Theoretical organic chemistry / by Julius B. Cohen.

  • Cohen, Julius B. (Julius Berend), 1859-1935.
Date:
1902
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Theoretical organic chemistry / by Julius B. Cohen. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    PREFACE Some apology for the appearance of a new text-book of organic chemistry seems necessary ; for in face of the multitude of its predecessors, the present volume can scarcely put forward the customary claim of supplying a “ long-felt want.” Whilst the study of general principles should form the ground¬ work of every text-book, it is important, in a subject so essen¬ tially practical as organic chemistry, to maintain a careful balance between theory and practice. This has been my chief aim. Organic chemistry has been so completely systematised—so few of the important links in the chain of facts are missing— that it offers great temptations to the teacher to place before the student a series of equations, qualified by the statement that the substances are acted upon by certain reagents, reduced with nascent hydrogen, treated with oxidising agents, &c., and other vague directions which leave the student the task of evolving the practical details of the process for himself, and, what is worse, transforming organic chemistry into a series of barren formulae and bald equations. To avoid this as far as possible, a description of the common chemical reagents is introduced at the outset, and a number of simple experiments are described in detail concurrently with an account of many of the reactions. The student is thus encouraged to study the reactions practically—a matter of very great consequence. Another object of these experiments is to assist the teacher in his class demonstrations ; for, with one exception (the pre¬ paration of zinc ethyl, which cannot be conveniently carried out in the class-room), they are devised so as to be completed during the lecture, or occasionally in a second lecture, but,