Ii8 



THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



der of the volume is occupied with a series 

 of experiments upon the following general 

 topics : the mechanics of solids, the me- 

 chanics of liquids and gases, and the phe- 

 nomena of sound and light. The work is 

 written in a clear style, is neatly and fully 

 illustrated, and is the result of four years' 

 practical experience in the physical labora- 

 tory of the Massachusetts Institute of Tech- 

 nology. It is gracefully dedicated to Prof. 

 William B. Rogers, the founder of that in- 

 stitution, " as the first to propose a physi- 

 cal laboratory." The rapid spread of the 

 laboratory system of teaching physics in 

 the higher schools of this country will open 

 a wide field of usefulness for Prof. Picker- 

 ing's excellent text-book. 



Civilization considered as a Science. 

 By George Harris, F. S. A. 382 pages. 

 Price, $1.50. D. Appleton & Co. 



Although the author of this volume is 

 a lawyer, and is disposed to consider his 

 subject very much in the light of his pro- 

 fessional studies, that is, from the stand- 

 point of the moral sciences, yet he accepts 

 the broader view which regards civilization 

 as part of the order of Nature, and as, there- 

 fore, dependent upon many sciences for its 

 interpretation. His aim, however, is not 

 purely scientific, that is, to analyze and 

 generalize the phenomena of civilization ; 

 but, recognizing the government of natural 

 law, he rather attempts a practical discus- 

 sion of those agencies of civil and social 

 advancement which are most perfectly un- 

 der public control. He writes with a view 

 to the improvement of society, rather than 

 to the understanding or explanation of it, 

 and his book would have been more com- 

 pletely described by the title " Civilization 

 considered as a Science and an Art." Mr. 

 Harris first inquires into the essential con- 

 stitution of civilization, to determine what 

 are its factors or the various forces and in- 

 strumentalities that have cooperated in its 

 development. Individual enterprise, scien- 

 tific discoveries and inventions, education, 

 legislation, internal and external inter- 

 course, religious institutions, language and 

 literature, and racial, climatic, and geo- 

 graphical conditions, are all enumerated as 

 elements of the grand result, while the 

 various values of these several elements 

 are considered in the successive chapters 



of the book. The present work is a new 

 and revised edition of a volume that ap- 

 peared several years ago. The result of 

 his progressive studies has been, material- 

 ly to modify the author's opinions on points 

 at first held to be all-important. He at first 

 considered that legislative measures, ex- 

 pressly adapted for the purpose, are the 

 main means by which civilization has been 

 promoted ; but a careful examination of 

 the subject soon sufficed to correct this 

 error. The subtler and more pervasive in- 

 fluence of education was next fixed upon as 

 " constituting the real efficient caase, if not 

 the actual essence of civilization." But fur- 

 ther inquiry convinced the author that here 

 also he was so profoundly wrong that he 

 regards the refutation of this fallacy as the 

 main purpose of his work. He says : " Upon 

 taking a comprehensive view of the whole 

 matter, in all its different bearings, and 

 with regard to all its varied requirements, 

 the ultimate conclusion which I arrived at 

 was, that which is not only really needed, 

 but what is, in fact, in many cases, actually 

 intended in the demands for the intellectual 

 and moral improvement and advancement 

 of the nation, is not education merely, but 

 civilization generally. This principle, which 

 has not been adopted without the fullest 

 deliberation and the sincerest conviction 

 of its truth, is the basis of the doctrine pro- 

 pounded in the following pages, and its 

 recognition is deemed of the utmost conse- 

 quence to the well-being of society. Edu- 

 cation is, in fact, so to speak, one only out 

 of several of the chains by which the car 

 of civilization is drawn onward. By apply- 

 ing to this one alone, not only is the ma- 

 chine moved very feebly and very slowly, 

 but there is considerable danger incurred 

 of snapping the single chain." 



Mr. Harris puts forth no claim to the 

 discovery or extension of the scientific 

 theory of civilization, but his book con- 

 tains much information and many impor- 

 tant suggestions upon the subject. 



The Logic of Accounts ; a New Exposition 

 of the Theory and Practice of Double- 

 Entry Book-keeping. By E. G. Folsom, 

 A. M. Price $2.00. A. S. Barnes & Co. 



There are two kinds of school-books 

 upon the same subjects. One is written 

 from the art point of view, and the other 



