870 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. IX. No. 234. 



istry, also lack uniformity, clearness and 

 exactness; " division 3200 shall include all 

 entries relating to the determination of in- 

 dividual elements in their compounds and 

 in mixtures, excluding determinations of 

 atomic weights " vrhich belong to division 

 3500 (theoretical and physical chemistry). 

 " Division 3300 shall include all entries 

 relating to the determination of individual 

 compounds, e. g., alkaloids, carbohydrates 

 * * * but excluding gases. If necessary 

 gravimetric, volumetric, electrolytic, phys- 

 ical, etc., methods may be distinguished 

 by letters, such as g, v, etc." "Division 

 3400 (Applied Analysis) shall include all 

 entries relating to the analysis of composite 

 materials, such as drugs, foods, soils, waters 

 and technical products generally, arranged 

 under appropriate significant headings." 



The remaining divisions, 3500, Theoret- 

 ical and Physical Chemistry, and 4000, 

 Physiological Chemistry, must be passed ; 

 the specimens given are sufficiently numer- 

 ous. 



A study of this remarkable scheme of 

 classification shows that the Committee 

 failed to recognize the fact that classifica- 

 tion and notation are two distinct things, 

 and that a notation need have no relation 

 to the character of the class to which the 

 notation is given. To diflferentiate the 

 houses in a city, street and number are 

 given ; ' 120 Grand Avenue ' suffices to dis- 

 tinguish a given house, and it is not neces- 

 sary to construct a symbol indicating the 

 number of stories, the number of windows 

 and the color of the paint in order to recog- 

 nize the address. 



Accompanying the schedule of classifica- 

 tion is a specimem page giving illustrations 

 of the way in which these rules should be 

 applied ; the examples bring out forcibly 

 the absurdities of the conglomerate method 

 proposed. The paper on Argon, by Lord 

 Rayleigh and W. Ramsay, receives the 

 Kabbalistic formula ' 0100. i?.<p,^ but, if we 



understand rightly the Committee's rules, 

 the numerals should be 0130, which stands 

 for argon. 



An article by J. J. Sudborough and L. 

 L. Lloyd, on ' Stereoisomerism as affecting 

 formation of etheral salts from unsaturated 

 acids,' is assigned simply the number 3500 ; 

 when, however, the same paper is entered 

 under a different title, namely : ' Etherifica- 

 tion of stereoisomeric unsaturated acids a 

 criterion of structure,' it has the number 

 1200 r ; when, on the other hand, this paper 

 is catalogued as : 'Cinnamic and allied acids 

 as a criterion of structure, Etherification 

 of,' the catalogue slip must bear the symbol 



1230.10.C,A'5- 



To a chemist the formula of cinnamic 

 acid C,H,.CH:CH,.CO,H has a definite 

 meaning, and we protest against a system 

 that introduces symbols, analogous in ap- 

 pearance, yet wholly misleading as respects 

 the composition. 



An examination of the schedule of classifi- 

 cation of Chemistry proposed by the Inter- 

 national Catalogue Committee shows that 

 it consists of a medley of several methods. 

 The system includes : 



1. Numbers, full-face and inferiors, used 



for several distinct purposes. 



2. Eoman capitals, to denote component 



elements. 



3. Roman lower-case, to denote kind of 



chemical process. 



4. Italic letters in parenthesis, to denote 



basicity of acids. 



5. Greek lower-case letters. 



6. Word-headings arranged alphabetically. 



7. Special provisions ; exceptions to rules. 

 In 1772, at Ulm, was printed a thin octavo, 



having the title ' Medicinisch-chymisch und 

 alchemistisches Oraculum,' which contains 

 a key to over two thousand symbols and 

 kabbalistic figures found in alchemical 

 manuscripts and books ; the book is curious 

 and instructive, as well as really service- 

 able to antiquarian chemists. The number 



