The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1912-01-09

tedcner is measured Dy the TeCenlncSS
of date Of the textbook.
Filling space in the too sparSely
occupied stack room of the library
Of aE old Southern college is a row
Of these discarded volumes. One OF
the most yellowed is
A CATECHISM
PRACTICAL CHEMISTRY
Being a Familiar Introduction
to that
INTERESTING SCIENCE
With an Appendix
Containing Many
Safe, Easy and Pleasing
Experiments
BY c. Irving, LID,
Holyrood-house, Southampton,
Fourth American Edition, Revised and
Corrected
BY John Griscom
Professor Of Chemistry n Natural
Philosophy in the
n. Y. Institution Of Science
New York,
1929.
We learn from advertisements on
the last leaf that the European Maya
zine for October, 1920, considered
this IAN excellent book for the edu-
cation Of youth, uniting the "utile
cum dulce.' Examination shows
that youths inclination toward the
dulce is INDUCED to the consequent
neglect of the utile, especially in the
"Pleasing Experiments" The path is
smo0thed for the teacher, also. for
he does not V to search for a
diplomatic wav OF putting his QueS-
tons, concealine what he half re-
veals. The information for both
teacher and pupil is already put up
in handy. predigested form. And the
real burden is placed where it be-
lcroe-on the pupil. For n sup
poses that the teacher held the book.
""Teacher-Describc the uses OF the
atmosphere"
'Pupil-For the support Of both
animal and vegetable life. atmospheric
air is indispenSably necessary: it Is
also requisite in cOnbuStiOn; 1T con-
veys sound and those minute particles
of odorons bodies which excite smell;
and it enables birds to move with ease
and ~OuicknesS."
Farther on we read as follows:
"Teacher-What are Farths?
"Pupil-Farths are the substance:
which corpose the greatest portion
Of the solid parts Of the globe.
"Teacher-What are the differen
earths?
"Pupil-The earths are ten, viz.
slick, alumina, glucina, ~zirconia, yttria
thorina. magnesia, barytes, strontites
and lime"
Among the Simple and Amusin'
Fxperiments'' are the following
chosen at random from several pages
ITO freeze water in Summer"
$40 make a Landscape ~alternatel
representing Winter and Summer"
"Netalic Vegetation:
ArbOr MartiS: or, Tree of Mars.
Arbor Dianae: or. Tree of Diana.
'"rO make q Luminous Phial to shOy
the Hours in the Night"
"A number of very innocent an
pleasing Experiments upon colour
nav be performed by the foflowin
Preparations:
"No. 9. Water i~mpregnated wit
Sulphurous acid.
mo. 10. Some red rose leaves in
fused in No. 9.
mo. II. Red cabbage leaves in
fused as above.
"Silver figures on silk
colours for painting on velvet: Yer
Bright Red, Pink Saucers diluted wit
lemon juice"
These ladylike experiments, trul
characterized as safe and easy" al
offset by a few of a more violer
nature-'to produce an explosion
and ito make an artificial volcano
Now that the deadly fre-cracker
under the ban, and FOuth of July al
effeminated. some youthful reads
may be glad to acquire these accom-
pliShmentS.
The first is as follows: "If a blat
der having a stop cock, to which
attached a tobacco pipe, be filled wit
u mixture of hydrogen and commo
air, and the bubbles, as thew ascen,
be touched with lighted paper. thu
will explode with "a loud noise"
For the second: Take equal par