of Baron Liebig, to whom we are so deeply indebted for the chemical science which he has brought to bear on the most important of the arts which agriculture surely is for the instruction he gives to the farmer, and also for his warnings to the statesman and the landed proprietor.

Though few members of the medical profession engage in agriculture, yet most of them have, or should have, as physiologists, a knowledge of its principles; and as they are daily in habits of intercourse with farmers, they have ample opportunities of calling attention to bad practices and to modern improvements in husbandry.

It is not our intention now to review this admirable work of Baron Liebig, but chiefly to impress on our readers one of the great defects of agriculture-as it is generally conducted in Europe-that of the exhaustion-practice; that of taking from the land in over-cropping more than is returned to it, from undermanuring, as if the earth, per se, were inexhaustible, and tillage could be made in perpetuo a substitute for manure.

Liebig throughout his work raises his voice against this mal-practice, and powerfully descants on its impoverishing evils. The impoverishment he deprecates is the loss of the fertilizing elements belonging to the soil essential to vegetation, varying according to the nature of the crop, and not the gaseous elements derived from the atmosphere. If the former are not returned in the same proportion as they are extracted, he demonstrates that the land eventually must become barren. Happily he is able to illustrate his views on this subject by an account which is given in the appendix to his book of the Japanese system of husbandry, extracted from a Report to the Minister of Agriculture in Berlin, by Dr. H. Maron, Member of the Prussian East Asiatic Expedition. That system is singularly contrasted with the modern European system, and in accordance with the Baron's mature scientific views. The Japanese farmer is described as master of his land, mastering it by a drill method of husbandry, by the manuring of every crop, and by the careful preservation of human excrement. Fallows are unknown to him. He imports no foreign manure; he stands in need of no foreign supplies of grain. The land is made self-supporting; and yet the country has a population exceeding proportionately that of Great Britain and Ireland. And why is this? It is because the income and expenditure of the soil are always kept evenly balanced, the farmer carefully avoiding the impairing the productive power of the virgin land, never breaking up a plot unless he possesses a stock of manure which he may invest in the ground.

All the details and they are minutely given-of. this excellent agriculture, by Dr. Maron, are deserving of being read and re-read, and of being treasured up in the memory of the farmer. We cannot but feel surprised in perusing them that the art of husbandry should have been brought to such a pitch of excellence without the aid of chemical science, merely by the common sense of an acute people taught by experience.

We shall give one passage--that descriptive of the Japanese privies,

on which their husbandry mainly depends for manure, and the prevention of that exhaustion which threatens our fields.

"The Japanese does not construct his privy as we do in Germany in some remote corner of the yard with half open rear giving free admission to wind and rain, but he makes it an essential part of the interior of his dwelling. As he ignores altogether the notion of a 'seat,' the cabinet, which, as a general rule, is very clean, neat, and in many cases nicely papered, or painted and varnished, has a simple hole of the shape of an oblong square, running across and opposite to the entrance door, and serving to convey the excrement into the lower space. Squatting over this hole, with his legs astride, the Japanese satisfies the call of nature with the greatest cleanliness. I never saw a dirty cabinet in Japan, even in the dwelling of the very poorest peasant. We in Germany construct privies over dung-holes, and behind our barns, for the use of our farm-servants and labourers, and provide them with seats with round holes. With even only one aperture, it is too often found that after a few days' use they look more like pig-styes than closets for the use of man, and this simply because our labourers have a decided, perhaps natural, predilection for squatting. The construction of the Japanese privies shows how easy it would be to satisfy this predilection.*

"To receive the excrements, there is placed below the square hole a bucket or tub, of a size corresponding to it, with projecting ears, through which a pole can be passed to carry the vessel. In many instances a large earthen pot, with handles, is used, for the manufacture of which the Japanese clay supplies an excellent material. In some rare instances, in the town, I found a layer of chopped straw or chaff at the bottom of the vessel. As soon as the vessel is full, it is taken out and emptied into one of the larger dung-vessels. These are placed either in the yard or in the field. They are large casks or enormous stoneware jars, in capacity from eight to twelve cubic feet, let into the ground nearly to the brim. It is in these vessels that the manure is prepared for the field. The excrements are diluted with water, no other addition of any kind being made to them, and stirred until the entire mass is worked into a most intimately intermixed pap."

