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THE

PHILOSOPHICAL MAGAZINE:

COMPREHENDING
THE VARIOUS BRANCHES OF SCIENCE,
THE LIBERAL AND FINE ARTS,
AGRICULTURE, MANUFACTURES,
| AND

COMMERCE,

BY ALEXANDER TILLOCH,

MEMBER OF. THE LONDON PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY, ETC. ETC,

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CONTENTS 933

OF THE

SIXTH VOLUME,

A NEW and expeditious Procefs for rendering Platina
malleable. By Mr. Ricoarp Knicut, Member of
the Britifb Mineralogical Society - Paget

Refleétions on Pruffiats. By 1.M. HaussMANN 4

Account of a fimple and effettual Preparation of Seed-Corn.
By Mr. Joun Wacstarre, of Norwich ~ 10

On the Dijflillation of ardent Spirit from Carrots. By Dr.
Hunter and Mr. Horney, of York - 12

Some Account of the Elaftic-Gum Vine of Prince of Wales’s
Ifland, and of Experiments made on the milky Juice which
it produces; with Hints refpetting the ufeful Purpofes ta
which it may be applied. By JAMES Howison, E/g. 14

Experiments and Obfervations on Shell and Bone. By
Cuarves Hatcuett, Ef. F.R.S. - 215 355

Hijfiory of Aftronomy for the Year 1799. -By JEROME
LaLanpe. Read at the Lyceum on the 26th of December.

0, 10,

Defeription of a fingular Phenomenon im a Thunder Cloud.
By L. C. LicHTENBERG . - 4£
Obfervations on the Elk. By the late E. H. Smiru, Phy-
fictan - - - - - 42
Extra& from a Letter of Mr. J. TURNER t#o Dr. PEAR-
son, on the Practice of the Vaccine Inoculation among
Country- People - - - - 49
Extra& of a Memoir on Elaflicity, ByC.BARRUEL 55
On the Efficacy of Yeft in the Cure of thofe Difeafes known
' by the Name of Putrid - - - 56
On the various Effects produced by the Nature, Compreffion,
and Velocity of the Air ufed in the Blaft-Furnace. By Mr.
Davip Musuet, of the Clyde Iron-Works 60, 113
Some Remarks on the Scotch Diftillery,'and a Defcription of
an improved Still, which may be charged and run off Se-
venty-1wo Times in Twenty-four Hours - 70
Obfervations on Spiders, and their fuppofed Poifon. By
M, AmMorevux jun, M.D - - 74, 122

% Some

toe CONTENTS.

Some Aceount of the late Mark ELEAzAR Biocn, of
Berlin => - - - Page 80
A Communication from Dr. LOANE, relative to Pneumatic
Medicine - - - -— - 82
Obfervations refpetiing Oyflers, ard the Places where’ found.
By Profeffor BECKMANN - = 97> 233
Communication from Mr, Henry CLurTTERBUCK, Surgeon
to the Univerfal Royal Difpenfary, on the Cure of thofe
A ffeétions which arife from the Poifon of Lead 11g
A curfory View of fome of the late Difcoveries in Science
i 126, 243, 304
On the Combuftion of the Human Body, produced by the long
and immoderate Ufe of Spirituous Liquors. By P1ERRE-
AEME LATED Theme a5, t= - - 132
Meteorological Axtoms, by L. Cotte; or the general Re/ult
of bis own and foreign Meteorological Obfervations during
the courfe of Thirty Years. - - - 146
On the Decompofition of Azotic into Hydrogen and Oxygen
Gas, by M. GirTANNER, and on the radical of the
Muriatic Acid. A Letter ‘from Van Mons, of Bruffels, to
Delametherie =) - « - 152
A Botanical Defcription of Urceola Elaftica, or Caout-chouc
~ Vine of Sumatra and Pullo-pinang ; with an Account of the
Properties of its infpifjated Juice, compared with thofe of
the American Caout-chouc, By WILLIAM ROXBURGH,
Wea Mon ae a on eee ee aOR
Account of fome Improvements introduced by the Scotch Di-
fillers, which enable them to charge and run off the fame
Still upwards of Four Hundred and Eighty Times in
Twenty-four Hours - 7 - 161
On the Queftion; Whether the Sun, the Moon, and other
“heavenly Bodies are furrounded by Atmofpheres. By
T. W. A. MurHARD - 2 - 166
On the Advantages which refult from fubftituting Oak Bark
for Gall Nuts in dyeing Black,. e/pecially in dyemg Hats
176
Same Account of the late PETER CHARLES LE MONNIER
180
Defcription of the [land of Borneo, with fome Account of
the Manners and Cuftoms of its Inhabitants. By Mr. Von
WuRMB ~ . ta ws -° 193
Method of preferving Birds and {mall Quadrupeds by means.
_ of Ether. By C. CHaprar - - 205
Defcription of a new Infirument for Trepanning, invented by
Mr. Joun RopMan, Surgeon in Paifley - 207
Obfcrvations on the Economical Ufe of the Ranunculus
es ina aquatilis ;

C:.OuN THEN TS. v

egualilts; with Introduétory Remarks on the acrimonious
and poifonous Quality of fome of the Englifh Species of
that Genus. By Ricuarp Putreney, M.D.F.R.S.
and L.S. - - - - - 210
Defcription of the Mus Burfarius, from a Drawing communi-
cated by Major-General Thomas Davies, F. R.S. & LS.
By Georce Suaw, M.D.F.R.S.V.P.L.S. _ a15
On the Analyfis of Azot: an Extraét of a Letter from Dr.
GIRTANNER fo Dr. Van Mons of Bruffels - 216
Defcription of the Method employed at Aftracan for making
grained Parchment or Shagreen. By Profeffor PALLAS 247
On that Difeafe peculiar to Poland and fome of the neigh-
bouring Countries, called thé Plica Polonica - 224
On the Ammoniure of Cobalt, and an Acid contamed in the
Grey Oxyd of that Metal known under the Name of
Zaffar. By L. BRUGNATELLI - - “229
Defeription of Mr. CouL1eR’s improved Apparatus for Fil-
tering and Sweetening Water and other ‘Fluids + 2g0
On the various Remedies that have been recommended for the
Cure of the Hydrophobia - - - 25%
Defcription of the Ifland of Celebes or Macaffar; with an
Account of its Gold Mines, and the Manner of working
them. By Mr. Von WuRMB - - 28g
Obfervations on preferving Specimens of Phants. By Joun
StacxuouseE, E/g. F.L.S. - - 302
On the Effects of the Acetic or Acetous Ether, employed with
Friétion in the Rheumati/m, Sciatica, and Gout 31
On the Nature of the Colouring Principle of Lapis Lazuli.
By C. Guyton - - mine wt eae
Account of certain Phenomena obferved in the Air-Vault of
the Furnaces of the Devon Iron-Works; together with fome
practical Remarks on the Management of Blaft-Furnaces.
By Mr. Rorzuck, in a Letter to Sir JamES Hatt,
Bart. - - - - - 324,
Communication from Dr. BLACKBURNE refpecting Caloric,
Light, and Colours - - - 334
Memoir on Azot, and on the Queftion, Whether it be a fimple
or a compound Body. By CHRISTOPHER GIRTANNER,
M. D. of Gottingen - 4 a 335
Method of deteéting the Prefence of Sulphur and Arfenic in
Ore, and of accurately determining the Quantity. By
B. G. Sace, Direétor of the firfi School of Mines 354.
Defcription of an Air and a Water-Vault employed to equalize
the Difcharge of Air into a Blaft- Furnace. By Mr, Davip
MusHET & = - - 362
New Publications a - | - 265, 304
Intelligence and Mifcellaneous Articles 84, 183, 272, 366

4 Bete “hie, ‘its Whe:
*) pa inal by Wa ‘en an
aa baling ‘ kee

bid hy ensues ee te

en

THE

PHILOSOPHICAL MAGAZINE.

FEBRUARY 1800.

I. A new and expeditious Procefs for rendering Platine
malleable. By Mr. RicHarp Knicut, Member of
the Britifb Mineralogical Society. Communicated by the
Author.

Ts E many peculiar advantages which platina in a mal-
leable fiate poffetfes over every other metal for the fabrica-
tion of a variety of infiruments and utenfils particularly ufeful
for the purpofes of chemiftry, together with the extreme
difficulty of procuring it, being hitherto only to be obtained
from Paris, of a very indifferent quality, and at a price equal
to that of gold, firft induced me to turn my attention to the
fubjeét. — After having repeated a variety of experiments,
from the different writers on this fubftance, without effect,

I at length completed a procefs, the fuccefs of which has
fully anfwered my expectations. By the procefs which I
follow Lam able to reduce’ any quantity of crude platina to
a perfeétly malleable flate, entirely free from impurity, and
capable of being wrought into any form whatever. As this
is a éircumftance of confiderable importance to the chemical
world, and the advantages which may refult from it to fo-
ciety-in general are perhaps incalculable, I would confider
myfelf deferving of cenfure, could I allow any motive whatever
to induce me to withhold it from the public. By fending it
for publication in a work of fuch extenfive circulation as the:

Vo; VI. B Philo-

2 Procefs for rendering Platina malleable.

Philofophical Magazine, it will meet the eyes of thofe for
whom it is intended. If any benefit refult from it to feience,
or the arts, my end is gained, and I thall feel amply repaid
for my trouble. The method I purfue is as follows :—

To a given quantity of crude platina, I add 15 times its
weight of nitro-muriatic acid (compofed of equal parts of
nitric and muriatic acids) in a tubulated glafs retort, with a
tubulated receiver adapted to it. It is then boiled, by means
of an Argand’s lamp, till the acid has affumed a deep faffron
colour: it is then poured off; and if any platina remains, un-
diffolved, more acid is added, and it is again boiled until the
whole is taken up. The liquor, being fuffered to reft till
quite clear, is again decanted: a folution of fal-ammoniac
is then added, by little and little, till it no longer gives a
cloudinefs. _ By this means the platina is thrown down in
the form of a lemon-coloured precipitate, which having fub-
fided, the liquor is poured off, and the precipitate repeatedly
wafhed with diftilled water till it ceafes to give an acid tafte;
(too much water is injurious, the precipitate being in a cer-
tain degree foluble in that liquid:) the water is then poured
off, and the precipitate evaporated to drynefs,

So far my procefs is in a great meafure fimilar to that
which fome others have alfo followed; but my method of
managing the fubfequent, and which are indeed the principal
manipulations, will be found. to poffefs many advantages

over any that has yet been made public. The beft procefs-

hitherto followed has been, to give the precipitate a white
heat in a crucible, which in fome meafure agglutinates the
particles ; and then to throw the mafs into a red-hot mortar,
or any fimilar implement, and endeavour to unite them by
ufing a peftle or ftamper. But the mafs is fo fpongy that it
is hardly poffible to get a fingle ftroke applied to it before the
welding heat is gone; and though by peculiar dexterity and
addrefs fome have in this way fucceeded, it has been found
to require fuch innumerable heatings and hammerings, that
moft of thofe who have attempted it, have either failed en-
tirely, or given it up as being too laborious and expenfive.
I have fucceeded in obviating all thefe difficulties, by adopt-
ing the following fimple, eafy, and expeditious method :—
A ftrong,

EEE Oe

—— ee

ee!

a . 5
eae oe See

Proce/s for rendering Platina malleable. 3

A ftrong, hollow, inverted cone of crucible earth being
procured, with a correfponding ftopper to fit it, made of the
fame materials, the point of the latter is cut off about three-
fourths from the bafe. The platina, now in the ftate of a
light yellow powder, is preffed tight into the cone, and, a
cover being fixed flightly on, it is placed in an air-furnace *,
and the fire raifed gradually to a {trong white heat. In the
‘mean time the conical ftopper, fixed in a pair of iron tongs
fuitable for the purpofe, is brought to a red, or to a bright
red heat. The cover being then removed from the cone, the
tongs with the heated ftopper is introduced through a hole
in the cover of the furnace, and preffed at firft gently on the
platina, at this time in a ftate nearly as foft as dough, till it
at length acquires a more folid confiftence. It is then re-
peatedly ftruck with the ftopper, as hard as the nature of the
materials will admit, till it appears to receive no farther im-
preffion. The cone is then removed from the furnace, and.
being firne% lightly with a hammer, the platina falls out in
a metallic button, from which ftate it may be drawn, by re-
peatedly heating and gently hammering, into a bar fit for
flatting, drawing into wire, planifhing, &c.

Befides the comparative facility of this procefs, it has the
farther advantage of rendering the platina much purer than
when red-hot ‘eet is obliged to be had recourfe to; for pla-
tina, when of a white heat, has a {trong affinity for iron, and,
with whatever care it may have been previoufly feparated.
from that metal, will be found to have taken up a portion of
it, when it is employed, of a red heat, to ferve to unite the
particles of the platina. To the fuperior purity of platina,
rendered malleable by the procefs before defcribed, I attri-
bute the greater fpecific gravity which I find it to poffefs,
than that prepared by other methods. Having taken the
fpecific gravity of about ten penny weights of it, which I
had previoufly paffed repeatedly through a flatting mill, I
found it to be 22°26.

. Fofter Lane, January 3, 1800.

* The one I employ is portable, and tho chamber for the fire only
cight inches in diameter, K,

Ra Il, Reflec~

{ 4 }
Il. Reflettions on Pruffiats. By 1I.M. Haussmann *,

a iv fix on ftuffs with fuccefs the metallic pruffiats,. it was
neceffary to examine with care the refults arifing from the
mixture of metallic folutions with the pruffiats of pot-afh or
of lime. The moft interefting information which I procured
by my experiments is as follows :—

The red oxyd of mercury fubjected to the aétion of. the
liquor of pruffiat of pot-ath or of lime, acidulated by the ful-
phuric acid, did not produce blue, but was transformed gra-
dually into yellowith fulphat of mercury: next morning, after
an addition of the muriatic acid, the change-took place in
an inftant, and I obtained a blue éxceedingly brilliant. -Hav-
ing, inftead of the fulphuric acid, employed the muriatic, the
red oxyd was diffolved, and the liquor became tranfparent, of
a bad blue colovr, which became gradually brighter as -it
was preciyitated. The red oxyd of mercury, diffolved firft by
the nitric acid in excefs, to which was added pruffiat of pot-
afh or of lime, furnifhed alfo a blue. The operation is flow
when the red oxyd is ufed ‘without diffolying it, and when
you confine yourfelf to acidulating the pruffiat with the nitric
acid. An aqueous folution of the oxygenated muriat of mer-
eury, mixed with a folution of pruffiat of pot-ath or of lime,
acidulated by the muriatic or nitric acid, gives alfo a very
beautiful blue.

In all thefe proceffes of mercury, and particularly the laft,
a part of this oxygenated fubftance remains in folution, and
refembles the he obtained by deftroying the colour of the
pruffiat of iron by means of the red oxyd of mercury and of
water. The oxyd of filver is changed with more difficulty.
Ydiluted with water a nitric folution of that metal ; and when
T hit the juft proportions of the pruffiat of pot-afh,-and the
fulphuric or muriatic acid, I obtained, by fhaking from time
to time, the moft beautiful blue in the fpace of twenty-four

hours.» The liquid arfenic acid, mixed with pruffiat of pote ~

ath or of lime, acidulated with fulphuric acid, gives a very
beautiful blue.

* From Journal de Péyfigue, an. 7.

A folution.

ST eS eee eee

——————

—_— a?

Reflections on Prujfiats. 5

- A folution of cobalt furnifhes a greyifh violet, and, with
the addition of muriat of ammonia, a beautiful violet blue ;
while, in treating folutions of the fulphat of zinc, the nitrat
‘of bifmuth, the muriat of tin, and the acetite of lead, with
liquor of the pruffiat of pot-ath or of lime, acidulated as be-
fore, you obtain only whites. Copper is precipitated under
a brown fhade. The muriat of antimony, precipitated by
aqueous dilution, and expofed, like the oxyd of filver, to the
aétion of the acidulated pruffiat of pot-afh, indicates fome
difpofition to become blue. Adding to the muniatic folution
of the black oxyd of manganefe, muriat of ammonia, and
mixing this folution with liquor of the pruffiat of pot-ath,
acidulated by the fulphuric acid, there is formed a very beau~
tiful blue.

I muft inform chemifts’not to be difcouraged when the
produétion of blue does not immediately take place; if it
fhould. happen that they do not obtain it, they mutt vary the
proportions until they have accomplifhed their end. The
blue of filver often does not fucceed till after a long time,
and does not acquire its utmoft degree of intenfity till the
end of eight, ten, or fifteen days.

As I intended to repeat and continue thefe experiments
-by the mixture of metallic folutions with liquor of the pruf-
fiats of pot-afh and lime acidulated, I firft expofed to the

action of thefe liquors, fome metallic oxyds fixed upon ftuffs.
Cotton cloth, which had imbibed a folution of native pla-
tina almoft infenfible to the magnet, after being wrung was
dipped, without drying it, in a folution of cauftic pot-ath;
the oxyd of platina remained, in a great part, adhering to the
ftuff, which being wafhed, affumed a yellow much more
beautiful than that obtained from iron. Having dipped this
cloth ina folution of pruffiat of pot-ath or of lime, acidulated |
by the fulphuric acid, I obtained as lively a blue, and in as *
fhort a time as if I had employed cloth coloured by the
oxyd of iron. A mixture of the folution of platina and of
tin diffolved in the muriatic acid, with an excels of acid, is
of a beautiful tranfparent red colour. Without excefs. of
acid, there is formed, at firft, a precipitate of a beautiful
orange

= I ae eee

6 Refledtions on Pruffiats.

orange colour. This procefs might furnifh another means
of purifying platina.

A piece of cotton cloth impregnated with a folution ‘of
gold, containing a fixth part of that metal without excefs of
acid, being pluneed in a folution of ammonia, furnifhed me
with an ochre yellow. This yellow at lenoth became blackifh
after being kept in a fheet of paper. As alkaline liquors, and
particularly that of the carbonat of pot-ath or of foda, have a
great tendency to diffolve the oxyd of gold, it cannot be ufed
for its precipitation on cloth. Cloth coloured yellow by gold
dipped in muriat of tin diluted with water, undergoes a change
into dark blackifh grey, which becomes brighter in. propor-
tion as the folution is diluted. I have often obtained violets
and lilacs by dipping, without precipitation, the cloth merely
imbibed with a folution of gold, in nitro-muriatic folutions
of tin prepared with different proportions of the acid. Se-
veral fhades of gold colour will be obtained by precipitating
oxyd of tin from its nitro-muriatic folution by dilution with
water, to which a folution of gold has been added, drop by
drop, at different times, with intervals of feveral hours. This
niode of operation will furnifh orange colours, while, if you
fubftitute oxyd of gold for the folution, you will obtain lilacs,
which, approaching more and more to fhades of crimfon,
will at laft become orange, if you continue to add to them,
from time to time, oxyd of gold. Thefe hades depend a great
geal on the proportion of muriatic acid prefent in the nitro-

-murtatic folution of tin. If it contains too great a quantity,

the dofe of water muft be augmented to make the oxyd of
fin precipitate itfelf, and the gold in that cafe gives a grey
colour more or lefs reddifh. The folution of tin, which I
employed for thefe experiments, was campofed of four parts
of nitric acid, one of muriatic acid, and one and a quarter

‘of granulated tin, flowly diffolved, to prevent, as much as

pofible, the nitrous gas from being difengaged in too great
quantity. Thefe oxyds of tin, coloured by the oxyd of gold «
more or lefs de-oxygenated, do not require much metal, and
confequently are not dear. They all prefent, when dry, dif.
ferent fhades of grey and lilac more or lefs intenfe, and in
all probability might be employed for painting porcelain,

Stuf

RefleGions on Pruffiais. 7

Stuff coloured by the oxyd. of gold feems to attrac&
the colouring particles of madder, and affumes a reddith-
brown tiat, or a fort of carmelite, which is more and more
blackened by a continuation or ee of the heat, The
other ingredients proper for, dyeing alfo blacken gold by the
help of heat. Galls, by ebullition, have an analogous effe&,
and produce almoft the fame greyifh-black colour as that
obtained by dipping in a muriatic folution of tin, probably
becaufe all thefe means de- -oxygenate the oxyd of gold. The
change into blue, of ftuff coloured yellow by the oxyd of gold
expofed to the aétion of diffolved pruffiat of pot-afh or of
lime, acidulated by the fulphuric or any other acid, takes
place only flowly. Three, four, and even five hours immer-
fion are neceflary to obtain a beautiful blue of equal intenfity
with the yellow produced by gold. By acidulating too ftrongly
the liquor of the pruffiat, the oxyd of gold diffolves without
giving a blue.

It is not uncommon to fee the experiment fail when the
folution of gold is dire&tly mixed with a folution of an alka-
line pruffiat or a pruffiat of lime. Every thing here depends
on the degree of acidulation ; but the experiment will gene-
rally fueceed when the oxyd of gold has been previoufly pre-
cipitated by ammonia or fome other alkali.

I for a long time imagined that thefe blues arofe*from the
metal employed, and formed pruffiats. I was fo full of this
idea, that, when I made the difcovery in 1781, I communi-
cated it to the celebrated profeffor Spielmann, who returned
me the following anfwer :— Weftenberg, in a differtation
maintained at Gottingen i in 1772, and Martin more amply
in a thefis printed here in 1775, remarked, that ley of blood
precipitated gold under a blue colour; but that, to obtain
this colour, it was neceffary to make ufe of an acid. The
latter obferved chiefly, that alkali, faturated with pruffian
blue, precipitated gold immediately of a blue colour; and
that, if ley of blood was deprived of all volatile alkali by
diftiliation, the refiduum, more concentrated, dyed {till more
eafily the metals it precipitated from their menftrua.”. At
the time when I was employed in repeating my experiments,
my friend Charles Bartholdi objected to me, that all my

blues

3 Refleétions on Pruffiats.

blues arofe only from iron, which the folutions of pruffiats of
pot-ath and of lime hold more or lefs in folution. I learned
alfo, from a paffage in Buffon in his obferyations on the na-
ture of platina, that Morveau had doubted the experiment of
Fourci, who precipitated gold of a blue colour by the pruffian
alkali. Though we cannot deny the exiftence of iron in pruf-
fiats of alkalies and of lime, I could, however, with difficulty
believe that a metallic fubftance fixed on ftuff, could be re-
placed by any other which would at the fame time remain
fixed,

If, in my experiment on cloth coloured by the oxyd of
gold, that oxyd had difappeared ; if the pruffiat of iron had
been precipitated in the liquor, inftead of being fixed on the
ftuff; if the afhes of fome fpecimens had not gilded filver;
and, in the Jatt place, if the intenfity of blues had not been fo
confiderable and fo general, and the fhades of each different,
I fhould certainly have been fooner freed from my error; but
T now am, and the following is the method in which I pro-
ceeded to convince myfelf of my miftake :—If deprived of its
colour, by means of a folution of pot-afh, a piece of cotton
cloth coloured yellow by gold, and then rendered bhie: I
wafhed it, and immerfed it for feveral hours in a muriatic
folution of tin, and produced the fame effect as with the oxyd
of iron. This cloth, deprived of its colour, and become of a
yellow fimilar to that produced by the oxyd of iron, was
changed into blue by alkaline pruffiats as fpeedily as the
latter. This blue cloth, as well as that deprived of its co-
lour by pot-afh when reduced to afhes, fcarcely gilded filver ;
and thefe afhes, treated with mercury, furnifhed only a flight
gilding, arifing no doubt from a fmall portion of the oxyd
of gold which had remained untouched in the liquor of the

‘ acidalated pruffiats, which, by longer immerfion of the ftuff,

could not have failed to have been taken up.

_ Thefe proofs were too ftriking not to induce me to con-
tinue my experiments. I foaked, therefore, the cotton cloth
in a nitric folution of filver, and, without drying it, I dipped

it in a folution of cauftic pot-afh ; the oxyd fixed on the ftuff ...

prefented inequalities, and exhibited different {hades of yio-

let, lilac, grey, and yellow. The action of the atmofphere — :
7 had

RefleBions on Pruffials. 9
liad a great influence on the tone of thefe fhades. The ftuff,
after being dried, was left for fifteea days in a folution of
pruffiat of pot-ath acidulated by the nitric, muriatic, or ful-
phuric acids, and affumed a pretty equal blue colour, of great
beauty and fplendour; but, when deprived of its ualahe by
cauftic pot-ath, it could not be brought back to its firft thades.
The yellow brie. a decided fap iority feemed to obfeure
the reft; which fhews that the pruffiat of iron had difplaced
a great part of the oxyd of filver.

The nitric folution of the red oxyd of mercury, with which
I impregnated the cotton in order to dip it in a folution of
cauftic pot-afh, gaye a very beautiful yellow, while the nitric
folution of mercury, newly made, produced a grey; but thefe
two fhades, having been left fome days in the folution of the
pruffiat of pot-ath acidulated by the nitric, mutriatic, or fule
phuric acids, were changed into blue. The colour being
afterwards difcharged by Mtn alkali, the grey and yellow
fhades re- appeared—with this difference, that the latter had a
preater refernblance to the ruft of iron. What is fingular is,
that the grey differed very little from its firft fhade: if, how-
ever, the grey oxyd of mercury had been obfcured by the
pruffiat of iron, difcharging the colour muft have produced
an ochre yellow.

All thefe experiments prefent phenomena fo fingular that
they deferve to be repeated; which I fhall perhaps do; but
in the mean time it appears to me true that the greater part
of thefe blues are only pruffiat of iron: the changes by affi-
nity, however, are extraordinary. It is, above all, on the
grey oxyd of mercury changed blue, that it is of importance
to fix attention.

As the precipitates which are formed in mixtures of me-
tallic folutions with folutions of praffiats, of alkalies, or of
lime, acidulafed, though not blue, are ftill pruffiats under
different colours, it is very probable that the metallic oxyds,
fuch as that of gold fixed on ftuff deftitred to be changed into
blue, become pruffiats, foluble in acids. Ini regard to the
blue of platina, I have no doubt that it is a praffiat of that
metal ; its change is effeCted as fpeedily as that of iron.

Vou. VI, C LI, Account

[x0 J
{t. Ascount of a fimple and effeual Preparation of Seeds
Csrn. “By Mr. Joun Wacsratre, of Norwich*.

§ Breet: has beert long fought for, and, in the opinion
Of fome, long fince obtained, a‘perfeét cure of the difeafe in
wheat and other grain, provincially known by various names,
as fmut, foot-brand, &c. which are but one and the fame
difeafe.

From the partial judgment of many individuals, it has
been afferted, that fuch and fuch cauftics, falts, and wafhes,
have beer cuinpletely deftructive of this bane; yet, however
fuch individuals may have efcaped its cnalieniny, the repeated
ule of their recipes has not fucceeded with others to whom
their procefs has been communicated: but I am corivinced,
by a feries of repeated experiments, that every perfon, who
duly practifes the fimpla means I now lay before you, will
be exempted from its immediate bane ; and a diftri€t of coun-
try, by purfuing the fanie mearis, may perhaps efcape future
coritagion.

The means are fimple; and are no other than immerfing
the feed in pure water, and repeatedly fcouring it therein,
juft before it is fowh or dibbled in the foil. “Whether welt,
fpring, or river water be ufed, is indifferent ; but repeated
ftirting and change of water is effential to remove the par-
ticles ‘OF infedtion that may have imperceptibly adhered to
the feeds thus purified: the fubfequent crop will be perfect
in itfelf, and its feeds (I am perfuaded) fucceflively fo like-
‘wife, if theré are no adjacent fields from whence this conta+
mination may be wafted. Before F give you a feries of ex
periments, which have confirmed to me the complete curé
of the difeafe in queftion, permit me to obferve, that many
years fince, believing that this corrupt fabftance of fmut
odcafioned its perpetuation, I took fome grains of wheat fromt
a {tock that had been known not to be affected with {mut ;
thefe grains I blackened with its daft, and the fucceeding
furnmier confirmed my opinion, .as near half the produce was

* From Letters and Papers of the Bath and Weft-of-England Society for

e Reyce: uraccment of Agritultnréy &c«
fmut-

v WEES

A fimple and effectual Preparation of Seed-Corn. = 10

fmut-balls. Here I ftopped; and'in my own fmall practice
ufed fome of the ftrongly recommended noftrums that were
faid always to effect a cure, and which apparently: they did,
as I uniformly fteeped the grain in rain Water before’ I made
the addition ‘of a difeuttfal fluid, or comimixture of I ‘know
not what firange npaincds®

_ About two years fince, I was cal'ed upon by an intelligent -
farmer (Roger Trefley) of Devonthire, who confidentially’
(becaufe he “had a fubfcription 1 in view) laid this fimple pro-
cefs before me. ‘I was immediately conyinced, by comparing”
what I had practifed with the principle he advanced.

' I then repeated my former experiments. I took a handful’
of pure wheat, and blackened it, by rabbing in as much-
fmnut-brand as I was able; after which, I divided this cor--
rupted handful into two equal parts ; “retained one part with’
all its corrupt impregnation *, and the other part ] well
cléanfed in water from its baneful particles: thefe two parts
I again fubdivided into three portions each, two of which [.
dibbled in different fituations, v7z..a portion of the, Pus and
impure, near to, but diftinétly feparated from, each other;
twe other portions fome miles from the former two: and the
remaining two. (the corrupted, and the cleanfed) I commitied
to the care of an accurate neighbour for his putting into the
ground, at which I was prefent, and witneffed the exactnels
‘of the feparation.. The products of thefe feveral trials were
uniformly the fame; the unwafhed was generally {mutty ;
the wathed good in quality, one fingle fet excepted. Thus
fully conyinced, and confirmed in the efficacy of the means
recommended, I engaged the farmers of a certain. parith
(Baburgh) to advance me a guinea for Roger Trefley’s pub-
lication, affuring the principal occupier f, “that he would be

convinced

E

* Wholefome water has a tendency tq promote vegetation, while fome
of the fetid and corrofive fluids have a tendency to deftroy its princi, le 5
in courfe, fome, perhaps much, of the feed perifhes in the foil,

4+ This farmer had been fubject many years to brand, notwithfanding
his confiant ufe of faline and other fubftances ; at length he changed thete
for a recipe from a gentleman to whole opinion he paid much deference 4
but it proved, that on this change he had more brand than beforg ; he
thence r¢folvefl to uly no’ ntore preparations, byt brought all his feedy

C2 whear

Le . On the Difiillation of

convinced of its certainty, without waiting the iffue of a-

harveft. The confequence of which has been, that I have
neither feen nor heard of a fmutty ear in this diftri€t; which,

I believe, hath in no preceding year been free from them, ,

In fine, not only from the experiments already adverted to,
but from others which might be adduced, I am fully, per-
fuaded that ‘the confirmation of this difeovery (and it has
been many years back fuggefted) will lead to.an incalculable
advantage ; for it is not alone a prefervation of the moft in-
difpenfable article of human food from an appearance and
flavour truly difeufiful; but, while it renders it more nutri-
tious, it alfo augments its quantity; for every fmut-ball
might have been a perfect grain, by ufing the fimple procefs
referred to.. To this let me add, that other kinds of bread,

as well as that more generally ufed, may be auginented and.
improved; fince barley and oats equally efcape this conta-

mination and diminution, if their feeds are equally purified.

IV. On the Difliliation of ardent Spirit from Carrots. By
Dr. HUNTER and Mr. Horny, of York*,

One ton and eight ftone of carrots, which, after being
expofed to the air a few days to dry, weighed one hundred
and fixty flone, and meafured forty-two bufhels, were wafhed,
topped, and tailed, by which they loit in weight eleven ftone,
and in meafure feven bufhels: being then cut, they were
boiled, with the proportion of twenty-four gallons of water
to one-third of the above quantity of carrots, until the whole
was reduced to a tender pulp, which was dong in three hours

wheat to the pump, and has:not had (he fays) any brand fince. And,
what is ftill, more confirming, a gentleman farmer in this vicinity applied
to me for Roger Treifev's procefs, in confequence of his whole crop of
wheat being fo exceffively infe€ted with fmut, that his threfhers daily, at
the clofe of their labour, cleanfed themf{elves zz water, they being, as he
expreffed it, as black as chimney-{weepers : yet his fubfequent crop of
wheat from 77s feed, fcoured in repeated wafhings, efcaped the taint,
except a piece of Jand in contiguity with the homeflead; which this gen-
tleman afcribed to the pollution which fled over it from divers dreffings.
* From the Travjactians of the Royal Soctety of Euinburgd, ?
: boiling.

‘

ardent Spirit from Carrots. 13

boilinc. From this pulp the juice,was eafily extracted, by
means of a prefs, and two hundred gallons of juice were pro-
duced from the whole. This juice was boiled again, with one
pound of hops, five hours, and then cooled to 66° of Fah-
renheit ; and, fix quarts of yeaft being added, it was fet to
ferment. The {trong fermentation la{ted forty-cight hours,
during which time the heat abated to 538° of Fahrenheit,
Twelve gallons of unfermented juice, which had been re-
ferved, were then heated, and added to the liquor, the heat
of which was thus‘raifed again to 66°, and the fermentation
was renewed for twenty-four hours more, the air of the brew-
houfe being all this time at 46° and 44°. The liquor was
now tunned, and continued to work three days from the
bung. Laftly, it was diflilled; and the firft diftillation was
rectified the next day, without any addition. The produce
was twelve gallons of fpirit *.

The eueuke of the carrots weighed forty-eight ftone, which,
added to the'tops and tails, faye provifion ra hogs, befides
the wath from the ftill, which meafured one hundred and
fourteen gallons.

From this experiment, which was made i Mr. Hornby,
Dr. Hunter draws the following comparifon between the
diftillation of carrots and that of grain :

Twenty tons of carrots, which will make two hundred
gallons of proof-fpirit, may be bought for 16 /.

Eight quarters of malt, or rather of materials for diftilla-
tion, confifting of malt, wheat, and rye, may be bought for
16/. and will alfo yield two hundred gallons of proof-fpirit.

The refufe from the carrots will be nine hundred and
fixty ftone, which, at one penny per ftone, will fell for 47.

The refufe, or grains, from the malt, &c. will be fixty-four
bufhels, each bufhel about three ftone, which, at one penny
per ftone, will fell for 16s.

Dr. Hunter, however, fuppofes that the manufaGuring of
the {pirit from carrots may be attended with more expence

* A fample of this fpirit, which was fent along with the paper, was
examined by Dr. Black, Dr. Hutton, and Mr. Ruffell: they found that
it refembled a corn fpirit in flavour, bur that it was equal to a corn fpirit
of the beft kind, and that it was proof.

than

5 Some Account of the Elaflic-Gum Vine.

than the manufacturing it from malt; but imagines that the
greater value of the refufe may compenfate for that expence ;
and that the faving of corn, for other purpofes, is an object
worthy of attention and encouragement.

V. Some Account of the Elaftic-Gum Vine of Prince of Wales’s
Ifland, and of Experiments made on the milky Juice which
at produces; with Hints refpecting the ufeful Purpofes te
which tt may be appled. By James Howtson, E/q.*

Ovor firft knowledge of the plant being a native of our
ifland arofe fram the flag ine accident :—In our excurfions
into the forefts it was ae neceflary to carry cutlafles for
the purpof e of clearing our way through the underwood. In
one-of thafe an air gum vine had een divided, the mitk
of which drying upon is blade, we were much furprifed in
finding it potlels all the properties of the American Caout-
chouc. The vine which produces this milk is generally about
the thieknefs-of the arm, and: almoft round, with a ftrong
a{h-coloured bark, much cracked, and divided longitudinally ;
has joints at a {mall diftance from each other, which often
fend out roots, but feldom branches; runs upon the ground
to a great length; at laft rifes upon the higheft trees into the
open air. Its found in the greateft plenty at the foot of the
mountains, upon a red clay mixed with fand, in fituations,
completely fhaded, and where the mercury in the thermo-
meter w ill feldom exceed fummer heat., .,

In my numerous attempts to trace this vine to its top, I
never fuceeeded ; for, after following it in its different wind-
ings, fometimes to a diftance of two ance paces, I loft it,
from its afcending among the branches of trees that were
inacceffible cither from their fize or height. On the welt
coait of Sumatra, I underftand, they have been mare fuccefs-
ful; Do&or Roxburgh having procured from thence a {pe-
cimen of the vine in flowers, from which he has clafled it,
but whofe defeription I have not yet feen,

* From the Afatie Refarches, Val, V. ’
! 4 W ith

Some Account of the Elaftic-Gum Vine. zg

With us the Malays have found tafting, of the milk, the
belt mode of difcriminating between the elaflic-gum vine
and thofe which refemble it in -giving out a milky juice, of
Which we have a great variety; the liquid from the former
being much lefs pungent or corrofive than that obtained from
the latter.

The ufual method of drawing off the milk is by wounding
the bark deeply in different places, from which it rans bat
flowly, it being full employment for one perfon to collec&t a
quart in the courfe of two days. A much more expeditious
mode, but ruinous to the vine, is cutting it in lengths of two
feet, and placing under both ends veffels to receive the milk.
The beft is always procured from the oldeft vines. From
them it is often obtained in a confiftence equal to thick
cream, arid which will yield two-thirds of its own weight in
gum.

The chemical properties of this vegetable milk, fo far as
I have had an opportunity of examining, furprifingly refem-
ble thofe of animal milk. From its decompofition in coi-
fequence of fpontaneous fermentation, or by the addition of
acids, a feparation takes place between its cafeous and ferous
parts, both of which are very fimilar to thofe produced by
the fame proceffes from animal milk. An oily or butyrous
matter is alfo one of its component parts, which appears
upon the furface of the gum fo foon as the latter has attained
its folid form. The prefence of this confiderably impeded
the progrefs of my experiments, as will be feen hereafter. |

I was at fome trouble in endeavouring to form an extra&
of this milk fo as to approach to the confiftence of new but-
ter, by which I hoped to retard its fermeritative flage with-
out depriving it of its ufeful qualities; but, as I had no ap-
patatus for diftilling, the furface of the milk, that was ex-
pofed to the air, inftantly formed into a folid coat, by which
the evaporation was in a great degree prevented. I however
learned, by colleGting the thickened milk from the infide of
the coats, and depofiting it in a jelly-pot, that, if excluded
from the air, it might be preferved in ‘this ftate for 4’ con-
fiderable length of time. : .

« Thave kept it in bottles, without any preparation, tolerably
7 good,

Asa vw

16 Some Account of the Elaflic-Gum Vine.

good, upwards of one year; for, notwithftanding the fer'-
mentation foon takes place, the decompofition in confe-
quence is only partial, and what remains fluid ftill retains
its original properties, although confiderably diminithed,

Not having feen M. Fourcroy’ s memoir on Caout-choucy
I could not sak trials of the methods propofed by him for
preferving the milk unaltered.

_ In making boots, gloves, and bottles, of the elaftic gum,
I found the following method the beft :—I firft made moulds
of wax, as nearly of the fize and {hape of what they repre-
fented as poffible; thefé I hung feparately upon pins, about
‘a foot from the ground, by pieces of cord wrought mto the
wax: I then placed under each a foup-plate, into which [
poured as much, of the milk as I thought would be fufficient
for one coat. Having dipped my fingers in this, I completely
covered the moulds one after another, and what dropped inté
the plates was ufed as part of the next coat: the firlt E
generally found fufficiently dry in the {pace of ten minutes;
when expofed to the fun, to admit of a fecond being applied :
however, after every fecond coat, the oily matter before men-
tioned was in fuch quantity upon the furface, that, until
wathed off with foap and water, I found it impoflible to ap-
ply any more milk with effet; for, if laid on, it kept run-
_ Ring and dividing like water upon wax.

Thirty coats I in common found fufficiemt to give a cover-
ing of the thicknefs of the bottles which come from America,
This circumftance may, however, at any time be afcertained
by introducing the finger between the mould and gum, the
one very readily feparating from the other.

_ I found the fingers preferable to a bruth, or any inftrument
whatever, for laying on the milk; for, the moment a brufh
was wet with that fluid, the hair became united as one mafs,
A mode which at firft view would appear to have the advan-
tage of all others for eafe and expedition in covering clay and
wax moulds with the gum, viz. immerfing them in eon milk,
did not at all anfwer upon trial; that fluid running almoft
entirely off, although none of the oily matter was prefent;
a certain degree of force feeming neceflary to incorporate,
by friction, the milk with the new-formed gum.

When,

Some Account of the Elaflic-Gum Vine. 17’

When, upon examination, I found that the boots and
gloves were of the thicknefs wanted, I turned them over at
the top, and drew them off, as if from the leg or hand, by
which I faved the trouble of forming new moulds. Thofe
of the bottles being fmalleft at the neck, I was under the
neceffity of diffolving in hot water.

The infide of the boots and’ gloves which had poets in
contaét with the wax being by far the {fmootheft, I'made the
outfide. The gloves were now finifhed, unlefs cutting their
tops even, Whitin! wag beft done with ‘{eiffars: The boots,
however, in their prefent ftate, more refembled ftockings,
having as yet no foles. To fupply them with thefe, I poured
upon apiece of gunny a proper quantity of milk, to give it a’
thick coat of gum. From'this, when dry, I cut pieces fuffi-
ciently large to’ cover the’fole of the foot, which, having wet.
with the milk, I applied; firft replacing the boot upon the
mould to keep it properly extended. By this mode the foles”
were fo firmly joined, that no force could afterwards feparate
them. In the fame manner I added heels and ftraps, when’
the boots had a very neat appearance. To fatisfy myfelf as
to their impermeability to water, I flood in'a pond up'to™
their tops for the fpace of fifteen minutes, when, upon pull-
ing them off, I did not find my ftockings in the leaft damp.
Indeed; from the nature of the gum, had it been for a period’
of as many months, the fame refult was to have been ex-
petted.

After being thus far fuccefsful, I was greatly difappointed —
in’ my expectations with regard to their retaining their ori-
ginal fhape; for, on wearing them but a few times, they loft
mich of their firft neatnefs, the contraétions of the gum
being only equal to about feven- eighths of its extenfion.

A Heebnd difadvantage arofe from a circamftance difficult *
td guard againtt, whith was, that if, by any accident, the”
gum fhotld be in the fmalleft degree weaker in one place”
than ‘another, the effect of aatlerifioh fell almoft entirely on’
that part, and the confequence was that it foon gave way.

‘From ‘what I had obferved of the advantage gained in fub-
ftance and uniformity of ftrength by making ufe of gunny
as'a bafis for the foles, I was led to fuppofe, that if an elaftic

Vor. VI. D cloth,

13. Some Account of the Elaftic-Gum Vine.

cloth, in fome degree correfpondent to the elafticity of the
gum, were uled for boots, ftockings, gloves, and other arti-
cles where that property was neceflary, that the defects
above- mentioned might in a great meafure be remedied. I
accordingly made my firft experiment with Coflimbazar
ftockings and gloves.

Having dexvis them upon the wax moulds, I plunged
them into veflels containing the milk, which the cloth
greedily abforbed. When taken out, they were fo com-
pletely diftended with the gum in folution, that, upon be-
coming dry by expofure to the air, not only every thread,
but every fibre of the cotton had its own diftinét envelope,
and, in confequence, was equally capable of refifting the ac-
tion of foreign bodies as if of folid gum.

The firft coat by this method was of fuch thicknefs, that,
for ftockings or gloves, nothing farther was neceffary. What
were intended for boots required a few more applications of
milk with the fingers, and were finifhed as thofe made with
the gum only.

This mode of giving cloth asa bafis I found to bea very
great improvement; for, befides the addition of ftrength re-
ceived by the gum, the operation was much {fhortened.

Woven fubftances, that are to be covered with the gum,
as alfo the moulds on which they are to be placed, ought to
be confiderably larger than the bodies they are afterwards in-
tended to fit ; for, being much contrasted from the abforp-
tien of the rajlliy little rales takes place in this diminu-
tion in fize even when dry, as about one-third only of the
fluid evaporates before the gum acquires its folid form.

Great attention muft be paid to prevent one part of the
gum coming in contact with another while wet with the
milk, or its whey; for, the inftant that takes place, they be-
come infeparably united. _ But fhould we ever fucceed in,
haying large plantations of our own vine, or in transferring
the American tree (which is, perhaps, more productive), ta
our poffeffions, fo that milk could be procured: in fufficient
quantity for the covering various cloths, which fhould be
done on the fpot, and afterwards exported to Europe, then
the advantages attending» this fingular property of the milk,

would

Some Account of the Elaftic-Gum Vine. “tg

would for ever balance its difadvantages: cloths, and cover-
ings of different defcriptions, might then be made from this
gum-cloth with an expedition fo much greater than by the
needle that would at firft appear very furprifing; the edges
of the feparate pieces only requiring to be wet with the milk,
or its whey, and brought into conta&, when the article
would be finifhed and fit for ufe. Should both milk and
whey be wanting, a folution of the gum in ether can always
be obtained, by which the fame end would be accomplifhed.

Of all the cloths upon’ which I made experiments, nan-
keen, from the ftrength and quality of its fabric, appeared
the beft calculated for coating with the gum. The method
T followed in performing this, was, to lay the cloth fmooth
upon a table, pour the milk upon it, and, with a ruler, to
fpread it equally. But, fhould this ever be attempted on a
larger fcale, I would recommend the following plan :—To
have a ciftern for holding the milk a little broader than the
cloth, to be covered with a crofs bar in the centre, which
muft reach under the furface of the milk, and two rollers at
one end. Having filled the ciftern, one end of the piece of
cloth is'to be paffed under the bar, and through between the
rollers; the former keeping the cloth immerfed in the milk,
the latter in preffing out what is fuperfluous, fo that none
may be loft. The cloth can be hung up at full length to
dry, and the operation repeated until of whatever thicknefs
wanted. For the reafons above-mentioned, care muft be
taken that one fold does not come in contact with another
while wet. .

Having obferved that moft of the patent catheters and
bougies made with a folution of the elaftic gum, whether
in ether or in the effential oils, had either a difagreeable
ftickinefs, or were too hard tq admit of any advantage being
derived from the elafticity of the gum; I was induced to make
fome experiments with the milk towards remoying thefe ob-
jections.

From that fluid, by evaporation, I made feveral large-
fized bougies of pure gum, which, from their over-flexibility,
were totally ufelefs, I them took fome flips of fine cloth co-
y¢red with the gum, which I rolled up until of a proper fize,

Da and

20 Some Account of the Elaflic-Gum Vine.

and which I rendered folid, by foaking them in the milk
and then drying them, Thefe poffeffed more firmnefs than
the former, but in no degree fufficient for the purpofe in-
tended. Pieces of ftrong catgut, coated with the gum, I
found to anfwer better than either.

Befides an effectual cloathing for manufacturers employed

with the mineral acids, which had been long a defideratum,
this fubftance, under different modifications, might be ap-
plied to a number of other ufeful purpofes in life; fuch as
making hats, great coats, boots, &c, for failors, foldiers,
fifhermen, and every other defcription of perfons who, from
their purfuits, are expofed to wet ftockings ; for invalids, who
fuffer from damps ; bathing caps, tents, coverings for carri-
ages of all kinds, for roofs of houfes, trunks, buoys, &e,

This extraordinary vegetable produétion, in place of being
injured by water at its nfual temperature *, ts preferved by
it. For a knowledge of this circumftance I am indebted
to the Chinefe. Haying, fome years ago, commiffioned ar-
ticles made of the elaftic-gum, from China, I received them
in a {mall jar filled up with water; in which ftate I have
fince kept them without obferying any figns of decay.

Should it ever be deemed an object to attempt plantations
of the elattic- -gum vine in Bengal, I would recommend the
foot of the Chittagong, Rajmahal, and Bauglipore hills, as
fituations where there is eyery probability of fucceeding,
being very fimilar in foil and climate to the places of its

rowth on Prince of Wales’s Ifland. It would, however,
be advifable to make the firft trial at this fettlement, to learn
in what way the propagation of the plant might be moft
fuccefsfully conduéted. A further experience may alfo be
neceffary to afcertain the feafon when the miik can be pro-
cured of the beft quality, and in the greateft quantity, with
the leaft detri iment to the vine.

* From an account of experiments made with the elaftic gum by
M. Groffart, inferted in the Angles de Chimie for 1792, it appears, that
water, when boiling, has 4 power of. partially diffolving the gum fo as to
reuder one part capable of being finally joined to another by preflure only,

VI, Experis

G wet 3

VL. Experiments and Obfervations on Shell and Bone. By
Cuarves Hatcuett, E/g. F.R.S.*

Some experiments which I lately made at the requett of
Mr. Home, and which he has done me the honour to mene
tion in his ingenious paper on the teeth of granivorous qua-
drupeds, induced me to turn my attention more particularly
to the chemical examination of fhell and bone, efpecially as
the former appeared to have been hitherto much neglected.

The time fince thefe experiments were begun, has not been
fufficient to enable me to enter into. all the minutiz of the
chemical analyfis of thefe fubftances; but, as fome remark=
able faéts were afcertained, I have now ventured-to bring

‘them forward, with the addition of {ome obfervations, al-
though as yet the whole is little more than a yery imperfeét
outline.

The firft of thefe experiments were made on the fhells of
marine animals; and to avoid repetition and prolixity, I
fhall, in a great meafure, once for all, defcribe the menftrua,
the precipitants, and the mode of operation.

When fhells were examined, they were immerfed in acetous
acid, or nitric acid, diluted, according to circumftances, with
four, five, fix, or more parts of diftilled water; and the folu-
tion was always made without heat. )

The carbonate of lime was precipitated by the carbonate
of ammonisc, or of pot-afh ; and phofphate of lime {if pre-
fent) was previoufly precipitated by pure or cauftic ammo-
niac.

If any other phofphate like that of foda was fufpected, it
was difcovered by folution of acetite of lead.

Bones and teeth were alfo fubje¢ted to the ation of the
acetous, or diluted nitric and muriatic acids.

The diffolved portion was examined by the above-men-
tioned precipitants; and, in experiments where the quantity
of the fubftance would permit, the phofphoric acid was alfo
feparated by nitric or fulphuric acid, The phofphoric acid
thus obtained, was proved after concentration by experi-

* Brom the Philgloprical Tranfadions for 1799
‘ ments,

22 Experiments and Ob/fervations

ments, which being ufually employed for fuch purpofes, are
too well known to require defcription.

It is neceflary moreover to obferve, that as the fubftances
examined were very numerous, aud my principal object was
to difeover the moft prominent characters in them, I did not
for the prefent attempt in general to afcertaim minutely the
proportions fo much as the number and quality of their re-
fpective ingredients.

The greater part, if not all, of mariue fhells, appear to be
of two defcriptions in refpeét to the fubftance of which they
are compofed. Thofe which will be firft noticed have a por-
cellaneous afpeét with an enamelled furface, and when broken
are often, in a flight degree, of a fibrous texture.

The fhells of the other divifion have generally, if not al-
ways, a ftrong epidermis, under which is the fhell, princt-
pally or entirely compofed of the fubftance called nacre, ot
mother-of-pearl.

Of the porcellaneous fhells, various fpecies of yoluta, cy-
prea, and others of a fimilar nature were examined. .

Of the fhells compofed of nacre, or mother-of-pearl, I
felected the oyfter, the river mulcle, the Aaliotis iris, and
the turbo olearius,

Experiments on Porcellaneous Shells.

Shells of this defcription, when expofed to a red heat in a
crucible during about a quarter of an hour, crackled and loft
the colours of their enamelled furface; they did not emit
any apparent fmoke, nor any fmell like that of burnt horn
or cartilage. Their figure remained unchanged, excepting a
few flaws; and they became of an opaque white, tinged par-
tially with pale grey, but retained part of their original glofs,

The fhells which had not been expofed to fire (whether
entire or in powder) diffolved with great effervefcence in the
various acids; and the folutton afterwards remained colour-
lefs and tranfparent. But the hells which had been burned,
upon being diffolved, depofited a very fmall quantity of ani-
mal coal; and thereby the prefence of fome gluten was de-

noted, although the proportion was too {mall to be difcovered

in the folution of the fhells which had not been burned.

) The |

~

on Shell and Bone. 23

The various folutions were filtrated, and were examined
by pure ammoniac and acetite of lead; but I never obtained
any trace of phofphate of lime, nor of any other combination
of phofphoric acid.

The carbonate of lime-was afterwards precipitated by car-
bonate of ammoniac; and from many experiments it ap-
peared, that porcellaneous fhells confift of carbonate of lime,
cemented by a very fmall portion of animal gluten.

Previous to the experiments on fhells compofed of nacre,
or mother-of-pearl, I examined fome patellz from Madeira.

When thefe were expofed to a red heat in a crucible, there
was a perceptible {mell, like that of horn, hair, or feathers.

The proportion of carbonic matter depofited by the fubfe-
guent folution was more confiderable than that of the thells
above mentioned, and the proportion of carbonate of lime
relative to their weight was lefs.

When the recent “thells were immerfed in very dilute nitric
acid, the epidermis was feparated, the whole of the carbo-
nate of lime was diffolved, and a gelatinous fubfiance, nearly
liquid, remained, but without retaining the figure of the
fhell, and without any fibrous appearance.

Thefe fhells evidently, therefore, contain a larger pibilicie
of a more vilcid gelatinous fubftance than thofe before men-
tioned ; but the folution feparated from the gelatinous fub-
ftance afforded nothing but carbonate of lime.

Experiments on Shells compofed of Nacre, or Mother-of- Peart.

When the thell of the common oyfter was expofed. to a
red heat, the effects were the {ame as thofe obferved in the
patell ; and the folution of the unburned {hell was fimilar,
only the gelatinous part was of a greater confiftency.

A fpecies of the river mufcle was next fubjected to expe-
riment. This, when, burned in a crucible, emitted much
fmoke, with a ftrong {mell of burned cartilage, or horn; the
fhell throughout became of a dark-grey, and exfoliated. By
folution in the acids a:large quantity of carbonic matter was
feparated; and much lefs of carbonate of lime was, obtained
from a given weight. of the fhell than from, thofe already
mentioned,

Upon

24 Experiments and Obfervations

Upon immerfing an unburned fhell in dilute nitric acid,
a rapid folution and effervefcence at firft took place, but gra~
dually became lefs, fo that the difengagement of the’ carbonic
acid gas was to be perceived only at intervals.

At the end of’ two days I found nearly’ the whole of the
carbonate'of lime! diffolved, but a feries of membranes re-
taining the’ firure of the fhell remained, of which the epi-
dermis comttituted the firft.

In:the beginning the carbonate of lime was’ readily dif-
folved, becaufe the acid menftruum had an eafy atcefs; but
after this it had more difficulty to infinuate itfelf between the
different membranes, ahd of courfe the folution of the car-
bonate of lime was flower.

During the folution the carbonic acid gas was entangled,
and retained in many places between the membranes, fo as
to give to the whole a cellular appearance.

The 4aliotis iris and the turbo olearius refembled this
mufcle, excepting that their membranaceous parts were
more compact and denfe.

Thefe fhells, when deprived, by an ‘acid menttruum, of
their hardening fubftance, or carbonate of lime, appear to be
formed of various membranes applied {tratum fuper ftratum.

Eachomembrane has a correfponding coat or craft of car-
bonate’of lime; which is fo fituated that it is alwys between —
every two membranes, beginning’ with the epidermis, and
ending with the laft formed internal membrane,

The animals which inhabit thefe ftratified hells, increafe
their habitation by the addition of a ftratum of carbonate of
lime, fecured by a new membrane; and as every additional”
ftratum exceeds in extent that which was previoutly formed,
the fhell becomes ftronger in proportion as it is enlarged, and
the growth and age of the animal becomes dehbted by the
number of the ftrata which concur to form'the hell.

Although the Aaliotis iris and the turbo olearius are com-
pofed of the true’ mother-of-pearl, [was induced to repeat
the foregoing experiments on fome detached pieces of mother-
ofspearl, fuch’ as are brought frora China.

Thefe: experiments I fieed ‘not defcribe; as the’refults were
precifely the fame.

I mutt,

on Shell and Bone. a5

T muft, however, obferve, that the membranaceous or car--
tilaginous parts of thefe hells, as of the pieces of mother-of-
pearl, retained the exaét figure of the fhell or piece which
had been immerfed in the acid menftruum; and thefe mem-
branaceous parts diftinétly appeared to be compofed of fibres
placed in a parallel direction, correfponding to the configura-
tion of the fhell.

The fame experiments were made on pearls ; which proved
to be fimilar in compofition to the mother-of-pearl; and fo
far as their fize would enable me to difcern, they appeared
to be formed by concentric coats of membrane and carbo-
nate of lime: by this ftructure they much refemble the
globular calcareous concretions found at Carl{bad, and other
places, called pi/olithes. .

The wavy appearance and irradiancy of mother-of-pearl,
and of pearl, are evidently the effe&t of their lamellated ftruc-
ture and femi-tranfparency ; in which, in fome degree, they
are refembled by the lamellated ftone, called. adularia.

When the experiments on the porcellaneous fhells, and on
thofe formed of mother-of-pearl, are compared, it appears
that the porcellaneous fhells are compofed of carbonate of
lime, cemented by a very {mall portion of qluten ; and that
mother-of-pearl, and pearl, do not differ from thefe, except
by a fmaller proportion of carbonate of lime; which, inftead
of being fimply cemented by animal gluten, is intermixed
with, and ferves to harden a membranaceous or cartilagi-
~ nous fubftance; and this fubftance, even when deprived of
the carbonate of lime, fill retains the figure of the fhell.

But between thefe extremes there will probably be found
many gradations ; and thefe we have the greater reafon to
expect, from the example afforded. by the patella, which
have been lately mentioned.

Some few experiments were made on certain land-fhells
and in the common garden-{nail I thought that I difcovered
fome traces of phofphate of lime; but as I did not find any
in the belix memoralis, it may be doubted whether the pre-
fence of phofphate of lime fhould be confidered as a chemical
charaéter of land-fhells *.

; igh Experi-
* Some experiments which I have lately made upon the cuttle-bone of
Vou. Vi. E the

26 Experiments and Obfervations

E: x iei8 iments on the covering a of Crufiacecus Marine
Animals *
_ As I was not acquainted with any experiments by which
the chemical nature of the fubftance which covers crufta-
ceous marine animals had been determined, I was defirous
to afcertain in what refpeéct it was different from fhell; and
I began thefe experiments on three fpecies of the echinus,
with which I had been favoured by the Right Hon, Prefident.

I was the more inclined to begin with the echini, becanfe
naturalifts do not appear to be perfectly agreed whether to
call them teftaceous or cruftaceous animals.

Klein, who has written a work upon echini, after having
noticed the various opinions of Rondelet, Rumphius, and
others, determines that they are to be regarded as teftaceous
animals. His words are: “ Sic plurimas teftas marinas, in
** {tatu natural confideratas, cum echinodermatis potius quam.
*“ cum cruftis aftacorum vel cancrorum conferre licebit. Ita-
“* que echinoderma cum Ariftotele qui echinos inter teftacea
“* quibus facultas ingrediendi eft reponit, mec non cum Be-
*<lonio, Aldrovando, et excellentiflimo Sloanio religiofé tef-
tam appellamus, quam fatis duram in nonnullis offendi-
<< Sth

Bat Linnieus was of the contrary opinion, as appears from
his definition of the echinus: ‘* Corpus fubrotundum crufla
** offea teélum {pimis mobilibus feepius afpera t.”’

Now, as the experiments above related had proved that
the thells of marine animals were compofed of carbonate of
lume, without any phofphate, I thought it very poffible that
the covering of the cruftaceous animals might, in fome re-.
fpect, be diferent; and if fo, I fhould thus, by chemical
the thops have proved that the term Jove is here mifapplied, if the pre-
fence of pholpiaty of. lime is to be regarded as the charaéteriftic of bone ;
for this fubslance in compofition is exaélly fimilar to thell, and confitts of
various membranes hardened by carbonate of lime, without the fmalleft
mixture of photphore. ! -

* Under thus head f have included my experiments upon echini, ftar-
fith, crabs, lawless, bec.

+ Kier Naturalis Dilpofitio Echinadermatum, &c. p. 10.

t Syfema Naiure. Edit, Gmelin, p. 3163.

, charaéters,

-

Bay

on Shell and Bone. 27

tharacters, be enabled to afcertain the clafs to which the
echinus was to be referred.

Of the three echini which were examined, one had fmall
fpines; the fecond had large obtufe fpires; and the third
was of a very flat form.

Portions of thefe echini were feparately immerfed in acetous,
muriatic, and diluted nitric acid, by each of which they were
completely diffolved with mugh effervefcence; depofiting at
the fame time a thin outer fkin, or epidermis. The tranfpa-
rency of the folutions was alfo difturbed by a portion of gluten
which remained fufpended, and communicated a brownifh
colour to the liquors.

The folutions in acetous and diluted nitric acid were fil-
trated; after which, from the acetous folution of each echi-
aus, I obtained a precipitate of phofphate of lead by the ad-
dition of acetite of lead; and having thus proved the prefence
of phofphoric acid, I faturated the nitric folutions with pure
ammoniac, by which a quantity of phofphate of lime was
ebtained, much inferior, however, in quantity to the carbo-
nate of lime, which was afterwards precipitated by carbonate
of ammoniac.

The compofition of the cruft of the echinus is therefore
different from that of marine fhells ; and by the relative pro-
portions and nature of the ingredients, it approaches moft
nearly to the fhells of the eggs of birds; which in like man-
ner confilt of carbonate, with a {mall proportion of phofphate

ef lime cemented by gluten.

It remained now to examine the compofition of thofe fub-
ftances which are decidedly called cruftaceous; but previous
to this, fome experiments were made on the-afterias or ftar-
fifth, of which I took the fpecies commonly found on our
coafts, and known by the popular name of five fingers (a/fe-
vias rubens.) 4

The afterias is thus deferibed by Linnzus. Corpus de-
preflum, fubtus fulcatum ; crufta coriacea, tentaculis mu-
ricata *,”’

When the afterias was immerfed in the acids, a confider-
able effervefcence was produced, and a thin external ftratum
* Syftema Nature. Ed. Gmelin, p.3160.

‘ E.2 was

28 Experiments and Obfervations

was diffolved; after which it remained in. a. perfectly coria-
ceous ftate, and complete in refpeéct to the original figure.
The diffolved portion, being examined by the ufual preci-
pitants, proved to be carbenate of lime, without any mixture
of phofphate; but in another fpecies of the afterias, which
had twelve rays (afferias pappofa), 1 difeovered a {mall quan-
tity of phofphate of lime. I am therefore induced to fufpe&
that, in the different fpecies of the afterias, nature makes an
imperfect attempt to form fhell on fome, and a cruftaceous
coating on others; and that a feries of gradations is thus
formed between the teftaceous, the cruflaceous, and the
coriaceous marine animals.

It was now requifite to afcertain if phofphate of lime is a
component part of the fubftance which covers the cruftaceous
marine or aquatic animals, fuch as the crab, lobfter, prawn,
and crayfith.

Pieces of this fubftance, taken from various parts of thofe
animals, was at different times immerfed in acetous and in
diluted nitric acid; thofe which had been placed in the di-
Juted nitric acid produced a moderate effervefcence, and in
a fhort time were found to be foft and elaftic, of a yellowith-
white colour, and like a cartilage, which retained the original
figure.

The fame effects were produced by acetous acid, but in a
lefs degree; in the latter cafe, alfo, a colouring matter re-
mained, and was foluble in alcohol.

All the folutions, both acetous and nitric, afforded carbo-
nate and phofphate of lime, although the former was in the
Jargeft proportion.

There is reafon to conclude, therefore, that phofphate of
lime, mingled with the carbonate, is a chemical characteriftic
which diftinguifhes the cruftaceous from the teftaceous fub-
ftances; and that the principal difference in the qualities of
each, when complete, is caufed by the proportion of the har-
dening fubftances relative to the gluten by which they are
cemented, or by the abundance and confiftency of the gela-
tinous, membranaceous, or cartilaginous fubftance, in and
on which the carbonate of lime, or the mixture of carbonate
and phofphate of lime, has been fecreted and depofited.

Moreover,

on Shell and Bone. 29

Moreover, as the prefence of phofphate of lime, mingled with
carbonate, appears to be a chemical character of cruftaceous
marine animals, there is every reafon to conclude that Lin-
nus did right not to place the echini among the teftaceous
" ones. .

The prefence of phofphate of lime in the fubftance which
covers the cruftaceous marine animals appears to denote an
approximation to the nature of bone, which, not only by the
experiments of Mr. Gahn, but by the united teftimony of all
chemifts, has been proved principally to confiit (as far as the
offifying fubftance is concerned) of phofphate of lime.

This confideration, therefore, induced me to repeat the
above experiments on the bones of various animals,

It is fcarcely neceflary for me to mention the ufual effects
of acids on bones fteeped in them, as they are known to every
phyfiologift and anatomift.

In every operation of this nature the offifying fubftance,
which is principally phofphate of lime, is diffolved, and a
cartilage or membrane of the figure of the original bone re-
mains; fo that the firft origin of bones appears to be by the
formation of a membrane or cartilage of the requifite figure,
which, when the {nbfequent fecretion of the offifying fub-
ftance takes place, is penetrated by, and thus becomes more
or lefs converted into the ftate of bone.

It is alfo known that the nature of the bone is more influ-
enced by the greater or lefs predominance of the membrana-
ceous or cartilaginous part than by any other caufe. It is
not, therefore, for me to add any thing to this part: and in
refpec to the fubftance which is the caufe of offification, little
alfo requires to be mentioned ; for this (as has been already
obferved) is known principally to confift of phofphate of
lime. I fhall only, therefore, briefly mention the refult of
certain experiments.

[To be continued, ]

VII. Hiflory

Leah 745

VIL. Hiffory of Affronomy for the Year 1799. ‘By JunoMeE
Latanpe. Read at the Lyceum onthe 26th of December.

aL His > year will be memorable on account of the totak
sietitetiont of that immenfe operation refpecting the fize of
the earth, which lafted feven years. Thofe able aftronomers,
Delambre and Mechain, who finifhied i it, arrived in the month
of November 1798, and by the month of January were able
to give us the value of the degrees between Dunkirk and
Barcelona. But, as thefe degrees did not follow an uwniforny
progrefs, 1t was foon found, that, to deduce from them the
value of the metre, or the new French meafure, 2 difeuffion
was neceflary, on the oblate form of the earth, to be adopted.
Ffad they adhered to the arc meafured between Dunkirk and
Barceiona, they would have had ;2., or nineteen leagues,
for the flatnefs at the poles; but, by comparing it with the
degree meafured under the Equator, they found only nine
leagues and a half.

On the 8th of April, after a long difcuffion, they adopted
the latter quantity, and the new metre was determined to be
36 inches 11°296 lines, and the flatnefs of the earth ;4-..

On the 5th of May C. Van Swinden, a eelebrated Dutch
philofopher, made a definitive report on the grand labour
of the meridian and the metre, which was afterwards read
im a public fitting of the Inftitute.

On the 22d of June the Inftitute prefented to the two.
councils the original ftandards of the metre and kilogramme
of platina, which were placed in the magnificent depot of the
national archives in the national palace, formerly the Thuil-
leries. :

On the 17th of November the confuls propofed | a law to
declare that the metre and the kilogramme are the Uefinitive
ftandards of France, and to caufe a medal to be ftruck in
commemoration of this grand undertaking. On one fide is

to be reprefented the Republic holding the metre and the kilo- -

gramme, with this infeription, ‘To all ages and all nations ;””
and on the exergue, ** French Republic, year 7.” The figure
will be on a plinth of five centimetres, The reverfe will ex-

hibe

Fiflory of Aflronomy for the Year 1799- at
hibit the globe of the earth, a pair of eompaffes extended from
the Equator, to the Pole, the conttellation of the Leffler Bear,
and the following infcription— Unity of meafures, ten mul-
lionth-part of a quarter of the meridian.” The diameter of
the medal will be two inches, and will be executed by C,
Joufiroy. It was propofed in a report prefented to the In-
ftitute on the 20th of October, by C. David, Moitte, Leblond
Mongez, Laplace, Delambre, Leveque and Goflelin, and was
adopted by a law of December 10.

By reducing thefe meafures to the temperature of ten de-
erces, which is the mean degree of the heat at Paris, and
that in the caverns below the obfervatory, [ find the 45th
degree to be 57012 .toifes, inftead of 57031 which I had
adopted i in my aftronomy. This is 19 oe Jefs; the mean
radius of the earth 4268159 toifes, lefs by 1323 toifes than
my table, which hitherto has ferved asa rule in books of
natural philofophy. . This, without, doubt, 1s very little in
regard to the extent of the earth: we are therefore pretty
well acquainted with its fize, but we are not fufliciently ac-
quainted with its irregularities ; and this, at any rate, is one
important rejult from this new labour. ¢

This year has furnrfhed three new comets. On the 6th
of Decembet 1798, C. Bouvard difcovered, at the obferva-
tory, a Imall one in the conflellation of Hercules; it was
feen only during fix days, and difappeared on the 11th of
December in Aquarius, but C. Burckhardt calculated its
orbit with all the precifion poffible*.

C. Mechain, to whom we are already indebted for the
difcovery of fo many comets, found one on the morning of
the 7th of Augnft, which is the goth according to the general
catalogue in the third edition of my Afironomy. It was very
fmall and without any tail, but, exceedingly clear; it was
above the Lynx, in the eonftellation which Hell formed in
1790, under the name of the Grand Telefcope of Herfchel.
At three o’clock in the morning it had 107° 47’ of right
afcenfion, and 43° 54! of north declination. It was among
the flars which C. Lefrangais obferved on the gth of.March
1794, fo that very cxact pofitions were immediately obtained,

** Conngiffance des Tems, an. 10. p. 380.

Cs Mechain

32 Hiftery of Aftronomy for the Year 1799.

C. Mechain and C. Burckhardt each calculated the orbit
with that ardour and readinefs which are natural to thefe able
aftronomers: C. Meffier followed its progrefs, according to
his ufual cuftom, with indefatigable affiduity, for more than
two months, till the 25th of OGober, when it difappeared
on the eaftern knee of Ophiuchus. During this long appear-
ance our collection of 50,coo ftars has often furnifhed im-
portant points for the reduétion of thefe obfervations. On
the Jaft day it was near a ftar of the fixth maghitude, the
pofition of which I have given in the Connaiffance des Tems
for the year 10. All the obfervations of C. Mechain and
Meffier will be publifhed in detail: fome of them have a
wonderful degree of perfection, becaufe they were made by
means of an excellent meridian telefcope, at the Maifon du
Champ de Mars (Military School) by C. Lefrangais and
Burckhardt.

This day alfo, December 26, 1799, at half after fiye in the
morning, C. Mechain difcovered a new comet in Ophiuchus,
which will be the gift. It had about 269° of right afcenfion
and 5° of northern declination. It appeared to the naked eye
as a ftar of 5th and 6th magnitude in the telefcope. Its nu-
éleus was exceedingly luminous, and almoft bounded : it
had a very narrow tail, of a pretty intenfe light, and about
7° in length. It advanced towards the fouth fo rapidly that,
- it was apprehended it could not long be obferved, unlefs it
fhould appear in the weft after having traverfed a part of the
fouthern hemifphere.

As the moft defective part of aftronomy at prefent is what
relates to comets, I muft recommend them to all our corre-
fpondents. The Bureau des Longitudes has fent a night te-
lefeope to C. Flaugergues at Viviers, who has promifed to
make ufe of it.

C. Mougin, in the department of Doubs, has promifed the
fame thing; but, being a prieft, he was obliged to quit La
Grand ’Combe-des-Bois, where he was curé, and where, fince
1766, he had made many obfervations and calculations, and
had heen banifhed to a hollow valley where he could no
Janger have a proper view of the heavens. The government
has thought proper to fuffer him to refume his labours, and

9 to

Hiftory of Afironomy for ihe Year 1799. 33
to return to his ancient habitation, which is more convenient
for fearching out comets. : ;

To render this fearch more fuccefsful, I have propofed to
mount a Newtonian telefcope in fuch a manner as to be
moveable around the eye-glafs, by means of a handle,
without changing the place of the eye. M. Von Zach has
caufed this machine to be engraved, and I hope that, at a

. more favourable period, it will be executed, and be the means

of difcovermg new comets. If, in the courfe of forty-three

years, the fame number has been difcovered by fearching for
them with plain telefcopes without any fupport, how many
ought-we. not to find by the method I propofe, which will
not {uffer the leaft portion of the heavens to efcape obferya-

tion?

C. Piétet, the celebrated profeffor of natural philofophy at

Geneva, and director of the obfervatory, has fent us the draw-
ing of an Englith telefcope, which, with a hinge and fmall arch

of copper, becomes parallactic, and proper for following the
fiars, and for making the greater part of aftronomical obferv-
ations. J hope opticians, who make ftands for telefcopes,
will take advantage of this hint, ‘fince mere amateurs, with an
achromatic telefcope, will thus be enabled, without farther
expence, to find out and to follow ftars in the open day,
and to fearch for comets, of which we at prefent ftand in
need.

The great work on the ftars, which I began in 1789, has
been carried by C. Lefrangais to nearly 50,000, notwith-
ftanding the unfavourablenedfs of the feafons, which has ren-
dered this year one of the moft difagreeable and unfruitful
feen at Paris. Thefe {tars have been already printed in my
Hifioire Celefte, the firft volume of which, as well as my
Bibliographie Aftronomigue, will appear as foon as the ftate
of the finances will admit of funds being applied to the
printing-houle of the Republic. C. Burckhardt has continued
to make, with C. Lefrancais, a great number of important
obfervations on the planets and ftars; for, as there are two
excellent inftruments at the Maifon du Champ de Mars, -
thefe are fufficient to employ thofe two able aftronomers.

Madam Lefrangais has made for the Connoiffance des

Vou. VL Ly Tems

4

34 Hiflory of Aflrononty for the Year 1799.

Tems of the year 10, which has juft appeared, and that of
the year 11, now printing, catalogues of 3000 fiars reduced
and calculated: fhe has therefore. given us in the whole
10,000. But C. Burckhardt has made tables of a new form,
which will enable him to calculate with eafe the whole
of the 50,000 ftars which have been obferved.

The obliquity of the ecliptic being one of the fundamental
objects of aftronomy, we have continued to obferve it at the
two folftices of this year. We found it in the month of June
5” more than what is given in my table; but C. Mechain,
in the month of December, found it 8” lefs than in my table.
This difference arifes probably from the refraction in winter,
which is not yet fufficiently known. This queftion we hope
to refolve in the prefent year by comparing better the two
folftices.

The obfervatory was in want of good inftruments, but we
have at length been able to obtain fome. The large mural
quadrant of C. Lemonnier, which General Bonaparte pro-
cured for us, has been erected, as well as that of five feet,
which C. Lemonnier Jent me in 1751 to obferve the moon
with at Berlin, and an excellent meridian telefcope executed
_ by C. Lenoir, with an objeét-glafs by C, Caroché. The
latter made alfo the harge fpeculum of the twenty-two feet
telefecope which was at La Muette, and which was equal to
that of Herfchel of the fame length. The telefeope of pla-
tina, which they withed to take from us, has been fecured
to the obfervatory by a decifion of the minifter of the inte-
rior. Thus nothing is wanting to the moft beautiful obferv~
atory in the world, to render it at the fame time the moft
ufeful.

We hope at the Peace to have a telefcope of forty feet,
with fpecula of platina. On the 7th of Auauft, 7th year,
a decree was made by the Inftitute that the platina we have
fhould be referved for the large telefcope until we obtain
from Spain a greater quantity. We have already 200 pounds,
but we muft procure at leaft 2000 for the fpeculum, which
the intimate connection between France and Spain gives us
reafon to hope will be the cafe.

Mr. Brown, an ingenious optician of London, has made

telefcopes,

Hiftory of Aftronomy for the Year 1799. 35
telefcopes, the tubes of which always remain horizontal, and
in which the image of the objeé is thrown on the eye-glafs
by means of a plain fpeculum.

The Minifter of the Marine has augmented the falary of
the Aftronomers of the Marine at Marfeilles, and C. Thulis
has refumed his obfervations with new zeal. The obferva-
tories of C, Darquier at Touloufe, Duc-la-Chapelle at Mon-
tauban, and Flaugergues at Viviers, have furnifhed us with
many ufeful obferyations. .

The grand and important work of C. Laplace, entitled
La Mecanique Celefle, expected with fo much impatience,
appeared on the 6th of September. In that work will be
found the methods and noble analyfis which led the author
to the important difcoveries which I have feveral times an-
nounced and extolled in this hiftory,

C. Burckhardt tranflated it into German with explanatory
notes, at the fame time that he read the proofs of the French
edition, and went over all the calculations. No author ever
had, or was more worthy of having, a tranflator of fo great
merit. The Bureau des Longitudes, who had long known

‘the zeal and ability of C. Burckhardt, have unanimoufly

elected him to a place vacant three years, though it had
been folicited-for by feveral men of letters, of approved ta-
lents, and natives of France. But C. Burckhardt has got
himfelf adopted by France; he has preferred it to his own
country, which he will no lefs honour by labouring with us.
In the laft century, Caffini, Huyghens, Romer, and Maraldi,
came in like manner to reinforce aftronomy in France; but
at that period it had more need of fuch affiftance. There
were then only two or three French aftronomers ; at prefent
we have feven or eight,

M. Schubert has publifhed in German, at Peterfburgh, a
work on Phyfical Aftronomy in two yolumes quarto, jn which
are found calculations of the perturbations of all the planets.

C. Caufflin has finifhed the tranflation of the Arabic ma-
nufcript of Ibn Tunis. In this work there are more than 4
hundred obfervations, thirty of which are of eclipfes. I had
found a fragment of it among the manu{cripts of Jofeph de
J.ifle, my old matter.

F2 The

36 Hiflory of Aftronomy for the Year 1499.

~The Inftitute deereed, on the 2d of December, that the
Minifter for Foreign Affairs fhould be requefted to borrow
at Leyden the manufcript. of Ibn Tunis, in order that the
Arabic text might be printed; and we have reafon to believe
that this requeft will be granted.

C. Bouvard has calculated the Greek and Arabic eclipfes,
and found that 3'13” muft be added to the anomaly, 8’ 30”
to the fecular movement of the anomaly of the moon, anda
minute to the fupplement of the node for 1790, and that its
fecular movement muft be diminifhed 2/ 48”.

C. Laplace has determined by theory two equations of the
moon. Two long memoirs, tranfnitted to the Inftitute in
confequence of the prize we propofed, contain many obferv-
ations and calculations on the fame fubje&. This-part of our
tables, therefore, fo interefting to navigation, has acquired
this year a new degree of perfection.

On the 8th of May we obferved, for the 17th time, the
tranfit of Mercury over the Sun’s difk. It is the firft ever
completely obferved at the defcending node, and there will
not be another of the fame kind till the expiration of thirty-
two years. It was impatiently expected by all the aftrono-
mers. It was obferved throughout all Europe; and C. De-
Jambre has drawn up a work, with new-formulz, in order to
deduce from the tranfits of Mercury all the confequences
thence refulting.

C. Vidal, our real Hermophilus, has made at Mirepotx a
new feries of obfervations of Mercury in all parts of his
orbit; fo that we want nothing more in regard to this pla-
net, fo difficult to be feen in our chmates. This aftonifhing
obferver has fent us obfervations alfo of more than a thoufand
auftral ftars, which can fearcely be feen at Paris.on account
oftheir fmall elevation.

The Ephemerides of Milan for 1799 have furnifhed us
with a new feries of obfervations of Mercury by C. Cefaris.
In thefe I have the pleafure of finding that the errors of my
tables are almoft infenfible. [ have had the fame fatisfac-
tion in regard to the diereflion of Mercury in his aphelion
on the 12th af Aueuft. The diftance of the fun, andthe

eccentricity

Hiftory of Afironomy for the Year 1799. 37
eccentricity of that planet, were found to correfpond with
my tables, except a few feconds.

The inferior conjunction of Venus, on the 16th of O&o-
ber 1799, was a phenomenon alfo of importance for the
theory of this planet. It takes place only eyery eight years
in that part of her orbit. It was obferved with as much
affiduity as fuccefs by C. Lefrangais and Burckhardt, in my
obfervatory at the Maifon du Champ de Mars. I have com-
pared it with that of 1751, which was in the fame pofition,
and for which I had made a great number of calculations,

-and I have found fcarcely any ‘thing to be changed in the
elements which ferved for the conftruction of my tables of
Venus, publifhed in the third edition of my Aftronomy in

‘34792. This labour will be inferted in thse Memoirs of the
Inftitute.

On the 23d of November this beautiful planet was eclipfed
by the moon. This phenomenon would have attracted a
number of eyes, had it not been at four o’clock in the morn-
ing. Jupiter, which is not fo brilliant, drew together a
great crowd at the Palais Royal, on the 14th of March 1788,
to fee him on the point of being eclipfed.

Obfervations of Jupiter have proved that about 30” are to
be added to the tables, which fhews that we ought to make
a little addition to the mean motion: this I before proved in
difeuffing the ancient obfervations in the Almageft of Pto-
lemy. The oppofition of the 16th December 1799 gave

_me 30 feconds. C. Quenot, an able navigator, who has re-
turned from Egypt, obferved it with an aftronomical circle,
and obtained the fame refult. The latitude alfo was found.
too {mall by 15”; from which I conclude, that the longitude
of the node of Jupiter, which is in the tables of C. Delam-

bre, in the third edition of my Aftronomy, ought to be dimi-

pifhed 10’.

The tables of Mars are thofe moft deficient. C. Lefran-
cais, therefore, has been employed on them for fome months.
He has calculated all the oppofitions and quadratures hitherto
obferved with accuracy, and the refult will be tables more ac-
curate than any ever yet given, in which there will be only a
few feconds of uncertainty. C, Burckhardt has calculated the

f perturbations

38 Hiftory of Afironomy for the Year 1799.

perturbations of Mars by the action of Jupiter and the Earth,
which Schubert and Oriani had before ealeulated, and with-
out which we could not have hoped to carry our tables ta
the fame degree of perfection.

The collection of obfervations made at Greenwich by the
celebrated Bradley and his afliftants between 1750 and 1762
has appeared in England, but I have not yet been able to
procure it,

Mifs Herfchel has publifhed a volume on the ftars, not of
obfervations, but refearches refpecting the grand Britifh ca-
talogue of Flamftead, and the obferyations of that celebrated
aftronomer; where fhe has found 500 ftars which are not
iy the catalogue, as fhe has found many in the catalogue
which are not in the obfervations.

C. Kramp, Profeflor at Cologne, has publifhed an analyfis
of aftronomical refra€tions, in which he has been able to
determine the refraction accurately and algebraically with-
out employing any hypothefis or approximation, This work
leads us one flep farther in this difficult part\ of aftrenomy.
It was proclaimed, with the other important works of the
year 7, at the laft exhibition at the Mufeum.

The Academy of Stockholm has fent M. Swanberg to
Lapland to find out the ftations which ferved in 1736 for
meafuring a degree under the polar circle. He employed
hinfelf only in difeovering their local fituation; but he fays
he found two minutes error in the reduction of the ftations
to the horizon, which might have arifen from fome defe&
m the inftruments, or from terreftrial refraction. I have
been informed in a letter from Sweden, that Maupertuis
propofed to recommence the meafurement at his own ex-
pence. This proves that he was not entirely fatisfied with
the refult, which differs confiderably from many other de-
grees that have been meafured. The local inequalities of
the ground, however, may have heen the caufe of this di-
verfity.

€. Defortia, as well {killed in Greek as in Geometry, has
made a new tranflation, with learned notes, of the book of
Ariftarchus of Samos, re{pecting the diltance of the fun and
the moon, collated with ten other manufcripts, This cele-

brated

Hiflory of Ajlronomy for the Year 1799. 9

~ brated work contains the nobleft idea ever formed refpeCting

the manner of finding the diftance of the fun from the earth :
an idea which, in my opinion, furpaffes all thofe ever enter-
tained by the greateft aftronomers. I gave fome account of it
in the Journal des Savans for 1797 *, of which only twelve
theets were publithed between the 5th of January and the
zoth of Aucutft.

Phe Nautical Almanack for 1803 has been tranfmitted to
us by the care of Sir Jofeph Banks, Prefident of the Royal
Society, to whom we owe this public teftimony, that fince
the commencement of the war he has maintained the inter-
courte of the fciences. His name, his credit, and his fortune,
enabled him to overcome all ,obftacles, and to remove every
political impediment; for we have afked nothing from hina
which he has not taken the earlieft opportunity of granting.
The Minifter of the Marine renders the fame teftimony, and
acknowledges the favours he has received from Sir Jofeph
Banks.

Five volumes of the Afiatic Refearches have been pub-
lifhed at London, ‘They contain a great many obfervations
made by the Englith in different parts of India; together
with memoirs on the Indian aftronomy, the lunar year, and
the worfhip of the Indians,

Baron Humboldt has gone to Mexico with inftruments
and a chronometer by Berthoud, and we hope, to receive
from him interefting obfervations refpecting the geography
of acountry aloft unknown. He will employ himfelf alfo
on natural hiflory, a fabject with which he is well ac-
quainted +.

C. Nouet publiflied in the Decade du Caire feveral obferv-
ations made in Egypt; and general Bonaparte has caufed
them to be reprinted at Paris by Didot. C. Nouet in-

formed me in a letier, that he was going to proceed up the

Nile as far as the Tropic, where the famous wells of Syené
are fituated, and where no fhadow is obferyed in the day of
the folftice. We thall therefore have a real geography, ac-
* Page 106 and 203.
+ Two letters from M. Humboldt will be found among the Intelli-
gence for this month. Epir.
companied

40 Hiflory of Afironomy for the Year 1799.
companied with other obfervations of thofe famous countries
which gave birth ito aftronomy, and where it has been for-
gotten for 2000 years.

C. Caftera has given us, in two volumes 8vo. a tranflation
of the curious travels of Mungo Park into the interior parts
of Africa; and we at length know the real dire&tion of the
Senegal and the Niger, of which, after fix months refearch,
I made only one river in my Memoir on Africa, printed
among thofe of the Academy of Sciences for 1790, the laft
volume of that collection.

C. Montucla has given a new edition of his Hiftory of the
Mathematics, enlarged by one-half, and in which aftro-
nomy occupies a confiderable place.

In the National Library there has been found a manu-
{cript on Optics: by Ptolemy, which was fuppofed to have
been loft. It is a Latin tranflation from the Arabic.
€. Cauffin, by whom it was found, propofes to make
known this valuable manufcript.

M. Bode has fent us from Berlin the remainder of his
Farge and beautiful charts which reprefent the heavens. The
great number of flars with which I furnifhed him, gave me
a right to new conftellations. To fill up the vacant fpaces
he had put thirty-three animals in the heavens; and I have
added a thirty-fourth, vzz. the Cat, on account of that charm-
ing poem, of which Defherbiers has publifhed fome frag-
ments. This new conttellation of the Cat is between Hydra
and the Ship. It has been already engraved in Germany, and
will be inferted in M. Bode’s new Celeftial Atlas, of which
he has publithed twelve fheets. -

M. Hobert and Ideler, of Berlin, have publifhed Logarith-
mic Tables for the decimal fines, which will facilitate aftro-
nomical calculations, until the more extenfive tables, which
C. Proney caufed to be calculated at the Bureau du Cadaftre,
and which began to be printed fome years ago, are finifhed.

The ftereotype edition of Logarithmic Tables, publifhed
four years ago by Didot and Callet, which ought at length
to be free from all faults, has been correéted on the plates,
and there is reafon to think that they approach very near to
perfection, ;

6 We

Singular Phenomenon in a Thunder-Cloud: 4i
We wanted alfo fmall portable tables, and thefe C. Didot
‘has undertaken. I have begun an edition of Logarithms car-
ried to fix decimal places, like thofe given by myfelf and La-
caille in 1760, which were publifhed by Marie in t768, and
reprinted four times afterwards, but ftill with more faults
than the firft time. We at length, however, have a perma-
nent edition, which it will not be neceffary to reprint evexy
ten years with more errors than thofe before difcovered. —
M. Bogdanich, affiftant at the obfervatory of Buda, has
made, in feverat cities of Croatia, obfervations of great im-
portance to Geography.
[To be concluded in the next Number. ]

VIIL. Defeription of a fingular Phenomenon in a Thunder-
- Cloud. By L. C. LicHTENBERG*.

Ox a fummer’s day, exceedingly hot and fultry, the ba-
rometer being at 27 inches feven lines, and Reaumut’s ther-
mometer at 22', there was formed, about three in the after-
noon, to the north of Gotha, a dark thunder-cloud, having
the appearance of rocks piled upon each other, and in fhape
almoft like a mufhroom. (Plate 1. Fig. 1.) The magnificent
fpeétacle exhibited by this immenfe mafs floating in the blue
expanfe of the atmofphere excited my attention; and I foon
obferved, that, from the fmall part which reprefented the ftem
of the muthroom, there arofe a fine bright vapour, which in
a few moments formed a perfe& ring around this part of the
cloud. The ring feemed to be in violent agitation, by which
it became always more enlarged, fo that in the courfe of a
minute it exceeded the greateft breadth of the upper part of
the cloud. It then began to extend itfelf upwards and down-
wards, and in lefs than thirty feconds the whole cloud: was
enveloped in a tranfparent covering, (Fig. 2.) This pheno-
menon had fearcely continued a minute when the cloud
began to extend itfelf, as if by a current of air forced from
its interior, and to afflume the form of a fan. It now loft
its fmooth rim, which terminated, as it were, in fringes,

* From Mavazin fur das Neuefte aus der Phyfik, Vol. 1.
Vor. VI, G and

42 Syne" Obfervations on the Elk. 2,

‘and the wholé acquired the form of a thunder-cloud.. Some
minutes after, black rainy clouds, formed of the vapour driver
downwards, and of the remains of the covering, were col-
Tected ie: and J expected every moment to fee the firft
flath of lightning, which foon followed. A little rain fell at.
fome diftance, but within a quarter of an hour the cloud was

fo. diftended that it was foon loft fin a thin mift.. The fame

phenomenon, though not fo ftriking, I have fince feen in a
great. many other thunder-clouds, but inverted. Inftead of
a fine vapour being thrown out, and forming a covering, I
faw white Clouds! fink down, fpread themlelves out, like
a veil over the arched part of the cloud, and difperfe them-
felves in it. The reafon why the vapour thrown out from
the cloud here deferibed formed a ring, was its fingular form.
The vapour, by being forced out ‘on all fides, was fo com~
preffed that it could extend itfelf only edgeways, and. after-
wards diffufe itfelf round the cloud.
If this phenomenon be compared with the electric experi-

ment where a ball of cotton, fufpended by a filk thread, is in-:
troduced into a metal vellel of a cylindric form and fufficient:

width, and where the veffel is fometimes rendered electric

and fometimes deprived of its electricity, the idea I mean to;

convey by this defeription: will be yeadily conceived. 1 am
of opinion that I'can thereby prove that we might examine
the electric {tate of the upper regions of the atmofphere, and

even of the clouds, with accuracy, if the latter were obferved »

rmiore frequently than has hitherto been done, and were they
employed’as natural electrometers for this purpofe.

;

—

Ds: Obfervations, on the Polk. By the late E. WH. SMitTH,
P byfictan ae

Giek accounts hitherto publithed by Naturalifis, of the
Bik and the Moofe, two very remark able animals of the
deer kind, are confuted.and unfatisfactory. Befide the mif-
apprehenfions which they contain. relative to »both animals,
all the ditficulties. im: the way of obtaining jut notions con-

ieee ioe
* Prom the Ametican Medical Repofitor y, Vol. II. No: 20
cerning

Objfervations on the Elk} 43

cerning them have been increafed by the writers of zoology
having confounded one fpecies with the other. Another
fource of error probably exilts infome real diflimilarity be-
tween the elk or moofe of Berets and the clk and moofe of
North America.

The defcription of the selina! mvs by Mr. Dudley, (Phi-
lofoph. Tranf. No. 368, p. 165.) I have every reafon to! be-
lieve, is correct as far as it goes; but it applies firictly to the:
moofe, and not to the elk, which is a different animal. /

M. De Buffon (Hiftoire Naturelle, L’Elan et. Le Renne,):
appears, in feveral places, to have mingled: the deferiptions
of both animals, and certainly confidered elk and moofe as
two names for the fame creature.. And this is the more’re-
markable, as the feveral quotations which he has made from
different authors contain manifeft contradiétions ; as will be
evident to any perfon who has {een either the moofe or the
elk *. The reader of M. De Buffon, therefore, will, not be
furprifed if he obtain no clear notion of the Elan ; as it is not
probable that the illuftrious: author himfelf had a diftinét
conception of the fubject of his defeription.

In Mr. Smellie’s tranflation of Buflon, Vol. VI. D- Aza: &e.
there are feveral additions to the original article. The ani-
mal and head of an animal, repiioticn by Mr. Allomond,
were probably of the moofe kind.

Dr. Goldfmith (Hift. of the Earth and, Anim, Nauites
art. Elk,) acknowledges the difcordancy of the various hif-
tories of the elk, which he alfo fuppofes to be the fame with
the moofe; and he labours, very ‘ineffectually,’ to reconcile
the deferiptions of authors. The figure given by bim re-
fembles neither the elk northe moofe; and the reader will
conclude the Doétor’s account with “as litte fatisfaction “as
he appears himfelf to have done, whenthe fays, After all>
this animal is but indifferently ane pain) deféribed ~

authors,” &c.

* See p. 543, Tome III. p.2. edit, 8vo, & Paris, 4775- The is a
tion (inferted p. 554 of the fame edition), copied from the Memoirs of
the Academy of Sciences, is of the European elk, and refembles the moofe
more than the elk of America; to which, however, it bears a greate
likenefs than is obfervable between this laft andthe moofe. ;3%

G 2 The

44 Obfervations on the Elk.

The confufion and contraditions of preceding writers have
been fuppofed to be avoided or removed by the celebrated
Mr. Pennant in his Arétic Zoology ; a work to which thofe
who are better able to judge on fuch fubjects than I am,
afcribe tranfcendant merit. In this work (Vol. I. p, £9.
art. Moofe,) the author pronounces ‘‘ the elk and the maofe
(to be) the fame fpecies; the laft derived from Mufw, which,
in the Algonkin language, fignifies that animal.’’. And this
opinion feems to have been quietly acquiefced in; and the
fubftance of Mr. Pennant’s account has been copied into the
Encyclopedia Britannica, and perhaps into other works of
equal credit and circulation.

An opportunity having been prefented to me, of fatisfying
myfelf that Mr. Pennant has erred in defcribing the moofe
and elk as a fingle animal, I think it my duty to correé this
miftake of that learned and amiable naturalift ; and I am too
well convinced of his love of truth and ardour for the ad-
vancement of natural knowledge, to doubt of his recelying
my correction with candour and delight. It may be proper
for me to premife, that, from the beft information that I can
obtain, (and I have had occafion ta converfe with feveral per-
fons who _profeffed to be well acquainted with both the elk
and the moofe,) the hiftory which has been given of the
moofe by that gentleman is eflentially juft in every other
refpeét than what relates to its identity with the elk.

IN Augut and September 1797 I vifited repeatedly, in
company with Dr. Mitchill, Dr. Miller, Mr. Dunlap, and
other gentlemen of my acquaintance, four elks, then exhi-
bited jn this city for gain. Two of them were males, which
the keeper affured us were but two years and a few days old;
one a female, fomewhat more than three years of age; the
fourth 2 male fawn, a year old. They were taken feparately,
a few days after their birth, and had been reared by men for
the purpofe above mentioned, They were very docile, and
might be handled and examined with perfeé fafety.

Colour.—tn this they all exactly refemble each other. In
the {pring the colour of the hair is reddifh; it then changes
te a greyith dun (which was its appearance when: obferved

€ gc "a

Objervations on the Eik. 45

by us); and in autumn, to a grey, which continues through
the winter. The rump is of a pale yellowith white, the co-
jour extending ‘about fix or feyen inches from the tail, on ali
fides, and very diftin& from the general colour of the pony.

