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NOTICES OF NEW BOOKS. 



Allgemeine Zoologie oder Grundgesetze des thierischen Bans und 

 Lebens. H. Alexander Pagenstecher. Berlin. I. — IV. 

 1878—1881. 



The appearance of the fourth part of Prof. Pagenstecher's 

 very elaborate 'General Zoology' seems to be a suitable oppor- 

 tunity for directing the attention of our readers to the scope and 

 object of this work, the fourth volume of which, larger somewhat 

 than its predecessors, contains more than 950 pp., while the four 

 parts together present us with as many as 847 figures. Professor 

 Pagenstecher may justly be congratulated on his activity, and the 

 German world of science on this valuable addition to their already 

 noble monument of conscientious laboriousness. While saying 

 this we are bound to add an expression of sympathy with the 

 learned author. In the preface to the second part of his work he 

 had to express a regret for the delay in its appearance, due to 

 an attack of inflammation of the eyes, which for seven months 

 precluded all work. Illness and other circumstances have pre- 

 vented the publication of the fourth volume, the mere printing of 

 which is stated to have taken as much as fifteen months ; and we 

 can well believe it. 



Some general considerations immediately arise when we pro- 

 ceed to take a comprehensive survey of this work. Obviously 

 enough, we have not here to deal with any elementary introduction 

 to the science, and any criticisms on the score of its length may 

 therefore be regarded as being fairly beside the question ; though, 

 on the other hand, one who was a student in one of our ancient 

 Universities, and is a teacher in one of the great centres of popu- 

 lation, might well question whether he finds more leisure as 

 professor than he found as student. From such a point of view 

 as this, Dr. Pagenstecher's work might meet with severe treat- 

 ment. The second and third volumes contain more than 900 

 pages, or as much as the fourth itself; but with all this mass of 

 printed matter, nowhere is there an index, nor any list of the 

 figures in each part, while the table of contents for each may, not 

 unfairly, be spoken of as meagre. Secondly, we have to find fault 



