PREFACE. 



THERE is scarcely a science wherein the French do not 

 occupy a leading position. To introduce the American 

 student of science to that rich technical literature of which 

 France is so justifiably proud is the design of this Reader. 

 Having but this purpose in view, I do not, of course, claim 

 to supply in my selections the wants of all scientific schools. 

 But since it is undoubtedly needful for our students to ac- 

 quire some general familiarity with French technical terms 

 and style, the selections I have made bear chiefly on sub- 

 jects representative of those branches with which the student 

 as well as the teacher is best acquainted. 



Electricity has received the largest share of attention in 

 the following pages ; its ever-widening future and its daily 

 increasing sphere of usefulness to mankind seeming to 

 warrant the prominence given it. Next come mechanics, 

 physics, chemistry and their various industrial applications. 

 The source from which most of the passages have been 

 drawn is the Revue Encydopedique, a periodical whose lucid 

 style has done much to popularize recent scientific discov- 

 eries and inventions. It is my hope that the cuts inserted 

 will aid the student to grasp more easily the theoretical 

 portions of the text, and at the same time increase his 

 interest in what may appear the more practical selections. 



While explaining the comparatively few idiomatic con- 

 structions met with in the text, from the nature of the case 

 the notes contain references chiefly scientific or biographical 

 in character. 



