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SI9V BOOKS.
young doctors of philosoph!. in writing thcir dissertations and \vIiicli makes abominhhle reading! So tvhilc tlic book was ttndu-takcli iii a praiseworthy attcmpt to hring the suhjcLct of organic chemistry into closer relationship to tlie n-odern conceptions of physical rhernistr?., it i i hardly a success in this respect and is aril!. of average valuct and in part badly written as a n ordinary tcst-hook of organic chen:is:ry. UNI\*ERSIrY O F C H I C A G O , T I X I ~ S STIEGI,ITZ. November \I
16,
1907.
TZXT-BOOKOF
(.)RG.\NIC C H E M I S T K Y . A. I:. HOLLERIAS, I’iI.D., 1:. I < , A , , Anisterdani, Professor Ordinarius i n tlie 1:niversity of .4msterdatn. ’~‘raiislatetl from tlie Third Dutch Rdition I)? A. 1. \V.\LKEK, PH.D., assisted l)y O\+~ES E. MOTT,PH.D., with the coijperation of the author. Second English E:dition, Rewritten. New York: John \Vile?. K. Sons. London: Chapman and Hall, 1,iniited. 190;. 8vo. xv t $39 pp. [’rice, Sz.go.
.According t o the author’s preface t o this second ringlish edition of his test-book on organic chemistry, the chief changes made are in the chapters on the constitution of benzene arid on pyrrole. In presenting the vexed question of the constitution of bcnivnc the plan is adopted of giving all three of the most prominent for:iiulae. KekulC’s. yon Baeyer’s and Thiele’s. with nn explanation and a vrry brief criticism of r:ach. There is legitimitc ground for a wide di\.ergence of opinion in regard t o the best order of arrangement for thc, presentation of the facts of organic chemistry. I t secms t o thc writcr, however, t h a t with the facts of isomerisni and thcl theories of structure, stercoisornerisni and tautotti. crism,’ thc fundaniental point which itirrst be most clearly understood by thc student for a working acqiiaintancc with orpanic c,heniistrc is th,, differelice in beliavior 1)ctnc.c.n satttratc%dand tinsatuwL-.d ~ o n ~ p o i i n d s . This difference is brouglif out tiiost cPiccti\cly from the expt rimental :t study oi t h e properties of thc. unsaturated h!rand theoretical side, drocarbons. ’The point of l-icw acquired thcrv is most useful, in fact, essential, in the study of the reactions of tlic. aldehydes and ketones as unsaturated compounds, in which absorption reactiom play a n extremely important r61e. in which the sirinllrr degree of stability of the addition products involves no difficult!- in prescntation after a thorough discussion of the olefines and acetylenes. and in conncc-tion with which relative instability, a further fundaI1i,i, :mtl tile discussion is restricted to tlie I : 3 diketones. I t is LL cluestion affecting very tli:triy inil)ortant classes o f organic conipounds (acid amides, nitroparaflins, niono-:ildehgdes and ketones m d tlieir hgdrazones and oximes, phenols, etc. ), and i t seeni:; t o the Lvriter that 2 ’ ~ f I I 60uk o,f f h i j cici.
