?nfi  &*nii*<rne  f  Am.  Jour.  Pliarm. 
ZUO  KeVteWS,  {       April,  1890. 
valuable  report  on  smut  in  oats,  and  on  the  methods  for  preventing  this 
disease. 
Some  Food  Substitutes  and  Adulterants.  By  Edgar  Richards,  Washington, 
D.  C.    Pp.  1 8. 
An  address  delivered  by  the  President  of  the  Chemical  Society  of  Washing- 
ton, January  23,  1890,  and  reprinted  from  Bulletin  No.  5  of  the  Chemical  Society 
of  Washington. 
The  Nature  of  Amalgams.    By  Wm.  L.  Dudley,  Salem,  Mass.,  1890. 
An  address  delivered  by  the  Vice-President  of  Section  C  of  the  American 
Association  for  the  Advancement  of  Science,  at  Toronto,  August,  1889,  and 
reprinted  from  the  Proceedings  of  the  Association. 
Bericht  uber  die  achte  Versammlung  der  freien  Vereinigung  Bayerischer 
Vertreter  der  angeivandten  Chemie'm  Wiirzburg,  1889.  Berlin.  Julius  Springer. 
1889.  Pp.  123. 
Report  on  the  Eighth  Meeting  of  the  Free  Union  of  Bavarian  Representatives 
of  Applied  Chemistry. 
Of  the  papers  read  at  this  meeting,  the  follow  ing  are  especially  mentioned 
here  :  On  Sparkling  Wines,  On  Carbonic  Acid  in  Drinking  Water,  Determina- 
tion of  Lead  in  Tin  Foil,  Determination  of  Fermentative  Power  of  Yeast,  The 
Rancidity  of  Culinary  Fats,  and  On  the  Examination  of  extracts  of  Meat ;  also,  A 
Statistical  Report  on  the  Adulterations  of  Food  Observed  by  the  Members  During 
the  Preceding  Year.  The  Publishing  Committee  consists  of  Prof.  A.  Hilger, 
Dr.  E.  List,  Dr.  R.  Kayser  and  Th.  Weigle. 
Practical  Electricity  in  Medicine  and  Surgery.  By  G.  A.  Liebig,  Jr.,  Ph.D., 
assistant  in  electricity,  Johns  Hopkins  University,  etc.,  and  George  H.  Rohe, 
M.D.,  Professor  of  obstetrics  and  hygiene,  College  of  Physicians  and  Surgeons, 
Baltimore,  etc.    ProfuseW  illustrated.    Philadelphia  and  London  :  F.  A.  Davis. 
1890.  Svo.    Pp.  viii  and  383.    Price,  $2. 
Of  the  three  parts  into  which  the  volume  is  divided,  Part  I  treats  of  elec- 
tricity, magnetism,  batteries,  storage  electricity  and  allied  matters.  The  laws 
wLiich  underlie  the  practical  application  of  these  physical  forces  are  fully  dis- 
cussed, special  attention  being  given  to  the  various  forms  of  electrical  and 
magnetic  apparatus,  which  are  likely  to  be  of  use  to  the  physician.  Neces- 
sarily the  construction  of  the  different  batteries,  the  theory  of  the  chemical 
action  and  the  best  methods  of  caring  for  the  batteries  claim  much  attention. 
Brief  descriptions  of  the  electric  motor,  the  telephone  and  the  phonograph 
are  added  not  merely  on  account  of  their  general  interest,  but  because  these 
appliances  appear  to  be  becoming  of  considerable  value  to  the  physician,  both 
in  the  treatment  and  diagnosis  of  disease.  The  first  chapter  of  Part  II, 
entitled  electro-physiology,  treats  of  the  effects  of  electric  currents  upon  the 
healthy  tissues  and  organs  of  the  body,  and  is  followed  in  chapter  II,  on  elec- 
tro-diagnosis, by  the  discussion  of  the  modifications  produced  by  disease,  and 
of  the  methods  for  utilizing  the  same  for  purposes  of  diagnosis.  The  third 
chapter  is  descriptive  of  the  most  useful  electro-medical  apparatus,  and  serves 
as  an  excellent  introduction  to  Part  III,  which  considers  the  general  thera- 
peutic effects  of  electricity,  the  methods  of  application  and  the  treatment  of 
the  diseases  of  the  various  organs  by  means  of  electricity.  A  number  of  use- 
ful tables  are  given  in  the  appendix,  mostly  relating  to  current-strength, 
electro-motive  force  and  resistance. 
