EDITORIAL. 
89 
suggestion  of  new  agents,  that  already  since  the  publication  of  this  book 
several  have  been  brought  forward  in  the  Journals,  as  valerianate  of  am- 
monia, ammonio  ferric  alum,  and  so  it  will  continue,  until  their  number 
merits  another  edition  of  the  "  New  Remedies." 
Hand-hook  of  Inorganic  Chemistry  ;  for  the  use  of  Students.  By  William 
Gregory,  M.  D.,  F.  R.  S.  E.,  &c.  Fourth  American  from  the  Third 
English  edition.  To  which  is  added  the  Physics  of  Chemistry,  by  J. 
Milton  Senders,  M.  D.,  &c.  New  York.  A.  S.  Barnes  &  Co.  1857. 
Pp.  426. 
Hand-book  of  Organic  Chemistry ;  for  the  use  of  Students.  By  William 
Gregory,  M.  D.,  &c.  Fourth  American  from  the  Fourth  London  edition. 
Edited  by  J.  Milton  Sanders,  M.  D.,  &c.  New  York.  A.  S.  Barnes  & 
Co.    1857.  Pp.480. 
Four  years  ago  we  had  occasion  to  notice  the  first  American  edition 
of  the  above  works  of  Dr.  Gregory,  then  published  jointly  under  the  title  of 
"  Outlines  of  Chemistry  for  Students."  Since  then,  it  would  appear  from 
the  above  title  pages,  two  other  editions  have  been  published,  neither  of 
which  we  have  met  with.  Being  aware  of  the  change  of  the  name  of  the 
work  from  "Outlines"  to  "  Handbook,"  and  of  the  issue  of  the  Organic 
and  Inorganic  portions  in  separate  parts,  we  were  not  a  little  gratified  on 
receiving  the  volumes  in  their  new  form,  and  promised  ourselves  a  more 
deliberate  examination  of  the  Organic  part  than  a  brief  glimpse  of  the 
English  edition  had  enabled  us  to  obtain.  The  result  of  this  examination 
we  will  now  present.  Of  the  426  pages  of  the  inorganic  chemistry,  191 
pages  are  devoted  to  a  compilation  of  the  "  physics  of  chemistry"  by  the 
American  editor,  who  deemed  the  omission  of  any  notice  of  light,  heat  and 
electricity  in  the  English  work  as  a  defect  in  reference  to  its  use  as  a  text 
book  here.  Of  this  addition  nearly  one  half  is  devoted  to  the  general 
properties  and  photographic  relations  of  light,  in  which  the  practical 
details  of  photography  are  entered  upon  with  considerable  minuteness. 
Of  the  remainder,  one-third  is  devoted  to  heat,  and  two-thirds  to  electricity 
and  magnetism,  with  a  chapter  on  "  Physiological  Electricity/'  cr  its  appli- 
cation in  the  cure  of  disease ;  a  rather  novel  subject  for  the  pages  of  a 
handbook  of  chemistry,  although  sufficiently  important  to  the  physiologist 
and  pathologist  to  merit  a  place  in  works  on  their  several  branches. 
It  is  not  in  reference  to  this  preliminary  matter  by  Dr.  Sanders  that  we 
feel  called  upon  to  make  exception,  especially  as  we  have  not  had  time  to 
examine  it  critically  ;  for  assuming  it  to  be  carefully  compiled,  it  must  add 
to  the  value  of  the  work  to  those  students  who  have  not  studied  those 
subjects  separately  ;  but  we  do  feel  it  our  duty  to  enter  a  protest  against 
the  remainder  of  the  volume  as  a  mere  reprint  from  the  stereotype  plates 
of  the  first  edition,  with  a  few  changes  in  foot  notes,  and  a  few  pages  on 
the  manufacture  of  aluminium  (taken  from  the  Pharmaceutical  Journal) 
