October 22, 1915] 



SCIENCE 



573 



having ranged along the foot of the mountain an 

 hundred miles to seek a vent. On your left ap- 

 proaches the Potomac, in quest of a passage also. 

 In the moment of their juncture they rush together 

 against the mountain, rend it asunder and pass off 

 to the sea. 



The first glance of the scene hurries our senses 

 into the opinion that the earth has been created in 

 time, that mountains were formed first, that the 

 rivers began to flow afterwards, that in this place 

 particularly they have been dammed by the Blue 

 Eidge Mountains, and have formed an ocean which 

 filled the whole valley, that continuing to rise they 

 have at length broken over at this spot and have 

 torn the mountains down from the summit to the 

 base. 



Probably in the whole realm of literature 

 there does not exist a more striking illustra- 

 tion of the cataclysmic point of view in at- 

 tempting' to explain geological phenomena 

 than is expressed in the above passage, and it 

 serves to illustrate how far in general in the 

 scientific realm we have got away from the 

 catastrophic ideas of Jefferson's day, which 

 antedate even somewhat those of Cuvier and 

 Schlotheim; yet when one examines the litera- 

 ture of modern physiography and sees the 

 readiness with which " an uplifted and dis- 

 sected peneplain " is invoked to explain every 

 even sky-line or approximate uniformity in 

 heights of mountain summits, while every 

 peculiarity in drainage is accounted for as an 

 inheritance from a past cycle of erosion, over- 

 looking in many cases a simpler explanation 

 involving only " processes now in operation " ; 

 he wonders if there does not lurk therein some- 

 what of the old catastrophism. 



Arthur M. Miller 



University of Kentucky 



SCIENTIFIC BOOKS 

 Der Nachweiss organischer Yerbindungen. 

 Augsgewahlte Eeaktionen und Verfahren. 

 By Dr. L. Rosenthaler. Verlag von Ferdi- 

 nand Enke, Stuttgart. 1914. 6X9.5 

 inches. Pp. xvii -f 1,070. 35.20 Marks 

 bound. 



This work comprises the nineteenth and 

 twentieth volumes of a series of monographs 

 edited under the direction of Dr. B. M. Mar- 



gosches, and published under the general title 

 '■ Die Chemische Analyse. Sammlung von 

 Einzeldarstellungen auf dem Gebiete der 

 ehemischen, technisch- chemischen, und physi- 

 kalisch-chemischen Analyse." The earlier vol- 

 umes are nearly all technical monographs deal- 

 ing with the various phases of analytical 

 chemistry. In the present volume, however, 

 there has been gathered together an immense 

 amount of general information for the organic 

 chemist. 



Everywhere that chemistry is taught there 

 are given courses in inorganic qualitative 

 analysis and text-books and reference works 

 dealing with the separation and identification 

 of inorganic compounds are to be found in 

 every chemist's library. When, however, we 

 pass into the realm of the carbon compounds 

 we find that an entirely difl'erent situation ob- 

 tains. There are but few texts or reference 

 works dealing with the separation and identifi- 

 cation of organic compounds, and it is a rare 

 university that lists a course in qualitative or- 

 ganic analysis. This volume by Dr. Eosen- 

 thaler should, therefore, receive a hearty wel- 

 come from the organic chemist and will un- 

 doubtedly stimulate courses in the separation 

 and identification of organic compounds. 



In the introductory chapter are given the 

 various qualitative tests for carbon, hydrogen, 

 nitrogen, the halogens, sulfur, phosphorus, 

 arsenic, etc., following which, in succeeding 

 chapters are considered hydrocarbons, alcohols, 

 aldehydes, ketones, carbohydrates, phenols, 

 acids, oxy-acids, aldehyde- and keto-acids, 

 ethers, quinones, esters, halogen derivatives, 

 nitro derivatives, nitriles and iso-nitriles, acid 

 amides, amines, aromatic hydrazines, azo and 

 diazo compounds, acid derivatives of organic 

 bases, heterocyclic bases, amino acids, poly- 

 peptides, organic sulphur compounds, organic 

 arsenic compounds, alkaloids, resin acids, tan- 

 nins, glucosides, saponines, pigments, proteins, 

 enzymes and tox-albumens. 



Eosenthaler's scheme of analysis is to first 

 of all determine to which group or groups of 

 compounds the unknown belongs. In order to 

 do this the characteristic reactions of each 

 class mentioned above are given very explicitly. 



