382 KANSAS CITY REVIEW OF SCIENCE. 



cal, Climatic, Historical and Philosophical. Under each of these heads are- 

 several appropriate chapters, such as a description of Mont Blanc and the Me'- de 

 Glace, The Old Age of Continents, A Grasp at Geologic Time, Geological Sea- 

 sons, A Remarkable Maori Manuscript, The Genealogy of Ships, Grounds and 

 Consequences of Evolution, etc. All of these are treated in an attractive manner^ 

 popular, but at the same time comprehensive and practical. No reader having 

 bought a copy of this book will regret it nor will he fail to read it more than once 

 if he has any real desire to acquire the most advanced ideas and the most reliable 

 information on the subjects treated. 



The Coues Check List of North American Birds. Second edition; 8vo. 

 pp. 144. By Elliott Coues, M. D., U. S. Army. Estes & Lauriat, Boston,. 

 1882. For sale by M. H. Dickinson; $2.00. 



The original of this work, which now assumes the character or position of a 

 dictionary of the etymology, orthography and orthoepy of the scientific names of 

 birds in addition to its former character of a catalogue of such names, was pub- 

 lished in 1870 and seemed to cover the necessities of ornithologists at that time. 

 But so rapidly has the science advanced that revision has been rendered necessary 

 and a large number of new names has been added. 



The most interesting portion of the work to the ordinary reader will be the 

 chapter entitled "Remarks upon the Use of Names." In this a full account of 

 the derivation of the technical terms used by ornithologists is given, also of the 

 rules for the proper spelling and pronunciation of such words. These rules are 

 not applicable solely to ornithological terms and names, but are of general appli- 

 cation and may be beneficially studied by all. 



The great bulk of the work is devoted to a revised check list of the birds of 

 this continent and a list of the author's works upon the subject. A very useful 

 feature of the former is the accent marks showing the proper pronunciation of 

 all names. Nothing so thorough has ever been published so far as we know. 



Floating Matter of the Air. By John Tyndall, F. R. S.; i2mo pp. 338.. 

 D. Appleton & Co., N. Y. For sale by the Kansas City Book \ News Co.,. 

 $2.00. 



The object of this work is to demonstrate the existence of germs in the at- 

 mosphere which produce and spread dangerous and fatal diseases, with numerous, 

 accounts of interesting experiments made by the author and other scientists, both 

 as to their existence in the air and their non production in the absence of atmos- 

 pheric air; the triumphs of the antiseptic system of surgery and the vital impor- 

 tance of pure air and pure water as sanitary agents. The most valuable chapters, 

 are those upon Dust and Disease, The Optical Deportment of the Atmosphere in, 

 Relation to Putrefaction and Infection, Researches on the Deportment and Vi- 



