PREFACE. 



WHEN the first British Scientific Products Exhibi- 

 tion was organised by the British Science Guild, 

 in the year 1918, one of the stalls was devoted to 

 a display of scientific and technical books. So much 

 interest was taken in this exhibit that it was repeated in 

 the following year, and a selected list of such books was 

 published in the Catalogue of this Exhibition. Similar 

 lists have been issued by the Science Masters' Association 

 and the Association of Science Teachers, but the Guild's 

 list was intended to be of service to industry rather than 

 to education. It provided a handy guide to the chief 

 existing British books on science and technology and 

 proved of decided value to manufacturers seeking suit- 

 able works upon the particular subjects with which they 

 were concerned. 



The list was reprinted and widely circulated by the 

 well-known scientific and technical booksellers, Messrs. 

 A. and F. Denny, and the many inquiries for it, or for a 

 more complete Catalogue of British books on science and 

 technology, led the British Science Guild to undertake 

 the preparation and publication of such a Catalogue. The 

 work was entrusted to a special committee which had at 

 the outset to decide whether an attempt should be made 

 to establish a standard of merit by which to determine 

 inclusion or exclusion of books in the Catalogue, or 

 whether all titles within the scope of the Catalogue should- 

 be admitted. The conclusion reached was that it would 

 be more satisfactory to make the Catalogue a complete 

 record of scientific and technical books other than those 

 intended for primary schools, and elementary volumes of 

 like nature, in the current lists of publishers in the United 

 Kingdom, and obtainable through booksellers in the usual 

 way. 



The Committee was fortunate in having among its 

 members Mr. P. Passenger, who not only possesses wide 



vii. 



