ESSEX HOUSE PRESS, CAMPDEN, GLOS. MEDIAVAL SINHALESE ART. By A. K. COOMARASWAMY, D.Sc. The Arts and Crafts of Buddhist Ceylon mainly as surviving in the 18th Century, with an account of the social status, methods and ritual of craftsmen. Illustrated by 140 text-illustrations, and 54 collotype and coloured plates. "It is, indeed, in the fact that so much new ground is broken that the high merit of this volume lies, for it is certainly the first time that a detailed account of the arts and crafts of a small area in the East has been given."Nature. 14 x 10, pp. 340. FOR USE IN NATURAL HISTORY. The distance between the stereoscopic lenses is regulated automatically with the correct focussing of the image. The Camera, therefore, is admirably adapted for photography of insects, flowers, plants, minerals, &c. Prospectus P. 172, Post Free. CARL ZEISS, 29 Margaret St., Regent St., London, W. Jena. THE NEW "STUDENT'S" STANDARD BAROMETER. (Registered Design No. 420,297-) Designed to meet the requirements of Students and others who find the need of a Barometer which will give exact readings, and cost but a moderate sum. The Used for demonstration purposes in all the principal Science and Technical Colleges, and adopted by the L.C.C. for use in their Classes. The construction is on that of the well-known "Fortin principle. The level of the cistern mercury is reducible to zero, in exactly the same manner as in the more expensive forms. The diameter of the mercurial column is 25 inch, and affords a bold, well-defined reading. scales, by means of the double vernier, are capable of being read to or inch and 1 milimetre. It is mounted on a well-polished, solid oak or mahogany board, with opal glass reflectors for reading off, and screws for vertical adjustment. The metal portions are all well bronzed and lacquered, and the scales are opal glass. A thermometer, graduated on stem F. and C. scales, is fitted to the brass frame. We confidently recommend this Instrument for use as a "Standard" in Colleges and Schools, private Observatories, and by Gas and other Engineers. Price, complete, mounted as illustrated, £3 7 6. 46 HATTON GARDEN, LONDON, E.C. ACTUAL MAKERS OF ALL KINDS OF METEOROLOCICAL INSTRUMENTS. Contractors to H.M. Government. ILLUSTRATED PRICE LISTS POST FREE. We pay carriage and guarantee safe delivery within THURSDAY, JULY 15, 1909. REGENERATION. Experimental-Zoologie. Part ii., Regeneration : Eine Zusammenfassung der durch Versuche ermittelten Gesetzmässigkeiten tierischer Wieder-erzeugung. By Dr. Hans Przibram. Pp. viii+338; 16 plates. (Leipzig and Vienna: Franz Deuticke, 1909.) Price 14 marks. THE HE second part of Dr. Hans Przibram's "Experimental Zoology has so far only been published in German, but it is to be hoped that an English translation will follow in due course. It will be a matter for regret if the efforts of the Cambridge University Press to provide English-speaking biologists with standard editions of works which are otherwise accessible only in a foreign language do not receive sufficient support to justify their continuance. The present volume, which is very considerably larger than the first (reviewed in NATURE, March 4, p. 2), deals with the secondary aftergrowth of lost parts, embracing the phenomena of morphallaxis and deformation. The allied subject of grafting, which finds a place in Prof. Morgan's work on "Regeneration," published eight years ago, is not systematically dealt with, but it may well be that this is reserved for special treatment in the final volume on function. The subject-matter of the part now under notice is divided into eight chapters, dealing successively with the different groups of the animal kingdom, from the Protozoa to the Vertebrata. To these is added a general summary, containing an account of the general laws which govern the regenerative processes and their development in phylogeny. There are sixteen coloured plates, which are bound at the end of the volume, but these are so overcrowded with figures as to tend towards confusion, and the execution is not good. The work is adapted for purposes of reference rather than for continuous reading, and is furnished with an extensive bibliography, in which few omissions are to be detected. In dealing with the power of compensatory hypertrophy possessed by the generative glands, the author alludes to the fact that although unilateral castration is said to promote an increased growth on the part of the remaining testis, the number of spermatozoa found in the semen is very appreciably diminished, at least according to Lohde's observations. These statements, however, are not necessarily conflicting, since Ancel and Bouin and others have shown that in all probability the interstitial cells of the organs, and not the spermatogenetic tissue, are responsible for the normal testicular influence which is exerted upon the secondary sexual characters and the organism as a whole; and so it may perhaps be, in general, that it is the interstitial rather than the seminiferous portion of the testis which undergoes hypertrophy after onesided castration. Moreover, the time which Lohde allowed to elapse after extirpating the single testis was probably too short to admit of definite conclusions being drawn regarding the power of