SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



177 



GEOLOGY FOR BEGINNERS. 



A N interestingly-written book for beginners in 

 the study of geology, and an instance of the 

 great improvement which has taken place in such 

 text-books during the last few years, is the new one 

 by Professor Watts ( 1 ). It is quite original in its 

 style of inception, and is thoroughly modern in 

 regard to its teaching. Indeed we are inclined to 

 think that a 

 student who 

 is acquainted 

 with all the 

 facts noted 

 in this work 

 will not be 

 disposed to 

 consider him- 

 self a begin- 

 ner any lon- 

 ger. Geikie's 

 " Text-Book" 

 is beyond 

 the reach of 

 many pockets, 

 so Professor 

 Watts' "Geo- 

 logy " will 

 come most 

 opportunely. 

 Petrology 

 generally 

 holds an im- 

 portant place, 

 and the broad 

 principles of 

 geology are 

 dealt with in 

 an interesting 

 and masterly 

 manner. We 

 should have 

 liked to have 

 seen more 

 space devoted 

 to strati- 

 graphy, but the syllabus of the Science and Art 

 Department forbids too much emphasis being 

 laid on this portion of the subject. The illus- 

 trations deserve special mention, as the "Kodak" 

 has evidently been hard at work, and with 

 excellent results. Geological landscapes are thus 

 produced true to nature ; one of these, through 

 the kindness of the publishers, we are able to lay 

 before our readers. . The only fault we have to 



f 1 ) "Geology for Beginners." By W. W. Watts, M.A., 

 F.G.S. 351 pp. 7 in. x 4f in. with 310 illustrations. (London: 

 Macmillan and Co., Ltd., 1898.) 2s. 6d. 



Photo by] 



Carboniferous Strata, Donegal. 



find is that most of the illustrations are small, but 

 considering the price of the book this cannot be 

 considered a defect. Rocks, both igneous and 

 clastic, are shown as seen under the microscope. 

 Derivations of all technical words used are care- 

 fully explained by means of footnotes, the Greek 

 or Latin roots being invariably given. One or 



two simple 

 experiments 

 are suggested 

 for use by 

 the teacher ; 

 in fact, the 

 whole work 

 proceeds on 

 the supposi- 

 tion that wher- 

 ever possible 

 specimens are 

 used to illus- 

 trate each 

 lesson. We 

 commend the 

 useful sugges- 

 tion made in 

 the preface, 

 that the line- 

 drawings in 

 certain cases 

 should be 

 coloured by 

 the student 

 to show their 

 geological 

 value. The 

 c : hapter on 

 fossils (xvi.) 

 is carefully 

 written, and 

 should be 

 accurately 

 studied by 

 beginners in 

 the science 

 of palaeontology. The zoological classification of 

 fossils is plainly shown, and useful illustrations of the 

 various classes are given. Too much importance 

 cannot be laid upon the necessity of beginners 

 having a clear conception of the proper method of 

 classifying their fossils, There is also a very 

 useful and comprehensive index of eleven pages 

 at the end of the book. We should be interested 

 to know where Professor Watts places the Bovey 

 Tracey tertiary formation, as we find no reference 

 to it. The work is one which can in every respect 

 be heartily recommended. E. A. M. 



IR. Welch, Belfast. 



