $5) 

 was an undertaking German in laboriousness 

 and American in enterprise, and the finished 

 volume is a monument of able and persever- 

 ing effort. Although this work is nominally 

 limited to the inorganic substances, excep- 

 tions have been made by including in it 

 C0 2 , CO, CS 2 , the carbonates, cyanides, fer- 

 rocyanides, etc. Prof. Comey acknowledges 

 receiving much aid from the earlier diction- 

 ary of Prof. Storer, but he found the material 

 that has accumulated since 1860, the limit 

 of that work, to be far greater than that 

 previously extant. Different results given 

 by different observers have been set down 

 in many cases, with the authority for each, 

 as it would have been manifestly impossible to 

 verify all such conflicting statements experi- 

 mentally. Under each title the solubility of 

 the substance in water is first given, the date 

 being arranged chronologically in the longer 

 articles. Then follow the specific gravities of 

 the aqueous solutions, and also any data ob- 

 tainable regarding their boiling points. Fol- 

 lowing this is the solubility of the substance 

 in other solvents first the inorganic acids, 

 then alkali and salt solutions, and finally 

 organic substances. While many of the 

 rarer substances are disposed of in a couple 

 of lines, some of the more important occupy 

 several pages : thus ammonia has five and a 

 fourth pages, glass over three and a half, 

 potassium nitrate nearly as much, and sul- 

 phuric acid over four. In putting the ma- 

 terial together many puzzling problems of 

 nomenclature and arrangement had to be 

 solved, but Dr. Comey's own practical sense 

 has been supplemented by wise counsel, and 

 when the user of the volume reflects that the 

 dictionary plan can give the maximum of 

 convenience only by sometimes disregarding 

 logic and relationship he will agree that these 

 questions have been well decided. 



The University of the State of New York 

 has issued Museum Bulletin 14 on the Geol- 

 ogy of Moriah and Westport Totonships, Es- 

 sex County. Besides describing the general 

 geology of these townships, this pamphlet 

 gives the latest information on the important 



iron ore deposits of that region, and reviews 

 the probable hypotheses as to their origin. 

 It contains a geologic map of the two town- 

 ships, a map of Mineville iron region, and 

 half-tone viewB of the mining district and 

 sections of the ore bodies. The bulletin is 

 mailed by the State Library on receipt of ten 

 cents. 



The Natural Science Association of Staten 

 Island has performed a commendable service 

 to local geography and history by publishing 

 the collection of Staten Island Names, cm- 

 piled by William T. Davis, and the accom- 

 panying map prepared by Charles W. Leng. 

 Names for natural features of the island and 

 the waters surrounding it, and for ferries, 

 roads, and villages are included in the collec- 

 tion. With each name is given the location 

 of the place to which it was applied, and 

 in many cases a quotation from some old 

 advertisement, deed, or map is added as au- 

 thority. With 6ome a legend connected with 

 the place is inserted. The list makes a pam- 

 phlet of fifty-seven pages, which may be had 

 for 50 cents from Arthur Hollick, secretary 

 of the association, at New Brighton, N. Y. 



A new and enlarged edition of Hypnotism, 

 Mesmerism, and the New Witchcraft, by 

 Ernest Hart, M. D., has been issued recently 

 (Appletons, $1.50). The original edition was 

 noticed fully in our number for October, 

 1893. Dr. Hart's general conclusions in re- 

 gard to hypnotism are that it is very rarely 

 useful for curative purposes, and is danger- 

 ous for platform performances and private 

 amusement. In a new chapter entitled The 

 Eternal Gullible, Dr. Hart gives the confes- 

 sions of a professional " subject " who had 

 appeared in performances with a number of 

 well-known "professors" in London. An 

 appendix contains some lively controversial 

 letters contributed to the British press by 

 Dr. Hart, Dr. Luys, and Prof. Sidgwick. 



With this may be mentioned A Study m 

 Hypnotism, by Sydney Flower, which is a 

 story of a hypnotizer's courtship with one of 

 his subjects (Psychic Publishing Co., Chi- 

 cago). 



Hypnotism and its Relation to Witchcraft, 

 Ghostology, and Mind-cure is the subject of 

 a lecture by /. H. Fisher, which is published 

 as a pamphlet (Seymour & Muir Printing Co., 

 Grand Rapids). Mr. Fisher expresses him- 