compensation possessed by the remaining testis. Dr. Przibram notes the occurrence of thyroid regeneration following the partial removal of that organ, but he omits to state that in certain cases the parathyroids are capable of regenerating tissue containing colloid substance, and so resembling, if not identical with, normal thyroid tissue. Neither does he mention that in rabbits and other animals which can survive thyroidectomy the function of the thyroid appears to be taken over by the pituitary, in which the cells of the pars intermedia show an increased activity, as manifested especially by a greater secretion of colloid. Both these processes are probably to be regarded as instances of functional restitution in allied organs of the body. The regeneration of the uterine mucosa after par turition and menstruation is alluded to, but there is no reference to Heape's papers, which deal more fully than any others with the nature of the post-menstrual recuperative processes. Futhermore, there are certain omissions in the literature dealing with teratological science. Nevertheless, the work, as it stands, contains by far the most comprehensive account of the subject of regeneration that has as yet been written, and, as such, it constitutes an important addition to the literature of experimental zoology. FRANCIS H. A. MARSHALL. A NATURALIST IN TASMANIA. A Naturalist in Tasmania. By G. Smith. Pp. 151. (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1909.) Price 7s. 6d. net, ASMANIA is the smallest of the Australian TAS States, and its scientific interest is out of all proportion to its size, while its magnificent scenery, picturesque lakes, rugged mountains, noble forests, and its combination of vegetation of tropical luxuriance with a temperate summer climate will always make it one of the most attractive of Australian tourist resorts. The State has still a small and scattered population; internal communication and railway construction are exceptionally difficult, so, though it was the second in date of Australian colonies, much of the island is still very imperfectly known. Mr. Geoffrey Smith, of New College, Oxford, made expedition to Tasmania in 1907-8, aided by a British Association grant, in order to investigate the primitive shrimps inhabiting its lakes. The short volume gives a charmingly written narrative of his journey, and it is illustrated by some of Beattie's beautiful photographs and excellent drawings of some Tasmanian animals, such as that of the Tasmanian Devil (Sarcophilus), by Mr. Goodchild. It is accompanied by a geological sketch-map based on Johnston's. an Mr. Geoffrey Smith is enthusiastic over the beauty of Tasmanian scenery. He deals especially with the districts near Hobart and around the Great Lake on the Central Plateau. He gives a short note on the aborigines, with illustrations both of their heads and skulls. On the vexed question as to the relation of the Tasmanians, he is emphatic (p. 28) that relationship lies rather with the Veddahs of Ceylon and the other straight-haired Proto-Dravidian_races that still exist sparsely in India and the Malay Islands." 66 He says we have a good deal of information as to their burial customs, which differ totally from those of the Australians, and their language seems to have differed entirely from the Australian and to show remote connection with the Andamanese " (p. 31). His last chapter discusses the biological relations of Australia and Tasmania, and the evidence for the connection of Australasia with Antarctica. He is convinced that the fauna and flora of Australia entered it from the south and not from Asia. As he truly remarks, the marsupials are most numerous and of the most primitive types in southern Australia, while they are comparatively rare and most specialised in northern Australia. If they had migrated from Asia the opposite arrangement would have been expected. The author still accepts Galaxias as evidence of the recent connection of Australasia and South America; he admits that it visits estuaries, but considers that it can only have spread across the southern Pacific along the shelf around the Antarctic land. After Mr. Boulenger's letter (NATURE, 1902, vol. lxvii., p. 84), with its convincing evidence that Galaxias breeds in the sea, the distribution of that fish is no indication of a former land connection. One slip, in fact, is the statement that the tree Senecios are unknown in the tropics (p. 133). They are the largest trees in the alpine zone of Kenya and other east African mountains. The author represents Tasmania as not a biological appanage of Australia, as he holds that it acquired its present distinctive characters before its separation from the mainland. Although this view is probable, the striking differences which the author well describes between the faunas of the two areas indicate that the separation happened long enough ago for many of the Tasmanian mammals to have developed into new species. The most striking part of the book is Mr. Smith's valuable contributions to knowledge of the primitive Tasmanian freshwater shrimps, of which he discovered a new genus. They are allied to those of the European Carboniferous Crustacea, and are one of the groups of archaic animals still living in Australasia. UNLIKE