A black femicircular line, of unequal width, (from 2 to }
inches,) feparates the white of the rump, on either fide, from
the dun or grey of the body. The forepart or fhin of the
legs, and the nofe, are black. The under-lip is flefhy, and
marked, in all four, in an uniform and peculiar manner.
Near the cheek, on each fide, it is black; and a black ftripe
divides it equally underneath: the reft is. white-—The male
has a fhort mane, about two inches longer than the reft of
the hair on the body, _ At this time the hair was very fhort;
but in winter it is faid to be four inches in length, and the
mane fix, and of the colour of the body. The male alfo has
2 beard, or covering of hair, under his throat and upon his
breaft, which, though fhort in fummer, grows out, in the
courfe of the autumn, fix or more inches beyond the hair of
the body; and is then, as now, of a deep black colour. This
beard is wanting in the female. The male fheds it every
{pring.

. Head.—The head (as will be feen Plate II.) refembles
that of the common deer, and of the horfe, much more than
that of the moofe, and is pointed and handfome. The wecé
is rather long and handfome.

The elk has an oblique flit or opening under the inner
angle of each eye, externally, of near an inch in length;
which is faid to communicate with the noftril*. But this
we could not correétly afcertain by examination, though
there feems no reafon to doubt the fact. . Something of the
fame kind obtains in the fallow-deer, fuppofed to be anala-
gous to the pundta lachrymatia in the human head. (See
Mr. White’s Nat. Hitt. of Selborn: fee alfo Encyclopedia,
art. Cervus.) A like opening is noticed by Sparman, and

* Mr. Campbell, of Richmond, Virginia, informed me, thet in the
fkeleton head of an elk, which he had feen, the opening under the eyc,
communicating with the noftril, was fo large that the thumb might be
cafily introduced into it.

fuppofed

46 Obfervations on ibe Elk.

fuppofed- by him to anfwer the purpofe of facilitating free
refpiration, in the Cervine antelope, (antelope . bubalis of
Pallas.) See Encyclopedia, art. Capra.

The ufe of this opening is differently explained iy the. pro-
prietor of the animals here defcrtbed. He afluresius that the
elk poffeffes the power, by ftrictly clofing his noftrils, of for-
cing the air through thefe apertures in uch a manner as to
make a noife which may be heard at a great diftances that
he has feen the wild animals do this frequently ; and that the
defign of it is to alarm each other when they fufpeét any
danger near, He has tauglit thofe in his pofleffion to make
a fimilar noife; but it was too feeble to caufe any obfervable
dilatation of the flit.

If the above explanation of the Beepey of thefe elks be jut,
it will probably lead us to a moré accurate notion of a:cir-
cumftance related concerning the Rupr: Capra, or ‘Chamois
of the Alps, of whom it is faid, that * when he fmells or
hears any thing which he cannot fee, he wifiles, or blows,
with fuch force that the forefts and rocks re-echo with the
found.’’—See Eneyclopeedia, art. Capra.

Horns.—The female has no horns. The appearance of
the horns of the fawn exa@ly refembles thofe on the head
of the principal figure (oppotite p. 18.) given by Mr, Pen-
nant.—The males (as the keeper informed us) drop their
horns annually, in May, then Jeaving ‘a pith about! !four
inches in length, which is foon covered and. proteéted by
velvet. In eight weeks the herns began to grow again. In
the animals we faw, they had been growing about ‘eight
weeks. On our firft-vilit, the horns were uniformly covered
with a fmooth velvet. About ten days after, the velvet was
coming off in narrow flrips, leaving the horns bare. | By the
nnddle.of September they were entirely free from ity) The
keeper informed us, that the animals freed their horns from
it, when wild, by rabbing them againft trees. . Nowthey
meee the fame aid from the pofts, &c. of their ftable; and
the proprietor occafionally affifled them. It was obfervable
hn a fall oozing of bloody nee fometimes fuceeeded the
removal of a ftrip a3 the covering

The

Obfervations on the Elk. 44

--The borns.of-the elk, inftead of being palmated, as are
thofe of the moofe, confift of three principal divifions :—~
1. The brow antlers, which the bunters call the altars 3
2. The two middle prongs, called the fighting+horns; and
3. The horns, properly fo called. The two firlt retain their
fimplicity, the laft increafes in complexity every year.. They
doe not;*as thefe of the moofe are faid to.do, acquire a new
branch: every year ;-though fomething analogous actually
occurs.” When the animal enters his third year, a fingle
pfohe or point comes out on the infide of the left horn; the
néxt year, a fimilar point on the infide of the right horn;
and fo®alternately. Four fhort points, called pikes, were
now appaiént, one on each brow-antler, and one on each
fi¢hting-horn. They feldom exceed an inch in length.

The ‘following meafurements were made of the horns of
one of the male elks.. They were fomewhat longer than
thofe of the other, notwithftanding an inch or two had ac-
cidentally broken off from the end of one of them.

F. Inch.
Diftance between the roots or origin of the horns, 9 4
Brow-antlers - - - - 6
- Fighting-horns, not meafured, but about the fame..
Longett horn - - = -, 3.0
From the tip of one horn to that of the other Be Kr

I recolle&t to have feen, in the Mufeum of Yale College,
. New-Haven, Conneéticut, fome years ago, a remarkable pair
of horns, fuppofed to have belonged toa moofe or elk. They
were not palmated ; and though I had not at that time de-
voted -any attention to fubjects “of natural. hiftory, yet, from
the general idea which I retain of their £ gure and compofi-
tion, I am perfuaded that they muff, at fome period, have
ornamented the head of an elk. If I am right in, this par-
ticular, it will afford us fome notion of the fize to which the
horns of this animal attain. The horns in the Mufeum of
Yale College, if 1 do not mifremember, were faid to weigh

55 or 56 pounds.
Size.—As the animals now deferibed had by no, means
aftaincd their full growth, it is impoffible to give any precife
8 information

48 Obfervations 6n the EM.
information concerning it. The meafurement made éf thent
in their prefent ftate are as follow :—

F. Inch.
Lenzth of the male, from the tip of the nofe to the
‘tail, along the line of his back, (the males were
nearly of a fize,) - - - aaa
Of the female, (a year older than the male,) - Wing
Height S * Y é es eh
Round the girth or bell - - - 5 6
——— the withers - - - 4 ro
Length of the head - - = I) AE
-— tail —_ - © > fant sig
From the extremity of one ear to that of the other 2 2
Length of the ear . - ~ = wOnh¥

The brifket of the elk very much refembles that of the ox.

Place and Food.—TVhe elks which were exhibited here
wete brought from Upper Canada. They are faid to be
found in almoft all the back country of the United States,
as low down as Virginia. In refpect to food, as thefe had
been domefticated from infancy, nothing particular could be
Jearnt from them concerning what they moft affected in the
wild fate. What appeared remarkable to us was, that they
all ate tobacco, as varioufly prepared by the tobacconitt,
with @reedinefs. This, the proprietor affured us, was a na-—
taral appetite; and that the wild elks ate the wild plant. We
thought that this required further evidence; notwithftanding,
we are informed by Haffelquift, that the Cervz Capra of Bar-
bary “ loves the {moke of tobacco, and, when caught alive,
will approach the pipe of the buntfman, though otherwife
mire timid than any animal.’’ Encyclopedia, art. Capra.

Young.—The rutting-time is from about the 2oth of Sep-
tember to the 1ft of October. The female goes about nine
mionths; generally brings forth twins; and it feldom: hap-
pens but that one is male and the other female.

Gait, &c.—The hoofs of the elk are very much cloven,
and, like the moofe and rein-decr, he makes a great clatter-_
ing with them in travelling. He is very fleet.’ A ftranger,
who was viewing thele elks at the fame time with us, told

us,

Vaccthe Inoculation among Country-People. 49

us, that he had feen elks ufed in fleighs the laft winter; and
that they were eafily managed, very ftrong, and very fervice-

able. He reprefented them.as travelling at the rate of 18 or
20 miles an hour. It is poffible that it was the rein~deer
that he faw ufed in this manner in Canada.

Flefb and Skin.—The fleth is faid to be excellent, and the
fkin employed for various ufeful purpofes.

Oil-Spring.—On the outfide of each hind leg the elk has
a {mall veficle or bag, which contains a thin unétuous fub-
ftance that the hunters call oi/, and the bag the oz/-/pring.
The male is faid to open this, by means of his horn, as the
horns begin to grow ;. when the oil fpreads over the young
horn, and is fuppofed to nourifh and proteét it. This he
does regularly, the keeper informed us, at 10 P. M. and at
4A.M. The female has not been obferved to make any
ufe of this oil, except when wounded. She then, it is faid,
opens the bag with her tooth, and applies the oil, by means
of her tongue, to the wound.

In rutting-time the elk is reprefented as contriving to
throw his urine upon this veficle ; which inflames in confe-
quence, and emits a ftrong fcent, whereby the animals dif-
cover each other in the woods. With regard to the fuper-
ftitious notion concerning the elk’s curing himfelf of the
epilepfy by means of his hind hoof, &c. (See Pennant’s
Arétic Zoology, art. Moofe,) may it not be probable that
the belief originated from the ufe he makes of the oil-fpring,
of which the earlieft European writers might be ignorant ?

X. Extrad from a Letter of Mr. J. Turner to Dr,
Pearson, on the Praélice of the Vaccine Inoculation
among Country-People.

I AM informed by our dairy-people, that the cow-pock is
epi-bootic chiefly in the fpring among cowsabout April or May,
and that the fpurious forts prevail in common at almoft every
other time ; and as the fpring is now advancing, I fhall have
it in my power to affift you. Believe me, Sir, that the cow-
pock mania is as great in the country as in the metropolis.

wow, VI. H Perhaps

50 Vaccine Inoculation among Country-People.

Perhaps you would like to know how we carry on the vac»
cine inoculation: almoft every cobler, fhepherd; and cow-
boy, are confummate and experienced adepts in this. new
fpecific art.

I will, with your leave, interfperfe this with a remark to
fubftantiate what I mean to advance.—At Steeple Claydon,
a village five miles from Winflow, great numbers have been
inoculated for the vaccine difeafe by the moft illiterate of
all beings m human fhape—the.cow-boys and fhepherd’s
boys, without any prior or fubfequent medicine whatever.
At Weftbury, Shenley, Fattenhoe, and a number of villages
round our neighbourhood, the fame. At Finmere, Mr.
Holt, the clergyman, (a neighbour of ours,) does adminifter
fome little medicine, fuch as falts, &c.—People are inoculated,

‘and inoculate themfelves, indifcriminately ; fuch as farmers,

dairy-people, &c. with impunity, without any preparation,
fubfequent purification, ot making application to any- me-
dical perfon whatever. Yefterday I faw a mam inoculate a
family with a cobler’s awl dipped in another’s arm: others
do it with a penknife ground like a lancet point :, others
* with needles infected with the vaccine matter. I am a great
advocate for the vaccine inoculation: I acknowledge it to
be a great acquifition and difcovery, and confequently ul-
timately a great blefling to the community at large, and do
not doubt of its fuccefs.

The well-attefted faéts that you and others affert, prove it
indubitably ; but greatly do I lament that fome delufion, or
fome fecret myfterious means have not been put zm force to
prevent its being in other hands than medical men. The
fmall-pox inoculation is now rapidly declining, and probably
in a few years may be known no more. [am forry to fay,
that fome of our ruaftics appear to underftand the cow-pock
better than many of our country medical fraternity. I may
add, Farewel, Thiftle Foreft! Farewel, en Hill, Stan-
ton Houle*, &e.

N.B. The proprietors of the above houfes deny the vac-
cine difeafe to be a fpecific for the variole; but the inter~

® The houles alluded to are finall-pox inoculation houfes, of great re-
pute.

pretation

Extra of a Memoir on Elafticity. 5t

pretation is obvious, becaufe the new inoculation will not
fupply them with patients.

I was treated with fome derifion the other and am every
day: a perfon faid, that, as he had inoculated many for the
cow-pock, he knew the complaint, and its treatment, better
than myfelf.

I am greatly forry the difeafe above fpoken of is fo well
known among the cow-people, as many eminent men will
Jofe great fums in the year by the {mall-pox being fuperfeded.

Query, Whether Fame, with her babbling tongue, fome-fu-
ture time, may not convey ruftic vaccine intelligence to fome
metropolitan friends, and fo overturn your excellent Inftitu-
tion, which, I am informed, is on the tapis*?

Dear Sir, believe me,
With the greateft deference and refpeét,
Your moft humble Servant and Pupil,
Winflow, Bucks. J. TURNER.

XI. Extraé of a Memoir on Elafticity. By C. BARRUELf.

Tue author of this memoir endeavours to explain the
caufe of the elafticity of bodies by the help of caloric. After
Jaying it down as a principle, that this fluid is emimently
élaftic ; that it is interpofed between the integrant molecule
of bodies, which is proved by their porofity ; he hopes, from
thefe two principles, to deduce confequences leading to this
refult. But whatever may be affigned as the caufe of elafti-
city, caloric, at any rate, has a great fhare in the ance
which it exhibits.

The different fy{tems adopted by philofophers relpeliiie
the caufe of elafticity, are, in the author’s opinion, either
vague or evidently erroneous. It cannot, he thinks, be
afcribed to a repulfive force, with which the molecule are
_ endowed, and which incréafes as they approach; for the

* It'appears, by the vaccine inoculation in the country, that medical
affiftance was fcarcely neceflary.
+ From the Azaales de Chimie, No. 97- P
H2 309 exiftence

52 Extraé of a Memoir on Ela/fiicity.

exiftence of this force is merely hypothetical. Nor can it
be faid that the elafticity is owing to air interpofed between
the moleculz, fince the phenomena of elafticity manifeft
themfelves in vacuo.

C. Barruel is of opinion, that if we fhould afcribe the
caufe of elaflicity to caloric, this queftion would remain to be
anfwered, Why is caloric fo eminently elaftic? We know,
indeed, fays he, that the affinity: of molecule of water to
thofe of fponge, into the pores of which they introduce
themfelves, produces an increafe of the volume of that
fponge; but the caufe of the reciprocal attraction of thefe
different molecule remains unknown. Befides, we could not
refufe to admit that the elafticity of caloric would arife from
the property which the molecule of this fluid might have of
repelling each other: a property the more probable, as it is
obferved in the eleétric fluid, with which caloric has fo great
an analogy. In a word, we may be fatisfied with admitting _
its elafticity as a fat from which we fet out, as from an
inconteftible principle.

The author then proceeds immediately to his obje&t, and
examines in what manner caloric a¢ts upon bodies. It di-
lates them by means of a reciprocal affinity between it and
their molecule, Thefe affinities are variable; but it is cer-
tain that, in regard to the fame fubftance, they decreafe in
proportion as the diftances increafe, and that their action is
at length reduced to zero.

Now, if we fuppofe a given quantity of caloric inclofed in
a receiver incapable of acting on this fluid, it will every-where
diffufe itfelf in an uniform manner. If we then introduce a
molecule of matter, the caloric will be unequally condenfed
around it, in yirtue of the unequal action which it exercifes
on the parts of the fluid at different diftances from it, and it
will be furrounded by a kind of igneous atmofphere, com-
pofed of {trata of different denfities, If a fecond molecule
be intraduced, the fame effects will take place, and every
thing will remain in the fame ftate as long as the molecules
are at a diftance from each other equal to the diameter of
their atmofpheres; nothing is changed but the temperature.
But when the molecule are brought fo near each other that

their

Exirad of a Memair on Elafticity. 53

their diftance is lefs than that diameter, their atmofpheres
will be compreffed, and the parts in-contaét wil] affume
more denfity and a higher temperature, and which is not
in equilibrium with that in the reft of the receiver. Thefe
/parts deprive themfelves of a portion of their caloric, which
is diftributed among the other ftrata of thefe atmofpheres
until the equilibrium is reftored,

When the molecule are made to approach each other
gently, the compreffion of the atmofpheres and their re-
eftablifhment take place peaceably; but if the molecule are
brought into contaét abruptly, the caloric is difengaged with
the greateft violence. It is to this rapid difengagement of
caloric, ftrongly compreffed, that we ought to afcribe the
detonations of the fuper-oxygenated muriat of pot-afh and
of gun-powder.

The molecule affumed, for example, retain a portion of
the comprefled caloric as long as they obey the force which
makes them approach each other. When they arrive at
that diftance at’which they exercife an action on each other,
their attractive force is greater or lefs than that with which
their atmofpheres tend to recover their former ftate. If the
molecule, then, be Jeft to themfelves, in the firft cafe the
fyitem retains its prefent ftate; in the other cafe it will re-
‘fume its primitive flate; and it is in this that the greater
part of the phenomena of elafticity feem to confift. This
reafoning may be applied to every body, the molecule of
which are feparated from each other by a certain quantity of
caloric.

C. Barruel pays attention alfo to the circumftances under
which the elafticity of a body may be manifefted, and to the
means proper for increafing or producing this property.
Thefe circumftances are, compreffion, a fudden fhock, and
flexion. In either of thefe circumftances it happens that
the adherence of the molecule either is or is not overcome.
In the firft cafe the moleculz are put out of their {phere of
activity, and the body is faid to be brittle. In the fecond
eafe the body is flexible, but the caloric interpofed between
its molecule withdraws, or does not withdraw itfelf, from
compreflion. If it withdraws itfelf, there is only one dif-

9 placement
~“

eh e nhe

54 Extra& of a Memoir on Elafticity.

placement of the particles of the body, which 1s then faid to
be ductile. If it cannot withdraw itfelf, it yields or refifts.
When it yields, the body is foft; when it refifts compref-
fion, it experiences the effects of it as long as the moleculz
are compretied ; 3 it then tends to recover its “former ftate ; and
this is. what renders bodies elaftic. \

There is no body perfectly foft, ductile, or elaftic. IWature
prefents none which under compreffion does not fuffer .a
portion of caloric to efeape. Thus a body is never perfe@ly
elaftic, becaufe the quantity of caloric comprefled, being lefs
than the total quantity, cannot reftore itfelf with the fame
force as if this fluid had remained in its entire ftate, and
cannot keep the molecule of the body feparated at the fame
dj@ence as before compreffion. Befides, the velocity with
which it reftores itfelf is alfo lefs than that which produced
the compreffion, for a part of this velocity has been deftroyed
by the entire mafs of the compreffed body.

A body is more flexible according as it contains more ca-
Joric between its’ molecule, This very eompreffible fluid
permits concave moleculz to approach each other without
the convex molecule being obliged to-feparate from each
other, as if there were not%aloric interpofed between them. :

~ The preceding obfervations' may ferve to throw fome light
“On various phenomena of elaflicity. A blade of copper not

hammered evidently remains in that ftate into which it is put
by bending, ‘becaufe the molecule of the éoneave part ex-
prefs, ‘by apptouehing each other, that portion of caloric
which adheres leaft to them. The other portion, which
does not efcape, is indeed compreffed; but the excefs of the
{pring is compentated by the excefs of the adherence of the
moleculz brought together: the body remains in that: ftate
in which it is-placed. |

If the blade has been hammered, it lofes by that operation
@ portion of caloric; the other portion remains comprefied 5
and, when this'blade is bent, the ‘compreffion of the fluid is
increafed. ‘The exeefs of {pring which it acquires is not
counterbalanced by the excefs of the adherence of the mo-
leenle : it tends to reftore itfelf; and the body paffes to that
fate which is called ela/ffic.

The

as ee ee eee

Extra of a Memoir on Elajiicity. 58

' The compreffion and re-eftablifhment of caloric may ferve to

explain alfo the ofcillations of the moleculz of a tube of glafs
terminated by a ball of the fame nature, when rubbed with
a moiftened fponge in order to obtain from it acute tones.
The molecule of the tube ‘having, by the extenfion which it
experiences, quitted the pofition proper for their equilibrium,
tend to return to it; and as by the velocity acquired they go
beyond the term from which they fet out, the interpofed ca-
loric is comprefled, it re-eflablifhes itfelf with a force equal
to the compreflion, and repels the two parts of the tube to
the diftance at which they were at firft, which occafions an
ofcillatory motion until it has been deftroyed by the refift-
ance of the air.

| We night, ftri@ly fpeaking, explain; without the inter-
vention of caloric, the elafticity of the ftring of a violin, or
of a bell, put into vibration: but from are has been —
it feems to act the moft confpicuous part.

Elafticity manifefts itfelf with lefs energy in liquids than
in folids, and yet the former contain more caloric. The
reafon is plain; it is becaufe their molecule, being exceed-
ingly moveable, they can eafily withdraw themfelves trom
the compreffing forces; but they are elaftic, fince they have
the property of tranfmitting founds, and of recoiling back on
themfelves. be MAY

“It muft have been remarked, that the accumulation of ca-
loric diminifhes the {pring of folid or fluid bodies: in gafeous
bodies, on the other hand, this elafticity is increafed by the
accumulation, becaufe thefe bodies, being held in folution
in the caloric, participate in its mechanical properties, and
chiefly its elafticity.

To increafe or produce elafticity in certain bodies, we
mutt employ means proper for bringing together their mo-
lecule, and keeping the caloric in a ftate of great compref-
fion. The harder, therefore, that a body is, provided it is
hot fo in the extreme degree, the more it will be elaftic. It
becomes, irideed, lefs flexible; but this inconvenience may
be remedied by rendering the body thin, fince its molecule
will then be lefs difplaced during flexion. There are two
things, then, to be confidered in elafticity; the rapidity of

/ the

56 On the Efficacy of Yejt
the difplacement of the parts put in motion, and the extent
of the difplacement, which depend on flexibility.

Allaying and tempering favour the increafe of elatticity ; $
becaufe, thefe operations, by bringing the molecule nearer
to each other, comprefs the has which tends afterwards
to re-eftablith itfelf. All thefe facts have induced the author
to conclude, that caloric has at Jeaft a great fhare in all the
phenomena exhibited by elafticity.

XII. On the Efficacy of Yefl in the Cure of thofe Difeafes
known by the Name of Putrid*.

A REMEDY, which contains much fixed air, has been Jately
flarted by the Rev. Mr. Cartwright, which merits the highcf
attention. Seventeen years ago, {ays this gentleman, I went to
refide at Brampton, a very populous village near Chefterfield.
I had not been there many months before a puirid fever broke
out among us: finding by far the greater number of my new
parifhioners much too poor to afford themfelves medical affift-
ance, I undertock, by the help of fuch books on the fubject of
medicine as were in my poffeffion, to preferibe forthem. I
early attended a boy about fourteen years of age, who was
attacked by this fever; he had net been ill many days before
the fymptoms were unequivocally putrid. I then adminiftered
bark, wine, and fuch other remedies as my book directed.
My exertions, however, were of no avail; his diforder grew
every day more untractable and malignant, fo that I was in
hourly expectation of his diflolution. Being under the ab-
folute neceflity of taking a journey, before I fet off I went to
fee him, as I thought, for the la{t time, amd I prepared his
parents for the event of his death, which I confidered as in-
evitable, and reconciled them in the beft manner I was able
to a lofs which I knew they would feel feverely. While I
was in converfation on this diftrefling fubject with his mo-

* The contents of this article cannot be too generally kaown. How
many valuable lives are yearly loft by putrid fore throats, fevers, &c.
which might be faved tg the community, and to their reletives, if the cure
here recommended were generally known and reforted to! with proper,
medical aid, however, where it can be had. Epsr.

ther,

in the Cure of Putrid Difeafes. 57

ther, I obferved in a corner of the room a {mall tub of wort
working; the fight brought to my recolleétion an experiment
I had fomewhere met with, of a piece of putrid meat being
made fweet by being fufpended over a tub of wort in the aét
of fermentation. The idea inftantly flafhed into my mind,
that the yeft might corre& the putrid nature of this difeafe,
and I inftantly gave him two large {poonfuls. I then told the
mother, if fhe found her fon better, to repeat this dofe every
three hours. I then fet out on my journey: upon my re-
turn, after a few days, I anxioufly inquired about the boy,
and was informed he was recovered. I could not reprefs my
curiofity: though I was greatly fatigued with my journey,
and night was come on, I went direétly to where he lived,
which was three miles off, in a wild part of the moors; the
boy himfelf opened the door, looked furprifingly well, and
told me he feit better from the inftant he took the yett.
After I left Brampton, I lived in Leicefterfhire: my pa-
rifhioners being then few and opulent, I dropped my medical
charaéter entirely, and would not even prefcribe for any of
my own family. One of my domeftics falling ill, accord-
ingly the apothecary was fent for; his complaint was a vio-
lent fever, which in its progrefs became putrid: having great
reliance, and defervedly, on the apothecary’s penetration and
judement, the man was left folely to his management. His
diforder, however, kept daily gaining ground, till at length
the apothecary confidered him in very great danger; at laft,
finding every effort to be of fervice to him baffled, he told me
he confidered it as a loft cafe, and that, in his opinion, the
man could not furvive four-and-twenty hours. Qn the apo-
thecary thus giving him up, I determined to try the effeéts.
of yeft. I gave him two large table fpoonfuls; in fifteen
minutes from taking the yeft, his pulfe, though full fecble,
began to get compofed and full. He in thirty-two minutes
from his taking the yeft was able to get up from his bed,
and walk in his room. At the expiration of the fecond hour
I gave him a bafon of fago, with a good deal of lemon,
wine, and ginger in it; he eat-it with an appetite: in an-
other hour | repeated the yeft; an hour afterwards I gave
the bark as before; at the next hour he had food; next he

Vat. VI. } I had

58 - On the Fifficacy of Vejt
had another dofe of yeft, and then went tq bed; it was nine |
o’clack. I went to fee him the next morning at fix o’clock ;
he told me he had had a good night, and was recovered. I,
however, repeated the mcnitaites and he was able to go about
his bufinefs as ufual.

About a year after this, as I was riding paft a ediicdaalt
farm-hcufe at the outtkirts of the village, I obferved a far=
mer’s daughter ftanding at the door, apparently in great af-
fli€tion ; on inquiring into the caufe of her diftrefs, the told
me her father was dying. I difmounted, and went into the
houfe to fee him. I found him in the laft flage of a putrid
fever; his tongue was black, his pulfe was fcarcely pereepti-
ble, and he lay ftretched out, like acorpfe, in a ftate of drowly
infenfibility. I immediately procured fome yeft, which I di-
Juted with water, and poured it down his throat. I then
left him, with little hopes of recovery. I returned to him
jn about two hours, and found him fenfible, and able to con-
verfe. ‘I then gave him a dofe of bark ; he afterwards took,
at a proper interval, fome refrefhment: J ftaid with him till
he repeated the yeft, and then left him, with direétions how
to proceed. I called upon him the next morning, at nine
o'clock, and found him apparently well walking 1 in his gar-
den: he was an old man, upwards of feventy.

[have fince adminiftered the yeft to above fifty perfons
labouring under putrid fevers, and, what is fingular, conti-
nues this benevolent clergyman, ‘I have loft not one pa-
tient.”

Dr. Thornton, whofe opportunities have been great in_
putrid fevers, having the fuperintendance of a difpenfary *
which jncludes the poor of nine parifhes, and is fituated in
the vicinity of St. Giles’s, has made frequent trials of yeft,
and {pegk s highly in its praife.

One day, fays the Rev. Mr. Townfend, by accident, as
Dr. Thornton went paft a fhop t in Toutetihanis Court Road,
he heard the fcreams of a mother who was agonifed on fee-
ing her child, as fhe thought, expire. Thefe fereams-re-
newed the firugeles of the child; and the nurfe who attended
threatened to take aw ay at this moment the child, that it

* The General Difpenfary. + Mr, Burford’s,
seth - might

in the Cure of Putrid Difeafes. 59
might die in quiet. Dr. Thornton got down immediately
fome tartar emetic, which quickly aéted as a vomit; and
after the operation was over he gave rhubarb, which tleared
the inteftines; he then ordered the child, every two hours,
yeit and water, with wine and bark, and im three days the
dying child was up and well.

_ The infe€tion had fpread to two others in the fame houfe ;
in this child, and in another, the putrid fever was siteeinded
with fwelled glands, which fuppurated, and threatened gan-
grene: in a robuft fervant girl it took the form of a dreadful
putrid fore throat; fhe had an emetic, and afterwards fome
rhubarb, then yeft and water every two hours. © The firft
effects of this newly difcovered remedy was that of rendering
the pulfe fuller and fifteen beats lefs in a minute, and her
black tongue foon afflumed a clean and red appearance: —
without bark or wine fhe was fpeedily recovered.

In. Dr. Beddoes’ Confiderations there are the following
cures :—Mr, Caldwall, engraver, (as Dr. Thornton reports,)
requefted him to go into Green-fireet, Leicefter-Fields, to
attend Mr. Hadril, who, he faid, it was fuppofed would not
outlive the day. I found him labouring under a dreadful
putrid fore throat, the tongue was black and thick coated,
and the pulfe quick and fluttering; evacuations being firft
premifed, yeft and bark in porter were exhibited every two
hours: his fitter; who nurfed him, was foon after attacked
by the fame fever, but the throat was not affected. She was
not like her brother confined to her bed, but her weaknefs
was fo great that fhe could not walk acrofs the room, nor
even fland up half a minute without fupport. In both thefe
cafes the relief from the yeft was very ftriking, and they were
foon cured: the wife was alfo infected, who received a fimi-
Jar benefit from the yeft.

The moft extraordinary cafes, however, are the following :
—In Hufband-ftreet, a finall confined fituation near Berwick-
ftreet, a fever broke out, which in the fhort {pace of a fort-
_ night, in three houfes only, fwept away fix perfons. Dr.
_ Thornton’s affiflance was at this time called in to Mrs.
Wollot, No.1, in that ftrect, who lay delirious and coma-
tofe, with her two children, all in the fame bed. She re-
Ia . fuled

es tia

60 On the various Effeéts produced by

fufed medicine and food, and was obliged to be drenched in
order to get either down: an emetic and cathartic being pre-
mifed, they were all put upon the fame plan; that is, were
to take, every three hours, two-thirds of a glafs of frefh por-
ter, with two table fpoonfuls of yeft and the juice of half a
lemon; and the food at intervals was the white of eggs,
which Dr. Thornton judged of all things were leaft fubject
to putrify *, beat up with fome fugar and water, and, as it
was the commencement of fummer, ftrawberries were alfo
ordered ; and without any farther medicine from the apo-
thecary than the emetic and purge, although the woman
was at firft obliged to be drenched, yet fhe and her whole
family recovered, and this very rapidly.

. Among the poor in St. Giles’s nothing 1 is adminiftered by

Dr. Thornton, after cleanfing the prime viz, than two table
fpoonfuls of yeft in fome porter every two hours; and out of
above forty cafes not one has died under this treatment.

XIU. On the various Effects produced by the Nature, Com~
preffion, and Velocity of the Air ufed in the Blaft- Furnace,
By Mr. Davip Musuert, of the Clyde Iron-Works.
Communicated by the Author.

V y ELEN it is confidered that in the fmelting operation
the reduction’ of immenfe quantities of materials is effeéted
by a compreffed current of air impelled by the whole power
of a blowing machine, the confequences of the change of
air, cither im quantity or quality, muft be very obvious:
when, farther, we contemplate the metal called into exiftence
by means of combuftion thus excited ; when we confider iron

as having the moft powerful affinity for the bafe of that part

of the air which maintains combuftion ; and when we view
the debafed ftate to which the metal is reduced by coming
into improper contact with it, we muft conclude, that the
application of blait in the manufacturing of iron calls for the

* We know that eggs are kept for a great length of time, and the
white, even under the heat of the hen’s body, does not putrify, and it
ferves as milk to the embryo in the egg,

mot

Air fed in the Blaft-Furnace. - 61

nioft minute and thorough inveftigation. In order to take a
comprehenfive view of this fubjeét, the following divifion will
be requifite :—

ift, The intimate connection which the quantity of blaft
bears to the area of the internal cavity of the furnace, and to
the nature of the pit-coal.

ad, The various modes by which air is procured, and
how thefe refpectively affect the quality of the air,

3d, The various changes to which air is fubjeéted by a
change of temperature in the atmofphere, with the confequent
effects.

4th, How far increafed or diminifhed velocity and com-
preffion alter the refults of the furnace.

5th, The form and diameter of the Sithtacetate ate!

rft, Then, in the conftruction of a blaft-furnace and
blowing-machine, the quantity of air to be ufed ought to
depend upon the internal dimenfions of the former; which,
again, ought to be formed according to the quality of the
pit-coal. Upon the foftnefs or hardnefs of the coal, ought
more immediately to depend the height of the blaft-furnace.
This neceffary precaution has given rife to a vaft variety of
furnaces, of different capacities, from 30 to 50 feet in height,
and from g to 16 feet diameter at the bothes. Furnaces
from 30 to 36 feet are ufed for the fofter qualities of coal,
fuch as a mixture of free-coal and fplint. Furnaces from
36 to 45 are appropriated to the burning of fplint-coal cokes ;
and in Wales, fuch is the fuperior ftrength and quality of the
pit-coal, that the furnaces admit of being reared to the height
of 50 feet. ‘

Thefe various qualities,of coal, it has been formerly fhewn,
have appropriate weights of iron-ftone, and, to ufe the Jan-
guage of the manufactory, are capable ‘ of fupporting a
greater or lefler burden of mine.’’? The former qualities
admit not of haying the air difcharged in great quantity, un-
Jefs it is impelled under an uncommon degree of comprefiion
and confequent velocity incompatible with the operations of
a fteam-engine. The reafon is obvious: when air, loofely
comprefled, or comparatively fo, is thrown into a body of
ignited fuel, the mechanical firucture and continuity of whole

particles

62 On the various Effetts produced by

particles are foft, the air is much more eafily decompofed
the ignition, of courfe,is more rapid: the defcent of the ma-
terials is promoted beyond their proper ratio, and long be-
fore the carbonaceous matter has penetrated the ore, or
united to the metal, to conftitute fufibility. “I fhall adduce
an example, as being moft illuftrative of this doétrine.

Suppole a blaft-furnace, 35 feet high, 11 feet wide at the
bothes, properly burdened, and producing No. 1, pig-iron.
Let the difcharge of air be fuppofed equal to a preffure 2!
pounds upon the fquare inch, or equivalent to 1-6th of the
atmofphere, or 5 inches of mercury: under thefe circum-.
fiances let it farther be fuppofed, that 1500 cubical feet. of
air are difcharged in one minute; and that the diameter of
the difcharging-pipe is 2°625, the area of which is equal to
6°8g0625 circularinches. Let the difcharging-pipe be in-
creafed to 3 inches diameter, and let the fame quantity of
air be pafled into the furnace; it 1s evident that as the area
of the difchareine-pipe is increafed to g circular inches, or
nearly 1-3d more than formerly, the compreffion of air muft
be proportionally diminifhed. This alteration is foon per-
ceived by its effects; the quantity of fcoria increafes from
the furnace, whilft the confumption of the materials above
is alfo confiderably augmented. In a few hours the fcoria
will have undergone a complete change, from pure white,
enamelled with various blue fhades, to a green, brown, or
black colour, confiderably charged with the oxyd of iron *.
The fame effeéts will continue, in greater or leffer degree, till
all.the materials are reduced which were exifting in the fur-
nacé at the period of dimimfhed compreffion. The philo-
fophy of this faét may be accounted for in the following
manner :—

While the jut affociation of proportions remained, the air
-was difcharged under fuch a degree of compreffion as to
excite proper combuftion: the decompofition of the air by
means of the ignited fuel, was not effected in immediate con-
taét with the feparatmg metal, but had, by its uncommon
degree of denfity, refifted decompofition in the ignited paf-

* The metal will have loft nearly all its carbon, and-have hepome 1 in-

ferior in valué 25 to 30 percent.
flee,

Air ufed in the Blaft-Furnace. 63

jage, and had been decompofed upon the cokes at a greater
elevation in the furnace. As a proof of this, we frequently
fee a tube formed throughout the whole breadth of the fur-
nace, quite black and apparently cold, formed of the fufed
materials; when this is removed, a confiderable defcent mo-
mently takes place of cokes heated vifibly beyond the com-
mon pitch: thefe inflame rapidly, but are foon again cooled
to blacknefs by the inceflant difcharge of air upon them.
The defcending mixture of iron and lava are in like manner
cooled around the line of blaft; the tube is again formed, and,
if not removed, will remain for days together, while the fur-
nace will be otherways working in the beft manner.

When by accident or defign the compreffion and velocity
of the blaft are diminithed, the tube begins to burn, and
throws off a great many red fiery-coloured fparks, the fides

and roof fail, and are carried before the blaft in all direc-

tions. Sometimes confiderable cloats of imperfect iron are
recoiled with fuch violence as to efcape the vortex of blatt,
and iffue from the tuyre-hole with fuch velocity as to inflame
in the air, and fall down in the ftate of oxyd. In the end
the tuyre will appear to flame, and all the paflage inwards
fhews an aftonifhing degree of whitenefs. The decompo-
fition of the air is inftantaneoufly effected upon its entering
the ignited paflage ; the iron by this means is expofed to the
oxygen that is difengaged; and the va{t quantity of caloric
fet free, in confequence of its union with the iron and carbon,
produces the aftonifhing heat now vifible, butwhich formerly
took place at a more proper height in the furnace.

From this it will appear, that although a greater apparent
degree of heat is vifibly produced by the poy decompo-
fition of the air, and a more rapid defcent of materials for
fome time is the confequence, yet, as the quality of the iron
is impaired, and as in the end the furnace will return to its
old confumption of materials as to quantity, the effects of a
Joofe foft blaft are conclufively pernicious.

It fometimes happens, that when a loofe blaft is furcharged
with a confiderable portion of moifture, or comes in contact
with cokes which had been wet when introduced into the
furnace, the inflammation which takes place at the tuyre is

prodigious:

64 On the various Effects produced by

prodigious: fine fire-clay will be melted down and blown to
flag in a few minutes; the fides of the furnace, compofed of
very infufible ' fire-ftone, is next attacked, and ma few
hours will be fo completely deftroyed as to ftop the work-
ing, and require immediate repair... Effects fimilar to thofe
now defcribed will be felt when blaft is improperly propor-
tioned to coal of a ftronger,continuity of fraéture and fuperior
quality. Befides the effects produced by the fudden decom-
pofition of iron, others of like nature are produced where a
‘foft coal is ufed, a fmall furnace, and a great difcharge of blatt.

It has been found that crude iron, to be properly matured,
ought to remain in the blaft-furnace, according to circnm-
ftances, 48 to 60 hours; that is, from the period that the
iron-ftone is introduced till fuch time as the metal begins to
occupy its place in the hearth in a ftate of perfect feparation.
When the contrary is the cafe, the mixtures arrive at the
hotteft parts of the furnace before the metal has taken up a
fufficient quantity. of carbon from the fuel; the action of
the blaft, and the immediate heat by which the ore is fur-
rounded, forces the iron from its connections to the bottom
of the furnace. The quality is de-carbonated, and reduced
in its value: to reftore this again, the local portion of fuel is
- increafed ; this adds to the expence of manufacturing, and
diminifhes, in fome meafure, the fmelting of the furnace.

When fplint-coal cokes are ufed in the blaft-furnace, the
blaft admits of being thrown in under the higheft poffible
pitch of compreéffion ; the uncommon denfity of the charcoal
fuftains a very powerful difcharge of blaft before it is diffi-
pated to facilitate the general defcent. Moft frequently, large
maffes of thefe cinders pafs through the whole ignited cavity,
and are thrown out below, poffeffing all the acutenefs of their
eriginal form and fracture.

This quality of coal is ufed in all the Curfon blaft-farnaces,
where, to enfure a refpectable produce, the air is difcharged_
under a preffure equal to 3} pounds upon the fquare inch, or
6! inches of mercury.

The fame quality of coal was ufed at the Devon iron-
works, where, at one time, having all the blaft of a 48 inch
eylinder engine thrown into one furnace, the column of

mercury

Air ufed in the Blaft-Furnace. 65
raercuty fupported was upwards of 7 inches; the quantity of
air difcharged under fuch an impelling power, I found to
exceed 2600 cubical feet per minute,

The coals ufed at the Cleugh, Cleland, and Clyde iron-
works, are nearly of the fame quality at each—a mixture of
fplint and foft coal. The Muirkirk and Glenbuck iron-works
have a coal different from any of the former, and in fome
particular {pots it confiderably refembles the Englifh clod-
coal.

ad, The various methods of procuring air for the blaft-
furnace may be reduced to the following :—1ft, That pro-
cured by cylinders, and difcharged into the furnace by means
of a floating pifton heavily loaded, and working in a large
receiver or "regulating cylinder: ad, That wherein pumping
cylinders only are ufed, and the air thrown into chefts in-
verted in water, called the qwater-vault: 3d, That mode
wherein the air is difcharged from the pumping or forcing
cylinder into an air-ticht houfe, called the air-vault.

The firft method is the original mode of blowing, and is
fill much ufed at thofe iron-works whofe erection has been
prior to the laft fifteen years. By this mode the quality of
the air is lefs fubject to alteration by a change of atmofphere.
The principal objection to this manner af blowing, is the
want of capacity in the receiving cylinder; which cannot be
increafed fo much as to take away the confiderable intervals
which occur at different parts of the engine-ftroke. This
effe& is fenfibly feen by the fpeedy and irregular afcent and
defcent of the column of mercury. In water blowing-ma-
chines, where the air is raifed by three or four cylinders
worked by means of a crank, where the air is received into
an air-cheft, and forced into the furnace by the continual
action of the blaft of each fucceffive cylinder, the current of
ait is fteady, and fupports the column of mercury with great
uniformity.

‘The ufe of the water-vault has of late years become very
general among new erected works. Its properties are, a fteady
and very cold blaft: the largenefs of the receiving cifterns
gives them a fufficient capacity to retain every pound’ of air

Vor. VI. kK railed

66 On the various Effets produced by

raifed by the furnace, and diftribute it to the greateft advan= ~

tage. This is not the cafe with the floating piftons, where
a certain quantity of {pare wind is thrown out at every return
of the engine, left the great pifton and weight fhould be
blown out of the cylinder altogether; which, indeed, fome-
times happens. The only objection which remains in force
againft the ufe of the water-vault, is the tendency which it
has to take up a confiderable portion of the water in folu-
tion, and introducing it into the furnace. A judicious ar-
rangement of the conducting-pipes would in fome meafure
obviate this, as well as the more dangerous tendeney which
water has to rife in a pipe fpeedily emptied of its air by the
ftopping of the engine: a ftream of water thus conveyed to
the furnace, would be productive of the moft awful confe-
quences.

The air afforded by the air-vault is much inferior to that
obtained in the former methods. This immenfe magazine
of compreffed air generates a confiderable portion of heat,
which greedily feizes the damps, which are unavoidable in
underground excavations, and conveys them to the furnace.
The blaft is, however, fteady and uniform; and when the
infide of the building is completely fecured againft the paf-
fage of air, it is productive of confiderable’ effects in the fur-
nace. In the fummer months, however, the air becomes fo
far debafed as to affect the quality of the iron, and change
it from grey to white. Every change in the temperature of
the atmofphere during this period, is indicated by various
changes in the furnace.

The largett air-vault hitherto in ufe was exeaaiial out of
folid rock at the Devon iron-works: the fiffures of the rock
admitted confiderable quantities of water; and the fame de-
gree of damp would always prevent the poflibility of making
the fidé-walls and roof air-tight by means of pitch and
paper, &c.

Befides the various natures of blaft, as to the ftrength and
equality of the current afforded by different modes of con-
Rrucing the blowing- machines, a variety in the quality of
the air obtained is alfo an invariable confequence: this is

fufficiently ©

ee

Air ufed in the Blaft- Furnace. 6%

fafficiently known by the effe&ts which it produces in the
blaft-furnace, and ought to be fubjeét to ferupulous examin<
ation.

In this, as in other countries, larger produces of caft iron
are obtained in the winter months than during the fummer
and autumn feafons: the quality of the metal is alfo much
more carbonated, and with a lefs proportion of fuel. In
many parts of Sweden, where the fummer heats are intenfe,
the manufacturer is obliged to blow out or ftop his furnace
for two or three months: not only is he unable to make
carbonated metal, but is frequently incapable of keeping the
furnace in fuch trim as to make a produce of any quality
whatever, In Britain, during the months of June, July, and
Auguft, more efpecially in dry feafons, the quality of the iron,
with the local proportion of fuel, will be depreciated 30 per
cent., and the quantity reduced to 2-3ds or 3-4ths.

In feeking for a folution of this univerfally acknowledged
fact, our attention is naturally directed to an examination of
the various ftates of air. That the quality of the air in winter
is more fit for combuftion than in fummer, is a truth which
requires no farther demonftration. Greater coolnefs, whereby
an almoft complete refrigeration of moifture takes place, and
the prefence of perhaps a greater relative proportion Qf oxy-
gen, may account for this phenomenon. On the contrary,
the quality of air during the fummer months becomes much
contaminated for combuttion, by holding in folution a much
greater quantity of moifture: the abundance of nitrous par-
ticles may. alfo diminifh the ufual proportion of oxygen.

This will account for the inferior effects of combuftion
both in common fires and in the blaft-furnace ; it will alfo
in agreat meafure tend to folve the curious phenomenon of
pig-iron taking up lefs carbon in fummer, although reduced
with a fuperior quantity of fuel. The air difcharged moft
probably contains lefs oxygen; yet the metal is much. lefs
carbonated than at other times, when contrary proportions
of thefe exift. Moft probably the deficient carbon is carried
off by diffolving in hydrogen, forming a conftant ftream of
hydro-carbonic gas, while the oxygen that is fet free unites
to the iron; and while it reduces its quality, at the fame time

K 2 the

68 | On the various Effeéis produced by

the quantity is reduced by a portion of the metal being loft
in the fcoria *.

To correct thefe occafional imperfections in the quality of
the air, and to’ devife methods to procure air always fit for
proper combuftion, ought to be an object of much confider-
ation to the manufacturer of caft iron. Whether fuch a
confideration has given rife to the different modes of receiv-
ing and difcharging the air now in ufe, I cannot fay; I ra-
ther think not: a great quantity of air has hitherto been a
greater object than a certain and uniform quality; and in
a country where there is more temperate and cold weather
than hot, it is by far the moft important object: to unite
both, however, would be an attainment of the greateft uti-
lity, and would rank the difcoyerer amongft the well-deferv-
ing of his country. How far the mechanifm of our prefent
machinery has been adapted to the exigencies of our atmo-
{phere, will appear upon examining the nature and properties
of the air, judged by its effects upon the blaft-furnace.

The air produced by the blowing and receiving-cylinder
is lefs changed, and lefs fubject to change, than that produced
and lodged in contaét with a vaft body of air or water. If
the blowing-cylinder is fixed in a dry cool fpot, the only
difference which the air undergoes is an increafe of tempe-
rature ; this is fo very confiderable, that upon entering the
blowing-cylinder immediately after ftopping the engine, I
have found the thermometer rife 15 to 17} degrees higher
than the furrounding air. That this heat is generated in the
cylinder is unqueftionable; but whether it is oceafioned by
the friction of the pifton leather upon the fides of the eylin-
der, or expreffed from the air by its fevere compreffion, I
have not yet been able to decide. It very probably arifes
from both caufes, although the latter is fufficient to prodce
amuch greater degree of heat. What effect this increafe
of temperature has upon combuftion we are unable to fay,
as the degree of heat accumulated will at all times hear a
reference to the temperature of the furrounding air, and as

* May not the fuperabundant azote of the fummer atmofphere produce ©
part of thefe effeéis, by diffolving a portion of the carbon, and forming .
carbonated azotic gas, as has been proved by M. Lavoifier ?

there |

Air ufed in the Blaft-Furnace. 6g

there is no method likely to be devifed where heat would not
be generated by the action of the particles of air upon each
other. ‘When the bulb of a thermometer is held in the
middle of the current of blaft, as it iffues from the difcharg-
ing-pipe, a temperature is indicated as much lower than the
temperature of the furrounding air, as the temperature of the
cylinder was higher; and it is mof probable that a much
lower degree would be obtained, were it not for the previous
expreffion of fome heat in the blowing-cylinder. Upon the
whole, 1 think, the quality of the air obtained in this way
of blowing uniformly moft fit for combuttion, provided the
numerous paufes and irregularities of the current of air were
done away.

Air forced into the furnace under water preffure always
contains a confiderable portion of-moifture; the blaft of
courfe is colder, as it iffues from the difcharging-pipe. The
temperature differs fo much from that of the external air as to
fink the thermometer from 54° down to 28° and 30°. Such
effects are produced by air coming into contact with water,
that, although the temperature of the atmofphere is 60, 655
to 70, yet the blaft at the orifice feldom rfes above 38% the
cold produced in this manner is much increafed if the air
is furcharged with fo much water as to be vifible in the ftate
of a fine fpray. The leading feature, therefore, of the water-
vault, as to its effects upon the quality of the air, feems to in-
dicate an almoft uniform degree of temperature in the blaft:
this can only be occafioned by the warm air in fummer
taking up a greater portion of the water in folution, the
efcape of which at a fimall orifice, and under a great degree
of comprefiion, produces the very great depreffion of the
thermometer, I have already hited at the bad effects pro-
duced by moift blafis, and {hall, i in a proper place, more mi-
nutely attend to them.

The moft inferior quality of air ufed in the blaft-furnace
is that thrown into the air-vault, and afterwards expreffed
from thence by its own elafticity and the fucceffive ftrokes of
the engine. The capacity of fuch a building is from 60 to
70,000 cubical feet; this, when filled} generates a much fu--
perior degree of heat to that fenfible in the blowing-cylinder.

As

70 Remarks on the Scotch Diftillery,

As this heat is produced many feet diftant from any mecha
nical motion, it is moft evident that it is extricated from the

air, and will readily unite with the moifture which penetrates

the building: the quality of the air introduced into the fur-
nace will therefore be in proportion to the quantity of moif-
ture taken up; this will.be much more in fummer than in
winter, as the temperature of the. former exceeds that of the
fatter. The fenfation, on entering the air-vault in the coldeft
months, mmediately after ftopping the engine, is exactly
fimilar to that experienced upon entering a érowded room in
the hotteft fummer day; the walls are covered with damp,
and the fuperior regions of the vault readily obfcure the flame
of acandle. The feeling, upon remaining im the air-vault
when the engine is at work, is lefs marked than would be
expected where fo great a compreffion of air exifted; the
fenfe of hearing, owing to the moifture in the conducting me-
dium, is confiderably impaired, and refpiration is performed
with fome difficulty ; the light of a candle is faint, and not

vifible at the diftance of a few feet.

XIV. Some Remarks on the Scotch Difiillery, and a Defcrip-
tion of an improved Still, which may be char. te and run
off Sev enty-two Times in Twenty-four Hours *

ge improvements that have taken place in the com-
mon diftillery bufinefs in Scotland within thefe few years
are fuch as cannot fail to excite the wonder of men of fci-
ence, while they ferve to prove, at the fame time, that, to in-
fure progreffive improvement in any branch, the moft effec-
tual mean is that ftimulus which refults from intereft.

It is not neceffary, and it would be tedious, to defcribe
the progrefs of the diftillery im Scotland, fince it firft began
to affume a form of fome confequence, about twenty years
ago. It may, however, not be thought improper to mention
what gave occafion to the licence att being introduced inte

* Extraéted from the Report of the Committee of the Houfe of Com-

sons, July 1799. '
the

and Defeription of an improved Still. 7%

the Lowlands of Scotland, by which the manufacture and
duties levied on fpirits in Scotland and in England became-
regulated by diftinét and feparate laws.

The Scotch diftillers, previous to the year 1786, had fent
large quantities of fpirits to the London market, which had
oceafioned a redu&ion of the price; and it was found alfo
that the revenue of the diftillery had diminifhed. From this
circumftance it was fufpe@ed that frauds were committed
againft the revenue to a great extent; and the London dif-
tillers having received certain information of the manner in
which the duties were evaded in Scotland, this fuggelted the
neceffity of making feparate and diftinét laws for raifing the
duties in the different kingdoms.

Therefore, in July 1786 the licence aé for the Lowlands
of Scotland commenced, and was to continue for two years.
The principle on which this act was framed, between the
contending and rival diftillers of the two kingdoms, with
confent of the minifter, was in this manner :—

The duty then paid by the Englifh diftillers was fixpence
per gallon on the wath ; and fuppofing that 18 gallons of {pie
rits, 1 to 1c over hydrometer proof, were taken from 100
gallons of wath, the duty on the fpirits of that firength
amounted to 2s. 93d. per gallon. The diftillers in the Low-
Jands of Scotland were allowed to work ftills of any capacity
or extent, on paying an annual licence duty of thirty fhillings
per gallon on the content of their ftills; and the fpirits thus
made were to be confumed in Scotland. They were alfo al-
lowed to fend their fpirits into England on paying an addi-
tional duty of two {fhillings per gallon, of the ftrength of 1
to 10 over hydrometer proof, when landed there. Thus it
- was computed, that the annual licence duty of the Scotch
diftillers would be equivalent to the remaining 9} d. per gal-
lon paid by the Englifh diftillers, on this ground, that the
Scotch diftillers could run off their ftills only once in the 24
hours.

The licence act being fettled in this manner, and as the
Englith diftillers confidered they had been thus far fuccefsful
in fixing the Scotch to pay a certain duty of 2s. per gallon,
not to be evaded, they expected to have had the London

9 market

"2 Remarks on the Scotch Diflillery,

market to themfelyes: but they foon found they were niif-

taken, and that the Scotch continued to fend increafed quan-
tities, and the price of {pirits fell very Jow in the London
market.

\ In the beginning of i788 an inveftigation took place in a
Committee of the Houfe of Commons, refpecting the namber
of times in which the Scotch diftillers had worked off their
ftills ina given time, and it was found that they were in the
practice of running off their {tills five or fix times in the {pace
of 24 hours. It was therefore inferred, that by mifreprefent-
ation they had obtained an undue advantage over the Englifht
diftillers ; and in February 1788, before the two years of the
licence act had expired, an additional duty of fixpence fer
gallon was laid on all fpirits fent from Scotland to England ;
the remaining 3!d. per gallon being reckoned a fufhicient
equivalent for the licence duty. It muft well be remem-
bered, that at this time the Scotch diftillers, who had long
contended with the Englith, became bankrupts, and refigned
that market to their rivals.” Since that time new regulations
have been made, by which the whole of the Englith duty is
paid on the Scotch fpirits when landed in England; and the
revenue arifing from the diftillery has very much increafed.

Having endeavoured bricfly to mention the caufes which
originally occafioned the licence aét to be introduced into the
Lowlands of Scotland, it may now be proper to obferve, that
the ingenuity of the diftillers, working by the licence act,
has conftantly been excited, and always fuccefsful in leffen-
ing the duties, ‘their fuccels having kept pace almoft in the
degree in which the duties haye been increafed. For, when
the licence act commenced in 1786, the diftillers continued
for fome time to ule ftills of a large fize, and the duty being
only 30s. per gallon on the content of the ftills,- they did
then work them off five or fix times in the 24 hours; by
which the duty coft from 2d. to 3d. per gallon on the {pirits.
In 1788 the duty was increafed to 3/., and it continued at
that rate for about five years: during this fpace they im-
proved in running off their flills to about 20 times in the
24 hours. They attaincd to this degree of difpatch by greatly
reducing the fize of their ftills, and enlarging their furnaces.

At

and Defeription of an improved Still. "4

At this time the duty on the fpirits did not coft them above
one penny per gallon, which being very {mall they did not
think any farther improvement neceflary.

Since the commencement of the prefent war, the minifter
has thought that to lay an additional duty on fpirits made in
Scotland would be a proper meafure; and in 1793 the an-
nual licence duty on the ftills was increafed to o/., ‘and in
1797 to 54/. per gallon, which is the prefent duty. He had
reafon to expe&t that a large increafe of revenue would arife
from this high duty; and yet it muft appear very furprifing
that the revenue from the Scotch diftillery has not increafed
in any confiderable degree. This is not owing to a diminu-
tion in the confumption of fpirits; for, the price of that article
being fo low in December lait as 3s. per gallon, there can
‘be no juft reafon to think that a lefs quantity has been ufed.

When the diftillers found the duty raifed on them fo high
as 541. per gallon, they tried every expedient im order to ac-
eelerate the procefs. From repeated experiments they have
found, that the more fhallow the fiills are made, and the
bottoms enlarged, the more they can increafe the fize of the
furnace, and.apply a larger quantity of fuel, and confequently
bring the wath in the ftill to boil in a fhorter {pace of time.
The liquor in the ftill being likewife on a more extended fur-
face, the evaporation or procefs of diftillation is performed in
a more expeditious manner. It is principally by the fhal-
lownefs of the ftills that the Lowland diftillers are now en-
abled to run off their ftills three times in the hour, or feventy-
two times in the 24 hours; a degree of difpatch which a few
years ago was thought to have been impraéticable.

Plate III. is a reprefentation of one of the common flat
ftills* now ufed by the Scotch diftillers. A reprefents the
ath-pit; , the grate; c, the furnace-door; d, the flame paff-
ing on towards the flue; and e, the body of the fti'l; f, the
bottom and fide-fcraper, an apparatus which is made to re-
volve continually during the procefs by means of an upright
thaft z, driven by machinery, and which paffes through a
cup-mouthed aperture 4. This is made fteam-tight by means

* Other improvements have been intreduced, of which we fall give
fome account in a future Number.

Vou. VI. L of

44 - Obfervations on Spiders,

of wool and greafe, held down by a plate of metal faftened
by ferews. 718 a plate of copper, concave, or rather conical
below, ftretching almoft to the fide of the ftill; malarge
hole in the centre of this plate, through which the fteam
generated at the bottom of the ftill efcapes into the head.
This plate, being made of quick afcent, facilitates the efcape
of the fteam, hake might otherwife be partially accumu-
lated under the thoulder of the ftill, and, by its re-aétion on
the fubeumbent liquor, caufe the ftill to run foul, or boil
over. kk the head of the flill. To the fcraping-machine f
are attached chains, which, by the rotary motion of the
feraper, are dragged with rapidity over the whole of the bot-
tom, by wien means the wafh is prevented from burning
to the bottom, and thereby generating any new compound
injurious to the flavour or quality of the fpirit. Thefe ftills
are ufually of from 40 to 50 gallons contents.

The principle of the improvement feems to centre in this
fimple point—The greater the quantity of heat that can be
made to pafs through the body of the {till in a given time,
the greater will be the quantity of vapour, and confequently
of {pirits, produced in that time: and certainly it is not eafy
to conceive how this can be attained in any way fo effectually
as by making the ftill a// bottom, as it were, and applying the
heat to every part of that bottom.

XV. Obfervations on Spiders, and their fuppofed Poifon.
: By M. Amorngux jun. M. D.*

Tas genus of infects is as numerous in fpecies as the
latter are varied. France contains almoft the half of the fpe-
cies known. M. Geoffroy has mentioned only fixteen; but
Dr. Lifter, who made obfervations of the fame kind in ‘Eng-
land, and M. Clerk, who carried them as far as any one in
Sweden, have given a mere complete hiftory of them, Sco-
; poli, f fo.commendable in other refpects for his ufeful labours,
does not appear to have done right in changing entirely the
‘denomination of forty-four fpecies of {piders, which he faw

* From Notice des Infedtes de la France reputés venimeux, ,
tok in

and their fuppofed Poifon. "6

in Carniola, merely that he might have the pleafure of giving
to each the name of fome illuftrious perfon who has pro-
moted the fcience of entomology. This mark of honour is
of little confequence to fuch great Mecenases, and the in=
conyenience of increafing and confufing the received nomen-
clature is very great.

The public care little alfo for the exa& defcriptions of na-
turalifts, and their methodic claffifications. They require
facts; fomething wonderful and extraordinary. «They wifh
that every natural being fhould prefent fome new phenome-
non; an object of immediate utility, ora fubjeét of repro-
bation : and when their prejudices are once eftablifhed, no-
thing can deftroy them. Sometimes, for the truth muft be
confeffed, naturalifts in their writings have been the fource
of errors and prejudices. Were we to correct the affertions
of Pliny, Johnfton, Mouffet, and Aldrovandi, authors ftill
quoted, and which one cannot read with patience, refpecting
infects only, we fhould make a large book of controverfies,
which would ferve neither to inftruct the learned, nor to un-
deceive the people, always wedded to their ignorance.

The hiftory of fpiders, and that of the effects of their
yenom, were it properly treated, would alone furnith matter
for an ample chapter. What variety in the fenfations of
‘man! Some have an invincible averfion to fpiders; and
there are women who faint at the bare mention of their
name*: others treat them with familiarity, and think it an

act

* This antipathy is no lefs ftrong, though often more reafonable,
amongthe men. M. Zimmerman relates the following fingular inftance a
it, to which he was a witnefs : —“ Being one day in an Englifh company,’
fays he, “* confifting of perfons of diftinétion, the converfation happened
to fall upon antipathies. The greater part of the company denied the»re-
ality of them, and treated them as old women’s tales; but I told them that
antipathy was a real difeafe. Mr. William Matthew, fon of the governor
of Barbadoes, was of my opinion; and, as he added that he had himfelf
‘an extremé antipathy to fpiders, he was laughed at by the whole company.
T thewed them, however, that this was a real impreffion in his mind, re-
falting from a mechanical effeét. Mr. John Murray, afterwards Duke of
Athol, took it into his head to make, in Mr, Matthew's prefgnce, a {pider
of black wax, to try whether this antipathy would appear merely on a
fight of the infeét. He went out of the room, therefore, and returned with

La abit

96 Odfervations on Spiders,

aét of prowefs to eat them. So many things have been re-
lated for and againft the affertion of fpiders being venomous,
that we cannot but be cautious in regard to what has been
faid on the fubje&t by different authors; we muft therefore
requeft thofe who relate fuch ftories in future, to give a
correét defcription of the kind of fpider or other infe&t which
they believe to be poifonous, together with their common
and {cientific names, which will remove all doubt and con-
fufion. .

Our {piders in France are in general rather ugly than for-
midable. If there are any fufpeéted of being poifonous, it
ought not to be the domeftic fpider with long claws, aranea
parientina and aranea phalangiodes Linn. nor the mower of
the fields, phalangium opilio Linn. the only kinds of the pha-
Jangia mentioned by Geoffroy; nor the mafon {pider, with
swhich perhaps this author was unacquainted, becaufe it in-
habits the fouthern provinces; nor the orange-coloured fpi-
der, and that entirely white aranea viatica, and the aranea
citrina Linn. found commonly among vegetables and fruit,
and chiefly grapes; nor fo many others which we fee daily,

‘'a bit of black wax in his hand, which he kept fhut. Mr. Matthew, who
in other refpeéts was a fedate and amiable man, imagining that his friend
really held a fpider, immediately drew his fword in a great fury, retired
with precipitation to the wall, leaned againft it as if to run him through,
and fent forth horrible cries. All the mufcles of his face were fwelled,
his eye-balls rolled in their fackets, and his whole body was as ftiffas a
pott. We immediately ran to him in great alarm, and took his {word from
him, affuring him at the fame time that Mr. Murray had nothing in his
hand-but a little wax, and that he might himfelf fee it on the table,

where it was placed.
He remained fome time in this fpafmodic ftate, and I was really afraid
of the confequences. He however gradually recovered, and deplored the
dreadful paffion into which he had been thrown, and from which he ftill
fuffered. His pulfe was exceedingly quick and full, and his whole body
was covered with a cold fweat. After taking a fedative he was reftored
‘to his former tranquillity, and his fear was attended with no other bad
confequences. We muft not be furprifed at this antipathy: the largeft and
moft hideous fpidets are found in Barbadoes, and Mr, Matthew was born
jn that ifland. Some one of the company having formed of the fame wax,
~in his prefence, a a fmall {pider, he looked. at it while. making with the ut~
mof tranquillity, but it would have been impoffible to induce him to
touch its He was not, however, of a timid difpofition.” vay

an

and their fuppofed Poifon. vit |
and of which we have no caufe to complain. _ If all our fpi-
ders were noxious, how many accidents would daily happen
im houfes which are not kept clean, and to thofe people who
labour in the fields? In that cafe it would be highly proper
to deftroy them.

The brown, black, and hairy fpiders, which refide in vaults
and cellars, as they infpire the contagious air of dirty and
uninhabited places, may have juices capable of doing hurt
when they are bruifed by accident on any naked part of the
body, or introduced into the ftomach. Of this, however, we
have no well-attefted proofs, though we know that the hairy
Spider is mifchievous, and that it attacks even wafps, the {cales
of which it breaks with its {trong forceps. But what fhall we
think of the popular opinion, that fpiders lofe their venons
in certain privileged places? This is related of the old tower
of Parifet at a league from Grenoble, fituated on a mountain,
and called by the populace Tour Saint Verain, to exprefs the
tower without poifon *; where, as is faid, no ferpent, {pider,
or venomous animal is to be found: we are even affured, that
thofe carried thither immediately die.

Spiders have often attracted the attention of the curious
by their manceuvres, their amours, and fingular mode of
copulation, as well as by their addrefs in {pinning their
webs, and forming cods, in which they inclofe their eggs;
on account of their art in repairing the accidents which hap-
pen to their webs, and the breaches. they make in them on
purpofe to deliver themfelves from. too flrong a captive they
have entangled; and of their perpetual wars, and the carnage
they oceafion, &c. Thefe are the ations not of mere au-

* John Tardif, a phyfician, who wrote in 1618, fpeaks very ferioufly of
the tower without venom, as one of the wonders of Dauphiny. M. Lan-
celot, who reduced all the wonders of this province to their juft value in
a memoir upon this fubje& inferted among thofe of rhe Academy of In-
feriptions and Belles Lettres, Vol. VI. fays, that the tower without venom
is no longer worthy of that name. It is falfe that no venomous animals
live near it; ferpents and {piders are found there, as well as in other places,
*¢ I have {cen fome carried thither,” fays M. Lancelot, ‘* for the fake of
experiment, aud it did not appear that they found themfelves incommoded
by the change,” :

tomatay

78 Objervations on Spiders,
tomata, and which mutt aftonifh thofe who view them with
the eye of a philofopher.

A worthy magiftrate, M. Bon, who was fond of natural
hiftory, at a time when it. was neceffary to furmount many
prejudices, found means to breed fpiders, and to extraé filk
from their cods, which he opened. All fpiders are not weav-
ers, but they are fpinners, and all live by hunting. ‘This
hunting, for the moft part, is only ftationary, like that by
decoy. Thefe hunters difplay confiderable cunning and ad- -
drefs to make their prey fall mto the fnares which they have
laid. One kind, the aranea domeflica, extends its net hori-
zontally in a corner, hooks itfelf to it, and in that manner
hes in wait for its prey; another, the aranea dumetorum,
places its net in a vertical pofition acrofs an alley in a gar-
den, to intercept the paffing infe&ts; one conceals itfelf in
its cavern, and darts forth on the fmalleft noife; and another
fufpends itfelf from the’branch of a tree by a long thread,
and aéts the tumbler, to attract ftupid {fpectators. There are
fome which cover their cave on the outfide with a kind of
white filk, as if to anneunce, by a beautiful entrance, that
there will be no danger to proceed farther: this is merely a
decoy. Such is their occupation, their refources, and their
induftry. As in every numerous race there are vagabonds,
fome fpiders employ themfelves only in running about, and
in jumping. Such are the habits of the wolf {pider. There
are fome: alfo exceedingly cruel, which employ their arms
with great force and activity.

The ftructure of fpiders is no lefs remarkable than their
habits. They have always eight eyes, but differently dif-
pofed; and this has enabled atures to divide them into
different claffes, in order that they may be better diftin-
guifhed. M. Fabricius, however, has made known five fpe-
cies with only fix eyes. This is denied by M. Geoffroy,
who apparently had not feen thefe fpecies. But the moft
interefting organ in thefe infects is their mouth, fince it is
with this alone that they are able to hurt us. The mouth
of the fpider confifts of two ftrong forceps, terminated by a
kind of very fharp claws, the points of which are bent

down-

- and their fuppofed Porfon. 59
downwards *, Thefe forceps or claws are moveable, and
can eafily be turned upwards or downwards, and even from
right to left. It is with thefe inftruments that the fpider
feizes, pinches, and kills its prey. The points alfo ferve it as
a mouth: though their extremity is very fharp, it is pierced
towards the end; and the infide of the forceps is hollow; fo
that the fpider by thefe means fucks up the moifture of flies,
or of other infects which it feizes.

Swammerdam fays, that what might be taken for teeth in
the fpider are real ftings or darts with which it pierces thofe
animals the blood of which it fucks: but this obferver did
not believe that the fpider emitted from thefe darts a venom-
ous liquor. Lifter, who fays he had certain proofs of {piders
being venomous, expreffed the poifon from thefe inftru-
ments. Leuwenhoek alfo advances, that the venom of the
fpiders is contained in the cavity of the fharp pincers which
proceed from the mouth of the infect. Others have faid that
thefe forceps are not hollow, but that the venom proceeds
from a {mall trank which iffues from the mouth at the mo-
ment when the infe& feizes its prey. It is poffible, and even
probable, that different kinds of fpiders have a different or-
ganifation ; and it is a certain fact, that many fpiders, and
perhaps all of them, throw out from their mouth a certain
liquor, with which they moiften their prey. We may reft
affured, however, that our fpiders have nothing in them ofa
venomous nature; and this is proved by our fo often touch-
ing them without danger. They are often between our teeth
svhen we eat fruit and certain kinds of vegetables, yet we
perceive no’ other bad confequences from them than thofe
which may arife from fear and the idea of dirtinefs. There
are even {pider-eaters, who make a {port of {wallowing them:
fome do it through whim, others through a depraved tafte,
und fome to thew their courage, or to gain a wager f. Redi

* This defcription is according to Geoffroy, Vol. III. p. 631. Thofe of
Linneus and Fabricius are as follows: Aranea, Os unguibus f. retina-
culis duobis.. Palpi duo diticulati, Linn. Aranea. Labium breve, apice.ro-
tundatum.. Palpi duo incurvi, maris clavati, Fabric.

4 Inftances of fpider-eaters may be found in the Ephemerides of the
Searches into Nature, the Philofophical Tranfa@ions, and in Vander-

wiel, who has colleéted a great many from diferent authors.
faw

bi fo} Some Account of the late.

faw people who ate fpiders, and, from the experiments which
he made, he does not believe them to be poifonous. Dr.
Fairfax is of the fame opinion. Clerk and Roéfel maintain,
that fpiders are not fe venomous as is fuppofed, fince many
perfons fwallow them. It is related by the Pezntre Natu-
ralifie, that a man pretty far advanced in life ate all the
fpiders which he found, and that they ferved him as a pur-
gative. He fpread them ona flice of bread, as if they had
been excellent marmalade. The fame naturalift confutes the
popular error, that the fpider is able, by its pricking, to kill
the toad. He faw nothing of the kind, though he made
various experiments on that fubject.
[To be concluded in the next Number. ]

XVI. Some Account of the late Manx ELEAZAR Biocon,
of Berlin.

Marx ELEAZAR BLOCH, a Jewifh phyfician efta-
blifhed at Berlin, and well known by his Natural Hiftory of
Fifhes, was born at Anfpach, in Franconia, of very poor pa-
rents. His father, who was exceedingly devout, {pent his
whole time in reading the Bible and the Talmud ; while his.
mother, by felling old clothes, and other things of the like
kind, gained enough to maintain her hufband and children,
M. Bloch, at the age of nineteen, could not read German,
and did not know a fingle word of Latin. He had read only
a few Rabbinical books, and fpoke a kind of Franconian
gibberifh mixed with the Judaic jargon. A Jewith furgeon,
fettled at Hamburgh, having taken him into his houfe to in-
firuét his children, he learned good German by hearing the
gazettes read, and afterwards by ftudying the language. He
lived fo economically that he faved from his feanty falary as .
much as enabled him to pay for inftruétion in the Latin,
which he was taught by a ftudent as poor as himfelf. He
acquired, at the fame time, fome knowledge of furgery ; and,
as he had relations at Berlin, he repaired to that city to ftudy
anatomy. Having furmounted various difficulties, and got
himfelf admitted as Doétor in the Univerfity of Francfort,
7 he

Mark Eleazar Bloch, of Berlin. eb

he réturned to Berlin and made himfelf known to M. Mar-
tini, by whofe means he was eleéted a member of the Society
of the Friends of Nature.

M. Bloch, in order that he might promote the objects of
that inftitution, undertook a natural hiftory of the Murzna,
a fifh caught only in the lakes of Pomerania. He began to
form a cabinet of natural hiftory; and having made a con-
fiderable collection of aquatic animals from all parts of the
globe, he refolved to write a natural hiftory of fifhes. He
eaufed drawings to be made and engravings to be executed
from them with great correétnefs. By a fortunate aceident
he procured the original manufcripts of Father Plumier, at
the fale of one of thofe Frenchmen who came to Branden-
bourg at the time when Frederic II. ettablifhed the admi-
niftration of excife. Father Plumier, of the order of the
Minims, had made three voyages to America, and always
brought back many interefting objeéts. Though he pub-
lithed nothing but on botany, if we except the art of turning,
it is well known that he wrote a great deal on birds and fifhes;
but no one could tell what had become of thefe mannfcripts :
and it is fiill unknown in what manner they came into the
hands of the above Frenchman, from whom they paffed into
thofe of M. Bloch.

This naturalift firft publifhed, in German, four numbers
of an Economical Natural Hiftory of Fithes, particularly
thofe in the States of Pruffia, with figures from original
drawings: Berlin, 1781 and 1782; large quarto. In the
following years he gave an Economical Natural Hiftory of
the Fithes of Germany, in three volumes, confifting of 108
plates, and in which the three numbers above mentioned
were inferted. He publifhed afterwards, in nine volumes,
the Natural Hiftory of Foreign Fifhes; fo that his whole
work, confifting of twelve volumes, contains 432 plates.
The laft appeared in 1795. He caufed alfo to be made, at
his own expence, by C, Laveaux, then at Berlin, a French
tranflation of his work, which he publifhed under the title of
Hifloire generale et particuliere des Poiffons, Berlin 1785—
1788; fix volumes folio, with 216 plates. It may be readily
conceived that the expence of fuch a work muft have been

Vou. VI. M confiderable ;

82 Communication from Dr. Loane,

confiderable ; unfortunately the number of the fubferibers
and purchafers was not fufficient to defray it. M. Bloch
had the misfortune alfo to lofe his only fon, already diftin-
guifhed by his talents, who died at Paris in 1787, when on
a tour to France and England to procure fubferibers to the
French edition of his father’s Hiftory of Fithes. This lofs
plunged M. Bloch, already oppreffed with labour and ex-
pence, into the deepcft affliGtion. He however ftill conti-
nued to employ himfelf on his Hiftory of Fifhes, and, having
conclude it, undertook a journey to Paris. This diligent

naturalift, who has rendered great fervice to ichthyolosyy,
died at euHieaes in Bohemia, on the 6th of Auguft 1799.
Befides the above voluminous works, M. Bloch publifhed a
great many memoirs on Natural Hiftory in the Tranfaétions
of different Societies. His Differtation on the Murzena, pub-
lifhed in the Memoirs of the Friends of Nature at Berlin,
has been mentioned already. In the fame work he publithed
_alfo the following:—Obfervations on the regular Depreffions
in Vitriform Stones; on the Worms in the Inteftines and
Lungs of Birds; an Effay towards the Natural Hiftory of the
Worms which live in other Animals; on Worms of the
Bladder; Defcription of the Buftard and fome kinds of Birds
found in Marfhes ; on the Oil of Herrings; on the vulgar
Opinion that the Organ of Generation in the Ray and Shark
is double; on the Myxina glutinofa Linn. &c.

XVUH. A Communication from Dr. Loan, relative ta
Pneumatic Medicine.

A CASE OF ATONIC GOUT CURED BY Via AER,

Avcustus ERNEST, Efq. in the beginning of Au-
eutt 1799, was feized with fymptoms of! afthnia, great
wheezing, and difficulty of breathing, cough, mucous expec-
toration, and incapacity of lying in an horizontal pofture.
Hience arofe much cedema of the lower extremities. . Dif-
ferent medicines were tricd without effect, when Lord Egre-
qnont urged bim to make trial of the oxygen air, under Dr.
thornton, September 23. This remedy was had recourfe to;

, ‘and

relative to Pneumatic Medicine. 83

and after inhaling the vital air but a few days, fo much be-
nefit was derived, that the patient was enabled to lie com-
pofed in bed during the whole of the night ; and after a fort-
night, fo great was the energy produced, that the gout made
its appearance in the great toe of the left leg. The afthma
from this period quitted Mr. Emeft, and the mflammation
continued for the fpace of ten days in the toe and parts ad-
jacent; and the fubfequent fwelling gradually fubfiding, the
patient was reftored to perfect health. He then went to
Lord Egremont’s, previous to which I received the following
fatisfactory letter :—
Letter to Dr. Loane.
November 9, 1799.

DEAR SIR, Warwick-ftreet, Galden-fquare, No. 7.

Tam juft going into Suffex to breathe there fome of the
pure atmofpherical air; but I cannot leave this mietropolis
without reiterating to you and Dr. Thornton, with the ten-
derett feelings of sratitude, the warmeft acknowledgments for
the great benefit you have conferred on me by adminiftering
to me the vital air: indeed, when I compare the fituation in
which I was at the end of September, when I, as a dying
man, came under both your care, to what, thank God, you
have brought me now, it feems to me quite miraculous, and
I fhall always look with aftonifhment at the wonderful dif-
covery which has been made fo lately of the oxygen air.

I am, with fincere regard,
Ever faithfully yours,
AUGUSTUS ERNEST.

Objervation—When he returned to London, his friends,
Lord Romney, Count Bruhl, &c. congratulated him on his
recovery ; but his afthma foon after made him a fecond vifit,
and the vital air was again refumed, wlien in a few days it
brought on another dttucle of the gout in both feet, whith
went off kindly, leaving the patient in excellent health and
extraordinary {pirits.

It may be proper to mention, the average dofe of vital air
daily given was fix quarts, mixed with twelve of atmofpheric
air, and thjs was conjoined with the medicines moft com-
monly exhibited upon fuch cafes. Ke,

M 2 INTEL.

‘

w | { 84 ]

INTELLIGENCE,

AND
MISCELLANEOUS ARTICLES,

ROYAL SOCIETY OF LONDON.

Ar the meeting, February 6, Dr. Young’s paper on
Sound was concluded. <A paper by Mr. Cooper on the
effects occafioned by the deftruction of the membrana tym-
pani, was begun.

On the 13th Mr. Cooper’s paper was concluded. By this
ingenious paper it appears the fenfe of hearing 1 is very little
siapiited by the Jofs of the membrana tympani.

A very curious and interefting paper on the fpontaneous
emiffion of light by various bodies, by Dr. Hulm, was read

on the 13th and 2oth: it contains a number of experiments,

fome of which prove that light is a component part of all
marine fifhes ; others, that putrid fifh ceafe to be Juminous,
rotten wood to fhine, and glow-worms to emit light, when
furrounded by a frigorific mixture,

FRENCH NATIONAL INSTITUTE.

In the fitting of the French National Inftitute, Vende-
miaire 15, year 8, October 7, 1799, C. Cuvier read the fol-
Jowing account of the labours of the Mathematical and
Phyfical Clafs during the laft quarter of the year 7 :—

The diamond, fo valuable on account of its rarity and
fplendour, and id flattering to the vanity of man, had long
ago attracted the attention of philofophers by other quetites.
The ancients confidered it as the moft unalterable of bodies,
and made it the emblem of the immutability of the decrees
of Fate :—~

Si figit adamantinos
Summis verticibus dira neceffitas
Clavos.
Mankind were much furprifed when experiments proved
what the genius of Newton had divined—that the hardeft
and

French National Injlitute. 8s

end mot untractable of {tones is converted into a little fmoke
and foot. But the queftion was, What is the nature of this
combuttible body? Is it a particular {pecies, like fulphur, or
phofphorus? or is it a compound of different combuitible
bodies, as oils and bitumens? There was only one way of
anfwering thefe queftions—to colleé& the ‘product of its cona-
buftion. ‘This has been done, and the product was found to
be abfolutely the fame as that of the combuftion of charcoal ;
that is to fay, that deleterious vapour to which chemifts have
given the name of carbonic acid gas. Are the diamond and
charcoal then the fame thing? or, if not, in what do they
differ? This is the problem which C. Guyton propofed, and
which he has refolved. He firft faw the diamond change it-
felf into carbonic acid without leaving a refiduum : if it differs |
then from charcoal, it is only becaufe it contains fomething
more. It produces much more of that acid, becaufe it ab-
forbs more oxygen during combutftion than charcoal does 3
and if the combuftion be fufpended at a certain point, which
C. Guyton did, by burning the diamond by means of the
folar rays, you obtain real carbon. Thus common char-
coal, making allowance for the earthy and faline matters
which form the athes, is not a fimple fubftance, as hitherto
believed. The diamond, by its firft combination with oxy-
gen, is converted into that fubftance of which the Englith
make pencils, and which is called plumbago; by a fecond
degree, into common black charcoal; and by complete fatu-
ration, into carbonic acid. The diamond, then, is really that
ideal and fimple being which chemifts ‘called carbon, and
common charcoal is*only carbon more oxygenated; that is
to fay, the two fubftances, which in their ufual {tate appear to
us the moft tranfparent, form, by their union, the blackeft
and moft opaque of fubftances, and one of the commoneft
of fubftances contains a great part of its weight of that which
we confider as the moft valuable.

But C. Guyton has done more. It is well known thet
iron is converted into fteel by combining itfelf with a certain
quantity of carbon. C. Guyton was defirous of afcerttaining
iy what. ftate carbon entered into this combination, and,
above all, whether it abandons its oxygen to form ftee]:

C, Guyton

84 French National Inflitute,

©. Guytom has declared in the affirmative, Agreeably to
the views which. dire&ted Clouet im his. difcovery of making
ett fteel, C. Guyton changed foft iron into that fteel with the
diamond alone im a clofe veflel; and common charcoal did
not produce fteel but when treated with fome agent capable
ef depriving it of its oxygen. Many poets have compared
the hardnefs of the armour of their heroes to that of the dia+
mond, without knowing ,that their ecomparifon was founded
on fo real anvintimacy. (See Phil, Mag. Vol. V.):

The fame chemift has dire&ted. his aitention to two me-
tallic fubftances little Known, though fufficiently abundant,
One of them, named nickel, is not yet generally confidered
as a particular metal: fome cheinifis think that it is only
an alloy of feveral metals. . C. Guyton is of a different, opt-
nion: he thinks that it may be poflible to take from nickel}
all the iron with which it is mixed, and that it will even
then retain properties hitherto found only in iron—that of
attratting the magnetic needle, and that of becoming mag-
netic itfelf.

The fecond metallic fubftanee he examined is hinge a
word which fignifies heavy ftone, becaufe fome of its ores
have a ftony appearance. It is not long fince 1t was’ known
to be a metal, and hitherto it had been reduced and melted
only in an imperfect manner. C. Guyton, having fucceeded
better than his predeceffors, has found that the fpecifie gra-
vity of this metal is much lefs than what had: been fuppofed ;
it does not much furpafs that of copper. He is of opinion
that tuneften can be of little ufe but by the property which
ite oxyds have of fixing vegetable colours.

The public has been informed a year ago of the fuccefs of
the refearches of C. Foureroy and Vauquelin on the ftone of
‘the bladder. This concretion, which occafions the moft ex-
‘craciating pain, and which the Faculty defpaired of being
ever able to diffolve, may. be diffolved in certain, cafes. by
‘agents fufficiently mild not to injure the, bladder. | Thefe
‘two chemifts have alfo united their efforts this year, and
“turned their attention to the liquid in which the ftone is
formed. Notwithftanding the numerous labours of »which
uritie has been the object, they found in it new and very te-

markable

>

French National Infiitute. by
markable things: they difcovered in it a particular fubflance,
to which urine is indebted for its colour, its tafte, its odour,
and, in a word, all its charaéteriftic qualities, This fub-
ftance, to which they have given the name of wrée, has fin-
gular properties: by the action of fire it is changed entirely
into carbonat of ammonia; it cryftallifes either alone or in
union with the nitric acid; it is exceedingly foluble; but
the ftrange{t phenomenon is, that marine falt, which generally
eryftallifes in-cubes, is changed into octaedra; and that fal-
ammoniac, which cryttallifes in oftaedra, 1s changed into
eubes when mixed with this fubftance. C. Fourcroy and
Vauquelin having remarked, in their analyfis of urée, that
it contains an extraordinary quantity of azote; that is to
fay, of that non-refpirable part of our atmofphere which
enters as an effential part into all animal fubftances; and, if

1 may be allowed the expreffion, that it was a matter too

much animalifed; have concluded that urine is chiefly del-
tined to carry off the faperflueus portion of this azotic prin-

ciple which: is foundin the human body. Thus each of the -

elements of which the body is compofed, is conveyed from
it ma particular manner; the lungs free it from carbon in
refpiration, the liver from hydrogen in the produétion of
bile, and the reins from azote in that of urine.

€. Chaptal has deferibed the art.of the fcowerer, which,
though defpifed becaule not lucrative, is, however, founded
ouknowledge and a multitude of facts which can be learned
only from the higher branches of chemiftry. (See Phil. Mag.
‘Vol. Vi p.4g.)

-C, Chauffier has been fo fortunate as to difeover a new
chemical production, and, at the fame time, a ufeful remedy:
im various difeafes :—it 1s a combination of fulphur with al-
kalies, in which the former is more abundant than in the
afual hydro-fulfures, commonly ealled liver of fulphur,
without being, however, in the {tate of an acid, The union
is more intimate than in the hydro-fulfures; and this com-
bination, which C. Cliauffier calls fulphurated hydro-fulfure,
hs not the fmell of liyer of fulphur. The fulphurated hydro-
fulfure of foda is fornved on a large feale, when Glauber’s falt,
ot fulphat of foda, is decompofed by carbon, This fubfiance
has been employed with fuccefs in fome chronic difeafes,

8 and,

88 French National Infiituté.

and; when diffolved in water, it may form a very good fubs
fiitute for certain kinds of fulphureous mineral water.

C. Latreille has explained the habits and induftry of 2
fall bee, which does not live in fociety like our domeftic bee.
Ft does not build edifices like the common bee, remarkable
for their matter and the geometrical manner in which they
are conftructed; but it knows, at any rate, how to render its
imal! habitation agrecable. Bits of the petals of the corn-
poppy, cut round and rolled up with art, forms a f{plendid
tent with real purple curtains, im which it depofits an egg,
with a portion of nourifhment fufficient for the young one
about to be hatched. Another infect deferibed by C. La-
treille is remarkable for the havoc it occafions, as it feeds
only on the young of the domeftic bees. It even fearches
for them when it is not deftitute of other prey, and deftroys
a great many of thefe infects. It is of a genus which: ap-
proaches near to that of the wafp.

C. Huzzard read to the Clafs the obfervations of the late
Flandrin on animals bit by a mad dog. It appears from
thefe obfervations that graminivorous animals, fuch as horfes,
cows, &c. may become mad when bit, but that they cannot
communicate this horrid malady to others.

C. Champagne gave the following account of the labours
of the Clafs of the Moral and Political Sciences. during the
Jaft quarter of the year 7:—

C. Bouchaud read two memoirs on the colonies and muni-
cipia of the Romans. C. Bougainville read an account of the
embatly of the five nations during the war of Canada in 1757.
‘C. Mentelle read a memoir on the extent and population
ef the kingdom of Poland, and the increafe of power which
Ruffia, Praffia, and Auftria have acquired by the partition of
that country. It refults from his refearches, that Poland, be-
fore the firft difmemberment, occupied an extent of 13510
Aquare Polith leacues of 20 toa degree: that the population was
7,660,787 individuals, and 795 individuals to a {quare leagues
that the total amount of the taxes both direct and indireét
was 37,173,237 florins, about 25,652,293 francs. The part
which fell to Ruffia by the two partitions amounted to 6069
fquare Polifh leagues, containing a population of 2,195,161

individuals,

French National Infiitute. 89

individuals, with a revenue of 8,000,000 francs.. Auftria
obtained an extent of 3376 {quare Polith leagues, with a po-
pulation of 3,778,010 individuals, and a revenue of about ten
millions of francs. The part of Pruffia amounted to 4288
fquare Polith leagues, with a population of 3,764,509 indi-
viduals, and a revenue of fix or feven millions of francs.

C. Lefcalier read a memoir on the ifland of Madagafcar.
This memoir forms part of a voyage to India, which the»
author travelled through, and contains details refpeGting the
population of Madaeatcar, its productions, and the induftry
and manners of its inhabitants. C. Lefcalier has difeovered,
that the manners, cuftoms, and, above all, language of the
inhabitants of Madagafear, have a ftriking siaaaianes not-
withftanding the diftance, to thofe ig the inhabitants of
Otaheite and the other iflands of the South Sea.

C. Fleurieu read a memoir on the application of the de-
cimal metric fyftem to hydrography and the calculations of
navigation.

C. Buache read a memoir on the lands difcovered by La
Peyroufe on the coaft of Tartary and to the north of Japan.
La Peyroufe explored the channel of Tartary, and his labour
appears to be correct. He examined fome parts of the land
of Yeflo, and confirms the truth of the difcovery made of it
by the Dutch in 1643, and the exactnefs of the defcription
they have given of it. But the Dutch and Peyroufe only
faw fome points of that land, the great part of which ftill
remains to be explored. The Ruffiaus had before made fome
voyages to Yeflo; and it appears that it is not a large coun-
try, as the Dutch and Peyreufe imagined, -but a group of fe-
veral iflands.

€. Lacepede, of the Clafs of the Phyfical and Mathema-
tical Sciences, read a memoir on a new zoological chart.
Naturalitts, i in treating of the different kinds of mammifere,
birds, reptiles, and fifhes, have pointed out, with care, the
countries which they inhabit. But, to complete the hiftory of
animals, it was neceflary that the naturalift fhould determine
the influence which the different climates have in changing
or improving their faculties and form, and in regard to the
prefervation or degenération of the fpecies. To obtain a fo-
lution to this important problem, the author traces out a zoo-

Vou, VI. N logical

go _ Philomatic Society, Paris.

logical chart, not according to the political or aceidental di-
vifions of the earth, but merely according to thofe phyfical
boundaries which have been admitted by geographers. He
takes his departure from the meridian of Franee, and di-
vides the globe into twenty- -fix divifions, of fufficient extent
to obtain fenfible differences. By means of thefe comparable
degrees, the naturalift will be able to afcertain the differences
between animals, and even the variations in the fame forms
and fpecies. This grand view of Lacepede, by leading to
more exact defcriptions and more accurate obfervations, will
ferve to give more extent to the fcience of the naturalift.

PHILOMATIC SOCIETY, PARES.

~-C. Noel, in a memoir read in the Society, after taking a
view of the advantages which’ might refult from naturalifing
falt-water fifh in rivers and ponds, and particularly the her-
ring, pointed out the means to bé employed for that purpofe.
Thefe means are, to conftru& an artificial pond between two
iflands of the Seine, and to depofit in it herrings full of roes
both hard and foft, which might be carried thither by one
or more boats. To enfure the fuccefs of this firft operation,
the fame boats might repair to the fithing banks, when the
herrings have fpawned, and take up a lading of fecundated
ova to be carried to the artificial pond, with certain precau-
tions which the author points out in his memoir. C. Noel
mentions a great many inftances: which feem to prove that
the herring is fond of frefli water; and, among other facts,
he relates an experiment ‘of Dr. Franklin, who: ftocked one
of the rivers of New England with herrings by depofiting in
the water leaves of plants covered with ova. To add fome
force to the proofs adduced, C. Noel takes a view of the dif-
ferent kinds of fifh which, by the art of man, have beer:
tranfplanted from one climate to another.

C, Chantran read a memoir on the fmut in wheat, and its
acid. After remarking, that ftalks whieh bear charred ears
differ in nothing from others, and that thefe ears’ often con-
tain good and bad grains, he thought himfelf authorifed to ad-
vanice, that this difeafe does not exift, as generally believed,
in the germ of the féed from which they fprung. However,
he does not confider liming the feed-as ufelefs; he thinks it

sae 4 y déftroys

Lyceum of the Arts, Paris. . gf
deitroys the animalculz attached to the feeds, and that the
reafon of its not entirely extirpating the fmut.is; becaufe it
cannot a&t on thofe fmall infe&ts which occafion it, and
which happen to be feattered in. the ground.

Having analyfed forty-fix grains of {mut, he found in this
fubftance an acid eafy to be demonftrated by fuch an analyfis
as could not poftibly produce it in the courfe of the procefs.
Thus, boiling water infufed over it, gave a ftrong tinge of red
to tinéture of turnfole, while the remainder of this tinéture
retained its former charaéter. Smut, deprived of its acid,
and calcined in the open air, emitted the odour of burnt
corn, and gave a refiduum fix times as large as the fame
quantity of the farina of wheat treated in the fame manner.
This joined to microfcopic obfervations, fays C. Chantran,
proves the animal -nature of this fubftance, and a difference
between it and the farina of wheat, greater than could arife
merely from difeafe.

The acid of {mut is not volatile, and may be concentrated
by diftiHation. With lime and with ammonia it forms an
infoluble falt. This Jaft charaéter diftinguifhes it from the
phofphoric acid. Combined with pot-afh, it gave a falt cryf-
tallifed in fmall deliquefcent needles of a bitter tafle. It de-
compofes carbonat of lime.

LYCEUM OF THE ARTS, PARIS.

In the fitting of the 24th of Pluviofe, Feb. 13, C. Bruley
read a note refpecting the Nopal, called commonly in the An-
tilles Bois des Indes, and which nourifhes the infeé& that pro-
duces cochineal, He announced: at the fame time a very
fingular phenomenon, which is, that in the Jardin des Plantes
at Paris there are feveral nopal plants, brought to France by
C. Delahaye, covered at prefent with infeéts exceedingly vo-
racious; from which it is expected that cochineal may be
cultivated in the neighbourhood of Paris fufficient for the
confumption of the French manufaétures. C. Bruley pro-
mifed to prefent, at the next fitting, nopal plants covered with
the living infects, and a piece of fearlet cloth dyed with Pa-
rifian cochineal, which, he faid, was equally beautiful as that
dyed with American pak Soe ee :

N3 CHILD

a Child found ina Savage State.

CHILD FOUND IN A SAVAGE STATE.

Many of our readers muft recolleé& the particulars refpeét-
ing Peter the wild boy, found in the woods in Hanover, who
was afterwards maintained in this country at the expence of
Government, and who died fome years ago: they will alfo be
able to recolle& the wild girl found in the woods of Cham-
pagne in France: both of which inftances were employed,
among others, by Lord Monboddo to fupport his whimfical
idea that mankind originally went on all-fours. Another
inftance of a wild individual of the human fpecies has re-
cently occurred, as appears by the following extract of a letter
from the adminiftrator of the hofpital of Saint Afrique, which
we copy from a late French journal :—

« The attention of the inhabitants of this commune has
been attracted this morning by a very fingular phenomenon.
A child, caught in the woods of Lacaune’by three huntfmen,
was brought to our hofpital, of which Iam one of the admi-
niftrators. On their approach, this child, which was quite
naked, betook itfelf to flight, and climbed up a tree. When
brought to Lacaune, it made its efcape; but it was again
caught in the woods in the neighbourhood of Saint Sernin,
and carried to the houfe of C. Conftans, Saint Efteve, com-
miffioner of government. The foldiers who attended it thi-
ther affured me, that it was caught in the manner above re-
lated. It is certain that it feeds only on potatoes and nuts.
If you give it bread, it fmells it, bites it, and then fpits it out:
the cafe is the fame with other kinds of aliment. From thefe
facts there can be no doubt that it has lived a Jong time in
the woods. But how was it able to withftand, while quite
naked, the feverity of the prefent winter in the woods of
Lacaune? This is the higheft and’ coldeft mountain in this
part of the country, and the cold was greater this year than
in 1795. This child feems to be only ten or twelve years of
age at moft. It is well fhaped, and its eyes are black and
lively. It is always endeavouring to efcape. This morning,
having fuffered it to go out into the fields contiguous to the
hofpital, it began to run as faft as it could, and, if it had
not been clofely followed and caught, it would have foon

gained |

Botany.—Meteorology. 93
gained the mountain and difappeared. We have made for
it a {mall drefs of grey cloth, by which it feems to be much
embarraffed, and which it does not know how to get rid of.
We fuffered it to go out into the garden, but it endeavoured
to efeape, and attempted to break one of the bars of the gate,
which is of lattice-work. It does not fpeak. When offered
potatoes, it takes as many as its pretty little hands can con-
tain. If they are boiled (for it prefers them fo) it peels
them, and eats them like an ape. Jt laughs in a very agree-
able manner, and, when robbed of i's potatoes, fends forth a
fhrill ery. Conftans imagined that it was deaf, but we have
convinced ourfelves of the contrary; at moft, it is only duil
of hearing.”

