July 12, 1889.] 



SCIENCE. 



33 



Smith's strictures on the French people of Canada ; and while he 

 admits that they are less successful in accumulating wealth than 

 men of the Anglo-Saxon race, and that they are too much under 

 the influence of the priests, he maintains that they are, on the 

 whole, as good citizens as any others. On the question of annexa- 

 tion, he thinks the French are tending toward a decision in its fa- 

 vor, largely because so many of them have already settled in New 

 England, and so have become familiar with life in the States. Mrs. 

 J. C. Croly writes on " Domestic Service," expressing the opinion 

 that mistresses usually expect too much of their servants, — as 

 much as could be expected of trained experts ; and, furthermore, 

 that the servant-girl is too often not treated, as she should be, like 

 any hired laborer, but rather as a dependent. To these causes 

 Mrs. Croly attributes many of the troubles that ladies have with 

 their servants. The other papers in the Forum deal with familiar 

 •subjects, and call for no special remark. 



— It cannot be said that in these days there is any lack of high- 

 class reviews, but their cost is prohibitive to the great mass of the 

 people. A high standard of excellence, and a cultivated literary 

 taste, are no longer confined to the few ; while a keen anxiety to 

 become acquainted with the ideas of the foremost men of the day 

 on the many vital problems now before the world is developing 

 among a class unable to purchase the periodicals in which alone 

 these subjects are handled. The object of The New Review 

 (Longmans, Green, & Co., London and New York) is to place a 

 critical periodical of the first order within the reach of all ; and the 

 preliminary list of writers is a sufficient proof that it will not yield 

 to any in the eminence of its contributors. The public will be 

 brought into direct contact with the most representative men of the 

 age. Politics, science, and art will be treated by writers of ac- 

 knowledged repute ; and literature, both critical and creative, sober 

 and fanciful, will be associated with names which have long car- 

 ried their own commendation. Brevity as well as cheapness will 

 be one of the distinguishing features of the new enterprise. The 

 second number, to be published early in July, will contain, " The 

 Shah," by the Right Hon. Lord Castletown ; " Matthew Arnold," 

 by the lord chief justice of England ; " The Eiffel Tower," by M 

 Eiffel; "The Eight Hours Bill," by Charles Bradlaugh, M.P. 

 "The Higher Policy for Africa," by Sir G. Baden-Powell, M.P. 

 "The Talkers of London;" " Greyfriars," by St. George Mivart, 



F.R.S. ; " The Dying Drama," by William Archer ; " Three Types 

 of Womanhood," by the Countess of Cork. 



— A natural-history serial, " Among the Florida Keys," by 

 Charles Frederick Holder, describing the strange adventures and 

 observations of a party of boys during a vacation trip in Florida, 

 begins in the July number of St. Nicholas, and will continue for 

 four months. 



LETTERS TO THE EDITOR. 



*^*Correspondetits are requested to be as brief as possible. Tke writer's name is 

 in allcases required as proof of good faith. 



The editor will be glad to publish any queries consonant with the character of 

 the journal. 



Queries. 



45. Is THE Human Voice growing, or decaying ? — In his 

 article on speech and song, in the Contemporary Review, Sir Morell 

 Mackenzie writes, " Before leaving the subject of the speaking voice, 

 a word or two may be said on what is more a matter of curious 

 speculation than of practical interest. Is the human voice growing 

 in power and beautyj or is it tending to decay .' Certain physi- 

 ologists assure us that the retina has acquired the power of dis- 

 tinguishing colors by degrees, and that the process will probably 

 continue, so that our descendants will by and by evolve the power 

 of seeing colors now quite unknown to us. On the other hand, it 

 is undeniable that civilization, so far from increasing the keenness 

 of our sight, threatens to make spectacles universally necessary. 

 There can be no doubt that the voice has developed greatly since 

 our 'half- human ancestors' wooed each other in the primeval 

 forests, and it is conceivable that it may in time to come acquire 

 the power of producing musical effects at present undreamt of. It 

 is also probable enough, that, as the voice gains in sweetness, it 

 may lose in power, the latter quality being more required in bar- 

 barous than in highly civilized conditions. On the other hand, we 

 are taller and of larger chest-girth than our predecessors even of a 

 not very remote date : it is reasonable, therefore, to suppose that 

 the average lungs and larynx are bigger nowadays, and the air- 

 blast from the lungs stronger. This would appear to justify us in 

 believing that the voice is stronger than it was even two or three 

 centuries ago. There are, however, no facts that I know of to 

 prove it." Cannot some of the readers of Science throw light on 

 this ? X. 



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