Feb., 1905] 



KNOWLEDGE & SCIENTIFIC NEWS. 



41 



redwings, ducks, geese, and waders — are familiar visitors to 

 England in winter. The last chapter of the book deals with 

 history rather than natural history, and is devoted to St. 

 Triphon, •' the enli,t;htener of the Laplanders," and the 

 monastery founded by him on the Pechanga River in North- 

 western Russian Lapland. Mr. Pearson's work is profusely 

 illustrated with reproductions of the author's beautiful photo- 

 graphs. There are 68 full-paged plates in all. Besides the 

 many charming photographs of the birds and of nests and 

 eggs, others illustrate most effectively the country and the 

 people, and others the flora. Mr. Pearson is much to be con- 

 gratulated on compiling so fine a record of his wanderings in 

 these wild and barren, but fascinating, regions. 



The Process Year Book for 1904-3 (Penrose and Co.; 4s.) 

 comes out as a handsome volume, replete with hundreds of 

 beautiful illustrations in all styles, of which 54 are in colour. 

 This is the tenth year of issue, and it may well be supposed 

 what an interesting exhibition it forms of the progress made 

 in this art. To quote from the preface : " Ten years is a short 

 period as history is made and measured, but it has been long 

 enough for process workers to achieve a great deal. Few 

 modern industries have progressed at such a rapid rate, and 

 few have so rapidly and completely revolutionised or super- 

 seded older methods." A number of mteresting articles by 

 well-known experts in the various branches of process print- 

 ing complete this valuable history. 



Dyes and Stains and Polishes. — In " Dyes, Stain.s, Inks, Var- 

 nishes, Polishes, iSc. including the art of Wood-staining, 

 Filling, and I<"rcnch Polishing, Briefly, but Sufficiently and 

 Clearly Explained" (Dawbarn and Ward), the author, Mr. 

 Thomas Bolas, sufliciently and clearly, if not briefly, explains 

 the contents and scope of his small sixpenny handbook. It is 

 intended for the beginner, and it is terse and far from being 

 overloaded with detail. 



The Elements of Geometry, by Braithwaite Arnett (Simpkin, 

 Marshall and Co. ; price zs. each part). — Geometrj' does not 

 change much with the times, yet new books periodically app;ar 

 to instruct us in the old science. In the three small volumes 

 before us there is certainly some novelty. A good deal not 

 usually included in such works is introduced. Trigonometrical 

 ratios, comparative scales, points of the compass, even ther- 

 mometer scales, are briefly but clearly gone into, and in the 

 more minor details of bold and simple diagrams and large type 

 a decided improvement on many older text books is effected. 

 It almost seems a pity that more changes are not made. For 

 instance, many definitions, which, though strictly according to 

 custom, are in reality very useless in modern instruction. 

 Take No. 16, " When a straight line is drawn between two 

 given points which are its ends, it is called a finite straight 

 line." It is not, in common parlance, called a " finite straight 

 line," and if it was, that would surel}' be a sufficient descrip- 

 tion. So, also, it seems rather unnecessary to lay down that 

 " a rectangle has all its angles right angles." 



"The Elements of Trigonometry, by S. L. Loney (Caml)ridgc 

 University Press; price 3s. 6d.), may be criticized in much the 

 same way as the foregoing. There is nothing exceptionally 

 new in this small book, which is intended for the use of 

 students commencing Trigonometry, but the subject is simply 

 and clearly put, and heavy type introduced to emphasize 

 special points. 



" Stories from Natural History," by Richard Wagner. Trans- 

 lated from the German by G. S. (Macmillan ; is. 5d.). — This is 

 a most excellent little book for children, calculated to awaken 

 their interest in animals and to encourage their powers of 

 observation. Ouite short accounts of different animals are 

 simply given, and these are well illustrated from photographs. 

 How to Build a Bicycle, by Mr. R. H. S. Williams, and How to 

 Build a Petrol Motor, by Mr. James F. Gill, B.Sc, are the 

 titles of Nos. 4 and 3 of the " Home Worker's Series " (Daw- 

 barn and Ward ; 6d. net). They are simply written and practical 

 handbooks, specially adapted for use by amateurs. "Toning 

 Bromide," by Mr. R. E. Blake Smith, is the subject of No. 16 

 of the "Photography Bookshelf Series" (Iliffeand Sons). The 

 author's name is familiar to photographers through the method 

 of sulphide toning introduced by him. This method is dealt 

 with in the present volume, and the author gives besides 

 detailed descriptions of other methods of modifying the 

 colour of bromide and other developed silver prints. 



