This is a collection of articles written by W. Mattieu Williams on different subjects, that in his opinion "are likely to be interesting to all readers who are sufficiently intelligent to prefer sober fact to sensational fiction, but who, at the same time, do not profess to be scientific specialists." This book offers and intriguing glimpse into the scientific ideas of late 19th century. Though nowadays these essays should not be seen as wholly scientifically accurate, they are still entertaining and in many basic aspects remain truthful. - Summary by Kikisaulite

This 1955 book by an acknowledged authority is an absorbing account of meteorology before the advent of weather satellites. “This is the lively account of the hair-raising experiences of the men who have probed by sea and air into the inner mysteries of the world’s most terrible storms…. Here is the first intimate revelation of what the human eye and the most modern radars see in the violent regions of the tropical vortex. The descriptions of the activities of these valiant scouts of the storms are taken from personal interviews with military flyers and weathermen who have risked their lives in the furious blasts in all parts of the hurricane...

Mae Watkins, a University of Michigan student, unexpectedly falls in love with a Chinese international law student in the midst of World War I. Despite the socially unacceptable pairing the couple decide to tie the knot and forge ahead with an unsure future. Mae demonstrates her unique ability to observe and describe a foreign culture after their move to Shanghai. She documents in detail her perceptions of Chinese fashion and food in addition to her knowledge of such controversial customs as foot binding and widow suicide...

The court of French King Louis XIV was not a safe place to be. It was filled with plots and intrigues, leaving observers and commentators with more questions than answers among speculation and innuendo. Funck-Brentano was a scholar, librarian and expert on the political climate of eighteenth century France. Backing up his work with research in the archives of the Bastille, he attempts to explain and throw light on the tumultuous times. - Summary by Lynne Thompson

"In this little book I have sought, in a series of stories or sketches, to present only the first steps in human progress. Man has risen from a stage of lowest savagery, little higher than the apes, buffeted by the hand of Nature, dependent upon the wild game he might kill or the food he found ready to hand, a fearing and a furtive creature of the forests and of the plains, preyed upon by a thousand stronger foes, to a being able to provide warmth and clothing and shelter against the rains and the cold and food against the seasons...

This book presents a summary of the findings conducted by the the Juvenile Protective Association in Chicago before the changes brought on by the war-time economy. The study's researchers were A. P. Drucker, Sophia Boaz, A. L. Harris, and Miriam Schaffner. Its author, Louise DeKoven Bowen was a well-known philanthropist and suffragist in Chicago. The summary makes no strong argument on its own, but presents simple facts and observations that would alert the reader to the need for social and economic reform in the city. - Summary by KevinS

A bit of pseudo-science that will baffle, confuse, and amaze! Until the Space Age, there was little every-day, self-evident proof that the earth was a globe, and plenty of people believed in a flat Earth. Here are 100 short arguments for a flat Earth. Some of them can be proven wrong fairly easily; others confound; and others are stated so confusingly that they MUST be true! - Summary by TriciaG “‘One Hundred Proofs that the Earth is Not a Globe,’ by William Carpenter, is published by the...

This history of the Women's Suffrage agitation is written at a time when the question is in the very forefront of British politics. What the immediate future holds for those women who are most actively engaged in fighting for their political freedom no one can foretell, but one thing is certain: complete victory for their cause is not far distant. When the long struggle for the enfranchisement of women is over, those who read the history of the movement will wonder at the blindness that led the Government of the day to obstinately resist so simple and obvious a measure of justice...

This is a useful, but not comprehensive description of both edible and poisonous fungi found in Great Britain. Although the book is well illustrated, the descriptions are well done and useful. - Summary by Larry Wilson

In the days before telescope photography, astronomers had to draw what they thought they saw through the eyepiece throughout the long dark nights. Sometimes they saw saw more than there really was to see, and a bit over 100 years ago Percival Lowell published books on what he was sure were canals on Mars, signs of intelligent civilization. by Alfred Russel Wallace.) - Summary by ToddHW

In this famous early work of German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, he investigates the artistic characteristics of Apollonian and Dionysian characteristics in Greek art, specifically in Greek tragedy as it evolved. Then he applies his conclusions about Greek tragedy to the state of modern art, especially modern German art and specifically to the operas of Richard Wagner.

