August 22, 1890.] 



SCIENCE. 



109 



tion, with additions); and "Drainage with Regard to Healtii, 

 and Modes of Disposal of Town Sewage," by George J. C. Broom, 

 F.G.S. 



— Messrs. D. Appleton & Co. announce that the third volume 

 of MoMaster's "History of the People of the United States" is now 

 well advanced, and will be published probably in the course of 

 the winter. It will be remembered that the second volume closes 

 with the negotiations regarding the Louisiana purchase. In the 

 new volume, which will contain eight chapters. Professor McMas- 

 ter begins with the debate in the House regarding the constitu- 

 tionality of the Louisiana purchase, and he closes the volume with a 

 discussion of the political and economic effects of the War of 1813. 



— Ginn & Co. , publishers, announce as in preparation " Allen 

 and Greenougli's Ovid," revised edition, edited by Harold N. Fow- 

 ler, Ph.D., instructor in Latin in Phillips Exeter Academy; with 

 a vocabulary by James B. Greenough, professor of Latin in Har- 

 vard University, which is intended to be of the same character as 

 vocabularies to Virgil, Csesar, etc., by the same author. The edi- 

 tor believes that the poems of Ovid are, as regards both style and 

 subject matter, better adapted than those of Virgil to serve as an 

 introduction to the study of Latin poetry. He therefore intends 

 to furnish the book with copious notes suited to the needs of 

 young students, which will be supplemented by grammar refer- 

 ences and an introduction on the life and works of Ovid and on 

 mythology. The selections are taken mainly from the ' ' Meta- 

 morphoses," and are chosen with a view to making the study of 

 Latin interesting. The value of the book will be greatly enhanced 

 by the addition of the vocabulary. 



— Among the books in press announced by the J. B. Lippincott 

 Company are "The Distribution of Wealth," by Rufus Cope; 

 "Hermetic Philosophy," by J. S. McDonald, author of "Vital 

 Philosophy," etc.; "The German Soldier in the Wars of the 

 United States," by J. G. Rosengarten (second edition, revised and 

 enlarged); "Regional Anatomy in its Relation to Medicine and 

 Surgery," by George McClellan, M.D., illustrated from photo- 

 graphs taken by the author of his own dissections, expressly de- 

 signed and prepared for this work, and colored by him after na- 

 ture (this last-named work is to be sold by subscription only) ; and 

 "Historic Note-Book," by the Rev. E. Cobham Brewer, LL.D., 

 Trinity College, Cambridge, author of " The Reader's Hand- 

 Book," " Dictionary of Phrase and Fable," etc. 



— In the early summer of 1889 a circular- letter was issued to 

 the working entomologists of the country, offering prizes for essays 

 containing original investigations regarding methods of destroying 

 the mosquito and the house-fly. The object of this effort was to 

 bring about an intelligent discussion of the question. What natural 

 enemies of these irritating insects may be easily and efficiently ar- 

 rayed against them ? The voracious and harmless dragon-fly, of 

 which our country supplies so many beautiful varieties, was espe- 

 cially designated as possessing qualities that made it a promising sub- 

 ject for careful investigation. The plan of destruction thus sought 

 for is that so commonly observed in operation upon a grand scale in 

 nature, where individual species and whole families are swept out of 

 existence through its operation. The questions formulated in the 

 circular-letter were widely discussed. Newspapers and other 

 periodicals treated them from a hundred standpoints; a volume 

 could be filled with articles relating to the subject published in 

 this country and in Europe. The most valuable results were, as 

 expected, those submitted by the scientific experts especially ap- 

 pealed to. The essays that they presented are the outgrowth of 

 long years spent in rearing insects, studying their transformations 

 and habits, and of extensive special reading. These essays were 

 found so full of valuable scientific and popular information that 

 the recommendation of the distinguished judges acting under the 

 terms of the cu-cular letter, to place them in a printed form before 

 the public, has been complied with in the volume " Dragon-Flies 

 versus Mosquitoes," published by D. Appleton & Company. An 

 article contributed by Dr. McCook to the North American Review 

 is reproduced with especial view to his observations on mosquito- 

 catching spiders. Captain Macauley, of the United States Army, 

 furnishes an interesting chapter of his experience among the 



dragon-flies and mosquitoes of the upper Missouri. The book is 

 illustrated with colored and other plates. 



