442 



NA TURE 



[September 5, 1901 



The authors proceed to consider the reasons for this 

 want of success. The present Acts are by no means un- 

 workable, and have the merit of simphcity ; but they 

 simply control the keeping of petroleum spirit (oil 

 flashing below 73° F.) and in no way interfere with 

 the sale or storage of petroleum oil (oil flashing above 

 73= F.). 



Though the Acts leave everything to the local authority, 

 yet they are deficient in provision for local control ; the 

 excessive decentralisation which puts in the hands of 

 district councils throughout the kingdom the administra- 

 tion of such technical legislation cannot but militate 

 against the attainment of the object in view. But the 

 legislative failure is not due to these minor points, but 

 rather to the strong opposition to the raising of the flash- 

 point and to the attempt to prohibit dangerous lamps by 

 legal enactment. 



The objections to raising the flash-point are, firstly, 

 that it is uncertain whether this measure would have an 

 appreciable effect in preventing lamp accidents, which 

 are, as a general rule, not caused by e.xplosions, but by 

 over-heating of the gallery and wick-tube and by 

 breaking the lamp, in which cases no oil flashing under 

 1 50 F. can be regarded as absolutely safe ; and, secondly, 

 that raising the flashpoint would indubitably cause a 

 rise in the price of the oil, when there would be tendency 

 to supply petroleum spirit for lighting purposes, this 

 spirit commanding, under present conditions, a higher 

 price than petroleum oil. The administrative difficulty 

 of the prohibition of dangerous lamps must be patent to 

 everybody. 



The yearly average of fatal accidents from lamps is 

 129, and this period represents the lighting, burning and 

 extinguishing of a lamp at least 4,000,000,000 times ; now 

 during a similar period, 5500 deaths are caused by 

 falling down stairs, yet no one would suggest that in con- 

 sequence houses must be restricted to one story ; lamp 

 accidents are nearly always caused by lamps being 

 dropped, knocked over or pulled off" tables when 1 ighted 

 and occasionally a lighted lamp is used as a missile. 



The authors give much sound advice as to the purchase 

 of safe lamps and, in an appendix, add directions for the 

 care and use of petroleum lamps, the circulation of which 

 recommendations in leaflet form by local authorities would 

 doubtless be attended by beneficial results. The con- 

 cluding chapter is devoted to calcium carbide and 

 acetylene. 



The first appendix deals with the imports of petroleum, 

 from which it appears that the import of Russian oil is 

 increasing, whereas that of American is decreasing — the 

 enormous increase in the importation of " petrol," 

 motor-car spirit, is significant ; in other appendices the 

 Petroleum Acts of 1871, 1S79, and 1881 are given, with 

 comments and explanatory notes ; memoranda and forms 

 of license issued by the London County Council and a 

 County Council report on the use of petroleum in manu- 

 factures and trades in London are also printed. 



The book is well printed, clearly arranged, and 

 possesses a good table of contents and an index ; we 

 must warmly congratulate its authors on having produced 

 an altogether admirable handbook of the subject. 



W. T. Lawrence. 

 NO. 1662, VOL. 64] 



COMMERCIA L ED UCA TION. 

 Commercial Education at Home and Abroad : a Compre- 

 hensi-ve Handbool;, providing materials for a Scheme 

 of Commercial Education for the United Kingdom, 

 including Suggested Curricula for all Grades of 

 Educational Institutions. By Frederick Hooper and 

 James Graham. Pp. xiv4-267. (London: Macmillan 

 and Co., Ltd., 1901.) Price 6.r. 



I "HE joint authors of this book are respectively the 



•*■ secretary of the Bradford Chamber of Commerce 

 and the inspector for commercial subjects and modern 

 languages to the West Riding County Council. They 

 have done well to embody the results of their experience 

 in a volume in which the promise held out in its some- 

 what lengthy title is creditably fulfilled. Very copious 

 particulars are given in regard to the organisation and 

 plans of commercial schools in the chief countries of 

 Europe, notably France, Germany, Belgium and Switzer- • 

 land. Designs of buildings, regulations and time-tables, 

 both from these countries and from the United States of 

 America, show in considerable detail how ample and 

 varied is the provision made for the systematic teaching 

 of " commercial " subjects, and how much our own 

 countrymen have yet to learn in this department of 

 national education. A considerable portion of the book 

 is thus statistical and is made up of a great variety of 

 official documents ; but it is uncritical, and does not 

 profess to do more than set forth existing facts, without 

 discriminating very exactly between those portions of 

 an elaborate programme which are of merely occasional 

 and local importance and those which are entitled to 

 rank as essential in every complete scheme of commercial 

 and economic training. 



In dealing with the conditions under which our own 

 tentative efforts after such training have hitherto been 

 made, the authors write with the authority which comes 

 from intimate knowledge, and their suggestions are of 

 much practical value. They rightly insist on the need of 

 a good foundation of general knowledge before any 

 attempt is made to difierentiate the course of a boy's 

 instruction in the direction of any trade or profession. 

 But they urge that when the time for such differentiation 

 arrives, there should be as much encouragement offered 

 by public authorities to the training of skilled merchants, 

 as to the education of the skilled manufacturer or artisan. 

 The policy of the Education Office, and the award of 

 special grants and recognition for "Science and Art," 

 have helped to encourage a general belief that all 

 efforts to prolong the education of a youth beyond the 

 ordinary school age and to fit him for the practical busi- 

 ness of life should take a scientific direction, the domain 

 of "science" being understood to include chemistry, 

 physics and other studies bearing on material industries 

 and production. " At present," the authors say, " pro- 

 vision is made whereby the science student may specialise 

 in the direction of mechanical and electrical engineering, 

 chemical industries and textile trades. But for the com- 

 mercial student no such opportunity exists." 



The contention that this is too restricted a view of the 

 aims and scope of a technical or continuation school is, 

 in our opinion, well grounded, and ought to lead to a 



