Vergleichende Mond- und Erdkunde

Abstract

THE resemblance which exists between the surface of the globe and that of the moon, as shown in the irregularities of level and the general character of the superficial formations, has long attracted attention, and much ingenious speculation has been exhibited in tracing a connection and seeking the cause. Fanciful theories exist without number, but men of the highest eminence have occupied themselves with the same theme, being led to it by the fascinating problem of the “ Plurality of Worlds.” This is the attraction that has induced Prof. Giinther to study the subject, or, perhaps it would be more correct to say, to sift and examine what others have written about it. His book is a marvel of research and a triumph of industry. He seems to have examined all that has been written, whether in fact or fiction, bearing on the relations of earth and moon. Mr. H. G. Wells and Jules Verne represent one school of thought; Procter and Flammarion another; the highest authorities, as Darwin, Loewy, and Puiseux, form a third. Every page bristles with notes, and is encumbered by the author's commentaries on those notes. This arrangement perhaps shows greater power of collection than of assimilation. Much of the matter, if worth preserving, could have been incorporated in the text and made the book easier to read.

Vergleichende Mond- und Erdkunde.

By Prof. S. Gnther. Pp. xi + 193. (Braunschweig: F. Vieweg und Sohn, 1911.) Price 5 marks.