180 



humidity in the air after observing the "wet and 

 dry bulb thermometer" or Psychrometer. A de- 

 scription of the latter named instrument : Remarks 

 on its practical value , Directions for determining the 

 the number of grains of vapor in a cubic foot of air, 

 and for calculating the Dew point, from an appen- 

 dix on the back of the card. 



The " Vapor Index " is certainly neat, ingenious 

 and simple, and makes very a elegant and useful piece 

 of apparatus for the meteorologist, or any one who 

 is not a meteorologist, who would learn the condi- 

 tion of the air around him, or in his dwelling, &c., 

 and adjust the humidity when controllable as may 

 best conserve his health or comfort. 



" Lippincott's Vapor Index " has received high 

 commendation from Professors Henry and Frazer, 

 and Louis Blodget, author of the " Climatology of 

 the United States. " The latter gentleman testifies 

 as follows, and we append his opinion that wider 

 publicity may be given to, and the attention of 

 Teachers and Directors of our Public Schools may 

 be drawn to the importance of introducing the 

 Psychrometer, and " Vapor Index" into our public 

 schools, now so indifferently warmed, ventilated and 

 supphed with air containing the proper proportion 

 of humidity : 



" I have found your "Vapor Index " or Psychro- 

 metric Calculator, a very convenient and accurate 

 instrument for giving the results of observations of 

 the wet bulb thermometer. It would be a great 

 advantage to introduce it into schools of every grade, 

 since it gives at once a result of observation which 

 the least skilled can understand and appreciate. " 



One difficulty in securing accurate hygrometric 

 observations heretofore has been that the observer 

 could not at once convert his observations into a re- 

 sult intelligible to himself. But by aid of this sim- 

 ple, but admirable scale, any one can at once see 

 what his reading of the wet bulb means, and he will 

 be much more likely to obs^irve correctly. 



The Vapor Index is for sale by James W. Queen 

 & Co., 924 Chestnut St., Philadelphia, and by J. S. 

 LiPPiNCOTT, Haddonfield, N. J. 



Beet Root Sugar, and Cultivation of the 

 Beet. By E. B. Grant. Boston : Lee & Shep- 

 pard. 



The object of this book is to call attention to the 

 importance of Beet sugar production in the old 

 world, and to demonstrate the advantage and feasi- 

 bility of establishing it in the United States, and it 

 proceeds to give the history of Jdeet Sugar; a com- 

 parison of the relative advantages in America and 



Europe for the production, and practical rules for 

 culture and sugar making. 



The author thinks that the abolition of slavery in 

 cane growing countries will elevate the price of labor 

 and make sugar always higher than it has been, and 

 hence beet sugar must become a very profitable 

 northern crop; but the cheap labor of ^lavery has 

 always been comparatively rude and shiftless, and 

 with the labor made more intelligent the production 

 will gain by intelligence what it has lost before, — 

 that has been the tendency of all things. When the 

 war made labor scarce in Agricultural districts of 

 the West, machinery was invented to take the place 

 of man, but jet there is no reason why the cultiva- 

 tion of the Beet should not successfully compete 

 with cane for all. There is much to encourage the 

 Beet grower in the sorghum experiments, for not- 

 withstanding the great care required to keep the 

 best saccharine forms of sorghum pure or up to the 

 highest degree of perfection, it has been found in 

 many places a very profitable crop to grow. 



This book will be found a valuable aid to Beet 

 sugar enterprize. It presents facts, intelligently 

 written, and concisely put together, giving a large 

 amount of very useful matter in a comparatively 

 small space. 



Catalogue of the Library of the Mass. Hor- 

 ticultural Society. 



Shows a very valuable collection of Horticultu- 

 ral books. 



Catalogue of Wm. Bull, London, England. 



Mr. Bull deals only in 7iew things. This Kst for 

 1867 contains 70 pages, and is a good guide to the 

 cultivator who would keep " up with the times. " 



llpiD anb JB,arp JPIanh. 



Production op New Pansies. — Either there is 

 a falling off in the production of new Pansies^ or 

 else the raising of them is confined to certain local- 

 ities from which they do not emerge as candidates 

 for public favor previous to being sent out. The 

 varieties of the Fancy Pansy increase much more 

 rapidly, seeing that Messrs. Downie, Laird & Laing, 

 announce some 12 or more new varieties. A batch 

 is also announced by Messrs. F. & A. Smith, ap- 

 parently ot continental origin, as the well-known 

 name of Demay is attached to most of the varieties. 

 There is no doubt but that, in point of quality of 

 flower, the English raisers of the Fancy Pansy have 

 outstripped the French raisers, judging from what 



