The Sun.
London, England, 1855-10-15 00:00:00

Journal of Public Health. Samuel Highley.

A well-timed editorial note, deserving of careful
perusal, on "Sanitary Legislation," points out the
,jrections of the labours of the true sanitary re-
former, the fourth and last of which is, "in giving
free scope and euc,-mragement to thwe mechanical
irts which tend to improve the beauty and conve-
nience of towns and cities, to lesson muscular la-
bour and to increase the comforts of the poor
man's home, and in instituting such an elevated.
class of amusements and occupation fur leisure
moments as shall make the heart more happy and
the mind less animal." Another editorial note
points out the main physical and moral errors in
our workhouse system; while a third treats on
" Burials iu Charcoal," and declares that the use of
that destroyer of animal matter is absolutely indis-
pensable in the common graveyard. In another
paper the manufacture and cost of charcoal for
sanitary purposes is the subject of inquiry by a
contributor. A useful "Dictionary of Foods and.
Drinks" is continued, and " The Sanitary Regula-
tions of Ancient Rome " are presented to the
reader's attention. In addition to the above will
be found a large amount of information respecting
epidemics, including the transactions of the Epi-
demiological Society of London.

The Journal of Physiological Medicine. John

Churchill.

The October number will be found inferior to
none of its predecessors in variety of information
respecting cerebral disease and its various develop-
ments, accompanied by philosophical remarks
thereon, and indications of the most eligible modes
of treatment. Among the numerous papers may
he noticed a very interesting one on the " State of
Lunatic Asylums and the Insane in Ireland,' from
which we gather that the inspectors speak highly
of the benefits which have resulted to the insane
from bringing them within the sphere of religious
instruction, " and that since the Report of 1851
there has been a decrease in the number of
insane to the extent of 1605," a decrease
" attributable to the decrease of insane in
poor-houses and gaols !" The subject of in-
sanity in connection with religion and education,
&c., and more especially the former, is treated
iu several papers with much ability and fairness.
Not the least important contributions, however, are
those respectively headed, "On the Policy of Main-
taining the Limits at present imposed by Law on
the Criminal Responsibility of the Insane," and
"Claim of Priority in the Reformation of the Treat-
ment of the Insane," the drift of which may readily
be surmised. The first contains some hard has
and shrewd reflections in connection with well-
known circumstances. An article on the mind
and " Researches into the Functions of the Brain,'
an elaborate and important paper, reprinted from
the last number of the " British and Foreign Medico-
Chirurgical Review," may also he noticed.

The Tribes of the Caucasus. By Baron August
You Haxthausen. Chapman and Hall.
. .

A philosophical and able work, by means of
which the reader will be enabled to form a pretty
accurate estimate of the vast political, religious,
and commercial importance of the Caucasian coun-
tries, and to speculate with greater confidence on
the probable issues, in the East, of the present
war. The work is translated from the manuscript
of the author, by Mr. J. E. Taylor, and may be
regarded as a continuation of a larger work on
Trans-Caucasia. In it will be found a narrative of
the past history and present condition of the Cau-
casian tribes, including the career of Schamyl and.
the Murids, together with a key to the policy of
Russia, and the hindrance offered to her ambitious
aims and aggressive progress by these countries.
To all who wish to have a thorough comprehension
of what is at stake in the present war, what is to
be won or lust, we would recommend a perusal of
this book.

The Friendly Society's Manual. By George C. Oke.

Butterworths.

A work for which we doubt not thousands of the
more thrifty and industrious of our artisans will be
grateful. The manual comprises the new Consoli-
dation Act, and other statutes affecting old and
now societies, as well as industrial societies, metho-
dically arranged, with a variety of information in-
dispensable to the satisfactory working of these
societies.

The Journal of A griculture. Blackwood and Sons.
Among a number of valuable contributions three
may be especially noticed, viz., a paper on " Liquid
Manuring and Irrigation," " Notes on the Preser-
vation an►l Drying of Grain," and an article on the
" General Principles of Reclaiming Land," in the
latter of which the general rules to be observed in
the primary work of fertilisation are clearly and
forcibly laid down. The number contains a reFord
of the transactions of the Highland and Agricul-
tural Society of Scotland.

Macphail's Edinburgh Ecclesiastical Journal.
A noticeable paper on the " Characteristics of
Modern Literature," in which well-merited ridicule
is poured on the heads of modern biographers, for
their intolerable prolixity, together with some
pleasing " Reminiscences of Eastern Travel," and
the continuation of a description of " A Month in
Arran," commend the present number to th©
favour of the public.