6 



NA TURE 



[November 5, iyo8 



Salmonids will and do continually cross with the 

 river trout, thus making the identification of the off- 

 spring difficult, but that " the difficulty of identification 

 is increased when one has to deal with quarter-breeds 

 or with the progeny of a half-bred trout and salmon 

 and a full-bred salmon." The last quoted statement 

 is unsupported by any evidence save that the author 

 has seen brown trout "doing duty on the salmon 

 redds," and occurs in a chapter in which it has 

 already been stated that " the spawning seasons of 

 the two fish (trout and salmon) seldom coincide." 

 We cannot help thinking that the existence of these 

 " quarter-breeds " is the merest matter of speculation, 

 and believe that no serious angler or ichthyologist 

 will credit their existence until specimens have been 

 submitted to expert examination. 



The general get-up and printing of the book is 

 worthy of the publishers whose name it bears, but 

 the use of the back of a map, showing existing 

 hatcheries, as an advertising space for one of these 

 hatcheries is to be deprecated. L. W. B. 



The Lore of tlic Honey-Bee. By Tickner Edwardes. 



Pp. xxiv-l-28i. (London : Methuen and Co., n.d.) 



Price 6s. 

 This book begins with an entertaining account of 

 the curious beliefs about bees held by the ancients 

 and in the Middle Ages, such as their spontaneous 

 generation from the carcass of an ox, as recorded by 

 Virgil and others, and the government of the colony 

 by the queen and her subordinates. 



" The single large bee, which all knew to exist in 

 each hive, was generally looked upon as the absolute 

 ruler of the community. It is variously described as 

 a king or queen by writers in the sixteenth and 

 seventeenth century, but only in the sense of a 

 governor ; and the word chosen largely depended on 

 the sex of the august person who happened to occupy 

 the English throne at the time." 



The greater part of the work consists of a pictur- 

 esque description of different aspects of bees and bee- 

 keeping at the present day. Mr. Edwardes is a charm- 

 ing writer, and the now well-ascertained facts of 

 bee-life are prettily treated by his romantic pen. The 

 author thinks that the " atmosphere of poetry and 

 romance ought to be held inseparable, now as ever, 

 from a craft which is probably the most ancient in 

 the world." Mr. Edwardes's argument that bees are 

 guided by reason rather than by instinct is not con- 

 firmed by close observation. 



.As regards the commercial possibilities of bee- 

 keeping, the author truly says that " tons of honey 

 are annually running to waste. All this could be 

 garnered and sold to the people at little trouble and 

 great profit." And "just as there is nothing like 

 leather, beeswax holds its own as a marketable com- 

 modity in spite of paraffin substitutes." 



The last chapter of the book is devoted to showing 

 how admirably bee-culture is adapted to the practice 

 (A the simple life. 



There are twenty-four fine full-page photographs. 

 F. W. L. Sladen. 



Elements of Water Bacteriolo,^y, with Special Refer- 

 ence to Sanitary Water Analysis. By Prof. S. C. 

 Prescott and Prof. C. E. A. Winslow' Pp. xii + 2^8. 

 Second edition, re-written. (New York : John Wilev 

 and Sons; London: Chapman and Hall, Ltd., 

 1908.) Price 6s. 6d. net. 

 The sanitary examination of water supplies by 

 bacteriological methods is becoming of increasing im- 

 portance. In this country extensive researches have 

 been, and are being, carried out for the Local 



NO. 2036, VOL. 79] 



Government Board, for the Sewage Commission, and 

 for the Metropolitan Water Board. In America also 

 much attention and research are being devoted to 

 the bacteriological examination of waters, and the 

 book under review gives a good summary of 

 American views, procedure, and technique relating 

 to this subject. On the whole, British and American 

 procedures are very similar, and the characters which 

 are recognised by both as belonging to the typical 

 Bacillus coli, so important a factor in all examina- 

 tions, agree fairly closely. This is important, as it 

 renders results obtained in both countries more com- 

 parable than otherwise might be the case. 



In the first chapter the natural bacterial flora of 

 waters, its variation under different conditions, and 

 influences modifying it, are discussed. The quanti- 

 tative bacteriological examination of water is con- 

 sidered in the next and succeeding chapters, namely 

 (i) the estimation of the number of organisms that 

 develop aerobically on gelatin at room temperature 

 (20° C.) ; (2) the estimation of the number of organ- 

 isms that develop aerobically on agar at blood lieat 

 (37° C.) ; and (3) the search for the Bacillus coli, and 

 its isolation and quantitative estimation if present. 

 .As regards Bacillus coli, the American standard 

 seems to be more lenient than ours ; for it is sug- 

 gested that only if this organism is present in i c.c. 

 or under should the water be considered to be unsafe. 

 The chapter on the significance of Bacillus coli is well 

 thought out and instructive. 



Finally, the methods of isolation of the Bacillus 

 welchii (cnteritidis sporogenes), streptococci and 

 pathogenic organisms such as Bacillus typhosus and 

 Vibrio cholerae are fully discussed. The book can 

 be recommended as a very useful one and a great 

 improvement on the first edition ; the numerous 

 tables, formulae for media, and bibliography enhance 

 its value. R. T. Hewlett. 



The National Physique. By A. Stayt Dutton. Pp. 



xn+ 188. (London : Bailiifere, Tindall and Cox, 



1908.) Price 5i. net. 

 A CONSIDERABLE practice in different parts of England 

 and Wales has enabled Mr. Dutton to form an idea 

 of the causes and remedies of the physical deteriora- 

 tion of which we hear so much nowadays. The 

 book he has produced is a sensible little brochure, 

 remarkably free from technicalities, and easily 

 understood by the man in the street. It deals with the 

 elementary questions of physiology which underlie 

 the teachings of hygiene, and gives a good deal of 

 practical advice on the measures to be adopted (diet, 

 fresh air, exercise, pure water, disinfection, and the 

 like) which would ensure the health of the people 

 and the improvement of the race. 



The main underlying idea of the book is the im- 

 portance of anremia as a factor in the causation of a 

 deterioration of the national physique, and the conse- 

 quent importance of improvement in the state of the 

 blood in any efforts to counteract malnutrition and 

 its consequences. The old idea that " the blood is 

 the life " is now relegated to advertisements of quack 

 remedies ; but there is no doubt that impoverishment 

 of the nutrient stream is a readily available guide in 

 any state of poor development or enfeebled health, 

 whatever the ultimate cause of such a condition 

 may be. The author in some cases, perhaps, pushes his 

 idea too far, as, for instance, when he regards ansernia 

 as the prime moving cause in producing myopia. 

 Still, the book is, as before stated, on the whole, 

 judicious and well-balanced. We can only hope that 

 its precepts may be taken to heart by the people at 

 large, and by the legislature. W. D. H. 