many books intended chiefly as short cuts to success in examination, this work seeks to impart in a clear, concise, and accurate manner the scientific principles underlying the proper use of material in construction. Part i. contains chapters devoted to natural laws, measurement, the air, heat, chemical principles, water, acids and bases, coal, and a useful outline of geology. In part ii. all the chief building materials are dealt with in detail. The origin and occurrence of each material are described, also the preparation defects, and tests for quality, including both laboratory for use, varieties met with, impurities and adulterants, tests and simple practical tests such as may be applied by the workman. In every case the author is careful to point out the application of correct scientific principles, and from his practical knowledge is able to suggest many useful tests not generally known. The work is thoroughly up to date, from both a scientific and a practical point of view, and the latest results of investigation into such matters as the setting action of cement, the rusting of iron, and the micrography of metals are clearly and broadly stated in their bearings upon the practical use of material. This book will prove of great value to students intending to take up architecture as a profession. The builder, also, and the practical man will be glad to take advantage of much of the information given. In fact, many teachers in the architectural and building departments of technical colleges will be glad to know of the book with the view of recommending it to their students. This being the first edition, it is hardly to be expected that the book is entirely free from defects. The diagrammatic illustrations given seem to be the least satisfactory part of the work. While the work has been written so lucidly as to render numerous figures unnecessary, it would seem that more than nine illustrations might be legitimately employed to assist the reader in grasping the subject. There is room for some improvement, too, in the chapter on timber, several inaccuracies having escaped correction, e.g. on p. 295, what is described as decay due to worms should rather be ascribed to the larvæ of certain beetles, &c. Also, on p. 296, the Teredo, although popularly regarded as a worm, should really be classed with the mollusca. In dealing with dry rot on p. 294, the temperature conditions are not referred development of the fungus. to. although these play an important part in the ' A few statements in other parts of the book seem to call for reconsideration or correction, e.g. p. 20, § 3-" If two vessels containing the same liquid be connected, the level in each will become the same whatever the form or distance of the connecting pipe." Again, the statement, p. 277, "Shearing and torsional stresses are identical, apart from the method of applying the force producing them," although true, needs explanation to the mind not trained in mechanics. The explanation given on p. 323 as to the optical theory of the production of a green pigment from yellow and blue powders, will hardly explain fully how it happens that the same blue powder, mixed with a red one, will produce purple. Turning to the useful table on p. 63, the tyro may be puzzled again to know why, if the substance denoted by CaO2H, is termed calcium hydroxide, the substance PbO2H, is termed lead hydrate; or, if CO, is called carbon dioxide, why SiO, is called silicon oxide. On p. 18 the author correctly says, "To move a heliostat reflecting a beam of light requires no more effort than would be necessary in the dark," but the heliostat being Italics not author's. unknown to most students of building materials, it might be advisable to substitute the more familiar “mirror." However, in spite of a few minor points like these, the book as a whole is well written, and admirably adapted to the class for whom it is intended. It deserves to take a permanent place among the textbooks upon the subject, and in future editions the points referred to will no doubt receive attention. II. B. ECONOMIC BACTERIOLOGY. Bacteria in Relation to Country Life. By Dr. Jacob G. Lipmann. Pp. xx+486. (New York: The Macmillan Co.; London: Macmillan and Co., Ltd., 1908.) Price 6s. 6d. net. WR cooled, are less subject to intestinal disturbances than children fed on raw milk. At the same time, it must be admitted that the pasteurisation of milk already filled with bacteria, and the products of their acitivities, will not remedy its defects. The undesirable substances formed by the bacteria are not entirely destroyed by the heating, and may still cause injury to the person consuming the milk. By resorting to pasteurisation, a dealer may be able to dispose of milk that would otherwise quickly become unsaleable. Similarly, the failure to cool the pasteurised milk quickly and to keep it at a temperature of 50°, or below that, may lead to the rapid multiplication in the milk of germs producing injurious or poisonous substances. Hence, pasteurised milk should be consumed within twelve hours, or should be immediately cooled down to between 45° and 50°." The subject of tuberculosis in relation to milk is fully discussed. It is pointed out that large numbers of tubercle bacilli may pass into the