Mat 11, 1917] 



SCIENCE 



463 



bodies the various classification systems which 

 have been advocated by American writers, and, 

 in addition, presents a very conveniently ar- 

 ranged list of varietal names and so far as 

 identified places them in the various classifica- 

 tion systems under their group names. This 

 should prove of no little convenience to those 

 interested in the subject. 



The three chapters devoted to " Climate, 

 Soils and Rotations," " Manures and Ferti- 

 lizers," and " Planting," are excellently 

 treated, the suggestions being clear, concise 

 and practical. In the opinion of the writer, 

 the value of the subject-matter in these chap- 

 ters would have been enhanced by a few well- 

 selected illustrations of potato implements 

 and cultural methods. The discussion of 

 potato diseases and their control is clear and 

 convincing and should prove very helpful to 

 both the farmer and the student. A chapter 

 on " Markets, Marketing and Storage " is 

 both suggestive and helpful, as is also that 

 on the cost of growing potatoes. 



As a whole, the book is uniaue. in that it is 

 strikingly devoid of illustrations, as compared 

 with most of the recently published agricul- 

 tural text-books. It is a welcome addition to 

 our present text-books on the potato, and 

 should find a place in the classroom of agri- 

 cultural schools and colleges. 



Wm. Stuart 



Health and Disease: Their Determining Fac- 

 tors. By EoGER L. Lee. Little Brown, Co., 

 1917. $1.75. 



This book gives a very pleasing presentation 

 of the factors of health and disease in strictly 

 non-technical language. The author has suc- 

 cessfully and very commendably avoided a con- 

 sideration of the treatment of ailments, and 

 has emphasized throughout the preventive 

 measures which may be performed, or encour- 

 aged by the cooperation of the layman. The 

 most reprehensible thing in the book, from the 

 reviewer's view-point, is the title of Chapter 

 XII., " The Air-borne Diseases ! " After the 

 struggle that has been, and is being made to 

 disillusion the popular mind of the idea that 

 air is an important conveyor of disease, it is 

 a misfortune to use this phrase in any sense. 



The author goes to some pains to explain that 

 he includes under this term chiefly " droplet " 

 or mouth-spray infection, but the use of " air- 

 borne " throughout the book is bound to nour- 

 ish the age-old fallacy. 



The first nine chapters consider chiefly mat- 

 ters of personal hygiene, the next nine, com- 

 municable diseases, and the last six, matters of 

 general sanitation. The sequence and point-of- 

 view throughout are good. Specially to be 

 commended are the chapters on Alcohol, To- 

 bacco and the Habit-forming Drugs and on 

 the Venereal Diseases and Sex Hygiene. 



There are a good many minor criticisms 

 which might be made, as, for example, the loose 

 use of the term antitoxin on page 173, speaking 

 of the " Spirochceta pallida " instead of Trepo- 

 nema pallida, the sentence " ' Eed flap ' is 

 caused by a ringworm which is really a vege- 

 table bacterium" (p. 243), and the statement 

 that " tubercle bacilli are only present in milk 

 when there is tuberculous disease of the udder " 

 (p. 306). 



The book contains 378 pages, is printed on 

 rough paper in good print and is amply in- 

 dexed. There are no cuts or diagrams in the 

 book and no specific references are given. It 

 is to be most cordially recommended to the lay 

 reader and might find a useful place as a text 

 in a general elementary college course in hy- 

 giene and sanitation, and should certainly be 

 on the desk of every teacher of biology and 

 hygiene. Curtis M. Hilll4rd 



Simmons College 



SPECIAL ARTICLES 



A NOTE ON THE EFFECT OF ASPHYXIA AND 



AFFERENT STIMULATION ON ADRENAL 



SECRETION 



Recent observers have expressed some doubt 

 as to the effect of asphyxia and afferent stimu- 

 lation on the secretion of the adrenal glands. 

 Under the circumstances it is desirable to have 

 simple methods which any one may use to 

 demonstrate the effect. During the past few 

 months, with the aid of Mr. H. F. Pierce, I 

 have devised such methods. 



If both carotid arteries, both subclavian 

 arteries and the aorta just anterior to the 

 inferior mesenteric artery are tied, and the 



