January i6, 1908 J 



NA TURE 



245 



bv which past beliefs have become merged into preient 

 dictrine. Hence the increased attention which is now 

 paid to the history of chemistry, and especially to 

 the history of the development of chemical theory ; 

 and hence, too, the large increase in the number of 

 works dealing with the historical aspects of chemistry 

 wliich have appeared within recent years. 



Dr. Bauer's little book cannot be considered as an 

 important addition to the list. To tell the story 

 jidequately of the origin and growth of chemistry from 

 the earliest times down to this age of ions and elec- 

 trons is hardly possible within the limits of 220 small 

 octavo pages. The book, however, may serve to 

 whet the student's appetite for a fuller acquaintance 

 \\ ith the subject, although in reading it he will have 

 something to unlearn. To accuse Priestley of " per- 

 sonal intolerance " (p. 6g) is wholly to misjudge his 

 character, and the translator — a Priestley research 

 scholar in the University of Birmingham — should 

 have been more careful of what was due to his 

 memory. To say, too, that Cavendish " contended 

 against Lavoisier's theory of combustion until hi. 

 death " is hardly consistent with accuracy. Caven- 

 dish never "contended" against anything; "con- 

 tention " was absolutely foreign to his disposition, 

 and, as a matter of fact, he ceased to take interest 

 in chemical subjects long before his death. Nizza, as 

 the place of his birth, may stand in the original 

 German, but the English reader is more familiar with 

 it as " Nice." John Dalton is said to have led 

 (probably from his hard up-bringing) " a very modest 

 life," and to have " died at Geneva in 1829." If this 

 is a faithful rendering we must suppose that Dr. 

 Bauer got his notes into confusion, since Dalton died 

 at Manchester in 1S44. The date and place evidently 

 refer to Humphry Davy, of whom, however, no 

 biographical account is given. To come down to 

 later times, Kekule is said to have become professor 

 of chemistry at Geneva in 1858 ; for Geneva read 

 Ghent. Ultramarine is not usually classed as a dye- 

 stuff. Thallium was not discovered by Mosander in 

 the earth from Ytterby, as stated on p. 189; nor was 

 fluorine isolated by Moissan by the aid of the electric 

 furnace (p. 216). The name of Lord Rayleigh is not 

 usually associated with the discovery of helium, 

 xenon, krypton, and neon (p. 217), nor did l\L and 

 Mme. Curie isolate radium from " natural pitch- 

 blende " as the bromide. 



Boyle, we are told, " left many writings, which 

 give us pleasure by their simple style and clearness 

 of expression." Whatever may be the merit of 

 Boyle's writings, their style is hardly that of -Addison, 

 and probably no man living has had the courage and 

 tenacity to work through them. Dr. Bauer is 

 evidently not familiar with Swift's " Pious Meditation 

 on a Broomstick in the Style of the Honourable Mr. 

 Boyle." 



In spite of minor blemishes the book is not without 

 merit; indeed, it is eminently readable, and interest- 

 ing. But it needs careful revision, since in its present 

 form a judicious teacher could hardlv commend il 1 

 his pupils. 



Neolithic Dcw-poinis and Callle-wayx. Bv Dr. .\rthur 

 John Hubbard and (ieorge Hubbard. Second edition. 

 Pp. xxiv+ii6; illustrated. (London: Longmans, 

 Green and Co., 1907.) Price 45. 6rf. net. 

 This interesting work has been considerablv enlarged 

 since the appearance of the first edition (1905), which 

 was reviewed in Xmlrk for .\pril 27, 1905 (p. 611, 

 No. 1852). The older work, with its convincing argu- 

 ment of Neolithic man fortifying the heights in order 

 to escape the ravages made by the wolves of the 

 plains on his flocks, has been retained and added to, 



NO. 1994, VOL. 77] 



and we also find the astronomical significance of some 

 ancient works discussed. 



In chapter ii. the authors state that they have found 

 the orientation of Maumbury Rings, near Dorchester, 

 to coincide accurately with that of Stonehenge ; it 

 would be of great interest to have the exact azimuth 

 of the axis, and also the angular height of the horizon 

 over which the sun is supposed to have risen, in order 

 that the solstitial evidence could be more rigorously 

 tested. Should this prove a true case, the discussion 

 of the data would probably give us an earlier date 

 than the 1680 b.c. + 200 years {not 1800 u.c. + 200 

 years, as stated by Messrs. Hubbard) found bv Sir 

 Norman Lockyer and Mr. Penrose for the more im- 

 posing structure on Salisbury Plain. One of the 

 added chapters (vii.) discusses the possible astro- 

 nomical origin of some earthworks on the top of Firle 

 Down, in Sussex, and the authors tentativelv suggest 

 that they were probably constructed about igoo B.C. 

 for the purpose of observing the critical seasons of 

 the May and solstitial years. But the evidence needs 

 very careful sifting before one may fix a solstitial 

 date, as was shown in the above-mentioned investiga- 

 tion of the much more permanent stone structure at 

 Stonehenge. Denudation, subaerial, human and 

 animal, will probably have played havoc with eartli- 

 work alignments, and the fixing of the original lines, 

 it seems to us, must be more or less an arbitrarv pro- 

 ceeding. We would point out that the straight line 

 G.O.B. on the plan given on p. 99 could not pos- 

 sibly indicate the rising and the setting points of the 

 May sun, as stated in the notes; probably the authors 

 mean the rising of the November sun of the Mav 

 year, for which the azimuth S. 62° E. would be 

 approximately correct. 



The book is beautifully printed and illustrated with 

 reproductions from photographs, and should do a 

 great deal to increase the general interest now being 

 taken in the ancient monuments of these islands. 



W. E. ROLSTON. 



Ubitngsbciipiclc aiis der anorganischen Experi- 



mentalchemie. By Heinrich Biltz und Wilhelm Biltz. 



Pp. xi + 232. (Leipzig: Wilhelm Engelmann, 1907.) 



Price 7 marks. 

 There are many books devoted to the preparation 

 of organic compounds, but one rarely comes across 

 one written especially for the study of inorganic pre- 

 paratory work. It seems to be imagined that great 

 skill is required to prepare organic compounds, but 

 that anyone can prepare inorganic compounds in a 

 state of purity and with good yields without anv 

 previous study. As a matter of fact, the preparation 

 of pure inorganic compounds is by no means simple, 

 and it is a great pity that this branch of chemistry 

 is very rarely taught in a systematic manner. Conse- 

 quently almost all the research carried out in thi> 

 country is along organic lines, because owing to the 

 interest aroused by the preparation of organic com- 

 pounds, the student naturally turns to organic 

 chemistry. 



The book before us deals in the main with in- 

 organic preparations, and is arranged, so far as pos- 

 sible, upon systematic lines. Thus chapter i. deals 

 with reductions of oxides, by means of carbon, 

 aluminium, potassium cyanide, and other reducing 

 agents. The sequence mercury from cinnabar and 

 then sodium and ammonium amalgam is rather 

 strange, as some would expect the amalgams to be 

 treated of in connection with alloys. Chapter ii. 

 tteats of polymerisation and dissociation, for example, 

 the allotropy of silver sulphide, the modifications of 

 sulphur, the passive state of iron, colloidal solutions, 

 and so on. Then follows the preparation of various 



