DURING the past few years the civilised world has bcgun to realise the advantages accruing to scientific research, with the result that an ever-
increasing amount of time and thought is being devoted to various
branchcs of scicnce.
No study has progrcssed more rapidly than chemistry. This
science may be divided roughly into several branches: namely, Organic,
Physical, Inorganic, and Analytical Chemistry. It is impossible to
writc any single text-book which shall contain within its two covers a
thorough trcatment of anyone of these branches, owing to the vast
amount of information that has been accumulated. The need is rather
for a series of text-books dealing more or less comprehensively with
each branch of chemistry. This has already been attempted by
entcrprising firms, so far as physical and analytical chemistry are
concerned; and the present series is designed to meet the needs of
inorganic chemists. Onc great advantage of this procedure lies in
the fact that our knowledge of the different sections of science does not
progress at the samc ratc. Consequently, as soon as any particular
part advances out of proportion to others, the volume dealing with
that scction may be easily revised or rewritten as occasion requires.