LIO 



KNOWLEDGE. 



[May, 1901. 



[The "companions" mentioned by Mr. Maunder iu 

 connection with the stars to wtiich reference is made by 

 Mr. Beilby. are small adjacent stars, and not the " com- 

 ponents ' shown when large telescopes are employed. 

 Certainly uo opera-glass would divide stars 1"9" or 2j" 

 apart, nor could it be expected to show stars of the 10th 

 magnitude. An aperture of at least 10 inches wotild be 

 required to see a star of magnitude 13'8.— Eds.] 



j^oticts of Boofes. 



» 



" The Progress or Invention in the Nineteenth Century." 

 By Edward W. Byru, a.m. (New York ; Wunc and Co.) 

 Illustrated. 3 dols. — This book compels our admiration. 

 Heautifully printed on excellent paper, and very tastefully bound, 

 it is a pleasure to behold. The illustrations too, are good and 

 most interesting, comprising, as they do, pictures of the people 

 of 100 years ago engaged in various mechanical pursuits. The 

 author realising the Imiitations of his work, states in his preface 

 that " The work cannot claim the authority of a text book, the 

 fulness of a history, nor the exactness of a mechanical treatise." 

 Under the heading " Chronology of leading events " we have, 1800, 

 Volta's chemical battery, and Roberts' ma.chine for making con- 

 tinuous webs of paper. In 1801, Tievithick's steam coach, and 

 80 on. Of the telegraph we are told, " On Way ii4tli, 1844, there 

 went over the wires between Washington and Baltimore . the first 

 message, 'What hath God wrought?'" This is, of course, an 

 error, for as far back as 1820 Fletcher made use of his electro- 

 magnetic telegraph. But the rest of this chapter is accurate and 

 interesting. Under " The Dynamo and its Applications," we are, 

 of course, not justified in expecting anything other than the well- 

 known history Irom Pixil's work in 1832 to the machines of to-day. 

 Next, from the description of Barlow's wheel, we are taken, by 

 easy stages, to some account of the modern Westinghouse motor, 

 and, turning the pages again, we go from the Jaberkoff candle 

 to the search-light on Mount Lowe. Under " The Steam Engine," 

 we have a description and picture of Hero's engine, assigned to the 

 year loU B.C. Turbines, tlie Nusmjth hammer, and the modern fire 

 engine, are all depicted and described. Locomotives and Atlantic 

 liners, printing presses, and paper machinery, are all pleasantly 

 discoursed of. The typewi-iter, sowing and sewing machines, re- 

 frigerating apparatus, and motor cars, are all adequately repre- 

 sented, as also the bicycle at various stages of its evolution. 

 Telescopes, cameras, radiographic apparatus, and gas plant, all 

 make way for the Forth Bridge, which is followed by the Suez 

 Canal, the Eiffel Tower, and Washington's Monument, wood and 

 metal working appliances and firearms. Our author concludes 

 with an excellently well-«Titteu " Epilogue," and we lay the book 

 down wishing that we might have ever so brief a look into any 

 similar work which may be published in a.d. 2000. 



"MiCK.VEL Faraday : His Life and Work." By Prof. S. P. 

 Thompson, f.r.s. (Casseli and Co.) Illustrated. 2s. 6d.— 

 A hackneyed verse of Longfellow's " Psalm of Life " forces itself 

 upon the mind when a book like the present comes before us. 

 For to a student of science, or anyone having a mild interest in 

 natural philosophy, the life of a man like Faraday is an inspiration. 

 And when such a biography as his is available at the low price 

 of this one, it is almost justifiable to say that the possession of 

 the book should be everyone's desire. The general facts of 

 Faraday's career are well known. How he attended Davy's 

 lectures at the Royal Institution while a bookbinder's apprentice ; 

 how he brought himself under Davy's notice and was appointed 

 to a minor post in the Institution, from which position he rose 

 to be the leader of British science and the beacon of his time — 

 all these facts are common knowledge. The story is told by 

 Prof. Thompson in a most sympathetic manner, and there is 

 scarcely a page of the book that does not contain some interesting 

 incident or expression of opinion. There are few men whose lives 

 will bear such minute analysis as that of Faraday, and none a 

 student of science could more profitably keep before him. When 

 we read how Davy treated the assistant whose researches had 

 excited the admiration of the whole scientific world, a spirit of 

 indignation fills the mind, and it is dilficult to admire the genius 

 of a man who could play such a part. The unpleasant light in 

 which Davy's action can now be seen should be taken to heart 

 by the men of science in power in the present generation. There 

 may not be many Faradays, but there are certainly a number of 

 Davys who endeavour to keep their assistants, however capable 

 they may be, in subordinate positions. Faraday was above all 

 petty meannesses and minor jealousies of this kind, and his life 

 was one which should be widely known and emulated. 



" The Structure and Life-history of the Haklequin Fly 

 (Chihonomtts)." By Prof. L. C. Miall, f.r.s., and A. R. 



