126 NEW BOOKS. pathological phenomena," and of "unmasking a prevalent system of imposture". The book was so well received that a second edition is now called for. The author has added a note upon the hypnotism of 'Trilby,' and a chapter entitled 'The Eternal Gullible,' in which he narrates the confessions of a professional ' hypnotist '. His preface takes the extremist view that ' hypnotism, when it is not a pernicious fraud, is a mere futility ' : but it is only fair to add that this extreme attitude is not maintained throughout the work. Thus we read (p. 134) that hypnosis is "a subjective phenomenon of great interest, and of some complexity ". The effect of the book cannot but be wholesome. It stands with Lehmann's work upon short-distance telepathy, and the recent study of double personality made by Miss Stein and Mr. Solomons, as an effective protest against current occultism. The Evolution of Bird Song, with Observations on the Influence of Heredity and Imitation. By C. A. WITCHELL. London : A. & C. Black, 1896. Pp. x., 253. Though written from the biological standpoint, this little book is a welcome contribution to our knowledge of avian psychology. The author's observation is accurate and his style clear. The ten chapters discuss the origin of the voice, alarm notes, the influence of combat, the call note, the simplest songs, the influence of sex, age, weather, etc., upon singing, heredity as affecting the permanence of bird cries, variation in bird voices, the influence of imitation on bird song, and the music of bird singing. Lectures on Human and Animal Psychology. By W. WUNDT. Translated by J. E. CREIGHTON and E. B. TITCHENER. Second edition, revised. London : Swan Sonnenschein & Co., Limited, 1896. Pp. x., 459. The text of this edition differs in no essential respect from that of the first. Minor changes have been made throughout the book : a long passage in the section on the Development of the Intellectual Functions one of the most difficult in the work has been rewritten (pp. 315, 316) so as to bring the connexion of the author's thought into clearer light ; and a five-page index of names and subjects has been added. Fear. By A. Mosso. Translated from the fifth Italian edition by E. LOUGH and F. KIESOW. London, New York, and Bombay : Long- mans, Green & Co., 1896. Pp. 278. Professor Mosso has attained to high eminence in physiology, and upon the whole has deserved well of experimental psychology, despite the fact that his instruments are more apt to set problems than to solve them. His book on Fear, which has already seen several editions in a French version, is of an extremely popular type : observation and criticism are sound as far as they go, but are interspersed with an infinite deal of emotional 'padding'. Dr. and Mrs. Kiesow have produced an accurate, and in the main readable, translation. As the popular character of the book will probably ensure it another edition, it may be worth while to note a few blemishes which can easily be removed by the translators. The reviewer has found idiomatic expressions on pp. 32, 40, 50, 85, 93, 125, 139, 149, 176, 181, 188. The 'last year' of p. 69 should be changed. Minor slips or misprints appear on pp. 51, 75, 163, 199, 200, 210, 215, 229, 266. ' Meynart ' and ' Duchenne de Boulogne ' are unfamiliar personages.
