282 



KNOWLEDGE. 



[Decembeb, 1903. 



in Asia Minor, but a tliorouglilv autlienticated' ins'anee of its 

 Ofcun-ence in the British Islands has hitherto been wanting. 



Black-tcinpei Pratincole in Sussex and Kent. — At the same 

 meetiDi; Mr. Boyd Alexander exhibited an adult female specimen of 

 the Black-winged Pratincole f'G/areoZa melanopteraj which had been 

 shot in Rye Harbour on the ISth of June Ust. Mr. Alexander also 

 noted that an adult male had been sliot on June 17th on Romney 

 Marsh. These twj specimens, with the one previously obtained on 

 Romney Marsh, and already recorded (Knowledge, 190.3, August, 

 p. 184). probably visited our shores in company. 



Greit Reed Warbler in Sussex — Mr. M. J. XicoU exhibited at the 

 same meeting a specimen of the Great Reel Warbler fAcrocephahis 

 tiirdoides) which he had shot on September 2.5th, 1900, near St. 

 Leonards. There are only four previous authentic; records of the 

 occurrence of this bird in Great Britain, althouoli it is very common 

 near at hand on the Continent, and its loud voice would be likely to 

 prevent it from escaping notice had it visited this country more often. 



Taienii Pipit in Kent. — Mr. XicoU also exhibited two Tawny 

 Pipits (Anthits canipesfri^J, shot at Rye Harbour on September 22nd. 

 It is curious that this bird is not more often recorded as a visitor to 

 the British Islands (it has been noticed some twenty or tliirty times), 

 since it breeds as near to us as the North of France and Holland, 

 while it is very common in Southern Europe and North Africa. 



Seport on the ilovements and Occurrence of Birds in Scotland 

 (hiring 1902. By T. G. Laidlaw, m.b o.r. {Annals of Scott. Kat. 

 Mist., 1903, pp. 78-79, 144-153, 20.5-210).— This yearly report is 

 very useful, but the records are becoming so numerous that it may be 

 found advisable in future to omit some of the details, and to sum- 

 marize the observations. 



All contributions to the column, either in the way of notes 

 or photograplis, should be forwarded to Harby F. WiTHERBy, 

 at the OJice o/ Knowledge, 326, Sigh Holhorn, London. 



^oUct9 of Boolts. 



"The Geogk.\phy of Disease." By Dr. F. G. Clemow. 

 Pp. xiv. and 624. (Cambridge University Press.) l.'(s. — This 

 is one of the most important contributions to scientific literature 

 that has come under our notice for some time. Though the 

 area of distribution of disease parasites is not the same as 

 that of the human diseases caused by them, the more the student 

 of pathology knows about both the better it is for mankind in 

 general. In many cases the reason why certain diseases are 

 endemic in some districts and absent from others admits of 

 simple explanation, but there are numerous cases where the 

 relationship between cause and consequence cannot be so clearly 

 seen. Some diseases, such as measles, typhoid fever and 

 ■whooping cough, occur in all parts of the inhabited world ; 

 scarlet fever and diphtheria are found mainly in temperate 

 and cool climates, while malaria and dysentery are most 

 frequent near the tropics. Cholera, plague and yellow 

 fever is endemic in certain limited areas, but at irregular 

 intervals they spread to almost any part of the world. Then, 

 again, some diseases seem to be antagonistic to others ; thus, the 

 diminution of malaria in many European countries in recent 

 years has been concurrent with an increase of cancer in the 

 same countries, and the fact suggests a relationshi]) between 

 the two diseases. With the material which Dr. Clemow has 

 so industriously collated, it becomes possible to make a scientific 

 study of the distribution of the various diseases to which human 

 flesh is heir, and to consider the factors which determine the 

 range of the maladies. To students of geographical and historical 

 pathology the book will be an invaluable work of reference. 

 With colonies in all parts of the world, it is of the highest 

 importance that our medical graduates should be in possession 

 of the volume which Dr. Clemow has prepared ; and the lay 

 public will find so much of interest in it that the book should 

 be added to every reference library. 