Further particulars are given respecting the fermentation of the manure it is especially mentioned that under no circumstances is it ever used in the fresh state, leaving the ammonia exposed to decomposition by the action of the sun and its volatilization by the wind, but taking the greater care to shield the solid ingredients from being washed or swept away by rain, &c.

Now, could this valuable manure be protected from waste, applied to our fields instead of being allowed, owing to our fastidious watercloset plan, to flow into our streams and pollute their water, how vast would be the gain; millions would be saved at present expended on the importation of guano and bones, and that exhaustion of the soil which is threatened, and is, without change of system, as certain as the final exhaustion of our coal-fields, would be arrested. As has been well observed by the father of agricultural chemistry, Sir H. Davy, when treating of this kind of manure, that "that which would offend the senses and injure the health if exposed, is converted by gradual processes into forms of beauty and usefulness; the fetid gas is rendered a

* That it is a predilection, we may remark, can hardly be doubted; in Turkey and Asia Minor the privies are of the same kind as in Japan, though not with a view to agricultural profit, and also in the Eastern world generally.

constituent of the aroma of the flower, and what might be a poison becomes nourishment to animals and man."

ART. VI.-A Survey of Human Progress, from the Savage State to the Highest Civilization yet attained. By NEIL ARNOTT, M.D., F.R.S., &c.-London, 1861. pp. 200.

It is very gratifying to see a man of advanced age, who has withdrawn from the laborious exercise of his profession, exerting himself to benefit his fellow-men by giving them his accumulated experience, and especially on a subject of so much importance as that of the education of the people. In the work before us, which, as its author observes, might as fitly be named A Treatise of Education' as the title it bears, Dr. Arnott affords an example which we cannot too much admire of this most praiseworthy labour. It is gratifying too to witness his faith in the advancement of society, as expressed in his title-page, that it is "as little perceived by the multitude in any age, as is the slow growing of a tree by the children who play under its shade-but which is leading to a new condition of mankind on earth.”

By taking a survey of human progress from the earliest historical period to the present time, and of the different races of men now existing, the living representatives of the several stages of social man, he shows in a very striking and convincing way how much depends on education, and that man, according to his training and the degree of acquired information, the result of education which he possesses, is either the ignorant and brutal savage, the homo ferus; or powerful in knowledge and refined in manner, the homo sapiens.

Though, as Dr. Arnott remarks, the art of medicine is of the greatest amplitude, in its full range comprehending what regards mind as well as body, and resting on the four departments of human knowledge-physics and chemistry, life and mind-yet we need hardly say that his great subject is scarcely suitable to other than a brief notice in a purely medical journal such as is our Review. Elsewhere, as in one or other of our literary Quarterlies, we hope it will have the attention that is its due, and equally so whether we consider the nature of the author's undertaking, or the ability, the originality, and the sobriety which he has displayed in the treatment of it.

His main intent is to show that the whole system of education, such as till recently was persisted in at our English universities-unchanged from a remote period-in which the instruction was chiefly confined to the dead languages and to the mathematics, and for proficiency in which, and in these alone, all their honours and prizes were bestowed, is altogether inadequate to meet the wants of the present advanced stage of society. What he advocates is, an enlarged liberal scheme, one commensurate as much as possible with existing requirements. He holds that our own language is more deserving of careful study than that of the Greeks and Romans; not that he would have

Greek or Latin altogether neglected, but when taught, taught as Milton recommended in his Tractate of Education,' so as to be of easy and pleasant acquirement. He holds that the four fundamental sciences, the mechanical, the chemical, vital, and mental, should be early and methodically taught, and that no curriculum of liberal study is complete without them. He enforces his arguments very happily and often eloquently by various and appropriate illustrations. We wish that our limits allowed of our giving some examples of these, as many of them, both in the text and in the additional notes, are most admirable.

