mains, if they be properly laid, and organic material, such as hemp, be avoided in making the joints.
Health. By W. H. Corfield, M. D., Professor of Hygiene and Public Health at University College, London. New York: D. Appleton & Co. Pp. 361. Price, $1.25.
The contents of this volume were delivered as a course of lectures at the rooms of the London Society of Arts, under the auspices of the National Health Society. It is an unpretentious but useful statement of the most important principles of personal hygiene, and the precautions necessary for the prevention of disease. Dr. Corfield's reputation as a practical student of this subject sufficiently attests the care and accuracy of his statements; and the style of the book is so plain and simple as to be easy to all readers. In speaking of the health of the individual his statement of the hereditary feature is especially clear. Half a dozen lectures are first given to preliminary physiology, and then "The Air," "Food and Drink," "Drinking-Water," "Houses," and "Communicable Diseases" are treated in the remainder of the course.
The Child's Catechism of Common Things. By John D. Champlin, Jr. New York: Henry Holt & Co. 1879. Pp. 289. Price, 60 cents.
This little book gives a large mass of information about common things, arranged in such a manner as to be interesting to and easily consulted by a child. The subjects are classified under the mineral, vegetable, and animal kingdoms, the information under each being given, as the name indicates, in the form of questions and answers. An excellent design, illustrating the inquisitive attitude of the child toward the things around him, appears on the cover.
Free Land and Free Trade: The Lessons of the English Corn-Laws applied to the United States. By Samuel S. Cox. New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons. 1880. Pp. 126. Price, $1.25.
The main purpose of this work is as an argument in favor of the principles expressed in the leading title. The author believes that "we are rapidly outgrowing the market to which our tariff walls practically limit us," and that "we must have the opportunity and privilege, the liberty, to trade," for which we must be free to buy as well as to sell. He sees, also, a great danger of a land monopoly, the first signs of which have appeared in the practices, the freight combinations, and the high rates charged for transportation by the railroads. The corn-laws of England and the land troubles of England and Ireland are discussed as affording historical illustrations of the author's views.
Sea-Air and Sea-Bathing. By John H. Packard, M. D. Philadelphia: Presley Blakiston. 1880. Pp. 121. Price, 50 cents.
This is number eleven of the monographs on hygienic subjects issued under the title of "American Health Primers." Dr. Packard has aimed to give such information concerning the subject, and such practical directions, as will be of use to those seeking recreation at the seaside. Such questions as how long to remain in the water, how to bathe, what care to take against accidents, and what to do in cases of apparent drowning, are among those considered.
Radical Mechanics of Animal Locomotion. With Remarks on the setting up of Soldiers, Horse and Foot, and on the supplying of Cavalry-Horses. By Colonel William Pratt Wainwright. New York: D. Van Nostrand. Pp. 294. Price, $1.50.
Though the heading of this work is professional, the problems it discusses are both of extreme scientific interest, and of wider application than to the training of soldiers. The writer aims to determine the fundamental mechanical principles of locomotive activity in animals of the vertebrate structure with a view to cultivating those habits of body by which movements shall become most harmonious and efficient. The point of view from which the book has been prepared is well indicated in the opening paragraph. "Many are the expedients which, in the training of soldiers, have been and still are adopted, in order to overcome that fault of body, whatever it may be, which, in ninety-nine men out of every thousand from civilized nations, tends to hinder the man from marching in a straight