This is the first issue of a monthly agricultural magazine for the year 1820. From the introduction: "A leading object of the Rural Magazine will be to furnish correct views of the science of Agriculture, and the various improvements which are daily made or suggested in it. For this purpose the best and most recent European works on the subject will be consulted, and selections made from the American newspapers that are devoted or friendly to the cause. The best information on the subject will thus be condensed in a form less unwieldy than a newspaper, and more popular than in scientific books...

PREFACE This Booklet has been written and compiled for the use of any student or layman who seeks concise and clear information on the history of Influenza. Brief and salient facts are set forth relating to “Flu” epidemics and pandemics: other collateral features have also been discussed, connected with or bearing upon this subject. Honolulu, Hawaii, U. S. A., 1921. - A. Mouritz Notes: Much of the material in "The Flu" is still relevant today, like pandemic terminology, thoughts about causes and micro-organisms, the flu's relationship with pneumonia, the impact on society, and approaches to treatments "The Flu" is included in the Surgeon General's Library at the U...

The United States Department of the Interior, Office of Education partnered with the Columbia Broadcasting System to present a series of 26 dramatic radio broadcast programs detailing the role of immigrants in the development of the USA. This small volume was printed as a supplement to the programs. It contains a great deal of the data concerning the contributions of immigrants to the country, often in condensed or tabular form, which were highlighted in the broadcasts. - Summary by Mark Smith

Famous criminologist, anthropologist, and psychiatrist, Dr Lombroso, investigated the memetic anecdotal belief that genius is associated with degenerative symptoms, or may even be a version of insanity, and presented his findings as a fascinating and controversial theory that the creative and imaginative celebrities throughout history have also displayed what he termed as "atavistic" symptoms, or defects resembling what is commonly seen in the unwell. Citations of evidence are drawn from a rich variety...

This 1904 history of slavery in the southeastern United States reflects the state of knowledge at that time, of course. The text contains so many extensive quotations that it was unfeasible to indicate them as quotes in reading the text. The author was a professor of history and English at Claremont College, a North Carolina school that closed in 1917. A resource of more current thinking may be had at the well-regarded 1988 Dictionary Of Afro-American Slavery. - Summary by David Wales

Charles Sternberg was an American fossil collector and paleontologist. He was active in both fields from 1876 to 1928, and collected fossils for private collectors as well as for international museums. This book is part travelogue, part paleontology, and part historical narrative of life on the open prairie. In it, Sternberg tells of his early interest in fossil hunting as a boy, and scientific expeditions from his first in 1876 to one for the Munich Museum in 1901. - Summary by Ava

The eighteenth, nineteenth and early twentieth centuries were periods of stark contrast between the opulent lifestyle of the rich and the extreme poverty of the peasants throughout the world. In addition, Russia straddled eastern and western cultures, not fitting neatly into either. The church was an important force, and those adhering to traditional eastern religions were peaceful and accustomed to 'doing as they were told'; followers of western thought were more eager for a democratic society. Add an autocratic czar and the conditions were ripe for revolution, corruption and murder...

An historical and sociological view of race relations in America as it pertains to the African-American. - Summary by KevinS

Wollstonecraft's A Vindication of the Rights of Men attacks aristocracy and advocates republicanism. It was published in response to Edmund Burke's Reflections on the Revolution in France , which was a defence of constitutional monarchy, aristocracy, and the Church of England, and an attack on Wollstonecraft's friend, the Rev Richard Price. Hers was the first response in a pamphlet war that subsequently became known as the Revolution Controversy, in which Thomas Paine's Rights of Man became the rallying cry for reformers and radicals...

