1'01. 5, NO. 11 why certain metals cannot be, and other metals are not, used in the preparation of hydrogen by their reaction with an acid. One is pleased to note that in the solution of stoichiametric problems the old style of proportion, A : B : : C : D , has been abandoned in favor of the fractional form now used by all the best teachers of mathematics. The hook contains some items, such as the Law of Raoult, the Law of Henry, and the generalization of Dulong and Petit, which are frequently omitted from elementary chemistries. On the other hand, some items might well have been omitted, such as the moribund LeBlanc process which is now only of historical interest in this country There will be differences af opinion as to the order of chapters hut the reviewer would prefer to have the three chapters on organic chemistry, now a t the end of the book, follow the chapter on the compounds of carbon, and the chapter on halogens follow the one on chlorine and hydrochloric acid. It is of course impracticable to attempt to list all the recent developments and applications of chemistry in an elementsry text but one regrets the omission of: atomic hydrogen flames; hydrogenation of soft coal; Duco finishes; bakelite; ore flotation; adequate treatment of explosives, war gases, and the use of nitrites in dye manufacture; and other similar material. Energy is not treated with the fullness it deserves. Revision will probably care for these omissions. I n the treatment of the metals the author has shown a good sense of proportion by giving t o such elements as barium, strontium, cadmium, cobalt, nickel, and manganese but a small amount of space. The index is not entirely satisfactory. While the work of such men as Bohr, Lewis, Langmuir, and Millikan on atomic structure; of Acheson on electric furnace products; of Perkin (not Perkins) on dyes; of Cottrell on smoke precipitation
is mentioned in the text, the index does not give any reference to these nor to Ostwald, whose process is given without credit under nitric acid. Neither text nor index gives any information concerning the work of Baekeland, Berzelius, Faraday, Morley, Remsen, Richards, and others. The hook might be made more serviceable by inclusion of these and some other chemists, with correction of the index; the human interest side of the subject might also receive much more attention with a consequent increase in the value of the book for the beginner. The -appendix contains tables of solubilities, melting points, weights of a liter of different gases, and other useful information. The half-tone illustrations are sometimes not sufficiently clear to he entirely satisfactory, while the pictures of chemists are still less clear in several cases. The drawings of apparatus by Mr. Schanck are good but it may he questioned if a simpler line drawing would not be more satisfactory than the ones in perspective which are difficult for pupils t o reproduce. The hook is well printed an good paper and substantially bound. A few errors in the spelling of chemist's names and one or two mistakes in grammar were noted. While there are several matters to he regretted, the book on the whole has much to commend it to the careful consideration of teachers of secondary school chemistry. C. H. STONE ENGLISH HIGHSCHOOL. BOSTON,MASSACHUSETTS Laboratory Methods of Inorganic Chemistry. HEINRICH BILTZ,Univ. of K i d , and WILHBLMBILTZ,Univ. of G6ttinpen. Translated by W. T. Hall and A. A. Blanchard, Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Second edition, 1928, John Wiley & Sons, New York, and Chapman & Hall, Ltd., London. 261 pages. 27 figures. 15 X xv 22.5 cms. $2.511.
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All who are familiar with the 1909 edition of this book will welcome this second edition. The translators have again faithfully followed the German text and adapted i t to English students. "This hook outlines a course of laboratory work which is essentially synthetic in nature and is designed to aid in acquiring a mare adequate knowledge of inorganic chemistry than is obtained in qualitative and quantitative courses." The work contains 171 experiments each of which is the preparation of a definite compound or element. It is divided into seven chapters grouping together the different classes of reactions. The subjects covered are as follows: (1) The Obtaining of Pure Elements; (2) Changes of Condition; (3) Simple Compounds; (4) Compounds Containing a Complex Positive Component; (5) Compounds Containing a Complex Negative Component; (6) Complex Non-Electrolytes; (7) Preparation of Compounds of the Rare Elements from Their Minerals. Each different type of experiment is preceded by a brief discussion of the theory involved in the reaction, hence we find excellent short expositions on mass action, Werner's theory of complex ions, electrolytic dissociation, etc. The new edition differs from the old only in that some of the discussions are made slightly longer. One variance from the 1909 edition is the inclusion of a short
discussion on the periodic classification of the elements. This is in reality an excellent short review of the modem electronic theory of the structure of matter. Some of the other changes worthy of mention are: the discussion on obtaining metals from fused salts is more satisfactory; the colloidal state is discussed more fully, the production of ammonia by the Haher process is used as well as the oxidation of sulfur dioxide to illustrate the commercial advantage of the law of mass action; under potassium iodide the recovery of iodine from organic residues is described; the preparations of potassium iodine tetrachloride and of phosphorous acid have been added; the discussions involving hetemolyacids and metal-ammonia compounds are slightly changed and more fully developed. The theory on isomeric salts is extended and this entire section with the exception of one experiment on chromium is now devoted to cobalt complexes. This is an excellent hook and in the words of the translators "should prove of value to manufacturing chemists as well as to students." The 1928 edition is better than the 1909 hut there is not enough change to warrant one buying the former if he already has the older copy.