The fitness of the author for the task he has undertaken is well shown by what he relates of himself, and the manner he acquired his experience; this, we may remark, is a concise autobiography. He introduces the sketch, when pointing out the evils of denominational schools, as fitted to render permanent, according to his opinion, religious differences, and so perpetuate numerous errors, and iudicating the advantages of an opposite scheme of secular education in mixed schools. We trust our readers will thank us for quoting the passage, in extenso, relating as it does to so distinguished a man. He says:

"The writer of this has a strong conviction of the importance of such mixed schools from his own experience, during his education in Scotland early in this century. The disruption of the Established Church there had not then taken place, and there was no activity of sectarian strife. Whatever the strict rule of law might be, the grammar school (at which Lord Byron happened then to be a pupil) and the University of Aberdeen practically received students of all classes, without reference to the creeds of their parents. The consequence was, that many congenial minds were drawn together, and warm friendships were formed which remained afterwards unbroken, notwithstanding differences of religious denomination. Among the students were members of the Presbyterian Church of Scotland, of the Church of England, and of the Roman Catholic Church. The writer had dear friends and relatives in all of these. Under these circumstances, ordinary sectarian animosities could not arise, and permanent benign effects in character were produced on all sides. When the writer afterwards completed his professional studies in London, and had been appointed chief medical officer of an East India Company's ship, which on that occasion had to convey troops to India, the accidents of a protracted and peculiarly eventful voyage carried him from Europe to parts in the other three quarters of the world, as Brazil, Cape of Good Hope, and various stations in Ásia, including China. He had thus experience, still larger than before, of differences of religious training, bringing under notice, besides denominations of Christians, also Hindoos, Buddhists, and Mahometans; and owing to considerable detention in various places, he had the opportunity of studying the effects in character. It was interesting to observe among all classes the earnestness of individuals in their different creeds, who would doubtless have made great sacrifices to perform what they had been taught to deem their duty to their Maker. On his return to London, to reside permanently, he had yet further experience of the same kind, when his appointment as physician to the French and Spanish Embassies gave him opportunities of knowing intimately men of superior intellect, who had been otherwise trained than people are in England. Had he been asked to state reasons why, if placed from infancy exactly as some of these had been, he would have believed and acted otherwise than as they were doing, he must have replied that he could not. With such education and experience of the world as fell to his lot, the writer thinks it impossible

that an ordinary mind could have conceived sectarian hatred against any person honestly following the lessons taught by the parents whom it had pleased Providence to give them as their guardians and instructors. The national schools in Ireland commence such an education; and the effects of the increasing freedom of commerce over the world, aided by railways, steam navigation, and the electric telegraph, by opening all nations to friendly intercourse with one another, must render more efficacious the Divine precepts, 'Love one another,' and 'Do to others as you would be done unto.''

In connexion with this subject, we would refer to an interesting paper by Professor Arnold in a recent number of 'Macmillan's,' on the system of public education as at present conducted in France.

ART. VII.-Anatomy of the Parts concerned in Femoral Rupture. By GEORGE W. CALLENDER, Assistant Surgeon to, and Demonstrator of Anatomy at, St. Bartholomew's Hospital.—London, 1863. pp. 51.

MR. CALLENDER's little work has a double object; in the first place, and chiefly, to give an accurate description of the parts which are concerned in femoral hernia, as they exist in nature, irrespective of the descriptions which have been handed down to us; and secondly, to recall to the recollection of anatomists and surgeons what there may be deserving of attention in the writings of the older authors on this subject-writings which the vast increase, and we hope we may be allowed to say, the preponderating merit, of modern works have well nigh buried in oblivion. In both of his objects Mr. Callender may be said to have worked successfully, but the former is to our minds far more important than the latter. After perusing the quotations which Mr. Callender's industry and love of such researches have enabled him to collect from a host of ancient writers on anatomy, we must own to having found the greater number excessively obscure and crabbed; and as we presume that the passages quoted would be found to be at any rate average specimens of the style and matter of the authors, we are well content to remain in humble ignorance of the rest. Some of the passages quoted, however, are interesting: such as the elaborate and distinct directions published by Franco in 1560 for performing the operation for hernia without opening the sac-an operation usually attributed to Petit. The passage (note on p. 49) is too long to quote; but it will be sufficient to say that this author describes the operation as distinctly as it could be described in a modern book of surgery, except that he calls the parts by obsolete names; and it is difficult to suppose that he could have accurately laid down all the steps of so peculiar an operation unless he had practised it. A few others of Mr. Callender's gleanings from old books are interesting, and tend to raise our estimate of our predecessors; but the real importance of the work consists in its being a quiet and faithful protest against the practice, which has too long prevailed in our schools, of describing the parts of the body anatomically, that is to say as they can be made to appear by dissecting, or cutting them to pieces, instead of describing them physiologically-that