May 30, 1902.] 



SCIENCE. 



863 



fects of impure water; Chapter twelve on 

 water purification, and Chapter thirteen on 

 scavenging of towns and sewage disposal, are 

 very complete indeed for a book of this size. 

 Under the head of sewage disposal he has 

 withdrawn all descriptions of the chemical 

 methods of treatment, but has very fully ex- 

 plained the theory and working of the bac- 

 terial tank and filters, which he very justly 

 maintains should be adopted wherever irriga- 

 tion cannot be advantageously carried out. 

 His discussion of river pollution by the gen- 

 eral introduction of sewage and the wastes of 

 human life and occupation is brief, but suffi- 

 ciently pointed to show that few streams 

 can be used with perfect safety as sources of 

 public water supply. 



In speaking of the disposal of the dead, the 

 author makes a strong plea for cremation, but 

 deems it in the highest degree improbable that, 

 for many generations at any rate, there will 

 be any appreciable change in the practice of 

 interment, sanctioned as it is by usage, senti- 

 ment and prejudices. He considers the fear 

 that cremation would, by precluding subse- 

 quent examination, serve to conceal, if not 

 ofi^er an indticement to, crime as exaggerated 

 or groundless, and shows how cremation might 

 be made to lead to the detection of crime as 

 it has already done in Italy, by exacting a 

 more rigid system of certificates of death 

 from the medical attendant, and in doubt- 

 ful cases a post-mortem examination. 



Chapters fifteen and sixteen, on preventable 

 diseases, immunity and disinfection, are fully 

 up-to-date and of great value, as is also the 

 chapter on school hygiene, especially the dis- 

 cussion of the excessive and misdirected men- 

 tal work. His long and practical experience 

 as a physician, sanitarian and school manager 

 entitles him to speak with authority on the 

 subject. His chapters on the health in the 

 Avorkshop, comparative mortality of various 

 professions and trades, meteorology, climate 

 and health resorts contain a fund of useful 

 information not generally found in a work 

 of this character. On the whole the student 

 of hygiene is to be congratulated upon the 

 appearance of this very accurate and com- 

 plete book. Geo. M. Kober. 



Forstdsthetik. By Heinrich von Salisch. 

 Berlin, Julius Springer. Second edition. 

 Octavo, paper cover. Pp. 314. Illustrated 

 with sixteen full-page heliotypes and fifty- 

 nine half-tones and figures. 

 This book treats of woodland scenery in its 

 relation to the science of forestry. The au- 

 thor describes in detail the scenic beauty of 

 the artificial forests of Germany. These have 

 long been subjected to systematic methods of 

 treatment, and although the ostensible object 

 has been solely to increase the practical 

 value of the* forests, they have incidentally 

 been given a distinctive character that is well 

 worth our study. The subject should inter- 

 est Americans because the forestry movement 

 that is now so rapidly gaining ground in the 

 United States must, in its practical applica- 

 tion, ultimately affect our wooded landscapes. 

 The book comprises two parts, the first of 

 which opens with an introductory chapter on 

 the relation between the economic and the 

 ajsthetic aspects of forestry. Then follow 

 several chapters on the nature of beauty and 

 our capacity to understand its various modes 

 of expression. The remainder of Part I. 

 shows how this beauty is revealed by the vari- 

 ous components of the forest. 



In Part II. the author enters into a careful 

 discussion of the sesthetic effects that are due 

 to the various operations of forestry, such as 

 the construction of road systems, the choice 

 of species in renewing the forest, the methods 

 of sowing and planting, and the different sys- 

 tems that regulate the cutting of the timber. 

 The concluding chapters treat of certain prin- 

 ciples of landscape art that in the author's 

 opinion may advantageously be applied to the 

 practical forestry of Germany. 



The author is thoroughly familiar with his 

 subject in its utilitarian as well as its sesthetic 

 aspects, and has produced a work of de- 

 cided value. His manner of treatment shows 

 exceptional powers of discrimination, partic- 

 ularly in matters of taste. The book contains 

 many extracts from writers who have inci- 

 dentally touched upon forest ajsthetics, thus 

 affording an opportunity for a broad but 

 liberal criticism of the various points of view. 

 While Mr. von Salisch therefore does not 