BOTANY.

C. Brouffonet, the French vice-conful at Mogador on the
coat of Barbary, having been obliged to abandon his fitua-
tion on account of the bad treatment he experienced and the
ravages occafioned by the plague, and to retire to the Ca-
naries, has employed his Icifure time in examining the foil
and productions of thefe iflands, of which he propofes to
publifh a natural hiftory. In one of the ifles he found the
glacial me/embrianthemum criftallinum Linn. cultivated on a
large fcale by the inhabitants, to whom it furnifhes abun-
dance of foda. Brouffonet obferved in the ifland of Tene-
riffe cight kinds of laurel, feveral of which appear to be new.

METEOROLOGY.

s On the 11th inflant there was a very curious phenome-
non here; an inceffant fhooting of the ftars from 11 o’clock
at night till day-light the next morning, defcribed by fome
as a fhower of fire; it was, indeed, magnificently awful.”

“¢ Barbadoes, Nov. 24, 1799.”

On the 6th of December a curious phenomenon was ob-
ferved at Aofta. At ten in the morning, two parhelia, or
mock funs, were feen, of the fame fize as the real fun, but
fomewhat paler. One of them had a long white tail, in fhape
refembling a fword. An hour afterwards, the three funs
formed a femicircle, the real one being in the middle. This
femicircle foon changed into feveral others, and at length fix

of

4 Expedition to Spani/b America.

of them were feen one above the other. Thefe alfo vanithed
again, but the two parhelia remained. At four in the after-
noon, previoutly to the fetting of the fun, the mock- fun in
the weft difappeared, and afterwards that in the eaft...

.

Von HumsBoupt’s ExpEDITION TO Spawtsit
AMERICA.

The two following letters from this indefatigable philo=

fopher to one of hits friends in Germany, have been pub-

lithed in one of the foreign journals :—
Corunna, June-3, 1799.

I wrote you from Marfeilles, that I had been difappointed
in my hopes of undertaking a voyage round the world with
Captain Baudin (to which I had been invited by the French
Government) juft at the moment when I was going down to
the port to embark. After this I propofed to go out to Bo-
naparte with the fecond expedition from Toulon, and my
friends were anxioufly expeGting me; but this expedition
was rendered impoffible by the battle of Aboukir. Firm to
my purpofe, I then wifhed to go by a Swedith frigate, ex-

_ pected at Marfeilles, to Algiers, in order that I might under~

take, with the caravan of Mecca, that dangerous journey
through the defart of Selima to Cairo. The frigate, how-
ever, did not arrive; and, after waiting two months to no
purpofe in Provence, as war had broken out between France

and Algiers, I proceeded to Spain. I had procured recom--

mendations to the king, and received from him what no fo-
reigner ever obtained—letters of recommendation to all the
viceroys, and permiffion to traverfe all the Spanith fettlements
with my initruments. »

You muft acknowledge that I have been exceedingly for-
tunate. I have been provided with every thing neceflary,
and in a few hours fhall fail, in the Spanith frigate Pizarro,
for the Havannah; from which T intend to proceed to Peru,
Mexico, and Chilt. I fhall be abfent for feveral years, but
T flatter myfelf with the hopes of accomplifhing fomething of
importance.

Bonpland, a young French botanift, accompanies me. I
fhall write you from the Havannah. :

ALEX. Von HumBouptTy
Orotava

Nourifhment by Abforption —Gafeous Oxyd of Azote. 98
Orotava in the Ifand of Teneriffe,

, June 24, 1799»

We left aroma on the 5th, and arrived, without any
accident, at Lancerotta on the 16th, and St, Croix, in Tene-
riffe, on the r7th. We were in fight of four Englifh fri-
gates, which we efcaped, but we cannot tell how.

I have examined the peak with great attention; I was al-
moft in the crater at the height of 11,500 feet. This excur-
fion was attended with more fatigue than danger.

We found the heat of the crater on the ground 70° Reaum.
and the air at 2°. The pumice-ftone, which has occafioned
fo much difpute, is obfidian-ftone fufed and decompofed,
It is here as clear as the day. I am fo tired that I muft
conclude my letter. Weare juft going to fet out for Ca-
raccas and the Havannah.

ALeEx. Von HumBoctptT.

NOURISHMENT BY ABSORPTION.

Dr. Van Mons, of Bruffels, has lately announced the fol-
Towing circumftance:-—Having a patient under his care, who,
on account of a wound in the throat, was incapable of (nik
lowing any kind of nourifhment for feveral days, he kept him
alive during that period by applyi ing to the fkin, in different
parts of the budy, feveral times a-day, a fponge dipped in
Wine or ftrong foup. He concludes from this fact, that the
abforbing veffels of the {kin are capable of conveying the fluids
éommunicated to’ them to the interior parts of the body, as
the latter convey the affimilated nourifhment to the blood.
It thould be remarked, however, that from Dr. Rollo’s expe-
riments on diabetic patients, it did not appear that water was
abforbed by the fkin: but this may have been owing to fome-
thing peculiar in the abforbent fyftem of fuch patients; for
one of our own navigators (Captain Inglefield or Bligh, we
do not recolle& which,). kept their companions from: perith-
ing of thirft, by applying fea-water to the fkin.

GASEOUS OXYD OF AZOTE.

We have feen this gas inhaled: it feems to produce,
through the medium of the lungs, the fame effet that al-
cohol does through the medium of the flomach—intoxica-

tion,

96 Death:

tion. Does not this intimate, what would be little expected,
that it probably contains a large portion of hydrogen?

DEATH.
At Paris, on the 23d of O&tober laft year, at the age of 77,

Louis James Gouffier, member of feveral learned focieties.
He was born in 1722, and applied at a very early period to
the ftudy of the mathematics. His firft labours were, to ar-
rarige and {uperintend the publication of the memoirs, which
the celebrated Condamine gave to the public i in 1751, on the
meafurement of the three firft degrees of the meridian in the
fouthern hemifphere. In confequence of the ability which
he difplayed by the part he took in this interefting work, he
was invited to co-operate in the Encyclopedie with Diderot
and D’Alembert. Being charged with the part refpeéting
the mechanical arts, Gouffier exercifed feveral of them him-
felf, that he might be better able to give a defcription of
them ; fuch as thofe of watch-making, lock-making, cabinet-
making, turning, &c. His articles difplay clearnefs, precifion,
and method. About the year 1760, the Baron de Marivet in-
vited Gouffier to refide with him, in order that he might im-
prove himfelf in natural philofophy. In 1779 they diftributed
the profpeétus of a New Philofophy of the World, which they
propofed to publith conjointly, and which was to make four-
teen volumes in quarto ; but it was never carried farther than
the eighth. Gouffier was fond of travelling on foot, and in
this manner went over all France. He hada great attach-

ment to hydraulics, and was acquainted with every river and
canal in the kingdom. With the fame Baron Marivet he
publifhed, in 1789, a work, in two volumes oétavo, on the
Internal Navigation of France, with an Atlas adapted to the’
fubject. He invented feveral curious pieces of mechanifm,
among which is a mill with portable arms for fawing planks.
This piece of mechanifm was fent to Poland to ferve as a
model for the mills deftined to manufacture the timber of
the immenfe forefts of that country. He invented alfo a
water level, much ufed by land furveyors,

Ce eeietemmnmnammiinne ik aint ieiememateemael

SS

THE

PHILOSOPHICAL MAGAZINE.

——

MARCH 1800.

: ae

I. Obfervations refpecting Oxflers, and the Places where
’ found. By Profeffor BecKMANN.

Our knowledge refpecting the nature and otganifation,
mode of life, nourifhment and propagation of thefe fhell-fith,
is confined, defeétive, and uncertain. They live m a me-
dium which fereens them from our obfervation; they are
found on coafts which few naturalifts frequent, and are fo
different from all other animals, that, even from the obferva-
tions which have been made on them, very little can be con-
cluded. I fhall leave it to naturalifts to colleét, arrange, and
explain thefe obfervations, as the following, in my opinion,
will be fufficient for the obje&t I have in view by the prefent
paper,*. .

Oyfters live on the fhores of the fea; and particularly fuch
as are fandy or ftony; on the coafts of. iflands, on rocks
which project into the fea; and on fand-banks ; but they
feem to thrive beft at the mouth of ftreams, where the water
of the latter renders {he water of the fea milder. “Phe animal
(lime which the ftreams carry along with them, and which
is accumulated on the fhores; may ferve them as food.

Oyfters {pawn chiefly in fpring, when the fun again begins
to warm the water of the fea; and what they then throw out
confifts in fmall oyfters completely formed, which feem to

#* Oftrea edulis inn.

Vot-Vii*. O be.

98 Obfervations refpetting Oxfters,
be innumerable. Each of thefe young ones expands to @
complete oyfter, in the fame manner as the feeds or fruits of
thofe plants which have hermaphrodite bloom. I muft here
obferve, that thofe are miftaken who {peak of male and female
oyfters ; for how could procreation be poflible among ani-
mals which either do not change their place during their _
whole lives, or can change it only perhaps for an inch, and
which are capable of rio other movement than that of opening
a Jittle their fhells ?
Thefe fhells are very often covered with productions of the
coral kind: they are frequently loaded alfo with fmall muf-
eles and multitudes of worms, but only on the convex fide, °
which appears to be the upper one, fo that the animal refts
on the flat fide. It frequently happens that both fhells are
quite pierced through, and gnawed by worms, in the fame
manner as old wood. All thefe enemies endeavour to deftroy
thefe harmlefs animals, and the cafe is the fame with the
worms which are found between the flefhy parts of their
body, and in many places more abundant than in others *.
A more formidable enemy for oyfters, however, is that ecl-
formed fifh which at Heiligeland is called nugnogen, but
which by fome has been called the five-fingered fifht. It
is found fometimes in oyfter-fhells that are quite clofe, and
im which no traces can be difcovered of the firft inhabitant.
Jt lies in the fhell bent like a ring, and the fifhers unani-
moufly affert that it eats the oyfter. On that account the

* Befides thefe worms, there are found, on fhells which have not becr
Jong taken from the {ca, another kind, exceedingly fmall, which emit 3
phoiphoric light, that may be obferved when they are thrown againft: a
hard body in the dark, or fuffered to fall ona fione. They are mentioned
by Lemery in his Diétionary of Drugse It appears to me that they are
perfectly fimilar to thofe which L have feen drawn up from the fea ca
ropes. Linneus gives to this fpecies the name of Nere/s nodtiluca.

+ Opbidion imberée, a name borrowed by Linnaus from Rondelet.
Befides the writers queted by Linnzus, F fhall refer the reader to Ge/nert
Hif. aqvatil. p, 105, under the Ajelli,, In Klein, p. 55, it is called Ex-
chelyopus flavus imberbis, Schelhammer’s Anat. Xipbie@, who had the
nugnogex in his poffeflion, may be found in Valentini Ampbitheat. Looto-
suicum, UI. p. 109. A bad figure of it may be feen m Rozier's Odferva-
tions fur la Phyfique, XII. 1778; p. 277., See alfo, Tranfaétions of the
Swedith Academy, Vol. V. p. #22, and Vol. VI, p. 116,

Englifh

and the Places where found. 99

Englith fifhermen ftrongly recommend deftroying it whcre-
ever it is found. But how comes this murderer into the
‘fhell? In all probability it creeps in when the animal opens
its fhell; and I thence conclude that the oyflers open their
‘fhells much wider than Reimarus* and others haye ima-
gined. Another queftion is, How happens it that the an-
cient ichthyologifts, though they mention this fith, do not
obferve that it was found in oy fter- thells, mien at prefent
is not uncommon ?

Oyfters are leaneft when they fpawn, or after that period,
and on this account fifhing for them at that time is forbidden
in England and other countries where prudent regulations
prevail, In Spain this precaution is employed becaufe it is
imagined that at this period the ufe of them as food is mju-
rious to the health, It appears that they ought at leaft to
be three years old in order to ferve as food +; and where care
is taken for the prefervation of the oyfter-beds, the fifhermen
are ordered to {crape off all the fmall ones which adhere to
thofe that are full grown, and to throw them back into the .
fea, An old oyfter has often twenty {mall ones attached to
it. Very fevere winters injure the oyfter-beds and deftroy
the oyfters, as was every where proved during that of the
year 1740. Violent ftorms. in the {pring are equally preju-
dicial, and many beds have been exhaufted by fifhing up too
many from them. We are told by Paulus Jovius }, that he
remembered the time when oyfters were brought from the
coat of Pefaro to Rome; but that thefe beds were afterwards
entirely exhaufied, and that people were obliged to be fatif-
fied with oyfters brought from Corfica, which, before they

* Betrachtungen iiber die befondern thierifchen Kunftriebe, p. 17.

+ It is generally believed that the fhells of mufcles receive ycarly-a new
coat, and from the number of thefe their age may be determined, as the
age of a tree from the number of its rings. Bur Poli, in his expenfive
work on the Teftaceous Animals of both the Sizilies, the firft part of
which was printed at Parma in 1791, affures us, that he obferved that
their fize does not increafe in fuch a regular manner as to admit of their
age being determined by it) In England the fmelleft oyfters are called
oy fter-{ced, cultch and /pat.

{ De Romuanis pifcibus, cap. xli. p. 139.

O 2 arrived,

td0 Obfervations refpetting Oyflers,

arrived, were often in a putrid ftate. No kind of animal
fubftance, indeed, is more liable to corrupt than fhell-fith,
both thofe which are ufed as food, and thofe which are not.

Tt is an undoubted truth, that the nature of the fhell and
fith, as well as the goodnefs of thefe animals, are different
according to the morte where they are found ; fo that fifher-
men can tell by their external appearance, sat connoiffeurs
by the tafte, where any kind of oyfter, and in general of
fhell-fith, have been found. Where the bottom is valcare-
ous, they are tenderer and more friable; where it confifts of
rock, they are thicker, more folid, and heavier; where it
confifts of marl, or a mixture of chalk and clay, they are lefs
earthy, fofter, and contain more animal gluten. Ona flimy
bottom they are more oily, and abound more with rich ani-
mal particles. The tafte is equally liable to change: for
example; on the eaftern ftony fhore of the Adifiatic See all
marine animals are poorer and more infipid than thofe on
the weftern fide, where the bottom is richer. On calcareous
rocks the oyfters are larger, but have not fo good a tafte as
thofe which live in flimy bays or creeks. | In Norway thofe
are Jeaft efteemed which are found on a muddy bottom, be-
canfe they have a muddy tafte: thofe of Denmark, found on
a fandy bottom near Tondern and Fladitrand, are much bet-
ter. ‘The bet are the fo called rock- -oyfters, found on the
rocks whcre they are alternately covered and left dr
the tide, though in England thofe found at the greateft ve
in the fea are preferred. The rock-oyfters are larger and
plumper than others, but their fhells much thinner, and
many of them fo thin that they are as tranfparent as horn.
For this reafon, a cafk fuch as thofe ufed at Bergen will
contain fearcely 400, or even 300, fand-oyfters, bee is ca-
pable of containing frorn 70 to 800 rock-oyfters.

The oyfer fithery is exceedingly fimple, and requires very
Kittle apparatus ; many calleét the oyfters with their hand,
that is, where the fea retire? and leaves the bottom eg
Where this is not the cafe, a fquare iron box, or box bound
round with iron, is dragged over the bottom by means
ofa rope, and from time’ to time drawn up and emptied,

’ | Others,

and the Places where found. 10

Others, inftead of this box, have a net made of firong leather
thongs, kept open by means of a heavy fquare iron frame,
which, by being dragged on the bottom, rakes up the oyi{ters”
and fuffers them to be received into the net. Others have a
rake with about twenty {trong iron crooked and blunt {pikes
eight or ten inches in length, which is faftened to a long
thin elaftic pole. The fifhermen, who are in a boat, draw
this rake over the bottom in the fame manner as the before-
mentioned net, and thus raife the oyfters, which are retained
by a board fattened over the rake, fo that they can be drawn
up with it. The pole muft be fufficiently pliable to yield
when drawn with force over the inequalities of the bottom.
In places where the fifhermen employ more care in colleét-
ing the oyfters in order to fpare the banks, they pull up, by
means of wooden tongs, when the water is clear, only the
largeft oyfters, and fuffer the reft to remain undifturbed till
they grow to the proper fize. There may, however, be other
means employed for catching oyfters with which I am not
acquainted ; and it would be a ufeful Jabour if any perfon
would give a complete treatife on the oyfter fifhery, with
engravings of all the apparatus and inftruments. This, as_
far as I know, no one has ever yet done. Duhamel pro-.
mifed to treat of this fubjeét in his large work on Fifhing,
but he died before it was completed.

Thofe oyfters which are diftinguifhed by a green colour,
and which the Dutch on that account call groenbaardyjes,
are confidered to be fuperior to others. But this diftinction
is not natural to them, and is produced by art. For this
purpofe pits are dug on the fea-fhore, and. furnifhed with
{mall fluices, through which the fea-water is fuffered to enter
at the time of the fpring-tides. When the water has rifen to
a certain height the oytters are thrown jnto the pits, where
they are left till they acquire the proper colour. ‘This ftag~
nant water, in warm weather, foon becomes green, and in a
few days the oyfters affume the fame colonr; but they do not
acquire their full quality, and become fit for fale, till the end
pf fix or eight weeks. 1am inclined to think that this co-
Jour is occafioned by certain plants which grow in the water,
perhaps an ulva; conferva, or tremella, This was the opiy-

nion

102 Objervations refpetting Oyflers,

nion of Bradley *, who calls the plant a fort of cow’s milk 5
a name which, according to Hudfon’s Flora Anglica, is a
Conferva rivularis, IT mutt here remark alfo, that the U/va
tatiffima of Linnus, which by Gmelin in his Hi/foria fu-
corum is called Fucus tremella laétuca, is by the Enghth
called the oyfter-green. The objections which fome Englifh
writers have made to this opinion feem to me to be of little
weight. They affert, that when, in the neighbourhood of a
greening-pit, another is formed at the diftance of about a foot,
the water never becomes green im the latter; and that pits
which haye been a certain time green, and have communi-
cated that colour to oyfters, fometimes lofe their colour, But
all this, even if true, might, on more accurate obfervation,
be explained from the vegetation of thefe plants.

In Europe the Englifh oyfters are accounted the beft; and
thefe, as the French believe, have been produced from oyf-
ters formerly fifhed up in Concalle Bay, near St. Malo, and
tranfplanfed to the Englifh coaft: but of this affertion we
have no prooft. Thofe, however, are moft efteemed which
are found on the coaft of Effex: from that coaft the brood is
tranfplanted to the fea near Colchefter, where the Coln,
which flows through the city, forms a great many arms and
fmall creeks exceedingly proper for breeding them. A great
many of thefe oyfter-pits are found at the village of Row
Hedge, in the parifh of Eaft Doniland; and the fale of oyf-
ters forms a confiderable branch of trade to the whole neigh-
bourhood ¢. After the month of May, however, no feed
- muft be taken from the banks, becaufe it is known, from
experience, that in that cafe mufcles and cockles would breed
there and deftroy the oyfters, People who infringe on this
regulation are feverely punifhed by the Admiralty Court,
which has all the oyfter banks under its infpection, All thefe
oyfters are in high requeft, under the name of Colchefter oy{-
ters. The befi come from Purfleet; they are exceedingly

* A Pan cal pecan of the Works of Nature, London 1739,
Syvo. p. 7
+ Lettres de l’Abbé Le Bisic fur les Anglois et les Francois, Am/ferd.
hie Mikes Vol, IIL. p- 281.
Morant’s Hiftory and Antiquitics of Effex; bani 1763, fol. p. 186,

plump,

and the Places where found. Io

plump, and the thells are thin and almoft tranfparent. The
bet kind, however, even at Colchefter, are fo dear that a peck
cofts five or fix fhillings; and as, the London fifhmongers buv
almoft all their oyfters from the fifhermen or dredgers imme-
diately after they are caught, they all, of courfe, pafs through
their hands. But they are: aataite dof mixing frefh with ftale oyi-
ters, and of felling thofeofthe weftern coaltfor Colchefteroyfters.
Many, ‘tall | prefer thofe oyfters which are colle&ted
on the coaft of Dorfetfhire, and particularly thofe found near
Poo]. They are faid alfo to contain fometimes pearls of larger
fize than thofe found in other places. The greater part of
the Englifh oyfters, which the Dutch carry away every year
with more than a hundred veffels, are fold by the fifhermen
_at Feyerfham, a fmall town in Kent, to the north-weft of
Canterbury, and which, like the neighbouring {mall towns
of Milton and Middleton, is known on account of this trade.
There are a great many oyfter banks alfo in the Ifle of
Wight: thofe, likewife, are well known which are found
near Tenby on the coaft of South Wales, and near Milford-
Haven: but the largeft, and perhaps the worft, are thofe of
Blackrock, near Liverpool.

It appears that the Englifh have taken more trouble than
other nations, not only to maintain their oyfter banks, but to
form new ones. Since the year 1712, a great many oyfters
have been found in the fmall.channe! of Meneu or Menai
which feparates Anglefey from Caernaryonfhire, and where
about the year 1700 none were to be feen. It is known,
however, that foon after that period fome perfon threw into
the above channel about a hundred oyfters, which have now
extended feveral miles, fo that at prefent a great many veffels
are employed in this fifhery *. It would appear that the waves
carry the feed along with them, as it is known that on the

_coaft of Holftein the banks are deftroyed by violent ftorms
about the time the oyfters fpawn.
{ To be continued, ]

a
2

* Some account of the Englifh oyfter banks may be found in the Taanf-
aftions of the Swedifh Academy, Vol. V. p. 122. and Val. VI. p. 116.
Alfo in the Fournal Economique 1733, Dec. p. 166 and 139; and 1767,
p- 177. See alfothe Hiftory and Antiquities of Colchefter, by Phil. Mv-
rant, Lond. 1748, fol. Vol. 1, p. 875 and Sp:at’s Hift. of the Royal So-
cicty, Lond. 17422, p. 397.

IL. Hiflory

~

[ tog J

Il. Hiflory of Aftronomy for the Year 1799. By Jerom#
Latanpe. Read at the Lyceum on the 26th of December.

[Concluded from Page 41.]

Tn E_ Geographical Ephemerides of M, Von Zach, which
appear every month, have continued to eftablifh a valuable
correfpondence between the aftronomers of Germany and
thofe of the reft of Europe; but this work feems to have
done more by procuring to aftronomers new amateurs and

new affiftants in regard to obfervations and calculations; fuch

as Colonel Le Coq, of Minden, in Pruffia; M. Felgenhauer,
at Reichenback, near Schweidnitz, where he has eftablifhed
an obfervatory furnifhed with excellent inftruments ; M. Ber-
hrnauer, at Budiffin or Bautzen, in Lufatia; M. Grillo, at
Wettin, in the duchy of Magdebourg; and M. Gaufs, at
Brunf{wick, a young man who fhews great tafte and zeal for
aftronomy, and who has made ufeful calculations.

In Ruffia, two officers of the navy have been fent to de-
termine the pofition of various points on the White and
Frozen Seas. The Prefident of the Academy, Baron de
Nicolay, a German from Strafburgh, and a poet, feems to
be interefted in this undertaking.

The beautiful inftruments ar Megnié, among which are
an azimuth quadrant, have been purchafed ‘by C. Lubbert,
of Hemburgh; and he has given me fome hopes that he
will eftablifh an obfervatory, where they may be rendered
ufeful. The Senate of Hamburgh having refolved to caufe
a correct map of its territory to be made, M. Horner has fet
out from Gotha, where he laboured in the obfervatory, and
has gone to Hamburgh.

The Duke of Gotha has purchafed new infiruments for
his beautiful obfervatory, and M. Von Zach continues the
printing of a valuable work, in two volumes quarto, on the
Stars; which will foon appear.

In the Batavian Republic, C. Calkoen has gone to take
poffeffion of the obfervatory of Leyden, and has left that of
Amfterdam to C. Keyfer; but we have received no obferva-
tions except from C. Dutenhoye at Utrecht. The Jaft men-

8 tioned -

Hiftory of Aftronomy for the Year 1799. Tos
tioned aftronomer has caufed to be printed the Cofmologic
Letters of Lambert, tranflated by C. Darquier.

A grand telefcope of 25 feet has been conftruéted by Dr.
Herfchel for Spain; it coft 175,000 francs, (above 7000 /,
fterling); but there is no obfervatory at Madrid; that of
Buen-retiro is not yet finifhed. The minifter Florida Blanca
had much at heart a mufeum and obfervatory, but the ar-
chiteét finifhed neither of them. When the war broke out,
the minifter was difmiffed, and aftronomy in Spain has re-
mained in its former ftate of torpor. There is fo little money
in that country, that it is difficult to find enough to defray
the fmalleft expences. But the minifter Durquijo feems to
be much difpofed in favour of aftronomy, and, in the mean
time, has enabled M. Chaix to make ufeful obfervations.
I have thanked him in the name of Aftronomy, and he re-
turned fuch an anfwer as increafes my hopes.

M. Chaix has been charged in Spain with a labour on
meafures; and we have fent him from Paris an account of
what was done by Borda, Mechain, and Caffini, in regard to
the meafure of the pendulum, which in 1792 was found to
be 36 inches 8 lines 60 at 10°, which is the mean heat at
Paris. This fuppofes the pendulum in vacuo reduced to very
fmall arcs. We learn from the Journal of Jena, that the
firft volume of the Memoirs of the Academy of Lifbon was
publithed in 1797; it begins at 1780. It contains obferva-
tions made at Lifbon by M. Cuftodio Gomes de Villas-
boas, and M. Ciera; by M. Ceruti at Carthagena, and by
M. Dorta and Barbofa at Rio-Jancire ; meteorological obfer-
vations made at Rio-Janeiro; obfervations of the fatellites,
made at Mafra; an cloge of d’Alembert, by M. Stockler;
but this eloge has excited perfecution againft the author in a
country where the anti-philofopbic tribunal flill calls itfelf
the Holy Inquifition.

An able artitt at Florence, named Gort, has divided, with
great ingenuity, a quadrant belonging to the obfervatory of
P. Ximenez, occupied by the Scolopies, and which had ori-
ginally been very ill divided. We may hope, therefore, for
fome obfervations from Tufcany.

The revolution of Naples has made that capital, the pe-

Vou. VI. P fition

aad

106 Fiflory of Aftronomy for the Year 1799.

fition of which was not accurately known, an object of at-
tention. M. Caffella fent me feveral obfervations of eclipfes,
which I have calculated; and I have found the diftance of
Naples from the meridian of Pans, by the mean of feyen
refults, to be 47’ 49”.

The labours of .M. Piazzi, of Palermo, muft have been
“interrupted this year by calamity and misfortunes; for I
have received no letter from the beautiful obferyatory and
the able aftronomer of Palermo.

A Roman citizen has come to infoiee aftronomy in, |
France. C. Ciccolini requefled leave to lodge in the Col-
lege de France, in order to obferve and make calculations
along with us. He has difplayed in this fituation as much
zeal as ability; and we are indebted to him for the calcu-
lation of eclipfes of the fun obferved in this century, of
which there had before been no relults. He has affifted us
alfo to calculate a part of our immenfe colleétion of ftars,

I announced lat year that Caflini feemed difpofed to tread
in the fteps of bis anceftors. His father, who quitted the
obfervatory at the fatal period of 1793, has announced his
intention of refiding at Paris; and the Inftitute has elected
him a fecond time to a place in the department of aftronomy,
yacant by the death of C. Lemonnier.

C. Sorlin has joined us, and i 18 calculating the longitudes,
Jatit ndes, and ae of pofition of fix hundred ftars, which
form the Fargletan ntal catalogue of the principal Itars which
C. Le Frangais i is publithing in the Connoiffance des Tems,
and which he has for feveral years been bringing to perfec-
tion. C. Sorlin has calculated alfo a new table of the {phe-
roidal degrees according to the dimenfions we, have adopted.

C. Mougin has ealoulated the proceffions of the 1500
ftars in the Con noiffance des Tems for the year 7, in cen=
tiemes and feconds; and he is calculating for 1800 and 1909
the proceffions of the 600 ftars of the fundamental catalogue.

C. Bernier of Montauban has fent us-calculations of “ob-
feryations of Mercury and Venus made by C, Duc-la-~Cha-
pelle. at

Several differtations have appeared in the public journals
on the queftion, whether the year 1800 begins the nineteenth

oe oo pelle | ‘century.

‘

‘

Hiflory of Aftronomy for ibe Year 1799. 107
eéritury. In 1700 there were many papers on the fame fub-
jet; but it is fufficient to confider that centuries are counted
like every thing elfe, from one to a hundred, and. therefore
it is 1801 that suit begin the new century. The only thing
that could occafion this error is, the tranfition from 17 to

18 hundreds, It has appeared to niany people that this is
changing the century: _
C. Taillardat has publithed a fmall work entitled Horloge

du laboureury, or an eafy methdd to difcoyer the hour of the

night by the afpect of the ftars, with figures of the conftella-
tions, and the months when they are fee in the evening,

The Marine, which is intiniately conne&ted with Aftro-
nomy, has produced a memoir containing theoretic explana-
tions of a trigonometrical chart for reducing the apparent
diftancé of the moon from the fun or a ftar, to the real dif-
tance, and to refolve other problems of navigation, by
C. Maingnon, lirutenant de vaiffean. This memoir, and the
chart by which it is ‘accompanied, contain an ingenious,
eafy, and correct method of reducing diftaneces with a feale
and compafs on one chart, inftead of the great number
which have been publifhed by Margets; and the report
which C. Leveque has made to the Inftitute on this fubject
difplays great erudition, and contains important reflections.

C, Leveque has publifhed alfo, in the Connoiffance des
Tems for the year 10, an interefiine memoir on the ufe:
which may be made of the horary charts of Margets for
refolving problems, which the author had not in view, and
which render them more interefting than was imagined.

The Bibliotheque Britannique, an excellent journal, pub-
lifhed at Geneva, contains an extract of feveral reports made
to the Society eftablifhed in that city for the advancement of
the Arts, on the going of a marine time-keeper,. executed
laft year by two Genevan artifts, Demole and Magnin, and
fubmitted by them for examination to that Society, who
appointed a commiflion to follow, at the obfervatory, the
going of that time-piece.

It is in the form of a cylinder, three inches in diameter
and 18 lines in height, and is. fufpended horizontally in a
double circle, after the manner of the marine compafles. It

P 2 has

108 Hiflory of Aflronomy for the Year 1799.

has a compenfation balance, according to the principles ex-
plained in the fame volume of the Bibliotheque Britannique*.
It is moved by a fpiral fpring rolied up in the form of a cy-
linder. The efcapement is defcribed in the fame work, and
illuftrated with figures. All the frictions, both of the efeape-
nients and the parts of the machine, are performed on rubies
either plain or pierced; and this eflential improvement,
which renders the ufe of oil unneceflary, had never before
been carried to the fame degree of perfection.

Thefe able artifts improved themfelves by a refidence of

feveral years at Paris with Ferd. and Louis Berthoud: they
afterwards united their talents at Geneva, tothe great ad-
vantage of an art in which they have fo eminently diftin-
guithed themfelves. C, Magnin is now travelling through
Spain, to which he has carried a time-keeper like that above

deferibed. They make alfo portable chronometers, with an

efeapement independent and a compenfation balance, which
go exceedingly well.

The art of piercing rubies, formerly carried from Geneva
io England by Fatio, was a fecret loft to the country in which
it was invented. Thefe artifts have again naturalifed it, for
they cut and pierced themfelves all the rubies they employed.

C. Louis Berthoud has alfo brought a workman to Paris,
and he will do the fame thing in future in regard to the
chronometers with which he will enrich the navy. The
minifter has entrufted me with one, the exatnefs of which
is of the utmoft value for the correfpondence of the five -ob-
feryatories of Paris.

I hoped that my aérial voyage, on the 25th of July 1799,
would have procured me fome knowledge refpecting the fcin-
tillation of the ftars and the nature of the atmofphere; but
Twas deceived by the perfon to whom I gave my confidence,
and for. whom I braved the public opinion. I was not able
to afcend to a fufficient height, but this atmofpheric prome-
nade enabled me to make fome ufeful remarks on aérial
currents. On fetting out from Tivoli the ait appeared to me
perfectly calm, and there did not feem to be the leaft wind,

yet I perceived that the balloon advanced towards the eaft. I
* Vol. XII.

,

rofe

ee es

Fijtory of Aftronomy for the Year 1799. 10g

tofe to the height of 250 toifes, and adyanced at the rate of
fix leagues per hour. The direction of the clouds, which {
had examined before I fet out, was, on the contrary, towards
the weft: thus I experienced, that when a local caufe impels
the lower part of the atmofphere towards the weft, that above
takes its place, and proceeds towards the eaft. Of the two
balloons which | fent off before me for the fake of trial, one
rofe to the height of 300 toifes, and directed its courfe te-
wards Monfort; the other rofe to about the height of 600
toifes, and proceeded towards Rambouillet, which made fix
degrees of difference. Thus, in 300 toifes the wind changed
fix degrees, By rifing, therefore, more or lefs, we fhall one
day be able to vary our direction. ‘The inclined planes of
C. Tetu Brefli, at Bellevue, afford us the means of varying
thefe direétions much more; and I hope that a proof’ of it
will be feen next fummer.

A large balloon of nine feet, which was let off next morn-
ing, rofe much higher, and fell at Coucy, 23 leagues to the
_‘*porth-eaft of Paris, having proceeded at the rate of eight
leagues per hour. It directed itfelf towards Maeftricht and
Ruremonde, while the clouds were proceeding in the direc-
tion of Joinville and Conftance towards the fouth-weft.
Between the two directions one might have chofen for every
part of Germany. Thus, the project which I had announced
of going to Gotha was not.chimerical, as afferted ; nothing
would have been neceffary but to choofe the height. The
velocity of eight leagues per hour was indicated alfo by the
excurfion of Garnerin on the 28th of Thermidor, year 6, wha
went from Rofni to Chalons in four hours. Twenty-four
hours, therefore, would have been fufficient to go to Gotha,
which was the term of my defires and my hopes.

My aéroftatic globe turned fix times, which fhewed, that
in a current of air of twenty fect in height, there is a fenfible
difference of force and velocity; but probably by rifing much
higher, I fhould have found more regularity.

I faw alfo, by the agitation of my-barometer, that the fla-
bility of the boat was not fufficiently conftant to enable-me
to obferve it with my glaffes; but at a greater height I fhould,
without doubt, have found more ftability: befides, as on

% board

19 <0) Hiflory of Aftronamy for the Year 179g.
board fhip, we might employ inftruments, which would
obviate the inconvenience of motion.

There have been periods when an aftronomer would have
been glad to rife above the clouds. Le Gentil went to India
in 1760 to obferve the tranfit of Venus: by the war he was
deprived of an opportunity of obferving that of 1761; he was
obliged, therefore, to wait for that of 1769; but he was again
difappointed by clouds. He had travelled then ten thoufand
Jeagues, and employed ten years for an obfervation which
he did not make. If he had been in poffeffion of an aéro-
ftatic globe, this long voyage would not have been loft to
aftronomy ; and, as aftronomers, we have reafon to congra-
tulate ourfelves on the noble difcovery of Montgolfier.

The froft, during winter, afforded an opportunity alfo for
meteorological experiments. C. Fourcroy repeated that of
the congelation of mercury: at 30 degrees it began to lofe
its fluidity, and at 32 became folid.

It now remains for me to fpeak of the loffes which aftro-
nomy has fuftained this year. The firlt, and moft remarkable,
is the death of John Charles de Borda, on the 1gth of Fe-
bruary 1799. He was born at Dax on the 4th of May 1733.
He was firft in the light horfe, and afterwards in the engi-
neers. In 1769 M. De Roquefeuil induced him to enter inte
the navy, where his mathematical knowledge might render
him of more utility. In 1754 he was received into the Aca-
demy of Sciences, where he was always confidered as one of
the firft eometers. In 1771 he undertook a voyage to
America, in the Flora, with Verdun and Pingré. ‘The re-
fults appeared in 1778 in two volumes quarto, the greater
part of which were due to his labours. In 1774 he under-
took a voyage to the Azores, the Cape Verd iflands, and
the coaft of Africa. The manufeript exifis, and contains
many obfervations, which render the publication of it de-
firable. I do not fpeak of his learned refearches on the re-
fiftance of fluids, which are in the memoirs of the Academy
for 1763 and 1767, fince I have nothing to recall here but
what he has done for aftronomy and the marine. But
C. Lefevre Gineau will read publicly in the Inflitute a more
particular eloge of this illaftrious academician, By ferving

in

Hiflozy of Afironomy for the Year.1799.- II

ia the American war with d’Eftaing in 1777 and 1778, his
health was impaired, but he ftill employed himfelf in ufeful
labours. In 1778 he introduced into aftronomy and the
navy multiplying circles, invented by Tobias Mayer, of the
importance of which no one had before been fenfible. He
brought them to perfection, and by thefe means rendered ay
eflential fervice to aftronomy and navigation.

In 1792 he invented inftruments and methods for obferv-
ing the length of the pendulum, with a precifion before un-
known; and metallic rules for meafuring bafes, intended to
give the real length of the meridian. Thefe inftruments
were of great utility for that great and important labour. As
refractions were neceflary in this labour, he made experi-
ments and theoretical refearches worthy of a great geome-
trician, They are preferved among his papers, and a large
memoir by him is ready to be printed.

He caufed to be calculated at his houfe, and at his own
expence, the logarithms of the decimal parts of the circle,
according to the new divifion into 400 parts; and defrayed
the expences alfo of printing. The publication of it is im-
patiently expected.

I have publifhed in my Abridgement of Navigation his
new method for gauging veflels, together with the tables.
He was infpector of the dock-yards : in this fituation he was
nfeful, and Government had the greateft confidence in his
talents.

C. Lemonnier died at his feat at Herils, near Bayeux, on-
the 2d of April. He had been loft to us ever fince the 1oth
of November 1791: three years ago I gave an account of his
ufeful labours, but the laft epoch of this memorable life
ought to be confecrated in the prefent hiftory. I withed to
infert in the firft volume of the Hi/foire Cele/le, now printing,
a part of the obfervations of my illuftrious mafter: nothing
would have been fo defirable as to render this teftimony to
lis memory, which would have been at the fame time a tef-
timony of my gratitude; but I was not allowed, notwith-
fianding my zeal and entreaties, to have any communication
with his manufcripts: I do not know what will become of
them in hands foreign to aftronomy, and which {eem as in-

different

«

Trg Hijtery of Afironomy for the Year 1799,
different for the glory of a father as for the fciences, which
he cultivated for fixty years with fo much fuccefs.

Jofeph Lielganig, formerly a Jefuit at Viera, died at
Lamberg, m "Aidftrian Poland or Galicia, on the 4th of
March 1799, at the age of 81. We are indebted to him
for the meafurement oF degrees in Hungary and Auftria in
4769. He came to fee me when I paffed through Venice .
in ¥765, and I then admired his talents and zeal.

On the 24th of February we loft Profeffor Lichtenberg,
at Gottingen, to whom we were indebted for the pofthumious
works of Mayer in 1775,

M. Strnadt, (we pronounce Strenat,) the aftrononrer of
Prague, long known’ by many ufeful obfervations, died on
the 24th of Sénlenibers Bernoulli, when he gave an account
in 4776, in the firft volume of his Nouvelles Litteraires, of
the memoirs printed at Prague, announced that there were
among them memoirs of M. Stepling, who was director,
and, in fome meafure, founder of the obfervatory, and of
M. Strnadt, who was his affiftant. Since that time he never
ceafed to obferve, as may be feen in the Ephemerides of
Berlin, and in other works. M. David, his affiftant in the
obfervatory, has fucceeded him as direétor.

We have learned alfo from Sweden, the death of I. H.
Lindquift, Profeffor of Mathematics at Abo in Finland,
who has publithed, im the Tranfactions of the rege 4 of
Stockholm, many interefting memoirs.

On the 17th of Nigyenibve 1798, we loft a valuable ama-.
teur of aftronomy, the bifhop of Tranfylvania, Count de
Batthiani, who eftablifhed an obfervatory at Carlfbourg, to
which he has bequeathed 30,000 florins and a beautiful Hi-
brary. He was born on the 30th of January 1741, and was
made bifhop on the 25th of January 1781.

The bithop of Erlang (Agria) Count Charles Efterhazi,
founder of the obfervatory where M, Madaraffy obferved,
died on the 6th of March 1799.

Hl. On

{ 113 ]

IM. On the various Effects produced by the Nature, Com-
preffion, and Velocity of the Air ufed in the Blafi- Furnace.
By Mr. Davip Musues, of the Clyde Iron-Works,
Communicated by the Author.

(Concluded from Page 70.}

| HAVE explained the neceffity of juft proportions exifting
betwixt the area of ‘the interior of the blaft-furnace, the
quantity of air thrown in ger minute, and the quality of
coal. The various modes of blowing, and their refpective
effects, deduced from ftrict obfervation, were alfo attended to.
We have now, 3d, to adduce examples where the various
changes of the atmofphere, as to heat and preffure, oceafion
the moft fenfible difference in the quantity of materials con-
fumed, and in the quality and quantity of metal produced.

It has been already demonftrated, that the air in winter,
by containing lefs moifture, is more proper for combuttion,
and more calculated to produce carbonated crude iron, than
the air exifting at any other feafon. From this fuperior
quality the manufacturer obtains advantages, which induce

him to wifh for a continuance of cool air throughout the.

whole year. Thefe effects are not, however, uniform; they

depend greatly upon a light or heavy atmofphere. The

keener and more {till the air, the more rapid the combuf-
tion. During a fevere froft, the defeent of the materials is
facilitated from +, to ;', more than in rainy or hazy wea-
ther, and at the fame time the quality of the iron is rather
improved than impaired. When a change from froft to {now
or rain takes place, the effects frequently become almoft im-
mediately obvious: the colour of the fame at the furnace-
head is changed ; the tuyre of the furnace inflames, and burng
with great violence ; the Java, as it flows from the notch of
the dam-ftone, becomes lengthened and tenacious ; the form
of it is changed, and the pen undergoes the moft vifible
alterations; the iron no longer retains its complete faturation
of carbon, but flows out fenfibly impaired of its fluidity,
and, when cold, the privation of carbon is moft evident by
the examination of its fracture.

WOW. Vis Q When

ia) nA

‘
It On the various Effects produced by

When fuch confequences arife from the tranfition fo free
quent in winter from froft to thaw, it will be eafily con-
ceived that the change effected during the milder and
warmer months muft produce proportionally additional ef-
fe&s. The increafe of temperature by taking up, and hold-
ing in folution, a much greater portion of aqueous vapour,
fall account for the ordinary effects which are annually ob-
fervable in every work. Where thefe pernicious confequences
approach to extremity, a folution of the phenomenon will
likely bé obtained by the examinatjon of the blowing-appa-
yatus. Tf air is fitted for combuftion in proportion as it ig
free from watery folutions, we are not to expect fimilar re-
fults from thefe blatt-furnaces in fummer, which are blown
by air from the ree culating cylinder, and thofe blown by air
from a water or air-vault. I have for years feen this fact
yerified, and fuperior quantity and quality of iron during the
hot weather, obtained from a furnace excited by means of
blaft, from the fimple regulating cylinder, with a lefs pro-
portion of fuel than from furnaces whofe air was exprefled
by means of the water or air-vanlt. Obfervations thus made,
where every day the effects of the different means cquld be
juftly eftimated and compared, have led me to the following
conclufion; That the quality of the air, as furnifhed us by
nature in our atmofphere, is uniformly more fit for the ma-

_nufaéture of crude iron to profitable account, when difcharged
firmply by means of cylinders and piftons, than when brought
into contaét with mojfture either in the water-yault or air-
vault,

So imperfe& has the quality of the fummer air been found
in this country for combuftion, where the water-vault wag
vied, that experiments have been made to repair the defi-
ciency of effect by introducing fteam into the furnace by means
of an aperture above the tuyre. The inducing mative to this
a&t, was a belief, that combuftion was diminithed in confe-
quence of a diminution of oxygen gas during the fummer ;
that, by introducing water upon a furface of materials ignited

to whitenefs, decompofition would enfue, a larger quantity of

oxygen would then be prefented to the fuel, and fuperior
efiects, as to combutftion, ob tained in this manner than hi-
therto

es

2

tee

va See

eS

Air ufed in the Blaft-Furndce: 115
therto wtneffed. The idéa was ingenious, and, in its appli-
tation to the manufacture of caft iron, original; but the
whole train of facts; Jaid down in tht$ and former papers, as
to the effets of a fuperabundant quantity of oxygen; was
overlooked. The event proved in the moft complete manner,
and on a great feale, the petnicious effects of moifture. The
furnace gradually became cooled where the fteam entered ;
the heat, fet free by the decompofition of the water and the
difengagement of oxygen, incréafed to an alarming pitch a
éonfiderable way up the furnace; the quality of the iron be-
tame brittle, and as white in the fraéture as filver; the in-
trodu@ion of the fteam was fill continued, the defcending
taterials were inftantly robbed of their heat to facilitate the
decompofition of the water, and by-and-by the furnace clofed
entirely over, and the experiment ceafed *.

This experiment, performed in a furnace 18 feet high, is a
complete proof that heat is difengaged from bedies while they
pafs from the fluid to the ssiionh ‘fate. The firft inftant of
the difeharge of fieam, a very confiderable portion of heat
would be withdrawn from the fufing materials and united to
the water: This, in its turn; lie be ienited to whitenefs,
and decompofed upon the metals and seks in a fuperior re-
gion of the furnace. The procefs continuing for feveral hours,
the materials at the tuyre were at laft fo completely deprived
of the caloric by the continual torrent of fteam, that they loft
fluidity, cooled rapidly, and at la(t became black. Had an-
other aperture for fteam and for atr been opened above thele,
how entirely fhut up by the confolidated materials, the fame
effects would have been produced; the immenfe quantity ot
caloric, difengaged by the decompofition of the ignited water,
would now approach nearer to the top of the furnace, an-
other flratum of fufing materials would again become con-
folidated, till in the end the whole furnace would be fet fait
from top’to bottom. From the introduétion of fleam into
the blaft-furnace, either as fueh, or under a fuperior degree

* The refpeftable and ingenious author of this experiment is among
the firft in the iron trade who devotes a liberal and f{cientific education to
the improvement of this favourite branch: from his fituation, talents, and
4pportunity, much may be expected.

Q43 of

116 On the various Effects produced by’

of expanfive force, the following important truths may bé
Jearned: That the quantity of oxygen which enters into our
atmofpheric compound is generally more fit for the manu~
facture of the fuperior qualities of crude iron than any mix-
ture which may be furnithed by the addition of water: that,
although the decompofition of water, by furnifhing a fuperior
quantity of oxygen, and by throwing off a roleduivta proportion
of caloric, increafes the effects of Cohn RiGn immediately in
the vicinity of this chemical analyfis; yet, as the water had
previoufly abftraéted the heat neceflary to its decompofition
from the inferior ftrata, a greater quantity by no means exifts
in the furnace. The water, in fact, only ferves as a medium
‘to convey the heat from one particular fpot, but, by attempt-
‘ing to fly off with it, meets decompofition, and renders up
not only the abftra&ted heat, bat that which was contained
in the oxygen of its decompofition.
4th, The compreffion and velocity of the air Sifehieaat
into the furnace, confiderably affeét the refults of the feivaled
ing operations. In the eonfideration of this fubject, the va-
rious qualities of coals will be found to have an intimate
connection with the area of the difcharging-pipe and the
compreffion of the blaft. It has already been more than
once obfetved, that a foft or mixed quality of coal is more
fufceptible of combuftion than either the {plint or clod-coal :
the confequence of this is, that, unlefs the neceflary com-
preffion of air is ufed, decompofition is too early accom-
plithed, and the cokes become oxygenated by combuftion in
a greater ratio than is proper for the carbonation of the me-

tal. To avoid this, the column of air ought to be difcharged,

in the cafe of foft coals being unavoidably ufed, under fuch a
degree of compreflion, as to refift entire decompofition in the
ienited paflage. In that cafe, the iron does not fo +mmedi-
ately come into conta¢t with oxygen, as. the decompofition
is chiefly effeéted im the fuperior ftrata of the feparating ma-
terials. Under the former circumftance, of a loofe uncon-'
nected ftream of air being thrown upon cokes eafily com-
buftible, the quality of the metal, with the fame quantity of
fuel, becomies oxygenated, the tuyre becomes fiery, and fre~
quently emits {parks of metallic oxyd. The feparating iron

may

dir ufed in the Blafi- Purnace. 114

may be viewed as it ‘oozes from the ore in {mall globulas
mafies, frequently on fire, changing its ftate to that of arm
oxyd. The combination of oxygen, by altering its denfity,
makes it fubjeét to the re-aétion of the blatt, Ww hich at times
gives it a direction from the tuyre with confiderable violence.
Thofe parts of the iron (by far the greateft) thus oxydated,
which efcape not at the tuyre, mix along with the fufed
earths of the ores and Jimeftone, alter their colour, and flow
from the furnace more unrevived than at their firft intro-
duction. It is, however, very different, even with this in-
ferior quality of coal, where the denfity of the blaft is pro-
portioned to the inflammability of the fuel. Qualities and
quantities of crude iron may be preduced from this, equal
to thofe from coals reckoned of a fuperior nature. The
metal becomes as highly faturated with carbonic prin-
ciple as that made from: clod or fplint coal. The tuyre
evinces that decompofition is effected in its proper place.
The fluid mafles of iron, as they become exprefled from
the ore, are fhivered into fpray, before the denfe column
of air, without exhibiting the leaft fymptom of decompo-
fition. They again unite under the level of the blaft, in-
ereafe in fize, and fink through the fluid {tratum of earths to
the bottom of the furnace. This fact holds out one of the
ftrongeft proofs of the great affinity which carbon and iron
mutually poffels towards each other. In the cafe of the iron
feparating i in an oxygenated ftate deftitute of carbon, it imme-
diately falls a prey to its affinity for oxygen. In the latter

eafe, the iron, being completely carbonated, refifis decompo-
fition by the facrifice of a very {mall portion of its carbon:
it further proves, that the affinity of oxygen is greater to
carbon than tonron; and that, before iron beeomes oxy-
dated, all the carbon is taken up.

The continuity of the particles of fplint coals renders the
cokes of difficult combuttion, capable of w ithftanding a molt
powerful difcharge of air, in quantity and in the degree of

‘ compreflion, witheut entailing effects fimilar to thofe pro-
duced with the ufe of fofter coals :, this renders the opera-
tions with fplint coal lefs fubject to cafualty and to change.
Carbonated iron with a proper blaft is more uniformly-eb-
tained, and frequently a very fuperior quantity. Similar

effects

t18 © On the Effedts of Air ufed in the Blaft-Furnaee.
effects are produced with the clod coal, but in a more emis
nent degree. Difcharging-pipes are ufed four inches in the
diameter, and the compreflion only equal to two pounds or
the fquare inch; yct the fame fatal eflects are not known as
in the ufe of feft coal, which, with fuch a column of air,
would require the preflure to be equal to 3! pounds upon the
fquare inch at leaft.

5th, Upon the form and conftruction of the difcharging+
pipe effets of more confiderable importance depend than is
either generally allowed or even conccived. At fome iron-
works, no peculiar fhape is adopted: if the tube is fufficient
to convey the air, and the mouth of it nearly of the fize
wanted, the interior contruction is entircly overlooked. This
indifference, however, is by no means general: varioufly
eonftructed pipes are ufed at different works, and at fome
places it is preferred to throw in the air from two pipes
whofe areas are only equal to one of the ufual fize.

‘The various fhapes may, in point of the principle of their
conftruction, be reduced to three. (See Plate V. Fig. 1, 2,3.)

To underftand properly the objectionable parts of the con-
ftruétion of nofe-pipes, it mutt be recollected, that much
has been faid to depend upon the blaft reaching the oppofite
extremity of the furnace, as little impaired. of the compactnefs
and velocity of its origimal difcharge as poffible. When it
is otherwife, the refults in the internal operations of the fur-
mace mufi be confequently altered. If the compreflion is
diminifhed { or when it reaches the oppofite wall, de=
compofition in that portion mutt be effected before the air
Kas attained its elevated fituation in the furnace. It is ever
poflible to difperfe the whole-column of air in fuch a manner
that the ignited materials of the oppofite fide may receive
little of its “eedts to promote combuttion.

The difcharging-pipe lig. 1. is frequently ufed: its length
is 12 inches or more; the diicharging aperture 3 inches, the
other end 5 inches; but this is arbitrary, depending upor
the fize of the adjoiming pipe. From a pipe thus conftruéted,
the air difperfes or diverges too fuddenily ; and at a {mall dif=
tance from the orifice, a confiderable portion of it anfwers
but’ imperfeétly the purpofes, of combuttion. Part of it is

{peedily decompofed, and the oxygen brought into immediate’
8 contact

On the Cure of A {ffeétions from the Poifonof Lead. 11g

conta with the iron, The quantity of metal is reduced by
the former, and the quality injured by the latter. Though
Jong cuftom, by a continued ufe of fuch fhaped pipes, has
prevented their pernicious effects from being obferved, yet
they muft prove in many cafes detrimental to the ceconomi-
cal diftribution of air, and the manufacture of iron.

Fig. 2. reprefents a nofe-pipe, of another conftrudtion, even
more exceptionable; becaufe the air difperfing ftill more fud~
denly, in a degree fomewhat proportionate to the more fud~
den contraGtion of the pipe, a contiderable quantity never
- enters the furnace, but, firiking on the exterior wall, is thence
repelled.

A difcharging-pipe conftructed as in Fig. 3. would obviate,
in a great meafure, the imperfections of the two former: the
jength of the tapered piece is 12 inches, of the ftraight pipe,
6 inches; extreme diameter as in the others, 5 Eachus $ dia-
meter of ftraight pipe, 3 inches. From fuch.a pipe it is con~
ceived that the blaft will proceed to the greateft poffible dif-
tance unimpaired in compreffion and velocity. So far, there-
fore, as the abfolute force of the blaft and breadth of the fur-
nace will permit, decompofition will be prevented on the level
of the pipe, and the manufacturer ‘freed from the evils which
I have above detailed, as attendant upon decompofition in
that quarter.

TV. Communication from Mr, Henry CLUTTERBUCK,
Surgeon to the Univerfal Royal Difpenfary, on the Cure
of thofe Afjettions which arife from the Poifou of Lead.

To the Editor of the Philofophical Magazine.

SIR,

aw E extenfive circulation of your Magazine amongft the

manufacturing clafles of the community, appears to me to

render it a proper vehicle for the following comnmfunication.

Should 2 A be of this opinion, your infertion of it will oblige,
Sir, your humble Servant,

H. CLUTTERBUCK,
IN

Walbrook, March 7, 1800.

20 On the Cure of Affections which

IN the year 1794 I publifhed a fmall pamphlet * contain»
jng an account of the efficacy of mercury in removing the
effeGts of the poifon of Jead on the conftitution of thofe em-
ployed ia working with that metal. As the practice then re-
commended feems to me to have engaged lefs attention than

its importance merits, I with here to recapitulate, as briefly

as poffible, the facts then flated, and to add fuch further
obfervations as my fubfequent experience has fuggefted rela-
tive to the fubject.

T hardly need ftate to you the great number of perfons
who, in.the courfe of their occupations, are employed about
this poifonous mineral ; nor how large a proportion of thefe
fuffer the agony of slic, followed, in many cafes, by the lofs
of the ufe of their limbs, difqualifying them, in a fhort time,
from earning their fubfiftence. The white-fead manufacto-
ries, the work-fhops of the plumber, the glazier, and the
painter, afford too many proofs of the truth of this. The
frequent inefficacy of the ordinary methods of treatment in
thofe cafes is well known. The fuggeftion, therefore, of a
mode of relief more powerful than thefe, and, in recent
cafes, almoft certain, mutt be allowed to be a thing of no
inconfiderable moment. Such a remedy, I venture to fay,
will be found in-mercury. At the time of publifhing my
former remarks on the fubjeét, I had tried its powers in eight
inftances only, in all of which it afforded the moft ftrik-
ing relief. The truth of this, I fhould obferve, did not then
re(t on my own teltimony alone, but was confirmed by that
of the Phyficians of the Difpenfary, my colleagues at the time.
The trials which [ have ‘ince made and witneffed, though not
invariably attended with fuccefs, have afforded ample proof
of the powers of the remedy in queftion, which Dr. Bradley,
now Phyfician to the Weitmintter Hofpital, did not hefitate,
in his letter to me on the fubje&t, to call a /pecific in thofe
diforders.

The affections comipon induced on the bedy by the
poifon of dead are, viclexi colic, with obftinate coftivenefs,

* Account of a new and fuccefsful Method of treating thofe Affeétions
which arifé from the Poifon of Lead. Printed for Boofey, Broad-ftreet,

London.
relicvable

ee a ee

.
ae

or

On the Cure of Affections from the Poifon of Lead. 12%

relievable only by the moft active purgatives, and very fre-
quently recurring; pains refembling rheumatifm, about the
arms and fhoulders; head-ach; cramps of ‘the legs, and
oftentimes fevere fits of the gout in the extremities; palfied
ftate of mufcles of the arms and hands, taking away all power
of grafping any thing, and even of lifting the hand to 'the
mouth; and, not unfrequently, epileptic convulfions.

The remedies commonly employed for the relief-of thefe
‘dreadful fymptoms are, purgatives of different kinds, efpe-
cially caffor oil; volatile and ftimulating medicines of various
forts; and the warm bath, particularly the Bath waters.
Thele often are of fignal fervice ; but they are, likewife, often
inadequate to afford relief, and the unhappy fufferer drags on
a miferable exiftence. In a large proportion of thefe cafes,
I think I am warranted in faying, mercury is an effectual
remedy, ‘

Calomel (a mercurial preparation) has been long in ufe for
the relief of the colic and conftipation produced by /ead; but
it is as a purgative only that it has been employed, without
regard to its effects on the conftitution generally. The objeét
I have here in view is, to employ mercury in fuch a way as
to produce the ordinary effects of this mineral on the general
habit, characterifed by forenefs of the mouth, and tendency
to falivation. It does not feem very material in what way,
or with what particular preparation of mercury, this is
brought about; as I have employed it, in the form of oint-
ment, externally to the affected parts, and zwardly in va-
rious preparations, without obferving any material difference
in the effects. For the relief of colic and obftruction of the
bowels, calomel is, perhaps, the beft and moft commodious
form given in the quantity of a grain daily, it rarely fails,
in a fhort time, to induce a regular aétion of the bowels,
with the entire removal of pain. It muft be obferved, how-
ever, that the fyftem, in the cafes which have been defcribed,
is peculiarly fufceptible of the irritation of mercury“in all
its forms; it is neceflary, therefore, to employ it with cau-
tion, and more fparingly than in fome other cafes. If the
difeafe has been of Jong flanding, it is requifite to keep up
the mercurial action for feyeral weeks, and to renew it, from

Vou. VI, R time

yka2 - Obfervations on Spiders,

ume to time, at fhort intervals. Two or three months, and
even a longer period, will be fometimes required for the at-
tainment of the defired end.

I fhall not difguife, that, in cafes of iong ftanding, where
the mufcles of the limbs are wafted and mainte rigid, and
the joints. ftiff and unpliant, mercury, like all other means,
will often be found ineffectual, A great obftacle to the cure,
too, frequently arifes from the poverty and wretchednefs of
the objects: ill fed, and without fufficient fhelter againft the
inclemencies of feafon, the conftitution is unable to fuftain
the debilitating action of the remedy. The effeéts of cold,
as I have juft hinted, influence materially the cure. In the
winter feafon, the ufe of the limbs is much more flowly re-
covered than in warm weather. This leads one to expeét
advantage from the warm bath in fuch cafes; and, in fact,
this is one of the moft powerful remedies .we poflefs, and is
calculated greatly to.aid the good effects of mercury. The
Bath waters are very fuccefsfully employed for the purpofe,
and the lyofpital there much reforted to by patients of this
defeription.

_If the advantages of the plan I have here recommended
be more widely diffufed, through the medium of your ufeful
Mifcellany, I {hall be highly gratified.

I am happy to find my obfervations on this fubjeé lately
confirmed by a refpectable foreign writer. M. Warburg, of
Berlin, in a Traét on Palfy, firongly recommends the ufe of
calomel and mercurial frictions in that fpecies of the difeafe
which is produced by ead *.

V. Obfervations on Spiders, and their fuppofed Potfon.
By M. AmMorevx jun. M. Dd.
{ Concluded from Page to. ]

Th; is well known that chickens, nightingales, and other
birds eat {piders without fuftaining any injury: {piders have
alfo been prefcribed as a remedy chiefly in the tympanis,
All thefe inftances, however, do not difprove the obferva-

be De Paraly/i, Auéiore Jacobo Warburg, Berolinenfi, :
, tions

a

and their fuppofed Poifon. £23

tions of thofe who have feen difagreeable confequences from

' the pricking of fpiders. Lifter is among this number ; ‘and

Lifter muft be believed, becaufe he made many obfervations

- on thefe infeéts. This author fays pofitively, im a particular

treatife, that feveral fpiders have a venomous liquor*. We
are aflured, on the other hand, by Robert Boyle+, that he
never faw any venomous {piders in Ireland, notwithftanding
the prejudices of the people; but, out of refpect for an author
who had none for others, he durft not controvert what Sca-
liger had advanced in regard to the fpiders of Gafcony,
which, he fays, are fo venomous, that, when they are crufhed
with the feet, the venom penetrates the foles of the fhoes.
The experiments of M. Bon, a member of the Chamber
of Accounts of Languedoc, feem, however, contrary to the
affertion of Scaliger. This magiftrate, who endeavoured to
apply to fome ufeful purpofe the threads of fpiders, touched
a great number of thefe infeéts, and had been frequently bit
by them without experiencing any bad confequences. Hoff
man, without doubt, went too far when he defied any one
to prove that fpiders or any other infects, taken internally,
ever caufed the leaft inconvenience to people in health. © In
this defiance there is, without doubt, fome exaggeration. It
is well known that the injury done to us by the greater part
of infeéts arifes only from their fting ; but infects of a cauttic
nature cannot certainly be fwallowed with impunity. Though
there have been people who ate fpiders, difagreeable confe-
quences have been feen to arife from the bite of thefe infeéts.
This depends on the kind of fpider, the time, and the place.
As there are poifons which have more aétion when intro-
duced through the fkin than when taken internally, fuch as
that of the viper, Tam inclined to think that the poifon of the
fpider may have a contrary effect; it exercifes a ftronger aétion,
perhaps, internally than on the fkin. Punétures, indeed, are
of little confequence ; and we are told of furprifing effeéts by

~ Araneas in ipfo morfu venenum funm dimittere, ideo mihi verifj-

mile eft, quod ab una aliqua hac beftiola, a. me laceffita, lymph puriffim

finjles guttas exiguas decies et amplius intra breve tempus refperfas no-. ,

tavi; idque totus faflitavit quoties mordere voluit.
+ Tentam. Phyfiol, p, 38. :

Ra ’ fpiders

Ror Ob/fervations on Spiders,

fpiders infufed or bruifed in wine employed with an inten-
tion of poifoning. What is related on one hand, of fpider-
eaters, and on the other, of thofe who have been poifoned
by drinking wine in which fpiders have been infufed, feems
to be contradictory: but it, however, is not fo: the differ-
ence arifes, no doubt, from the difference of the fpiders, and
the different conftitution of the fubjects.

It ig pretended alfo, that fpiders diffufe a noxious vapour
when burnt, and that, when they burft on being applied to
a flame, they fpurt out a noxious liquor. I fhall here relate
what is faid on this fubje& by Turner in his Treatife on
the Difeafes of the Skin *. ‘* When a young practitioner,’
fays he, “ I was fent for to vifit a woman who had been ac-
cuftomed, every time fhe went to the cellar with a candle, to
burn all the fpiders’ webs which fhe could find. It happened,
however, that one of thefe infects fold its life much dearer
than the reft. Its feet having got entangled in the tallow, and
its body burfting, its venom candid juices were thrown.out into
the eyes of its perfecutor, and particularly on her lips. The

‘latter {welled up prodigioufly in the night-time; one of her
eyes became exccedingly inflamed, and her tongue and gums
were alfo affected. At laft thefe-affections were accompanied
with continual vomiting, &c. J ordered at firft a {mall glafs
of Spanifh wine burnt with a feruple of falt of worm-wood,
and fome hours after a bolus of theriac, which fhe afterwards
threw up. I rubbed her lips with oil of feorpions and oil of
rofat, &c.; I applied leeches to the temples, by which the
inflammation of the eye was much diminifhed ; and I allayed
the pain by the ufe of a very bright mucilage of the feeds of
quinces and white poppies, extracted in rofe-watcr. But.as
the fwelling of the lips ftill increafed, I applied a cataplaim,
made with a decoétion of fcordium, rue, and. elder-flowers,
thickened with the farina of vetches, &c.’?.. The author,
‘however, notwithftanding his care, had not the honour of
performing a cure. An old woman, as is often_the cafe,
mterfered; and had all the glory, after fifteen days applica-
tion of the leaves and juice of plantain, and {piders webs.
Turner relates that before this accident, the patient had

* Vol. LI. p. 292. of the French edition.

told
+

ee ee

ee ee

ee ee

—_

and their fuppofed Poifon. 125
teld him, the fmell which arofe when fhe burnt fpiders in
that manner had often affected her head fo much, that fhe
thought the objects fhe faw turned round. She often even
experienced fainting fits with cold fweats, and fometimes a
flight vomiting, But notwithftanding all this, fhe found fo
much pleafure in tormenting thefe poor infects, that nothing’
could cure her of her mania till fhe met with the accident
above mentioned. This lefion may ferve as a warning to
thofe who have the fame mania, and who, befides expofing
themfelves to injury of the like kind, run the rifk of burning
their apartment, or perhaps the whole houfe. .

The punctures made by large fpiders (I here allude to thofe
of France) are almoft infenfible. There is formed around the
wound a livid fwelling, fometimes with phlyctenes, which
feem to announce a feptic poifon. The other fymptoms, de-
{cribed by different authors, are fo various, that, if they were
united in the fame fubject, the poifon of the {pider would be the
moft violent of any known. It is furprifing how the ancients
have afligned particular fymptoms to chara¢terife the punc-
ture of each kind of phalangium and fpider. One might be
induced to believe that they obferved an analogy or relation
between our humours and the colours of thefe infects: they
have marked all the degrees of pain, from itching to ftuper.
On this fubject the reader may confult Paulus Aigineta, Avi-
cenna, Rhazes, Nicander, Grevin, &c. Afterwards a whole
cloud of authors repeated that the venom of {piders, intro-
duced into the body in any manner whatever, was followed
by numbnefs of the part, cold of the extremities, fhivering,
fwelling of the lower belly, palenefs, involuntary fhedding
of tears, and an inclination to »make water; priapifm in
young perfons, relaxation of the fame member in old people,
convulfions, &c.

It is very uncommon to fee confequences fo fatal, unlefs
people have the misfortune to be bitten by the avicular {pidér
of America, which deftroys birds’ nefts;"or by the black fpider
of Madagafcar, which, according to Flacourt, occafions fhi-
vering, and cools the blood; or, in the laft place, by the
tunga, the wolf-{pider, and nhamdugua/u, which are fero-
cious {piders of Brafil, mentioned by Leclufe and Margraff.

Merian

126 Ai curfory View of fome of the

Merian has given a figure of the large hairy fpider of Gua-
java, which lives on the colibris.

Brogiani affures us, that in Etruria there is a kind of pha-
Jangium which refides in the earth, the puncture of which
eccafions violent fymptoms; fuch as phrenitis, vomiting,
gangrene in the wounded part, or exanthemata. Sheep alfo
have died in confequence of being punctured by this infeét.
Brogiani does not here allude to the tarantula, as he treats
of that infeét feparately. The Italian journals, fome time
ago, announced that a large kind of fpider had occafioned
great ravage in the fields of Volterra, in Tufcany. It at-
tacked the reapers, and, by its puncture, occafioned violent
pain and convulfive movements in all the limbs. Nothing
of the like kind’is to be apprehended in France, except in
fome cantons during the dog-days. An enlightened natu-
ralift, the Chevalier de Lamanon, fays, that in the month of
June 1782 the drought and heat were fo great in Provence,
that fpiders, which in general are not venomous, occafioned
by their bite fevere difeafes, which hada great refemblance
to thofe occafioned by the bite of the tarantula. In ordithary
cafes of being bit or punctured by fpiders, it will be fuffi-
cient to wafh the wounded part with brine, to apply theriac,
and to preferibe one or two dofes internally. The freth leaves
of fage, or thofe of the plantain, have been recommended as
topics, and wafhing with vinegar. Recourfe alfo may be had
to volatile alkali.

VI. A curfory View of fome EA the late Difcoveries im-

Sctence *

MATHEMATICS,

Pex PLACE, in his Mecanique Celefte, has confidered the
fyftem of the world as a grand problem of mechanics, which
he has endeavoured to,refolve.. For this reafon he treats in
the firft book on the general principles of equilibrium and
motion. He gives a rigorous demonttration, of the principle

* From the Journal de Phyfique,’an. 8:

of

~

late Difcoveries in Science, 127

of the decompofition of forces. He then treats of the mo-
tion of a fotid body, whatever be its figure; gives the con-
ditions of the motion of fluids, and applies them to the -mo-
tion of the waters of the fea and to that of the atmofphere.
He then determines what ought to be the force acting on the
celeftial bodies to render their movements fuch as they are
exhibited to our obfervation. The laws of Kepler conduct
him diretly to the principle of univerfal gravity; that is to
fay, that the action which the celeftial bodies exercife on
each other is in the direé&t ratio of their mafles and the in-
verfe of the fquare of their diftances. The new illuftrations
which he gives are highly worthy the attention of geome-
tricians.

Foflombroni has treated the principle of virtual forces
like an able geometrician.

ASTRONOMY.

Herfchel has publifhed his obfervations on the fatellites
of Jupiter, in which he determines the length of their days,
or their revolutions round their axes. The firft turns round
its axis in 1 day 18 hours 26/6”; the fecond in 3 days
18 hours 17' 9’’; the third in 7 days 3 hours 59’ 6’; and
the fourth in 16 days 18 hours 5/17’. He endeavours to
determine the fize of thefe bodies, but has not yet been able
to attain to great accuracy. “ We may only conclude,”’ fays
he, “ that the firft fatellite is larger than the fecond; that
the fecond is the {malleft of all; that the third is much larger
than any of the reft; and that the fourth is nearly as large as
the firft.”

Le Frangais Lalande continues with perfeverance his cata-—
logue of the ftars of our hemifphere. He has already carried
the number to 49,000.

Bouvard has completed a grand labour on the movements
of the moon. He has calculated the eclipfes mentioned by
Ptolemy, and thofe obferved by the Arabs. All thefe eclipfes,
compared with modern obfervations, have given him 12” 21
of correction for the fynodical motion, and 8’ 34! 5 for the
mean anomaly, This agrees with the refults which Laplace
has found by calculation.

5 The

128 A curfory View of fome of the

_ The French aftronomers have at length terminated the
grand operation of meafuring an arc of the meridian’ from
Dunkirk to Barcelona. They performed this labour with
fuch precifion, that no fenfible error can be fuppofed in it,
efpecially as their refults are abfolutely agreeable to thofe
given by preceding meafurements. It appears from their Ja-
bour, that the quarter of /the terreftrial meridian, that is to
fay, the are of the meridian comprehended between the Equa-
tor and the North Pole, is = 2,561,370 modules, (they have
‘-employed this word to exprefs a rule of platina of twelve feet,
or two toifes,) which make 5,122,740 toifes. The metre is
the ten millionth part of this quantity; that is to fay, the
length of the metre is 755537, parts of the module; and, by
comparing this with the ancient meafures, the true metre is
443 +728, lines of the toife of Peru, (that is to fay, of that
which ferved the French academicians for meafuring a degree
in Peru,) the temperature of this toife being fuppofed to be
‘18° of Reaumur, or 164 of the centigrade thermometer.
The metre, therefore, is 3 feet 11 72°. fren:

They have calculated alfo the length of the degree for the
different’ latitudes which ies Aieahired: The following is
the refult :—

The degree between Dunkirk and Paris modules, toifes.
in the mean latitude of 49° 56'30', is. - 28538 or 57076

Between Paris and Evaux, in the mean

latitude of 47° 30% 46! - - - 28533 or 57066

- Between Evaux and Carcaffonne, in the

mean latitude of 44° 41’ 4/ - -: - 28489 or 56978
Between Carcaffonne and Montjouy, in :

the mean latitude of 42° 1720" - - 28472 or 56944

This length of the arc of the meridian is the fame as that
before determined by obfervations. The following is the
account given of it by Lalande *: P

“© In obferving carefully with a fextant the zenith diftance
of the fame ftars at Paris and at Amiens, there has been
found 1° 1’ 13’ of difference in all the altitudes between two
points, the diftance of which deduced from the preceding
was 58233 toifes. Nothing remains, therefore, but to make

* See his Afironomy, third edition, No, 266:.

the

|
’
’
4
:
:

late Difcoveries in Science. 129
the following proportion: 1° 1! 13! is to 58233 toifes as
1° o' o is to a fourth term, found to be 57074 toifes. This
is the length of a decree of the earth between Paris and
Amiens, determined by Picard. The mean latitude of this
degree is 49° 23’. This length fuppofes the toife of the
north, and the temperature of Reaumur’s thermometer, 10
or 12°. This degree is reduced to 57056 with the toife of the
equator now adopted.”

Tt is to be obferved, that according to thefe new meafures
the difference of the degree between Evaux and Carcaffonne ,
is much greater than it ought to be according to theory ; fot
it differs 88 toifes from that between Paris and Evaux, thouglt
there is only a difference of about three degrees of latitude,
which makes nearly 32 toifes per degree. That between
Carcaffonne and Mountjouy differs 34 toifes, though there
is only a difference of about two degrees of Jatitude, which
makes 14 toifes per degree; while the degrees between Dun-
kirk and Paris differ but To toifes, and there are two degrees
of latitude, which makes only four toifes of difference per
degree.

It is generally fuppofed that the degree under ‘the equator
is 56753 toifes, as it has been eftimated by the French aca-
demicians, and that under the pelar circle, it is 57419 toifes,
which would make a mean difference of about feven toifes
between each degree. But it appears that the difference is a
little greater between the degrees towards the pole, than be-
tween thofe towards the equator. The difference of 14 and
32 toifes, which has been lately found, cannot be reconciled
with general theory. This difference, therefore, muft depend
on fome particular caufes. Thefe facts indicate either an
irregularity in the terreftrial meridians, or an ellipticity in
the equator and its parallels, or an irregularity in the inte-
rior of the earth, or an effect of the attraction of mountains,
or a powerful action of thefe different caufes united, or of
fome of them on each other; an action which has nevet
been demonftrated in fo ftriking a manner as by the refults
juft given. It muft be left to the ableft mathematicians to
direét their attention to thefe faéts in order that they may
endeavour to explain the principles on which they deperid,

Vor, VI. Ss and

130 A curfory View of fome of the |
and to attain, refpecting the figure of the earth, a more per-
feéttheory than any yet given. This confirms the opinion
before entertained, that the figure of the earth is not a re-
gular curve. It refults from thefe calculations, that the flat-
nefs of the earth is a 334th part; that is to fay, the axis is
to a diameter at the equator as 333 to 334.

The length of the pendulum is another mean given by
Nature for obtaining conftant meafures, becaule it is a con-
fequence of gravity which cannot vary, It has been efti-
mated for a each vibrating feconds at Paris, to be
ht 919. of the module, or vids of the metre.

The length of the metre being determined, ferves to fix
the weights and meafures of capacity. Diftilled water was
aflumed as the body which could be moft eafily procured in
full. purity; and Lefevre Gincau endeavoured to ‘afcertain
the weight of a kilogramme of this water taken at that tem-
perature at which it has moft denfity. The real kilogramme,
the weight of a cubic decimetre of diftilled water, taken at
its maxinyam of denfity, and weighed in vacuo, or the unity of
the weights, is 18827, or 2 pounds 5 gros 35 0°15 grains;
that is, a little more than the Paris pint, which was fuppofed
to weigh two pounds. According to thefe experiments, the
cubic foot of diftilled water, taken at its maximum of den-
fity, is 70 pounds 223 grains. It is 70 pounds 141 grains
if we take the water at the temperature of 3, of a degrees
and it would be 70 pounds 130 grains, if we fhould take the
water at the temperature of melting ice. The maximum of
the denfity of water, and therefore of its weight, 1s, when
its temperature is at about 4 degrees. The kilogramme
contains a thouland grammes, confequently the gramme ts
18 33%, grains.

goth Comet. The nucleus of the comet, difcovered by
Mechain at the obfervatory of Paris about two o’clock in
the morning on the 2th of Thermidor (Auguft 7th), be-
tween Gemini and the Lynx, was exceedingly fimall, was.
furrounded by a light nebulofity, and bad no traces of a
tail. The diameter of the whole was only about a minute.
It role towards the north to about 60 degrees of declinations,
‘The elements of its orbit were as follows :-—-Longitude of the

9 defeending

late Difcoveries in Science. 131
defeending nodes 3 figns 9° 34’: place of the perihelion in
the orbit, 3° 36’: ‘aclination of the orbit, 50° 52/:: direcs
tion of its movement, retrograde : paflage at the perihelion
on the a1ft of Fruétidor, year 7, (Sept. 7, 179g,) at 4 hours
34 minutes mean time at Paris: diftance of the perihelion
0°$2387.—This is the tenth comet difcovered by Mechain.

LUMINOUS FLUID.

Fabbroni has examined the refractive power of various
fluids, and fhown that they are exceedingly different. Thus,
wether has a refractive power much more confiderable than
oil, The former gives a focus of 60, the latter of 75.

Haiiy has fhown that feveral mineral fubftances have a °
double refraction; fuch as, tranfparent quartz, the topas, the
emerald, calcareous {par, fulphat of barytes, the euclafe, the
idocrafe, fulphat of ftrontian. Among the foluble and fapid
falts, borat of foda (borax) and fulphated magnefia have
double refrattion; fulphur has double refraction ; amber and
the diamond have fingle refraction; carbonat of lead, or
white lead ore, has double refraction.

Brougham, in a paper printed in the Tranfactions of the
Royal Society, gives an account of fome experiments which
feem to him to prove that the doétrine of Newton refpecting
the refrangibility of the rays of light, is falfe. Prevoft, of
Geneva, thinks that Brougham is miftaken; he maintains
the theory of Newton, and {hows that the experiments op-
pofed to it are not conclufive. .

Dizé has confidered the matter of heat as the caufe of all
luminous efle@ts. He has made a great number of experi-
ments to prove, that‘in all the terreftrial phenomena there is
never light without heat. His conclufions are: 1. That heat
always precedes luminous effets. 3. That light cannot be
a body fii generis; beeaufe light does not take place but
when caloric is free, and in fufficient accumulation, on which
depends the force of the Juminous effect produced. 3. The
effeét called luminous can only be a luminous property,
which every molecula of free caloric poffeffes. 4. Caloric
being a fubftance, the quantity of which is limited, darts
jtfelf towards the fun, which is its ftrongeft point of attrac-
as = ae tion.

13% On the Combujiion of the Human Body,

tion, 5. When the molecule of caloric are accumulated

in that body, they are thrown off from it by the force of re-
pulfion ; Pa from this refults the fublime harmony of at-
traction and repulfion, the only caufe of the equilibrium of

the univerfe,
[To be continued. ]

VII. On the Combuftion of the Human Body, produced by
the long and immoderate Ufe of Spirituous Liquors. By
PrchaciAunt LAIR*,

ix natural as well as civil hiftory there are facts prefented
to the meditation of the obferver, which, though confirmed
by the moft convincing teftimony, feem on the firft view to
be deftitute of probability. Of this kind is that of people
confumed by coming into contaét with common fire, and of
their bodies being reduced to afhes. How can we conceive
that fire, in certain circumftances, can exercife fo powerful
an aétion on the human body as to produce this effect? One
might be induced to give lefs faith to thefe inftances of com-
buftion as they feem to be rare. I confefs that at firft they
appeared to me worthy of very little credit, but they are pre-
fented to the public as true by men whofe veracity feems un-
queftionable. Bianchini, Maffei, Rolli, Le Cat, Vicq-d’ Azyr,
and feveral men diftinguifhed by their learning, have given
certain teftimony of the facts. Befides, is it more furprifing
to experience fuch incineration than to void faccharine urine,
or to fee the bones foftened to fuch a degree as to be reduced
to the ftate of a jelly? The effects of this combuftion are
certainly not more wonderful than thofe of the bones foften-
ed, or of the diabetes mellitus. This morbific difpofition,
therefore, would be one more fcourge to affli& humanity ;
but in phyfics, faéts being always preferable to reafoning,
I thall here colleét thofe which appear to me to bear the
impreffion of truth; and, left I fhould alter the fenfe, I fhall
quote them fuch as they are giv en in the works fram which
I have extracted them.

~ We read in the Tranfaétions of Copenhagen, that in 1693

* From the Yournal de Phy/ique, Pluviote, year 3.

produced by the Ufe of Spirituous Liquors. 133
a woman of the lower clafs,. who for three years had ufed
{pirituous liquors to fuch excefs that fhe would take no other
nourifhment, having fat down one evening on a {traw. chair
to fleep, was confumed in the night-time, fo that next morn-
ing no part of her was found but the fkull and the extreme
joints of the fingers; all the reft of her body, fays Jacobeus,
was reduced to afhes.

The following extract of the memoir of Bianchini is taken
from the Annual Regifter for 1763:—-The Countefs Cor-
nelia Bandi, of the town of Cefena, aged 62, enjoyed a good
ftate of health. One evening, having experienced a fort of
drowfinefs, fhe retired to bed, and her maid remained with
her till fhe fell afleep. Next morning, when the girl entered
to awaken her miftrefs, fhe found nothing but the remains
of her body in the moft horrid condition. At the diftance
of four feet from the bed was a heap of afhes, in which could
be diftinguifhed the legs and arms untouched. Between the
legs lay the head, the brain of which, together with half the
pofterior part of the cranium, and the whole chin, had been
confumed; three fingers were found in the {tate of a coal;
the reft of the body was reduced to afhes, which, when
touched, left on the fingers a fat, foetid moifture. A {mall
lamp which ftood on the floor was covered with afhes, and
contained no oil; the tallow of two candles was melted on
a table, but the wicks ftiJl remained, and the feet of the can-
dlefticks were-covered with a certain moifture. The bed was
not damaged ; the bed-clothes and coverlid were raifed up.
and thrown on one fide, as is the cafe when a perfon gets
up. The furniture and tapeftry were covered with a moift
kind of foot of the colour of afhes, which had penetrated into,
the drawers and dirtied the linen. This foot having been
conveyed to a neighbouring kitchen, adhered to the walls,
and the utenfils. A piece of bread in the cupboard was”
covered with it, and no dog would touch it. The infectious
odour had been communicated to other’ apartments. The
Annual Regifier fates, that the Countefs of Cefena was ac-
cuftomed to bathe all her body in camphorated fpirit of wine.
Bianchini caufed the details of this deplorable event to be
publithed at the time when it took place, and no one con-

; tradi¢ted

534 ‘On the Combuftion of the Human Body,

tradiGted them. It was attefted alfo by Scipio Maffei, 4
Tesrned cotemporary of Bianchini, who was far from being
credulous; and, in the laft place, this furprifing fact was
confirmed to the Royal Society of London by Paul Rolli.
The Annual Regifter mentions alfo two other facts of the
fame kind whith occurred in England, one at Southampton
and the other at Coventry.

* An inftance of the like kind is peer in the fame
work * in a letter of Mr. Wilmer, furgeon :-—** Mary Clues,’
aged 50, was much addicted to intoxication. Her propenfity
to this vice had increafed after the death of her hufband,
which kappened a year and a half before. For about a year,
fearcely a day had pafied in the courfe of which fhe did not
drink at leaft half a pint of rum or anifeed-water. Her
health gradually declined, and about the beginning of Fe-
bruary {he was attacked by the jaundtce and confined to her
bed. Though fhe was incapable of much aétion, and not
in a condition to work, fhe ftill continued her old habit of
drinking every day and fmoking a pipe of tobacco. The
bed in which fhe lay ftood parallel to the chimney of the
apartment, and at the diftance from it of about three feet.
On Saturday morning, the 1ft of March, fhe fell on the
‘floor ; and her aetna weaknefs having prevented her from
getting up, fhe remained in that ftate till fome one entered
and put her to bed. The following night the wifhed to be
left alone. A woman quitted her at half after eleven, and,
according to cuftem, fhut the deor and locked it. She had
put on the fire two large pieces of coal, and placed a light in
a candleftick on a chair at the head of her bed. At half
after five in the morning a fnoke was feen iffuing through
the window, and the door being fpeedily broke open, fome
flames which were in the toom were foon extinguifhed. Be-
tween the bed and the chimney were found the remains of
the unfortunate Clues: one leg and a thigh were fill entire;
‘but there remained nothing of the fkin, the mufcles, and
the vifeera. The bones of the cranium, the breaft, the
fpine, and the upper extremities, were entirely calcined, and
covered with a whitifh efflorefeence. The people were much

* Annual Regifter for 1773, p. 73.
? furprifed

produced by the Ufe of Spirituous Liquors. 135

furprifed that the furniture had fu(lained fo little injury. The

fide of the bed which was next to the chimney had fuffered
the moft; the wood of it was flightly burnt; but the feather-
bed, the clothes, and covering, were fafe. I entered the
apartment about two hours after it had been opened, and
obferved that the walls and every thing in it were blackened ;
that it was filled with a very difagreeable vapour; but that
nothing except the body exhibited any ftrong traces of fire.”

This inftance has great fimilarity to that related by Vicq-
d@Azyr in the Encyclopédie Methodique, wnder the head,
Pathologic Anatomy of Man. A woman, about fifty years
of age, who indulged to excefs in fpirituous liquors, and got
drunk every day before fhe went to bed, was found entirely
burnt, and reduced to afhes. Some of the offeous parts only
were left, but the furniture of the apartment had fuffered
very little damage. Vicq-d’Azyr, inftead of difbelieving this
phenomenon, adds, that there have been many other in-
ftances of the like kind.

We find alfo a circumftance of this kind in a work en-
titled, A&a Medica et philofophica Hafnienfa; and in the
work of Henry Bohanfer, entitled, Le nouveau phofpbore en-

jlamm2.. A woman at Paris, who had been accuftomed, for
three years, to drink fpirit of wine to fuch a degree that fhe
ufed no other liquor, was one day found entirely reduced to
afhes, except the fkull and extremities of the fingers.

The Tranfactions of the Royal Society of London prefent
alfo an inftance of human combuttion no lefs extraordinaty :
Jt was mentioned at the time it happened in all the journals;
it was then attefted by a great number of eye-witneffes, an®
became the fubjeét of many learned difcuffions. Three ac-
counts of this event, by different authors, all nearly coincide.
The faét is related as follows :—** Grace Pitt, the wife of a
fifhmonger of the parifh of St. Clement, Ipfwich, aged about
fixty, had contracted a habit, which fhe continued for feveral
years, of coming down every night from her bed-room, h
dreffed, to {moke a pipe. On the night of the gth of Apnil
1744, fhe got up from bed as ufual. Her daughter, who
flept with her, did not perceive fhe was abfent till next
morning whey fhe awoke, foon after which fhe put on her

clothes,

136 On the Combuftion of the Human Body,

clothes, and going down to the kitchen, found her mother
feretched out on the right fide, with her head near the grate ;
the body extended on the hearth, with the legs on the floor,
which was of deal, having the appearance of a log of wood,
confumed by a fire without apparent flame. On beholding this
fpectacle, the girl ran in great hafte and poured over her mo-
ther’s body fotme water canting in two large vetlels in order
to extinguifh the fire ; while the fcetid odour aad fmoke which
exhaled Fdetis the bédy almoft fuffocated fome of the neigh-
bours who had hattened to the girl’s affiftanee. The trunk
was in fome meafure incinerated, and refembled a heap of
coals covered with white afhes. The head, the arms, the
legs, and the thighs, had alfo participated in the burning.
This woman, it is faid, had drunk a large quantity of fpi-
rituons liquor in confequence of being overjoyed to hear that
one of her daughters had returned from Gibraltar. | There
was no fire in the grate, and the candle had burnt entirely
out in the focket of the candleftick, which was clofe to her.
Befides, there were found near the confumed botly the clothes
of a child and a paper fcreen, which had fultained no injury
by the fire. The drefs of this woman confifted of a cotton
gown.
” Le Cat, in a memoir on fpontaneous.burning, mentions
feveral other infiances of combuftion of the human body.
«< Having,” fays he, “ fpent feveral months at Rheims in
the years 1724 and 1725, I lodged at the houfe of Sieur
Millet, whofe wife got intoxicated every day. The domeftic
economy of the family was managed by a pretty young girl,
which £ muft not omit to remark, in order that all the cir-
cumftances which accompanied the fact Iam about to relate,
may be better underftood. This woman was found con-
fumed on the 2oth of February 1725, at the diftance of a
foot and a half from the hearth in her kitchen. A part of
e head only, with a portion of the lower extremities and
a few of the vertebrx, had efcaped combuttion. A foot and
a half of the flooring under the body had been confumed,
but a kneading- trough and a powdering-tub, which were
very near the body, had fuftained/no injury.. M. Chretien,
a furgeon, examined the remains of the body with every
juridical

produced by the Ufe of Spirituous Liquors. 137

juridical formality. Jean Millet, the hufband, being inter-
rogated by the judges who inftituted an inquiry into the
affair, declared, that about eight in the evening on the 19th
of February he had retired to reft with his wife, who not
being able to fleep, had gone into the kitchen, where he
thought fhe was warming herfelf; that, having fallen afleep,
he was wakened about two o’clock by an infectious odour,
and that, having run to the kitchen, he found the re-
mains of his wife in the ftate defcribed in the report of the
phyficians and furgeons. The judges having no fufpicion of
the real caufe, of this event, profecuted the affair with the
utmoft diligence. It was very unfortunate for Millet that
he had a handfome fervant-maid, for neither his probity nor
innocence was able to fave him fr om the fufpicion of having
got rid of his wife by a‘concerted plot, and of having arranged
the reft of the circumftance in fuch'a manner as to give it
the appearance of an accident. He experienced, therefore,
the whole feverity of the law; and though, by an appeal to
a fuperior and very enlightened court, which difcovered the
caufe of the combuftion, he came off victorious, he fuffered
fo much from uneafinefs of mind, that he was obliged to
pafs the remainder of his melancholy days in an hofpital.”
Le Cat relates another inftance, which has a moft perfect
refemblance to the preceding :—‘¢ M. Boinneau, curé of
Plerguer, near Dol,” fays he, ‘* wrote to me the following
letter, dated February 22, 1749: Allow me to communicate
to you a fact which took place here about a fortnight ago,
Madame de Boifeon, 80 years of age, exceedingly meagre,
who had drank nothing but fpirits for feveral years, was fit-
ting in her elbow-chair before the fire while her waiting-
maid went out of the room for a few moments. On her
return, feeing her miftrefs on fire, {he immediately gave an
alarm, and fome people having come to her affiftance, one
of them endeavoured to extinguifh the flames with his hand,
but they adhered to it as if it had been dipped in brandy or
oil on fire. Water was brought and thrown on the lady in
abundance, yet the fire appeared more violent, and was not
extinguifhed till the whole fiefh had been confumed. Her
fkeleton, exceedingly black, remained entire in the chair,
Vou. VI. oe which

138 On the Combuftion of the Human Body,

which was only a little feorched; one leg only, and the two
hands, detached themfelves from the reft of the bones. It
is not known’ whether her clothes had caught fire by ap-
proaching the grate. The lady was in the fame place in
which fhe fat every day ; there was no extraordinary fire, and
fhe had not fallen. What makes me fufpeét that the ufe
of fpirits might have produced this effeét is, that I have been
affured, that at the gate of Dinan an accident of the like kind
happened to another woman under fimilar circumftances.”’

To thefe inftances, which I have multiplied to ftrengthen
the evidence, I fhall add two other faéts, of the fame kind,
publifhed in the Journal de Medicine*. The firft took place
at Aix, in Provence, and is thus related by Muraire, a fur-
geon :— In the month of February 1779, Mary Jauffret,
widow of Nicholas Gravier, fhoemaker, of a fmall fize, ex-
ceedingly corpulent, and addiéted to drinking, having been
burnt in her apartment, M. Rocas, my colleague, who was
commiffioned to make a report refpeéting the remains of her
body, found only a mafs of afhes, and a few bones, calcined
in fuch a manner that on the leaft preffure they were reduced
to duft. The bones of the cranium, one hand, and a foot,
had in part efcaped the action of the fire. Near thefe re-
mains ftood a table untouched, and under the table a fmall
wooden ftove, the grating of which, having been long burnt,
afforded an aperture, through which, it is probable, the fire
that occafioned the melancholy accident had been commu-
nicated: one chair, which ftood too near the flames, had the
feat and fore-feet burnt. In other refpeéts, there was no
appearance of fire either in the chimney or the apartment ;
fo that, except the fore-part of the chair, it appears to me
that no other combuftible matter contributed to this fpeedy
incineration, which was effected in the fpace of feven or
eight hours.”

The other inftance, mentioned in the Journal de Medi-
cine t, took place at Caen, and is thus related by Merille, a
furgeon of that city, ftill alive:—‘‘ Being requefted, on the
3d of June 1782, by the king’s officers, to draw up a report
of the ftate in which I found Mademoifelle Thuars, who

* Vol. LIX. p. 440 t Vol. LIX, p. 140.
was

produced by the Ufe of Spirituous Liquors. 13g
was faid to have been burnt, I made the following obferva-
tions:—The body lay with the crown of the head refting
againft one of the andirons, at the diftance of eighteen inches
from the fire ; the remainder of the body was placed obliquely
before the chimney, the whole being nothing but a mafs of
afhes. Even the moft folid bones had loft their form and
confiftence ; none of them could be diftinguifhed except the
coronal, the two parietal bones, the two lombar vertebra,
a portion of the tibia, and a part of the omoplate; and thefe,
even, were fo calcined, that they became duft by the leaft
preffure. The right foot was found entire, and fcorched at
its upper junction ; the left was more burnt. The day had
been cold, but there was nothing in the grate except two or
three bits of wood, about an inch in diameter, burnt in the
middle. None of the furniture in the apartment was da=
maged. The chair on which Mademoifelle Thuars had been
fitting, was found at the diftance of a foot from her, and ab-
folutely untouched. I muft here obferve, that this lady was
exceedingly corpulent; that fhe was above fixty years of age,
and much addiéted to fpirituous liquors; that the day even
of her death fhe had drunk three bottles of wine and about
a bottle of brandy; and that the confumption of the body
had taken place in lJefs than feven hours, though, according:
to appearance, nothing around the body was burnt but the
-clothes.””