" The Wonderful Century : The Age of Kew Ideas in 

 Science and Invention." By Dr. A. R. Wallace. Pp. xii. and 

 ;Vi7. (Swan Sonnenschein.) 7s. 6d. net. — So far as we know there 

 does not exist a better popular account of the nature and growth 

 of science and invention during the past hundred years than is 

 given by Dr. Wallace in this volume. The first edition was 

 good, but the present edition is even more valuable, and .should 

 command a large circle of readers.' The long chapter on 



vaccination has been omitted, the chapters on locomotion, 

 photography, and chemistry have been extended, and new 

 chapters have been added on electrical and astronomical 

 advances. Scir-ely a subject of importance has been over- 

 looked, so that the volume gives a broad view of the present 

 state of knowledge and conditions of living. Radium is briefly 

 mentioned, and among other matters surveyed are the liquefac- 

 tion of gases, colour photography, and the evolution of chemical 

 elements. Special attention is given to the author's view that 

 the solar system is at or near the centre of the universe. The 

 section on wirele s telegraphy is, however, scarcely up-to-date, 

 for as messages have been exchanged from one side of the 

 Atlantic to the other, the remark that the distance across which 

 messages have been sent " has been extended to two hundred 

 miles, between the Isle of Wight and Cornwall," is somewhat 

 behind the times. 



"Cohen's PHysic\L CiiEMrsTRY." Translated from the 

 German by Martin H. Fischer, m.d. (Bell.) Os. net. — We can 

 heartily recommend this little book to anyone desirous of 

 becoming acquainted with the principles of physical chemistry. 

 It has 343 pages, is well illustrated, and is provided with 

 numerous references to the leading scientific journals. So many 

 books of this kind are liable to become unreadable lists of facts, 

 but the present author's style is interesting and lucid, and 

 entirely free from technical mannerisms. The lectures on 

 electrolytic dissociation are exceedingly good. The theory of 

 Arrhenius, and the various methods employed in determining 

 the extent of the dissociation of electrolytes in solution, are by 

 no means easy to grasp when met with for the first time, but 

 the lucid way in which Prof. Cohen treats the subject causes 

 most of the usual difficulties to disappear. The author has 

 greatly added, also, to the value of his book by showing the 

 relations which exist between physical chemistry and biology, 

 and by revealing many fields for research, the pursuit of which 

 would jirove of untold profit to medical men and biologists. 



Dr. Fischer is to be congratulated on the able way in which 

 he has effected the translation. 



" Steel and Iron." By A. H. Hiorns. Pp. xvi. and 514. 

 (M'acmillan.) lOs. Gd. — Mr. Hiorns has produced several 

 excellent text-books on metallurgy, and many students will be 

 glad that he has now facilitated their studies by bringing 

 together the essential points of papers published at home and 

 abroad on various aspects of the iron and steel industries. It is 

 no easy matter to assimilate and present in a digested form the 

 mass of literature of real significance in any scientific subject, and 

 the author who attempts this task deserves well of his generation. 

 Mr. Hiorns does not pretend to have taken account of more 

 than a ssrall proportion of published papers on iron and steel, 

 but he does give the results and conclusions of leading 

 authorities, so that the student of metallurgy is able to take a 

 view of the subject in the light of recent theory and experience. 

 The descriptions are concise, well illustrated, scientific and 

 practical, and the book as a whole is a credit both to the author 

 and publisher. 



'■A Manual of Pal.earctic Bird.s." By H. E. Dresser, 

 K.L.S., K.z.s. (Published by the Author at 3, Hanover Square, 

 W.) 2nd part. 12s. fid. — In a notice of the first part of this 

 work (Knowledge, 1903, July, p. lo8,i complaint was made of 

 the omission of many described forms which were entitled, in 

 our opinion, to rank equally in ))oint of distinction with many 

 which had found a place in the volume. In the preface to the 

 work, which is included in the part now under review, Mr. 

 Dresser gives a curious reason for these omissions. After 

 referring to the dangers of the " endless manufacture of sub- 

 species," the author declares that he has "declined the recognition 

 of such so-called 'sub-species' as those who have described them 

 have so little confidence in as to need the aid of trinomials." 

 Granted that it was wise to omit from a work planned for field- 

 naturalists the sub-species least easily distinguishable, a proper 

 standard for selection was of the utmost importance. Mr. 

 Dresser's resolution to omit those forms described under a more 

 modern system than that used by him was a great error of 

 judgment, and an inconsistent selection of the forms treated of 

 in the work has been the natural consequence. Notwithstanding 

 this serious fault, the work will be found very useful in many 

 ways. The arrangement is excellent, and a great amount of 

 good information is compressed into a very small space. Besides 

 the scientific appellation, the name of each bird is given in 



