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of educational value, perhaps more of permanent value, than is derived from studies taken under compulsion. The reader should have been present on December 15, 1925, at the Central High School, Philadelphia, when he would have been agreeably surprised a t the very considerable interest manifested by both boy and girl students, teachers of science,beads of departments, and newly appointed director of science, in attending an Inter-High-School Science Association meeting to the number of nearly six hundred. In fact two of the largest lecture rooms were full to over-flowing and the complete program was repeated. Sponsors of the Chemistry, the Natural Science, and the Radio clubs, that is, the teachers of science, furnished the program. The talks as enumerated below required from ten to fifteen minutes each. Some of the talks were illustrated by unusual experiments and rarely seen material. A student, John Bennett, of the graduating class was chosen to preside over the meeting. Throughout the whole program there was undivided attention. Refreshments were served after a business meeting. The program was as follows: Dreams and Musings in Chemistry. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ..Philip Maas The Delaware River Bridge. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Claude B. Hagy Face to Face through the Ether. . . . . . . . . . . . . . J. Howard Graham How Plants Capture Sunlight.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Elmer B. Ulrich The Smallest Thing in the Universe, and the Newest Rays.. . . . . . . . . . Edward H. Landis Aladdin's Modern Wonderful Lamp.. . . . . . . . . ..Lloyd M. Knoll J. H. G.
ELEMENTS OF COLLEGE CHEMISTRY Last year I made a study of many of the widely used elementary chemistry texts with a view to adopting one to use in my classes this school year. I looked for one that was interestingly written, and teachable, yet thorough and sound and up-to-date. I selected Foster's "Elements of Chemistry" (D. Van Nostrand Co.) and the results thus far have been most gratifying. Since the book is giving me such good service and so much pleasure in the teaching, I was much surprised a t the tone and character of the review in the January JOURNAL.I could not help thinking that had the reviewer actually used the book or even made a careful study of it he would have had a different story to tell. He opposes the unusual order of the earlier chapters, but "the proof of the pudding is in the eating;" my pupils, starting with the more familiar topics of the early chapters, avoided the customary cold plunge into the
unknown with its chilling effects. At the end of the fall term they have a very satisfactory knowledge of the fundamental laws and theories; are familiar with oxygen, hydrogen, nitrogen, carbon, and some of their compounds; and have mastered their chemical arithmetic with less difficulty than usual, and without requiring supplementary problems which I have previously had to prepare. While your reviewer says that the book has "None of the 'rub it in element," my experience has been just the opposite, in fact, it is that element that most excites my admiration. The properties of acids, bases, and salts, after being briefly treated in the early pages, are enlarged upon and thoroughly "rubbed in" for twenty-six later consecutive pages, besides being frequently alluded to by reference and question throughout the remainder of the text. Your reviewer states that the "index" has "one reference each to chemical equilibrium and explosives." Had he studied the text as well i s the index he would have noted that chemical equilibrium is constantly kept before the pupil by careful explanation and sumptuous use of the reversible reaction equation, and that explosives are not only treated individually in logical order, but are repeatedly mentioned when their components or constituents are discussed. The theory of the subject is explained in a convincing manner and industrial applications are stressed in a way to make the student realize the value, to him, of a thorough knowledge of the science. The laws of chemistry are connected to the theories that explain them with a clearness that should satisfy the most exacting. The wealth and variety of material meets the requirements of all, and one may omit what he does not consider essential. (I shall omit seireral chapters because my course has for its primary object preparation for college entrance examinations.) The extensive use of bold type and italics, the splendid illustrations, the clear and logical presentation, supplemented with summaries and questions and references at the end of every chapter, make it the nearest my ideal as an interesting, sound, and teachable text that I have used or examined. LAWRENCEVILLE HIGHSCHOOL. LAWRENCEVILLE. N. J.
H. W. HEATH
THE LAW OF AVOGADRO Under the above caption I published a brief paper in the November EDUCATION, giving what I was pleased number of the JOURNAL OP CEEMICAL to call a deductive proof of Avogadro's law from the empirical and firmly established laws of Gay-Lussac and the law of Combining Masses.
