238 



KNOWLEDGE. 



[October 1, 1897. 



of De Vries ; Traube's proof of osmotic pressure ; Hittorf s 

 transport numbers ; and the dissociation theory of Arr- 

 henius, are all put in a nutshell, so to speak ; while the 

 technical aspects of electro-metallurgy, which are so im- 

 portant at present, are dealt with in their proper places. 

 Dr. Liipke'a book is a desideratum in every chemist's 

 library. 



Through a Pocket Lens. By Henry Scherren, F.Z.S. 

 (Religious Tract Society.) Illustrated. 23. 6d. An idea 

 far too common among those whose tastes incline them 

 towards the study of natural history, is that nothing of 

 scientific value can be done unless a microscope of high 

 power, and other generally prohibitive auxiliary appliances, 

 are accessible. How this notion is wide of the mark may 

 be clearly seen by an inspection of the little book under 

 notice, which contains an amazing amount of accurate 

 information gleaned by careful observation, and seconded 

 by the aid of a simple microscope, some dissecting needles, 

 a few beakers, capsules, watch glasses, pipettes or dipping 

 tubes, and a pair of forceps — the lot costing only a few 

 shillings. The author has indicated how the anatomy and 

 life-history of quite a multitude of insects and other 

 representatives of animated nature may be effectively 

 studied by anyone, however circumscribed from a pecuniary 

 point of view, if only the will is there, for some of the 

 apparatus can be easily made, and other pieces can be 

 replaced by things available in nearly every house for 

 domestic use. 



The VoiDiij Bn'tle-CoUector's Handlnuik. By Dr. E. 

 Hofmann. With an Introduction by W. Egmont Kirby, 

 M.D. (Sonnenschein.) Illustrated. 4s. 6d. When one 

 considers that the total number of insects known is up- 

 wards of two hundred and seventy thousand, and out of 

 these more than a hundred thousand belong to the 

 Colfo/iteia, or beetles, the reason why so much literature 

 exists on the subject will be sufficiently apparent, and it 

 will also be obvious that no writer would pretend to cope 

 with such a vast array of living things in a single volume. 

 Dr. Hofmann therefore gives, in an introductory chapter, 

 a general description of beetles ; their morphology and 

 development ; their habits and how to catch them, and, 

 when caught, how to kill them ; and, finally, how to classify 

 and arrange them in the collected form so as best to dis- 

 play their distinguishing characteristics. Then follows a 

 grouping into sections, which are further divided into 

 families, the members of which are described according to 

 external appearances, articulation, mode of reproduction, 

 and method of acquiring the means of existence, etc. A 

 very attractive and useful feature of the work is represented 

 by twenty coloured plates, comprising over five hundred 

 really good presentments of dillerent kinds of beetles. 



SHORT NOTICES. 



Trai'tical Astrology. By Alan Leo. {Modern Jstroloqt/ OflU-e, 

 BouTerie Street.) Illustrated. 3s. 6d. The author tells us lie has 

 only one motive in issuing this work, namely, "the desire to place the 

 science of astrolngy before the world in its true light, as a science, 

 and not as a forluue-lcUing jumble of hoary predictive trash." An 

 intimation is advanced that theories of fate, and the law of action and 

 reaction, need the practical deiiionsl ration of the law through the 

 agency of astrology. Every assertion in the hook is backed u].i by 

 personal experience, so we are told, and anyone by very little practice 

 in this srience may unravel the great imstery of life. A manellous 

 result, truly, for so small an outlay I The ancient Chaldean and 

 Assyrian sages knew how t^ predict eclipses, and, what was more 

 important to them, how to use such knowledge to the cost of those 

 less informed on matters celestial. Witli the almost universal know- 

 ledge of planetarv motions in our own time, it is hardly to be ex|jected 

 that we shall readily be persuaded to turn on a retrograde path of a 

 couple of thousand years, to indulge in the belief that the conjunction 

 of any heavenly bodies whatsoever will solve for us " the riddle of 

 the sphinx." 



Memorials of William Cranch Sond, Director of the Harvard 

 College Observatori/, 1810-59, and of his Son, Oeorge Phillips Bond, 

 Director of the Harvard College Ohservatory, 1859-65, are in pre- 

 paration by Edward S. Holden, Director of the Lick Observatory. 

 iso adequate biography of either of the Bonds is avadable. At the 

 request of the daughters of George Bond, Prof. Holden has under- 

 taken to arrange the manuscript material in their hands in an orderly 

 form. The book will also contain selections from the diaries and 

 correspondence of &eorge Bond, as well as an account of the scientific 

 work of the Bonds, together with appendices, giving a complete list 

 of their published writings. A small edition only will be issued. The 

 publishers are Murdock & Co., San Francisco, and Lemeke & Biichner, 

 New York. 



