360 



NATURE 



[June 29, 1916 



and is both novel and interesting^. It is the long-est 

 section in the book, occupying nearly one-third of 

 the whole, and may be commended as being- what 

 the editor claims for it — the most authoritative 

 and detailed account of the process which has yet 

 appeared in the language. 



A short account of the Stassfurt industry and 

 of the extraction of potassium and magnesium 

 salts, very slightly and imperfectly treated, con- 

 cludes the volume. 



A book of this kind may serve to show how 

 dependent industry is upon science, and may pos- 

 sibly quicken the interest of the general reader in 

 a question of which the national importance is now 

 being forcibly brought home to us. But it is 

 difficult to see what other useful purpose it fulfils. 

 It certainly is not calculated to strengthen the 

 position of any one of the branches of techno- 

 logical chemistry with which it professes to deal. 



OPEN-AIR NATURAL HISTORY. 

 (i) Rambles of a Canadian Naturalist. By S. T. 



Wood. Pp. vii + 247. (London : J. M. Dent 



and Sons, Ltd., 1916.) Price 6^. 

 (2) The Life Story of an Otter. By J. C. Tre- 



garthen. New edition. Pp. xiii+188. (London: 



John Murray, 1915.) Price 2s. 6d. 



(1) T^ HE rambles of which Mr. S. T. Wood 

 -*- gives an account were pursued through- 

 out the year, and their record makes a pleasant 

 season-book. The studies express a blend of bio- 

 logical inquiry and poetic reflectiveness, and they 

 represent an end, rather than a means, of nature- 

 study. They put into words the joyous, intelli- 

 gent appreciation which well-educated, normal 

 human beings have, or should have, when they 

 take country walks. "What is seen and heard — 

 things revealed to the eye and ear- — awaken a de- 

 lighted interest, but our thoughts and fancies, 

 stirred by what is partly revealed, have a deeper 

 charm. Following these suburban rambles may 

 yield the keen pleasure of observations verified. 

 And, perhaps, in the wayward ramblings a com- 

 munity of fancy may be discovered more pleasant 

 and more fraternal than the kindred joy of dis- 

 closing Nature's guarded secrets." 



The author writes of the pitcher-plant and its 

 interrelations, the early migrants and flowers, 

 the renascence of spring, the honking of the wild- 

 geese, the night-cries of the toads, the beauty of 

 the dandelion, the midsummer birds, the life-cycle 

 of the Promethea moth, the gorge below 

 Niagara, the Great Northern Diver, the autumnal 

 flocking, the haunt of the coot, some winter- 

 visitors, and much more besides. We cannot say 

 that we have found anything very remarkable in 

 these essays, but we found each of them too short 

 — which points to fine quality. They are alto- 

 gether wholesome and beautiful, indirectly edu- 

 cative in the best sense. 



Worthy of the highest praise are the_ charac- 

 teristic colour illustrations — by Robert Holmes — 

 of whip-poor-will, bloodroot, Promethea moth, 

 lady's slipper, monarch butterfly, and winter's 



NO. 2435, VOL. 97] 



robin. There are also beautiful chapter-headings 

 (of . nature-study inspiration) by students of the 

 Ontario College of Art. They are in fine harmony 

 with the spirit of the book. 



(2) Mr. J. C. Tregarthen's admirable "Life 

 Story of an Otter " appears in a new edition^ 

 which deserves a wide welcome. With patience 

 and sympathy he has been able to build up a 

 coherent biography of a singularly elusive 

 creature, which few naturalists know except in 

 glimpses. His account of the education of the 

 cubs, of the varied business of life, of the nomad- 

 ism, of the combats of dog-otters, of the partner- 

 ship of the pair, of the inextinguishable playful- 

 ness, and so on, is altc^ether admirable. 



Mr. Tregarthen writes of what he has seen^ 

 his inferences are restrained, and his style sug- 

 gests the opyen air. We do not share his enthu- 

 siasm for the otter-hunt, for which, however, he 

 is prepared to give a reasoned defence, but we 

 recognise the value of his first-hand observational 

 natural history. There are some beautiful and 

 interesting illustrations of the otter and its 

 haunts. 



OUR BOOKSHELF. 



Penzance and the Land's End District. Edited by 

 J. B. Cornish and J. A. D. Bridger. Pp. 128. 

 (London : The Homeland Association, Ltd., 

 n.d.) Price 6d. net. 



The Penzance Chamber of Commerce has con- 

 ferred a boon on all visitors to their beautiful 

 district, and especially on those who are inter- 

 ested in something more than mere scenery. 

 Guide-books are generally most disappointing to 

 anyone who seeks information on the geology or 

 natural history of a region which is new to him, 

 but the guide-book recently added to the Home- 

 land series Is a good example of the way in which 

 the needs of scientific visitors may be met without 

 in the least detracting from the usefulness of the 

 book to the ordinary reader. The chapters deal- 

 ing with each special topic have been entrusted to 

 experts who know the district thoroughly, and 

 they are consequently of real use to other experts 

 or students to whom Penzance and its neighbour- 

 hood may be comparatively unknown. 



The book Is well got up, clearly printed in good 

 type, very well illustrated, and is written in an 

 easy and interesting style. There Is a clear map 

 of Penzance, and a sufficient map accompanies 

 Mr. Dewey's lucid account of the local geology. 

 The map of the district, however, might well be 

 improved. It Is a reproduction of the one-inch 

 Ordnance Survey map, but seems to lack clearness. 

 This is particularly noticeable in the names of 

 points, bays, and places along the coast, which 

 are often so obscured by the unnecessary shading 

 of the sea as to be barely legible even with a 

 lens. Again, Mr. J. B. Cornish contributes a 

 good account of the antiquities of the district, and 

 the value of this interesting chapter to an 

 archaeologist would be greatly enhanced if the 

 places described could be easily identified, as by 



