476 Literary Notices. 



LITERARY NOTICES. 



Sun Views of the Earth; or, the Seasons Illustrated. 

 Comprising Forty-eight Views of the Earth as supposed to be seen 

 from the Sun at different Hours and Seasons. With five enlarged 

 Sun Views of England, and a Diagram representing the Earth's 

 daily motion in her orbit. By Richard A. Proctor, B.A., P.R.A.S., 

 late Scholar of St, John's College, Cambridge ; and of King's Col- 

 lege, London. Author of " Saturn and its System," " The Constel- 

 lation-Seasons," etc. (Longmans.) — The changes from spring to 

 summer, autumn, and winter, depending on the positions taken up 

 in succession by the earth in its journey round the sun, may be 

 represented by a series of views of the earth as it might be seen 

 from the sun at any point of the journey. The places which the 

 sun looks straight at will receive a full share of light and heat, those 

 which he looks at more slantingly will receive less, and those out 

 of his reach none at all. Mr. Proctor has devised a highly instruc- 

 tive and pleasing set of pictures illustrating these facts, and giving 

 a far better notion of the cause of the seasons than any diagram we 

 have seen. Plate I. gives four coloured views of the earth at the 

 winter solstice (Dec. 21), at 6 a.m., 6 p.m., noon, and midnight; 

 and at a glance it is seen how the northern regions are fore- 

 shortened and the polar portions out of the sun's sight. Plate II. 

 has similar views representing the state of things one month later, 

 and so on in succession through spring and summer to a month 

 before the winter solstice, represented in Plate XII. The XIHth 

 Plate shows on a larger scale the way in which Great Britain, 

 Erance, Holland, Denmark, etc., are presented to the sun at various 

 periods of the year. We are glad these drawings are published at 

 a very moderate price, because they will, with the help of the 

 explanatory letter-press, be of great use to schools and families, and 

 to teachers who wish to know how these matters may be made 

 most intelligible to their pupils. 



We have also received from Messrs. Longman four charts drawn 

 by Mr. Proctor : one of the Zodiac, on which, with the help of an 

 almanack, the paths of the moon and planets may be easily traced; 

 another of Mars representing that planet as seen from the earth at 

 varioiTS points of his rotation. Two other charts represent the 

 orbits of Mars, the Earth, Venus, and Mercury; and of Neptune, 

 Uranus, Saturn, and Jupiter. A great deal of astronomical infor- 

 mation is compressed in these diagrams, which are well worth 

 attentive study. 



How to Use the Barometer, 18G8. By the Rev. R. Tyas, 

 M.A. Cantab., F.M.S., Member of the Scottish Meteorological 

 Society. Author of " Favorite Wild Flowers," etc. (Bemrose and 

 Sons.) — The author also calls this little book " A Companion to the 

 Weather-glass." It contains useful information about instruments, 

 and a series of tabular forms to facilitate the registration of meteo- 

 rological changes. These are very handy, though on a somewhat 

 small scale. The author likewise does a little weather prophecying, 



