October 25, 1901.] 



SCIENCE. 



651 



River. The analyses upon which this opinion 

 is based are too extensive to reproduce here, 

 but those who dwell in the lower Illinois valley 

 and those who have feared the possible effect 

 of the sewage of Chicago upon the water sup- 

 ply of St. Louis should observe the following 

 emphatic statement ,of Dr. Long : He says : 

 " I believe that it may be safely said that if the 

 whole of the sewage of Chicago were to be ex- 

 cluded from the Illinois River, the condition at 

 Grafton (where it enters the Mississippi) would 

 remain unchanged so far as its organic contents 

 and bacterial organisms are concerned." 



The character of the Chicago sewage, the 

 condition of the various tributary streams, the 

 self-purification of the Illinois River and its 

 subsequent pollution by Peoria and other cities 

 are all fully discussed in the report. 



The analytical work appears to have been 

 carefully done, but it is to be regretted that 

 certain portions of what is now considered to 

 be a complete water analysis are omitted. For 

 example, the amount of coloring matter was 

 not measured and consequently the determina- 

 tion of oxygen consumed cannot be fully inter- 

 preted. The measurement of turbidity was 

 likewise omitted ; nor is any mention made of 

 microscopical examinations. Determinations of 

 dissolved oxygen and free carbonic acid, taken 

 in connection with the other observations, 

 would have thrown much light upon the self- 

 purification of the stream. Nevertheless, the 

 results as they stand are of great value and re- 

 flect credit upon those who conducted the work. 



It is the intention of the Illinois State Board 

 of Health to extend observations of this char- 

 acter to other streams until the sanitary survey 

 of the state shall be complete. 



G. C. Whipple. 



Leitfaden der Wetterkunde. Gemeinverstand- 

 lich bearbeitet von Dr. R. Borestein. Mit 

 52 in den Text eingedruckten Abbildungea 

 und 17 Tafeln. Braunschweig, Friedrich 

 VieweguudSohn, publishers. 1901. Price, 

 6 Mk. 



This book is intended as a popular treatise 

 on the weather, for the use of farmers, sailors 

 and others whose pursuits are affected by the 

 weather, and also for the benefit of all who 



may be interested in natural phenomena. Its 

 object is to give the elementary facts of mete- 

 orology and explain the scientific principles on 

 which weather forecasts are made. The author 

 hopes thus to enable his readers to better 

 understand and apply the forecasts as made by 

 the national bureaus and to make forecasts 

 for themselves. The publishers explain that 

 among other new things embodied in the book 

 are the results of the scientific balloon ascents 

 and an account of the various weather services 

 of the world. 



The book is interestingly written and well 

 illustrated. The distribution of rainfall and 

 temperature over Europe is graphically illus- 

 trated by four colored charts. Perhaps the 

 most attractive feature in the book is the re- 

 production of the best of the pictures from the 

 International Cloud Atlas, showing in approxi- 

 mately natural colors the different types of 

 clouds, all of which are derived from photo- 

 graphs. This is a feature that other text-books 

 would do well to copy. 



The chief criticism of the book is that it is 

 written almost entirely from a German stand- 

 point. The quotations are chiefly from Ger- 

 man authors and the illustrations are derived 

 chiefly from German sources. The only map 

 of the world contained in the book is one illus- 

 trating the distribution of pressure. Several 

 pages are given to describing the weather ser- 

 vice of Germany ; only a paragraph is given to 

 the weather service of the United States. The 

 balloon ascents quoted were those made by the 

 German Aeronautical Society, and no mention 

 is made of modern kite work. Perhaps this 

 was intended by the author, as he was writing 

 chiefly for German readers, but a foreigner 

 misses the broad cosmopolitanism such as is 

 found, for example, in the work of Dr. Hann. 



H. H. Clayton. 



Who^s Who in America. A Biographical Dic- 

 tionary of Notable Living Men and Women 

 of the United States. Edited by John W. 

 Leonard. Chicago, A. N. Marquis and 

 Company. 1901-1902. Pp. xvi + 1304. 

 The initial edition of this work, published 

 two years ago, made a niche for itself in cur- 

 rent literature and a place for itself on the most 



