37& 



NA TURE 



[September 16. 1922 



Cancer of the Breast and its Treatment. By Prof. W. 



Sampson Handley. Second edition. Pp. xvii + 411. 



(London : Published for the Middlesex Hospital Press 



by J. Murray, 1922.) 30.?. net. 

 It is now more than six years since the exhaustion of 

 the first edition of this book, in which Sampson Handley 

 set out to place the operative treatment of cancer of 

 the breast on a more rational basis by a closer study of 

 the pathology of the disease. His main conclusions 

 were : (i) that carcinoma spreads centrifugally by per- 

 meation of the lymphatic plexuses ; (2) that reparative 

 processes inadequate for cure are a normal part of the 

 cancer process ; (3) that inflammation and fibrous 

 tissue formation are the principal of these defensive 

 processes ; (4) that invasion of the serous cavities is an 

 event of critical importance in the process of dissemina- 

 tion ; (5) that the embolic theory is only true for 

 exceptional cases. The author instances much detailed 

 evidence in support of these views, which have won 

 widespread, though not universal, acceptance. 



The present edition contains new chapters on 

 radiological treatment, recurrence, Paget's disease of 

 the nipple, lymphangioplasty, and injury as a causative 

 factor in carcinoma. The book is well arranged and 

 excellently illustrated. 



A Handbook of Some South Indian Grasses. By Rai 

 Bahadar K. Ranga Achariyar. Assisted by C. 

 Tadulinga Mudaliyar. Pp. vi + 318 (Calcutta : 

 Butterworth and Co., Ltd. ; London : Constable 

 and Co., Ltd., 192 1.) 4 R. 8 As. 

 This book is intended to serve as a guide to the study 

 of the grasses of the plains of South India for the use 

 of officers of the Agricultural and Forest Departments 

 and others interested in grasses. To remedy scarcity 

 of fodder, foreign grasses and fodder plants have been 

 imported, but so far none have been established on 

 a large scale. The same amount of attention bestowed 

 on indigenous grasses would have yielded better results. 

 About one hundred grasses of wide distribution in the 

 South Indian plains are described in this volume. The 

 arrangement adopted is that of the " Flora of British 

 India." Keys for the identification of genera and 

 species are given, and good descriptions of each species 

 are accompanied with figures of the whole plant and 

 of the spikelet and details of the flower. The descrip- 

 tions are preceded by a useful general account of the 

 vegetative organs and flowers, and the histology of 

 the stem and leaf. The figures, though not always 

 quite sharp, are sufficiently clear to be a great help 

 towards the identification of a given specimen. The 

 handbook should prove of good service in South India. 



The World About Us : A Study in Geographical Environ- 

 ment. By 0. J. R. Howarth. Pp. 94. (London : 

 Oxford University Press, 1922.) 25. 6d. net. 

 Mr. Howarth has written a small book on a most 

 important subject. Its size is the only fault we have 

 to find with this excellent volume, although it is a 

 pity that a title more descriptive of the content was 

 not chosen. Enthusiasm for the geographical point 

 of view too often leads to exaggerated statements of 

 the influence of environment on human activities 

 and is prone to encourage generalisations which not 

 infrequently ignore the facts. Mr. Howarth is too 



NO. 2759, VOL. I 10] 



careful a geographer to fall into these bad ways. 

 He traces the nature of geographical influences, and 

 in selected cases tries to estimate the forces of the factors 

 involved. Chapters on the factors of environment are 

 followed by others on distribution, migration, and trans- 

 port. Particularly suggestive are the chapters on geo- 

 graphical environment and political states, and the local 

 application of environmental study. The latter ex- 

 pounds the idea of regional survey in its value as a 

 co-ordinating study of the things and peoples around 

 us. Mr. Howarth's thoughtful and lucidly written 

 volume should help geography to find its proper 

 place in educational schemes. It deserves to be read 

 widely. 



Eyes and Spectacles. By Dr. M. von Rohr. Rendered 

 into English by Dr. A. Harold Levy. Authorised 

 translation. Pp. vi-t- 130 + xxii. (London : Hatton 

 Press, Ltd., n.d.) 6s. net. 

 We believe that this little book by Dr. Moritz von 

 Rohr will prove as helpful to other English readers 

 as it has been to the translator. Not only should 

 it be read by those who prescribe and those who 

 make lenses, but also by those who have to teach 

 medical students or others the elementary principles 

 on which the science of ophthalmology is based. The 

 first part of the book deals with the eye itself, and 

 also perspective as a form of perception by means of 

 which the arrangement in space of the outer world 

 becomes manifest to the observer. The most im- 

 portant section of the book deals with spectacles, 

 and stress is laid on the two fundamental problems 

 of increased clearness of vision and the alteration of 

 direction of the object perceived. The final portion 

 of the volume deals with spectacle frames. The 

 translation, which has had the advantage of the author's 

 revision, appears to have been carried out in an efficient 

 manner. 



The Link between the Practitioner and the Laboratory : 



A Guide to the Practitioner in his Relations with the 



Pathological Laboratory. By C. Fletcher and H. 



McLean. Pp. 91. (London : H. K. Lewis and Co., 



Ltd., 1920.) 45. 6d. net. 



This little book is for the guidance of the medical 



practitioner when he is obtaining the assistance of the 



laboratory. It enumerates clinical conditions with the 



appropriate pathological investigations, and gives clear 



instructions for the collection and transmission of the 



necessary material ; there is also a brief resume of 



vaccine and serum therapy. Attention to the details 



given will certainly assist the practitioner in supplying 



to the pathologist the right material in the right way. 



Emile Coui : The Man and his Work. By Hugh 

 MacNaughten. Pp. xi + 52. (London : Methuen 

 and Co., Ltd., 1922.) 2s. net. 

 An ambitious title appears on this book, which is really 

 an enthusiastic appreciation of a doctor from whom the 

 writer has received benefit. It records vividly scenes 

 at Nancy, Eton, and London when Coue gave demon- 

 strations of his methods. The writer gives a very 

 charming impression of Coue as a man. The book is 

 not, however, nor does it purport to be, a scientific 

 treatise on Coue's theories of suggestion. 



