REVIEWS. 
227 
described, and a list of the minor forms of the latter, extending to the dis- 
covery of Lntlier in last March, forms part of this section. The book is 
profusely and well illustrated, and contains an astronomical vocabulary 
covering nearly sixty pages, thus completing a volume to which we have 
much pleasure in directing the attention of all our readers. 
VITAL PHENOMENA * 
D OES the reader desire a work compounded of mild evangelicalism 
and extremely dilute science? Does he wish to associate super* 
ficial and imaginative philosophy and religion to the utter annihilation of 
everything Socratic ? If so, he should peruse Mr. Grindon’s essay on 
“ Life.” To us it is one of those inexplicable mysteries, only to be solved 
in future ages, how publishers can be found to undertake the publication 
of books like the present one. We were about to express our surprise that 
persons connected, even indirectly, with science, could be found to write 
them ; but our knowledge of the frailty of human nature nipped the 
sentence in the bud. What shall we say of Mr. Grindon’s production ? 
That it is well written? Yes: we can conscientiously award the author 
our tribute of praise in this regard. The style, were it not for a few 
pedantic and wildly-conceptive flights, might be termed excellent. It ha*s, 
at least, the merit of being readable, but that is all we can admit in it s 
favour. As a popular medium for the communication of science, it is 
absolutely valueless. Recognized and exploded theories are indiscrimi- 
nately introduced, and, from the author’s comments, it would appear that 
he occasionally is at a loss to understand either. He aims at being meta- 
physical, and therein we think he errs. Thus, he entirely misinterprets 
the beautiful doctrine of the correlation of forces, and in his confused 
notions of the functions of the body invokes the assistance of a vital force. 
Again, he speaks of the sluggish life of the Annelida, proving his ignorance 
of that group, which has been specially designated Errantes. When attri*- 
buting the movement of the blood in plants to the Divine cause alone, he 
shows that he is unacquainted with Draper’s grand researches. The 
absurd generalization of a single animal archetype should not have been 
introduced, and the question of homologies is one which is even yet so 
undecided that it had much better have been omitted. The more animal 
forms are investigated, the more forcible becomes the conviction that there 
are several types fundamentally distinct from each other. We could 
adduce many other instances of Mr. Grindon’s erroneous teachings, but 
space forbids. We regard his volume as a melancholy example of what 
extravagances a man who combines pseudo-metaphysics, imperfect science, 
and superstition, may be led into. 
* “ Life : its Nature, Varieties, and Phenomena.” By Leo H. Grindon, 
Lecturer on Botany at the Royal School of Medicine, Manchester, &c» 
Third Edition. London : Pitman. 1863. 
