Alcohol; its Combinations, Adulterations, and Physical Effects. By Colonel J. G. Dudley. New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons. 68 pages. 25 cents.
This useful pamphlet is a popular restatement of the chief facts and arguments derived from science, upon which the opponents of alcoholic beverages rest their case. For his motto, Colonel Dudley quotes the pithy observation of Dr. Willard Parker that "the laws of health are the laws of God, and as binding on man as the Decalogue;" and he then proceeds to show how the laws of health are violated by the use of spirituous drinks. The author does not profess to have made any new contributions to the question, but only to present the opinions of eminent authorities, who have given great attention to the subject. His pages present many startling facts suited to awaken serious reflection on the part of those who are in danger from the use of alcoholic beverages, but the freshest portion of the statement is his exposé of the outrageous system of cheating practised by the dealers in spirits. Of all the frauds of commerce, according to this writer, none will for a moment bear comparison with the adulterations and sophistications of intoxicating liquors. He gives recipes enough for the manufacture of all kinds of choice liquors to start a manufacturer in business, and shows, by the cheapness of the material used, how immensely profitable such a business must be. To the rising generation, who cannot have the benefit of the teachings of the old temperance campaign, such works as this of Colonel Dudley will prove valuable, and its wide circulation among them is to be strongly commended.
Epidemic Delusions. By Frederic R. Marvin, M. D. New York: Asa K. Butts & Co. 28 pp., 12mo.
In a lecture before the Liberal Club of New York City, the author endeavored to point out the causes of popular delusion in general. The lecture ia here produced in book-form. Inherited tendencies to passion and ignorance in the masses, automatic action, sympathy, and the desire to imitate, are assigned as the causes. The cultivation of a healthy public sentiment is regarded as the only cure.
A Record of Experiments showing the Character and Position of Neutral Axes. A Paper read before the American Society of Civil Engineers, by Louis Nickerson, C. E.
This paper records a series of experiments undertaken to ascertain the character and position of neutral axes (unstrained parts) in beams and columns under pressure, and attempts to establish, as the result of such experiments, "that the neutral axis is a flexible line truly parallel to the top and bottom sides of the rectangular beam, and passing through the centres of gravity of its sections only when the load is evenly distributed from end to end; . . . but that, when there is a local pressure, the neutral axis is more or less governed in its direction and form by the strain passing from the point of local pressure to the point of support."
Papers chiefly Anatomical. Read before the American Association for the Advancement of Science, August, 1873, by Burt G. Wilder, M. D.
These are: Discussions of the Outer Cerebral Fissures of Mammalia, especially the Carnivora; Cerebral Variation in Domestic Dogs; Lateral Asymmetry in the Brain of a Double Human Monster, and Papillary Representation of two Arms in the Same; Habits and Parasites of Epeira Riparia; Need of a Uniform Position for Anatomical Figures; Lateral Position of the Vent in Amphioxus and in Certain Batrachian Larvæ; Composition of the Carpus in Dogs; Present Aspect of the Question of Intermembral Homologies; Variation in the Condition of the Sense-Organs in Fœtal Pigs of the Same Litter; Pectoral Muscles of Mammalia, and Variation of the same in Domestic Dogs. The papers are illustrated by numerous plates.
The Mechanical Properties of Materials of Construction. Read before the American Society of Civil Engineers, by Prof. R. H. Thurston.
This is an attempt to formulate methods for determining the homogeneousness, elasticity, and cohesive power, of metallic substances, as well as the effects produced in them by shocks or blows, strains, and variations of temperature.