excreta of tuberculous cows, a fact which was fully confirmed by the experiments of our Royal Commission on Tuberculosis as contained in the last report, and it is concluded that "Whatever difference of opinion there may prevail as to the extent of human tuberculosis caused by the consumption of milk and milk products, it is conceded by sanitarians that persistent efforts should be made to eradicate bovine tuberculosis." Subsequent chapters deal with milk beverages, butter and cheese, canning, ensilage and fermented liquors. The book is adequately illustrated and clearly printed. R. T. HEWLETT. WRITTEN in non-technical language, this book gives a good account of the activities of microorganisms. It may therefore be recommended to all those who desire to obtain a general knowledge of the functions of bacteria and the important rôle they play in relation to daily life, while the intelligent agriculturist will find a large amount of information which should aid him in his work. After a brief survey of the form, structure, food requirements, and conditions of growth of bacteria, successive chapters deal with these organisms as met with in air, water, and sewage. The relation of water to health and disease is discussed, and the chief factors in connection with the contamination and purification of water are detailed. A readable account is given of the disposal of sewage and of bacterial systems of sewage disposal. Next follow the most important sections of the book, viz. | (1) Our Forests and Woodlands. By Dr. J. Nisbet. the relation of bacteria to soil fertility and the influence of manures. We here find accounts of the sources of nitrogen in the soil, of nitrification and denitrification, of the action of leguminous crops in fixing nitrogen, and of soil inoculation with pure cultures of nitrogenfixing organisms. The proper methods of storing farmyard manure are dealt with at some length, and thelonown that under differ from conditions of storage the losses of organic matter from the manure stack in three or four months may range from 15 to 20 per cent. to 40 to 50 per cent. of the initial quantity, and valuable suggestions are made on the best means of conservation of manurial constituents, both by proper methods of storage and by the use of chemical fixatives. The chapters which follow on milk, its production and preservation, are also excellent. Details are given which show that careful hand-milking yields a better milk as regards bacterial contamination than any milking machine, unless extreme precautions are taken in the sterilisation of the latter. The subject of pasteurisation of milk is also critically discussed, and the following extract sums up the author's views on the advantages and disadvantages of the process, views with which we fully agree and which should be widely known : 66 Pasteurisation is effective for the destruction of disease: bacteria in milk and for the improvement of its keeping quality. It is agreed that city children fed on pasteurised milk, properly heated and properly FORESTRY. New and revised edition. Pp. xxiii+348. (London: J. M. Dent and Co., 1909.) Price 3s. 6d. net. (2) Trees: A Handbook of Forest-Botany for the Woodlands and the Laboratory. By the late H. Marshall Ward. Vol. v., Form and Habit. Pp. xi + 308. (Cambridge University Press, 1909.) Price 4s. 6d. net. (1) THE first edition of Dr. Nisbet's well-known book, "Our Forests and Woodlands," appeared in 1902. The second edition has now been issued, and will doubtless be welcomed by a large circle of readers, not only on account of the interesting and important information it contains, but the price is such as to bring it within the reach of many who cannot afford the more expensive, though excellent, works on forestry at present available to the English reader. A very important, and probably the most outstanding feature of the new edition is the preface, in which the author has given a résumé of the progress which has been made in forestry since the appearance of the first edition. The doings of the various Governmental committees and commissions which have sat of late years are clearly set forth. There is also given a very striking table in the form of an abstract from the "Annual Statement of the Timber Trade of the United Kingdom" for 1906 and 1907. Here it is shown that the gross total imports of wood and timber, wood-pulp, and manufactured wood-pulp come to about 37,500,000l. To supply these present demands, leaving out of consideration the increasing consumption, which will no doubt continue, the author points out that it would require 3,000,000 acres of conifer and other woodlands, or an annual cut of 50,000 acres of timber worked on a sixty years' rotation. Contrary to opinions held in other quarters, Dr. Nisbet anticipates the decrease in the supply, to this country at least, of pitwood. At present large supplies come from Bordeaux, but signs are lacking that the quantity of suitable timber is decreasing, while the French collieries themselves show increasing demands. It would be a serious blow to all our industries dependent on coal should the supply of pitwood fail, and in any case the price is likely to increase, which will, other things remaining the same, raise the price of coal. not Another very