— Among other articles, the Westminster Review for August 

 contains the following: " Mr. Stanley's New Book;" "Lunacy 

 Law Reform ; " " Life in Achilland Aran," by Michael MacDonagh ; 

 "Cremation at Milan," by H. Sutherland Edwards; "Divorce: 

 Does Scripture Forbid It?" by A. P. Richards; and "The New 

 Educational Code: Will it Work?" by Joseph J. Davies. The 

 Scottish Review for the same month contains " Canada and the 

 United States," by J. G. Bourinot; "Traces of a Non-Aryan Ele- 

 ment in the Celtic Family," by Professor J. Rhys; " Bikelas on 

 Scotland," by J. S. Blackie; "The Interpretation of the Critical 

 Philosophy ;" "Oriental Myths and Christian Parallels," by Florence 

 Layard ; "Odd Foods," by Alfred J. H. Crespi; "The Cession of 

 Heligoland," by Andrew T. Sibbald. In the Nineteenth Century 

 for August are to be found " The Value of Africa : a Reply to Sir 

 John Pope Hennessy," by H. H. Johnston; "On the Rim of the 

 Desert," by E. N. Buxton; "The Power of Suggestion," by A. B. 

 McHardy; "Primitive Natural History," by Geo. J. Romanes; 

 "The American Silver Bubble," by Robert Giflfen. The Contem- 

 porary Revieiv this month has an illustrated article on " Christ 

 among the Doctors," and an ai-ticle on "Women and the Univer- 

 sities." Other articles are " How British Colonies Got Responsible 

 Government," by Sir C. G. Duffy; "The National Home Reading 

 Union and its Prospects," by J. C. Collins; "The Shetland Isles in 

 the Birds'-Nesting Season," by T. Digby Pigett; "Illustrated 

 Journalism," by Carmichael Thomas; "The Prehistoric Races of 

 Italy," by Canon Isaac Taylor; "The Nihilisms and Socialisms of 

 the World,'' by J. Page Hopps; "The Organization of Unskilled 

 Labor," by R. Spence Watson; "A Defence of University Lec- 

 tures," by Professor William Knight; and " Britain Fin de Siegle," 

 by Frederick Greenwood. The Fortnightly has articles on " The 

 Latest Discoveries in Hypnotism," by Dr. J. Luys; " The Strong- 

 hold of the Sphakiotes," by James D. Bourchier; "Ethics and 

 Politics,'" by Sir Rowland Blennerhassett ; "Labor Disputes in 

 America," by Dr. W. H. S. Aubrey; " The Educational Outlook," 

 by the Rev. J. R. Diggle; " Armenia and the Armenian People," 

 by E. B. Lanin; and "War in the Future," by Col. W. W. 

 Knollys. 



• — Bulletin No. 23 of the United States Department of Agricul- 

 ture comprises the reports of the field agents of the Division of 

 Entomology which were necessarily omitted from the annual 

 report. Although Mr. Coquillett has reported upon several phases 

 of his work, the Bulletin gives only the portion relating to 

 the experiments which he made in the destruction of the red 

 scale of California {Aspidiotus aurantii Maskell) by the use of 

 washes. A portion of his report relating to experiments with gas 

 treatment for this scale insect, resulting in the great cheapening of 

 the use of this process, was printed in Insect Life for January and 

 February, 1890. Another section of his report, relating to the 

 attempted colonization of the insects preying upon Icerya purchasi, 

 imported by Mr. Koebele from Australia, was published in part in 

 Insect Life for October, 1889, and the remainder is reserved for 

 future use. The experiments with washes were undertaken with 

 a view of presenting a practical illustration of their utility to the 

 fruit-growers of southern California, who had apparently ignored 

 the previous results obtained and published in the reports for 1886 

 and 1887. The red scale was particularly chosen on account of 

 its importance as a pest, and for the further reason that the 

 fluted scale seems at present to require no further experimenta- 

 tion, since the vedalia is overcoming it so rapidly. Professor 

 Osbom, we learn from the Bulletin, has taken up the study of 

 insects injurious to grasses, in addition to Bis regular work upon 

 the insect parasites of domestic animals, and reports upon the 

 leaf-hoppers injuring forage plants. This is a comparatively new 

 and important field of investigation. Professor Webster continues 

 his studies of grain insects, and reports upon certain points con- 

 nected with the economy of a few well-known pests. Miss Murt- 

 feldt sends in a general report upon the insects of the season in 

 eastern Missouri, brings out a number of interesting facts, and 

 gives the life history of a beetle injuring spinach, and also the 

 histories of two interesting saw-flies. Mr. Koebele during the 



