APRIL 29, 1915] 
NATURE 229 

in inquiries into the efficacy of therapeutic agents 
as applied in actual practice. The last-named 
would perhaps have been better published separ- 
ately, and need not be further considered here. 
As regards “optochin,” it is found that this drug 
exerts a specific bactericidal action on the pneumo- 
eoccus in high dilutions in serum as well as in 
watery solution. It has been successfully used 
as an application in local pneumococcic affections, 
and though some have been favourably impressed 
with it in the treatment of pneumonia, others have 
not found it to be of value. There is also some 
risk to eyesight in its use. 
The pneumonia of the. Rand was found to be 
a pneumococcal infection, and the native seems 
naturally to possess much less immunity towards 
the pneumococcus than does the white man. 
Various trials were made of pneumococcus vaccine 
as a preventive of pneumonia, and it is finally 
recommended that a dose of 1,000 millions of 
pneumococci cultivated in glucose blood broth 
might be appropriately employed as an ordinary 
prophylactic dose, as this was found considerably 
to reduce the incidence of pneumonia among those 
treated, as well as reducing the mortality if pneu- 
monia occurred among them. 
A very large amount of experimental work was 
carried out in this inquiry by Sir Almroth Wright 
and his collaborators, and the manner in which the 
results were controlled and are tabulated are 
models of what a scientific investigation should 
be, and form a valuable contribution towards the 
control of a disease which causes serious loss of 
life, as well as being one of considerable economic 
importance in the Rand. R. T. HEWLETT. 

ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING. 
(1) American Handbook for Electrical Engineers: 
a Reference Book for Practicing Engineers and 
Students of Engineering. Compiled by a staff 
of specialists. Harold Pender, editor-in-chief. 
Pp. xvili+2023. (New York: J. Wiley and 
Sons, Inec.; London: Chapman and Hall, Ltd., 
LOI4s) Me emGes2rs. net: 
(2) Electrical Engineering in Ind'a: a Practical 
Treatise for Civil, Mechanical, and Electrical 
Engineers. By J. W. Meares. Pp. xxxvi+ 517. 
(Calcutta: Thacker, Spink and Co.; London: 
W. Thacker and Co., 1914.) 
(1) 
Price 5s. 
N its thousand pages this “ American Hand- 
book” contains information on an enor- 
mous variety of subjects arranged alphabetically 
' from “Abbreviations” to ‘‘ X-Rays.’’ The work 
is a sort of combination of a library of text-books 
with a collection of formule and data. In the 
latter department, which must be regarded as its 
true field, the book will be found of great service 
NO. 2374, VOL. 95] 

to electrical engineers, but the utility of the text- 
book portion is, perhaps, open to doubt. 
Each section appears to have been written by a 
man having a thorough and practical knowledge 
of the subject, and the theoretical and descriptive 
matter is excellent so far as it goes; where it 
bears directly on the tabulated matter it is also 
most useful. But the necessary limitations of 
space prevent it from being anything like a satis- 
factory substitute for the detailed text-book. We 
get just a very brief summary of the leading facts, 
to other books 
in which fuller information can be obtained. 
but we are also given references 
Although we would not agree with everything 
contained in the book (for instance, we do not 
” 
approve of ‘“‘abohms,” “‘abamperes,” and so on, 
and do not even admit any necessity for the so- 
called systems of units), we must 
say that the volume is a useful accessory to the 
“absolute ” 
electrical engineer’s desk or 
(2) This book contains a 
library. 
considerable amount 
of information on electrical matters with special 
reference to the conditions 
and legislation as they exist in India, but we have 
some difficulty in imagining a class of engineers 
to whom it will be really useful. The elementary 
matter is too scrappy, and too much jumbled up 
to be of service to a beginner, or even to one 
as to climate, cost, 
who has forgotten; to the man who knows already 
it would be sheer waste of time to read it. 
There is much descriptive matter, but there are 
very few illustrations; without them the written 
matter is almost worthless. 
we think, prefer a good standard text-book, of 
which there are a few, for getting up the elemen- 
tary theory, and one of the well-known “ pocket- 
books” for tabulated data. 
Davip ROBERTSON. 
Most engineers will, 

OUR BOOKSHELF. 
English Folk-song and Dance. By I. Kidson and 
M. Neal. Pp. viit+178. (Cambridge: At the 
University Press, 1915.) Price 3s. net. 
Ir is only in recent years that with the active 
collection and study of European folk-lore the follk- 
song and folk-dance have begun to receive the 
attention which they deserve. The collecting of 
English folk-songs, begun by the Rev. J. Broad- 
wood in 1843, has since that time been actively 
prosecuted by Miss L. Broadwood, W. Chappell, 
Dr. Barrett, and Mr. Baring Gould. In 1898 the 
Folk-song Society conimenced its labours, and has 
year by year added to our knowledge of British 
and Irish folk-music. A summary of the pro- 
gress already made and instructions to the col- 
lector were badly wanted. This has now been 
supplied in the present book, which deals satis- 
factorily with the problem of the origin of folk- 
music, and fully describes the methods of nota- 
