556 



NA TURE 



[OcTOIiEK 5, 1905 



and in giving assistance to the investigations of 

 others. The volume thus consists largely of _ addi- 

 tions and notes originally appended to memoirs by 

 other authors." 



Hence, although we meet abundant evidence of 

 Stokes's constant occupation with scientific subjects, 

 and of the characteristic generosity with which he 

 placed his powers at the service of others, we miss 

 something of the more spontaneous activity which 

 characterised his earlier period. We find various 

 proofs, however, that the subjects which had first 

 fascinated him were never long absent from his 

 thoughts ; and occasionally they receive a flash of un- 

 e.Kpected illumination. We may cite the various notes 

 on water-waves, the brilliant little paper on semi-con- 

 vergent series, and the admirable interpretation of 

 Prof. Hele-Shaw's experiments on the flow of a 

 viscous liquid between parallel plates. We have also 

 a record of the keen interest which in the last few 

 years of his life he took in the subject of Rontgen 

 rays. The lecture (p. 256) which he gave to the Man- 

 chester Literary and Philosophical Society in 1896 was 

 written out (with the help of reporters' notes) a\ter 

 ■delivery ; bright and genial as it is, it gives no 

 adequate idea of the buoyant freshness and vivacity 

 which characterised the oral exposition. 



The volume includes, by a happy determination, a 

 collection of the papers set by Stokes in the mathe- 

 matical tripos, and in the old Smith's Prize examin- 

 ation. It is well known that through this unusual 

 channel several important scientific results were first 

 made known to the world ; for example, the notion of 

 group-velocity, and the famous " Stokes's Theorem," 

 respecting which we have an interesting historical 

 note by Prof. Larmor. We suspect that a mathe- 

 matical antiquarian might make further interesting 

 " finds." If we are not mistaken, we detect prior 

 publications of a remarkable theorem relating to the 

 infinite product for sin .r, and of a definite integral 

 property of Bessel's functions, which are usually 

 attributed to Weierstrass and to H. Weber re- 

 spectively. Of course, no one, least of all Stokes 

 bimself, would attach much importance to the ques- 

 tion of priority under these conditions ; but such 

 instances are of interest as showing, in unexpected 

 directions, the singular vigour and independence of 

 Stokes's mind. 



The Royal Society obituary notice, with its authori- 

 tative appreciation of Stokes's scientific researches by 

 one of his keenest admirers and disciples, forms a 

 fitting accompaniment to this monumental publica- 

 tion. The volume is further adorned by an excellent 

 photograph by Mrs. Myers, of date 1892. 



The scientific world will await with great interest 

 the publication of the " volume of biographical char- 

 acter, to be occupied in part by a selection from Sir 

 Oeorge Stokes's voluminous scientific correspondence, 

 including some unpublished manuscript material," 

 which is promised in the preface. The great energy 

 with which Prof. Larmor has discharged his present 

 honourable task justifies the hope that we shall not 

 have to wait too long for the proposed supplement. 



H. L. 

 NO. 1875, "^'OL. 72] 



OUR BOOK SHELF. 



Notes on the Drawings for Sowerhy's "English 

 Botany." By F. N. A. Garry. Reprinted from the 

 Journal of Botany, 1904-5. Pp. 276. (London : 

 West, Newman and Co., 1905.) Price 6s. 



The series of volumes known as " English Botany " 

 was begun in 1790 by James Sowerby, the botanic 

 artist, who engaged Dr. James Edward Smith, the 

 possessor of the Linnean collections and founder of 

 the Linnean Society, to describe the plants depicted by 

 him. At first the name of the draughtsman only 

 appeared on the title-page, but in 1795 a preface to the 

 fourth volume by Smith acknowledged his authorship, 

 and he was much annoyed in after years by " the flijj- 

 pancy with which everybody quotes " Sowerby," 

 whom they know merely as the delineator of these 

 plates, without adverting to the information of the 

 work, or the name of the author." The artist and 

 those who followed him preserved the original draw- 

 ings of the phanerogams and vascular cryptogams, 

 which ultimately came into the possession of thi: 

 trustees of the British Museum, and are now in the 

 department of botany. Here are to be found the 

 drawings, with impressions from the original plates, 

 and also from the third recast edition, laid down side 

 by side on the same sheets. The drawings (which 

 had been submitted to Smith for his criticism and his 

 text which accompanied them) bear many notes and 

 directions to the engraver, which are of great interest 

 as showing not only the state of botany at the time, 

 but mentioning the numerous contributors of plants 

 to the work and its supplement. Mr. Garry has done 

 excellent service in the laborious task of transcribing 

 and editing these notes, which can now be read by 

 those who have not seen the originals themselves. 

 Turning over these pages, the writer is reminded of 

 the days when, more than thirty years ago, he first 

 made acquaintance with the drawings in the old 

 rooms of the department at Bloomsbury, recalling the 

 charm they possess for all who care for the history 

 of the native plants of Great Britain. 



Without going into detail it would be impossible to 

 set out manv most interesting items which are to be 

 found in the pages of this modest reprint from the 

 two years' supplements to the journal in which they 

 made their first appearance. We have here glimpses 

 of a big book in the making, which extended in the 

 first instance to thirty-six volumes and closed in 1814 

 with a general index. Further discoveries and greater 

 discrimination of critical forms induced the beginning 

 of a supplement in 1831, which died out in 1866 

 in its fifth volume ; the text in these later volumes 

 was by many hands, amongst them the most active 

 and critical of the botanists of the day. These last 

 plates are now in the Fielding herbarium at Oxford, 

 whence they were borrowed by the author so as to 

 complete his work. B. D. J. 



.1 Text-book of Clieinical Arilhmclic. By Horace L. 

 Wells. Pp. vii4-i66. (New York: John \\'iley and 

 Sons; London: Chapman and Hall, Ltd., 190;.) 

 Price 55. 6d. net. 



In the preface it is stated tliat this book " is de- 

 signed especially for the use of students of quan- 

 titative analysis, many of whom, even after having 

 taken extensive courses in higher mathematics, show 

 little ability to solve simple chemical problems. Cer- 

 tain portions of the work are suitable also for the use 

 of those who are studying elementary chemistry." 

 It appears, therefore, that an American professor is 

 no better off than his English cousin in this matter 

 of student arithmetic The dlfiicultv is two-fold. In 



