July 20, 191 1] 



NATURE 



73 



Pray for the souls, divers Orate pro animabuses (sic) 

 in the windows, and a bell Ora pro anima Sancta 

 Katharina.' The 'pictures in stone' were doubtless 

 the alabaster images of the reredos, fragments of 

 which are still preserved in the church, exquisite in 

 modelling and colour." 



Thus was the beauty of rural England destroyed 

 by a fanatic and at a carefully calculated price. 



The second quotation deals with national history 

 and tells us that : — 



" Near Hardwick is Childerley Hall, now a farm- 

 house, and hither King Charles the First was brought 

 by his captors, when carried off by Cornet Joyce from 

 Holmby House, in Northamptonshire. He was not 

 altogether an unwilling captive, for both he and the 

 Army hoped to arrive at some mutual accommodation 

 which would make both independent of that Parlia- 

 mentary control of which both were heartily wearied. 

 He was treated accordingly with the utmost respect, 

 and during his stay at Childerley Hall (from Saturday, 

 June 5, to Tuesday, June 8), the students of Cam- 

 bridge ' flocked apace ' to pay their homage to him. 

 ' He is exceedingly cheerful,' writes a contemporary 

 scribe, ' shows himself to all, and commands that no 

 scholler be debarred from kissing his hand, for which 

 honour thev return humble thanks and Vivat Rex ; 

 and there the Sophs are in their gowns and caps as if 

 no further than Barnwell.' Nay, even the great chiefs 

 of the army, the men who at Marston and Naseby 

 had faced and conquered him. Fairfax. Treton, and 

 Whallev, and Cromwell himself, came hither to join 

 in this hand-kissing." 



The book is bv no means free from small, but to 

 a resident stimulating, errors (like the minute gas- 

 bubbles in soda-water), but in spite of these it will do 

 much to popularise a countryside which has been too 

 long neglected. 



THE SUGAR CANE AND CANE SUGAR. 

 Cane Sugar: a Text-book on the Agriculture of the 

 Sugar Cane, the Manufacture of Cane Sugar, and 

 the Analysis of Sugar House Products; together 

 with a Chapter on the Fermentation of Molasses. 

 By Noel Deerr. Pp. xv + 592. (Altrincham, Man- 

 chester: N. Rodger, 1911.) Price 20?. net. 

 IN this work the author has brought together very 

 nearly all the information, both scientific and 

 practical, which an enthusiastic planter, manager, 

 or chemist would be likely to require in dealing with 

 the production of cane sugar. 



The first ten chapters — about one-third of the whole 

 space — are devoted to description of the cane and its 

 methods of culture. They include a section on the 

 pests and diseases to which the plant is subject, with 

 notes on the various devices which have been found 

 most useful in combating them. In case anyone 

 should question whether it was advisable for the 

 author, a chemist, to devote a considerable amount 

 of space to the botany, agriculture, and pathology of 

 the sugar cane, as well as to its chemistry, an ex- 

 planation is offered which enlists our sympathy at 

 once. " I found it impossible," the author says, " to 

 live on plantations without taking a keen interest 

 in . . . all phases of the production of cane sugar." 

 We may hope that there are many others afflicted 

 with the same kind of inquisitiveness. If so, Mr. 

 Deerr's suggestion that his work may serve to fill a 

 NO. 2177, VOL. 87] 



gap in English technical literature will no doubt be 

 justified. On plants and insects he may not write 

 with the authority of the professional botanist or 

 entomologist; but that is not the whole story. To 

 point out the road, one need not have helped to 

 make it. A useful purpose is served in stimulating 

 the reader's interest, and putting him in the way of 

 getting further information when his curiosity is 

 aroused. From this point of view the outlines given 

 of the botany of the sugar cane, and especially the 

 summary of the insect and fungoid pests that infest 

 it, are by no means lost labour. 



The factory operations connected with the produc- 

 tion of sugar and molasses from the harvested cane 

 are dealt with in the next ten chapters, and the 

 remainder of the volume is chiefly concerned with the 

 chemical control of the manufacture and with ques- 

 tions of sugar analysis. There is also a chapter on 

 fermentation and distillation, with special reference to 

 the requirements of the sugar house in respect of the 

 production of rum. 



Several years ago V. H. and L. Y. Veley 

 ascribed the phenomenon of " faulty " rum to a micro- 

 organism which they isolated and studied, but their 

 conclusions were subsequently challenged by Scard 

 and Harrison. The author has found in weak rum 

 a fungus which, he says, is "similar" to that de- 

 scribed by the Veleys. He does not, however, think 

 it can be called the cause of faulty rum, inasmuch 

 as it did not develop when placed in strong alcohol 

 (75 P er cent.). It was not killed, but no change 

 could be traced in sound, clear rum when this was 

 inoculated with a drop of the weak spirit containing 

 the fungus. Apart from the question of micro- 

 organisms as a cause, the turbidity shown by faulty 

 rum on dilution is attributed to the presence of 

 certain kinds of caramel, higher fatty acids, and 

 terpenes. 



The book represents a great amount of reading. 

 It is not the author's first work on the subject, and 

 his experience as chemist, manager, and sugar tech- 

 nologist is a guarantee that his own statements are 

 likely to be practical and trustworthy, whilst for the 

 views of authorities quoted copious references are 

 given. Tested here and there on points within the 

 present writer's knowledge, the information has 

 proved to be accurate. The illustrations, which 

 are numerous, include some excellent photographs 

 and coloured plates. C. S. 



LABORATORY METHODS IN ZOOLOGY. 

 Zoologisches Praktikum. By Prof. A. Schuberg. 

 Band i., Einfuhrung in die Technik des zoologischen 

 Laboratoriums. Pp. xii + 478. (Leipzig : W. 

 Engelmann, 1910.) Price 11 marks. 



DR. SCHUBERG has set out to write a laboratory 

 manual of methods for dealing with different 

 groups of animals, but found that there was a good 

 deal of general descriptive matter as to methods, 

 apparatus, and reagents to be dealt with before the 

 systematic treatment of the groups could be reached. 

 It is this general part that occupies the whole of the 



