BOOK REVIEWS bromine in CCL added to tubes containing pentane and pentene would rtooomplish this beautifully and almost instantly. Within a few pages in the organic section the student is required t o describe the odors of fourteen organic compounds. This is a difficult, if not a n impassible, task since some have odors characteristic only t o themselves. Somewhat misleading is the number of experiments listed; 133 are contained within 94pages of the book. Experiments 108, 109, and 110 with space for answers utiliae one-half of one page. Experiments 111 t o 124 are on normal and pathological urine. The manual is the fill-in type with a place for every answer and many whale pages are required t o be filled in with physical and ohemicrtl properties of numerous chemical compounds. A mass of data is to be recorded but little or no attempt a t generalization is made. The reviewer's experience with courses of the type for which this manual was written leaves doubt in his mind of the ability of many of the students enrolled in suoh courses t o prepare formal labaratory reports such a s required in many manuals. If the student, unfamiliar with science, must be led through his experim e n t ~ ,then certainly a n attempt should periodically be made t o orient the student with respect t o the place and importance of the particular experiment with regard t o the course. Certain questions should
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regularly be asked which require some thinking on the part of the student. This manual seldom makes suoh demands. I t is unfortunate that suoh a. manual should be written t o accompany the author's wcll-written texts. ARTHURL. WILLIAMS San Jose Slate College San Jose, California
Novveau Trait' Volume 11
d e Chimie MinCrale.
Edited by Pad Pascal, Honorary Professor, Sorbonne. Masson e t Cie, 850 pp. 54 figs. Paris, 1959. xxxix 18 X 26 cm. 8900 fr.
+
Arsenic, antimony, end bismuth from elements of Group V are treated in this volume. The general description and physical properties of arsenic and its inorganic compaunds are presented by R. Dolique, while the organic compounds are described by Pasoal himself. Bothorel is sole author of the section on antimony, and Domange is sole author of the material on bismuth. Comparison with other volumes of the treatise which have appeared previously shows that generally high standards are being maintained, but most of the criticisms may still be applied, such a s poor indexing, failure t o select a single date (1956-58) t o which t o bring all literature searches for the entire volume, and the like. As with the other volumes, coverage
is more extensive than that of Mellor but not as extensive as that attempted in Gmelin. The advantage over both is that the more modern concepts and materials from recent publications are being used in Pascal. ROGERV. KRUMM University of Florida Gainsile Nouveau Traite d e Chimie Minerale Volume 1 4 Edited by Paul Pascal, Honorary Professor, Sorhonne. Mssson e t Cie, 1014 pp. 152 Paris, 1959. m i x figs. 18 X 26 cm. 10,700 fr.
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This volume of Pascal on chromium, molybdenum, and tungsten meets a ~ressingneed for a more comprehensive reference work a n these elements. The volume of Mellor which included them appesred in 1931, and the current edition of Gmelin does not yet include chromium. I n the latter set, tungsten appeared in 1933, and molybdenum in 1935, while supplements t o bring the literature surveys to 1950 have not yet appeared. An introduction to the three elements has been vritten by Pascal, and this is followed by the section on chromium by J. Amiel, with a description t o the complexes of chromium by Raymonde and Clement Duval. Exoept for a discussion on molybdates, molybdio anhydrides, and molybdic acids by L. Malaprade, the (Continued on page A848)
BOOK REVIEWS section on molybdenum. is treated by
J. Auhry. Chretien and Freundlich have contributed the section on tungsten, but a n additional section by Malaprade appears in it on the heteropolyacid derivatives of molybdic and tungstic anhydrides. It is felt that the latter should have been separated by the editor so that several pages on compounds of molybdenum would appear under that element rather than in the section under tungsten. This volume has none to rival it in comprehensive modern treatment of the three elements under one cover. ROGERV. KRUMM University of Florida Gainsville
Colorimetric Volume 2 A
Methods
of
Analysis.
Foster Dee Snell, Cornelia T . Snell, and Chester Arthur Snell. D. Van Nostrand Co., Inc., Prinoetan, New Jersey, 1959. 793 pp. 32 figs. 16 X 23.5 cm. x $15.
+
This book is a supplementary volume to Volume 2 of the third edition of the camprehensive four-volume treatise on "Colorimetric Methods of Analysis (194854)." It covers the work that has appeared since the date of publictttion of Volume 2, "Inorganic Determinations" (1949) up to January 1956 (plus a few important later ones) and includes for the first time flame photometry with improvements in burners, the application of photomultiplier tubes, and detailed procedures on this important extension of "colorimetry" to include the color of flames. The authors' deoision to bring the third edition up to date by the additions of supplementary volumes is a wise and practical one, in view of the vast amount of new material that is appearing in the literature. Even so, Volume 2A is almost as large as Volume 2, though it covers a period less than a decade and ai necessitv must lae several wars he-
them containing only one or two pages because of lack of new or improved methods dealing with the respective topics. The treatment of subject matter is the same as in Volume 2, namely, beginning with lead (Chapter 1) the metallic elements are taken up individually acoording to their analytical chemistry grouping and ends with magnesium (Chapter 45). Then follows chapters an the nonmetals and their radicals, the last three chapters dealing with oxygen and water, peroxides, and ozone. Each chapter begins with a, brief introduction on the new or improved methods, followed by directionsfor preparing the samples, the reagents, and the standards. Details of procedures include the means of removing interfering suhstitnces, avoiding errors, and methods of calculation. In order to avoid unnecessary duplication, frequent page references are given to Volume 2. In addition, there are
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