*4 



\ \TURE 



[September 26, 1918 



atoi can readily determine ilie 

 position of his ship. 



As a dii device for his book, or po 



ph) 111 genet al, the authoi had thfe 

 happ; ration to choose the graph of i«o 



electric waves of different frequencies 

 with lxis vertical. The. effect is not altogether 



unliki that <>f the rod of Mercury with its inter- 

 twini d serpents. There are not many misprints, 

 p. 54, however, the formula for the capacity 

 nl an ellipsoid is still given incorrectly- possibly 

 because no one uses it. The u? should be u. 



Sir William Ramsay as a Scientist and Man. By 



Prof. T. C. Chaudhu'ri. With an Introduction 



by Prof. I'. Neogi. Pp. ix + 66. (Calcutta and 



London: Butterworth and Co., 101S.) Price 



1.8 rupees net. 



This little book opens with a short but apprei ta- 



tive account, of Sir William Ramsay's early life, 



education, and career, special attention being 



directed to his earnest efforts to impress on the 



Government the importance of scientific education 



and research and the necessity for co-operation 



between the Government and the scientific societies 



in connection with the war. 



After a brief reference to Ramsay's early work 

 on organic chemistry, and to his researches on 

 physical and inorganic chemistry, there is a fuller 

 account of the discovery of the inert gases. 



The last three chapters are devoted to radio- 

 activity, modern views on electrons and elements, 

 and the question of the transmutation of elements, 

 with especial reference to Ramsay's researches 

 and views. 



Readers will obtain a clear idea of the great 

 part played by Sir William Ramsay in the develop- 

 ment of chemistry, but the p6rtrait is not well 

 reproduced, and there are a few inaccuracies. 



S. Y. 



The Practice of Soft Cheesemaking. Fourth revi- 

 sion. By C. W. Walker-Tisdale and T. R. 

 Robinson. Pp. 106. (London : John North, 

 1918.) Price 35. net. 

 The revised edition of this small volume appears 

 at an opportune time, as there is a considerable 

 demand lor information as to the best means of 

 utilising small quantities of milk. Full working 

 detail- 1 oncerning the manufacture of soft cheeses 

 are gi with chapters upon the production 



of clean milk, the preparation of cream, and the 

 packing an 1 1 rketing of the soft cheese. Those 

 unacquainted ith 'In- terms used in dairying will 

 find the expl given in one of the sections 



of great help, whils! the regulations of the Board 

 of Agriculture ind useful for reference 



purposes. 



This handbook can be strongly recommended to 

 anybody who proposes to n al e soft cheese; and 

 whilst some practical instruct! is desirable, the 

 directions are given so clearly and conciselv that 

 1 beginner need not fear to m start. The 



is also give instructions make ■soft 



chee I nun goats' milk. 



2s5 2, VOL. IO2] 



LETTERS TO THE EDITOR. 



[The Editor does not hold himself responsible for 

 opinions expressed by his correspondents. Neither 

 can he undertake to return, or to correspond with 

 the writers of, rejected manuscripts intended for 

 tins or any other part of NATURE. No notice is 

 taken of anonymous communications.] 



Substitutes for Platinum. 



L 'INFORMATION dom6.e dans Met, ill nail ErS, el qui 



est reproduite dans votre numero du 15 aunt, si, alio 

 d'une insuffisano de documentation cju'il me parail 

 utile de relevei . 



L'all;age nomine 1 "platinite," employe dans les 

 lampes a incandescence, n'est pas ne de la guerre; 

 sa decouverte a fait partie de I 'ensemble des re< ti' rches 

 que j'ai effectue.es au Bureau international des Poids 

 et Mesures, a partir de l'annee 1896, et pour I 'execu- 

 tion desquelles j'ai re§u I'aide la plus devouee il< la 

 Society de Commentry-Fourchambault et Decazeville. 

 Le platinite est nitre dans 1 'usage courant de certaines 

 usines franchises des l'annee 1900, et s'est repandu 

 peu a pen dans les autres pays. Le detail de cet 

 emploi est dunne dans mon ouvrage, "Les applica- 

 tions des aciers au nickel," paru en 1904; je ne 

 crois pas exageYer en disant que l'economie de platine 

 realisee jusqu'ici grace au platinite depasse cinquante 

 millions de francs. 



C'est egalement la Societe de Commentrv-Four- 

 chambault et Decazeville qui a realise pour la 

 premiere fois, dans ses acieries dTmphy, les alliages 

 de nickel a fortes additions de chrome; leurs pro- 

 prietes sont decrites dans l'ouvrage de M. I.. Dumas, 

 "' Recherches sur les aciers au nickel a haute teneur " 

 (1902); d'interessantes applications en out ete faites. 



Les metallurgistes americains de leur cot£ 

 fabriquent, depuis quelques ann^es, sur la merne 

 donnee, l'alliage " nichrome," dont Pusage s'esl beau- 

 coup repandu pour la chauffe electrique des appareils 

 de laboratoire. Cn.-Eo. Guillaume. 



Pavilion de Breteuil, Sevres (S.-&-O.), 

 10 septembre 191S. 



Future Treatment of German Scientific Men. 



1 have just read Lord Walsingham's excellent letter 

 in Nature of September 5, and agree with all he 

 sa\ s as to what should be our line of action towards 

 ilie scientific men of Germany. It is impossible we 

 can meet them just as if nothing had happened since 

 KH4- I quote this sentence (how true it is!): — "It is 

 impossible to dissociate the mental attitude of the 

 population of that country, by no means excepting the 

 highly educated and scientific classes, from tin u irld- 

 conquering aspirations of their rulers, or from the 

 barbarous atrocities committed by them in pursuit of 

 that national ideal." 



I have not heard of a single letter from the very 

 large number of the above scientific classes in Ger- 

 many to acquaintances in this country in which such 

 acts have been denounced, nor have I seen any pro- 

 test or condemnation of German methods coming from 

 the Germans in our midst, of whom there are many 

 who have enjoved in this country friendship, hos- 

 pitality, and even protection, such as mi British sub- 

 ject could hope to rrceive in Germany. Any expres- 

 sions of this kind would be well known, quoted, and 

 notorious. 1 think I should have heard of them, 

 although 1 now lead a very retired country life. 



Instead of protecting objects of science and an by 

 leaving them intact for the benefit of other nations 

 ami the world in general, the German has raised 

 footing and destruction into a devilish art. Soldiers 