The town of Caen affords feveral other inftances of the
fame kind. I have been told by many people, and parti-
cularly a phyfician of Argentan, named Bouffet, author of
an Effay on Intermittent Fevers,:that a woman of the lower
clafs, who lived at Place Villars, and who was known to be
much addiéted to ftrong liquor, had been found in her houfe
burnt. The extremities of her body enly were fpared, but
the furniture was very little damaged.

A like unfortunate accident happened alfo at Caen to an-
other old woman addiéted to drinking. I was affured by
thofe who told me the faé, that the flames which proceeded
from the body could not be extinguifhed by water; but I
- think it needlefs to relate the particulars of this and of an-
other fimilar event which took place ia the fame town, be-

Ta caule,

140 . On the Combuftion of the Human Body,

caufe, as they were not attefled by a proses-verbal, and not
having been communicated by profeffional men, they do not
infpire the fame confidence.

This collection of inftances is fupported, therefore, by all
thofe authentic proofs which can be required to form human
teftimony; for, while we admit the prudent doubt of Def-
cartes, we ought to reject the univerfal doubt of the Pyr-
rhonifts. The multiplicity and uniformity even of thefe facts,
which occurred in different places, and were attefted by fo
many enlightened men, carry with them conyiétion; they
have fuch a relation to each other that we are inclined to
afcribe them to the fame caufe.

1. The perfons who experienced the effeéts of this com-
buftion had for a long time made an immoderate ufe of {pi-
rituous liquors.

2. The combuttion took place only in women,

3. Thefe women were far advanced in life.

4. Their bodies did not take fire fpontaneoufly, but were
burnt by accident.

5+ The extremities, fuch as the feet and the hands, were
generally {pared by the fire.

6. Water fometimes, inftead of extinguifhing the flames
which proceeded from the parts on fire, gave them more ac-
tivity.

7. The fire did very little damage, and often even fpared
the combuftible objects which were in contaé with the hu-
man body at the moment when it was burning.

8. The combuttion of thefe bodies left as a refiduum fat foetid
afhes, with an unctuous, ftinking, and very penetrating foot.

Let us now enter into an examination of thefe eight ge-
neral obfervations. i

. The firft idea which occurs on reading the numerous in-
ftances of human combuiftion above related is, that thofe who
fell. vi€tims to. thofe fatal accidents were almoft all addicted
to fpirituous liquors. The woman mentioned in the Tranfac-
tions of Copenhagen had. for three years made fuch an im-
moderate ufe of them that fhe would take no other nourifh-
ment, Mary Clues, for a year before the accident happened,
had fearcely been a fingle day without drinking half a pint
a 9 of

produced by the Uje of Spirituous Liquors. tat
of rum or of anifeed-water. The wife of Millet had been
continually intoxicated; Madam de Boifeon for feveral years
had drunk nothing but fpirits; Mary Jauffret was much ad-
diéted to drinking; and Mademoifelle Thuars, and the other
women of Caen, were equally fond of ftrong liquors.

Such excels, in regard to the ufe of {pirituous liquors, muft
have had a powerful aétion on the bodies of the perfons to
whom [I allude. All their fluids and folids muft have expe-
rienced its fatal influence; for the property of the abforbing
veflels, which is fo active in the human body, feems on this
occafion to have atted a diftinguifhed part. It has been
obferved that the urine of great drinkers is generally aque-
ous and limpid. It appears, that in drunkards who make

an immoderate ufe of fpirituous liquors, the aqueous part of

their drink is difcharged by the urinary paflage, while the
alcoholic, almoft like the volatile part of aromatic fubftanees,
not being fubjeted to an entire decompofition, is abforbed
into every part of their bodies.

I hall now proceed to the fecond general obfervation,
that the combutftion took place only in women.

I will not pretend to affert that men are not liable'to com-
bufiion in the fame manner, but I have never yet been able
to find one well certified inftance of fuch an event; and as
we cannot proceed with any certainty but on the authority
of facts, I think this fingularity fo furprifing as to give rife
to a few refleCtions. - Perhaps when the caufe is examined,
it will appear perfectly natural. The female body is in ge-
neral more delicate than that of the other fex. The fyflem
of their folids is more relaxed; their fibres are more fragile
and of a weaker ftructure, and therefore their texture more:
eafily hurt. Their mode of life alfo contributes to increafe the
weaknefs of their organization. Women, abandoned in ge-
neral to a fedentary life, charged with the care of the inter-
nal domeftic economy, and often fhut up in clofe apartments,
where they are condemned to fpend whole days without tak-
ing any exercife, are more fubjeét than men to become cor-'
pulent. The texture of the foft parts in female bodies being
more \fpongy, abforption ought to be freer; and as their

whole

x

542 On the Combuftion of the Human Body,

whole bodies imbibe fpirituous liquors with more eafe, they

ought to experience more readily the impreflion of fire.

Hence that combuftion, the melancholy inftances of which

feem to be furnifhed by women alone; and it is owing
merely to the want of a certain concurrence of circumftances
and of phyfical caufes, that thefe events, though lefs rare than
is fuppofed, do not become more common.

The fecond general obfervation ferves to explain the third 5
I mean, that the combuttion took place only in women far
advanced in life. The Countefs of Cefena was fixty-two
years of age; Mary Clues, fifty-two; Grace Pitt, fixty ;
Madame de Boifeon, eighty; and Mademoifelle Thuars
more than fixty. Thefe examples prove that combuftion is
more frequent among old women. Young perfons, diftraéted
by other paffions, are not much addicted to drinking; but
when love, departing along with youth, leaves a vacuum in
the mind, if its place be not fupplied by ambition or in-
tereft, a tafte for gaming, or religious fervor, it generally falls
a prey to intoxication. This paffion ftill increafes as the
others diminifh, efpecially in women, who can indulge it
without reftraint. Wilmer, therefore, obferves, “ that the
propenfity of Mary Clues to this vice had always increafed
after the death of her hufband, which happened ‘about a
_ year before :”’ almoft all the other women of whom I have
fpoken, being equally unconfined in regard to their actions,
could gratify their attachment to fpirituous liquors without
oppofition.

It may have been obferved that the obefity of women, as
they advance in life, renders them more fedentary; and if,
as has been remarked by Baumes*, a fedentary life over-
charges the body with hydrogen, this effeét muft be ftill
more fenfible among old women. Dancing and walking,
which form falutary recreation for young perfons, are at
a certain age interdi¢ted as much by nature as by prejudice.
It needs therefore excite no aftonifhment that old women,
who are in general more corpulent and more addicted to
drinking, and who are often motionlefs like inanimate

%* Effai du Syftéme Chemique de la Science de |’Homme.
maffes,

produced by the Ufe of Spirituous Liquors. 143

"maffes, during the moment of intoxication, fhould expe-
rience the effects of combuttion.

Perhaps we have no occafion to go very far to fearch for
the caufe of thefe combuftions. The fire of the wooden
ftove, the chimney, or of the candle, might have been com-
municated 1o the clothes, and might have in this manner
burnt the perfons above mentioned, on account of the pecu-.
liar difpofition of their bodies. Maffei obferves that the
Countefs of Cefena was accuftomed to bathe her whole
body with fpirit of wine. The vicinity of the candle and
lamp, which were found near the remains of her body, oc-
cafioned, without doubt, the combuftion. This accident re-
minds us of that which happened to Charles Il. king of
Navarre. This prince, being addiéted to drunkennefs and
exceffes of every kind, had caufed himfelf to be wrapped up
in cloths dipped in {pirits, in order to revive the natural heat
of his body which had heen weakened by debauchery; but
the cloths caught fire while his attendants were faftening
them, and he perifhed a victim to his imprudence.

Befides accidental combuftion, it remains for us to exa-
mine whether fpontaneous combuftion of the human body
can take place, as afferted by Le Cat. Spontaneous com-
buftion is the burning of the human body without the con-
tact of any fubftance in a ftate of ignition. Nature, indeed,
affords feveral inftances of fpontaneous combuftion in the
mineral and vegetable kingdoms. The decompofition of py-
rites, and the fubterranean procefles which are carried on
in voleanoes, afford proofs of it. Coal-mines may readily
take fire fpontaneoufly ; and this has been found to be the
cafe with heaps of coals depofited in clofe places. It is by a
fermentation of this kind that dunghills fometimes become
hot, and take fire. This may ferve alfo to explain why truffes
of hay, carried home during moift weather, and piled up on
each other, fometimes take fire. But, can fpontaneous com-
buftion take place in the human body? If fome authors are
to be credited *, very violent combuftion may be produced in
our bodies by nature and by artificial proceffes, Sturmius fF
fays that in the northern countries flames often burft from

* German Ephemerides, Obfery. 77. + Ibid. Tenth year, p. 55-
the

344 _ On the Combuftion'of the Human Body,

the ftomach of perfons in a ftate of intoxication. Three
noblemen of Courland having laid a bet which of them
could drink moft fpirits, two of them died in confequence of
fuffocation by the flames which iffued with great violence
from their ftomachs. We are told by Thomas Bartholin*,

on the authority of Vorftius, that a foldier, who had drunk
two glafles. of fpirits, died after,an eruption of flames from
his mouth. In his third century Bartholin mentions an-
other accident of the fame kind after a drinking-match of
ftrong liquor.

' It now remains to decide, from thefe inftances, refpecting
the accidental or fpontaneous caufes which produce combuf-
tion. Nature, by affuming a thoufand different forms, feems
at firft as if defirous to elude our obfervation; but, on mature
refleétion, if it be found eafy to prove accidental combuftion,
fpontaneous combuttion appears altogether improbable ; for,
even admitting the inftances of people fuffocated by flames
which iffued from their mouths, this is ftill far from the
combuftion of the whole body, There is a great difference
between this femi-combuttion and fpontaneous combuftion
fo complete as to reduce the body to afhes, as in the cafes
above mentioned, As the human body has never been feen
to experience total combuftion, thefe affertions feem rather
the productions of a fervid imagination than of real obferva-
tion; and it too often happens “that Nature in-her mode of
aétion does not adopt our manner of feeing.

I fhall not extend further thefe obfervations on the com-
buflion of the human body, as f flatter myfelf that after this
examination every perfon mutt be ftruck with the relation
which exifts between the caufe of this phenomenon and the
effets that enfue. A fyftem embellifhed with imaginary
charms is often feducing, but it never prefents a perfec&
whole. We have feen facts juttify reafoning, and reafoning
ferve afterwards to explain faéts. The combuftion of the
human body, which on the firft view appears to have in it
fomething of the marvellous, when explained, exhibits no-
thing but the utmoft fimplicity: fo true itis, that the won-
derful is often produced by effects which, as they rarely ftrike

* Fir century. P
our

produced by the Ufe of Spirituous Liquors. 145

our eyes, permit our minds fo much the lefs to difcover their
real caufe. .

Some people, however, may afcribe to the wickednefs of
mankind what we afcribe to accident. It may be faid, that
affaffins, after putting to death their unfortunate victims,
rubbed over their bodies with combuftible fubftances, by
which they were confumed. But even if fuch an idea
fhould ever be conceived, it would be impoffible to carry it
into execution. Formerly, when criminals were condemned

to the flames, what a quantity of combuftible fubftances _

was neceflary to burn their bodies! A baker’s boy, named
Renaud, being condemned to be burnt a few years ago at
Caen, two large cart-loads of faggots were required to con-
fume the body, and at the end of more than ten hours fome
remains of the bones were ftill to be feen. What proves that
the combuftion in the before-mentioned inftances was not
artificial is, that people often arrived at the moment when
it had taken place, and that the body was found in its na-
tural ftate. People entered the houfe of Madame Boifeon at
the time when her body was on fire, and all the neighbours
faw it. Befides, the people of whom I have fpoken were al-
moft all of the loweft clafs, and not much calculated to give
rife to the commiffion of fuch a crime. The woman men-
tioned in the Tranfa&tions of Copenhagen was of the pooreft
condition; Grace Pitt was the wife of a fifhmonger; Mary
Jauffret that of a fhoemaker; and two other women, who
refided at Caen, belonged to the lowelt order of fociety. It
is inconteftible, then, that in the inftances I have adduced
the combuftion was always accidental and never intentional.

It may be feen that a knowledge of the caufes of this phe-

nomenon Is no lefs intereftine to criminal juftice than to na-
tural hifory, for unjuft fufpicions may fometimes fall onan
innocent man. Who will not fhudder on recollecting the
‘cafe of the unfortunate inhabitant of Rheims, who, afier
having loft his wife by the effect of combuftion, was in
danger of perifhing himfelf on the fcaffold, condemned un-
jaftly by an ignorant tribunal !

I fhall confider myfelf happy if this pi@ture of the fatal
effects of intoxication makes an impreffion on thofe addicte:!

Vou. VI. U pred

x

146 . MesiaiiOegtoal Axioms,

to this vice, and particularly on women, who moft freqieritly
become the viétims of it. Perhaps the fr ightful details of fo
horrid an evil as that of combuftion will reclaim ‘drunkards '
from this horrid praétice. Plutarch relates, that at Sparta
children were deterred from drunkennefs by exhibiting to
them the fpeétacle of intoxicated flaves, who, by their hi-
deous contorfions, filled the minds of thefe young fpe€tators
with fo much contempt that they never afterwards got
drunk. This ftate of drunkennefs, however, was only tran-
fitory. How much more horrid it appears in thofe unfor-
tunate victims confumed by the flames and reduced to afhes!
May men never forget that the vine fometimes produces very
bitter fruit—difeafe, pain, repentance, and death !

VII. Meteorological Axioms, by L. CoTTE; or the general
Refult of his own and foreign Meteorological Obfervations
during the courfe of Thirty Years *,

Obr meteorological obfervations are as old as the efta-
blifhment of the Academy of Sciences in the year 1666, and
have never yet been interrupted, The moft celebrated aca-
demicians, fuch as a Sidileau, a de la Hire,.a Maraldi, “a
Caflini, a Fouchy, a Chappe, &c. have contributed towards
them; and feveral members, fuch as Morin, Duhamel,
Malovin, Meffier, &c. paid attention to the fame object
without making themfelves much known. The correfpond-
ents of the Academy alfo frequently communicated to it
their meteorological obfervations. All the learned focieties
in Europe comprehend meteorology in the lift of their Ja-
bours, and particularly the Royal. Society of London, the
Academies of Berlin, Stockholm, Peterfburg, &c. but, above
all, the Medical Societies at Paris and the Hague, and the
Meteorologic Society at Manheim. Thefe three learned
bodies have therefore the moft extenfive correfpondence,

I have communicated to the public the refult of the ob-
{ervations made by all thefe focieties as well as of my own

®* From Niues Fournal der Phyfik, by Profeffor Gren, Vol. I}, part 5. ~
during

Meteorological Axioms. 147

during the courfe of thirty years, partly in my Treatife and
Memoirs on Meteorology, and partly in the Hiftory of the
Medical Society, the Colletion des Savans etrangers, the
Journaux des Savans, de Phyfique, de France, &c. I en-
deavoured to neglect nothing that had any relation to me-
teorology, and [ flatter myfelf that I have given the refult of
every thing that has been publifhed for a hundred years on
this branch of fcience. But how tedious is its progrefs!
From this aftonifhing collection of obfervations J have as
yet been able to deduce only a very fmall number of phyfical
truths, which I here lay before the public under the title of
Meteorological Axioms. They are:not drawn from the whole
mafs of the before-mentioned obfervations, made for a very
long period, and in a carelefs manner, and with very impere
fect inftruments, but from thofe of the laft thirty or forty
years. They are as follow :—

i
Of the Barometer.

1. The greateft changes of the barometer commonly take
place, during clear weather, with a north wind; and the
fmall rifings during cloudy, rainy, or windy weather, with
a fouth, or nearly fouth, wind. ‘

2. The ftate of the mercury changes more in the winter
than the fummer months; fo that its greateft rifing and fall-
ing take place in winter; but its mean elevation ts greater in
fummer than in winter.

3. The changes of the ftate of the barometer are nearly
null at the equator, and become greater the more one re-
moves from it towards the poles.

4. They are more confiderable in valleys than on mountains.

5. The more variable the wind, the more changeable the
ftate of the barometer.

6. It is lower at midnight and noon than at other periods
of the day: its greateft daily height is towards evening,

7. Between ten at night and two in the morning, and
alfo in the day, the rifing and falling of the mercury are Jefs :
the contrary is the cafe between fix and ten in the morning

and evening,
U2 8. Between

148 Meteorological Axioms.

8. Between two and fix in the morning and evening it rifed,
as often as it falls; but in fuch a manner that it oftener rifes
about that time in the winter months, and falls oftener in
the fummer months. .

g. The ofcillations are lefs in fummer, greater in winter,
and very great at the equinoxes.

10., They are greater alfo in the day-time than during the.

night.

11. The higher the fun rifes above the horizon, the lefs
are the ofcillations; they increafe as he approaches the wett-
ern fide of the horizon, and are exceedingly great when he
comes oppofite to the eaftern part of the horizon.

12. They are, to a certain degree, independent of the
changes of temperature.

13. The mercury generally rifes between-the new and the
full moon, and falls between the latter and the new moon.

14. It rifes more in the apogeum than the perigeum: it
ufually rifes between the northern luniftice and the fouthern,
aud falls between the fouthern luniftice and the northern.

15. In general, a comparifon of the variations of the mer-
cury with the pofitions of the moon gives nothing certain:
the refults of Nos. 13 and 14 are the moft conftant.

16. In our neighbourhood the barometer never continues
twenty-four hours without changing.

17. The barometers in the weftern diftri€ts rife or fall
fooner than thofe in the more eaftern.

18. When the fun paffes the meridian the mercury if.

falling continues to fall, and its fall is often haftened.

s9. When the mercury at the fame period is rifing, it
falls, remains ftationary, or rifes more flowly.

20. When the mercury, under the fame circumftances, is
ftationary, it falls; unlefs, before or after it becomes ftation-
ary, it has been in the act of rifing.

at. The above changes commonly take place between
eleven in the morning and one in the afternoon, but oftener
before than after noon. ;

22. Before high tides there is almoft always a great fall
of the mercury ; this takes place oftener at the full than the
new moon,

IT.

Metecrological Axionist 149

II.
Of the Thermometer.

1. The extreme degrees of heat are almoft every, where
the fanie: this, however, is not the cafe in regard to the
extreme degrees of cold.

2. The etic rifes to its extreme height Silent in
the temperate zones than in the torrid zone.

3. It changes very little between the tropics; its varia-
- tions, like thofe of the barometer, are greater the more one
proceeds from the equator towards the poles:

4. It rifes higher in the plains than on mountains.

5. It does not fall fo much in the neighbourhood of the
fea as in inland parts.

6. The wind has no influence on its motions.

7. Moifture has a peculiar influence on it, if followed by
a wind which difperfes it.

8. The greateft heat, and the greateft cold, take place
about fix weeks after the northern or fouthern folftice.

g. The thermometer changes more in fummer than in
winter.

10. The coldeft period of the day is before fun-rife.

-11. The greateft heat in the fun and the fhade feldom
takes place on the fame day.

12. The heat decreafes with far more rapidity from Sep-
tember and Oétober, than it increafed from July to Sep-
tember.

13. It is not true, that a very cold winter is the prognoftic
of a very hot fummer.

Ill.
Of the Wind,

1, The winds between the tropics are regular and period
ical.

2. The more one removes from the Erapics, the more
changeable they are found.

3. The winds are more changeable in winter than in fum-
mer, and towards the equinoxes than at any other time.

4. lt is not true, that the wind which blows abont the

time

50 Betcorological Axioms.

time of the equinoxes will be the prevailing wind during the
next fix months.

5. A frefh breeze always fprings up before fun-rife, efpe-
cially in fummer.

6. In the neighbourhood of the fea there is a periodical
land and a fea breeze.

7. Violent winds are more prevalent in the neighbourhood
of mountains than in the open plains.

. IV.
Of Rain and Evaporation.

r. Rain is more frequent in winter than in fummer, but
more abundant in fummer than in winter.

2. It is alfo more abundant, but lefs common, in fouthern
countries, than in thofe where the temperature is cold and
moderate.

3. The increafe and decreafe of rivers are not always in
proportion to the quantity of the rain which falls.

4. The quantity of rain is greater in low than in high
diftrits, and fill more fo in the neighbourhood of forefts
and mountains.

5. The quantity of evaporation generally exceeds that of
the rain.

6. The greater the heat, the ftronger the evaporation.

7. itis greater alfo while the wind blows from the northern
regions, than when it comes from the fouthern.

8. In the laft place, it is greater during dry and cold, than
during morft and warm, weather.

g- The greateft drought indicated by the hygrometer takes
place in April.

XY.
Atmofpheric Eleétricity.

1. Electricity manifefts itfelf oftener without ftorms than
with them.
2. It is occafioned more frequently by dry than by rainy
clouds.
3. It is oftener pofitive than negative, particularly when
occafioned by flationary clouds, becaufe thefe, without doubt,
are

Meteorological Axioms. 151

are atfuch a great diftance, that the electricity which rifes
from the earth cannot reach them: in the oppofite cafe it is
exceedingly variable.

4. The atmofphere exhibits figns of electricity at all times;
at every hour of the day and the night.

VI.
The Magnetic Needle.

1. The greateft declination of the needle from the north
towards the weft takes place about two in the afternoon, and
the greateft approximation of it towards the norih, about
eiglat in the morning; fo that, from the laft-mentioned hour
till about two in the afternoon, it endeavours to remove from
the north, and between two in the afternoon and the next
morning to approach it.

2. The anniial progrefs of the magnetic needle is as fol-
lows :—Between January and March it removes from the
north ; between March and May it approaches it; in June
it is ftationary ; in July it removes from it; in Auguft, Sep-
tember, and October, it approaches it; its declination in
O&tober is the fame as in May; in November and December
it removes from the north: its greateft weftern declination is
at the vernal equinox, and its greateft a ale to the
north at the autumnal equinox.

3. The declination of the magnetic needle is bigforent ac-
cording to the latitude: among us it has always increafed
fince 1666: before that period it was eafterly.

4. Before volcanic eruptions and earthquakes, the mag-
netic needle is often fubject to very extraordinary moye-
ments.

5. The magnetic needle is agitated before and after the
appearance of the northern lights: its declination on thefe
occafions is about noon greater than ufual.

6. The greater or lefs appearance of thefe northern lights
is variable; fome years this phenomenon is very frequent,
in others uncommon. _ For two or three years they have
occurred very feldom. *

7. The northern lights are more frequent about the time
of the equinoxes than at other periods of the year.

7 8. Tais

¥52 On the Decompofition of Azotic

8. This phenomenon is almoft conftant during the long

winter in the polar regions, and is the more uncommon the
nearer the equator.

g- Southern lights have been obferved alfo in the regions
near the fouth pole.

10. The northern lights are often accompanied with light-
ning, and a noife like that of ele&tricity; while the lightning
proceeds partly from the middle of the northern lights, and
partly from the neighbouring clouds.

‘VII.
The Lunar Period of Nineteen Years.

It appears that the general temperature of a year returns
every nineteen years; an.epoch when the phafes and pofi-
tions of the moon in regard to the earth are again the fame.

I might add more refults, but I fhall coffine myfelf to
thofe found moft conftant by obfervation, and conclude with
wifhing, that the zeal of obfervers may contribute to confirm
niore and more the certainty of thefe Axioms, or to difeover
new ones.

IX. On. the. Decompofition of Axzotic into Hydrogen and
Oxygen Gas, by M. GirtTANNER, and on the radical
of the Muriatic Acid. A Letter from Van Mons, of
Bruffels, to Delamtherie*.

J TAKE the earlieft opportunity of informing you, that
Girtanner has decompofed azot, and reduced it to hydrogen
and oxygen, in the proportion of 0°93 of the former and
6°07 of the latter: From this it feems to follow, that.azot,
ammoma, water, atmofpheric air, &c. are compounds of
thefe two principles in varied proportions. In analyfing air
we do not feparate but compound the azotic gas by fub-
tracting a part of oxygen from the hydro-oxygen fluid, which
conftitutes that air. This is, perhaps, ‘the reafon why com-
buftion is more lively in pure oxygen gas, or orygen gas not

* From Yourual de Phyfique, an. 8.
engaged

into Hydrogen and Oxygen Gas. . 153
engaged in a combination with hydrogen. Argil is the fub-
ftance which bet decompofes atmofpheric air; and fo'com-
pounds azot ; and this agrees pretty well with the experiments

/of Humboldt. This property of argil explains the neceflity
of its prefence in artificial nitre-beds, and gives us reafon to

think that Wicgleb and Wurzer are not altogether‘deceived _

when they think of converting aqueous vapour into azote
gas, You muft. have remarked in amy experiments on this
converfion, that I could. not account properly for the large
quantity of gas which I frequently happened to collect.

Stormy rains may be means employed by. Nature to free
atmofpheric air from that excels of oxygen continually flow-
ing into it from plants, by combining into water a.part of the
two gafes of which it is compofed. | This much:is, certain,
that the uniform mixture of two fluids of denfites fo different
as thofe of azotic and oxygen gas, has always. led me to fuf-
pect an union of thefe two gafes.

In a word, if the difcovery of Girtanner {hall be confirmed
it will enable us to account for the almoft total difappearance
of azot during the decompofition of nitre by fire.

M. Girtanner perfifts in maintaining, that hydrogen is the
radical of the muriatic acid, but this hydregenic acid contains
lefs oxygen than water. The experiments which I oppofed
to my friend * all tend either to oxygenate that liquid or to
de-oxygenate the acid. I followed an oppofite courfe to
Girtanner, but which was pointed out tome by himifelf, whe
at that time confidered the muriatic acid as oxygenated water,

Trommi{dorff was not wrong when he informed me +, that
there would perhaps be more hope of difcovering the radicals
of undecompofed acids, by endeavouring rather to oxygenate
than to de-oxygenate thefe fubflances.

I am not vet acquainted with the experiments of M. Gir-
tanner, but I have already made a mixture of hydrogen gas

and oxygen gas, in the proportion mentioned, without ob-
taining azotic gas. \. J.B. VAN MONS.

* Mémoires de I’Toftirut National, Vol I. p. 36 and 44.
+ Annales de Chimie, Vol. XXXII.

VGou..V1. Xx . X. 4 Bo-

{ 154]

X, A Botanical Defcription of Urceola Elaftica, or Gora
ebhouc Vine of Sumatra and Pullo-pinang ; with an Account
of the Properties of its infpiffated Juice, compared with thofe
of the American Caout-chouc. By W1LL1AM ROXBURGH),
M..D.*

F OR the difcovery of this ufeful vine, we are, I believe,
indebted to Mr. Howifon, late furgeon at Pullo-pinang; but
it would appear he had no opportunity of determining its
botanical charaer. To Doétor Charles Campbell, of Fort
Marlborough, we owe the gratification arifing from a know-
ledge thereof.

About twelve months ago I received from that gentleman,
by means of Mr. Fleming, very complete {pecimens, ‘in full
foliage, flower, and fruit. From thefe I was enabled to re-

duce it to its clafs and order in the Linnzan fyftem. It
forms a new genus in the clafs Pentandria, and order Mono-
gynia, and comes in immediately after Tabernemontana,
confequently belongs to the thirtieth natural order, or clafs
called Contorte by Linnzus in his natural method of clafli-
fication or arrangement. One of the qualities of the plants
of this order is, their yielding, on being cut, a juice which is
generally milky, and for the moft part deemed of a poifonous
nature,

The generic name Urceola, which I have given’'to this
plant, is from the ftru€ture of the corol, and the fpecifie
name from the quality of its thickened juice.

So far as I can find, it does not appear that ever this vine
has been taken notice of by any European till now. I have
carefully looked over the Hortus Malabaricus, Rumphins’s
Herbarium Amboinenfe, &c. &c. figures of Indian plants,
without being able to find any one that can with any degree
of certainty be*referred to. A fubftance of the fame nature,

and probably the very fame, was difcovered in the ifland of.

Mauritius by M. Poivre, and “from thence fent to France;
but, fo far as I know, we are {till ignorant of the plant that

yields it,
* From the Afatic Refearches, Vol. V,

The

Defcription of the Urceola Elajticu. 155

The impropriety of giving to Caout-chouc the term gum,
refin, or gum-refin, every one feems fenfible of, as it pof-
feffes qualities totally different from all fuch fubftances as
are ufually arranged under thofe generic names; yet it full
continues, by moft authors I have met with, to be deno-
minated elaftic refin or elaftic gum. Some term it fimply
Casut-chour, which I with may be confidered as the generic
name of all fuch concrete vegetable juices (mentioned in this
memoir) as poflefs elafticity, inflammability, and are foluble
in the effential oils, without the affiftance of heat.

In a mere definition it would be improper to ftate what
qualities the object does not poffefs; confequently, it muft
be underftood that this fubftance is not foluble in the men-
ftruums which ufually diffolve refins and gums.

Eaft-India Caowt-chouc would be a very proper fpecific
name for that of Urceola elaftica, were there not other trees
which yield juices fo fimilar as to come under the fame ge-

‘neric character; but as this is really the cafe, I will apply |

the name of the tree which yields it for a fpecific one.
E. G. Caout-chouec of Urceola Elaftica, Caout-chouc of Ficus
Indica, Caout-choue of Artocarpus integrifolia, &c. 8c.

. Defeription of the Plant Urceola.

PENTANDRIA MONOGYNIA.

Gen. Char. Calyx beneath five-toothed ; corol one-petaled,
pitcher-fhaped, with its contra€ted mouth five-toothed ; nec-

tary entire, furrounding the germs ; follicles two, round, dru-.

pacious ; feeds numerous, immerfed j in pulp.

Urcreora ELASTICA.

Shrubby, twining, leaves senitians oblong, panicles ter-
minal; is a native of cei Pullo-pinang, 8c. Malay
countries.

_ Stem, woody, climbing over trees, &c. to a very great ex-
tent, young fhoots twining, and a little hairy, bark of the

old woody parts thick, dark-coloured, confiderably uneven,

a little f{eabrous, on which I found feveral fpecies of mofs,
particularly large patches of lichen: the wood is white, light,

aud porous.
Leaves, oppofite, fhort-petioled, horizontal, ovate, oblong,
X 2 pointed,

156 ». A Botanical Defcription of
pointed, entire, a little feabrous, with a few feattered white
hairs on the under-fide.

Stipules, none.

Panicles, terminal, brachiate, very ramus.

Flowers, numerous, minute, of a dull greenifh colour, and
hairy on the outfide.

Braéis, \Jancéolate, one at each divifion and fubdivifion of
the panicle. :

Calyx, perianth, one-leaved, five-toothed, permanent.

Corol, one-petaled, pitcher-fhaped, hairy, mouth much
contracted, five-toothed, divifions ere&t, acute, nectary en-
tire, cylindric, embracing the lower two-thirds of the germs.

Stamens, filaments five, very fhort from the bafe of the
corol. Antlers arrow-fhaped, converging, bearing their
pollen in two grooves on the infide near the apex; between
thefe grooves tal the infertions of the filaments they. are
covered with white foft hairs.

Piftil, germs two; above the nectary they are very hairy
round the margins of their truncated tops. Style fingle,
fhorter than the ftamens. Stigma ovate, with a circular
band, dividing it into two’ portions of diferent colours,

Per, Follicles two, round, laterally compreffed into the
fhape of a turnip, wrinkled, leathery, about three inches in
their greatett diameters ; one-celled, two-valved.

Seeds, very numerous, reniform, immerfed in firm flefhy

pulp.

.

Explanation of the Figures. (Plate 1V.)..,

1. A branchlet in flower, natural fize.

a. A flower magnified.

3. The fame laid open, whichiexpofes to view the fitua-
tion-of the ftamens inf{crted into the bottom of the corely the
neGtarium furrounding the lower half of the two germs, their
upper half-with ‘hairy margins, the ftyle and ovate party-
‘coloured’; ftigma appearing above the nectary.

4. Outfide of one of the mamens> U much a

5. Infide of the fame, R

6. The neétarium-laid open, expofing to view! the whole.
of the piftil.

4. The ‘tivo feed-veffels (called by Linnteus follicle ae: 7

Q
J

Fe EP

tural

the Urceola Elajiica. 157
taral fize; half of one of them is remoyed, to fhow the feed
immerfed in pulp. A portion thereof is allo cut away, which
‘more clearly fhows the fituation and fhape of the feed.

From wounds made in the bark of this plant there oozes
amilky fluid, which, on expofure to the open air, feparates
into an elaftic coagulum and watery liquid, apparently of no
ufe after the feparation takes place. This coagulum is not
only like the American Caout-chouc, or Indian rubber, but
poilefies the fame properties, as will be feen from the follow-
ing experiments and obfervations made on fome which had
been extracted from the vine about five months ago. A ball
of it now before me, is, to my fenfe, totally void of fmell even
when cut into, is very firm, nearly {pherical, meafures nine
anda half inches in circumference, and weighs feven ounces
and a quarter ; its colour on the outfide is that of American
Caout-chouc where frefh cut into, of a light-brown colour,
till the action of the air darkens it: throughout there are
numerous {mall cells filled with a portion. of light-brown
watery liquid above mentioned. This ball, in fimply falling
from a height of fifteen feet, rebounds about ten or twelve
times; the firft is from five to feven feet high, the fucceeding
ones of courfe leflening by gradation. :

This fubftance is not now. foluble in the above-mentioned
liquid contained in its cells, although fo imtimately blended
therewith, when firft drawn from the plant, as to render it
fo thin as to be readily applied to the various purpofes. to
which it is fo well adapted when in a fluid fate.

From what has been faid, it will be evident that this
eCaout-chouc poflefles a confiderable fhare of’ folidity and
elafticity in an eminent degree. I compared the laf quality
with that of American Caout-choue, by taking {mall flips of
each, and extending them till they broke; that of Urceola
was found capable of bearing a much greater degree of exten-
fion (and contraétion) than the American: however, this may
be owing to the time the refpective fubftances have beer

’ drawn from their plants.

The Urceola Caout-chouc rubs out the marks of a black~
‘Tead pencil as readily as the American, and is evidently the’
fubftance of which the Chinefe make their elaftic rings.

: It

458 A Botanical Defcription of

It contains much combuftible matter, burning entirely
away, with a clear flame, emitting a confiderable deal of
dark-coloured fmoke, which readily condenfes into a large
proportion of exceeding fine foot, or lamp-black ; at the fame
time it gives but little fmell, and that not difagreeable: the
combuftion is often fo rapid as to caafe drops of a black li-
quid, very like tar, to fall from the burning mafs; this is
equally inflammable with the reft, and continues when cold
in its femi-fluid ftate, but totally void of elafticity: in Ame-
rica, the Caowt-choue is ufed for torches; ours appears to be
equally fit for that purpofe. Expofed in a filver fpoon to a
heat about equal to that which melts lead or tin, it is re-
duced into a thick, black, inflammable liquid, fuch as:drops
from it during combuftion, and is equally deprived of its
elaftic powers, confequently rendered unfit for thofe purpofes
for which its original elafticity rendered it fo proper.

It is infoluble im fpirits of wine, nor has water any more
effe&t on it, ex¢ept when aflifted by heat, and then it is only
foftened by it.

Sulphuric acid reduced it into a black, brittle, charcoal-
like fubftance, beginning at the furface of the Caout-chouc,
and if the pieces are not very thin or fmall, it requires fome
days to penetrate to their centre; during the procefs the acid
is rendered very dark- coloured, almoft black. If the fulphuric
acid is previouily diluted with only an equal quantity of wa-
ter, it does not then appear to have any effect on this fub-
fiance, nor is the colour of the liquid changed thereby.

Nitric acid reduced it in twelve hours to a foft, yellow,
unelaftic mais, while the acid is rendered yellow; at the end
of two days, the Cvout-chouc had acquired fome degree of
friabiliry and hardnefs. The fame experiment made on
American Caouf-chouc was attended with fimilar effets.
Muriatic acid had no effeét on it.

Sulphuric ether only foftened it, and rendered the different
minute portions it was cut into eafily united, and without
any feeming diminution of eclaliicity. 7

Nitric <ether I did not find a better menftruum than the
vitriolic; confequently, if the «ther I employed was pure,

of which I have fome doubt, this fubftance muft differ’ ef-
fentially

the Urceola Elaftica. : 139
fentially from that of America, which Bermiard reports to be
foluble in nitric ther.

Where this fubftance can be had in a fiuid ftate, there is
no neceffity for diffolving.or foftening it, to render it appli-
cable to the various ufes for which it may be required; but
where the dry Cuowt-chouc is only procurable, fulphuric
zther promifes to be an ufeful medium, by which it may
be rendered fo foft as to be readily formed into a variety of
fhapes.

Like American Caout-chouc, it is fcluble in the effential
oil of turpentine; and I find it equally fo in Cajeput oil, an
effential oil, faid to be obtained from the leaves of Melaleuca
Leucadendron. Both folutions appear perfect, thick, and very
glutinous. Spirits of wine, added to the folution in Cajeput
oil, foon united with the oil, and left the Caout-choue float-
ing on the mixture in a foft femi-fluid ftate, which, on being
wafhed in the fame liquor, and expofed to the air, became as
firm as before it was diffolved, and retained its elaflic powers
perfectly, while in the intermediate ftates, between femi-fluid
and firm, it could be drawn out into long tranfparent threads,
refembling, in the polifh of their furface, the fibres of the
tendons of animals; when they broke, the elafticity was fo
great, that each end inftantaneoufly returned to its refpective
mafs. Through all thefe ftages, the leaft preffure with the
finger and thumb united different portions as perfectly as if
they never had been feparated, and without any clamminefs
or fticking to the fingers, which renders moft of the folutions
of Cacut-chouc fo very unfit for the purpofes for which they
are required. A piece of catgut, covered with the half-in-
fpiffated folution, and rolled between two fmooth furfaces,
foon acquired a polifh and confiftence very proper for bou-
gies. Cajeput oil I alfo found a good menftruum for Ame-
rican Caout-chouc, and was as readily feparated, by the addi-
tion of a little fpirit of wine or rum, as the other, and appears
equally fit for ufe, as I covered a piece of catgut with the
wafhed folution as perfeétly as with that of Urcgola, The
only difference I could obferve, was a little more adhefive-

nefs, from its not drying fo quickly ; the oil of turpentine had —
5 y o q 2? I

greater attraction for the Caout-chouc than for the fpirits of.
3 wine,

166 Defeription of the Urceola Elaftica.

wine, confequently remainéd obftinately united to the for-
mer, which prevented its being brought into that ftate of
firmnefs fit for handling, which it acquired when Cajeput
oil was the menftruum.

The Cajeput folution employed as a varnifh did: not dry,
but remained moift and clammy, whereas the turpentiné
folution dried pretty fait.

Expreffed oil of olives and linfeed proved imperfect men-
firuums while cold, as the Caowt-chouc, in feveral days, was
only rendered foft, and the oils vifcid, but with a degree of
heat equal to that which melts tin, continued for about
twenty-five minutes, it was perfectly diffolved, but the folu-
tion remained thin, and void of elafticity. I alfo found it
foluble in wax and in butter in the fame degree of heat; but
full thefe folutions were without elafticity, or any appearance
of being ufeful.

I fhall now conclude what I have to offer on the Caouta
chour, or Urceola elaflica, with obfervine, that fome philo-
fophers of eminence have entertained doubts of the Ame-
rican Caout-chouc being a fimple vegetable fubftance, and
fafpeét it to be an artificial production; an idea which I
hope the above detailed experiments will help to eradicate, ,
and confequently, to reftore the hiftories of that fubftance by
M. De Ja Condamine and others, to that degree of credit
to which they feem juftly entitled; in fupport of which it
may be further obferved, that, befides Urceola elaflica, there
are many other trees, natives of the torrid zone, ‘that yield
a milky juice, poffeffing qualities nearly of the fame nature}
as artocarpus integrifolia (common-jack tree), ficus religiofus
et Indica, Hippomane biglandulofa, Cecropia peltata, &e.

- The Caout-chouc, or Ficus religiofa, the Hindus confider
the moft tenacious vegetable juice they are acquainted with ;
from it their beft bird-lime is prepared. IT have examined
its qualities, as well as thofe of ficws Indica and artocarpus
integrifolia, by experiments fimilar to thofe above related,
and found them triflingly elaftic when compared with the
American and Urceola Caout-choucs, but infinitely more
vifeid than either; they are alfo inflammable, though in a
Jefs degree, and fhow nearly the fame phenomena when

inymerfed

Improvements in the Scotch Difiilleries. 161

immerfed in the mineral acids, folution of ‘cauflic alkali,
alkohol, fat and effential oils; but the folution in Cajeput
oil could not be feparated by fpirits of wine, and collected
again, like the folutions of the Urceola and American Caout~

choucs, i

XI. Account of fome Improvements introduced by the Scotch
Difiillers, which enable them to charge and run off the
fame Still upwards of Four. Hundred and Eighty Times
in Twenty-four Hours *.

Ix our laft Number we gave fome account of the progrefs
of the diftillery bufinefs in Scotland; of the improvements
that had been recently introduced there in the confiruétion
of the ftills; and of the caufes that ‘led to thefe improve-
ments.

A memorial, prefented to a Committee of the Houfe of
Commons by Dr. Jeflrey, who was appointed by the Lords
of the Treafury to examine the works of the diftillers in
Scotland, contains much curious and ufeful information on
this fubjeét; and, indeed, the whole of the Reports of the
Committees on the Scotch Dittilleries in 1798 and 1799
are extremely interefting.

The ftill defcribed in our laft avas a great improvement ;
but the one we are about to. defcribe is fo powerfyl that
hardly any evidence fhort of that with which the fact is
fupported, could make it credible. But the evidence is com-
plete; for it is that of the diftillers themfelves, whole interett
it evidently was to depreciate rather than over-rate the
power of their ftills, the duty paid on the content of the fiill
having been from time to time increafed in proportion ta
the acquired dexterity with which they were able to work
it off. 3

We have already mentioned, that the firft grand improve-
ment was that of increafing the width and diminihhing the
depth of the full, by which a greater furface was. expoled tq

* Extraéted from the Reports of the Committees of the Houfe of Cam-
mons on the Scorch Diftilleries, 179%, 1799.

*- Vou, VI, | y the

162 ' Aecount of fome Improvements

the aétion of the fire, and confequently a quicker evaporation
-produced. To leffen the poffibility of the ftill running foul,
and to haften the efcape and confequent condenfation of the
. vapour, feemed to be the only points neceffary to the per-
fecting of the procefs.

_ Dr. Jeffrey defcribes a ftill which feems wel! calculated to
anfwer every end that can be defirable in fuch an utenfil.
It was conftracted by Mr. Millar, a Scotch diftiller of great
ingenuity. Dr. Jeffrey called Mr. Millar’s notice to the
giving the free and moft dire&t efcape to the fteam. ‘ After
mentioning to him,” fays Dr. Jeffrey, “ that M. Beaumé
had contrived a ftill that had many apertures in the head,
and that he had found that the more of thefe openings he
made the fafter did the diftillation go on, Mr. Millar fet about
conftructing another very flat ftill, on the principle of giving
exit to the fteam at as many points in the fhoulder of the
- full as poffible. Fig. 1. Plate V. is a bird’s-eye view of the
apertures in the fhoulder of this flill before the pipes be fitted.
into them. Plate IV. is an outfide view of the flill, with its
external machinery. Fig. 2. Plate V. is a perpendicular fec-
tion, fhowing the central pipe, large below, and tapering as
it rifes perpendicularly upwards. The lateral pipes are
oblique, truncated cones, flattened at the fides, as they
afcend, to open into the central pipe. Immediately above
that part of the central. pipe where the lateral pipes enter,
the jet and froth-breaking fly plays, while the liquor-agi-
tating and fediment-fcraping engine is worked, by ma-
chinery, below. The depth of the body is only 2} inches at
the centre; and, at the fides, the fole and fhoulder meet at
an acute angle. No fooner was this ftill fet to work, than it
was evident that the principle on which the fhoulder was
conftruéted was juft; for, though the body and head held 52
or 53 gallons only, the ftill could work with 22 gallons of
wath, if the workmen were careful; but fteadily, and without
foul running, for a day together, with 20 gallons; and the
time between charge and charge. was only three minutes at
an average. I have, however, feen this ftill charged and dif-
charged 21 times within the hour. In a letter, which I re- -
ceived a few days ago from Mr. Millar, he informs me,

* that

-

/

introduced by the Scotch Diftillers. 163

£ that he has made a new ftill, of the fame kind, that con-
tains only 40 gallons in the body and 3 in the head, 43 gal-
lons in all; and that the ftate of working with this ftill is as
follows:—From the commencement of the charge till the
word is given to let off, 2} minutes; time of difcharging,
4 minute; making the time of charging, running, and dif-
charging, 23 minutes only, which is almoft 22 times in an
hour. The quantity of the charge of wafh is 16 gallons,
which is two-fifths of the whole. content, or 2! gallons more
than one-third full. The charge of low wines is 24. gallons;
the time of diftilling from g to 10 minutes.’ This, in fo far
as I know, is the fafteft going ftill in Scotland; and, when I
fay Scotland, I believe I may fay the world.”

The following is a more particular defcription of the full
alluded to :—

Plate iV. Fig. 4. a view of the new ftill, with its fedi-
ment-agitating and jet-breaking apparatus.

Fig. 1. Plate V. fhoulder of the new ftill turned up, to fhow
the place and fize of the apertures through which the fteam
efcapes; a’s, the fteam-efcape apertures 5 b’s, the plain fur-
faces between’ the apertures.

Fig. 2, (Plate V.) a vertical feétion of Fig. 4. "Plate IV.
to fhow its internal apparatus; a, the bottom of the ftill
joined to 4 the fhoulder with folder, or riveted, or fcrew-
nails and lute; c, the turned-up edge of the bottom, againft
which, and on a level with a, the brick-work of the coping of
the flue refts, preventing the flame from getting up to touch c;
d, the difcharge-pipe. N.B. Neither the charge-pipe, nor
fight or foap-hole are fhown. \ e, e, the body of the ftill;
Ff, fe&tion of the central fteam-efcape pipe; g, feétion of one
of the lateral fteam-efcape pipes; 4, outfide view of another ;
i, 7, i,7, inferior apertures of lateral fteam-pipes; 4,4,4,4, fa-
perior apertures of ditto; /, /, bottom-fcraper or hquor-agitator,
which may either be made to apply clofe to the bottom, or to
drag chains ; m, the upright fhatt of this engine, as it is called ;
n, horizontal wheel of ditto, with its fupporters; 0, vertical
wheel of ditto; 7, its handle and fhaft; w, fupport of thaft;
7, froth and ebullition jet-breaker refting on the crofs bar s;
t, its upright fhaft; u, cup-mouthed collar of ditto, filled

Y3 with

164 Accourt of Some Improvements °

with wool and greafe, held down by the plate and ferews
formerly defcribed ; v, general fteam-efcape pipe, or head.

Fig. 3. dlterations propofed to be made in the form of the
apertures to facilitate the efcape of the fteam, by taking away
a great part of the fhoulders on which it muft otherwife 1m-
pinge: a, the verge of the fhoulder; 4, the central aperture ;
c, the lateral apertures; d, the fpaces between them. It is
hardly neceflary to add, that as the lateral apertures are very
Jarge at their bafe, the pipes muft contract more quel near
the bafe than higher up.

The following defcription of the mode of carrying on the
procefs of diftillation at Cannon Mills; near Edinburgh, in
1798, before the improvements had been carried to their
prefent pitch, will ferve-to give our readers fome idea of the
expertnefs and fteady regularity of the people employed :—

In this work there are two ftills generally ufed for diftilling
wath; thefe ftills contain fifty-five or fifty-fix gallons in the
body, and twenty-nine in the head of each; are charged with
wath up to the fight-hole, which may be within four or five
gallons of the full content of the body. A very ftrong fire is
put into the furnace below the ftills; there are a quantity of
iron chains affixed to a f{pindle, which a man, who ftands on
the top of the furnace, turns round, and the chains fweep
round on the bottom of the infide of the ftill all the time
that the wafh is coming to’boil, and when the fpent wath is
running off. If the wafh fhould rife up too far in the aét of
boiling, and which is known by a man who keeps ftriking
the rate of the fill with a ftick, he gives the alarm to an-
other man, whofe fole bufinefs is to attend the furnace, and
who intiantly dafhes a pailfull of cold water onthe bottom of
the ftill, and on the fire, which caufes the wath to fall down ;
the fire is then ftirred up to a very ftrong heat, and this pro-
cefs goes on till the fteam is condenfed, and the low wines
run off clear. There is another man who attends at the end of
the worm, where the low wines run off into a receiver, who
is called the ball-man, and who, with an inftrument, exa-
mines the low wines as they run off; and when he finds there
is no more {pirit remaining in ec calls out /et go, upon
which every span eiuplayed, about the ftill is at his poft. He

who

introduced by the Scoteb Diftillers. 165

who attends the difcharge cock turns it about, and the fpent
wafh runs inftantly off; which done, he gives the fignal to
the man on the top of the furnace, who having opened the
fight-hole, turns the charging cock, and fills the ftill as before
with frefh wath; the furnace-man dafhing in coals, and the
other man turning all the time the iron- work round; and the
fame procefs goes on again day and night, and the difcharg-
ing the fpent wath, and renewing the charge, is done ina
few feconds.

The low wine ftill is wrought much in the fame way, with
this difference, that the fore-{hot, as it is called, which is the
firt of the fpirits that come off, is kept from the fpirits, and
returned back into the next or fome fucceeding operation, as
are alfo the faints or fpent low wines; the difcharge of the
fpirits is likewife attended by a ball-man, who moves a cock
placed in a receiver for receiving each feparate kind, and
which is done in the twinkling of an eye.

“It has been propofed,”’ fays Dr. Jeffrey, “ to adapt a
fteam-engine to a ftill. There is no difficulty in effecting
this: it may be faid to be already accomplifhed, for Mr.
Cartwright’s fteam-engine is a ftill and fteam-engine con-
joined ; ue it may be alfo obferved, that a fteam-engine
fitted to a Scotch faft-going {till would have great power ;
for the quantity of fteam that rifes from thefe ftills in a given
time is prodigious. Such an engine could grind the malt,
turn the mafh-ftirring machine, work the pumps, &c. and
it is, [ think, likewife obvious, that under furvey it would
aid the excife in deteCting frauds ; for it would fhow when
the {till was at work. But however convenient and econo-
mical fuch a fteam-engine-ftill might be in England, where
the diftiller may work when and how he pleafes, it never can
be profitably ufed in Scotland, where the diftiller works againft
time. For, as the fteam would be pent up in the full during
the half of the time the beam of the engine makes'a {lroke,
the diftiller would lofe that time: befides, as the heat accu-
mulates in the wafh when the fteam is not allowed to efcape,
it is to be feared that the fediment would be frequently
finged, and that of courfe the {pirit produced would be tainted
with empyreuma,.” ;

XI. Oa

{ 166 J}

XIt. On the Queftion, whether the Sun, the Moon, and
other heavenly Bodies are furroundea by Atmofpheres. By
T. W. A. Murnarp*.

"Tus queftion is of the utmoft importance to the phi-
lofopher as well as the aftronomer; and the more fo at the
prefent period, as the difpute between the fo-called Atmo-
fpherians and Anti-atmofpherians, which has been conti-
nued ever fince the beginning of this century, is not yet
ended. It relates in particular to the atmofphere of the
moon, which was fo ftrenuoufly maintained by Plutarch.
But it would be’as ridiculous to refer the conteft to reafon,
as if we fhould endeavour to give a decifive opinion refpecting
a ciroumftance with which we are totally unacquainted. It
is certain that nothing on this point can be determined
a@ priori; and therefore fuch conclufions as are drawn from
analogy muft be confidered as decifive. The fenfes muft
here be our guide; but it is much to be lamented, that our
ergans are often too weak, and our in{truments too imper-
fe&t, notwithftanding the great precifion to which the latter
have been carried in modern times.

But we muft firft endeavour to eftablifh what we mean
m general by the term atmo/phere. By atmofphere, I un-
derftand that delicate fubtile body which immediately fur-
rounds the planets, and which is mixed with thofe heteroge-
neous particles diffolved on their furfaces, or which evaporate
from them. By this definition it is evident, that, according
as the nature of the planet, and the particles diffolved on its
jurface, are different, the atmofpheres muft neceffarily be dif-
ferent alfo; fo that, by knowing the phyfical nature of the
furface of any of the planets, we can form a conclufion re-
fpecting the nature of its atmofphere, and vice verfa. Of this

we have a fufficient number of inftances in regard to the »

earth. Let us here only compare the pure air of the dry
diftricts of Arabia with the air of marfhy watery diftriéts,
which is continually filled with vapours, clouds, and rain, and
we fhall foon be convinced of the truth of this pofition. But

* From Neues Journal der Phyfik, by F. A.C, Gren, Vole III. part 4.
y whether

On the Sun, Moon, and other heavenly Bodies. 167

whether each of the planets is furrounded by fuch a fubtile,
mafs or not, is another queftion, which our experience hi-
therto has left in the greateft uncertainty, and refpecting
which we can form only probable conclufipns @ priori.

If we confider the heavenly bodies at the period of their
formation, it muft naturally occur, that, when created,
they muft have had atmofpheres; for, as foon as the fixed
ftars began to burn, let their fub{tance be what it might, a
great many particles muft have thereby been difengaged from
them, and have formed a kind of atmofpheres. Now, if each
of thefe fixed ftars is furrounded by a certain number of pla-
nets, its ation on them muft have feparated from them abun-
dance of particles, which, on account of their levity, would
immediately afcend and form atmofpheres around them: but
as the difengaged particles could not all have the fame.gravity,
the lighter would rife to a greater height than the heayier :
and, on that account, the rarity of thefe atmofpheres mutt
have increafed according as the diftance from the planet was ©
greater. The different aqueous, earthy, faline, fulphureous,
and mineral particles form therefore in the air, belonging
to each planet, what ought properly to be called its atmo-
fphere . <

That the fun has an atmofphere is admitted by all the mo-
dern aftronomers. Peyroux dela Coudreniere has in parti-
cular afferted, in modern times, and his opinion has been
almoft univerfally adopted, that the fun is not a ball of fire,
but that his light comes entirely from a luminous atmofphere
by which he is furrounded, and which is filled with a highly
inflammable vapour that forms a continual covering of fire.
According to him, therefore, the fan is a prodigious burning
mirror, which can effect with lefs wafte much more than it
could do were it a globe of fire. M. Schréter concludes alfo,
from his obfervations, that the light of the fun arifes from the
luminous matter by which he is furrounded ; fo that hopes
are entertained that, in the courfe of time, by making fre-

* Heinfius, in his Betrachtungen iiber den kometen von 1744, Peterf-
burgh 1774, 4to. p. 101, makes the boundaries of each atmofphere to be
in that point where the particles extricated from the planet are in equili-
brium between it and the fun.

quent

168 On the Queftion, whether the Sun, Moon, and’

guent obfervations of the fpots and facule, we fhall be able
to obtain a chart of the fun, as we have cbtained one of the
moon: for, according to this hypothefis, the fpots of the fun
are not clouds and thick vapours that arife from the opaque
body of the folar orb. According to Peyroux de la Coudreniere,
all the planets are ftill approaching nearer to the nature of
the fun’; and, in his opinion, Venus, Jupiter, and Saturn,
would not exhibit fuch a luminous appearance were they en-
lightened merely by the fun. He concludes, therefore, that.
abundance of inflammable vapour mutt afcend into their at-
mofpheres, and, by taking fire, increafe their light. Ac-
cording to him, our earth acquires a confiderable light from
a like caufe: and this indeed is not altogether improbable ;
for I myfelf, with a telefcope of a great magnifying power,
have frequently obferved the heavens, by day as well as night,
for this purpofe alone, and have feen, ina quarter of an hour,
a great many inflammations of this kind in the atmofphere.
Pey roux de la Coudreniere, however, goes too far when he
believes that Saturn, the remoteft of the planets, feems. as if
inclining to remove from our fyftem altogether; to convert
himfelf into a fun, and to have planets revolving around
him. This conceit is fuffiiciently refuted by the difcovery of
Uranus (the Georgium fidus) by Dr. Herfchel.

Upon the whole, we have no certain grounds on which
we can reafon refpecting the atmofpheres of the planets.
Becaufe our earth has one, and is a planet, it does not thence
follow that the reft muft have atmofpheres. We indeed find
every where in nature the greateft diverfity and variety; and
if we always formed conclufions from analogy, we e fhould fall
into the greateft albfurdities and errors. :

M. Schréter, from the alternate obfcurity and bright ap-
pearance of Jupiter, which he has obferved, thinks himfelf
authorifed to conclude, that the atmofphere of Jupiter, in
general, has a great fimilarity to ours*. It is very remark-
able, adds he, that the whitifh and light zones are not al-
ways perfectly bright, but in common feem to be covered
with a thin atmofpheric matter, and to have fometimes a
more luminous appearance than atothers. Itis not impro-~
* See his Beytrége xu den affronomi/chen ee ray Berlin 1788. 8¥o,

bable

other heavenly Bodies, have Aimofpheres:” 16g

bable that the furface of Jupiter may reflect a very lively and
white light, according to the nature of its component parts,
with which we are unacquainted. The ftripes obferved on
the furface of that planet lie in a pofition parallel to his equa-
tor; are fubject to a great-many variations; and, ih general,
are confidered to arife from atmofpheric matter liable to ac-
cidental changes. The fame thing may be conjectured in
regard to Saturn, on which there are ftripes of the fame
kind, according to the late difcoveries of Dr. Herfchel. But
in regard to dice atmofpheres of Mercury, Venus, Mars, and
Banus, our conclufions muft be attended with ftill lefs cer-
tainty. If they have any, they muft be far more fubtile, and
finer, than that of our earth; elfe thefe bodies would not al-
ways appear with fo much brightnefs. The exiftence of an
atmofphere around Mars has, indeed, been. rendered highly
probable by Dr. Herfchel and Mr. Schréter; and the latter
thinks he obferved a crepufculum of 154° in Venus, which.
feems to fuppofe that it has an atmofphere *.

In regard to comets, I can the lefs venture to hazard any

affertions, as fome of our modern philofophers confider them:
to be merely nebulous bodies; I fhall therefore confine what
I have to fay, to the moon, which ftill remains to be taken
- into confideration, and refpecting the atmofphere of which
there has been the moft difpute. Towards the end of the
fixteenth century it was ftrenuoufly maintained by Kepler.
In the feventeenth the fame opinion was entertained by
Kircher, Scheiner, Mo6ftlin, Fabricius, Bulliald, Hevelius,
&c. In the prefent it has been adopted by Lonville, Ma-
raldi, Fontenelle, Bianchini, Carbone, Wolf, Bofcovich,
Euler, Du Sejour, Herfchel, Schréter, &c. Thofe who op-
pofed this opinion were, Huyghens, Caffini, Malezien, De la
Hire, De I’Ifle, Mylius, Tobias Mayer, Grandjean de Fou-
chy, &c.

Thofe who maintain that the moon has an atmofphere
found their opinion on the following grounds :—

1. During total eclipfes of the fun, a light ring has been

feen around the moon parallel to her limb. This pheno-

* See Bodes Aftronom. Fabrbuch 17493, p. 251+
Vou, VI, 4 mecnom

140 On the Queflion, whether the Sun, Moon, and

irienon was obferved, in particular, during thofe remarkable
total eclipfes of the fun in the years 1706 and 1715. That
of the 12th of May 1706 was obferved in London by Hal-
Jey; in Paris, by Caffini and De la Hire; at Montpellier, by
De Plantade; at Berlin, by Hofnrann; at Leipfic, by Baron

Von Wolf; at Drefden, by Tfchirnhaufen; at Nuremberg, .

by Wurzelbau ; at Jena, by Hamberger; at Zeiiz, by Teu-
ber; and at Breflau, by P. Heinrich.

On this occafion Caflini, De la Hire, De Plantade, Wolf,
Wurzelban and Heinrich obferved, durmg the greateft
darknefs, a light ring around the moon; but, on the other
hand, Hotmann and Teuber perceived nothing of the kind ;
and thofe who faw the ring differ very much from each other
in the accounts ihey have given of its magnitude and colour.

The eclipfe of the fun on the 3d of May 1715 was obferved
at London by Halley and Louville in particular, and a ring
of the fame kind was obferved. Rings of the like kind have
been obferved alfo at various periods.

2. Many aftronomers obferve, that the planets fometimes
when they approach the moon’s limb have a coloured ap-
pearance, change their round figure, and feem to affume that
of an ellipfe. It has often happened that a planet at its ingref-
fion has appeared perfectly round, and at its egrefiion quite
diftorted ; or, vice verfa, diftorted at its ingreftion, and round
on its egreffion. The latter cafe I once obferved myfelf, in

regard to Venus; the former was feen, in regard to Jupiter, »

by M. Kaftner at Leipfic. This phenomenon takes place
not only with the planets but alfo with the fixed ftars, as is
proved by a multitude of inftances both old and new ; fo that
it feems to be a fact eftablifhed beyond all difpute.

2. It is faid to have been remarked during folar eclipfes,
that the limb of the fun trembles before the moon entirely
touches it. ;

4. The diameter of the moon is faid to hive been obferved

fmall at the beginning and end of the darknefs during eclipfes,

and ereater at the time of the greateft darknefs. Gi: this cir-
‘ eumftance Teuber founds his proof for the exiftence of a
lunar atmofphere. Euler, from the diameter of the fun ap-

pearing

other heavenly Bodies, have Atmofpheres. - 174

pearing to be magnified during the annular folar eclipfe of
4748. concluded alfo that the moon has an atmofphere *

5. The-moon, during ferene weather, when ftars fi the
feventh magnitude could be feen, has totally difappeared, fo
that fhe could not be difcovered by the beit telefcopes. Se-
veral inflances of this kind are related by Kepler 1 in his d/fro-
nomic pars opticat, and by Copernicus in his Epitome of
Aftronomy {. The fame thing was obferved by Hevelius,
Riccioli, &c. It is worthy of remark, that at the time when
the moon: difappeared to coxa the difappeared fuddenly
alfo in Holland.

6. Several aftronomers habe found that the moon does not
always appear equally bright and clear. Hevelius fays, that
at various times, though the weather was equally ferene ;
though the moon had the fame altitude, and was at the fame
_diftance from the earth; and though he ufed the fame tele-
feopes, her fpots did not appear equally bright and diftin®,
but were more apparent at fome times than at others. The
fame thing was obferved by Erafmus Francifci, and Bulliald;
and before them, by Méftlin.

7. Fiery phenomena have been feen on the moon; and
from this circumftance fome have concluded that fhe has an
atmofphere. Kolben faw in 1705, not far from the line,
thirty hours after new moon, the two horns.of that luminary
touch each other; fo that fhe formed, as it were, a bright
ring. It is related in the Breflau Collections §, that fome
people faw the moon, the day after fhe had been new, as
bright as if fhe had been full; and Siegefbec fays, in the fame
work ||, that in 1724, two days after new moon, he faw the
fame phenomenon as that obferved by Kolben. j..

From all thefe circumftances it might be conétaded that
the moon has an atmofphere; but to thefe grounds, others,
perhaps equally ftrong, might be oppofed. Thefe proofs for
the other fide of the queftion may be found in Mylius’s

* See Sur |’Atmofphere de Ja Lune prouvée par la derniere Eclipfe an-
nulaire du Soleil, par M. Euler, in the Mem. de l'Acad. Royale des Sci-
ences de Berlin 1748, p. 103, :

+ Pages 227, 297. { Lib. V. p. 825,
§ See Breflanifchen Sammlungen, XV, p. 270, || XXVI. p. 522.
23 Thoughts

172 On the Queftion, whether the Sun, Moon, and

Thoughts on the Lunar Atmofphere*, 'and T. Mayer’s
Proofs that the Moon has no Atmofpheret: but, without
tranfcribing them, I fhall here give a fhort view of them,
and in the fame order as I have related the grounds on which
the opinion of the Junar atmofphere i is founded.

In regard to the bright ring (1) which has appeared round
the moon during total folar eclipfes, it is evident that, even
if we admit that the moon has an atmofphere, it muft have
been occafioned by its refraction. But experience has fhown
that bright rings of the like kind are produced around all
opaque bodies when they are placed oppofite the fun or any
firong light. This was found to be the cafe by De la Hire,
who oppofed this circumftance to the opinion of Louville,
who was a ftrenuous advocate for the lunar atmofphere. For
this purpofe he took an unpoliflred globe of ftone, and, placing
it between his eye and the fun, faw the interior edge of the
ring, which was formed around it, broken and uneven, as
Louville had feen the interior part of the ring around the
moon. A like experiment was made by De I’Ifle junior.
He caufed the rays of the fun to pafs through a {mall hole
into a darkened room ; held a circular piece af lead between
him and the fun; and obferved, on a fheet of white paper,
that the fhadow of the lead was evidently furrounded by a
Juminous ringt. John Caffini explained the ring feen
around the moon during total eclipfes of the fun from ‘the
folar atmofphere; and thie was carried ftill farther by De
Plantade. But this explanation is not neceffary, as it ap-
pears that the whole phenomenon may be explained as well,
if not much better, from refraction, Du Sejour, however,
is of opinion, that refraction of the fun’s rays at the moon’s
limb cariubt be admitted unlefs we firlt admit a lunar atmo-
{phere: and he fhows, from Short’s Obfervation of the Solar
Eclipfe in 1764, that the refraGtion of the fun’s rays which
touched the moon’s limb amounted to 41”.

* Gedanken iiber die atmofphire des mondes, Leipfic 1746, 4to.
+ Kofmologifche nachrichten und fammlungen auf das jahr, 1748,
Nuri, 1750, 4t0. p, 397+
t See his Paper on the Atmofphere of the Moon, in the Memovres de
P Academie des Sciences for 1715. Parts 1718, p. 147
' One

other heavenly Bodies, have Atmofpheres. 73

One of the lateft inftances of fuch a ring around the moon
is that fen on the 24th of June 1778, by Don Antonio de
Ulloa, between Tercera and Cape St. Vincent *. Five or
fix feconds after the fun was completely covered, a very
bright ring began to be feen around the moon; and this
ting feemed to be in a continual and violent motion round
the moon’s circumference. The nearer the moon approached
to the centre of the fun, it always became brighter and more
luminous. Its colour was not every where the fame: next
to the moon’s limb it was reddifh; then of a pale or gold-
yellow colour; and towards the exterior edge it always be-
came whiter: but it was every where equally luminous and
beautiful. All the parts of the ring feemed to be carried
round the moon with the fame velocity, without the order of
the colours being confounded. Every thing before obferved,
in regard to this luminous ring, might be explained from re-
fraGtion ; but the circumftance, never obferved on any other
Bako, of its moving with a continual and uniform motion
around its centre, if this was actually the cafe, and if it did
not arife from fome deception in the organs of fight, makes
a new, and, according to every appearance, an almoft infu-
perable difficulty in the explanation. It is much to be la-
mented that we are likely to remain in this uncertainty a
confiderable time; for, according to a calculation of M. Du
Vaucel f, a total eclipfe of the fun, vifible at Paris, will not
take place for 120 years, and none can occur vifible in any
part of Europe till the year 1816}. From the above obfer-
yation Don Antonio de Ulloa’ does not hefitate to conclude
that the moon has an atmofphere.

I fhall now proceed to the fecond point, adduced as a proof

* See his Obfervation de l Eclipfe du Soleil totale du 24 Juin 1778, in
Rozier’s Journal de Phyfique, Vol. XXV. part 1. April 1780, p.3193 alfw
Mem. de I’ Acad. Royale des Sciences & Paris 177%, Paris 1781, p. 64; and
Don Antonio de Ulloa’s Obfervations on the total Eclipfe of the Sun on
the 24th of June 1775, in the Swedith Tranfaétions, Vol. XL. Leipfic 1753,
Pp. 225.

+ Vol. VY. Des Memoires prefentés,

} See Peter Wargentin’s Paper on the luminous Ring with which the
Moon feems to be furrounded when fhe entirely coyers the Sun, in the
Swedith Lranfactions for 1778, Vol, XL. p.251, r

’ : ot

E74 On the Queflion, whether the Sun, Moon, and

of the moon having an atmofphere. Some fufpicion is éx~
cited in regard to the accuracy of this obfervation, becaufe
many aftronomers, during the fame celeftial occurrences at
other times, have never obferved the fmallett change of
figure in the ftars either during their ingrefs or egrefs. De
la Hire *, however, obferved, during an occultation of Ju-
piter by the moon, that when Jupiter was at the diftance of
12° from the moon, he fhowed the fame lively colours as
when he approached nearer. But,’ to make thefe colours
appear, it was neceffary that Jupiter fhould be at the edge of
the aperture of the telefcope ; for when he was in the middle
of it none were feen. From this circumftance he naturally
_concludes, that the colours did not proceed from the moon,

but from the glaffes of the telefeope, which, as they are

convex, form at their edges a fort of circular prifm. Venus,
which appeared foon after, exhibited the fame colours as
Jupiter. T. Mayer, therefore, gives this excellent rule:
Make the experiment without prejudice, and take care to ufe
the telefeope with the neceflary precaution: it will then,
perhaps, be found, that the planets and fixed ftars approach
the moon at all times in their proper form. De ’Ifle afcribed
this phenomenon to the inflexion of the rays alone +.

We now come to the third argument adduced in favour of
the lunar atmofphere, or the tremulous motion of the fun’s
limb before he touches the moonduring a folar eclipfe. This
undoubtedly arifes from our atmofphere alone; and we have
fo many initances of fuch quivering on other occafions, that
I do not think it neceflary to fay any thing farther refpeting
it. -This is certainly one of the weakeft proofs advanced in
favour of a lunar atmofphere.

In regard to the fourth proof, that the diameter of the
moon at the commencement and end of eclipfes has been
obferved to be fmaller, and at the time of the greateft dark-
nefs to be greater, it appears to be almoft void of foundation ;
and indeed we have more inftances of fuch a phenomenon not
being feen, than of its being obferved. During the total

* Memoires de l’Acad. de Paris 1715, p. 148.
+ Mem. pour fervir a |’Hiftoire et au Progrés de lAftronomie, Paris

£738, P+ 249¢ ‘lai
olar

,

ciher heavenly Bodies, have Atmofpheres. 17g

folar eclipfe of 1669, nothing of the kind was difcovered ;
and this was the cafe in regard to that of 1706, which Hof-
mann obferyed at Berlin. Tobias Mayer, alfo, during the
great total eclipfe of the fun in 1748, though he made his
obfervation with the utmoft attention, could perceive no fuch
thing.

I muft now fay a few words refpeCting the fifth and fixth
proofs. The caufe of both thefe phenomena lies, no doubt,
in our atmofphere, and not in that. of the moon; for the
phenomena have been feen in one place and not in ,an-
other.

Thefe are the grounds on which the exiftence of the lunar
atmofphere may be contefted: but it appears to me, that we
fhould decide too rafhly were we to deny altogether that the
moon hasan atmofphere ; for we may ftill admit one, though
it may be of fuch a nature as to elude our fenfes, There
are many things in nature which our imperfe& organs of
fenfe are incapable of perceiving; but it would be ridiculous
,on that account to deny their exiftence. I need only requeft
the reader to recollect the phenomena of general gravity or

attraction, magnetifm, &c. This much, at any rate, is cer-
tain, that if the moon has an atmofphere, it muft be of a
nature totally different from that of our earth. ‘This will
appear the more evident, if we confider that, according to all
the obfervations hitherto made, the moon does not abound
with fuch feas and rivers as our eatth. M. Schréter conjec-
tures, that as the moon, in regard to the fun, turns round her
axis only once in 29 days 12 hours, this monthly change of
day and night may probably have a confiderable influence on
“the lunar ‘atmofphere, and fupply the place of our feafons.
Of this he is the more convinced by the monthly change in
the colour and fpots of the moon which he has remarked.
The atmofphere of the moon mutt be different from that of
the earth, not only in regard to its brightnefs and tranfpa-
rency, but alfo in regard to its power of weakening and break-
ing the rays of light. But on this fubject nothing decifive can
be obtained from all the obfervations hitherto made*,

* See Schroter’s Obfervations on the Atmofphere of the Moon in the
Gitring, gel. Anzeig. 1792, No. 86.
. We

196 Ox the Ufe of Oak Bark in dyeing Black:

We are equally ignorant in regard to the folar atmofphere,
which is faid to give rife to the fo called zodiacal light. In
that cafe, however, it muft not be of a globular form, like our

atmofphere, but extend round the fun’s body like a kind of

zone. From this folar atmofphere M. Mairan * deduces the
northern lights ; but this opinion has been, in fome meafure,
refuted by d’Alembert f.

The refult of what has been here faid, is, that refpeéting
the atmofpheres of the celeftial bodies we know very little ;
and as the obfervations on this fubject require to be made
with the utmoft accuracy and attention, it will be a long
time before our knowledge on this head can be much en-
Jarged. It is to be hoped, however, that thofe who poflefs
acutenefs of fight, and good inftruments, will endeavour to
determine this point, for which no perfon feems fitter than
Dr. Herfchel.

==

XII. On the Advantages which refult from fubflituting

Oak Bark for Gall Nuts in dyeing Black, efpecially in
dyeing Hats.

Dine STEPHANOPOLT, a Corfican, anda furgeon in
the French army fo far back as the year 1782, propofed oak
Bark as a fubftitute for galls; and the examination of his
procefs was referred by the Government firft to Macquer,
who gave a favourable report of the refult, and afterwards to
Berthollet, who was of a different opinion. Several other
means for determining the advantages or difadvantages likely
to refult from a general adoption of the procefs were’ had re-
courfe to. Lately it was revived by the Lyceum of the Arts,
from whole report we extract the following account :—

«© Experiments were made, by order of the College of
Pharmacy, at the manufactory of Beaujolin and Morel.
Two boilers, of about two hundred and twenty hats each,
were made ready, one for the gall nuts and the other for the

* See his Traité Phyfique ct Bena 8 de Aurore Boreale, fecond

edit. Parts 1754, 4to.

+ See his Opufcules Mathematiques, Vol, Vii p. 3348
8 bark,

On the Ue of Oak Bark in dyeing Black. 177

bark. Twelve hats in each were marked: they were of the
fame {tuff and the farne fize, had been prepared with all the
precautions which each of the two methods required, and
the whole procefs was carefully obferved by a commiffioner
who attended for the purpofe. — After all thefe hats had been
properly dried, cleaned, and brufhed, they were placed in-.
diferiminately on a table. Several of the moft expert dyers
of Paris were invited to fele&t, from the twenty-four hats, the
twelve which fhould appear to them to be the beft dyed.
Thefe dyers arrived feparately at two different: times, fo that
there were two felections; and in both cafes, one hat ex-
’ cepted, thefe dyers pointed out as the beft dyed thofe hats
which had been treated with oak bark. Was any thing
more neceilary to determine which method deferved the
preference >? The fate of this new procefs however, which
to fuccefs in the operation of dyeing, unites economy, and
the advantage of freeing us from paying tribute to a foreign:
nation, has remained in a ftate of uncertainty.

“ One of the ftrongeft objections which has been made to .
dyeing black with oak bark, is the confiderable difference
between the quantities of the precipitates; and we mutt fay,
for the information of thofe unacquainted with the fubje&,
that the black matter of the dye, of which we here fpeak,
refults from the combination of an acid, called the gallic,
with iron; and in the operation we are defcribing, the quan-
uty of this acid is generally determined by daca how
- many parts of iron (furnifhed by fulphat of iron, commonly
galled green copperas,) have gone into a known quantity of
the precipitate: the remaining parts which are neceflary to
make up the known quantity are counted as gallic acid.

** If the decoétion of a given quantity of gall nuts be poured
on a folution of the fulphat of iron, you obtain a black pre-
cipitate; and if the fame operation be performed with a de-
_coétion of oak bark, and in the fame quantities, you will

have alfo a black precipitate, with this difference, that the
gall nuts will have produced eight or ten times as much as
the oak bark: but this abundance in the gall nuts is only
apparent, and is owing to.a fort of feculent matter, or gum,
which adheres to the acid and is carried down with the pre-

Vou, VI. Aa cipitate,

178 On the Uje of Oak Bark in dyeing Black.

cipitate, where it cannot but diminifh the intenfity of the
black. In a word, to be convinced of thefe truths, it will
be fufficient to give a comparative view of the two proceffes,
and of their refults. We {hall fuppofe, therefore, a kettle for
twenty-five dozen of hats, as is the cafe in feveral manufac-
tories. That quantity will require twenty-five pounds of gall
nuts and the like quantity of fulphat of iron, about 150 or
200 pounds of logwood, and twelve pounds of acetat of cop-
per (verdegris), and from 100 to 125 pails of water. The
gall nuts and logwood mutt be boiled for about fix or eight
hours, which will reduce the decoétion to about a third.
The fire is then diminifhed, to throw in, portion by portion,
the fulphat of iron and the verdegris. In this manner the
bath is' prepared, and you plunge into it the felt or hats,
which are to be drawn out and again immerfed different
times, as experience has fhown that atmofpheric air contri-
butes a great deal towards the efficacy of the operation of the
dve. There is fome difference in the method of manipula-
tion; but this depends on the practices followed in different
manufactories: in regard to the dofes, they are nearly every
where the fame.

*« The method of Dimo Stephanopoli eonbite merely in
fubftituting oak bark in the ftead of gall nuts in the proportion
of a half, that is to fay, twelve pounds and a half inftead of
twenty-five. It requires no other preparation before it is
employed than to be cut, or coarfely broke

“¢ This bark furnifhes a dye much fuller, as well as more
beautiful and more durable; and the operation becomes much
eafier, for it is not fubje€t to what ts called burning. It is
free from an immenfe quantity of fediment, which is found
in the bath when gall nuts are employed, and which com-
municates a duft that can be removed only by a red or
brufh, which, however, requires Reals and troublefome
{ation
_ © By forming an eftimate at the ufual prices, in theopera-
tion above mentioned, the gall nuts employed coft 75 francs,
and the oak bark 14 fous*. Janin; in the ftreet Avoie, pro-
prietor of one of the largeft hat mianufaGtories at Paris, and

* One hundredth of the price of the galls.
who

On the Ufe of Oak Bark in dyeing Black. 179

who dyes twenty-five dozen of hats at a time, has employed
for ten years, with conftant fuccefs, the procefs of Stepha-
nopoli, He affures us, that from his own experience oak
bark deferves in every refpeét to be preferred to gall nuts.

Morel, hatter, near the gate of St. Martin, one of 'thofe
who firft employed the procefs of Stephanopoli, has never
difcontinued it. Huaut, in the ftreet des Meneftriers, had
formed an eftablifhment for dyeing hats, but for want of
proper encouragement he was on the point of abandoning
his enterprife. Morel, however, advifed him to pay a*vifit
to Stephanopoli, from whom he obtained the procefs; and
fince that time he has fucceeded. He declares that he is
‘under the greateft obligations to Morel,’ and the author of
this new method. He regularly heats a kettle of 300 hats
every twenty-four hours. Both Janin and -Morel have for
feveral years paft received many letters from their cuftomers
refpecting the beauty and durability of the dye of their hats,
and, according to their declaration, only fince they employed
oak bark.

<¢ Tt refults from what has been faid, that oak bark is pre-
ferable, in every refpect, to gall nuts: that, being a produc-
tion of our own foil, it will free us from paying tribute to
foreigners; and that a fearcity of gall nuts, or accidents
which may happen to prevent a fupply of that article, can
no longer hurt the manufacture of hats in France, which is
of fo much importance, and that of wool dyed black, &c.

‘© We have not entered into all the details which this fub-
je& would admit; it is fufceptible of great extenfion, and,
in many refpects, may be confidered as new. It cannot be
doubted that the operation called galling might be performed
with oak bark, and it is to be regretted that the refearches of
Lapalle, Member of the Conftituent Affembly, on this object
were not publifhed.

‘© The ufe of oak bark was already known in fome branches
of dyeing, and this ufe of it had been mentioned by feveral
authors. Toconclude: We are certain that, in the difpute
refpecting oak bark and gall nuts, the views of each party
were equally pure; but experience alone was able to remove
every difficulty, and the Affembly muft have feen that there

Aaa ‘remains

180 Account of the late Peter Charles Le Monnier.

remains no longer any doubt réfpeéting the importance of
the fervice rendered by Stephanopoli: His method will be in-
troduced and extended in our manufaétories, to the advantage
of feveral branches of induftry and of the general intereft.’” "

XIV. Some Account of the late PETER CHARLES
: Le MonnieR,

j ae Cuarves Le Monniter, the oldeft aftronomer
in Enrope at the time of his death; which happened on the
ad of yay 1799, at Lizieux in Normandy, was born at
Paris on the 20th of November 1715: Ata very early pe-
riod of life he applied to the ftudy of aftronomy, and’ made
his firft obfervation of the oppofition of Saturn on the 23d of
September 1731, when he was only fixteen. At the age of
twenty he was chofen a member of the Academy of Sciences
at Paris. In 1735 he was fent to Lapland, along with Mau-
pertuis, to meafure a degree of the earth: In 1748 he accom-
panied Lord Macclesfield to Scotland to obferve the annular
eclipfe of the fun, which could be feen with moft advantage
in that country; and he was the firft aftronomer who had
the pleafure of meafuring the diameter of the moon on the
fun’s difk.

Louis XV. who was fond of and patronifed aftronomy,
fhowed a great efteem for Le Monnier. When his Majefty
withed to obferve any of the celeftial phenomena, he always
attended him; and it.appears, by the memoirs of the Aca-
demy of Sciences at Paris, that the King obferved in this
manner, at his country palace of St. Hubert, both the tranf-
its of Venus over the fun’s difk in the years 1761 and 1769.
It is worthy of notice, and deferves to be here recorded; how
much his Majefty feemed to be interefted in the fuccefs of
thefe obfervations, and how careful he was not to interrupt
the aftronomers during the courfe of their operations. Le
Monnier, in his paper.on this fubjet in the Memoirs of the
Academy, fays :—‘* His Majefty perceiving that we confi-
dered the, laft contaét to be of the utmoft importance, we

were at that moment furrounded by the moft acc .

filence.**

‘
i
&
’
j
J
i
cf

Account of the late.Peter Charles Le Monnicr. .181

filence.”” During the tranfit of Venus in £769, his, Majefty

allowed that able res officer the Marquis de Chabert, who

“had juft returned from a feientific voyage to the Levant, to
have a fhare in the obfervations made on that occafion.

In thé year 1750 Le Monnier was requefted by the,King
to draw.a meridian line at the palace of Belle-vue, where he
often made obfervations ; 5 and his Majelty for this fervice gave
Le Monnier a prefent of 15,000 livres (about 600/, fterling).
In 1742 his Majefty gave him a houfe in Rue de la Pajie at
Paris, where he readed and made obfervations till the period
‘of the Revolution. In’ 1751 the King prefented him with a
block of marble eight feet in height, fix in breadth, and fif-
teen inches in sack in mly that he might affix to it
his five feet mural quadrant. This large mafs of Se, with
all the infruments attached to it, moyeson a large brafs
globe, by which the quadrant can be turned from fats to
north, and by which the great eight feet mural quadrant,
which is faftened in an immoveable pofition to a wall front-
ing the fouth, can be adjufted.

With thefe quadrants Le Monnier, for the fpace of forty _
years, obferved the moon, with unwearied attention, at all
hours of the night. No perfon but a diligent aftronomer
ean know to what inconveniences one is expofed in making
an uninterrupted feries of obfervations of the moon. As the
moon, during oné revolution, may pafs the meridian at every
hour of the day and the night, which is the moment for ob-
fervation, the aftronomer who purfues thefe obfervations mutt
be prepared at all hours of the day and night, and facrifice
fleep and every other enjoyment.

Le Monnier was Lalande’s aftronomical preceptor; and
the fcholar has, indeed, thown himfelf worthy of the mafter.
The difcerning mind of Le Monnier-could readily forefee in
young Lalande, then only fixteen, what the courfe of a little
' time afterwards confirmed. In the twentieth year of his age
Lalande, on the recommendation of his preceptor, was slagied
a Member of the Royal Academy of Sciences; and in 1752,
on a propofal made by him, he was fent to Berlin along with
La Caille, who afterwards undertook a voyage to the Cape
of Good Hope to make cogrefponding obfervations, in order

5 to

182 “Account of the late Peter Charles Le Monnicr.

to determine the parallax of the moon, which never had
been accurately afcertained. On this occafion Le Monnier
Jent to his pupil his five feet mural quadrant. His zeal for
the promotion of aftronomy was boundlefs; and therefore
Lalande fays, in his Notice des Travaux du C. Le Monnier,
“© T myfelf am the principal refult of his zeal for aftronomy.”’

Le Monnier was naturally of a very irritable ee
and, though warm in his friendfhip, was eafily offended :
that cafe his hatred was irreconcileable. Lalande, as he bas
himfelf, had the misfortune to incur the difpleafure of his
preceptor, for whom he entertained the utmott affection, and
whofe good graces he was never able to recover. But Lalande
never ceafed to fhow his efteem and gratitude for him till the
Jateft day of his life. ¢ I never ceafed to declare,” fays La-
lande, ‘as Diogenes did to his mafter Antifthenes, You will
never find a baton fufficiently heavy to drive me away from
you.” In the year 1797 Lalande wrote an eulogy on Le

“Monnier for the Connoiffance des Tems, année 9, which dif-
played the utmoft refpect and efteem of the pupil towards nt
preceptor; but Le Monnier would never read it *.

Hennert, that celebrated geometrician and crite of ma-
thematics at Utrecht, may alfo be confidered as a fcholar of
Le Monnier, as appears by the following extract from one of
his letters, dated May 26, 1797 :—‘¢ Le Monnier is an acute
and philofophic aftronomer. I learned a great deal from him
while I refided at Paris, though I lodged at the houfe of the
late De l’Ifle, where I often obferved with Meffier. Le
Monnier was a great friend of D’Alembert, and confequently
an opponent of Lalande.”

Le Monnier Jeft behind him a great many valuable ma-
nufcripts and a multitude of excellent obfervations, which he
was very fond of keeping to himfelf, and which, in the latter
period of his life, he never made known. _Befides others, he .
had a feries of important obfervations of the moon, and a
great many obfervations of ftars, made for a cdtalogue, which

* Yt may not be improper here to remark, that Lalande had a great
friendfhip and refpe&t for that eminent aflronomer La Caille, whom Le
Monnier mortally hated. Le Monnier and D’Alembert were allo greae
friends, but Lalande had no kind of intimacy with the latter. ‘

€

we ig f

Intelligence and Mifcellaneous Articles. 183

he announced fo early as the year 1741, and among which
there were two of the new planet Uranus. The more he was
‘entreated to communicate them to the public, the more ob-
ftinate he became in withholding them; and he even fome-
times threatened to deftroy them. When the Revolution
broke out, Lalande, who was exceedingly anxious for the
prefervation of thefe papers, made an attempt to get them
into his poffeffion ; but his exertions were fruitlefs. He could
only learn, that Le Monnier had concealed them under the
roof of his houfe. When Le Monnier was attacked by the
firft fit of the apoplexy on the 10th of November, Lalande
was therefore afraid that, as no one but himfelf knew where
thefe papers were hid, the old man, through mental debility,
might forget where he had placed them. Le Monnier left
three daughters, all married; the fecond of whom was mar-
ried to the celebrated mathematician La Grange on the 31ft
of May 1792.

INTELLIGENCE,

AND
MISCELLANEOUS ARTICLES,

ROYAL SOCIETY OF LONDON.

Tue reading of Dr. Hulm’s interefting paper on the
_ fpontaneous emiffion of light by various bodies, was con-
cluded at the meeting of the 27th of February,

An ingenious paper on refraétion, by Dr. Woolafton, was
read on the 27th of February and 6th of March.

At the latter and the fubfequent meeting cn the 13th, a
paper, by Mr. Henry, of Manchefter, on attempts to decom-
‘pofe the muriatic acid, was read. The experiment was made
by means of the eleétric fpark on the acid in its gafeous
form, but without fuccefs. Mr. Henry is of opinion, that
the refult looked for will never be obtained by means of
fingle eleCtive attraction ; and that, if ever a knowledge of

the

184 French National Inftitute.
the bafe of this acid be got at, it muft be by means of the
moft complicated seen:

- A paper, by Mr. Howard, on his newly. difcovered fulmi-
nating oxyd of mercury, of the powerful effects of which we
have already taken fome notice, was read on the 1 3th and 2oth.
The procefs for preparing it we cannot yet fully deferibe,
but it confifts in digefting nitrat of mercury in alkohol. A
precipitate is thrown down, which, on being carefully. wafhed,
to free it from the nitrous acid, pofleffes the fulminating pro-
perty formerly noticed. Experiments with this fubftance
fhould be carefully conduéted, and in very ftnall quantities,
to prevent accidents.

FRENCH NATIONAL INSTITUTE.

In the public fitting of the 15th Nivofe, year 8, January 5,
the following account of the labours of the Phyfical and Ma-
thematical Clafs during the preceding three months was read
by C. Cuvier.

C. Guyton has prefented a table of the dire&t combina-
tions of forty-two chentical elements ; that is to fay, of fub-
ftances which the chemifts have never been able to decom-
pofe, and which they muft confider as fimple till proofs of
the contrary are obtained. Thefe forty-two fubftances, com-
bined only two by two, give 861 different combinations, with’
the half of which we are not yet acquainted. Combining
them three by three, and four by four, paying ‘attention to
_ the proportions of the conftituent parts of each combination,
the number of the latter increafes in fuch a manner as to
excite aftonifhment. One might be inclined to confider our
ignorance refpecting the greater part of thefe combinations
as a proof of the imperfection of feiences but fo far is this
from being the cafe, that it is by the immenfe progrefs fei-
ence has lately made that we are enabled to know that thefe
combinations are poffible.

Among the fubftances with which modern chésiieling has
been dately enriched are in particular fome femi-metals, one
of which, by its difeoverer, Profeflor Klaproth of Berlin, has
been called Uranite, from the planet Uranus of Herfchel,
as the common metals received from the alchemifts the

names

_—

French National Inftitutes 184

names of the feven old planets. C. Champeaux, ingénieur
des mines, is the firft who difcovered Uranite in France. The
details of this difcovery have been communicated to us by
C. Lelievre.

Chemifts have given the name of affinity to that power by
which different fubftances tend to unite with each other, and
which properly forms the obje& of all their refearches ; for
chemiftry will never be complete until we obtain a table of
the degrees of affinity of each fubftance for all the reft under
given circumftances. What renders it difficult to form fuch
a table is, that thefe affinities do not preferve the fame order
in all circumftances. It has been long known, for example,
that this order varies according to the degrees of heat; but
feveral other caufes, to which chemifts have not hitherto
paid fufficient attention, concur alfo to render it uncertain.

_C. Berthollet has been employed on this part of chemiftry,

and has prefented on that fubje€t a work of great labour, a
portion of which he communicated to the Inftitute of Egypt,
and which proves, that in going to fearch for new faéts in a
diftant country, he has been the occafion of making new
progrefs in the theory which ought to unite them.

Among the caufes which change the order of affinities is,
the refpective quantities of each of the fubftances brought
into contact. One fubftance, which would exercife no action
if it entered the mixture in a quantity equal to the others,
exercifes a very perceptible a€tion when its quantity is con-
fiderably augmented : it feems, then, that the different parts
of each fubftance unite their efforts to overcome the refift-
ance oppofed to them.

Another of thefe caufes is, the greater or lefs cohefion of
one of the fubftances or mixtures. It augments the refiftance
to the change which.the affinities ought to produce.

A third caufe is elafticity, which leffens the tendency to
combination. . Thus any fubftance, oxygen for example, aéts
with a far greater force when concentrated in a liquid com-
bination than when it is under the elaftic form. The ation
of heat feems to enter into this third caufe. It may be pof-
fible that it does not alter the affinity of the different fub-
fiances but by producing changes in their refpective elafti-

Vou. VI. Bb cities ;

136 French National Inftitute.

cities: if two or more fubfances, then, which enter into any”
mixture, are of fuch a nature as to produce an elaftic, con-
crete, or even infoluble compound, we mutt no longer cal-
culate their effeét in the definitive refult according to ‘Whakbe
folute affinity belonging to each, but muft deduét what
this concrete or elaiic fate takes from the affinity. It may
readily be perceived what light the application ef thefé prin-
ciples, which have never been before confidered in their ge-
neral extent, muft throw upon all the phenomena of che-
mittry.

C. Berthollet, by means of thefe principles, has been able
to bring under the common laws of chemiftry a multitude of
facts which feemed infulated, or even contrary to thefe laws.
Hitherto, for example, the affinities of the greater part of
thefe compound bodies were confidered independently of
thofe of their compounds, becaufe the circumftances above
mentioned were not taken into account. C. Berthollet
clearly {hows that in many cafes they depend on each other ;
and how, from fo fmall a number of elementary fubftances,
when chemically confidered, fo many compounds, and effects
fo various as thofe exhibited by Nature, can be produced.

Befides the table before mentioned, C. Guyton has pre-
fented to us four others, deftined, like the firft, for the in-
ftruction of the pupils in the Polytechnic School. One of
them contains a methodical diftribution of minerals into
orders, claffes, genera, and {pecies. Another gives a com-
plete fyftem of the external character of minerals according
to the principles of Verner, with additions. The objeét of
the third and fourth is, to facilitate to beginners Haiiy’s
theory of the ftruéture of cryftals, by prefenting in a feries the
firft molecule of a cryftal, its nucleus, and the different mo-
difications produced by the laws of decrement, and by giving,
according to the graphic method, a key to the formula which
reprefent thefe modifications, and the folids refulting from

them, without lofing fight of the nucleus.

Some of the a aturAlifes of the Clafs have employed them~
felves, during the laft quarter, on the remains of organifed
bodies difeovered in places where living animals analogous
to them do not at prefent exjtt,

C. Villars,

French National Inflitute. 187

| C. Villars, affociate, has announced to us that he found
foflil wood in the turf on one of the higheft mountains of
the Alps, near.a glacier, and at the height of more than
2280 feet above the neareft forefts now in exiftence. ‘his
foffil wood confifts of trunks of larch, birch, and moun-
tain-afh, with their roots in perfect prefervation. ‘Their fitu-
ation gives C. Villars reafon to believe that they grew on the
fame fpots where they are buried. But how has the cold
become fo violent that the fame trees can no longer live at
fuch avgreat altitude? C. Villars affigns the caufe to the fink-
-ing down of the fummits of thefe mountains ; their wafting in
confequence of being wafhed away by the rains; and the im-
prudent deftruction of wood by the hand of man.

A fact no lefs curious has been communicated to us by
Poiret. He has found frefh-water fhells in ftrata of turf, and |
covered by other ftrata of the fame turf containing marine
fhells. The foil which prefented thefe objefts muft then
have been firft watered by rivers, and afterwards inundated
by the fea, though at prefent it 1s found in the middle o.
the Continent.

C. Beavois, aflociate, has brought us, from North America,
proofs of changes no lefs aftonifhing in the ftate of the earth.
The remains. of enormous quadrupeds, abfolutely unknown
at prefent, have been found there at various periods; but
C. Beavois has fhown us bones different from any hitherto
dug up. Each day, and every climate, furnifhes proofs o1
the revolutions which our globe has experienced, and which
are imprinted on its furface and in its bowels in indelible
characters. -

In Botany, the Clafs has received from C. Brouffonet va-
luable obfervations on fuch plants‘in Morocco and the Ca-
nary ifles as are either ufeful or new. In thefe ifldnds the
inhabitants cultivate the me/2mbryanthemum cryftallinum, from

-which they extraét foda, and which by combuftion gives a_
third of its weight. C. Brouffonet is of opinion, that this
plant might be cultivated in the department of Var, between
Montpellier and the fea.

