February, 19 lo 



AMERICAN HOMES AND GARDENS 



XIX 



Dry- Farming: Its Principles and Prac- 

 tice. By William jNIacdonald. New 

 York: The Century Co. Pp. 290. 

 Price, $1.20 net. 

 The term "dry-farming" is a new phrase 

 which originated in Western America. It 

 may be defined as the conservation of soil 

 moisture during the long periods of dry 

 weather by means of tillage, together with 

 the growth of drought-resisting plants. It 

 is not, of course, points out Prof Macdon- 

 ald, farming without moisture, for that 

 would be clearly impossible. The phrase 

 is now widely and loosely applied to a par- 

 ticular form of farming in all places where 

 the normal rainfall ranges from zero to 30 

 inches per annum. The method, al- 

 though constantly spoken of as new and 

 modern, is really old; but its latest applica- 

 tions and the fruitful results obtained from 

 it have attracted more and more attention 

 to this system of agriculture, which has in- 

 variably yielded rich results wherever 

 properly applied. 



Prof. ]\Iacdonald treats his topic in a 

 broad and comprehensive way. He de- 

 scribes the various methods used in this 

 form of land-culture, notes results and 

 gives due credit to the pioneer workers in 

 this field. His book is at once a history 

 of his subject and a practical handbook of 

 methods. It is the latter aspect that gives 

 it its greatest value, but his historical notes 

 will be welcomed by the agricultural stu- 

 dent. As a text book this volume is thor- 

 -oughly practical. 



Wrought-Pipe Drainage Systems. By 

 J. J. Cosgrove. Pittsburg : Standard 

 Sanitary ^Ifg. Co. Pp. 145. 



^Mr. Cosgrove has laid the plumbing 

 world under a distinct debt of gratitude for 

 this excellent handbook, which is, in many 

 ways, a model of its kind. Handsomely 

 printed in an attractive dress, carefully il- 

 lustrated with diagrams and other drawings, 

 provided with numerous tables and an in- 

 dex, it contains everything essential to a 

 presentation of its subject. 



The author points out, in his preface, that 

 the scope of his book is much broader than 

 the name would apply. A more descriptive 

 title, he adds, would have been "The Ma- 

 nipulation of Wrought Pipe." While par- 

 ticularly descriptive of drainage systems the 

 book is equally applicable, in its practical 

 direction, to the needs of heating plants, re- 

 frigerating systems, pipe lines, water sys- 

 tems or any uses to which pipe may be put. 



Wild Flowers 

 Know. By 

 New York : 



Pp. 1 5- 1 -41 1 



Every Child Should 

 Frederic William Stack. 

 Doubleday Page & Co. 

 Price, $1.20. 

 A thoroughly useful book. The author 

 rightly states that it does not require a pre- 

 paratory course, nor any special instruction, 

 to become acquainted with the more com- 

 mon wild flowers and their individual traits, 

 and then proceeds to show how this knowl- 

 edge may be acquired n a very direct and 

 simple manner. The book is not a "child's 

 book" in the common acceptation of the 

 term, but is an elementary treatise on plants, 

 very carefully prepared, admirably con- 

 densed and eminently useful in its plan and 

 arrangement. The key to the subject, as 

 Mr. Stack presents it, is the color of the 

 flowers, all the plants described being 

 grouped under their own colors. Identifi- 

 cation is thus reduced to the simplest 

 method, and the whole kingdom of wild 

 flowers is easily opened to the beginner. It 

 is a book some older folk will like, too, and 

 find exceedingly useful. 



Popular Scientific Books 



JiJiKC*JC STAGE ILLUSIONS AND SCIENTIFIC 

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EXPERIMENTAL SCIENCE 



By GEORGE M. HOPKINS 



Twenty-fifth Edition, Revised and Greatly Enlarged 

 1,100 Pages, over goo Illustrations 

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The Scientific American Boy 



By A. RUSSELL BOND 



i2mo. 320 Pages. 340 Illustrations. Price, $2.00, Postpaid. 

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*«@ 



The Scientific American Cycloped 

 Receipts, Notes and Queries 



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Home Mechanics for Amateurs 



By GEORGE M. HOPKINS, Author of "Experimental Science" 



i2mo, syo Pages, 320 Illustrations. Price, $1.^0. Postpaid. 

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MUNN & CO. Inc., Publishers, 361 BROADWAY, NEW YORK 



