Miscellaneous Intelligence. 325 



involved with uniform clearness throughout and — so far as space 

 allows — with much thoroughness. At some points the work con- 

 tains so much that it will call for close study from those not 

 already well grounded in physical science. An interesting chap- 

 ter is that giving a brief account of the work of the Weather 

 Bureaus of the various governments. The book is well illustrated, 

 the charts at the end including, for example, the representations 

 of the different types of clouds, being particularly good. 



5. Studien uber die JVarkose ; von Dr. E. Overton. Pp. 195. 

 Jena, 1901. G. Fischer. — This monograph contains a review and 

 critique of the more prominent theories of the mode of action of 

 narcotics and anaesthetics. The greater part of the book is taken 

 up with a discussion of the theory of narcosis which has recently 

 been advanced by Professor Hans Meyer of Marburg, and advo- 

 cated independently by the author. Briefly, this theory assumes 

 that all chemically indifferent compounds which are soluble in 

 fats or similar substances act as narcotics on living protoplasm to 

 the extent to which they are distributed therein. This action 

 will obviously be most pronounced on those tissues which are 

 richest in fat-like compounds, viz., the nervous tissues. The com- 

 parative efficiency of various substances as narcotics (anaesthetics) 

 must be dependent on their relative affinity for these fat-contain- 

 ing tissues and the tissue fluids respectively. Dr. Overton has 

 attempted to ascertain this relationship — the coefficient of distri- 

 bution — for a number of organic compounds which act as narcotics. 

 Many experiments on plants and animals — mostly lower forms — 

 are reported in detail by the author, who is an assistant in botany 

 at the University of Zurich. l. b. m. 



6. Weber Ilarmonie unci Complication • von Dr. Victor Gold- 

 schmidt. Pp. 136, large 8vo. Berlin, 1901 (Julius Springer). — 

 Starting from some of the fundamental principles of crystallo- 

 graphy, the author has attempted to show that analogous laws 

 exist both in the harmonic relations and in their combination in 

 other departments of science — as in sound and light. Thus the 

 so-called harmonic series of numbers of which a simple example 

 is given by O'^'l'2'cc, which in crystallography defines the 

 position of the planes in a crystal in terms of the molecular 

 forces, is believed to fix the positions of most of the notes of the 

 musical scale and also those of the chief Fraunhofer lines in the 

 solar spectrum. It would be impossible in a brief space to make 

 clear the methods of the author in arriving at this conclusion, 

 still less to explain his manifold deductions. The reader cannot 

 fail to appreciate the industrious ingenuity exercised even if not 

 convinced as to the correctness of all the views advanced. 



7. Nature's Miracles: Familiar Talks on Science; by Elisha 

 Gray, Ph.D., LL.D. Vol. III. Electricity and Magnetism. Pp. 

 248, 12mo. New York, 1901 (Fords, Howard and Hulbert).— 

 In this little volume the writer presents some of the important 

 topics in electricity and magnetism in simple language and with 

 familiar illustrations, designed to interest the general reader to 

 whom scientific treatises are closed books. 



