June 23, 1899. ] 



SCIENCE. 



869 



tered under the compounds from which they 

 are derived. 



The next paragraph provides that " entries 

 under the name of a substance may, if 

 necessary, be sub-divided in the same way 

 as that proposed for inorganic substances." 



Hydrocarbons receive the numerical sym- 

 bol 1010, and the scheme for indicating 

 their substitution derivatives leads to amaz- 

 ing propositions ; the general group is di- 

 vided thus : 



1010 Hydrocarbons. 



1020 Paraffins. 



1030 Unsaturated Open-Chain Hydrocarbons. 



1040 Benzenoid Hydrocarbons. 



1050 Eeduced Benzenoid Hydrocarbons (Terpenes, 



etc.). 

 1060 Unclassified Hydrocarbons. 



" Each of these divisions shall be sub-di- 

 vided (excepting 1010 and 1020) into 

 isologous groups, in each of which com- 

 pounds shall be entered in homologous 

 order." Then follow two new arbitrary 

 signs for distinguishing derivatives ; these 

 are full-faced numerals, 2, 4, etc., used to 

 indicate homologous series C,Hj^_j, CJi^^_i, 

 and the full-faced letter C, with exponents 

 attached to indicate the number of carbon 

 atoms in a given compound. 



Applying this scheme to nitropropane 

 CCH3.CH,.CH,.(N0,) ) it will receive the 

 registration symbol 1020.C3-N02 ; allene 

 (Cj:C:CH,) will be indicated by the symbol 

 1030.2.C3,and bromotuluene (C,H,.CH,.Br) 

 will be indicated by 1040.6.C,.Br. 



This plan of assigning to definite chem- 

 ical bodies arbitrary symbols resembling in 

 structure well-established formuhe is most 

 objectionable ; if carried out it would prove 

 vexatious to chemists and of no practical 

 value to librarians. 



To alcohols and ethers the symbol 1100 

 is assigned ; to acids, 1200; each of these 

 groups is sub- divided exactly as are the 

 hydrocarbons, but the symbols of the sub- 

 divisions do not harmonize. Since paraf- 



fins = 1020, ' ols ' should have been 1120, 

 and acids 1220 (instead of 1110 and 1210). 



In the paragraph on acids provision 

 is made for indicating the number of oxy- 

 gen atoms, the character of the acid 

 and the basicity by numbers, to which 

 ol, al, on, id or cy shall be appended, ac- 

 cording to the origin of the acid. " Thus, 

 lactic acid would be marked 1210. C3O3 

 (l.ol), and protocatechuic acid, 1230. 8. C.O^ 

 (I.2.0I)." Here, again, we have registra- 

 tion symbols resembling in a general way 

 chemical formulse, yet they do not show the 

 constitution nor even suggest the name of 

 the substance. 



Number ll-lO is given to carbohydrates 

 other than mono-, di- and trisaccharides and 

 1450 to glucosides and 1460 to resins, and 

 it is provided that compounds belonging to 

 these divisions shall be entered alphabet- 

 ically ; this is again a departure from the 

 numerical plan. Another rule provides 

 that " under alkaloids (1800) a list shall 

 be given of vegeto-alkaloids, together with 

 the Latin names of the plants from which 

 they have been obtained, arranged in the 

 alphabetical order of the plant names." 

 Chemists not versed in botany would find 

 this arrangement a puzzling one. Again, 

 "alkaloids derived from plants (1810) and 

 from animals (1820) shall be arranged 

 alphabetically." 



Division 2000 is styled ' Coloured com- 

 pounds ' [!] , a singular misnomer for com- 

 pounds used in dyeing ; yet another division, 

 2010, is called 'Coloured substances, not dye- 

 stuffs,' and division 2020 is named ' dye- 

 stuflfs.' Provision is made for sub-dividing 

 these categories thus : " 2010 into Hydro- 

 carbons (coloured), Alcohols (coloured), 

 Ketones (coloured), etc.; 2020 into Azo 

 dyes * * * dye- stuffs of vegetable origin, 

 unclassified dyes," arranged alphabetically 

 in each sub-division. 



The rules concerning the entries of the 

 sub-divisions of 3000, Analytical Chem- 