Geolo'/ii of Xorlh-East Durham. Bv D. A. Woolacott, B.Sc. 

 (Hills &' Co., Sunierland.) Illustrated." ls.fid.net. This little 

 work consists of a reprint of some papers which appeared in the 

 Sunderland IJ'eeili/ Echo in the summer of 18y6. The author's aim 

 has been to present facts in a popular style, so as to be understood by 

 persons unacquainted with the principles of geology, and he has, we 

 think, succeeded in his laudable aspirations. Mr. Woolacott displays 

 a wide knowledge of facts and also ability to present them to others 

 in picturesque fashion ; indeed, the language employed is much more 

 pictorial than the illustrations used for the purpose, presumably, of 

 adorning the pages. And yet for these primordial works of art our 

 author, in obeisance to the grateful impulse in him, dutifully makes 

 known to the world at large his obligations to the editor of a 

 newspaper. 



The Story of the Mine. By Charles Howard Shinn, (G-ay & 

 Bird.) Illustrated. 6s. We have here the life-liistory, as it were, 

 of the great Comstock lode of Nevada, and not in any sense a 

 technical handbook. Still, reading between the lines, it is possible 

 to cull much information relating to the daily life of the miner, 

 whicli would be very valuable to anyone intending to launch out as a 

 ]jrospector in the Far West. Two brothers, named Grosh, were the 

 real pioneers of the district, and had they not succumbed to adverse 

 elements it is probable that the whole of this Jiistory would have 

 been very different from what it is. From the fifties up to the 

 present time, we have glimpses of the fortune hunters and their 

 adventures in connection with these famous mines ; the transition 

 from simple placer mining to the more complicated processes involved 

 in quartz mining; the excitement of would-be prospectors, and the 

 tremendous rush across the sierras ; the development of dependent 

 industries; stock, and stock sj^eculators ; and the memorable days of 

 the great Bonanza. Mr. Shinn has the knack of writing in not 

 merely a readable style, but a style which is tru y fascinating. lie 

 presents a living picture of the typical figures one meets in the wild 

 West, sharply defining the contrasts between individuals, and one sees 

 clearly the gradual development of a great mining industry as the 

 facts are skilfully piled up by the author. 



We understand that a second edition — revised and enlarged — of 

 Mr. Arthur Mee's Ohservalional Astronomy is in the press, and may 

 be expected almost immediately. The book contains many portraits, 

 maps, and illustrations, and is designedly a practical work for 

 amateurs. A memoir of the Rev. Prebendary Wehb, by the author, 

 is given in an appendix. 



Tlie Queen's London. (Casscll & Co.) Part I. fid. Perfect in 

 realism, excellent in art, marvellous in cheapness. 



BOOKS RECEIVED, 



An Introduction to Geology. By Wm. B. Scott. (Macmillan.) 

 Illustrated. Ss. net. 



The Evolution of the English Alphabet — a Diagram. By Hy. 

 George Taylor Jones, B.A. (Relfe Bios.) fid. 



Glimp.ies into Plant Life. By Mrs. Brightwen.F.E.S. (Unwin.) 

 Illustrated. 



Manual of Ethics. By John S. Mackenzie, M.A. (Olive.) fis. 6d. 



The Neui Fsyehology. By Dr. E. W. Scripture. (Scott.) Illus- 

 trated fis. 



A Synopsis of English Sistory. By J. C. Wright. (Relfe Bros.) fid. 



Humane Science Lectures. By various Authors. (Bell.) 



Elements of Chemistry. By Rufus P. Williams. (Ginn & Co.) 

 Illustrated. 5s. 



A Guide to Zermatt. By Edward Whymper. (Murray.) Illus- 

 trated. .3s. net. 



Pictorial Instruction. — Object Lessons. By G. Colonib, D.Sc. 

 (Relfe Bros.) Is. 6d. 



Publications of the Bureau of Ethnology. ,J. W. Powell, Director. 

 (Smithsonian Institute.) 



*,i,* The next number of Knowledge (November) will 

 contain a fully illustrated Literary Supplement. 