Hammond, f.l.s. (Clarendon Press.) Illustrated. 7s. 6d. — This 

 is not a book which appeals to a large public, yet it is a very 

 valuable one, and will take rank as an important contribution 

 to natural history. The work is very appropriately published by 

 a University Press, and we trust that many similar monographs 

 will be made available. What are popularly known as blood-worms 

 are the larvae of the gnat-like dies often seen in summer on 

 window-panes, or hovering in swarms over streams and pools. 

 This is the insect the lite-history of which is traced by the authors 

 in detail. To the practical man, it may appear a waste of time 

 and money to prepare and publish a work upon the structure and 

 habits of a trivial insect, but if he were familiar with the 

 working out of the connection between malaria and mosquitoes he 

 would pause before giving expression to this view. If the life- 

 histories and internal structure of the various mosquitoes had 

 been thoroughly studied, the connection between the insect and 

 the disease would have been understood long before it was. In 

 the same way Chironomus is possibly connected with occurrences 

 in nature which affect the well-being of the human race directly 

 or indirectly, and, leaving the biological value of the monograph 

 upon it out of consideration, the time wiU probably come when 

 its practical significance will be understood. From another point 

 of view the book is valuable. There is a tendency to consider it 

 an achievement to add to the number of species, while the study 

 of the life-histories of insects is neglected. The monograph should 

 encourage a more scientific spirit among the members of natural 

 history societies, and lead to the preparation of works of a similar 

 character. How wide is the field may be judged by the remark 

 that " The great majority of Dipterous insects, for instance, 

 have never been reared, and only an insignificant minority have 

 been closely examined." We venture to say that a large part of 

 the book will provide a naturalist with novel and interesting 

 information, and will suggest similar observations of other Insects, 

 as well as create a desire to examine practically the facts 

 described. If local natural history societies will encourage work, 

 on these lines they will do a real service to biological science. 



" The Temples and Ritual of Asklepios at Epidauros and 

 Athens." By Richard Caton, m.d. (C. J. Clay.) Illustrated. 

 3s. net. — Among the interesting results of archieological research 

 in Greece is the information obtained as to the sanitary and 

 medical aspects of Greek life by the exploration of the shrines of 

 Asklepios, the god of healing, at Epidauros and Athens. Dr. Caton 

 brings together the work that has been done by various archaeolo- 

 gists at the sites of these shrines, and contributes to it some 

 observations, restorations and theories of his own. His book 

 contains the substance of two lectures delivered at the Royal 

 Institution, and is well iUustrated. The purposes of the various 

 buildings are describejl or conjectured, and the ritual of the 

 Asklepian shrines, as well as the accommodation and treatment 

 of the sick who frequented them, are considered. A number of 

 large and harmless yellow snakes were kept in the sanctuary, and 

 one of Dr. Caton's original suggestions is that the labyrinth below 

 the beautiful Tholos or Thymele temple may have been the home 

 of these creatures, which were reverenced as the incarnation of 

 the god. and were utilised in the treatment of the patients. We 

 read " The sick were delighted and encouraged when one of these 

 creatures approached them, and were in the habit of feeding them 

 with cakes. The serpents seem to have been trained to Uck 

 with their forked tongues any ailing part. The dog also was 

 sacred to Asklepios, and the temple dogs in like manner were 

 trained to lick any injured or painful region of the body." Three 

 centuries before the commencement of the Christian era the rulers 

 of Rome sent a galley to Epidauros to fetch the god Asklepios to 

 check a pestilence. One of the sacred serpents was carried in 

 the galley, and it left the ship as soon as the insula in the Tiber 

 was touched. The plague is said to have disappeared at once, 

 and in gratitude to the ^od which was believed to be jiresent in 

 the form of a serpent, a temple was erected to j^sculapius, as 

 the Romans designated him, and from that time this island in 

 the Tiber has been devoted to the cure and treatment of the sick. 

 Moreover, adds Dr. Caton, " It is doubtless, in consequence of 

 this episode of the foundation of the temple of ^sculapius on 

 the island of the Tiber, that the staff and serpent of the 

 Epidaurian god have been, and remain to this day, the symbol of 

 the profession of medicine." These remarks are sufficient" to show 

 that the book is of real interest in connection mth the history 

 of medicine, and merits the consideration of students of classical 

 archaeology. 



" One 'Thousand Objects for the Microscope, with a Few 

 Hints on Mounting." By Dr. M. C. Cooke, m.a. (Frederick 

 Warne and Co.) Illustrated. 2s. 6d. — Dr. Cooke's descriptive 

 guide to microscopic objects easily accessible and possessing 

 characteristics worthy of observation has been a helpful friend 

 to many microscopists. In its new form the book shomd be even 

 more successful, for the introductory part now given contains just 

 the kind of information as to the miscroscope and its essential 

 accessories, and (he manipulation, collection and mounting of 