important question to which the author directs attention is the wood-pulp industry. At the present time the United States dominate the paper market of the world, but there is an increasing shortage of suitable timber for the making of paperpulp, which is, therefore, naturally increasing in price, and the recent large rise in the price of paper is due to the growing shortage in the supply of spruce. Since 1904, the cost of mechanical wood-pulp in this country has increased from 85s. a ton to 120s., while in America during the past ten years the price has increased threefold. The demand for pitwood and wood-pulp is bound to continue; in other words, there is a sure market for such produce, and the author, who is a widely recognised authority on such matters, points out that our waste lands and poor pastures are to a very large extent capable of producing conifers and soft-wood crops which could be established at comparatively little cost, and would yield good returns to the owner, and at the same time supply pit-wood for our mining industries and therefore indirectly benefit all industries dependent upon coal; and, lastly, with a sufficient supply of raw material for the making of paper-pulp a new industry would be created in this country. There are altogether eleven chapters in the book, with an index at the end. Some very fine illustrations are also included. The first two chapters are mainly taken up with historical matters, which provide extremely interesting reading. The next two chapters deal with the sylvicultural characteristics of the oak and beech. In chapter v. the remaining hardwoods are considered, while the soft woods, such as alder, birch, lime, and poplars, are dealt with in chapter vi. Coniferous plantations of pines, firs, and larch are treated in chapter vii. Chapter viii. is more arboricultural, as it deals with hedges and hedgerow trees. Chapter ix. is occupied with the consideration of highwoods, copses, and coppicewoods, while the last two chapters, viz. x. and xi., are devoted to woodlands, game and sport, and the improvement of British forestry respectively. The book is full of sound and trustworthy information. Its price is moderate, and it deserves a hearty reception from all those interested, directly or indirectly, in our forests and woodlands. (2) This volume dealing with the form of trees is the final one of its series. The volume, like the previous one, has been seen through the press by Dr. Groom, who informs us in the preface that he has reduced changes from the original to a minimum. The few alterations and additions which were found necessary have been indicated by enclosure within square brackets. Part i. deals in a general way with the habit or form of trees, and, in addition to the text, the form or habit of the tree is indicated in many instances by illustrations, while the form of the branch-system is also indicated diagrammatically. A series of Mr. Henry Irving's well-known photographs illustrating the outward appearance of the bark has been included. In part ii. the trees are detailed according to their form and other external appearances. The system of tabulation adopted is similar to that employed in the previous volumes. At the end we have an appendix which contains a classification of trees and shrubs according to their seedlings, and here we have many excellent drawings by Miss E. Dale from actual seedlings, the scale of magnification or reduction being indicated in each case. No doubt this appendix, as Dr. Groom points out, is not so complete as the author evidently intended to make it, yet it is, including the drawings, valuable so far as it goes, and is well worthy of careful study. Taking the whole work as it now stands, we have five volumes which deal respectively with buds, leaves, flowers, fruits, and form, and it will be admitted on all hands that the late Prof. Marshall Ward has left behind a monumental work which will long be considered a standard on trees. NEW BOOKS ON ORGANIC CHEMISTRY. (1) Modern Organic Chemistry. By Dr. C. A. Keane. Pp. xiv + 503. (London: The Walter Scott Publishing Co., Ltd., 1909.) Price 6s. (2) Practical Organic Chemistry. By Dr. J. J. Sudborough and T. C. James. Pp. xviii+378. (London: Blackie and Son, Ltd., 1909.) Price 5s. net. : (3) The Elements of Organic Chemistry. By E. I. Lewis. Pp. viii+224. (Cambridge University Tutorial Press, Ltd., 1909.) Price 2s. 6d. (4) Abhandlung über die Glycole oder Zwei atomige Alkohole. By Adolf Wurtz. Pp. 96. Ostwald's Klassiker, No. 170. (Leipzig: W. Engelmann, 1909.) (1) T anyone possessing a sound elementary knowledge of organic chemistry we can strongly recommend Dr. Keane's book. It is not a text-book, for there is no systematic arrangement of the materials, and the properties of individual substances and the relations of different groups are not brought into relief. If, for example, the student wishes to learn something about ordinary phenol, he will find bits of scattered information in four different places. Systematic instruction is obviously not the object of the book. But although the treatment is unconventional, and frequent digressions are made into regions not usually embraced by organic text-books, this very fact rather enhances than detracts from the interest of the |