C. Teffier has communicated obferyations on a difeafe in

." Bb 2 millet,

788 , French National Inftitute.

millet, which he calls charring (the fmut). It is propagated
by communication, and may diminith the crop one-half.

C. Desfontaines prefented the fecond and laft volume of
his Flora of Mount Atlas. This work, which, on account
of the correétnefs of the defcriptions and the beauty of the
plates, may be ranked with any thing of the kind ever yet
publithed, is a ftriking proof of the zeal of its author; who
collected the materials in the deferts of Africa, where he was
-€very moment expofed to new dangers.

C. Ventenat has communicated a very extenfive work on
the lime-tree. He has defcribed feven fpecies unknown to
Linnzus, feveral of which might be naturalifed in our gar-
dens; and particularly one, which, no doubt, would be pre-
ferred to the common lime on account of its leaves, which
- being thicker, refift better the heat of fummer; and of its
flowers, which are fweeter and laft much longer.

Our anatomifts have been employed chiefly in unfolding
the organifation of two animals of the fimpleft kind and the
moft diftant from man. One of them, named the medu/a,
is found in the waters of the fea, where it is nourifhed not
by one mouth, as all the other known animals, but by a
multitude of fmall tubes, which may be compared to roots.
Its ftomach fupplies the place of a heart, and conveys the
nutritive juice, through ramified veflels, to every part of the
body.

The fecond, to which C. Huzzard has called the attention
of the Clafs, is found in the interior part of the brain of
fheep, and never any where elfe, though it is difficult td
conceive why this fhould invariably be the cafe. This ani-
mal occafions a mortal malady, the fymptoms of which are,
that the fheep affected jump and run round with a fort of
convulfive movement. The body of this animal forms a ve-
ficle filled with water: on one body there are feveral heads,
and each head has a mouth. A fpecial commiffion has been
appointed to endeavour to find out the beft means for deftroy-
- ing this fingular infeét.

c. Chaptal has made known ta us a pew method for

bleaching catton,

!

ens

Gafeous Oxyd of Axot. 189

C. Loifel, affociate; has publithed a complete treatife on
all the proceffes in regard to the art of glafs-making.

C. Sabbatier has fhown, that it is often poffible to fave
thofe who have the upper part of the arm fhattered, or the
head and neck of the humerus attacked with caries or ex~
oftofis, from the cruel and dangerous operation of amputating
that limb at the joint, that is to fay, at the place where itas
joined to the fhoulder, merely by extirpating the upper part
of the bone. Several perfons treated according to this me-
thod have experienced no fenfible decreafe in their firength
or the mobility of the arm.

GASEOUS OXYD OF AZOT.

We have already had occafion to mention: the refult of
fome experiments. made at the Medical Pueumatic Initita-
tion, Briftol, with this new gas, and the hopes thefe afforded
that it would prove a powerful remedy for various diveafes.
The following extract of a letter, with which we have been
favoured from Dr. Beddoes, gives fome farther information
on this fubjet, that cannot fail to prove interefting to our
philofophical readers :—

SisTR,

** Tam fure it will give you pleafure to hear that the gas
which you noticed in your Magazine has fully fae aaa
its character. The inference I eal not fail to draw from
the firft effects, with regard to its power in curing palfy, has
turned out juft. You will undoubtedly believe that I do not
mean to affirm that it will prove an infallible remedy in pa-
ralytic complaints ; but in the moft inveterate cafes of hemi-
plegia, originating in apoplectic feizures and confirmed by
repeated ftrokes, it has reftored feeling and the power of vo-
Juntary motion to the affected fide; and I am perfuaded it
will continue to do as much ‘in a large proportion of in-
ftances. The full details will be given in a work by Mr.
Davy and myfelf, now in the prefs. No untoward accident
has occurred in the many hundred trials lately made with
the gas: but a few hyfterical females having cautioufly re-
fpired it, there has been reafon to,think that a larger dofe -
would have given rife to fits, as ftated in my Notice.”

We

t90 Gafeous Oxyd of Axol.

Wemay take the prefent opportunity to mention, that we
underftand Dr. Beddoes means foon to give Leéures on the
Laws of Animal Nature, and on the Means of preferving the
Syfiem from Injury upon the moft important Occafions of com~
mon Life.

<¢ A popular expofition of the principles of the animal eco-
nomy, with their application to the purpofes of individual
and domeftic welfare, upon a plan widely different from that
of any exifting publication, has rone been feen neceffary by
many people. . .

*¢ Heretofore an acquaintance with the caufes of his per-
fonal condition has feldom been numbered among the ac-
complifbments of the fcholar, or the qualifications with which
the man of bufinefs is fitted out for fuccefs in the world: yet
it will be confeffed, that neither fuccefs in bufinefs, nor pro-
ficiency in the fciences accounted /iberal, are feparately fuf-

ficient for rendering the condition of human life defirable ;
and, im fat, to endeavour, by any combination of thefe ma-
terials, to conftruét a fyftem of perfonal happinefs, is to pro-
jet an edifice which fhall ftand fecure without a foundation,

Of a tr uth, fo long and fo generally neglected, a portion of the.

public, it is Helier ed, begins to feel that degree of conviction
which operates upon conduét.. In this belief, the prefent
opportunity of infiruction is offered to thofe who may be
defirous of it.

«© Numbers fall viétims to their own impatience under
inefs, or to the wavering conduét of their friends. Fre-
quently on the onfet of dangerous difeafes, people, by fuffer-
ing themfelves to be amufed by trifling domeftic expedients,

Jofe an opportunity which no medical fkill can ever retrieve. -

Upon thefe evils the prevalence of jufter ideas would a& as
a check. Nor is it paradoxical to fuppofe that the mortality

among infants would be fmalley, and debility of conftitution .

at all periods of jife more rare, if parents (however inftructed
in other things) were not in common nearly upon a level
with nurfes in that which it fo much imports them to pof-
fefs—an aequaintance with the powers that operate to the
injury or advantage, the deftruction or preferyation, of the

objects of their affection,”
The

Cow-Pocks 4 Yor

The Le&tures are to be calculated for both fexes and dif-
ferent ages; and that there may be little chance of exclufion
by reafon of narrow circumftances, the fubfeription is fixed’
at One Guinea; but, unlefs fifty perfons fhall have entered
their names by the 31{t of March, the Leétures will not go
on, as, without a tolerably numerous audience, Dr. Beddoes
thinks he could beftow his time in a manner more advan-
tageous to the public.

We fincerely hope nothing will prevent this ufeful defign
from being carried into effect.

COW POCK.

rience of a Letter from Dr. De Carro of Vienna,~ fo
Dr, Pearfon.
*“ DEAR SIR, ¥

*¢ Two Hanoverian gentlenten, Dr. Ballhorn and Mr,
Stromeyer, who, as you know, are making experiments with
cow-pock, and with whom I correfpond, informed me that

‘this difeafe is very well known in Holftein, and that a cer-
tain Dr. Neffen, of Siegeberg, has collected many faéts
which prove its anti-variolous property. Being myfelf lately
in company with feveral Englifh gentlemen, who were put-
ting to me many queftions on the fubje&t of cow-pock, an

- American gentleman, Mr. Murray, of Philadelphia, told me
that his fervant, a German, had lived three years in the
Duchy of Holftein, and that he thought he recolleéted that he
had mentioned to him fome faéts which coincided much with
what I was telling them about the cow-pock, Thig gave me
the curiofity of fpeaking to that feryant, who, he told me,
was very intelligent, and had fhown often a fpirit of obferva-
tion. Here is the fummary of his anfwer:—That during a
ftay of three years in Holftein, in the environs of Kiel, he
had very often heard of a, difeafe of cows called Die Finneny
(finne means, in general, a pimple, un bouton; jinnig, pim
pled, bowtonné,) and that he had had_ frequent oceafion’ of
fecing cows affected with that difeafe: that its property of
preferving againft the fmall-pox.is well known by.the farmers
and phyficians of the country: that, in the town ofiKiel, the
inoculation with the finmen is fometimes practifed upon chil-

g dren

102 Feat and Light.—Ectnomy in Cooking.

dren m the idea of preferving their beauty: that the couritry-
people do not like this inoculation, becaufe they pretend
that it leaves behind it feveral other diforders: that, waiting
at-table, he had very often heard gentlemen, and among
others a Dr. Ackermann, {peak of its anti-variolous power :
that in great farms men do not milk cows, but that in the
fmaller ones that happens very often: that a difeafe of horfes
called mauke (true German name for grea/e) is known by
all thofe who take care of them: that old horfes particularly,
attacked with the mauke, are always put in cows’ ftables, and
there are attended by women: that it is particularly in harveft
that men in {mall farms milk cows: that he never heard of
any relation exifting between the jimzen and the mauke. He
defcribes that iene of cows like a pimple between flefh and
fkin (that is his expreffion); and fays, that when a cow is
affected with it, fhe lofes her milk and becomes very Jean :
that farmers kill the fick ones to prevent the contagion : ;
that they fometimes falt thofe cows, and give them in winter
to eat to their fervants, who diflike the flefh fo much that they
look upon this treatment as a mark of avaricioufnefs: and that
the puftule produced by inoculation is about the fize of a pea,
and is never attended with any other eruption.”

HEAT AND LIGHT.
Dr. Herfchel, whofe difcoveries have already tended fo
much to the increafe of fcience, has, we underftand, made
a.difcovery within thefe few days paft that bids fair to place
his name higher than all the refearches he has yet made—
he has found out a method of feparating the rays of heat
from the rays of light.

ECONOMY IN COOKING.

Into a digefter ufed by the Soup Committee of Manchefter
was lately put a large bone of beef, from which all the meat °
was carefully cut and {craped away, and which weighed when
put therein 25> ounces, and when taken out again only 10;
fo that there was gained of good and wholefome food 15%
ounces, or full three parts in five of what is ufually loft im
the economy of it.

THE

PHILOSOPHICAL MAGAZINE.

eR Sees

APRIL 1800.

—————

ie Defeription af the Ifland of Borneo, with fome Account of
the Manners and Cufioms of its Inbabitants. By Mr. Von .
WurmMpe*., .

Tue Portuguefe, Dutch, and Englifh, ever fince the
fixteenth century, have in turns endeavoured to eftablifh:
themfelves in this ifland, which is one of the largeft in the
Indian ocean; but the Dutch alone, by being fo fortunate as
to have a preponderance in India, were able to accomplifh
their object. On account of the gold and diamonds found

here, as well as of the pepper, of which the Dutch Eaft
India company export annually 600,000 pounds, this ifland’
is of confiderable importance to their trade.

It is reported that, when the Portuguefe wifhed to form a
fettlement here in the year 1526, they prefented to the fultan
of Landac and Suceatana fome beautiful pieces of tapeftry on
which figures of various kinds were reprefented; but that
the fultan, who took thefe figures to be animated or magic .
figures, and apprebended that they might unexpeétedly rufh
from the tapeftry and ftrangle him, rejected the prefent, and
expelled the Portuguefe, with their prefents, from the coun-
try. The Englith were not much more fortunate, having
quitted Borneo entirely ever fince the year 1706. In 1766

* From Merkwit;digkeiten aus Spa publifhed by the author’s
brother.

Vou. VI. Ce they

194 Defcripiion of the Ifland of Borneo.

they made an attempt to form a fettlement in the ifland of
Balambangan, at the northern extremity of Borneo, which
was given up to them by the king of Solon. They had in it
a few Europeans for the fake of trade, and a garrifon of three
hundred foldiers, Europeans and blacks. . Their view was
to eftablith here a factory, where they might exchange the
productions of Europe and Hindoftan for thofe brought
hither from China and the Indian iflands; but in the year
3792, after a part of their troops had been {wept off by con-
tagious difeafes, the fort they had conftruéted, being badly
fortified, was fuddenly attacked, and the whole eftablifhment
deftroyed. The Englifh are fiill ignorant who were the au-
thors of this violence; and they do not know whether they
ought to afcribe it to the Dutch, jealous of their trade in
that neighbourhood, or to the Spaniards, afraid of their pof-
feffions in the Philippines.

Various accounts of Borneo may be found in the works of
different authors; fuch as Valentyn’s General Defcription of
India, Salmon’s Prefent State of all Nations, the General
Hiftory of Voyages by Prevoft, and the paltry compilation
of the abbé de la Porte. But as this large ifland is as yet
little known even in India, and as no European has been

able to penetrate to the interior part of it, all thefe deferip-

tions are erroneous and imperfect. That I may therefore
give the public the lateft and moft authentic information
refpeéting this ifland, I fhall confine myfelf chiefly to the
account of it publifhed in the Tranfactions of the Society for
promoting the Sciences at Batavia, in the ifland of Java.
The ifland of Borneo extends from the fourth degree of
fouthern latitude to the eighth of northern, and from the
hundred and fiftieth to the hundred and fifty-eighth of lon-
gitude. It is about 780 miles in length and 720 in
breadth. Its climate is almoft the fame as that of Java; but
Borneo is lefs mountainous, and the land, for twelve or fif-
teen miles, and fometimes more, from the coaft, is almoft
. every where marfhy. The remaining part of the ifland is
fuficiently fertile, and would be productive were not the
natives too indolent to cultivate the foil, and fonder of fearch-
ing for gold and diamonds, which they barter with the Ja-

‘ vanefe

KS

_— =
~~

Defcription of the Ifland of Borneo. 195

vanefe for various neceffaries of life. The middle of the
ifland is occupied by an extenfive ridge of mountains called
the Cryftal Mountains, becaufe a great quantity of eryfial is
found in‘them. At the bottom of thefe mountains is a
Jarge inland Jake, which gives rife to all the rivers that tra-
verfe the whole ifland.

The real natives of this ifland are the Biadjoos or Dajak-—
kefe, who live in the interior parts of the country. The fea
coaft is inhabited by a mixture of Malays, Javanefe, and Ma-
‘eaffars. It is only of the countries fituated on the coaft that
we have any certain accounts, for the interior parts of the
ifland are as yet very little known.

The greateft kingdom in the ifland, and the moft important
on account of its connection with the Dutch Eaft India com-
pany, is that of Banjermaffing on the fouthern fide. The
great river Pontiana, which is navigable for fhips that draw
from twelve to thirteen feet of water, is exceedingly conve-
nient for trade. The fultan Sufuhunan Natahalam, fince the
year 1771, has transferred his refidence from Cagu-Tangie
to Martapura, where he caufed a large city to be built, and
a canal to be dug which paffes through the middle of it; at

. the fame time the name Martapura was changed into Bumie-
Kintjana. Thereader may from this readily conceive that
the power of this fultan is not inconfiderable. The inha-
bitants of the city, as well as thofe who refide in places at a
diftance from the coaft, are mahometans, mixed with a great
many Biadjoos or Dajakkefe, who are pagans. Thefe Biad-
joos, who inhabit a great many villages, the number of which
is faid to amount to 784, are fubjeC to various petty princes,
who acknowledge the fultan as their fuperior. Of thefe Bi-
adjoos, who are the original natives of the ifland, I ‘hall
fpeak hereafter.

The fa&tory of the Dutch Eaft India company is fituated
at the end of the village of Tatas, or Banjermafling. It con-
fifts of an oftagonal fort furrounded by palifades, which on
the eaft fide next the river is furmifhed with three, and on
the-weft, or land fide, with two baftions. - The produétions
of the country fought for as articles of commerce, ave pepper,
gold, (moftly gold-duft, not very abupdant. in metal,) dia-

Cez2z - monds,

196 Defeription of the Ifland of Borneo.

monds, canes, birds-nefts,,. wax, pedra del porco, dragons-
blood, and iron. For thefe the Dutch give in exchange,
agates of a longifh form, rings of red agate, ditferent kinds
of coral; all forts of Chinefe articles, fuch as ccarfe porce-
Jain, red and other kinds of filk; all forts of cotton cloth,
clothing fuch as is worn by the Indians, various produétions
of Java, and alfo opium: but the laft muft be introduced pri-
vately, as the ufe of it has been ftriéily prohibited by the
fultan,

Suceatana lies in 0° 50! fouth latitude. A little further
morth is the river Pontiana, which, through a great many
mouths, difcharges itfelf into the fea under the line. This
river at its mouth is twelve feet in depth, and at high water
fixteen, fo that floops and fmal] veffels can proceed to the
company’s factory with great eafe. The paflage from the
mouth of the river to the factory requires twelve hours. At
the diftance of feven or eight miles from its mouth, the river
_ divides itfelf into two branches; the fouthernmoft of which
flows through the country governed by Pangerang Jofep, who
in 1778 was raifed by the Eaft India company to be fultan
of Safango and Pontiana, under the name of Sarief Abdulla
Rachmann., Thefe two kingdoms extend a great way into
the country. One of the fervants of the company faw at
the court of this fultan, one of his vaffals, the king of Gaf-
caro, whofe dominions lay at the diftance of upwards of a
-hundred miles; and he was told that in that country there had
been found fome pillars, three feet in height and three in
breadth, infcribed with European sbartiem: If this in-
formation be corre&t, the Europeans at fome early period
muft have penetrated a confiderable way into the interiar
‘parts of the ifland. The Society of the Arts and Sciences at
Batavia had hopes of obtaining a copy of thefe infcriptions,
‘by which means the myftery might have been explained; but
hitherto they have been difappointed.

Pontiana and Safango produce excellent gold, wax, birds-
nefits, pearls, fago, diamonds, tin, and iron, which are bar-
- tered for provifions of all kinds and cotton cloth, but parti-
cularly rice and falt. Heavy rains, accompanied with thick
~_¢louds, prevail here from the month of November till May.
It

.

Defeription of the Ifland of Borneo. 197

It deferves to be mentioned, as a meteorological obfervation,
that the thermometer here is never lower than 82°, and never
‘higher than 94°.

tas lies on the northern arm of the river Boats
about feventeen miles higher up, in the latitude of 0° 35”
north. The Dutch had a. refident here fo early as a hun-
dred and fifty years ago. After that period their poffeffions
were deftroyed, till the king of Bantam, to whom Landae
and Succatana had for many years belonged, made a prefent
to the company of all thefe lands in the year 1778—but
whether voluntarily or through compulfion I cannot venture
to fay. This much, however, is ‘certain, that the Dutch
after that time confidered thefe lands as their property, and
the princes who govern in them as their vaffals; built their
fort at Pontiana, between Landac and Succatana, and ap-
pointed Pangerang Saidja Nata as regent of the whole
diftri&t.

The refidence of the prince of Landac is fituated on the
projecting corner of a mountain, to which there is an afcent
by 118 fieps. Two rivers, which are fo full of rocks that no
kind of veffel can be navigated in them, flow on the right
and left of this mountain; and as there are other mountains
on each fide of thefe rivers, this place is fo ftrong by nature
that it is impregnable. It is alfo well furnifhed with artil-
lery : befides feveral fmall cannons, there are in it two iron
guns, eight-pounders, one of which has on it the company’s
arms, and the other the Danifh. It is inconceivable how
fuch heavy maffes could have been conveyed to the fummit
of fo fteep a rock. In this kingdom there are gold and dia-
mond mines of confiderable importance. .

Between Landac and Borneo, the moft northern kingdom
of the ifland, and from which, in all probability, the whole
country takes its name, there are feveral fmaller kingdoms,
which are not of great importance, but which are not yet
fufficiently known. Their regents are, in part, vaffals of the
fultan of Borneo, A fmall trade is carried on in thefe dif-
triéts with gold, diamonds, canes, wax, and other articles of
the like kind, which are given in exchange for the produc~
tions of Java; but this traffic is of little confequence, and at

9 the

198 Defeription of ihe Ifland of Borneo.

the fame time uncertain, becaufe this part of the country
is inhabited by fevera! difcontented prmces who live by
piracy. ,

Bornco is gov eftied by a fultan, who has his refidence in
this place, where a confiderable trade is catried’on with the
productions of the country, which are pearls, birds-nefts,
wax, flaves, rice, and camphor. |The camphor of this ifland
is confidered as the beft, and is preferred even to that. of
Sumatra. Hoitynn, a phyfician of Amfterdam, to whom
natural hiftory is fo much indebted, and who, in the Tranf-
aétions of the Society of Haarlem *, has given a defeription
with figures of the camphor-tree from the dried branches,
tranfinitted to him by a member of the Society of the Arts
and Sciences at Batavia, fays: ‘* The camphor of Borneo
and Sumatra is produced by a tree with oval, tharp-pointed
leaves and large tulip-like flowers. By thefe marks it is dif-
tinguifhed both from the camphor-tree of Japan, and from
the other fpecies of the laurel. A hundred weight of the’
eamphor of Borneo cofts 3000, and one of that of Sumatra
2000 rix-dollars, but the Japanefe cofts fcarcely fifty: the
Taft, however, is much more volatile than the other kinds.”
Of the camphor of Bornco about 4375 pounds are exported
every year. The articles imported are tin, cotton cloth, and
all the productions of Java except rice, which is cultivated
here in great abundance.

The fultan_of Borneo lives in great ftate, and is more
feared by his fubjects than that of Banjer; but at the fame
time, according to the account of fome Englifhmen who
frequent this part of the coaft with fmal] veffels, and carry
hither cotton cloth, which they exchange for pepper, he is
more conftant in his friendthip and truer to his engagements.

_Between Borneo and Tidor Jie the two fmall kingdoms
of Balangan and Baraoou, where birds-nefts, wax, &c. are
exchanged for Javanefe produdtions and a fort of coarfe
cotton cloth. Next comes Dannuar, which is fubject to a
Dato called Beginda ; and a little further, Sammunta, under
Dato Tomongong ; and Cottee, which is governed by a fultan
named Adgic Umut. Between the two laft there are a

* Vol. XXI.

-

t great

Defeription of the Ifland of Bornea. %99

great many villages, the names of which are unknown. The
fame articles are exported and imported here as at Borneo.
The. next place is Appar Karrang, governed by the fultan
. Thua; and then Paffier, the laft kingdom, which belongs to
the fultan Annom. The articles of trade in this country
are gold, -birds-nefts, wax, and canes, which are exchanged
for the productions of Java. The inhabitants of Paflier are
very few in number, and therefore it has, not been poffible
for them to drive back the Buginefe, who have made them-
felves matters of the river, and at the fame time of the trade.

Further fouth lies Simpanahan, which is governed by
Pangerang * Prabo. The whole country from this place to
the extreme boundaries of Salatang belongs to the king of
Banjermafling, who poffeffes alfo the great and fmall ifland
- of Pulu-Lauts, There appear to be no other kingdoms in
the interior part of Borneo; at any rate, if there are, they
are not known. The inhabitants of the mountains bring
the produétions of their lands, and their different articles of
manufacture, to the neareft part of the coaft for fale.

I fhall now lay before the reader what I have been able to
learn refpeéting the Biadjoos or Dajakkefe, who for the moft
part inhabit an extenfive diftri€t in the interior part of .the
country on the weft fide of the river Banjer. The Biadjoos
are of large ftature and well built. Their women are faid to
be fair and handfome; but they never bring them to Banjer,
or any other of the places where they trade. The drefs of
the Biadjoos has a great refemblance to that of the Malays.
Their women, and even the wives of their princes, go naked
to the middle, and in general have nothing around their
body but a fhort gown. The men paint their bodies with
figures of various kinds, as is the cafe among the other na-
tives of the ifland and throughout all India. They*come to
Banjer to fell their gold, canes, and rice, for which they re-
ceive in exchange coarfe Chinefe porcelain, copper and
earthen veffels, or tampayangs, on which are reprefented
dragons, fnakes, and other figures fuited to their tafte.

Their marriages are accompanied with fome very fingular

ad Pangerang, dato, kiey, radeen, and other terms of the like kind,
are words which exprels different degrees of dignity. '

ceremonies,

£0 Defeription of the [land of Borneo.

ceremonies. When a bachelor has conceived an attachment
for a young woman, he employs fome female to afk her in
marriage from her parents; but he is fure of receiving a de-
nial unlefs he has given a proof of his courage by cutting off
the head of an enemy. If his offer is accepted, he carries to
his bride a prefent, which confifts of a male or female flave,
two dreffes, and a water-pot, on which fome of their favourite
figures are reprefented.. When the wedding-day arrives, the
bride and the bridegroom each give an entertainment at their
houfes ; at the conclufion of which the bridegroom, in his
beft apparel, is conduéted to the refidence of the bride,
where he finds at the door one of her relations, who fmears
over him the blood of a cock which has been killed for that
purpofe; and the fame ceremony takes place in regard to the
bride, with the blood of a hen. They then prefent to each
other their bloody hands; but it is confidered as a bad omen
#f the blood, in confequence of this joining of hands, fpirts
out too far around them. The new-married couple then re=
main together, and the whole folemnity ends with a fecond
entertainment. When the wife lies-in, the hufband affumes
the office of nurfe, and no other care is ufual on this occafion
than that one of their conjurers, whom they call dalzan,
gives the newly-delivered woman fome medicines, amidft
finging, and beating on certain inftruments named gindang.
If the wife die, the hufband cannot enter again into the mar-
ried ftate until he has cut off the head of fome individual of

another nation, and thereby avenged the death of his wife.
When a Biadjoo dies, the body is put into a coffin, and
kept in the houfe until all the remaining males of the family,
father, fon, and other near relations, have purchafed a flave ;
who is to be beheaded on the day when the body is burnt, in
order that he may attend the deceafed in the other world.
Before this unfortunate wretch is butchered, it is earneftly
recommended to him to be faithful to his mafter on the other
fide of the grave. The athes of the burnt body are afterwards
collected in one of the above-defcribed water-pots, and the
pot, together with the head of the flave who has been
ftrangled, is depofited in a {mall edifice or tomb built for
that purpofe. A year often elapfes before the relations of
the

Defcription of the Ifland of Bornes. 201

the deceafed are in a condition to purchafe a flave to ferve
him in the next world. ;

Their houfes are conftruéted of boards joined together,
and have neither windows nor partitions except that which
feparates a {mall corner for fleeping in. The whole family
refide together along with their flaves, forming in the whole
fometimes a andied perfons. They have nothing to afford
them light but a thin piece of pine- wood, which burns no
longer than till about eight in the evening. Over their doors
they fufpend the heads which they cut off in their fkirmifhes,
and often while they are ftill bloody. Whenever they con-
ceive a defire of difplaying their courage by cutting off heads,
they fet out on an expedition for that purpofe. On fuch oc-
cafions, the perfon who wifhes to gratify his bloody intention

_makes known his defign to his friends and relations, who de-
liberate with him on the means to be purfued, and who ac-
company him, together with their dependants and flaves.
They then proceed, in great fecrecy, to the river Banjer, and
lie in wait for fome fmall veffel belonging to Banjer fifher-
men, whom they either furprife in the night-time or attack
and carry away in the open day. One or perhaps two of
thefe unfortunate captives are then deftined to become a fa-
crifice to their infatiable rage for murder.

When the Dajakkefe bring home a head, the whole village,
men, women, and children, teftify their fatisfaction by every
demonfiration of joy. People who beat on gongs * are fta~
tioned in a row in the ftreet to conduét the conqueror, with
the head in his hand, to his own houfe, where he is received
by all the women prefent, who dance around him. When
he approaches the door, he finds where the gongs ceafe a
cufhion placed for him, on which he fits down, and where
the head is taken from him by the women. The fortunate
head-hunter receives prefents from all the company, who
dance and afterwards partake of a repaft. At the fame time
fome food is thruft into the mouth of the head, and a little
drink is poured into it; after which it is hung up as a per-
petual trophy of victory,

‘

* The gong is a kind of mufical infirament of copper.

Vou, VI, hove: "J Thefg

RO Defeription of the Ifland of Borneo.

“ Thefe people, however, before they undertake expeditions
of this kind in queft of Banjerefe heads, always endeavour to
deduce fome omen of good or bad fortune from the flight of
a kind of hawk*. With this view they entice the bird to
perch on the ground, by ftrewing rice on it, and by other
means ; and if he wheels round when he rifes, and difappears
in the clouds, or flies towards that quarter to which they in->
tend to proceed, they confider it ag a fign of good fortune,
and they fet out with frefh courage: but if the bird direéts
its flight towards a quarter oppofite to that to which they
with to go, they defer the expedition till a more favourable
Opportunity. It often happens that they muft wait two or
three days before fuch a feathered prophet appears to inform
them when they are to expect good fortune.

The Biadjoos have fearcely any form of government, and
| no written laws. Ifa perfon is accufed of theft, and if fuffi-
cient proof cannot be adduced againft him, the culprit and
the accufer are carried before one of the oldeft inhabitants.
An earthen pot with afhes and water is placed on the ground,
and a bit of wood, on which are depofited two fmall copper
buttons, is laid acrofs the pot. After an oath has been ad-
miniftered to each of the parties, the bit of wood is turned
round in fuch a manner that the buttons fall into the water ;
the accufed and the accufer muft then each draw one of the
buttons from it, and he whofe button appears as if feoured,
and rendered white by the afhes, gains the procefs.

It is faid that the Biadjoos have fome idea of a Supreme
Being, to whom they addrefs prayers under the name of
Dewatta; and as they believe that this Dewatta not only
created, but {till preferves and rules the world, they requeft
him to grant them happinefs and profperity. Refpecting
the notions which they entertain of this deity, and the par-
ticular worfhip they pay to him, I can give no further ac-
count. If we may judge from the character of thefe people,
their deity muft be a gloomy and revengeful being: no na-
tion on the earth have a greater propenfity to murder and
revenge.

When a married woman commits adultery, and is dif-

* Falco Milvus.
covered

Defeription of the Ifland of Borneo. 203

coveted by her hufband, the latter never makes any attempt
againft the adulterer, but contents himfelf with putting to
death two or three of his flaves; after which he imagines
himfelf freed from all fhame. The woman, on the other
hand, is punifhed merely with words, but fometimes with
blows. Do not a people, whofe condu& is regulated by
fuch laws, deferve pity? Revenge, fuperftition, avarice, and
a fpirit of plundering, are often among civilifed as well as
uncivilifed nations the ftrongeft incitements to acts of cruelty
and murder: but the Biadjoo, who attacks only poor de-
fencelefs beings, and carries about their heads as trophies of
his courage; who never attacks his enemy himfelf, but en-
deavours to be avenged by putting to death innocent flaves,
certainly furpaffes in cruelty the ravenous animal that de-
yours others only to appeafe its hunger. Let us hope, for
the honour of humanity, that a good deal in this imperfe&
relation may be exaggerated.

The Biadjoos are unacquaitited with polygamy. When a
man wifhes to feparate from his wife in confequence of her
having been guilty of fome crime, he retains her clothes and
ornaments, and caufes her to pay befides a fine amounting

.to about thirty rials. After this, each party may again marry.
Thefe people acknowledge the fultan of Banjer as their fo-
vereign, and pay him yearly a fmall tribute in gold duft of
the value of twenty rials.

The principal part of our information refpecting thefe
people was obtained from a Mr. Palm, who made a journey
from Pontiana to Landac in the year 1779 on bufinefs of the
Dutch Eaft India company, and who, on this occafion, pe-
nétrated a confiderable way into the country. At Landac
he paid a vifit to the gold and diamond mines, and on his
return had the good fortune to get into his poffeffion an
orang outang of the largeft kind, which is properly a native
of this ifland. As this animal has been defcribed in the
Tranfactions of the Society for promoting the Arts and
Sciences at Batavia, I fhall fay nothing further of it*, and

* For a defcription of this animal from the above Tranfaétions, fee the
Philofophical Magazine, Vol. I. p. 225.

Ddz proceed

204 Defeription of the [land of Borné.

proceed to give the reader fome account of the diamond and
gold mines.

In working the diamond mines great care is required to
examine the ground intended to be dug. The places where
diamonds are to be found may be known by certain fmalt
flints, generally of a black colour, which lie on the furface,
and alfo by the yellow colour of the ftony foil. The fureft
method, however, is to follow the directions of the people
who refide in the neighbourhood of thefe mines, and to
whom fuperftition aferibes the fame wonderful power as the.
fo called divining-rod of the Europeans was fuppofed to pof-
fefs formerly. It is faid that at certain periods of the day,
fuch as four o’clock in the morning, twelve at noon, and
four in the afternoon, they have the faculty of feeing the re-
fleGtion or fhining of the diamonds through the earth. Thefe
mountaineers point out to the diamond-miners a certain {pot
where they ought to dig; but they receive no payment till it
actually appears that it contains diamonds. A pit about fix
feet fquare 1 is then made in the place with a kind of pick-axe,
for in fuch ftony ground fhovels and fpades cannot be em-
ployed. The earth when loofened is taken up in bafkets,
formed into heaps, and afterwards fifted by people, who fit
in water-pits dug for the purpofe, firft with coarfe and then
with finer fieves. [he remaining fand is then wafhen with
the water, amidft which the labourers fit-and cxamme it once
more. If nothing is found, the ftones and earth are thrown
onone fide; but if any diamonds appear, the overfeer, who
is always prefent, watches with great care till the good ftones
are collected and formed intoa heap. The workmen receive
but very moderate pay for their labour, All thofe ftones
that weigh above five carats muft be immediately delivered
to the fovereign prince or the fultan. But this law is made
only for the fimple, as nothing is eafier than to fwallow fuch
ftones, and in that manner to carry them away.

The mines are dug, in a perpendicular direétion, fome-
times to the depth of ten fathoms. The labourers, however,
are totally unacquainted with the art of mining, and there-
fore when the leatt difficulty occurs they are entirely ata
lofs. The gee of the pits are prevented from falling in by

bundles

Prefervation of Birds and Quadrupeds by Ether. 05

bundles of rice-ftraw and pieces of wood placed in a crofs
direétion ; but fuch accidents often happen, particularly in
the time of violent florms, - As they are incapable of freeing
the pits from water during heavy rains, they are prevented
from working, and mutt fufpend their labour till the weather
becomes dry. The moft produétive diamond mines are at
Ambauwang, beyond Molucco, in the diftriét of Banjer-
mafling, and at Landac and Pontiana. Befides thefe mines,
which Jie among the mountains, diamonds are fought for
alfo on the banks of various rivers; but thofe who follow this
eccupation have fo little fuccefs, that ten or twelve men will
dig and fearch fometimes a whole month before they find
diamonds to the value of twenty Spanifh rials.

In regard to the gold mines, the ignorance of the natives
refpecting every thing that relates to mining is fo creat, that .
- little advantage is derived from them, though they are fup-
pofed to be very rich. In Banjermaffing the gold is- found.
at the depth of about three fathoms; the veins properly fo
ealled are of a reddifh kind of marl. At Landac the ore is
found at the depth of about ten feet, and the workmen muft
dig till they come to a cruft which has almoft the appear-
ance of rotten wood. Until this vein, which is called the
covering of the mine, be found, there are no hopes of meet-
ing with gold.

Il. Method of preferving Birds and fmall Quadrupeds by
means of Ether, By C, CHAPTAL.

Tus method of preparing all kinds of animals for ca-
binets is exceedingly fimple, and fo certainin its effect that
C. Chaptal never found it to fail in a fingle inftance. It is
as follows :—The matter contained in the bowels of the ani-
mal mutft be evacuated, either by gradually pretling the body
towards the rectum, or by injecting fome liquid which may
remove every thing that ftands in its way. After this opera-*
tion, the end of the rectum is to be tied with a thread, and
ether to be injected, with a proper inflrument, into the body

through

206 Prefervation of Birds and Quadrupeds by Ether.

through the mouth or bill; and when the bowels have been
filled with it, the animal is to be hung up by the head. “One
of the eyes muft then be fevoped out, and the brain extracted :
after which the head is alfo filled with ether, which muft be
prevented from efcaping by plugging up the eye-hole. On
the fecond or third day the injeéting of ether is to be repeated,
and this procefs is to be continued till the animal. be com-
pletely dried.

While the animal is cradually drying, care muft be taken
to give to the body its proper pofition, and as foon as it is
completely deficcated it may be put up without further care
or any other preparation. A {mall female papajay, prepared
according to this method in the year 1782, was loft behind
the fhelves of a library, and remained there two years with-
out its folidity or form being in the leaft changed. This pro-
cefs for preferving animals feems to be attended with con-
fiderable advantages. C. Fouchy, of Montpellier, fays
C. Chaptal, who has made ornithology his particular ftudy,
recommended fpirit of wine, a few years ago, for the fame
purpofe ; but as foon as the fpirit of this liquid has evaporated,
the remaining aqueous part promotes corruption in a very
great degree; whereas ether, by its evaporation, carries with
it not only its own aqueous particles, but thofe alfo which it
abforbs from the body. Befides, this method neither deftroys
the form of the animal nor tarnifhes the fplendour of the
feathers or hair, and is exceedingly cheap: one ounce of ether
ts in general fufficient for a fmall bird: A large papajay re-
quired only one ounce and a half. As the procefs is attended
with fo little expence, it may be ufed for animals of a con-
fiderable fize.

C. Chaptal remarks, that in regard to animals which have
been wounded, and on that account have apertures in their
bodies which cannot be fhut fo well as the natural apertures,
the procefs is more difficult, and attended with greater trouble,
as they are lefs capable of containing theether. Such ani-
mals, therefore, muft be chofen for prefervation as have died
a natural death, or as have been killed by being ftrangled,
The procefs will be performed fooner or more flowly accord

ing

New Infirument for Trepanning. 20%

‘ing as the weather is more or lefs favourable for drying the
bodv. The procefs of drying might perhaps be a little
fhortened by the application of artificial heat.

The theory of this procefs, as C. Chaptal thinks, is, that
the ether, while it evaporates, volatilifes the moifture in the
animal body, by thefe means effects a gradual deficcationy
and thus removes the only caufe of corruption. ~

e
l ‘
= — es eS

MII. Defeription of a new Inftrument for Trepanning, invented
by Mr. Joun RopMaAn, Surgeon in Paifley. Communi~
cated by the Inventor,

Tue operation of trepanning mutft be confidered a very
important one in furgery, both on account of the dangers
with which it is often attended, and the beneficial effets
which follow the fuccefsful performance of it. The danger
and accidents which attend this operation arife partly from
the imperfection of the inftruments employed, and partly
from want of dexterity in the operator.

To manage the inftruments now in ufe for trepanning with
neatnefs and facility, would require a degree of mechanical
dexterity which falls to the lot of few furgeons: yet furgeons
the moft inexperienced, and unaccuftomed to operations of
any kind, are often neceffarily called upon to perform this
operation.

The trepan is allowed by the greater number of furgeons
to be a dangerous inftrument, and the ufe of the trephine,
though more generally employed, has been fometimes fol-
lowed by fatal accidents.

The chief objection to the more general ufe of the trepan
feems to arife from the chance of its paffing fuddenly in upon
the brain towards the end of the operation. To avoid fuch
an accident, the celebrated profeffor of anatomy at Edinburgh
fays, in his lectures, that it might be as well to begin the
operation with the trepan, and to finifh it with the trephine.
But, whichever of thefe inftruments be employed, there is ftill
a rifk of the bone being unequally cut: for, if the inftrament
be held in the fmalleft degree to one fide during the opera-

tion,

208 New Infirument for Trepanning.

tion, the bone at that fide to which it is moft inclined will
fooneft give way, and confequently the brain may be injured
before the furgeon is apprifed of it. Such accidents, it is
well known, have frequently happened. Sometimes, too,
the centre-pin, from agitation or inattention of the furgeon,
-has been left in_ the inftrument to the end of the operation,
and, after paffing through the bone, has perforated the brain.

Befides thefe, and feveral other obvious objections, the
number of neceflary auxiliary inftruments fufficiently evinces
the propriety of attempting to fimplify and improve the pre-~
fent mode of operating.

The manner of perforating the fkull by the mftruments
now in ufe is, firft, with the perforator, to make a fmall hole
in the bone of a fufficient depth to receive the centre-pin of
the faw, then to apply the inftrument, and to continue faw-
ing tll the groove is deep enough to preferve the inftrument
fteadily without the centre-pin: the inftrument then is with-
drawn, and the pin removed by means of the key. The
furgeon now proceeds to finifh the operation, and, having
replaced the inftrument, works through the bone with the
greateft- caution, taking care to withdraw and replace the
inftrument from time to time, in order not only to clear
away the duft that fills up the teeth of the faw, but to dif-
cover whether the portion of bone to be removed is nearly
feparated. ; ,

By this way of operating it is evident a confiderable por-
tion of the time is taken up even in preparing for the opera-
tion, befide what is loft during the courfe of it. To fave time
in this, as in every other operation, muft be confidered as a
matter of great confequence both to the patient and furgeon.
With a view to fhow how this may be accomplifhed, it will
be neceffary to mention in what manner the operation may —
be conduéted with the inftrument now to be propofed. >

The patient being prepared for the operation, and the in-
ftrament applied, as in the plate, care muft be taken to make
the fawing-teeth round the whole circumference touch the
furface of the bone equally. This can eafily be done; for,
thongh the inequality of the bones on which the inftrament
is placed be fuch as to prevent the faw from acting on all

points

New Inflrument for Trepanning. 209

points of the circle alike, one or other of the legs may be.
lengthened or fhortened at pleafure, by means of the fetting
ferews ; and in this manner it may be made to fit exactly.

The next ftep of the operation is, to cut the pericranium
with one or two tums of the inftrument, and, if neceflary,
that portion of the membrane within the circle of the faw
may be removed with the fingers. The fawing is now begun
by turning the handle with one hand, and holding the in-
ftrument firmly with the other. Thus the bone may be
cut very quickly ; and if the furgeon wifh to proceed cau-
tioufly towards the end of the operation, he may then work
the infrument in the manner of the trephine, which can be
done by grafping the handle with one hand, and fupporting
the frame as before mentioned.

The fimplicity of the inftrument, and the mode of ope-
rating with it, will be better underftood by the following
defcription :

A, A, the handle, (Plate VIT;) B, B, the axle, paffing
through D, the upper part of the frame; and C, the crofs-
band. E,E,E, the fides of the frame; F, F,F, the feet or
refts, which flide in the fides of the frame K,K,K, and are
faftened with thumb-ferews 5,5; G, the cutting-head, fixed
on the end of the axle; H, a collar which flides upon the
axle, and can be made faft upon it with the thumb -fcrew a.

The fliding-collar may be ufed with advantage when the
furgeon is afraid of plunging the head of the inftrument into
the brain during the operation ; for, by fixing it at a certain
diftance above the crofs-band, it will reft upon it, fooner or
Jater, according to the intention of the operator, and prevent
the inftrument from paffing deeper until the collar be fhifted.
For this reafon, as well as the fuperiority of the inframent
in general to thofe in common ufe, it is particularly recom-
mended to furgeons who may have frequent oceafion to per-
form this operation on board a fhip at fea.

WOW Vie > Be IV. O}-

[ 210 J]

TV.. Obfervations on the Economical Ufe of the Ranunculus
aquatilis; with Introductory Remarks on the acrimonious
and poifonous Quality of fome of the Englifh Species of
that Genus. By Ricuarp Putteney, M.D.F.R.S.
and L.S.* ~

Boru ancient. and modern writers on Botany and the
Materia Medica agree, pretty uniformly, in attributing to
many fpecies of whe genus Ranunculus a corrofive and poi-

fonous quality, In feveral it abounds in fuch a degree as, —

when applied externally, in a recent ftate, to excite vefica-
tions, and ulceration of the parts, frequently of a malignant
and gangrenous nature; and, when taken inwardly, to prove
poifonous and fatal, by inducing vomiting, inflammation of
the ftomach, with the ufual confequences of acrid poifons.
Thefe qualities are particularly manifeft in the recent plant,
while in its higheft vigour before flowering; and more in-
tenfely in the germen of the flower itfelf, and in the petals
of fome, ,

The poifonous fpecies, that are indigenous, and common
in England, are, the Ravunculus Flammula, or Leffer Spear-
wort; R, bulbofus, bulbous-rooted Crowfoot; R. acris, up-
right Crowfoot; R. /celeratus, Marth Crowfoot ; R. arvenjis,
Corn Crowfoot; and the R. aguatilis, or Water Crowfoot,
according to the report of various authors. Of thefe the
Flammula, bulbofus, and fceleratus, are judged to be the moft
acrimonious. ,

Before the introduétion of Cantharides, the acrid Ranun-
_ culi were, all in their turn, ufed as veficatories ; and Haller
tells ust, the R. Flammu/q is {till in ufe as fuch in fome parts
of France, Gilibert affures us { that the R, bulbo/us veficates
with lefs pain than the /les, and has no effect on the urinary

* From the Tran/adtions of the Linnean Society, Vol. V.

+ See the Exumeratio Stirpium and Hifforia Stirpium Helvetia, in
which much fatisfaétory information is colleéted refpecting the properties
of this genus of plants; and for which the author has, with his wfual
candour and accuracy, quoted all his authorities,

R' Plante variores Lithuania, No. 331+

paflages,

Economical Uje of the Ranunculus aquatilis. * ait

paffages. He gives it therefore a.decided preference as an
epifpaftic. Other authors allow thefe qualities in the Ra-
nunculi, and that they are quicker than Cantbarides in their
veficating effect; but fay, that all thefe advantages are more
than balanced by the greater uncertainty of their action on
the fkin, and their frequently leaving ill-conditioned ulcers,
of which Murray and other writers have recorded inftances*.
Neverthelefs, the Ranunculi were employed in local fpaf-
modic complaints and in fixed pains, and not unfrequently :
in cataplafms to the wrifts i in intermitting fevers. Crowfoot
is known alfo to have been one of the ingredients in Plun-
ket’s epithem for cancers.

The acrimony of thefe plants is, however, of fo volatile a
nature, that, even in the moft virulent, it is wholly diffipated
in drying; fo that, in the form of hay, they appear to be
harmlefs, and nutritive to cattle. It is alfo inftantly expelled
in decoGtion, probably in all-the fpecies ; at leaft, Murray in-
forms us, that the fhepherds of Morlachia eat even the R. /ce-
leratus, as a culinary plant, after boiling it: the R. aurico-
mus, and, as feveral authors affure us, the R. repens, are fo
deftitute of acrimony as to be wholly inoffenfive, and even
worthy of a place among oleraceous plants.

The Ranunculi give out this quality wholly in diftillation :
the water of the R. /celeratus, by the experiments of Tile-
bein, as recorded in the fecond volume of the Chemical An-
nals, is acrimonious in an intenfe degree, and, when cold,
depofits cry{tals which are fearcely foluble in any menftruum,
and are of an inflammable naturet. The diftilled water of
the R. Flammula, or Lefler Spearwort, as we are informed
by Dr. Withering, is an emetic more inftantaneous, and lefs
offenfive during i its action, than white vitriol; and, as if Na-
ture had farnifhed an antidote to poifon fam among poifons
of its own tribe, is to be preferred in promoting the inftant
expulfion of deleterious {ubftances from the ftomach.

In the experiments of the Pan Swecus, even in the im-
proved edition by Schreber, after the obfervations and re-
newed trials of Kalm, Gadd, Bergius, and Laftbohm, made
upon horned cattle, goats, {heep, horfes, and fwine, all the

* Apparat. Medicam. iii, 87. + Page 313.
Ee 2 {pecies

Az Ob/fervations on the Economical Ufe

{pecies of Ranuncull, with which trials were made, except
the R. auricomus, were rejected by the horned cattle; and it
is well known, that while our meadows and pa(tures are
eaten bare of other vegetables, the R. acris and R. bulbofus,
which are but too plentiful, are left untouched: neither do
cattle willingly eat the R. repens, although it is not wholly
rejected by horfes, fheep, and goats.

The R. Flammula, according to the above experiments,
was eaten only by horfes, to which animal it is there faid-to
be very grateful; whereas the R. auricomus, eaten by all the
reft, (except that fwine choofe only the roots,) was rejected
by horfes. The R. /celeratus, which is fuppofed to be the
Herba Sardonia of Diofcorides, was touched by goats alone ;
the R. bulbofus only by the latter, though it is well known
in England that hogs are fond of the roots. The R. acris
was eaten by fheep and goats; but the R. aquatilis is re-
corded as the only one rejected by all the five fpecies of ani-
mals on which thefe trials were made. It does not appear
by either edition of the Pan Suecus, that any trials were
made with R. arvenfis; and though horned cattle and horfes
will eat this fpecies greedily, (although not without fubfe-
quent injury,) yet it is known to have been highly delete-
rious to fheep. A notable inftance of this occurred in Pied-
mont in the year 1786, where a number of thefe animals
died, as it was at firft fuppofed, of an epidemical difeafe; but
fubfequent examination difcovered that this deftruction was
owing to the Ranunculus arvenfis. The hiftory of this acci-
dent is circumftantially related in the Memorrs of the Royal
Academy of Turin, by M. Brugnon*. The herb grows lux-
urtantly 1 in Piedmont, and the fheep fed with ye: eagerne{3
upon it. The effects here mentioned were not ‘ameecate,
but progreflive; and M. Brugnon, on further inveftigation,
was convinced they were principally owing to the roots of
the plant; fince, by experiments purpofely made on dogs,
pe are were almoft inftantly killed by them. ee

were found affected with eryfipelatous and gangrenous {pots ;

* Memoires de ? Académie Royale des Sciences, Années 1788—1789,
3 Turin, 4to. 17906 b
ut

of the Ranunculus aquatilis. 243

but more particularly the abomafum, which he found much
more deeply ulcerated than the others; and the mifchief had
extended into the {maller inteftines.

The avidity with which fheep, horfes, and cows, eat the
Ranunculus arvenjis, is, as M. Brugnon juftly obferves, an
exception to the commonly received maxim, that herbivorous
animals are, by inftin€t, led to reject whatever is noxious.
We fee frequently that hunger will impel our domefticated
cattle, efpecially on being firft turned ‘to grafs in the {pring,
to eat almoft all vegetables promifcuoufly. Some of our
farmers are aware of the effe€ts of Crowfoot, of which the
R. acris and R. bulbofus are fo common in our paftures, and
by which the mouths of their cattle are frequently inflamed
and bliftered ; and doubtlefs the effets often extend much
further, and fometimes prove fatal. There can be little
doubt of the fame deftrnétive confequences from other poi-
fonous plants, in cafes where the caufe is little fufpected.

M. Krapf, who inftituted a fet of experiments wholly con-
fined to this genus of plants *, attributes to the R. aguatilis
the deleterious qualities belonging to the others; obferving,
that it will veficate the fkin, but is flower in its operation
than the R. bulbofus and R. fceleratus. Bifhop Gunnerus
alfo, in his Flora Norvegicat, tells us, that this fpecies is
not lefs noxious to cattle than the R. /celeratus; that even
the goat, an animal lefs nice in the fele¢tion of its food than
the others, leaves it wholly untouched.

It is well known to botanifts, that the Ranunculus aqua-
tilis of Linneus comprehends four fpecies of the older writers ;
and even Haller, and fome more modern authors, ftill keep
them feparate: among whom, the late profeffor Sibthorp, in
his Flora Oxonienfis, enumerates them diftinétly, under the
names of, 1. R. beterophyllus, or R. aquatilis Ger. em. 829.
Ray Syn. 249. °2. R. aquatilis, or R. aquatilis omnino te-
nuifolius J. B. iii. 781. Ray Syn. 249. 3. R. circinatus,
R. aquaticus albus, circinatis tenuiflime divifis foltis, floribus
ex alis longis pédiculis innixis Pluk. alm. 311. t. 55.2. Ray

* C. Krapf, Experimenta de nonnullorum Ranunculorum venenata
qualitate, horum externo et interno ulu. Vienne 6766. &vo. p. 107.

+ No. 646.

. Syn,

i

¢

414 — Economical Uje of the Ranunculus aquatilis.

Syn. 249. and 4. R. fluviatilis, or Ranunculo five Polyart-
themo aquatili albo affine, Millefolium maratriphytlum flut
tans. J. B. iii. 782. Without entering here into any dif-
quifition relative to thefe diftin@tions of the fpecies, I fhall
come to the ultimate object of thefe obfervations, by re-
marking, that I was lately witnefs to a fact, with refpect
to the Ranunculus aquatilis fluviatilis, which, after what I

recolleéted of the charaéter of the plant, fomewhat furprifed:

me, while it fufficiently proved, not merely the innoxious
quality of this plant, but that it is nutritive to cattle, and
capable of being converted to ufeful purpofes in agricultural
economy. Unlefs thefe varieties of the R. aquatilis Linn.

be endowed with different properties, it is a proof that the.

experiments on this plant were not made with fufficient ac-
euracy, or difcrimination of the varieties; not fufficiently re-
peated on different individuals of the fame fpecies of animals ;
or, that in different countries or fituations it is divefted of its
virulence. In the prefent inftance, it is probable, the plant
is rendered inert as a poifon, by growing tn the water; al-
though in certain other inftances, moifture is thought to
heighten the deleterious property of vegetables, efpecially in
the umbelliferous tribe. i

The fact that I have alluded to is, that in the neighbour-
hood of Ringwood, on the borders of the Avon, which affords
this vegetable in great abundance all the year, fome of the

cottagers fuftain their cows, and even horfes, almoft wholly ~

by this plant; fince the remaining part of their food is no-
thing more than a fcanty pittance they get on the adjacent
heath, which affords little more than Ling, Lichen, Bog-
mofs or Sphagnum, &c. It is ufualto employ a man to
colleét a quantity for the day every morning, and bring it
in the boat to the edge of the water, from which the cows,
in the inftance I faw, ftood eating it with great avidity, FE
was indeed informed they relifhed it fo highly, that it was
unfafe to allow them more than a certain quantity; I think
between twenty-five and thirty pounds each, daily; but with
variation according to circumflances,. The cows I faw were
apparently not in a mean condition, and gave a fufficient
guantity of good milk, I was told by the perfon whofe cattle

eee were:

_

ee nl at

——

—S

Defeription of the Mus Burfarius. 21

were feeding on it, that he kept five cows and one horfe fo
entirely by this plant, and what the heath afforded, that they
had not confumed more than half a ton of hay throughout
the whole year; none being ufed, except when the river is
frozen over. I examined the whole parcel, on which four
cows were feeding, in the beginning of March, and found the
whole confifted, exclufively, of the Ranunculus fluviatilis,
without any mixture of the Potamogeton, Carex, Sparganiumy -
or other aquatic plants. In fummer, however, it can fcarcely
be avoided but that there muft be a mixture of fome of thefe:
but other plants are not chofen.

This account was confirmed to me by different perfons ;
by whom I was further informed, that hogs are alfo fed with
the fame plant, on which they improve fo well, that it is not
neceflary to allow them other fuftenance till it is proper to
put them up to fatten..

This relation, while it fhows how carefully experiments
fhould be conducted before a decifive judgment on the powers
of any reputedly poifonous vegetable can be formed, may in-
duce fuch as were unacquainted with this fact to adopt the
ufe of this plant in fimilar fituations, fince it is one of the
' moft frequent in many rivers.of this kingdom. The applica~
tion of it to thefe ufeful purpofes will alfo anfwer a fecondary
good—of tending to clear the ftreams of what is otherwife
confidered as a noxious weed; fince, by its abundance in
fummer, it is frequently feen to. choke up the rivers more
than any other plant, and, from flight falls of rain, contri-
butes much to the overflowing of meadows in hay-time.

VY. Defeription of the Mus Burfarius, from a Drawing come
municated by Major-General Thomas Davies, F. R.S. &
L.S. By Georce Suaw, M.D.F.R.S,V.P.L.S.* -

Tue Mus burfarius belongs to a. particular divifion in

the genus, containing fuch fpecies as are furnifhed with

cheek-pouches for the temporary reception of their food,

}t feems not to have been yet defcribed, or at leaft not fo
* From the Tranfadctions of the Linnean Society, Vol. V.

diftinétly

236 On the Analy/is of Axot.

diftinétly as to be eafily afcertained. It approaches however.
to one or two fpecies mentioned by Dr. Pallas, Mr. Pennant,
and others; but differs in fize, being much larger, as well as
in the appearance of the fore-feet, which have claws differ-
ently formed from any of the pouched fpecies hitherto de-
feribed,

In order to fecure its knowledge among naturalifts, it may
be proper to form for it a fpecific character, viz.

Mus cinereus, caudé tereti brevi fubnudd, genis faccatis,

unguibus palmarum maximis fofforiis.

Afth-coloured rat, with fhort, round, nearly naked tail,
pouched cheeks, and the claws of the fore-feet very
large, formed for burrowing in the ground.

The cheek-pouches are far larger, in proportion to the
animal, than in any other of this tribe, and therefore have
given occafion for the fpecific name. (Plate VII.)

This quadruped was taken by fome Indian hunters in the
upper parts of Interior Canada, and fent down to Quebec.
It is now in the poffeffion of Governor Prefcot,

VI. On the Analyfis of Azot: an Extra of a Letter from
Dr. GinTANNER to Dr, VAN Mons of Bruffels*.

q Gottingen, Dec. 26, 1799.
HAVE been travelling during the greater part of the
fummer for the reftoration of my health. I {pent fome time
in Swiflerland, where I met with one of my old friends, an
excellent chemift. We repeated, amidft the thunder of can-
non, a great number of the experiments I had made on the
analyfis of azot; and I can now prove that this fubftance is
a compound body. The experiments of Wiegleb and Wurzer
are true, whatever the Dutch chemifts may fay to the con-
trary; but thefe experiments, as you may readily conceive,
prove nothing againft the theory of Lavoifier. I have written
a memoir in French on the analyfis of azot, which I fhould
fend you to be inferted in the Annales, were I certain that it
would not be loft by the way.

I am now publifhing the third edition of my Principles of

#* From the Annales de Chine, No. 99.
the

i

Method of making Shagreen at Aftracan, Qi7

the Antiphlogiftic Chemiftry, in which you will find new
ideas on the acidifiable bafe of the marine acid. T am cer-
tain it is hydrogen; but the acid contains much lefs oxygen
than water.

That I may not leave your curiofity ungratified in regard
to the analyfis of azot, I muft tell you, that it is compofed
of hydrogen and oxygen in the proportion of o:at of the
former, and 0°79 of the latter *: it is nothing elle, therefore,
than an oxyd of hydrogen. All our eudiometry is falfe, fince
azot 1s.a production of our eudiometric analyfis, and did not
exift in the air before the experiment. Alumine or argilla-
ceous earth is the fubftance moft proper for changing atmo-
fpheric air into azotic gas. This-is the principle on which
the production of faltpetre, fo much fought after in France
at the commencement of the war, depends, and which i 1s
now difcovered by my experiments.

Hydrogen gas may be transformed into azotic gas by re-
fpiration: the oxygen gas, a part of which is always con-
denfed in the lungs, joins itfelf to the hydrogen, and changes
it into azot. The fame converfion may be effeéted, and in a
much more fenfible manner, by bringing hydrogen gas into
contaét with moiftened argil.

VIL. Defeription of the Method employed at Aftracan for
making grained Parchment or Shagreen. By Profeffor
PALLAS.

‘Tue proceis for preparing fhagreen is a very old oriental
invention, not practifed in Europe, and which, as far as I
know, has never yet been defcribed; though Bafil Valentin}

* Tp our lat we announced this difcovery of Dr. Girtanner, and gave
Dr. Van Mons’s letter to C. Delametherie upon the fubjeét, by which the
proportions were ftated to be hydrogen 93, and oxygen 7. We are in-
clined to think the prefent is the refult obtained by later experiments, as
the former was copied from the Yournal de Phyfique for Nivofe, which
anfwers to the end of December and 21 days of January. Enir,

+ See M. B. Valentini Mufeum Mufeorum oder Vollfiandige Schaubibne
aller materiallien und fpecercyen, p, 439.

Vor, VI, Ff is

218 Method employed at Aftracan for making

is pretty right in what he fays of it in general, It is one of
thofe arts of the Eaft, which, like that of the Turkey dye for
cotton, the preparation of Ruffia leather, ifinglafs, &c. have
remained unknown and unemployed, not becaufe they are kept
fecrets, but becaufe none of the European travellers ever took
the trouble to learn them, and becaufe the materials ufed are
not fo common and fo cheap in Europe., It may be of fome
‘utility, therefore, if I here give a circumftantial defcription
of this art as it is practifed.at Aftracan by the Tartars and
Armenians, efpecially as the method of thefe people is per-
eétly fimilar to that ufed in Turkey, Perfia, and various parts
of Bucharia, and as the fhagreen-makers of Aftracan ac-
- knowledge that they ebrarand the procefs originally from
Perfia.

All kinds of horfes’ or affes? {kin, which have been dreffed
in fuch a manner as to appear grained, are by the Tartars
called /uwwer, by the Perfians /ogre, and by the Turgs /ag7i,
from which the Europeans have made /bagreen yp ehagrin.
The Tartars who refide at Aftracan, with a few of the Ar-
menians of that city, are the only people in the Ruffiay em-
pire acquainted with the art of making fhagreen. Thofe who
follow this occupation not only gain confiderable profit by
the fale of their production to the Tartars of Cuban, Aftra-
can, and Cafan, who ornament with it their Turkey leather
boots, flippers, and other articles made of Jeather; but they
derive confiderable advantage from the great fale of horfes’
hides, which have undergone no other procefs than that of
being fcraped clean, and of which feveral thoufands are an-
gially exported, at the rate of from 75 to 85 roubles per hun-
dred, to Perfia, where there is a fearcity of fuch hides, and
from which the greater part o of the fhagreen manufactured in
that country is prepared. The hind part only of the hide,
however, which is cut out in the form of a crefcent about a
Ruffian ell and a half im length acrofs the loins, and a fhort
ell in breadth along the back, can properly be employed for
fhagreen. The remaining part, as is proved by experience,
js improper for that purpofe, and is therefore rejected.

The preparation of the fkins, after being cut into the above
form, | is as follows :-= —They : are depofited in a tub filled with

pare

{

grained Parchment, or Shagreen. 219

pure water, and fuffered to remain there for feveral days, till
they are thoroughly foaked; and the hair has dropped off.
They are then taken from the tub, one by one, extended on
boards placed in an oblique diretion againft a wall, the cor-
ners of them, which reach beyond the edges of the board,
being made faft, and the hair with the epidermis is then
fcraped off with a blunt iron feraper called wrak. The fkins
thus cleaned are again put in pure water to foak,. When all
the fkins have undergone this part of the procefs, they are
taken from the water a fecond time, fpread out one after the
other as before, and the flefh fide is feraped with the fame
kind of inftrument. They are carefully cleaned alfo on
the hair fide, fo that nothing remains but the pure fibrous
tiffue, which ferves for making parchment, confifting of coats
of white medullary fibres, and which has a refemblance to a
fwine’s bladder foftened in water.

After this preparation, the workmen take a certain kind
of frames ealled pa/zi, made of a ftraight and a femi-circular
piece of wood, having nearly the fame form as the fkins. On
thefe the {kins are extended in as fmooth and even a manner
as pofible by means of cords; and during the operation of
extending them they are feveral times befprinkled with
water, that no part of them may be dry, and occafion an
unequal tenfion. After they have been all extended on the
frames, they are again moiftened, and carried into the houfe,
where the frames are depofited clofe to each other on the
floor with the fleth fide of the fkin next the ground. The
upper fide is then thickly beftrewed with the black exceed-
ingly f{mooth and hard feeds of a kind of goofe-foot, (cheno-
podium album*) which the Tartars call a/abuta, and which
grows in abundance, to about the height of a man, near the
gardens and farms on the fouth fide of the Volga; and that
they may make a ftrong impreffion on the fkins, a piece of felt
is fpread over them, and the feeds are trod down with the feet,
by which means they are deeply imprinted into the foft {kins,

* This chenopodium is often ufed as food by the German colonifis on .
the Volga, on account of the frequent failure of their crops. They employ
ir either as a fubftirute for greens, or pound the feeds, and, with the ad-
dition of a little meal, form them into bread.

Ffa The

220 Method employed at Aftracan for making

The frames, without fhaking the feeds, are then carried out
into the open ait, and placed i in a reclining pofition againft a
wall to dry, the fide covered with the feeds being next the
wall, in order that it may be fheltered from the fans In this ©
ftate the fkins muft be left feveral days to dry in the fun,
until no appearance of moifture is obferved in them; when
they are fit to-be taken from the frames. When the im-
preffed feeds are beat off from the hair fide, it appears full of
indentations or inequalities, and has acquired that impreffion
which is to produce the grain of the fhagreen, after the fkins
have been fubjeéted to the laft fmoothing or feraping, and
have been dipped in a ley, which will be mentioned here-
after, before they receive the dye.

The operation of fmoothing is performed on an inclined
bench or board, which is furnifhed with an iron hook, and
is covered with thick felt or fheep’s wool, on which the dry
fkin may gently reft. The {kin is fufpended in the middle of
the bench or board to its iron hook, by means of one of the
holes made in the edge of the fkin for extending it in its
frame as before mentioned; and a cord, having at its extre-
mity a ftone or a weight, is attached to each end of the fkin,
to keep it in its pofition while under the hands of the work-
man. It is then fubjected to the operation of fmoothing and
fcraping by means of two different inftruments. The firft
ufed for this purpofe, called by the Tartars fokar, is a piece
of fharp iron bent like a hook, with which the furface of the
fhagreen is pretty clofely feraped to remove all the proje@ting
inequalities. This operation, on account of the corneous
‘hardnefs of the dry fkin, is attended with fome difficulty ;
and great caution is at the fame time required that too much
of the impreffion of the a/abuta feed be not deftroyed, which
might be the cafe if the iron were kept too fharp. As the
iron, however, is pretty blunt, which occafions inequalities
on the fhagreen, this inconvenience muft afterwards be re-
medied by means of a fharp feraping-iron or wreak, by which
the furface acquires a perfect uniformity, and only faint im-.
preffions of the alabuta feed then remain, and fuch as the
workman wifhes. After all thefe operations, the fhagreen is
again put into w ater, partly to make it bss and wal to

* raife

grained Parchment, or Shagreen. 22%

raife the grain. As the feeds occafion indentations in the
furface of the fkin, the intermediate fpaces, by the operations
of fmoothing and fcraping, lofe fome part of their projecting
fubftance; but the points which have been deprefled, and
which have loft none of their fubftance, now fwell up above
the feraped parts, and thus form the grain of the fhagreen.
To produce this effect, the fkins are left to foak in water for
twenty-four hours; after which they are immerfed feveral
times in a {trong warm ley, obtained, by boiling, from a
firong alkaline earth named /chora, which is found in great
abundance in the neighbourhood of Aftracan. When the
ikins have been taken from this ley, they are piled up, while
warm, on each other, and fuffered to remain in that ftate
feveral hours; by which means they fwell, and become foft.
They are then left twenty-four hours in a moderately ftrong
pickle of common falt, which renders them exceedingly white

_and beautiful, and fit for receiving any colour, The colour
moft ufual for thefe fkins is a fea-green; but old experrenced
workmen can dye them blue, red, or black, and even make
white fhagreen.

For the green colour nothing is neceffary but filings of
copper and fal-ammoniac. Sal-ammoniac is diffolved in
water till the water is completely faturated ; and the fhagreen
fkins, ftill moift, after being taken from the pickle, are
wafhed over with the folution on the ungrained fleth fide,
and when well moiftened a thick layer of copper filings is
ftrewed over them: the fkins are then folded double, fo that
the fide covered with the filings is innermoft. Each {kin is
then rolled up in a piece of felt; the rolls are all ranged
together in proper order, and they are prefled down in an
uniform manner by fome heavy bodies placed over them,
under which they remain twenty-four hours. During that
period the folution of fal-ammoniac diffolves a quantity of
the cupreous particles fufficient to penetrate the fkin and to
give it a fea-green colour. If the firft application be not
fufficient, the procefs is repeated in the fame manner ; after
which the fkins are fpread out and dried.

For the blue dye, indigo is ufed. About two pounds of it,
reduced to a fine powder, are put into a kettle; cold water is

poured

222 Method employed at Aftracan for making

poured over it, and the mixture is ftirred round till the co-
lour begins to be diffolved. Five pounds of pounded alakar,
which is a kind of barilla or crude foda, prepared by the Ar-
menians and Calmucs, is then diffolved in it, with two pounds
of lime * and a pound of pure honey, and the whole is kept
feveral days in the fun,-and during that time frequently ftirred
round. The fkins intended to be dyed blue muft be moiftened
only in the natrous Jey /chora, but not in the falt brine.
When ftill moift, they are folded up and fewed together at
the edge, the flefh fide being innermoft, and the fhagreened
" hair fide outwards; after which they are dipped three times
‘in the remains of an exhaufted kettle of the fame dye, the

fuperfluous dye being each time expreffed ; and after this”

procefs they are dipped in the frefh dye prepared as above,
which muft not be.exprefled. The {kins are then hung up
_in the fhade to dry; after which they are cleaned and paired
at the edges.

For black fhagreen, gall-nuts and vitriol are employed in
the following manner:—The fkins, moift from the pickle,

are thickly beftrewed with finely pulverifed gall-nuts. They ~

are then folded together, and laid over each other for twenty-
four hours. A new ley, of bitter faline earth or /chora, is in
the mean time prepared, and poured hot into fmall troughs.
In this’ ley each fkin is feveral times dipped; after which
they are again beftrewed with pounded gall-nuts, and placed
in heaps for a certain period, that the galls may thoroughly
penetrate them, and they are dried cst beat, to free them
from the duft of the galls, When this’ is done, they are rubbed
over, on the fhagreen fide; with melted fheep’s tallow, and
expofed a little in the fun, that they may imbibe the greafe.
The fhagreen-makers are accuftomed alfo to roll up each
fkin feparately, and tc prefs or fqueeze it with their hands
againft fome hard fubftance, in order to promote the abforp-
tion of the tallow. The fuperfluous particles are removed by
means of a blunt wooden fcraper (urak); and when this pro-
cefs is finifhed, and the fkins have lain fome time, a fufh-
* Qyick-lime is probably meant here, which, by taking up the carbonic
acid of the alkali, and thereby rendering it cauftic, will enable it to effect
a mechanical folution, or rathet an impalpable comminution, of the indigo,

Epi, :
cient

grained Parchment, or Shagreen. 229"

cient quantity of vitriol of iron is. diffolved in-water, with
which the fhagreen is moiftened on both fides, and by this
operation it acquires a beautiful black dye. It is then drefled
at the edges, and in other places where there are any ble-
mifhes. 4

To obtain white fhagreen, the fkins muft firt be moiftened,
on the fhagreen fide, with a {trong folution of alum. When
the {kin has imbibed this liquor, it is daubed over on both
fides with a pafte made of flour, which is fuffered to dry.
The pafte is then wathed off with alum-water, and the fkin
is placed in the fun till it is completely dry.. As foon as it
is dry, it is gently befmeared with pure melted fheep’s tal-
low, which it is fuffered to imbibe in the fun; and, to pro» ”
mote the effect, it is preffed and worked with the hands,
The fkins are then faftened in fucceffion to the before-men-
tioned bench, where warm water is poured over them, and
the fuperfluous fat is feraped off with a blunt wooden inftru-
ment. In the laft operation the warm water is of great fer-
vice. In this manner fhagreen perfectly white is obtained,
and nothing remains but to pair the edges and drefs it.

But this white fhagreen is not intended fo much for re-
maining in that ftate as for receiving a dark red dye, becaufey.
by the above previous procefs, the colour becomes much
more perfect. The fkins deftined for a red colour muft not
be immerfed firft in ley of bitter falt earth (/chora), and then
-in pickle, but, after they have been whitened, muft be left
to foak in the pickle for twenty-four hours. ‘The dye is pre-
pared from cochineal, which the Tartars call 4zrmitz. About
a pound of the dried herb ¢/chagann, which grows in great
abundance in the neighbourhood of Aftracan, and is a kind
of foda-plant or kali, (/al/ola ericoides*,) is boiled a full
hour in a kettle containing about four common pailfulls of
water; by which means the water acquires a greenifh co-

* The beautiful red Turkey leather is dyed with cochineal prepared
in the fame manner. Profeffor Gmelin junior, in the fecond part of his
Travels through Ruffia, explains the herb ¢#/chagann by artemifia annua,
having doubtlefs been deceived by the appearance the plant acquires after
yt has been dried. Befides, this artemifia is found only in the middle of
Siberia, and never on the weft fide of the Irtifch.

5 lour,

224 On te Plica Polonica.

lour. The herb is then taken out, and about half a sed of
pounded cochineal is put into the kettle, and the liquor is
left to boil a full hour, care being taken to ftir it that it may
not run over. About 15 or 20 drams of a fubftance which
the dyers call Jiiter (orchilla) is added, and when the liquor
has been boiled for fome time longer the kettle is removed
from the fire. The fkins taken from the pickle are then
placed over each other in troughs, and the dye-liquor is
poured over them four different times, and rubbed ‘into them
with the hands, that the colour may be equally imbibed and
diffufed. The liquor each time is exprefled ; after which they
are fit for being dried. Skins prepared in this manner ‘are
fold at a much dearer rate than any of the other kinds.

VIII. Ox that Difeafe peculiar to Poland and fome of the
neighbouring Countries, called the Plica Polonica.

Tu E celebrated Profeffor Brera, who refided in Poland
during the fummer of the year 1795, and who had a good
opportunity of making obfervations on this fingular difeafe
in the country to which it is peculiar, has publith ed the fol- “
Jowing account of it:—‘* Under the term plica polonica is
underftood a difeafe by which the hair on the head and other
parts of the body fwells, becomes matted together, and forms
hard knots, and, on being touched, occations the moft acute
pain. The patient at the fame time is feized with a kind of
nervous fever, and the functions of the brain are deranged. ft
This difeafe prevails throughout all Poland; but it feems to 4
be more peculiar'to Lithuania, where the inhabitants, of every |
age and condition, are, fooner or later, attacked by it. Some- ;
times it is found among the wild animals, but oftener among
the domeftic, and moft frequently among horfes. In Lower ;
Hungary, the Bannat, Croatia, and Sclavonia, there is at q
prefent a fimilar difeafe, from which foreigners who refide
long in thofe countries fuffer more than AS natiyes.

“« The fymptoms of this dreadful malady in general are,
fleep difturbed: by terrible dreams, a fudden depreftion of «
the fpirits, and a loathing of every kind of food, A few :

days

ete cia Sa ae

On the Plica Polonica. 225

days after, gouty pains are felt, fometimes in the arms, and
fometimes in the knees. The difeafe then more and more
manifefts itfelf, accompanied with a fever, at firft of a doubt-
ful nature, but which commonly exhibits a nervous charac-
ter, the affections of which ftill increafe. The phyficians, in
thofe countries where this difeafe prevails, often treat it in an
improper manner, and wafte the time in the application of
palliatives. The pains, uneafinefs, and other affections, are,
however, fometimes leffened by the common mode of treat-
ment, and the patient often recovers in fome meafure his
appetite, and might entertain hopes of a cure, did not a
‘fhivering of the whole body, and a ftronger or weaker heat
which follows, with violent pains and an uncommon heavi-
nefs, remind him too much of the lurking evil. Uncertain
refpecting the event, he wanders about for feveral months,
and, inftead of health, the difeafe returns with more violence
than ever.” The pains in the limbs become more acute, the
itching in the arms greater, and the patient remains confined
to his bed. The hair begins gradually to fwell, and to be-
come clammy, and a fixed pain takes place above the focket
of the eye, and gradually extends over the whole forehead.
The funétions of the brain begin to be deranged; all objects
feem to the patient to have an appearance different from what
they ufually have; and he is frequently feized with fits of gid-
dinefs, and even‘blindnefs. He is at the fame time tormented
with intolerable thirft, and experiences a violent fenfation of }
burning 1 in the throat, and over the whole fkin. The urine
is commonly turbid, almoft of a coffee- brown colour, and
gives a dark feddictiailt The body is coftive.

«© Under thefe circumftances the difeafe increafes, and it
then becomes high time to apply means for leffening, or ra-
ther removing, if poffible, thofe affections which threaten the
life of the patient. This is the critical period for bringing
the difeafe, as the Polifh phyficians fay, to maturity. When
this is accomplifhed, the patient will be paft all danger. The
fureft means of effeéting this end is, to endeavour to excite
perfpiration ; for which purpote the warm bath, ftrengthened
with a decoétion of aromatic or other herbs according to

Vou. VI, Gg circum-

226 On the Plica Polonica.

circumftances, and which the patient ought to ufe every day, is
to be recommended. At other times, the body muft often be
rubbed with flannel, in order. to maintain a determination of
the juices towards the fkin. Diluent medicines, fuch as
the extract of bitters, foap, hemlock, and mercurius dulcis if
no fcorbutic diathefis exifis, are to be adminiftered internally.
It has been confirmed by repeated experiments, that ftrong
perfpiration, often continued, for feveral days, is the confe-
quence of this treatment. The matter perfpired is in general
exceedingly clammy, and has a naufeous foetid fmell. In
confequence of this perfpiration the morbid affections gra-
dually difappear, the patient feels himfelf lighter, and might
imagine himfelf quite well, were he not obliged to drag about
a heavy load of filthy matted hair, filled with a multitude of
fmall worms *, By cutting off the hair, the patient would be
expofed to the utmoft danger: the confequences are, blind-
nefs, incurable convulfions, and often death. There is an
inftance of a lady, who, after having been almoft cured, died
fuddenly on attempting to draw a comb, even with the utmott
gentlenefs, through her hair. The beft method is, to bear
the inconvenience with patience for three or four years. At
the favourable period when the hair begins to be difengaged,
at which time the young hair is feen {pringing up, the follow-
ing rules are to be obferved :—A place is to be fought for in
the head where the matted hair is loofe and raifed up: into this
place the finger muft be thruft, and the operator muft endea-
vour, but without ufing force, to loofen it every where around;
and this procefs muft be daily repeated, fometimes in one place
and fometimes in another. The hair which has been com-
pletely difengaged is then to be cut with great caution. After
this operation, fhould the pain in the orbit of the eye return,
and if giddinefs, accompanied with convulfive movements in
the arms, fhould take place, the operation of difengaging the
hair mutt be fufpended, and bathing be refumed. By thefe
means the affections not only difappear, but the remaining
clotted hair often becomes loofened of itfelf. In this difeafe

* The ufe of hair-powder, it is faid, was firft introduced for the pur-

pofe of concealing the defurmity occafioned by this difeafee Epit, h
the

On the Ammoniure and Acid of Cobalt. a9

the hair often {wells in fuch a manner that blood iffues from
it when cut.”

Dr. Brera is of opinion, that this terrible difeafe is not to
be afcribed, as fome believe, to the dirtinefs of the people in
Poland.

| oe heh le a Se

es

IX. On the Ammoniure of Cobalt, and an Acid contained in
the Grey Oxyd of that Metal known under the Name of
Zaffar. By L. BRUGNATELLI*.

‘Vue metallic ammoniures have for fome time paft en-
gaged my attention. Thefe compounds refult from a che-
mical combination of ammonia with metals. Hitherto they
have been little examined, that of copper excepted, notwith-
ftanding their charaéteriltic properties, which diftinguifh them
from other bodies. The ammoniure, which firft became the
object of my refearches, was that of cobalt t. The parti-
cularities which it prefented are as follows :—

1. I had feveral times obferved that the precipitate, formed
by ammonia in a folution of the nitrat of cobalt, was re-dif-
folved in that alkali. I colle&ted fome of it on a filter,
and wafhed and dried it. On half an ounce of this precipitate,.
which was of a dark colour, I poured two ounces of liquid
ammonia, ftopped the bottle, and left it at reft. The tem-
perature of the atmofphere was 20° above zero of Reaumur.
At the end of twenty-four hours the alkali had affumed a
dark-red colour t, and the precipitate was entirely diffolved.
I thought I had formed a pure ammoniure, but I endeavoured
to procure a larger quantity by other means.

2. I tried to diffulve fmalt or blue cobalt in cauftic am-
monia, but without fuccefs, even when long digeftion was

%* From the Annales de Chimte, No. 98+ + oy

+ I have fince.examined the ammoniures of mercury, zinc, copper,
and arfenic.

+ Bergman had obferved only that ammonia affumed a red colour with
gobalt. Cobaltum, fays he, a niccolo differt quod omnibus acidis et alcalt
volatilé folvatur colore rubro. This circumftance has been noticed by all
chemifts without adding any thing to it.

Gg2 employed ;

~

228 On the Ammoniure and Atiu — 2iowiee

employed; but I eafily fucceeded in diffolving the grey oxyd
of this metal, commonly called zaffar. This fubftance af-
forded me the means of eafily procuring ammoniure in abun-
dance, and permitted me to repeat and vary my experiments
different ways. -

3. L evaporated to drynefs the ammoniure hind from
zaffar. The concrete refiduum I obtained, was compofed of
two very diftin& fubftances; one of which had a dark red,
and the other a pale-yellowifh colour.

4. I poured diftilled water on this refiduum, nifiie the
matter with a glafs fpatula. The red part was eneete dif-
folved, and communicated to the water a beautiful rofe

-colour. The yellowith matter remained undiffolved.

5. The yellowith fubftance may be obtained during the

- evaporation of the liquid ammoniure, from which it begins

to be feparated at the moment when it is reduced to half its
bulk. The red-fubftance remains diffolved in the Jaft quarter
of the liquid *, : ,

6. The ammonia then takes from the zaffar, and holds in
folution, two very diftinét matters; one of which, foluble in
water, has a red colour; and the other, infoluble in the fame
liquid, has a yellowith colour. The latter fubftance is the
pure oxyd of cobalt. I think I difcovered in the former a
peculiar acid, diftinét from all the other acids known,

Of the pure Oxyd of Cobalt,

47. The yellowith fubftance, which is feparated by the flow
evaporation of the ammoniure in the air or in the fun, may
be confidered as the pure oxyd of cobalt. It is infipid, in-
odorous, infoluble in water, and foluble in all the mineral
acids. The nitro-muriatic acid forms with it a yellowith
folution, which is in great meafure deprived of its colour by,
the addition of a little diftilled water.

8. This folution _may be employed for fympathetic ink,
like the common nitro-muriat of cobalt. Sometimes the
acid refufes to diffolve the whole of the oxyd, but by adding
a little water the folution is completed. $

* By preferving ammoniure of cobalt for fome time, even in bottles
well flopped, there is feparated from it a yellow matter. ; ¢
aS 9. This

rT te BON : Acid of Cobalt. 220

9. This folution is precipitated by the pruffiat of pot-ath
of a blueifh-green colour, which does not change. It is not
precipitated by the gallic acid, but the mixture acquires a
darker colour. In other refpeéts this folution exhibits all the
phenomena of a common folution of cobalt in the fame acid.

10. The muriatic acid diffolves exceedingly well the yellow
oxyd, and aflumes a beautiful highly-charged green colour.
This colour immediately difappears with the nitric acid as

well as with a little water, but it reappears by the addition

of a little of the muriatic acid well concentrated.

Of the pure Ammonjure of Cobalt.

11. The yellow oxyd diffolves entirely in ammonia, and
_ forms pure ammoniure of cobalt. This ammoniure has a
yellow, and fometimes a rofe, colour. It is not decompofed
by acids. It is deprived of its colour by the muriatic acid.
The pruffiat of pot-ath changes it to grey, and occafions after-
wards a depofit of the fame colour. The fulphure of pot-ath
makes it affume a dark colour inclining to black, and preci-
pitates from it fulphure of cobalt *. The borat (alkaline) of
foda is decompofed by it, and precipitated into borat of cobalt
of a very white colour,

On the Acid drawn from the Ammoniure of Cobalt, and
ats Properties.

4

12. The red fubftance of the preceding experiments was
feparated from the yellow oxyd. For this purpofe I evapo-
rated in the fun liquid ammoniure; and when it was reduced
to about the fourth of its volume, and no longer precipitated
in a fenfible manner yellow oxyd, I filtered it through paper.
What paffed had a dark red colour, like decoétion of cochi-
neal, This liquor emitted no odour, but had a very pun-
gent tafte: it was again expofed to the fun till it was per-
fectly deficcated.

13. The remaining mafs was diffolved in diftilled water,

* The fulphure of cobalt dried in the air approaches in colour to zaffar.
When rubbed on’ paper it affumes a metallic f{plendour like the gréater
part of the other metallic fulphures; when heated it emits a fulphureous
odour, and inflames when thrown on burning coals,

which

230 On the Ammoniure and Acid of Cobalt.

which was tinged of a beautiful ruby colour. This folution
manifefted an unequivocal charaéter of acidity. On cooling,
it depofited fome. fmall brilliant cryftals, which I, found to be
a combination of the acid with ammonia. As this. acid
feemed to be diftinét from all the other acids, I have given
it the peculiar name of the cobaltic acid.

14. To afcertain whether the cobaltic acid could be fepa-
rated from the ammoniure of cobalt by means of heat, I fub-
jected a pound of it to diftillation im a retort. After three-
fourths of the liquid had paffed into the receiver I ftopped
the diftillation, and found that the retort contained a liquid
rendered turbid by the yellow oxyd precipitated. I decanted
the liquid after the precipitate had depofited itfelf, and eva-
porated it to drynefs. The refiduum was yellowifh, and
partly foluble in water, to which it communicated a yellow
tint. This folution poffeffed all the acid characters of the
red liquid of No. 15.

15. In another experiment I put a pound of the ammo-
niure of cobalt into a retort, and carried the diftillation to
drynefs. The cooled matter which remained at the bottom
of the retort was blue; but it had this colour only at its
furface, being internally yellow. After fome hours this blue
colour difappeared, and the mafs aflumed a red colour.

16. A remarkable difference between the refiduum of the
evaporation in the fun and that by fire is, that the latter gave

up to the water the cobaltic acid almoft colourlefs, fo that '

the folution, filtered cold, was almoft as limpid as water. I
remarked befides, that by the latter procefs the acid does not
contain any, or contains very little, of cobalt of animonia
(cobalt d’ammoniaque).
_I fhall now enumerate the principal charaéters by which
the new acid is diftinguifhed.
1. It prefents itfelf under a concrete form, and is not vo-
Jatilifed by fire.
2. It is fometimes of a red colour, fometimes pale yellow,
and at other times entirely colourlefs.
3. It has no {mell.
4. It has an acid, pungent, but not difagreeable tafte.
5. It gives a tinge of bright red to an infufion of turnfol.
6. It

—"

Onthe Ammoniure and Acid of Cobalt. 2gt }

6. It is perfeétly foluble in water.

7. It decompofes all the alkaline fulphures from which it
precipitates the fulphur.

8. It precipitates ammoniure of copper of a bright green,
and that of zinc of a pure white colour.

g. It precipitates the fulphat of copper of the fame colour
as the ammoniure of that metal.

10. It precipitates the nitrat of filver white ;

11. The nitro-muriat of tin the fame;

12. The nitrat of mercury of a clear ftraw colour ;_

13. The acetite of lead white.

14. It does not make any fenfible change in folutions of
gold and platina.

15. It precipitates lime-water in a white coagulum info-
luble in water, and fuper-faturated with acid.

16. It precipitates the acetite and muriat of barytes.

17. It is feparated from the water which holds it in folu-
tion by alcohol.

18. Employed as a fympathetic ink, it is not coloured
green or blue like folutions of cobalt, but renders the paper
brown and then black when it has been expofed to a ftrong
heat, as is the cafe with other acids.

19. With tin&ture of gall-nuts newly made, it forms an
abundant yellowifh precipitate.

20. With a faturated folution of foda it gives an irregular
tranfparent falt foluble in water, but not deliquefcent in the
air.

21. With pot-afh it forms a falt cryftallifable in fquare
cryfials, tranfparent, and not deliquefcent in the open air;

22. With ammonia a falt foluble m its acid;

23. With barytes an opake falt eryftallifable with diffi-
culty.

The prefence of an acid in zaffar made me fufpec&t that °
this acid might be of an arfenical nature; but this doubt foon
vanifhed by comparing the characters of the two acids.

1ft, The arfenic acid does not precipitate folutions of filver
like the cobaltic acid. 2d, The arfenic acid precipitates
lime-water: this arfeniate is rediffolved by the acid as well
as by a frefh quantity of lime-water.. The contrary is the

| cafe

232 On the Ammoniure and Acid of Cobalt.

cafe with the acid of cobalt. 3d, The arfenic does not, like
the cobaltic acid, decompofe the muriat and the acetite of ba-
tytes. 4th, The arfenic acid is foluble in alcohol, which
precipitates the cobaltic acid under a concrete form.

It remained to be afcertained whether the acid extracted
from zaffar exifted already formed in that oxyd, or whether
it was produced by the action of the ammonia.

As the acid of cobalt readily diffolves in water, I boiled fix
pounds of zaffar in eight pounds of water for a quarter of an
hour, and filtered tie. liquor while warm. What paffed was
tranfparent and colourlefs, but manifefted a fenfible tafte. I
evaporated the liquid, taking care to cover the veffel with a
piece of filk. When reduced to one-half it became turbid,
without the fubftance which was feparated appearing fenfibly
coloured. I continued the evaporation till a third only of
the liquor remained. When I removed it from the fire there
was depofited a very white matter, which, on coming into
contact with the air, affluméd a beautiful rofe colour. I fe-
parated this matter, and colleéted it on the filter.

The liquor which paffed had a bright-yellow colour, and
was perfectly tranfparent. It manifefted in a decided manner
an acid tafte; reddened tinéture of turnfol; fpeedily decom-
pofed lime-water, falts of barytes, and thofe of filver; was
precipitated with alcohol, &c. In a word, it exhibited: all
the:properties of the cobaltic acid obtained by the Mea
before mentioned. .

The red depofit which remained on the filter was infipid,
and gave to the muriatic acid a very beautiful green colour.
It was the pure oxyd of cobalt. This oxyd “difelvad’s ina
large quantity in its acid, and was precipitated from it in
proportion as the latter was concentrated. The acid which
the ammonia had feparated from the zaffar was found then
‘ entirely formed in that fubftance. It ftill remains to be
determined, in a pofitive manner, what is its radical. In the
mean time I thought it my duty to retain its name of the
cobaltic acid,

ages: hee ie

X. Objervations refpecting Oyflers, and the Places where |
found. By Profeffr BECKMANN.

[ Concluded from Page 103.]

Tretanp has very abundant oyfter-banks near the vil-
lage of Arklow, on the eaftern fide of Dublin, from which
feed is conveyed to the artificial beds of the capital on the
northern fide near Clontarf; and further fouth, at Sutton,
not far from Howth. Alfo at Polebeg and Dalkey, not far
from Dublin; and particularly Ireland’s Eye, where the
largeft and beft oyfters lie at the depth of about eighteen or
twenty fathoms under the water. Likewife to the north of
Dublin, near Rufh and Skerries, where the oyfters are falter
and harder than in places where more frefh water falls into
the fea*. Scotland has great abundance of oyfters near the
ifland of Inch Keith, which is not far from Leith.

I have no intention of enumerating all the places where
oyfter-beds are found; but I fhall here give a lift of thofe with
which I am acquainted, becaufe it perhaps may be of ufe
to travellers who think objects of this kind not unworthy of
their notice. Thefe fhell-fith are found in various places on
the coaft of France; fuch as the mouth of the Seine, where,
though few in number, they are of an excellent quality. On
the coaft of Caen, i in Normandy, there is a bank fix miles in
length and one in breadth.. They are found alfo in the Bay
_ of Ifigny, and in the neighbourhood of Cherbourg. Thofe
in particular are highly valued which are colleéted at the
mouths of fome ftreams where the fea-water is fometimes
thrown entirely back, and which are called Awitres de pied.
Granville, in Normandy, gains 50,000 livres + by this fithery.
On the coaft of Brittany there are very large oyfters, parti-
cularly at Concalle, where a great many are preferved in
places enclofed for the purpofe. The bank at Painpol is al-
mott entirely exhaufted. At the mouth of the Loire; between
the rocks on the coaft of Poitou, on the coaft of Aunis and
Saintonge, where thofe who make bay-falt tran{plant oyfters to

* Natural Hiory of the County of Dublin, by Rutty, Vol. I. p. 376.
+ This at leaft is afferted in Voyage dans les depaytements de la France.

Vou, VI. Hh mar{hy

234 Obfervations refpetting Oyflers,

marfhy places, in which they acquire a better quality, thougls
they never become fo good as the green ones of Satnténge’s
alfo 4 la téte de Buch, near Bourdeaux. In Languedoc, near
Cape Leucate, there is an oyfter-bank at the depth of twenty -
feet. At the mouth of the Rhone, on the coaft of Provence.
At Paris thofe oyfters are’ moft efteemed which come from
Bretagne, Rochelle, Bourdeaux, and particularly from Medge.

The Dutch have fome oyfter-beds on the coaft of Zealand,
near Zierikzee; oyfters are kept there alfo in pits as well as
at the town of Brouwerfhaven, and particularly at Petten in
North Holland: thofe of the laft-mentioned place are much
efteemed, and are known under the name of Petten oyfters.
For -thefe pits * many fhip loads are tranfported every year
from the coafts of England.

There are exceedingly rich oyfter-banks in \the duchy of
Holftein and in the neighbourhood of Jutland, which fup-
ply moft of the oyfters ufed in the northern part of Ger-
many. I entertained hopes that we fhould have obtained a
complete defcription of thefe oyfter-beds in the highly valu-
able collection of the Provinzial-blittern of Schlefwig- Hol-
ftein, as well as of the trade to which they give rife; but hi-
therto this hope, as far as I know, has never Leet realifed.
It gives me greater pleafure, therefore, to be able to fupply
in fome meafure this deficiency by the information on that
fubje&t, which, by the means of Profeflor Tychfen and
M. Adler, I ebieiied from M. Todfen, a clergyman at
Uberg near Tondern.

The royal oyfter-beds lie all together on the weftern coaft
of the duchy of Schlefwig, between the iflands Fanée, Rom or
Romée, Sylt, Fohr, Amrém, Nordftrand, Silworm, Siide-
rog, and extend from the diftrict of Ripen to Helgoland.
The number of the beds from which oyfters can be fithed is
at prefent reckoned to be fifty: the greater part of them take

* Ocflerpulten waarin de oeflers gefpeend worden. Oyfter-banks firft
’ arofe on the coafts of Holland about the beginning of this century, a few
years before it began to be obferved that fhips were deftroyed by fea-
worms, as we are informed by Sellius in his Hi/?. zat. teredinum, p. 289.
See) alfo Leeuwenhock’s Arcana nature, or Experimenta et contemplat,

Pe 459° is
_ their

and the Places where found. 235

their names from the perfons by whom they were difcovered.
Some of them are a furlong, fome a quarter of a mile, and
fome half a mile in length; and their breadth is equally va-
rious. M. Todfen afcribes, and with great propriety, the
excellent quality of thefe oyfters to the water which in the
{pring is fwept by a continued eaft wind that blows from the
continent through the canal and fluices. The oyfters of
thefe different banks are not all of the fame kind; in fome
they are large, in others of a moderate fize, and in many
only fmall: the laft, were they left to grow older, would
never attain to a larger fize. The large oyfters are called de-
putat-auftern, the reft kaufmanfauftern. Till the yeat 1794,
the royal chamber of domains let thefe oyfter-banks to the
highett bidder for the term-of fix years; but as this period
was too fhort for the perfons who took the leafe, and preju-
dicial to the fifhery, they were let to the prefent leffee,
M. Afmuffen, merchant in Tondern, during his natural
life, from the year 1795, for the yearly fum of 7505 dollars,
which muft always be paid in advance. _He has bound him-
felf to furnifh yearly 112% barrels of oyfters to be delivered
from time to time, but-each time never lefs than four, and
never more than eight barrels, carriage free, at Haderfleben,
for the royal family. This city is diftant about ten miles
from the village of Hoyer, where the oyfters are landed, and
which is a mile from Tondern. The leffee is permitted to
fith for and fell oyfters only during the four laft and the four
firft months of the year. The inftruments ufed for fifhing
up thefe oyfters are of the fame kind as thofe employed in
other countries, The mof common is a kind of drag-net
made of thongs of feals-fkin worked together, and faftened to.
an iron frame which ferapes up the oyfters. Thefe nets,

_ when the fifhermen have'arrived at the proper place, are let
down by means of ropes made faft to the iron frame,
M. Afmuffen ufes at prefent eighteen veffels, which are per-
feétly fimilar to thofe of which figures have been given by
Duhamel. The fifhermen bring their lading either to the
above-mentioned village of Hoyer or to Hufum*, which is
feven

* Ihave been told by a friend that prayers for the prefervation of this
Hhz oyfter-

236 Ob/fervations refpeéting Oy/ters,

feven miles from Tondern. From there the oyfters are con-
veyed to Apenrade and Flenfburg, and thence in fhips to the
Eaft Sea, where the confumption is greateft, for a barrel
fometimes is fold there at the rate of 100 roubles.. It is not
true that they coft dearer to the natives than to foreigners :
a hundred coft, a dollar ; and a barrel, containing from 800
to 1000 oyfters, about ten dollars, fometimes more or lefs.