"My opposition to injustice, imposition, discrimination and prejudice, which have for many years existed against the colored people of the South, has led to this little book. In many parts of America the press has been furnished with “matter” for defending the colored people, through the medium of “Coleman’s Illustrated Lectures.” By request of my many auditors, some of whom being leading elements of the Northern States and Canada, this volume is published. Many persons interested in the welfare of the negro, have sought a more elaborate book on the Southern horrors...

Dr. Rai Bahadur A. Mitra who was the Chief Medical Officer in Kashmir presents a short treatise on the bubonic plague. The book ranges from a short history of the bubonic plague, including an account of the great 1665 plague in London, through description of the disease, treatment and prevention. - Summary by Larry Wilson

A highly accessible introductory history of the development of scientific thought, method, and application from the first practical concepts of time and space to the development of the first successful heavier-than-air flying machine and the discovery of radioactivity . - Summary by Steven Seitel

The American Bee Journal is the “oldest bee paper in America established in 1861 devoted to scientific bee-culture and the production and sale of pure honey. .Published every Wednesday, by Thomas G. Newman, Editor and Proprietor” In this volume are short articles and correspondence on a variety of topics from Royal Jelly to the Honey and Beeswax Market. - Summary by Larry Wilson

Part of the scholarly and scientific publications of the United States National Museum series: United States National Museum Bulletin.In these series, the Museum publishes original articles and monographs dealing with the collections and work of its constituent museums— The Museum of Natural History and the Museum of History and Technology. These are gathered in volumes, octavo in size, with the publication date of each paper recorded in the table of contents of the volume. Since 1959, shorter papers relating to the collections and research of that Museum have been gathered in Bulletins titled “Contributions from the Museum of History and Technology,”...

Roger North, son of Dudley North, 4th Baron North, was a successful member of the bar and later member of parliament. But he had wide ranging interests from architecture to music. He has an avid collector of books and is best known as the biographer of the North family. Here we sample his interest in raising fish. He presents fifteen short sketches of esculent fish, and a longer essay as "A Discourse of Fish and Fish Ponds." - Summary by Larry Wilson

A young scholar, recently graduated from Princeton College, travels across the United States as a member of the working class, taking any job he could find, enduring hardships and struggling to make a living. He travelled mainly on foot, designing for himself a social experiment on experiencing different class and culture structures and the reality of working conditions at the end of the 19th century. This volume covers the Eastern part of the United States. - Summary by Phyllis Vincelli The second volume The Workers - An Experiment in Reality - the West covers the Western part of the United States.

This volume displays the romance of birds in beautiful prose and dialog in simple language for children and adults alike. Written by a mother and son team of naturalists, chapters describe various aspects of the life and habits of birds highlighting specific birds from owls to hummingbirds. From the introduction: “Seek the children, little book: Bid them love the bird's retreat . . . Bid them find their secrets out, How to understand their words.” - Summary by Larry Wilson

'Thoughts on South Africa' is a collection of Schreiner's observations of colonial South Africa in the early 19th century, mostly regarding Boer-English relations. The book was published posthumously in 1923. Prospective listeners should be aware that it reflects the place, culture and language of the time in which it was written.

William H. Councill, former slave and contemporary of Booker T. Washington was founder of Huntsville Normal School, now Alabama Agricultural and Mechanical University in Normal, Alabama. This short volume consists of short pieces of advice to the Negro workers of his time with some statistical information at the end. Councill reflects many of the attitudes and opinions of his time.

A young scholar, recently graduated from Princeton College, travels across the United States as a member of the working class, taking any job he could find, enduring hardships and struggling to make a living. He travelled mainly on foot, designing for himself a social experiment on experiencing different class and culture structures and the reality of working conditions at the end of the 19th century. This volume continues the story that began in the first volume , and spans the region from Illinois to California - Summary by Phyllis Vincelli

The American Bee Journal is the “oldest bee paper in America established in 1861 devoted to scientific bee-culture and the production and sale of pure honey. Published every Wednesday, by Thomas G. Newman, Editor and Proprietor” In this issues are topics from Bee-Culture in Cities to Queen Raising and Breeding. - Summary by Larry Wilson