296 BihliograpMcal Notices. 



country excursions. To junior students, names like nightingale, 

 scjuirrel, hare, &c. are only familiar from the written symbols in 

 school books, and the results of inquiry among Russian and German 

 children are sot out in this table: — 



German. Bussian, 



Children ivho have not seen : percent, percent. 



Lark rising with song 25 60-150 



Squirrels in a wood 71 58-66 



Running hai-e 3 50-54 



Mole-hiil 22 30-59 



Nests ou a tree 15 3-11 



Snail crawling 2 40-59 



Not heard : 



Nightingale's song 56 40-44 



Cuckoo's cry 11 20-32 



Not vidted : 



A leafy forest 44 10-11 



One of acerous leaves 37 12-17 



In other words, about half the children are as if blind or deaf to 

 rural sights and sounds. This leads the writer to exclaim at the 

 expenses during a decade of school life and overwork of brains in 

 order to learn word combinations. This can only be remedied by 

 teachers, not merely by programmes. Especial interest attaches to 

 the article by Mr. Sukatshev on the forest as an association, as au 

 object for winter study. The mutual effects of trees on their growth 

 side by side are contrasted with the development of solitary 

 specimens. There is a struggle for life among crowded trees, and 

 the weakest goes to the wall. There are distinctions between 

 simple and complex associations. This article is suggestive of 

 original research and aspects often overlooked. The results of 

 winter zoological explorations round the St. Petersburg Government 

 are given by Mr. S. A. Petrov. The winter habits and colouring of 

 animals and birds are described. 



In the department of chemistry, Mr. S. Sozonov continues his 

 examination of a government scheme for chemical instruction in 

 Realschulen. He writes: " Dogmatism in an elementary course of 

 chemistry, as of physics, should be reduced to the minimum possible. 

 To eliminate it altogether is unfortunately out of the question at 

 present." Mr. V. Yerkhovsky continues his description of heating 

 apparatus for chemical experiments in middle schools, and the study 

 of physics in village and urban schools is treated by Mr. V. 

 Lermantov. " Prussian students," observes the latter, " are 

 generally lacking in attention : they understand more easily a 

 serious but short deduction, than a simple but 'many-storied' 

 reasoned conclusion extending over pages." There is a favourable 

 notice of a new German solder-paste, " tiuol," made at a Bonn 

 factory. 



The remainder of space is occupied by reviews of works on in- 

 organic chemistry and elementary physics. 



Francis P. Makchaxt. 



