Page:American Journal of Sociology Volume 9.djvu/287

 REVIEWS 273

party besides access to a mass of documents bearing on its history and aims. His method of treatment is that of the practiced investigator, and his sources of information are fully and carefully indicated. He gives due prominence to the economic aspects of his subject, which are so inextricably involved in the political.

Lictte devolution dans la nature etVhistoire. Par GASTON RICHARD, agrege de philosophic, docteur es lettres, charge du cours de sociologie a 1'Universite de Bordeaux. Ouvrage couronne par I'Academie des sciences morales et politiques. Paris : Felix Alcan, 1903. Pp. ^+403.

THIS weighty volume, which has met with high commendation from M. Th. Ribot, represents a method that becomes increasingly popular the application of philosophic generalization to biologic, sociologie, and historic material. It is divided into three parts: "The Biologic Problem," "The Psychologic and Sociologie Problem," and "Con- science and the Genetic Explanation ;" and makes use of recent philo- sophic standpoints; in fact, is perhaps somewhat overweighted with the latest floating terminology. The treatment is throughout philo- sophic as opposed to sociologie, if one may use a rough (and rather mis- leading) popular distinction. The first part follows the custom of continental works of this class in pointing out the shortcomings of Mr. Herbert Spencer and the contradictions and deficiences of the Dar- winian view of evolution. M. Richard finds the law 'of evolution through natural selection merely one expression of the law of the con- servation of energy ; and holds that a more adequate dynamic state- ment of the universe as a whole is to be made through tracing the development of specific phenomena by means of the genetic method, and working toward a system in which these various series may be shown to be reversible and mutually convertible.

La condition de la femme dans les diverses races et civilisations. Par CH. LETOURNEAU. Avec une notice biographique par G. PAPILLAUT. (" Bibliotheque sociologique et internationale.") Paris: Girard & Briere, 1903. Pp. xvi + 508. Fr. n.

THIS posthumous work of the indefatigable Ch. Letourneau is the last volume in his well-known series of comparative studies of social institutions. It has the merits and the grave defects of its predeces- sors.