03178 
““false’’ chaulmoogra oil, which is expressed 
from the seeds of Hydnocarpus venenata, Gaert- 
ner. Considerable uncertainty exists as to the 
origin of true chaulmoogra oil, but it is probably 
obtained from the seeds of Taraktogenos kurzti, King. 
Since the latter oil is admittedly the most promising 
remedy for the treatment of leprosy, it is highly impor- 
tant to determine whether oils from the seeds of other 
plants of the same family, such as H. venenata, can 
be substituted for it, thus largely increasing the quan- 
tity of the remedy available. The author finds that 
the oils from T. kursii, H. wightiana, H. anthelmin- 
ticus, and H. venenata are chemically similar, but 
differ from the oil of Gynocardia odorata. It is there- 
fore to be expected that the physiological action of the 
former oils would be similar, and the outcome of the 
author’s further work on their physiological properties 
will be, awaited with interest. The second paper estab- 
lishes the fact that certain edible beans, particularly 
warieties of the soy bean, contain a substance which, 
like the ‘“‘maltol’’ discovered by Brand in caramel 
malt, gives a reaction with ferric chloride similar to 
that given by salicylic acid. Of thirty-two varieties of 
Japanese, Chinese, and American beans, eight brealk- 
fast foods, six coffee substitutes, and four flours, 
twenty-one of the bean samples, one breakfast food, 
and four of the coffee substitutes gave positive results 
when tested by the ferric chloride reaction; but only 
the four coffee substitutes gave positive results when 
tested by Jorissen’s reaction. In testing for the pre- 
sence of salicylic acid in beans, it is therefore advis- 
able to use Jorissen’s reagent. 
Mr, J. H. Lavender gives some interesting notes 
in Engineering for December 29 on the hardening of 
screw gauges. From a number of preliminary experi- 
ments on different brands of cast steel, one having a 
high percentage of manganese was selected. ‘The 
reasons for this selection are as follows :—(a) The 
manganese content of the steel appeared to affect the 
volume changes in the steel; (b) this particular brand 
of steel could be quenched in oil, and a better surface 
finish obtained than from one quenched in water. 
The analysis of the steel gave the following per- 
centages :—C, 0-96; Si, 0-19; Mn, 1-20; S, 0:03; 
P, 002. The furnace used for heating the gauges 
need not be of any particular kind, so long as the 
metal is not heated too rapidly and uniformity during 
heating is obtained. A small Richmond gas furnace 
is very suitable for the work. From the results given 
by the pyrometric curves, it was decided to harden 
gauges from a temperature of 749° C. Gauges 
quenched from this temperature are quite hard, and 
the temperature is sufficiently high to provide a fair 
margin for the hardener. Undue oxidation is pre- 
vented by providing a reducing atmosphere in the 
furnace by means of excess of gas, and by having the 
quenching tank as near as possible to the furnace. 
Gauges are tempered in oil at 260° C., sufficient time 
being given for obtaining uniform temperature 
throughout the metal. Whale oil is used for cooling 
purposes. The strain produced by sudden quenching 
is got rid of during the tempering process, and a trust- 
worthy man, by following the procedure outlined, can 
produce work which comes within the National 
Physical Laboratory’s requirements. 
“Tur Wellcome Photographic Exposure Record and 
Diary”’ for the new year is issued by Messrs. Bur- 
roughs Wellcome and Co., a little volume for the 
pocket that many photographers would be very sorry 
to be without. It includes, as in past years, not only 
what the title indicates, but many tables, formula, and 
other information that photographers need, and the 
NO. 2463, VoL. 98] 
NATURE 
well-known ‘Exposure Calculator ”’ that has stood the 
test of many years. The formyl are, of course, in 
terms of ‘tabloids,’ but as the content of each is 
given, the user of them knows what he is doing. The 
price of the diary is one shilling, and special editions 
are issued for the southern hemisphere and U.S.A. 
AN early publication of the Cambridge University 
Press will be Dr. J. Y. Buchanan’s ‘Comptes Rendus 
of Observation and Reasoning."’ It will contain, 
among others, the following papers :—Recent Antarctic 
exploration; chemical and physical notes; on ice and 
brines; on steam and jbrines; the size of the ice-grain 
in glaciers; ice and its natural history; Beobachtungen 
tiber die Einwirkung der Strahlung auf das Gletche- 
reis; in and around the Morteratsch Glacier; a study 
in the natural history of ice; the use of the globe in 
the study of crystallography; on a solar calorimeter 
used in Egypt at the total solar eclipse in 1882; solar 
radiation; the total eclipse of August 30, 1905; eclipse 
predictions; the solar eclipse of April 17, 1912; the 
publication of scientific papers; the Royal Society; 
nomenclature and notation in calorimetry; thermo- 
metric scales for meteorological use; and the metrical 
system. 
Messrs. SOTHERAN’s new catalogue (No. 767) of 
second-hand books in zoology, including big-game 
hunting, and comprising many works relating to 
ornithology, should be seen by all in search of bargains 
in these branches of science, most of the works being 
priced at a great reduction. We mote that the list 
directs attention to a complete set to 1912 of the 
Abstracts of the papers printed in the Philosophical 
Transactions and the Proceedings of the Royal Society ; 
also of the Philosophical Transactions from 1665 to 
1910. Messrs. Sotheran announce the continuation, 
by Mr. W. L. Sclater, of Shelley’s ‘‘The Birds of 
Africa.” It is hoped to complete the work by the 
publication of four or five additional volumes. — 
We have received from Mr. Humphrey Milford a 
copy of the general catalogue of the Oxford University 
Press, issued in November last. It contains 574 pages 
describing the six sections—one of which is concerned 
with natural science and medicine—into which the 
catalogue is divided. An exhaustive alphabetical index 
of authors, editors, and jsome titles makes it easy to 
discover particulars of jndividual books. The section 
dealing with natural science runs to thirty-five pages, 
and describes works on the history and methods of 
the sciences and on the following, among other sub- 
jects :—Mathematics, physics and chemistry, astro- 
nomy, geology, biology, and medicine. The illustra- 
tions scattered throughout the different sections add to 
the attractiveness of the catalogue. 
THE spring announcements of Messrs. Macmillan 
and Co., Ltd., include :—*A Text-Book of Thermo- 
Chemistry and Thermo-Dynamics,” Prof. O. Sackur, 
translated and revised by Dr. G. E. Gibson; *‘ Human 
Physiology,” Prof. L. Luciani, translated by Frances 
A. Welby, with a preface by Prof. J. N. Langley, illus- 
trated, in five vols., vol. iv., edited by Dr. G. M. 
Holmes; *“‘Community: A Sociological Study, being 
an attempt to set out the Nature and Fundamental 
Laws of Social Life,” Dr. R. M. Maciver; “The 
Origin and Development of the Moral Ideas,’ Dr. 
E. Westermarck, vol. ii., second edition; ‘The 
Economic Annals of the Nineteenth Century,” the late 
Prof. W. Smart, vol. ii., 1821-1830; ‘‘ Higher Educa- 
tion and the War,” Prof. J. Burnet; ‘‘ Highways and 
Byways in Wiltshire,’ E. Hutton, illustrated by Nelly 
Erichsen. 
[JANUARY II, 1917 | 