The number caught, and the confumption, vary exceed-
ingly in different years. During ftormy weather and fevere

oft, none can be fifhed. The number fifhed up yearly, the
leffee, for reafons which cannot be difapproved, has hitherto
kept a fecret; but it is certain that 2000 barrels would fearcely
be fufficient to pay the rent and expences.

Thefe thell-fith are more or lefs injured by froft and ftormy
weather, according to the depth at which they lie. Some
beds at high tides have only eight, fome three, and fome
{carcely two fathoms water above them; and the laft fuffer
moft when continued fro{t prevails with a wind from the eaft
or north, becaufe on thofe occafions the tide is fearcely per-
ceptible on this coaft. The beds during ftormy weather are
fometimes covered with fand and fea-weeds, but by the fame
caufe they may be freed from them. Thofe beds which are
in danger of being covered with mud, fand, fhells, or fea-
weed, the fifhermen endeavour to keep clean by continual
fifhing on them; but thofe beds which contain a great num-
ber of young oyfters they fpare as much as poffible.

The five-fingered fifth infefts thefe beds, but the oyfter-

fifhers call it the ftar-fifh. A long red worm, alfo, with a great. .

number of feet, is found among thofe oyfters which are old
and fickly. Oyfters of three years old are accounted fit for
fale. The leffee is forbidden, under the fevereft penalties, to
fith up any younger. The fithermen mutt carefully feparate
“the young ones from thofe’ which are eatable, and throw
them back into the beds. To be able to diflinguifh the three
years old oyfters, itis neceffary to be well acquainted with the
oyfter-bed were formerly offered up in the church of Hufum ; bur this
has been omitted for feveral years paft, becaufe the owner refufed to allow
the clergyman about two hundred oyfters, which he claimed for performing

ae ait beds

and the Places where found. 237

beds where they are found: if this is the cafe, they may be
eafily known from the young oyfters by their form, and the
fize of their fhell.

The oyfter-banks of Jutland lie on the eaftern fide of the
northern extremity, near Fladftrand, a market-town, where
there is a paflage over to Norway; alfo at the ifland of Leffoe,
fituated in the Cattegat, three miles from Sabie, in the dif-
trict of Aalborg. Refpeéting this fifhery, feveral regulations
have been publifhed, one of which is dated February 1709.
Attempts have often been made to tranfplant oyfters to the
large bays which extend from the Cattegat twenty miles
acrofs the country, and nearly interfect it; but they have
been attended with as little fuccefs as thofe on the coaft of
Seeland.

Norway has excellent oyfters, and in great abundance on
the weftern coafts. The beft are thofe found on the rocks,
_and called rock-oyfters. Many of them are pickled, and
fent in jars and other veffels, which contain the fixteenth
part of a barrel, to different parts of the Eaft Sea. Thefe
oyfters often contain pearls; but they are not of a large fize,
and never have complete fplendour.

Sweden has excellent oyfters on the coaft of Bahus-Lan,
near the ifland of Kafteré, a mile weft from Strémftad, from
which they are fent, as well as from Udewalla, to every part
of the kingdom. ‘The fifhermen there pretend that, when an
oyfter-bed has been exhaufted, it requires from four to five
years before it is again ftocked *.

Italy has oyfters of different qualities. Thofe found near
Ancona are of a large fize, but not very well tafted. Thofe
are accounted the beft which are produced in prodigious
multitudes near Tarento, in the fea called Mare Piccolo, or
Ul Picciol Mare, which is a large bay that extends paft Ta-
rento towards the north-eaft. I mention this circumftance, —
becaufe in moft of the geographical books and charts thefe
names are wanting. I found them only in an old chart of
the Terra di Otranto, by J. Janfon, though they often occur
in books of travels,

* Kalm’s Waftgotha och Bahuflanfdka refa. Stockholm 1746. 8vo,
p 119 and 257, :
The

238 Obfervations refpeting Oyfters,

- The Mediterranean fea, in general, has more fhell-fith than
the ocean any where contains in the fame fpace; but no part ;
of it is more abundant in this refpe& than the Golfo Taran-
2ino, the harbour of the city, and the Picciol Mare. Fithing
is the principal or only occupation of the inhabitants, who
chiefly live by it: on this account the greateft care is taken
to preferve and increafe the oyfter-beds. At prefent there
are feven, which belong partly to the king, partly to the
clergy, and partly to private perfons. They are all let on
leafe. Thofe who pay to the proprietors 30 carlini may_fith
for oyfters till St. Andrew’s day. It is afferted that they bring
im yearly 21,348 ducats, and. that the duty on-all the oyfters
and fhell-fith which are fent from the city amounts to 5615.
If we add to this what is gained by the preparation of byffus
(/ana pinna*) we may eftimate, according to the affertion of
the archbifhop Jofeph Capece-Latro +, the whole annual re-
turn at 100,000 ducats. Great care is here taken that the
oyfters may not be difturbed during the time they are fpawn-
ing, and that all the young ones be thrown back again into
the fea. It is generally believed here that all fhell-fith are
fatteft and fulleft at the time of the full moon.

The oyfters of the Mare Piccolo are at prefent to the rich
Italians what thofe of the Lucrine lake were to the ancientst.
This lake extended in Campania from Baiz to the lake Aver-
nus, and was feparated from the fea only by a mole; but,

* Akind of filky threads, about five or fix inches in length, which
fome kinds of fhell-fith (myzilus pina) throw out, and with which they
attach themfelves to the rocks and other folid bodies. When thefe threads
are burnt, they emit, as filk does, a fmell like that of urine. The pinna
marina throws outa éy/fus, which is fit for being manufaétured, and is
valued more than wool. At Naples, Medffina, Palermo, and Corfica,
ftockings, gloves, &c. are made of this fubftance. They are exceedingly
warm, and are confidered as prefervatives againft the gout. Epir.

+ Memoria fui tflacei di Taranto, without date or place: the author’s
mame is found only at the end of the preface. See alfo Von Salis Reéifex
wa verfcbiedene provinzen des Kénigreicbs Neapel, in the appendix to the
firf{ volume.

+ The oyfters of Tarentum alfo were much efteemed by the ancients.
Aulus Gellius, Lib. VII. cap. 16. or rather Varro, reckons the ofrea Ta-
rentina among the greateft delicacies.

though

and the Places where found. 239

though it has been celebrated by fo many poets, it is at pre-
fent only a pond, which is fcarcely fufficient for watering
cattle. In the year 1538, on St. Michael’s day, an earth-
quake, which had continued fome time, became fo violent
that the lake retired from its banks, and its bafon was almoft
entirely filled up; as was the cafe, in part, with the lake
Avernus. The neighbouring fmall town of Tripergala was
fwallowed up with all its inhabitants and riches. It con-
tained a great many monks and nuns, who, it is faid, led
yery irregular lives.“ It might have been expected,” fays
Blainville, “ that the gulph would have been fatisfied with
the nuns and monks, and that it would not have carried its
revenge further: but this was not the cafe; as a monument
to pofterity, it threw up fuch a quantity of filth, that it pro-
duced a mountain a mile in height and four miles in circum-
ference.”

The Venetian oyfters I have already mentioned. They
are fent to Vienna, and perhaps further; and thofe who are
accuftomed to old oyfters are faid (no doubt ironically) to
find them much more pleafant than frefh ones when they
meet with them in other places *.

For fome years paft oyfters have been brought to Hamburgh
from the following places, though from many of them their -
arrival is accidental :—London; Havre; Schelling, an ifland
near the coaft of Weft Friefland; Borkum, an ifland near
Groningen ; Soltkamp, in the province of Groningen; Wan-
geroeg; Feverfham; Amerum or Amréen, an ifland near
Rypen; Schirmerkog, and Feburfon. With the laft place,
to which fhips, I believe, have gone only within thefe two
years, I am not acquainted. The one before, no doubt,
means the ifland of Schiermonigkoog, which lies near Frief-
land, to the eaft of the ifland of Ameland. Wangeroeg is

* Becher, in his Narrifch Weifheit, p.201, juftly ridicules the propofal
“of William Schréder, fon of the then chancellor of Gotla, for ftocking the
ponds in the gardens of Vienna with oyfter-brood: for oyfters require falt
water; and even new beds formed in the fea do not always fucceed. The
Society for the Encouragem ‘nt of the Arts at London has often offered
premiums on this fubjet. Se: Memoirs of Agriculture, by Doffie. Lon-
don 1763, Vol. I. p. 307+

an

240 Improved Apparatus for Filtering and Sweetening

an ifland which belongs to the lordfhip of Jever, and lies at
the diftance of a mile from Wangerland. J.J. Winckel-
mann fays, in his Oldenburg chronicle: ‘ In the E.S. E.
near this ifland, oyfters were tranfplanted about twenty years
ago, and propagated, but they have been referved for the fo-
vereion lord.” Winckelmann wrote about the end of the
Jaft century, but in what year I have not been able to learn.

XI. Defcription of Mr. CoLyiER’s improved Apparatus for
Filtering and Sweetening Water and other Fluids.

‘Tue importance of obtaining pure water for culinary
purpofes is fo obvious, that any invention for facilitating that
ebject deferves, and will be fure to meet with, due attention
from the public, as it is a matter that very much concerns
their health.

The general practice of palais a fluid fimply through the
pores or interftices of any compact fubftance is attended with
obvious objections. If the filter is either of animal or vege-
table prodution, it muft neceflarily be a€ted upon by the
fluid, which at the fame time percolates through its own
fediment and corruption. Hence arifes the neceffity of fre-
quent change of the filter, which, while it does not alto-
gether remove the evil, is at the fame time attended with
much trouble and expence. If we ufe natural or artificial
ftone, or any other fubftance found in the mineral kingdom,
the fediment finds its way into the fubftance of the filter,
which is thereby rendered extremely foul, and cannot be
completely cleanfed by any contrivance hitherto reforted to
for that purpofe. In percolations through fand, or any thing
in the form of powder, this reafoning does not completely
apply; but in that cafe the powder muft be often difplaced
to be wafhed or changed. If unconfined, the fluid forms
channels for itfelf in patios direétions; and if confined, as
by mechanical force, in 2 {trong box, it is liable to the very
objections urged againft the ule of compact fubftances. The
inventor of the machines, of which it is now propofed to give
fome account, does not pretend to have arrived at the ne plus

7 ultra

Water and other Fluids. 24t

zJtra of improvement in an art of fo much importance to
fociety as that of purifying water. So far, however, as con-
cerns the difficulty hitherto complained of mm the procefs of
filtration, we think he has completely fucceeded. ‘He has
alfo confulted the only true principles which can fhorten the
extreme tedioufnefs of this procefs.

Firft, The groffer particles and corruption form no obftruc-
tion, as the fluid takes a direétion from the exterior of the
filter inwards.

Secondly, As the filtering mednim ‘comprifes numerous
cylinders of fmall diameters, the contents of which are alfo
fmall compared with their external furface, the percolating
fuperficie#@ltogether is ‘as much increafed as the magnitude
_ of the machine will allow.

Thirdly, As thefe cylinders do not themfelyes form the
veffel containing the fluid, but ‘are placed in the veffel, they
fufiain a preffure proportioned ‘to the whole perpendicular

height of the fluid within it.

Moreover, it muft be admitted that the fubftance chofén
‘as a percolating medium is free from any poffible chemical
objection, being formed of materials of fufficient durability,
and altogether mfoluble in water and moft other fluids.

-Fig. 1, (Plate TX.) a fection of a ciftern of any materials
and of any fize, with a cock A to draw water for common
ufe. B, a leaden refervoir, holding 4, 6, or 8 gallons, placed
infide, the cock C of which comes through and is foldered
into the fide of the ciftern, from which filtered water is drawn
off. The bottom of the refervoir is raifed about two inches
above the lower edge DD of the fide B, that it may ftand
above the fediment in the water.—EE are 4, 6, or more
hollow cylinders, ¢lofed at one end, faftened into the lead,
formed of argil and filex baked together in a potter’s kiln,
through which the water pérdolates: into the refervoir B.—
F, a tube a few inches diameter, as high as the ciftern, with
a {mall aperture at top for the air to efcape, while its dimen-
‘fions anfwer another purpofe. As water will find its level
when the machine has been long at reft, the water will ob-
tain the fame altitude in the tube as it ftands at in the ciftern ;
and whenever it is drawn off for common purpofes, the fame
principle caufes it to fall in the tube, pafting inverfely through

Vou. VI. eS the

24% Apparatus for Filtering Water and other Fluids.

the pores of the cylinders, and producing thereby a reflux as
well as a flux, which will always keep the pores free from
any obftruction.

Fig. 2. a fection of a cafk or tub, contrived, as to the filter-
ing part, precifely on the fame principles, but furnifhed with
a {weetening apparatus, which confifts of broken crockery
placed between two partitions, fo that the water poured in at
the top falls through fmall apertures upon innumerable fur-
“faces; and the cafk being perforated all round at GG, is ex-
pofed to atmofpheric air, probably fome hours before it efcapes
drop by drop into the divifion below.

The referyoir only differs in fhape from thofe contrived for
cifterns, as may be feen Fig. 3. which is a horizontal fection
of the cafk Fig. 2.

Fig. 4. a fection of a cafe lined with lead, and furnithed
infide with cylinders fupported on a frame above a ciftern
lined with lead to receive the filtered water. It only differs
from the cafk in this refpect, that the filtering procefs pre-
cedes the fweetening; the foul water is drawn off at the up-
per, and the water for ufe at the lower, cock. A funnel or
bafon, with a hole in its bottom, is placed within the frame
of this apparatus between the cafe and the ciftern already
defcribed, Through this funnel, which is filled with broken
crockery, the water which falls from the cafe is obliged to
pafs before it can reach the ciftern. A vertical fection of this
funnel is reprefented in Fig. 5.

This apparatus is provided with handles and rings defigned
for the convenience of moving, lafhing to a fhip, &c. The
frame is furnifhed with a hanging door on each fide impan-
nelled with canvafs, which, while it excludes duft, admits air,
and may be lifted up to examine the ftate of the ciftern when
neceffary.

Fig. 6. a longitudinal fection of one of the cylinders, and
a feparate view of its bottom, into the fquare hole of which
a tube of box wood enters. The cylinder is fixed by means
of a nut and fcrew, and, with the affiftance of leather, a

found joint, is made to conneé¢t it with the leaden bottom of

the cafe Fig..4 and 5.
It would be vain to attempt, by mere mechanical nieans,
to free water from thofe principles which are held in a ftate

4 of

Bests

On the Caufes of Elafticity. 243
of perfect folution ; neverthelefs it is of great importance, by
rendering rain or river water as clear and tranfparent as hard
water ({pring water), to preclude in moft cafes the neceffity
of ufing the latter, which generally abounds with pernicious
impregnations colleéted from the bowels of the earth by
chemical decompofition.

XII. A curfory View of fome of the late Difcoveries in
Science.
[Continued from Page 132. ]

Barrver has made refearches refpecting the caufe of
-elafticity, which he afcribes to two principles: 1. ‘* Every
body in nature,”’ fays he, “ is porous, and thefe pores are
proportioned to the denfity of the fubftance: 2. Thefe pores
are filled with different fluids, and principally with caloric.
But caloric poffeffes a ftrong repulfive force; from which it.
follows, that, when an elaftic body is compreffed, the caloric
in its pores drives back by its repulfive power the difplaced
parts, and brings them to their former ftate.’”” Libes, who
has examined the fame fubject, makes elafticity to depend
on caloric interpofed either between the molecule of the
bodies, or combined with them, and at the fame time on
the attractive force of thefe molecule. ‘ This being pre-
mifed,” fays he, “ I fay, that the reftoration of folid bodies
after compreffion is a combined effect, which depends in part
on the repulfive force which their integral moleculz have
received from caloric, and in part from the attractive force
of thefe molecule.” He then applies elegant formule of
calculation to thefe phenomena.

Soquet has made experiments, which feem contrary to thofe
of Count Rumford, refpecting the non-conduétibility of ca-
loric by fluids. ** Thave feen,”’ fays he, ‘* at Venice a piece
of glafs, in a ftate of incandefcence, immerfed into a pail of
water without the latter being reduced to a ftate of vapour ;
but, having plunged my naked arm into the water, I found
it exceedingly hot. I then approached my hand gently be~
low the mafs of glafs, and fenfibly felt its heat.”” He admits,
however, that fluids in general are not good conductors of

Ti2 i caloric.

244. Caloric in, Liguids and in Vapour.

caloric. He then makes fome refearches refpecting the.
caufe why. the water is not reduced to vapour by incandef-
cent glafs, while it is by incandefcent iron.

Pictet has given fome very intefefting obfervations on
elaftic fluids, and aqueous vapour in particular. It appears
that all fluids are indebted for their elaftic ftate to the matter
of fire, or caloric. Some preferve this elaftic ftate at every
temperature, and this is the cafe with aqueous vapour. The
author endeavoured to determine the quantity of caloric con-
tained in waicr in a ftate of vapour at the temperature of
ebullition ; and experience proved that this aqueous vapour
.bad eight or nine times more caloric than the fame water in
a liquid ftate at the fame temperature. The following are
the means he employed to obtain this refult:

Let M be one of the maffes, and T its temperature; 7 the
other mafs, and ¢ its temperature; the temperature of the
mixture will be - ME ms

M+m

This formula he applied to the following experiment :—
He took a balloon, the water in which weighed fix ounces,
and was at the temperature of 43°. He introduced into this
water, for five minutes, the vapour of an eolipyle, and the
temperature of the water rofe to 49°, that is to fay, was
raifed 36°, and*its weight was increafed 228 grains. He
then endeavoured to difcover what calorific effect would be
produced by 228 grains of boiling water on fix ounces or
3456 grains of water at the temperature of 130°; that is to
fay, what would be the temperature of the mixture.

4 x 3456 X 13 +228 x80
By applying the above formula he had eaee re Far res ir

=a ne er for the temperatuty of the mixture. Boiling water
then did not produce but 4° Fee more heat in fix ounces of
water at the temperature of 13°; while the fame quantity of
water, in a ftate of vapour, at he temperature of 80°, raifed
the heat 36°. The calorific effeét, therefore, of water in
vapour is about 84 times greater than that of the fame water,
boiling. But the volume of the vapour is about 1800 times
greater than that of boiling water. There is therefore 213
times more fire im any given volume of boiling water than

; in

Experiments on Sound. 45

in an equal volume of vapour. The author then makes va-
rious applications of thefe principles, but particularly to
fteam-engines, the different degrees,of the power of which
he determines according to the ftate of compreffion of the
aqueous vapour.

Perolle has made experiments on the intenfity of found in
different gafes, which feera to give a refult contrary to thofe
of Prieftley, Chladni, and Jacquin jun. Maunoir and Paul,
of Geneva, having infpired hydrogen gas without being in-
commoded by it, were much furprifed, when they attempted
to fpeak, to find that their voice had become {hrill and
f{queaking.

Perolle has given experiments alfo refpeéting the propaga-
tion of found, by which he fhows that air is not the beft
medium for conveying it. He ftopped his ears with bits of
chewed paper, and, having applied his watch to them, could
not hear the noife of its beating, He removed the watch, and
placed it in conta with a {mall cylindric piece of wood, the
other extremity of which touched one of thofe external parts
of the head that propagate found; fuch, for example, as the
cartilaginous parts of the ear; and he then heard the beating
of the watch.

He fufpended the watch in the middle of a bocal, and found
that the found reached him; but having filled the bocal with
water, the found was much ftronger. The joints of the watch
had been luted. He placed the watch on different bodies,
fuch as wood, a marble table, &c. and found that the latter
_tran{mitted the found faintly, while the former tranfmitted
it with greater or lefs force. He thence concludes that the
found of mufical inftruments, fuch as violins, harps, harpfi-
chords, &c. depends on the property which wood has of tranf-
mitting founds; and that houfes built of marble or ftone are lefs
fonorous, becaufe thefe bodies are worfe conduétors of found.

Lamarck has obferved that founds are tranfmitted in vacuo
in water, and through the moft folid bodies. The cannon
of Toulon are heard at Monaco, that is to fay, at the diftance
of more than 25 leagues, while one is lying on the ground;
but the fame founds are not Propagated nearly fo far i in the
air. From this he concludes:

1ft, That

245 Eleéiricity propagated in Vacuo.

tft, That the common air in which we live is not the
proper matter which conduéts found, fince, notwith{tanding
the great tranfparency of this fluid, it is ftill too grofs to pe-
netrate freely the maffes of thofe bodies which have greater
denfity than itfelf; a’ property which the matter fit for con-
ducting found evidently poffeffes. .

2d, That there exifts an invifible, exceedingly fubtile and
fingularly elaftic fluid, of extreme rarity, which eafily pene-
trates all bodies, which is diffufed throughout every part of
our globe, and confequently throughout our atmofphere.

3d, That this fluid is the effential caufe of the elafticity
with which atmofpheric air feems to be endowed, and that
it 1s to the vibrations communicated to this fubtile fluid—
vibrations which are tranfmitted with great celerity through
different mediums, and even the moft folid—that we ought
to afcribe the immediate caufe of found and noife in regard
to us.

4th, That the fubtile fluid which conftitutes the propa-
gating matter of found is exaétly the fame as the ethereal
fire, of which the author fays he has demonftrated the exift-
ence in his different writings, and which may be confidered
as the ethereal fluid mentioned by Newton, if to its well
known properties we do not add the fuppofition by which
Newton gives to its vibrations a velocity greater than that of
light. ’

Tremery has confirmed the opinion of thofe who think
that electricity is propagated in vacuo. He exhaufted en-
tirely of air the tube of a barometer; and having extraéted a
fpark by means of a metallic rod, the electric fluid paffed
in the vacuum, and the whole infide of the tube became
luminous.

ATMOSPHERIC AIR,

Humboldt has publifhed the refult of his obfervations on
the nature of atmofpheric air, by which it appears that the
purity of this air is fubject to great variations. The fum of
his obfervations is as follows :—The quantity of oxygen con-
tained in atmofpheric air decreafes according to the abun-
dance of clouds, fogs, rain, and fnow; but it increafes during

dry

On the conftituent Parts of the Atmo/phere. 247

dry and ferene weather. After great rain the eudiometer in-
dicates in atmofpheric air only 0°264, and 0°259 of oxygen.
But when the blue {ky appears, the eudiometer marks 0°284
of oxygen, and as far as o:290. The experiments of Read
feem to announce a combination between oxygen and elec-
tricity; but we are ftill ignorant whether the air being charged
with the eleétric matter has any influence on its purity. Buch
colleéted the air of the Gifberg at an elevation of 3890 feet,
and Humboldt found this air exceedingly impure. It appeared
by the eudiometer that it contained 0026 lefs of oxygen than
that of the plain; which confirms what we before knew, that
the air on high mountains is more impure than that found
at a lefs elevation. The purity of the air varies to fuch a
degree,-that the author faw the eudiometer announce, be-
tween April and November 1797, from o*2g90 of oxygen to
0°236. But, does atmofpheric air contain. only oxygen, azot,
and carbonic acid? The author thinks it probable that it
contains alfo a portion of hydrogen, which combines with
the azot, and which we have no means of deteéting. Hum-
boldt collected air in the crater of the peak of Teneriffe, at
the height of 1904 toifes, and found in it only o-rg of oxy-
gen. It muft be obferved that there is no longer any erup-
tion from this crater. The pure air of the plain at the bot-
tom of the peak contains 0°278 of oxygen. The air at fea
in the latitude of 10° 30’ contained more than 0°30 of oxy-
gen. This obfervation fhows that the air at fea contains
more oxygen than that at land*.

METEOROLOGY,

Bouvard continues to make meteorological obfervations
with great accuracy. He has found the variation .of the
needle at Paris to be 22° 15’, and the dip 70° 35’. Coulomb
employs a new procefs to find the dip of the needle, which
‘at Paris he eftimates at 68° 10’.

Humboldt has made interefting obfervations refpecting the
magnetic needle. The following is the refult of thofe in

* For other important information connected with this branch, fee

Dr. Van Mons’s letter in our laft, and Dr. Girtanner’s in our prefent,
Number,

regard

248 Meteorology.

regard to its dip. The magnetic force is meafured by the
number of ofcillations which the needle makes in a minute.
The inclination is given in degrees of the circle divided into-
400 parts.

Dip. .| Magnet. force.

~

°

Nimes - 43° 30/32") 0” 7". S64 R20 Obl SgrO
{Montpellier |43° 36’ 29!” 0

Marfeilles 143° 17° 29" ©

Perpignan |42° 41/53’|.0° 2’ 14/E 72° 55] 24°8
Barcelona |41° 23’ 8! o :

Madrid - {40° 25° 18”| 0° 24’ 8/ Wi75° 20) 24°0
Valencia - 139° 28’ 55") o° 10° 4/°W\70° 70] = 23°5

Ferrol - -| - - - - +s = 176° 16). 29°79
At Sea - (32° 16’ i or. 5O| -e4c0
Ditto - - |26° 51’ ip? 3 67° 26] 23:0
Ditto - - }14° 15! 48°) 3/ 55° Bol §=623°9
Ditto - - |13° 51’ 50°. 2” In0° 15] 23°4
Ditto - - |T0° 59’ 64° 31’ 146° 50} | 23°79

He found the variation at Marfeilles on the 11th of No-
vember 22° 55° 30; at Madrid, in May, 22° 2'; and at
Aranjues, about the fame period, 21° 58’. The water of
the fea appeared to him to be lefs denfe under the equator
than at fome diftance from it.

Buch has given fome refearches refpecting the barometer,
in which he examines the ‘caufés of its variations. In his
opinion, the ftate of the barometer and its variations do not
depend on the ftate of the furface of our globe, and we muft
feek for the caufes beyond it. His proofs are:

rft, That the barometer varies very little under the tropics,
and that its variations increafe on approaching the poles,
But if thefe variations depended on the ftate cf the atmo-
fphere, they ought to be equally perceptible over the whole
furface of the globe.

ad, The ane often remains almoft motionlefs amidit
the greateft agitations of the atmofphere. Thus, in 1794,
when Vefuvius was in the utmoft agitation, and when the
air was filled with the flames, afhes, and fmoke of the vol-

cano, the barometer was almoft motionlels,
Cotte

Meteorology. 449

Cotte has prefented a view of the fevere winters which
we have experienced. A difpute had arifen among the fei-
entific men at Paris refpecting the cold which would take
place in the winter of the year 1798: and fome afferted that
it would be fevere becaufe that of 1398 was fo; founding
their opinion on this circumftance, that the fame temperature
mutt take place every four hundred years. Mazuyer main-
tained, that the fevere winters in our climates take place be-
tween the fourth and fifth year, or the eighth and ninth
years; becaufe, according to the remark of Toaldo, the fea-
fons and conftitution of the years mu“: have a period almoft
equal to the revolution of the lunar apogeum, which is from
eight to nine years, and that, towards the middle of this
period, that is to fay, every four or five years, there muft be
a return. Thus the fevere winter of 1788-1789 followed
one which took place ten years before; and that of 1794-
1795 took place four years after that of 1788-1789.

Cotte feems rather to refer to the period of nineteen years,
which brings back the moon to the fame points. He efti-
mates, therefore, that the general temperature of any year,
ought to correfpond with that of each antecedent nineteenth
year after the commencement of the century. But thefg rules
he confiders only as probabilities.

Lamarck has publifhed an annuary, in which he endea-
yours to determine a prognoftication of the temperature from
the pofition of the moon in the fouthern or northern figns.
When fhe is in the fouthern, it is probable that north and
eaft winds will prevail; when fhe is in the northern, it is
probable that fouth and eatft winds will be moft prevalent ;
and thefe winds have a decided influence on the temperature
and rain *,

Cotte has given an extract of a memoir, by Beaumé, on
thermometers. The motion of thofe made with fpirit of wine
is different frem thofe made with mercury. Thus, near the
degree of boiling water, when the mercurial thermometer
falls five degrees, that made with {pirit of wine falls feven ;
and on the other hand, near the freezing point, when th¢
mercurial thermometer falls five degrees, that made with

* See alfo Toaldo’s paper on this fubjeé&t, Phil. Mag. Vol. LV. p. 367-
Vor. VI, Kk ‘fpirit

250 Galvanif/m.

fpirit of wine falls no more than three or four. The mercury
dilates from the freezing point to that of boiling water, in the
ratio of 5045 to 5122, or of a 65th part of its volume. Mer-
cury in a ftate of ebullition in the .open air makes the mer-
curial thermometer rife to 190 degrees, the barometer being
at 28 inches.

GALVANISM.

Jadelot has tranflated into French Humboldt’s work on
galvanifm, to which he has added a great many of his own
experiments. The general confequences he prefents are as
follows :

ift, The effects of galvanifm are for the moft part different
in the different parts of animals.

2d, The diaphragm, in warm-blooded animals, is that
mufcle which, if not irritated moft {trongly, is at leaft irri-
tated with the moft readinefs; for it is the only one that al-
ways contracts itfelf with the createft violence in experiments
where no chain is formed, but which do not however fuc-
ceed unlefs in thofe whofe irritability is greatly exalted. May
not this obfervation contribute towards determining the re-
fpective degrees of the irritability of the different mufcles ?
Thefe experiments atteft :

3d, That, as Humboldt has remarked, the living nerves
and mufcles are furrounded with an aétive and fegitibte at-
mofphere; a condition that, added to the conducting pro-
perty in which the animal organs participate with all moift
fubftances, f{upports the explanation of profeffor Reil refpect-
ing the aétion of the nerves, which extends beyond the
points where they difperfe themfelves.

4th, That, as Humboldt obferved alfo, galvanifm may
excite movements in the organs altogether independent on
the will, as in the heart and ftomach,

5th, That the galvanic fluid, coming from-a warm-blooded
animal, may act with efficacy on the nerves of the human
body.

6th, That the galvanic idenenden take place without the
intervention of any external body: that, thus, the caufe which
produces them refides in the living animal economy,

ath,

'
:
.

On the Cure of the Hydrophobia. 251

"th, That they can manifeft themfelves by means of a
chain eftablifhed between two points of the fame nerve, and
by adduétion in organs brought into contaé with fome part
of the fleth.

Vaffali-Eandi has given interefting obfervations on gal-
vanifm. ‘* We do not yet know,” fays he, ‘ what is the
caufe of thefe extraordinary phenomena: Volta is inclined to
believe that the mufcular contra¢tions are excited by the
éele&tricity which the metals that touch each other, or the
heterogeneous bodies that fervé as conductors, acquire; an
that, confequently, we fee no animal electricity in the phe-
nomena of galvanifm; which, according to this theory,
proves nothing elfe than that animals are eleGtrometers more
fenfible of the fmalleft degree of electricity than other elec-
trometers.”” The author then relates the experiments of
thofe who afcribe all thefe phenomena to an eleétricity pe-
euliar to animals; and he concludes by faying—‘* Were I
to declare my opinion, I fhould be inclined to believe that
the mufcular contraétions are produced by the movement of
animal electricity direéted by the conductors of natural elec-
tricity.” The changes of eleétricity which different fluids
‘experience in the body, may ferve to explain thefe pheno-
mena; for he himfelf has proved, for example, that urine
when iffuing has negative electricity, while the blood which
flows from a vein has pofitive electricity. ;

Fabbroni has publifhed an important work on feveral phe-
nomena afcribed to galvanifm. Inftead of afcribing the ef-
feéts to eleétric fire, he is of opinion that they depend on a
chemical operation ; that is to fay, an aétion exercifed by the
two metals on each other. (See Phil. Mag. Vol. V. p. 268.)

{ Lo be continued. |

rT

XIII. On the various Ween: that have been recommended
for the Cure of the Hydrophobia.

WV E fhall not diftrefs our readers by a painful detail of
the fymptoms and progrefs of this dreadful malady, but con-
tent ourfelves with giving fuch remarks on the various me-
thods of cure as may prove ufeful to mankind,

Kka Sea-

o- «

252 On the various Remedies recommended

Sea-bathing was for a long time held to be a fovercign
cure, if timeoufly reforted to: the many melancholy failures,
however, of this boafted remedy have long fince convinced
medical praétitioners, that even in thofe cafes where a fup-
pofed cure had been effected, there had aétually been no dif-
eafe; the faliva in fuch cafes having been previoufly cleanfed
from the tooth of the animal that inflicted the bite, by pafl-
ing through thick clothes before it reached the patient’s {kin.

Mercurial frictions, there are reafons for believing, have
fometimes proved beneficial in the hydrophobia. Dr. Fo-
thergill feems inclined to afcribe their good effect more to
the ingredients with which the mercury is made into an
ointment, than to the mercury itfelf: But of this hereafter.
Dr. Metée afcribes them to the volatile alkali which the
mercury difengages from the ammoniacal falt contained in
the lymph of the animals.

The king of Pruffia, in the year 1777, purchafed from a
Silefian peafant a remedy for the hydrophobia, which he or~
dered to be kept prepared in all the apothecaries’ fhops, and
by all furgeons. The bafis of this remedy is the meloé pro-

fearabeeus et majalis, (oil-beetle *,) a black un@tuous infect,
which, when touched, emits from al] its articulations a brown
oily liquor, and on that account it has been called the oil-
beetle. It is found in almoft every country in the fpring.
It is called fometimes the farrier’s beetle, becaufe the far-
riers prepare from it a bliftering ointment by pounding three
hundred of the infeéts in a pound of oil of laurel. The fol-
lowing is the method of preparing the anti-hydrophobic re-
medy of Praffia:

K. Take twenty-four beetles preferved in honey, two grains
of ebony wood, one grain of Virginian fnake-root, one grain
of filings of een twenty grains ae the mofs of the afh-tree,
four ounces of theriac, and a little of the honey in which
the infects have been preferved.

The dofe of this opiate varies according to the age and fex-
of the patients. Itis to be taken once m a dofe of two grains
for male adults, a grain and a half for females, and a grain

* See C. T. Schwarts de hydrophobia, gufque fpecifico Melcé majali et
frofcarabeo. Hale 1783.

c for

Sor the Cure of the Aydrophabia. - 153

for children of twelve years of age, diminifhing the dofe ac-
cording to the age. Four grains are given to oxen morning
and evening, and they are made to faft twenty-fous hours.
It is recommended to thofe who take this remedy, to remain
twelve hours in bed in order to excite perfpiration. The pa-
tient alfo, during that period, muft abftain from food and
drink. It is recommended likewife, in the obfervations on
the Pruffian cure, to burn the fhirt which the patient had on
while fubjected to perfpirations The wounds are to be wafhed
with wine and vinegar into which falt has been put, and to
be afterwards dreffled with bafilicon or falt butter. If this
remedy fucceeds, its effects are to be afcribed to the profca-
rabeus meloé, which has the property of cantharides ; an in-
fect which belongs to the fame genus, and which the cele- _
brated Stoll, profeffor of medicine at Vienna, and director of
one of the hofpitals in that city, has afferted to be a fpecific
in the hydrophobia. His firft care was to cover the wound
with a veficatory, which he continually renewed. He pre-
{cribed internally tincture of cantharides, at firft two drops,
which he increafed progreflively for forty days, according to
the age and conftitution of the patient: the dofe at laft was
carried to twenty-four drops, which may feem almoft incre-
dible. This medicine is the moft violent diuretic known,
and the application of it requires an able hand: but its effi-
cacy is aflerted to be well eftablifhed; as alfo, that it pro-
duces the moft falutary effects even when the hydrophobic
poifon has had time to diffufe itfelf throughout the mafs of
the blood. In the laft fiages of the difeafe, the obftacle hi-
therto moft invincible is the difficulty of making the patient
{wallow any remedy. Every body knows the convulfions
and horrid paroxyfms into which the unfortunate fufferers
are thrown merely by the fight of any liquid. Stoll was of
opinion, that the effect of the hy drophobic virus on the fenfes
is direétly the reverfe of that of opium: it augments irrita-
bility as much as opium lowers it: the leaft noife, the {mallet
degree of light, to perfons labouring under this dreadful ma-
lady, produces torture beyond defcription; and the diffeétion
of bodies, in which no change in the humoursar in the or-
ganifation was iter, feems to prove that this opinion is

well

254 On the various Remedies recommended

well founded. If thefe obftacles, then, were removed, and if
the patients could {wallow the remedies prefcribed for them,
there is reafon to think that their lives might be faved. Stoll
entertained fome good ideas on this fubjcdt + but want of op-
portunity, and premature death, prevented him from apply-
ing them to practice. He was of opinion, that the exceflive
irritability, occafioned by the hydrophobic virus, might be
overcome by opium; and, as the patients cannot fwallow
any thing, he propofed adminiftering it in injections. The
difficulty here would be, to determine what quantity of opium
ought to be employed; but, after proceeding far enough to
produce the intended effeét, the patient would then be able to
fwallow the tincture of cantharides ; and, as there is no time
to lofe in fuch cafes, it would be neceffary to raifé the dofe
at firft to four drops, and to follow up the cure with activity.

If Stoll’s idea be correct refpecting the action of the hy-
drophobic virus, the high ftate of irritability might, we think,
be fubdued fpeedily by making the patient inhale 4ydro-car-
bonat. The idea is certainly worthy of the attention of the
faculty; but this gas fhould not be reforted to except with
the aid of a. phyfician, With fuch aid, however, if a mere
reduction of the irritability be all that 1s neceflary to enable
the patient to fwallow medicines, the end might certainly be
gained.

C. Delametherie * informs us, that feveral eminent phyfi-
cians, fuch as Tiffot, Laffore, Blais, Belletefte, &c. have
employed the volatile alkali with fuccefs in the hydrophobia.

In the Gazette de France of May 4, 1799, there is an ex-

tract of a letter from Carmont in Andalufia, dated March 2%,
the fame year, which fays, that a fhepherd having been bit
by a mad dog, and fymptoms of the hydrophobia having
begun to appear, Don Candido Trigneros, a phyfician in
the neighbourhood, applied to the wound a little lint dipped
in volatile alkali, and with the approbation of .Don Jofeph
Mexia, of the Medical and Patriotic Societies of Seville, or-
dered the patient to fwallow, for four days, twelve drops of
volatile alkali in three ounces of water; which made the
fymptoms of madnefs difappear.

* Fournal de Phy/ique, Ventofe, an. 8.

~

T rea

for the Cure of the Hydrophobia. ose

“T received,” fays Delametherie, “ a letter dated Auguft 7,
1778, from M. Noguerez, curé of Paffy-lés-Paris, in which
he gave me an account of the method by which he cured
of the hydrophobia a gardener named Olivier, who had been
bit in the middle finger by a mad cat. Some days before, a
man in the fame houfe, who was bit by the fame cat, had
feyeral fits of the hydrophobia, of which he died in the
H6tel-Dieu. It was not till twenty days after the accident
happened, that Olivier’s fleep began to be interrupted by
violent agitations, during which he was delirious. When
awake, his eyes had a hag gard appearance. The curé having
adminiftered to him fiecn drops of volatile alkali in a glafs-
of water, his patient paid him a vifit next morning, and in-
formed him that he had enjoyed good reft during the whole
night. The curé made him take, for, two daygaonger, ten
drops of alkali in a glafs of water, and ever fince Olivier has

remained in good health. I have employed this remedy
with fuccefs for preventing the hydrophobia.”

C, Pelletan, one of the moft celebrated furgeons of Paris,
has inferted in the public papers, that, by cauterifing the part
bit, and afterwards plunging it into cold water, the effects of
the hydrophobic virus might be prevented. ‘* This fact,”
fays Delametherie, ‘ brings to my remembrance an experi-
ment which a game-keeper of Ile Adam made, feveral times
fucceffively, in “the prefence of the late prince of Conti. He
caufed himfelf to be bit in the arm by a mad dog, fprinkled
over the wound fome gunpowder, and, having fet fire to it,
tied up his arm in a wet cloth. Thefe bites were never at-
tended with any bad confequences. I was a witnefs to an
experiment of the like kind made at Blois by a limonadier,
near the bridge. Having been bit in the hand by a mad
dog, he immediately burnt fome gunpowder on the wound,
and continued well.—The theory of this important fact is as
follows: The burning decompofes the animal tiffue, and dif-
engages volatile alkali, which is circulated with the blood,
and neutralifes the hydrophobic virus. Volatile alkali aéts
with the greateft efficacy, and prevents the effects of the hy-
drophobia, It is fufficient to put fome of it on the wound,

and

256 On the various Remedies recommended

and to ufe it internally Lies it has ‘been diluted with a con-
fiderable quantity of water.’

The Ormfkirk medicine, from its great Heleteity deferves
fome notice here; and the more fo, as we can lay the recipe
before the world, which will enable medical men jufily to
appreciate its pretenfions. The quantities of the various in-
gredients are, to be fure, rather loofely. expreffed, were accu-
racy amatter of moment in fuch a compound: “ F. A fmall
tea-fpoonful of prepared oyfter-fhell; one cafe-knife point-
ful of roach-alum, burnt; one cafe-knife pointful of Ar-
mienian bole; as much elecampane root as will lie ona filver
fixpetice, and the fame quantity of afh-coloured ground liver-
wort—all in powder. They muft be well mixed together.
The dofe for a perfon of the ftrongeft conftitution is two
drachms, @othecary’s weight, in a glafs cf red port, taken
m the morning fang: The patient mutt faft for two or
three hours anee I

The above was fent to the editor for the purpofe of being
faid before the public through another medium (a newfpaper)
fo far back as the year 1791, but by fome accident was mif-
Jaid till a few days ago*. The author, after enumerating
the virtues afcribed to the various ingredients by different
writers, which we give in a note in his own words +, con-
eludes with the following obfervations ;

6° What

* Tt is dated ‘* Bifpham, Lancafhire, 28th Oétober 1791,” and bears
the Ormfkirk poft-mark —No fignature.

+ * Tf fora cow, horfe, or pig, give double the quantity, in a pint of
milk or water: if for a dog, give the double dofe in a little new churned
butter, without falt; and take care to tie him up, in a clean place, with-
out litter, as they are fubjeét to vomit it up again, The quantity of each
ingredient above is rather uncertain, if the confequence fignified any thing,
‘The oyfter-fhells are to be well cleaned, pulverifed, and levigated into an
impalpable powder, which may be dried on a chalk-ftone, and afterwards
fer by im a warm or very dry place for a few days, The Edinburgh Col-
lege give the preference to thofe fhells which are hollow. This has the
virtues of other teftaceous powders. The alum is to be burnt in an earthen
veflel, or one of iron, as long as it bubbles or fwells up. The bole is not
always found pure 5 it fhould be of a bright-red colour, with a tinge of
yellow. It will effervefce with acids; and in order to free it from impu-

’ 7 rities,

for the Cure of the Hydrophobia. 25%

“ What degree of confidence ought to be placed on the
medicine, mutt be left to the judgment of the difcerning; as
alfo, whether a preference oucht not to be given to that grand
correétor and blunter of all animal poifons, OLIVE OIL;
efpecially if camphor is diffolved in it?) We have an account
from the continent of its curing the hydrophobia in a very
advanced ftate, when given in large dofes ; and we know that
it certainly is an effectual cure ” for the bites of ferpents,
vipers, &c.”’ ,

From what fource the author of this letter learnt that the

rities, powder it and wafh it: the finer part may be decanted into another
veffel ; the impurities will remain. After the finer parts are fubfided, pour
off the water, and dry the bole for ufe. Bole was formerly much efteemed
as an alexipharmic, and fingularly ferviceable in malignant and peftilential
difeafes.

“The inula, or elecampane, grows commonly in moift places, and is
often cultivated in gardens; the flower is a yellowifh-green, fomewhat
fimilar to a chryfanthemum, but larger. According to Linnzus, it is the
fecond order of the igth clafs, Syxgencfia Polygamia fuperfiua. The root
is here to be ufed only. In the recent ftate it does not fmell fo ftrong as
in the dry; for it then is highly aromatic. The proper time for taking
up the root is toward the end of September. The druggifts have a trick
of mixing other fubftances with it when it is purchafed from them in
powder, Asa medicine, it was formerly in high eftimation. Rembertus
Dodonzi, an eminent German botanift, who wrote about 220 years fince,
fays it is an excellent remedy againft the. bite and ftings of all venomous
animals. Dr. Hill fays, from his own experience, that an infufion of the
freth root, {wectened with honey, is an excellent remedy for the hooping-
cough.

*¢ We now come to the liverwort, which ftands part of the original pre-
fcription, although often omitted. Dr. Mead judged it of that importance
as to recommend it, with black pepper, under the title Pa/wis Antilyffas, to
the College of Phyficians; and it found aplace in the Difpenfatory. Ca-
ninus, liverwort: the leaves are covered with a kind of afh-coloured meal-
inefs, leather-like, flat with blunt lobes, targets an the‘edge afcending.
Dillenius 200, tab 27, fig. 102, calls it Pie, digitatum cinereum
Lafuce foltis finuofis. It grows common on old cops, heaths, woods, and
hedges. Mr. Hudfon calls this genus Liverwort: but, as the Marchantia
of Linnaus is commonly known by the name of Liverwort, it is neceffary
te mention this difference in order to avoid miftakes ; for, when once a per-
fon is acquainted with. this Cryptogamia plant, he will not eafily forget it
when he fees it again. Dr. Withering, of Birmingham, a fenfible, well
informed, and ingenious gentleman, gives this genus the Englifh appellae
tion of Cupthong.”

Vor. VI, Ll hydro-

258 On the various Remedies recommended

hydrophobia had aétually been cured by the ufe of olive oil,
we know not; but the fact is worthy of the more notice, as
the fame remedy has lately been recommended by Dr. Fo-
thergill, of Bath*, without knowing the fact, but with a
force of reafoning that cannot fail to infure its receiving pro-
per attention. Speaking of oleaginous medicines, the Doétor
fays: ‘* The ancient remedy againft the bite of the viper was -
Jong confined to the fat of that reptile, till it was at length
difcovered that olive oil was equally efficacious; a circum-
fiance fince well known to viper-catchers, and confirmed by
reiterated experiments. Whether it act by a fpecific power,
or merely by invifcating the poifon, or otherwile deftroying
its activity, matters not; the fact has always appeared to me
interefting, and the analogy obvious. Whatever fhare of
fuccefs the mercurial ointment may have had in counteraét-
ing the canine poifon, it has invariably been attributed to the
mercury ; but I have long fufpeéted it ought rather to have
been afcribed to the oily quality of the lard, with which it is
compounded, and which conftitutes two-thirds of the com-
pofition. :

_© To form a jutt eftimate of the cures attributed to mer-
cury, we muft take into the account the other means em-
ployed at the fame time. Thus M. Baudot, M. Bouteille,
and other French practitioners of eminence, unwilling to
truft to the above mercurial procefs alone, exprefsly order .
the wound to be firft carefully anointed with warm olive oil.

**M. Le Roux and his followers, who rejected mercury,
and attributed their fuccefs to the antimonial cauftic alone,
employed neverthelefs an ointment, confifting chiefly of frefh
butter, to drefs the wound f.

«¢ In this and other obftinate difeafes of the convulfive
kind, the ancients anointed the body with warm oil; a
practice too much neglected by modern praé¢titioners.

<* Conformable to this idea appears to be Dr. Loof’s ole-
aginous medicine, which now properly comes under confi-
deration.’ The yolk of egg, though probably deftitute of any:

* See Letters and Papers of the Bath and Weft-of-England Society,
Vol. IX.
4 Mem. del Acad, Vol. Vi Ay H's -
wi fpecific

«

for the Cure of the Hydrophobia. 259"

fpecific power, yet (as an animal mucilage well adapted to
- render the oil mifcible with the animal fluids, and alfo to.
reconcile it to the ftomach) feems a proper addition; nor
need there be much exaétnefs from an apprehenfion of an
over-dofe. A domeftic remedy fo fimple, fo innocent, and
fo well recommended, is certainly entitled toa full and candid
trial in this country. ,

“‘ That the human body’ may’ be thrown into a’ copious

perfpiration by friction with warm olive oil, is a circumf{tance
~ unnoticed till Jately. The effeéts of this procefs, as practifed
at the Smyrna hofpital, in the prevention and’ even cure of
the plague, in the firft ftage of infeCtion, are related by
Count Berchtold in his late interefting traét on that fub-
jeét*; and fince confirmed by the teftimony of father Lewis,
fuperintendant of the hofpital.
_ © Tf olive oil, then, be really a prefervative againft the
poifon of the mbentied viper, and even the peftilential con-
tagion itfelf, is there not reafon to fufpeét that oil- and ole-
aginous fubftances may have had a greater fhare in counter-
aGting the canine-poifon than the votaries of mercury ever
imagined ? e

<< It is not pretended, indeed, to be a certain, only a pro-
bable remedy, after the hydrophobia has a€tually commenced |
analogy affording only a prefumption, not a proof; nor can its
efficacy be fully afcertained, but by repeated trials and atten-
tive obfervation. As the prevention depends on due manage-
ment of the wound, this medicine is judicioufly ordered to be’
applied externally for feveral days. On this, probably, and
this alone, ought the main ftrefs to be laid; yet, to calm the
patient’s mind, and to ftrengthen his hopes’ of fecurity, it
may not be amifs to give the oil alfo internally, according to
the dire&tions. Previous to this plan of treatment, however,

the wound ought to be diligently wathed and cauterifed.

*¢ If it cure dogs after the infection has taken place, it is
a remarkable circumftance; but {till more fo, if it effect this
by throwing them into a profufe per/piration. This mutt cer-
tainly be a miftake. Dogs, indeed, perfpire copioufly from

* Defcrizione del nuovo rimedio curativo e prefervativo contro la pefie,
See Philofophical Magazine, Vol..IIp. 256.

Ll2 the

26a - On the various Remédies recommended

the lungs, but affuredly never from the fkin, even in the’

fevereft fox-chace.

“© As the gaftric liquor of a healthyjanimal has the fin-
gular property of counteracting animal, poifons taken into
the ftomach, might not this fluid, applied, to the. enve-
nomed wound, tend to deftroy. the activity of the canine
poifon?

‘* As the faliva differs.’ very; little from the gaftric liquor,

may it not, in the act of fucking out the priced add to the:

fecurity by fubduing any minute remnant Jurking at the bot-
tom of the wound ?

** Mr, Whitaker, an intelligent member of the Bath ene
cultural Society, has juft now favoured me with the following
remarkable fact, which tends to edrroborate this opinion :—~
Two perfons, very nearly related,: had the misfortune to be
bitten, at the fame-time, by a’ mad dog... One of them, bemg
bitten in the thumb, immediately fucked the wound diligently
till the blood ceafed to flow; and,.without-wing any other

precaution, remained well., The other, whofe; lip ‘had been,

lacerated by the dog, being difabled from fucking out the
poifon, had immediate recourfe to the ufual remedy, fea-
bathing—and with the ufual event. ‘The. infeétion took
place; the hydrophobia.came,ong and death enfued,

*¢ As this fafe-and fimplemethod jby’ fuction. requires no
medical appatatus; can be. inftantly performed abroad or at
home, either,by the party er a,companiony, with little lofs of
time or delay of bufinels, ought it not.to,bé,earneftly recom-
mended to all. perfons remote from;.medical aid, : particularly
fhepherds, hufbandmen, {and agriculturifts:?, Ner need this
preliminary ftsp.be any ‘hindrance in. profecuting, at leifure
the other modes of prevention, which have been confidered

as mott effe étual.:. Were thefe diligently purfued, immediately.
after every accident of this nature, it is prefumed, the hydro-:

phobia would very rarely, if ever, appear. After the proper
precautions, therefore, have been duly obferved, the patient
may be encouraged to banifh anxiety, and reft in ful] affur-
ance of his fafety. He may allo purfue his ufval manner of
Jiving, and frequent cheerful company ; abftaining, however,
from every kind of IREPEIASP> or being Bae, away by

guts

WT

for the Cure of the Hydrophobia, 26

gufts of anger, or other ftrong -paffions. No internal re-
medies at this period have been infifted upon, becaufe none
feemed neceflary ; nor could’ they, for réafons affigned, add
to the fecurity.

_ “© The canine poifon feems to attack the oxygenous prin-
ciple of the blood, the probable fource of irritability and of
life. Hence the depreffed unequal pulfe; the chillinefs of
the extremities, accompanied with internal heat; the melan-
choly afpect ; the dejection of fpirits ; and the general abfence’
of fever,

<* It appears that the hydrophobia may be confidered as a
fpecies of {pafmodic angina, produced by fpecific contagion,
which exerts:its influence, 1ft, on the injured part, and af-
terwards on the organs of deglutition: 2dly, That the local
ftimulus, being propagated to the brain, excites the moving
powers of the fy{tem into re-aétion; and hence the convul-
five motions which fpeedily exhauft the ftreneth, and finally
extinguifh the vital principle: 3dly, That profufe bleeding
may prove highly injurious: 4thly, That the forcing down
large quantities of liquid is a cruel practice, as it cannot but
jeartals the fpafms, and exafperate the malady.

Indications of Cure,

*< The chief indications of cure appear evidently to be the
following :—1{t, To diflolve the fatal conneétion between’ the
injured part and the organ of deglutition. 2dly, Fo calm the
violent {pafms, and foothe the nervous fyftem. 3dly, To
fupport the ftrength, and invigorate the whole frame.

* To anfwer-the firft of thefe indications, much depends
on external means, and clofe attention to the injured part.
The moment any darting pains, attended with numbnefs and
difeoloration, are perceived, they denote the poifon to be in
an a¢tive ftate, and that no time ought to be loft in profe-
cuting the molt vigorous meafures,

“* The period front the commencement of thefe orem
to the approach of the hydrophobia is uncertain, and perhaps
rarely exceeds five or fix days. To prevent, therefore, the
jritation being propagated to the throat, lect the fufpected
part be itmediately cut out, and the furface of the wound.

duly

25% On the various Remedies recommended

duly cauterifed. If any difficulty of deglutition has already
been felt, let’a fharp blifter or finapifm be applied to the
throat, extending from ear to ear. For, unlefs the morbid
impreffion can be obliterated by one yet ftronger, and the
natural aétion of the fympathifing parts fpeedily reftored,
there can be but fmall hopes of fuccefs.

«¢ A malady fo rapid in its progrefs, fo intractable by na-
ture, demands Herculean remedies, and warrants a prudent
trial of the moft aétive fubftances with which we are yet ac-
quainted. The atropa belladona, in dofes of four or five
grains, has been highly extolled by fome German profeffors;
the laurocerafus half grain, and arfenic one-eighth by others.
The hyofcyamus niger, in form of extract, given in dofes of
15 or 20 grains, in cafes of fixed melancholy, attended with
horrors and obftinate watchings. I have fometimes found
very beneficial. It moreover procures fleep and compofure
of mind; often where opium fails, or even adds to the in-
emtetiaed Now thefe potent remedies, with due caution,
may be tried in fucceffion: if they fail, they only fhare the
common fate of former antidotes ; but if one of them fhould
anfwer, it may afford an important addition to our ftock of

knowledge.
** adly, To affuage the fpafms, and foothe the nervous
fyftem. \

< To effet this after the hydrophobia has ‘aétually ap-
peared, all impediments, and whatever may hurt the acute
feelings of the patient, or, by the power of affociation, tend
to ageravate his fufferings, muft be firft carefully removed ;
no dog muft on any account be allowed to enter the room.
Not water only, and other liquids ; ; but all glaring colours,
and glafs mirrors, muft be kept entirely out of his fight. No
loud noife, nor cold air, muft be fuffered to moleft him,
Having thus removed impediments, we muft next endeavour
to affift nature in alleviating the fpafms and in procuring a
lucid interval. If there be any critical evacuation in this
difeafe favourable to our views, it muft, I conceive, be that’
of fweat. -
“In the cures recorded by Dr. Nugent and others, in.
five or fix cafes of the hydrophobia in an advanced ftate, the:
treatment

for the Cure of the Hydrophobia. 263

treatment was different in each; yet there was one circum-
ftance common to all, and that was a copious fweat. Till
that appeared, the recovery feems to have been doubtful.
Nor is the cafe defcribed by Van Helmont an exception:
the patieht being plunged in the cold bath till half dead,
the cure was attributed to the fright, but ought rather to
have been afcribed to the re-aétion of the fyftem, which,
being aided by a warm bed and fudorific regimen, termi-
nated in a falutary fweat. In a fubfequent experiment of
this kind, equally terrific, no fweat enfued, and the difeafe
foon proved fatal.

“© Sudorifics, indeed, feldom produce a copious fweat, un-
lefs their operation can be affifted by warm diluting liquors.
Hence, perhaps, it is, that mufk, valerian, opium, and other
powerful fudorifics, have fo often failed. Given merely as
antifpafmodics, without proper dilution, they ferve but to
flatter hope at the expence of difappointment; let therefore
the following method have a fair trial :

** In a pint of olive oil diffolve an ounce of camphor: let
the entire furface of the body be diligently rubbed with this
folution, made warm, continuing the friction, before a gentle
fire, till the whole be expended; after which let the patient
be covered with flannel, and put into a warm bed till a
copious perfpiration be procured. This may be encouraged
by an enema of warm wine-whey, with an addition of vola-
tile alkaline fpirit, or eau de luce, which laft has long been
deemed a noted {pecific in France.—The part affected, and
alfo the neck and {fpine, ought to be well embrocated twice,
a-day with tepid oil, which, by foothing the nerves, may
act as a powerful anodyne and antifpafmodic: could an entire
bath of oil be had, it would be, perhaps, greatly preferable
toa common bath of warm water.

<< A patient, in confequence of the poifon of arfenic, had
long fuffered fevere pains and convulfive fpafms over the
whole furface of his body, which refifted yarious internal
and external remedies, till he was ordered, by M. Bouteille,
to be placed, for the fpace of an hour, at proper intervals, in
a bath of warm oil, by which he was foon completely cured.

5 6s JF

»

254 On the Cure of the Hydrophobia.

-& Tf mufic has charms to harmonife the nerves, and foothe

the feelings of a melancholy or outrageous maniac, as men-
tioned on the higheft authority, can any caufe be affigned
why, in a mufical age like the prefent, its powerful influence
fhould not be tried againft this dreadful malady? Though its
effects on the difeafe occafioned by the tarantula may have
been greatly exaggerated, yet, if what has been confidently
aflerted of its efficacy againft the envenomed bite of the moft
dangerous ferpents, be true, the analogy would afford, at leaft,
a prefumptive argument in its favour. But, independent of
this, other beneficial effects, in removing the wild ravings in
certain fevers, might here be produced *. And it was confi-
dered by Clinias, Afclepiades, and Areteeus, as an effential
remedy in phrenfy, melancholy, and mental derangement.

“ In the Memoirs of the Medical Society of Paris, Vol. VI.
is an affecting inftance of a youth of 12 years old, who died
of the hydrophobia. The diftrefling feene, near the clofe of
the difeafe, induced the phyfician to try the effects of mufic,
by playing before him on the guitar. The harmony, even at
this late period, we are told, appeafed the fpafms, and ren-
dered the pulfe more calm and regular.

<¢ gdly, To fupport ftrength, and reftore the energy of the
brain. , i gigi y od

“© To enable the patient to bear up under the’ unequal
conflict, his diet fhould confift of the moft nutritious ali-
ments, chiefly of the folid kind, to which may be added freth
eges, jellies, and bread foaked in generous wine. If, from his
dread of liquids, neither food nor medicine of the fluid kind
can be got down, they muft be conveyed in the form of me-
dicated baths and enemas; of which the body, being in a

parched abforbent ftate, will imbibe more than is generally’

imagined. Might not liquids be alfo fafely conveyed into
the ftomach with a flexible tube, as in cafes of fufpended
animation ?

“¢ To reftore oxygen to the blood, and invigorate the whole
fyftem, vital air, properly modified, may be inhaled into the
lungs. Where this cannot be had, as nitrous acid contains it

* See Medical Journal, Vols. I. IL. and XI.

-

in

New Publications. 265
in a loofe ftate, and readily detached, the acid may be diluted
with a portion of water; and adminiftered as above men-
tioned.

© Should any confiderable truce to the violent fymptoms
be happily obtained, the return of paroxy{m might poflibly
be obviated by a liberal ufe of Peruvian bark with fteel, and
by repeated oxygenation.”

From the variety of faé&ts which we have laid before our
readers, it will hardly efcape notice, that volatile alkali and
olive oil appear to be the moft powerful remedies in this
dreadful malady; and that the fecurity of the patient would
be further infured by the wound being well fucked, and alfo
cicatrifed, without any Jofs of time. AT,

=——

NEW PUBLICATIONS.

Principles of Modern Chemiflry, fyftematically arranged. By
Dr. F. C. Gren, late Profeffir at Halle, in Saxony.
Tranflated from the German. Cadell and Davies, 1800.
2 Vols, 946 Pages; with Plates and Tables.

Tue better part of the ufeful arts is chemical. An in
finite number, of the appearances and changes of material
nature are governed by chemical laws; the refearches of che«
miftry conduc to the knowledge of philofophical truth, and
form the mind to philofophieal enlargement, and accuracy
of thought, more happily than almoft any other {pecies of in-
yeftigation in which the human intellect can be employed.
Hence are candid attention and encouragement eminently
due to every undertaking which firives, either to extend che-
mical fcience by new difcoveries, or to recommend and faci+
Kitate its ftudy by elementary publications aiming at new
precifion, clearnefs, order, fullnefs, and engaging elegance.
From the times of Boyle, Digby, Mayow, and Hooke, to
thofe of Hale, Lewis, Priefiley, Black, and Cavendith, the
philofophers of Britain, in fome meafure, {lighted chemiftry
for the fake of thofe purfuits in the mechanical philofophy
and the mathematics, in which they muft be confefled to
Vor. VI. M m have

U

266 | New Publications,

have been incomparably ardent and fuccefsful. Our fathers
were therefore content, during that period, to accept the
Germans, Dutch, and Fretich, for their chemical inftruétors.
The French, though not the proper authors of the moft im-
portant difcoveries in that which is called Modern Chemiftry,
were, however, the firft to combme, correét, and advance
thofe difcoveries into one general fyftem: and we therefore
honour them as our mafters; and have fubmitted to receive
from them, as well a new:chemical language, as our favourite
elementary chemical books. Even the Germans, though not
more fortunate than we in difcovery, nor more ably inftruc-
tive in academical leCtures and the exhibition of experiments, ,
have been lately more forward to publith compilations of the
facts anid principles of chemical fcience; and we neither deny
praife to their induftry, nor reject their aid. Such is the
progrefs of chemical, difcovery as to demand the frequent
compofition of new fyftems, which fhall affemble faéts as
they are obferved, and principles as they are eftablithed,
Books thus neceflary we gladly accept, from whatever quar-
ter and under whatever name. We fhould wifh them to be
originally in Englith, to illuftrate efpecially the ftate of Britith
{cience, of Britifh inveftigation, of Britifh arts. But, poffefs —
they the true merits which are to be defired of fuch works
in general, we fhall receive them with eager gratitude and
refpect even in tranflation from a foreign language.

The following abftra& of, this ork: by Dr. Gren, may
perhaps affift our readers to judge what utilities are likely to
refult from the addition of it to the prefent ftock of Englith
chemical literature. -_

It opens with an introdutory fketch of the hiftory of che-
miftry. In the f7/? chapter are explained thofe more general
Jaws which refpect alike all the other parts of chemical fci-
ence, the general nature of the moft remarkable proceffes of
the laboratory, and the forms and peculiar ufes of thofe in-
ftruments. which chemiftry chiefly employs. The chemical _
hiftory of the more remarkable gafes, and of fome of their
proximate compounds, fills the /econd chapter. The general
characters of the acids, of the alkalies, and of their neutral
compounds, are exhibited in the ¢bird, The fourth traces

7 the

New Publications. — aby

the hiftory of the earths. In the fifth the properties of the
different mineral acids are explained with confiderable mi-
nutenefs of detail. The chemical compofition of vegetables,
their principles immediate and ultimate, with their ufes in
the arts, are the fubjects of the firth chapter. The feventh
chapter is employed upon animal matters. Fermentation
and putrefa€tion are the fubjects of the eighth. The ninth
and tenth chapters give the chemical hiftory of bituminous
and carbonaceous minerals. The metals are the fubjects of
the eleventh. Tables of attraCtions, fpecific gravities, weights,
meafures, &c. fill nine articles of an appendix. A copious in-
dex concludes the lafvolume. A preface by the tranflator, and
a table of contents, are prefixed at the beginning of the firft.

Such are the parts, the ftruéture, the exterior form, of
this work. Its feientific value is not to be difcovered with-
out a more intimate examination of it.

It traces the general hiftory of chemiftry from the fuppofed
origin of the fcience, among the ancient Egyptians, to the
zera of its Jaft great improvement by the creation of the anti-
phlogiftic fyftem.

In the explanation of the firft, general awe of chemical
fcience, or what may be called the metaphyfics of chemifiry,
Dr. Gren teaches, that the attraction, the cohefion, and the
expanfion of matter depend upon three diftinét laws: that
matter fills all fpace, without any intervening vacuity: that
it is, however, poflible for two particles of matter to exift to-
gether in the fame {pace at the fame time: that thofe which
are called permanently claftic fluids are not condenfible-nor
deftructible by the mere abftraction of their caloric: that the
affinity of compofition, the fimple affinity, and the double
affinity, are the only diftinguifhable modes of chemical at-
traction: that aetecnael Is no indication of any great ac-
tivity of attractive force.

Solution, fufion, evaporation, diftillation; the fubordinate
_ modes of thefe different procefles, and the veffels and imple-
ments with which they are ufually performed, he defcribes
with confiderable accuracy and clearnefs.

Concerning caloric, this ingenious chemift teaches, that

Mma it

268 New Publications.

it is elaftic and expanfible: that it 1s not expanfible* s that
any quantity of this fubftance poffeffes more or lefs of expan-
five power, according as it is lefs or more expanded: that it
fills a}l {pace, in continuity, without interftices: that it never
produces fenfible heat without entering into intimate chemical
combination with all the parts of the heated body: that its
expanfive force is fometimes active, fometimes inert and qui-
efcent : that, in vapour, caloric is, though fixed and latent, yet

only mechanically adherent to the vaporified fubftance ; while |’

jn the permanent elaflic gafes it is chemically combined with

the refpective bafes: with various ather doétrines, which, as’

lefs novel and peculiar, require not to be here particularly
noticed. é

Light, this author reprefents as a compound of a peculiar
bafe with caloric. He fuppofes it to be rendered fluid and
elattic by caloric; to be fixed, without it. He conceives light
to exift in a fixed ftate in all combuftible bodies, and to be
evolved, in combutlion, into combination with the caloric
from the vital air that is then decompofed. In this manner
he defcribes /ight as the fame thing with the phlogifion of
the difciples of Stahl; not allowing that, if fixed, it muft have
gravity, and that, if it have gravity, the bodies out of which
it is evolved mutt be lighter, as to their other matter, after

they have loft it, than while it ftill exifted in them. He re-

gards:it as being, though a diftiné fubftance from caloric,
yet the matter of beat, and the principle of combu/tion.

Speaking of combuftion, Gren feruples not to affirm, that
the antipblogiflic /yflem affords no explanation of the reafon,
why a certain degree of previous heat is necellary to the com-
mencement of flaming combuiflion. Flame he defcribes as
effentially confifting of the burning gas of the bodies which
are decompofed under it.

He thinks it not improbable that gas-azot and gas- -oxygen
may co-exift in the atmofphere, not in a merely wcehanival
mixture, but even in intimate chemical combination.

That fog which renders the atmofphere thick, dim, and

* See the work, Vol. I. §151- It is'poffible, however, there may be
fome miftake in the printing. 5
turbid,

]
;
)

New Publications. 269

turbid, is regarded by Dr. Gren as the bafis of aqueous va~
_pour entirely deprived of its caloric.

Dr. Gren regards that which has been called the oxygen-~
ated muriatic ay as being nothing but the proper muriatic
acid in its full energy. To that which is now commonly called
the muriatic acid, he gives the name of muriatous acid; re-
garding it as analogous in its chara¢ter to the ee
and the nitrous acids.

He rejects, after Doerffurd, the peculiar ein of the
campbhoric acid. He confiders the narcotic matter ‘of certain
vegetables as worthy to be diftinguifhed as one of their pe-
culiar immediate principles.

The /ithic acid does not appear to: this author to be one
that is formed by the organic funétions of animals.

He affirms, that thofe which are called the acetous and the
acetic acids differ only in the degrees of their concentration,
not in the proportions of their principles.

His general account of the acids, alkalies, and earths, is
indeed br ief, and rather incomplete, but in almoft Sake par-
ticular fuficiently correct.

According to our perfonal experience, hot lime and fulphur,
coming into intimate contact, are apt. to exhibit a combuf-
tion of the fulphur, from which enfues a formation of ful-
phureous acid. Dr. Gren recommends, to prepare fulphuret
of lime by mixing chalk with fulphur, and then igniting the
mixture, to expel the carbonic acid !

In his account of vegetables, Dr. Gren relates, contrary to
the experience of other chemitts, that pyro-ligneous acid, when
fufficiently pure, is, in the nature and proportions of its prin-
ciples, precifely the fame with acetic. acid! *

He afcribes to the mechanical porofity alone, of charcoal,

-unaffifted by any chemical re-agency, that power of purifying
faline leys from colouring matters which charcoal is well
known to poflefs.

' From accurate analyfes of wheat, able chemifts have re-
folved this fubftance into the two immediate principles of
farina and gluten; but Dr. Gren rather confiders it as com-
poled of gluten, larch, and mucilage.

He denies that any vegetables have in them fuch an im-

mediate

270. “New Publications.

mediate principle as aroma; but fuppofes that which has
been hitherto called aroma, to be mayeeliy volatile or ethereal
oil.

The plates of the chemical apparatus at the end of the firft
volume are very beautifully engraved by Mr. Lowry.

Dr. Gren difcovers no analogy between the gelly of ani-
mal bodies and the gluten of vegetables.

He maintains, that, in dread, Hours is fo thoroughly, fo en-
tirely altered, as to ee no longer capable of affording even the
fmalieft portion of farina or gluten,

He reckons no fubftances to be properly fufceptible of pu-
irefadtion, fave fuch as contain azot.

Of bitumens he afferts, that they muft neceffarily have had
their origin from the decompofition of animal bodies.

Though more ample in his accounts of the. metals than in
the preceding departments of his work, he gives no account
of the new Cornifh metal the menachanite.

At the end the editor has given feveral ufeful tables.

As to the other matters in the compofition of this work,
they differ not materially from the explanations in the fyftems
of Fourcroy, Chaptal, Nicholfon, and Jacquin.

The tranflation isnot free from Germanifms; but in books
ef chemical and phyfical feience, elegance and propriety of
this fort are rarely regarded as objects of primary concern.

On the whole, we cannot doubt but the public muft receive,
with partial favour, a work of fuch fingular merits. The
tranflator, and thofe who have encouraged the tranflation,
evidently deferve the warmeft thanks of Britifh chemifts,

Effays on the Venereal Difeafe. Part IW. By WILLIAM
Buarr, A.M.F.M.S. &c. ec. Sc, Symonds, Pater-
nofter Row. 1800. ; 4

IT was fome time fince flated by Mr. Scott of Bombay,
that he had difcovered the acid of nitre to poffefs the powers
of a {pecific remedy for-the venereal difeafe. Dr. Beddoes,
Mr. Cruickfhank, and other medical gentlemen i in this coun-
try, eagerly repeated the trials sridiveata by Mr. Scett. The
fuccefs was various. One party affirmed the decifive efficacy
of the new medicine; another declared, from alleged expe~

rience,

p+

New Publications. - 29%

tience, that its powers were imaginary, or at beft uncertain.
Inaccuracy of obfervation and experiment, with the influence
of perfonal partialities and preconceived opinions, were na-
turally fuppofed to be the chief caufes of thefe contrarieties
of report. Mr. Blair, Surgeon to the Lock Hofpital and Afy=
Jum, therefore, undertook to colle& fuch a fyftem of evidence
concerning the action of nitric and- nitrous acid in des vene=

_rea, as fhould, if poffible, finally afcertain the true praétical

principle in regard to its ufe. The refult of his -firft inquiries

_was made public in a former part of the prefent work. In

the fecond part the ingenious author prefents a multiplicity
of new teftimonies; analyfes and examines the fas pub-
lifhed on the fame fubje& by others; and endeayours to de-
duce thofe general truths, to eftablifh which, he conceives
that all his affembled teftimonies combine their force. His
inquiry has been conducted, and his. laft inferences are de-
duced, with the candour of a gentleman and the cautious
difcrimination of a philofopher. ‘¢ That the acids of nitre,
&c. though very ufeful auxiliaries to mercury in the cure of
the venereal difeafe, are, in no modification of that com-
plaint, to be confidently and exclufively fubfituted inftead
of mercury,” is the general. pra€tical pofition with which
Mr, Blair clofes his whole inveftigation.

This opinion is, perhaps, the fafeft to be at prefent a&ted
upon in medical practice.’ Et feems to be allowed on ail
hands, however, that nitric acid, taken together with mer-

‘ eury, counteracts its debilitating effets without diminifhing

its remedial energy.
Of the ratio of the operation of either mercury or nitric
, acid, as an anti- venereal remedy, no very particular account
"has ever yet been given. It has indeed beén conceived,
that, fince oxygen is the bafis of vital air, it muft be, in all
its various modifications, of fovereign efficacy for the cure of
difeafe and the nourifhment of life; that nitric acid is a re-
medy againft lues venerea, on account of the oxygen which
it contains ; and that other oxygenous compounds may pro-
bably act with fimilar effeéts, All-beyond this is fill left in
myftery. But, is not the venereal virus one of thofe innu-
merable and fabtle chemical. compounds as yet inimitable by
human

27% Intelligence and Mifcellanéous Articles.

human art, which the healthful fun@ions of the animal
economy continually form by the endlefsly varied combina-
tion of hydrogen, carbon, oxygen, and azot? Is not this
virus, thus compounded, decompofable, probably, by the affi- ,
nities of many acid ‘and faline fubftances, provided thefe fub-
ftances might be brought into mixture with it in all thofe
parts of the fyftem in which it is aétive, and without being
themfelves previoufly altered by decompofition or new com-
binations? Are not the activity with which mercury pene-
trates throughout the whole body, and that remarkable de-
gree in which, in every one of its combinations, it preferves
its primitive energies—are not thefe the caufes of its being a
fpecific for the decompofition and entire expulfion of the
venereal virus? Does it not then certainly appear, if oxy-
gen, or perhaps nitric acid, without decompofition, without
new combination, might be brought in fufficient quantity,
and for a fufficient length of time, into mixture with all the
venereal virus that is at any time in the fyftem, that the
virus might be entirely decompofed, and the difeafe com
pletely healed ?

es = merereanae nena Fem eS

INTELLIGENCE,
AND 3
-MaSCELLANEOUS ARTICLES.

PRIZE QUESTIONS,

Tue Ele&toral Jablonfky Society of the Sciences at
Leipfic has announced the following prize queftions for
the year 1800:

Hiflory. —A. fhort fketch of the seks of the trade of
Poland.

Mathematics.—An hiftorical view, quoting the authorities
of the various purpofes to which the laws of attraction have
been applied fince the time of Newton to the prefent period.

Phyjfical Economy.—Of the influence of the atmofphere

on,

French National Inftitute. 1 278

6n the fertility of the earth, according to the neweft and
moft authentic experiments; and in particular, How does
the nature of the foil, fituation, and culture, contribute to
render this influence attive and efficacious? The prize is a
medal of the value of 24 ducats; and the papers, written
either in the Latin or French language, muft be tranfmitted,
with a fealed note containing the author’s name and place of
abode, to C. F. Hindenburg, public profeflor of natural phi-
lofophy and fecretary to the: fociety.

The following prize queftions have been propofed by the.
French National Inftitute.

CLASS OF THE MATHEMATICAL AND PHYSICAL
SCIENCES,

I. The Clafs propofed, for the fecond time, in the year 6,
as the fubjeét of a prize, an anatomical comparifon of the
liver in different kinds of animals; but as no paper has been
tranfmitted on that queftion, He Clafs has thought proper
to withdraw it, and to propofe the following :

“© To determine, by chemical and anatemical obfervations
and experiments, what are the phenomena of the torpor
which certain animals, fuch as the marmot, dormoufe, &c.
experience, during winter, in regard to the circulation of the
blood, refpiration, and irritability: to make refearches re-
fpeéting the caufe of this fleep, and why it is peculiar to
thefe animals.”

‘The competitors are requefted to examine in particular
what differences are obferved between thefe animals in their
lethargic and their ordinary ftate, in regard to the quicknefs
of their pulfe; the degree of the warmth of the blood; the
frequency of their refpiration; the quantity of oxygen con-
fumed in a given time; and their excitability by galvanifm.
They will examine alfo the anatomical differences which dif-
tinguifh thefe animals from thofe not fubje& to torpor during
the winter; and they will endeavour to difcover whether thefe
differences are {uficient to explain the phenomena of that
torpor. :

The prize will be a gold medal of the value of a kilo-
gramme. As the éxperiments refpecting this queftion can-

Vor. VI, Nn not

O74 Quefiion on Vegetation, Se.

not be made but in winter, the memoirs will be received tilf
gthe 15th of Meffidor, year 10. The Inftitute will proclaim
*the piece which fhall be thought worthy of the prize in its
public fitting of Vendemiaire, year 11.

II. The Clafs propofed alfo in the year 6, as the fubject
of a prize, to be determined in the public fitting of Germi-
nal, year 8, the following queftion :

“¢ To endeavour to afcertain, by accurate experiments,
what influence euneipictt air, light, water, and earth, have
on vegetation.”

Though no memoir has been received on this imterefting
queftion, the Clafs has thought proper to propofe it again ;
but as the different labours neceffary to refolve it completely
would require many experiments and confiderable time; and
as it can hardly be expected that all the information which
may be wifhed for can be obtained from the competitors in
the courfe of the new term propofed, the Clafs has decreed,
that if memoirs in which the queftion is treated in its full
extent be not received, it will grant the prize to that which
fhall contain a feries of experiments, facts, and obfervations,
that fhall appear calculated to augment the knowledge al-
ready acquired in regard to fome parts of the queftion.

The prize will be a medal of the value of a kilogramme,
and will be decreed in the public fitting of the 15th of Mef-
fidor, year 10. The papers muft be fent in before the 1f of
Nivofe, year 0.
tr ee What ; are the charaters which diftingutth im ani-
mal and vegetable fubftances thofe which five! as ferment,
from thofe in which they produce fermentation ?”

The prize will be a gold medal of the value of a kilo-
grammie, and will be decreed in the public fitting of the
15th of Germinal, year tc. The papers muft be fent in
before the rft of Nivofe the fame year.

CLASS OF LITERATURE AND THE FINE ARTS.

“‘ To analyfe the relation which fubfifts between mufic
and declamation.”’
_ € To determine the means of applying declamation to:
mufic without injuring melody.”

The

Phenomena of Volcanoes. 275

The prize will be a gold medal of the value of a kilo-
gramme, and ‘will be decreed in the public fitting of the
15th of Nivofe, year 10. The papers muft be written in.
French, -and fent in before the 1ft of Vendemiaire the fame
year.

Tn the fittting of the 15th of Germinal (April 4), at which
Bonaparte fat as prefident, C. Cuvier read an account of the
labours of the Mathematical and Phyfical Clafs during the
preceding three months.

It is in the department of natural hiftory in particular that
the labours of the Clafs, during the laft quarter, have enlarged
the boundaries of feience. It has treated fome queftions of
the utmoft importance in regard to the hiftory of minerals
and that of animals.

Philofophers, for example, have long been embarraffed °
with volcanoes, on account of the difficulties which occur in
explaining the phenomena of them, and in the attempts
made to difcover the fources of thofe immenfe quantities of
fubftances of every kind thrown up by them during eruptions.
C. Patrin, on this fubject, has given fome views which dif-
play a bold imagination, and has called in to his aid all the
refources of modern chemiftry. He fuppofes that the water
of the fea is continually attra¢ted between the itrata of {chift,
which generally forms the bafis of volcanoes: that the ma-
rine falt is there decompofed: that its acid becomes fur-
charged with oxygen by pafling over the oxyds of iron and
manganefe: that it decompofes the fulfures of iron, and even
the water, by the intervention of carbon: that the different
products of thefe decompofitions, combining under other
forms, give petroleum and-hydrogen gas, which take fire,
and produce the moft brilliant part of the volcanic pheno-
mena; while electricity, joining itfelf to thefe elements, al-
ready fo numerous, forms fulphur and phofphorus. It is the -
laft-mentioned fub{tance above all, which, in the opinion of
C. Patrin, aéts the moft diftinguifhed part. By it he fup-
poles the oxygen is fixed under an earthy appearance, and
confequently, it is by it that volcanoes are enabled to furnith
that immenfe quantity of lava which they are continually
pouring forth on the furrounding diftris without exhaufting

Nn the

276 Red Snow.—Native Metals.

the bafe that fupports them. In the laft place, the iron is
carried into the lava by a metalliferous fluid, to which
C. Patrin afcribes the property of holding metals in a ftate
of vapour, and of depofiting them under certain circum-
fiances, almoft as fluoric acid gas does filiceous earth.

Snow of a very bright red colour has fometimes been
found on the fummits of the higheft mountains. The mat-
ter which colours it, burns with a fmell fimilar to that of a
great many vegetable fubftances. Sauffure, who often col-
leGted fuch fnow on the Alps, was induced by this property,
as well as by its being found in fummer, and in places where
a great many plants were in flower, to confider the colouring
matter as the farina of fome plant *. C. Ramond, who found
this duft on the fnow of the Pyrenees, baving remarked that
it is heavier than water, fufpected it to be of mineral origin ;
and he, indeed, found that it arifes from a decompofition of
certain micas, This decompofition requires, without doubt,
the conditions mentioned by Sauffure; for C. Ramond found
that they are neceflary to the Pyrenees as well as to the
Alps.

The production of native metals in the interior of mines
is one of thofe objeéts alfo which have attracted the atten-
tion of naturalifts, and which have given rife to a multitude
of fyftems. An experiment of C. Gillet-Laumont points
out one of the ways in which this produétion may take
place. He has fhown us, that by touching or rubbing with
zine or with iron the muriat of filver, that is to fay, a com-
bination of the oxyd of filver with the muriatic acid, the
filver immediately refumes its purity and luftre by giving
up its acid to the metal which touches it. But the cir-
cumftances neceflary for this reduction, which chemiftry
eafily explains, may occur every moment in the interior of
mines,

We too often accufe the ancients of error when we do not
underftand them. Ariftotle fpeaks of the afpalax as an ani-
mal entirely blind. The Romans and the moderns, having
tranflated the word a/palax mole, thought themfelves autho-

* For an account of Mr. Sanffure’s difcovery of red {now on the Alps,
fee the Puilofophical Magazine, Vol. III. p. 168. ;
rifed

Zoology. 259
rifed to deny the affertion of Ariftotle; and indeed the mole
is not blind; it is alfo an animal different from the afpalax.
C. Olivier has brought us from the Levant an animal ac~
tually blind, its {kin not being even pierced at the place
where the eyes ought to be; which lives under ground like
the mole, and which has all the characters afcribed by Ari-
ftotle to the afpalax. This animal is that known to zoolo-
gifts under the name of mus typhlus and zemni.

C. Olivier has given us alfo fome information refpeéting
another {mall animal known to the ancients under the name
of the tevo-footed rat, and to the moderns by that of the
Jerboa. The very fingular conformation of its feet, of which
thofe behind are five or fix times longer than thofe before,
has been known for fome time, but we had no accurate
_ knowledge of the manner in which it walks. C, Oliviér in-
forms us that it moves forwards only by jumping, but that
it always falls on all four. He has deferibed alfo the organ-
ifation of its genitals, which are armed with fraall points, that
muft render its copulation ftill more painful than that of
cats. He has defcribed alfo a {mall fpecies of this genus,
hitherto imperfe&tly known.

C. Beauvois has invented an inftrument for indicating the
refpective proportions of the crania of different quadrupeds.
He has applied it to two animals of North America, whicla
fome naturalifts ftill hefitate to make diftin@ fpecies on ac-
count of their great refemblance to animals analogous to
them in the old continent. Thefe animals are the fox and
the rabbit of the United States. The refult of C. Beauvois’
comparifons is, that they are two difinét fpecies; and this
opinion is juftified by the habits of thefe animals. The rab-
bit, in particular, does not burrow like ours, but neftles in
hollow trees.

C. Latreille has prefented two memoirs, which have been
fince printed. The firft. treats of the ferpents of France.
Thefe animals, which occafion fo much terror to the vulgar,
have not been fufficiently ftudied by naturalifis. The eleven
fpecies found in France have often been confounded with
each other, but C, Latreille has completely explained the
pomenclature, :

The

978 - Ultramarine—Anatomical Preparation. *

The fecond memoir relates to falamanders, to which our
anceftors afcribed the property of refifling the flames; but
they have fhown to our cotemporaries a property more au-
thentic, and equally wonderful, that of reproducing their
limbs when they have been cut off. C. Latreille has de-
fcribed fix-{pecies which hitherto have not been diftinguifhed
by naturalifts.

Every body knows ultramarine, that valuable colour, whigh
alone imitates the azure of the heavens. It is extracted from
a ftone named /apis lazuli, by a very tedious manipulation ;
and though it has been known for a long time, and was even
employed in the middle ages for thofe miniatures with which
manufcripts were can anise, no precife idea was enter-
tained refpeéting its colouring principle: it was long be- .
lieved that it was copper. Maregraf proved that it is iron;
but the queftion was, to find in what ftate it exilts in the
fone, and how it produces that beautiful blue colour with-
out being combined with the acid of Pruffian blue. C. Guy-
ton, treating gypfum which contained abundance of iron,
yemarked ANS in changing itfelf into a fulfure, that matter
affumed a blue colour as unalterable as that of /apts lazuli,
and preferving itfelf even in pot-afh in fufion. Guided by
this phenomenon, he treated Japis lazuli itfelf; and his ex-
periments leave him no doubt that the colouring principle
of that ftone is a blue fulfure of iron, which has hitherto
eluded the refearches of chemifts, becaufe they confounded
the produéts of it with thofe of the grains of pyrites or yel-
low fulfure of iron, which exift in every kind of lapis lazuli.
By a few fteps more the arts will perhaps be enriched with a _
rare fubftance, which may be formed at pleafure.

C. Chauftier has rendered an important fervice to all thofe
{ciences the object of which is organifed bodies, by commu-
nicating the means of preferving to the different parts of the
human body, and of thofe of animals, the forms which they
poffefled when in the ftate of life. This procefs confifts in
keeping them for fome time in a folution of the oxygen-
ated muriat of mercury, commonly called corrofive /ublimate.
When fuffered to dry, after being taken from this mixture,
they aflume a confiftence like that of wood, and become

abies

Medicine. 279
abfolutely unchangeable in the air. If the bodies have been
mjected before being immerfed, they even retain the colour
and frefhnefs of life and eaulinuedtly form mummies much
more perfeét than thofe of Egypt, which, as has been faid,
only eternifed the image of death. C. Chauffier has no
doubt that this was the method employed by Ruifch, and
which anatomifts in vain attempted to difcover.

C. Vauquelin and C. Buniva have analyfed the liquor of
the amnios of woman and that of the cow, together with the
fubftance found. on the bodies of new-born children. The
liquor of the amnios of woman contains albumen, foda, mu-
riat of foda, and phofphat of lime. The cruft on the body
of the foetus is a degeneration of the albuminous fubftance,
which begins to pafs to the ftate of a fat body. The liquor
of the amnios of the cow exhibited a peculiar animal matter,
a new acid, and fulphat of foda.

Medicine has produced four important memoirs. The
epidemic difeafe which broke out at Nice and Grenoble
alarmed the public, and a report was even fpread that it
was actually the plague. C. Defeflart, however, after col-
leéting every information on the fubject, has fhown that it
was only that difeafe long known under the name of the jaz
fever, which too often attacks armies and other bodies of
men when crowded together.

Children are born fometimes with a portion of the vifcera
uncovered, and having a tumor which by medical men is
called an umbilical hei: C. Laffus has fhown that the
caufe of this defeét is, that the liver, receiving a larger quan-
tity of blood than it ought by the umbilical vein, -dilates it-
felf more than ufual,. feparates the mufcles of the abdomen
which kept it in its place, dilates and renders thin the ten-
dinous fubftance that feparates them, and makes its way
through the fame opening of the fkin through which the
umbilical cord paffes. This diforganifation fometimes pro-
ceeds fo far that the inteftines, and even the heart and lungs,
are alfo uncovered. ‘This vicious conformation proves almoft
always mortal; and C. Laffus announces this circumftance,
that furgeons may fave themfelves the trouble of performing
operations, which may caufe the parents to be accufed of

.Q ignorance

280 Affaying of Silvers

ignorance or cruelty. C. Pelletan, om the other hand, eft«
deavours to encourage them to undertake another operation,
which may be ufeful, and, which mifplaced timidity often
prevents from being practifed; it is that of bronchotomy, or
opening the tracheal artery. Whenever any body capable
of ftopping refpiration is introduced into that canal, it may
be boldly wey in order to get rid of it. -

C. Portal has revived the ideas, which he announced in
1782, on the treatment of that kind of apoplexy called /erous,
that is to fay, of that kind durmg which the face remains
pale and livid. He has proved that emetics, generally ad-
miniftered in fuch cafes, are the more inefficacious, as in
every kind of apoplexy the ftomach is palfied; and that, be-
fides, it has appeared by all bodies which have been pate
that in the ferous apoplexy, as well as in others, there are
accumulations of blood in the brain. He does not hefitate,
therefore, to recommend bleeding for the one as well as for
the other ; and he has proved by practical obfervations that
it has often fucceeded.

C. Duhamel has been employed in improving the art of
affaying filver, or of feparating it from the lead it contains.
For this procefs, on a {mall {ceale, refiners employ fmall cups
of well lixiviated bone-athes called cupells, which abforb the
lead as it vitrifies, and leave the filver pure: a large fcale
they employ cupells formed of wood=-athes ; ns befides their
being expenfive, they are attended with feveral inconve-
niences. C. Duhamel, after remarking that the litharge,
or glafs of lead, may be feparated in proportion as it is
formed, without caufing it to be abforbed by the cupells,
propofes that thefe veflels thould be made of founders fand
mixed with clay; that the furface of them fhould be covered
with a ftratum of afhes; that the blaft of the bellows fhould
be directed on the fluid lead to accelerate the oxydation; and
that the litharge fhould be made to run off by a groove
formed in the edge of the cupell, and which ought to be
dug lower in proportion as the bath finks down.

GC. Lacepede read an ingenious memoir on fome pheno-
mena refpecting the flight and vifion of birds. He took, as

the objet of his obfervations, the eagle and man-of-war’

bird ;

Jew Books. —Geography. 28%
bird; two kinds which are endowed with the ftrongeft power
of flight and the acuteft vifion. It refults from his obferva-
tions that the fight of thefe birds is nine times more exten-
five than that of the furtheft fighted man; and that in 220
hours, that is to fay, ina little more than nine days, allowing
them 16 or 17 hours of repofe, they would make the tour of
the whole earth.

C. Cuyier read the eloge of Daubentori, with an account
of his labours, in the oie of which he drew a parallel be-
tween him and his’ friend Buffon. Buffon always fuffered
himfelf to be led away by his imagination, Daubenton al- .
ways endeavoured to evard again{t his: the former was full
of vivacity, the latter of patience: the firft chofe rather to
guefs at the truth than to obferve it; the fecond remarked all
its details, and was always difident of himfelf.

The Clafs has received from feveral of its members the
following works’:

_ . Olivier has prefented the three firft volumes of his
Natural Hitiory of Infeéts, which contain a defcription and
figures of an immente number of new and interefting fpecies.

C. Briffon prefented a new edition of his Diétionnaire de
Phyfique, with additions containing an account of all the
modern difcoveries.

C. Cuvier has prefented the two firft volumes of his Lef-
fons of comparative Anatomy. In this work the author ex-
amines the organs of motion and fenfation in regard to their
ftructure and ufes in man and all the other claffes of animals.

C. Levefque read at the fame time an account of the la-
bours of the Clafs of the Moral and Political Sciences during
the preceding three months,

cs. Goffelin has examined the saanical knowledge of
the ancients refpecting the fouthern coalts of Arabia. He
has proved that Ptolemy, notwithftanding the fingular form
he has given to them, has preferyed with the greate(t accu-
racy all the diftanees, and that our beft modern charts might
be corrected by the labours of that ancient geographer.

C. Buache has communicated to the Clafs a memoir, in
manuf{cript, written at Cairo in 1717 by the French traveller
Paul Lucas. This memoir contains fome curious. informa-

Vo-. VI. Oo : tion

282 Eledoral Academy of Sciences at Erfurt.

tion refpecting feveral places in the interior of Africa. .The
means employed by Paul Lucas to obtain this information
were the fame as thofe employed by fome late Englifh tra-
vellers: he confulted the caravans which fet out every year ,
‘from Cairo for Africa.

C, Langles, by his fkill in oriental literature, has been
able to procure fome information, which he has communi-
cated to the Clafs, refpeing a people in India called the
Seeks. Thefe people, whofe capital is Lahor, acknowledge
as their founder a Hindu born iu 1460, who gave them in
“one book their code of Jaws and the ritual of nee religion.
They adore one God, to whom they afcribe neither pafiions
nor human weaknefs. As they are ftrangers to the fhackles
of fuperftition, they have not reccived thofe of defpotifm,
which, by oppreffing the other tribes of India, enchains their
courage as well as their ideas. As they are induftrious, opu-
Tent, and brave, and are protected by natural raniparts im-
penetrable to cavalry, they have never yet been fubdued
even by the Mogul princes, their neighbours.

- ELECTORAL ACADEMY OF THE USEFUL SCIENCES
AT ERFERT.

In the fitting of September 2, 1799, A. F. Hecker read a
treatife on the care and education of orphans; on hofpitals
for foundlings, and on child-murder.

J.J. Bellermann,communicated fome obfervations on five
oriental manufcripts which had been prefented to the Aca-
demy.

C. Cramp communicated his analyfis of aftrononagal and
terreftrial refraGtions.

In the fitting of O&ober 2, Charles Theodore Anthony
Maria Baron von Dalberg read a paper on fteatites, and the
‘afes to which it may be applied in the arts by lapidaries ;
- and communicated at the fame time fome obfervations which
he had made on the fteatites of Baireuth (talcum fleatites).
Steatites is an exceedingly foft ftone, which can be cut or
‘turned’ with great eafe, and which, when burnt in a clofe
Veffel, acquires fuch a hardnefs as to withftand the file. In
this manner an artift, with very little expence, might prepare
a a Selle ORR . cameos,

Steatites.— Germination. 283

eameos, gems, and fmall toys, which in point of folidity would
not be inferior to thofe of the ancients. The author made a
feties of experiments on the method of giving a durable dye
to hardened fteatites, by which it appears that it may be made
to imitate the moft efteemed and moft beautiful kinds of ftone.
In the fpecimens of the coloured fteatites laid before the So-
ciety, fome of which had heads cut on them, the members
admired in particular the high degree of polith of which
burnt fieatites is fufceptible, and in which it exceeds even
agate. Thefe experiments are curious, and of the utmoft
importance to the arts.

