August 7, 1903.] 



SCIENCE. 



179 



church and public beneficences, in our in- 

 creased regard for human life, we feel the 

 effects of this energy, though we see it not. 

 The social settlements of Owen and others 

 were truly preliminary nineteenth century 

 scientific experiments to test the strength 

 of the law of love, and the amount of this 

 energy needed to vivify and unify the 

 social organism. Like thousands of scien- 

 tific experiments before and since the}' par- 

 tially failed, but their failures and successes 

 have been recorded, so that succeeding ex- 

 perimenters might carry the inquiry to a 

 successful issue. 



The fetish of unbridled commercial 

 competition which has too long lorded over 

 us, is in many ways inimical to our highest 

 interests. It can be a helpful servant if 

 kept in subjection, it becomes a harsh 

 tyrant if worshipped as a god. It can not 

 retain suiyrcmacy alongside the gospel of 

 peace and love. If so, the latter suffers or 

 becomes effaced, and mankind becomes the 

 loser. 



If back of all our failures and achieve- 

 ments, our hopes and our disappointments, 

 some great and desirable Iniman goal is 

 not to be attained, then in spite of the 

 genuine pleasure that comes from discovery 

 of new knowledge, man may well turn from 

 his labors exclaiming, 'Vanity of vanities, 

 all is vanity. ' But I thank God that beau- 

 tiful lives have lived and still live, and that 

 imperfect though I may be, energj-— in- 

 spiration, if you care so to call it — can be 

 got by drawing supplies of like energy as 

 theirs from the great fountain head that 

 has energized them. The science of life, 

 and the religion of life may dwell apart, 

 but who knows whether, when our pro- 

 found ignorance has been dispelled, it may 

 not appear that both arc linked together, 

 and are governed by similar great laws 

 that we are asked by observation and ex- 

 periment to verify and to accept. 



Illimitable fields of research still remain 

 for us to enter; the masses of our fellows 

 are eager to learn what fruits we gather 

 and bring back. ^Ye can only aft'ord then 

 to be optimi.sts, and to exclaim with 

 JIackay : 



Blessings on Science! When tlie earth seemed old, 

 When Faith grew doting, and ovir reason cold, 

 'Twas she discovered that the world was young. 

 And taught a language to its lisping tongue. 



J. M. ilACFAKLANE. 

 Univehsity of Pexxsylvaxia. 



SCIENTIFIC BOOKS. 

 Zoological Results based on Material from 

 New Britain, New Guinea, Loyally Islands 

 and elsewhere collected during the Years 

 1895, 1896 and 1897. By Arthur Willey. 

 Part VI. (August, 1902). Cambridge 

 (Eng.) University Press. Pp. 691-830, 

 pis. 75-8.3. 



The sixth instalment of Willcy's ' Zoological 

 Results ' is devoted entirely to an aecouut of 

 the natural history of the pearly nautilus and 

 is by Dr. Willey himself. The account opens 

 with a personal narrative in which he relates, 

 in addition to the many observations bearing 

 directly on the problem of securing the eggs 

 of the pearly nautilus, numerous incidents and 

 occurrences that he met with while sojourn- 

 ing among the inhabitants of the Eastern 

 Archipelago. This is followed by a detailed 

 account of the pearl.y nautilus itself. 



Many interesting and important observa- 

 tions on the natural history of this animal 

 are here recorded. The natural coloration is 

 such that, though the animal is a conspicuous 

 object when in the hand, it is quickly lost 

 sight of when dropped into the sea, a condi- 

 tion which has led Willey to believe that its 

 coloration is of a protective character. Sex- 

 ual dimorphism in Nautilus has long been 

 known and is easily recognized even in the 

 dead shells. Willey has brought to light the 

 remarkable fact that while in Nautilus potn- 

 pilius the males outnumber the females (150 

 to 6G), in -V. macromphalus the reverse seems 

 to be true (10 to 16). No important informa- 

 tion was obtained as to the way in which the 