Astronomy. — The appearance of a third edition of the admir- 

 able and fascinating book by Mr. Walter E. Maunder, F.R.A.S., 

 " Astronomy Without a Telescope " (W. Thacker and Co.) 

 is interesting, not only as a tribute to its great and well- 

 deserved popularity, but as proving the existence of a large 

 and increasing number of persons who take an intelligent 

 interest in the study of natural phenomena. 



Astronomy for General Readers (Whitlaker and Co.), by Mr. 

 George F. Chambers, F. 1\,A.S., is re-published in a cheap 

 edition at the price of one shilling, whereby a useful and read- 

 able book is brought within the means of the general reader 

 of popular science. 



Fireside Astronomy (Witherby and Co. ; price is. 6d. net) 

 by Mr, D, W. Horner, F.R.Met.Soc, M.B.A.A., is intended, 

 as its title suggests, to meet the requirements of the intelligent 

 amateur, who, having neither the lime nor the means for a 

 serious study of the subject, would yet be very glad to know 

 in a general way something of the science of astronomy. 



Examples in Arithmetic (George Bell and Sons; with or 

 without answers, 3s.) is compiled by Mr. Charles Pendlebury, 

 assisted by Mr. F. G. Robinson, from his " New School Arith- 

 metic." The examples range from elementary to advanced 

 arithmetic. Part II. including elementary mensuration and 

 logarithms. 



" Hints on Collecting and Preserving Plants " (West, Newman, . 

 and Co. ; price is.), by Mr. Stanley Guiton, contains useful 

 hints for the formation of a herbarium by a young collector, 

 and gives advice respecting the best means of collecting, 

 drying, preserving, and arranging plants. 



" The Hygiene of Bird-Keeping," by Mr. W. G. Creswell, 

 M.D., L.R,C,P., F.Z.S. (R. G. Clement; price is. net), consists 

 largely of articles which have appeared in " Bird Notes." 

 It gives practical and sensible hints on the housing and feeding 

 of birds. 



" Christianity and Rationalism on Trial " (Watts and Co. ; 

 price 6d,) is the title of articles by various authors con- 

 tributed to the Clarion in the course of a controversy which 

 took place in the pages of that journal on the subject suggested 

 by the title. 



"Do We Believe " (Watts and Co.; price 6d.), by Mr. John 

 Allan Hedderwick, summarises a correspondence which took 

 place on the subject of" Belief" in the columns of the Daily 

 Tclixi'iipl', and attempts to show what, in the author's opinion, 

 are the foundations of a stable belief. 



"Christianity and History," by the Rev. J. Neville Figgis, and 

 " Britain and Her American Colonies," by Mr. E. and S. Hors- 

 burgh (James Finch and Co.; 2S. net) are two of a series of 

 small volumes published with an educational purpose. They 

 are primarily intended as the subjects for essays or holiday 

 tasks; and examination papers by the respective authors can 

 be supplied to teachers at 5s. per 100 copies. The subjects 

 dealt with are treated in a readable and popular style. 



"Italian Varnishes." — Mr. George Fry, F".L.S., F.C S., be- 

 lieves himself to have solved the long-vexed problem of the 

 varnishes used by the great Italian masters of violin-making. 

 The results of his study and experiment are given in his book 

 on "The Varnishes of the Italian Violin-Makers of the Six- 

 teenth, Seventeenth, and Eighteenth Centuries, and their In- 

 fluence on Tone " (Steevens and Sons; price 6s.). Hitherto 

 experts who have had facilities for examining the varnishes on 

 old Italian instruments have believed it to be an oil varnish 

 coloured according to the fancy of its individual makers, and 

 divers explanations have been offered to account for the 

 inability of modern violin-makers to reproduce it. Mr. Fry 

 suggests as the explanation of the problem that the old violin- 

 makers used as the constituents of their varnishes the natural 

 products of trees (conifers) and plants (flax) growing in their 

 immediate vicinity; that they were simple varnishes composed 

 of resin and turpentine, or of these two substances and linseed 

 oil; and that the various apparent colours were due to optical 

 effects naturally arising from variations in the details of the 

 preparation of the varnishes. We can only say, without 

 seeing and hearing the results of Mr. Fry's experiments, 

 that the arguments used by him in support of his_ asser- 

 tion, and his descriptions of the experiments made by him, are 

 exceedingly interesting, and worthy of attention. 