Profeffor J. Bartholomew Trommfdorf gave at the fame
time a chemical analyfis of fteatites, by which it appears that
filiceous earth and talcky earth are the principal component
parts of this foffil. The profeflor, however, obferved alfo a
fmal] mixture of argillaceous earth, which Klaproth, during
his refearches, ntl not find, but which, according to the
author, was perhaps accidental.

Prince Demitri von Gallitzin gave an account of the expe-
riments which he made with different kinds of air in regard
to the germination of vegetables. He fowed garden-crefles
in thirteen kinds of air, and kept them all at an equal tem-
perature. The following were the refults :-—1(t, In oxygen
gas, and in air corrupted by refpiration and burnt bodies,
germination took place as well as in common air. 2d, In hy-
drogen gas and in carbonic acid gas, extracted from different
bodies, and by yarious proceffes, there was no germination.
The feeds of the crefics {welled up a little, but in the courfe
of eight days there was not the fmalleft fign of growth ;
though the feeds in atmofpheric and oxygen air, and air cor-
rupted by refpiration, produced in the fame period four leaves.
Atmofpheric air being admitted into the glaffes which con-
tained the carbonic acid, and hydrogen gafes, the feeds in
forty-eight hours threw out two leaves. From this it feems
to follow, that carbonic acid and hydrogen gafes check
and retard germination, but do not defiroy ina ad, Nitrous
air deftroyed the feeds, gave them a black colour, and
rendered them incapable of germinating in other kinds of

air.
Oc3 This

284 Experiment to preferve Potatoes.

This effect, as the author conjectures, arifes from the ni-
trous acid which the nitrous air contains. The author com-
municated alfo the following obfervation :—Being defirous,
as the late Camper was, to difcover fome means for prevent-
ing potatoes from growing, in order that they might be pre-
ferved in a ftate fit for food throughout the whole year, he
put fixty of them into a glafs bell with fixed air, and clofed
the aperture with mercury. The potatoes, indeed, did not
germinate, but at the end of fix months they were totally
fpoiled, emitted a brown corrupted juice, and funk moft
intolerably.

Dr. G. H. Thilow read a paper on the action which puri-
fied nitre and common falt have on the animal body. From
feveral experiments which the author made in the galvanic
manner, with many variations, on different animals, he con-
cludes, that nitre poffeffes the property of lowering the tone
of the nervous and mufcular fibres. Thus, for example, the
crural nerve of a frog being f{trewed over with nitre, no con-
vulfive movements of importance took place; but when com-
mon falt was applied in the fame manner, exceedingly violent _
convulfions were produced. The author is therefore of opi-
nion, that common falt is to be confidered as one of the
ftrongeft of ftimulants.

In the fitting of November 2, J. F. H. Baron von Dalberg
prefented a treatife on the origin of harmony, and its pro-
greffive formation. In this eflay the author traces out the
progrefs of the mufical gamut of melody and polyphenia,
or finging in parts, in the different periods of the hiftory of
mufic from their firft origin to their prefent refined ftate ; and
fhows, by hiftorical and afthetic proofs, that all the ai in
regard to their formation, have had the fame progrefs; that
is, from fimplicity to complexnefs, from rudenels to refine-
ment, from great to exalted, until the art, by corruption of
tafte, again finks into trifling minutenefs, and becomes over-
Joaded and {poiled. From thefe obfervations the author de-
duces this practical refult for muficians, that unity and va-
riety determine real beauty; that difcords, chromatic and
enharmonic proportions, the alternation of quick and flow
time, and a mixture of the exalted and lively ftyle, are ne-

eeflary

Antiquities —Hereditary Difeafes. \ 285

ceflary to enhance the value of confonant fimple proportions ;
and that variety in the unity, order, and fymmetry of the
parts, alternation, aud contrafis, and power combined with
foftnefs, form the eternal laws of fifthetic beauty. The au-
thor at the fame time prefented feveral illuftrations, and a
few curious unpublifhed fongs of the middle ages, with the
old mode of notation in the form of cyphers, or the Hebrew
accents, part of which he brought with him from Italy.

The prefident, C. F. Baron von Dacherdden, director of
the Academy, prefented an urn, dug up a fhort time before
near Strafsfurt, the height of which was fix and a half, and
the width at the greateft diameter nine inches. The prefident
obferved, as fomething remarkable, that this Germanic urn
was found, with feveral others, in a low diftri€l, though the
burying-places of the ancient Germans were always on emi-
nences. Near this urn were found feveral maffes of ftone,
which feem to indicate a Druidical altar or habitation,

Profeffor H. A. Frank read fome obfervations which con-
tained a criticifm on a fuppofed proof of hereditary difeafes.
Some perfon having afferted in a late publication on heredi-
tary difeafes, that the Roman families of Pifo, Cicero, Len-
tulus, Fabius, &c. acquired their names from certain fpots,
marks, or moles, refembling different kinds of pulfe, which
were peculiar to them, and which were tranfmitted through
different generations, the author fhows that Plutarch and
Pliny, who fpeak of the derivation of thefe names, partly do
not make the above aflertion, and partly are of another opi-
nion. Thus, Pliny deduces the above names from this cir-
cumftance, that thofe to whom they were firft given diftin-
guifhed themfelves in a particular manner by the cultivation
of pulfe.

Profeffor Jofeph Hamilton read a paper on the nature of
the eleCtric matter. He is of opinion that this matter con-
fifts of light, fire, and the phofphoric acid.

Dr. G. Thilow prefented fome obfervations to confirm the
difcovery of Ingenhouz, that oxygen has a great influence on
vegetation. The author’s experiments were the two follow-
ing :—1ft, A weak, fickly dwarf-tree was befprinkled with a
mixture of oil of vitriol and water. The tree-lice, which ren-

dered

236 Difiillation.— Heat and Light.— Antiquities.

dered the plant fickly, afterwards difappeared, and the plant °
fpéedily revived. 2d, A fmall layer of an auricula (Pri-.
mula auricula Linn.) by the fame means, in the period of
fcarcely three weeks, was brought to a confiderable fize and
full bloom. This plant the author prefented to the Society.
The latter experiment, according to the author, would pro-
bably have fucceeded in a fhorter period had not the expan-
fion of the plant:been retarded by two nights froft.

In the fitting of December 3, Profeffor J. B. Trommfdorf
read a paper entitled Colleétions towards a Chemical Know-
ledge of Mineral Bodies; which contained, 1f{t, A chemical
analyfis of a black feld {par in the bafaltes of an extinguifhed
volcano of Unkel: 2d, The anatomy of a blue chalcedony
from Siberia: 3d, The decompofition of a dark black obfidian
ftone from Mount Heckla: 4th, The chemical examination
of a heliotrope from Bohemia.

A paper was received from N. Miller, of Marktwipfeld,
on the progrefs of diftilling fpirits from potatoes according
to the author’s principles ; in which he endeavoured to fhow
tHat the country around Nieuwied had derived great benefit
from this method of diftillation, and from its beconiiip more
general,

HEAT AND LIGHT.

By Dr. Herfchel’s experiments on this fubjeét, and which
have been Jaid before the Royal Suciety, it appears, not only
that the different coloured rays of the folar fpe¢trum are en-
dowed with very different powers of heating bodies ; but that
Beat alfo comes from the fun by zmvifible rays, which are /e/s
refrangible than the red rays of the prifmatic {pectrum,

ANTIQUITIES.

A peafant of Steyermark, a few months ago, in digging ©
at the large canal near Vienna, found an urn containing
298 pieces of the pureft gold, of a ftraw colour, fomewhat
fmaller then Imperial ducats, but twice as thick, and confe-
quently equal in value'to about an Englifh guinea. Twenty
of thefe pieces he immediately gave to one of his fellow-la-
bourérs, and with four others he purchafed from a Vienna
pedlar fome clothes, with which, and the remainder of the

Coins,

A new fomple Earth. 2a7

coins, he fet. out for Steyermark. Here, however, the eir-
cumftance was difcovered by the magiftrates, and 274 of the
coins have fince been tranfmitted to the Imperial: cabinet.
Twenty of thefe pieces are ftill wanting, but the Auftrian
government is making fearch after Fee All thefe coins
are in excellent peelervacon, but a few of them are a little
eut. They comprehend 76 of Nero; 95 of Vefpafian; 42 of
Trajan, two of them ao a well preferved ; 21 of Adrian;
10 of Antoninus; 12 of Domitian; 11 of Lucius Verus; 9 of
Galba, three of them exceedingly good; 1 of Marcus Aure-
lius; 1 of Marciana; 8 of Fauftina, three of them in fine
prefervation ; 8 of Otho, and 1 of milius.

The proprietors of an enclofure near Montpellier, in lately
digging up a plantation, difcovered a tomb in which was en-
clofed an alabafter urn, the cover of which was cemented
down. On opening they found in it afhes, an alabafter in-
cenfe-pot, the handle of which reprefented the head of a
ram, a fepulchral lamp, and feveral pieces of money ftruck
in the reign of Domitian. Another difcovery for the amufe-
ment of antiquarians has alfo been made in France—a temple
has lately been found which was dedicated to Ceres, and
which, according to hiftory, was fituated on the road from
Paris to Pics

A NEW EARTH.

Profeffor Trommfdorff has announced that he has difco-
vered a new fimple earth in the fo called Saxon beryl. “ I
examined,” fays he, “ this foffil, and expected to find in it
glucine, but could difeover no traces of it. The new earth
which [ found poffeffes the following properties, by which it
diftinguithes itfelf from other earths :—It is white, and to-
tally infoluble in water. In a freth ftate, when moiftened
with water, it is fomewhat duétile. In the fire it be-
comes tranfparent and very hard, fo as to feratch glafs,
but remains infipid and infoluble in water. The burnt earth
diffolves very eafily in acids, and produces with them pecu-
liar falts, which are entirely void of tafte. Fixed alkalies
diffolve this earth neither in the dry nor the wet way; and it
is equally infoluble with the carbonic acid and with cauftic
ammonia. It has a greater affinity. to the oxalic than to

other

A
288 _ . Learned Tour.
other acids. Ihave given to this earth the name of aguft
erde (taftelefs earth) becaufe a combination of it with acids
is infipid.” Profeffor Trommfdorff informs us, that a full
analyfis of this earth, accompanied with an accurate defcrip-
tion of the foffil by Dr. Bernhardi, as well as an analyfis of
a German foffil that contains chrome, will appear in the firft
part of the eighth volume of his Journal of Pharmacy, along
with other effays of importance to chemifts.

LEARNED TOUR.

A letter from Rome of a recent date contains the follow~
ing article: —‘* Mr. Hamilton, a young man twenty-five
years of age, nephew to Sir William Hamilton, the Britifh
ambaffador at the court of Naples, and fecretary to the Britifh
ambaffador at Contftantinople, is about to undertake a Jearned
tour through Greece, Afia Minor, Syria, and Egypt. With
this view, during his refidence in this city, he engaged various.
artifts, to whom he is to allow handfome falaries. He takes
with him as architect an Italian named Baieftra; a ftatuary,
alfo an Italian, is engaged merely for the purpofe of fuper-
intending the cafts; as Thode of all the monuments not
tranfportable are to be taken on the fpot. Don Tito, of
Naples, is to attend Mr. Hamilton, as landfcape- painter,
and to defign ruins; and the Calmuc Feodor, an ingenious
draftfman and engraver, who about eight years ago was fent .
by the court of Carlfruhe to Rome, but who was left there
feveral years without any protection, and who on that ac-
count was in narrow circumftances, is engaged to paint ~
figures. Thefe artifts are all engaged for two or three years.
Mr. Hamilton proceeded from Naples to Palermo, and thence
to Conftantinople, where he pafled the winter, that he might
_ begin his tour through Greece in the fpring.

‘¢ Befides the above artifts, Mr. Hamilton carried along
with him from Naples a band of mufic. The whole tra-
velling party, after they have been joined by fome Englith
gentlemen of fortune at Conftantinople, will confift of from
fixty to eighty perfons.”’

THE

PHILOSOPHICAL MAGAZINE.

MAY 1800.

¥. Defeription of the Tland of Celebes or Macaffar; with an
Account of its Gold 1 Mines, and the Manner of working
them. By Mr. Von WURMB*,

Tite ifland of Cclebes, called alfo Macaffar, is of great
importance to the Dutch ¢ for the fpice trade, on account of
its fituation, as it has on the north the Philippines, on the
welt the Sunda ifles, on the eaft the Moluccas, and on the
fouth Timior and Java. It extends from the third degree of
north to the fifth of fouth latitude, and lies nearly under the
136th degree of longitude. It is about a hundred and twenty
miles in length from nofth to fouth, and forty-five in breadth
from eaft to weft. Raynal fays its nes amounts to about
a huadred and thirty miles, by which, in all probability, he
underftood its length from north to fouth. Properly the
eaftern fide of the ifland is called Celebes, and the weftern
Macaffar; but in general the former name is given to the
whole ifland, particularly by the Dutch.

As this ifland lies under the line, the air is exceeding-
ly hot; but the heat is moderated by frequent rains and
cooling breezes, and in moft places the air is not prejudicial
to the health of the inhabitants. It abounds with moun-

* From Merkwirdigheiten aus Oftindien, publithed by his brother. -

4 This ifland, fince the author wrote, has fallen into the hands of the
Englith.

Vou Vi. Pp tains,

290 Defeription of the Ifland of Celebes,

tains, but the foil, taken in general, is fertile. Rice, coce+
nut trees, mangoes, bananas, melons, and oranges, grow
here exceedingly well, and are cultivated in abundance, to-
gether with the cotton fhrub, why, and batia*, ‘There are
here alfo plenty of horfes, oxen, buffaloes, deer, wild fwine,
and birds of afl kinds, and in particular a variety of beautiful
parrots. Abundance of fith are caught on the fea-coafts as
well as in the rivers and lakes.

The Dutch carry hither opium, fpirits, lack, coarfe and
fine cloths, &c. and receive in exchange rice, wax, flaves,
and gold. Here, as well as in many parts on the coaft of
Africa, the unfortunate beings doomed to flavery are not
prifoners taken in war, or criminals, but people in general
who have been kidnapped for the purpofe of being fold; and
it often happens that relations do not hefitate, for: the Gabe of
gain, to deprive their fellow-creatures of liberty, the greateft
bleffing which mankind enjoy in the prefent life. The ifland
is well peopled: on the coaft of Celebes alone there are faid
to be fifty-fix thoufand inhabitants, feventeen thoufand of
whom are capable of bearing arms.

In this ifland there is a multitude of fmalJl kingdoms and
ftates, the greater part of which, however, depend on the
two great kingdoms of Macaffar and Bony. The king of
Ternate, alfo, has extenfive pofleffions, which occupy almolt
the whole of the northern and eaftern part of Celebes. The
two moft powerful kings, whom the Dutch, by the prepon-
derance of their arms, obtaimed as allies, are the Kings of
Macaffar and Bony. ‘The kings of Tello and Sandrabony are
in alliance with the king of Macaffar; and thofe of Soping,
Luhu, and Tanette, ai that of Bony. Some fmall ftates,
fuch as Wadjo, Mandhaar, &e. are independent. Though
the kings of Macaflar and Bony are allies of the Dutch, they
are always fworn enemies to each other ; and.this is not un-
favourable to the policy of the Dutch, who in their Indian
poffeffions ftill keep in view the maxim divide et impera, and

* Uby is a root ufed as food, and datta is a kind of buck-wheat, which
formerly was the chief food of the Javanefe before they were acquainted
with the ufe of rice,

who

with an Account of its Gold Mines. 29%

who derive great advantage from the difcord of the eaftern
princes.

The kingdom of Macaffar or Goach hes on the weftern
fide of the ifland, of which it occupies the greater part. The
king of Goach and that of Tello both bear the title of Ma-
caflar, though each has a diftinét kingdom: they aflume the
titles of Goach and Tello from their places of refidence. Ac-
cording to an ancient tradition, the Macaffars, like many
other nations, deduce the origin of their princes immediately
from the gods. Once, fay they, after the death of the firft
fovereign of the kingdom, a beautiful female defcended from
heaven fufpended by a golden chain. This celeftial beauty,
named Tumanurong-a, was immediately chofen by the Ma-
caffars to be their queen. She afterwards married a king of
Bonthain, and, after being pregnant three years, brought
forth a wonderful child, capable of fpeaking and walking as
foon as it was born, but exceedingly ugly and deformed.
This young prince was named Tuma-Salingabeerang. When
he attained to manhood he broke the golden chain which his
mother had brought with her from heaven, and the mother
and her hufband inftantly difappeared, and left to their fon
the kingdom, together with one half of the chain, This
chain, which, it is afferted, was fometimes light and fome-
times heavy, and fdeiclicots appeared of a pale colour, was
long preferved as a valuable part of the regalia of the crown,
until it was loft, with various other rarities, during the war-
like commotions which took place in this kingdom about the
middle of the prefent century. . This Tuma-Salingabeerang
is confidered as the chief of the family of all the binge of
Goach.

The Dutch were involved in violent difputes with thefe
fovercigns before they were able to eftablith themfelves in
their kingdom. In the year 1778 Goach, the capital, was
taken by florm and deftroyed; and in 1781 the prefent king
Punduca Siri, fultan Abdal Hadja, was placed on the throne
by the government of Batavia. The king of Goach does not
enjoy unlimited power, but is fubjeét to certain laws, which
he is obliged ftriétly to obferve. He can undertake no mea-
fure of importance without the confent of his council, nor

Pp2 can

292 Defcription of the Ifland of Celebes,

can he infli& arbitrary punifhment on criminals, who muft
be punifhed according to the laws. He has a privy council
called Tonulalangs, ane every village is under the direction
of a particular governor diftihertidhied’ by the title of Galarang.

The Portuguefe vilited this ifland about the beginning of
the fixteenth century, and obtained from the fovereign then
on the throne permiffion to form an eftablifhment. The
fueceffors of this prince introduced the weights and meafures
now in ufe, fixed the prices of merchandife, manufactured
gunpowder, and planted the firft cannon on the walls of
Goach. He gave permiffion alfo to the Malays not only to
refide in his kingdom, but to ere& a Mahometan temple.
This religion made fuch progrefs here, that about the year
1588 deputies were fent to Mecca to bring from thence a
hadja or prieft to inftruét the Macaffars in the doctrine of.
Mahometanifm, which in 1603 was eftablifhed throughout
the whole kingdom under the fultan Allahudier.

The kingdom of Bony, which lies on the weftern fide of a
bay, pasteles on that account the Bay of Bony, is the fecoud
kingdom in point of importance in the ifland. It is in clofe
alliance with the two fmall kingdoms of Soping and Luhu,.
The natives of Bony, that they may not appear inferior to
the Macaffars, deduce their origin in the like manner, from
the gods. The firft king, they fay, defcended from heaven,
and was known by the name of Matta-Solompo-e, that is,
the all-feeing. This fovercien, after reigning forty years,
refimned the kingdom to his fon, and with his wife afeended
again to heaven: but, notwith{landing this common defcent
oftheir rulers from the race of the gods, the Macaflars and
people of Bony are fworn-enemies, and their inceflant quar-
rels greatly contributed to enable the Dutch, who, according
as their intereft required, favoured fometimes the one party
and fometimes the other, to make themfelves mafters of the
ifland. At prefent the Bouginefe, or people of Bony, are the
mott powerful, as.the Macaffars were about a century ago. —

The Bouginefe are of a middle ftature, and have a bebe
ea biesian but not dark. Among the female fex, in par-~
ticular, fome are found almoft entirely fair. Their features
m general are agreeable, only that the nofe is a little flatted.

The

with an Account of its Gold Mines. 293

The Macaffars, on the other hand, are of large ftature, have
a manly warlike appearance, are of a more open difpofition,
_and at the fame time deteft treachery ; while their opponents,
the Bouginefe, never attack openly, but endeavour to fall
upon their enemies by furprife. Thofe even who never did
them an injury are not fecure from being murdered by them
when they can do it with privacy; and they often commit
fuch actions for no other reafon, as they fay, than to try the
goodnefs of their daggers. Many Macaflars, as well as Eu-
ropeans, have fallen a facrifice to this thirft for blood. Their
daggers and aflagays are for the moft part poifoned, as well as
their fmall darts, which they can fhoot at their enemies to a
confiderable diftance by blowing them through a tube.

Their clothing confifts of a piece of red or blue cotton
loth wrapped round the body, and drawn through between
the legs. The upper part of the body is quite naked. On
the head they wear a piece of cotton cloth in the form. of
a handkerchief, with which they cover their hair, which is
as black as pitch, and exceedingly long. On the other parts
of the body neither the men nor the women fuffer any hair
to grow; they pull it out by the roots, in the fame manner
as the Mahometans and Indians, as foon as.it appears. They
feed for the moft part on rice, fifh, and pifangs; and their
beverage is water, though they-are not deftitute of fagueer,
or palm wine. The Bouginefe women are in general much
handfomer than thofe of the other Indian tribes: fome of
them, had their complexion the fame mixture of red and
white as our females, would be accounted beauties in Eu-
rope. They are naturally of an amorous difpofition, and are
capable of undertaking any thing to gratify their inclinations.

The Mahometan religion, which has here become general,
permits the Bouginefe to have four lawful wives, provided the
hufband can maintain them. If the parties, however, are
not fatisfied with each other, they may feparate with as little
trouble as they were united. Their funerals are attended
with very little ceremony. The body is wrapped up ina
piece of white cotton cloth and depofited in the grave, over
which fome {weet-fcented flowers are ftrewed, and two {tones
are erected, ane at the head and another at the feet. The
max : Bouginele

294 Defeription of the Ifland of Celebesy

Bouginefe have a fort of game at cards, which in all probay
bility they Jearned: from the Portuguefe. It has a great fimi-
farity to that called ¢arocco, though the twenty-two tarocs
are’ not among their cards. The four colours are called
fpada, datudyens cafo flokke, copas-coufel, and boelang-rofy.

As the Dutch readily faw the great importance of this
ifland, particularly.in regard to their fpice trade, they did
every thing in their power to form a fettlement in it, and
even at an annual expenfe, which confiderably exceeded the
income arifing from their trade: the abbé Raynal makes
it to be 165,000 livres. The caftle of Rotterdam, which
is the principal refidence of their Eaft India company in
the kingdom of Macaffar, lies in the latitude of 5° 7’ fouth,
and the longitude of 136° 50’. It was conftructed by the
Portuguefe with the afliftance of the Macaffars, and was af-
terwards beautified by the Dutch, who increafed its fortifica-
tions. Some years ago a neat church was erected here ca-
pable of containing two hundred perfons.+ The walls of the
fortrefs, which are ftrong, and of confiderable height, are
built entirely of {tone hewn from the rock. On coming out
by the land-gate you arrive at a Jarge plain, on the north fide
of which lies the village of Blaardingen, where the principal
part of the Europeans refide. The ftreets, which are broad,
and ornamented with beautiful buildings, interfect each other
at right angles in the direction of the four points.of the com-
pats; At the end of one of them is a large edifice fet apart
for an orphan-houfé. The Chinefe all ine together in one
ftreet, called for that reafon the Chinefe ftreet. Blaardingen
is furrounded with palifades, and is furnifhed with gates,
which are fhut- in the night-time. Without the palifades,
towards the fouth, there is a row of buildings, one of which
is the habitation of the governor, and at a little diftance there
are fome places called campongs inhabited by natives and
Europeans.

The road of Macaffar is one of the moft beautiful in India:
and at the fame time fafe for thips at every feafon of the
year. The diftri& around it is exceedingly pleafant. It
confifis of a large plain feveral miles in extent, in which,
as far as the eye can reach, nothing is to be feen but rice-

8 fields

7

with an Account of its Gold Mines. 295

fields and meadows watered by fmall ftreams. The pic-
turefque appearance of this fcene is heightened by groves
and fcattered clumps of ‘fhady trees loaded with fruit. To-
wards the eaft it is bounded by lofty mountains, called the
mountains of Bonthain, which divide this part of Celebes
towards the weft from Bony, and towards the fouth from the
gulph of Tomini into two parts.

The feafons are here the fame as in Java. The fouth-eaft
monfoon continues from May till November, and is called
the favourable monfoon: the north-weft, called the bad
monfoon, continues from November till May. During the
former the fky is ferene and the weather dry ; but continual
winds and violent rain prevail during the latter. It is very
fingular, that on the eaft fide of the before-mentioned moun-
tains of Bonthain the contrary takes place: for, when fine
weather in the fouth-eaft monfoon prevails on the weit fide
of the mountains, there is nothing but hurricanes and rain
on the eaft fide; fo that the boundaries of fummer and wim-
ter are only a few miles diftant from each other. The prin-
cipal productions here are rice and cotton. The rice, how-
ever, is inferior in quality to that of Jaya, but the cotton*is
the beft in India.

The Dutch Eaft India company poffefs the cafile of Rot-
terdam, called in the language of the country Adjong Pan-
dang, together with the furrounding diftrict, in confequence
of a treaty which they entered into with the prince of Ce-
lebes. But as the boundaries of their poffeflions were per-
haps not accurately defined, the company always endeavoured
to enlarge, and the Macaffars on the other hand to confine
them. The company poffefs alfo a peninfula extending from
this place towards the north, and a large flat diftrict, which,
on account of its fertility, is’ confidered as the granary of
Celebes, together with feveral places lying between this
plain and the mountains, and likewife a great many villages

among the mountains. Thefe places border on each other,

and are bounded on‘the weft by the fea, on the north by the
kingdoms of Tanette and Maros, on the eaft by Tamari, and
on the fouth by the kingdom of Macaffar. The inhabitants

of

295 Defeription of the [land of Celebes,
of thent, after various revolts, were at laft reduced to comnts
plete obedience in 1738.

T fhall omit faying any thing of the other fmall kingdoms
in the ifland of Celebes, and proceed to a defcription of its
gold mines, and the method in which the gold is collected.
Mining and the art of metallurgy are conducted in a very
carelefs manner in India; which is owing partly to the igno-
rance of the natives, and partly to their indolenee. In ge-
neral it needs excite little furprife, that people who live in 2
mild climate, and who have few wants, fhould be little in-
clined to penetrate into the bowels of the earth to procure
metals, which are immediately extorted from them by the
avaricious Europeans, or of which they are in a great mea-
fure deprived by their own princes. If an Indian here and
there be conspelled by force or neceflity to dig for or collec
gold, he never goes to work with fufficient intelligence and
activity, but contents himfelf with what he can procure to
fatisfy his wants in the eafieft and fpeedieft manner. This is
exactly the cafe with the Indians who inhabit thofe parts of
Cel¢bes which produce gold.

They obtain that metal by collecting the fmall particles
which have been carried down by the ftreams, or by wafhing
the fand whieh they dig up, rather than by working the
mines in a regular manner. The auriferous mines in the
ifland of Celebes commence on the fouthern fide of Bulang
and the northern fide of Kotta-Buna or Mogondo, and pro-
ceed thence to Dondo on the fouth-weft, and Tamperana on
the north-wett fide, at the Bay of Tomini. Every where be=
tween thele two diftriéts gold is found im a greater or lefs
quantity. Where the land of Celebes becomes fo narrow,
and the mountains fo low, that a perfon can with eafe pafs
from the one coaft to the other in a few hours, the auriferous
niountains end; and on the whole coaft on the other fide, as
far as Macafiar, a fingle gold mine is not to be found.

Befides the mines already difcovered, a great many others
would no doubt be found, were there a fufficiency of labour-
ers; for the villages in thefe aurifcrous mountains are ex-
ceedingly ill peopled, Another caufe of thefe treafures being
e fo

aith an Account of its Gold Mines. 297

fo much neglected is the ignorant fuperftition of the natives.
They never will venture to dig in any place where they fuf
pect great riches to be concealed until they have fent thither
a diviner, as he is called; to find out whether their labours
will be attended with fuccefs. The whole art of thefe di-
viners, called in the language of the country Ta/anga, con-
filts in their difcovering, as they pretend, by the voice of a
certain bird, whether abundance of gold is to be found in a
certain place ; whether the labourers will be attacked by fick-
nefs; whether there are in it many fpirits to impede the la-
bourers and conceal the gold from them, with other things
of the like kind. If the bird gives a favourable anfwer to all
thefe queftions, the diviner mutt érideavour to fecure the fa-
your of the protecting fpirits of the place by offerings of va-
rious kinds; after which a few workmen may begin digging,
and_continue their labour as many days or months as the
bird has preferibed. If the bird, however, gives an unfa-
vourable anfwer to only one queftion, no perfon will venture
in fuch a place to dig a hole of only a few inches in depth.
Many rich mines remain, therefore, unexplored, becaufe the
prophetic bird, or the Ta/anga, are not in. good humour.
When the workmen have arrived at the place where, ac-
cording to the permiffion of the Talanga, they may dig up
gold, they hold ferious counfel with the bird once more, and
afk it in what particular fpot they muft begin. When this
is done, they firft conduct water to the fpot; for without water
they cannot proceed, as by its means they wafh away the
earth and clay from the pit, that the ftones and fine fand,
among which the gold is contained, may remain pure. If
the fituation of the ground will not admit of the water being
conduéted in furrows, they make a kind of gutters of hollow
wakka trees, which they ‘fupport with props. When they
have brought the water to the place where the mine is to
the worked, they make a pit of twenty, thirty, or forty feet in
circumference, according to the number of workmen: fome-
times there are eight, and fometimes ten or twelve. As long
as the water has room to run off, they fuffer it to carry with
it the earth, which they keep continually turning and ftirring
in the pit; but when the pit becomes fo deep that there is
Vou. VI. Qq no

298 Defcription of the Ifland of Celedes,

no paflage for the water, they muft bale it out till they arrive
at the ftones. Thefe they wafh clean, and build them up re-
gularly around the fides of the pit, but without lime or mor-
tar, to prevent the earth from falling in. When the pit is
carried to. a very great depth, they fooara thefe {tones by means
of boards and Beane of wood. Thefe poor miners find fome-
times ftones of from three to four and five hundred weight,
which they are obliged to raife and remove from the pit with-
eut any other machines than a common wooden lever,

When all the earth, clay, dirt, and ftones have been
thrown from the pit, and a kind of black fand begins to
appear, they are then fure that they fhall find gold. This
fand they take up in a kind of {mall fhovels made for the
purpofe; and, having placed themfelves in the water, they
put one handful of the fand after another on fimall round
wooden difhes named dulangs. Thefe dulangs are about
eighteen inches in diameter and fomewhat hollow, and
have a {mall cavity in the middte which can be clofed with
a wooden cover. When all the fand has been wafhed from
the dulang by being continually ftirred round with the hand,
the gold, which is much heavier, remains im the aboye-
mentioned cavity. When it can receive no more, they take
the gold which has been collected, and hold it over the fire
in a coco-nut fhell till it is dry; after which they blow away
the remaining fand as well as they can, and preferve the pure
gold.

When they dig a hill or mountain which is fituated clofe
to a river, they employ another method to obtain the gold.
In this cafe they make a pit at the edge of the river, conduét
into it as much water as they have occafion for, throw into
it the earth they have dug up, and wath it till nothing re-
mains but the black rere mixed with gold; after which ahey
wath it in their ‘du/angs, as already deteritvad. This is the
eafieft method of procuring gold, provided it can be employed.
They have, however, a third methods. but it can be ufed only
in mines newly difeovered. They go into the river with a
bafket on their back, and a piece of iron refembling a thick
chifel, w hich has a wooden handle, and fearch the fiffures
and crevices of the rocks, where they fometimes find lumps.

5 of

with an Account of its Gold Mines. 2909

of gold equal in weight to two or three rials. In other re-
{pects, the art of digging for gold is the fame in all the mines
and among all the people on this coaft. The only difference
is in regard to the depth of the pits. In many places it is
fcarcely neceflary to go deeper than ten or twelve feet; but
in others the pits muft be carried to the depth of feveral fa-
thoms, and the fides muft be fupported by means of boards
and beams. The inftruments ufed in thefe mines confift only
of a piece of iron about a foot and a half long and two inches
in thicknefs: itis pointed and fharp at the one extremity,
and at the other is furnifhed with a focket, into which is
ftuck a wooden pole about fix feet in length. Thofe who
are able to procure it have alfo an iron hook, with a fhort
wooden handle, which they employ for loofening and turn-
ing up the earth around ftones. A mattock, with the above-
Pranlonad dulangs, which each miner makes for himielf,
and a pair of gold feales, form all the reft of their apparatus.
When a gold mine is difcovered, the workmen do not im-
mediately begin to dig it, but firft fearch the neareft river, in
which they turn up the ftones and drain off a part of the
water. After they have turned up the fand to ahout the
depth of a foot, they fometimes find large pieces of gold,
which in all probability have been wafhed down by the
fireams from the mountains. It has been remarked that the
rocks on the borders of rivers, and even the greater part of
the fiones which are taken up from pits where the ore is
rich, have a blue, and fometimes yellow, colour, and are fo
foft that they may be ufed as paint. Where the gold is lefs
rich, the ftones are, gray or white, and cither of a hard tex-
ture, or foft like limeftone. By thefe figns the produce in
gold of any mine may be eafily afcertained.
In all, the gold mines, but particularly thofe which lie at
a diftance from the fhore, it is exceedingly cold before fun-
rife and after fan-fet. On this account the poor miners
fuffer a great deal.’ As they are obliged to fit in the water
from morning till night, their bodies, when they ceafe from
their Jabour, are almoft rendered quite white by the faltpetre.
When the mines are worked, the water of the river near
which they are fituated is muddy, and of a reddifh-yellow
Qq 2 colour

goo Defcription of the [land of Celebes,

colour down to its mouth; and thofe who are fo imprudent
as to drink of it are feized with a dangerous dyfentery.

The labour of the miners is not always attended with the
fame fuccefs; for it fametimes happens that they work a
month and longer, during which they {pend feveral dollars,
without finding gold of the value of one. In that cafe
they are obliged to dig in fome other place, and to renew
their labour. In newly difcovered mines they are for the
moft part fuccefsful; but in mines that have been worked
for fome time, they are often obliged to labour a whole
month before they obtain any gold. The quantity and value
of the gold which is found in any mine cannot be accurately
afcertained. One workman, alfa, is often more fortunate than
another. In newly difcovered mines there are labourers who
fometimes, in the courfe of fourteen days, find to the value

of two hundred dollars; whereas in other places the value of
twenty. dollars 1s fearcely found in the courfe of a year.

_ In the wide extended gold mines of the river Palella, which
divides itfelf into feveral branches, there are places where
gold is exceedingly abundant ;. but in fuch places it is of lefs
value, being fcarcely eighteen carats fine. The beft gold
comes from the mines of Popajatu, Molifipat, Ankahulu,
Tolodinki, Lembuno, Sonffo and Tamperana; alfo from the
fouth and fouth-weft fide of Pogiama, Wongo, Tomollas
Bevool, and Tontaly, The gold procured from all thefe
mines is for the moft part abave twenty carats fine. Fre-
derick Dithr, a fervant of the Dutch Eaft India company,
who vifited thefe mines a few years ago, is the only perfon
who has given an authentic account of them, Thofe who
travelled through thefe diftricts before him, never faw the
gold mines, but only yifited the habitations of the chief
civil officers, which are at a confiderable diftance from the
places where ‘the gold is dug up; and the chief men among
the natives are too indolent to undertake journeys along thofe
dificult and dangerous roads which conduét to the mines,
and jn which people are often in danger of breaking their
necks,

Within the extent of the gold mines of Ankahulu there is
a place called Langi, which produces a kind gf gold that in
finenefg

with an Account of its Gold Mines. gor

finenefs exceeds even that of Popajatu and Ankahulu. This
place, however, is little frequented, becaufe the fmall river
near which it is fituated is not navigable, and the inhabitants
are obliged to carry their provifions on their backs along a
difficult and dangerous road: Befides, the miners often find
in this place a great deal of copper, which, when they have
no acid to put it to the teft, often decejves them, as they at
firft take it to be gold. This is the only mine on the north
or north-weift fide where copper is found. Near Bevool, on
the fouth or fouth-weft fide, there is another where good
copper is dug up in duft, which is as fine as the fineft gold-
duft. In the mines of Bombula, Batodulang, Ankahulu, and
Palella, a great deal of rock-cryftal is found, and likewife a
kind of iron ore.

In almoft all the mines which the before-mentioned Mr.
Dihr vifited, he obferved, that the workmen, when they had
dug to the depth of five, and in.fome places of twelve feet,
came to a horizontal ftratum of rock, which with their in-
ftruments they were not able to penetrate. They, however,
frequently told him, that they firmly believed that they fhould
find gold below thefe rocks, if they could break through them.
He faw alfo at Ankahulu, where a ftratum of fuch rock is
found, at the depth of from twelve to fifteen feet, that there |
were fiffures in it, two or three inches -wide, which contained
a blackith fubftance almoft like ruft of iron, mixed with a
' great many pieces of gold, and which the workmen, after
_ they wafhed the ‘rock perfectly clean, dug out toas great a
depth as they could with their tools. In all the mines of
Celebes, the gald, when feparated from the fand, is of confi-
derable finenefs. At Pogiama and Palella alone gold ore is
found here and there, mixed among other ftones; but it is
not rich, and the gold muft be extracted by pounding the
fone, which is not very hard,

iT. 03.

[> g0aya]

TI, Objervations on preferving Specimens of Plants. By
Joun Stackuous®, E/g. F.L.S.*

i profecuting my refearches with a view to complete the
hiftory of the Britifh Fuci, I was defirous to difcover, if pof-
fible, a method of preventing the olive-coloured, coriaceous
fpecies from turning black in drying. For this purpofe I
tried the experiment of immerfing them in a {trong folution
ofalum. The refult of my experiment did not anfwer my
expectation. They were prevented, indeed, ‘from turning
black, but they acquired a greenith hue, However, ima-
gining this might arife from “tie mixture of alumincus with
muriatic falts, eh being of opinion that the properties of
alum might be of great ufe in preferving land plants on_fe-
veral accounts, I fet on foot a courfe of experiments, and am
happy to fay, that the refult has been favourable to my ex-
pectations. After repeated trials, during which partial fail-
ures occurred, owing to the proportioning the degrees of
ftreneth of the falas: and the admiffion of light and air
Savi the time of drying, I can fafely recommmneld to the
public attention the procefs which follows, not doubting but
that many improvements will fuggelt themfelves to thofe who
poffefs a chemical knowledge of the various fubftances made
ufe of by dyers in fixing their colours.

Take-a faturated folution of powdered alum in common
water: immerfe carefully your fpecimen, flowers, leaves and
ftalk in this liquor. During this immerfion, with a camel’s-
hair brufh, fuch as varnithers make ufe of, wet thoroughly a
theet of blotting-paper: difplay your {pecimen carefully on
this paper, and prepare another fheet in a fimilar manner to
lay over your plant, Then give a fmart preflure to your
plant, either with a botsnielt prefs, a napkin prefs, or
weights of any kind applied to the fpecimen placed between
Ghocath boards, or books, obferving to lay about half a quire
of paper below the fpecimen, and the fame quantity above,
to take up the moifture. Afier a day or two, according to

** Fiom the ‘ag bir of the Li nnean Society, Vol. V.
, the

Obfervations on preferving Specimens of Plants. 303
the fucculency of the plant, and when the aluminated paper
appears perfectly dry, your fpecimen may be removed into
frefh paper, and kept carefully under gentle preffure, with
the edges of the paper folded over each other to prevent every
poffible admiflion of light and air till its removal into the
herbarium. For thofe who wifh to affix their fpecimens,
(and it is fearcely poffible to effect the prefervation of the
delicate tints of the petals of many kinds without a ftrong
adhefion to, and almoft incorporation with, the paper,) the —
time above mentioned, that is, when the aluminated paper
is thoroughly dry, is the proper time for proceeding with the
operation. Have ready a pafte made with flour and water,
with alum mixed in it, fuch as upholfterers ufe, {trong gum-
water, or ifinglafs-glue: apply either of thefe to the back of
your fpecimen with a brufh; then fix it carefully on ftrong
writing or drawing-paper, by laying your paper fmoothly.on
the fpecimen as it lies, prefling it gently with your hands
and a cloth, and then turning over both together, When
this is done, iron the plant with a box-heater in the manner
recommended by Major Velley in Dr. Withering’s Arrange-
ment of Briti/b Plants, v. 1. p. 34, if you have the conve-
niences; if not, apply an immediate and {mart preflure, as
before direGted.

It is taken for granted that thofe who with to profit by
thefe inftruGtions,.are practifed in the ufual methods of pre-.
ferving dry fpecimens, and that they are aware that parti-
cular care fhould be taken to pare off the back parts of thick
woody ftalks, and of the globofe, fucculent heads of flowers,
as well as of the buds of thofe intended to be pafted down,
previous to their preflure. For the moft fatisfaCtory inform-
ation on thefe particulars, the reader is referred to the In-
trodu@tion to Dr. Withering’s excellent work above men- .
tioned. It is almoft needlefs to mention, that aluminated
fpecimens will be eompletely guarded from the erofion of
infe&ts, as well as from the danger of being injured by
damps; and therefore the procefs will be particularly valu-
able to thofe who vifit foreign countries.

As beauty and durability are of fo much confequence in
the arrangement of an herbarium, and as plants cannot be

preferved

804 4 Andtomy of Animals:

pteferved any length of time in perfection even with the
ufoal apparatus of a vafeulum, or tin-cafe, no botanical tra-
veller fhould be without a fmall prefs, fuch as that defcribed
in Dr. Witherine’s Arrangement, v.1- p. 31. It may be
framed fo as to admit of a drawer for receiving the preferved
fpecimens ; either thin enough to lie under the fect in a poft-
chaife; or, as a feat for a third perfon is often defirable, at
may be contrived to be as high as the feat of the carriage,
with a correfponding cufhion on the top.

= oe

III. A curfory View of fome of the late Difcoveries in

Science.

[Continued from Page 251.]

ANATOMY OF ANIMALS,
Covirr has made many refearches refpecting the or-

ganifation of infects, and the manner in which nutrition
takes place among them. ‘¢ I think I am the firft,’’ fays
he, “ who has diftinguifhed worms into two grand families ;
the molufez, which have a heart, and a'complete fyftem of
circulation; and zoophytes, which have neither. I have de-
fcribed the heart, and the vafcular fyftem of the principal ge-
nera of the molufce ; and I have proved that their venous
veffels perform at the fame time the function of abforbing
veffels.”? He then fhows that infeéts have neither a heart
nor veffels of circulation. Malpighi obferved in the filk-worm
a large knotty veffel extending along the whole back, and he
believed that this veffel performed the funétions of the heart
and aorta, and that the fame organifation exifted in all in-
fe&ts. This opinion was adopted by all naturalifts. Cuvier
has carefully examined this veflel, as well as the whole or-
ganifation of infeéts; but he obferved no movement of fluids,
or circulation. Almott the whole body of the infect is filled
with trachee; from which he concludes that there is no real
circulation in thefe animals, and that their nutrition is per-
formed by immediate abforption, as is evident in polypes
and other zoophytes, which are found immediately below in-

4eéts in the {cale of organic perfection.
He’

Anatomy of Animais. R08

He then examines the organifation of the medufa or fea-
nettle, and fhows that it approaches near to that of vege-
tables. ‘If I confined myfelf,” fays he, ‘ to announcing,
that there exifts an animal without a mouth, which is nou-
rifhed, like plants, by means of ramified fuckers, and in
which the ftomach fupplies the place of heart, one might
have fome right to refufe aflent to fo extraordinary an affer-
tion; but I exhibit the animal itfelf.”” He then explains the
nature of its organifation. This animal has no mouth, but
only fome offioles, or very fmall apertures, which all termi-
nate at a large cavity or bag, which may be confidered as
the ftomach. From this cavity proceed fixteen veflels, which
are diftributed to every part of the animal, and have a com-
munication with each other by means of a circular veffel
exactly concentric to the contour of the animal. Thefe vef-
fels ferye to convey the nutritive juice. No heart is obferved
in this animal, nor any organ analogous to one.

Cuvier has compared alfo the brain of various red-blooded’
‘animals, © The charaéter of that of man and apes is, the ex-
iftence of the pofterior lobe and the digital cavity. Thecha-
raéter of the brain of carnivorous animals is, the fmallnefs of
the mates in regard to the ¢e/fes. In herbivorous animals the
tefles are much larger than the ates. That of the brain of
rongeurs (the {tag kind) is the fize of the za#es, and the abfen¢e
or fhallownefs of the circumvolutions. That of the brain of
the folidipedze is the fize of the mates, joined to numerous
and deep circumvolutions. That of the brain of cetaceous
animals is its great breadth in proportion to its length, and
the total abfence of olfaétory nerves. Man and quadrupeds
alone have olfa€tory nerves properly fo called: in real qua
drupeds they are fupplied by mammillary caruncles. ag

Sue has defcribed the manner im which he prepares the.
fkeletons of animals. He firft boils them in water, as was
practifed by Daubenton; after which he pours water over
them, or throws it upon them with force from a fyringe.
By thefe means all the flefh detaches itfelf from‘the bones,
which remain perfeétly clean.

Dumeril has obferved, that the laft articulation of the
fingers in mammiferous animals always retains a peculiar

Vot. VI, Rr character

306 Stru&ure of Eggs.

character in each fpecies. He propofes to give to this ar-
tuculation the name of the os unguinalis.

ANIMAL PHYSIOLOGY.

Léveillé has given a very curious work on the manner in
which young oviparous animals are nourifhed in the egg.
He compares it with that in which nutrition is performed in
the foetus of mammalia, ahd fhows:

1. That the feetus of mammialia is nourifhed only by the
umbilical cord, and that it receives no nourifhment by the
mouth: that the fame thing takes place in the young oyi-
parous animal enclofed in the egg; and to prove it, he gives
the anatomy of the egg, and of the membranes: which envelop
the foetus.

2. That the egg, when incubated, confifts of the eye (cica-
tricula), the yolk, three diftinét albumens, an abforbing ca-
nal, five membranes, fanguine and ferous veffels.

3. That the third albumen is divided into two parts, united
' by a very thin prolongation: that their pofition Is not at the
two oppofite poles of the yolk, and that each has for its
centre an annular cordon; in one of them it is membrana~
ceous, in the other vafcular.

4. That there exifts a communication between the albu-
minous mafs and the capfule of the yolk, by means of this
abforbing conduit.

5- That the yolk has no fufpending ligament, and that j it
floats at freedom in the interior of the white, ;

». 6. That the volume of the albuminous mafs decreafes in
-proportion to the time of incubation, while that of the yolk
increafes; which feems to prove that the one abforbs the
other.

_ 4. That the firft albumen having no communication with
the other two, there is reafon to prefume that it is abforbed
by the veffels of the facciform membrane. It is this which
is cemented to the fhell of the egg, except at the broad end.

8. That the yolk, befides its augmentation of bulk, has
very great fluidity; and that it is abforbed by the vada
membrane, ‘w hich forms its popes tunic.

g.- That it is proved by experience that there are no yellow

veflels

Cow-Pock. 307
veffels nor valvule in the interior of the chlorilime mem-
brane; that is to fay, that which enclofes the yolk of the
ego.

10. That the chicken, confidered as foetus, is enveloped
in a peculiar membrane, that feparates it from the yolk, with
which it has a conneétion, and from the white, with which it
has none, and from which it is at a confiderable diftance.

11. That all fubftances deftined for the nourifhment of
this fetus are contained in diftin& capfule feparated from it.

12. That there exifts a perfect analogy between the veffels
of the yolk and thofe of the placenta; and that the former
are to the yolk what the fecond are to the matrix, except the
difference in the circulation,

13. That, contrary to the opinion of Haller, the albumen
does not communicate with the aqueous bag; and that the
chicken makes no ufe of this fluid for its nourifhment.

14. During the latter period of incubation, every thing
left enters into the abdomen of the chicken in fuch a manner
that no umbilical cord remains without.

15. That the red-blooded animals, which live in air, may
be divided into two grand claffes, the umbilical and non-
umbilical.

Dr. Jenner has made an interefting difcovery in regard to
the cow-pock. He obferved that cows were fubjeé to puf-
tules on their teats. Thofe who milk them acquire puftules
alfo; and it is very extraordinary that by thefe means they
are preferved from the fmall-pox. He inoculated with the
cow-pock in the fame manner as with the common {mall-
pox, and by thefe means produced the fame effects as when
people acquire the difeafe by touching the puftules of cows ;
that is to fay, thefe people are not liable to the common
fmall-pox, either by communication or inoculation. Thefe
facts have been confirmed by feveral other phyficians, fuch
as Drs. Pearfon, Pulteney, &c. Dr. Woodville, phyfician
- to the Small-Pox Hofpital, has inoculated in this manner
feveral hundred perfons. This difcovery is of the utmoft im-
portance to humanity; for it is well known that the natural]
fimall-pox is one of the moft deftructive of all thofe difeafes

Rr2 which

408 Still-born Childrent.—Difcovery re{pefting the Blood.

which affli€&t mankind. Inoculation, therefore, ought no
longer to be performed with the matter of the common fmall-
pox or variolous matter, but with the vaccine ; becaufe in-
oculation with the Jatter is free from all danger, whereas
that with matter of the common f{mall-pox is attended fome-
times with fatal confequences.

Herholdt has proved that the liquor of the amnios pene-
trates fometimes into the tympanum of the feetus; from
‘which he concludes, that it introduces itfelf fometimes, alfo,
into the tracheal artery, and fills it before birth. When the
child is brought forth, it is neceflary, therefore, to affift that.
liquor in flowing off. Nature generally operates in this cafe
alone; but its efforts are fometimes ineffectual, and the child
is fuppofed to be ftill-born. In fuch circumftances it muft
be affifted. This the author did in thirteen children, whom
he reftored to life by facilitating the efcape of the liquor.

Dr. Buvina has made experiments which tend to prove,
that in living animals the red blood is retained in its proper
cavities by the aétive vitality of the parts, rather than by the
fmallnefs of the veffels and pores. This he proved by making
injections of blood. Thefe injections in the living animal
penetrate only to the veflels, in which it circulates during
life. This he proved in a living calf; but, having deprived
the animal of life by cutting the fpinal marrow, the injections
immediately penetrated to the moft delicate veffels of the pe-
riofleum and other parts, and gave them a red colour, which
they have not in the Jiving animal.. He has even feen the
blood iffue from wounds, fuch as.thofe of veficatories. He
thence concludes, that if the blood in the living animal does
not penetrate to feveral delicate veffels, {uch as the lympha-
tic, it is on account of the refiftance oppofed to it by the force
of vitality, and not on account of the fmallnefs of the orifice
of the veffels. The fpontaneous echymofes, which take place in
the feurvy and fome other difeafes, feemi to arife from the
weaknefs of the vital forces, which permit the blood to pe-
nétrate to the capillary veffels.

The fame author has demonftrated, by direct experiments,
that 2 portion of the bone of a body, newly deprived of life,

may

Grafting of Bones.—Fecundation of Vegetables. 309
may be engrafted on the bone of a living animal of the fame
or of a diflerent {pecies.

In conjunétion with Vafalli, he has made experiments to
afcertain whether the opinion of the ancients, who pretended
that contagious difeafes are produced by infects, be true ;: but
their refearches have fhown them that this opinion: has no
_ foundation.

Pinel has publifhed numerous obfervations, which he has
had occafion to make, on idiots and maniacs. He fhows
that kind and gentle treatment, but attended with firmnefs,
often calms the fury of thofe unfortunate perfons, and is fre-
quently fufficient to reftore them to reafon.

PHYSIOLOGY OF VEGETABLES.

Desfontaines has given a memoir on the cultivation and
ufes of the date-tree, fo valuable to the inhabitants of hot
countries. Thefe palms, as is well known, are of the family
of the diecia, the male flowers of which are borne on one
ftalk and the female flowers on another. The male flowers,
deftined for fecundation, are detached from the trees about
the end of March, before the anthere have fhed their farina.
They are prepared in fuch a manner that they can be tied to
the females: they are hung up and dried in the fhade; and
in this manner they will retain their virtue till the ie fol-
lowing. Towards the end of April they are attached to the
female date-trees, which are thus fecundated; becaufe it
would be very imprudent for men, whofe whole nourifhment
is confined to the fruit of this palm, and who inhabit the
bofom of the deferts, to truft for the fertility of thefe trees to
the winds, which, in fome cafes, may convey the fecundating
farina.

Linnzus made known a part of the wonderful phenomena
exhibited by the va/i/neria at the time of its fecundation.
Picot la Peyroufe.has added fome new details. This plant
belongs to the diecia. The male and female always grow
at the bottom of the water. At the moment when the male
is about to flower, its ftalks, which are terminated by a flat
fheath, burft, and the flowers are thrown out on the furface
of the water; where they unite, and float about at the plea-

fure

310. «=. Afcent of the Sap in Trees Germination.

fure of the winds. The females, which have a very long
ftalk, turned into a fpiral like a fpiral fpring, rife at the fame
time to the furface of the water by the expanfion of their
ftalk ; agitate themfelves around the male flowers, which ap-
proach them; and when the rays of the fun begin to heat
the horizon, the ftalk falls back, and carries with it, below
the water, the female flowers, which then fhut. But in the
evening, as foon as the fun finks below the horizon, they re-
appear on the furface of the water. This is repeated feveral
times, but the author has not determined the number. In
the laft place, when the fecundation is effected, the ftalk falls
back entirely, and carries with it, to the bottom of the water,
the flower and the germ,

- Coulomb having caufed to be cut down, towards the end
of April, fome Italian poplars govered with flowers, obferved
that one of them, which had been cut at the diftance of fome
hnes from the axis of the tree, emitted at the cut a noife like
that produced by the air when it iffues in abundance, and in
fmall bubbles, from the furface of a fluid, and that a great
deal of fap flowed from it. This experiment, being repeated
feveral times, was always attended with the fame fuecefs;
from which he concludes, that the fap in large trees does not
afcend in a fenfible manner, but towards the axis, which
forms the medullary canal. To afcertain this fact, be caufed
feveral of thefe trees to be pierced with a gimblet; but the
mitrument was fcarcely moiftened till it had arrived within
two or three centimetres of the centre of the tree: when it
approached the centre, fap iffued in abundance, with a con-
tinued noife of air-bubbles, which afcended with the fap, and
burft in the orifice formed by the gimblet.

Sauffure the fon has publithed refearches on the influence
whichoxygen gas has onthe germinationof plants. The greater '
part of naturalifts, fays he, who have examined the imfluence
of atmofpheric air on germination, have perceived, that when
feeds are placed in contact with water and pure azotic gas
they do not germinate; and that. there is a production of

-earbenic acid, which, mixing itfelf with the azotic gas, in-
ereafes the volume of the atmofphere of the plant. They have
feen that, when oxygen gas is fubftituted in the preceding.

experiment

Eropean Sugar —Struéture of Vegetables. 318

experiment for azotic gas, there is-alfo a preduétion of car-
bonic acid gas; but that the atmofphere of the plant de-
creafes, and that the oxygen gas is abforbed. He made fe
veral experiments to difcover what takes place in thefe opera-
tions. The following are his conclufions :

i. The atmofpheric oxygen gasis not abforbed by the feed
in the a& of germination, as feems hitherto to have been ad-
mitted, but is employed merely to form carbonic acid gas
with the carbon of the feed.

2. The feed in germination does not, by the contact of the
atmofpheric air, form carbonic acid gas from its own fub-
ftance, but only furnifhes one of the conftituent parts of that
gas, c#z. carbon.

3. It furnifhes the oxygen and carbon from its own fub-
itance in the carbonic acid gas, which it produces when: it
is in contact only with water and pure azotic gas.

Though the action which the vegetation of plants exercifes
on atmofpheric air has been examined by a great number of
philofophers, much on this head is ftill wanting. Spallan-
zani, who has been lately fnatched from the fciences, has
alfo examined this fubjeét. He concludes from his experi-
ments +

1. That the leaves and tops of vegetables, when the rays
of the fun dart upon them, increafe the proportion of the

oxygen gas of the atmofpheric air.

2. That this augmentation is not fo confiderable as has
been believed.

3. That the fame parts of vegetables diminifh the oxygen
gas during the night, and cloudy days, by transforming it
continually though flowly into carbonic acid.

4. That the flowers, whether in the fun or fhade, have more
power to diminith the quantity of vital air or oxygen gas.

5. That fruit have the fame effeéts in this refped as flowers.

Delaville has examined feveral plants which afforded him
fugar; fuch asthe mallow, digitalis purpurea, cabbage, the leaves
of the artichoke. The beet-root gave alfo a large quantity.

Desfontaines has publifhed his excellent memoir on the
firucture of the monocotyledons, or plants with one feminal
leaf, fuch as palms, afparagus, rufhes, &c. He has fhown

that

312 On the Green Matter which vegetates in Water.

that the whole of the interior of thefe plants is compofed of
the medullary part, in the middle of which are a few longi-
tudinal fibres. Thefe vegetables have no folidity but at the
furface, where the fibres are collected and united; whereas
in the dicotyledons the furface is compofed of an epidermis,
which has little folidity, while the interior has a great deal.
Though the green matter which vegetates in water has al-
ready been the objet of much refearch to philofophers, Se-
nebicr has thought it worthy of being fubjected to a new ex-
amination. He informs us, that it was known to Lahire,
Leuenhoeck, and Homberg. Adanfon gave it the name of
tremella conferva gelatinof2, omnium tenerrima, minima, aqua-
rum limo innafcens. Prieftley, Ingenhouz, Senebier, Girod-
Chantram, made a variety of experiments and obfervations
on this fingular fubftance. Felix Fontana believes it to be
a kind of polypier, that is the habitation of fmall infects,
which produce it as other infects produce coral. This is the
opinion alfo of Ingenhouz and Girod-Chantram; but Sene-
bier is of a different opinion. Having made refearches re-
fpeéting the manner in which this green matter is produced in
the water, he found, 1. That it was never produced in water
kept in obfcurity: 2. That a great deal of time was requifite
to produce it in diftilled water, and that it was neceffary that
the water fhould be long expofed to the aift 3. That water
into which he had put earth, was more favourable than any
other to the production of this green matter: 4. That none
of it was formed in a veffel of water covered with a ftratum
of oil.
To afcertain the manner in which it is formed, he put
glaffes, on which fome of the green matter had been, into
veffels of water, and ‘perceived in the water, fome days after,
animaleula without green matter. The green matter then
appeared, and he faw the animalcula penetrate into it, and
give it movement. At other times he faw the green matter
without animalcula. He obferved in this green matter a
very diftinét pellicle, fimilar to that of vegetables. This pel-
licle appeared to him to abforb the carbonic acid gas which
is in the water; to decompofe it; to abforb the carbon; to ~
nourifh itfelf; and to.fuffer the oxygen gas to be difengaged.
. 7 This

On the Green Matter which vegetates in Water. 318

This pellicle appeared to be the fundamental body of the green
matter; it is a kind of net-work, or tiffue.

He obferved alfo, with great cate, the animalcula gene-
rally found in the green matter, and it appeared that they
were not different from thofe of common infufions. This
much however is certain, that the fame animals are not
always found in the green matter. He mentions the expe-
riments of Muller on infufion animalcula, and fhows, that
the fame kind almoft are found in the green matter, He
fhows further, that the green matter, examined with the mi-
crofcope, exhibits nothing that can be confidcred as a poly-
pier, or neft of {mall animalcula. From all thefe obferya-
tions he concludes it to be probable, that the green matter is
a real vegetable analogous to the ulva inte/tinalis, or nofloch ;
that the animals moft frequently found with it do not belong
to it, fince the green matter may exift without animalcula;
and that thefe animalcula are often found without the green
matter: fo that, in every refpeét, the green matter and animal-
cula appear to be abfolutely independent of each other: the
green matter muft be a plant on which the animalcula feed.

_The green matter, kept in water in an obfcure place, feems
to diffolve. It becomes gray, white, and gives no more air
when expofed to the fun. A chemical analvfis of the green
matter proves alfo that it is a vegetable, for be extraéted from
it gum, refin, and a portion of green colouring matter: a
fmall quantity of ammonia has indeed been procured from
it, but feveral plants, when analyfed, give the fame; and be-
fides, this green matter almoft always contains the remains of
animalcula and other animals, which might have furnithed
ammonia. His conclufion is, notwithftanding every proba-
bility to the contrary, that this green matter is a plant: fur-
ther obfervations and experiments ref{pecting it are neceffary.

He next direéts his refearches to conferve, and examines
the opinion of thofe who believe them to be the matter of
zoophytes; that is to fay, a kind of nefts, or madrepores,
containing the infeéts which form them. All his obferva-
tions have proved to him that this opinion is not well found-
éd, and he confequently perfifts in believing, that the con-
fer, as well as the green matter, are real vegetables,

‘Vor. VI. Sf Gired-

4

B14 Cure for the Rheumatifm and Gout.

Girod-Chantram has made obfervations on different kinds
of confervee, but chiefly the rivularis and fontan:. He main-
tains his firft opinion, and believes thefe produétions to be
the habitation of animals.

Decandolle has examined, with Brogniard, the ftructure of
marine plants, fuch as the fwcz; he finds that they have a
‘great affinity to the confervie.

Morellot has given obfervations on the leaves of trees,
with the figns which announce their being in full vigour,
and the time when they ought to be collected for pharma-
ceutical and economical purpofes. He fhows that it is at the
period when the plant is in flower that the leaves poflefs their
full virtue. They drop when their particular life is termi-

nated.
[To be continued, }

IV. On the Effeéts of the Acetic or Acetous Ether, employed
with Friétion in the Rheumatifm, Sciatica, and Gout.

Tur different changes of weather from cold to heat, and
from dry to moift, w hich fucceed each other fo frequently
and fo rapidly, often give rife to the rheumatifm ; a malady
exceedingly painful, and for which medicine aon too few
remedies. If acetic ether, therefore, as appears, fpeedily al-
lays the pains, and even cures them, the application of it is
_a new benefit to mankind, which ought to be made known
that it may be brought into general ufe.

About twenty-five years ago, when the acetous ether was
difcovered in the laboratory of Count de Lauragais, it was
not employed in medicine. In 1784, C.Sedillot jun. being
tormented with the rheumatifin, tried on himfelf this acid,
pouring twelve or fifteen drops, at different times, on the part
affeted, which he immediately rubbed with his hand, to
render the action of the remedy more penetrating. After
this fri€tion, he kept himfelf warm in bed: a perfpiration
took place at the part which had been rubbed, and foon
became general, and the pain was fenfibly diminifhed.
Twelve hours after, a fecond fri€tion produced the like

effects ;

Cure for the Rheumatifm and Gout. ats

effects; and a third, after the fame interval, made a com-
plete cure. C. Sedillot fays he repeated this experiment
afterwards on a great many perfons, and that it always fuc-
ceeded. He recommended it, therefore, to the notice of
medical men in the Tranfactions of the Medical Society of
Paris *.

C. Martin, phyfician to the bofpital of Narbonne, and
formerly phyfician to the army of the Eaftern Pyrenees, has
lately confirmed, in a memoir read before the Medical So-
ciety ¢, the properties afcribed by C. Sedillot jun. to acetous
ether. He employed it alfo, with friétion, in feveral cafes of
people tormented with the rheumatifm, {ciatica, and gout.
Among thefe cafes, he quotes one of a man fifty-five years
of age, who had been long fubject to rheumatic pains
which had no fixed feat; and who, having been attacked
with a violent {ciatica from the hip to the extremity of the
foot, could obtain only very flight and momentary relief
from all the other remedies, both internal and external,
which were adminiftered to him. Half an ounce of acetous
ether was applied in friction, every twelve hours, over the
whole of the part affected; and after each friction he kept
himfelf warm in bed. After the third friction he found re-
lief; and at the fixth he was fo well cured that he went next
day to his country-feat, a league diftant from the city, al-
though three days before he had not been able to drag himfelf
from one end of his chamber to the other without experi-
encing the moft excruciating pain. Succefsful cafes of this
kind, communicated to the Society of Medicine at Paris by
a regular practitioner, deferve the attention of medical men,
who ought to try the remedy in order to afcertain whether
its efficacy be fuch as is here {tated.

C. Sedillot confiders acetous ether alfo as a fedative much
fpeedier and gentler in its effect than opium: it does not
tend, he fays, like the latter, to impede the ation of the
organs. The following 1s the refult of an experiment which
he made with it on himfelf:—Six drops on a lump of fugar

* No. X. Meffidor, an. 5.
+ Sce La Recucil de la Societé de Medicine, Vol. VIII, No. 48, Ger-
mival, an. 8.

Sfa produced

316 On the Colouring Principle of Lapis Lazuli,

produced no fenfible effect; next day, twelve drops induced
a flight propenfity to fleep; and the day following, eighteen
drops rendered this. propenfity ftill greater. By thus adding
fix drops to the dofe ev ery fucceeding day, always with fugar,
he fwallowed haifa grain on the fixth day, w ‘hich produced
a profound tranquillity and neceffity of fleep.

It is recommended to thofe who employ this remedy to
ufe pure acetous ether ; but it is to be obferved, that it is not
eafily met with in that ftate. The following is the procefs
for preparing it, prefcribed by C. Sedillot:

Take equal parts (for example, a pound) of alcohol, and
another of acetous acid. Diftil this mixture in a glafs re-
tort, and the refult will be the acetous ether; which muft
. be reétified to free it from the fuperabundant acid which has
paffed over with it in diftillation. For this purpofe put it
into a glafs veflel, into which introduce a folution of the car-
bonat of pot-ath (falt of tartar): this alkali abforbs the acid,
and the ether floats on the furface. It is then decanted; and
rectified by a new diftllation in a glafs retort with a fuitable
apparatus.

V. On the Nature of the Colouring Principle of Lapis Lazuli.
By C. Guyton *.

Cuemists have long made that blue ftone, known
under the name of /apis lazuli, an objeét of their refearch,
with a view, in particular, to difcover the colouring fubftance
which gives it fo high a value; on account of the fplendour
jt communicates to works in which it is employed, and of
the ultramarine, fo much eficemed in painting, which is
prepared from it. This colour was firft aferibed to copper 5
but the celebrated Margraf demonftrated the fallacy of this
opinion, as he found in it only filex, fulphat of lime, lime,
and alittle iron. Some after him fufpected in it the prefence
‘of the oxyd of cobalt; and others, fuch as Rinmann, a little
fluoric acid: but all thefe conjectures, by a more accurate
examination, were foon fhown to be falfe.
* From the 4:.nal_s de Chimie, No. 100,

The

On the Colouring Principle of Lapis Lazuli. 317

The means of analyfis having, for fome years paft, been
carried to a degree of perfection which could fearcely have
been expected, it was natural to think that the chemifts moft
expert in this new art would not negleé to apply it to the
folution of this important queftion. Among this number I
fhall mention Mr. Klaproth, whofe labours have fo much
enriched the chemiftry of minerals, and who has paid par-
ticular attention to all the blue-coloured foffils. In 1784 he
publithed experiments which demonftrate that what is called
native Pruffian blue, a fubftance found in turfy foil, and
which is often white before being expofed to the air, derives
its colour only from a combination of iron and the phofphoric
acid *,

Another mineral, remarkable for the fame colour, which
has been fucceflively taken for fmalt, or the native blue oxyd
of cobalt; for another kind of native Pruffian blue; and for
a blue oxyd of copper, was difcovered at Vorau in Auftria.
But it refults, from the examination of it by the celebrated
chemift of Berlin, that the colour depends only on filex,
argil, and iron; and though he difcovered that it refifted the
action of the fire lefs han lapis lazuli, he is of opinion that
it might be claffed among the number of its varieties, if it
fhould be found to contain alfo limet. This laft conclufion
fhows that Mr. Klaproth had previoufly determined, with
his ufual accuracy, the conftituent parts of the real lapis la-
zuli; and he indeed indicates them in the tenth article of his
Refearches on Mineral Subftances; where we fee that the
pureft lapis lazuli, called ortental, confifts of 46 per cent. of
filex, 28 of carbonat of lime, 14°5 of argil, 6°5 of fulphat of
lime, 3 of oxyd of iron, and 2 of water.

He re¢tified, therefore, the analyfis of Margraf, by adding
argil; of which the latter made no mention, and which I
fhowed, fifteen years ago, to be contained in it, by touching
a polifhied piece of lapis lazuli with the fulphuric acid, which
at the end of fome hours left very regular cryftals of alum,
that remained on it. But by what principle can the oxyd of

*% Chemifche Annal. 1784, p- 396.

+ See Beytrage zur kentnifs der mineral korper, Se. Vol. I. p. 197, and
Annales de Chimie, Vol. XX1. p. 144:

iron

338 On the Colouring Principle of Lapis Lazuli.

iron be tinged blue without a combination either with the
pruffic or the phofphoric acid? Mr. Klaproth fays that he
does not know *.

The experiments of which I am about to give an account
feem to me to afford a folution of this important queftion :
but before I prefent the proceffes and the refults, [ ought,
for the fake of perfpicuity, to give an account of fome la-
bours, which paved the way for arriving at this conclufion.
In the year 1780, when infpecting a pit in fearch of coal at
Montolier, in the road from Dole to Poligny, I found, at the
depth of 35 metres, a gypfeous bed containing zones of a

“beautiful very bright red colour. I gave a defcription and
analyfis of it in the Journal de Phyfique for the month of
December that year, and I concluded from my experiments
that it was fulphat of lime coloured by the oxyd of iron.

The recent difcovery of feveral new metallic fubitances,
fome of which had the property of giving colours of great
intenfity, induced'me to think that the foffil of Montolier
deferved to be again examined with a view of fearching for
ene of thefe oxyds. For this purpofe, at the commencement
of this year, I deftined a piece of it for the experiments in
the analyfes of minerals, which form part of my courfe at
the Polytechnic School. They were conducted with as much
precifion as fagacity by C. Deformes, formerly a pupil in the
laboratory of the fecond divifion. Having afcertained that this
foffil contamed no carbonat of lime, we took ten grammes
ef it, reduced to powder, which was put in a crucible and
bronght to a red heat. The colour became darker, and
pafled to a yellowifh-brown, and there was a lofs in the
weight of 2°23 grammes, or 22°3 per cent.

A. We digefted, at feveral times, the muriatic acid on
the 7°77 that remained after calcination; they did not lofe
their colour, and the acid took up only a very fmall portion
of the iron.

B. We afterwards boiled the refiduum in a folution of the
earbonat of pot-afh, but only a very fmall part was decom-’
pofed.

C. What remained was mixed with charcoal duit, and

* See his Beytrage, &c, Vol. I. p. 2010
7 treated

On the Colouring Principle of Lapis Lazulz. 319

treated in acrucible. A fulfure being formed, it was de-
compofed by the muriatic acid, which feized on the lime
and the iron, while the filex remained mixed with the fuper-
abundant carbon.

D. The liquors arifing from the three operations were
united, and then divided into two equal portions. From
the firft we feparated iron, which was found to weigh 1°05
grammes; and I affured myfelf that it contained no other
earth but lime. We drew from the fecond 8 decagrammes®
of lime. The whole liquor, therefore, contained, according
to the proportions determined by Klaproth,

Oxyd of iron = ~ 2° grammes.
Lime ~ = = 1°6
Sulphuric acid - = 2°9E

E. It remained to examine the portion of earth left by the
acid, and which was found mixed with the fuperahundant
carbon. Here the operations began to prefent thofe unex-
pected phenomena, which, deviating from the ordinary
courfe, inform the attentive chemift that he is advancing
towards a difcovery. This refiduum was firft calcined in an
open yeffel to confume the carbon, but the filex remained
black: it weighed 1°65. It was treated with pot-afh ina
crucible of platina, and gave a fufed mafs of a fuperb blue
colour. Water ponred over it aflumed the fame colour.
‘fhe nitric acid made it entirely difappear. The filex, fepa-
rated by evaporating to drynefs, weighed no more than 0°86
grammes.

F. It now became of importance to know the effe& of
different re-agents on the nitric acid which had been poured
over the mafs fufed in the crucible, with a view to difcover
the fubftance that had given it thefe properties. The fol-
iis are the refults of thefe trials :

, With the pruffiat of pot-ath this liquor gave a precipi-
a of a yellowifh-green colour, which the addition of
acids, inftead of converting into blue, made immediately dif-
appear.

2. With the gallic acid there was no precipitate.

3. With fulphurated hydrogen there was no precipitate,

as

320 On the Colouring Principle of Lapis Lazuli.

as might have been expeéted, looking only for iron; but it
‘was proper thus to exclude the other metallic fubftances,
which are precipitated by this re-agent.

4. With the hydro-fulphure of ammonia there was @
beautiful green precipitate.

5. With ammonia, a white precipitate.

6. With pot-afh, a light blue precipitate. The two laft
paffed to yellow in drying.

* Comparative experiments were made at the fame time
with a folution of the nitrat of iron, and the refults were
totally different.

G. That no doubt might be left refpeSting the nature of

the fubftances, the prefence of which might have had an in-
fluence in thefe refults, fynthefis was called in to the aid of
analyfis. Sulphure of iron was prepared in a direét manner ;
the nitric acid was poured over it in fufficient quantity, and
the liquor, when filtered, was diluted with abundance of
water, that the excefs of the acid might no longer precipi-
' tate the fulphurated hydrogen which was poured over it. In
this ftate the fame re-agents which had been before employed
prefented all the fame phenomena. One might have fup-
pofed that the fulphat of iron, (not oxydated,) in the fame
circumftances, would have given fome analogous effects ;
but the pruffiat of pot-ath produced only a white precipitate,
as profeffor Prouft had announced.

H. It was eafy, after this, to conclude the analyfis of the
red fulphat of lime of Montolier: it confirmed what I had
announced, that it depended only on the oxyd of iron; and,
befides, determined with accuracy the quantities of the con-
ftituent parts as follows :

Sulphuric acid . “ - - 2)) gf
Lime - - - - - - 4) GO
Oxyd of iron - - es - 21°9
Gtlewite eth Gow sou - - - 86
Water carried off by the firft calcination - 22°3
Lofs - a i a y g Ny ak
100°0,

But

On the Colouring Principle of Lapis Lazuli. 521

But the termination of this Jabour opened a field for new
refearches, of which it is time I fhould give an account alfo,

I. Obferving the blue colour which the fulphat of lime of
Montolier had affumed with pot-afh, the effeéts of the re-
agents on the acid holding its iron in folution; and, above
all, feeing the preen precipitate formed by the pruffiats dif-
appear by the addition of acid, ©. Deformes recollected that
he had obferved fimilar phenomena during fome experiments
which he undertook laft year with C. Clouet on lapis lazuli.
This was already a ftrong indication that this ftone con-
tained fome other colouring metallic oxyd than that of iron.
The queftion then was, to flldioy the coincidence of faéts in
all its circumftances, to determine the particular fiate’ in
which this metal produces that beautiful blue compofition.
Some experiments added to the obfervations already known
refpeGting the properties of lapis lazuli will give an idea of
this coincidence.

K. Lapis lazuli may be brought to a red heat, and lofe as
much as 0°2 of its weight without any fenfible alteration in its
colour; but at a ftronger heat, fuch as that of an enameller’s
furnace, its colour pafles to grey. By ftill increafing the in-
tenfity of the heat, it is reduced to a brownifh vitreous f{coria;
and there is a decreafe of from 10 to 11 hundred parts of its
weight.

L. When lapis lazuli is pulverifed, one fometimes per-
ceives a fmell fimilar to that of mufk, and which argil and
magnefia emit alfo when they are united with a little fulphur.

M. Lapis lazuli is deprived of its colour by the three mi-
neral acids, but more or lefs fpeedily. This effeét, by the
nitric acid, is produced almoft inftantaneoufly: the muriatic
acid is the next in order: the attion of fulphuric acid is the
floweft. The fame odour is often difengaged from it nc thefe
acids as by trituration.

If the nitric acid is concentrated, there is a prdueida of
nitrous gas ; and, accidentally, of carbonic acid gas when the
fapis lazuli contains carbonat of lime. The liquor tried by
pruffiats gives a precipitate, the colour of which approaches
that of Pruffian blue, but inclining fenfibly to greefi, and

Vou. VI. 2h tee which

322 On the Colouring Principle of Lapis Lazuli.

which is deftroyed by acids. The hydro-fulfure of ammonia
occafions in it a green precipitate inclining to black. When
the nitric acid is ufed diluted with water, there is a difengage-
ment of a little f{ulphurated hydrogen. Pruffiats then form in
the liquor only a bright green precipitate, which acids caufe
immediately to difappear. With the hydro-fulfure of am~
monia the precipitate is a beautiful green. If the lapis lazuli

- has been previoufly fubjeéted to calcination, diluted nitric

acid difengages from it a little fulphureous acid gas.

N. Thefe facts prove, not only that the lapis lazuli holds
a little fulphur, but they demonftrate alfo the identity of the
colouring principle of this ftone, with every compofition in
which. earthy fubftances are made to enter in combination
with the fulfure of iron, fince we have feen (IF, G,) the ful-
phat of lime, holding iron, carried to the ftate of fulfure by
carbon, and the fulfure of iron, prepared in a direct manner,
prefent the fame phenomena under the fame circumftances,

O. Before I terminate this memoir I fhall add fome ab-
fervations, which will be of utility to thofe who may be dif-
pofed to repeat thefe experiments,

The compofition of every kind of lapis lazuli is not effen-
tially the fame: one may perceive very diftin@ly in feveral
{pecimens, even of that called the oriental, fulfure of iron in
eryftals which have metallic brilliancy. Sometimes it is dif-
feminated in fmall particles ;.and it is this, no doubt, which
has hitherto prevented the moft accurate chemifts from de-
te€ting the real colouring principle of this fubftance. They
have feen the fulphur as an accidental produdtion foreign to
the fubject of the analyfis, without fufpeCting that there ex-

‘ifted a blue fulfure of iron. It may readily be conceived

that, in experiments of this kind, the greateft care muft be
taken to cheofe fragments abfolutely free from every particle
of pyrites or folfyre of iron, of a yellow metallic appearance.
The prefence of this Jaft fulfure is not the only difference
found between fpecimens of Japis lazuli, Of three kinds fub-
jected to examination, gne contained, with cryftallifed fulfure
of iran and blue fulfure of iron, only fulphat of lime and filex.
The {econd, belides thefe, contained barytes: and the third,
. abfolutely
2

On the Colowring Principle of Lapis Lazuli. 323
abfolutely free from all mixture of pyrites, had in its com-
pofition argil and carbonat of lime fimilar to that analyfed
by Mr. Klaproth.

The cryftals of alum, which were formed very fpeedily,
as already mentioned, on a beautiful plate of lapis lazuli,
leave no doubt that there are fome kinds in which a little
pot-afh may be accidentally contained. It will be proper,
therefore, to fearch for the colouring principle in what con-
ftitutes its real effence, without paying too much attention to
thefe accidental varieties. We muft not, however, believe
that the affinity of earths, either with each other, or with
the colouring principle itfelf, has any influence on the na-
ture of the compound. » A proof of the contrary here pre-
fented itfelf, in a fenfible manner, in one of the fynthetic
operations. Sulphat of lime charged with iron having been ,
treated with charcoal-duft, and then held in digeftion in the
nitric acid, the pruffiat of pot-afh at firft only coloured the
liquor green, without giving a precipitate: the addition of a
folution of argil immediately produced a green precipitate,
which was taken up by acids, and, under all circumftances,
exhibited the fame phenomena as that obtained from the
decompofition of lapis lazuli.

The confequences which appear to me to refult from the
facts announced in this paper, are as follows:

1. The fulphat of lime of Montolier is coloured by a ted
oxyd of iron, which adhefes fo ftrongly to filex as to refift
the a¢tion of acids.

2. This fulphat, treated with carbon, gives baths toa ne
fure of iron, in which that metal is lefs oxydated 5 which
being diffolved in acids, does not by ReuiBalp give Pruffian
blue, but a green, precipitate, which acids dc troy inftead of
heightening, and which retains the blue colour peculiar to
it even in pot-afh, and at that heat which is required for its
fufion in the dry way.

3. By operating on the fulfure of iron prepared in a direst
manner, you obtain a product which manifefts the fame pro-
perties in the fame acids, and by the fame re-agents.

4. Thefe phenomena are exactly fimilar to thofe exhibited
by lapis lazuli fubjected to the fame operations,

Tt3 5. We

R24, Phenomena obfzrved in the Air-Vault

-§« We may therefore form at pleafure the blue colourmg:
principle of lapis lazuli, the difference in the natural pro- -
duction neceffarily refulting from the flow.:combination of
this principle with the earths and fulphat of lime alone ex-
cepted.

6. In the laft. place, the blue fulfure of iron'is the real and
fole colouring principle of all the ‘varieties of the lapis lazuli,
and probably of that mineral alfo known under the name of
the blue ftone of Vorau.

VI... Account of certain Phenomeng obferved, in, the, Air-Vault.
of the Furnaces of the Devon Iron-NWorks* ;-together with
Some, prattical Remarks on the.Management,of Blaft-Fur-

_ «ndces. By-Mr. Roepuck,.in a*Leiter, to, Sir JAMES

vernal Bart. Communicated, by Sir JamES HAtL t.

I, HAVE examined my memorandums concerning the
obfervations IT ‘made on the condenfed air in the air-vault
of the Devon iron-works near Alloa; and, according to your
requeft, I now tranfmit you an account of them ; and alfo of
an experiment IT made, when a partner and manager of ia
works, in order to ora the produce of blaft-furnaces. °

The two blaft-furnaces at Devon are “of | large. anne
each: béing 44 feet high, and about 19 feet wide in the
bofhes, or wideft part, and are formed ona fteep bank, by
two oe funk in a very folid rau of coarfe-grained. free-
flone. Af; glut ads

© Thefe pits were afterwards fhaped and lined, it the ufual
manner of blaft-furnaces, with common ‘bricks and fire-
bricks ; ‘and the hearth was laid with large’blocks of the
ftone that had been dug out, «and which ferve’ the purpofe of
fire-ftones. At the back of the two furnaces, next the bank,
the air-vault is excavated, and formed by a mine drove iit
the folid rock, diftant from the furnaces about 16 feet. The

* Thefe iron-works are on the banks of the river Devon, which runs
into the Frith of Forth near Alloa. They are three miles from Alloa,
and eight from Stirling.

- am rom Tranfadtions of the Royal Socicty of Edinburgh, Vol. V: part 1.

‘ bottom

——- ae

of the Devon Iron-Works. ~ 325

bottom of the air-vault is only about four feet higher than
the level of the bottom of the furnaces. This vault has an
aperture at one end to receive the air from the blowing ma-
chine, and has two at the oppofite end, one of dich re-
ceives the eduCtion-pipe, andthe other is a door to give ad-
mittance o¢cafionally into the vault. As the rock is ex-
tremely clofe’ and folid, the vault is dry, except that a little
water ouzes very gently from the fide next the bank in fmall
drops, and does not appear to exceed an Englifh pint in
24 hours.

Thefe furnaces are provided with air, or blaft, as it is termed,
by the means of’a fire-engine of the old, or Newcomen’s
eonftruction. The diameter of the fteam cylinder is 48%
imches; and the fquare area'of its piflon being about 18662
fquare inches, the power of this furt of engine cannot be
rated at more than 7 1b. to the fquare inch, amounting in all
to about 130621b. ‘This power was employed to work ar
air-pump, or blowing cylinder, of 78 inches diameter, and
about 7 feet long. The number of fquare inches on the
pifton of the air-punip is 4778, and therefore this area;
being’ multiplied by 23, will produce 13139; being a re+
fiance that nearly balances the above-rated power, and
{hows that the air, which was expelled fromthe ait-pump,
could not be condenfed more in the ordinary way of working

than with a comprefling power of about 22\b. ow each fquare

inch. As. the engine was not regulated, at firft, to make a
longer ftroke than about 4 feet 8 inches, ‘only one furnace
being ufed, the quantity of air expelled at‘each’ ftroke of the
machine was about 155 cubic feet, which it difcharged

through a valve into the air-vault about 16 times in a

minute. When two furnaces afterwards were blown, the
engine was regulated to work much quicker, and with a
longer ftroke. The air-vault is 72 feet long, 14 feet wide,
and 13 feet high; and contains upwards of 13,000 cubic

‘feet, or above 8c times the contents of the air-pump. The

top, fides, and bottom of this vault, where the leaft fiffure

_ could be difcovered in the beds of the rock, were carefully

caulked with oakum, and afterwards plaftered, and then co-
vered with pitch and paper, The intention of blowing into
the

—

/

325 Phenomena obferved in the Air-Vault

the vault is to equalife the blaft, or render it uniform; which
it effects more completely than any machinery ever yet con-
trived for the fame purpofe. The air is conducted from the
vault by the eduction-pipe, of 16 inches diameter, into an
iron box or wind-cheft, and from this it goes off to each
furnace in two fmaller pipes that terminate in nozzles, or
blow-pipes, of only 2! to 3 inch diameter at the tweer of
the furnace.

When the furnace was put in blaft, after having been
filled with cokes, and gently heated for more than fix weeks,
the keepers allowed it to have but little blaft at firft, giving
it a fmall blow-pipe of about 2% inch diameter, and likewife
letting off a very confiderable quantity of air, at the efcape,
or fafety-valve,on the top of the iron wind-cheft; as it is a
received, though erroneous opinion among them, that the
blaft mutt be let on very gradually for feveral months. From
the conftruétion of this valve it was impoflible to afcertain
the exact proportion of the blaft they thus parted with, but
I believe it was very confiderable. The confequence was,
that the furnace, after it had been in blaft for feveral days,
never feemed to arrive at its proper degree of heat, but was
always black and cold about the tweer in the hearth, and ap-.
peared in danger of choaking, or gobbing, as it is termed.

After various cxpatitaestic, tried in vain, by the keepers

_and the company’s engineer, and others, (indeed they tried
every thing, except giving the furnace a greater quantity of
air, which, as I afterwards afcertained, was all that it want-
ed,) they concluded that the air-vault was the caufe of the
whole mifchief; and, to confirm their opinion, they faid they
had now difcovered that water was, in confiderable quan-
tities, driven out of the air-yault through the blow-pipe,
which cooled the furnace; and they infifted, that the power
of the engine was fuch as to force water out of the folid rock ;
fo that this method of equalifing the blaft never would fuc-
ceed. The other managing partner was fo much alarmed
by thefe reprefentations, that he began to confult with the
engineer, and others, about finding a fubftitute for the air-
vault at any expence.

As the plan of the blowing apparatus had been adopted at

- , : my

of the Devon Iron-Works. 429

my recommendation, and was now fo loudly condemned on ac-
count of the water, I had other motives, than mere intereft,
for trying to become better acquainted with the phenomena
attending it. I accordingly determined to go into the air-
vault, and to remain enclofed in the condenfed air while the
engine was blowing the furnace. It is an experiment that
perhaps never was made before, as there never exifled fuch
an opportunity. I could not perfuade the engineer, or any
other of the operative people about the work, to be my com-
panions, as they imagined that there was much danger in
the experiment. Mr. Neil Ryrie, however, one of the clerks
of the Devon company, had fufficient confidence in my re-
prefentations to venture himfelf along with me.

The raachine had been {topped about two hours previous
to our entering the vault, and we found a dampnefs and
miftinefs in it, which difappeared foon after the door was
fhut faft upon us, and the engine began to work in its ufual
manner. After four or five ftrokes of the engine, we both
experienced a fingular fenfation in our ears, as if they were
fiopped by the fingers, which continued as long as we re-
mained in the condenfed air. Our breathing was not in the
leaft affeGted. I had no thermometer with me, but the tem-
perature of the air felt to us the fame as that without the vault.
Sound was much magnified, as we perceived, when we talked
to each other, or firuck any thing; particularly the noife of
the air efcaping at the blow-pipe, or wafte valve, was very
loud, and feemed to return back tous. There was no ap-
pearance of wind to difturb the flame of our candles; on the.
contrary, I was furprifed to find, that when we put one of
them into the eduction-pipe, which conveys the wind from
the vault to the furnaces, it was not blown out. There was
not the fmalleft appearance of any drops of water iffuing out
of this pipe. The ouzing and dropping of water from the
fide of the rock next the bank, feemed the fame as before the
condenfation was made in the vault. ‘In fhort, every thing
appeared, in other refpeéts, the fame as when we were in
the common atmofphere. Having remained about an hour
in the condenfed air, and fatisfied ourfelves that no water,
during that time, that we could in the leaft difcover, was

J agitated

328 Phenomena obferved in the Air-Vault

agitated and forced out of the rock and vault by the power of
the blaft, as was-imagined and infifted on, we gave the fignal
to flop the engine. As foon as: it ceafed to work, and the
condenfation abated, ‘and before the door of the vault was
unfcrewed, the whole vault, in a few feconds, became filled
with a thick vapour, fo that we could bardly fee the candles
at four or five yards diflance. The'door being now opened,
the work-people, anxious to know onr fituation, and what
had occurred, came into the vault, and prevented. any further
obfervations. I now endeavoured to account for this curious
appearance of the water, which only fhowed itfelf occafion-
ally, in very final] quantities, at the tweer, and at a hole I
ordered to be made in the bottom of the wind-cheft to colle&
it more accurately; for it never was obferved, but either when
the engine, after working flowly, was made to work quicker,
or, after having been flopped for a few minutes, was fet to
work again. .

I confidered the vapour which wé had difcovered in the
vault to arife from the moifture of the fide of the rock next
the furnace, which being expelled by the great heat of the
furnace, and converted. into vapour, was able to force its way
through the pores of the rock into the vault; but that being
in a manner confined within the rock, by the preflure of ihe
condenfed air, it found itfelf at liberty to come into the vault
only when the condenfation abated confiderably, or was to-
tally removed by the going flow, or ftopping of the engine,
It alfo occurred-to me, that the air, in a flate of condenfa-
tion, might poffibly be capable of holding a greater quantity
of water in folution, which might precipitate fuddenly into
vapour or mift when the condenfation abated. I imagined,
therefore, that the very fmall quantities of water we at times
difeovered, proceeded from nothing elfe but this vapour in its
paffage to the furnace along with the blaft, being condenfed
into water, by the coolnefs of the eduction-pipe and iron
wind-cheft. The quantity of water did not appear to amount
to a gallon in twenty-four hours.

A few days after 1 had made this experiment, the water
ceafed entirely to make its appearance, either at the tweer or
at the hole in the wind-cheft ; but the furnace did not.come

into

6f the Devon Iron-Works. 329

into heat fora long while after, and indeed not till the keepers
let much more air into it by a larger blow-pipe, and allowed
lefs air to efeape at the fafety valve. It is probable that the
rock was now become perfectly dry by the continued heat of
the furnace.

My experiment had the good effect to remove all the pre-
judices againft the plan I “had adopted of blowing the furs
naces, and likewife prevented the other partner from laying
‘out a large fum of money, by fiopping the works, and alter-
ing the blowing machinery. Indeed, it has fince been ad-
mitted, by all who have feen it at work, to be the moft
fimple and effective method of equalifing the blaft of any yet
put in practice.

This experiment led me, fome time iiewwarde; to apply
a wind-gauge that I contrived, to afcertain precifely the ftate
of the condenfation of the air thrown into the furnaces. IT
found that a column of quickfilver was raifed five inches; and
fometimes, though feldom, fix inches ; and, in the interval of
the return of the engine to receive air into the air-pump, it
fell only half of aninch. At this time only one furnace was
worked. But when two furnaces were in blaft, the engine
only raifed the mercurial gauge about four inches; becaufe
the Devon company, for certain reafons, did not, while I
continued a partner, think proper to allow the blowing ma-
chinery to be completed, by the putting to work their fecond
boiler of twenty feet diameter for the fire-engine, according
to my original defign, which, by adjufting the thachitiery,
would biive enabled us to blow two furnaces, with two boil-
ers, with as much effeét, in proportion, as one furnace with
one boiler. This inftrument had the advantage of enabling
-the work-people to difcover the real power of their blaft, and”
know the exact condition of the air-valves, and the gearing
of the blowing pitton ; for, if thefe were not tight, and in’
order, (although the engine might, to appearance, be doing
well, by making the fame number of difcharges of the air-
punip as ufua! per minute,) yet the windégauige would not

rife fo high, and would fhow that there was an imperfection’
fomewhere, by reafon of a quantity of air efcaping at the®
yalves, or pifton, that could not fo tafily otherwife be known.
‘eVot. VI. Uu This

340 Phenoniena obferved in-the Air-Vault

This contrivance was confidered as of much ufe, and was
afterwards always quoted in the company’s journal books, to
fhow the actual ftate of the blowing machine, in comparing
the daily produce of the furnaces.

I hope you will not think me tedious, when I explain to
you another experiment, which appears to me to be of con-
fiderable importance to all manufacturers of caft iron,

I had reafon to conje&ture, from my own obfervations on
the effets of blowing machinery on blaft-furnaces, as well
as from the knowledge I had acquired from my father, Dr.
Roebuck, and from my communications with other expe-
rienced iron mafters, that a great part of the power of fuch
machinery was mifapplied in general practice by throwing
air into furnaces with much greater velocity than neceflary ;
and that, if this velocity was, to a certain degree, diminifhed,
the fame power, by properly adjufting the blowing machinery,
of whatever nature, would be capable of throwing into the
furnace.a proportionally greater quantity of air. For, ‘* Since
the quantities of any fluid, iffuing through the fame aperture,
are as the fquare roots of the preffure;’’ it follows, that it
would require four times the preffure, or power, to expel
double the quantity of air, through the fame aperture, in the
fame time: but if the area of the aperture was doubled, then
the quantity of air expelled by the fame power, and in the
fame time, would be increafed in the ratio of the fquare root
of 2 to 1, though its velocity would be diminifhed exa@ly in
the fame proportion. Again: I confidered that the quantity.
and intenfity of heat produced in blaft-furnaces, and confe-
quently its effects in increafing the produce, might be only
in proportion to the quantity of air decompofed in the procefs
of combutftion, without regard to its greater velocity 5 that is
to fay, whether or not the’ fame quantity of air was forced,
in the fame time, into the furnace through a fmall pipe, or. |
through one of larger dimenfions; for, in attending to the -
pracefs of a common air-furnace for remelting of iron, where,
there is a very large quantity of air admitted through the large
areas between the bars, it is well known that a much greater.
intepfity of heat is produced than takes place in a blaft-fur-

nacey~”

of the Devon Iron-Works. 331

nace, and yet the air does not enter into the fire through the
bars with increafed denfity or great velocity. I therefore
thought it probable, that increafing the gwantity of air,
thrown into the blaft-furnace, in a confiderable degree, al-
though the velocity or denfity might be much lefs, would
have the effect of increafing its heat, and operations, and
produce. And as, from the principles above ftated, with
regatd to the machinery, I faw I could greatly increafe the
quantity of air thrown into the furnace, by enlarging the di-
ameter of the blow-pipe, and regulating the engine accord-
ingly, without being obliged to employ more power, I was
anxious to make this experiment.

A fyftem of management, of which I did by no means
approve, was adopted by the other partners of the Devon
company foon after the works were begun to be erected;
and, in the profecution of it, they ordered their fecond fur-
nace to be put in blaft, without permitting thofe meafures to
be taken that were neceflary to provide and maintain a fuffi-
cient ftock of materials; and alfo, without allowing ‘their
blowing machine to be completed, according to the original
defien, by the addition of its fecond boiler. As might have
been expected, a trial of feveral months to carry on two fur-
naces, with only half the power of {team that was neceflary,
and an inadequate ftock of materials, proving unfuccefsful,
the company, as a remedy, inftead of making up the above
deficiencies, ordered one of the furnaces to be blown out,
and ftopped altogether. This improper meafure, however,
afforded me the opportunity of immediately putting in prac-
tice the plan I have mentioned.

