Miscellaneous Intelligence. 283 



minerals. Part II on Historical Geology contains 307 pages. 

 The book gives consequently about equal space and importance 

 to the two great divisions of geology. The paper is of such a 

 grade that the half-tone reproductions of photographs and wash 

 drawings which constitute the bulk of the illustrations are of 

 excellent quality. Certain of the full-page photographs of impres- 

 sive features, such as that of the Yosemite, reach a height of artis- 

 tic excellence. Numerous block diagrams bring out clearly the 

 various features of erosion and structure. The number and 

 instructional value of the illustrations show that the author, as a 

 skilled teacher, has paid much attention to this side of the subject. 

 The fragmentary fossils of the older texts have disappeared from 

 this and in their places are restorations, wash drawings being 

 given of invertebrates. 



The text is equally clear and attractive. It presents the basic 

 principles amply, but in a manner which the student can master 

 and permits the teacher in lecturing to go directly into the more 

 advanced phases or give special illustrations of such subjects as 

 may suggest themselves. An excellent list of references is 

 appended to each chapter which will be of value to the interested 

 student for developing an acquaintance with the important 

 literature. J. b. 



3. Handbook and descriptive Catalogue of the Meteorite Col- 

 lections in the United States National Museum • by George P. 

 Merrill. Bull. 94, IT. S. Nat. Mus. Pp.207, pis. 41. Wash- 

 ington, 1916. — This is a very interesting catalogue of the mete- 

 orites in the U. S. National Museum. These include 329 falls and 

 finds in the Museum collection proper and 83 more in the Shep- 

 ard collection. The latter, brought together by Professor C. U. 

 Shepard and bequeathed to the Museum by his son, includes 234 

 falls and finds. The total number is therefore 412 out of the 650 

 known in all the world. The descriptions are made more inter- 

 esting by the liberal number of excellent plates exhibiting promi- 

 nent specimens and sections from them. The Introduction of 27 

 pages gives a concise but valuable summary of the subject of 

 meteorites ; their classification, mineral and chemical composi- 

 tion, structure and phenomena of fall. 



4. A Student's Book on Soils and Manures ; by E. J. 

 Russell. Pp. ix ; 201 ; with 34 text-figures. Cambridge, 1915 

 (Cambridge University Press). — The present work, by the Director 

 of the Rothamstead Experimental Station at Harpenden, England, 

 is a further evidence of the increased interest in the study of soils. 

 It is issued in the Cambridge Farm Institute Series and, although 

 intended primarily for the use of the practical farmer, contains 

 information of much value to the botanist and chemist. The first 

 part includes an account of the soil, discussing its composition, 

 its organic constituents, and the changes produced by climatic 

 factors. The second part takes up the control of the soil by cul- 

 tivation, drainage and other processes. The third and last part is 

 devoted to fertilizers, both inorganic and organic. The book 

 shows clearly that the art of treating and improving soils from 



Am. Jour. Sci. — Fourth Series, Vol. XLII, No. 249. — September, 1916. 

 19 