When one of the furnaces was ftopped, the other conti-
nued to be blown by a blow-pipe of 23 inches diameter, and
the produce of the furnace, for feveral weeks thereafter, was
not 2o tons of iron per week at an average. The engine at
this time was making about 16 ftrokes a minute, with a
{troke of the air-pump, about 4 feet 8 inches long; but
when I altered the diameter of the blow-pipe, firft to 3, and
immediately after to 3+ inches diameter, and regulated the
working gears of the engine, fo as to make a ftroke of 5 feet
2 inches long, and about 19 ftrokes in a minute, on an

Uu3 average,

’

332 Phenomena obferved in the Air-Vault

average, the produce was immediately increafed. It con-
tinued to be, on an average of nine months immediately
after this improvement, at the rate of 33 tons of iron per
week, of as good quality as formerly; for during this period,
from the 21f of November 1795, to July 30, 1796, this one
furnace yielded 1188 tons of iron. No more coals were con-
fumed in working the blaft-engine, or other expences about
the blowing machine incurred, and therefore no more power
was employed to produce this great effect. It is alfo of much
importance to remark, that the confumption of materials,
from which this large produce was obtained, was by no means
fo great as formerly. The furnace required very’ confiderably
kefs fuel, lefs ironflone, and le/s limeftone, than were em-
ployed to produce the fame quantity of iron by the former
method of blowing; and according to the ftatements made
out by the company’s orders, as great a change was effected
in the economical part of the bufinefs.

From the fuccefs of this experiment, fo well authenticated,
and continued for feveral months, I am led to be of opinion,
that all blaft-furnaces, by a proper adjuftment of {uch ma-
chinery as they are provided with, might greatly and advan-
tageoufly increafe their produce, by afluming this as a prin-
ciple, wiz. * That with the given power it is rather by a
great quantity of air thrown into the furnace, with a mode-
tate velocity, than by a le/s quantity thrown in with a greater
yelocity, that the greateft benefit is derived, in the /melting of
ironflones, im order to produce pig-iron.’ However, it is by
experiment alone, perhaps, that we can be enabled to find
out the exact relations of power, neve Bees and quantity of
air requifite to produce a maximum of effet *

Zz But

* If Q_ be the quantity of a fluid, iffuing in a given time through an

rture of the diameter D, V its velocity, and P the power hy which ir
is forced through the aperture; then the area of that aperture being as
D2, the quantity of the fluid iffuing in the given time will be as VD?, or
bc eae :

Again: this quantity multiplied into its velocity, will be as the s70-
mentum of the fluid expelled, or as the power by which it is expelled,
that is, V?D*= P, o. VD=,/P. «

Here, therefore, if D is given, V is as JP, as Mr. Roebuck affirms,

Allo,

;

of the Devon Tron-}Works. 333

But an unfortunate difagreement among the partners of
the Devon company put it out of my power to make further
progrefs in this matter, by laying me under the neceflity,
two years ago, of withdrawing myfelf entirely from the
concern.

——o
In order to illuftrate what is faid above, a ground plan of
the air-vault and furnaces of the Devon iron-works is given
in Plate X. of which the explanation follows :

Explanation of Fig. 1: Plate X.

A the air-vault, formed by a mine drove in the folid rock
of coarfe grained freeftone. B the blowing cylinder. C the
pipe that conveys the air from the blowing cylinder to the
air-vault. D, the eduétion-pipe, that carries the air from the
air-vault to the iron wind-cheft. E, the iron wind-cheft,
(about 2! feet cube,) in which is inferted a wind-gauge, re-
prefented in Fig. 3. FF, the two blow-pipes for each fur-
nace, which terminate in apertures of 3+ inches diameter at
the tweers of the furnaces. GG, the two blaft-furnaces,
placed in two pits funk in the folid rock. HH, the timps
of the furnaces, from whence the caft iron is run off into the
cafting room LL. O, the door to give occafional admittance
into the air-vault. M, the excavation, in which is placed the
blowing machine,

Explanation of Fig. 2.

A, the end of the wind-gauge, (about 12 inches Jong,)
which is open to the atmofphere, being half filled with quick-
filver. B, the end that is inferted in the iron wind-cheft, and
expofed to the preffure of the condenfed air of the air-vault.

Alfo, becanfe V = = and alfo V= < Q=D,/P, fo that, while
P remains the fame, Q_will increafe as D increafes, and ¥ will diminifh
in the fame ratio,

The problem, therefore, of throwing the greateft quantity of air into
the furnace, with a given power, ftriétly fpeaking, has no maximum, but
the largeft aperture of which the engine can admit muft be the beft. It
is probable, however, that there is a certain velocity with which the air
ought to enter into the furnace; this will produce a limitation of the pro-
plem, which, as Mr. Roebuck fuggetts, is not likely to be difcovered but

by experiment. - J.P.
{ VIL. Com

VII. Communication from Dr. BLACKBURNE 7re/peGling
Caloric, Light, and Colours.

« SIR, Spring Garden, May. 5, 1800.

I, is now more than twelve months fince I, announced
my intention of publifhing fome remarks concerning the ufe
of the word eat, and the conftitution of light. My avoca-
tions have not allowed me to fulfil my promife; and being
fill uncertain when I may be able to finifh for pulivetion,
{ thall be much obliged to you to imfert in your refpeétable
Journal the following brief refults of my inveftigation con-
cerning light, which I conceive to be of more importance
than thofe concerning heat, which chiefly relate to verbal
eriticifm. The proofs and reafoning on which thefe refults
depend, will, I nope be foon fubmitted to the public.

cE am,) &e:
«< Mr. Tillocb. WILLIAM BLACKBURNE.”

1ft, Light is a compound refulting from a peculiar com-
bination of caloric and oxygen. |

adly, In all thofe phenomena which have given occafion
to the idea that light is identical with, or a modification of,
caloric, the manifeftation of the Jatter principle is to be re-
ferred to the difunion of the conftituting principles of light.
The caloric, therefore, which fo frequently refults from the
application of light to various fubftances, iffues from the de-
compofition of light i in various degrees.

3dly, The phenomena of FAPcs 4 are to be afcribed to the
different qualities of light, as containing caloric and oxygen
im different proportions. The different proportions manifeft
themfelves in the circumftances both of the decompofition
and the formation of varioufly coloured light.

4thly, The feparation of light by the prifm is to be regarded
as a chemical decompofition, not a phyfical or mechanical
divifion of light.

sthly, The changes which take place in the colours of
different fubftances, as of plants in the procefs of vegeta-
tion, of metals in that of oxydation, are owing to corre~

fpondent

Ox the conftituent Paris of Axot. 335

fpondent changes which thefe fubftances tindergo in their
chemical aétion upon light.

6thly, The evanefcence, or, as it is frequently termed, the
abforption, of light, is to be referred to the complete refolu-'
tion of this compound into its conftituent parts.

VIII. Memoir on Azot, and on the Queflion, Whether it be a
Jjomple or a compound Body. By CHRISTOPHER GIR-
TANNER, M.D. of Gottingen™.

Tux moft celebrated chemifts have long known the
important part which azot performs in all the operations of
nature. Lavoifier, Fourcroy, Berthollet, Van Mons, Guy-
ton, Chaptal, Vauquelin, Prieftley, Van Marum, Goettling, |
Wiegleb, Von Hauch, Paets, Van Trooftwyk, Deiman, and
feveral others, have endeavoured, with more or lefs fuccefs,
to ftudy its nature; and it is to their labours united that we
are indebted for a knowledge of its fingular properties, which
are very different from ‘thofe of the other aériform fluids
with whofe bafes we are acquainted.

But it is in organifed bodies that this fingular principle
feems to perform the moft diftinguifhed part. In the re-
fearches I have made for twelve years, refpecting the me-
chanifm of life in animals and plants, I always found myfelf
ftopped by this too little known principle. In my experi-
ments I faw it appear and difappear, without being able to
fix it, or to explain in what manner it had introduced itfelf
into the body from which I extraéted it. I began, therefore,
to fufpect that azot was not a fimple body, but a compound.
I formed feveral conjectures, which my experiments proved
to be falfe; and, defpairing of fuccefs, I had entirely given
up purfuing this fubje&, when the difpute which arofe re-
fpecting the azotic gas drawn from the fteam of water, in-
duced me to turn my attention to it once more. This dif-
pute is not yet terminated, notwithftanding al] that has been
faid for and againft the converfion of fteam into gas by

-* From the Annales de Chimie, No. 100. This is the memoir ans
Nounced in the preceding number of the Philofophical Magazine, p- 216.

Goettling,

336 On the conftituent Parts of Axot.

Goettling, Wiegleb, Von Hauch, Weftrumb, Achard, Wur-
zer, juch, Van Mons, Paets, Van Trooftwyk, and Deiman.
It appears to me that this famous difpute has a great re-
femblance to many others mentioned in the annals of our
{cience, and by which the moft important points of the
theory of chemiftry have been fixed. Such was the difpute
on the exiftence or non-exiftence of the carbonic acid in
chalk, which occupied all the chemifts of Europe for feveral
years; and fuch was that refpecting the exiftence or non-
exiftence of oxygen in the red oxyd of mercury: a difpute
in which I myfelf was engaged, and abuled by the German
chemifts, and particularly Gren, who was exceedingly apt
to become warm *.

Wiegleb, Goettling, and Von Crell, affert,

1. That the fieviny’ of water, in pafling through ignited:
tubes,’ is converted into azotic gas.

2. That this change always takes place, and under all
circumftances, provided the fteam of the water is brought
iffto conta& with the ignited bodies.

3. That water is changed into azotic gas by combining
itfelf with caloric. ;

4. That water is the ponderable bafe of azotic gas and of
all the other gafes.

5. That confequently the theory of Lavoifier is falfe.

The Dutch chemifts, as well as Von Hauch, Juch, Van
Mons, &c. maintain,

1. That the fteam of water, in paffing through ignited
tubes, is not converted into azotic gas in-any cafe whatever.

2. That the azotic gas obtained, has not been a produc-

tion of the water, but has arifen from a part of the atmo-
{pheric air which paffed through the tubes.

3. That confequently the theory of Lavoifier remains un-+
fhaken; and that the theory of phlogifton, or that of —
being the bafe of all the gafes; 1 is erroneous.

Being much interefted in this difpute, I followed its®
progrefs with great attention; but I was‘ forry to fee party”

* All the opinions maintained by Gren were erroneous ; but he had
the merit of writing his Sy/emati/ches Handbuch, which is an excellent
compilation. Gren was a good compiler, but a bad reafonier,

7 ~ fpirit

On ibe conflituent Parts of Azot. 437
fpirit introduced into it, and that it was catried on with
afperity on both fides; that the contending parties difputed
hot for the difcovery of truth, but for victory; and that they
Were previoufly determined to difcover nothing but what
their particular theory required. This condué prevented
them from feeing the objet under its real appearance ex-
periments were fhultiplied ; each party denied thofe of the
oppofite party; refults entirely different were found, and in-
ftead of approaching, they receded ftill further from each
other. The only thine which interefted me in this difpute
was truth. I am firmly perfuaded that the fyftem of Lavoi-
fier is agreeable to nature. Having heard of an experiment
which I was told overturned this fyftem entirely, I immes
diately faid: Let tis repeat and examine it; if the fyftem be
falfe, we ought to abandon it as foon as voflible, and not to
wait till it abandon us. Let us not be attached to fyftems,
but to truth; and when Nature fpeaks, let us liften to her
voice in preference to that of a Stahl or a Lavoifier, a Def-
cartes otf a Newton. Whatever may be the refult of our
experiments, we fhall profit by them: as we run the rifque
of lofing nothing but error, let us haften to fubje& ourfelves
to that lofs.

Such was thé manner in which I reafoned. I had learned
from the hiftory of chemiftry, that in all difputes in which
two parties obtained contrary refults from fimilar experiments
there was a miftake in the mode of expreffion, and that both
at bottom were in the right; and I doubted whether this
might not be the cafe in regard to the difpute in queftion.
T propofed, therefore, to refolve the following points :

1. Is the fteam of boiling water canyon into azotic gas
by paffing through ignited nee i

2. Under wie circumftances does this change take place ?

3. What is the rationale of this production of azotic gas ?

4. Are thefe experiments contrary, or not, to the fyftem of
Lavoifier ?

I will freely confefs, before I enter on this difcuffion, that
the manner in which the produétion of azotic gas had been
explained, by making it pafs from the extefnal air through

Vou. VI. Xx the

328 On the conflituent Parts of Azot.

the tubes, did not appear to me altogether fatisfaétory. 7
had, indeed, formerly adopted this explanation*; but I foon
abandoned an opinion fo contrary to every thing that we
Know of caloric. I am really forry to feé an opinion fo im-
probable defended by chemifts of the firft rank ; but the hif-
tory of chemiftry affords many inftances of the like kind.
Before the immortal Lavoifier had profcribedl phiogifton, the
Stahlians extricated themfelves from their embarraffment
in a manner abfolutely fimilar. They put oxyd of mercury
iti a crucible, fhut thé cricible in the clofeft manner pofli-
ble, and expofed it to a ftrong heat. On opening it after it
had cooled, the mercury was found fluid. But as fuch a re-
duétion, according to the doétrine of Stahl, could not take
place without the intervention of phlogifton, the Stahlians
were afked to explain thi phenomenon fo coutrary to their
doétrine. Their anfwer was, that the phlogifton had paffed
through the crucible to join itfelf to the mercury. Even
Bergmann and Scheele were fatisfied with this abfurd ex-
planation +; which proves that'the fpirit of fyftem mifleads
the ableft men, and renders them ridiculous in the eyes of
pofterity, more enlightened, and lefs flaves to prejudice. I
fhall fhow that azot does not pafs through the fides of tubes,
and that phlogifton does not pafs through crucibles. The
experiments which Prieftley made to prove that the air pafles
through earthen retorts, does not prove ‘what he pretended
to prove. He faw the retorts {moke on the outfide, but the
water, as he imagines, did not pafs through: the exterior
part of the earthen retort only aitraéted the water of the at-
niofphete.

As I propofé, in a particular work on azot, to give a detail
of the fitimerous experiments I have made to afcertain its
nature, I fhall confine myfelf at prefent to a general view of
therm, as well as of the refults which I think myfelf autho-
rifed to deduce from them. I think, then, that I may fafely
affert, that azotic gas is obtained :

1. When water is boiled in an earthen retort unglazed in

* Anfang[grunde der antipblogiftifchen chemie, fecond edition, p. $9, 904
+ Scheele von luft und feuer, edition of Leonhardi, p, 42.
the

On the conftituent Parts of Azot. 339

the infide, and when the fteam is made to pafs through a
tube of glafs or any other fubftance. J

a. When water is boiled in a glafs retort which contains.
argil or alumine, and the eam is madg¢ ta pafs through 2
tube of glafs or of any other fubftance,

3. When comman water is boiled in a glafs retort, ang
the fieam js made to pafs through an earthen tube.

4. When common water is boiled in a glafs retort, and
the fteam is made to pafs through a glafs tube which con-
tains pe or alumine,

. When an earthen tube, filled with water, is inclofed
in 4 a larger one of glafs, with fand between them; and the
tuke af glafs 1 in another of iron, with fand between them, in
the like manner, and the whole is expofed to the fire *,

6. When water is boiled in a glafs retort containing lime,
and the fteam of it is made to pafs through a tube of glafs
or of any other fubftance,

. When water is boiled *» a glafs retort containing
sutaided quartz or filex, and the fteam is made to pafs
through a tube of glafs or of any other fubftance.

8. The firft experiment will equally fucceed when the
earthen retort ig covered on the outfde with a metallic
glazing,

g. The third experiment will alfo fucceed when the earthen
tube is covered on the oudfide with a metallic glazing.

IO, The fourth experiment will fucceed, when, inftead of
_argil, the tube is filled with lime or pounded quartz,

Only fteam of water, but nq azotic gas, is obtained :
y. When water is boiled jn a glafs retort, and the vapour
is made to pafs through tubes of alafs or porcelain,

2, When water is boiled in an earthen retort covered on
the infide with a metallic glazing, and the fleam is made te
pafs through tubes of glafs or porcelain,

3. When water is boiled in a glafs retort filled with pound-
ed glafs, and the fteam, is made to pafs through tubes of glafs
or porcelain,

* This is ane of Prieftley’s experiments, which F have not repeated.
See his Experiments and Obfervations on different Kinds of Air, Bur-
wuing ban 1790, Vol. II. p. 418.

Xx 4 Generag

40 On the conftituent Parts of Azote

General Remarks.

To obtain azotic gas in the greateft quantity, the water
muft be evaporated very flawly, and over a very gentle fire 5
and care muft be taken not to increafe the fire too much.

In every experiment of this kind, without exception, it
may be obferved, that when the laft drop of water is evapo-
rating the azotic gas ceafes to be produced, though the fire.
be continued.

Refults of the Experiments.

Such are the facts and plain ftatement of the experiments,
independent of all fyftem, of all explanation, and of all the-
ory. It thence refults :

1A Be Mefirs. Wiegleb and Goettling were right in fay-

ing that water was converted into azotic gas by the aétion of

oe
_ 9. That they were wrong in maintaining that this change
always takes place, and under all circumftances, when the
fteam of the water is brought into contact with bodies
brought to ignition in the fire.

3. That Mr. Wiegleb has not proved what he afferts, wiz.
that the converfion of water into gas is owing to a mere addi-
ne of caloric, and that water forms the bafe of all the gafes.

. That the Dutch chemifts were wrong in, advancing
rai the converfion of water into azotic gas never took Sioce
in any cafe whatever; and that the gas obtained arofe from
atmofpheric air which had paffed through the retorts and
the tubes.

5. That there are certain circumftances under which water
is converted into azotic gas, and others where it is nels and
that it is eafy to reconcile the oppofite parties.

The change of water into azotic gas by the ation of ca-
loric and of earths being afcertained, the queftion was, to find
a folution of this problem. The manner in which I explain
it is as follows:—I have obferved, as well as Ingenhouz,
Von Humboldt, and Van Mons, that moift earths are en-
dowed with the property of abforbing the oxygen of the at-
mofphere at the common temperature. Befides, I have ob-
ferved a circumftance, not mentioned by Von Humboldt,

8 ~ that

On ihe conftituent Parts of Azot. 344

that they abforb oxygen in lefs time, and in greater quantity,
when they are heated. I found, by other experiments, that
earths take the fame oxygen from the water ; bunt that, for
this purpofe, a temperature higher than that of the atmo-
fphere i is required, Argil, argillaceous éarth, or alumine, i8
that which takes up oxygen with the greateft avidity, and at
a temperature far below that of boiling water; lime requires
-a higher temperature, and does not charge itfelf fo much
with oxygen ; filex, before it abforbs oxygen, muft be brought
to a ftate of ignition in the fire, but afterwards it takes it up
very rapidly. Baked argil ynites itfelf alfo with oxygen,
but it requires a higher temperature. Glazed argil does not
abforb oxygen, the glazing heing made of metallic glais,
which has no aGion on oxygen.
Having made thefe detest I did no} find it difficult
_ to explain the phenomena of the converfion of water into
azotic gas. Recollecting the hypothefis which M. Mayet.
had ventured to ftart, a few years ago, on the nature of azotié
gas, by fuppofing that it was a compound of oxygen and
hydrogen, water converted into a gas*, I conceived a fimilaf:
idea refpecting jt. As M, Mayer gave his hypothefis merely
as an idea thrown out at hazard, and as he fupported it with
no chemical experiment whatever, I propofed ta fupply what
he had left undone. Admitting this hypothefis, and refleét=
ing on the fingular property which earths have of abforbing
ie oxygen of water, I explained, without difficulty, the ex-
periments above mentioned. They are the refult of a double.
affinity. The oxygen of the water unites itfelf in part to the
earth, which is converted into an earthy oxyd; the remainder
of the oxygen in union with the hydrogen combines with
_ the caloric, and forms azotic gas; confequently, azof is water
deprived of a part of its oxygen.
This affertion is fuppported by various experiments: but
I fhall confine myfelf to a few only, and fhall referve the reft
to be mentioned in a fecond memoir, after I have repeated
them.

1. Provide porcelain tubes, and try them by tranfmitting
through them the fteam of boiling water, which will pafs in
* Gren’s Journal der Phyjik, Vol. V. p. 382+

vapout

(943 On the conftituent Parts of Azot.

vapour without the Jeaft particle of gas except the air cons
tained in the retort, After you have afcertained in this man-
ner that. the water is not changed into gas in thefe tubes, ta
prevent the objeétions of thofe dates imagine that the external
air pafles through the tubes, fill one of them with filings of
tin and put it into the fire, which you mutt take care to keep
up. Then make the fteam of water to pafs through it. 19
the pneumatic apparatus you will obtain azotic gas mixed
with oxygen gas, The tin is changed into an beyd, This
experiment, which was made by M. Von Hauch, may be
eafily explained from my principles, The tin takes from the

water only a part of the oxygen it contains; the yeft remaing
in union with the hydrogen, and forms azot.

a. By tranfmitting the fteam of water over lead, in the
fame manner as in the preceding experiment, you will ob-
tain, according to M. Von Hauch, the fame refult. At the
commencement of the operation the oxyd of the lead paffes
under the bell with the gas and the fleam of the water, and
the metal then appears under the form of a very fine powder,
The azotic gas obtained is in proportion to the oxygen gas

almaft as 64 to 36,

3. By t tranfmitting, in the fame manner, the fteam of

water through a tube filled with antimony, you obtain a
mixture of azotic gas and oxygen gas, There will be 89 parts
of the former, and 11 of the latter.

4,4 porcelain tube was filled with black oxyd of man-
ganefe, and the tube expofed to a yery ftrong heat for more
iban two hours, until the oxyd had entirely ceafed to farnith
oxygen gas. The fteam of water wag then made to pafs over
this oxyd deprived of the greater part of its oxygen, At firft,
oxygen gas pretty pure was obtained, and then azotic gas,
This experiment of M. Von Hauch is very inftruétive, The
manganefe evidently abforbed, firft the hydrogen, and then
a part of the oxygen of the water.

5. The fteam of water was made to pafs through the fame

tube, filled with the fame manganefe which tial ferved for

the fourth experiment, Azotic gas was obtained; and the
fire being continued for three ie the HifeRpaseieen of
yhe azotic gag continued ag long as the fteam of the water

Wea

meeneoene

_

=

A ection emai

On the-conftiinent Parts of Azots 545

was made to pafs. When no more fteam was tranfmitted,
the difengagement of the azot ceafed ; but it tecommenced
as foon as the water was again boiled, aul new fteam began
to pals over the manganefe. This experiment was tepeated
fix days fucceffively, cathy day for three hours, and always

with thé fame fuccefs. Wheri the operation was ended; the
manganefe was found cemented to the porcelain tube in fuch
4 manner that it could not be feparated.

6. Dr. Pearfon analyfing water by an eleétric fpark, al-
Ways obtained azotic gas, befides the two gafes of which
water is compofed. ;

7. The fame gentleman btirning, in a tube hefmetically
fealed, a mixture of oxygen and hydrogen gas by means of
an electric fpark, obtained water and azotic gas.

8. Dr. Prieftley obferved, that oxygen gas which had té=
mained in conta& for fome time with ihe pureft diftilled
water was in part changed into azotic gas. I have proved
this obfervation, and I found 0.1 of azotic gas in the oxygett
gas.

9- A mixture of hydrogen gas and nitrous gas, vihiehy re=
mains for fome time in conta¢t with water, no longer burns,
and ig found changed into atmofpheric air; which I explain
by fuppofing that the hydrogen combines itfelf with a part
of the oxygen of the nitrous gas, or of the water, and is con-
verted into azotic gas. This experiment; which was ate
by Mr. Link, with me did not fuceeed.

10. Dr. Ptieftley found that hydrogeri gas, which he had
kept for a long time in contact with water, was entirely
changed into azotic gas*, This experiment does not al~
ways fucceed: It fucceeded four times with Prieftley. It
__ is, no doubt, rieceffary that the water fhould contaiti oxygen:

it. In burning a mixture of eleven cubic inches of hy
drogen gas and one inch of oxygen gas; azotic gas is obé
tained. This experiment was made by M: Yelin, but with
ine did not fucceed.

12. When the fteain of water is itiade to pafs through 4
pun-barrel which has been before employed feveral times for
the fame kirid of experimerits, and has been entirely oxydated

* Sec Prichley’s work before quoted, Vol. I. p. 230,
in

444 On the sori ifituentt Papas of Ani,

in the infide, no hydrogen gas is obtained, but azatie daa;
as the iron is no longer able to take up any of the oxygen

prefented to it by the water, This is an experiment of

M. Yelin, and was confirmed to me by M. Mayer.

¥3. An experiment made by Mr. Lampadius appears té
me to prove, in a very fatisfattory manner, thé prefence of
oxygen in azbtic gas. He fiifed arfertic in the pureft azotic
gas prepared by the combuftion of phofphorus. The metal
was fublimated, and at the end of the experiment it was
found that it had been in part converted into oxyd of arfemic.

14, In the combuftion of two gafes to produce water,
when the quantity of hydrogefi is too great, nitric acid is
obtained: —

15. The following experiment, deftribed by Scheele, ap-
pears to me a hew proof that azot is nothing but oxydated
hydrogen. The following are the words of the celebrated
chemift *:—* I filled a Bladder with aif obtained from iroti
filings alitral ved in the vitriolic acid, and inhaled this air.
Having infpired it twenty times, I found myfelf obliged té
defift. Having recovered a little, I exfpired; as far as poflible,
all the air deinthinwll in my lungs, and then again refpired
the inflammable air. After ten infpirations I could infpire
fo more. The air, on being examined, was no longer ins
flammable; but, however, did not render turbid lithe water:
In a word, it was cotrupted sir, (azotic gds).””~ It may be
perceived that in this experiment the pure hydrogen gas
eombined itfelf in the lungs with the oxygen gas, which
remained after the preceding eee of atmofpheric air,
and formed there azotic gas.

16: For another experiment, which appears to me to cor
yoborate my opinion refpecting the nature of azotic gas, we
ate indebted to Mr. Henry, of Manchefter. It was repeated
by him feveral times, and always with the fame fuccefs +.
His ex; planation of this phenomenon, which ‘is very different
from mine, becaufe he believes azot to be a fimple body,
may be found in the work below quoted. His experiment
ja as follows :—In a bent tube of glafs he mixed, in a mer-

* Von luft und feuer, p- 1365
+ Scherer’s Algemeines Fourvat der Chemie, Vol. ¥. p. 9¢
curial

ee ae

On the conftituent Parts of Axot.- 345

curial pneumatic apparatus, 94°5 meafures of carbonated hy-
drogen gas, and 107°5 meafures of very pure oxygen gas (ob-
tained from the oxygenated muriat of potafh). This mixture,
forming 202 meafures, was reduced, by an eleétric explofion
made to pafs through it, to 128-5 meafures, and then, by
lime-water, to 54°0: a folution of the fulphat of potath
diminifhed the remainder to 23 meafures. In this experi-
ment, therefore, 23 meafures of azotic gas were produced by
an electric explofion, the oxygen uniting itfelf to the hy-
drogen.

17. Of all the known bodies, zinc, if I am not miftaken,
is that which unites eafieft with oxygen; it takes it from al-
moft all other bodies, and this renders it exceedingly proper
for enabling us to difcover the fmalleft quantities of oxygen,
It was by means of zinc in particular that I was able to fe-
parate the oxygen of the muriatic acid from its bafe: I em-
ployed it alfo to make the lateft analyfisof ammonia. If filings
of zinc be mixed in a retort with concentrated liquid am-
monia, the retort being made to communicate with a pneu-
matic apparatus; and if it be kept in digeftion for feveral
days, taking care not_to increafe the fire too much, #he am-
monia will be decompefed. In the retort you will obtain
oxyd of zinc, and under the pneumatie apparatus hydrogen
gas in confiderable quantity, mixed with a {mall portion of
ammoniacal gas and azotic gas not decompofed. Jt is eafy
to prove that it is not the water with which the ammonia

_has been diluted that could furnifh the hydrogen gas ob-

tained, becaufe the hydrogen is obtained in too large quan-
tity, and the azot in too fmall, to leave any.doubt in regard
to the decompofition of the latter.

Such are. the experiments from which we may, I think,
conclude that azot is a compound of hydrogen and oxygen,

In a fecond memoir I fhal] make known feveral other expe-

riments no lefs decifive, but which require to he repeated be-=
fore they can be fubmitted to the examination of the able
and accurate chemifts to whom this paper is addreffed. Azot,
then, if lam not miftaken, being a body compounded of hy+
drogen and oxygen, it thence follows, that the atmofphere is

Vou, VI, ay not,

/

346 On the conftituent Parts of Azot:

not, as hitherto believed, a mixture of oxygen gas and azotie
gas, but rather a mixture of oxygen gas and hydrogen, and,
if I may be allowed the expreffion, water in the form of gas.
When by chemical experiments, which very improperly have
been called eudiometric, the oxygen is feparated from the hy-
drogen, this feparation never can be effected entirely or com-
pletely: a part of the oxygen remains united to the hydrogen,
and forms that chemical combination which we call azot, and
which we obtain by the above experiments. Oxygen, fo in-
difpentably neceffary for fupporting the life of organifed be-
ings, is, by its combination with hydrogen, converted inta
azot, which not only is unfit for maintaining life, but is a
real poifon, on account of the affinity it has for oxygen, and
the avidity with which it takes it from organifed bodies.

Oxygen has fo great an affinity for hydrogen, when both
are found mixed in the atmofphere, that it is very difficult to
feparate them entirely: for this reafon, the analyfis of azot
has been attended with great trouble. When charcoal, ful-
phur, a taper, and metals, ceafe to burn in atmofpheric air,
and when animals expire in it, it ftill contains a pretty large
portion of oxygen. Phofphorus burns in it exceedingly well,
and for a very long time; and even when phofphorus ceafes
to burn there always remains a fmall quantity of oxygen
united to the hydrogen; that is to fay, there flill remains
‘azot. Atmofpheric air, however, as I have feveral times ob-
ferved, may be deprived of almoft all its oxygen, and the
analyfis of it may be rendered almoft complete, by heating
phofphorus in it for fome time. Phofphorated hydrogen gas
will then be obtained by the converfion of a part of the azot
into hydrogen.

It refults from thefe experiments, that eudiometry, fuch as
it exifts at prefent, is founded on erroneous principles. The
azot obtained by thefe experiments being always a product
of the operation, and not having previonfly exifted under the
form of azot in the air fubjeéted to examination, Von Hum-
boldt, who is fond of drawing general conclufions from indi-
vidual faéts, feems to have been deceived when he afferts,
that earths might be employed tg determine the quantity of

azot

On ihe conftituent Parts of Azct. 349
azot cofitained in atmofpheric air, Earths do not indicate
the azot contained in atmofpheric air; they convert that air
into azot.

Cultivated earth being in conta& with the atmofpheré
abforbs its oxygen and forms azot. In the polar regions,
and on the fummits of the Alps, where the earth is always
covered with fnow, the atmofpheric air contains a greater

‘quantity of oxygen than in the fouthern countries or im the

plains, as the fnow prevents the air from coming in contact
with the earth.

Since the conftituent parts of azot are riow known, we »
might write a new theory of the art of making faltpetre.
The Annales de Chimie* contain fome very valuable ob«
fervations on this fubjeét; for example, the following :—
“ The earth taken up from deep fubterrateous places well
fecured from the light, fuch as cellars, fequites only to be
expofed to the air a few days to produce abundance of falt-
petre. It is worthy of obfervation, that fuch earth does not
furnifh an atom of nitrat when taken from the damp and
obfeure places where it was formed, and that it is only by
the combination or combuftion of the azot of the earth by
the oxygen of the atmofphere that this falt is produced.”
The explanation given of this interefting phenomenon in the
fame work +, is a proof how far we were from the truth be=
fore the nature of azot was better known:

As lime abforbs oxygen with avidity, we fee the reafon of
the infalubrity of apartments the walls of whieh have been
recently whitened.

The following bodies are combinations of hydrogen with
oxygen in different proportions: azot, the gafeous oxyd of
azot, nitrous gas, the nitrous acid, the nitric acid, the mu=
riatic acid, the oxygenated muriatic acid, the nitto-muriatic

‘acid, water, atmofpheric air, ammonia. I hope to be able

foon to prove that to this lift we ought to add potafh, foda,

and fulphur. Phofphorus appeats to me to be hydrogen in

the pureft flate with which we are acquainted with it; but

this I am far from being able to prove. In regard to the
* Vol; XX. p. 313- + Page 314.

Y¥y3 analy fig

/

>

348 On the confiituent Parts of Axot.

analyfis of fixed alkalies, it has been effected completely;
As I do not intend to enlarge on this fubjeét in the prefent
memoir, I fhall only mention one of thofe experiments
which are conclufive. "When alkali is: fufed with filex for
the purpofe of making glafs, you analyfe the alkali. The
hydrogen efcapes under the form of a gas, and the oxygen
combines itfelf with the filex, glafs being nothing elfe but
an oxyd of filex. Too much oxygen, however muft not
enter into the compofition, as it would render it lefs tranfpa-
rent: this is the reafon why glafs-makers add fubftances
ereedy of oxygen, as manganefe.

Having communicated to M. Mayer the refult of my ex-
periments, by which I fo evidently confirmed an idea thrown
out by him at hazard, and of which he has the merit of
being the author, this learned philofopher fent me a {hort
memoir, of which the following is an extraét :—* I am in-
clined, to, believe,’’. fays he, “‘ with Mr. De Luc, that the
evaporation of ‘water, fuch as effected by nature on a large
fcale, is a, real converfion of water into air. It is indeed true,
that we have never yet been‘able in our laboratories to convert
-water into air by evaporation; but the reafon of this is, that

“we are unacquainted with the part which both light and

cledtrieity perform in evaporation- in general. It appears to
me probable, however, that the ponderable parts of atmo-
{pheric air, that isto fay, oxygen and azot, have no other

fource than from the water with which the furface of our

globe. is covered. The very fmall quantity of oxygen gas
which vegetables exhale by the influence of the folar light,
is far, from’ being able to make,good the enormous confump-
stion.ef oxygen which daily takes place in our atmofphere fo
tnany different ways: but by fuppofing, according to this the-
ory, that £00 grains of water are converted by the fecret procefs
of nature into,100 grains of atmofpheric air, that is to fay, inte
a chemical. mixture of oxygen and hydrogen, we may find, by
a. very fimple calculation, in what proportion the oxygen and
shydrogen combine to form the azot which we find in the at-
amofphere. We muft, however, keep in view, that what we
call azot 1s not always of the fame nature, and that there is

confiderable

On the conflituent Parts of Azot, 34)

confiderable variation in the proportions of its conftituent
principles *.

** I fhall call the water W, the oxygen O, the hydrogen H,
the ponderable part of atmofpheric air L, and the ponderable
part of azotic gas S,

Then 100 W = 85 O +15 H.

«© But a cubic inch of atmofpheric air is a mixture of
% cubic inch of oxygen gas and 2 cubic inches of azotic gas;
therefore,

ES O+2:S.

“© One inch of atmofpheric air weighs 0°46 grains, one of
oxygen gas o’51 grains, and one of azotic gas 0°44 grains ;
confequently,

o4f6 L= SO + 504458,
1°84 L ="o:51 O + :1°32,S,
184 L = 510 + 132 S.

100 L = 27°38 O + 72°9S.

« Azotic gas being a compound of oxygen and hydrogen,

| S=.«O + y H; therefore,

100 L = (27°83 + 72°2 «)'O + 72:29 H.

s* But nature converts 100 grains of water into Loo grains
of atmofpheric air; confequently,

100 W = ioo L; then,
27°38 742K = BS
7227 = 15
“* Therefore « = 0°79, and _y = 0°25 nearly.
S=079 0+ 0°21 H, or 100 S= 49 O+ 21 H.

«* That is to fay, 100 grains of azotic gas are compoled
of 79 grains of oxygen and 21 grains of hydrogen.”

Having applied this ingenious mode of calculation, em-
ployed by M. Mayer, to the other oxyds of hydrogen, I had
the following refult :

If N be the nitric acid, we know by experiment that
100 N = 79'5 O + 20°5 S.

_* This is a very important point, to which M. Mayer has direéted our
attention, It will be neceflary to make a great number of very accurate
experiments to determine the different degrees of the oxydation of hydro-
gen, and to diftinguith the different gafes hitherto comprehended under
the general name of axotic gas

Now,

S56 On ibe conftituent Parts of Azet.

Now, inftead of 5 let us fubftitute its value found by the
preceding calculation, and we fhall have
16d N = 79°5 O + 20°5 (0°79 0 + rar H) = 95°77 0
* 4:3 H nearly:

1oo Grains of nitric acid contain, therefore, nearly 96
grains of oxygen andl 4 grains of hydrogen.

The fame mode of calculation gave me alfo the following
refults :

100 Parts of ammonia = 63°72 oxygen ++ 36°28 hyd.

100 Parts azot = 79°0 oxygen + 21°0 hydrogen.

100 Parts of atmofpheric air = 84°67 oxyg. + 15°33 hyd.

100 Parts of water = 85°66 oxygeti + 14°34 hydrogen.

100 Parts of the gafeous oxyd of azot = 86°77 oxygen +

13°23 hydrogen.

100 Parts of nitrous gas = 93°28 oxygen + 6°72 hyd.

100 Parts of the nitrous acid = 94°33 oxyg. + 5°67 hyd.

100 Parts of the nitric acid = 95°70. oxyg. + 4°30 hyd.

May not oxygen and hydrogen be the two elements of
which all bodies in nature are compofed? To me this feems
not at all improbable. It feems probable, alfo, that the hea-
vier a body, the more it contains oxygen in a concentrated
ftate; and deprived of caloric; and that, on the other hand,
the more-a body contains hydrogen, the lighter it ought to
be. But thefe are merely hypothefes, which muft be con-
firmed or refuted by future experiments.

It is feldom as fimple bodies, but rather as compounds in
different proportions, that the two conftituent principles of azot
enter into the combination of bodies. Carbon or the oxyd of
the diamond is found in many bodies, and the diamond in
‘none with which we are acquainted.’ We obtain:carbon in
our chemical decompofitions, and not diamond. We do not
even know the diamond or diamontic (adamantine) acid,
though. we know very well the carbonic acid. No chemitft
will think of faying that we exhale diamond in refpiration,
but carbon. The diamond, perhaps, is not even a fimple
body ; in all probability it contains ftill oxygen ; for all tranf-
parent bodies, if I'am not miftaken, contain more or lefs of
it. Thus, azot as well as carbon enters into feveral combina-
tions as azot, as a double principle, which gives bodies very

different

On the conflituent Parts of Azot. 351

different properties from thofe they would have were they.
combined with the two fimple principles of which azot is
compofed. Azot, as a conftituent principle of bodies, is not
hydrogen and oxygen; but azot; in the fame manner as foap
is not oil and alkali, but foap. Of this obfervation we ought
never to lofe fight.

In feveral experiments I have obferved that fulphur often
exhibits a yellow or yellowifh orange colour. We fhall fel-
dom be deceived if we fufpe& the exiftence of fulphur in all
bodies which exhibit that colour. Bodies which contain
earbon are black, brown, or violet. Azot announces itfelf

_by a green colour: ftunted plants, which vegetate fheltered
from the air and light, are white, and contain very little azot :
if expofed to thefe two agents for fome days, they affume a
green colour, and the proportion of azot in their compofition
is much more confiderable. When nitrat of potafh is fufed
in a glafs retort, and the oxygen gas is difengaged from it, one
may obferve at the end of the operation, when the azot is
formed, that is to fay, when the oxygen has a greater affinity
to the hydrogen than to the caloric, that the green colour
appears, and the difengagement of oxygen gas ceafes entirely.

But what requires the attention of all philofophers is, that
when water is expofed to the fun the light decompofes it,
and difengages the oxygen in a large quantity. The hydrogen
then retains the laft portions of the oxygen; azot is formed,
and announces itfelf by its green colour; the water is more
and more decompofed; more of the oxygen (which I have
demonttrated to be the principle of life and irritability in or-
ganifed nature) becomes fixed; and this azot, produced from
water by means of the fun, is an organifed body, the con-
ferva fontinalis; a plant which lives, expands, and perpe-
tuates its fpecies. Thefe are the boundaries at which the
philofopher ought to ftop; itis here that he ought to admire
and refpeét the fecrets of Nature, without knowing whether
he will ever be allowed to penetrate the veil by which they
are hid. What is certain, and what I have affured myfelf of

_by a great number of experiments, with which I have been
occupied every fummer for more than twelve years, is, that
the influence of the folar light is abfolutely neceffary for this

5 ‘converfion

352 Ox the conflituent Parts of Azot.

couverfion of water into a plant or organifed azot. No de-
gree of heat can fupply its place; and this fingle experiment
might be fufficient to. convince every unprejudiced reafoner,
that heat and light are two fubftances entirely different. I
am furprifed that this green matter of Prieftley, this fonti-

nalis, fhould not have been more attended to by chemifts.
It is the moft wonderful fubftance exifting ; the moft fingular
body in nature. Nothing can ‘be more “abt than whit
has been advanced by Prieftley . To reafon as he does, is to
yeafon like a child. This celebrated man, whofe name will
Jive as long as the fciences are cultivated, has made moft
important difeevatios: T admire his fagacity, but T am forry
to fee in all his works that he is rather an experimenter than
a philofopher. While he difplays to us with one hand the
aftonifhing fecrets of Nature, he keeps the other always ready
to clofe our eyes, left we fhould fhow a defire of penetrating
further than he choofes us to extend our view. He has given -
us a ftriking inftance of his unwillingnefs to allow us to fee
the wonders of Nature, except through his facerdotal glafs,
in the difpute which he had with Dr. Ingenhouz refpeéting
the green matter in queftion. Ingenhouz, an enlightened
naturalift, having defcribed a great number of experiments
refpecting this fingular fubftance, which are worthy the at-
tention of every thinking being, adds: * The water itfelf, or
fome fubftance in the water, is, in my opinion, converted
into this kind of vegetation. It is a real tranfmutation, which
may appear inconspveheH Able to the philofopher, but which, -
at bottom, is not more extraordinary than the change of grafs
and other vegetables into greafe in the bodies of graminivo-
rous animals, and the change of the aqueous juice of the
olive into oil.”

Water is changed into a plant: fuch is the faé&. There
Ingenhouz ftops. He fays, I have no comprehenfion of the
eaufe. This is the language of a philofopher. Prieftley, on
the other hand, is feandalifed at this language; and he afks
Dr. Ingenhouz, if he is not afhamed to attempt to revive the,
long ago refuted doétrine of fpontaneous generation *. He

x {peaks

- Priefiley fays that the theory of fpontaneous generation is a doétrine

long

On the conftituent Parts of Azot. 353

fpeaks to him almoft in the fame manner as the inquifitor to
Galileo when he endeavoured to prove to that immortal man
that the fun moved round the earth. Prieftley then gives us
his own theory on the produétion of organifed azot. The
feeds of this plant, he fays, float every where; in the air, on
the earth, on the fea, on the Alps, in the plains, under the
poles and the equator, in fummer and winter, and in all
feafons, and are received into the water, where they germi-
hate: but organifed azot is produced in bottles well corked.
Dr. Ingenhouz has even proved, that by filling a bottle with
well water, and inverting it in a bafon filled with water, ore
ganifed azot is formed in large quantities. Prieftley, who
could not maintain, without fuppofing an intelligence fupe-
rior to the pretended feeds of this plant, that they had come
through the water on purpofe to fettle in this bottle prepared
for them, extricates himfelf from his difficulty by making
them pafs through the glafs by imperceptible fiffures*. Such

long ago refuted. The following are his own words: “ confidering how
long the do&rine of equivocal or fpontaneous generation bas been exploded.”*
A philofopher ought never to make ufe of fuch an expreffion. There is
no refuted opinion to which we may not recur, and again examine. . Phi-
lofophy acknowledges no authority which can profcribe it from admitting,
or forbid it to examine. There are many other opinions, long ago refuted,
to which we ought ftill torecur; for example, that of the tranfmutation of
metals. What chemift at prefent will dare to deny the poffibility of at ?
The change of one metal into another ought to appear Jefs difficult than
the converfion of the fweeteft body (fugar) into the foureft (oxalic acid) 5
than the change of the hardeft body (the diamond) into the fofteft (car-
bonic acid gas); than the change of the moft tranfparent (the diamond)
into the moft opake (charcoal). In the agth century the tranfmutation of
metals will be generally known and practifed. Every chemift, every artift
will make gold; kitchen utenfils will be of filver, and even gold, which
will contribute more than any thing elfe to prolong life, poifoned at pre-
fent by the oxyds of copper, lead, and iron, which we-daily {wallow with
our food. There will then be no other riches than natural riches; the
productions of the foil: artificial riches, fuch as gold, filver, and paper
money, will vanifh in the hands of thofe who have accumulated them.
What a revolution in fociety! Every enlightened chemift, however, will
agree with me, that this revolution is not only probable, but at no great
diftance.—Note of the Author.

* Through fome unperceived fraéture, Vol. IIE. p.294- ‘The feeds of
this plant infinuate themfelyes imto veffels of svater throygh the fmalleft
apertures, p. 308,

Vou. VI, sik ah mye ig

\

354° Method of deleting Sulphur and Arfenit in Oré.

is the method which mankind have always employed when
they did not choofe to fee what was only too evident. It is
thus that phlogifton has been made to pafs through crucibles,
and azot through tubes and retorts. |

I fhall here obferve, that to make thefe experiments fuc-
ceed, it is abfolutely neceflary that the water fhould contain

- gas in folution, either oxygen gas or carbonic acid gas. The

more gas it contains, the fooner organifed azot will be formed
in It.

It is much to be wifhed that chemifts would examine with
attention what changes earths undergo by the oxygen which

' they abforb by decompofing the fteam of water. I have no

doubt that fuch an examination would lead to very important
difcoveries. Thefe ideas I fubmit to the knowledge and cri-
ticifm of the illuftrious French chemifts the editors of the
Annales de Chimie, the fathers of the feience; by them it
was created. Before them, chemiftry was only a fhapelefs
mafs of facts, ill arranged and {till worfe explained.

IX. Method of déteGting the Prefence of Sulphur and Arfenie
in Ore, and of accurately determining the Quantity, By
B. G. Sace, Direcor of ihe fifi School of Mines.

Th E torrefaction or reafting of a mineral difengages
and decompofes the arfenic and fulphur it contains: but the
earth of the metal is calcined, and lays hold of a portion of
the acid and the water; which increafes its weight, fo that
no juft eltimate can be formed of the proportions of fulphur
and arfenic which the mineral contains. Befides, thefe two
fubftances burn fimultaneoufly: torrefaétion, therefore, is not
fufficient to atiord any precifion.

The diftillation of two parts of the vitriolic acid with one
of the pulverifed mineral, which contains fulphur and arfenic
combined with metallic fubftances, furnifhes the means of
determining with precifion the quantity of fulphur and arfenic
they contain. There firft paffes over fulphureous acid, which
‘ariles from the decompofition of the metallic part *, and of
Hath gh the

| ® The author here ufts the teym zeta/lifateur, on which he has the
b following

Experiments and Obfervations om Shell and Bone. 355

the vitriolic acid; the fulphur is difengaged of a citrme co-
lour, and the arfenic under the form of a white calx. The
calcined metal!ic vitriol remains in the retort.. By this pro-
eefs I obtained from fulphurous and arfenical cobalt ore,
White calx of arfenic - 36
Citrine-coloured fulphur - © 15

5t
Thefe fubftances ferved to mineralife the cobalt, to give it
the property of eMlorefcing into vitriol of cobalt in.a moift
place. This falt is foluble in water; and in this it differs
from the lilac-coloured arfenical efHorefcence of cobalt,
Having treated in the fame manner ore of nickel*, there
paffed over fulphurous acid, citrine-coloured fulphur, and
white calx of of arfenic; there remained in the retort green.
ealx of nickel in part vitriolated. The fulphurous and arfe-
nical ore of nickel. which I employed had no matrix, and
was covered with an efflorefcence of a dirty green colour:
its internal tiffue was gray inclining to red, It produced per
quintal, .
Sulphur = - 3
Arfenic - - 23
Nickel - Pa vA

/

X. Experiments and Obfervations on Shell and Bee By
Cuarves Hatcuett, Eg. F.R.S,.

[Concluded from Page 29.]

Tue bones of fifh, fuch as thofe of the falmon, macka.
rel, brill, and fkate, afforded phofphat of lime; and the only
difference was, that the bones of thefe fifth appeared in gene-
ral to contain more of the cartilaginous fub{tance relative to

following note:—‘ Le metallifateur eft congénéré des huiles, des graifles ;
c'eft le méme acidum puilque faturé de phlogiftique et combiné avec moins
d’cau ; c’eft le méme acide qui eft combiné avec les terres métalliques, qui
forme les fels qu’on nomme chaux métalliques.”

* The cuprum xiccoli of the French. Nrccotum Wallerti. This cele»
brated mineralogift fays, ‘¢ Whence the mineral nickel acquired jts name is
gncertain, Nickel, perhaps, fignifies the fame thing as fpurious or falfeg

43% the

350 Experiments and Obfervations
the phofphat of lime than is commonly found in the bones
of quadrupeds, &c. +

The different bones alfo of the fame fifh were various in
this refpeét ; and the bones about the head of the fkate only
differed from cartilage by containing a moderate proportion
of phofphat of lime.

It is at prefent believed, that phofphat, with fome fulphat
of lime, conftitutes the whole of the offifying fubftance; and
perhaps the formation of bone from cartilage depends only
on the phofphat of lime; but whether this is the cafe or not,
it is fit that I fhould notice a third fubftance, which con-
ftantly occurred in the courfe of my experiments.

~'When human bones or teeth, as well as thofe of qua-

drupeds and fifh, whether recent or calcined, were expofed ~

to the action of acids, an effervefcence, although at times
but feeble, was produced. This circumftance at firft I did
not particularly notice; but the following experiments ex-
cited my attention :

After the phofphat of lime had been precipitated fico the
folutions of various teeth and bones by pure ammonia, I
obferved that a fecond precipitate, much fmaller in quantity,
was obtained by the addition of carbonat of ammonia. , This
fecond precipitate diffolved in acids with much effervefcence,
during which carbonic acid was difengaged, and felenite was
formed by adding fulphuric acid. Moreover the folution of

this precipitate did not contain any phofphoric acid; nor did -

the liquor, from which the precipitate had been feparated,
afford any trace of it.

This precipitate was therefore carbonat of lime; but I ftill
was not certain that it exifted as fuch in the teeth and bones.

Although regular and comparative analyfes of the bones of
different animals have not hitherto been made, yet by the
experiments of Meffrs. Gahn, Scheele, Macquer, Foureroy,
Berniard, and the Marquis de Bullion, it has been proved
that phofphat of lime is the principal offifying fubftance of

bones in general, and that this is accompanied by a fmall ~

proportion of faline fubftances, and by fulphat of lime.
I was therefore defirous to afcertam whether the carbonat

‘of lime, which I had obtained by the above-mentioned ex-

periments,

—

on Shell and Bone. Soy

periments, had been produced from the fulphat of lime de-
compofed by the alkaline precipitant, or whether the greater
part had not exifted in the bones in the fiate of carbonat.

Each of the folutions in nitric acid afforded a precipi-
tate with nitrat of barytes; but the quantity of fulphuric acid
thus feparated appeared by far too fmall to be capable of fa-
turating the whole of the carbonat of lime obtained from an
equal quantity of the folution. To prove, therefore, the pre-
fence of the carbonic acid, and the confequent formation of
- carbonat of lime, portions of the various teeth and bones
were immerfed at feparate times in muriatic acid; and the
gas produced was received in lime-water, by which it was
fpeedily abforbed, and a proportionate quantity of carbonat
of lime was obtained.

Although it appears that the principal effects during offi-
_ fication are produced by the phofphat of lime, yet we here
fee that not only fome fulphat, but alfo fome carbonat of lime
enters the compofition of bones; and it is not a little curious
to obferve, that as the carbonat of lime exceeds in quantity
the phofphat of lime in cruftaceous marine animals and in the
ege-fhells of birds, fo in bones it is vice verfa. It is poffible,
‘when many accurate comparative analyfes of bones have been
‘made, that fome may be found compoted enly of phofphat of
lime; and that thus-fhells containing only carbonat of lime,
and bones containing only phofphat of lime, will form the
~ two extremities of the chain.

I fhall now make a few remarks on the enamel of teeth.

When a tooth, coated with enamel, is immerfed in diluted
nitric or muriatic acid, a feeble effervefcence takes place, and
the enamel is completely diflolved; fo alfo is the bony part;
but the cartilage of that part is left, retaining the fhape of the
tooth. Or if a tooth, in which the enamel is intermixed
with the bony fubftance, is plunged in the acid, the enamel
and the bony part are diffolved in the fame manner as be-
fore; that is to fay, the enamel is completely taken up by
the acid, while the tooth, like other bones, remains in 2
pulpy or cartilaginous ftate, having been deprived of the
offifying fubftance. Confequently, thofe parts which were
coated or penetrated by lines of enamel are diminifhed in

; proportion

Bee Experiments and Obfervations

proportion to the thicknefs of the enamel which has been
thus diffolved ; but little or no diminution is obferved in the
tooth *.

Mr. Hunter has noticed this: and, fpeaking of enamel,
fays, “* when foaked in a gentle acid, there appears no griftly’
or flefhy part with which the earthy part had been incorpo-
Fated.”

Now when the differeince, which has been lately ftated
between porcellaneous fhell and mother- of-pearl, is confi-
dered, it is not poffible to avoid the comparing of — to
enamel and tooth.

‘When porcellaneous fhell, stink or in powder, is expofed
to the action of acids, it is Aisedl gists diffolved without
Jeaving any refiduum., |

Enamel is alfo completely diffolved in the hke manner.

Porcellaneous fhell and enamel when burned emit little
or no fmoke, nor learcely any {mel of burned horn or car-
tilage.

Their figure, after having been expofed to fire, is not ma-
ferially changed, except by cracking in fome parts; their
external glofs partly remains, and sis colour at moft be-
comes gray, very different front what happens to mother-of-
pearl or tooth. In their fra€ture they have a fibrous texture;
and, ia fhort, the only effential difference between them ap-
pears to be, that porcellaneous fhell confifts of carbonat of
lime, and enamel of phofphat of lime, each being cemented
by a fmall portion of gluten. ;

In ike manner, if the effects produced by fire and acid
menfirua, on fhells compofed of mother-of-pearl, and on
the fab(tance of teeth and bone, are compared, a great fimi-
larity will be found; for, when expofed to a red heat,

rf, They fmoke much, and emit a fmell of burned cars
‘tilage or horn. :

aly, They become of a dark gray, or black colour,

» * T have alfo obferved, that when rafpings of enamel are put into di-
hated nitric or muriatic acid, they are diffolved without any apparent re-
fiduum; but when rafpings of tooth or bone are thus treated, portions of ~
membrane or cartilage remain correfponding to the fize of the rafpings.

+ Natural Hiftory of the Human Teeth, p- 35- - at ;
a YF

ox Shell and Bone. 555

3dly, The animal coal thus formed is of different incimera-
‘tion.

. 4thly, They retain much of their original figure, but the
membranaceous fhells are fubje&t to exfoliate *.

5thly, Thefe fubftances, (pearl, mother-of-pearl, tooth, and
bone,) when immerfed in certain acids, part with-their har-
dening or offifying fubftances, and then remain in the ftate
ef membrane or cartilage.

6thly, When previoufly burned, and afterwards diffolved
in acids, a quantity of animal coal is feparated, according to
the proportion of the gelatinous, membranaceous, or carti-
laginous fubftance, and according to the duration of the red
heat.

And laftly, the acid folutions of thefe fubftances, by proper
precipitants, afford carbonat of lime in the one cafe, and phof-
phat of lime principally in the other, in a proportion relative
to the membrane or cartilage with which, or on which, the
one or the other had been mixed or depofited.

As porcellaneous fhell principally differs froma mother-of-
pearl only by a relative proportion between the carhonat of
lime and the gluten, or membrane; in like manner the ena-
mel appears only to be different from tooth or bone by being
deftitute of cartilage, and by being principally saree of phof-
phat of lime cemented by platens

The difference in the latter cafe feems to somes why the
bones and teeth of animals fed on madder become red, when
at the fame time the like colour is not communicated to the
enamel; for it appears probable that the cartilages, which
form the original ftructure of the teeth and benes, become
the channel by which the tingeing principle is communicated
and diffufed.

Thefe comparative experiments prove that there is a great
approximation in the nature of porcellaneous fhell and the
enamel of teeth, and alfo in that of mother-of-pearl and
bone; and if a fhell fhould be found compofed of mother- ~
of-pearl, coated by the porcellancous fubftance, it will re-
femble a tooth coated by the enamel, with the difference of
carbonat being fubftituted for phofphat of lime.

:

* This is a natural confequence arifing from their fruéture,

g Some

360 Experiments and Obfervations

Some experiments on cartilaginous fubftances (which T
intended to have inferted in this paper, but which I am
prevented from doing, as they are not as yet fufficiently ad~
vanced) have in a great meafure convinced me, that mem-
branes and cartilages (whether deftined to become bones by
a natural procefs, as in young animals, or whether they be-
come fuch by morbid offification, as often happens in thofe
which are aged) do not contain the offifying fubftance, or ,
phofphat of lime, as a conftituent principle. I mean by
this, that I believe the portion of phofphat of lime, found in
eartilaginous and horny fubftances, to be fimply mixed as an
extraneous matter; and that, when it is abfent, membrane,
cartilage, and horn, are moft perfeét and complete.

The frequent prefence of phofphat of lime in cartilaginous
fubftances, is not a proof of its being one of their conftituent
principles, but only that it has become depofited and mixed
with them in proportion to the tendency they may have to
form modifications of bone, or according to their vicinity
with fuch membranes or cartilages as are liable to fuch a
change. If horns are examined, few, I believe, will be found
to contain phofphat of lime in fuch a proportion as to be
confidered an effential ingredient. I would not be under-
ftood to fpeak here of fuch as ftag or buck-horn, for that
has every chemical charaéter of bone, with fome excefs of
cartilage; but I allude to thofe in which the fubftance of the
horn is diftin€tly feparate from the bone, and which, like a
fheath, covers a bony protuberance which iffues from the
os frontis of certain animals *.

Horns of this nature, fuch as thofe of the ox, the ram,
and the chamois, alfo tortoife-fhell, afford, after diftillation
and incineration, fo very {mall a refiduum, of which only 2
{mall part is phofphat of lime, that this latter can fearcely be
regarded as a neceffary ingredient.

By fome experiments made on 500 grains of the horn of
the ox, I obtained, after a long continued heat, only 1,50
grains of refiduum ; and of this lefs than half proved to be
phofphat of lime.

* Nature feems here to have made an analyfis, or fepaiaen a of horn
from bone,

48 Grains

‘

on Shell and Bone. 36%

58 Grains of the horn of the chamois afforded only 0,50
of refiduum; and 500 grains of tortoife-fhell yielded not
more than 0,25 of a grain, of which lefs than half was
phofphat of lime.

Now, it muft be evident that fo very fmall a quantity can-
not influence the nature of the fubftances which afforded it 5
and the fame may be faid of fynovia, 480 grains of which
did not yield more than one grain of phofphat of lime.

This fubfance is undoubtedly various in its proportions
in all thefe and other animal fubftances, arifing, probably,
from the age and habit of the animal which has produced
them; but I believe that I may at leaft venture to place
fome confidence in the foregoing experiments, as feveral
others, made fince the above was written, have tended to
confirm them *.

In the courfe of making the experiments which have been
related, I examined the foffil bones of Gibraltar, as well as
fome gloffopetre, or fhark’s teeth. The latter afforded phof-
phat and carbonat of lime; but the carbonat of lime was
yifibly owing principally to the matter of the calcareous
firata which had inclofed thefe teeth, and which had infinu-
ated itfelf into thefe cavities, left by the decompofition of the
original cartilaginous fubftance.

The bones of the Gibraltar rock alfo confift principally of
lime, and the cavities have been partly filled by the carbonat
of lime which cements them together.

Foffil bones refemble bones which by combuftion have
been deprived of their cartilaginous part; for they retain the
figure of the original bone without being bone in reality, as

* Thefe experiments were repeated on bladders, which I chofe in pre-
ference.to any other membrane, as not being liable to offification, and
therefore likely to contain very litde or no phofphat of lime. 250 grains
of dry hog’s bladder, after incineration, left a refiduum, the weight of :
which did not exceed 1-soth of a grain. This was diffolved in diluted
nitric acid; and upon adding pure ammonia, fome faint traces of phof-
phat of lime were obferved. Now, as 250 grains of bladder did not afford
more than 1-soth of a grain of refiduum, of which only a part-confifted
of phofphat of lime, there is much reafon to regard this experiment as an
additional proof that the phofphat of lime is not an effential ingredient of
membrane. 2

Yor, VI, 3A one

363 Defeription of an Air and a Water-Vault.

one of the moft effential parts has been taken away. Now
fuch foffil or burned bones can no more be regarded as
bone, than charcoal can be confidered as the vegetable of
which it retains the figure and fibrous ftructure.

Bones which, keep their figure after combuftion refemble
charcoal made from vegetables replete with fibre; and car-
tilaginous bones which lofe their fhape by the fame caufe
may be compared’ to fucculent plants, which are reduced in
bulk and fhape in a fimilar manner.

From thefe laft experiments I much queftion if bodies
confifting of phofphat of lime, like bones, have concurred

“materially to form {trata of Iimeftone or chalk ; for it appears
to be improbable that phofphat is converted into carbonat of
lime after thefe bodies have become extraneous foffils. ”

The deftruéction or decompofition of the cartilaginous parts
of teeth and bones in a foffil ftate muft have been the work
of a very long period of time, unlefs accelerated by the action
of fome mineral principle; for, after having, in the ufual
manner, fteeped in muriatic acid the os humeri of a man
brought from Hythe in Kent, and faid to have been taken
from a Saxon tomb, I found the remaining cartilage nearly
as complete as that of a recent bone. The difficult deftruc-
tibility of fubftances of a fomewhat fimilar nature appears
alfo from the piercing implements formed of horn, which
are not unfrequently found in excavations of high antiquity.

SF

XI. Defcription of an Air and a Water-Vault employed to.
' equalize the difcharge of Air into a Blaft-Furnace. By
Mr. Davip MUSHET.

i G. 1. (Plate XI.) reprefents a vertical fection of the ele-
vation of an air-vault 60 feet long and 30 feet wide, confifting
of four arches of regularly progreffive fizes. This building is
generally conftruéted under the bridgehoufe, where the ma-
terials are daily collected for filling the furnace. AB, repre-
fents the acclivity to the furnace top. The -fpace betwixt
the arch-tops and the. level of the floor is filled with mate-
tials.as denfe as can be 2 asa The walls of the under

part

Defcription of an Air and a Water-Vault, 364

part are three feet thick, befides a lining of brick and platter
from 18 inches to two feet. Still further precautions are
neceffary, and alternate layers of pitch and ftout paper are
requifite to prevent the efcape of the compreffed air. C,a
view of the arched funnel which conveys the air from the
eylinder to the vault. Large iron pipes with a well fitted
door are preferable, and lefs apt to emit air. D, an end view

of the pipe by which the blaft is carried to the furnace. _
Fig. 2. is a horizontal fection of Fig. 1. at the dotted line
ab, reprefenting the width of the crofs arches, which are
thrown in each partition to preferve an eafy communication
betwixt the vaults. D, is a fection of the firft range of pipes,
meant to conduét the air to the furnace, In like manner
pipes may be taken off from any part of the vault for the dif-
ferent purpofes of blowing furnaces, fineries, hollow fires, &c.
Fig. 3. reprefents a yertical longitudinal fection of what is
generally called the water-vault. The walls of this building
may be erected to the height of eight or nine feet, their
thicknefs fimilar to thofe of the air-vault. A brick lining,
and even puddling with clay betwixt it and the ftone build-
ing, is neceffary to prevent the water from oozing by the
accumulated preffure. A, is an end view of the horizontal
range of pipes which conveys the blaft from the blowing cy~
linder to the inverted cheft. BBB, the range which conduéts
the air to the interior of the inverted chett, and conveys it
to the furnaces, proceeding along the extremities of the co-
Jumns broken off at BB. C, an inverted chet made of wood,
iron, or even of well-hewn flags fet on end and tightly ce-
mented, is 54 feet within in length, 18 feet wide, and 1 feet
high. The dimenfions, however, vary at different works.
When the cheft is made of wood or iron, it is generally
bolted by means of a flange to the logs on which it is fup-
ported, left the great preflure of air fhould overcome the gra-
vitation of the cheft, and difplace it, DD, view of the centre
log, and ends of the crofs logs, on which the cheft is laid.
Thefe fhould meafure 18 inches in height, fo as that the
mouth of the cheft may be that diftance from the furface of
the floor, and the water allowed to retreat from the interior
of the cheft with the leaft poffible obftruction, EE, the out-
3A 4 fidg

364 New Publications.

fide walls of the building. FF, the brick-work, made
perfeGtly water tight. The dotted line G, reprefents the
furface of the water when at reft. Let the depth of the
water, outfide and infide of the cheft, be eftimated at four
feet. When the engine is at work, fhould the preffure of
the air have forced the water down to the dotted line H,

3% feet diftant from the line G, and only fix inches from the
mouth of the cheft, it follows, that the water mutt have rifen
in the outer building, or cheft, 3; feet above G, and have
its higheft furface nearly at reft at I. In this cafe the ftrength
of the blaft i is reckoned equal to feven feet of water, or nearly
fix inches of mercury. The fpace betwixt the cheft and out-
fide building is three feet. When the engine is at reft, and
the water has affumed its level, the quantity of water within
the cheft fhould be equal to that without.

Fig. 4. is a ground plan of Fig. 3. The crofs logs on
saben the ciftern is fupported are dotted within, but drawn
full in the fpace betwixt the flange of the cheft and outer
building. The breadth of the flange-tops of the binding
bolts, and thicknefs of the metal of ‘he cheft, are alfo drawn.
The letters bear a reference to thofe in No. 3. }

NEW PUBLICATIONS.

The Chemical Pocket-Book, or Memoranda Chemica; ar- -
ranged in a Compendium of Chemi iftry according to the
lateft Difcoveries, &c. By JAMES PaRKINSON. Sy-
monds; Murray and Highley, &ce. 230 Pages: 12mo.
Price 5s. Pe ai

Ox a plan of general arrangement, nearly fimilar to

thofe of Fourcroy’ and Chaptal, Mr. Parkinfon has brought

: together, i in this little volume, almoft all the principles, fabs,

affirmations and theories of modern chemiftry. If we could

be content with an affemblage of faéts, not wrought into re-

gular fyftem, nor prefented i in continuous compofition, few

_ Jate chemical publications would deferve to be preferred to

~ this one. In forming it, the compiler has laid under con-
tribution ;

New Publications. 368

tribution every recent work from which any chemical glean-
ings could be gathered. His induftry deferves praife, and
his book cannot fail to be ufeful in no mean degree; though
we fear that in a few cafes he has admitted fa€ts of uncertain
authenticity, and theories not fufficiently fupported.

An Effay on the Theory and Praétice of Bleaching, Sc. By
Witiiam Higeins, M.R.J.A.. London: Vernor
and Hood, 1799. 71 Pages: 8vo. Price 2s.

Science is truly beneficial only in its application to the
ufes of life. But for thefe ufes, we fhould little value all the
improvements of modern chemiftry, There exifts not, how-
ever, in any language, a treatife in which art and fcience are
brought into alliance mere happily than in that which is
now before us. It was publifhed at the requeft of the Right
Hon. Mr. Fofter and the Right Hon. Mr. Corry of the
Irith Houfe of Commons. It is intended for the perufal
and inftruGion of aGual bleachers. It explains the nature
of flax, as being coloured by a refin that intimately pervades
allits fibres. It explains in detail the practices of the old
method of bleaching, which difcharged the weaver’s dreffing
by fteeping in water; then, for 2 courfe of many weeks,
applied alternate expofure to the open air, and fteeping or
boiling in alkaline lixivia, to bring all cloths of flax to perfec&
whitenefs, It relates the manner of the applications of oxy-
genated muriatic acid in oxy-muriat of lime to abbreviate
and perfe& the bleaching procefs. . It laftly propofes, as the
cheapeft and beft of all modes of bleaching, the alternate ufe
of fteeps of oxy-muriat of lime, and fteeps of fulphuret of
lime, which in the courfe of ten days will bring green linen
to a ftate of pure whitenefs. We earneftly recommend this ~
treatife to general attention. ‘ )

Tranfaétions of the Royal Society of Edinbyrgh, Vol. V.
Part I. for 1799.
_ This Part contains the following papers :
nL. Inveftigation of certain theorems relating to the figure
of the earth. By Mr. Playfair.
HI, Account of certain phenomena obferved in hie air-
vault

366 Intelligence and Mifcellaneous Articles.
vault of the furnaces of the Devon iron-works ; together with
fome practical remarks on the management of blaft-furnaces.
By Mr. Roebuck. (See the prefent number of the Philofo-
phical Magazine, p. 324.)

III. Experiments on whinftone and lava. By Sir James |
Hall, Bart.

IV. A chemical analyfis of three fpecies of whinftone
and two of lava, By Dr. Robert Kennedy.

V. Anew method of refolving cubic equations. By James
Ivory, Efq.

,

INTELLIGENCE,
AND

MISCELLANEOUS ARTICLES,

LEARNED SOCIETIES,
ROYAL SOCIETY OF LONDON,

Since our laft report, feveral interefting papers by
Dr. Herfchel, on the fubjeé&t of his late difcovery refpeét-
ing heat and licht, have been read. Doétor Herfchel, pur-
fuing his late difcovery of what he calls the invifible heat-
making rays of the fun, has inveftigated, and experimentally
proved, that heat is occafioned by rays emanating from can-
dent fubftances ; and that thefe rays have a power of heating
bodies, and are fubject to the laws of reflection and of refrac-
tion. The Doctor divides heat into fix claffes; three of
which are folar, and three terreftrial. On account of the
fimilarity between the former and the latter, he reduces his
fubjeét to three general heads. He treats in his firft divifion
of the heat of the fun and of terreftrial flame; in the fecond,.
of the heat of prifmatic rays and of red-hot iron; and in the
third divifion, of the invifible heat-making rays of the fun;

and of terreftrial invifible or dark heat in general, side
om Papers

Philomatic Society. 367

Papers on the following fubjeéts have alfo been read :

An account of an earthquake felt: in the vale of Conway,
between Conway and Llanrwft, on the 12th of March laft.
By J. Lloyd, Efy.

Experiments on platina. By Wm. Bingley, Efq. affay-
mafter of the Mint.

A poftfeript by Mr. Howard to his paper on fulminating
oxyd of mercury, containing an account of fome experiments
made with it at Woolwich; from which it appears, that I oz.
burft a fhell which would have required 7 02. of gunpowder;
and that half the charge of oxyd ufually employed of gun-
powder would burft any piece of ordnance. A remarkable
property of this preparation is, that when fired with gun-
powder the latter does not deflagrate.

A paper, by S. Schroeter, on the planet Mercury. From
his obfervations it appears, that its mountains bear the fame
proportion to its diameter as thofe of Venus and the Moon
do to theirs, and that the higheft mountains are in its fouthern
hemifphere ; alfo, that its rotation on its axis is performed in
feventy-four hours.

PHILOMATIC SOCIETY OF PARIS.

C. Jurine read lately a memoir on the monoculus caftor.
Under this name the author includes the monoculi of which
Muller very improperly formed three fpecies, vzz the cy-
clops, ceruleus, rubens, and lacinulatus. The ceruleus 1s
nothing elfe, indeed, than an old female of the rubens ; and the
chara@ter of the /acinulatus confitts merely in foreign appen-
dages, or a kind of infufion animals which often adhere to
this monoculus. C. Jurine having fueceffively reduced feveral
of thefe infeéts to a ftate of afphyxy by means of a few drops
of fpirits thrown ‘nto the water which contained them, and
having revived them by adding new pure water, obferved,
that it isnot the heart but the inteftinal canal which re-
tains longeft its irritability, and refumes it the fooneft. The
female carries her eggs not in two clufters, like the greater

part of the other cyclops, but in a large bag, which has a
little refemblance to the tail of the beaver. It is from this
circumftance that the author gives to the above fpecies the

name

1

368 Philomatic Society. |
name of caflor.: The right antenna of the male has a hinge
by means of which he lays hold of the threads that terminate
the tail of the female to force her to copulate. When the
two fexes copulate, they are in an oppofite ditection.
C. Cuvier read a note oa the foffil tapirs of France. The
’ author announced, that there are dug up in France the bones
of two kinds of tapirs ; one of the fize of the ¢ommon tapir,
which is no longer‘found alive in America, and the other of a
fize equal to that of the hippopotamus, and of which living
individuals no where exift. Both thefe kinds, like the common
tapir, have teeth (grinders) the fummit of which is marked —
with two or three tranfverfal eminences or ridges that become
blunted with age. Among the animals known at prefent, there
is none but the Jamantin which participates in this charaéter
with the tapir. The want of incifive and canine teeth, how-
ever, and the form of the jaw-bones of the lamantin, by no
means permit them to be confounded with thofe of the tapir.
The author has feen two confiderable portions of the lower
jaw of the former, or {mall fpecies, in the cabinet of C. Drée.
They were found on the laft declivities of the Black Mountain,
near the village of Iffel, in the department of Herault, in a
bed of coarfe gravel. They have no fenfible difference from
the analogous parts of the common tapir. In regard to the
large fpecies, the author knows of four fpecimens: 1. An
extreme grinder found in a ravine near Vienne, in Dauphiny,
and defcribed and illuftrated by a figure in the Journal de
Phyfique for February 1773: 2. A confiderable portion of a
grinder found by C. Gilet-Laumont at Saint-Lary, in Com-
minge: 3. The germ of a grinder without roots, preferved in
the National Mufeum of Natural Hiftory: and 4. The two
halves of a lower jaw, containing each five grinders, but
broken at both ends, and confequently without the incifores
or canine teeth, and without any determinate form. It may
be eafily feen that four of-thefe grinders have tranfverfal emi-
nences, as thofe of the tapir; and that the one before is
alone flat at the top, and without any protuberance. It is
probable that the animal was not full grown, fince it wanted
the extreme grinder with three protuberances, and that the
one next toit had not been ufed. From the fize of thefe
teeth

Britijh Mineralogical Society. 369
teeth it evidently appears, that the animal to which they be-
Jonged muft in bulk have been equal at leaft to the hippo-
potamus, or perhaps to the elephant. Tt is not known where
thefe two portions of the jaw were found; baw are in part
ancrufted with fand.

C. Lafteyrie, who is now travelling through the north of
Europe, has addreffed a letter to the Society on the intro-
dution of the fine-woolled breed of {heep into the cold coun-
tries. Near Leyden and Haarlem, in Holland, he obferved
that the climate, though damp, does not prevent the breed
of the Spanifh fheep from thriving. He faw the fourth ge--
neration of thefe animals, bred in the country, which had as
fine wool as the Spanith fheep, though both the foil and the
climate were in appearance very unfavourable to the conflitus
tion of thefe animals, In another letter he fays he found the
fame fuccefs in Denmark and Sweden, and even in the moft
northern parts of thefe two countries, where that breed have
exifted for many years. He mentions in particular, that the
Danifh government, two years ago, fent for three hundred
Spanith fheep, only one of which has died in ihe courfe of
that time notwithftanding the fevere cold of the laft winter,

In the annual fitting on the roth of January C. Sylvefter
made a report of the labours of the Society during the year.
At the fame time

C. Lacroix read the eulogy of Borda, isi Cc. Coquebert
that of Bloch.

BRITISH MINERALOGICAL SOCIETY.
This Somer has jaf circulated the following notice of its

ont fonie months fince public notice was given of
tution of the Britith Mineralogical Society ; one of
t pal objects of which is, the gratuitous analyfis of
h of our native minerals as may be fent to the Society by
1ine-Owners, or other perfons who are interefted in the in-

r 3 he Society’s firft meetings were neceflarily much
pied in eftablifhing arrangements for the moft effectual
of its own defigns and thofe of its correfpondents.
bjects have, we trutt, been fatisfattorily provided
iat! 3 B for ;

,

370. Britifh Mineralogical Society.

for; and the number of fpecimens fent to the Society fo.
analyfis, evince at the fame time the utility of the {cheme
and the public confidence.

*¢ The Society, confifts of a competent number of members
in the habitual practice of chemical operations, each of whonr:
undertakes an analyfis in rotation, (affifted, in cafes of pecu-
liar intricacy, by a feleét. committee,) the refult of which,
after general approbation, is tranfmitted, by the. fecretary to
the perfon who fent the fpecimen. Since, however, feverab:
of our correfpondents, from inadvertence, have not complied :
with the conditions mentioned in) the circular letter of: the: "i
Society; we here repeat them, with ‘the addition’ of fome .
others, and beg to have it underftood that no analyfis will be”
undertaken where thefe are not complied with :

« x, The whole of each fpecimen mutt be at leaft four
pounds weight, and im as few pieces.as poflible. The perfor |
who fends the fpecimens, if more than one, fhould break-a~
fmall piece from each, taking care to referve and mark them
with the fame numbers as thofe that he fends to the Societys |
becaufe, in the analyfis returned to him, the different fpeci-
mens will be diftinguithed by their numbers: the fafeft way!
of marking each will be to write.the number on.a flip)of
paper, and fix it on the fpecimen with gum-water. » Every,
piece muft be wrapped in paper, and packed im a bex with
faw-duft, addrefled (carriage paid).to Mr, W. H. Pépys,
Poultry, London. *

<9, A paper muft accompany the fpecimens, ftating their
provincial names ; the name of the parifh and county where
they are found; the depth of the mine or quarry where they
are procured; the general extent and bearing of the veimor~
ftratum towards the points of thecompafs; and the method of
procuring them, whether by blafting or by the pick-axe, &c.

<< g, The Saciety alfo requefts, that the metallic ores which ©
may he fent them. for analy fis may be accompanied with fpe-
cimens of the gangue or matrix in.which they are found, and
of the fuperincumbent ftrata, with their refpeétive depths and >
provincial appellations, according to the folowing form + :

* The blanks, and parts printed in Walics, tobe occupied by théir — |
proper defcriptions) ; ;

« Specimen

Britifhb Mineralogical Society. 37%

«© Specimen No. 1, called by the miners [ freel-grained
potter’s lead ore] found at [ ] mine, in the parith of
{ ] county of [ ]; [40] fathoms below the
furface, in a [regular vein from 2 to 24 inches acro/s| lying
[N. WW: and 8. E.] rifng to the [N. W.], procured by
[blafling]. The ore fourid mixed with [b/ack-yack fpecimen
No. 2, and fpar No. 3,] in a (/late-rock]. Depth of ftrata
cut through in finking the mine, [foil 1 foot; gravel 5 feet,
No. 4; rock 30 fathoms, Nos. 5 and 6; Joale 2% fathoms,
No. 7; flate-rock 7 fathoms, No. 8.)

‘© The Members of the Britifli Mineralogical Society have
in view, befides the above, another object of perhaps ftill
greater general importance. In common with all other in-
quifers into this moft interefting department of natural hif-
tory, they have regretted the formidable obftacles to colleét-
ing accurate information in the mining diftri&ts, origimating
from the vague and peculiar terms in ufe among the miners,
and from the different ideas annexed to the fame terms in
different parts of the country. They feel the impoffibility of
introducing a f{cientific nomenclature into the mines and col-
lieries, and in confequence have arranged correfpondences in
various parts for the purpofe of collecting materials towards a
general explanatory dictionary of all the mining terms made
ufe of in the Britith iflands.. The fuccefs of this plan, it is
obvious, depends effentially on the public concurrence ; its
advantage cannot be called in queftion, and therefore the
Society requefts with confidence the affiftance of thofe gen-
tlemen who, from their local fituation, or other circum=-
fiances, are able to further its execution, and are willing
that the whole fcience of mineralogy fhould be cleared from
that confufion and myftery in which it has been enveloped.

Befides lifts and explanations of technical terms, the Society
wifhes to be furnifhed with fpecimens of fuch minerals as
have received any names in the mines and collieries: with
out the pofleflicn of fpecimens it will be impoflible to iden-
tify the fubftances fo as to affign them their proper {cien-
tific appellations; and thefe being depofited in the cabinet
of the Society, will form a conftant record and authority, to
which the moft liberal accefs will at all times be allowed.

3Ba “ The

872 Galvani/m.

“© The confcioufnefs of contributing in their fphere to the
public good, and to the improvement of a favourite branch
of natural fcience, is the fole remuneration which the Mem-
bers of the Society look forward to; and they will efteem
the time and expenfe employed in the analyfis of minerals
amply repaid, if thofe whom they have thus ferved will exert
their perfonal aétivity and influence among their workmen,

in furthering the execution of the above defign, by the com- _

munication of illuftrative fpecimens and explanatory lifts of
technical terms.

“* Tt is the intention of the Society to affociate as corre-
fponding Members a felect number of fuch perfons, com-
petently fkilled in mineralogy, as may be zealous to affift its
views ; and that proprietors of mines, who have it much in
their power to furnifh fuch faéts and fpecimens as are of
principal importance to the Society, fhall be confidered as
eligible to the clafs of correfponding Members ; all of whom,
though they are to be fubject to no pecuniary contribution,
fhall be allowed free accefs to the meetings and to the
cabinet,”

GALVANISM.

Mr. Carlifle has lately made fome interefting experiments
which prove the identity of the electric and galvanic fluid.
A number of plates of filver (fay, 40 or 50 crowns or half-
crowns) piled alternately with plates of zinc, with pieces of
wetted pafteboard between each to complete the galvanic
chain, will not only give an eleétric {hock to the perfon who
touches the top and bottom of the feries, but continue to
give an uninterrupted ftream of the ele@tric fluid, which
being paffed through water, decompofes it completely. If
gold, filver, or platina wire be employed to carry the eleétric
matter into and from the water, both oxygen and hydrogen
are liberated ; but if oxydable metals are employed, hydrogen’
only.

INDEX

ey al

INDEX; ro VOB. Vit

ABSORPTION, nourifhment applied by the fkin, 95.
Acid, a new one difcovered in {mut of wheat, go.
Affinities, remarks on chemical, 185.

Air, effets, &c. of, in the blaft-furnace, 60, 113.
Air-vaults, account of thofe employed in iron-works, 324, 362.
Ammoniure of cobalt, Brugnatelli on the, 227.

Amnios, on that of a woman and of a cow, 279.
Amoreux on {piders, and their fuppofed poifon, 74, 122.
Analyfis of lapis lazuli, 318.
Anatomical preparations, new method of preferving, 278.
Anatomy, notices refpeing, 187, 304.

Animal eleGricity, obfervations refpecting, 250,

» curious experiment in, 372.

Animal phyfiology, obfervations refpecting, 305.
Animals, method of preferving, by means of ether, 205.
Antipathy, remarkable inftance of, 75.

Antiquities, notices re{pecting, 286.

Arc of the meridian, meafured from Dunkirk to Barcelona, 128.
Ardent fpirits, on the diltillation of, from carrots, 12.
Arfenic and fulphur, to feparate from ores, 354.

| Ajthma, oxygen gas a cure for, 82.

Afironomy, Lalande’s hiftory of, for 1799, 30, 104.

, notices re{fpefting, 127.

- Height of the mountains in Mercury, 367.
Atmofphere, on thofe of the planets, 166, .
Atmofpheric air, on the different degrees of purity of, 246,
Azot, on the decompofition of, 152, 216, 335.

Barometer, obfervations refpecting the variations of, 147.

Barruel on elafticity, 51.

Beddoes, (Dr.) letter to the editor from, 189.

Biography, 80, 189,

Birds, method of preferving, by means of ether, 205.

——, on the flight and vifion of, 280.

Black, oak bark fubftituted for galls in dyeing, 179.

Blackburne’s, (Dr.) theory of caloric, light, and coloursy 334.
Blafi-furnace, on the compreffion, &c. of air for the, 60, 113,

324, 302.
Bloch, (Dr.) fome account of, 80, .
3B 3 Bloods

3

374 INDEX.

Blood, how retained in its proper cavities, 308.

Bone and Shell, Watchett’s experiments on, 21, 355.
Bones, on the proper mode of boiling, 192.

—, engrafted on thofe of living animals, 308.

Borneo, defcription of the ifland of, 193. a
Botany, obfervations relating to, 93, 187, 302. _
Brain, charaéteriftic differences of, ‘in different animals, 36
Brera ( Prefeffor) on the plica polonica, 224.

Britifh Mineralogical Society, proceedings of the, 369.
Brugnatelli on the oxyd, ammoniure, and acid of cobalt, 227.

”
.

3

Caloric, on the non-condudtibility of, by fluids, 243.

Caloric, light, and colours, Dr. Blackburne’s theory of, 334.

Caout-chouc, experiments with, 14, 154. :

Carlifle’s late experiment in galvanifm, 372.

Cariwrighi’s remedy for putrid difeafes, 56.

Celebes, defcription of the ifland of, and its gold mines, 289. —

Chaptal’s method of preferving birds and animals, 205.

Chemical affinities, remarks on, 185. ;

Child, one found in a favage ftate, 92.

Clutterbuck on difeafes arifing from poifon of lead, 119.

Cobalt, on the oxyd, ammoniure, and acid of, 227.

Cochineal produced in the Fardin des Plantes at Paris, Qt.

Coins, difcovery of fome ancient, 286.

Combuftion of the human body, occafioned by immoderate ufe of
ardent fpirits, 132.

Comet, refpecting the, feen 7th Auguft 1799, 139.

Conferva fontinalis, on the produétion of the, 312.

Contagious difeafes, vot produced by infects, 309.

Cooking, an economical method of, 192.

Corn for feed, an effeétual preparation of, 10,

Cotte’s meteorological axioms, 146.

Cow-pock, letter from Dr. De Carro, of Vienna, refpecting, 191.

Cupelling, fand recommended to be ufed in, 280.

Date-trees, curious method of fecundating, 309.
Deaths, 96+
Devon iron-works, phenomena obferved in the air-vaults, 324, |
Diamond, experiments on the, 84, ,
Difcoveries, curfory view of late, in {cience, 127, 132, 304.
Difeafes, yett a cure for putrid, 56.

, contagious, not produced by infects, 309.
Diftillation of ardent {pirit from carrots, 12.

, account of fome curious improvements in, 70,
Dyeing, experiments with pruffiats in, 4.

-———--, on the ufe of oak bark in, 179.

Earth, difcovery of a new fimple, 287,

Egg, anatomy of the, 306.

Llafiic-gum Vine, account of the, 14, 154.
t Ez (a; fitci *y 9

INDEX.

Llafticity, Barvuel’s memoir on, 51.

Elafticity, refearches ref{peting the caufe of, 2435 244.
EleGoral Academy at Erfurt, proceedings of the, 282.
Eleétric fluid the fame as the galvanic, 372-

matter, opinion on the nature of, 285.

EleGricity, meteorological axioms refpecting, 150.
————— propagated in vacuo, 246.

£ik, obfervations on the, 42.

Ether employed as a remedy for gout, rheumatifm,-&c. 314,
» method of preparing, 316.

oO
Px)
Ww

Filtering apparatus, defcription of Collier’s improved, 240.
Fifh, propofal to naturalize marine fifh in frefh water, go.

Fifbes, light a component part of all marine, 84.

Fofil tapirs, remarks on, 368.

French meafures, brief account of the new, 128.

- National Inffitute, tranfaétions of the, 84, 184, 273.

Fulminating oxyd of mercury, experiments with, 367.

Galvanic fiuid the fame as the eleftric, 372.

Galvanifm, obfervations refpecting, 250.

Gafeous oxyd of azot, notices refpecting, 95, 189.
Geology, obfervations relating to, 187.

Germination, experiments, &c. refpecting, 283, 285, 310.
Girtanner ( Dr.) on the analyfis of azot, 152, 215, 335-
Gold mines, account of thofe at Celebes or Macaffar, 289.
Gout, effects of ether employed with friétion in the, 314.
Gum elaflic, experiments with, 14, 154.

Guyton’s analyfis of lapis lazuli, 316.

Harmony, remarks on, 284.

Hratchett’s experiments and obfervations on fhell and bone, 21, 355.
Hauffmann’s reflections on pruffiats, 4.

Heat and light, important difcovery refpeCting, 192, 286, 366.

, light, and colours, Dr. Blackburne’s theory of, 334-
Herfchel’s (Dr.) difcovery refpeCting heat and light, 192, 286, 366.
Human body, on the fpontaneous combuttion of, 132,

Humbold?’s expedition to, South America, 94.

Hunter and Hornby, (Drs.) diftillation of f{pirits from carrots, 12
Hydrophobia, on the various remedies recommended for, 251.

Idiots fometimes reftored to reafon by kind treatment, 309.

Infects, obfervations,on, 88, 367.

Iron-works, defcription of air-vaults ufed at fome, 324.

Jeffrey, (Dr.) extra&ts from his memorial on Scotch diftillery, 161.
Ferboa, or two-facted rat; Gngular, conformation of the feet, 277).

Lair on the fpontaneous combuftion of the human, body, 132.
Lalande’s hiftory of -altronomy for 1799, 30, 104.
Lapis lazuli, Guyton on the colouring matter of, 278, 316s

5 Lead,

476 ; INDEX.

Lead, on the cure of affe&tions arifing from poifon of, 11g.
Learned Societies, proceedings of, 84, 90, 183, 273, 282, 366.
Leaves of trees, belt feafon tor colleGting for ufe, 314.

Light a component part of all marine fifhes, 84.

—— and heat, important difcovery refpe&ting, 192, 286, 366.
——, colours, and caloric, Dr. Blackburne’s theory of, 334.
Luminous fiuid, opinions refpecting the, 131, 192, 286, 334, 366.
Lunar period of 19 years, meteorological remarks on the, 152.
Lyceum of the Arts, Paris, proceedings of the, 91.

Macaffar, defcription of the ifland of, and its gold mines, 289.
Madagafcar, fimilarity between the manners, &c. of the inhabitants;
of, and thofe of the South Sea iflands, 89.
Magnetic needle, meteorological axioms refpecting the, 351.
Maniacs fometimes reftored to reafon by kind treatment, 309.
Mathematics, notices refpecting, 126.
Medufa, or fca-nettle, organifation of, 304.
Mercury, a cure for affeétions ariling from poifon of lead, 11g.
» notice refpecting the new fulminating oxyd of, 184.
» height of mountains, &ce. in the planet, 367.
Boridia: meafure of an are of, from Dunkirk to Barcelona, 128,
Metallic pruffiats, experiments in dyeing with, 4. *
Metals, on the production of, in mines, 276.
Meteorology, 4.1, 93> 146,247.
Mineralogy, a notice refpecting, 369.
Mines, manner of working thofe in Celebes, 297.
Monnier, fome account of Peter Charles Le, 180.
Monoculus cafior, obfervations on the, 367.
Afurhard on the atmofpheres of the planets, 166.
Muriat of foda, a trong flimulant, 284.
Muriatic acid, attenipts to decompofe the, 183.
Mus burfarius, Dr. Shaw’s defcription of the, 215.
Mus typhlus and zemni, the blind afphalax of a a 276
Mu/bet on blatt-furnaces, 60, 113, 362.
Mufic, remarks on, 284.

Nisw books, account of, 265, 364.
Nickel, remarks on this metal, 86.
Nourifhment adminiftered by the fin, 95.

Oak bark a fubftitute for gall nuts, 179.

Ores, method of feparating fulphur and arfenic from, 354.
Oviparous animals, how nourifhed in the egg, 306.
Oyfers, Beckmann’s obfervations refpecting, 97> 233-

Pallas (Profeffor).on the making of fhagreen, 217.
Palms, curious method of fecundating, 309.

Parhelia, two feen at Aokta, 93. -

Philomatic Society, Paris, proceedings of the, go, 367.
Plants, method of preferving {pecimens of, 302. ane
Platina,

INDEX. 377

Platina, procefs for rendering it malleable, 1.

Plica polonica, on the Polifh difeafe called, 224.

Pneumatic medicine, communication from Dr. Loane on, 82,

Poifon of lead, on the cure of affeétions arifing from, 119.

Peland, on the population of, 88.

Potatoes, on the diftillation of {pirits from, 286,

Prize queftions, 272.

Pruffats, Haufimann’s refleCtions on, 4. )

Pulteney (Dr.) on the economical ufe of the ranunculus aquatilis,
210.

Rain, meteorological axioms concerning, 150.

Ranunculus aquatilis, on the economical ufe of, 210.

Refradive power of different fubftances, 131.

Rheumatifm, effeéts of ether employed with fri€tion in the, 314.
Rodman’s trepanning inftrument defcribed, 207.

Roebuck on the air-vaults, &c. at the Devon iron-works, 324.
Roxburgh (Dr.) on the urceola elaftica, or caout-chouc vine, 15 4.
Royal Society of London, tranfactions of the, 84, 183, 360.
Edinburgh, tranfactions of, 367.

Sap, on the afcenfion of, in trees, 310.

Sviatica, effects of ether employed with friction in the, 314.
Science, view of late difcoveries in, 304.

Sva-nettle, organifation of the, 395.

Seeks, on the Indians called, 282.

Shagreen, method of preparing at Aftracan, 217.

Shell and bone, experiments and obfervations on, 21, 355-
Silk-cvorm, on the organifation of the, 304.

Silver, cupells of fand recommended for refining, 280.
Skeletons, Sue’s method of preparing, 305.

Smut, to remove, from feed-corn, 10,

in wheat, Chantran’s ideas on, go.

Sound, experiments on, 245.

Spanifhb wool. The fheep that yield it thrive in Holland, 369.
Spiders, obfervations on, by Dr. Amoreux, 74, 122.
Stackhoufe’s method of preferving {pecimens of plants, 392.
Steam-engine, propofal to work by a ftill, 165.

Steatites, on the ufes it may be applied to, 282.

Still, defcription of improvements on the, 70, 161.
Still-born children may {ometimes be reftored to life, 308.
Sugar, feveral plants that yield, 3 (1.

tl and arfenic, to feparate from ores, 354.

Sulphurated hydro-fulphure, a ufeful medicine, 87.

Surgery, improvements in, 189, 207, 308.

Surgical cafes noticed by the French National Inftitute, 279.

Thermometer, meteorological axioms on, 149.
Thermometers, difference in the movements of mercurial and fpirit of
wine, 249.
Thunders

378 INDEX.

Thunder-cloud, fingular phenomenon feen in a, 41.
Travels, Mr. Hamilton’s intended, 288.

Treponning inflrument, Mr. Rodman’s newly invented, 207.
Tung fien, a notice refpecting, 86.

Ultramarine, the colouring principle of, 278.
Uranite difcovered in France, 185. ,
Urceola elaftica, defcription of the, 14, 154.
Orée, a new fubftance found in urine, 87.
Urinary concretions, experiments on, 86.

Vaccine inoculation, obfervations on, 49. °
Valifueria, on the fecundation of the, 309.

Vapour, on the quantity of caloric contaimed in, 244.
Vegetation, experiments on, 283, 285.

Folcanoes, attempt to explain the phenomena of, 275.

Wag flafé’s preparation of feed-corn, 10.

Wind, meteorological axioms concerning the, 149.

Wool. Spanifh fheep thrive in cold climates, 36.

Worms divided into two families, 304. ;

Wurmb’s defcription of the ifland of Borneo, 193.

Wurmb’s defcription of the ifland of Celebes, or Macaflar, 289.

Yeffo, not a large country, but a group of iflands, 8g.
Ye/?, on the efficacy of, in certain difeafes,. 56.

Zoology, notices refpeting, 89, 277-

ont ‘2 Neuse

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END OF THE SIXTH VOLUME.

Printed by Davis, Wizrxs, and Tayztor, Chancery-Lane.

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